Oh Baby...

You know those moments that make you realize how old you are? I've had one of those recently.

Waaaaay back when I was 19yrs old, I met a life long friend. When we met, she had a little baby.. named Kayla. I watched Kayla grow up over the years... she got married.. and now she is expecting her first little baby.

Here is her belly... I love this picture.

So when she found out she was expecting - before she even knew if it was a boy or a girl.. she wanted the Sock Monkey theme.

I offered to make the nursery items for her and her sweet hubby.

As soon as she found out she was having a girl.. I was secretly hoping she would change her mind and go with something pink and super girly. Since I only have boys.. I was dying to do something pink.

But we moved ahead with the sock monkey and honestly, it turned out so cute!!

Here is a snapshot..

And a close up of the bumper pads.

And the curtains..

And a pillow..

This is the back of the pillow..

But, when I drove the 4 1/2 hours to deliver it all, we discovered that the crib skirt was too long. So I had to bring it back home with me and shorten it a bit. So here it is hanging over my kitchen island since I don't have a crib in my house to display it.

I used this pattern to make the skirt - but shortened to only 14 inches long.

Her is the insides of the pleats.

I have a few more blankets that I'm working on for her. She is just days away from delivering. I can't wait!!!

Blueberry Butter.. YUM

So when we decided to move all the way from Arizona to Minnesota.. I knew what I was getting myself into. I grew up in North Dakota so I know what winter is all about.

But one thing I didn't realize, is that Blueberries are all around us every summer! We used to pick Choke Cherries and Raspberries when I was a kid, but never Blueberries! Who knew!  I love Blueberries.

So, when I came across a recipe recently, I was super excited to give it a try.

You've heard of Apple Butter right? I have a recipe for it on my sidebar. Well, what about Blueberry Butter?!! Eh?? I know!

I have adapted my recipe from THIS ONE. I'm not a fan of things super sweet. So I added a few more Blueberries and cut the sugar in half.

And the best part - you make it in the Crock Pot.

Blueberry Plum Butter

6 Pints of fresh Blueberries

5 Plums

1 Cup White Sugar

Juice of 1 Lemon

Wash Blueberries and remove all the stems. Wash Plums and cut in 1/2 to remove the pit.

Put Blueberries and Plums into food processor and blend until you have a puree. Pour puree into Crock Pot and cook on HIGH for 1 hour.

Reduce to LOW and cook for 6-8 hours or until it has reduced and consistency is thick like Apple Butter. 

When you in the final hour of cooking remove lid and add Sugar and Lemon Juice. Cook for final hour and then spoon into 1/2 pint jars. Recipe makes 5-6 1/2 pints or 3 pints.  

Enjoy!!

FNSI Winner!

I love the Friday Night Sew-In.. I really really do.

Can you beleive that Bobbi and I have been hosting these for 3 YEARS!!! Wow, time really flies when you are having fun. We have decided to make one minor change to how we do the FNSI. Instead of making you post your results on Saturday, and doing the drawings on Sunday, we have decided to give you all weekend to post and we will do the drawings on Monday evenings from now on.   

I am sewing again this evening. My work schedule this week doesn't look like it will be too mentally draining. So I will hopefully be sewing every night!

Anyway.. on to the good part. Bobbi and I each drew a winner for a prize from all the FNSI participants. This month, I will be sending my winner a Charm Pack of this adorable fabric "Cherry Christmas" along with some goodies from my FNSI Giveaway box. It's full of fun stuff.

My winner is #75 Lisa Ann from http://lisaannslife.blogspot.com/

I am in love with her granny square pin cushion. I.want.it! I've recently added the granny squares to my long wish list of future quilts.

Congrats Lisa Ann - send me your info and I will get this fun little package in the mail to you!!

Don't forget to check Bobbi's blog to see who her winner is over there.

A Home for Santa and his Mrs

I'm not quite finished with my projects from the FNSI - So I will share them later. But I did finish these at the beginning of the evening.

You may remember this post when I attempted to make a quilted bag to store my ceramic Santa and Mrs. It didn't work out so well.

Needless to say, they have been siting on the window seat in my dining room since January. Yeah.. please don't judge me.

So now that summer (or the end of) has arrived, I noticed how cheap the fleece was at my local discount fabric store. I decided to grab some dark red along with some gold satin rope and make some simple sacks to put Santa and Mrs into.

So I brushed off the nice thick layer of dust and slipped them inside without problem. YAY!!! I love these and they look just like Santa's gift sacks too!! Ooooohh.. that just gave me another idea! These were so simple to make - maybe I should get some more fleece while it's dirt cheap and make gift sacks for under my own tree each year! How cute would that be! Maybe a tutorial is in order.

Now for the big question... do you think they will make it to the attic before it's time to decorate for this Christmas?

Prepared and Excited

I just spent some time getting 2 projects cut and ready for Friday Night Sew-In.

One thing I have learned from doing these FNSIs over the past 3 years is that the key to success is preparation.

I am ready!! Now if I could just skip work tomorrow....

August Friday night Sew In Sign Up!!

Yay Crafty Vegas Mom for coming to the FNSI rescue this month!!

It's just days away and Bobbi just posted the sign up this month. So head on over to her blog and sign up!

www.craftyvegasmom.blogspot.com

I know exactly what I will be working on. How about you?

Time For A Redo

Do you shop on Craigslist?

I rarely buy things off Craigslist even though I look frequently. But I made a purchase yesterday.

I found this awesome Quilt Rack for $20!! Have you ever seen a Quilt Rack with a bottom drawer!? It's my favorite part.

But I should probably add in $10 for gas since what should have been a 20 minute trip turned into an hour because of 1 wrong turn. But it's all good.

Now I just need to decide how to refinish it and make it fresh and new!!

I won't be able to work on it for at least 2 weeks though. Even though it's been calling my name today. I am sewing and workin hard to finish a project. And next weekend, I will be traveling. But after that.. I'm goin to tackle this makeover! And hopefully by then I will have a plan!

**update** I rec'd an email from a reader, Jan, who let me know this is actually a saddle rack. It totally makes sense! The drawers are for combs and brushes. And the horseshoe handles on the end are for holding the bridle. I love it even more now. Thank you Jan!!