Exciting...

It's been an exciting weekend in that I got to work on my quilt top....and I got it completely FINISHED! I am very proud of the quilt top...my second quilt and by far the largest I've ever made. Here are a few pictures: The first one is just of the blocks laid out on the floor (before it was put together).



These two pictures show it after it's put together. Our bed is a full size bed and it's made to fit a twin...but it gives a good idea of how it will look. Most Double Irish Chain's are made on the diagonal. I saw a picture of a DIC in this book. I thought it looked very unique so I wanted to try to make it like that one. Joel had to help a lot with this aspect of it...he did all the figuring to make it work out! Thanks Joel!

So instead of the chain being on the diagonal it is in a straight line pattern. I'm pleased with the look of it.



Now I'll put it aside till November or December...until it gets cooler outside (and school work calms down). I can't wait to start quilting on it, but for now it feels good to have this part of the quilt completed.

A lot of work...

So this week I have gotten to work a lot on my quilt top. I have really gotten down to business. On Sunday I put out the blocks I had made for the top to look at it. I was almost halfway there. On Monday night I started making more strip-sets for the blocks and was able to get several done. Then on Tuesday night I made all but 11 of the checkerboard blocks. That means I made around 16 blocks in one night...that's a lot compared to what I had been making! Then on Wednesday night I made some strip-sets for the other block pattern and ironed them all down. Last night I got to work on it again, and I made the last 27 blocks! Then I finished up the 11 checkerboard blocks I had left....so that means....ALL MY BLOCKS ARE MADE!!!!!!!

I really did not expect to finish it this quickly. I just got in high gear this week somehow and knocked those blocks out. I hope to lay it out this weekend and start to put the top together. If I get this stage done I promise I'll post pictures. I'm so excited. My goal was to have the top completely together by December so I could start quilting it (always more fun to quilt in cold weather). I definitely think I'll make my goal time!

Now I just have to wait for the day to pass...so I can get home and work on my quilt top!

Dragging on...

I really can't believe that it's only Wednesday. I have class on MTW and none on Thursday and Friday thankfully. I think that because I have all my classes the first half of the week makes it drag on and on. I think I will like my classes this semester...they are not going to be easy but hopefully I can make it through. However, the comprehensive exams I have to take this semester to finish my up my graduate studies are going to kill me. I'm scared to death of this exam. Please be praying for me!

On another note, I am getting my hair cut on Friday. Any suggestions?

Craziness

Ok, so classes start today...and let's just say there is much craziness going on. There are so many students that don't have a clue where they are going! Most of the time I can handle the absent minded looks, and I even try to help the poor students. BUT, if I get one more phone call for the Financial Aid department (my number is only one digit different from theirs) I'm going to have to scream. Haha! I try to be as nice as possible. I even looked the number up for them and give it to them when I say sorry you have the wrong number. You'd think they'd be appreciative, but most of the time I get hung up on. That is not the reaction I was looking for from them! Oh well, hopefully it'll all die down soon once school gets into full swing...in about 2 weeks! (Hopefully I can make it that long)

On to a happier note. My friends and I had a girl's night out on Friday night. We went to Santa Fe Cattle Co. It is pretty good...I got a steak...yummy. Also, they have this chipotle bacon ranch dressing that is really good. Just a recommendation if you happen to go there! We had a good time catching up and visiting, and we even made a stop by Old Navy before coming home. Fun times! :)

Hope you're having a great Monday!

So...

Ok, so this week has been a little crazy already and it's only Tuesday! An update on the weekend...my quilting class was a lot of fun. I was the youngest in the class...that's pretty normal in the quilting realm. It's going to sound stupid I know, but I learned how to tie a knot on the end of my thread...it's a really easy technique for me now! It's important to have a good knot. I also learned how to easily hide my knot in the quilt and end it without any trouble. I'm super excited about learning those techniques. We also worked with stencils on a practice block. It was my first time to work with stencils...and I love them! So, my quilting class was great. Joel had a good weekend too, and we both enjoyed watching the Olympics the rest of the weekend.

Speaking of the Olympics, it is very entertaining to watch all of these athletes compete. I love to watch gymnastics and swimming...go Phelps...and last night I caught synchronized diving. That is amazing. I don't know how they do it!

Did you know that we have a Little Caesar's now? We are going to get a Hot'n'Ready pizza tonight and some crazy bread! Yummo. Actually I've never had Little Caesar's...but it's pizza, and I love pizza. So hopefully Little Caesar's will live up to my expectations!

So classes start next week...which means tons of students are back on campus. I can already tell a difference in the traffic...ugh. Hopefully it won't take an entire month this semester for the student's to learn their way around campus!

It's FRIDAY!

