Combining my love of quilting and my love of cross stitch

Made this with the new series from Little House Needleworks - Little. Sheep Virtues.

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It is Easter Vacation and I have had alot of fun Making things for Easter. For our Easter Dinner with the famiy I made cupcakes that look like baskets and easter egg cookies.

Than for fun I covered a plastic egg with sugar and cream cotton yarn. Use Alene's tacky. AC Moore tacky is not "tacky" enough.

Grands Taco Melts

I'm not much of a cook.  I would far rather be quilting or sewing or stitching or knitting or scrapbooking!!!  However, that being said, last night I decided to make a recipe that I found in a calendar that my secretary gave me to give to my daughter.  It was delicious!!!!

Here is the recipe for the Grands Taco Melts
1pkg taco seasong mix
2/3 cups water
1 1/2 cups salsa
1 lb lean ground beef -cooked and drained
1 can Pillsbury Grands refrigerated busicuits (any variety)
1 cup shredded cheese (I used cheddar)
1 cup of sour cream if desired

Heat oven to 375 degrees
In medium saucepan, cook taco seasoning mix, water, 1/2 cup of the salsa and cooked ground beef until thickened.
Press each biscuit into 6-inch rounds.  Fill each with taco mixture and 1 tablespoon cheese.  Fold dough over the filling and press to seal.  Place on greased (I used parchment paper) cookie sheet.
Bake 9 to 14 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve with remaining salsa, cheese and sour cream.

Here are a couple of pictures!

THE QUILT

The wedding is over and everyone has signed the quilt.  Now, I need to quilt it.  For Christmas my dear husband gave me a Grace EZ3 quilting frame.  I LOVE IT!!  I put it together and now I have the quilt in and have begun to quilt.  Here is what it looks like!!

 My New EZ3 quilting frame

 The Quilt in the Frame!

 My first stitches in the quilt.  It is so much fun.  I haven't quilted for years - back to my Lancaster County Roots!!!!

Christmas is almost here and I'm busily getting ready. Here are some pictures!

 Little Mittens I knitted for all the girls in my guild

 Carley helping me work on Christmas presents

 The Girls - 3 generations - at Sandie's apartment (Actually 4 generations if you count my grandpuppy!!)

 An ornament for the ornament exchange at guild

 Christmas Kisses treat - these are so easy and so good.  You take a waffle pretzel and a kiss.  Put in the oven for 4 minutes than push an M & M into the kiss.  So christmasy and so good!!!

 My gingerbread train that I found at Cracker Barrel for 40% off!!!

 It is really Christmas because Santa came to town!!

My Gingerbread cookies - these are so much fun to make!!!

How Can it be November Already

Where does the time go. I can't believe it is November. We are deep into wedding plans and now it is time to put that up for awhile and get ready for the seasonal holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'm not sure where we are going to put "Christmas" since our home right now looks like wedding central!!

Planning for a wedding is so much fun. Alot of work, but alot of fun. I'm enjoying the side of being the mother of the bride. Of course, being a stitcher, I'm having a blast making all the things that the bride and groom want made. Pew decorations, quilt for signing (rather than a guestbook - isn't that a great idea!), table runners for the tables, jackets for the mob and gmob because the bridal store discontinued our colors!!!, wedding sampler, etc. I felt alittle emotional when I stitched their names and dates into the sampler!! Are they old enough, are the responsible enough, can they afford this, - you know, all the thoughts that would go through a mothers head at a time like this.

The laterns for centerpieces are done, my dress is hanging on a closet door, her dress is hanging in my room, grandmoms dress just came, the engagement party has happened - I think we are pretty much on target.

Now, Christmas. We have to get all this put away and get started. The Christmas table is going to have a snowman theme this year - snowflakes and snowmen will abound. So, can I get myself into the groove? Can I remove myself from wedding mode? Probably NOT!! Christmas will be fun but will definately have "there's a wedding happening in this family!" overtone to everything we do!! So, will we do red and green or just plain white!! Maybe I have the perfect theme for this Christmas!!

