Creative Journey of 2017 and What's Ahead in 2018

Oh my what a creative journey 2017 has been!!
How about a little look at some of my favorites in no particular order...and some thoughts on the creative journey for 2018!!

Island Ways are Winding has to be my favorite post because of the photos. My hydrangea bushes were just beginning to bloom and they were the perfect accent to the scrappy colored little quilt.

Included in this post has to be my favorite make of the year. What fun was had at a retreat with Edyta Sitar for the teacher!!!

Being part of a blog hop for the release of Christa Watson's new book was one of many new exciting creative adventures for me this year!!!

Frosty Times Four has multiple reasons to be included in my list of favorites!! It has had the most views. Once again--I am loving the photographs in this post. And it is the first pattern I put for sale on my Craftsy page!!

Having an original quilt block--Adventure Seeker--published in Quiltmakers 100 Blocks was a super exciting adventure!! Add to that being part of the Road Rally blog Tour with other designers--well life is good!!!

My most favorite of the year is the camping/motorcycle adventure my husband and I took to Yellowstone this summer. Hands down the B.E.S.T. rides we have ever taken!! The country side that can be experienced from the bike is just beyond words to explain!! Check out the post for how this adventure inspired some creative block designing!!

The cycle ride through Shell Canyon in the Big Horn Mountains was so inspiring that I was so busy experiencing it in the moment that I forgot to take any photos--but the experience inspired this quilt block that I entered into the AccuQuilt Barn Quilt contest this past fall--and it was the runner-up!! This design now hangs in their corporate office for a year!! Super exciting!!!

So what doors will be knocked on and opened in 2018?!?

I will be having a few quilts/patterns available through the Island Batik Spring/Summer 2018 catalog. Super excited about this opportunity. Looking into ways to expand the pattern designing side of my business.

I want to stay more organized and on top of my customer quilts in the coming year. They have been so understanding this past year and I am very grateful to each and every one of them!!!

I need to start an exercise program that works for me. I am very active during the 6 months of the year where my husband and I  do a lot of sort and loading of hogs--but the other 6 months are a bit stagnant in the physical activity department.

I am linking up with Meadow Mist Designs and Quilting Jet Girl. Check them out for more reflections on 2017 and thoughts to 2018!!!

Click here to find Meadow Mist Designs.

Click photo above to go to Quilting Jet Girl

Wishing you beautiful moments, treasured memories, and all the blessings a heart can know!!
Happy New Year!!

Follow me on Instagram to see what crazy adventures I do in 2018!!!

Resting Place...creative borders

 I had just the right project in mind for  the Creative Borders and Bindings Island Batik Ambassador assignment this month!!

This 20" block was designed this summer as a result of our motorcycle trip to Yellowstone National Park. You can read about that here.

But the actual feeling or inspiration has been in the making for many years. We were married over 30 years ago and started our life together on the place my husbands' family has farmed for over 60 years and are still farming it today. They do not own the actual farm, but have cared for it as their own for all these years.

Our children were raised with lots of love and laughter in this old farmhouse! So many memories were made here. But one frigid winter night the water in our toilet was frozen solid. It was the ONLY toilet in the house I might add--the bathroom window is in this picture. That was the last winter we would spend in this drafty old house on the farm. We contacted a builder, located a building site and by Thanksgiving were living in a new draft-free house!!

 Now, what does all this have to do with quilting you might ask?? Well, I am very much a homebody. Being a homemaker and specifically a farm wife and been my joy and privilege. I loved living ON the farm place and watching all the activities that go on during the day.

Seeing all the day to day activities came to a stop when we built the new house as the building site we choose was 1 1/2 miles away from the farm place. It is a beautiful place in the country on a hill. We can see for miles in every direction, the river to the east and often have wildlife cross our lawn. 

 But it has taken my heart a few years to feel at peace with not being able to see all the daily activities on the farm!!!

 This year will be our third Thanksgiving in the new house. Three years of finding the new normal daily activities. And my heart is finally at peace with it. My heart has found it's new resting place!!
The place where new memories can be made. The place that my grandchildren know as "Farm Grandma's House"!! What more could I need?

 So, come on inside. Find the place where your heart can rest and memories made!!

Wonder and Wander Together!!

April 2016 was our 30th anniversary!! Several things crossed our minds to celebrate the event. I brought up the crazy idea to purchase a used pickup camper, pull the motorcycle on a trailer and travel to great riding places. After some thought, Loren agreed and searched Craigslist to make Terri's new adventure come true!!

What follows is a little peek into our Yellowstone Adventure and how it inspired the quilt blocks I designed and entered into AccuQuilt's Barn Block contest.
Click the link here to see all the contest blocks. Or click the name under the block on this post to take you directly to the voting page for that block!! You can vote for more than one block--but only once a day.

Here we are all loaded up and ready to hit the road!! The sun was just coming up. The colors of God's paintbrush that morning were just exquisite!!

Watch for those colors.....

At the East gate into Yellowstone we go...along with lots of other motorcycles. We had been here over 15 years ago with the kids. I remember them saying--there was just too many trees and can't we see something different--so that is what I was expecting to see again--but there had been a fire, so lots of the trees were gone. But out of the ashes comes beauty!! There were so many wild flowers and the smell was intoxicating!! Red, blue, purple, pink, yellow, and white.

Most of my photos are taken while riding--so pretend you are riding the back of a motorcycle with me!!

Wildflower Meadows

There is just nothing quite like enjoying God's great big beautiful world from the back of a motorcycle. The smells and sounds are intensified and just too amazing for words.

We rode back to the Big Horn mountains the next day--up Highway 14 through Shell Canyon and back down Highway 14A. Most of the time I am just soaking in all the sights that I forget to take out the camera.
The towering red rocks of Shell Canyon were gorgeous. The green irrigated fields of hay had such a sweet smell. The fast running creek along side the road made me smile. All of it is stored on the memory card in my mind!! Along with coming down 14 A with 13 miles of 12% grade curves!!

Free range cattle!! Who knew that was a real thing?!?! No fences!! There were 2 young calves on the road right along a curve--interesting event on a cycle!! They let us pass without incident.

Shell Canyon Road

Bear Tooth pass is considered one of the top 5 riding roads, so we had to go!!

I kept the kids informed along the way--love the ways technology can keep us all connected!!

Saw lots of snow and these curve signs!!!

The views were 360 degrees around--I didn't know where to look first. Since I wasn't driving I could look anywhere!! Loren on the other hand--had to keep his eyes on the road--as looking out to the sides messed with his depth perception when he looked back to the road--so best I take pictures for him!!

The classic photo op!! We had made the kids take this photo years ago--so we did it this time!!!

Such gorgeous color!!

Vacation selfie!!!

Our rides in Yellowstone and surrounding areas of Wyoming far exceeded what we imagined!! Just beautiful!! We LOVED the pickup camper--like a little home away from home! I have a tendency to get homesick--even with all my family around, I can still miss my home. This trip that never happened!! I was so relaxed and enjoying the adventure of it all that I was so not ready for it to end. All was well with my soul!!!

Resting Place

We stayed a night in Spearfish, SD on the way home--beautiful place too--next's year's plan--Sturgis here we come!! Heading east on I-90 to home, we stopped at the Chamberlain rest stop. There is a giant stainless steel statue that I wanted to see.

Dignity is the name of this Native American woman wrapped in a Lone Star quilt. It was as inspiring as I had hoped it would be!! Well worth the turn off and drive up the hill.

Up To It

Wonder.

Wander.

Repeat.