I am so glad it is Friday. This week has been good, but I always look forward to the weekends. Today however, time has been crawling! I can't believe it's not even 12 yet. Feels like it should be 3....or maybe that's just wishful thinking.

Joel and I are going to have some friends over for supper tonight...I'm cooking spaghetti. We will probably also be playing some Wii games. So we are excited about that.

Tomorrow is a pretty full day. Joel is leaving early in the morning to go to Birmingham with some friends and will be gone till late tomorrow night. I am going to a quilting workshop tomorrow morning...I'm excited about that! Then my Mom and I will eat lunch and go to Columbus to shop for some clothes. I am in desperate need of some non casual, but not super dressy work clothes. I have been wearing the same pairs of pants all month! But have no fear I'm going shopping tomorrow. I'll let you know if I find anything good.

Hope y'all have a great weekend too!

The big project I'm working on...

Well, I found a new hobby last December when I decided to make Christmas stockings. I had looked everywhere and couldn't find what I wanted so I decided to just make them...note: I had only sewed one other time in my life and that was a pillowcase with much supervision! So I asked Joel's mom to help me make these Christmas stockings and it turns out that I had the greatest time working on them, and I ended up making a tree skirt for us too. From there the hobby just grew and now I am always looking for some new project to begin.

I made a quilt for my niece in the spring, it was my first attempt at quilting. I found that I enjoy that activity too! So now I have two hobbies, haha. Here is a look at the quilt I made for Avi Grace...



Once I finished that quilt I immediately decided I needed a new project. So I looked around and finally found a quilt design that I loved, and I knew I had to make it. So I started on a Double Irish Chain. Let's just say I have a long way to go...but I am enjoying it! The quilt is going to be large enough to fit on a twin sized bed so I am excited about that. Here are a couple of pictures of my progress so far...



I'll keep you updated on the progress...my hope is to be at the quilting stage by Christmas...winter is the best time to quilt!

A few thoughts...

Ok, so Joel and I had to go and try out the new Sonic last night. We have been driving past it all month watching the progress, and it is finally opened. We were unsure where to park exactly because it is new so we didn't know where the cool side would be. So I guess we have set the standard for where we will park from now on! It's a pretty large Sonic and from where we parked you couldn't see the road because the building blocked it. At first I thought that was a little odd, but the more we talked about it that was kind of nice. It still has the "new" feeling to it, and the service was super quick. So all in all, we're liking the new Sonic.

I only have one issue with the new Sonic. I just really can't understand why it has a drive thru window. Can anyone explain that idea to me? I thought the whole point of Sonic was to drive UP and sit....either in your car or at the nice little tables they have out there. So I'm not feeling the drive thru window, but other than that it is good. You should go try it out!

On another note, I was reading about the bank robbery in MS that happened yesterday and I stumbled across the Marshall Ramsey cartoon for the day. I have heard of Marshall Ramsey before, but I have never looked at much of his work. A lot of it is quite hilarious. You should go take a look...http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=opinion04

You can look at the archives of older ones there too. I especially liked this one...http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Date=20080709&Category=OPINION04

Lastly, we bought the Wii Fitness game last night...so I can't wait to get home and try it out!

Beach Trip 2008

The girls in my family....plus my nephew took a trip to the beach this summer. I thought I'd post a few pictures of the fun. It's the first time I've been to the beach since I was 13... We had a great time.

A Saturday with lots of fun...

This weekend held a lot of fun for everyone. Joel's family was in town so we got to visit with them. We don't get to visit with the entire immediate family very often so when we do we take advantage of it! Both brothers were home along with their families. On Saturday we went to town and ran some errands and then spent the rest of the day hanging out at home.

I sewed a curtain for a friend...the first time I've made one (sorry no picture). It was surprisingly easy and a lot of fun. We grilled out burgers and hot dogs for supper and played some games with extended family. Around 8:00 a thunderstorm got stirred up and it was an amazing show of lights! At 8:30 when all is dark you could easily see the entire yard and road because it was lit up by lighting. Fortunately, we did not lose electricity!

The other new thing that I did this weekend was to cut Joel's hair for the first time. I know so many people who cut their husbands hair, but the idea just scared me. My sister-in-law Deborah was gracious enough to help me attempt the cutting! I was quite proud of how it turned out. We went to church on Sunday morning without having to make an emergency stop at the barber shop so I call that a success! I think I will be able to do better the next time...we bought some clippers of our own. I'll keep you updated on this aspect of our lives!

An observation I have made since I began working fulltime this summer is that the weekend seems to fly by! It's great when Friday gets here and before I know it I look up and it's Monday morning again. Not sure how yet...but we need to figure out how to make the weekend days slow down!

Off to do some reading now...