Just a quick visit to wish you all a very Happy Christmas and a Peaceful New Year.

Santa came to see Freddie and Jude and Freddie seems to like him a lot, what a special time of year this is for small children, my grandchildren like all the other children are having a wonderful time, each day brings something magical, they see lights on peoples houses, Santa,s and Snowmen and suddenly trees appear in their houses with pretty lights and lots of wonderful things to touch and wonder at, Christmas has always been a brilliant time in our family even when we didn't have much money to spend it was still very precious, my son Andrew is an infants teacher and is absolutely exhausted but he has  just produced a Christmas play and has found it very rewarding for him and the children but I think he will definitely need his Christmas holiday.
Tony and I are going to Birmingham tomorrow  to stroll around, have lunch and just have a lovely day, my shopping is done my wrapping is nearly done and I am beginning to relax a little.

Here are a few more photo,s from London, The Rudolph was in Covent Garden it was huge, the other  photo's are  of one of the Selfridge's window I loved it because it had Santa's train going around the mountain full of parcels Lovely!

Hi Everyone, Tony and I have been in London for a couple of days, we went to see the lights and have a walk around the shops especially Hamleys Toy Store, we bought toys for Jude and Freddie, we also went to Foyles bookshop and. got them some lovely books.
The lights were wonderful, we walked the length of Regent Street and Oxford Street my feet are a bit sore today
The Snow globe was in Piccadilly  Circus over Eros, we also went to Covent Garden Market which is very upmarket a bit special;
Before we came home today we had a lovely breakfast in a French restaurant it was delicious. The photo's below show The Queen on her throne and the royal wedding all done in Lego, the little man peeping over Williams arm is my Tony.

Here is a Baby quilt I just finished, it's labelled and ready to go to a baby called Seth, I did a quilt for his brother Laurie who is now 18months old and Seth is brand new.

Here is my other quilt which has taken me forever to quilt but I love it, it will be a present for someone next year but , I  want to keep it for a while because it has taken me so long to do, Kathleen nagged to try one of these quilts and I am glad she did.
How is everyone's shopping going, it is getting a bit crowded now, we had a lovely day yesterday we did food shopping and Christmas shopping Kathleen also managed to buy herself two lovely tops from Monsoon, we both love that shop and spend ages walking around oohing and aahing , I bought my daughter a dress for Christmas it is truly beautiful, we then went next door to Accessorise and bought earrings so, a good day was had with two stops for coffee and munchies.

Sorry it has been so long since I posted we are still very busy working on the Bungalow and Christmas is fast approaching so I am busy with shopping , I am enjoying buying things for Jude and Freddie. I have also been finishing a quilt it is now complete I will take a photo and post it for you to see, I love it I think it's the best one I have made.
I hope you are all well and getting ready for Christmas, it is such a busy time of year and I don't really enjoy it until Christmas Eve when I can relax and know there is no more I can do other than cook the meals, we are going to my sons this year as my kitchen is in a state of flux and I wouldn't trust my cooker to cope, we have done such a lot of pulling down, filling holes, plastering rubbing down and much more, we still have to rip out all the cabinets and lay a new floor but I think we will have a bit of a rest through December and have some time to ourselves, the carpet for the bedroom is coming next Friday so that will be another room finished I am really looking forward to putting my pretty things up in the bedroom it will be my little oasis.
I will post my quilt soon.

Jude and Freddie

Jude and Freddie  are so lovely, I love this photo, we will see them tomorrow and I cannot wait.
Tony and I have been busy today sanding walls in the bedroom and I have started stripping paper in the porch. Kathleen called in this morning and I walked to the Dr.s with her where she got results and her cholesterol was normal, I think she will celebrate with a bacon sandwich.
The tickets arrived for the Malvern quilt show we will go on the Friday, it's a lovely show we love it, because it's small and you get to see everything, I am quilting a large quilt at the moment and it is taking me ages to finish but it is looking lovely. I have started a baby quilt for one of Kate's friends who  had a litte boy last week,my life is full and happy and I am very grateful.

