Retreat Post – Thursday #4

After we left Aunt Ruth’s, we hopped up the street to Sew Ezy. This is the shop where I bought my new machine, JJ. I had all of my accessories for Bubba the Brother to drop off and it was very nice to get it all out of my way in my sewing area at home!







Regina would be sad to miss these 2 animals hanging around outside of the shop.




I’m not sure what the others got in the shop, but I knew that there were some dog fabrics that I needed for the quilt that I have to make. I picked up these with the idea that the white on white will be used in the sashing.



Once we were all done here, we raced to the Fabric Shack to meet up with Regina who had been there for a while looking around. In all of the excitement of meeting someone new, we all forgot pictures!

As we pulled into the parking lot, I looked for a New York state license plate and I didn’t see any, even though there were plenty of out-of-towners yelling, “THERE it is!!!” I was worried that she got tired of waiting and went somewhere else. It turns out that she parked a street away and walked to the shop. I called her cell phone and she said that she was in the back at the bathrooms. Knowing the store like I do, I ran to the back and we ran right into her! Hugs were passed out and then we started shopping and asking her how the drive was. She was so excited that she was on the road at 4:30 AM instead of 5 like she had planned. She also took way too many potty breaks!

Because it was getting past my normal lunchtime I was getting hungry. I made my fabric choices and then went and sat quietly outside waiting for the others so that we could go for lunch.



Again, I missed most of what everyone else bought. And when everyone was mostly done, I ran with Regina to her car and we drove to the restaurant for lunch.

Sunday's Events - Part 1

Sunday, I got up and the ninjas and I went downstairs to go outside. Max wiggled with delight when he found Mike sleeping on the floor with in face licking range! Turns out that Holly had an accident in the middle of the night and they had to migrate to the family room. I took all the dogs out and then Mike got ready to go and play golf. Jen and I bummed around a bit reading emails and blogs and sewing a little. I spent a bit of time ironing my millions of half square triangles for my Thangles Milky Way quilt.

We started to get a little famished and decided that we needed grub so we called Cindy to see where she was and then finished getting ready while we waited on her to show up. When she got there, we decided to try going to IHOP again and if they were too busy, we would hit the Great Wraps. After we ate, we ran back to the Lang store so that I could get some fuzzy shoes.

While we were in Lang, I was too lazy in a hurry to get the shoes and didn’t remove one shoe from the plastic piece that holds them together. After I almost fell and Jen and Cindy composed themselves, we decided that we should take some videos for prosperity.

Here's Jen:



Here's me on the left and Cindy on the right:



These are the pair that I ended up getting with some Muppets jibbitz.



Once we were done causing a disturbance at Lang’s, we headed to the Bits ‘N Pieces store in Jen’s area. On our way, Jen installed the jibbitz on Cindy’s and my shoes so that we could wear them and show the off.



We met up with Sherry who was going to run around and then sew with us at Jen’s. BNP was cozy, but they didn’t really have anything that we didn’t see at other shops. No one in our group ended up buying anything.

When we left there, we headed back to Patched Works. I think that I forgot to get a picture of the store’s front so you will have to take my word for it that it is a large building! And it’s all quilting! Jen directed me to find fabric for a Stitch’n Chix bag so that she could make it for me. I really wanted to get some Califon fabric to make a Courier bag out of, but all they had was the black and white. I am going to wait and get that from my quilt shop. This is what I ended up getting – sock monkey fabric for pants and batiks for the bag.



The Turtle enjoyed the notions here.



While we were looking at notions, the Jens (oh yeah, we saw Jen V at the shop while we were there) pointed out a couple of thread guides. I figured that it wouldn’t hurt to try them out.



When we were done at Patched Works, we headed back to Jen’s for some sewing!

J3’s Excellent Quilt Adventure – Stops 6 - 10

After we stopped for a very filling lunch, we headed to JJ Stitches. There is no picture of the front of the store because we didn’t want to cross the street to get a full view. And we couldn’t stand in the middle of the street due to the traffic. I have to say that I loved this store. They specialize in reproduction fabric and I am a sucker for it! And it looked like they had the full lines of most of what they had. The only issue was that they rip the fabric and don’t give the extra few inches to make up for it. I will have to mark my purchases and watch what I use them for. The other thing that I really liked was the simple quilting that they had on their quilts. It was mostly a crosshatch that followed the seams in the blocks and it was just stunning!



