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Wednesday, November 28

Giveaway winners and.........another giveaway you could win.......


Yes, I have the winners of all of the giveaways from last week and I'll tell you about another giveaway just as soon as I share those winning names.  Here they are...............

All those lovely fabrics from Jacquelynne's  "O Holy Night" collection go to...........

Winner of Day 1 Giveaway (November 19) is.....
Happy*Cottage*Quilter

Day 2 winners (my Hostess Cupcake day) are..........
Cheryl's*Teapots2Quilting and Mary*on*Lake*Pulaski

Day 3 winner (Counting blessings) is........
Christine at MacDonald's*Patch*Blog

And the winner of Day 4, my Thanksgiving left-overs, is Marie at The*Watermelon*Diva and she lives just down the road in St. Peter so I can deliver her left-overs in person!!

Day 5 winner of the panel and fabrics is blog reader Gale, Kentucky Quilter.

And the final winner of the stocking panel of Day 6 is Kate at By*the*Babbling*Brook !

Whew! That's a lot of winners! I have all the fabrics packaged and ready to mail so as soon as I hear from the winners, I'll get their fabrics in the mail!

And now, if you'd like a chance to win the items you see in this photo, then you must go to Jacquelynne's blog and check out her great giveaway. Just click HERE and you are there!


Thanks to everyone of you that entered the giveaways. I enjoyed reading every comment and am still answering them!  Thanks to Jacquelynne for sharing her fabrics!
Next post..........crazy quilting!!
Have a great day!
Sandi

Monday, November 26

What's on the line?


It's a re-run "on the line" today. I figure if Jay Leno can do re-runs, so can I.  :-)
I've been very busy packaging the fabrics from last week's giveaways and doing Christmas stuff and cleaning.  I've been so busy, that yesterday afternoon, I had to take a nap and I never got out to the line to take a photo.  This is not a large quilt, but I posted the photo large so you can see the detail of the little quilt which measures about 15" square. It was about this time last year that I posted this quilt. Just go here to learn how you can make the little quilt.
I want to thank all of you for the awesome comments during last weeks giveaway days. Jacquelynne's fabrics are very popular. There is still time to enter each giveaway. Winning names will be drawn Tuesday evening, November 28th at about 8:00 p.m. CST.
 
Your advice on my border problem for my tabletopper was very helpful. I almost left the corner as it was but then I kept changing my mind. I didn't like the corners as they were but I wasn't crazy about the green squares either. And then, I took the border fabric and laid it at the corner.........
I cut a small piece, folded over the edge, and pinned it across the corner....
then stitched it in place and I like the way it looks. Now I need to decided if I will add more poinsettia fabric or another border strip.  I'll share again when I make that decision.  :-)
On another subject.................
I thought I'd share that I have been reading a really good book recently. Have enjoyed a chapter every night before bed and was almost done.......when............ Kaiser the Wonder Beagle seemed to think there was nutritional value in my book and ripped it to shreds and then ate almost all the cover............
 
Oh, yes, he did and oh, yes, I was not happy! Fortunately, he ripped up the first 68 pages and not the last pages in the book. I have just one more chapter in the book and will finish it tonight. It's called "Ciao Bella" and is a story of a young woman and soldier in Italy in 1945. The author's are Gina Buonaguro and Janice Kirk. I bought the book at the Dollar Tree store for just ........ one dollar.  It was a great buy! I was planning on sharing it with my daughter so guess I'll check the Dollar Tree and buy a second copy. Kaiser took lots of outside reading breaks today. ;-)  I'd like to think he won't do this again but he seems to be going through a "terrible two's" stage. However, he's "four times two"!  I'm beginning to think I need a baby gate to keep him out of my stuff. I hate keeping the doors shut to every room just to keep him out of trouble. Closed doors in the winter months, mean cold bedrooms.  :-(
 
That's all for this Monday. Hope your week is off to a good start! I'm going to be doing some more Christmas decorating. Love, love, love this time of year! 
Sandi
 

Sunday, November 25

Time for a rest!

 
After six days of giveaways, I am taking a rest. Church this morning and then I'm going to come home and relax with the Sunday paper and a cappucino. Then it's time to gather up the remaining fall decorations and replace them with Christmas greens. And then.................. I think I will make another quilt block similar to this one.............

