I Am So Glad 2012 Is Over

Today we had to put my precious little kitten Cleopatra "Sissy" down.  She had kidney failure and was having such a hard time.  I am so glad that she is finally at peace.

 

I'll miss you my sweet girl!  We buried her in my flower garden when I got home from work tonight.  She would have been 13 years old in a few months.  What a way to end a very stressful year.  I pray that 2013 will be a happier year for all of us.

Many blessings for each of you in the coming year.
Shelia

Christmas Day In The ER

Working today in the ER and here is my crew of hard working nurses, tech and registration staff. 

Left to right:  Jennifer, Leslie, April, Jennifer, Terry, Me and Denise.  Thanks for all your hard work everyone!

Merry Christmas.
Shelia

Merry Christmas Everyone

Christmas is a very special time of year when we remember why we are blessed.  We have a savior who paved the way for our salvation.  Thank you Lord for all of your blessings and for the biggest blessing of all, the gift of your son Jesus Christ.

Spend time today with those you love.  If you can not physically be with them make sure that you touch base by phone, text, e-mail or whatever technology you have available to you.  Time is the one thing that we can not get back.

Merry Christmas to all. I wish for you a blessed Christmas and a very happy new  year.

I'm in the Emergency Room working today......so I pray for a safe Christmas Day for all.

Shelia

Accuquilt Take 5 Die

One of my Christmas presents is the Take 5 die from Accuquilt.  This is a really cool die. 
This die gives you the ability to use fat quarters to cut different pieces at the same time and rearrange them into quilt blocks.  This block finishes at 12-inches.

I used 15 pink and brown fat quarters to cut out my pieces for this quilt.  I then moved each pile of squares, rectangles etc. to mix up the blocks for piecing.  In one stack I moved the bottom to the top, next I moved just a random piece to the top and so on until I had messed with each stack of pieces.  This will give the quilt a random scrappy look.

 With the leftover edge I was able to cut 4 of my 2-1/2 x 4-1/2 inch rectangles.  I plan to use these rectangles as a border on the quilt.  It used all but some very fine slivers of the fat quarters.  Not even big enough to save as a string.   the final tally of pieces cut from the 1-fat quarter was:
4- 2-1/2 x 4-1/2 inch rectangles
1- 4-1/2 x 8-1/2 inch rectangle
1- 8-1/2 x 8-1/2 inch square
6- 4-1/2 x 4-1/2 inch squares
12 total pieces from each fat quarter.  5 pieces to make a 12-inch finished block, 3 extra 4-1/2  x 4-1/2 inch squares and 4- 2-1/2 x 4-1/2 inch rectangles which could all be used in the border of the quilt.  Now that is what I call effecient cutting.  I'm also pulling some rectangles I already have in my scrap bin of bricks to use in the border.  Although I haven't looked yet I am sure that I also have some precut 4 1/2 inch blocks already in my bin that I can pull out pinks and browns from to use also.

I give this accuquilt die 5 stars for effeciency and ease of use. 

 

Happy Quilting,

Shelia



Family Christmas

Today we are having our family Christmas dinner, since me the nurse is working Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and the day after. 

This is my Christmas from Roger a quilt rack.  Isn't it pretty with my four-patch swirl quilt hanging on it.

I just realized that I didn't take any pictures yesterday????  Guess I was too busy cooking etc.  Can't believe that I didn't snap some pictures. 

My nephew Dale and I played a game of horseshoes after lunch.  I am definately out of practice, but me and my hot pink horseshoes won....Yippie!  Dale was a touch competitor and did not cut me any slack.  It was fun playing and the weather was beautiful.

Merry Christmas,
Shelia

Bee Night With My Girls

It is always great to get together with my bee girls and have some fun laughing and quilting.

Tonight it was just four of us who could meet.  Gina and Susan were both out of town.  So me, mom, Suzanne and Sue got together to play.

Below we are sorting precut squares from my bin of 2 1/2 inch blocks to use as the block of the month at our January guild meeting.  Our block chairman asked members to make 9-patch blocks with white backgrounds to donate for a habitat for humanity quilt.  I had pulled out 12 sets for me and pieced them while we were talking.  They go together so quickly.  So now I have 12 blocks to donate for the habitat quilt. 

