For those of you that don’t know, I attend a couple different quilting retreats with my Mom every year. I’m not a quilter but I have found over the years that a quilting retreat is a great way to get some good reading done! So I tag along and while all the other ladies are quilting, I read! This year I was also determined that be creative as well so I brought a coloring book and a cross stitch project (unopened) with me to break up the routine and do something different. This year was another super productive and fun year, and I wanted to share with you readers a run-down of what happens at our mystical retreat weekends!

Friday

Friday is a great day since its the first day of retreat! Mom and I leave in the morning, we stop somewhere on the way for breakfast (this year was Dunkin Donuts since it coincided with Free Donut Day!) and we try to arrive as close to (but not before) 10am as possible. Our retreat is hosted at the Incarnation Center in Ivoryton, CT. Retreat is held in The Lodge building, all the ladies stay in rooms on the wings and then there are tables set up in the center common room for the quilters. I lucked out and found a little nook right next to my Mom’s table that I use as my command center for the weekend. After we arrive Friday, we unload the car (which is a fantastic form of organized chaos), unpack our bags and get settled. Our rooms are private (there are some shared rooms if you wanted to share with people) and we each have a twin size bed. Bathrooms are shared in the hallway but the individual stalls have their own doors so it still ends up being very private. My mom and I always are in rooms at the very end of one of the hallways, which is right next to the building’s little library. Lunch is at 12:30pm so we spend the time before lunch getting stuff organized and catching up with the other lovely ladies at retreat. We’re also very lucky in that the dining area is right in our building, which is pretty convenient when its raining. So after lunch we have about a solid 5 hour stretch until dinner, then after dinner we have time to get things done until whenever we feel like going to bed. Also on Friday this year we were very lucky that a local store, Cate’s Sew Modern, came to our retreat center with items we could buy. Their store has such great fabrics, and though I’m not a quilter I am an avid fabric fan and I usually convince my Mom to buy something. They were so nice and we were very lucky to have them join us for an afternoon!

So that’s the basic rundown for Friday. I was able to finish a book, color a picture, and do a couple blog posts (my May wrap up blog post and a review of the book I finished, The Death of Mrs. Westaway). I also started a new book and got maybe 1/3 of the way done before bed. I was supposed to be working for a little bit but I couldn’t get my webcast to load so I skipped that. My mom also got one of her quilt tops done, I included a picture of it below!

Saturday

Saturday is a wonderful, full day of retreating! Meals are at 8am, 12:30pm and 6pm. There is a snack table for snacks. Mom and I usually try to get to a local winery, Chamard Vineyards, before lunch but this year we decided to go after lunch. We stopped by the Clinton Outlets first and walked around, but we weren’t in a spending mood so we walked away empty handed. We didn’t walk away empty-handed from the winery though! We had a wonderful time at Chamard, and though we had a little trouble at first finding room at the bar, once we did we had great wines and great service. We went back to retreat after purchasing a few bottles.

Saturday I got a lot done, I finished the book I started on Friday, Rainwater, and had time to do a post on it, plus I read a whole other book before bed. I also colored another picture and started a cross-stitch project. Our friend at retreat also showed us a quilt she was working on and the fabric had characters from a book series I was a huge fan of as a kid, I included that picture and a couple other quilter pictures of Mom below.

Sunday

Sunday is a short day and is a little sad because we are getting ready to leave. Mom and I pack the car a little bit every hour so that by the time lunch is over we can just drive away. After posting about the book I finished before bed Saturday (The Opposite of Here), packing up all my junk, and working on my cross stitch project for awhile, there wasn’t much time left for reading. I did start a new book but didn’t get very far on it yet. That’s ok though! My mom did end up having time to finish putting a quilt top together, and I thought it looked awesome! Overall I felt super productive this past weekend and I was able to really do a lot of the things that I love doing. Plus the weather Sunday was GORGEOUS! The other two days were pretty humid and hot but Sunday was crisp and clear. Beautiful weather and a beautiful day.

Lunch is at 12:30pm and then Mom and I wrap things up pretty quickly after that. We always stop for a (good) coffee on our way home. I was very happy to see my husband and kitties once I got home Sunday, and after my very productive weekend, I spent the rest of the day Sunday relaxing on the couch. 🙂

That’s a wrap! 

And that’s retreat! The other ladies do A LOT of quilting, and there are fun quilting related grab bags and door prizes and what not but since I’m not a quilter I kind of end up doing my own thing. I always have a lot of fun though and I can’t wait for next year!