Gadgets

Do you see it? The new gadget that is! I just wanted to let you all know that you can now subscribe to my blog by e-mail, just enter your e-mail address in the box to the top left of the page and that's it!

Wwwooooo! That was hard, I think I need to relax now with some yummy mac n cheese :] maybe to be followed by some ice cream :] healthy I know :]

Bake Shop Time Again!!!

Hop on over to the Moda Bake Shop, to see my latest recipe featuring a Fat Quarter Bundle of Mirage Batiks!

If you've never been here to visit before, Welcome!!! I've got all sorts of crazy things going on, a little Challenge from my Guild I'm working on, my garden is churning out tomatoes at a record pace, my dog likes to play in the tub, and some quilting things worked in every so often.

Plus, it's almost that time - my favorite time of year for cooking - FALL!!! It means chili and soups and casseroles and all that goodness. (I already have 2 batches of veggies prepped and ready in the freezer for the first pots of chili :] You can find the recipe for chili and other goodies by clicking on the tutorials tab at the top of the page)

I also have my own line of patterns available at quilt shops all across the country, you can check each one of those out by clicking on the Patterns tab at the top of the page. Let me know what you think of the Dueling Personalities Quilts... I'm so interested to see what kind of quilting personality you all have! Mine changes alot! Mostly with the seasons or depending on which style quilt I'm working on!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you come back soon so we can chat some more!!!

Challenged

In more ways than one... but this first one is fun! I promise :]

My guild, the Wildwood Quilt Guild, likes to do a challenge every year or so. The fabric above was given to each member to use in their challenge quilt. Here's the rules:

Since it's for 2011
you must make a quilt or project using ALL of the fabric provided (it's a Fat Eighth)
you have to use 20 blocks (they don't have to be the same block (that's the 20-- part)
add in 10 other prints to the fabric provided for a total of 11 fabrics (the --11 part)
and have it ready to hang at our show in November...

So I had this idea of what I wanted to do, but didn't know exactly how I wanted to do it, and only using 11 fabrics in 20 blocks - you could say I was challenged alright!

I just recently got my fabrics to go with the challenge fabric and I'll keep you posted on that once I'm back on my feet again (Chest pains started acting up a bit, no worries - I've almost finished a book!) I'm hoping to get back to sewing later this week.

SO my question to you is - with those restrictions, what would you make?

Catching Up

So, you may have seen on other posts that I ventured out to JEllen's house of fabric a little over a week ago to visit with Joyce and meet the ever talented Vickie Eapen of Spun Sugar Quilts! Vickie was signing Fresh Fabric Treat books (all projects by Moda Bake Shop Chefs), and I couldn't miss the opportunity to meet her. It's always nice to meet another Bake Shop Chef.

And, since I was at a fabric shop I had to make a purchase - or two - or three... I finally have some Ruby here at my house of Ruby... but I'm still trying to decide what I want to do with it. I'm sure I'll come up with something...

Right after leaving with my purchases I headed over to my nephew's 8th birthday party. It was Rock 'n Roll themed. Gee, do you think he might know who Gene Simmons is???

 He's a good kid with a little mischievous behavior from time to time (notice the look on the face, it gives it all away - plus the shirt reads TROUBLE FINDS ME even in camouflage)

 But he's got a good heart, here he's going around and gave everyone that came to the party a hug, even Uncle Ben... oh, and to go with the Rock 'n Roll theme - notice the tattoos. When we got there he had 5 on, when we left he had 14 or more...

 His parents surprised him with a custom guitar shaped cake in his favorite color - BLUE!!! It was pretty awesome and yummy I might add.

 And more of the tattoos. He had to pull up the shorts to show the ones on his knees his mother didn't know where there until this moment... This is what you get when you leave and 8 year old with his 16 year old cousin alone in the kitchen with a pile of temporary tattoos and a sink at the ready...

