Next block...

The next block section on the Lori Holt quilt finished...

Some Finishes.....

This little pincushion was so fun to make...finally getting some of the little projects finished...

Even cute from the backside...To make this Daisy Adooooorable Pincushion, here's a link

Spool quilt top....finished....now to get it quilted...

Close up of spools...so nice to get the top done after 1 1/2 years...

Nativity Ornaments...

I am participating in an ornament exchange on my husband's side of the family...I fell in love with this felt nativity and if you love it too and want to make some, here is the link from Pinterest that I used

http://whatmadeleineloves.blogspot.com/2011/12/felt-nativity.html

Twinkly stars....

 I have finished my twinkly stars row...

 This is for the sampler quilt by Lori Holt...

 Super fast, easy and fun...

They will post the next section tomorrow...

Progress...

 Baby Oliver with runny nose and raspberries...he discovered he likes them and was putting them on his fingers...

Progress on the spools...

Spooling Around....

A little over a year ago, I  got this book by Whimsicals...I love her designs....

I especially love sewing themed quilt blocks and so this quilt was a winner with this Spooling Around quilt...

Some finished spool blocks...the kit came with Kim Diehl fabrics...yum yum...

Trunk Show at My Girlfriend's Quilt Shoppe Featuring Lori Holt

 Saturday, I got to attend a trunk show featuring Lori Holt at My Girlfriend's Quilt Shoppe.

 She brought the quilts from her new and fabulous book...Quilty Fun...

 All of the projects were taken from the elements of the Row Along we did recently...

 I had so much fun piecing the Row Along and I am excited to make a project or two out of this book...

 Lori has been teaching for years and her designs are very easy to make but are soooooo cute....

 I love being around so much talent and grateful she is willing to share thoughts and ideas...

 She taught a class afterwards, but I did not attend that...would have loved to though...

 Lori has her happy colors and I think I am addicted to the happy colors...they are so delightful to sew with....

 What a fun trunk show.  Lori has accomplished so much because she works hard at what she does and she shares with others...To get her new quilt book, you can order through Fat Quarter Shop here http://www.fatquartershop.com/quilty-fun-book-21546

To finish off our day, Curtis and I went out with friends for a concert...Great times!!!

Block Jack and Apples...

 This month for quilt guild block jack, we did the block Birds in the Air 2 and we were to do the blocks in Christmas colors...the winner won enough blocks to make a nice lap quilt...

Lori Holt has designed a Sampler Quilt from her newest book release "Quilty Fun."  It incorporates the elements that she used in the Row Along quilt as well as some new blocks...You can find out more about it HERE...I made my block this morning and it was really fun!!!

Quick Trip to North Dakota...

 My son, Jackson took a job in North Dakota in the oil fields...he got the call on Tues of last week to go and by Friday of last week, we were driving him to North Dakota.  We went up through Idaho then on to Montana...The next three pictures are of Big Sky Montana...Appropriately named because the sky is enormous....

 Driving through Montana, the evidence of huge wild fires were everywhere...

 You could see all this fallen timber everywhere...however, I did not take any pictures of the fallen trees.

 Most of the roads on this journey were two lane highways with frequent traffic stops due to road construction...This picture is one of those times...

 After getting to North Dakota and dropping our boy off, we headed south to Mount Rushmore in South Dakota...you can't go clear out to the Dakotas and not stop off to see this national landmark...

 Our GPS told us we should be there approximately 3:00 pm, but due to a stop at an antique store and road construction stops, we got there between 6:30 and 7:00 pm...It was nightfall and for the 45 minutes we spent there it went dark quickly...My first reaction to Mount Rushmore was "it looks fake."  When you see this monument in the movies such as North by Northwest or National Treasure, it appears so massive...It was much smaller in real life, but overall, I loved being able to see this and cross it off my bucket list...

 We drove from South Dakota to Wyoming and ran into Independence Rock, a historical landmark for all pioneer trails that went through this area...The Mormon Migration, the Donner Party, The California Trail, The Oregon Trail...If the pioneers did not reach this rock by early July, they would be in serious trouble due to early winter weather...

Independence Rock...Curtis and I walked around this landmark.  There were names carved into the massive rock -- from the pioneers, cavalry and other groups from the mid 1800's.

 A couple miles down the road from Independence Rock was Devil's Gate...A historical landmark...the trail was to the side of Devil's Gate.

 Right by Devil's Gate is a Mormon Visitor Center at Martin's Cove.  Members of our church do "Trek" where they wear pioneer clothing and pull handcarts.  This picture is an example of the handcarts that were used by really poor immigrants who could not afford ox and wagon to make the journey...

 This photo represents what one person would be allowed to take on the handcart...they were limited to 17 pounds total per person...If I had to make a journey this way, I would definitely have to leave behind my beloved fabric scraps....

 The area of Martin's Cove where the pioneers crossed was bought by a gentleman with the last name of Sun.  He had a ranch there.  His wife had a large rock collection from which this fireplace was made...It was fascinating to see this in person...a very beautiful and interesting  piece.  The mantle was made up of Indian grinding stones...

 A close up of some of the rocks...

Another close up of the rocks...

Driving back into Northern Utah...This is Bear Lake, a very welcome sight after being in a car for 3 days...Fun Trip with many historical memories...