Hello Everybody, we took time out from decorating on Tuesday 24th to go to Leeds to see Rod Stewart in concert at the new arena, it was BRILLIANT! we have been fans of Rod since forever and have been to lots of concerts but we hav'nt been for a while so this was a real treat, he was so good we loved every minute and sang along with all the songs especially Maggie May. We arrived in Leeds at lunchtime and as we had never been there we had time for a good look around, they have some lovely Victorian Arcades full of nice shops and the indoor market building was amazing, I spent all my time looking up at the balustrades and balconies, very pretty all in all we had a good day.

I would love to make some soap, I have no idea how you do it but I would really like to try, Kathleen and I spend hours in TK Maxx smelling the soaps they are so gorgeous one of my favourites is Violet this smell is so sweet and reminds me of when I was a small girl and every Good Friday my friend Jean's Grandma used to take us to Peddars wood and we would pick Violets and Primroses and take them home for my Mom for Easter, the smell in the wood was wonderful and the flowers like a beautiful pale yellow and violet coloured carpet. such happy innocent days. Does anyone have a failsafe way of making soap?  I would love to know.

This a picture of Kathleen (cottonreel), it was a beautiful day and we had  been to the hairdressers, we are in a village called Market Bosworth which wins a lot of awards for it's lovely flower displays, it also has some nice little shops which we love to browse, Market Bosworth is famous because of the Battle of Bosworth where Richard 3rd died, recently there has been much excitement because they found his body under a car park near the cathedral he is to be interred in the cathedral. The coffee and cake is good in Market Bosworth too.

Hello people, I am still here, the picture above is of my Beautiful Jude and Freddie they get more precious every day.
We are still working very hard on the bungalow, we now have a completed conservatory with  tiled floor as soon as it is furnished I will post a picture, we have carpet in the lounge and our furniture should be in  place within the next two weeks, I actually emptied 3 more boxes yesterday it was lovely to find my Chintz China and put it on the shelves.
Kathleen and I have been to the NEC quilt show since I last posted, we had a great day, spent too much money as usual but saw some beautiful quilts.
Our little sewing group is having an exhibition of some of our quilts so that people in the village can see what we do, there are some lovely quilts and smaller pieces too.
I cannot believe that summer is drawing to a close I do so love the light evenings when it is still daylight at 10.0.clock, now the nights are drawing in and soon the winter will be upon us, I am trying to think of something I like about the winter but there is not much. My son Andrew is getting married next July so we are looking forward to that, I am busy making bunting their theme is Garden Party so there will be lots of flowers about tied to trees in jam jars and all sorts of containers.
I will post again soon !

Hats galore, these are hats for Age Concern, they are put onto Innocent Smoothie bottles in the supermarket or any where  the smoothies are sold and for every bottle sold 25pence goes to age concern, Kathleen and I have been knitting them, they are so easy to do just 28 stitches and then you decorate them, apparently it has been going on for a few years and they have collected lots of money to help elderly people through the winter, I do have a pattern so if anyone would like to knit  them I will post the pattern.

Here is a selection of photo's of our Bungalow  it looks quite pretty from the front and we have just had the conservatory built, it is nearly finished the plasterer is coming tomorrow, the bedroom is awful the fitted wardrobes are far too big for the room, we have started to take them down can you see the 1960.s orange paint which is under the wallpaper, the lounge the room with the garden chair and lots of boxes has been stripped, painted, had all the electrics done as they were dangerous, we also removed about 12 black beams from the ceiling they were awful, we have shelving to fit and a new fireplace surround to fit also, then we can have a carpet fitted and I can get new furniture Yippee!
The garden is a nice size but it is quite a mess we have had a huge beech tree removed which had a fungus infection, we have to relay a patio and replace sheds, there is probably a lot more and I will show you pictures as things happen, the kitchen is drab and awful it still has a few beams which will come down and we will strip it completely, as you can see we still have masses to do but it is all doable, will post more soon.

