A Finish and a Question!!!!

Regular readers will recognize these two quilts! I have been working on them forever, and now all I have to do is quilt and bind them. They will be enjoyed by two little twin girls named Ciara and Maeve!! I like Ciara's the best, the black fabric gives the quilt some extra punch not to mention that I did the borders wrong!!! What can I say, I was tired and when I hung them up I thought it looked kinda cool so I didn't bother to do any ripping!! I designed these quilts and as far as I am concerned it is my artistic interpretation to do as I please!!!

Do you like my new take on hanging quilts?? I saw someone else do that and I thought what a great idea, no more asking family members to hold up my artwork.

So, here is my QUESTION.... If you live in Ireland you might want to give this some thought...


Today, Cathi of Celtic Knots and I exchanged a few emails and I have been toying with this idea for a few weeks so I will throw the invite out there. I would love to have a quilt/craft retreat at my house sometime in February. I am more than willing to do it over a weekend so that our DHs can mind the children and afford you a weekend away. There will be no cost involved, just a contribution of some sort of food or beverage item that can be shared!! Since I own a B&B and have plenty of bedrooms, those of you gals traveling from the 4 corners of Ireland can stay either Friday or Saturday or both nights if need be. We had a retreat here last year and we all had a great time. Let me know what you all think and for those of you that are reading my blog and live in Ireland but have never commented please don't be shy and send me an email. If you would like to come and you have a quilty friend, just bring her along. I will contact the usual suspects and see if we can come up with some idea of a good weekend.
Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed didn't they??!!!! I don't think he likes being photographed, neither do I, that's why I always have the camera!!!!! LOL

Old McDonald Had a Farm

Pity these poor children!!! No really DON'T....
Things are speeding up here on the Farm, and although it can be fun it is certainly hard work. We have a three lambs that need supplemental feedings, mostly because the mothers are not producing enough milk and we have had mostly twin births so it puts a strain on the mothers. By right you should be giving the ewes extra meal but our winter grass has been good and frankly you can't afford to buy the grain. The sheep are okay, it just means my poor children have to do some extra work, AAAWWWWWW!

The boys are heading up the field with the morning bottles and the little lambs know they're coming! They are sooooo cute. We were going up the fields to round the sheep up for routine dosing and inspection.




We check their feet and trim hooves if need be. The sheep are brought into the farmyard and placed in a pen. All five of us climb into the pen and the dosing begins, everyone has a job. FarmerBoy catches the ewes, I load the medication into the syringes, DS1 paints a dot onto their back, DS2 regals us with good humor and corny jokes and DD pouts. She doesn't really pout the whole day, just the first hour or so - not really a morning kinda gal!!

I have two more quilts finished and will do a show and tell tomorrow. They are quilts that I have showed before, they just needed borders and the applique finished up. Keep Smiling and thanks for stopping by!

One Down Many More to Go!!

I wasted no time today finishing up this quilt top!! Last night I posted about this and how I was uninspired by it and never bothered to finish. Today was overcast and miserable, the perfect day to stay inside and get some quilting done.

I set about ironing the remaining fabrics for the borders, cut up the 4 7/8 squares of yellow and assorted leftovers for the pieced border. Did some quick chain pieceing and bada-bing I am finished! There is one problem and that is that I don't have enough backing material. I need three yards and preferably I would like '30s print, I ordered some off the FatQuarter Shop last night. This little gem will have to wait until next week, once the fabric arrives I will get it pinned and ready for my machine quilting exercise!!!


I am so glad that I finished this, it's really cute and to be honest it was silly of me to just toss it aside. While finishing up the pieced border, FarmerBoy walked by my sewing area and without prompting (I usually ask 20 times what he thinks, knowing full well he will always tell me how beautiful my work is and how talented I amLOL!!!!) said that we should hang it at the top of the stairs "it's so cheerful".

I am off to clean up my sewing area and then my little sidekick and I are going to watch Mama Mia for the 40th time!!! I just need to find my sequined bellbottomed jumpsuit and platform shoes!!

