Roxy is so demanding and fun!

I have been consumed with playing with Roxy and am so in love with her!!!!!! Working on my WAKEUP Wonderland quilt...

Stitching the sashing that mimicks window pane as thought it has wood grain

Mimicking the reeds and pebbles from my pond on the Wonderland quilt...So much fun!

Simple little leaf veins...

In reading magazines and more magazines, I am ok with not having my qulting be perfect but instead call it Modern Art....It's all about the spin they say at my job!

Hope you enjoyed my sneak peeks that Roxy and I have been doing!  She is so demanding and only wants me spending time with her....

Psychedelic....Dude.....

Fun little exercise tonight for paper piecing practice.....Won't be a whole quilt but gives me ideas...Kaffe will most likely be the choice OF COURSE!

The world is filled with such love and miracle workers!!!!

My eyes are red and swollen after having just visited http://greenfairyquilts.blogspot.com/ and watched the video of Clint's trip to Romania with the donated quilts and money that went to school supplies and food.  Quilters Rock!!!!!!!!!  Please visit Judi and Clint and CELEBRATE their Romanian service mission and all of the donated beautiful quilts showcased.  Grab a Kleenex and then say a little prayer of gratitude for our blessings!

Come Celebrate Color Country with me! Wilderness Safari!!!

Welcome to a peek at my past 30 hours of life in Southern Utah!  We have been on a wildlife safari and what a beautiful world God has given us.  Surprising an elk herd, deer jumping in front of our Rhino and lounging in meadows, antelope everywhere and the cherry on the top- Bighorn sheep on the drive home in Zion National Park.  Hope you enjoy!!!!

I love camping!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

When we came up to the herd, it was only females.  Soon the male pictured above came out of the grove of trees and herded all 3 groups of females into the trees.  Fabulous to watch nature at work!

I love love seeing trees and flowers growing out of sandstone.  Always amazing to me.

Bryce is so wonderful because it mixes desert and forest, so much fun riding through this stream in the Rhino.

A favorite game of Harley's- dipping his head under the water and coming up with boulders.  He may be 13, but I think we have another birthday coming up next year together!

I see this photo and I become tearful.....my baby is old and yet he acts like a puppy when I remind him of old games we have played over the years.  When at the lakes, he forgets he is blind and old......

My little hot-dogger!  He and Carson worked hours on making different jumps in the campground while Sean and I chatted, read and created quilt blocks.

First girly block for a little wonky neighborhood baby quilt.  So fun to create while camping!

Thank you for playing with me and happy Sunday!

Love, Em

Conde Nast Traveler inspires.....

Last night I giggled as I was reading the latest Conde Nast Traveler and came upon the article by John Oseid about building forts.....Theme for my Friday it seems!

"Remember the little fortresses and castles Mom let you build in the living room, when you'd position the recliner, couch and coffee tble at odd angles and cover them with blankets?  Cocooned and protected from the world...."

And this may be the explanation for our innate love of forts!

and CHANEL asks us to "BE UNEXPECTED!"

Delta tells us "THE ONLY WAY UP IS UP."

Shangri-La hotels proclaims "There's no greater act of hospitatlity than to embrace a starnger as one's own!"

and my favorite by Da Vinci..."Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."

May your weekend be a vacation whether coming or going or my favorite, "Stay-cationing"!

When was the last time you made a fort?

I wonder if the joy of building forts when we are small is an innate need of the human heart and soul that we do not  lose sight of....just transforms into another shape or we fall in love with the process all over again as we build with our children and grandchildren......

Excited to head to Bryce Canyon tomorrow morning to CELEBRATE the colors, cool weather, God's wonders with red rock and what creations Carson and Noah will come up with. 

While driving with Noah this morning discussing our excitement that his friend can join us, he said,

 "Carson and I are so excited because we can create in Peace (no younger sibs or younger neighbor kids)." 

They have been working on skateboard deck designs and t-shirt designs for their business.  Watch out Fantasy Factory and Rob Dierdek....

Here we will be in the middle of gorgeous National Park and will be sewing and drawing in the morning and evenings...a funny visual for me.  Maybe we will send Sean on the Rhino with the dog and create all day, WHO KNOWS, no rules on VACATIONS!

