Hello Everybody, I guess I am not a "real" blogger. This is not something I have time to do everyday, as I should. It is something I like to do because I have always loved to write. My specialty was poetry and I have some good ones in my portfolio. I have also kept a written history of certain journies in my life. So I do love to write. I think most of what I have produced was inspired. Now my inspirations take me to another genre...quilting!

I have been very busy quilting. I am about to finish my third mini quilt swap. I find them so much fun, but a lot of work and love go into mine and I sorta hate to part with them. The one I am about to finish is a
Winter Mini Quilt and I really am pleased with how it turned out. It does have a winter scene but the house is warm and inviting and the playful snowman is having a ball on the frozen pond! So it will be hard to give up. However, I have been thinking of the secret recepient who will get this little jewel. I went to her blogspot and found out she is a very talented, creative quilter and has 3 little children who I am sure will love this happy, smiling, skating snowman! So, I will bind (and hand quilt some of it) and mail it off to Maine. I am sure it will be loved and given a good home.

I am also making friends on The Quilting Board.com. We swap blocks and sets and mini quilts, we help each other out with problems and give each other encouragement and support. What more could you ask of a friend. If you have nothing to do, drop by and say howdy, visit awhile and look at some of the things we are doing.

Monday I am off to South Carolina again for more clinics. What we do is so needed out there, so I never say no when they ask me to go. Smoking is an addiction and people need to know that there is help out there. They need to know that they need treatment and support. Thats what we tell them. So, if you, or someone you love is trying to stop smoking talk to your doctor, get treatment and support. It worked for me and can work for you too!

Please rememebr how blessed we are to get to live where we live, do what we do, and be who we are. It all begins with your choice to do the right thing, be the best person you can be and leave God in control of everything else.

Peace and Prayers

Hello to all my friends, family, and followers. It has been a great February so far and now Sweetheart's day is almost upon us. I have been working on a Feb Mini Quilt and it just got mailed today. It turned out really pretty. so I hope my quilt partner likes it.

I just got back Friday from North Carolina. The clinics I spoke at had a lot of people who really, really want to quit smoking. Some of them had already started their quit journey. I wish them all success in this struggle to overcome the addiction to nicotine. Next week I am off to Dallas for another round of clinics and I am so looking forward to it! I love what we do and how we help people! I didn't know that we had a "quit season" but that is what I was told last week. So it looks like from March thru August we will not be doing as many clinics as we have been doing. It will give me a chance to get caught up on things I have ignored here at home. But I will sure miss telling my quit story!

My next WIPs here at home is to get caught up on my five block swaps, (I owe for Jan and Feb), get my Winter Themed Mini Quilt done and to make 12 Spring Themed blocks out of lavender and green fabric! Yea...what fun! I havent even decided on a pattern yet, but I do have some lovely lavender and green fabric. So I have no excuse not to get 'em done!

Take care everyone, I will talk at'cha later!

Peace and Prayers

Good Morning .....It has been awhile since I last blogged. Janurary has been a very busy month and I cannot believe it is almost gone. I have been busy with all of my block swaps and have sent out 6 so far. I have also received 6 in the mail. And I still need to do 3! My siggie collection is growing and I am loving that too! I am posting pictures  of my blocks just because they are so beautiful. The ladies at http://www.quiltingboard.com/ are talented quilters and every swap challanges me to make each block better then the last. I am also in a Midget Block  swap, a 5" I Spy Flannel Swap and a Feb Doll Quilt Swap on this board! My little sister in Vermont sent me 25 Maple Leaf blocks along with the blue and green fabric used to make them. They are gorgous and I have them at the top of my WIP pile. (I think I need to get a bigger WIP basket). And the blue and yellow giant block came from my little sister in Ilinois! I swap monthly with both of them. Busy, Busy, Busy! What a blessed life I live!

I am also on the road again this Thursday. This time to Georgia for two more GetQuit Clinics. I am very passionate about this program and what we do. Some of the doctors from the first clinics we did are wanting to book a 2nd clinic! That tells us that it is working and they want more! If you or someone you know really wants to quit smoking go to http://www.mytimetoquit.com/ to find out how you can make it happen. You can read about people, just like me, who smoked for decades and finally quit!  The key  to success is treament and support. If you want to read how I was able to finally able to do it go to http://www.mygetquitstory.com/.

I also have one lovely person willing to PayIt Forward with me.  She will receive a small handmade gift from me, which I am working on now.  I still need 2 more people to accept the challange. All you have to do is leave a comment here telling me you are willing to PIF. I will make you a small gift within the next year and you in turn will get 3 more people to accept your challange and post the PIF logo on your own site! That's all there is to it!

I am also posting a picture of my Fall Theme Mini Quilt. I have already mailed it out to my swap partner and am eagerly awaiting  one of my own! This is the first mini quilt I have ever done and I almost wanted to keep it! But I didn't! I am sure my partner will love it too. My next swap with this group is a Winter Theme Mini Quilt and I am in the planning stage on it!

