The proof is in the pictures..........

that we all had a really good time at Heidi Kaisand's "Spring into Action" retreat. She pampered us with lovely gifts like those in the photo below. When we arrived on Friday evening, there was a basket filled with goodies for each of us and a real daisy in the cutest little vase. Everyone got busy sewing almost as soon as they arrived and it was so much fun to meet so many new quilters from near and far! We enjoyed homemade breads, cheese, fresh veggies and goodies for our Friday evening supper. And then we continued to sew..........

On Saturday morning there was a "Springtime" pincushion sitting by each of our sewing machines. Lunch was a "bag lunch" from "The Machine Shed" which is the restaurant next door to Comfort Inn and Suites where the retreat was held (and also right next to Living*History*Farms). We all received a kit from Heidi for a tablerunner and I'm going to share that project in a seperate post. :-) Sewing continued after lunch and then there was an afternoon snack of popcorn and more sewing. Dinner was a delicious chicken breast and broasted potatoes with salad and bread and..........are ya hungry yet? :-) There were fabric doorprizes right after dinner and I have plans for the fabric I won, so that's another post I can do. Then I think Heidi's gift of copies of American Patchwork Quilting magazine came next. She made personalized luggage tags for each of us and slipped them over the rolled up issues of APQ. The goodies just kept coming. I mean really good, goodies...........Oreo bon-bons. I'm not sure that's what they were really called but they were made with oreos and then covered with white chocolate and sprinkles. Oh, my gosh, were they good! There was a lot of sewing, laughing, chatting, and projects completed on Sunday and then we woke to another gift! Each of us found a covered notebook at our machines on Sunday morning! Oh, yes, we were pampered and I loved every minute of it. I needed a vacation after this long winter and Heidi's retreat was just the ticket! And to remember the weekend......as if I would forget it!.........I bought one of Heidi's Hen and Chicks charms. :-)

Now, it's time to share photos of some of the sewing fun that we enjoyed. You all know that I came prepared to sew springy things. I packed my project bag with lots of pink and green and got to the sewing fun almost immediately! This picture sums up my Friday evening.........

And by late Friday night.......or early Saturday morning, I had completed my quilt top!

Across the table from me was my sewing buddy, Sue. We had tried once before to come to Heidi's retreat but family events didn't work out so we couldn't make it. This time, though, we booked our space last fall and there was nothing that was going to keep us from this fun weekend! We had such a good time that we are still smiling about it two days later. :-)

Smiles were on a lot of our faces as one of the neat aspects of Heidi's retreat was that there was a Millennium long-arm quilting machine set up in the room across the hall from the sewing room. We all had the opportunity to learn about machine quilting and then actually quilt our projects!!! How cool is that?!!!

In the photo above, DawnCavanaugh is helping Donna Jo (left) and Melissa (right) to position Melissa's quilt on the Millennium. The machine quilting opportunity that we all enjoyed was such a gift that I'm going to share more on this in a seperate post next week. It will be the first post I do after my Good Eggs/Bunny Hop ends. It was all so interesting that I just need to share it later when I have more time. There were lots of projects quilted so I'll share those then. In the meantime, here are a few more photos from the retreat...........

Deb Peterson, from Illinois (owner of QuiltersGeneralStore ), put the finishing touches on this quilt top on Saturday afternoon.

Lynne Hagmeier is showing retreat guests the technique for her new design that will be at Spring Quilt Market. Lynne's website is here and her blog is here.

And here is Heidi with a lovely quilt top she finished for here son. Amidst all the prep and hosting, she completed this top and I am just amazed at her energy! Double-click on the photo so you can see the cute print that she used in this.

This is Cathy Gies and she is admiring her finished blocks. She is working on Heidi's "Echo" quilt pattern (you'll find it on her blog). Cathy had a great sense of humor. She made us laugh and made us sing. It was great fun! I'm her "new best friend" as she was coveting a bag I brought that I made from Nanette's pattern last fall. She tried to convince me to give it to her but I couldn't part with the bag. I did tell her that "you never know what might come in the mail"..........so she gave me her address. :-) And since a lot of you get packages in the mail from me, well, Cathy may yet get a bag!

There's just one more picture to share right now....

I finished my top on Friday night and on Sunday, I machine quilted it with help from Dawn. So what did I do on Saturday?..............I stitched up these pillows! I brought some finished tulip blocks with me and fabrics so I could make these for my quilty bedrooms. The pink one will go in my green quilty bedroom and the green pillow goes in the pink quilty bedroom. I'll also share more on these pillows, plus I'll give you the pattern for the tulip in a post on March 30th. These tulip blocks have been "planted" in my "to do" pile since 2003. I think it was about time they "blossomed" into finished projects!!

Sending out a big THANK YOU to Heidi for a lovely retreat!! It was wonderful!

Sandi

It was "sew" much fun!

That's right, Heidi's Hen and Chicks Spring Retreat was "sew" much fun that I am still smiling!! My friend, Sue, and I were so relaxed and sewed and enjoyed meeting so many new quilting friends and ......well, it was just wonderful! I have some pictures to share of the "pampering" that we received and some of the projects that were made. There will also be proof that I actually completed some projects but the photos will have to wait til Tuesday to be posted. I'm a nightowl but I stayed up later than usual on Saturday night and the lack of sleep has finally caught up with me. If you want a peek at the goodies and projects at Heidi's retreat, just click here. :-)
Just one more thing before I start singing "Good-night Irene" and head off to bed......... I'm going to be posting the info on the Good Eggs Giveaway and Hoppin' Down the Bunny Trail at 6:00 p.m. CST on Tuesday. Then on Wednesday, you can start hoppin' down the trail of blogs and have some spring fun!

Sandi

Packed and ready to go.........

My project bag is packed for the retreat.....................

It's filled with lots of pinks and greens and springy fabrics, some tulip blocks to work on and a couple of show and tell pieces. I need to add the blocks that I made last summer from all those pinks and greens and a few accessories and I am ready to go. One has to have their priorities in order, you know, and so packing this project bag for the retreat was more important than the bag that will hold my clothes. :-) Today, I'll pack my clothing bag which is slightly smaller than my project bag. Remember, fabric is more important than what I need to wear. :-) Plus, I am going for comfort this weekend, so I'll just need a couple pair of slacks, sweaters, socks, etc. and, of course, toothpaste and all that stuff. Anything I forget for that bag can be bought at Target. I am leaving all day Thursday to double-check the project bag so I don't leave some necessary fabric or tool on my sewing table. If I sound like I'm a little overly anxious and a bit too organized, well..........it's because I am really in need of a vacation and this is going to be a really fun weekend so I want to be prepared!

While I'm away, poor Kaiser will have to stay home with Steve and will probably mope around all weekend wondering where I'm at. I made him a new flannel blanket so he's certainly not forgotten. Plus I'll leave him some treats so he'll think he's at a doggie retreat! :-) And then when I get home, he'll act like he hasn't seen me in months, just like all dogs do when their owners go away and then come home. We should all be so happy to see each other, right?! LOL!

Re: the rising waters of the Minnesota River........the ice dam is breaking up but water is still rising. Our area is not going to get the worst of the flooding. No, it's the areas along the Red River who are the ones worrying now about how high the water will go. Unfortunately, spring flooding is a part of living near the river and it's not pretty. Once it is over and spring is in full bloom, the beauty of the river will return again. It's just a little tough getting through the days until that time comes............

Sandi