Goofin' Off and Wondering Where Did October Go?

I can't believe we're closing in on the end of October already. The Goofin' Offs have been having a great month and staying busy. It has definitely cut into my project time, but that's life I suppose.

Thanks to all of those who wished me well on my last post about an exciting possibility for me. I have had several magical opportunities present themselves lately. But the one I am most excited about...well, I got a call and have made it to the next level of interview. I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that it all goes well.

I have not had as much time to sew lately, but I have managed to get the first two sets of borders on the Woody/Toy Story Quilt.

Woody/Toy Story Quilt With First Set of Borders

Woody/Toy Story Quilt With Second Set of Borders

The colors are coming together so well. It's such fun fabric to be working with. I love all the new Disney fabric lines that Camelot Fabrics has been coming out with lately...so many fabrics, so little time.

I managed to get another section completed on the Mickey and Pirate friends cross stitch. 

Mickey and Pirate Friends Cross Stitch as of 10/25/2017

Looking at Goofy's bright eyes never, ever, ever gets old.

Mr. Goofin' Off and I haven't had a chance to carve pumpkins yet. I was thinking about this the other day and looking up some fun designs on Pinterest. There are so many cool designs. But I found some really fantastic Disney designs with carving templates right on Disney's family.disney.com website.

Check out this Goofy pumpkin!

Image Credit:  Family.Disney.Com

Hope I can talk Mr. Goofin' off into carving this one.

It reminds me of the pumpkins we saw at Disneyland a few weeks ago. Oh, how I miss my Disney right now. So let me share a few more pictures of the Disneyland pumpkins.

Donald Pumpkin Greeting Guests at Disneyland

Minnie and Pluto Pumpkins Greeting Guests at Disneyland

Mickey Pumpkin Greeting Guests at Disneyland

Thanks again for letting me indulge myself with my Disney goofiness.  Are you carving pumpkins this year? If so, what will your pumpkin look like? I'd love to know in the comments. I'd enjoy some pumpkin-carving inspiration.

Have a magical day, my friends!

For more stitching, quilting, and crafting inspiration, I'm linking up to:
Needle and Thread Thursday

Goofin' Off With Some Sweet Ghirardelli Goodness

I was doing some picking up the other day and finally finished unpacking my carry-on bag that I take when we travel. In the front zipper pouch I found I had tucked away a little sample that had been passed out to us at Disney's California Adventure. Did you know that there are a few places at Disneyland that give out free samples? Yep! And after we've shelled out so much money to go there, we never hesitate to partake of the free samples.

Ghirardelli Pumpkin Spice Caramel

I decided to have a little fun with this sample, but I'll get to that in a minute. First, let's get to what many of you are here for...updates to the projects.

I've had my sewing machine pumping out these these sweet blocks the past few days. I continue to be smitten with this Woody fabric and can't wait to see these block sets assembled into a quilt. 

Block Set C

Block Set D

My Mickey and Pirate Friends cross stitch piece continues to come along nicely. At this point, I am anxious to see some of Goofy's friends start appearing with him. I know I've got a ways to go, so I'll just enjoy Goofy's big eyes staring at me for now. 

Mickey and Pirate Friends Cross Stitch as of 10/04/2017

Back to my current appetite for Ghirardelli. As I mentioned before, we got a sample at the Ghirardelli shop at Disney's California Adventure on our last trip. They were handing out samples of their fall flavor of Pumpkin Spice Caramel. It was a tasty combination...pumpkin + chocolate + caramel = yummy.

Some people in our group...okay, all of us in the group...decided we wanted more than a Ghirardelli sample, so we went ahead and treated ourselves to some ice cream sundaes. I'm not sure what the boys ordered, but I know I got the Mint Bliss Sundae (on the far right). I have to get one at least once on every Disney trip. 

Sundaes from Ghirardelli Soda Fountain at Disney's California Adventure

I can report back that there was not anything left of these when we left...nope...not a drop...spoons licked clean.

Finding the little sample when I unpacked made me think of the ads Ghirardelli had kept sending to my Facebook feed. Basically, it's an oven-baked s'more using a Ghirardelli chocolate square instead of the traditional Hershey bar. Ghirardelli Facebook ads for the win!

Ghirardelli Oven-Baked S'Mores

It's really quite simple...and tasty. I layered one half of a graham cracker with a marshmallow and placed it on the rack in the middle of my oven. I turned the broiler on. It took me a little over 60 seconds for the marshmallow to toast. I would keep a close eye on it because it would probably start to burn quite quickly. After I took it out of the oven, I placed a Ghirardelli chocolate square on top followed by another square of the graham cracker. Take a bite...or two...

I enjoyed my first s'more with the pumpkin, so I thought in order to give my readers a more rounded review, I would try it with another flavor of the Ghirardelli squares. That's right, I did for you...really, I did. I settled on the Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel that I had. Yep. It was just as sweet and just as delicious.

