Oh, what a busy week. You'd think that things would be winding down rather than ramping up now that Christmas has passed. So many things to do - - decorations to box up and tuck away, snow to shovel, gifts to enjoy, plans to make for New Years Eve, snow to shovel, year-end business stuff to button up, resolutions to ponder, snow to shovel and more. I've been trying to get some overdue tasks behind me this week because on Monday, Tara our graphic designer at Palmer Printing who has been enjoying a week of vacation, will be off and running on Every Barn Tells a Story. We can hardly wait.

Wishing you a year of good health and prosperity ....... Happy New Year!

It's never too late to wish Merry Christmas, is it?
Merry Christmas!
We hope that your holiday was magical.

Diane and I saw the first page layout for our book earlier this week. It was exhilarating to see our work look like a real book! Now, we can hardly wait to see the rest.

I had a delightful conversation this morning with Donna Sue Groves, the incredibly talented woman who envisioned the Quilt Trail. It's estimated that the trail has grown to over 2,700 quilt barns scattered across 27 states. Every Barn Tells a Story would not be possible without her. She has been very supportive of our work. Thank you Donna Sue!

You may learn more about her and the Quilt Trail on this site.
http://thehardestyear.com/2009/07/a-patchwork-of-hope-donna-sue-groves-the-woman-behind-barn-quilts-faces-the-challenge-of-her-life/
I'm happy to report that Donna Sue's health is improving which she insists is because of loving and supportive people, many of whom she has never met. By the way, Donna Sue is planning a 10 year anniversary Quilt Trail celebration May 14-15, 2011 in Adams County, Ohio. Be certain, we'll be telling you more about it!

I'm listening to Christmas music while working today. Today's snowfall put me in the spirit.

The music reminded me of my personal story about the Zemke Christmas caroling tradition that I'll share in Every Barn Tells a Story . The story will will accompany the Star Variation block pattern, the barn quilt that hangs on my shed. The extended Zemke family has gone Christmas caroling every Christmas Eve for 55 years. Last year, my immediate family and a couple neighbors caroled in our neighborhood. Give it a try. You'll love the reaction of your surprised neighbors and you may receive a treat (sweets or spirited variety!), too.

We hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Did any of you join in the Black Friday shopping frenzy? Now only 24 days until Christmas. And did you know that in a mere 20 days, the days will start getting longer? Only a minute or so a day, which I know is hardly noticeable, but good for my pshyche anyway.

Tomorrow, Diane will be working with a photographer who will shoot photos of our two sampler quilts (Barn Dance and Star Promenade) for Every Barn Tells a Story. She's also working with Nate, our graphic artist, and Palmer Printing to spiff up the quilt barn photos we took. It's really starting to look like a book now! Could we have picked a busier time of the year to work on this project? What were we thinking?

Diane's busy making Thanksgiving dinner for her family. I have it easy - - just need to clean up the house a bit and make a couple of pies. We'll give you a progress report on Every Barn Tells a Story after we've eaten our fill of turkey.

I'm feeling good today. Lisa, our editor, is editing. Diane and I are going to snap a few more photos for Every Barn Tells a Story tomorrow at Mickmans Garden Center, Ham Lake, MN, (www.mickman.com) which has graciously offered us the opportunity to use their store for staging the photos. In addition to having wonderful plants for your garden, in season, they also have an extraordinary gift shop. Mickmans'building, although an old train station, is screaming for a barn quilt. I wonder if we'll be able to convince them to hang one. It sure would catch the attention of Hwy 65 passersby!

The highlight of my "good feel," though, is Tara Connor our graphic artist is pulling everything that Diane and I've been working on into one incredible book for you. Tara, Diane and I are meeting at Palmer Printing, our publisher, next week. We're on a roll!

Every Barn Tells a Story, our book about the Quilt Barns, is progressing nicely. Diane and I thought you might like to catch a glimpse of the sampler quilts which will be in the book along with the patterns to make them, of course!

The other day, someone asked: "What exactly are you two including in the book?" Every Barn Tells a Story is a compliation of fascinating barn owners biographies, narratives and anecdotes which we've partnered with about a dozen projects we're sure that you'll enjoy making - - 2 sampler quilts, 2 small quilts, a table topper, cross stitched round barn, a couple aprons, embroidered dishtowel, instructions on how to paint your own barn quilt, recipes, a table grace and more. Farmhouse wisdom will be interspersed throughout the book.

I'd say this cow bit off more than she could chew!

The pumpkin was actually stuck in the poor thing's mouth. Hopefully, she won't be too embarassed when her photo appears in Every Barn Tells a Story.

Take a look at this fans! Diane's barn quilt is hung . . . in a beautiful fall setting I might add . . . at the end of the road to her house. Doesn't this inspire you to paint one, too? Just think of all the places you could hang a barn quilt of your own. I wonder what she has planned for Christmas. Hmmm. A barn quilt for every season. Get painting Diane. Christmas is just around the corner.

