Present Time and it's not even Christmas yet!

When my buds and I met to see Mary's Chilhuly quilts this week, it was also time to celebrate Mary's Birthday!  No, I forgot to take a picture of the birthday gal but I did take pictures of some of the gifts WE all received that day!   First one was a birthday gift!

First off, I saw on FaceBook a post by Ami Simms on this really cool light for your sewing machine.  Now a lot of you in Michigan, as well as other states, know Ami from her quilting/teaching days.  She's now retired from teaching but still posts on FB.  I saw her comment on the Razon Sewing Light.

 I trust if Ami thought this was a great tool to have that I'd purchase one!  And with Mary's BD approaching I ordered one for her too! 

This was Mary's present...in fact, this is Mary's machine with the light already attached!  I have to admit I haven't been in my sewing room to even put mine on yet!

You can see how bright the light is!  It's reflecting on her acrylic sewing extension.   I hope to get in my room sometime this weekend......

Next up, our bud, Carol (who I've also posted about!), made these beautiful note cards.  Carol gave each of us a group of the cards! 

Carol taught herself to make them and is now working with her Friends of the Library group to make them  for selling.  How cool is that!  The cards are stenciled onto book pages then once dry covered with a watercolor type dye/paint, dried and glued to card fronts.  They really are beautiful....almost too pretty to use!!!  Thank you, Carol!!!

And another present from our bud, Lois Ann (another friend who I also have blogged about) gave us each a bag of Ghirardelli candy and just by luck I received my favorite!!!!!  Dark chocolate/salted caramel!  I love these!!!!!  And it was just the luck of the draw!!!  Each bag was different!  It's funny because LA usually gives us chocolate covered cherries, which I love and only get at Christmas from her!  But thanks, Lois Ann!!!!  I love Ghirardelli dark chocolate candy.












 

Before I forget, when the kids were leaving on Sunday, MaryJo gave me this towel!  Is this cute or what!!!  I love it!!!!





It's beginning to feel like Christmas around here!!!!! 

Where did the week go!

Well, I sure as heck don't know where this past week went!  We got home on Sunday and picked the girls up from the kennel.  Not sure if they were happier to see us or if we were happier to see them!  Regardless, it feels normal to have us all together again.  And before I write about the lost week...HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to my son, Darrin and his wife, Kris.  28 years ago...seems like yesterday to me!

Monday I had my art meeting and show some of my work I've done the past four months in Florida.  And, of course, I got to see some art from my buds!  I've asked before to share some of their work and I'm sure they won't mind this time as well.













My bud Carol is really getting into painting...she's working on a quilt for her nephew but it's taken a few years to complete!  HA  Only because she's busy doing her watercolor work, which is fabulous! 
These are some of what she's been working on!  She is actually taking online classes from Val Webb, who I wrote about in a previous post.

I'll check with my other bud, LA, to make sure she doesn't mind me sharing her work she's been creating of late.  She too does a lot of watercolor work but has now put her focus and talent back into art quilting!  Which she is superb at! 

After our meeting, I picked up the girls to drop off at the spa, then met Carol for lunch, stopped at grocery store, picked up girls,  made dinner...yada...next day was looking for new glasses and to pick up Bob's new car (Terrain, which he loves - this is his 3rd Terrain).  Wed. did some more spring cleaning, oven cleaned, laundry then off to Amber's Lacrosse game...she scored a goal right off the bat for her grandma...but they lost.  Thursday, more cleaning, off to dinner, dog walks, yada, Friday was back to look for glasses, Nick's LaCrosse game and in between physical therapy for my sciatic!  Which is doing SO much better!  I am a believer in exercise and finally convinced Bob to even try some today for his shoulders!  AND guess what!  He said he feels so much better!  DUH!  Now to get him to do exercises daily!  Taking bets as to whether he keeps it up!!!

I'm on the road!

Yep...I should be on the road headed to INDY to be part of a sew-in with four other ladies until Sunday!  I am hoping to get lots of hand work done since I'm not taking my machine.  Just all my hand projects.

So to show some artwork on my blog today, I asked my 'talented' friend if I could post pics of her latest art work from our August fiber meeting and she said "yep"!

Carol has been taking several online art classes...mainly watercolor and she does a great job.  She certainly has the talent for painting and drawing.  In case you don't recognize this 'lady' or 'girl', it's one of the Kardashian daughters!!  I think she does look like the younger one, who I think this is.

 Anyway, enjoy work from one of my talented friends!  I'm so lucky to have so much talent surround me!!!!  I took these pictures as Carol was working on the piece and bringing to our fiber meetings.  This is the first painting we saw a few months ago.

In progress...looking good!!!

And the finished painting!!!  Really nice, isn't it!!!!

So hope to have lots of pics from our weekend!!!  That is if I can put my sewing or drink down long enough to take a picture!