25th AQS Anniversary Quilt Show in PADUCAH !!!

Hi All:
Today we announced that AQS will host its 25th anniversary in Paducah, Kentucky. Space Coast Hospitality Management Services, the new owners and management company of the Executive Inn, has contracted with A & K Construction, Inc., of Paducah, Kentucky, to renovate all of the hotel rooms and provide improved hotel services by April, 2009. In addition, the City of Paducah has committed to remodel the Julian M. Carroll Convention Center.

The remodeling will solve many of the problems that we had at the 2008 show - air conditioning problems in the convention center, and the run-down conditions at the hotel. It has taken the months since the show for the plans to develop far enough that AQS is comfortable that the renovations can be completed in time for next year's show. More renovations will continue after the 2009 show with the building of an entirely new entrance and other exterior modifications.

We will all look forward to a new look for this hotel that has hosted the AQS Quilt Show for the past 24 years. Watch the AQS Web site, www.AmericanQuilter.com for upcoming information on making reservations at the Executive Inn; the reservation system is one of the things that will change soon so they aren't ready right now to handle reservations for the show.

And even though many of you have complained about the high rates the hotels in Paducah charge, those rates are set by the hotels. In Paducah we do not contract with the hotels like we do in our other show sites. We certainly can't be involved in price setting of the rates the hotels charge. If you don't like the hotel rates here, I suggest that you look at attending one of our other shows where there are more hotel rooms and thus more competition between the hotels, so the rates are in line with what is charged at other national quilt shows.

For me, this announcement today means that we can move full steam ahead with the plans for our 25th anniversary quilt show.

Blue Hydrangea

Look at the pretty blue of the hydrangeas in our front yard. The rain this week had battered them a little bit. As you drive around town right now, the hydrangeas are just beautiful. The white that you see in the background is Tuffy wandering under the bush.

Tuffy Came to Help Me Take Photographs

I went outside this evening to take photos of the hydrangea bushes in the front yard and Tuffy came to help (???) me. He decided that he'd wander in and out of my feet while I tried to get close to the flowers.

How can you not take a photograph of those beautiful blue eyes?

Des Moines Convention Center - High & Dry

Several people have asked about the condition of the convention center in Des Moines. It sits on a hill and has been high and dry through the flooding that occurred in some parts of Des Moines. The ball park parking lot that we will use was flooded for a couple of days, but they played a ballgame last Saturday night - with no one there but the two teams - and the lot is back to normal now.

Keep all those who are caught in the waters of the flooding rivers in your prayers. Our families in Iowa are dry, but there is water covering bridges near Wayne's Mom and sister Kathi. The bridges over the Cedar River have all been closed due to the high water. Kathi said her doctor, dentist, insurance man, Dollar General store, and gas station that she uses in Columbus Jct. are all under water.

Happy Birthday

Today is my birthday and it is the third night in a row that I've eaten out. We went to Patti's Restaurant in Grand Rivers - my favorite birthday dinner spot. Of course we had the 2-inch thick pork chop...yummmmm. We didn't have room to eat dessert then so we brought home coconut cream pie - my birthday pie... ymmmmmmmmmm. The meringue is about 6 inches high.

Kelly's Baby Shower

Last night we had a baby shower for Kelly Meyer. Her baby should arrive the end of July and then she's going to stay home and take care of her little girl.

When she arrived home last night, her husband Chris said the baby had more clothes than Kelly does. GRIN Such cute clothes. One of my favorites was the box of Mary Jane socks that Chrystal gave her - too cute. Wayne and I gave them a Raggedy Ann doll from Arcola, IL, home of the designer of the Raggedy Ann and Andy dolls - we stopped there on one of our trips; and a piggy bank with some 2008 dollar coins to commemorate the year of her birth.

Our Anniversary

June 16 was our anniversary. These are the pretty flowers that Wayne sent to the office...lilies, daisies, snapdragons, and whatever those filler flowers are.

This was our 45th anniversary...guess I'll have to quit saying I'm 39 now. Wayne and I enjoyed dinner at Outback Steakhouse - our favorite place for steaks.

Catching Up

Since I last wrote here, I've been to Peoria to teach - always love getting out into the classroom. The Gems on the Prairie Quilt Guild is 250 members strong. I did my Princess & the Pea lecture, looking at quilting in the U.S. and all around the world. Also taught classes on Borders, Bindings, and Windmill - Twisted Log Cabin - the quilt that get all of the mail from the opening images on Simply Quilts.

And we are busy finalizing the Registration Guide for the AQS Quilt Expo - Des Moines that will be held October 8 - 11, 2008 at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines. Let's all keep those Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, Iowa folks in our prayers - they are being inundated with water, water everywhere.

Happy Father's Day to your Dad and all the Dads out there.

Bonnie

In memory of our friend and neighbor - Lorraine Ingram

Yesterday our next door neighbor, Lorraine Ingram, passed away at her home. She loved her home and all of the flowers in her yard. Over the past few months her eye sight was failing and she didn't get to work in her gardens much. We helped her when there were things that Wayne and I could do - we always told her that we were helping her and we hoped that someone would help our mothers in the same way.

She loved her little Jack Russell, Katie. She was good company for Lorraine. Katie's barking more than once set us off to make sure Lorraine was okay - usually Katie was just barking at a squirrel or a bird in the yard.

Bless you Lorraine - you're in His hands now. Lorraine had read through the Bible at least five times.