Sunday, February 1st, my baby's 23rd.

Before I wrap up retreat, I just need to say "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CATIE!!!!"
This adorable 2 year old:

is now this confident, insightful, mature, beautiful, talented, intelligent 23 year old woman.
Where did the time go? It seems like she was just born and here she is, her first year out of college....can't believe we have been so blessed with such great kids.
Thank you for your indulgence, back to retreat.
Even though I was up so late, and had a hard time falling asleep, I still was up at 7:30...again not wanting to miss anything.
I made this little table runner from fabric I won at the brown bag auction in October. I actually found border and backing at our first quilt shop on Sunday.
This is the last Jo Morton project from 2008. I also found the border and backing on the way home. I am not sure I will be joining the club this year as I have so much at home to work on. I brought 5 piecing projects with me and I worked on all of them. I also brought 3 machine quilting projects and only worked on one of those. I guess that will help me plan better for next year.

Enid loved my purse so much, she bought the pattern and the fabric in a slightly different color wave and I mentored her through the process.

Colleen was commissioned to make this quilt. It is an original design and will be in her book when published.
Celia worked on this stunning creation a good part of the weekend. The toille fabric was won by her at the brown bag auction and she supplemented with the blue marble. It is going to be incredible when finished.
Deb made this "Boline's 5 yard quilt" on Saturday and Sunday. I didn't get a picture of the Minnesota hot dish one that she worked on but didn't quite finish, which is such a happy quilt.
The tradition at retreat is if you finish something, you ring the bell and everyone stops what they are doing to admire, ooh and aah and take pictures. Well, when Deb rang the bell, I was in the bathroom and couldn't stop what I was doing to get out and see.
Then Kathy, the scalawag, tried to keep me from getting out.....such fun at my expense. But they continually remind me, it is so easy.
After a wonderful Sunday morning brunch we set out for home.

What a great group of gals to create with all weekend. Of the 12 that attended, I hadn't "retreated" with 4 of them, but would do so again in a heartbeat. I think next year, Celia and I might add a night on the other end, just to decompress.
We stopped at two more wonderful shops on the way home and made it home with 5 minutes to spare before kick off of the Super Bowl. Not that I really care, but the commercials are always interesting.

Saturday, January 31st......sew and sew and sew

I really tried to stay up on Friday night, but crashed at about 12:30.
More laughter, great food provided by Patsy and another walk filled up this day.
Enid finished this amazing panel for her dad that she has been working on for two years. It is completely hand pieced and hand quilted.
Colleen finished this gigantic king sized top for use in their camper.
(sorry Celia, this picture of you is terrible) She made a "stitching for soldiers" lap quilt.
This is another Jo Morton quilt from last year. The hour glass blocks took forever, but I think it turned out just beautiful. The center medallion was hours and hours of work.
This was the closest to a finished project that Ann could show because she was designing this as she went. A true art quilter in every sense of the word. She appliqued the leaves and did free motion stitching and decorative stitching. It was mouth watering.
A second completed top from Kathy...and she says I am driven....she who casts stones.....
Vickie was making twin baby quilts for her doctor's twin babies. I was lusting after her 30's scraps and to indulge me, she threw a few my way.

The fabric in Pat's large star comes from the Elmcreek line designed by Jennifer Chiaverini.
Karen, a first time retreater is not a quilter, but knitted this cute little purse.
This was also Mary's first time at retreat and she provided so much laughter and fun that we are encouraging her to join us next year. She made three "yellow brick road" quilts simultaneously. Also, she was the grand champion at our guild's last quilt show.
In addition to the entertainment provided by the birds and squirrels, Patsy's cat's provide a show while they are hunting. They periodically come in, peruse the joint and then want out 5 minutes later to continue their passion.
Deb, Celia and I took a walk on Saturday after lunch and tried to show the beauty of the landscape. The temperature was much more moderate and we were greeted by many snowmobilers.
I always go and greet Patsy's girls...her chickens and unfortunately didn't get a shot of her rooster, who is simply glorious in his perfusion of color.

