July 2023 Quilt Update

 Our theme this year, Binding Us Together, is just so needed.  If you didn't get a chance to check out the post explaining it all --- here is the LINK to the initial post.  I'm looking forward to the direction this can take us all, but especially myself, if I give it a whirl.  Sometimes stepping out of comfort zones is challenging, but it almost always allows for growth.  Here we go:  That brings us to July and all of the patriotic fun that happens along the way.  Take every chance you get to strengthen those friendships and the ties that bind us.  This month -- let's focus on GIGGLES.  Seriously, laughter brings us all so close and makes memories that will stay with us forever.  Let's hear the laughter, y'all.  

Missouri Star Girls Trip 2 - Days 7 & 8

 It's morning and we have PLANS!  We have a 9:00 appointment to see the Clydesdales!!!  So excited.  Now to get all my little chicks in a row and get out of here. 

Appletree Quilting Center Spotlight - Columbia, MO

 We are in Columbia, MO and Jen has found another quilt shop stop before we have to really focus on driving.  Appletree Quilting Center is MUCH more than the outside would say.  My goodness, come in and peek for yourself.  Once inside the door, this place just opens up.  Ooooh, so many things to see.  I only have a few items left on my list, but, after asking, I won't get them here.  Now I can just enjoy the scenery.

Quilt Sisters Exploring - Warm Springs Ranch (The Clydesdales!)

 Good Morning!  We are up EARLY, had breakfast and have arrived at our 9:00 appointment with 15 minutes to spare.  That is enough for some picture taking.  Warm Springs Ranch is our plan for this morning and I'm super excited.  A little about the sign - the "W," "S," and "R" measure 15 feet tall, weigh more than 2,000 pounds each, and sat on top of the Bevo plant for more than 30 years.  The entire "Budweiser" sign on top of the Bevo building was replaced in January of 2013.  The "W," "S," and "R" were chosen for installation at Warm Springs Ranch, the breeding facility for the World Famous Budweiser Clydesdales.  This little piece of St. Louis serves as an important landmark for those visiting this facility.

Missouri Star Girls Trip 2 - Days 5 & 6

We've hit Day 5 in our Missouri Girls Trip.  Hard to believe, right?  We are still at the Retreat Center in downtown Hamilton, MO and it's our final day of the MSQC Doan Girls Retreat.  Time to drag ourselves out of bed and get moving.  For the last couple of day, I noticed a rug at the foot of the stairs and today I manage to get a picture of it.  I think every sewing room should have one. 

Quilt Sisters Exploring - Boonville, MO (Bridge, Park, and Sunset)

 Due to a bit of a a faux pas on my part, we are staying in Boonville, MO tonight.  If you go on a map and look up the distance from Hamilton, MO to Boonville, MO, you will find that we have made VERY little progress today.  We are TWO hours away from Hamilton and not in the right direction to go home.  Yep, I'm on a roll right now.  At any rate, we are in Boonville for the night so that we can do something fun tomorrow morning -- bright and early.  After an early dinner, we still have some time to kill so a few of us decide to go exploring around the hotel area.  Evening light is great for pictures and . . . . we spotted a bridge.  Now to just get to it.

Sew Sweet Quilt Shop Spotlight - Brunswick, MO

 We are in Brunswick, MO and have found a quilt shop stop.  This one turned out to be sooooo fun and, in fact, several of us would up at the checkouts TWICE.  Come along and see all the treasures we saw and see if you would have shopped a bit too.

Quilt Sisters Exploring - Chillicothe, MO Murals

 One of the places that Jenny Doan told us we should check out is Chillicothe.  The person who did the train mural (and others) in Hamilton was Kelly Poling and his work is all over the town of Chillicothe as well.  That makes an appealing spot for us to check out on the way home from our retreat.  When we park, the first thing we notice is that one doesn't necessarily have to buy a new sign if the business changes.  Just pain over it.  Pretty funny and cool at the same time.

From the minute we enter the downtown area, the walls come alive.  Take a peek with us at just a small section of town and his work.

