Checking in from Illinois

Hi Everyone!
I am checking in on my road trip! So far it's been GREAT but I miss my DH something fierce! My son's soccer team lost 3-1 on Friday night...a great game but the other team had an AWESOME player on their team who scored all of their goals. DS's team bounced back on Sunday and won 2-1 and looked great! I have had some great alone time wtih my son and that is GREAT!!!

I met up with my sisters in Waterloo, IA and we went to a quilt store and then to my DS's game. Unfortunately, it was raining quite hard and we didn't have any time to talk to DS.

The next day, Saturday, my sisters and I wanted to go shopping at a quilt store while we were in Iowa. We were staying in Waterloo and the Quilter's Travel Companion didn't have anything nearby. There was an ad for a shop, The Quilter's Quarter, in LaPorte, IA and the ad said it had 5000 bolts. It also opened at 9AM and everyone else that was surrounding us didn't open until 10. We debated going to QQ last or first. Well, we went there first.

This shop was in the middle of a CORNFIELD!!!!! We overshot the turn and had to backtrack. Then we hit a gravel road and thought...OH NO!!! We were wondering what the heck we got ourselves into and then I saw a mailbox with QQ on the side of it. We turned into a driveway and saw a house. At this point we were all still baffled. I said it must be in their house! When we got past the house we saw another free standing building...YEP...THE LQS!!!

Well, let me tell you...this LQS was the BEST!!!!!!!!!! It was about 9:30 and we walked around and took it all in. VERY CLEAN AND NEAT!!! The building itself was all brick and had a full basement for a full 6400 SQUARE FEET!!! Her DH built it for her after working out of her house was not good enough! She is ONE LUCKY lady!

The fabric in this shop was AMAZING! BRIGHTS, BATIKS, GEOMETRICS AND MORE!!! My kind of shop!!! My sisters and i shopped and then got hungry before we were done!! We told Melinda, the owner, that we needed to get something and could she recommend a place intown? STUPID QUESTION...the gas station was our option! I had 2 cheese stix and one sister had nothing while the other had a pizza slice! Back to the quilt store we went...when we were done spending almost 6 hours there we dropped almost $800 between the 3 of us! WOOHOO...it was FUN!!!!

Honestly though, it was the NICEST quilt shop we've ever been in! SHE ROCKED!!!!!So, if you are ever on Hiway 20 in Iowa go to QUILTER'S QUARTERS in LaPorte...its' off the beaten path but well worth it!!!!! They hope to get dairy cows on their farm soon!!!

Hugs,
Laurie