I love pumpkins and leaves!!! I miss the crisp fall weather that we use to enjoy in Michigan, the colors were so vivid and varied. Oh childhood! Have things changed that much or is it my old eyes? Hate hearing about bad days and illnesses - I will be praying for you all. Praying you have better days and of course happy times! I have canned 23 jars of tomatoes and now am working on stewed tomatoes - 6 jars in the canner. More to do, but decided to take a break and check up on you all.

My goodness you are all so-o-o-o busy. :thumbup:

I remember the days of work, then off to run errands, home to cook and clean.

I am liking this retirement much better.

Here is a pic of what I have been doing. Top is done, Orion's Star from Eleanor Burns.

ooooh what a pretty quilt! bet you did that as a quilt in a day right ? LOL... I see lots and lots of cutting and sewing and not a day quilt at all :)

Belfrey curious is it all pumpkins or only jack o lanterns that you do not do? would you prefer ONLY leaves? if somake sure your partner is given that information ok? wouldn't want anyone to receive something they are not fond of .. I know she would not like to work with Halloween at all so if you are wanting only Halloween make sure you let me know before I hand out partners! soon very soon.. its coming! Today is my baby girls birthday! she is.. 22. yikes where do all those years go? They grow so very fast enjoy them while you have them. I am now waiting for grand children to be part of my life. Yos my dear girl you dance MARVELOUSLY. and we don't get our todays back so your right tell someone you love you love them right now. Excellent advice. I send my HUGS to you and a big wet smooch grandma like kiss on your cheek.. (should I go put icky cologne on first?).. JUST FOR YOU> talk about scoring girl :)

I'll second that, what a gorgeous quilt, love blue and yellow anyway and your quilt is super!! Brat, I didn't get to go shopping yesterday like I thought, but boy did I today!! I am so excited, I went looking for falls and loved so many that I bought yards and half yards of 13 different fabrics! So watch out, now I just have to decide which ones to send. I will have plenty for the fat quarter swap, if I can part with any more, plus should have a great selection to chose from for a table runner. Have a hair cut tomorrow morning but after that watch out cutting mat. I will let you know when I get them in the mail, I know it takes almost a week for anything to get from here to Oregon, so I would think it maybe the same for you. YUMM, the store sure was full of eye candy!

Thank you for the compliments on my quilt. I loved the pattern, but not the size of the blocks. At 16 and 1/2 inches, they were monsterous to square up . :)
You are right- not a Quilt in a Day :thumbup:

Love all the paper piecing shown. I have not "wrapped" my head around t yet. One day.....

Yos- with all that dancing, you may cause an earthquake in TX. That flamenco is pretty furious :D

The fabric pictures are a real tease. I am still thinking and thinking and thinking.... Oops gave myself a headache.

By the way- all the food talk has made me gain weight already- but keep the ideas coming- always need new food to try :p

sapdoggie, that's a really pretty quilt! Love the way it turned out.
Got my fabric in the mail yesterday for this swap, now just have to figure out a unique pattern for it! Sorry Belfry, it's pumpkins, but they're not jack-o-laterns, would that do if I get your name? I promise to make it real special!!

if she doesn't care for pumpkins you can always make them for ME :) I love them. more than fall leaves ok maybe almost the same but the bright color makes me feel like a kid again. We used to go to pick them in Half Moon Bay as a kid and then spend all afternoon coming up with the perfect design. ended up with like crooked triangles but you knew you were going to have the prettiest one yet. I am sure mine was! I still buy them now .. don't usually cut them any more but love to have them sitting by the front door.. My mom used to make a big pot of chicken soup, carve out a pumpkin fill it with soup, bake it for a bit in the oven then serve it on the table in the pumpkin. boy was it pretty and she would scoop a bit of the pumpkin out into the soup also and top it with the seeds.. I did the same thing for my kids. Some traditions are not so bad.

Wow! Everyone is showing some beautiful blocks and quilts!! I am still in the stage of looking for the fabric! Waiting for something to jump out at me, plus I thought I better wait and see what me partner wants!
Sorry I have not been around much, was in the hospital for a couple days with kidney stones! Those things are horrible!! but I am back and getting a bit faster now!
I am willing to do either a Halloween or a Fall runner and I am good with either one in return since I still have two girls who love to go out! Plus they love to help me decorate the house!!

Good morning all. An electrical storm woke me at 3, had to get up and close windows and never did get back into a deep sleep. Elliott, my biggest fur ball golden is terrified of thunder and lightning so we snuggled on the couch but his panting kept me on the edge of sleeping. We needed the rain, just not such a downpour to wash gullies in the horse paddock. It's suppose to rain off and on all day so I see sewing in my plans, after I make a couple of pies. A dear friend came over yesterday and we picked a huge bunch of wild blackberries so hubby and a neighbor have requested pies, hubby wants to use so of our abundant rhubarb so I will make rhubarb blackberry pies - that will be after I cut my fat quarters to send out!

