How Many Times

I seriously do not know how many times I will take a break from this blog. It seems that every time I commit to working hard and keeping up my posts, life throws me something, I get busy and this gets dropped. So I will NOT commit to continuous posts, but I will commit to try.

 A lack of posts does not equate to a lack of quilting, we have had lots and lots of quilting, crafting, sewing, gardening and life happening.

 It has all been beautiful and fun and so busy!

 I just love making these amazing creations.

 I cannot wait to share the details with everyone!

Over the last few years we have had no shortage of events.

 My son Liam and daughter Madelyn recently welcomed the final addition to our family Landon Jon.

 I swear she was happy about it, you just cannot tell from the picture.

 We had girls days!

 And I had my first go at a garden... it was an absolute success!

I dabbled in pillow making...

 And my precious girl turned ONE!

 Friends and family members got married, had babies and I tried to keep up with everyone.

I transitioned to a stay-at-home-mom role and still dropped into work on occassion to have some adult conversations. It has been fun, exhausting and taught me so much more about the world. Being able to stay at home has encouraged me to be more open and has taught me a profound respect for other parents. Being a Mom is HARD work!

...and I would be wise to remember that!

Seriously Kimberly, the holidays are over!

I know, I know, the holidays are over and I need to get back to this blogging business. It is safe to say I took a small quilting / blogging hiatus; and it felt GREAT! I completely overloaded and overwhelmed myself this holiday season! Like usual, my crafting list was far larger than necessary and completely took over every ounce of free time I had. I spent many a night up until 3:00 am just trying to finish one of the many projects occupying my work space. I finished 4 bags (like those shown below), two purses (a lot like this one), a pillow (first talked about here), 10 potholders (with this fabric), and a Puppy (quilt) for Mr. Matthew.

(Liam is getting big! The little man celebrated 6 months on December 22nd!)

I managed to get some sort of photo before everything was shipped off, but it was always rushed and the lighting wasn't the best. I will try and post about each of these projects a little over the next week or two. In addition, this lucky girl won the giveaway on Lauren's blog (mentioned here) and received a new sewing machine from Santa (aka my Dad and Stepmother). I now need to get it out of the box and make sure it actually works and wasn't damaged in shipping. Come on Kimberly, get your butt in gear.

(This is officially Liam's favorite Christmas gift from Santa, a singing rocking horse! Although his Johnny Jump Up comes in a close second!)

Speaking of butts, I'm hoping to be shrinking mine this year! ;) I know, I know, not a weight loss New Year's Resolution... I'm sorry to tell you, but that's exactly what I'm talking about. This year I feel as though I'm not completely setting myself up for failure. My mother and I are tackling it together, we're taking it day by day, and I just posted about it on my blog so there's no turning back now!!! I will keep you updated as the mood strikes.

Now back to quilting!

This first bag is one I made one of my very good friend's daughter, Leah! I made her this quilt for her Mommy's baby shower way back when before she was born and now this little darling has gone and turned ONE on us (December 8th)! I used this tutorial for the bags and it was so simple, I ended up making four of them for the Christmas season.

Here is the little Peanut... she is getting so big!!! I love you Leah!

So as noted, pretty in pink:

Isn't it just adorable? I love this honeycomb pattern!

And this next bag I made for one of my Aunt's Granddaughters for Christmas. There is nothing more fun than pink fabric!

If you're looking for a fun easy pattern that takes just minutes to make, I would highly recommend this one! The pattern is flawless and the finished product, adorable!

Thank you for visiting everyone, I hope your holidays were fabulous and fun too!

Black Friday, Blue Skies, and Red Wine

This year, I had a wonderful Black Friday. My mother, Liam and I drove down to the Waterloo Premium Outlets and shopped for the deals of deals. We lightened our purses considerably (purchased a few purses) and had a very good time.

We spent the night in Geneva on the lake at a very pretty hotel. We took Liam for his first swim in a pool and thoroughly relaxed, dined, laughed and enjoyed ourselves. We didn't do a lot of waiting in lines and we just tried to enjoy the beautiful sunny day we were blessed with.

On Saturday, after room service (so fun) we made our way to Joann's for the shorter lines. I found some really adorable fabric and added quite a bit to my stash. For the first time in a long time I didn't even look through the remnants bin, I just bought what I wanted.

I'm not sure if the crosswords or the Eiffel towers are my favorite but they both called to me from the shelves!

I cannot tell you why but I loved this Rooster fabric, love, love, love!

And I thought this fruit was pretty darn cute too!

Someone very special has a mother who clipped this pillow (also pictured below) out of a magazine and requested one if I found some free time. As I've said before, there's nothing I like more than requests.

So while I was in Joann's I picked up some very adorable fabric and mesh. I heard that the very special someone is very interested in dinosaurs as of late. So once I get these Christmas Tree skirts out of the way, I will whip up this pillow and get it in the mail for Christmas. I'm pretty sure my little brother Matthew would appreciate one of these as well.

And lastly, I purchased some fabric for potholders, (again by request) how wonderful! I've only ever made one but I can't imagine they should be that difficult, only time will tell.

I also purchased Insul-Bright, which is the special lining that goes inside of potholders and provides more of a buffer against heat. The instructions suggest including a layer of Warm and White batting to absorb any moisture. I am slightly unsure as to where the regular batting would go in an oven mitt? Should I put it inbetween the fabric and Insul-Bright or inbetween the Insul-Bright and inside of the mitt? Anyone have experience with this?