Where To Find Me

I guess it's no secret that I have abandoned this blog over the past few months.  I blame life...with two toddlers it's hard to find time for blogging!  What I have found time for is quilting.  It's become my new passion, and I'd rather spend my time at the sewing machine than at the computer.

I have set up a public Instagram account to share my quilt work with social media and connect with the incredible quilting community.  I have found endless inspiration and ideas through this outlet.  If you would like to follow my quilting work you will find me at @prairiembquilter.

The photographs in this post are of my most recent quilt top finish.  The pattern is the Meadowland Quilt from Then Came June patterns and it was SO FUN to sew together.  I will be quilting this one as soon as the thread I need arrives in the mail!

I've driven by this abandoned farmhouse countless times and always wanted to photograph a quilt on it.   This quilt and this house are perfect together.    I like to think of connecting the present with the past -- what quilts did the women who lived in this house sew or use?  Quilting is a skill with history and tradition.  That's why I love these photos so much.

This quilt is 80" x 80".  It is fat quarter friendly.  I used Essex Linen in Oyster for the background and a mix of black, white, blue and beige fat quarters that I had a lot of fun collecting from many different quilt shops...I even picked up a few on our road trip this summer.

I loved making this pattern so much that I might even sew together a smaller, bright and colourful version to use as a summer picnic blanket.  Find the Meadowland Quilt pattern at Then Came June!

And follow me @prairiembquilter!

February

So, it's been crickets chirping on here for the last six weeks or so, but that's not because there hasn't been anything happening in life!  Life has been pleasantly busy for being the heart of winter, and I suppose blogging just fell to the wayside.  Here's a few pictures of what we've been up to, aside from me finishing up a BEAUTIFUL throw quilt, which will follow in a separate post.

My kids are such goofs.

We had a GORGEOUS hoar frost that lasted two days a few weeks ago.  I had to stop and take photos driving home from work!

Social media filters have been very entertaining for the kids.

On Valentine's Day the weather was beautiful and we had a class skating party followed with homemade slow cooker hot chocolate and Olympics!

A highlight of February was heading to Winnipeg on the long weekend to spend a night at a hotel and visit the Ice Castles.  They were spectacular!  Ari loved it so much that I had to bribe him with hot chocolate to get him to leave!  The kids also LOVED the hotel pool and playing in the hotel room.

My school went to the Festival du Voyageur in Winnipeg for a field trip.  We had a beautiful day with lots of winter fun and a bit of learning about Metis culture too.

A sunny and snowy day for a sled ride.

The snow started to melt last week and the kids were SO excited to get out their rubber boots and play in the puddles! Ari also found last year's bubbles and was thrilling his sister with them.

And today we woke up to a snow storm and had a snow day, so it's back to winter boots and snow pants for the time being.  While it's been a good winter, I am more than ready for spring to arrive!

Maris' Big Girl Room Tour

My baby girl is going to be 18 months old this week!  And along with that came a few changes in her bedroom.  I've felt during the last few weeks that her room still felt like a baby's room, and she wasn't a baby anymore.  Being on holidays from work at the moment, I took the opportunity to do some shopping and rearranging to transform her bedroom into an oasis for a toddler girl.

The first thing to do was to dismantle the crib and assemble her new toddler bed.  We purchased the vintage looking Minnen bed from IKEA.  I love that it (and the mattress) is extendable to three different lengths, so it can grow with her.  We currently have it at the shortest length, which is as long as a crib but as wide as a twin bed.  Some new toddler bedding from Target completed the look.

We also bought another IKEA Trofast toy storage unit.  This one doubles as her night table and has a nice surface for playing and displaying her pretty toys.  She also chose the cute owl lamp from IKEA.

We kept the Hemnes (also IKEA) chest of drawers and change pad as we are still using diapers...she's not that grown up yet!

I took the armchair, lamp and side table out of the room to make more space for her to sit and read and play with her toys.  She is such an avid reader and loves taking books off her shelves to sit in the rocking chair or on her bed and read.

And that's her new room!  It's the tiniest room in the house, so we'll see how long she's happy in a small space, but I love that it's updated now to suit her growing needs.

Our Christmas

Christmas 2017 has come and gone in a flash.  We had a perfect family Christmas together.  The kids are at such fun ages, and I know the years to come will be just as fun.  Here are a few pictures of our Christmas Eve unwrapping night at home.  I love their matching Hanna Andersson pj's!

Maris didn't need ANY help unwrapping gifts this year.  She was all over it.  I tried to follow the "4 gift rule" (something they want, something they need, something to wear, something to read), but they ended up each getting 5 presents.  Still, knowing that there were gifts to come from each set of grandparents, it cuts down on the amount of new things!

Ari's BIG, number 1 exciting gift was his excavator!  He had wanted one so bad.  We even wrote Santa to ask for it!  His reaction opening this one was priceless.

Maris' big gift was her shopping cart with play food.  They also got a cash register from grandparents, so they are all set to play store.

Still happy Christmas morning, when we opened up stockings.  I love these two little people so much!  They make Christmas so much more fun!

The Most Wonderful Time of Year

Yesterday marked the first day of December, the most wonderful time of year (other than the end of June, of course ;). Christmas is always a special season.  Here are a few ways we want to make the most of it...

• Decorate the tree
• Build a gingerbread train
• Write a letter to Santa (try to get the kids to visit him, too)
• Attend the school Christmas concert
• Read Christmas stories
• Drink egg nog, tea and other spiced drinks
• Have many gatherings with friends and family
• Watch our favourite Christmas movies
• Volunteer for Christmas Cheer
• Go out and see the Christmas lights around town
• Enjoy displays in local shops
• Craft ornaments with Ari
• Enjoy two weeks holidays at home with the family
• Celebrate the reason for the season; Jesus' birth!

Have a Merry Christmas everyone!

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