I just couldn't help myself. I had to paint another barn quilt for my little shed at my cabin. This one is the Variable Star pattern which is one of the blocks featured in Every Barn Tells a Story. Just as I got the barn quilt hung, the sun peeked through the trees - - right on my star! (By the way, the barn quilt that I took down is hanging at my house in Blaine.)

Diane painted a barn quilt which she hung on the fence at the end of her driveway. She promises a photo soon. Stay tuned.

Test, test, test. We've finished testing all of blocks for the two sampler quilts which will be in Every Barn Tells a Story. Whew, that's done! Now, off to see what's next on our checklist.

Rain, rain go away. The southern part of our state, where Diane and I visited with quilt barn owners and photographed their barns, is under water. One community measured hail several inches deep. My heart goes out to farmers who are trying to get their crops out of the fields.

Last weekend when I was in Jackson, MN, I spotted several quilt barns along the way. Have you thought about painting one for yourself, or maybe as a gift for someone? A brightly painted quilt block would add a spot of color, especially with winter looming. If you don't have a barn, think about hanging it on a fence or at the end of your driveway by your mailbox. Or, how about painting one for the inside of your house? The block doesn't have to be 8' X 8' like the blocks you see on barns. Paint any size that suits you! The instructions to paint one will be in Every Barn Tells a Story.

Every 4 years, Quilters Newsletter presents the results of the Quilting in America survey that they do in cooperation with International Quilt Market and Festival. Some of the results of this survery were published in the most recent Quilters Newsletter. I found some information interesting and some a bit surprising. Here's what I learned. In 2010, the total value of the quilt market was $3.58 billion, up 9% since 2006. But . . here's what I found interesting - - the total number of quilters (21.3 million) in the US has gone down 23% since 2006. Where are the quilters going???

Some other interesting survey information: The average quilter is about 62 years old (another surprise to me), college educated (I always knew that we were smart!), has been quilting for about 16 years, and purchased 94.3 yards of fabric last year (yikes!).

I wonder what else they learned from the survey. A complete survey may be purchased for $125 through www.quiltersvillage.com.

Ok, I stand corrected. Diane labored a bit while searching out some barn quilts - - she snapped this photos and some others that you just may see in Every Barn Tells a Story. Isn't it a lovely shot? Keep up the nice work Diane!

As Diane and I took off in opposite directions to celebrate Labor Day, it prompted me to think - - why the heck do we have a holiday to celebrate the end of the beautiful summer season anyway? Does that mean that we’re eager for winter? Not me! After a bit of reading, come to find out, the first Labor Day holiday was signed into law by Congress in 1894 after the deaths of several workers during a labor strike in Chicago. President Cleveland was looking for a way to get workers and labor unions to reconcile their differences, so the holiday was created as a sign of unity, at first in the form of a parade followed by a festival for workers and their families. Well, we didn’t have a parade or a festival, but we did get a little R&R.

While we were at the ranch last week, Diane and I took some time to relax a bit.

We're so excited about the progress we're making on Every Barn Tells a Story, which is on schedule for publication around the first of the year (2011). At times, it seems hard to believe, but if we take a glance back, we really have come a very long way. We visited with so many wonderful barn owners and captured their extraordinary stories. Then, we talked with Donna Sue Groves, the woman who started the quilt barns and is the Quilt Trail ambassador. What a gracious and charming woman! And, most of the many, many great projects for our book (and there are many!) are complete. Now, it's time to start pulling it all together into one neat package for you to enjoy!

Time to get back to work....

Diane and I tore ourselves away from our sewing machines for an adventure at a local hobby farm on the outskirts of the city. We visited with some miniature cows, which should NOT to be mistaken for baby cows. They really are yearlings! Isn't he cute?

Tool of the trade. If at first you don't succeed . . . oh, you know the rest!

Writing patterns, editing patterns, and making sample blocks for Every Barn Tells a Story.

Back to work......

Here's Ol' Bess dining in my flower garden. Next best to the real thing. Country traveling has won over this city gal!

Our computer keyboard has become our best friend and most loyal tool, next to our sewing machines, of course! Diane's writing quilt block patterns like crazy. Testing and retesting them with dear friends Marcy and Deb. I'm writing barn owner stories that we collected on our travel adventures and doing a bit of stitching, too. With loads of help from Lisa, our editor, Every Barn Tells a Story is on its way!

We're home after spending the day in the West Union, Iowa area. We had the great fortune of meeting the Fayette County Barn Quilt Project committee in the morning. What terrific marketers. Beautiful barn quilts are blanketing the entire county. We met at Moonlight Stitching Studio - Sisters Retreat. If you're thinking of going on a quilting retreat, this is THE place to go! Give Deb Thies (owner) a call at 563-422-8212.