But there will be one rule.......................

SEND ME A COMMENT TOMORROW and I will post pics when we arrive home so you can see where we travelled together....I always enjoy sharing my Utah outdoors with you, friends!

If you are unfamiliar with Bryce Canyon, google if you are interested in wetting your appetite for what you will be seeing with me. 

Happy Weekend, Em

Zest is ready for binding, Hip Hip Hooray for Roxy!

 This bird and leaves motif is a favorite of mine and so easy to create.  Sorry it is sideways, I can't get it to rotate.

Sunshines warming the "N"

I wish the sunshine showed up in the orange sqare

Lots of little ditties that I give tribute to Green Fairy.  This is a typical style of hers with my wonky mini quilts to give differing motife to the different fabrics.

And the finale, my orange that kinda looks like a tomato :).  So much practicing to go!!!!

Hope you enjoyed Roxy's show!

"Great Things Happen When People Ride Bikes!"

The title of this post is a sign for a local bike shop- I love it!!!

Jenny and Bri, I can imagine you would both agree with me?! 

Who else loves to pedal?

Years ago I spent more hours on a bike seat then I did in a car and I miss those days of competition with myself, climbing Wasatch Mountains and getting rescued by a Poop truck when hypothermic and can't feel my brakes...

And the whole reason why my husband and I met...we were only going to ride bikes on the weekends was our initial thinking.....Girl seeking boy to pedal with!

And the romatic memories of biking in Napa and Sonoma and Tandem riding around San Juan Island...

Ding Ding goes the bike bell and off I go to sew a fun little wonky neighborhood quilt with the above fabrics.

It's everywhere!

Jammin' to Grooveshark tunes and look what I found...

CELEBRATE! 

There has got to be something to this idea....

I love how Rebirth is on the top... 

Hands all over.....

Recovery....

What the heck is Dougie?

What song is playing in your soul today?

No wonder I loved this license plate!

I saw this license plate and thought, where is the microphone...."Testing 1 2 3, testing.  Could I pls meet the person who is havnfun?"  I automatically loved them!  But of course, me being the reticent shy woman that I am, I WOULD NEVER DO SOMETHING SO ZANY!

Seeing this fab license plate yesterday reminded me that I need to get a vanity plate, SO FUN!!!!

What would I have on it?   Ideas????

Do you have a vanity plate or a fav bumper sticker, if so, PLS SHARE!!!

Could be a fun little 15 minute project for a mini art piece....hmmmmmmmm!

May this LICENSE PLATE be on your bumper today!

Ta Da! Sportin' the Minnie Ears while Celebrating!

Such a wonderful weekend for me and the family and I hope that you too found some CELEBRATIONS along the journey!  Whether your weekend was filled with heartache or joy, please know that this bouquet of flowers I send to you!

 (I promise this is the last photo I post of this quilt...)

Erin wrote earlier asking if I do anything halfway.... and this is my response...

My husband's construction company's motto is "NEVER HALF ASSED" 

(A mantra of his hero his Grand-dad)

....I like the ring it has!

And with that note, Happy Sunday evening and may this be a fabulous week for us all.

Love, Em

Roxy is undaunted! So much fun to be creating with needle and thread!

I am cross-eyed and vision blurry, Roxy and I have spent hour upon hour upon hour determined to practice and figure out this free motion quilting!  I have prepared for tackling this quilt by doing sketches over and over on blank paper at work, been up in the middle of night practicing on scraps and today I studied many books and would trace with my finger....And this is my debut..

I could not have been loving this in the past when perfection was my only option...but that was a couple of years ago and now I am so excited that I can only get better with every hour of practice!

 I hope you enjoy my first real adventure with Roxy in large quilt form....

I am loving giving the flowers texture and movement...

POP!!!!

My simple little decoration for each pinwhell.

On track to be able to hang in my office this Monday!

Happy Saturday evening, Friends!!!

Up Up and Away! May your artistry take flight today!

So much fun and beauty in my neighborhood this weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Got tickets?....Little sillines at the local rodeo....

Happy Saturday!!!!  I am hoarse this morning from hootin and hollerin at the rodeo last night.  The cutest challenge, little 5 year old riding the sheepin in MUTTON BUSTIN'.  Gotta love good old Americana!

