Quilting Fun!

We celebrated my son's birthday by taking him to Legoland! I just cannot do a big party every year so we decided that a fun place like legoland would be perfect for a brand new two year old!  I actually have to give credit where credit is due and say that my husband planned the whole trip.  I just sort of showed up and through some clothes in a suitcase (after he had already gotten his clothes and my son's clothes pack\ed!) and jumped in the car.  Everything was perfect from the hotel we stayed in to Legoland itself. It truly was the perfect place to celebrate for a child this age. The smiles on my boy's face were really worth the ticket price (not cheap, btw!).

When I knew we were going to legoland, I of course realized that we would be near some cool quilt shops. One is called Quilter's Paradise and its in Escondido California.  My husband endured a trip here right before we headed to legoland. We almost missed the place because its in area where there are no other retail shops. I guess this is a testament to quilters.  We know where to go when we need fabric!   When we got there it looked closed but thank goodness I got out to take a closer look and found that the door was open!  The place is huge!  I did not think to take pix of the inside but if you are in the area, GO GO GO!  I plan to go back! 



I also went to QUILT IN  A DAY!  I don't know what I was expecting but it was such a small place because most of their business is online. They have a large classroom and the set where they shoot their shows is also on the premises.  Check me out in Eleanor Burns' parlor:





And here is the retail space:



I bought the pattern for this hugs and kisses quilt and I think I have mostly figured out how to make it on my Accuquilt GO!



This place had really good fabric prices and I picked up a few pieces for a future project.  Hopfully I can start working on it soon, though I still have 3 current WIPS that I need to finish up!

Since I always like to leave you with just a little cuteness, here is my little one having a ball at Legoland!

Works In Progress Wednesday

I am joining in on Works in Progress Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced! I am planning to do this every week!  This will motivate me to keep working on all my UFOs and hopefully finish some great projects this year.

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So, this is my friendship braid inspired quilt top.  I saw this tutorial over at Missouri Star Quilt Company:





I realized that I could use my Accuquilt Go and the Chisel Die to create my version of this quilt.

I laid them out a few times before I found this layout that I love.



 Here, I have pieced that strips and added the first border.



Hopefully I will have the entire top pieced by next Wednesday and then it will be ready to quilt.  I am going to attempt some straight line diagonal grid quilting. Hopefully it will work out. I have to say that I really love  my Accuquilt Go!  It saves so much time and with all that it going on in my life, I do all I can to save time!  This is the first of I believe many quilts that I will be able to create using my GO!

My other work is progress is not quilting related or even crafting related. Its my Masters Degree!  I am happy to say that though I am still working on it after 3 years, I am so close that I can almost taste it!  I will actually be done by the end of June! I am so excited.  My program is completely online and the school is in Salt Lake City. So if I actually want to participate in the ceremony, I will have to fly to Utah.  At first I was thinking, whatever, who cares as long as I get the degree. But this has been such a battle that I think that once I finish, I MUST walk down that aisle and receive my degree. So, Salt Lake City here we come! ( probably next year though since they only have two ceremonies per year.)

Oh, how about a 3rd Work in Progress:  The Cuteness!



He will be progressing for a while though I know time is flying pretty quickly.  Its so hard to believe that he will be 2 years old next week!  My husband and I have been looking at his baby pictures and some from just one year ago. Its just amazing how much kids grow in such a short amount of time!


We are planning to take him to Legoland. Hopefully I will be able to visit a quilt shop in the area while we are there!  Stay tuned for more  pics and updates!