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November 26, 2007

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving
We had a really lovely meal with two other American couples yesterday, our American Thanksgiving away from home. We all have two daughters each, so there were six girls running around here yesterday!
The Girls at Thanksgiving!
My mom came through with some jellied cranberry sauce posted from the States, and one friend brought the American standby of Green Bean Casserole, complete with imported crispy onion thingies on top, lol! Another did sweet potatoes with marshmallows, and I made American style biscuits...a little touch of home! We also taught them a game we love to play when we are back home: Mexican Train Dominoes!! I think we might have made a few converts??!! If I have space in the suitcase, I'll be bringing a few copies home!

I am thankful to have made some really good friends so quickly after moving here. These same ladies are in the book club and knitting group and really helped bring me into their community they had already developed here, as they were here a few years ahead of me! The kids get along great. We will really miss them when they head back next summer when their 3 year contracts are done. Maybe Sherry and I can take over the American tradition in Ireland in years to come? Now that Aine knows about Thanksgiving, I have a feeling we will be celebrating it yearly! Some years I actually haven't celebrated it here in Ireland, as I am not a huge turkey fan and a big meal for 2 people and 2 babies wasn't a strong priority!

Another thing I am thankful for this week is some finishes!! And here is the big one!!!

I HAVE FINISHED QUILTING
ALL THE SQUARE BLOCKS ON MY DEAR JANE!!!!!

All Done the Squares!!!!!

I will keep the quilt on the frame for another week or so and quilt a few triangles. When I am done with the bottom row that I can reach, I think I will hand quilt the rest of the triangles on a hoop. The other triangle borders are impossible to quilt on the frame as the quilt is too wide! Am trying to decide whether to take it to Oregon or not, in my carryon of course!!


I've also got 7 bath scrubbies done and one more nearly there. I hope to give these to the girls' teachers, my mom, MIL, and a few friends for Christmas. I might make some more of these if I get any takers for the pay it forward swap! So far, no one that commented is available to join in!! Anyone out there want to join in?



My dad's Bend mountain quilt is now done with binding and hanging sleeve on. It is 60 inches wide, so can't get it all in this photo, but will look good over their big mantel.


Dad's Three Sisters and Brokentop Wallhanging

Girls are in school at the moment, so am going to take some time to start quilting on the triangles! Cleaning...that can wait till later!! My cold isn't gone but is much better. Thank you so much for all the get well soon messages!

18 comments:

Clare said...

It sounds as if you had a great time. Are you sure you want to take the DJ to Oregon with you? I'm not a huge turkey fan either. We're having canard this year. It's better for you and the price of turkeys here is unbelieveable, considering dinde is so cheap the rest of the year.

Lucy Locket said...

Wow Cathi you've been busy! The Dear Jane looks amazing! Lucy x

Connie W said...

Glad you're feeling better and were able to gather with friends for the Thanksgiving tradition. I LOVE your DJ and admire you so much for making it and now having done all that quilting by hand. (I'm not joining in the PIF at this time so don't count me in.)

ruthsplace said...

Great to see you enjoyed Thanksgiving. Congrats on the dear jane (near) finish!

VerrySherry said...

happy thanksgiving!! Yes! would love to get another tradition going. We ended up inviting a few of the girls' friends over and the kids loved it. Babydoll is now a huge fan of the holiday!
Congratulations on such great strides in your crafts!! They look great!
xo

Sarah said...

How terrific to have other American families to celebrate Thanksgiving with!

Jeanne said...

Congratulations on the quilting progress with your Dear Jane! I'd love to see it in person. Everyone seems happy at your Thanksgiving get-together. Could we sign up on each other's PIF without having to get an additional three names? VBG

Hanne said...

Belated Happy Thanksgivings - you all look so happy.

Congratulations on finishing quilting the DJ squares - Go Cathi Go !

Karol-Ann said...

Well done on all the finishes. I was contemplating taking a baby quilt with me to handquilt while I'm away, but I would need to bring it back which means I would 'waste' space in both directions. Space I could use for gifts on the way out and fabric on the way back!!!
Have a great trip. I'll only be able to catch up much later on what you've been up to!

Vero said...

Those are photos of happy people. It is so nice to share such views! And I'm amazed by the quantity of work you achieve!

Bubblesknits said...

Happy Late Thanksgiving! I would sign up for the swap, but I've promised the hubby no more until after the New Year. LOL

Your Dear Jane quilt looks wonderful! I can't believe all that you've gotten done! You're making me look like a slacker. ;-)

Tazzie said...

What a wonderful time you had. Congratulations on your DJ milestone!
*hugs*
Tazzie
:-)

Andrea said...

Yippee for the quilting on the DJ. You have made really good progress on this. And I'm sure your dad will love his wallhanging too. Glad you're feeling better.

Tracy said...

So glad you had a wonderful day...and have found a community of friends that are like family--home away from home! Such happy photos--thanks for sharing! Congratulations on finishing the DJ block quilting--that's a huge accomplishment--well done. Love your bath scrubbies! Are the knitted circles done up like a yo-yo? Do you have a pattern for these? You dad will love the wallhanging--it's beautiful! Happy week to you all ((HUGS))

lisakingsley said...

I like the kokopelli, but my aunt is an arborist and will love it. It looks like your scrubbies would work really well. I would love to sign up for your PIF, but I just signed up on another one a couple of weeks ago and have not gotten three people to sign up for my give away. Sorry to miss out. Hope you have a great time here in Oregon.

doni said...

I LOVE looking at quilts from the back - I almost always have light backs so the colors will shine thru! Great job and congratulations on finishing your Dear Jane.

terriont said...

Your quilt is stunning! Good for you!

Julie said...

Lovely, lovely quilting. I so want to do a dear Jane., Maybe in the coming year.

JulieQ