100 Posts = GiveAway!!!!!

So tell me - what's better than finishing a quilt???



Finishing TWO quilts, of course!!!!!!!



That's right, I made two - one for you and one for me. Back in May, I won a fat quarter bundle of Snippets from Kelly at Charming Chatter. After I decided I wanted a simple patchwork quilt, I started cutting and found I had enough for two quilts. So now, I'm giving one away!

The quilt measures 60"x75".



It's backed with a sheet, the batting is a flannel sheet. Lightweight but cozy and washable.



This is a utility quilt, meant to be used - I have no mad quilting skills to show off, lol! It's a hug from me to you.

So what are the rules? Very simple, there are only two:

1. Leave a comment on this post.
2. DO NOT POST ABOUT IT.

That's right, don't put it on your blog. This give-away is for my regular readers and followers. Which of course greatly enhances your chance of winning!

So read the edit on my previous post to make sure I can reply to you, and leave me a comment here. This is open to everyone - whether you live down the street or down under, or across the pond. I will pick a winner on Black Friday, the day after our Thanksgiving holiday, November 27. Good luck!

An Important Post: Updated With An Important Edit!

Edit: I was wrong! Debbie was good enough to let me know how you REALLY make sure you're not a no-reply blogger! Debbie, I can't thank you enough....I was horrified! Here's how you change a no-reply. Go to your blog, sign in, and go to your dashboard. Over on the left, click on "edit profile". There are two things where you show your email addy, and I'm not sure if you need both of them or just one of them checked, so we'll do both. Under where it says Privacy, make sure 'show my email address' has a check mark in the box, then scroll down to Identity and make sure your email addy is in the box for Email Address. SAVE your changes. Everybody, be sure to thank Debbie! There's just no end to this learning curve, lol!



Why? Well, because I want everyone to have a chance to win my give-away, if they want. So I'm posting information on how to know if you're a no-reply blogger or not.

What IS a no-reply blogger? Well, when you comment on my posts, I get an email with your comment. Normally, it will have your email addy on it, and I can just click 'reply' and email you back. If you've ever left a comment, and not heard from me, then the email doesn't show your addy - instead, it says 'no-reply commenter'. If I try to reply to it, it goes out to cyberspace and is eaten by borgs. Not really borgs, but I like the way it sounds. And by the way, I do reply to each and every comment, as long as I have an email to reply to.



So. HOW do you know? Well, if you use blogger, then I can tell you. Sign into your blog. Go to either Customize, or your Dashboard. Click on the tab that says Settings. Underneath the tabs at the top of that page, you'll see Basic, Publishing, Formatting, and Comments - click on Comments. This is where you make changes to how people comment on your blog.



Scroll all the way down to the bottom of the page. It says Comment Notification Email. If that box is blank, then you're a no-reply blogger. You want to have your email address in that box. When you've put your email there, click SAVE. You have to save or the changes won't take.



And that's it! Now you can enter my give-away, and lots of others. Now, what if you don't have a blog, or you have a different one, like wordpress or typepad and I can't help you with those? Just leave your email in your comment, so I can reply to you.



If none of this makes sense and you need more help, you can email me at alliehomeschool at yahoo dot com [take out spaces and use the symbols]. I'd be glad to help you if I can.



This is post number 99. Friday will be number 100, so check and make sure I can reply to you!

Challenge Blocks Have Arrived!

Lyn, from Bluebird Quilts, issued a challenge - to use four vintage hexagon blocks in a wall-size quilt. The finish date is May 2010. She sent out the blocks last week and mine arrived today!



I'm so thrilled to be a part of this challenge. I have a million ideas fighting for my attention. I can't wait to get started - but I'm going to draw up several different ideas before I do. Won't this be fun! Thank you, Lyn, for letting me be a part of this!

Tomorrow, [or next day - next POST, anyway] I'm going to devote a post to how to know if you're a no-reply blogger, and what to do about it. It's important, if you enter a give-away, that the blog owner has a way to contact you! Heaven forbid someone else should get your prize, right? *G*

And now I'm going to wrap up in something warm, it's FREEZING here. Brrrrrrr.....

