The Mercado Family, and then some

My Family. (L-R, F-B)Mom & Dad, Me, GP, TChoco (sister), Harvey (brother), TSandy (sister), Nyshma (Niece) & Ryan (soon to be Nephew)
GP and I are finally back home after celebrating Christmas with my extended family. It had been over ten years since I had seen my brother and about three since I had seen my parents, so we had some catching up to do. My niece who just recently relocated to NH showed up on Christmas Eve with her fiance and made my sister's wishes come true. It would have been her first Christmas without her baby (who is now a little grown up, ahem!), but thanks to some awesome planning (Nyshma's) and a sneaky cohort (TChoco) was there on schedule in time for the pernil (that's the official Puertorrican holiday feast roast) prepared by grandma. Woo-HOO!
My parents have been married 48 years and I feel so lucky to have been there to celebrate their Anniversary too. Time flies, doesn't it? 48 years, Hello!
My heart is happy and I feel blessed to have spent the holidays with my family. It's hard to coordinate travel and lodging for nine but when it happens, it's just awesome.

It was hard to say goodbye but I so missed being home. There is no place like home and this was my second holiday away from home. I think I am understanding where the phrase "there is no place like home for the Holidays" comes from. I love my family and I will miss them dearly but I am happy to be home, even if it's not quite as toasty as TX...

Hope your holidays were spent with those you love, and that the New Year brings you health, happiness, love and laughter. Happy New Year!!!

The Eleventh Hour

I should have been packing, wrapping things up and getting ready for our trip to TX, but what was I doing? Cutting these kits. I am so bad. I had to finish cutting them, I had to. I wanted to take one with me to make while I was away. LOL! See? I told you I had a good reason for not packing! Now I am off to take the Pepperdog to the Spa (well nobody likes traveling with a smelly dog!) and afterwards, I will get back to work. I'll fill orders and get them to the PO, run errands and THEN start packing.
So much to do, so little time... but I'm happy to have this cutie to come along with me. He's been on my list all year, and I finally cut the kits...at the eleventh hour. Talk about cutting it close, eh? LOL!
You need a great take along project too? I have one of these left and you still have time to get it in today's mail bag. Hurry! =)
You can buy the Joy kits here!

A Ray of Hope

A new discovery in the quest for a cure to Alzheimer's... read about it here:

Baby Steps, a little ray of hope...I'm so happy. =)

Holiday Santa, Done!

The sun did not shine but the rain stopped long enough for me to rush outside and snap a few pictures of my wonderful Holiday Santa.
This is a Cynthia Erekson Design. The pattern has not yet been released but she taught it at weekend workshop I was fortunate enough to have attended.
The face looks bright because of the glare but it is not that bright. The other colors are true. He measures 31" high by 11" wide at the widest poing. Isn't he the cutest guy ever?

Update: The pattern for this Santa has been released it is called Snowflake Santa.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas...

at The Mercado's house. Are you lovin' my Santa? He is almost ready to be "revealed" but it's too dark to take a good pic so it'll have to wait until tomorrow. In the meantime, enjoy this little sneak peek of what I painted today.

I spent the day painting with Cynthia Erickson and a group of very happy ladies who all had a crush on Santa Baby... Oh he is a cutie, eh? Nothing soothes the soul like a day of painting fun.

Hope your day was filled with wonderful crafty things. If not, there's always tomorrow. Make the most of the weekend by sneaking in a little holiday project of your own; you can do it!!!

It's a Celebration!

My Facebook page has reached a milestone.
I have over 4000 followers and I think that's a great reason to celebrate, don't you? So in the sprit of Christmas, I am parting with one of my favorite little quilts and shipping it off to the lucky winner. This is not a kit, this is an actual finished Holiday Tree quilt, made by me!

This wonderful little quilt was made with love and much attention to detail. It is flannel on cotton, embellished with handmade polymer clay buttons and comes with it's own little vintage hanger (although I did put a sleeve on it too, I'm good like that, LOL!).

My image is too long for FB so I am posting it here but to enter the giveaway please leave your comment on my Facebook page. If you're not a follower yet just use this link:
Go To Pumpkin Patch Primitives Facebook Page!

I will draw a winner on Sunday. Please remember, to enter the drawing your comment will have to be posted on FB, not here.Thank you to all who read my musings and join in the fun. I truly do appreciate your company. B=)

A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes

GP wanted to go to Walt Disney World after his successful trip to Disneyland last year. I have to say that when I got home after that first trip I thought I would rather die than do it again, but you know how you go through labor and then a few years later you're ready to have another child??? I kind of think that vacationing with my Prince is a little like that. You know it's going to be hard, you know you will want to kill a few people along the way and you still can't get over the twinkle in his eye and the excitement in his hands ... so off you go begging for a favor and hoping that TChoco will say yes to his next master plan.
How lucky for us that her cup runeth over with love and patience to spare, and she once again agreed to be the wingman on this most challenging of adventures. Careful to consider every little detail she planned his trip and all I had to do was follow her lead and watch for bumps in the road. And you must trust me when I say, there were many bumps in the road... but we navigated as best we could and GP had a fun time, only hampered by a terrible cold that hit him two days into his adventure and still lingers three days after arriving home.
Thank you TChoco for your love and patience, and above all, for helping us make GP's dreams come true. XXO
This is TChoco (in her Minnie Mouse sequin ears) w/ GP at the Magic Kingdom. GP says what??? "No pictures!" LOL!

Some Projects Just Go On and On,and On...

Ever find yourself wondering how something so small could ever take so long? Yep, I do too. Take this wool Monthly Mini quilt I started months ago (please don't ask me when. I blogged about it but I am hesitant to search and find out how long it's really been "in progress").

Today I thought I had finally finished the blocks and was ready to set them on the background. Well, two things happened. First, I couldn't find the pattern (I put it in a "safe" place so I wouldn't lose it, don't laugh at me!), and second, well, you tell me what's wrong with my blocks... can you tell me what's wrong with my blocks??? It's the Monthly Mini that wont end! LOL!

PS. My blocks aren't as bright as they appear, that's just a bad pic. Click on the link to the old post about them to take a closer look at some of the blocks. Better pic to follow once I finally finish this; hopefully before I'm on Social Security! HAHAHA

Mystery Quilts, Not for Everyone

Have you ever taken a Mystery Quilt Class? They have them all over the place, online, at local shoppes. I think if you step into any Brick and Mortar shoppe you will find a sign up sheet for one of these classes. Be warned, do not sign up!

I took a Mystery Quilt Class to answer the "Why Mystery Quilts?" question. I have to tell you, I will never, ever, take another one. The Mystery Quilt Class offers the opportunity to meet new people with like interests, allows you to start and finish a quilt top in a day and go home with a completed top, ready to be shipped off for quilting. "What more can you ask for?" you may ask... a pattern that will not make you cringe when you finish it. Ouch!
We chose our fabrics and spent the day chatting, cutting, stitching and pressing, all on a very tight schedule to ensure that we would get the job done and once all the blocks were sewn together I almost gasped in horror.

Yep, I would never recommend taking a mystery class, ever. But I will say this, it's one way to make a a quilt in a day. ;)
BTW some ladies loved their quilt tops, which proves my point...
Mystery Quilts are just not for everyone.
My theory is, the finished quilt top was not displayed because no one would have signed up... which is exactly what I think every time I see a sign up sheet for a Mystery Quilt Class. LOL!
I will show you my MQ top someday but I'm still not confident enough to "own up" to having made that, LOL!