Patsy collects chickens like some of us collect fabric and the more unusual, the better.
She is not only a great cook and a wonderful hostess, but every meal provides a celebration:
This was our lunch sandwich.
Pictured with our wonderful dinner is our delightful hostess.
Colleen, Mary and I finally called it a day at about 2:15. It became the joke of the retreat that I didn't want to miss anything, so tried to get up early and stay up late so as not to have any regrets. When I came up from taking my shower Saturday morning the whole room was roaring in laughter. Of course, as if on cue, I said, "hey, what did I miss?" and they just kept on laughing. Well, turns out they did the laughing just to get me.......and I fell for it.

Friday, January 30th....I love my friends.....

I was up by 7:30, as was most of the people in our group of 6. Enid met us there on Thursday night and actually beat us by about 30 minutes. I made baked oatmeal for breakfast, which was a hit and we snacked on it all weekend. My sister has made that for me a couple of times and I love it.
I usually try to position myself so I can see the bird feeders and I am never disappointed.
This guy was bound and determined to get that last piece of suet..The acrobatic show was quite entertaining. But you understand, suet makes you very thirsty.. (if you click on the picture below to enlarge it, you will see this little guy's tongue lapping at the snow)
The birds on her feeder provide color and beauty that is incomparable.

To get the picture of this wood pecker, I had to slowly reach for my camera because they notice movement and scare easily.
Deb made some wonderful soup for lunch and we happily sewed all day while the rest of the retreaters filtered in.
After lunch, Deb and I took a walk.
The retreat from the back side. When we were coming back, we were very cold...
That's because it was only 10 degrees. But the walk was invigorating and helped us sew without much lethargy.
Patsy has such an eye for how to use old junk...reminds me of my sister...(not the junk, the creativity)


Kathy made this "petals" baby blanket on Friday.



Enid made this "slash and shuffle" quilt on Friday from the fat quarters she had won in our game last year. This was the project that Colleen showed us last year and was our quilting group's winter project day in March. She is going to back it in flannel.
This is me discovering what the "start/stop" button on my machine can also be used for. I thought that it was only to tell you when it was ok to start sewing....nay, nay my fellow Baby lock owners....you can disconnect the foot pedal and use it for long strip piecing or a long run....revolutionary!!!!
This weekend is becoming our tradition and we already have our names on the list for next year. We all got along great and just loved being together. Usually Patsy doesn't fill in the winter because many ladies are afraid of the drive and uncertain weather, so a smaller group is just delightful.

Thursday, January 29th, let the fun begin!!!

Our schedule for travel to retreat this day worked with military precision thanks to Deb (retired Navy nurse) and Kathy (our private little Sargent). Kathy's goal was to get the 5 or us in our van. Now if we were on a day trip, I would think that would be possible, but 5 ladies with 4 sewing machines, at least two supply bags per person and 5 over night duffels? Well, all of us with the exception of Kathy were skeptical. But, you know, she made it work and we did it!!!
This was my load alone without my duffel, and we all had at least this much.
We shop hopped on the way up, which was a blast. Our first planned stop was in Whitewater, but they open at noon on Thursdays. We went to a new shop to me in Fort Atkinson that I just loved; Backyard quilts. I found some very cute apron fabric. I purchased more reds and whites for a redwork quilt I am planning for next year at JJ Stitches in Sun Prairie. Also, drooled quite a bit in the 30's repro room there and bought a very cute basket pattern. We hit Millhouse in Waunakee and Deb and I both spotted a coordinating apron fabric for me. Our last stop before the final destination was Quintessential Quilts in Reedsburg. On the way up, my feet were killing me and I couldn't figure out why. I thought I had Candice's hiking boots on, but when the other gals hit a yarn shop in Baraboo and left me in the van to nap, I took them off and found out I actually had Catie's boots on. She is an 8 1/2, I am 9 1/2-10!!! So, when we stopped for groceries in Baraboo, there was a J C Penney's next door, and I went in and bought new shoe boots. One of my best purchases all weekend, because they are perfect for when it is sloppy, but you aren't going to be trudging through ankle deep snow or deeper. I love them and my toes are very thankful.
After settling in at retreat and popping a pizza in the oven, we started up our machines. I set these very unrealistic goals for myself at retreat every year, and this year was no exception. I thought I could actually get this one together before I went to bed on Thursday night, but the most I could do was piece the blocks and square them up and get it on the design wall. I crashed at 9 pm with only a 15 minute nap the whole day. It's hard to go after working the night before, but that was how my schedule worked this time.
I finished by noon the next day. Isn't it cute?? It's from the Happy Hour book. I was under the delusion that Happy Hour meant that all the quilts in it took only an hour to make. Then I read the fine print. "Every hour spent quilting is a happy hour". Oh......well, that's true....

