A Little Update....Just for the Fun of It

There isn't a link up at Freshly Pieced today, but just for fun, I thought I'd track my progress for the week anyway.

1- I completed the 18th Skill Builder block.  I love how they're looking all together now.

2- I'm up to date on my Blogger BOM.
3- I made a bag for each of the boys for Christmas.  Little Man and Little E (Cousin) are both getting a wooden train set for Christmas and inside each of the bags is a train from Thomas & Friends.  I know perfectly well they will only care about the train and not the bag, but I still think they're cute.

4- I got a Christmas block done, so I need 6 more to finish off the quilt top.  This is #36- Christmas Memory block:   (I love the little present in the middle of the sashing)

Stats for the Week:

New projects - 2
Completed projects - 2
WIP- 3
No progress-  Ladybug Quilt & Halloween Wall Hanging

What are you working on?

Letters of Gratitude

This past week's Activity Days fell on the last day of November, so we made Gratitude Cards.  Each girl made three cards expressing gratitude for 1- someone from church, 2- someone in their family, 3- any person they chose.  They made the cards themselves - I was impressed by their creativity. 

Our newest addition to the group is slightly under aged, but she's so cute we've decided to let her tag along with her mommy.

Getting My MoJo Back

It always takes me a couple of days to get back into the rhythm of life after vacation.  Unpacking, doing laundry, and keeping children happy (who had gotten used to way more attention than just a boring 'ole mom can give them) makes me tired.  When I finally got back to sewing it felt so good!

(I'm linking up to BOMs Away Monday at What a Hoot):

1- Skill Builder #18: Flying Geese- I'm officially half way done with this sew along and am totally loving it.

2- November BOM (#3):  Split Star

Waterfront Paradise

Joel and I were lucky enough to be able to get away for 24 hours to celebrate our 5th anniversary (A huge thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Thompson for crowd control while we were gone).  We headed down to the Chesapeake Bay.  We stayed at an adorable 1800s Bed and Breakfast Inn outside of St. Micheal's, Maryland. 

  This is the view from the porch off of our room:

 We actually stayed in the annex next to the main house.

There was no TV or Wi-fi.  It was perfect for us to just get away and unwind.  First thing we did: sat on the dock and watched the sunset.  The unseasonably warm weather was the cherry on top of an already fabulous evening. 

So relaxing......There goes the sun:

Once the sun was long gone, we headed to town.  Since it was off-season the entire town was pretty much shut down by 5pm, so there wasn't much in way of window shopping, but that's alright.  We headed to dinner at a really cool, local restaurant.   We don't eat a whole lot of seafood, but when staying at the Bay how can you NOT branch out?!  We had crab cakes and rock fish and Joel also tried ceviche (made with salmon) for the first time.  The highlight of the meal was actually the orzo sitting in a basil remoulaude.  Yum!!

 The view is just as nice in the morning.  :)

The best part of the trip? (Besides spending time together alone- obviously):  Waking up at 7am, cuddling for a couple minutes and then rolling over and going back to bed until 8am.  With a son that regularly gets up by 6am, it was sheer decadence.  Yay for sleeping in!

For Your Reading Pleasure

Here are some lovely books about Thanksgiving:

I love turkey sandwiches the day after.  Ok- who's weathering the storm of Black Friday today?  Maybe I should ask if you've already been out since practically everything opened at midnight this year. I still haven't decided if I want anything badly enough to deal with the crowds today, but we did have a little fun at Toys R Us yesterday. We waited out in the cold for two hours to just get into the store. Call me crazy, but I thought it was a lot of fun. My husband was totally a good sport and went with me, but he has informed me that it's not an activity he plans on repeating. Hee Hee. Happy shopping everyone.

An Extra Special Thanksgiving

Not only is it my favorite holiday, but it's also my five year anniversary today!!!  I can't believe how it feels like we were married just yesterday and yet it also feels like we've been together forever.  Does that make sense to anyone else besides me? :) 

Happy Anniversary, my love!  It's so wonderful to be married to my partner in crime and best friend.  Here's to another year as amazing as the last.  I love you!

Last Minute Progress

It's been an odd and extremely busy week.  Anyone else feel like sometimes getting ready for vacation is just as much work as a regular job?  We're on our way to the Commonwealth State (aka- Pennsylvania) for some fun Turkey Day celebrations with family, but I did manage to get a couple of things done before we left. 

1- I got one Christmas block and a Christmas table runner done (blogged about here).

2- Skill builder:  I was hoping to get it done before leaving, but the only thing I was able to do was cut most of the pieces out.  I guess this will have to wait until we get back.

3- This is most exciting finish of the week- I made my first pot holders!  I seriously love them.  I'll definitely be making more.  They're not too difficult to make - just a little thick under the machine.  I used My Girl Thursday's tutorial.  I used slightly different materials, but LOVE, LOVE, LOVE how they turned out.  Here's what the back looks like:

Stats for the Week:

New projects - 3
Completed projects - 3
No progress-  Ladybug Quilt & Halloween Wall Hanging
To do this week:  Eat lots of turkey! :)

Oh, and check out the other WIP at Freshly Pieced!

Poco a Poco

(Little by Little- I just think it sounds better in Spanish)

Block #5- All About the Presents

I got one Christmas block done and then everything came to a screeching halt with the trip to the ER.  It threw me off my rhythm, and I've just barely gotten back to sewing this weekend.  Happily, this table runner came together quickly for me.  I love how it turned out.  It's based on "Color Me Happy" by  Rachel that I found at Moda Bakeshop.

 I liked her idea of using modern freestyle lines for the quilting. 

It took me over 3 years to get around to finishing the first table runner, so I'm thinking 2 days is quite an improvement - pretty phenomenal.  Now I'm on to the next project. 

Happy Sunday!  Hope you have a nice, relaxing day.  I'm teaching my first ever Relief Society lesson today, so wish me luck.  Day of Rest is more of a figurative title when you have 2 little kids with you at church, but it's a nice thought. :)