Happy sewing!

Happy New Year!

Tonight, New Year's Eve finds us at home having a wonderful chicken curry dinner and playing games with the 3 musketeers! I have just completed a few little projects.

First, over there on the left is Block 7 on the Designer Mystery Block of the Month from the FatQuarter Shop . It arrived this morning and I took a break this afternoon from cleaning and cut all the fabric up!!! This evening I sat down and put it all together, I can't wait to see this completed which reminds me that I need to start cutting up the finishing kit.


Now for my second project, I have a flimsy that has been sitting in the pile for 2 1/2 years just waiting patiently to be completed. It is all 1930's reproduction fabrics, very easy pattern as you can see. I grew disinterested in it and put it away hoping that I would one day feel inspired to finish. Well, I have been practicing my machine quilting for the past two weeks. First I did some searching online and watched a number of very good instruction videos and then started practicing on paper like the instructors tell you do!!
I have now graduated to working with fabric. On one of the videos by Pat Sloan, she recommends using a small project and quilt several patterns on it, one in each block...

What a perfect use for this little quilt, I am going to put some borders on it and then prep it for quilting. In each block I am going to machine quilt all the little patterns that I have been practicing!! After it is finished I am going to hang it in my sewing area and use it as a reference (this will be interesting, if you knew me you would be laughing by now...) Wish me luck!! LOL This is the one area of quilting that I fear the most and need serious help in!!!

Wishing all of you a Happy New Year and many blessings for 2009!!!

Intro to South Wexford Tour

I wanted to share the following slideshow with you. This will probably be the last one that I share since it is not quilt related and you are all probably finding this boring. I have a few quilt projects that I am going to start working on as well as finishing up some old ones. So God willing I will have a few quilty posts coming up over the next few days!!

Yesterday was a gorgeous day here in Wexford, my little sidekick and I decided to go and map out the last of our cycling routes (this just happens to be the longest one!!) and get some photos for our new website that hopefully will be launched by mid January. This is my favorite area of Wexford, maybe because it reminds me of Cape Cod. The Thatched houses that you see are in the village of Kilmore Quay, a small fishing village in South Wexford. It is the only remaining village in Ireland with a high proportion of thatched houses. I photographed a few for you but trust me there are lots!!! You start getting a little embarrassed taking photos of people's houses when you know that they can see you out the windows. I know that they are used to it but still!!!!

Wexford has a very rich history that stretches back to the Gaelic Kings and yet is the least promoted County in tourism terms. Wexford's rich agricultural heritage meant that it didn't need tourism dollars and therefore the historical sites are very quiet with few tourists. There is more history here than any other area of Ireland yet you would never know it!!! This has been a fun adventure for me having read a number of history books on Ireland and in particular Wexford.

Tour of South Wexford

Intro - Wexford Coastal Route!!!

We have spent the past two days roaming the back roads along the coast of Wexford. We are in the process of mapping out bike routes for our guests. Making every effort to balance routes with great views and places to visit as well as keeping to the safest roads. Usually FarmerBoy and I do this on our own when the children are in school, bringing them along reminded me why we do this!!!! We had a huge Breakfast; Blueberry pancakes, rashers(bacon) and sausages. Within the hour the voices in the back seat started to rumble about hunger, I thought I was going to blow a gasket!!!!!! Funny, the smallest was the biggest complainer and yet when we got home she ate like a bird....I think I'm going to go hide in a corner for the rest of the evening!!!!

Wexford Coastal Tour!!!!

Merry Christmas!

I came across this on Jan's blog and thought it would be a fun post to do before Christmas. FarmerBoy and I discussed some of these questions and the children started asking us about what Christmas was like when we were children. My husband's answers were very different from mine especially since we grew up in two different cultures in different countries.

Wishing all of you and your families a very Merry Christmas from all of us here on the Farm!!

Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate, haven’t had egg nog in years in fact if I did want some I would have to make it myself. No egg nog in the dairy section here in Ireland!

Does Santa wrap presents or set them under the tree? Well this is a tricky one!! Sometimes Santa wraps and sometimes he doesn’t!!! Depends on the gift!!!

Colored lights on tree or white? I love white lights but have been overruled by FarmerBoy and the children who all prefer colored lights. I have garland swags over the fireplace and those have white lights!!

When do you put your decorations up? December 8 is the big day in this house and they come down on January 6!!

What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? I love stuffing and cranberries, it was a tie between the two.

When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? In third or fourth grade, the girl who lived across the street from us told me and when I disagreed with her she confirmed it with her mother while I was standing there. I never forgot that.

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Most definitely Christmas morning, even if we are awakened at 5:00 am!!!!

How do you decorate your Christmas tree? I have ornaments that I have been collecting for 20 years and there are a few that were given to me by my mother that have been in the family for many years. I have a nice collection of handblown glass ornaments as well as ornaments collected from my travels.

Snow! Love it or Dread it? I love snow but we don’t get any in Ireland, or at least where we live in Ireland. I grew up ice skating on frozen ponds and downhill skiing, I miss the white stuff!!!!

Can you ice skate? Yes indeed I can, I taught my own children last year!!!

Do you remember your favorite gift? A Barbie Town house with an elevator. God I loved that house and played with it for hours!!

What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Family and time spent together.

What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Pecan Pie with whipped cream, real whipped cream!

What is your favorite tradition? Baking Christmas cookies which we did on Sunday. Also having a really nice dinner on Christmas Eve and then we go to the 7:30 Mass at a little church in our parish that is out in the middle of nowhere. We usually do alot of hillwalking during Christmas and it is becoming more and more of a tradition.

Which do you prefer, Giving or Receiving? Now honestly, what self respecting adult would say receiving LOL!!!! Giving of course, Christmas is all about children. When we lived in the United States we bought more gifts for the Toys for Tots Campaign and families that were on the Giving Tree at our church and office but they don't do that here -- I really miss that type of community spirit.

What is your favorite Christmas Song? Silent Night. There are sooo many, Silent Night was the first song that entered my mind when I read this question.

Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? I used to love candy canes but they don’t have them over here or at least where I shop they don’t carry them. I like them but have learned to live without as usual!

Ever recycled a Christmas present? Yes, several years ago we received an over abundance of Christmas tins of chocolates and when people would stop by we simply gave them the tin that was left by the previous guest!!!! It was embarrassing to have people show up and they would give you a bottle of wine or chocolates -- so I was forced to improvise!!!

Christmas Quilt update No. 3

Moving quite quickly on this gem of a quilt!! First let me just say that this has been very quick and not exactly the most interesting quilt. I am more of a traditionalist when it comes to my work, I love working on quilts that are challenging and intricate -- this one does not fall into that category.

I like it for its practical purpose but it is not a beauty!!!!

I was thinking about Christmases from my childhood and I realized that some of the little knick knacks that I remember as a child were just that, little knick knacks that were probably purchased at the five and dime yet they were so special and when you see them now you grow all sentimental because they remind you of your childhood and the excitement of Christmas. I have spent years collecting beautiful and expensive tree ornaments, yet it is the old beat up ones that I love the most. Although this quilt was not very difficult and lacks visual appeal, I can guarantee you that in 40 years time my children will be fighting over who inherits it LOL!!!!!

Today I am going to finish up the back, most of it was done last night, and then add some borders. Hopefully tomorrow I can put the layers together and pin it. This will most certainly be done by Christmas. I figured out the final cost of this quilt will be around $60 or less since I won't be using all of the 3 yards of fabric for the borders. And I am happy to report that there was little to no scraps left over, the entire Jelly roll and Layer cake were used. Waste not, Want not.....!!!!

