Inspirational Words

What a wonderful way to think!

These famous words are from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe:-

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it.
Until one is committed there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness.
Concerning all acts of initiative there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and endless plans.
That the moment one definitely commits oneself then providence moves too.
All sorts of things occur to help one that would never have otherwise occurred.
A whole stream of events issue from the decision, raising in one’s favour all manner of unforeseen incidents, and meetings and material assistance which no man could have dreamed would come his way.
Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.
Begin it now.
 

Hugs,

Karen

Play Day

It finally cooled off here and I finally took a day off from working.  So my husband and I took off for the mountains.  It was beautiful.  We had to drive through the clouds in the park to get above the clouds.

At 12,000 feet you feel like you're on top of the world and all is calm.  Of course there's always a critter or two that you might spot.  Looks like this marmut has been eating well.

We went to Grand Lake where there's a wonderful place to sit awhile and look at the lake.  Should I sit here -

or here -

And then just looking at all the trees is what I find relaxing.

And now it's back to work.  Hope you enjoyed the little day-cation like I did.

Hugs,

Karen

Orange Peel Quilt

I've been so so busy with customer quilts that I've truly been ignoring my blog and my family and friends.  I feel bad but I also need to maintain my focus and try to catch up.  I'm sure you know the feeling.  But since I just finished this customer quilt I thought I'd snap a few photos and share them with you.  It's made from japanese fabrics and they are really lovely.  Lots of colors and muted shades.  It's a very simple quilt and very easy on the eye.  Enjoy.

And the back photo:

I'm sure hoping my customer likes it!

Hugs,

Karen

Befuddled

Ever find yourself so busy, so swamped, so distracted that you just simply "forget"?

That's been me lately.  But in trying to keep my priorities straight I took time to bake some banana nut muffins.  They turned out great except that the baking time seemed totally off to me.  They did bake in about half the time.  But they were beautiful.

The trouble came when my husband tried one.  He said they weren't very sweet.  And then it dawned on me - I totally forgot to add the brown sugar!  No sugar at all!  But we are making up for it by adding honey with every bite.

The recipe I used came from this wonderful blog:  http://www.mennonitegirlscancook.ca/.

Maybe one of these days I might slow down some......

Hugs,

Karen

Roses

I've been a bad blogger of late.  First it was my daughter's wedding which was absolutely beautiful.

Then I was buried with customer quilts - now that can be a good thing or a bad thing.  It's always good to have the extra money and it's good to have something to keep you busy in a cool basement while it's hot outside.

On the other hand why is it that all quilts come at the same time?  And of course, there's always those that have deadlines.  Whew.....I am busy.

But after finishing one quilt today I am taking the rest of the day off to "smell the roses".  This bunch of roses is from one rose bush in our backyard.  And all of them are from one stem - that's right - one stem.  Most of the stems are so heavy with blooms that they are laying on the ground.  But it's a beauty!
Enjoy.

Hugs,

Karen

Mother's Day

September 1, 1980 was the day I became a "mom".

It forever changed my life.

It remains one of the most beautiful days of my life.

My little girl, all grown up and getting married in one week.

I love you Christine.



New Year's Quilt

Remember when I first started marking this quilt on January 1?  The center was a linen that I received as a gift from Cindy Needham and I wanted to make it special.

Well I finally got a block of "me" time and yesterday I finished the quilting.  I actually used an entire 3000 yard cone of Bottom Line Thread in the bobbin!  And I did add a vintage doiley in the middle.  I still have binding to do and lots of beading.  But this is it so far.

I'll share more pictures as it progresses and hopefully I can show the entire quilt.  Thank you Cindy! 

Hugs,

Karen