Shhhhh!
It's Christmas Eve. I have been working the last few weeks on these little aprons for my little Granddaughters. One more to go. Whew! I decided at the last minute to make these for all my little girls. I have been busily sewing away! These little aprons are so fun and easy. I hope they like them....just for fun! I think I will be burning the midnight oil to get the last one finished. Hope I'm done before Santa comes!
It's Christmas! During Max's time as Bishop of our Ward we have established a tradition. The week before Christmas we order Krispy Kreme Donuts and deliver them early Saturday morning to everyone one in our Ward.
It takes a little planning....a little preparation and we are off! We picked up the donuts at 7:30 a.m and the families in the Bishopric came over to help. It was so much fun. We let the kids ring the doorbell and run......such a Festive Activity! There is nothing better than a warm Krispy Kreme Donut on a Saturday morning.
Tonight Emma had her Christmas recital! She was giggly and excited to play her Christmas Song that she had practiced for all the parents and friends that were in attendance.
She was third on the program and played "Jolly Old St. Nicholas". No mistakes, all smiles! She was thrilled when she was finished as everyone gave her the "thumbs up!"
Way to go Emma.....keep practicing!
"Jolly Old Saint Nicholas"
Emma with her piano teacher, Melissa Taylor
On Wednesday I was invited to Maddie's kindergarten Christmas Program, "Mother Goose meets the Gingerbread Man! I have been to a program or two and I have to say this little production was absolutely darling!
All the Kindergarten classes participated in the program. Might I say they had a ton of little kindergarteners! They were divided into groups, each representing a nursery rhyme. The stage was decorated perfectly and all the little kids were dressed up to represent their nursery rhyme. Mother Goose and the Gingerbread Man were the stars! We listened to "The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe".....Humpty Dumpty....Little Miss Muffett....Jack and Jill......Old Mother Hubbard...and Little Boy Blue.
There certainly was a crowd there to see this little program. Thanks for inviting me...you did a great job Maddie!
Yes, I am late! I can't let this time go undocumented. We had such a fun time with Family, both near and far. This year we had everybody here for Thanksgiving and some visitors as well. Shelley and Jason came with their whole family and Mom and Lee where here as well.
Thanksgiving is a tough time for me....meaning.....it is not my favorite Holiday. Big Surprise! However, this year was so enjoyable. The weather was beautiful, we had good food, we had a blast with Shelley and Jason, we learned how to dip pretzels (courtesy of Shelley), McCall had a good visit with Beau, and I loved having my kids and grandkids to share the Holiday with! What could be better? Here's the pictures to prove it!
Max keeps the kiddos busy while we cook
Lindsey makes the perfect rolls
Too much fun cooking!
The appetizers were so delish!
These grandkids have so much fun together
The kiddo table
Just a word here.....This year we decided to play Dodge Ball on Thanksgiving afternoon. (a suggestion by Shelley) Jason and Shelley bought some balls at WalMart and we had a fierce "Dodge Ball" game in the Church Gym......Hmmm we knew someone that had a key! We had a blast. The little kids thought it was the BEST! The guys took it so serious!!! We have bruises from balls thrown at lightening speeds! Yes, you, Ryan Bennett! It seriously took some effort to stay in. Well, the girls didn't have a chance............next year!
Dallin and Kevin attempt a guitar duet
McCall and Beau
Well, yes we all ate chocolate pretzels!
Kevin and his friends
The "Posers"
So yes, I have much to be thankful for. 
Riley invited me to Grandparent's Day at her school. A month ago she sent me an invitation letting me know that her class would be sharing some stories and honoring the Grandparents in her classroom. I love to go to these programs and watch my little grandkids participate in their classroom, meet their teacher and just be part of their school activities on occasion.
Julie informed me that I might have a chance to say a little something about some of the things that I love to do in my life or talk about some memories from my childhood. I had several weeks until the program and immediately thought it would be fun to make Riley a quilt to remember this special day! Lucky for me that Mom was in town. She agreed to help me make a quilt for Riley.
Riley's teacher's name is Mrs. Germaine. She had gone to so much effort and had a special program planned for all the grandparents in attendance. All the children sang songs about Grandparents, we had some yummy refreshments that the parents had made and then each student had a chance to read something about their Grandparent from a book they had put together individually from questions they had asked us earlier. It was darling! This is what Riley said about Us:
"My grandparents live in Mesa, Arizona. They also live in a little red house. What I love about it is the pool, but in the winter I play in the playroom. It is special!"
That made me smile. The children sang some more songs and then we were treated to a video show that Mrs. Germaine had put together. Each child had a chance to say something about their grandparents and then she had gathered pictures of all the grandparents and put it all to music. It was a tear jerker....I had to wipe a few away! It was very sweet.
At the end of the program all the grandparents had a chance to stand and talk about some things that were important in their childhood, or things that they enjoyed doing. It was interesting to hear what each of them had to say. One grandparent brought a game of "Jacks" and showed the children how it was played....remember that? Those were the simple, fun games!
I was able to give Riley her quilt and tell a little bit about why I love piecing quilts. I treasure handmade quilts and hope that Riley will love the quilt that we made for her. It was so fun to make in anticipation of this fun time I was able to spend with her. Riley is my oldest Grandchild....that makes her quite special! I love you Riley.....thanks for letting me share Grandparent's Day with you!