The turtle wanted some cake since it was National Cupcake Day. Then, they pointed this out to me and asked for a picture with it.

Naughty Turtle!! hee hee

Here is what I bought:



We also went into a small store that was next to JJ’s. It had some yarn, cross stitch and quilting fabric and patterns, but the store wasn’t much to speak of. Plus, there was a creepy guy that was following us around. We got out of there fast! No time even for turtle pictures.

Before I even left town, I had remembered that Jen had been to a Crocs store and I said that since we were driving to Madison, we should stop at the Crocs store on our way back. So we stopped in Jackson Hole (aka Johnson Creek) at the Crocs store.

**As a small side note, while we were driving to the Crocs store, Mike, Jen's hubby, called and asked if he should let my dogs out. I said that he could and to just put them back in their cage if he didn't want to deal with them before we got back. They hung up and after about 10 minutes, I said, "I guess that he didn't have any problems with the little dogs." Just then, Jen's phone rang. My heart stopped! He let us know that he let the dogs out and Maisy got loose and then Max got loose, but he got them back in the house and they were back in the cage. He was not thrilled!**



The Crocs store didn’t have anything that we wanted and nothing that Cathy requested so we didn’t stay long. (Sorry, Cathy!) We had other shops to hit! We did stop for a potty break next to the Crocs store. We walked in and there was a little girl playing with the hand dryer. The dryer was loud and the girl seemed to be standing under the dryer. The Jens and I went into our stalls and commented on the noise of the dryer. Jen finished washing her hands before I did and got to use the dryer first. We then understood why the little girl was playing around. Not only was the dryer loud, but the air was a force not to be reckoned with. It was a bit of an effort to keep your hand in the air stream and when you held your hand steady, it blew all the extra skin around. Awesome! And we forgot to get video of it. It wasn’t until we were halfway to the car that I thought of blowing the air in our faces so that our lips and cheeks would flap around. Jen V wouldn’t let us go back. *Sigh*

Our next stop was Ben Franklin’s. Growing up, we had Ben Franklin’s around here, but they weren’t the greatest stores. I can’t remember when the last one even closed because it’s been so long. On the way to Ben’s, we broke a rule and had cupcakes in Mike’s beloved truck. I mean, it was National Cupcake Day. We really couldn’t not celebrate National Cupcake Day. It would have been close to blasphemy! Of course, Jen didn’t eat her cupcake since she was driving, but Jen V and I certainly enjoyed ours. *giggle*

When we got to BF’s, Jen parked at the back of the lot next to a truck with a dog in the cab of it. I was having another giggle fest over ‘Waun-A-Bowl’ again (really, that got a lot of laughs from me the whole weekend!) and was having a hard time communicating with the Jens. Then, Jen V slipped when she got out of the truck. She was OK, but it didn’t help me at all. When Jen asked from the driver’s side of the truck if Jen V was OK, I turned to her and found the dog in the next truck barking hysterically at Jen and then he threw himself at the door next to Jen. Again, it wasn’t a good combination for me and by the time we got into BF’s, tears were streaming down my face and I was almost hysterical with laughter. It’s a wonder that the Jen’s didn’t take turns smacking me to help me get myself under control.

The BF's had some great quality fabric! Moda Marbles on sale for $5.97 a yard! Unfortunately, I didn't see anything worth buying. But we did manage to sneak a picture of the turtle with some fabric.



There was also some issues with the BF's workers and whether cutting fabric was something that a person who is working in customer service should do it. I was ready to compliment the girl who helped us, but the Jens didn't want to wait for a manager. They were eager to eat in the truck get on the road!

Once we were in the car, Jen called her quilt shop, Patched Works, to let them know that we were on our way since it was close to closing time. By the time we got there, they had already closed the register so we chatted a little and made plans to go back on Sunday. We left Patched Works, dropped Jen V off at her house and then headed back to Jen's place to save the dogs and sew.

