Needles and Pens

A little follow up on my last post... We went to our grandson, Aaron's, birthday party this past weekend and he showed me the new sheets and pillowcase I made for him, on his bed. They fit! "Good job, Grandma!" (I love it when he says that.) Looks like he won't fit in his little bed for much longer, though! I can't believe how fast he's growing up... (Here's the tutorial I used for the crib/toddler sheet. Super easy-to-follow instructions, and purely coincidental that she also used a John Deere print. lol) Not only do the sheets match his John Deere quilt , they also match one of his birthday gifts... "Take you for a ride on my big, green tractor..." (Jason Aldean, one of Aaron's favorite songs.) Cousin Sophia hangs on for dear life. :o) Borrowed this picture from my daughter, just cause it's so cute. Happy birthday, big guy! We love you!

Finished the John Deere panel quilt for my grandson last week... Cute, huh? And here's how the pieced back turned out... Looks good at a distance, but I made the mistake of making the back border the same size as the printed front "border," so the edge of the border quilting on the back is all over the place. (I don't think Aaron will mind.) I had a little chunk of the backing fabric left over, so yesterday I made a little pillow to match -- with red piping! All done! But something is still missing... I know what, it's this 'lil cutie. Miss you, Aaron! See you soon! XOXOXO

Still waiting for baby... so I decided to start another project to pass the time. ;o) Our guild challenge this month was to "do something with hankies," so I thought it was the perfect time to revisit those that were given to me several years ago, by my husband's grandma. I chose these reds, pinks and whites for my project. I could see something very "valentine-y" for the end result, and since my birthday is on Valentine's Day and Grandma's was very close, well, that seemed appropriate. Incidentally, Grandma and I shared the same first initial, too: Next came the fun part. I found this Hanky-Panky Crazy Quilt pattern, by Cindy Brick, at the HGTV website. It seemed perfect for what I had in mind. I spent hours playing with different combinations of fabrics and embellishments that I thought might work: The hard part was cutting into Grandma's hankies, but I finally convinced myself that I only had them as a keepsake, and a wallhanging for all to enjo...

If you saw yesterday's post, you already know all about the Healing Hearts quilt that my online group made for a fellow member in my hometown. What I haven't yet shared is that as I was collecting blocks for the quilt, I was also receiving little packages in the mail, just for me. Packages with cards, letters and darling little nine-patch blocks, made from all sorts of children's novelty prints. It was a surprise grandma shower! Check this out: How cool is that?? Last week, I hustled around while my daughter was on her last two days at work and got a quilt made from all the blocks. What a great surprise it'll be for her when the baby is born. It turned out to be a nice sized quilt, too. Just perfect for when he starts rolling around, and he can look at all the different little pictures on his quilt. I think he's going to LOVE it. I know I do! Thanks, ladies, for caring, for thinking of us, and for helping us to welcome our new little one into the world in such a...

I've met a lot of quilters online over the past few years, quilters of all ages, lifestyles and personalities, but the one thing they all seem to have in common is a heart of gold. When someone is hurting or in need, quilters come through. This story is just one more example. One of my online quilting groups welcomed a new member early this year, and in the months that followed, she had a string of misfortunes, from a cancer diagnosis, to surgery, to the tragic death of a family member. Thoughts, prayers and good wishes flew through cyberspace, but you just can't send a real hug through email. Coincidentally though, this new member happens to live very near my hometown. Maybe a real hug wasn't out of the question, but could we make it a group hug? Plans were made in secret, and within days I started receiving quilt blocks in the mail, as well as donations to help with supplies. Meanwhile, our new member and I made plans to meet at our local quilt guild meeting. Mind you, in...

Finished my niece's wedding gift today, a cheerful blue and yellow sampler quilt made from a 2007 block-of-the-month project: Lacey and Benjamin, may your life together be richly blessed...