Riley took me a on tour of her classroom and showed me some of her artwork she has done. Mrs. Germaine worked hard with her classroom to make this a special time for Grandparents!
This is a poster made by Riley with facts she gathered about my life
This is Riley's turkey....it's quilty, she says!
We love you Riley!Kevin started his wrestling season last night for Mountain View High School.
Okay, I am trying to like wrestling.....I grew up with 5 girls you know! It is such a guy thing. I let Max deal with all the sweaty stuff! On the positive side....Kevin has worked ever so hard to get into shape to wrestle in his weight class, 103. Up at 5:15 a.m. three mornings a week to run for an hour and then strength and conditioning for 2 hours at the end of each day. He has to work out everyday, except Sunday. His body is definitely showing the results of a hard workout....He is pretty buffed!
Before a match they have to weigh-in. Kevin has to weigh a certain amount to qualify to wrestle his opponent for a match. This is stressful. This time Kevin was a couple of pounds over-weight which meant extra exercise and calorie cut-back. I know he was miserable. He tried hard for two days to lose 2-3 pounds so he could make the weigh-in. Ohhhh I was so glad when he called and said he made it!
Okay....you had better be a pretty good wrestler if your name is listed on the program as Josh "Mad Dog" Taylor...really. He just didn't know he was up against Kev-Dawg! I was nervous as the match started. Kevin has had some pretty good training from and Olympic Wrestler and has become quite good at "take-downs." Points for him. In the second period Kevin pinned his opponent. Yes, I was screaming! I could like this sport......as long as he wins! Way to go Kev. Good Job.
The long-awaited debut of High School Musical 3 is here! What a perfect time for Nana to step in for a trip to the movies with her granddaughters....oh wait! The guys want to go?????? So we made it a family affair. Riley, Emma, Maddie and Kate were all excited to see Troy & Gabriella on the big screen. Okay...it is a really cute movie. So here is the "Review" from the little fans....and some big ones!
This month it was Elaine's turn to have our quilt group at her house. As usual, it was FABULOUS! We had a fun time....even though we were missing some of our friends that were not able to come. Heidi, Michelle, and Andie...we missed you! Lucky for us Kim came at the last minute. We can't laugh without her there!
Now....a little about Elaine. She moved here from Utah and I am sure it took her a while to get use to the Arizona weather.....I kinda think she still misses Utah a lot! We're glad she is here, though, because she has added a new dimension to our quilt group. She is an experienced quilter and always does the most darling things.....really, we all want to copy her! She always has such good advice to give and is always sooooo helpful..... and Becky.....I know you love her!
Like I said.....Elaine is a fabulous quilter. Her quilts are definitely treasures. This one was soooo cute! I wish I had taken a close-up picture of her border and binding. The border is scalloped and she inserted ric-rack in the binding.
These aprons she made for her daughters were absolutely the cutest! Her fabric combinations were so fun. I just thought they were pretty dang fashionable for the kitchen girls! Hmmmm gotta try them for myself!
The back of this apron.....the cutest!
My goal lately is to use up some of my scraps. My sewing room is just way too cluttered with fabric....and of course....I need to buy some more! Soooo I am trying to come up with some quilts that use up some of these scraps! Actually, I love this quilt....made up of 30's reproduction fabrics. Almost done!
Marene always has something to show for herself. This quilt was so complicated! It is all appliqued. She is one of our quilters that quilts our quilts when we are finished piecing them. She is so talented! This Christmas quilt is a masterpiece!
Carol is working on a Star Quilt. Several of us made this quilt. It is so fun to make and turns out so cute. By the end....you need a rest from making stars!
Marae made these fall kitchen towels for her Visiting Teachers. Michelle (her daughter) had made some last month and she just had to try them. Actually....it is such a cute gift idea and so quick to make for a Holiday.
Just a word about this quilt....Kim is making it as a favor for her sister-in-law. The fabrics in this quilt came from blouses that were worn by her sister-in-law's Grandmother. The squares have been hand-pieced. Kim is sewing them together and then the quilt will be given as a gift to the daughter. (Does that make sense?) Anyway....it is cute and old-fashioned!
Marae gave us a lesson on our upcoming quilt group project. We are all making an American Jane Pattern from Jelly Rolls. She has begun to sew hers together and she gave us some hints on pressing the seams in certain directions to make your block turn out well......thanks Marae!
Whoever hosts our quilt group also fixes us lunch. Luckily, this is only once a year. Pressure, pressure....what's for lunch? Elaine made a delicious chili. I am posting the recipe. She obtained this recipe from a restaurant in Galesberg, Illinois called "The Jumping Bean." (Elaine...feel free to correct me!) It is called "Mom's Famous Santa Fe Chili" Yummmmm! It was truly delicious. We had cornbread with honey butter and a salad. Dessert, well....a picture is worth a thousand words!
What an absolutely fun day we had at Elaine's home. I have made such incredible friends and appreciate their company so much. We always have something to learn from each other. We appreciate each other's talents and hopefully share ours. I love to sit and visit, laugh, eat and marvel over the creativity and knowledge that my friends have. I love it! They are truly a light in my life!!!
