Sew Crazy & Stuff

Today was Sew Crazy day, and we continue to work on QOV quilts. Debi had made lots of half square triangles and kitted up a top for us to make. It is done and ready for quilting. Cute, too!

This Chinese Coin top, made from strings, will get borders and will also become a QOV. We have been busy girls!

On the family front, we celebrated Jackson's birthday (again) on the actual date with a family dinner at the Mexican restaurant and his Mimi's strawberry cake.

Sara Ashley went to Charleston on her school class trip.

Robert got his Learner's license......watch out!

And Buddy napped with his little deformed paw over his face....how sweet is that?

GRATITUDES:

Flip flops.

Peanut butter....crunchy, please.

The smell of steaks on the grill.

Take care, 

Jennie

Heartstrings

Today was Heartstrings Day at our house. We don't  have a large group, but we are pretty prolific.  And besides, we have lots of fun......the most important part, right?

Sandy and I got a pile of string blocks with various dark blue centers made. Louise pressed and trimmed. Debi bound our most recent quilt....which she had also quilted....and then made some large half square triangles for a new quilt. We are needing a small break from strings and have some larger pieces to work with.

Here are our most recent finishes.

You just can't go wrong with strings....amazing how different each quilt looks by simply setting them differently. All made from what would be considered trash.  I suppose this is a true " trash to treasure" story!

GRATITUDES:

Stitching days with friends.

The process and the product of quilting.

Making something from nearly nothing.

Take care, Jennie

Chicken Update

No chicken posts in awhile, s I thought I would catch you up. The flock is doing well, and now that the days are longer, egg production is up and we have plenty to eat and share.  A couple of weeks ago their coop and runs got cleaned, with their fan installed for Summer.

Bobbie is one of our original flock and our largest hen.

Ronny, our handsome rooster, takes good care of his girls.  Someone down the road got a new rooster, and he and Ronny try to out crow one another. Love hearing them.  Thank goodness, the neighbors are not that close and don't mind their crowing anyway.

Feeding frenzy over cabbage leaves from the garden.

Snowflake and Puff.

Maddie.

Ronny, Puff and Bobbie.

We continue to enjoy their antics and their eggs. It is hard to imagine life without them.

GRATITUDES:

The sound of chicken chatter.

Puppy antics.

Sweet family.

Take care,

Jennie

Daisy

Little Daisy is growing like a weed. Seems she looks bigger every morning. She is delightful......busy, happy, adventurous and loving. And she loves her Buddy....the feeling is obviously mutual.

What did you say, Mom??

I am tired of exploring the garden now.

Busy morning.

GRATITUDES:

Cold, wet doggie noses.

Sweet, soft dog snoring softly, snuggled in your lap.

Did I mention naps before?.....yes, naps.

Take care, 

Jennie

Around Over the Hill Farm

Spring is a busy and happy time for us.  Weather that is lovely, Spring rains, flowers and hundreds of shades of green everywhere. Thank you, Lord.

The wild roses, scavenged from the roadside a few years ago, are flourishing. My grandmother called them Seven Sisters roses.

Blake's garden. Promise of lots of fresh veggies in this photo. We are having fresh cabbage for dinner tonight.

GRATITUDES:

The joy of living in the quiet of the country.

The surprise of volunteer flowers.

Food fresh from the garden, grown by my husband's toil.

Take care,

Jennie

Maggie B in Atlanta

This week our rug hooking guild, Dogwood ATHA, was privileged to host Maggie Bonanomi for a 3 day workshop and as the speaker for our Spring Hook In. What a lovely, talented and humble lady. It was one of the most enjoyable classes I have ever taken.  Thank you Maggie!!

Following are photos from the last day of our class:

Nancy's rug......a Lib Calloway design called Holly House. This rug had the ugliest photo of the finished rug attached, but Nancy saw beyond that and is creating a beauty!

Deste chose Evergreen Basket, one of Maggie's patterns. I especially love the basket in this one.

Lots of people don't realize that Maggie once designed for Needl' Love. This design by Maggie is from one of those books. Sheri did her usual great job using a super wide cut and is all finished except background.

Kathie designed this beautifully soft design as a runner for her dining room table. Take a close look at her reverse hooked basket.....Wow!

Home Grown is a new design of Maggie's.....it had never been hooked. Vicki chose it because it reminded her of her newly planted garden.

Diane chose this design from one of Maggie's books.....it was originally a wool appliqué designs. She struggled finding the right colors to use with her interesting medium background, but I think she got it just right.

Paula, the queen of both quilted and hooked primitives is doing a terrific job on this pattern of Maggie's. I just adore the background that Maggie helped her choose. Below is a photo of the fabrics she used.

Don't you love the border of this Maggie design that Millie is hooking?

I can' true ember whose mat this is, but isn't it wonderful? And that little squiggly border of Maggie's adds so much.

Also can't remember who was doing this one, but those soft color choices just sing.

Wendy was doing a really nice job on this rug....I believe it is an Edyth O'Neill, but am not positive.

This is Georgia's rug....she called it the fried egg rug. The pattern is Maggie's first rug hooking pattern.

Finally, my rug, Maggie's penny rug. Though the design was simple, color planning was challenging, I am loving it!

There were a couple of rugs I failed to get photos of.... Darn!

Following are some of Maggie's diverse and lovely rugs utilizing that knack she has for instantly making them look worn and loved.

Most of our class.

Hope you enjoyed the show.

GRATITUDES:

Working with fiber.

Sharing that love of fiber with like minded souls. 

Friends that care about one another's sorrows, fears and joy......and pray.

Laughter.

Take Care,

 Jennie

Scrap Bin Success

I have been trying to get all of my scraps cut up and stored a la Bonnie Hunter for months now. What a job; they just seemed to multiply. Finally, I am done. What a relief! Now my strings are stored in the bin.....easy to reach in and grab a few to piece a block on the foundations I keep close at hand.

More photos from our yard:

Snowball Bush

Clematis

Rose Arbor

Buddy basking in the sunshine.

GRATITUDES:

Old fashioned roses blooming on the arbor.

Accomplishments, no matter how small.

Gentle Buddy nudges, asking for love.

Take care,

Jennie

Lots of Family Going On!

From the first of April through the first of June our family is beyond busy.  It is a wonderful time, and despite the frenzy, we enjoy the memories made at each event.

We celebrated my birthday with a cookout at the Estes' home.

Then we celebrated Sister's 80th with a surprise party at their AL home.

Ashley and Matt took Macy, Jackson, Sara Ashley and several friends for a surprise birthday at Six Flags for Macy.

Then Macy and Jackson had their family birthday party with swimming and a cookout at Blalock Lakes.

Jackson and Christopher are playing T-Ball.

Robert chose Tokyo for his 15th Birthday dinner.

Macy and Sara Ashley enjoyed a rainy day for no reason at all.

The guys cooked up a delicious Mother's Day Lunch and we sat back and enjoyed it.

Whew!! I am exhausted, but happy.

GRATITUDES:

Family.

Any reason to share time with family.

Mothers.

The guys who love us mothers.

Take care,

Jennie