The World's Most Intriguing Blog Post Title

Cannot come up with a headline grabber to save my life today. Sorry!

It's Wednesday and I wish my WIPs were closer to finishing than they are, but blast it, I had to clean up the house again for another showing yesterday and then they called and want to show it again tomorrow. So 48ish hours between showings = plenty of time for the kids to trash the place. Good grief.

And I tried to clean out the shrubbery yesterday morning. Yeah, that's not going to happen. First, because I don't HAVE to do it (I was just being nice). Second, because I'd need a suit of armor to tackle those rose bushes. They are seriously overgrown and impossible to deal with. I've made a note to myself that I won't have rose bushes around my house. I'll go with hydrangeas and lilacs and other non-killer-thorny shrubs. These ones are AWFUL!

I much prefer dandelions . . .

Okay, but I'm going to sew this morning. And I'm going to work on these blocks:

I like them okay, which means it's great I'm giving it away. Still don't do well with scrappy stuff. But they are cute. The other plus to making these charity quilts is getting my daughter involved. She loves hanging out with me, and I'm teaching her sew, so we talk about what I'm working on and who it's for. I showed her the website for Quilts Beyond Borders and it started a conversation about orphans, poor people and helping others. I know I talk a lot about starving children in other countries (usually when I can't get them to eat homemade chicken pot pie awesomeness!), but I think it did her a lot of good to see kids who don't have much. And will do her good to help make something for them.

Linking up!

Make-A-List Monday: Taking Names!

I love being productive. Love love love it! I love crossing things off my list. I sometimes add things I've finished to my to-do list just so I can another thing crossed off. True story. With five awesome kids around all day, I don't always get to get much done.

Here's my list from last week:

• Piece the three flimsies I meant to piece last week - 2 scrappy trips and my Gypsy Girl patchwork

Done! Here they are (curse the rain and wind, but I got pictures at least!):

My PKM scrappy trips. I originally was going to do it just like the London trips, with small diamonds, but that dark green fabric was always drawing my eye, no matter where I put it. So I figured I'd just make it front and center and then it wouldn't bug me. Glad I did that.

My Gypsy Girl patchwork. Never again will I think that it's "so easy" to make a simple patchwork. Maybe it is if you aren't a smidge OCD like me, but this took forEVER to lay out because I couldn't have similar colors or patterns too close together, if I could help it, and I had to take deep breaths when it couldn't be avoided. But it's done and I love it. My girly loves it too, which is good because it's going in her blanket chest for the winter!

My London trips. I'm so glad I used the white. Love this one. My 6'2", eyes of blue husband has claimed this one. Finally a quilt he can bury himself in! His mother is also from London so he says it should naturally be his. No arguments here.

• Prep fabric for semi-annual cut-a-thon - I 'splained here what that is, exactly

Prepped and cut it all while listening to the most amazing, uplifting talks. Great great weekend. Even got started on some blocks:

These are for one of my H2H quilts. I pulled all the pinks, greens (that were the right color), and browns. I'm using this pattern, which is pretty simple and straightforward, but it comes out looking pretty fantastic. I obviously can't share the process with you, but it is layer cake friendly, and I just used stuff from my stash.

• Finish Strawberry Fields Shortcake blocks

All done and ready to lay out.

So, as for this week, here are my new plans:

• Piece Hello Sunshine Jacob's Ladder blocks

I trimmed these during my cut-a-thon this past weekend. Took me FOUR hours to do it. I know, because I started it during the first session on Saturday, and finally finished it when the second session concluded. Now I've just gotta get these blocks done.

• Piece borders for Posy Kiss Me quilt

Cut the pieces for this during my cut-a-thon. Need to finish these so that I can make this an official flimsy finish.

• Finish piecing green/pink/brown blocks (H2H quilt!)

Took me a bit to decide what to do with this, but I'm excited to get this done.

• Make two bee blocks and mail them

One black and white and one green/blue/purple

That's all for this week. Here's hoping they don't want to show the house again this week!

I am adding two things:

First, a recipe, so I can link up with Sarah. It's my carrot cake recipe, over at my cake blog. Yes. I have a cake blog. It needs some more attention! But this is the BEST carrot cake recipe. Kid you not. I'm not great with quilts just yet, but I speak pastry. I bleed chocolate. And I love this carrot cake.

Second: are y'all aware of the free shipping offer going on this week at the FQS? Yep. $40 = free shipping. Now that I can manage!

Linking up!

Make-A-List Monday: Randomness

Boy, at the beginning of the week, I thought my plans were all set and ready to go.

Yeah, total derail over here.

One, I started packing for our move. No, no word on the house, but we still have to be out of this house at the end of May. So I figured I'd get some early packing done. I started with my sewing room, with projects that I knew I wouldn't finish or even want to start before the move. This got me thinking about what I could get done and before you knew it, I was finishing up projects.

I blame Sarah too. She announced the H2H and I suddenly found myself pulling fabric that would work well together (gasp - am I about to do something scrappy?). So those projects are pulled. One is cut out already. I'm excited to use up these languishing fabrics and share some quilty love.

But, for habit's sake, we'll just look at that list from last week, shall we? Here goes:

• Finish three flimsies - yep, three!

Well, I finished two, just not two of the three I wanted to finish. How's that for confusing? I finished the Delft Blue Dutch Pinwheels (one for H2H), and I finally, FINALLY, pieced the border for my Sew Cherry Granny quilt. I love it. A lot. My husband is on board with painting our bedroom aqua (I know, right?), and so I want my coordinating quilts ready for my bed. I'll quilt this one on my sister-in-law's long arm.

I'd show you the whole quilt, but it's huge. Queen-sized and my husband wasn't around to hold it up for me. This might be one to hang off the deck in the back yard. Here is a picture of it before the borders.

• Finish Simple Life Dottie blocks

Yeah, no. I have to trim all the blocks down and I hate that part. So I did what any self-respecting quilter does. I worked on something else!

• Make two bee blocks

This I did do, but I gave myself a headache doing it. Can I just say that terms like "gender neutral" do not appeal to me. What they really mean is no flowers, butterflies, or girly colors. Because my girl would be more than happy with dragons, dinosaurs, blues, oranges, reds, yellows and greens. And I'm drawn to girly fabrics. So it was a struggle to find something bright and non-girly in my stash. In the end, I figured rainbowy stuff is pretty gender neutral.

On to this week. Oh boy do I have plans!

• Piece the three flimsies I meant to piece last week - 2 scrappy trips and my Gypsy Girl patchwork
• Prep fabric for semi-annual cut-a-thon - I 'splained yesterday what that is, exactly
• Finish Strawberry Fields Shortcake blocks

There. Just three, but a lot of work in those three.

WIP: Hands 2 Help 2013

The Amazing Sarah has done it again. She's organized the Hands2Help Charity Quilt Challenge for 2013 and I'm joining in on the fun/madness.

You can read all about the challenge here. In a nutshell, you make a quilt for charity. You send it in.  You feel good. You might win a prize. It's awesome.

As for me, I've got one almost done - a quilt top that has been languishing far too long and needs a better home than my top shelf.

I know I loved these fabrics when I bought them, and I still think they are pretty, but they are really not my style. And yes, I know it could use a good ironing. After I add the last two rows!

Just may go crazy on the scrappy trip-alongs, too. We'll see. Let's stick with the one for now and see what I pull out of my scrap bin for another.

How's about some friendly quilty peer pressure? You know you want to join!

Linking up, because these are worthwhile WIPs.