Twenty One Today!

I've done it, I've raised from seed to adulthood another human being!  Today Maddie turns 21 so what better than 21 photos of her through the years :)

Here she is one day old, what a cutie :)  It was the hottest day of the year and they couldn't get her temperature up so she was wrapped up in layers and layers...she's no different now and really feels the cold!

Her first trip on the channel tunnel :) This was back in the day when she loved going on holidays.

Being a beautiful bridesmaid for our friend Sara :) It was her first time but now she's been a bridesmaid five times in total!

Look at that cheeky face! She loved being outside and naked, now she hates both!

I think her dream even now is to be a pirate!

Reception year at school :)

An after breakfast nap and Pitcher and Piano with her beloved Barney, she still has him now!

Nothing changes, she's still a giggler :)

Look at her lovely eyes, she likes to keep them hidden behind glasses now :(

Garson Farm where she picked the winner in the pig race :)

Christingle, I miss it now that she's older :(

One of my favourite ever photos of her :)

And another one, taken outside the Portland Heights hotel as the sun went down :)

Here she is, sweet sixteen!

Still giggling and looking forward to an elephant hunt in London :)

More giggles, I have hundreds of photos of her laughing :)

And the odd funny face (that's a lie because I have hundreds of funny face photos too!)

She the most intelligent person I know, bright as a button :)

She works hard *insert hysterical laugh*

And she is special :)

So happy 21st to my daughter and my best friend....Sam.

Every day you make me smile, laugh and want to do silly things.

I hope you have a fabulous day darling

Love mum xxx

Week Twenty Six

Another great week is over and done with, here are the highlights:

I spent lots of time with this handsome boy :)

I found some time for scrapping :)

We spent a lot of time out in the garden :)

My neighbour gave me some of her delicious birthday cake :)

We had ice creams in the office :)

These two had lots of cuddles :)

My eczema has been so bad that I've had to wear horrible cotton gloves to bed :(

My brother Jamie and his girlfriend arrived on a visit from Thailand :)

And gave these two scamps the football kits they wanted :)

I spent some time with this cheeky chops :)

Had dirty pudding :)

Watched Alice ride her bike :)

Helped my friend Sarah move house :)

And got drunk with some of my family :)

Now I'm ready for another week full of family and friends.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

Sew Much Fun!

I've been quilting for about 27 years now!  I started off doing it all by hand and I still enjoy making blocks by hand, it's a lot quieter to do in the evenings when I'm watching TV!

I do have a machine and I was recently sorting out my fabric stash when I found these quilt tops I'd made a few years ago!

This one is for Christmas and I'm still deciding whether to add a wide border to it to make it a little bigger :s

This one is all ready for quilting and I really must get round to doing it soon!  I love it and it's definitely a summer quilt :)

And this one is all finished, yes it's fully quilted and bound!  I made it for Maddie, she picked the fabrics and how she wanted it and I put it all together for her.  The only trouble is she won't use it, she says she doesn't want to spoil it :(

I say that homemade quilts are for using as much as possible, especially when you need a warm hug :)

I've got so many ideas for other quilts I want to make but I never seem to have the time....maybe one day I'll win the lottery!

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

I Spied

With my little eye......

A few years ago I was out with Paul and we were finishing the afternoon by meeting up with his sister at a jumble sale she'd been working at.  There were no cashpoints nearby but it was ok, we had £4 in change on us and that would be enough for a cup of tea.  We were parched and headed straight for the tea bar when something caught my eye amongst all of the jumble that was being packed away.  This is a rough reconstruction of what I saw:

I ran walked over for a closer looked, gave it a little tug to get it out from the gap it had been wedged in, and here is what I found:

The photos really don't show how beautifully hand pieced and hand quilted this is:

And there was even more treasure inside it!

Pockets had been made for a rotary cutter, a quarter inch marker and a long quilting ruler that were included!

There was a well loved, well used cutting mat:

With somewhere to press the pieces of fabric!

I loved it and I appreciated the work that had gone in to it.  I couldn't and wouldn't let it go back in the cupboard with the rest of the jumble, I had to have it!!!  I looked at the price tag......£4, just £4 for this amazing, beautiful, homemade quilt station!

Paul, bless him, was happy to forfeit his cup of tea (which is an amazing thing for a tea addict like him to do!) and I took it home with me.

Every time I look at it I wonder who made it but, unfortunately, there are no names or markings on it :(  Even without the bits and pieces inside I would still have thought it was an incredible bargain and I'm so happy that it's mine.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx

Week Twenty Five

Another busy week has passed and we're at the halfway point of the year!!! Here are the highlights from week twenty five:

Bingo night with the girls, no winnings but some fun shaped biscuits :)

Cinema night with my girl to see Jurassic World :)

A meal out with my friend Clare, we shared this pudding because we're good (and because we were stuffed after the main course!)

I went to see my mum on the day she got back from her holiday with a gift for the kids :)

My sisters cooked a BBQ!

Dirty pudding :)

I had the day off work on Friday and went to the National Quilt Championship at Sandown Park :)

And saw some stunning quilts!

Of course I had to add to my fabric stash while I was there :)

After catching up on chores I spent a couple of hours in the garden with my book:

And this handsome boy :)

I visited my old junior school to watch my nephew Jack play football.  Maddie decided she'd like to shoot some hoops lol:

My niece Alice wanted to try my chai tea latte, she loved it so much she drank the lot!

Paul had a little win at bingo :)

And then we went to my neighbour's 30th birthday party:

Which was a lot of fun!

On Sunday I had a migraine :(

So, apart from Sunday, I had an amazing week but I'm thankful that this week coming looks to be a lot quieter so I can recharge my batteries.

Thanks for stopping by
Jo xx