Snow on May Day

Good morning.

We're celebrating May Day in fine Dakota style.

Unfortunately, the little girls in town are not dancing around a maypole, wearing pretty gauzy white dresses. Our kids are wearing snow-pants and mittens.

I truly couldn't believe it yesterday morning, when Matthew excitedly looked out the window and announced it was snowing. I hoped he was joking. He wasn't.

There's really no accumulation, but a fine crystalline powder coats the earth. It's a good weekend to stay inside, make soup, and snuggle up under a cozy quilt with a good book.

That's what we did yesterday, and it was wonderful. Wesley made French Canadian split pea soup, using our Easter ham-bone, and we toasted home-made croutons for a hearty supper. Simple, but delicious.

I took responsibility for snuggling up under a cozy quilt with a good book, and by evening I was relaxed, energized, and excited about quilting. As a result, the blog has been updated, dozens of new items have been added to the website, and we're looking forward to another good week at the shop.

I've been faithfully following the blogs written by my favorite pattern & fabric designers, hoping for a hint of what we'll be seeing at quilt market. Spring Market is in Minneapolis this year, so we can drive, rather that fly. Without luggage limits or shipping to worry about, I'm sure we'll come home with our SUV packed with fun new merchandise.

Market is closely followed by the Rapid City Quilt show, June 11-13th, our biggest quilt show of the year. We'll come home, unpack, and open the doors wide for shoppers from the ND State Quilt Shop Hop, June 16-30. We're already getting ready for these events, and as soon as details are finalized, we'll be sure to let you know.

We're entering uncharted waters with the Statewide Shop Hop, as it will be our first time participating in such an event. But, it promises to be great fun, and we're so excited to meet shoppers from across the state. The Big Picture:

The State will be divided into two parts, approximately split by HWY 83: "East" and "West"

Shoppers are invited to hop from store to store with passports in hand, collecting stamps at each location.

At the conclusion of the event, completed passports will be collected, and drawings will occur.

Five $200 certificates available for visiting every shop in the state.

Four $100 certificates for visiting every "East" shop.

Four $100 certificates for visiting every "West" shop.

Participating shops will offer special projects, welcome packets, and more.

Individual quilt shops are organizing bus tours to facilitate travel. We heard Friday that at least two buses will be coming our direction from the East, and this prompted us to get busy. With help from our friend Cindy, we're planning a bus trip to head East, June 18-20, 2010. In the weeks to come, we'll finalize the schedule, cost, and route. In the meantime, mark the date on your calendar, and prepare to go hopping!

I'll be updating the blog with more specifics about the shop hop and bus trip as details are finalized. In the meantime, please e-mail us with questions.

Photo Credits: ~"Maypoles", courtesy of Wikimedia Commons, photo credit Mike Goren. ~"Snowflake", courtesy of Wikipedia, Michael, "Small microscope kept outdoors. Snapshot camera held to eyepiece focus set to infinity."