As a mom, the thing I've prayed for since my daughter was born was her future mate. I wanted her to find a man that would love her, respect us and be, you know, just right!! Well, she found him. We are all so excited. He planned a sunrise beach proposal but, it poured rain!! So, a beach proposal on the porch of the beach house was the place at 6 AM!!! July 16, 2009.

Now, let the games begin. Pick a date, a place, a dress, decorations, favors, oh yes, and I hope to wear the dress of my dreams that makes me look good too!!! After all, I too have waited 23 years for this day!

Congratulations Sandie and Dan!!

MAR Mini Seminar - It's In The Bag

What a great weekend. Stitching is my life. I love to be creative and I particularly love to stitch. A friend and I spent the weekend in Camp Hill PA at a "Stitching Mini Seminar". It was a wonderful weekend. We drove up on Friday night got our room and than quickly got unpacked and into our PJ's so we could stitch on the projects we brought with us. Than it was up early in the morning and off to class. I took a class called "M'Lady's Bag". It was a blackwork and beadwork little bag that is a necklace. There were 7 in my class. There was actually a lady from Maryland who was 90 years old and she was working on 27 count linen. God love her. I hope I can do this when I'm her age!

All in all, the weekend was a total success. It was a time to relax and stitch, a time to renew old friendships, a time to make new friends, a time to hear and a time to get in touch with the bigger picture of MAR/EGA. I was impressed with the depth of planning for the seminar and impressed with the MAR board and all that they are doing.

No Good, Very Bad, Horrible Weekend

It all started with the Hot water heater going. That was ok though because we got almost 20 years out of it. So, we called PSEG, with whom we have a contract, they came out and said it is shot you need a new one and it will be $900. We were shocked but the worst was yet to come.

We set an appointment for that and accepted that news. Than on my way home from work the next day my engine light went on in my car. Now, mind you, my car is 10 years old so we expect problems. It was the catalytic converter - which we all know as the politicians way of sucking money out of it taxpayers and feeding the hand of the environmentalist. So, that cost $1000. So, now we think we are looking at $1900. An overwhelming amount.

What more could go wrong you say? Well, when they came to put in the waterheater of course, there was more. Because of new regulations for carbon monoxide and epa regulations (again, another political hand to feed) we had to have the core in our chimney taken out (drilled out - what a mess) and a new one put in. So this bill went for $900 to $4150. Yea - pretty bad right. Oh, this is only the beginning.

We stayed home on a Sunday while all this work is done at our house. Decided to run out for dinner. We were gone for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Came home and some of my jewelry was strun down our front steps. The front door was unlocked. WE HAD BEEN ROBBED!! The took all my jewelry. Smashed the sunroom door and came through the house.

Yes, God is in control of even this. However, I do have that sick pit in my stomach. Sin is a horrible thing and is getting more and more control.

SNOW!, Beautiful Snow!!!!

Snow has to be my most favorite thing in the whole wide world. I truly believe it is the most beautiful thing that God has created. Well, we finally had that night-time snow that is sooo beautiful.

We had a sunroom put on our house two years ago. Our house is such that the sunroom is really on the second floor, I couldn't wait to stand and look out and see snow. It funally happened!!!

Isn't it beautiful!!!

The Christmas Tree Contraversy

Christmas is definitely my favorite time of the year. I really do spend all year doing things to get ready. Picking the theme for my table than finding things to support my theme, looking for gifts, making ornaments, stitching stockings and tablecloths, etc.

The first thing I do every year the day after Thanksgiving is decorate the trees. We have three trees. One big family tree in the living room, a Barbie tree outside our bedroom, and a Disney tree in the sun room.

I watch alot of HGTV - in fact, I'm addicted to those design shows. This year, as I watched the "Christmas Decorating" shows I was struck with a theme that running through them all - YOUR CHRISTMAS TREE SHOULD HAVE A THEME. Having lots of random stuff on your tree looks like clutter!! Wow, stop there. I firmly disagree. When I decorate my tree it is a time that transports me to another world - the past. Each ornament, which there are probably close to 300, has some meaning and each ornament is one of a kind with the exception of a few that are in sets of four. I remember who gave me the ornament and pray for that person, I remember the people that painstakingly made ornaments and pray for them. There are ornaments that Sandie made when she was little - you know macaroni and pipe cleaners!! - I pray for her. It takes me forever to decorate the tree but when I'm finished I've visited more points in time than during the whole previous year. When I look at the decorated tree it is packed with wonderful memories. When people visit, they love to look for the ornaments they gave us or look for one that they really like. Does it look cluttered?? Absolutely not - it looks festive and beautiful.

