Happy Birthday Dad!!!

Dad celebrated quite the milestone during the last week: his 60th birthday!! Doesn't look a day over 40, does he? Mom put together an incredible party. Dad was a little emotional with all the people that came to celebrate with him. He is a wonderful man and ALL the loved ones who came to support and celebrate were proof. He's the guy everyone looks to and will do anything for anyone. Here's to you dad, love you!.

I did give him the Crown quilt for his birthday. He loved it, pulling it out of the bag for everyone. I'm sure glad he liked it, then he told me he needed some pillowcases to go with it. I think Mom and Dad decided to put the quilt on a quilt rack in the living room. Maybe I'm off the hook for pillow

cases for a little while.

Duncan was having a great time at the party. He found the coolers full of all that water and ice. He loves to pour. So he poured and poured and was soaked minutes later. He was SOOO cute!

Steve made the cupcakes this time! Since I was quilting all day, it was up to him. He made the cake with beer, the filling with Crown Royal (Dad's favorite) and the icing with Irish Cream. They were delicious, rich, and you really only needed one...wink, wink.

Patriotism Continues

The 4th of July may have past, but no reason to not continue to be patriotic, right? Grandpa's quilt is finally done: stayed up too late and just finished the binding. The quilt is made up of nearly 1000 2 1/2 inch squares of red, blue, and off white material. It ended up being an awesome quilt. Then Aunt Kathy let me use her BIG machine to quilt it and I got to practice quilting a "feather" pattern. I'm so excited it turned out so well! Grandpa will probably like it, but won't remember where it came from a few hours later. Should be a great weekend, 3 quilts to give away, a quilt show/class, and DAD's 60th birthday! Gonna be so much fun!!!

Calla Lily Kaleidoscope

I finished Grandma Z's quilt (Grandpa's just needs the binding tacked down). The pattern is a "stack and whack." Cutting the material a certain way creates these blocks. Even though it's all the same material, each block turns out completely different. The upcoming weekend will be very busy and hopefully full of smiles as Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa should all be getting quilts. Dad's 60th birthday is just days away!! Hope he likes his quilt!

Happy Birthday Emily!

During our vacation, our good friends' daughter celebrated her 3rd birthday. Being the cupcake lady or as Emily calls them, "Yum, yums," I took cupcakes camping. While her mom and dad went for a 4-wheeler ride, Emily and I decorated cupcakes and ate frosting. She was very serious about making them pretty and eating frosting.

Sprinkles! Big brother helped too, but I think he liked eating them more than helping.

Delicious!

Mountains and Surgery?

I started the vacation with surgery (huh?)! Okay, it was a "simple, everyday" procedure I was still VERY nervous and anxious about. I had the LASIK procedure done. If I were asked today if I would do again, the answer is NO. There was pressure/PAIN involved with the creation of the "flap" and that memory is too fresh in my mind. Follow-up appointment today. I know it worked, because on vacation, I was spotting the deer at dusk with my dark glasses on before Steve or anyone else. Steve has decided I have to go hunting with him now because my eye sight is so "good."

So surgery started vacation meaning I got sit and relax for the entire week. We went camping at Marsh Lake in the Uinta's. I was told "take it easy, no lifting, just relax" by the surgeon, so Steve had to do a lot of work to get us ready for the trip and while we were on the trip. My job was to take my eye drops as ordered and sit under the awning. I did that, but fished as well. Caught one (yippee). Scenery wasn't too bad.

Marsh Lake is at about 9400 feet above sea level, high in the mountains. Unfortunately, the pine beetle has killed most of the forrest so the mountian sides are brown/red instead of green. It also meant a lot of firewood, yummm, smores... During the week, we had sunshine, mild winds, rain, and SNOW in July! The pictures demonstrate pretty much everything.

Oreo enjoyed camping, she was exhausted after and slept for 3 days. Not only did she hunt for squirrels and chipmunks, she got to go fishing. Fishing for her is hard work--she chases the lure to the water's edge when you cast and barks until you reel it in. Then if there's a fish, she MUST nip at the tail. Since we weren't putting the fish on a string, they were laying on the ground at Steve's feet--she had to take guard over them.

Mom and Dad came up to the mountains for a day since it's only a couple hour drive from Rock Springs. I think all the dogs enjoyed the outing. They all sure like our new recliner chairs--as did Dad.

Happy 4th of July!!

I know, not posting frequently enough...creativity takes time. Healing does to. I had LASIK surgery yesterday and the doctor told me "take it easy." I asked about quilting and he said , "No, too much I strain." I asked about baking, he didn't say no. (yippee!) I came home from the follow-up appointment and made cupcakes. We are going to Aunt Kathy's cabin tomorrow to celebrate so I made some dessert. Not quite to scale, but looks cute and will be quite tasty!

I nearly have Grandma's quilt done, just need to add the binding and tack it down. I am allowed to do more "eye-straining" activities after the weekend so hopefully I'll get it finished next week. Grandpa's is ready to quilt. I plan to practice more intricate quilting on it (at least intricate for me).

Steve and I made it on another camping trip: Little Mill in American Fork Canyon. The weather was incredible! Perfect for relaxing, hiking, and doing some work on the camper. The next trip coming up shortly (after a few days of healing).

The river was still really high and running very fast. All the warnings given were necessary. Our camp site was right by the water. The sound was so loud, we had to shout most the time and it sounded like loud fans in the trailer all night long.

Oreo must have gotten cold. Silly dog.

She likes it!

I delivered the bags (yes, bags-plural) to my mom. She really liked the first bag with butterflies, but I just was not happy with it. So, I ordered material and made her a second bag. I like the second much better! She liked them both.

The bag was finished a few weeks ago, so I moved on to other projects. I completed a bag for myself (yipee) and started a lap quilt for my grandmother. Soon both quilts for my grandparents will be complete so I can photograph and post the pics. Here's my bag:

Finally, Steve and I finally got the trailer out for a camping trip. Nearly the middle of June, but better late than never. His birthday was Friday and it was a shorter weekend, so we went somewhere close: East Canyon. It rained nearly the entire time and got a little chilly, but no biggie. We had games, the portable DVD player, and I, the dedicated quilter, took Crown bags to cut apart for the eventual next Crown quilt. Even with rain, the trip was well worth it, can't wait to go again! The area was close, clean, and not as "primitive" as advertised. Maybe next time the sun will shine a little so Steve can go fishing.