Another Saturday Night

WHAT a week. It didn’t start off well – my mom’s next-door neighbor’s house was broken into. In the middle of the day. Broad daylight. For the THIRD TIME. Which of course makes my mother rather nervous. I spent all day Tuesday at her house, just hanging out and basting a quilt. When she moved in 18 years ago, folks didn’t even lock their doors during the day….it was a lovely neighborhood. I wish my mom would get a dog. If you’re a praying person, I’d appreciate prayers for her safety.



Thursday, I went for a meeting with a work assessment guy. I’ll be going to a facility daily for 2 weeks, where they have me in a simulated work environment, to see how I do. I have an awful lot of restrictions – actually, he said I have them ALL, lol – like no reaching, lifting, walking, standing. I’ll be doing clerical work. I only hope there’s not much using the mouse – I have a bad mouse shoulder. We’ll see how I do, see if there’s anything they can do to make it a more friendly environment for my body, and then I’ll start sending out resumes. Oh boy! After 18 years of staying home, it’s making me a bit nervous.



Are you wondering what these pictures are? Well, I'm not going to tell you. It's a secret. *G* You'll find out in 3 posts!



Jenny from Elefantz has been having a November Trims Challenge. She used some Moda cotton tape from a jelly roll to hang her Garden Stitcheries on, and I liked it so much I copied it. I had been trying to find clothesline to use, but when I saw hers, I knew that would work MUCH better. I love it. I'm still going to look for some smaller clothes pins.



Boy I have a lot of holes in my wall. You know what I'd love? A picture hanging system - where the wire runs all along the top of the wall, near the ceiling, and then you hang wires from that to hang your pictures from. I LOVE those. I'm pretty changeable about furniture and pictures, and that would let me change my mind without putting so many holes in the wall. For now I'll just cover as many as I can with little quilts.

Well, I'd better get back to my secret project - enjoy your Sunday!

How About A Recipe??

Do any of you have old photos like this around the house?



This is my mom, not sure how old she was, on a neighborhood pony. Probably around 1940. I love this picture. I was browsing through some old ones, thinking about my mom and my grandma - my mom is still [thank You Lord] with me, but my grandma has been gone a long time. I miss her so much, and still find myself reaching for the phone to call her. Thinking about my grandma reminded me of how we used to bake together - I don't LIKE to bake, or cook, but I do love to eat and helping her with Christmas baking was sure to get me a coffee cake all my own.

One recipe of hers that we all dearly love is her Ginger Snaps cookies. I don't like store-bought, they're hard as a rock and too spicy. Grandma's were soft, sugary, and so tasty! The only problem was in the making....the dough is VERY hard to stir. Fortunately I have teen boys to do the stirring for me. I decided to share the recipe with you. I also decided to turn it into a stitchery, and make it up for my mom for Christmas. I'll let you know how that goes.

So if you'd like to make them, be prepared for the stirring....and make a lot, because they'll disappear in no time. We made them for the entire family for Christmas one year, about 30 tins full, and I don't think they lasted a week.

Grandma's Ginger Snap Cookies

1 cup sugar
3/4 cup crisco
1 egg
1/4 cup light molasses
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves, 1/4 tsp ginger - use 1/8 tsp ea. for milder flavor
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour

Mix ingredients in order listed. Roll into small balls, about 1" diameter, or size of small walnuts. Roll in sugar, place on baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees.

If you have any left when they've cooled, put in airtight container with piece of bread. This will keep them soft.

Edited to add: Crisco is the brand name of a vegetable shortening here in the US. I'm not sure what the equivalent would be overseas.

Oops....

I cannot believe I posted today and forgot to mention a give-away! Go see Melanie at Kimono Reincarnate and enter her give-away - oh my gosh she makes the most gorgeous things!!!!!

Oh dear that means this is post 95. Only 5 more to go til my give-away!