Ok.... That is all for today. I plan on making the last 3 swap blocks and cutting the peices for the Feb doll quilt today. Then I am going shopping for 30's Reproduction fabric for the Midget Swap! Busy, Busy, Busy!

Peace and Prayers till next time
missd

Good Morning everyone! Today is the 3rd day of Jan 2010. It is also my 63rd birthday. I am sharing it with my Billyangel. We will have a pizza party today at 1:30 and we will be surrounded by friends and family! What a great way to start a new year! His mama is making "our" cake. It will be a humongous Omnitrix. (for those of you who are not into the cool stuff:  It is Ben 10's watch made out of 1 choc cake, 1 white cake and 2 round strawberry cakes.) My daughter is a very talented cake decorated and has made Billys cakes every year since the first one. It was a Blue's Clues cake, #2 was Scooby Doo, then Sponge Bob, Deigo, Spiderman, and last year was Buzz Lightyear! Billy gets to tell her what kind of cake he wants, I can hardly wait to see what his next request will be. I will post a picture tomorrow of Ben 10's Omnitrix.

Now that all of the holidays are over for awhile, I am eager to get back to my beloved quilting. My mom is also wanting some more blocks to sew together. I think I will sandwich and baste a quilt and challange her to hand quilt it. I think she can do  it as long as I keep the batting thin. I will keep you posted on her progress.

My goal this month is to finish up some WIPs. I have been working on an Asian Jar/Attic Window quilt for my BFF and a purple and lime batic for my daughter's birthday in Feb. So I had better get busy because both of these are big projects and I do want to get them done. I am also off to Houston next week for 3 days of clinics for Pfizer. I love being a GetQuit Ambassador and look forward to these trips every month. I have committed to another 12 months and will do them for as long as God leads me to do them. If you or someone you know is struggling with nicotine addiction please direct them to http://www.mytimetoquit.com/. If you or someone you know has overcome that addiction please direct them to http://www.mygetquitstory.blogspot.com/ to tell their story of how they quit. It is what we do and what we encourage others to do.

I am also asking for 3 people to help me Pay It Forward. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post committing to the PIF challange. In return, you will receive a small hand made gift from me. Then you will get 3 people to sign up and and make gifts for them. It is a fun way to give back a little, its a pleasant surprise for the gift receiver and we get to be creative in what we make. You also get to post the PIF logo on your blog site.

I leave you now with these words:  In this New Year get rid of things that are not useful, beautiful or joyful.

Peace and Prayers
missd

Good morning everyone! Well it is the last day of an amazing year and I am feeling reflective. There has been many changes in my world, much progress and a lot of personal growth. I have made decisions that define who I am and what is important to me. The God I serve is top priority, followed by family and my friends as always. My own personal growth and what I do with my life are next. This coming year I do promise myself to continue on my journey of discovery. I will continue as a GetQuit Ambassador, traveling all over the country to let people know that  they can stop smoking, I will continue to create quilts for family, friends and charity,  I will do a better job on my blog, I will learn something new this year, I will continue to pay it forward, and I will continue to thank God for loving me and blessing me.

If you are reading this I invite you to reflect on your own life. To make a promise to yourself to be the best "you" you can be and to pay it forward. Help those who are walking the same path to do the same. We all have something to give to the world, it is up to us to find out what that something is.

I do wish you peace and prayers on your journey. May you find both when you visit me here.
missd

Merry Christmas and thank you for visiting here. It is Christmas eve, again, and I am finally finishing last minute gifts, again. I am sure you all know how that goes. We make promises to ourselves to start in July next year and be done the week before Christmas. And before we even get started we are behind!

I have spent a fair amount of time looking back on this year and I am amazed at what has taken place and how blessed we all are! I am thankful for so much that it is hard to know where to start. I retired from a very stressfull job after 8 years of it, bought a new car, completed an 18 year old quilt, (it was started in 1991), became an after-school care giver for two 6 year olds, quit smoking after 40 years and nine attempts at quitting, became a GetQuit Ambassador for Pfizer Pharmeceuticles (as a motivational speaker to get others to quit), convinced to my 83 year old mom that if she can sew, she can piece quilt tops together,(she did two full size tops this month and loves it), spent her 83 birthday with her, committed to 5 monthly block swaps,started a collection of siggies, and met a whole bunch of  wonderful people in the on-line quilting world. How blessed my life is and how grateful I am to my Lord and Savior for all that is mine because of His love.

So I take a moment out of this day to wish the baby Jesus a Happy Birthday, and to say Merry Christmas to all of my friends and family. May the Good Lord bless and keep you.

missd

Good Morning...I am still playing around with this site. It is Christmas  time so I will leave this up for the holidays and come back to choosing a new look for the blog after the New year!