I am still here, still painting walls and skirting boards, we are working very hard to get sorted it's coming together slowly and I can see our new home will be lovely when completed, the walls for the conservatory are up and they are coming to do the glass next week then we will lay the tiles, we did manage a couple of days away and on the way home called into  garden centre, I saw the rose you see above it is called  Nostalgia and smells absolutely beautiful.
The weather here is gorgeous at the moment very warm, I am hand quilting a large quilt at the moment that is keeping me sane I also want to start making bunting for my sons wedding I have a year but they want a lot so I must get going, We are going to see my in-laws tomorrow and my daughter and her two boys are joining us, great grandma is excited.
Time for bed I will try to post more often have a lovely summer.

What a glorious day! Cottonreel and I went shopping today we had a lovely time, I bought two pretty skirts and two pairs of shoes all from M&S we both bought perfume and Cottonreel  bought some knickers, we had coffee and toast and a bit later on we treated ourselves to ice cream. On the way home we called in at the garden centre and bought plants and seeds, I have managed to plant my front garden but I am waiting until after the conservatory is built before I tackle the back, I did spend a couple of hours yesterday ripping out a very rampant Ivy it had really run riot and was starting to choke other plants, tonight I am going to sew.

Hello People I am still here, we are still incredibly busy with decorating and electricians and conservatory builders, tree felling people and many many more things but in between  I have been able to make and complete a cot bed quilt for Freddie, It was lovely to just sit sometimes and do a little sewing.
Cottoneel and I had a good day at the Malvern Quilt show, it was a glorious day of weather for a change we saw some lovely quilts and got lots of ideas, the fabric was so gorgeous and we did buy some I also bought a new cutting mat because it was a really good price and mine is getting very tatty, we finished up with a lovely ice cream Yum!

A cup of tea is what was needed yesterday, we removed the beams from the ceiling, they were black and there were nine of them they made the room dark and we hated them, but now the room is so much lighter, we also removed a dividing glass partition and door that was between the kitchen and lounge it was very 1970's, Tony is replacing it with a stud wall and then I got home from shopping and the fireplace had gone, we are now stripping all the layers of wallpaper off the lounge walls it's a lovely feeling stripping the room back so that we can make it all new and clean and bright.

Tomorrow Cottonreel and I are going to Malvern Quilt Show, we love it there and always have a lovely day, I have been clearing my sewing room of boxes, the table is in place with the machine on top and I am unloading all my files and books the dresser is looking cute with jars of buttons on the shelves, I am looking forward to spending the day with Cottonreel  it always amazes me that she is still so enthusiastic after all these years.

Hi Everybody, we are doing o.k the electricians have been today to sort out the wiring, one more job done, we are beginning to feel  more at home although we are still surrounded by boxes and there is a lot to do, people have been very kind and have been giving me encouragement with lovely messages on this blog, a quick thank you to silversewer for the lovely heart she left at Kathleens for me I will hang it as soon as we are sorted. The weather has been really beautiful over the May bank holiday and we have been out in the new garden doing some bits, it has been raining on and off today but it is still quite warm, we brought quite a lot of pots filled with flowers and shrubs and the pots are looking lovely giving us some colour.
I am on the last little bit of Freddie's quilt I actually sat and sewed a little over the last two days it seems to calm me, I have a lovely new sewing room which is also full of crates and boxes and I have yet to tackle that but I will get to it soon.
We have some trees around us and the birds must be nesting in them as there is a lot of chattering and busy toing and froing feeding babies the morning chorus is loud and beautiful.

We Have moved

 Hi people, we are finally in our new home and it is utter chaos, it was such hard work we worked solid for 3 weeks packing boxes and sorting stuff, we got rid of loads of stuff but I am afraid more must go, we still have too much stuff. I must be honest and say I was very emotional all day yesterday I felt we had made a terrible  mistake and I just wanted to go home, I phoned  Kathleen last night and she was a bit worried, she came around this morning and made things seem much better, there is a lot to do in this bungalow and I am sure that once a lot of the boxes have disappeared it will help, we are going to start on the Lounge first so that we have somewhere nice to sit and be comfortable, there is a doorway to be bricked up first and a fireplace to be ripped out and a new one to be put in, my son called in yesterday took one look at the fireplace and said " It's a bit Liberace Mum" it would look good in a big room but is far too big for our lounge so lots to do but I feel much better after a nights sleep, speak soon.