 
A little over a week ago, I sent this one off to Victoria at Bumble*Beans*Blog.  She had a bunch of these vintage Santa's and offered to send two each to anyone who would take one and make a block to send to her (the block is 12-1/2" square but I cropped it to the size above). I love that Santa is whistling while he works.......or is he just whistling and twiddling his thumbs instead of working?  Who knows? Anyway, I used some vintage green print to surround Santa and then the red and white polka dot fabric is actually a border print that I cut and mitered just right to frame Santa. The green polka dot has been in my stash for many years. I've always thought it would be a fun thing to make Christmas blocks from my stash of Christmas fabrics and maybe if I make a block with the extra Santa, it will be the start of those blocks I need to make a Christmas quilt.  Do I need to start another project? Well, of course, not. Do I want to start another project? Well, of course, I do!  Be sure and check out Victoria's blog in the coming weeks because she will be sewing her blocks together and quilting that top before you can say "Santa Claus is coming to town"!!!
Wishing you all a quiet, relaxing Sunday!
Sandi

Saturday, November 24

An Anniversary Giveaway!


Today is our 44th wedding anniversary. I thought I'd add one more giveaway to this week of giveaways in celebration of this day!  This is another panel and fabrics from Jacquelynne's fabric line "Joy~Peace~Love~Noel". It will go to one lucky winner..........


Last summer, I gave one of the stocking panels to my quilting friend, Jackie, and here's what she made for her grandson, Baxter.............

It's adorable, isn't it?!! And all you have to do for a chance to win the stocking panel and fabrics is leave your name and tell me this...............if you had a pet reindeer, what name would you give it?  If I had a pet reindeer, it's name would be Lizzy. That's right. Lizzy. Now get busy and leave a comment with your pet reindeer's name. I'm looking for some good humor here.  Good Luck! Winner will be announced on November 28th about 8:00 p.m.  ;-)
Have a good day!
Sandi



Friday, November 23

"You'd think it was winter" Giveaway!

Oh, my, here in Minnesota it was in the 60's mid-day on Thanksgiving and then about noon the wind came up. Then about 4:00 p.m. snowflakes started to fall. And the temperatures began to tumble. And oh, how it blew late last night!!! Yes, Winter was making it's entrance for sure! That got me to thinking about my giveaway and that I promised to share more of Jacquelynne's fabrics. This panel is from her Joy~Peace~Noel~Love fabric line from last year. I gave away one of the panels and some fabric bundles back then. Last night, I realized that there had been three panels, so I am keeping one for me and someone is going to win this one...........

I'm also adding some yardage in the snowflake prints and the winter critters fabrics. You will be able to make something fun and festive for this coming Christmas!!

And speaking of Christmas, I finished decorating the tree for our living room on Wednesday evening. It's almost identical to the way I decorated it last year. There's a reason for that but I'll share that another time. I just enjoyed seeing it decorated. I love the tree at night. This photo was taken mid-afternoon on Thanksgiving and that dry grass you see through the window almost looks like snow but it's not.
I just wish I could get a better picture of the tree. This photo really doesn't capture the "magic" of the tree that you can see "in person". I like to put my tree up early and I keep it up long after Christmas so that I can enjoy the magic for as long as possible!
 
I hope that you all enjoyed a lovely Thanksgiving. My husband baked the turkey and he felt it wasn't quite as tasty as usual. We are thinking we will try an organic turkey next year. His sister brought the pumpkin pie. It was a big 12" pie and everyone said it was very good! For the first time ever, I skipped the pie due to my gluten/egg sensitivities. However, there were Hershey's Kisses so I did not suffer. LOL!
Sooo............... How can you win that panel and fabrics? Well, leave your name and then tell me your favorite winter food treat.  I love a good cup of hot cocoa. And today will be a good day for at least a cup or two!
Have a good day!  And if you are out shopping today, I hope that you find all that Santa needs to bring!
Sandi

Thursday, November 22

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Wishing all of you a wonderful Thanksgiving who celebrate the holiday and to those in other corners of the world, I wish you also a wonderful day!
Now, I said there would be a giveaway every day this week and I have a fun one for you. First you must answer this question..............what do have when you are finished eating your Thanksgiving meal? Think hard now.......

No, the answer is not a stomach ache..............The answer is Left-overs!!! There are always "left-overs/scraps" and they are the best part of the meal in my opinion. And when I make something with fabric, I always have "left-overs". And so..........I have "left-overs/scraps" from four of Jacquelynne's fabric lines and I will put them in a box and send them off to one lucky winner. Just leave your name here and that's all you have to do for a chance to win my "left-overs"! 

