Gathering

There is NOTHING like getting your entire family together at Christmas! Time is soon coming when our grandkids will starting choosing colleges and jobs that will scatter them too. Can it be possible for that to be happening in a few years? Time is fleeting!! Treasure it!
The grandkids love to get together and just hang out....playing games, swimming this time together. Memories and bonds that God has certainly blessed our family with.


The pictures say more than I can with words...there are more!!...talking, laughing, even just looking over books that were given as gifts. Our family enjoys reading....just getting together when we all can...we are blessed....so blessed!! Quilted Love, Always!! Kari

Christmas Day

Where does the time go?...Can it be Christmas again...Yes!! it can!! the little ones answer to that yearly question adults express!
Our son and family in Indiana invited us for a "night over" Christmas Eve, so we could see the little gals open up gifts with them on Christmas morning.
On Christmas Eve our sons very creative wife planned a "polar express" ride to see the Christmas lights. The gals went to bed, and just after getting under the covers they rolled them into their coats and told them we were going to go on the Polar Express to see the Christmas lights...she had tickets that she punched with holes for the "train" ride and everything..even hot chocolate in their sippy cups....so cute!!....we enjoyed the ride too and the little ones Ooohed and AHHED at the lights glittering against the new fallen snow...It was wonderful!! We had to get home,though and get to bed so Santa could make his visit to them because they had been very good little gals!!
While opening up gifts in the morning, the youngest granddaughter clowned around by putting on all her bigger sisters new undies onto one leg!...she is a hoot!! as her Mama says! Her older sister hugged on her new dolly throughout the day that her Mama had also made her...and of course they fought over the BOY doll!! Such is life!!
OH YEA, My Happymerryversary brought a new friend into my home....a knitting machine....I admit I have had no time to acquaint myself much with it...with projects to finish and sewing for our family gathering in Bluffton on the 28th.... Blessed here!! Kari

Plain not Fancy

You know there are times in your life when you think was I meant to be this or that?...we live near the Amish again in northern Indiana. I love their way of life. It is community all the way!...I know no one is perfect and we all have the same nature within us, but I love to spend time with others; working, caring, making projects...whatever it is, it is better when done together. So, while in Vermont I put together an Amish style quilt. It could be used for a baby quilt. I love the simplicity of their lives and their quilts. I was even honored in being an OB nurse in their region of northern Indiana, so I even was involved in birthing their babies. Some, came by a van with a "driver" and only got their just in time to have the baby born. Others, got their earlier in their stage of delivery and I was able to get to know them and share my English life with them. In life and conversation using the old fun game we use to play in 4-H..."who, what, where, when and how"...always helps you to get to know others! So, here is the quilt top I put together to also quilt. Right now I have it posted on my Etsy Shop Thimblestitches ..... and now I am getting phone pictures of some great gifts our OLDEST grandchild, Alyssa, has made for cousins for Christmas. She is a very gifted artistic teen! Love her!... she has a deep textile, seamstress, tailoring DNA planted in her! Tailors, Shoe Cobblers, Quilters and Seamstresses from Germany. Hope you enjoy the top....I am about to go to my sewing machine to make small turtles with little quilted octagon shells to sew on top. Merry Christmas!!! Quilted Love! Kari

Rest?

Is there rest if you love to sew? There is always a project that you are imagining doing or you see something that you KNOW you can make yourself! The bumper sticker: the one with the most fabric WINS!
I was blessed to be born into a family that had a history of tailoring, shoe cobbler, and house/barn painting and furniture refinishing. How blessed in that heritage. That is probably why my Mother taught me to sew my first project at age 4. It was a hotpad with God is Love on it. A little bird. And she would not let me go through the thickness to the back. I had to learn to go between the back and front with my backstitch design. I have it somewhere in my nostalgia. I really need to frame it. I remember her soft hands helping me with my needle. You know, as Moms, Wives and Grams we model Christ in so many ways, or we can model Christ...when things come into our lives to show others by our actions, our humility in repentance or acts of kindness when others are unlovely...on and on we can model our Lord. I am so glad for the people in my life growing up. So blessed.
As my hub worked I would sew. I made quite a pile of things! I can't believe it looking at the pile but it was one day at a time! 29 totes, 11 quilt tops, 1 1800 Repro dress, and 3 little girls dresses in 3 months. And all our travels mixed in between. A 40 year Marriage Celebration!!
We enjoyed walking on beaches, looking out over mountain ranges, museums, history,liberty and the history of our land spreading out all over this area of our Land.
Please look up The Lighthouse by Longfellow...look at the history of Fort Mitchell....the War of 1812...Ft Tichondaroga...Plymouth...Braintree...Quincy....Boston...on and on!! Nope, not time to Rest....time to travel back to our wonderful cabin built for a B&B and see what God has for us to complete there...for Him. Quilted Seabreezes I will NEVER forget! Love, Kari