Wednesday, January 28th, a snowglobe day

It snowed here most of the day yesterday and through the night but with very little accumulation because it was soft and fluffy, like little feathers. I thought it looked like someone had shook up a snowglobe and all of the stuff was slowly floating down:
I love watching this kind of a day, and usually position myself by a window to see the beauty that only Mother Nature can produce.
I will be taking a break for a few days as I will be leaving for my annual quilt retreat tomorrow morning.....stay tuned for lots of fun.

Tuesday, January 27th, getting over my fears

Was it FDR or Churchill that said "there is nothing to fear, but fear itself"? Well, I have been very fearful of printing photos here at home, or of using Photoshop. First I thought the pictures printed here would be horrible and professional places like Wal-mart or Walgreen's would do so much better. (hah, was I proved wrong!!!) Also, anything technical has always intimidated me, so I have steered clear of Photoshop. I even signed up for a free on line tutorial, but was too scared to walk through it step-by-step. Catie really has never had the patience to show me and when Chuck would start, I would get all glassy eyed. I think it took a neutral party to show me and that was Celia on Friday night. I started with printing some photos on Tuesday with Chuck's help and then I was willing to print more on Friday.
So there, HP printer and Photoshop, we are enemies no more and may even be able to share a work space.....
(by the way, the above photo and all of the photos from PADS night were edited through Photoshop.....next I probably should work on my photog skills....one thing at a time, my friend)

Monday, January 26th, PADS night

Last night, our small group served our local homeless shelter. The way it works in Lake County is that there is a central location in Waukegan and the people are bused from one location to another every night of the week. That way, the burden isn't too great on any one area. It is a service available for the 7 cold months of the year and the other 5 months, the people are on the street. My heart broke last night as I know we only saw a small glimpse of what is actually a huge problem, not only in this county, but around our nation.
The Lutheran church in Grayslake has been a PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter) location for a few years and Jean Hackbert in our small group has been active for quite some time.
Talk about a heart of compassion!!! We should all aspire to be a servant like Jean. She works at PADS 3-4 Monday nights per month on the 11pm-3am shift.
This is Ardy, the Shepherd of the Lakes site coordinator. She gave us a little orientation time.
Shepherd of the Lakes turns their sanctuary into a large dorm room on Monday nights.

They have a clothing closet, a nurse and physician on hand for medical concerns, a Bible study, an AA meeting, movies, games..you name it, they have tried to make these outcasts from society feel like they are taken care of and loved.

Last night our group purchased, prepared and cleaned up after dinner. It was quite an undertaking, but I have to tell you, it was just like a fine oiled machine.Angie, learning the finer points of Koolaid making. It was a totally new experience for her!!
There were quite a few teens there to serve the food and other tasks. While the meal was being served, there were about 5 of us continually doing dishes. We served Italian Beef, steamed vegetables, fruit salad, soup, tossed salad, pie and ice cream. The Italian Beef was donated to the Northern Illinois Food bank from Portillo's. Evidently they cut off the ends of the beef and give it to them and then we purchased 40 pounds of it for $7.20. Then Angie and Jean shopped for the rest last week.
My big roaster has come in handy on more than one occasion. Last night we served the Italian Beef out of it.Thank God for people who serve, like Jean, Ardy, Jon and Dave. They told us specifically that these people were our guests and to treat them as such. And with that in mind, our gals willingly became the hands and feet of Jesus. Above are the ladies that served last night...not pictured is Robin, who helped set up the sanctuary but left early because it was Erin's (gulp) 18th birthday. Marcy was also down with the flu.

Every time my judgemental nature welled up inside of me last night when I felt like someone was too demanding or came back for second and thirds on food, I remembered to whom Jesus specifically ministered. It was the outcasts, the downtrodden, the abused, and the misunderstood. Yes there are reasons that these people are homeless. They have substance abuse issues, they are ex-cons, they are mentally ill, or they have lost jobs, but it was an honor to have pruney hands for a night. It made me so thankful for what God has blessed our family with and to realize that in an instant, it could all be taken away.