Winners of all the giveaways this week will be announced on November 28th. Good luck!
Sandi

Wednesday, November 21

Counting our blessings!

This past month, I've been really busy coordinating a Silent Auction fundraiser for our church, St. Paul's UCC here in Henderson. It was a lot of fun and it raised funds! Can't beat that, right? I gave the fundraiser a name.........called it the "Count Your Blessings Silent Auction". I talked about how when we count our blessings and then share what we have, it makes even more blessings. The concept for the auction was simple........congregation members were asked to bring a themed basket or just some item that could be placed for bid. It could be handmade or store-bought. I loved seeing the items that came in and then I took them and "flouffed" them. In other words, I took a few items and put them together to create one bid item. There were no gift certificates for restaurants or spas, no oil changes or anything like that. These items could be new or used and that's what made it fun. I've been doing Silent Auctions with non-profit groups for years and the format is a simple and easy way to raise some extra cash for a church or organization. As you can see in the photos below there were items for all ages..........

On this table there was a basket full of kids craft supplies, a nail polish assortment basket, children's books, a bin full of tools.........etc..........
A popular item was a rug made by Marvel Tesch and more baskets and decor items.........
There were a couple of "home movie" baskets filled with movies, treats, popcorn and in that cute popcorn container..........
Candles and Christmas greens, Red Hat items and a really popular item was the Jolly Green Giant!! We live just a few miles from LeSueur, MN and the valley that is home to the Jolly Green Giant.
My big purchase was a basket full of Christmas candles and goodies............
The event did more than raise funds, though. It created fellowship. It was something different and folks had fun doing this. I got to know some folks in the church that I had never talked to before. One was Elvirda Bird who embroidered a set of beautiful dishtowels. They came in after I took the photos and I forgot to go back and get a picture of them. Those who know me well, know that I rarely miss a picture opportunity but perhaps I can get a photo before they are picked up by the winner.
And speaking of winners................yep, it's another giveaway. I appreciated all the advice on what to do about the corners on my tabletopper. I am going to try a couple things on one corner and if it doesn't work, then it won't be too much to rip out. In the meantime, you can leave your name for a chance to win some of the poinsettia fabric in a blue colorway............
There are six fat quarters........oops! a little edit here ... I don't know what I was thinking because there are four fat eighths and two fat quarters in this grouping..... in this collection. Just leave your name, and this time tell me what little blessing has happened to you in the past week that makes this a good week!
My little blessing this week?..........hmmmm........let me think on that..........there was more than one thing that is making this a good week!!
Have a great day!
Sandi

Tuesday, November 20

Hostess Cupcakes, Twinkies and another giveaway!

There are many things making the news these days, and many things are more important than the end of the Hostess company. How-ever............
I cannot lie,
I had to buy,
I did not cry,
I just gave a sigh.  

I don't know the details and maybe it's management of the company or maybe it's the union, I only know that Hostess was the stuff of my childhood and I hate to see it go. My mother would send me to the store for a loaf of bread or milk and I remember that it was a good day, if there was enough left for a treat. Sometimes I bought a 3-cent chocolate Lunch bar but if I was really lucky, there was enough left to buy a Hostess CupCake. I loved those chocolaty cakes and that cream filling. I seem to remember they cost about 12-cents for a package of two. Yes, I am seriously dating myself by telling you how much I paid for these things when I was a kid. I was not a Twinkies fan, though. They just had no chocolate in them so they weren't on my food pyramid. LOL!  So, with news that the company would cease to exist, I had to take action! We were headed to the grocery store last Friday to get our Thanksgiving turkey and I told my husband we had to get some of these............
I got the last two boxes of CupCakes at the Cub Grocery store that we shop at. There were plenty of Twinkies left then but now I hear they are hard to find. We put the goodies in the freezer and figure we'll enjoy them at Christmas, just for fun. Now the funny thing is, though, as much as I love my cupcakes, I am sure they were fresher and more tasty when I was a kid. And that's the truth!
Now, I promised there would be a giveaway today and there will be. And sorry for anyone who thought it might be Hostess Cupcakes or Twinkies. Nope, it's gonna be fabric. But first, I have to share this gorgeous photo.....................
And then again..........I cannot tell a lie, I did not grow this gorgeous plant. Nope, it's the "green thumb" of my friend, Connie. I had to share this because it's gorgeous, but also because yesterday, blogger Kate (of By*the*Babbling*Brook blog) left a comment on yesterday's giveaway.......
"Love all those fabrics. I hope some of your lucky rubs off on me, Sandi, and I win!!!!"
I replied back to her and said "I totally understand the lucky rub. Yesterday afternoon, I rubbed the hand of my friend and our postlady, Connie, in the hopes that her "green thumb" would rub off on me. Am attaching photo of her gorgeous plants that adorn our little post office so you can see why. ;-) " 
And then I thought, I must share this with my readers! I may not be lucky enough to have a "green thumb" for real plants but I do have a real touch for "growing" artificial flowers (okay, you can't really "grow" artificial flowers) and I love to work with floral fabrics. So finally, here's the scoop on another giveaway...........



