OK Joanne! lol

Joanne from over at Splitting Stitches has been on me lately about updating my blog.  Yes, it was April the last time I made a post, but I have to tell you, I have been really busy.

Where do I start!  Let's see.  The first part of May, Jill and I took a quick trip to North Carolina.  Fayetteville to be exact.  Went to see my sister Dawn and her family for a few days.  There was a very important reason for me to go too.  We needed to finish a quilt Dawn had started for her BFF Anne.  She actually had a couple of quilts that needed finished but that trip we mainly worked on that one.  We got it all done except for the border.  I brought it home, put the border on it and quilted it.  It then made a trip back to NC with my Mom.  Anne received and loved it.  Dawn was the designer on this one so put on your sunglasses before viewing more than 2 seconds!  lol

Of course by the time all of this was done it was June.  Time to open the pool.  Pools are a great way to enjoy the summer and stress you in ways that you have never been stressed before.  Dealing with chlorine levels, ph levels, acidity levels, etc.  And then sometimes the just plain extremely hot weather does a whole new number on the water.  In June the pool looked great as you can tell by the next photo.  Don't you just love the turtle!  It is a good thing I got this picture because pond scum led us into the month of July.  But all is well now and water is clear and cool!

 

 Then came the month of July!  What a hectic month that was!  Since I had a long weekend that month, I decided we needed to start on a home decorating project.  Cody and I painted all that weekend. The hallway, the family room, the dining room and kitchen.   You know once you start you can't stop so new flooring was added to all those rooms plus the laundry room.  Love the new laminate flooring and I am so glad the carpet is now gone!  We waited on the living room so we would have something to do this winter.  lol  Actually it isn't a living room anymore but where I keep my Grace frame and quilting machine.  So once the flooring was down there were new curtains to hang and furniture shopping to do.  We went from plain white walls, tan carpet, hunter green and burgundy curtains and green furniture to walls painted Faded Denim, Roasted Garlic and Pumpkin Bread, laminate flooring, blue stripes and orange and red curtains and leather furniture.  Big difference!  Here are a few photos to see how it ended up.  Don't look at the couch potato or recliner radish!  We still have some things to do yet but hope to get those little things done in the next couple of weeks.

 While we were in the middle of all these renovations, my sister Dawn took a turn for the worse.  Dawn was diagnosed with Stage 4 Breast Cancer in October of 2007.  She passed away on July 29th, 2010 very quietly with me and Mom by her side.  She was an amazing woman and is missed greatly.  So another trip to North Carolina for the visitation and memorial service then back home for another visitation, funeral and burial.  There are still times when something funny happens and I reach for the phone to call her and tell her.  We always enjoyed a good laugh!  Sometimes too many!  But I know she is in a better place free of the awful pain she had to endure on this earth.  Miss you little sister!!

So now we come to August!  August was a month for finishing!  Finishing the some of the work on the house we had started.  Finishing quilts!  I have managed to finish 2 quilts in August.  The first finish I can't show you right now.  It was one of Dawn's and will be going to her son.  After he receives it I will post a photo but not now.  The second one was actually a repair.  My dear SIL, Lisa, asked me to repair a quilt for her quite some time ago.  She said it was her sick quilt and it sure is ugly and I have to agree with her there.  She used it when she was sick to curl up on the couch with.  Anyway, the backing was almost gone as well as most of the batting.  The top was in good condition but you know the double knit fabric lasts a zillion years.  Yes, it was pieced out of double knit fabrics.  So I left what was left of the batting and backing and added a new layer of batting and a new backing.  Tacked it at the seams and put a binding on it. 
If you have a weak stomach don't scroll down any farther!  Here is that masterpiece!

 So do you know what else happened in August?  Stay tuned tomorrow when I update you on the rest of the month of August!

Bye for now!
Rhonda