Mom, Sue and Suzanne are here also going through the same bin for some blocks to donate.  I think each of them found enough for at least 8-10 blocks each which means the four of us will be donating over 40 blocks to the cause.  And do you know the crazy thing.........you could not even tell that we have taken that many blocks out of the bin.  Suzanne said there are enough blocks in that bin to make about 3 quilts.......I think she is so right.  It was amazing how quickly we all could pull together that many pieces for blocks which were already cut and ready to sew.  Thanks Bonnie Hunter for a wonderful system of using and sorting scraps of material.

 At our last bee night we had cut up a ton of fabric that was donated to our guild to us in Habitat quilts.  My Accuquilt cutter really came in handy that night.  Cutting out 80 squares at a time sure made the kit making go faster.  We packaged these up into kits and gave out to members at the guild meeting.  Mom took several of those kits and had been piecing away on them.  Below is one of the "brights" kits that she took.  We were laying it out on the design wall for her.  Isn't it cute.

 Below are pictures of one of the other kits mom pieced.  It is also going to be a wonderful habitat quilt for someone.

 And my baby girl........she has been sick lately and was sleeping on my quilt in the livingroom when I snapped this picture.

Happy quilting,
Shelia

A Christmas Thank You Poem

Today when I worked in the Greer Emergency Room I received this poem from one of the nurses.  It brought tears to my eyes when I remember WHY we do what we do in the craziness of the emergency room.

I can't write poems, and I am

not artistic. 

But I want you to know,

You Make A Difference.

When the doctor tells a child that their father is gone,

you are there.

When a parent hears their child is sick or has a mass,

you are there.

When the doctor notifies parents of a fetal demise,

you are there.

Through the good and bad,

You are there.

Thank you for being there,

Thanks you for being you.

 



Thank you Lord for my blessings.  I work with a great group of nurses!

 

Happy quilting,

Shelia

November Quilt Guild Meeting

We have such a wonderful quilt guild.  So many talented ladies who are always willing to share their beautiful quilts and techniques with others.  Our guild is known as the guild with heart......and it truly is!  I have been a member of this guild for the past 20, almost 21 years and have so many wonderful friends because of this guild.  I am blessed.  I realized when looking at some pictures on my phone that I had not blogged about the meeting....oops....so better late than never.....

During show and share my friend Debbie from Stitchintherapy showed her color block string quilt.  BEAUTIFUL!

Our speaker tonight was Marti Michell who did a wonderful lecture and trunk show.  Don't you just love trunk shows!

Another great night with a wonderful group of ladies.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Decorating For Christmas

My precious husband and cats are trying their best to get me into the Christmas spirit.  Below is Roger getting the tree up and going......it is always awesome to see all of the special ornaments that we have collected over our years together.  We try to pick up a new ornament each year from somewhere we have traveled during the year.  Alot of special memories in this tree.

 While I was getting out the Christmas quilts, sissy decided that this one was hers and I could just move on and leave her alone!

 We have Christmas music playing and are getting things decorated.  Christmas candles burning with a great cinnamon aroma in the house.

Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Sunday Quilting Fun

Today I was able to spend some time watching a movie with my honey......we watched Fire with Fire. 

Lots of good actors in it and I had not heard of it before.  Enjoyed spending the time with Roger.

Next I started sorting some 2 1/2 inch squares that I already had cut in my scrap bin.  I'm going to piece this as a 20 patch block for a scrap quilt. 
So while we watched NCIS, I sorted some blocks.

Doesn't look like I made much of a dent in the 2 1/2 inch square bin does it?  I think I have enough blocks in here to do several quilts just with these blocks.

It's been a good day....I even baked a blackberry cobbler today.....But this is all that is left when I went to take the picture.  My husband who doesn't eat a lot of sweets decided that this was really good.  I too enjoyed it.  Should have bought some vanilla ice cream to go with it.

Time to get some work done.
Happy Quilting,
Shelia

Cutting For Bonnie Hunter's New Mystery Quilt

We had a blast at bee tonight.  Lots of projects getting worked on.  I got to show Dave the Accuquilt......needless to say I think he is hooked.  Where was this machine when I was cutting out the first mystery for me and mom???????  Remember those 1600 quarter square triangles I had to cut with the rotary cutter?????  This time I'm using the accuquilt and oh my does it make a difference.

Here are the triangles for the next mystery and it took me all of about 10 minutes to cut them!  Now she can get to the sewing faster.

While she started piecing the triangle blocks I was cutting her strips for the four patch blocks.  Love that machine and how quickly it gets us to the piecing process.

Off to work now for another shift in the ER......and can I say that this full moon is killing me.  Our census has been horrible, don't know where all these people are coming from.  Until then,

Happy Quilting,
Shelia