Yesterday, I showed you that I was working on this tabletopper from Jacquelynne's "O Holy Night" fabric line. You can see the entire line by going here. So, I have a problem and I am seeking your advice. Notice the little green squares at the middle of the bottom of the photo.........
They are there because I need to fix a corner problem. I cut strips of the border fabric in Jacquelynne's line and sewed it around the pieced center section. I realized the corners should have been mitered. However, I don't want to rip it out, so I thought maybe I should just put a green triangle in each corner, like when one is making a Snowball block and that would make it look better. Any ideas are most welcome.
Just as I loved Hostess Cupcakes when I was a kid, I also loved the number Two. I think that's because my birthday was on the second day of the month but whatever the reason, I like the number Two and consider it my lucky number. Maybe it will be lucky for Two of you as this is what is offered for a giveaway today.................
Two colorways of the poinsettia fabrics in Jacquelynne's fabrics! In addition to the four fat quarters, you'll also get some of the border fabric shown in the first photo of my "tabletopper in progress". Just leave your name and a way to contact you. And then be sure to hop over to Jacquelynne's blog......... The*Noble*Wife and say Hello!  Many thanks to her for sharing her fabrics!
There will be two winners for this Giveaway day. Comments open through 8:00 p.m. on November 28th. Winners will be notified and will have two days to reply! Fabrics will be mailed out on November 30th so you'll have time to make something lovely for this Christmas!!

Have a great day!
Sandi


Monday, November 19

What's on the line?

I took my "on the line" photos last Wednesday. Had to do that as last Thursday these quilts "on the line" went off to New Jersey with my friend, Monica Meyer Javens. She is giving a week of her time to make a mission trip to New Jersey to help folks affected by Hurricane Sandy. She's writing about her journey and you can read her blog here. It's called Minnesota Love Going East!!!  Very appropriate!!
There are many quilt drives going on now for the victims of Hurricane Sandy. When I learned that Monica was making this mission trip, I offered to send a couple of quilts and stuff, and to ask members of the Kindred Kwilters if they would like to send something, too. And they did!
First up............this quilt is a joint effort of my friend, Cathy and me.
We made it several years ago to donate to the local women's shelter. I did the applique center and Cathy did the big "quilt as you go" borders, then surged the edge of the quilt.  I thought the surged edge made it look unfinished and always intended to add a true binding. I finally did it! Cathy passed away in 2009. She'd be pleased this quilt is headed east as she grew up in White Plains, New York. :-)
Next up is a Christmas patchwork quilt that someone made when we did quilts for Iowa flood victims in 2008. It was summer so a Christmas quilt got set aside until now.  I added a red velour binding and I hope some child loves the quilt. Now as you know, it's a little windy up here on the ridge..............  
          
Oh, yeah, really windy! I almost gave up and then finally managed this shot........
Along with the two quilts, I gathered mittens and scarf sets, two men's insulated vests (new ones that were bought for my dad and never worn), a couple of purses, stickers for the kiddies and those yummy Land O'Lakes cocoa mixes to warm up the workers and those who have lost their homes. There's a sweet blue baby blanket an awesome knit Christmas stockings that were sent too late for the Iowa flood victims so off they went to New Jersey!
And then there were quilts from members of Kindred Kwilters. Here's Sandy Shaugnessy with an adorable child's quilt that she finished at 6:00 p.m. and our meeting started at 7:00 p.m.!!! Awesome!
That's Diane Wild on the left and she quilted this "rescue" quilt top, so called because it's a garage sale find which she "rescued". She wrote a lovely message on the back of the quilt for the person who will receive it. Thanks, Diane!
 