Got two different ones started.

One has a center square with a fabric that reminds me of what would be in a cornucopia. Wish I had more of that but it was in a box of scraps and was the only one.

The other blocks I'm doing combine fabric with colorful autumn leaves and with pumpkins.

I don't particularly do Halloween either, just fall.

First block I did with the leaves and pumpkins was way too busy and all you saw was a mess so I switched the orientation of the pieces and it made all the difference in the world. Was afraid it wouldn't work at all, but now I like it.

Morning! I can't tell you how many projects I have started only to say.. oh heck no and well too far in to save most of it so it hits the trash. We are our own worst critics is right. But honestly, you do know.. if something is working foryou or not. Its not a secret and there is nothing worse than trying to finish a project you inherently hate. Ugh its like drudgery to the tenth degree! So how nice we have a bit of time here to play with things. I have a couple options now I see someone here has little ones and likes Halloween. I have lots of Halloween blocks begging to be made into a runner. One of my original goals last spring winter was to use my Halloween blocks to make gifts for my kids and friends this fall and well here it is fall.. did I do it? NOOO but maybe one runner could be had. I was going to make one for a angel runner but no one truly is hot on Halloween so plan B. lol.. my life is a whole lot of plan B's.

Today is going to be a peaceful day in the Brat household. I have declared it so it must be. Wish me oodles of luck with this one :) the man who is unemployed is not happy (mild understatement) and my oldest son is seriously unhappy (mild understatement) and well I am going to sew. heck with them. I am going to be happy.

ok randomness here: I have this great dream, in my aunts house which I haven't been in 30 yrs big old rambling Spanish style home.. Keith Urban is there (who would have thought) and well I HIT ON HIM OMG .. and he turned me down. talk about a keep it real girl dream lol I woke up laughing.. that guy has the stringiest of hair and his aussie accent is about as cool as he thinks he is.. what was going on with MY brain? and my baby girl was 8 or so in the dream. she is always a little girl in my dreams. what is with that? oh for those of you who analyze this stuff don't tell me I don't want to know. probably means I shouldn't eat plums before bedtime. yikes. (hope I gave you a smile there me ancient me hitting on some American or what not idol guy. yikes twice). smile yos, your not alone :)

sapdoggie - that is one beautiful quilt! I love blues and yellows together - but yet to make one - what's with that!! Thanks for sharing your beauty!!

'Brat, that sale site you got me into has shipped my fabric...WAYYY more than I need for sure...so when it comes I'll be able to think about this runner. Got a couple of things locally and still waiting for major inspiration. Meanwhile, you've started multiple ones and trashed them already? What's up with that?!

Hope you have a happy day and some of that happy rubs off on the men in your life!

oh no not this swap just in general everyone starts projects that we hate and don't finish :) just saying its ok to shift gears in the middle of an idea, especially if its a bad one. Oh my fabrics came in and I LOVE them. I don't get it I picked up 8 yrd 5.60 shipping Jan tried it and it was double. she lives down the road! my silly favorite of course is the skunk fabric. Steve instantly said can you make me a shirt with that? UH NO I don't make shirts and one yard of skunks wont do ya sorry. lol.

I just checked out fall colors on pinterest gorgeous pics .. and then went here to check fall runners for ideas:
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=...rs&FORM=HDRSC2

billions of them! ok not billions but lots to get killer ideas of color combos for sure :) I hear cows in the fields outside..oh boy that is neat. The little things that thrill the brat to be sure.

Sew! Cut! peak at ideas! then share them all with us!!! oh and if you haven't signed up, you should this is a great swap with all great swappers right ladies? this swap has a whole bunch of new swappers and I want to extend a hand in inviting you to join the regulars here in becoming one big happy team .. we do some amazing things truly. I know your input will be welcome and enjoyed!

Brat!

So, now that the blue/white/yellow is done and ready to send to the long armer- as soon as I win the lottery which will be when I find a dropped ticket, or someone "gifts" me the winning ticket- it is time to think runner.

Why do they call it a runner- my table doesn't go anywhere ? Oh I know- runs off when food is not acceptable- like kids when veggies are offered.

Brat- just go to your happy place and let the guys deal with their moods- easier said sometimes though.

Retiredfirechief- I have two dogs that are not happy with the thunder and lightning. One has loud noise issues and the other has light issues. Spend many nights with both of them trying to hide under the covers. We have managed a compromise by putting up a gate outside our bedroom door. The dogs can go in the laundry room and bury themselves in their fleece blankets.

