Happy Birthday, Charlie!

Charlie is my brother, the only boy in a family of six girls, two mothers, and two fathers. Actually it took that many adults to create our hodge-podge of a family. .

For Christmas this year I quilted a table runner with a native American theme. It was fun to do and I found the perfect leftover fabric to make the binding, a Kaffe Fassett piece. The only problem was that I didn't have enough and ended up sewing tiny strips together to complete the quilt.

July 24 is Charlie's Birthday. He now lives in Nevada and is also my friend. I'm imagining a birthday celebration that includes a traditional family barbecue; chicken, sarsa, beans, garlic bread and corn on the cob. Topped off with an angel food cake slathered in strawberries and whipped cream. We'll end the night with a fun game of cards before he returns home. Happy Birthday Charlie!

P.S. Well, my imagination played a trick on me and that lovely strawberry covered angel food cake proved disastrous. Fortunately we still enjoyed it and it brought laughter to the party as well.

For Rachael

When Rachael was in labor with her last child, she also labored on a quilt. As I cut and pressed, she sewed and by the end of the labor had two wonderful creations to celebrate; Ivan Joseph and their Laboring Quilt. I machine quilted her quilt and had a great time adding flowers and their pollinators.

Rachael celebrates life. She always welcomes people around her table to celebrate milestones - a birthday, moving from the highchair to the "big table", an award or achievement.... To celebrate her gift, I made a celebration cloth to grace the table. A place to set the vase of flowers, the cupcakes or towering creation of strawberries, shortcake and whipped cream.
Now that the Levy's have relocated to a small home in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle, we won't be able to celebrate with them as frequently as we did when they lived in Reno. But the cloth will be there, representing the love we have for Rachael, Marcel and their family. I know they will keep up the celebrations, for it is in her blood, and they will have the Moser Family gathering with them around the table. Blessings!

For Molly and Luke

This tablerunner was a Christmas gift for Molly and Luke. I
loved the colors and they had fun using it when they enjoyed their Christmas feast with Luke's family from Idaho. With fabric left over, I made an apron for Molly as a shower gift. I still have more fabric....what to do?

Quit Buggin' Me

I made this quilt for Dagan, my grandson in Seattle, who loves to squish bugs. (Much to my dismay!) It's just that they look so completely different once he removes his little foot. Of course the bugs quickly loose their appeal once they no longer move. Since Dagan is only three years old, he has a lot of time to explore bugs.

Seattlelites

I'm living in Seattle. In actuality, I am living out of a suitcase in my grandson, Dagan's playroom. He is sharing it with me just fine but made comments this morning about how much he likes his playroom and that I should move some of my stuff. My time here is short as I am the Nana nanny, doing baby patrol for my second grand daughter and seventh grand child. Penelope Jane is so very sweet, two weeks old and, as her mother refers to her, as soft and squishy as a ball of pizza dough rising. I am loving this time with Dagan and the chances I have to hold PJ.

Kyna and I talk about how nice it is to have a one-time nursing mother care for a current nursing mom. We understand what it means to eat and need food...large quantities of food, often. I remember my mother-in-law coming to help me when I had a baby and how shocked she was that I needed a 4th hard boiled egg! I was hungry and eggs were good. Some things don't change.

So I'm living in Seattle until Tuesday, June 22 when I climb into my car and travel back to my little trailer near the salt flats. Be it ever so humble....

February...the month to quilt

During February I unfolded projects waiting to be quilted and spent enough time quilting that the machine became a permanent fixture on the kitchen table. Bill was fairly patient but I found myself holding my tongue when he would set cartons of yougurt, a jar of peanut butter and leftover containers all over my machine. He asked why I was in the kitchen since I have a great quilting room so I explained that I just didn't have space to quilt with the industrial machine and the size of the quilts. No space, I replied. So, he didn't complain or say anything but I was constantly clearing food off the machine. I guess that can be considered the price I pay to take up even more of our communal space.

I've been having so much fun working on projects. A quilt that Rachael pieced when she was in labor with Ivan, a baby quilt for my soon-to-be baby grand daughter and a table runner. So, for a while longer, the quilting machine sits on the kitchen table and I sit down whenever I have a free moment, after I clear off all the stuff Bill has piled upon the machine. Oh well, keep on stitchin'

Magazine Celebrities!

I discovered a pattern in Fons and Porter, a quilt magazine, and decided to make it, and make it, and make it yet again. The pattern is paper pieced and I enjoyed giving wall hangings to all five of my daughters. They received gardens, full of colorful blossoms. I gifted my friends single buds, open and brightly colored. Upon a whim, I decided to send the photo back to the pattern source and lo, they printed it! I know it is in their online magazine so check it out. answers54@fonsandporter.com

Weariness

I'm sitting here in an overstuffed chair, too tired to move. Sleep is calling me into the dark abyss and I want to fall. The only problem is that I am twenty miles from home, it is cold and dark and I am alone. At least, if I were in my car I would be alone. Instead I am sitting in Starbucks, downing an extra hot cup of non-fat cocoa, no whip, surrounded by young baristas and an occasional customer or two. I'm reluctant to leave for the car is cold and the house colder. Bill has class tonight in Fallon so I stopped by here, thinking I could get some emailing done. Now I'm stuck and not wanting to move.

This past year was one of the most difficult times I've experienced in a while. The home remodeling project took from me more than I expected. It seems as if I would have nothing left so many time. Oops the battery light is flashing so I'm going to save, shut down and really go home. It's time. More griping on another post.