On the right in the photo above is Dottie and she had a pile of quilts to donate, at least four or five.  She had them in her car and when the meeting was over, we just tranferred them to my car, then later to Monica's car. :-)  Big thanks to Dottie! 
And here's Ruth with a quilt she made for Hurricane Katrina but did not have a way to get it to anyone and so she said........"I guess it was meant for someone affected by Hurricane Sandy"!  Thanks, Ruth!
There were also some hats, mittens, and other items that were donated and after our meeting I delivered it all to Monica. I laughed when I saw all the "space bags" that held all the stuff folks have donated. I was worried things might be popping out her car windows as she cruised down the road but she had it all under control with those awesome "space bags". They really, really work!
So, in addition to gathering stuff for Hurricane Sandy victims, I've also been working on a Silent Auction at church and then playing with fabrics........lots of fabrics from Jacquelynne at The*Noble*Wife. And I decided that I would share a couple bundle with my quilting friends at Kindred Kwilters. So, I put together two bundles........."O Holy Night" on the left and "Fruitful Hands" on the right.............
Somebody wrote all the members names down and then had me draw a winning name. Guess what name I drew?  Ha ha.........my own name. It was too funny!  Obviously, I drew two more names and had two happy winners. And so now.......how about a chance for one of you to win this little fat quarter selection from Jacquelynne's "O Holy Night" collection?
Just leave your name for a chance to win! I'm working on this project with some of the other fabrics in the "O Holy Night" line...........
and in my next post, I'll be giving away some more of Jacquelynne's fabrics with these lovely poinsettias in the design. And all you have to do is leave your name. Every day this week, I'll be giving away fabric. Thank you so much, Jacquelynne for sharing your gorgeous collection!
All drawings will close on November 28th and fabrics will be mailed on November 30th. You'll have them in time to make something Christmasy for this year!!! Go now and leave a comment and be sure to stop by every day this week for more chances to win!
Have fun!
Sandi

Sunday, November 18

Reflecting.............

This time last Sunday I was sewing and singing, practicing the National Anthem and America the Beautiful. I was asked to share both songs at the local Veteran’s Day observance here in Henderson. I love to sing and I may not be good enough for The Voice or anything like that, but I do my best and always feel so relaxed after singing. It just makes me smile. J  And while November 11th was the official Veteran's Day, it fell on a Sunday so it was observed on Monday. It was kind of like having two Veteran's Days. The local Veteran's participated in at least three ceremonies, two of them here in Henderson.  The first was at Hilltop Elementary. Adjutant Vic Leuders did a great program that got kids involved in answering why we observe Veteran's Day, naming the Armed Forces, our Commander in Chief, etc. There was a variety of answers! 
After the program was over at Hilltop Elementary there was a dinner that was served to the Veteran’s. At each place setting there were special placemats drawn by the 4th and 5th grade students. Because I sang for the program, I was invited to the dinner. I considered it a real honor to be seated with so many who have served from WWII to Korea to Vietnam.  Before sitting down to eat, I read almost all of the placemats. They made me smile to see what they drew and wrote. When dinner was finished and before the tables were cleaned……….I took these four placemats and wanted to share them with all of you............




Now, I don't the names of any of the young artists but I thank them for sharing their patriotic messages!
After the program at Hilltop, we went to the program over at the Minnesota New Country School.  The featured speaker there was a helicopter pilot who flew many missions during the Vietnam war. His first name is Ray and I do not recall his last name. He mentioned an interesting fact, that this Veteran's Day was the first one to not have a living WWI Veteran. The last WWI Veteran passed away in February of this year. Now I must apologize because here is a local WWII veteran who celebrated his 102nd birthday!  I was invited to join the party because I had sung during the day. My friend, Bert, is on the right and he invited me to join the men and their wives as they celebrated this occasion. My friend, Arden, is on the left. I promise to find out the names of the veteran serving up the birthday cake and the veteran who is celebrating. Thanks to both, to all the men and women who serve in the military!!
I look forward to singing in future observances that honor those serve! 

This post was written on Sunday afternoon, November 18. And just as I wanted to publish it, we lost our Internet service. We didn't get it back until this Monday morn. Just glad it was finally restored!
Sandi

Saturday, November 17

Out and about to New Ulm!

