I set sail for one of the best weekends ever ...

The call for all hands on deck had arrived and finally it was time to cast off.

The colours had been hoisted.

And we were welcomed with open arms.


Pam had seen to every detail and made certain our quarters were well stocked with supplies.

I had such a great weekend and I just don't know where to begin. We were technically nine, but were a crew of eight, Pam, Kathy, Helen, Kris, Bonnie, Cynthia, Carolyn and me.
A few of us had cameras and took close to 400 pictures all together. Pam copied all of the photos from our disks and is going to compile a CD for everyone.
Pam had everything set up for us and so we were all able to get right in and start working on our projects - it's all about product and none of us wanted to walk the plank (they run a tight ship at the Pirate Quilters Retreat).

So here is where I have to jump ahead, because I don't have all of the photos yet.

Thursday night we had the most wonderful Lasagna dinner prepared by Pam's very own Cap'n Cook. And of course Rum Cake for dessert. It was all delish! And then it was back to work.

Friday morning we found coffee and juice waiting for us. Cap'n Cook was in the galley and prepared a fantastic French Toast breakfast. We had a busy day ahead of us and needed plenty of energy. Cynthia brought a couple of games for us to play and the first was started right after breakfast. We were all given a quilt retreat related charm and then were told that we couldn't say the would QUILT. If you did you had to give up your charm. The person with the most charms at 3pm would then get ALL the charms and a bracelet too. Kathy was the winner in the end, but let me just say that some of these quilting pirates were a bit more cut throat than others - and I am not going to name names ... Kathy and Bonnie!
Promptly at 10am we headed to the Quilter's Cupboard to stock up on supplies and then made a quick trip over to Sew Fun to get anything else we may have overlooked. And then it was back to work, breaking for a lunch of Italian Crockpot Beef sandwiches. Then back to an afternoon of sewing. The Cap'n brought in a round of Strawberry Margaritas late in the afternoon and before we knew it it was time for dinner.
The Cap'n and his 1st mate (Pam) served the crew a Chicken Enchilada dinner. And then it was time for dessert of Olallieberry Pie. The Cap'n pulled the crew together for the pie presentation and here is what was served up.

Cynthia had made pincushions for everyone!

Why that pie looks good enough to eat!

Next we had real Olallieberry Pie for dessert! YUM.

And then we played a game called Left, Right, Center.

The prize was all of these fat quarters! And I won!!! WooHoo!

We got another early start on Saturday and got busy after breakfast. A stop mid day to have a bite of lunch and then back to the fun stuff.

Cap'n Cook prepared a round of Lemon Drops and Pepper Popper appetizers.
We sewed until dinner time and then had the best BBQ Rib dinner.

The time passed quickly, but we did manage to squeeze in quite a bit of sewing. We also had some demos. Helen and Kris both did demos on hand applique. They both do exquisite work - absolutely stunning.
Pam demoed the little baskets from the Pink Penguin.
We all had so much fun. A lot of laughing, we sang the Pirate Song and the group even heard the theme song from the Super Chicken cartoon show.
It was a fantastic 4 days and it was so good seeing everyone again. The crew was absolutely the best and I hated to see it end. We are already looking forward to next time.

With rubber banana in hand ...

So here I am at the local Blood Bank this morning (right now, actually) doing a plasma/blood donation. The rubber banana is the "squeeze toy" they give you. It has been a while since my last donation. Things were just too busy with my trips to see Marlene, working on her quilt, work and, well, you get the picture. Our Blood Bank is really cool. The stations for plasma and platelet donations are set up for internet access. Very cool. The only drawback is having to type with one hand.

This weekend has been going by all too quickly. I am looking forward to some expanded quilting time in the very near future though and time with good friends.

A little bit country - a little bit quilt show ...

Once again I have gotten behind on my blog entries. The last 2 weekends have been fun filled quilting weekends.

Back on April 18, a group of us got together once again for a fantastic fun filled Sew Day. Debbie was our hostess and we were a “quiet” group of 4 (Pam, Deanna, Debbie and me). Debbie served up a wonderful lunch and had lots of goodies for us to snack on throughout the day. Alex was able to drop in for lunch - it’s always good to see her. And I was glad she could take a quick break from her Asilomar prep to stop by. We have another Sew Day on the calendar and I am looking forward to spending the time with good friends once again.

Last weekend was also quilt related sewing fun. Saturday morning started with a quick trip to a quilt show. I got to the show early and then met up with my mom and my neighbor, Rose. The show was very nice and there about 350 quilts on display. I did remember to take my camera, but very inconveniently forgot to bring fresh batteries. Wouldn’t it be nice to have batteries for sale at quilt shows. Maybe it would just help to remember them when leaving the house.

After the show I went home and loaded up the car and the dog for a weekend of country quilting. I spent the rest of Saturday and all day Sunday in the quiet and solitude of the country. I got to see the “deer family” off in the distance – too far off to get a picture with my camera and fresh batteries. And then on Sunday morning I could hear the turkeys off somewhere down the road.

