Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am thankful all members of my family are healthy and safe. I am thankful for my friends all over the world who share my quilting life. I am thankful for my health.

 

I am also thankful for my friends, even when they put confetti in the holiday cards they send!

Happy Thanksgiving

This is a pan of homemade Baklava. Specifically it is Walnut-Orange Baklava. I made it. I can't believe I've waited all my life before making some. It isn't hard, but it is fussy. And judging by the piece missing, this stuff is delicious.

Now I know what you're thinking. Traditional Baklava is so damned sweet you only need ONE piece and half the time that's more than enough. Well this stuff is different. It's not cloyingly sweet and the recipe I used asked for orange, walnuts, coriander and cardamon. (It's delicious.) I am not sure I'll ever make it again, but I'm not cooking the big bird this year, I'm a guest.

The dinner this year will be in the Boston area and I'm spending it with a friend's family. The last I heard the count was 20. Ought to be fun. Which brings me to the Baklava, not your average Thanksgiving dessert. But the family I'll be visiting changes it up every year. Each year they have a theme and this year it's "Middle Eastern." The family distributed a spreadsheet. I signed up for a dessert since almost everything else was taken.

Ergo, Baklava.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Countdown...

My Thanksgiving preparations are well underway. The house is clean, the serving dishes are ready, the menu is set and much of the shopping has been done. If you want to know more details, you'll have to visit my cat Millie's blog. She spills all my secrets.

It's funny. I'll meet quilters and they'll say, "I know all about you! I read your blog." And I ask them if they read Millie. "Well, no," they admit.  "In that case, you don't know all about me."

Right now Millie's nose is out of joint. I've got the table covered with Thanksgiving stuff and I've been moving stuff around for the big celebration. (Happiest news to date: weather should be partly sunny and temps in the 50F range! Whee!!! Remember last year?)
 

Fall House Top Finish

When I bought my sofa last year, the last thing I was looking for was a dark gray one, but this charcoal sofa looks good with anything, and the Fall House Top quilt is no exception. While watching tennis last night I folded the binding over to the front and pinned it in place. Then I sewed it down.

I'll take beauty shots this weekend.

Cheryl, this is what my table looked like the night before Thanksgiving last year. Everything was ready for a big family dinner. (The quilt was only a flimsy then.)

 Overnight we got about 20 inches of heavy wet snow that knocked out power to my house for three days.

Fortunately my sister had power at her house, so we simply moved the feast over there. 

"Make sure you bring that quilt!!!" she told me.


One of the reasons we love quilts is the stories they tell. This quilt has a good story.

The Day After

When I woke up yesterday, Thanksgiving morning, the electricity was out and the temperature inside the house was 57F. The temperature outside was 33F, but it was sunny. As the day wore on, it got cloudy and cold. My sister had power at her house, so the Thanksgiving feast was moved there. A good time was had by all except for one small black and white cat.

When my brother, niece and I drove to my house to get Millie, it was starting to get dark, and the house was 53F. The overnight temperatures were supposed to drop to 22F, and I had no idea how cold the house would get. I was very worried about leaving her alone, so we went to get her.

Millie was not happy to be ambushed and thrown in the crate. I am sure she isn't happy at all to be in my sister's bathroom, even though she has her own litterbox and food. Still, I feel much better knowing she is safe and secure.

I sure do hope I get my electricity back soon. I really want to be in my own home, in my own bed, and sewing in my own studio.

Happy Thanksgiving

When I tell people my life changed when I adopted a famous cat, they all look at me like I have three heads. I laugh. It's true. If it wasn't for Millie I wouldn't be quilting today. 

If I hadn't adopted Millie, I wouldn't have made 200 Gizzy quilts and sold them to cat lovers all over the world.

If it wasn't for Millie I wouldn't have a very special family of fairy oddkids in Maryland.

If it wasn't for Millie I would never have discovered Tonya and her free pieced letters.

If it wasn't for Millie I would never have met Julie and Chris, and made so many new friends.

Thank you Millie.

When my family sits down for dinner today, we will all say what we are thankful for. I will say that I am thankful for a 13 pound ball of fur who still, after eight years, refuses to sit in my lap.

The world is indeed a funny place.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Busy, Busy, Busy

I finished the backing for the Fall House Top quilt. Yes, Pat, it will be a quilt, but I will use it as a tablecloth.

Next up is preparing for Turkey Day.

I've seen suggestions to set out all your serving dishes ahead of time, and put post-it notes on each saying what you'll use them for. It's a great piece of advice. I've been doing it for years.

Autumn House Top Block #2

Remember the Christmas Random Plank quilt I made two years ago?  In the end, I decided it would be a table topper.

Well, in my family I cook Thanksgiving Dinner. When my Mother had her 75th birthday I decided it was time to relieve her of the burden of cooking the big bird, so I've hosted the dinner ever since. This year it will be a large family gathering, and my big dining room table will be expanded to its full length - 108 inches. I liked the Christmas Random Plank table topper so much I decided I had to make one for autumn, and for the Thanksgiving table in particular.

Moving to the new house put a real kink in the plans, but if I make one block a day there's a real chance I can have a flimsy by the big day. The design was finalized during a conversation with my pal Julie the other night. I did NOT want to make another Random Plank, for two reasons.

1. Been there, done that.
2. A flimsy built that way is very difficult to manage. It's big and unwieldy, and no fun to wrestle with day after day.

I considered doing a "Missing U" version, but again, been there, done that. Julie suggested an oversized House Top version of a quarter log cabin block. We measured the table full size, and I'll need 18 18-inch blocks. The flimsy would be about 54 x 108 inches.  I want to use fabric I already have, and I want to have a little fun with the blocks. The block in the photo above is block # 2, and I'm happy with it. Although the first two blocks use the same fabric in the first square, the blocks won't all use that same fabric. I'll keep the same general color and tone, but there will be variations. This is a scrap quilt, after all. The only constant is the fabrics are the colors of Autumn in New England: greens, golds, reds, oranges and browns.



***update: Holy Toledo! This is this blog's 1500th post!

Happy Thanksgiving

This is the time of year to be thankful for your blessings. This is my son and his best friend, who grew up without a family, and calls me her "chosen mother." That's quite an honor. Her new family will celebrate Thanksgiving with the rest of my family tomorrow, and I'm quite looking forward to it.

Have a great Thanksgiving Holiday. I hope you're near someone you love, and the day finds you all safe and happy. Even if you don't celebrate Thanksgiving, have a great day!

I'll be back when all the cooking is over, and all the dishes are done!

Happy Thanksgiving.