A New Year is coming!

 Happy New Year's Eve...or Happy New Year, depending on where you are!  I have been working on more applique flower blocks.  These are all prepped and ready to go.

Above are my blocks for the next clue in the Quiltville Mystery quilt.  Looks a little halloweenish, don't you think?  But I am loving the plaids!!  Just 116 more of these babies to go! I have a few more four patches, and then this step to go, then I will be caught up.  Please see Bonnie's post here to see what colors and progress other quilters are up to!

Just thinking about the New Year...what exactly do I want to do?  I definitely want to work on UFO's, and have several ready to go, picked out and ready to stitch.  I also want to incorporate more applique in my quilting.  So I am thinking of what to do along that line, but first, I am going to finish the applique flower blocks above.  Only about 12 more to go!!  I also want to do some tutorials...maybe I can share some of my shortcuts, if anyone would be interested...

I wish each of you a marvelous, fun, quilting filled New Year!

Julie

A few little things that I have been doing...

 I have been a busy, busy girl, as we all are at this time of year!  But...if I have blocks prepped?  I can stitch them in the car!!  I finished these blocks above, minus a little needed embroidery on one or two.  I bound a quilt...that is a big deal, LOL!!  I love the slow stitching of binding a quilt by hand...

 Janet!!  sent the above wonderful ornaments!!  They are tiny, tiny, tiny!!  The little snowman just kind of wanted to be in the picture...I am not in charge at my house, the inanimate objects are, LOL!  Anyway, Janet was raising money for a very worthy cause, and she was generous enough to send these...and STRINGS!!!!  of plaids!!  Of course I screeched with joy...

Thank you, Janet!!  Visit her HERE!!

And my dear friend Lyn sent these wonderful gifts all the way from Australia.  Thank you so much, Lyn...I am so blessed to know you!!  And I will really enjoy making these projects!!




I hope your Christmas was wonderful, each and every one of you!!
Back to work tomorrow for me!


Julie

Merry Christmas!!!

No pictures or anything but a heartfelt, most sincere wish for a wonderful Christmas for each one of you!  Your humor, talent, and love shines out to the world through your blogs, and I am so blessed to know every one of you!

Merry Christmas!!!

Christmas is coming!!

 I have been working on these blocks...they finish at 6 inches.  Loving working on these!!  They are so portable and just fun to stitch. I am about half done with the lot of them.

 Some of these still need to be blanket stitched and embroidered.

 I found this little chair at my local quilt shop, and have been eyeing it for months.  So, I decided to get it and display my little quilts on it.  It is a child's chair, and it is just right for displaying my little quilts.


How is your Christmas preparation going?  I am about done here, ready for Jesus's birthday!!


******************Nurse's notes*********************

A smart little nurse practitioner saved one of our patients yesterday...yep, a nurse!  The patient was just not responding to what we were doing for him...she happened by the room and a little voice told her to go in there! She was on her way out the door, for home, after a long shift.  She followed that little intuitive voice, and found a very sick patient, having difficulty breathing and going into sepsis syndrome (severe infection).  He ended up transferring to me, his nurse in CCU, and after extensive treatment and tests, is on the right track to getting well!!  He really could have gone either way...He was truly teetering on the edge of life and death.  I am so proud of her!!

So...do you follow your intuition?  Do you ever have little things happen that have no real evidence of why...but you just follow a hunch?  I would love to hear your stories!!





Hope you all have a great day,

Julie

Sidetracked with Spring!! Tiny Tulips!

Well, hmmmm...I got a little sidetracked!  I saw a wonderful tulip pattern on line, at Primitive Gatherings, and after receiving the pattern, I wondered...what would happen if I made the blocks tiny!?!  3 inch tulip tiny!!  So, Tiny Tulips was born!!  Very quickly prepped, this will be blanket stitching applique, and I love that, with sewing thread, due to the small size of the blocks.  Springtime, anyone?    Guess it depends on how cold it is where you are!!

Have a great day, everyone!!

Julie

Brandywine Designs!! and mystery progress too! and a gift in the mail!!!

 The third step of Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville mystery was posted!!  I have all the pinwheels cut out, and a few made...so do you think this might be the layout?  What is your guess, all you mystery lovers out there?!  Please see this LINK to go to the latest Quiltville Link up post!

