Oh well, I was going to blog today anyway

I just love it when they change things on the website and store and don't tell us - makes life soooooo interesting.  It seems that Goodsie updated the checkout process and added all sorts of good things to make it easier.  They also took out the "Comments" section which we use a lot.  Quite a few of you just got an email the other day on a BOGO sale, please write the name of the Fall pattern you want free in the "Comments" section.  Lo and Behold - there is no "Comments" section.  I've emailed and asked them to put it back in but meantime, for this week's sale I just went into each pattern on sale and reduced the price.  Whew.  If you didn't get the email go to the store and see the Fall patterns on sale - Free Shipping  on orders of $25.00 or more with promo code AUTUMN.

There.

I was in Dallas last week and, of course, had to visit Moda.

And quite by chance I got there the day they were getting Fellowship (our new line) ready to go out to the stores.

It goes from the big rolls onto this machine that somehow puts them onto the bolts.

Then the bolts go through two machine to get shrinkwrapped.

And stack according to print and color onto carts to

head for the storage shelves before being shipped out to the stores.

And the same day I was there watching Fellowship get ready for the stores.....

the initial rolls of Audra's Iris Garden (to show at Fall Market) came in.  If it had gotten there a little earlier, I would have been able to take my yardage home with me but I had to wait a few days for them to cut it and ship it.  It got here late Friday afternoon.  

Let the stitching begin!

And of course, we had to have the grandkids over for the weekend when we got back.  Here's Cullen - our little Spiderman climbing the crabapple tree.  

We were impressed with his climbing but made him come down - crabapple trees have pretty spindly limbs.  We really don't have time for trips to the hospital for broken arms and legs.

And today her friend brought her kids......:)

I'm having to fill the feeders at least twice a day and the wild birds are having to be "early birds" if they want any.

I took these pictures about noon yesterday and it was her second visit.  

This time she not only brought her friend but her friend's kids came too.

And yesterday morning we saw a whole flock of turkeys - adults and babies - go up the hill beside the house and into the tree line.  We've never seen wildlife this close to the house before.  I don't think there's much food out there for them.  It will be a hard winter. There aren't any crops out there this year. We've always provided cover for the wildlife by not clearing our fence rows but I think this year we'd better keep food out too.

And speaking of winter - our "Christmas is Coming" sale is in the pattern phase this week.

8 patterns (from Christmas 101 through Winter Star) are on the Featured Products page - Buy One, Get One Free (of equal or lesser value, yada, yada) Type the name of your free pattern in the Comments section.  And Free shipping in Continental US for all orders over $50.00 August 2nd - 8th.  Type in Promo Code "Frosty". 

Sorry this is short and sweet but my Fall pattern deadline is August 6th.  

Keep quilting ladies.

Stuff N Such

A few weeks ago I substituted for Laurie Simpson (of Minick and Simpson) at a workshop she was supposed to teach.  She got double pneumonia instead.  I joined Polly in Iowa at Heidi Kaisand's Hen and Chicks Quilt Shop and we had a great time.  To say "thanks you" Polly sent me a rug canvas for one of her rugs that I fell in love with.  It's awesome.  Now, all I have to do is find time to hook it.  I'd love to have it done by Christmas but I also have a few quilts to get done.  Life is so hard  :)

Then, the other day our UPS guy brought me a box.  Then I opened it there was this gorgeous wood box inside.  It's a portable sewing desk with a sandpaper board on the top.  You can kind of see the handle on the end.

And lots of room for storage inside.  

Laurie's husband Bill made her one years ago and she sent one to me.  

Thank you so much, Laurie and Polly.  You are 2 first class people as well as first class designers.

And speaking of designing, that's what I'm doing right now.  My pattern deadline is August 6th and I still have 1 1/2 quilt designs to go.  Here's a sample of the fabric line that will be showing at Fall Market.  The name of the line is Audra's Iris Garden and I will tell you all about it AFTER the deadline.

Back here, we are we're having a "Christmas in July (and August) Sale"  This week it's Christmas and winter books - Buy One, Get One (of same or lesser value) Free.  

The book sale 

is from July 25th

through August 1st.

Be sure to write the name of your free book (of equal or lesser value) in the "Comments" section. 

And lastly - quickly since I need to get to work doing patterns - (I just hate deadlines) - back to the "we live in a black hole" issue.  

The office is open each week Monday-Friday from 10:00-2:00 CST.  If you call during that time you should either get someone answering or (if Tori ran upstairs and forgot the phone) the answering machine.  IF THE PHONE JUST RINGS AND RINGS, it does not mean we're not here.  It means we're on the phone.  God bless CenturyLink for doing away with the busy signal.  

And once again, apparently we're not getting some emails.  I know we're not because I didn't get my Market contract pdf from Quilts, Inc.  Rose says she sent it and I believe her.  Thank God for Moda Lissa who looks after the designers.  So I will be going to Fall Market.  

Anyway, we do check the email 2 - 3 times daily.  If you aren't getting answers try the gmail attached to the blog.  I hate it because  it's confusing to use - I can't print things out - cloud printers?, etc but I usually do get the emails.  At least I think so.  And then we can check and get back to you.  

Have a great week ladies.  It's only going to be in the high 90's here.  Some relief.  I'm still ready for a hard freeze.  And reindeer and snowmen and kids in snowsuits and ....................

Today she brought a friend :)

I guess that good news travels fast........

