Mother's Day Sewing Time!

Since I didn't see my mom on Mother's Day, we planned a sewing weekend last weekend!  We let laundry and dishes sit by the wayside and my dad was even nice enough do the cooking!

But before I headed up north, my cousin had let me know he had 25 cases of mangos & did we want any? Well my hubby LOVES mangos, so I met him & got my mangos and headed home.

Mango smoothies - YUM!!

Of course I couldn't go without my adorable co-pilot showing off his new car seat!

I was expecting to take more pictures, but when you're in the cutting & sewing groove - there is just no time for pictures!  I did capture this one of the fabric I'm cutting for the wedding quilt I'm working on.

Overall we had an amazing weekend, after a full day of quilting & sewing I fed the goat mango peels (oh my goodness did he love them!) and drove the fourwheeler in the mud - embracing my country girl roots.

And we decided we have GOT to do that again! What a fun time!

Spring is Here

Finally feels like we are out of the grips of winter.

I've got tulips coming up and the weather this weekend was amazing!

Saturday was so beautiful I set myself up out on our deck in the sun to read!  It was cool enough where & didn't get hot, but the sun was out in full force!  It was so relaxing & reminded me of how much I enjoy reading.  Unfortunately I did spend a little TOO much time out there & got my first sunburn of the season. Although between you & me, it was totally worth it :)

Next weekend Mr. C and I are headed up to my parent's where my Mom & I are going to have a sewing day!  She said she might need to go pick up some more fabric, so when I was out at Joann's I got us $93 of fun!  Hope this week goes fast!

Melissa

2015 - Q2 Finish Along

I have decided to join the Q2 Finish Along over at On the Windy Side.  So instead of drooling over everyone else's projects, I hope to have two of my very own finished by the end of the Quarter (well let's be honest, I'll still be drooling because everyone makes such amazing projects!)

The two projects I want to have finished are

1. Jelly Fish & Octopus Quilt
This one I started just because I loved the fabric!  I started piecing the squares quite a while ago, as I mentioned in this post Taking a Jelly Fish Break.

Then once the rows were together, I did nothing.  For a very very long time.  I didn't want to iron my seams.  Can anyone relate?  My ironing board and iron were away, and it just didn't seem fun.

Last weekend I decided I need to get this one finished so I can start my next project, so I've got it put together with ironed seams - well, except the one in the center because my iron had shut off and I didn't to wait around any longer.

So for this Finish Along, I need a little fire under me to get this guy finished!  After I'm done ironing I am going to attempt to quilt it myself using my walking foot.  I think it will be good practice, since its not going to anyone.

Once that one is finished, its on to the real deal project. The make or break, I gotta get this baby done!

2. Field Day Wedding Quilt
One of the girls who works for me is getting married in July!  She's a fun, vibrant, exciting girl so for her wedding I wanted to make a quilt with colors that I believe reflect her!

I have had this Field Day Fat Quarter since August and I think that this Squares & Strips tutorial at Cluck Cluck Sew will be perfect.  Doesn't she have the best Tutorials?

I feel like this is an agressive plan with working full time, all of the every day things, as well as a vacation to Seattle scheduled.  But I need to find more time to sew, if not just to keep myself sane.  Well and a Deadline of a Wedding date doesn't hurt either!

Do you have any projects you want to get finished before the end of June?  Join us!

Baseball Opening Day!!

Something that most people don't know about me is that I LOVE baseball!!  I grew up watching it with my parents, we would make a Saturday of it watching local teams or even fast-pitch softball.  In addition, my great-grandmother was a die-hard fan, I remember as a little girl her watching the World Series with her in her nursing home room.  So I'm pretty sure its in my blood.

If we had a closer MLB team, I would totally have to buy season tickets! Since we don't, I have to settle for going to games when we travel to new cities!  Lucky for me, my hubby is a good sport and we have gone to some great games!  We've been to a few Rockies games in Colorado, and last year we had so much fun at a Milwaukee Brewer's game, that we are going again this April!

And no Wisconsin baseball post would be complete without mention of Hank the Ballpark Pup who is proudly displayed on my desk at work  .

If you are unfamiliar with Hank, he is the cute little doggy the Brewer's team adopted last year at Spring Training.  You can learn more about his story here.

Spring Baseball & Dogs!  What could be better?

Play Ball!!

Slow Roasted Cinnamon-Sugar Vanilla Almonds

For the month of February, nuts.com is looking to spread the word on the health benefits of almonds! I couldn't be more excited to help. This girl loves almonds!

And if you've ever been through Chicago O'Hare airport, more than likely you smelled the amazing almonds as soon as you step off the plane.  If you're like me, you can never pass them up!  Since I can't be flying back & forth to Chicago, I came up with my own version to make here at home.

With only 7 ingredients these are much easier to make than you'd think!

I think they look good before they even get in the oven!

Slow Roasted Cinnamon-Sugar Vanilla Almonds

Ingredients
3cups - un-salted almonds
1 egg white
1tsp cold water
1tsp vanilla
1cup white sugar
1tsp cinnamon
1/4tsp salt

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Using a whisk or hand mixer, beat egg white until foamy.  Add cold water and vanilla, mix.

In a large bowl measure out 3 cups of almonds.  Pour egg mixture over almonds and stir to coat well.
In a separate bowl mix together sugar, cinnamon, and salt.  Sprinkle over almonds and mix well to ensure there is sugary goodness on all almonds.

Grease a cookie sheet and spread evenly in one layer.  Bake for 1 hour.

Resist the urge to take them out when the sweet aroma takes over your house.  Letting them get slow roasted and glazed on the outside will be totally worth it!

What are your favorite recipes using almonds?  If you need any inspiration, check out nuts.com's almonds page to see their health benefits and more recipes.

Lazy Day Flannels

Riley Blake Lazy Day Flannels are the newest addition to my Etsy Shop!

If you've been around my Blog a while, you'll know how much I love flannel.  It is my favorite type of fabric!

In fact my first two quilts were rag quilts!

And I made this little monkey quilt for my friend Renee. 

So when I saw these Lazy Day Flannel's by Riley Blake, I knew they would make an adorable rag quilts and a great addition to my Etsy Shop!

What to you think?  Cute right?? My mom even said that they reminded her dresses her and her sister had when they were little girls in the 70s.  

I'm also thinking of putting together 1 yard bundles, would any one be interested in that?  

Let me know!

Taking a Jelly Fish Break

Sometimes you just need to take a break and make a Jelly Fish and Octopus quilt for no other reason than the fabric makes you smile :)

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