 I recently ordered some patterns for Christmas.  I just love applique, but really have not done a ton of it...you all know I am a scrappy piecer, LOL!!  But this coming year...I am dreaming in applique!  So, I ordered some patterns from Brandywine Design.  I very rarely advocate for a company...but this one I can really brag about!!!  Not only was their customer service very fast, but when I received the package, it was just so neatly put together and lovely...it was just a treat!!  And...they put in some special pins based on the blocks from their Wooly Critter Sampler below.

 Wooly Critters!!!  I love animals, and this sampler will be just so much fun to stitch!!  Can't wait for this one!!

 Another sampler, just right for spring.  So, you can visit them here...Brandywine Design...maybe we can do a Wooly Critter Sampler together if some people are interested in the coming year!!!

So lets brag about those companies who are just superior!!

I received the most wonderful box in the mail!!  Recently, I have been studying about angels in the bible and in fiction and literature.  Deanna, my friend from Utah, sent me the most wonderful book all about angels!!  And also a huge box of scrappy wonderfulness...I just loved the whole thing!  Most of all, I am so thankful for friends who think of me with such a thoughtful gift...thank you Deanna!!




*****************Nurse's Notes*************************


I had written a big paragraph about a very sick patient, a young patient...a sweet darling patent!!  But it was so sad, when I read what I wrote, that I deleted it all.  I asked for the sickest patient on the floor, for the challenge, but also to be of service to the family (I knew them).  It is a sinking feeling when you come back the next day and the room and bed are empty.

So this is your assignment, if you choose to accept it!!  Go and find your most precious loved ones and hug them tight and tell you that you love them!!  Make up with them if you are in a snit...just go do it...time is short and waits for no man...or lady either!!

Thanks for listening to the nurse's notes...just an outlet for me...please skip these if you are here for just quiltish stuff!!!


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Have a great day, everyone!!

Julie

A Mystery!!

 At last!  I have decided what to do about Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville Mystery quilt!!  The logical choice for me?  PLAIDS!!  I really do not have yellows, or oranges, not enough anyway to make an entire quilt, so I chose to substitute some different colors.  I had a biggish piece of orange/rust colored plaid, and some green plaid and I bought the black instead of blue, because the quilt shop had the black, but not enough blue...and the very light yellow/tan is also from the stash.  SO!!  Off I go!  I am caught up with clue number two, which was a very fun clue to piece, by the way!!  So thanks to Bonnie for another fun mystery quilt!!!  I am excited about clue number three, coming up on this Friday.  You can also join in...not too late at all...just go to Quiltville!!  Who knows what the final quilt will look like, but I delight in playing with the little quilt pieces, LOL!

It has been very, very cold and icy here, at least for this part of the country, this whole weekend. All businesses, and even all the churches were closed.  But worst of all, my marathon was cancelled!!  No refunds, as all the proceeds go to charity...but I guess it was worth it if it saved one person from getting hurt on the ice. 25,000 runners were expected.   I was doing the 1/2 marathon, and was so ready!  Oh well...I guess I will keep training and be extra ready for the next one.

I know I am silly at times, but I really worry about the animals outside in such weather.  The cows and horses and sheep, of course, but the little ones too, like this little squirrel I spied in one of our trees yesterday.  He was cuddled up with himself, trying to keep warm! I had to snap his picture... Poor baby...but I saw him frisking around the yard today on the snow, so I guess he made the night OK. Almost all of the birds are gone for the winter, but I saw a red headed woodpecker today, and a few sparrows.  Tough little babies, out in this cold!!



Have a  great day, everyone, and Happy Monday!!  TGIM!!


Julie

Are you doing Bonnie's mystery??!

 Well, are you?  I am still deciding what colors to use in Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville mystery!!  I need to shake a leg, don't you think??  Mean while, I am in a tiny piecing mood....above are 3 inch churn dash blocks.

 Two inch bow ties...

And 4 inch baskets!!  Need to trim that dog ear and threads!

I have decided to piece 30 minutes each night before bed.  I can finish two baskets, five bowties, and two  churn dashes in that time.  In a years time, I could have three quilts worth of tiny blocks!!

Back to the mystery...I just do not have very many orange fabrics at all....and very, very few yellows.  So, I am still pondering what colors to use.  I am sure it will come to me!!!  I love the first clue!!

Have a wonderful day, each of you!!

Julie