And occasionally the wild birds get some of the bird food too!

Instead of blogging

I teach a couple of Girl Gangs and one of them met at my house last Saturday.  Toni remarked that I hadn't blogged much lately.  She's right - I've kind of been a lousy blogger.  

Here's what's been keeping me busy.

First, I've been watering the garden.  We have raised beds and they have to be watered twice a day.

We've had lots of visits from grandchildren.  Cullen and Quinn live in the city and come to the farm every week or two to run around and go crazy, visit their cousins, go to the swimming pool in town and adopt kittens.  This one went home with Cullen.  Someone abandoned it in town by Kelly's apartment. It crawled up over the wheel well and under the pickup bed.  Luckily Zoie heard it meowing before they drove the pickup and crawled in the space to rescue her.  Blueberry and Cullen are best pals now.  (He's really not choking her, he just likes to hold her that way and Blueberry is fine with it.  She clings to him wherever he goes.)  

And I water the garden.

Then there's corralling Spike and Yoda when Yoda comes to visit - which is often.  Yoda lives with Zoie in Cameron in an apartment.  The first couple of hours they're here Spike and Yoda run up and down the drive, around the barn and chicken yard and back to the house.  Then they come inside and tear around in here until we make them go back outside.

And I water the garden.

Somewhere in the middle of the day, I  check the water in the birdbath behind the house.  Our deer has been drinking all the water every afternoon when she comes for her snack at the birdfeeder bench.  I also doublecheck the chicken yard to make sure they all still have water.  

And I water the garden.

I told Pep this morning that if I didn't love my flowers and fresh vegetables so much, I would stop watering the garden.  I am ready for a hard freeze already.  And I may have to stop anyway soon.  They're starting to restrict water in town.  I'm glad I water by hand as it uses much less water that using an overhead sprinkler.

Speaking of a hard freeze, I got Samantha Snowglobe out and decided to put the kit on special for 30% off for a week.  Maybe her snowflakes will bring cooler temperatures and rain.  :)

Deuces had found a good way to cope with the heat - take a nap on the couch in the house.  I may have to go join him.

Ssshhhh! Be very quiet and don't move suddenly either

I was in the back of the house straightening things when Pep called me in an urgent voice.  "Jan - come here and be very quiet.

He was standing at the kitchen sink looking out the window.  When I quietly joined him I saw this beautiful deer eating corn and birdseed off of our birdfeeding bench.  

It would look up when a bluejay or cardinal landed on one of the feeders close to the house, then quietly go back to feeding.  I went to get my camera but the flash would go off and reflect off of the window.  Pep's phone camera wasn't strong enough.  Then he thought of his IPad.  The camera on the IPad isn't the greatest so the pictures are a little grainy but we got them.

It was a really nice way to start the morning.

We're getting ready for the 4th - cleaning house for the festivities - cleaning rugs tomorrow after Zoie's puppy was learning what to do and where not to do it.  :)

Then I'll change the quilts this weekend and all of the decorations.

This is "Ring Around the Posie" - one of my favorite summer quilts for my bed.  It's not red, white and blue but it certainly says "summer" to me.  The colors of the quilt on the bed are more of the true colors of the fabrics.  Photography is so interesting.

Anyway, it's regularly $174.95 but the kit is on special until the 4th for $148.70.  And this week we learned to use the coupons on our store.  Yay!  If you type in the promo code "posie"  you'll get free shipping on all orders over $100.00.

Well back to cleaning...... but I have some fun stitching waiting for me tonight.

So far - so good - at least I think so.......

This year for the Mystery Quilt we're doing the Collector Series again.  It was originally an 18 month BOM - the first one Linda and I did.  And it's been a day or two since it came out so it seemed like time to do it again, only I'm changing a couple of blocks and putting some together so now, it's a 12 month BOM.  The original quilt got lost somehow - probably it's in a box somewhere in some shop's back room waiting to be shipped.  Anyway, I thought Linda had it and she thought I had it and, and, and.........

The quilt is just full of the things we love - houses, trees, stars, yada, yada, yada.  Here's January - May blocks on the wall in the loft.

And here's June's block that just shipped.

There has been a problem or two with the quilt.  People would call or email and ask to  be put on or taken off of the list for the Mystery Quilt.  Tori would dutifully add or subtract their names from our list in Quickbooks.  Then every other week or so we would get the flash drive with the current Quickbooks and load it into the computer.  Tori didn't realize that she needed to wait to change the lists until we got the newest version.  So she kept overriding all of the work she'd done.
And boy did we get the calls and emails from people who had gotten blocks they didn't want or hadn't gotten blocks they did want - sometimes one each month.
Finally, one day I was in the office and realized what was happening.  Whew!
So now we have a new updated list but we're really not 100% sure it's complete.  If you don't get a block or do get one when you don't want it, let us know one more time and we promise not to override this version - :)
And if you've just seen it for the 1st time and want to get in on the fun, email Tori at janpatekquilts@yahoo.com or call her at 816-632-7632.  And now that we know what was happening, it will be fun again.

This is "Spring Has Sprung".  Usually I don't put a quilt on special quite this soon after the club ships but I really like it.  It makes me happy.  So I decided to offer it for 15% off.

I need something cheerful to look at and think about.  We're having quite a battle this year protecting the babies

We solved the hawk problem last year with netting over their yard.  So far this year we have had to relocate 3 racoons and one black snake.
Life around here is never dull.