I Ran Away -- and I Liked It!!!

Runaway Retreat was the BEST EVER this year!!!

Let the retreating begin!!!

We started out huffing & puffing - it's hard work packing THREE quilters and all their stuff for FIVE days into one car....

Yep, it took an extra luggage carrier to get it all to Kentucky!!! :*D  

Friend Carole has a large SUV, but even it wasn't big enough for all of us - and I packed light!  (Don't laugh - I really did!!!  I have witnesses!!!!)  Of course, it was even more full on the way back LOL!!!
We made a few new friends on the way ....

There's nothing quite like a road trip with quilting friends - you never know what might happen!  On the way home I called 911 for the first time in my life because of the drunk driver directly in front of us on the interstate!  He was going at least 80 mph, weaving all over the both lanes and even several feet off the shoulders.  Then he lost control completely - we knew it was inevitable and were just praying he wouldn't hit anyone else!  He veered wildly all over the road before he went all the way down into the middle of the median and almost turned over - but he never even slowed down, just turned it around and headed back up on the highway - straight toward us!!!  Thankfully, Carole was calm under pressure and kept our vehicle a safe distance from him.   Prayers sure kept us safe that day - and believe me, we were all praying!!!  We never heard if the highway patrol got him, but I sure hope so!!!

So.... back to Runaway Retreat 2014..... What could be nicer than spending five days with great quilting friends, many of whom I don't get to see very often?

Norma, Judy S & Barbara

Ruth, Carole & Betty

Terry greeted us in full "LET'S HAVE SOME FUN" mode!!!
(Love the Scissors through her head LOL!!!)
Terry and Margaret put on this retreat every year and do an EXCELLENT job!!!!

I didn't realize until we got home that I didn't get a picture of Judy L & Brenda :(  They live in Kentucky, so it's always special to see them every year.  (Judy L gave me the precious Kitty Pincushion I showed you yesterday ♥).  Sorry girls - you know I love you!!!!

The Retreat Center is always like returning to an old friend .... 

View from the 3rd floor my last morning -
Ahhhhhhhh what a view!!!

This quilt hangs on the rails of the courtyard to greet us every year....

The Courtyard leading to the cafeteria and classrooms -
Such a peaceful place to find a relaxing few moments :)

Mornings at Runaway this year were especially beautiful and serene.... 

The Auditorium where we sewed is on the right

The first evening, I put together the ORANGE Soul Searching block, and then sewed up the flimsy quilt the next morning.... you can read more about that HERE.

It feels GREAT to finally have something finished this year :)  After that, I concentrated on getting my Blooming Nine Patch rows together ....and I still have a ways to go!

On Wednesday, I taught a class on my new pattern, Amish Beauties, to 20 students ....

..... and then on Thursday we took a little side trip to Boonville, Indiana, to visit one of our favorite quilt shops, The Village Mercantile.  This excursion is one I look forward to all year long!  What could be better than going on a day trip with great quilting friends???

I sat in the third row on the way and knitted

After shopping, we stopped at this restaurant to eat
(I kept looking for Dolly Parton but she never showed up!!!)

Then we had to stop at our favorite ice cream place for real ice cream cones!!!
Mine was a double scoop of butter pecan in a waffle cone -
Can we say "Oink Oink"???????

                                              Carole was trying to be "good" so she got a "Baby Cone"
                                                Really????  This is just WRONG on so many levels!!!!!
                                       Where does this thing get the nerve to call itself an ice cream cone???

Our last stop was at an antique shop on the way back.  Now I'm not a big antique fan, but even I found a couple of things I couldn't live without....

Antique yarn spool, twine holder & cast iron pressing iron

Won't this be cute with a ball of yarn instead of the twine?  It even has a surprisingly sharp pair of scissors that sit in the top!

And I always loved my grandmother's little black iron - I believe I actually remember her using hers. I do remember that it weighed a TON!!!  This one does too :)  It is in pretty good shape and has a lot of nice markings on the handle.  I'll think of Granny every time I see it, and that's worth any price!!!!

Oh, and I know you are wondering .... what did we buy at the quilt shop?  I'm not sure you could handle all that today!!!  Let's just say that fabric acquisition was accomplished by all of us - and lots of it!  I mostly bought some cool tools that are hard to find, but I also found some great pieces that will work nicely in a few of my projects :)

Carole and Judy L even visited a couple little antique shops on the square while waiting for the rest of us to finish up our purchases.  I almost choked when Carole said she bought TWO sewing machines!  I figured I would have to be tied to the roof on the way home, because there sure wasn't any room in that car!  But then she smiled and said they were toy machines :)  Yeh, she's real funny.....

We made it back that afternoon just in time to get in line for dinner - and we were all stuffed!!!  But we knew we had better eat something or we'd be starving at midnight LOL!!!  After that, it was time to start thinking about going home.  That was tough, because we had so much fun and weren't really ready for it to end.

My first morning back home was a shock to the system - I actually had to COOK MY OWN BREAKFAST!!!!

Boy did they ever spoil us at Runaway:*)  The old saying, "Wish you were here!" was definitely true for me - it could only have been better if all of you had been able to be there too!  I'm already looking forward to next year....

Hugs & Blessings!

Teresa

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