One would think there were naughty movies playing in the house with all the panting and pacing going on. If it gets too bad,I take them to the grandkids room and let them up on the bed.Not much sleep happens, but at least hubby can sleep in the other room.

This is Pepper- the one with noise issues. She wants to hide behind me and bury her head. Good thing I have a big recliner.

I had a wonderful dog for me many many years who was petrified of noise. One fourth we left him in the yard but left the house back door open so if he was scared he could go in. We lived in CA where fireworks were illegal. Went to the inlaws. Big mistake. Came home he was gone. He didn't go in the house. the dug under the rock hard dirt to get out of the fence ran up the hill into a home and stayed there shaking. We came home horrified he was gone and posted 100 signs.Finally the couple came home from work and called us. Said he ran in and wouldn't move. This was a german shep/husky dog. Big dog. lucky for us they were good with animals and didn't run him to the shelter. I have never left an animal home alone on purpose on major events like that or during storms. my own cats go into hiding no one would know I have them when the thunder here hits. there is a cupboard they run into and stay .. tough trying to talk them into being comfortable then isn't it?

ok off this darned board! sewing here I come!!! lol til the phone rings of course..

OH sapdoggie, I LOVE her!!! She is precious!!! I have one that has issues with storms; however, even worse issues when the power goes out. With the HEAT this year again...the power grids are struggling, so some nights we have brown outs. I swear that dog knows the second the power goes off. He starts whining and crying and pawing at me (not like the room wasn't already dark) and if I don't respond it gets louder...the big baby. Once I get him calmed down, then the lil man realizes his nightlight is out and starts screaming bloody murder!!! Oh dear, then off to get him and bring him with me to lay in bed and then the big baby dog jumps up crying and whining...goodness, craziness at my house!!!

Working on organizing my stash...oh my, my stash is HUGE...time to get busy on projects and thin it down some so hubby will let me buy more!!! :D

I think I'm having a better day today. Didn't want to come to work today. Lil man got BIT BAD yesterday at school. It's about the size of a silver dollar and my lil man cried and cried. I got him a good bath last night, cleaned it all up, put more neosporin on it and ice. This morning, looks MUCH better. The director didn't get pictures yesterday and wanted to get them today...however, the bite is almost healed. Director asked me what I do to make it go away so fast and I told him. He was amazed, I think, that with a little bit of TLC, some neosporin to make sure there is no infection and ice to bring down the swelling that it looks so much better. I had to send him the pictures I took last night for the files at the school. The other kid bit and didn't let go until the teacher got there and had to pry him off of my kid. I was NOT a happy momma last night. Took my lil man home and we snuggled and watched a movie. He was a happy kid after that!!! :) Today...not so much, did not want to go to school. Had to convince a 3 year old that it would be ok. We will see...waiting for a phone call...

BTW, le brat...I'll dance again but only if you provide the music!!! and not Keith Urban!!!

Thanks Yo- Pepper is as spoiled as they come. Just can't resist those eyes. Her sister- Angel is equally spoiled- gets the best spot on the couch!

When we were having power issues, I put one of those solar lights that stick in the ground in each room. Had to put them in a can with the points down. There may be a way to take the stick off- just didn't take the time to do it. I think I saw a post of someone putting them in an empty water bottle with sand in the bottom- not sure.
That way, when the lights went out, room still had light. Works great in the bathroom !
In the morning, just put the light back in the sun to recharge. I keep a bucket of them charging. The last ones I got were after the 4th of July- on clearance.

Now- need to get back to the machine- much more fun to hang out with friends on the board. We need to create a sit and sew time across the internet so at least we will get something productive done :D

Not to sight my fur babies- here is sister ( angel) She dos not like the camera, so it is hard to get a good picture. The flash hurts her eyes.

Love the chatter going on here! I am a newbie for this swap. Hope I manage to do a great job on my table runner for whoever I get. I am sort of new to quilting in general. Mostly have made children's quilts,placemats, and tote/purses.
I love fall and scarecrows. Scarecrows just say fall to me!
Went out yesterday and bought way more fabric than I need for a table runner, but if I am making one, may as well, make a couple for gifts!
I called it fabric therapy! We are still recovering from the flood that hit us last month. We have lived here since 1974 and never had a problem until 2011 and last month. And it scares me that we are under a storm watch for this afternoon with high winds, large hail, and major downpours. Anyone have a HUGE UMBRELLA?
Love all the fur babies! We have two dogs and one huge, love able cat. The dogs are Czar, the brown one and Sombra the black one. And the kitty is Nicholas. Now hope I can manage to attach the photos. I think I did it!
Laurel

Thought I'd share a good laugh :) This is my darling little Frankie (my Avatar pic) after a bath. Bloom kinda falls off the rose doesn't it?
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Oh my hope we aren't all going to the dogs ! (and cats).