And just for fun....drinking coffee with dear Sean and shopping for old Triumph motorcycles...

OOH LA LA!!!

Pinwheel arachnid and Kaffe Fassett Garden...

What a fabulous evening, Sean and I had a simple Tuscan picnic in the backyard near the pond and chatted..so nice to just sit and chat....!  Could have been anywhere in the world.....

And this little picnic friend was a gift for our evening!  Haning amidst the cattails in our pond.

 "SEAN LOOK! GET THE CAMERA!"

This picture is worth a thousand words....He is a type of pinwheel with how his legs are fixed....

I love Sean's camera for capturing the detail of God's artistry! 

.....sew on the borders then Roxy will do her thing....I can't wait to hang in my office Monday morning!  Such a fun pattern to create and....

I did it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I followed a pattern the whole quilt!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Seeing REDS on Harley's Birthday! Whirling pinwheels for the Whirling Dervish

It is a great day at work when I can get so much accomplished on the current quilt in my home!  I feel so blessed to have the freedom to work from home when the tasks can be done in my quilting sanctuary. 

And this quilt I am going to call "WHIRLING DERVISH".....

in honor of the birthday prince:

Taken 13 years ago when a newborn in my life.  My favorite photo of all time of him! 

I love this boy beyond the limits of love and we have had a wonderful day together!

If he make it to his next birthday, He and Grandma Dorothy will both CELEBRATE their 88th birthday the same year...SO FUN!

(He has earned the nickname of Whirling Dervish with his blindness and deafness that leads him into doing circles around the house....)

....."and many more on Channel 4!"

"Norm!".........

Theme song from Cheers...

"Making your way in the world today, takes everything you've got.

Taking a break from all your worries, sure would help a lot.

Wouldn't you like to get away?

Sometimes you want to go

Where everybody knows your name,

and they're always glad you came.

(I am always "glad you came" to my blog and left a comment or just a Godwink of presence!)

You wanna be where you can see

our troubles are all the same.

You wann be where everbody knows

Your name.

While visiting a local quiltshop on Saturday, I was perusing the outer borders of the shop and the Shopgirl came up and asked, "Why are you not at the Kaffe's, you are always there?"  She and I giggled as I let her know that I was saving the best for last!  Something wonderful about entering Scrap Apple and being greeted, "Hello, Emily." 

The above block is the beginning of my traditional biannual quilt and reds and purples will be the luscious colors this time.  Following a pattern and OH MY!!! I have spent more time unpicking then sewing...and SEW worth it.  I cropped the mistakes since I need to fix tonight....More to come this week...

Do you have a CHEERS quiltshop?

Today's letter is....."S"....

Smiling and Surfing....

Sewing....

Son......

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!.........

Studs and Staph......

What is your "S" for this Sunday?

Celebrating my dad this evening...do you ever sit and just think of someone special in your life?

My father is a very eccentric loving man who taught me the value of art, education, God and the art of physical exercise.  He was the original scrap booker and tonight I celebrate him as I sit in reverie and gratitude for his example and am saddened for children who will not know their father due to death in 911, the war, drugs, circumstances.

Growing up, it was common to find him riding his Mary Poppins bicycle to the hardware store and carryiing home 2 x4's on his shoulder, weekends were spent cheering him on in ultra races and he was always the one to hug me when I was sad.  A great man!

A goal, make this into Lazy Gal quilting words someday for him....

Monday evenings were spent as a family reviewing Newsweek articles and other news items that would best enhance our learning.  And read a classic and you earned $10.00.  Harvard educated and dreamt of me following in his footsteps, I spent a summer there and that was all I needed to know that it wasn't for me.

A favorite photo of mine.  My father has just completed the Coppenhagen marathon and is pictured in a newspaper and the reflection is of my brother as we admired the article.  I love this photo portraying a son's study of his father.

How retro is this.  My dad has decorated his house with theme areas and this is one.  I needed some these threads tonight!

A great man who is known as Grandpa Ye...to Noah...as Noah remarked as a toddler years ago, "Grandpa Ye is a good man , we love him all of the time!"