So, what do we do with this themed thing. OK, I admit, I had to at least address the idea so I have two small trees. One with all my Christmas Barbie ornaments and one with all Disney ornaments. There, I have satisfied those designers and I have satisfied my creative, nostalgic side.

Happy Holidays Everyone!!!

Saturday at the Kimmel Center

Every year my mom takes me to the Kimmel Center for Christmas to see Peter Nero and the Philly Pops. I love going to the Kimmel center. This is a trip conducted by the Seniors Citizens of South Jersey so that can be quite entertaining in itself.

We left at 11 AM and went to the Moshulu for lunch. http://www.moshulu.com/site/main.asp . I have never eaten on the Moshulu so this was new and exciting. It is docked at Penn's Landing. It is a 4 star restaurant. I had the Chicken.

Than it was off to the Kimmel Center for the Philly Pops Christmas Concert http://www.phillypops.com/. It was so good. The Von Trapp Children were there singing with the pops this year. (You remember Kirk from the movie, Sound of Music - he says in the movie, "I'm Kirk and i'm incouragable." - these Von Trapp children were his great great grandchildren). They were really good. There were 4 of them.

The concert was about two hours long. Not long enough - I love just being inside the concert hall. It is like being inside of a huge violin. Music is such a wonderful gift from God.

Of course, now our tree is decked out with a new ornament from the Kimmel Center - actually two this year. The newest musical instrument is a trombone. (The last two years brought a violin and a flute). I would have only gotten the one ornament but they also have a new brass ornament that is a likeness of the Kimmel Center - of course, I had to have that!!

It was a great day. Let the holidays begin!!!! (But not too fast, I've got so much to do!!!) REJOICE!!

Back to Work

Have you ever noticed how after a vacation it is so hard to get back to work. I did not darken the doors of the workplace for a whole week. (at a convention for 3 days and home celebrating turkey day for 5). So, we are back, and I must get motivated. I really do like my job - but at this time of the year there is so much to do!!

I spent the last few days decorating trees, making gifts, weeding through old decorations. The house looks like Christmas exploded. Boxes, storage containers, ornaments are everywhere. Will I ever get it done? Yes, I will. Every year I fret over getting everything accomplished and somehow it all gets done. I really do love this season. I stitch all year to get ready. I love to decorate the tree and ponder over each ornament on the tree and where it came from. Tree decorations are a great way to remenisce about family events and people who have touched our lives.

It is not truly Christmas until one watches the movie White Christmas, a true classic. So, on Saturday night while home alone (eveyone else was out) I did it - I watched White Christmas. I can now declare, "It IS The Christmas Season." Let's rejoice and celebrate the birth of The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords!!

21st Century Learning

Here I am doing something I never dreamed I would do - writing a blog. I have never much wanted a public face. I'm not even sure I like to write! But, here I am writing for the world to see.

In my lifetime we have gone from typewriters and carbon paper to this!! The way students communicate and learn is changing before my eyes.

I'm involved in a project at work/school that is making me so much more aware of 21st century learning. Leaning is in transition, as Karl Fisch says, "Shift Happens". Well, it is happening to me and I'm getting involved in the ways that our students are now learning. Let's see, I have an I-Google, I share in a Wikki and am involved in several Ning's along with this Blogspot. I'm experimenting with developing a Ning for my Accounting class. The more I do, the more I want to do. Not only is this a learning experience, it is fun. One of the Ning's I participate in is a Stitchers Showcase. I LOVE stitching. I love to share what I do and see what others do. This whole thing is so amazing. I'm seeing the stitching of people from all over the world. My world is shrinking and my knowledge is growing.

My fellow educators - I encourage you to get involved in this 21st century learning. We have access to the whole world - it is at our fingertips.