It's beginning to look a lot like...QUILT WEEK!
As Paducah gears up for Quilt Week, I thought I would revisit a post I wrote last year to introduce the rest of Kentucky to the event that preoccupies my little neck of the woods. - SSH
There is one event the entire year revolves around. There is one event every Kentuckian around me loves but also dreads. The tourists. The crowds. The traffic.
The Kentucky Derby?!?!
Nope! That's for you central Kentuckians. Over here in Western Kentucky, the event of the year is the AQS Quilt Show. Starting early this week, the streets of Paducah will start to fill with quilters from near as far (seriously, FAR, as in Japan far) and really live up to its name The Quilting Capital OF. THE. WORLD.
The Quilt Show transforms the entire town. I will never forget the first year I moved back. I walked into my favorite coffee shop downtown only to find the front had been filled with fabric bolts of every color. Coffee shop/Fabric store! Only during the Quilt Show.
Some less enthusiastic citizens complain about The Quilt Show. These are the people who have never actually gone to the Convention Center and taken in the beauty and artistry that is competitive quilting. These are the people who prefer to frown over the slightest change in their routine and giggle at the ladies in their quilted vests. These are the people who don't even go down town the entire week for fear of being confronted by someone not from Paducah!
These are not my people.
I'm very lucky to have my own quilting tour guides every year. My husband's parents run Planet Patchwork, a popular quilting website, and have been coming to the Show for years. (That's how I knew Nicholas and I were meant to be. He took me to the Quilt Museum on his first visit to Paducah and showed me his father's endorsements in the front of all the quilting books.) They show me all the best shops and shows. We eat at the church quilting luncheons. It's a blast to be a foreigner in your own town.
So, as the rest of Kentucky gears up for a little horse race, Paducah will be living large with the quilters. If you're not from around here, I encourage you to come by. And if you are from Paducah and have never embraced the Quilt Show in all its glory, it truly is your loss.
~ Sarah Stewart Holland
HerKentucky Derby Days: Lifeguard Press Lilly Pulitzer Giveaway!
Hey y'all! We're so excited to bring y'all the second giveaway of HerKentucky Derby Days.
As I've told y'all before, I'm a huge Lilly Pulitzer fan. I was so excited a few years ago when a line of fun Lilly paper goods, gifts, and accessories was released. I was even more excited to learn that the company that produces these items, Lifeguard Press, is Kentucky-based!
Lifeguard Press was kind enough to send me a Lilly Pulitzer print tumbler to review. I just adore this -- it's a huge, Lilly-print acrylic cup with a hot pink straw. I used it all this weekend -- it kept my drinks cold and made my desk look so cute. Even better, it's BPA-, Phthalate-, and Lead-Free. So many thanks to Lifeguard Press-- I think this may be my new favorite cup!
Lifeguard Press has also graciously offered a prize pack to get one lucky HerKentucky reader ready for Derby! As y'all know, any horse race can is subject to weather. It can be sunny or rainy, but the Derby must go on. These Lilly-print items will help you be prepared no matter the weather. The prize pack includes a can koozie, sunglass straps, and an umbrella. You'll be Derby-ready, rain or shine!
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Enter using the Rafflecopter widget below.
Good luck, and Happy Derby Days!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
{Actual prints may vary from prizes shown. A member of the HerKentucky writing staff was provided with a product for review, however, all opinions expressed are our own. Contest runs from 6:00 a.m. Monday, April 22 through 12:00 a.m., Friday, April 26. Winner will be announced Friday, April 26.}
Thunder
Fireworks just really aren't my jam.
Being outside in a nighttime crowd amidst loud booms and distracting lights just seems like an invitation to be mugged and/or thrown up upon. Now, I can't speak for you, but to me that doesn't sound like all that much fun. And, if you have a couple of dogs (and I do!), then you know that fireworks equal non-stop anxiety for the furry members of your household. Needless to say, the famous fireworks display that kicks off the Kentucky Derby Festival isn't an event that I include in my spring calendar. As I told a friend recently, I need a Xanax or a glass of Shiraz when I just think about Thunder over Louisville.
And so, whenever someone asks me "Are you going to Thunder?", I adamantly reply "You couldn't pay me enough."
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| image via Voice-Tribune |
Over the years, I've played many roles in expressing my hip disdain for Thunder. I've been the smug Highlands-dweller who schedules her Saturday night dinner reservations to avoid the Thunder tourist crowd. I've been the even smugger Former Highlands Dweller who audibly rolled her eyes when friends asked if she was heading to Louisville to see the fireworks. And, I've been the chick who giggles over the so-called Thunder baby boom, because that can't really be a thing, right?