Taking a break from decision making- fabric is fun, but mind gets overwhelmed by choice. Perhaps I need to clean up and clean out - um-m-m-m-m Not Today !

So, here I am working from home today and some one says, you should join the table runner swap on QB. It will be fun. Here's hoping I am allowed to join, since I haven't been in a swap in years.

If it helps, I love fall and my favorite colorway is warm tones. HInt HInt

Ok...Ok...here are my 2 fur babies...

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Here is my momma dog Miss Rusha. I've had her for 11 years and she is my heart. Her fur has had numerous tears. She has been there for me through everything. She is a mutt/rescue dog that no one wanted. I wanted her and I have loved her ever since! Hubby says her breed is "fence jumper" whatever jumped over the fence that day.

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This is my big baby Max. He is a puggle and a LARGE puggle at that. Someone abandoned him still on a leash. Broke my heart. He used to shred EVERYTHING; however, as he has gotten older he has settled. He has a lot more gray now than he does in the picture. He suffers from seperation anxiety really bad. He found a forever home when our home was broken into and he barked and barked and barked. However, I know he found a forever home when my hubby brought him home and I told him DO NOT NAME IT! My husband's response...I think I'll call him Max. Darn it...the dog is now ours!!! :)

This is my Abby, she is having surgery today on her hind leg, torn tendon. So, please send puppy hugs and prayers for her. As you can tell, she loves fall colors too!

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I don't mind pumpkins if they are mixed in with other items or even part of a Thanksgiving-type cornicopia. I just don't care for the ones with faces on them -- too Halloweenish for me. I really prefer more of a general Fall/Autumn theme since the table runner can then be used all the way up to Advent/Christmas.

I was just looking through my stash for fall fabric and realise I don't have any. Plenty of blenders in orange, brown, yellow, fallish red, but no prints. Not even one. I'll have to remedy that situation really quickly! I see a shop hop in my near future! :)

I sent a message in to sign up for this event - I have some wonderful fall fabrics that will be perfect for the waffletime table runner. If I end up in halloween I have a fun skeleton that I made years ago (see below photo) that I could try and trace around and applique - funky stitching around the edges would create a challenge - hmmmmm something to think about.

Oh I completely feel your worry!!! I've done the TPLO surgery with my Rusha twice!!! Puppy prayers!!!

So I see there is more arm twisting going one here. Welcome to the crowd. Hope we can keep a smile on your face and craziness in your heart. !

NOw you can recruit another person ad they can recruit another person and so on and so on.......

Hugs and prayers for all of our fur babies. They do become instant family members :)

@belfry - I have prints, not blenders. :D We could combine our stashes :thumbup:

Who has more pictures of fabric ???? I need help here !!!

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I just got done making these blocks for a project, and when I went to lay it all out, I did not like the outcome. I love these prints and colors, just have to find a different lay out for them.

But maybe I could get some more of these and use them for a pattern for my swap partner. But what if they didn't like these prints. (could there be someone out there that won't love these fabrics!)

Chickadeee55 - those blocks are AMAZING!!! I love the sunflower batik!!!

love the batik blocks chickadee - I really like the sunflower batik fabric - I'll have to see if I can find some of that for myself.

You can always send it to me. Another idea if you want to do a side swap, pick me gladly I'd do one for those fabrics!!:thumbup:

Love the blocks chickadee :thumbup: I can see a great table topper out of them!

OMGosh....why couldn't I live really close to you...two of my favorite things to eat - wild blackberries and rhubarb!! (hang on, gotta wipe the drool off the keyboard). Please eat a few pcs for me..;o) OR, you could freeze me one, then pack it w/ice packs and SEND it to me...hahaha It wudn't thaw if you sent it over-nite. ;o) Well, I can dream can't I??

There, think I got it.. LOLO My boxer is the same way with storms, she just shakes so bad it's like setting with a vibrator!! I've considered getting the Thunder Jacket. You know they have to be miserable. All we can do is hug them..lol

Chickadee - l love those batik blocks. If you get me as a partner, just send them "as is"!

I found some great fall colour batiks today. Our local quilt shop has closed but one of the owners moved the left-over fabrics to her garage and they are only $4.00 a yard. I'll wait to see if my partner wants fall colours or fall prints. But if colour, then I'll probably use the one on the left in the design. I really did fall in love with it. I like the other one also, but it is more delicate looking.
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PICK ME, PICK ME !!!!!!!! (Waving madly)