Thanks for dropping by and giving me an excuse to indulge in my chocolate treats. I hope you enjoyed your stay and will come by again really soon.

Links to Where You Can Find Some of My Favorite Things from Today's Post

Modern View 3-Yard Quilts by Donna Robertson 

Disney Toy Story Woody Fabric

Ghirardelli Chocolate Pumpkin Spice Caramel Squares

Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramel Squares

For more crafting eye candy and inspiration, I am linking up with:

Mid-Week Makers
Let's Bee Social
WIP Wednesday

Goofin' Off With the Winds of Change

I can't believe it has been almost three weeks since my last post. The past three weeks have been crazy, but it all came out great in the end. If you have been following me for some time, you'll know that we have had five weddings of nieces and nephews this summer. Well, the final wedding was a destination wedding...to the Caribbean...on a cruise ship. Well, Hurricane Irma changed those plans a few days before we were to leave. But more about that later...

Because things have been so crazy, I haven't been at my sewing machine much the past few weeks. I did manage, however, to put those last borders on my Gingerbread Square Dance quilt. You can see the finish below. 

Gingerbread Square Dance Completed Top

Now it's time to work on the Toy Story quilts for the happy couple that got married in July with the Toy Story themed wedding. They will be two lap size quilts to keep them warm while studying (or watching TV or playing video games) this winter. 

Here is the first set of fabrics that I've put together. I hope to be cutting into them in the next 24 hours. My rotary cutter is just itching to get picked up and slice through some fabrics. 

Fabrics for Woody/Toy Story Quilt

I did manage to get a bit of stitching on Mickey and Pirate Friends. It seemed an easier project to pick up and put down while all the travel changes were going down. Page 1 of ??? has been completed. I can see all of Goofy's eyes now.

Mickey and Pirate Friends Cross Stitch as of 09/20/2017

As I mentioned above, Hurricane Irma decided to make herself known a few days before we were to leave for our Caribbean cruise. We were given the choice of taking a shortened cruise leaving four days late or canceling and getting our money back in the form of a cruise credit. The entire group that was going on the cruise decided to just cancel as there was no way we would be able to make it into Fort Lauderdale to catch our cruise ship. The flights were all booked up.

That gave us just a few days to make alternative plans. The wedding party was able to come up with an entire new plan in less than 48 hours. We would still be "cruising", only it wouldn't be on a cruise ship, and it wouldn't be to the Caribbean. It was decided that the wedding would be held in beautiful Victoria, British Columbia. 

Victoria from the Front of the Fairmont Empress Hotel

We all boarded the Victoria Clipper in Seattle on Monday, September 11th, at way too early of a time in the morning. It was a beautiful three-hour trip up to Victoria and a sunny day with temperatures in the mid-70s. 

Let me just say here that when the Fairmont Empress in Victoria heard the story of the wedding plans being spoiled by Hurricane Irma, they were extremely accommodating. They allowed the wedding to take place in one of their flower gardens for no charge. They upgraded the room of the happy couple and made room for our large group to enjoy lunch together after the wedding. 

The Fairmont Empress is extremely beautiful and exquisite. Here are a couple of pictures I took of the lobby area. 

Mr. Goofin' Off on the Lobby Balcony in His Caribbean Wedding Atire

Lobby of the Fairmont Empress in Victoria, BC

The picture doesn't do this chandelier justice. It had to have been one of the most elegant chandeliers I've ever seen. And those fresh flowers just smelled so wonderful. 

After the wedding and lunch, Mr. Goofin' Off wanted to check out the miniature museum which was behind the hotel. We spent about an hour there. I think Mr. Goofin' Off probably could have spent another two hours there, but we had my mom with us, and I don't think her feet and legs would have held out as there was nowhere to sit down. We walked the waterfront for a while, and then went to catch the Victoria Clipper back to Seattle. 

After we got back home, we now had some airline miles that had been refunded back into our account and five days left of vacation that Mr. Goofin' Off had taken off of work. So what do you think the Goofin' Offs did?  I'll give you a hint...

Our Change in Vacation Plans Thanks to Hurricane Irma

You can look forward to a few pictures from our trip over the next couple of posts. As always, thanks for stopping by. I love to hear from you, so please feel free to leave a comment or question below. 

*As a side note here, I just want to mention how much my heart hurts for those recovering from all the hurricanes, fires, and earthquakes. The Goofin' Offs send our prayers and good thoughts to anyone suffering from the devastation.*

Linking Up With:
Sew Some Love
Midweek Makers
Let's Bee Social
WIP Wednesday
Needle and Thread Thursday
Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday
Can I Get a Whoop Whoop!
Finished or Not Friday!
Stitchery Link Party