Jewel of the Prairie

My DD Jennifer has a blog called "Jewel of the Prairie". I just went there and saw several wonderful photos of Lucy and Carrie. Take a look. We will miss her.

Goodbye dear Lucy

Sad weekend for us. Lucy was unable to survive last night. Carrie and John were wonderful parents, and will be again. We will all miss her cute little face, biting at our feet, and pawing at the cats to play. She touched all of us in the few short weeks she was here. Take care Lucy. We will see you again someday!

Lucy

Carrie and John's adorable puppy is having troubles today. Spending the night at the vet. Praying that she recovers. Here is a photo of Lucy and Trixie at our house last week.

Iowa visit

After Katie's wedding, I planned to pack the van with things we were giving Jen and Jerod, and follow them down to Iowa for a visit. I figured after knee surgery that it would be several months before I would be able to travel that far, so this was the weekend to do it. So Sunday afternoon I headed south with the kiddos. One of the hottest weeks of the summer.





Jen and I worked at weeding their garden. Creeping Charlie. If you want some, just ask Jen! Then we made cushion covers for the rattan furniture. Amy Butler fabric I had purchased at the quilt show in Duluth. Turned out really nice. Stops at the hardware store, Walmart, the quilt shop in town, and one of the playgrounds for the kiddos. Temps and humidity limited that, so we went back home, turned on the sprinkler, and let the kiddos run through it.



I had to take some photos of the interior of their new home. I love the oak woodwork. And the glass windows in the living room and dining room are priceless.

We had planned to return home Tuesday, but weather delayed us, and Wednesday morning we were packed and on the road by 8:30am, headed for St. Paul. Carrie and John were closing on their house and moving later Wednesday. Could we pack any more in one day? Probably not.

Weddings, weddings, and more weddings

The past two years have been filled with weddings. Daughter, niece, then another daughter, nephew, and this past weekend another niece. I think we are done for a few years. Great time was had by all!

One of my favorites

Audrey Manning, a member of our local quilt guild had her first entry in the juried section of the Minnesota quilt show. In my eyes, it should have won a ribbon. Judge for yourself.

Best Machine Quilting

When I first saw this quilt I thought how amazing it was. Then I read the card and realized I had taken a quilting class from her up at Sievers on Washington Island several years ago. Wonderful work by Jean Lohmar.

Ahhhh, the t-shirts

Some of my favorites as seen at the Minnesota Quilt show.

Sunrise!

After hearing about all the beautiful sunrises over Lake Superior, Donna and I set our alarm for 5am Saturday. A first, and probably last. Then we went back to sleep for a few hours!

My Favorites- Part 1

The Minnesota quilt show has some of the most creative entries I have ever seen. Going through my photos, I realized there was no way to show all of the wonderful quilts. So which were my favorite?

One of the miniatures had wonderful tiny blocks reminding me of my Dear Jane journey but in miniature. Another that won Best of Show- Small Quilts was a wonderful alphabet quilt in batiks.













Creativity in the challenge category caught my eye on this nautical entry. It didn't win a ribbon, but I sure loved it.

Game Quilts

I looked through my 600+ photos from the first two days. Exceptional quilts. All winners were very worthy recipients. Special exhibits brought an array of emotions.

One of the fun displays were the game board quilts from the Mother Original Quilt Shop in Pequot Lakes MN.
Their Monopoly game was so much fun.

Lake Superior

Thursday in Duluth

If you ever get a chance to attend the Minnesota quilt show in Duluth, try to stay in Canal Park. It is a wonderful setting to relax and enjoy the show. Our hotel had a shuttle to the DECC, so I was able to go for a few hours, come back and relax, and return for more eye candy.

A great selection of merchandise this year. One of my favorites is The Quilt Merchant from Winfield, Illinois. Here is Docia with some of the lovely quilts in her booth.



My challenge quilt entry was lucky enough to be displayed next to the winning doll. Adorable.

Duluth

I am attending the Minnesota Quilt Show in Duluth. We have been blessed with sunny weather. The view from our hotel out onto Lake Superior is wonderful. I expect to spend a bit of time watching and listening to the sea gulls. And of course the quilt show!

Wigs for Kids

Wednesday, after two years of long hair, and what that entails, DGD got her hair cut. Needed at least 12" to donate to Wigs for Kids.

Needless to say, it was a big event. Extremely excited. I was nervous about cold feet, but that never happened. Now we have a cute summer cut, perfect for swimming! And a child will have a bit of her blond hair in her wig.

More Totes

Tote bags

I had planned to make tote bags for the preschool teachers' end of year gifts. Time and life got in the way, and am just now finishing them. Three done, one to go! Dark batik one is in the Minnesota Quilt Challenge this year in Duluth. I love doing the challenges. This will be the first time that I haven't entered an actual "quilt".

Summertime, summertime!

Summer is here in Minnesota. Most days have been warm and sunny. Little rain. That should change Saturday. Good for me, as I have sewing that must get done.

A new event on the horizon. Knee replacement July 9th. With less than five weeks until surgery, I have quite a list of things to accomplish.