Happy Birthday Shawn!!! Love, Aunt Becky & Uncle Ben

My morning...

So, here's a kinda typical day (about once every few weeks or so) when you have a dog that LOVES water:

I was in the living room cutting some strip sets for a quilt I'm working on - minding my own business - trying to listen to the movie I've got on the TV - but all I can hear is the dog playing in the tub.

This sadly wasn't even the best part. He LOVES playing in there and blowing bubbles with his nose and splashing all over and having a jolly good time.

This time around, this was his treat for big bad Momma taking him to the vet earlier that morning. But most times when we have someone coming to the house for a service call or something (like to service the furnace or hook up the new satellite or something) I'll put Duncan in the tub with a few inches of water - he COULD CARE LESS that anyone is there. He'll play for hours if I'd let him.

Gotta love this dog. Does your pet do something crazy like mine?

You know me...

And my love for Amish Country, but the best part about my most recent trip is... it's only a couple hours away from home, just a highway, to another highway and a few more,  to this...

 This is the view behind our hotel...

 These pictures do NOT do any justice for the scenery, it was absolutely breath-taking. You can start to see the fog rolling in as the sun sets...

 I love rolling hills and picket fences...

 And the sunset was just as beautiful...

 The colors were more and more vibrant until it was over, and then we crashed because the next 2 days we (Mom and I) were working a trade show with MODA!!!

 Didn't the booth look lovely? I mean how could it not with all the latest and greatest designs being showcased???

 Another view of the booth, I missed both ends of the booth in pictures, and managed to only get a picture of Mark, no one else. Owell, I think that means we have to go back and do it again!!! Oh, and a quick side note, while I was at the show I got to wear the most adorable ruffled apron by MODA, and I forgot to get a picture of that too!

Oh, and the greatest news of all: while at the show I got to meet my first ever other Moda Bake Shop Chef! Corey from Little Miss Shabby is such a doll and much to my surprise, lives one town away from where this show was being held. I knew there was a bunch of us Ohio gals on the Moda Bake Shop, but I didn't know she lived there and would be at the show that day. It was so nice to meet and chat...

 But then before you knew it, the pies had been eaten (I was in Amish country...), the big barns were flying by as we drove out of town...

And goodbye to Sugarcreek, the only Swiss Village in Amish Country with the best German restaurant I've even been to...

Maybe one of these days the Hubbin and I could go down and spend a few days antiquing (I bought the most adorable wooden tool box for $8!), eating our way through the towns and just having a good time.

Have you ever been to Holmes County? Have anywhere you'd recommend to stay or eat? I'd love to hear it. Oh, and pop on over to Corey's blog and say hi! Until next time!

Drumroll Please...

And the winners are (PAUSE)

You probably all want to know the answers first, huh?

My favorite cake of all time (which nobody guessed) is a Cassata Cake... Typically white cake with Strawberries and Glaze in between the layers covered in the most dreamy frosting... Pure divinity.

The other answer that I would have accepted is Tiramisu - the Italian's gift from Heaven. Just saying :) Many of you were extremely creative with the Moda Layer Cake idea for this answer... Obviously you all weren't here listening to my belly growl as I dreamt of birthday cake. Sorry, but at that specific moment NOTHING but food was on this girl's mind :) Good guesses though!

I'm currently working with 2 different fabrics right now (I"m never only working on one thing) and a few people guessed this one right. I'm working with both Civil War Reproductions and Batiks!!! Sorry to say no more Bliss for now, Ruby isn't in my hot little hands yet and Terrain - I'm loving it as much as the rest of you, planning to work with it soon.

So, the winners of the prizes are:

1. Sallie who said "My favorite pattern is Starbox. Thanks for the chance at your giveaway!"

2. SoSarahSews who said "I like charmed living casaba"

Thank you all who participated and the winners will recieve an e-mail in their inbox momentarily. I will be back soon with pictures and news from my trip to Holmes County, but tata for now!