Now What?

A very sweet friend recently sent me a pattern, all the way from Tasmania. She showed a picture of this quilt made up on her blog, and I fell in love with it. Thank you Bell, I can't wait to make it!







What I love about this pattern is that the daisies cover any points that don't match. *G* They don't call me Allie-OOPS for nothin'.



And I won a give-away over at Jan's blog:







The cutest towels with stitcheries, cookies for Santa. My mom is going to love these - she once spent $300 at a home party for Christmas decorations. The woman goes all out. She usually has her tree up until June.



And I finally finished Jenny's In My Garden stitcheries. Oh my gosh do I love these.







Hold onto your monitors, I took pics of them all.



















I guess I should've brushed the lint off first. Please disregard the awful job I did on the binding....I love pieced binding, but it's a bit tricksy. I dug into my vintage button stash and had so much fun. I want to hang these on a clothesline with vintage clothes pegs. They are really going to brighten up my sewing room!



So, the title of my post - now what? I have so many projects ready to start, that I don't know which one to pick up! The Gum Tree designers have been so busy, I want to make each project there, of course the towels and the quilt I showed at the beginning of this post, the stitcheries of Jenny's that I haven't started yet, all the bom's I've been saving, and dh's quilt....sigh. AND - my up-coming give-away project! This is post 94, there will be a give-away at number 100. I guess I'd better start with that! This will be only for my regulars followers - you won't be blogging about it. I'm very excited to finally have my own give-away! I've been so blessed by all of you in blog-land, and at last I can give back a little.



I have so much to do, what am I doing sitting here? See you soon!

A Thankful Heart

Colossians 4:2 tells us to have a thankful heart. Sometimes, that's a struggle - I've done my best, in good times and bad, to cultivate a thankful heart, by counting my blessings, by thanking the Lord for everything. It's easy when things are going well, not so much when everything looks bleak. But it never ceases to amaze me how the bleakness lifts when I do it anyway, in spite of circumstances. The joy of the Lord surely is my strength!

This week, it's been easy to cultivate a thankful heart. Thanks to blogland friends who reach out and pray, or just email to let me know they're thinking of me, I appreciate you all.

Today, I recieved a parcel from Niki at Pumpkin Country, just because. Just because she is sweet and lovely, and one of my favorite people. Niki knows all about struggles and her sweet spirit shines right through them.



Is that not too darling for words? I wish you could touch these, they are so soft, and I can't stop. Look at these lovely little pennies:



You know you'd be petting them too.



And CROWS. I have nothing with crows on them - and I love them! Niki, you are too sweet - I opened the package and went running for my camera, I couldn't wait to show everyone. Now if I can just keep my mom from seeing them.....she can't have them! Thank you, darling Niki!

Last week, I showed you the latest stitcheries I'm doing, from Jenny of Elefantz - her design set called In My Garden. The designs incorporate rick-rack and buttons. I didn't have any rick-rack - and Carrie from A Passion For Applique emailed me and offered to send me some of her vintage rick-rack.



I don't know how, but the colors are PERFECT for these stitcheries. Carrie, I appreciate this so much! Look how well the yellow goes -



And the other colors go perfectly as well! I was dreading doing the rick-rack and Carrie, you took the dread right out and turned it into joy. Thank you dear heart! The next one to use it will be this one:



I want to get all the stitching done first, then the rick-rack, and then I'll pick out buttons - I'm looking forward to pulling out all my vintage buttons for this stitchery. I don't get to play with them nearly enough. Most of the stitching on the others are done, I'm saving the rainbow for last so I can use all the colors of floss I've used in the other stitcheries.




Aren't they sweet?

One last but not least thing to tell you - Sue over at Blueberry Buckle Quilt Studio is having another give-away! Go vote on which fabric you like best, and tell her what fabric you use most. She's giving away a jelly roll of Objects of Desire by Sandy Gervais for Moda!

And just cuz, one more shot of soft woolly goodness:



Go find something or someone to be thankful for!