Hello Internet

Long time no see eh? I had totally intended to post pics of my adventures (crafty and otherwise) while Janelle was here to visit, but in the middle of it all (on my birthday!) my camera was lost/stolen.......and stolen with it was my blogging mojo. But, I have a new camera and stuff to share. We will start small. Ok?? First up, recent cute pics of my adorable children taken with my fabulous new camera:

























While blog hopping recently, I came across a quilt block exchange. I have ALWAYS wanted to join a block exchange. Sounds great right?? Well, this was for scrappy Christmas blocks. I have strong feelings about Christmas quilts.....They seem so silly, why go to all the work for a quilt that is only out for 6 weeks a year max?? Right??? Wrong! I have been loving the Christmas stuff I have seen, and I like that many are more winter than Christmas. So I signed myself up. I am making 12 blocks for the exchange, and and additional four, two for me, two for a charity quilt. I tackled 1/2 the blocks last night. When I finished (at 4:30 am) I was unsure how I felt about them. Today I adore them. So you will too! :)


























One last thing, I think I should mention that during my absence, I have cleaned my house. Really cleaned it. It looks amazing. Yeah, yeah yeah, your house always looks nice, but mine??? A mess. Always. All the time. EXCEPT NOW!!! So if you want to come visit me now is the time. Really, come on over. I won't even pretend not to be home. :) But hurry, we are going on week 2 of cleanliness and order, and I am not sure I can keep it up much longer. ;)

Capri's Quilt

Capri Andalucia Quilt- Front
Originally uploaded by LHBC Nicole.

Sorry this is a bit later than I promised.....I also think I said I would show 2 quilts, but only one is finished. More to come, I have a HUGE stack of WIPs. Anyway, here is the big reveal!

My sister didn't find out ahead of time if her baby was a boy or a girl. With 3 boys I took a chance (and trusted her husband who promised a girl), and planned for a girl. I started this at my Toronto quilting weekend in April and finished about a month ago. Capri was born during the quilting weekend. I had started this quilt, but did have plan B boy quilt materials waiting just in case. I would have completed it faster, but my machine was being ridiculous. I swear I quilted this quilt 3 times, and ripped it out twice. I was frustrated enough, that I went and got a new machine less than a week later. (and I am in love. Seriously!) Anyway, back to the quilt, if I hadn't specifically picked out the fabric with Jenny (my sister) in mind, it would have been harder to give away. As it was, I was so excited to give it to her, that I held onto it for a month so I could see her reaction in person. :) (if you want to see the back etc, clicking on the picture will take you to my flickr photostream. There are more pics there)

I should have lots to share soon. Not only do I have 3 quilt tops just waiting to be quilted, but Janelle is coming from Toronto. I also want to show off my new baby.....er....machine.

No cute pics here

I made the girls some really cute dresses last week. Aurora was "graduating" from kindergarten, so I thought I'd make her a special dress.....and of course then Eve would need one too. They turned out SO cute, but then I tried to get a picture. It was sunny out, Aurora had allergies and Eve......well, Eve just likes to look goofy in pictures. So this is the best of what I got:

Cute dresses.....goofy kids! (click on the pic to really appreciate facial expressions) This is why I will never be a great crafty blog. That, and the fact that I only blog about once a month. :) This dress pattern is from The Handmade Dress The Miss Madeline. It was really easy. I taught my SIL to sew yesterday using this pattern. I have also had requests for at least 3 more of these for Aurora and "one for all the holidays". Love that girl!

I did make one more thing in honor of school ending. Aurora's teacher, Katie, was such an amazing teacher. I knew there was no way to really thank her properly, but here is my stab at it:


This is the Market Bag by Sandi Henderson. I am in the process of making myself the gathered bag from this same pattern. I see a few more coming out of the stash as well.

I have been out of town for the last week, so no recent projects. I might start taking my machine with me. I miss it when I am away! So after a short and joyful 12 hour car ride with the kids tomorrow, I get get back to the sewing. Sadly, it also means that I have to leave my sweet niece Gabi, and her parents. They used to live 30 min away...I miss that! I did manage to teach my SIL to sew this week though. She is a natural, and I am sure my BIL will be thanking me for years. :) You're welcome Jeff!!

Look for pics of some new quilts in a few days. I will be gifting two on Sunday and will post pics soon after.

Class Trip to KUTV

I know I need to do an update, but life is far too busy to allow for that right now....besides I am SO far behind! Sorry! I have a quilt I am dying to show off, but I want it to be a surprise for my sister, so you will have to wait another month. BUT, here is something fun. Aurora's class did a field trip to Jeremy's station and they were on TV. A lot of parents in the class missed the segment, so I am showing it off here. Enjoy!



(there are 3 more quilts in the works, so I will be back soon I promise.....oh and did I tell you about the new sewing machine??)