Oh and before I forget, my DD was out in the field visiting Baby and her twins several times yesterday afternoon!!!! She is over the moon, I hope she doesn't get to attached to them. Knowing her she will convince FarmerBoy to change out the Rams and keep Baby's little ones for breeding as well. Before you know it we will have a pet farm!!!!!

Bye and keep smiling!!!!

Baby has two Babies!!!!!

You must be thinking, this woman has way too much time on her hands???!!!

I have the pleasure of announcing that the first of our lambs arrived this morning!!! And to make the moment even more special, the twin lambs are the offspring of my daughter's pet ewe! Her name is Baby, she was orphaned at birth and we hand reared her. The year baby was born we had 7 pet lambs and she was the only girl lamb or for you farm gals out there a ewe lamb. Our children were allowed to pick a lamb and they would receive the financial benefits when the lamb was sold but only if the bottle fed and cared for them. My little girl of course picked the only girl lamb and the boys picked ram lambs or for you city girls - boy lambs!!

When the lambs were sold there were alot of tears, hysteria and mayhem. FarmerBoy had to actually bring one of the boy lambs back from the factory because one son was so upset. All the farmers were having a good chuckle about the pickle he was in, probably were there once themselves. The hardest lesson to teach children on a farm is that the animals are raised for a purpose. That is why we take such good care of them, they are part of our livelihood.

Our daughter is the smart one in the group, she kept baby for breeding. She received no financial reward that summer but FarmerBoy promised that one day she will reap many rewards. Last year Baby lost her lamb at birth, FarmerBoy and I were on the verge of tears that night. We had to do surgery on her out in the field at night with lamps. It was soo sad.... Now look, here they are!!!!!

DD will be home from school soon and once she hears that Baby had twins you can bet she will be out there chatting away to them before sundown.
They are soooo cute, not the smartest animals but cute.
You can tell that Baby was a pet, she let me get so close to her and her children and never once got anxious.

Bye and keep smiling!!!!!

Christmas quilt update!!!

This has been my challenge! I am making a quickie Christmas quilt, not an heirloom and knowing my children there will be food stains, something that will be cute but very utilitarian!!!

I bought a jelly roll and layer cake of Mary Engelbreit's Isn't Christmas Jolly? fabric while in the states. I tossed in a coordinated panel and three yards of fabric, all on sale making this even more enjoyable!!!!! I have been struggling with what to do with it, tick tock Christmas is coming and another project is sitting left undone. As my daughter says easy peasy lemon squeezey, keep it simple. I cut the layer cake up into 4 1/2" squares, the jelly roll was cut up into 8 1/2" strips and 4 1/2" strips. Split the squares into two separate piles. Take one pile of squares and coordinate with 2 41/2" strips to each square and sew to opposite sides of said square!! Next pile do the same and then add the 8 1/2" strips to the 2 remaining opposite sides of the square. Lay them out and aim for a 52 1/2" strip.

Now I have to figure out the placement of the panel. I am making this quilt reversible, not using backing. I have enough blocks to do the front and back because I am using the panel in the middle of the front. I should have enough yardage to do a border on both sides and a bias binding. I am flying by the seat of my pants on this project so hopefully it will turn out alright!!!!


It is cold and wet here in my part of Ireland right now, a perfect day for quilting. I want to light a fire before the children get home from school but I am too lazy to go out side and fill my coal bucket.... I wonder where FarmerBoy is?????? Funny how he shows up whenever I'm cooking lunch and then very quietly disappears again, hmmm!!!! Maybe if I burn my cinnamon candle he will reappear looking for dessert -- then beg and plead with him to go outside and get my coal!!! Or maybe I should appeal to his male ego and play the meek and mild damsel in distress, throw in a few whimpers (what???? my daughter does it all the time and she has him wrapped around her little finger!!!!), maybe that will work!!!!








Oh and by the way, those are FarmerBoy's shoes in the window in the last picture. We really do run a first class operation here contrary to what you might see in some of these pictures!!!!!

Bye and keep smiling!!!