Kennebunkport

We noticed as we looked at our route while heading to Maine that we were close to Kennbunkport too, so we headed East of the Interstate and headed down Route 9. Following a BEACH sign we found the most awesome area! A family was playing soccer on the beach...how wonderful!!...Shiloh was very excited to get out and take a stroll on the beach to with her Master...I shot pictures, of course! We realized after we left the area that the Bushs' Compound was up the coastal road on the next cove jutting out...so we are thinking that I did get a picure of it, just from a long distance! I can dream!

The Village of Kennbunk is so cool! We have seen so many perfect New England towns while here, this one did not let us down; straight from Hallmark!
I am a LOVER of the FLAG...as most know...so the flag on a garage was perfect photo shot for this Patriot Family.
We had to head up farther north to Portland Maine so we headed out on the Route 9 to that destination...we REALLY want to come back to this area to vacation in the summer in the future. We are HOOKED!! Maine Rocks! Seasalt Blessings!! Kari

A LIttle Bit of This and A Little Bit of THAT!

Yesterday we spent the day driving up to Maine to see the Portland Head Light HOUSE....so worth the time! We stopped in Kinnebunkport on the way, just to be near the Bushs' area...we did not realize we were just a few miles up the beach from their cove...but we had to get to Portland before the museum was closed in the Light House Innkeepers' Home. The Moon came up just before we left. The folks in Maine are so wonderful too we found!!
There were photgraphers everywhere. The museum curator said that it is the most photographed lighthouse. We can agree to that! Even with my phone the pics were awesome!! We learned, again, more about our heritage as a country. Oh, for the day without the "scanner and pat downs" for safety, huh?
We strolled on the beach, even though it was 30 degrees and windy. We found that you can rent a beach house pretty reasonably for a week in the summer in Maine....that would be an awesome plan for our family vacation soooooon!! We all are history buffs and beach bums!!
I was delighted to find vintage pics on Flickr lately and the photographer said I could post them, they won't enlarge but if you want to see them bigger, she has awesome prints online, at sussanadashboard....also she is on my link list under Malphi, she does fantastic aprons and designs...
The familiar kitties that my grandables got us this summer took naps by me as I was working on the grandables dresses a few days ago...our Golden Shi was under the little RV table with her head in my lap!....yes we have enjoyed our stay in New England...but Home is where the heart is....and my sewing and longarm studio!!....Halleleujah!!!
Today I am making aprons for Christmas presents.....then a few totes tomorrow and then a few days of finishing up a few whimsy quilt tops I made in September with appliqued delight!! Thanks for putting up with my here a little and there a little!!!...That is the way it is in my Quilting Life!! Kari

Back to "work"

We found a great family resturant just up the road at the "round about"....do you have those in your area?
They do speed up traffic but are free-for-alls too. You need 4 eyes in your head. Anyways, after being here for over 2 months we finally quit looking so hard at the intersection and notice a family resturant in the SE side of the round about!..Needless to say, we had a Saturday Brunch there soon after. I plan another brunch this weekend...the last one we have together, the next one hub works and then we leave for home on Sunday Afternoon. This Sunday we are going to the coast one more time!
My project today is the darling dress in the pattern by Burda...i have a 18 month old and 2 size 4 grandables to make them for...of course, since the sun is shining and the wind is not going to blow us away our Golden Shiloh and I are going to do some laundry too and mail some much enjoyed postcards to the 9 grandables that we are so blessed with!! See you soon!..maybe with my dresses done...then back to quilts....
Please enjoy the video by Jodi....I LOVE HER!!!! and you will too!! squarequilting.com
Quilted Threads! Kari