September Accomplishments

In spite of a week long vacation with an ancient machine, I still got quite a bit accomplished. Not as much as I had hoped, but enough to keep me happy!

Quilty accomplishments

1. Finished piecing a disappearing 9 patch top for the Alaska quilts
2. Finished the St Jude and Lucky Charm pants
3. Finished August block for BOM
4. Quilted 2 charity quilts on Lenny and Squiggy – still in the process of ripping out the quilting on one.
5. Almost missed a class at Best Friends, but was able to show up a little late and catch up quickly!
6. Did the Tri-State 2008 Shop Hop with buddies. Had a great time! Spent lots of money and got loads of great stuff!
7. Posted a contest and then wigged out on picking winners! I will do that this weekend! Promise!
8. Won the Lazy Days of Summer contest with my Sunny Lanes top over at the Quilting Gallery blog
9. Finished the 4th of July table runner for Judy’s housewarming
10. Finished 4 placemat tops for Judy’s housewarming
11. Quilted and finished the Ugly Quilt for mother. She loves it!
12. Had to piece on an antiquated Kenmore while on vacation
13. Finished my Courier bag
14. Finished my HSTs for my Thangles class that I almost missed.

Non-Quilty Accomplishments

1. Read/Listened to K, L, M and N in Sue Grafton’s alphabet series
2. Got a cat bed from Linda for the dogs. They adore it!
3. Got a GREAT CMG’s wife story! See here for that. ADD LINK!!
4. Went to Florida for a vaca
5. Got lots of turtle pics while on vacation
6. Returned from vacation to my little dogs who missed me a lot!
7. Had lots of fun and laughs feeding the dogs an ice cream cone

Other Florida purchases

This will also have the last of the turtle pictures for now.

On Wednesday, we drove to Venice. There are some cool antique shops that the old ladies like to go to and we usually go to The Crow's Nest for lunch, but they were closed for yearly maintenance and we had to make due at Althea's. It was good.

There is a little stationary store on the main drag and I picked up a few goodies. My mom also got me a quilt calendar for 2009. Here's the calendar and a couple of the packs of cards that I picked up.



There were some interesting items in the store that I just had to get shots of. And luckily, I had my camera!!

I knew that I should have bought this book. I know that Jen loves the sock monkey fabric and we could have shared it. *kicking myself!*

This was just very timely!



A sparkling turtle on a chain. 'Nuff said!

Florida - fabric purchases and another turtle

While I was in Florida, my parents took the time to take me to some shops. The first one we went to was Quilts 'N More. Dad was the driver and waited patiently while I shopped.

They had 20% off of their flannels and Halloween items and they had this panel done up with prairie points and I just *had* to have it!

Well, Max just couldn't resist walking across the panel...

I also got yardage of the black dots and a couple of fat quarters that I just couldn't resist. And the charm pack is for the prairie points. (Mom, remember - those are 5 inch squares!)

I got these 2 fat quarters to make a secret project. Now, I need a zipper. I wonder who this will be for....



They had this panel and I picked out the borders with help from mom. I can't wait to work on it! Mom is going to hang it in her house. She thinks bathroom, but once she sees it finished, it may be somewhere that is more visible to guests.



And a closer view...

The colors are SOOO vibrant!!

As I was checking out, I saw a turtle. It was too cute! Then, I remembered that I forgot my camera! :( I had to take this picture with my hillbilly digital camera cell phone. It still a cute turtle though.



We went to a couple of other shops and I just got some miscellaneous cuts of fabric. I don't remember exactly which shops I bought these in, but we went to 3 other shops while I was in Florida.

Mom had made an attempt to do the area shop hop when they had it, but she only made it to one shop. She did buy the kit for the one shop's block and we really liked the colors. Mom also bought a pattern for a reversible, quilt as you go table runner so we bought some coordinating fabric so that I can make her a table runner.



And I got some fabric for Maddy and some more purples for my class in November. (EW, apologies for the out of focus picture! But I don't feel bad enough to try and take another one!)



I got a pattern for a designer that is new to me for a little something for a quilting buddy. I hope that he/she likes it!