There weren’t any possum emergencies in the “hood” since my last post. That’s a good thing I guess. I hope to get some more sewing done this weekend. Hope you are all able to do the same.

Mondays - who knew ...

Mondays – usually just the beginning of the work week. And today, this Monday is just the typical run of the mill kind of start to the week. Last week on the other hand was a different story.

Last Monday was just routine. Starting with coffee, a shower, and getting dressed. Oh yeah, must not forget the high speed car chase being covered on the news. I think it was north bound on 110. Not all that familiar with the freeways in southern CA.

The chase had just ended with the “purp” veering across all lanes of traffic and crashing into the center divider and ending in the center of the freeway injured and unable to exit the vehicle.

This is where my day suddenly changes direction …

My neighbor from across the street appears at my door and tells me he needs help. He has a possum in his yard and doesn’t know what to do. I suggest just chucking it over the fence, but he says he thinks it is dying or dead. He “called animal control and they don’t do anything about them”. I suggested that if it’s dead just “bag it up for disposal”. He says “ oh no, they give me the creeps”. So I said I would be over in a minute. I grabbed my “can” and headed over to find a very docile possum in the planter near his side door. He was concerned about it’s location and his 2 yr old daughter. As he asked if I needed a shovel or something, I just went over and picked it up and put it in “the can”. Too bad I didn’t have my camera to get a pic of the look on his face. Too funny. I have a place near a creek in the hills where I relocate them to keep them from returning and I would do that after work. With the can in my yard and some fruit in with the critter, I was about to return to my routine when 2 police cars pulled up the street. I asked if they had come about the possum and they said yes. I told them I had taken care of it, let them know what my plans were and showed the contained critter to them. My neighbor came over and said “Yeah, you should have seen her. She just went over and grabbed it. There’s no way I could have done that, they give me the creeps.” The police left. I went about my day. When I got home I checked on the possum. Seems it was dying and by the time I got back home it has passed. So I wrapped it up to take out to Animal Services for disposal.

So there you have it. I’m not sure how I became the neighborhood person in charge of who to get when you don’t know what else to do. This wasn’t the first time and I’m sure it won’t be the last.

Hope you all have a Monday that is just routine.

A "Triple F S" Day ...

So here we go again with the letters ... LOL

Last Saturday was spent with Friends. And what a great time we had. I left home on Friday and took a leisurely drive north to Debbie's. As I got closer to Debbie's, I had to do a loop around the block to get a pic of this lovely gal. I say gal because of the hat (and maybe because "she" is pink).

I made a quick stop to see Pam. And I just have to say that RocketKittyMorning is a hoot and a half. He lets you know that you are obligated to pet him and scratch his butt. Too funny!

Anyway, getting back to the Triple FS.

Saturday was all about Friends, Fun, Food ... and Sewing. Susan, Holly, Debbie, Pam, Alex and myself had a wonderful day. We worked on a group project to honor our friend Marlene. It was our first sew day together since Marlene's passing - a day that she would have been at if she was still with us. But then she was with us. We shared memories of her, ate strawberries in her memory and had the best Chicken Curry Salad that I just know she would have loved. The day went by all too quickly.

So another day has been scheduled and will be here before we know it. I'm looking forward to it.

A "Triple D" Outing ...

Gosh, has it really been 4 weeks since the outing??!??!? Well, anyway, 4 weeks ago we had a Triple D outing to see our friend Sylvia. Deanna and I met up at Debbie's and headed north for a fun filled day.

We started out the day with a bit of sun, but then the clouds moved in. Scattered showers were the prediction for the days weather, but that was not going to dampen our spirits at all.

Our first stop of the day ... In Between Stitches. Of course we had to stop there and check out their "new digs".

The shop was calling to us ...

The store is so fresh and new and they have it fixed up so nice with displays and quilts hanging. I always love how they have their displays.

After a nice visit with Leslie and Melissa, we headed to Starbucks (sorry, no photo - still trying to get the hang of this whole blogging thing) and then hit the Freeway.

Just a short drive north and we arrived.

We were all so happy to see Sylvia. We spent a bit of time visiting, seeing her quilt studio and then the four of us headed out for some more fun.

Lunch was first on our agenda and then we went to two nearby quilt shops. The first shop was Red Hen Quilt Shop (my photos were too blurred to post).

And then we made it into Beehive Quilts just a few minutes before closing.

Both shops were very nice! Didn't really buy anything though. Just a piece of Dandelion Girl for backing and a magazine.

We went back to Sylvia's for some more gab-gab-gabbing and then finally had to head on back to Debbie's. It was so good to see Sylvia and spend such a wonderful day together. We hope to do it again soon.

A Late Start into March ...

Company has gone, my project obligation is completed and we have made the jump into Daylight Savings Time.

I am so hoping that things settle back into a more typical routine. Notice I didn't say normal ... after all, what is normal anyway.

It always makes me so happy when we change the clocks ahead one hour and it stays light later. Now if only the days were a little longer. I know they will be soon.