The only problem is that, lately, I'm starting to wonder if I've missed out on something by ignoring Thunder. I have never seen a photo of the display that isn't outright beautiful. And, Downtown Louisville in the springtime is one of the most gorgeous sights I've ever seen. The fireworks always seemed impressive when I'd catch them in the distance from my carefully reserved dinner table or my 8th floor condo window. Maybe it would be even cooler if we were watching from a downtown hotel or office building...Maybe all those crowds are onto something.
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| image via gotolouisville. |
Capturing the Beauty of Central Kentucky
In a time of great tragedy and sadness, it's important to remind ourselves of the goodness and beauty that exists in this world.
Maybe I'm biased, but out of all the places I've visited, I cannot think of a more gorgeous place than Kentucky in the springtime. Even the cloudy days are stunning.
Maybe I'm biased, but out of all the places I've visited, I cannot think of a more gorgeous place than Kentucky in the springtime. Even the cloudy days are stunning.
This spring, I've spent a great deal of time outside with my camera trying to capture some of this beauty in my own "backyard" in Central Kentucky. From the tulips at the Kentucky State Capitol, to the iconic horses and their foals grazing in newly green pastures, the natural beauty that surrounds us is simply breathtaking. Here are just a few of my favorite photographs:
As our country copes with yet another senseless tragedy, I encourage you to take a moment to appreciate the beauty in your own life. And, there is no better time than the present to step outside and take a look around.
HerKentucky Welcomes Glenda McCoy!
HerKentucky is thrilled to welcome Glenda McCoy to our writing staff!
I first met Glenda when we were both in school in Lexington. As you do these days, I "re-met" her via social media. Glenda is so smart and creative, and her love for Kentucky shines through in so many ways. I mean, she takes pictures like this:
Glenda is an Ashland native and an alumna of the University of Kentucky. She spends her days in Frankfort, making the world a better place at the Kentucky Commission on Women. She and her husband live on a Clark County farm and have an adorable toddler daughter.
I first met Glenda when we were both in school in Lexington. As you do these days, I "re-met" her via social media. Glenda is so smart and creative, and her love for Kentucky shines through in so many ways. I mean, she takes pictures like this:
Glenda is an Ashland native and an alumna of the University of Kentucky. She spends her days in Frankfort, making the world a better place at the Kentucky Commission on Women. She and her husband live on a Clark County farm and have an adorable toddler daughter.
Central Kentucky Runs for Boston
Like many across the nation and the world, I was horrified on Monday as my Twitter feed went from tweets cheering on the marathoners in Boston to tweets sharing a terrifying situation as it unfolded. In the days since, the horror of the bombings at the marathon finish line has saddened me to a degree I found a little surprising. I don't know anyone personally affected, but I think the fact that the victims are just normal people who were there to run, there to cheer, there to celebrate.
Running is a sport without a lot of barriers to entry. Lord knows, if I can become a runner just about anyone can! Slow, fast, short, tall, expensive Nikes or barefoot, many many people can participate. It's a sport that doesn't require a lot of cash outlay to get started. In fact, running is one of the first things many children do in their natural progression of development.
I'd wager that most of us have either run in a race or have cheered on friends and family in a race. Of course, it takes a lot of dedication and commitment to qualify and participate in the Boston Marathon. You don't have to have a qualifying time to be a runner, though. No matter the distance or the speed, there's a camaraderie in the running community.
It's been heartwarming to see the running community in our state come together to strengthen those bonds of health, fitness and the celebration of life in the wake of a tragedy like we've seen this week. All over the state, remembrance runs have popped up. One of the biggest will happen this Saturday in Lexington.
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| By misconmike |
John's Run Walk Shop will host a remembrance run for Boston on Saturday 4/20 at 7 am. The group welcomes all speeds, abilities and distances to start off from the shop South Ashland Avenue in
Lexington (Chevy Chase) and encourages the wearing of green and white (Boston's city colors).
If you're a runner but not able to attend the run on Lexington, will you dedicate a run this week to the folks in Boston? I know it weighed on my mind tonight, as I struggled through a few miles along the Kentucky River. No matter how tough those miles were, no matter how out of running shape I am, it felt good to get out there again.
HerKentucky Derby Days: Marley Lilly Giveaway!
Can y'all believe it? Derby is just a few days away!
Whether you consider Derby to be the greatest two minutes in sports, the most fashionable day of the year, or the one day that you put mint in your bourbon, it's the day that Kentucky shines on an international stage. Here at HerKentucky, we're getting in the Derby spirit by partnering with some incredible companies to bring you some great prizes.
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You can enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter widget below.
Good luck, and Happy Derby Days!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
{Contest ends at Midnight on Sunday night, April 21st. Winner will be contacted on Monday, April 22.
All opinions expressed in this post are our own. No member of the HerKentucky staff was compensated for this post.}