Still packing and finding things I haven't seen for years, I cannot believe I have kept so much stuff (rubbish), we have supplied the charity shops with enough for the next 12 months. We have a date now, 3rd May honestly house moving in the UK is a real pain so long winded, I am cleaning each room as we empty it and then closing the door on it, I don't know what Jude is going to do when we move the first thing he does when he arrives here is point at the stairs and gallops up them with Granddad in hot pursuit, little Freddie is growing quickly and looks beautiful.
My garden is looking very pretty with loads of wild primroses and violets out, they seem to have spread all over I will of course dig some clumps up to take with us, Oh well back to work packing those boxes.

Sorry I am not blogging at the moment but we are busy packing up the house for the move to the bungalow, we are signing contracts tomorrow, hopefully it will move quickly after that.

Two Lovely Boys

Here are our two lovely grandchildred Jude and Freddie, they are so beautiful, if I sound like a doting Grandmother it's because I am.
We are still sitting looking out at snow which is really beginning to get annoying,, I phone Kathleen every morning and we moan about the snow we have beecome obsessed with snow.
It is quite frustrating for me at the moment because I want to buy new garden plants and because I don't know exactly when we are moving I can't, Tony did go and get Kathleen and me a Bramley Apple tree the other day which is potted ready to move with us but usually I am haunting the garden centre's at this time of year, never mind I must possess my soul in patience.

WARNING!!!!!!!!!

There is a rogue e.mail on the rounds,it is supposed to be from my friend Kathleen Solomi (cottonreel) and she is supposed to be stranded in the Phillipines and wants money please ignore the e.mail it is a scam, Cottonreel is very upset and she is having trouble getting on to blogger.

I have just started to read this book and I am finding it really interesting, it's  about a young Quaker girl travelling to America from Dorset and trying to settle into a new Quaker community in Pennsylvania and learning about the runaway slaves, there is a lot of information about quilts and quilting and Tracy Chevalier actually made a quilt so that she would be know first hand what it was like. I am sure it will go on to include the Underground Railway which was a way of helping slaves to escape, I am sure that if you enjoy quilting you will enjoy this book.

Yes! it is snowing here again today and it is so cold I don't want to move, trhe poor Primroses are covered again but bless them they keep on bravely blooming giving my garden a little bit of colour.
Tony and I are off to Birmingham tonight to see Alfie Boe in concert at the NIA we are looking forward to that even though the snow is supposed to get really heavy b y teatime, we will take blankets and shovels just in case.
I phoned Kathleen this morning, she hates the snow, we had a good chat and both felt better for it. I am making Freddie a quilt and I am as handquilting another full size quilt so busy  on the sewing front, we will need all these quilts if this weather keeps up.
We have started to think about holidays and we seem to have settled on New York for a week and then a couple of weeks in West Virginia it looks beautiful,

 

Hello everybody, I am struggling to do much posting at the moment, there is a lot of illness about, Tony's Dad is in hospital but hopefully he will be home tomorrow, Kate has had Mastitis and we have been helping her with the babies and there is a nasty throat bug about too which also gives you an eye infection at the end of it, not a good time and the weather is not helping, "where is the spring"? we have primroses out which keep getting snowed on the daffodils are trying to bloom but are not quite making it yet.
We are starting to get rid of some of our stuff ready for the move into the bungalow, slowly but surely. I have some large plastic boxes ready to start filling with my sewing room stuff.
The quilt you can see is one I am hand quilting at the moment, it is a Hexagon pattern and it is made from all Tilda fabrics, I love it! this is a keeper.

