Wait...what month are we in?

It has recently come to my attention that Thanksgiving is NEXT WEEK...where has the time gone?! I am totally not ready, which luckily is fine because we're traveling for Thanksgiving this year...otherwise right now I'd probably be running 'round the grocery store like a chicken with my head cut off, trying to find whatever Thanksgiving feast supplies are left on the shelf, and perhaps being desperate enough to swipe some from someone's non-attended cart...ok, so I'm not really that mean, but you get my point...Thanksgiving is soon, which means the Christmas whirlwind is about to begin. Many blogs are already running their Christmas craft series, with lovely ideas for gifts to make for others, but I just came across a great series at this blog, Lily's Quilts, she is part of the quilting e-zine, Fat Quarterly, which is a great place to find alot of inspiration. Anyway, Lily's Quilts is running a series called "Christmas Gifts for Quilters" where about each week she posts an idea that someone else can get YOU for Christmas. And along with that, always a great give-a-way.  Click the button bellow to check them out, and throw some hints at your loved ones!

I SO wanted to be already started on the gifts that I plan to make this year, and you'd think that with all of these blogging-series that I've been reading I would have gotten the hint to start, but alas, I've lost track of time really haven't thought too much about it until now!! EEK! So, I've spent the last few days finishing up some other "must-finish" projects so that by the end of this weekend I can start cutting into fabric for my gifts.

First up, these are some Mosaic Quilt Blocks that I made for a quilt to be donated to a family who lost EVERYTHING in a gas utility explosion in San Bruno, CA last year.  Then recently, the husband got in a very bad car accident and has been recovering from that, while the wife is about to have their first baby! I signed up to join do. Good Stitches, a quilting bee, and while my actual quilt circle that I'll be a part of does not start until January, Kelsy posted a request for help for this family and I was pleased to be able to assist.

I was a little nervous as these were my first blocks to be made for an actual quilt EVER and of course they were going to be used by someone else, so they needed to be good. These were pretty fun to make and gave me some liberty to not be exactly square, so I think that definitely worked in my favor :)

Second on the agenda was this "Beautiful Balance" check book cover I was making for my BFF. I had made one before for my self, using Amy Butler's "Style Stitches" book (which I LOVE, BTW) and she loved it so I wanted to make one for her as well. This time, I added some little pockets to be able to store credit cards and stuff like that.

I LOVE the way this one turned out, I was tempted to not tell her I'd made it and just keep it for myself! I always get anxious about making things for people, I want the end result to be good quality and something they'll be proud to use. My bestie said she loved it, and it was perfect timing because her old wallet had just died so she has already put it to use! Phew!

Last on my agenda today will be to finish my turkey. We're making progress, and I adore him (adore him so much that I've started to refer to him like an actual pet, and sometimes even talk to him while I'm sewing...) I'm so excited for how this is going.  He's all stitched on, and I've started to add the words around him.  Today (hopefully) I will get the words complete and do the quilting.

Well, if I keep blabbing on here I'm never going to get anything done, so away I go! How about you, have you started your Christmas crafting, or are you a procrastinator like me??