I've been so busy lately that regular blogging has just not been happening. Two weeks ago today, my friends, Laura and Sharon and I took a "day out" and headed over to New Ulm, MN. Yes, it has taken me two weeks to get around to writing about it. But here it is and we had a fantastic day!!
First, though.........if you are not familiar with New Ulm just go here. You'll learn all about this great Minnesota city and it's connection to Germany. Interestingly several years ago, I visited Ulm, Germany but had never been to New Ulm which was just fifty miles from where we lived at the time. Funny how that goes. Now I live just about 30 miles from New Ulm but even now, this was only my second visit. Years ago, I visited with my daughter, Collette and we are planning to make another visit next weekend. It's the Christmas theme that is drawing us back to New Ulm. On this day with Laura and Sharon............we were in pursuit of quilt shops. Imagine that?!  LOL!
Our first stop was The Thimble Box on Main Street. We have just arrived and Sharon is heading toward the back where she spied a Thimbleberries panel she had been wanting.
That's Laura checking out lots of brights...........

The samples in the classroom were lovely but it was this little vintage sewing machine on the worktable that caught my eye............
and then I loved this yo-yo pumpkin and his yo-yo buddies. That snowman looks like he's melting, don't you think?

Some of you may remember that I was planning to not buy any fabric for this year. I did say though, that if I took a vacation or some special trip, I could buy fabric. And so, I must tell you that yes, I bought something............the panel in the center below. It's a Christmas gift for someone so don't tell. And that makes it okay to buy because it's not really for me. :-)
Next stop was lunch at Joni's*Restaurant&Catering and it was really good. We all had grilled chicken sandwiches and enjoyed just savoring the time to visit with each other!

From Joni's we headed to Lambrecht's and oohed and aahed over all the lovely Christmas decor...............

And while there was no fabric at Lambrecht's, there was this wall of scarves that really wowed us. We happened to be there on the day of their Christmas Open House so the store was bustling with shoppers..........all women! And that's because it was opening weekend of deer hunting season here in Minnesota!! Oh, and if you are wondering did I buy a scarf. Nope, I didn't but Laura did. I treated myself to a really pretty necklace that I'm saving for Christmas. I might have to buy a scarf when I'm in New Ulm with daughter, Collette.......... :-)


 

The second quilt shop that we visited was Spinning Spools. The entrance is that arbor covered walk-way and to the right of Laura and Sharon there is a lovely garden. I'm sure it's prettier when in full bloom but it was still lovely even in autumn.
Shop owner Val can be seen at her cutting counter. To check out her shop on-line, just go  here. And yes, I bought a fat quarter here and it's a gift that I can't show you or someone will know it's for them! As we were leaving the shop, Val gave us a card for craft shows that were being held in New Ulm that weekend. They were at various homes and businesses and the event was called "Gnome Made". Cute, huh!
One of the craft sales was at the Lind House. If you get a chance to visit New Ulm, you will really enjoy the homes and architecture on the cities streets.
The Lind House is available for events but is not open to the public on a regular basis so this was a treat to visit the home. The handcrafts that were offered for sale were lovely but it was the interior of the home that fascinated me. Look at that wallpaper in the dining room and the fireplace and mantle. It was even more lovely in person!
  To learn more about the Lind House just go here.
Another house on the "Gnome Made" tour was the Wanda Gag house. You may be familiar with author Wanda Gag and her book "Millions of Cats".  It was such a charming little house. That's the three of us on the front porch of the home (thanks to the kind lady who took our picture!). 
Inside the home there were ornaments for sale on this Christmas tree and lots of felted wool mittens and other goodies. Again, it wasn't the handcrafts that caught my eye, but the paintings on the wall. They tell the story of the U.S. Dakota War of 1862. To learn more about this house and the panels, just go here.

And so, you can see that we definitely had a fantastic day. I love to spend time with my quilty friends. So relaxing and sew special!

More quilty friends to tell you about soon and other stuff. Today we put the Christmas lights on the front porch but once we made sure they all work, we turned them off until after Thanksgiving. Husband Steve brought the box with the big Christmas tree up to the living room and tomorrow I'll start decorating it. That's after I get home from church and the wrap up of our Silent Auction event. Will have to tell you about that and also coming up is news on friend Monica's mission trip to New Jersey. And then there will be a little bit of giveaway fun that will begin on Monday. And here's a secret..........there will be a giveaway on Tuesday, too. Also, one on Wednesday. And even one on Thanksgiving Day! And it's all thanks to a special blogging friend. Stay tuned!

Have a lovely Sunday!
Sandi