Hello Everyone, sorry I have been absent but I have been busy with babies, Yes! little Freddy Boothroyd has arrived a lovely brother for Jude, here I am with both of them, I am so proud I could burst and their Grandad is just blown away and we are very pleased and relieved that everything went well and Kate and baby are safe and sound, got to go we are off to do some washing, ironing and cuddling, 'Heaven'

 

We have found a new home, we found a nice bungalow which has an extra room added which will be great for my sewing room, we have had our offer accepted so fingers crossed we are hoping everthing will go through o.k and we can move during spring/summer. The rooms are not a bad size, some of our furniture will not be needed, the kids want some of the spare things and the rest can go to a charity shop, I would like some new stuff and I look forward to shopping for it, the bungalow is just around the corner from Kathleen (cottonreel) even closer than we are now she cannot wait tosee inside,(so nosey).

The weather is foul today and we are expecting snow overnight, I have stared a medallion quilt because Kathleen tells me I have to stretch myself, she is taching me how to do it, Iam doing the centrepeice at the moment, I am so lucky to have my very own teacher.

I don't know about the rest of you but I could really do with some sun on my bones it seems ages since I felt the warmth of the sun, when we were kids everyday seemed warm during the summer and we spent every day outside, I cannot remember when we last had a long hot summer, I remember the summer of 1976 it was so so hot and it went on and on, it was the year Tony and I got together and every day seemed magical and I still feel that way about my lovely man.

I have finished this baby quilt for my next door neighbours baby boy, it was nice to do and Claire loved it.
I have started the Fast Diet this week and today is my fast day, you have to have two fast days in seven on the other days you can eat normally, so far I am fine it  is lunchtime and I am not too hungry, you are allowed 500 calories on your fast day 600 if you are a man. I had 40grams of porridge made with water and 125 grams of Blueberries, I can drink black coffee or tea or just water, tonight I am going to have a chicken stir fry that will complete my 500 calories, tomorrow I will eat normally, this diet is so interesting I bought Dr. Michael Moseley,s book and is such an interesting read, I watched the Horizon programme back in August 2012 and was fascinated it really makes sense. I will give it a try as I would love to lose some weight and feel healthier.

Little Jude is really growing up, he loves books especially the ones with the different textures, there is so much these days to stimulate babies, Kate is due to give birth at the beginning of March, I wonder what Jude will think of a new baby, we don't know what she is having she  wants a surprise this time, I shall just be glad when it's over and they are both safe.

It is a bitterly cold day today, Kathleen and I went shopping for food and we were really glad to get home in the warm, we start back at our sewing class on Thursday, we are looking forward to that, I want to start a new quilt, I have some nice fabrics but I am not quite sure which pattern to do.
I am dreading moving all the stuff from my sewing room when we find a new property, there is so much but it will give me a good opporunity to sort stuff out.

What a week, the weather has been interesting to say the least, the photo is of our garden which looked very pretty, the summerhouse looked like a Swiss chalet, the birds were very busy and we made sure there was lots of seed for them.

The small baby quilt is for our next door neighbour who had a little boy last week, with all the snow I have been able to piece and quilt it this week it's nearly finished.

Good News! for us anyway, we have accepted an offer for our house, we now have to find somewhere to live, it will be nice if we can move ready for the  summer but, there is not a lot of property out there at the moment so we are hoping with the spring coming people will start putting their property on the market, I am dreading having to pack up all our stuff, we have lived here for 16 years and accumulated a lot of "stuff", I think the charity shops will do well in the next few months we want to move into a smaller property so that means getting rid of a lot of our Furniture it is going to be quite hard, on the plus side it will be exciting to look for things to furnish a new house.

Hope you are not suffering too much with the Snow.

Here are my first three Framed Hexagons, I joined the Framed Hexagon Club on designsbyfee, they are really nice to do, you can just go on collecting them until you have enough,  want to make a quilt so I will keep on collecting them for a while, you an also do applique ones, I am hand quiltng a large quilt at the moment so these make a nice change.
It is snowing here today and very cold, a lovely day for sewing.

 

 

Here is my CJQP 2012 completed, I have put them all together to create a wallhanging for our bedroom, I am really happy with the result.

I am looking forward to a change in the weather so that I can get at the garden, ther is a lotg of old dead stuff that needs removing, I have noticed some bulbs poking through and some nice new green shoots on some of the shrubs, it would be nice to get out there but is very wet and cold so I will probably have to wait a little bit longer.