This one is called "Going Somewhere."  It depicts a pre-WWI Chillicothe setting.  The Milwaukee Depot (demolished 1977) serves as the backdrop for period vehicles and a drawn streetcar used to transport patrons to the station.

Missouri Star Girls Trip 2 - Days 3 and 4

 Day 3 of our Missouri trip starts with the group preparing for a Scavenger Hunt through the Missouri Star Quilt Company shops.  We left the Hotel Hamilton a bit early, so the streets are empty enough for some pictures.

Missouri Quilt Museum - Hamilton, MO

 I was blessed to visit Hamilton, MO last year and so this trip is number 2 for me and a few others in our group.  However, we did not get the chance to visit the museum at that time and we have finished our scavenger hunt with some time leftover before the retreat officially begins.  The museum is only a few blocks away so we opt to walk.  We've heard great things about this museum and I'm looking forward to our stop.

Missouri Star Girls Trip 2 - Day 1 and 2

 The whirlwind is continuing!!!  We left retreat yesterday and are on our way to another one this morning.  Can you believe it?  We are off to Missouri Star for a Doan Girls Retreat and all the fun that comes with that as well as our journey there and back.  Jen is driving again this year and the three of us are super excited to see what the week will bring.  The packing is done, the car is ready and it's time to hit the road.  Come along with us on our journey and see all the wonders we see, BUT know that some things just don't make it to the blog.  We gotta have some secrets, ya know?

Blue Top Quilt Shop Spotlight - Lamar, MO

 Our second shop stop for today is at Blue Top Quilt Shop.  THIS one has had huge billboards all along the highway leading us here.  That meant we needed to stop, right?  Add in the fact that it is open on Monday and we're game for some treasure hunting.  

I like this sign better, but there was a gentleman sitting in a car out front and I did stop to ask him if his wife had, indeed, screamed.  He just smiled and said no before going back to his phone.

Quilter's Corner Station Spotlight - Carthage, MO

 On a Quilt Sisters trip there are always quilt shop stops.  This is our  first one for this years trip to Missouri and I thought you might like to peek in with us.  We are in Carthage, MO and the shop is Quilter's Corner Station.  It is a cute little building along the road and has some surprises inside.  One of the first surprises is that when I enter and look left, I spot a beauty salon.  Yep, this place does dual duty - how fun to shop while waiting on a hair appointment.  

However, this is not the main shop - just some extra fun with panels, patterns, kits, and making one pretty stuff.  Into the main shop - there's quite a bit in this small space.

Bluff Dwellers Cave - Quilt Sisters Exploring

Girls Tip to Missouri #2 is underway and our first fun stop was OKARMO Corner, which is the three corners where Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Missouri come together.  As we were leaving there and continuing onto Joplin, MO, Lori spotted a sign for Bluff Dwellers Cave.  Let's go!

Under the Big Top Retreat

 It's full steam ahead here in Rainbow, TX.  The second weekend of our summer back-to-back retreats is underway and the first order of business is LUNCH.  Babe's, of course.  So, so good.  Janet and Korin went into Burleson for some shopping and we all sent her on a mission while up there.  Hobby Lobby had these "wonder boxes" on clearance.  Yep, yep, yep - we need them.  Thank you, Janet, for being our sherpa.  We have found that these totes can handle soooo many small items in a nice and organized way.  It helps out for the "I forgots" that always seem to take place at retreat and helps the room provide.

July 2023 Tweeners

 We are in Tweener mode and that means: quiet and not much going on.  Normally, that is true but today has been a bit different.  Several of us took a road trip after the first group left and managed to have some great conversations leading to many decision-making moments.  Then, since I was gone on our road trip or teaching purse-making (yes, that went on today too) most of the day, I enlisted help with my Loyal Union blocks and believe it or not --- some refused.  However, I did get quite a bit of help and am soooooo thankful.  Time to feed the natives and for tonight, it's Mexican.  We didn't manage to get pictures, but Frieda and I have proof we were there.

Welcome to the Carnival Retreat

 Life on the road continues.  I'm off in the wee hours towards retreat.  I have back to back retreats with an additional back of a roadtrip ahead.  Time to rock and roll.