Now, right before I left for Florida, I had gotten an unsolicited (read - I didn't mention his name in the post) comment on my blog from Mark Lipinski. I was very excited about it and told my granma about it when I was reading Quilter's Home magazine on the plane. Well, when we went to the shops, the workers would chat and ask questions and mom would ask them if they knew who Mark was and then say, "Cuz he comments on her blog!" How is that for pride??? he he he

Turtle of the day

Sunday mornings, my parents go to breakfast with 2 other couples from their neighborhood. The Sunday that granma and I were there was no different. We went to Tiffany's, a little hole in the wall diner that had some great food. And it was decorated really neat. Unfortunately, I left my camera at the house (a recurring theme for the week) and had to take this picture of the turtle on the wall with my cell phone.

Passing time at the airport

Right now, I am sitting in the Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina. It is 9:45 and we have been here for just over an hour and our flight doesn't leave until 11:40, so we have a bit of a layover. I figured that I would check some email and post some pictures.

Last night, we went to Palm Island to go to the Rum Bay Restaurant. I guess the water taxi upset my stomach and I wasn't able to drink my Hurricane or eat my Alfredo that I was so looking forward to. I think that I only had a mint and a partial saltine cracker and water all night. When we landed at the airport here, we got CinnaBuns. I was able to eat about half of it and have the rest sitting here in case I feel like finishing it before we leave. I was so disappointed last night because I was very much looking forward to the Alfredo. I will have to treat myself sometime this week, I think. I hear that Olive Garden has pumpkin cheesecake that may make the trip for dinner worth it!

I can't remember if I mentioned it on this site, but the little dog Daphne did NOT like granma. She would buck and bolt and try her hardest to get away from granma when given to her. She would go out of her way to avoid getting close to granma in any way. When granma had food, she would only get as close as she needed to in order to get the food. Then, she would run.



When anyone else was holding Daphne, she was lovey and happy. As soon as granma got close, she would stiffen up and move to get away from her. She would let granma pet her, but would crane her neck in such a way that she wouldn't be looking at granma. It was quite humorous! We only found out on Friday that Daph didn't like Granpa or Nettie, my step-granma, either. She would do the same things!



She is a very sweet little dog though! On Friday morning, she gave me a tiny little kiss on my nose. She is very stingy with her kisses. On Friday night, she sniffed and then kissed my ear.

Jasper on the other hand is a wild man! He runs and licks and bites and steps on little Daphne to get in where any action is going on. He is constantly rolling onto his back for belly rubs and then if you don't pet him quick enough, he bats at you from his back with his front paws. I was going to get a video of this, but I forgot.

I was going to take pictures on Friday of the fabric purchases that I made. Mom wanted me to get the pictures and told me that I would need to get Daphne and Jasper in them, too. This meant that they would have been allowed to be in the *gasp* off-limits living room! But, I didn't get around to doing that either.

On Thursday, I did get some pictures of lizards. They fascinate me. They fascinate Daphne and Jasper, too, although the dogs tend to chase, catch and then kill them. Yuck!!! :(

This was outside of Mom and Dad's house.

This was at granpa's house. We saw him when we were swimming.

On Tuesday, there were little bitty frogs in the pool that I kept fishing out, but I didn't have my camera to take pictures of them. When we swam on Thursday, I had my camera and we didn't see any. :( They were very tiny though - smaller than one of my finger nails when they were all stretched out. You will just have to take my word for it!

Well, I am going to try and catch up on my emails and blog reading now. Probably later today, I will be able to post about the shops that we went to with pictures. And I have more turtle pictures, too! I am sure that you can hardly wait!

Turtle of the day

Regina in New York collects turtles. She posts about them on her blog. She writes about them and where she got them. We send her pictures and patterns all the time... like these turtles(towards the bottom of the post) that Jen and I saw in April when we were doing a shop hop before heading to the retreat.

When Regina started writing about her turtles, I remembered when I took art in high school. I was in the ninth grade so it was about 17 years ago. We did lots of things - drawing, calligraphy, batik. One thing that I enjoyed was the ceramics. We had to make something. Our own design. This is what I made.





Mom usually has it in the bottom of the potted plant that is in the picture, but it got a lot wet after the rain from Ike went through.

The right front leg is unattached right now. The left back leg has been unattached and reattached.

It's nice to see it being used!