Diane and I met with more very gracious barn owners and snapped lots more photos. We can't wait to start writing their stories so we can share them with you in Every Barn Tells a Story. We had a wonderful trip, but as always, it's great to be home.

Bob & Trudy Campbell, Hawkeye, IA, shared the story of a ball of string, wound by Bob's father, which holds special contents inside. Over the past 5 years, the Campbell family has used these special balls as a means to share family stories. We'll share their story in Every Barn Tells a Story. The quilt block on their barn is Ohio Star.

We had 3 fantastic interviews with barn owners in Fayette County, IA today. Bud & Belva Gallagher shared the story of this historic stained glass window which Bud's grandfather donated to a country church. The window was removed before the church was recently torn down.

Diane wears many hats. Here she is taking a photo of rolling farm fields outside of Caledonia, MN for Every Barn Tells a Story.

Here's Diane planning our itinerary for tomorrow when we will interview one more barn quilt owner in Caledonia, then off to West Union, Iowa for a couple more. We hope that you'll tune in again!

We visited with Patty Schulte at her family dairy farm in Caledonia, MN. The Schultes wake at at 3:40 am so that milking may begin at 4:00 am. Some cows are milked 4 times a day. The day usually ends about 7:30 pm. The Schulte barn quilt, Clay's Choice, is proudly displayed on their 99 year old barn.

Our next stop was at the farm of John and Elaine Burg who have the Gentleman's Fancy block on their barn which was built in 1941. John's family's original farm, which may be seen on the nearby ridge, was built in 1864. John showed us a property tax receipt from 1898 when the total real estate taxes were $6.71 on 200 acres. John and Elaine showed us true county hospitality by inviting us to spend the night at their home.

How blessed we are to have had the great fortune to get to know such gracious people today.

Diane and I made it to the Houston, MN exit, a couple of hours from the start of our trip in Blaine, MN, when we decided to search out a restroom. We followed the highway sign directing us to a gas station in Ridgeway. I don't see a restroom. How about you? We opted to go to the bar/restaurant next door.

Diane and I are setting out on another quilt barn adventure tomorrow morning. We can hardly wait to get started. (This photo is from our trip to Grundy Center, Iowa.) Our first stop tomorrow is Caledonia, MN, then Fayette County, IA and LaFayette County, WI later this week. We hope to capture human interest stories of several quilt barn owners along the way. Their stories will be in our book Every Barn Tells a Story along with their barn quilt blocks which are featured in our sampler quilt, also in the book. Stay tuned. If all goes as planned, we'll be blogging the tales of our adventure along the way.

By the way, I neglected to mention that Horace Adams shared his secret to planting corn in straight rows with us. His wisdom will be included in Every Barn Tells a Story!

In mid-April, Diane and I went on a travel adventure to Central Iowa in search of quilt barn owner stories for Every Barn Tells a Story. Our first stop was in Humboldt, Iowa where we visited with Horace and Doris Adams. The Adams, who married in 1947, farmed the land that Horace’s grandfather homesteaded in 1869. Horace,age 96, invited us to write on his Facebook wall! Doris, age 87, said that she leaves the "technology stuff" to Horace who also enjoys his antique cars - - a Woody and a Model A. Horace and Doris' barn quilt, Corn and Beans, was painted for them by a local 4H group. They were thrilled when they saw that that block was painted in John Deere colors.

A couple of weeks ago, Diane and I participated in our first International Quilt Market which was held at Minneapolis Convention Center. Our booth with our patterns (Ann-Crocus Lane Quilts; Diane-Clover Hill Designs; Mary-Mary Deeney Designs), books and quilts was one of about 800+ vendor booths. Talk about 3 days of complete sensory overload. Lots of exciting new products should be available soon in quilt shops around the world. Take a peek at our Barn Quilt (on point with star in center). It's a sneak preview of the of the many projects that we’ll be featuring in our book Every Barn Tells a Story.

Fast forward 4 months since my initial posting. Oh my, how time flies! I have so much to tell, that I don't know where to start. How about here ........ Sometime in the dead of winter, I asked my friend Diane if she knew what a Quilt Barn was? That's when Diane's and my worlds changed. Diane and I have embarked on writing a book that we've entitled Every Barn Tells a Story, An American Journal. Stay tuned to learn more, keep up on our book writing progress and especially our travels as we go in search of captivating barn owner stories that we're collecting. More to come. And I promise that my next posting will be sooner than 4 months.

Me, a blog? What next? Over time, technology and I haven't been very good friends, which may explain my bloglessness. I enjoy reading other people's blogs and posting comments, so what the heck. I took the plunge today. Like Julie in the movie "Julie and Juila," I pray that my mother and daughter won't be my lone followers. Won't you be a follower, too, and check in once in awhile?