Catching Up

It has been ages since I blogged. The internet was sketchy all the way home so I had little opportunity to post about our doings and then once we unlocked the doors to home, it seemed there was so much to get caught up on. Five months of mail was a major undertaking, catching up with appointments, friends and family; never mind the unpacking and all the dust and cobwebs! 

Before long the end of the month was hovering around and I still had not even started my contribution to the AYOS Parade. All I can say is this. I am glad it was not a big project!

Before I show you the parade entries from Sue and I, let me give you a quick recap of the trip home. After Texas, we drove to Pensacola, Florida to have a short visit with friends. My first trip along the Gulf Coast. 

It was extremely foggy that day and visibility was poor. You will have to believe me that the Gulf of Mexico is out there beyond all the white...and for my friends in Canada, NO that is not snow drifted on the centre line of the highway...it is fine white sand...everywhere, and YES, it blows around and drifts like our snow. 

For those of you following the dramatic weather in the U.S. Right now, you may know that Florida has been hit hard with heavy winds and extreme rainfall causing flooding. Our friends are safe but many in that area of Pensacola were hit very hard. 

These photos are of the very sections of highway we drove on just 3 weeks ago. Absolutely frightening!

While in Florida, we of course visited Disney World Epcot Center and Universal Studios, and The Kennedy Space Center. All very interesting...especially the Space Center. I have to say that being at Universal Studios and riding a bicycle up into a starry night sky with E.T. in the basket was quite a thrill as well. 

I chose not to mess with the Transformers though! I found it best to deal with them at a distance.

Have you ever had Dippin Dots? Well it was a first for Mr. O and I as well. We thought we were standing in line for ice cream cones...nope!

They are like little ice cream flavoured hail stones...much colder and harder than ice cream.

I had Oreo Cookie crumb and Mr O had Choc. Chip Cookie dough. Tasty, refreshing and cold, but definitely not ice cream cones!

Of course we also saw several of these....

No they were not in a zoo..but in the wild! Reason #1 for me not to live in Florida...and all this time I thought the heat would be the biggest deterrent. Give me mosquitoes any day!

After Florida we spent another week on the road, but I will save that for later. It's late and I don't want to miss the parade. Our project this month was a little different. It was not a Schnibbles pattern but a quilters choice of any of the Thimble Blossoms mini quilt patterns. We chose Round & Round mini.

Sue made her mini using the Quilt Diva collection of fabric and rather than just having a mini quilt, she turned hers into a tote!

How cute us this?

I used a small charm pack of Mistletoe Manor wovens and then added some hand embroidery.

It is hard to take decent photos at night so these are not the best. I wanted an aged and worn look so tomorrow I plan to give it a bit of a spritz with an antique spray I bought from Primitive Gatherings. If I don't ruin it I will post a better photo later. 

My sister in Saskatchewan also chose Round and Round and hers has a totally different look. I love it!

I am not sure why it is showing up sideways and it is late and I am not about to fight with it.

What is so amazing to me, is how we all started with the same basic pattern and ended up with three totally different projects!

I better get to bed or I will end up sleeping in and missing the parade! Night night...sweet dreams.