I just got back from a trip to Charlotte North Carolina. What a beautiful spot on earth and the people are wonderfully friendly. I spent a week there doing GetQuit clinics and loved every minute of it! Now I am home and busy catching up on blogging and quilting and swapping, etc. You know how it goes...you never get caught up! I am just lucky enough to keep up...barely! Mailed off 3 blocks and 2 siggies this morning, them turned right around and signed up for another swap! Farm theme..12 block swap due feb 15th! Wish me luck.

If you are reading this I am hosting a Pay It Forward and need 3 people who would like to receive a little hand made gift from me. They in turn would sign up 3 others and make gifts for them. You have a year to get the gifts made and sent. All you have to do is make a comment here on this blog and copy the PIF logo to yuur site! Easy and fun, and I promise you a cute little something within 30 days!

Ok...gotta make a run to the fabric store to pick up interfacing for a pin-strip suit jacket I am making for my daughter. Have a blessed day!

Peace and prayers to all who enter here

Hello everyone,

I am trying out a new look on this site. Do you like it? Please be honest...I want it to be attractive and appropriate...so feel free to post your true feelings about it! It is kinda quilty..

I just got back from Jacksonville Florida GetQuit clinics. We did a clinic at the Mayport Navy Station and things went great there. Now I have this weekend to rest and quilt and quilt and rest. Its my R&R, then off to Charlotte South Carolina for 5 days. My quilting time has had a big bite taken out of it so some of the Christmas gifts I was planning on making may not get made! But it is for a good cause and getting quit for Christmas would be the greatest gift for a smoker! don't you think? I know I would give up a Christmas gift to get someone to quit smoking!

I am still sending out a challange for all of you quilters: I am inviting you to a Pay It Forward Challange. It works like this: If you would like to participate in a PIF please post a comment here. Hopefully three brave souls will be interested - if more than three express interest I will draw names to determine the winners. The three people chosen will get a small, handmade gift from me within the next year.  They in turn would issue the challange to their quilting friends. If you decide to participate just  post this logo on your blog along with a PIF challage. It is a lot of fun and I hope my quilty friends are up to keeping it out there.

That's it for now...gotta  pack  for tomorrows trip.

Peace and Prayers
missd

Hello to you all.....Still recovering from Thankagiving dinner by eating more turkey! We aare a small family these days but my daughter still cooks a big, wonderful Thanksgiving Day dinner for us. This year it was my daughter Robin, her 6 year old son Billy, my son Robert, my mom (who is visiting from Illinois for the winter), and myself. We  enjoyed each others company and our big old fashion dinner and now we are getting back to our daily routines. I am attending a donor appreciation luncheon at the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center on Monday. I am honored to meet someone whose life was saved by mulitiple blood transfusions, and I happen to be one of the donors. Then on Wednesday I am off to Jacksonville Fla  for more GetQuit Clinics. For more information on this go to http://www.mygetquitstory.blogspot.com/. Of course I am quilting and sewing, and block swapping,  and thinking about christmas gifts and how many will actually be finished in time. We live life abundantly because we live blessed lives! Every day I thank God for the life He has given me. It is part of the reason I do what I do!

Today I am inviting you to a Pay It Forward Challange. It works like this:  If you would like to participate in a PIF please post a comment here. Hopefully three brave souls will be interested - if more than three express interest I will draw names to determine the winners. The three people chosen will get a small, handmade gift from me within the next year and must post this logo on their blog along with a PIF entry. I will choose the participants a week from today.

Peace and Prayers
missd

Good Morning...It is almost Thanksgiving and I have rested up from my GetQuit Clinics in Charleston, West Virginia. I am so happy with the results and very moved by the stories people have. I look forward to my next round in December. If you or someone you know is trying to quit smoking please visit http://www.mygetquitstory.blogspot.com/. Helpful information and my quit story is there. Yours can be too, as soon as you succeed in getting quit! You can do it with treatment and support! Now back to my 2nd passion...quilting:

When I returned home I had a lovely siggie from Helen of Aunt Hennys Blogspot. I also have 2 ready to mail out this afternoon. These little blocks are so much fun to make and to receive. If you want to join in our fun go to www.quiltsandsiggies.web-log.nl . Annelies in the Netherland manages this swap..and has a beautiful siggie herself.

WIPs:
I am currently trying to finish some heavy quilting for Quilts for Kids. It is such a pretty little quilt and I have filled it with love. It requires heavy quilting because it will be given to a child in the hospital and will be washed and dryed  in industrial washers and dryers. If you are into quilting for charity go to http://www.quiltsforkids.org/. They will send you precut fabric for the top and instructions for making it. It is a good thing, and I plan on sending an extra quilt and some gallon plastic bags. I don't believe they ask for too much. God bless them for what they do.