May is a big birthday month in my family, and yesterday my "baby" turned 10-years-old. No more single-digits in this house, at least until September, with the onset of our "grandparenthood." Time marches on. Hard as it is, I guess I'll have to let him grow up... The "Bear Paw" quilt did get finished in time -- and it was a hit! Ten years is definitely a milestone, but just a week ago, his big brother celebrated a milestone birthday too, turning 21. That magical age where you can finally "do whatever you want to do," relatively speaking, of course. ;o) Mother and son, 2:00 a.m. (Last call, anyone?) Waaay past Mom's bedtime! All in all, it's been a happy -- if somewhat exhausting -- birthday week. Time to rest up for the next round! ;o)

More bunnies! Must be Easter in the air. Today I finished this crib quilt, for a new great-niece we're expecting in April. I'm calling it "Bunny Love." I originally bought this bunny/heart fabric to make an Easter dress for one of the girls years ago, but since that never happened, I thought it would be perfect for an April baby quilt. I bought the friendship star blocks from my friend, Connie, some time ago, so with the blocks already made, the quilt came together really quickly. I love the old-fashioned look of the scrappy blocks. And everything, right down to the batting and thread, came out of my over-abundant stash. ;o) Here's a closeup of the bunny border (They're actually bears, dressed up as bunnies. They even have little bunny slippers!): The quilting (since the border is reversed at each end, I quilted some hearts going each way. No top or bottom!): And one more view, with a little different lighting: I'm really happy with the way this turned out...

A quiet moment last summer, with my youngest son, Timothy... "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my strength and my Redeemer." ~ Psalm 19:14 At times I question whether I've said the right thing, or made the right decision, where my children are concerned. Sometimes years after the fact I wonder, had I done this or that differently, would they be more self-assured, more directed, more content in their lives? These are the times when - if not for my faith - I would drown in a sea of self-inflicted mommy guilt. As much as I would love to be the perfect mother, always knowing exactly the right thing to say or do, I'm only human. So I continue on doing the best I can, in all my human fallibility, praying for God's forgiveness and guidance in all things, but especially in raising my children. The purpose of Word-Filled Wednesday is to share God’s word through photos and a verse. Click on the logo above for mor...

It's Show and Tell day over at Kelli's House ! I'm relatively new to Show and Tell, and I'm already having a hard time finding things worthy of showing! I think my post today is a bit unusual, but it does have a great story to go along with it. At least, I think so. ;o) I have a thing for birds' nests. I'm amazed at the intricate, detailed work that goes into them. I'm inspired by the care taken in the construction of these little works of art, designed for the specific purpose of comforting and protecting their young. Like this one, for example, a high-walled, cozy little cubbyhole, tightly woven with soft, grayed moss. My dad found this one abandoned in his garage, and gifted it to me. Besides this little beauty, I have a couple of nests that grace my Christmas tree each year (I've heard that this brings good luck for the coming year). However, there is one special nest that holds a place of honor in my china cabinet, year round. This is the one with t...

Ever since I saw that the Photo Hunt theme for this week is "wooden," I've had this song stuck in my head. It's one of my father-in-law's standards: *Wooden Heart (Muss I Denn) Can't you see I love you Please don't break my heart in two That's not hard to do 'Cause I don't have a wooden heart And if you say goodbye Then I know that I would cry Maybe I would die 'Cause I don't have a wooden heart There's no strings upon this love of mine It was always you from the start Treat me nice Treat me good Treat me like you really should 'Cause I'm not made of wood And I don't have a wooden heart Muss i denn, muss i denn Zum Stadtele hinaus Stadtele hinaus Und du, mein schat, bleibst hier? There's no strings upon this love of mine It was always you from the start Sei mir gut Sei mir gut Sei mir wie du wirklich sollst Wie du wirklich sollst 'Cause I don't have a wooden heart * Created by Fred Wise, Ben Weisman, Kay Two...

So yesterday was my birthday. I don't know why I always dread my birthday. It has nothing to do with age. It's more a discomfort with being the center of attention, I think. Yet I am so lucky to have a family that showers me with love on this one day each year. Of course, they love me every day, but on my birthday, they bend over backwards to show me just how much. And not everyone is so fortunate. Yes, I am truly blessed! I woke up to a text message from my oldest son, already two hours into his workday, he took a minute to send a "Happy Birthday, Mom -- and Happy Valentine's Day!" Aww... put a smile on my face, as I shuffled the younger kids out to the bus. Later in the day, I picked up my mom and we went to lunch, and then shopping for my birthday gift -- a new desk chair -- which I love! I came back home to find a voicemail on the phone. It was the entire high school choir, singing "happy birthday" to me, followed by my 18-year-old daughter saying, ...