May Day!!!

How did it get to be MAY 2016???  When I was in elementary school, one summer I overheard my Grandma Grant say, "This summer is going so fast ..." and my thought was, "Grandma you are losing your mind, this summer is never going to end!"  Grandma, I'm sorry!  I know exactly what you were feeling!!  and PS thanks for giving me an interest in quilting!!!

The last few weeks have been a blur - but I did get a few things done!!  So lets start seeing what's been happening!

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There was a trip to Portland, we'd learned to make "Lotus Flowers" with napkins at guild meeting.  It was a sweet little project so the kids and I made some.  I thought they were cute May Baskets ... they ended up being teacher presents. We took turns balancing them on our head and shoulders!

Miss P is into selfies!  So we had to take many pictures - I'd say she was pretty good, I never get one this good!!  We also made rubber band bracelets on the Wonder Loom.  We do have trouble with that loom.  It's easier for Miss P to make the single bracelets with the crochet hook.  But I found the fish scale (tail?) bracelet instructions online and it was very forgiving!  AND it uses 2 pegs on the loom.  When I told Miss P, she lit up and got excited,"We get to use the loom?????"  So we sat across from each other and both used 2 pegs successfully!  YAY!

The Sewing Studio was open in April.  CY, a very talented friend is designing the raffle quilt for next year.  We met for a week in her MIL's currently unoccupied house to sweat-shop it.  It's going to be gorgeous and lots of research of Oregon Coast flora and fauna was being done.  There's hand quilting, strip piecing, fusible applique, hand applique and lots of fabric try outs!  I thought I was there as a fabric consultant and tie breaker!  But I ended up fusing that adorable Oyster Catcher block!!  My first 'solo' block in a raffle quilt!  I'm usually one of the machine piecers in any group effort.  And oh, I can weld a mean seam ripper too!!

Sue Spargo introduced a "Instastitch BOM" two months ago.  It's log cabin-ish and looks very modern.  She uses a variety of fabrics on hers.  But I had these yummy Cherrywood hand-dyes. So that's what I picked.  I was behind on block construciton, but at Bayshore Retreat (more about this fabulous time later) I got the first two blocks pieced.  I still need to add the embroidery highlights - but first need to finish some pieces for the 'quickly speeding at us' Memorial Day Quilt Show!!!

Here's one of two UFOs finished.  This is an I Spy quilt for my great nephew's first baby, expected in May!  Mom and I made these checkerboard I Spys when she was only able to sew squares together because of her eye sight.  We made 7-8 of them, one for the first child of her grandchildren and great grandchildren!  We have two more in that generation left to do.  Be aware, I spy quilts are pretty much a life-long obsession.  I'm still on the look-out for fabrics that work!!  A decade later???

Another UFO I finished was the Red and White Bento Box for the Bayshore Quilters Challenge.  This week, I noticed my Dropbox notifications were about changes to files (?) So I went in and saved them all on my computer.  But I'm missing some pictures - including the finished one of this quilt!

Luckily I took it to retreat and people took pictures of it - so I'll get one of those.

This is my Brookings Challenge for 2016.  I made a similar quilt last year.  This year's challenge was to use a traditional block, and do your favorite technique.  They had a dozen entries!  A successful challenge.   I used shirtings, wool applique and my favorite ocean creature - the whale!  Sorry for the uncropped picture - but when I cropped it, it turned sideways!!!  I figured upright was better than sideways.

This is for all you crazy Brookings quilters who helped me save scraps for Dog Beds.  I took enough to retreat for us to make SEVEN dog beds - and one was quite large as you can see!!

There was a "Map" fabric post card exchange and I love maps.  This is a "Shop Hop" in Oregon!  But the map fabric is really France!  But I made the cars follow a route printed on the fabric!

And I exchange a "May Day Basket" with my friend in Texas.  At one time I stenciled that little basket block.  It was pretty light, so I went over it with a Fabrico pen and then stitched around it to get it to stand out.  I also sent that cute pieced basket pin? coaster??  I never figured out how to use it - so I released it into the wild!!!

This is my Woolies Stitch-along challenge.  Four of us in Woolies played along.  I started the little house in the woods. The others gave me the sidewalk to the door, smoke coming out of the chimney, the forest, flowers and a tree farm in the front yard!!  One participant just moved, but if she can find her project, all four will be in the Brookings Show Memorial Day Weekend

We also got to see the boys this month.  I went over for the big Birthday Bash.  D is 5 and K is 3 and they had a Ninja party.  Their mommy may have outdone the rest of the family with Pinterest party ideas!!  We had cucumber snakes in the snacks, an obstacle course, ninja stress balls the kids help create, ninja pipe cleaner figures, and a chopstick game among other things!!!  It was great fun to be there.

Then the next weekend we went over and babysat for them.  A&J went up to Portland to see "Newsies".  L and Miss P also went to "Newsies" the night before!  A good time was had by all - including Nana and Papa!!

And that brings us to this little doll!  NO, it's not mine!  P, a friend here in Brookings was looking for a puppy.  They are very expensive out here.  I told her my friend J in NE had connections and we assigned J to look for a Boston Terrier at a cheaper price.  If she found one, we would pay her airline ticket out here.  6 weeks later she found "Lucy" a seal (brown) adorable puppy! 2 weeks later they are both here!!  I know quilting friends will get a kick out of the "Lucy Boston" connection!!

I picked them up at the Portland airport Saturday morning.  Lucy was delivered to her new mom and dad; we settled in - unsupervised - and have already planned a Houston Quilt Show/Quilt Cruise vacation this November!!!  When I emailed my golfer DH - who has naturally gone golfing to give us time to take over the house!!!! - he said, "I knew it was a mistake to let you gals get together!!!" And then approved the trip!

Sew Many Places is who is arranging the cruise.  M and I took a cruise a few years back and they are VERY well planned.  M even said it was her best vacation ever!  I'll let you know what other 'trouble' we get into this week!