Christmas

Merry Christmas!

We were able to have our immediate family gathering on Wednesday this year, and it was glorious. We typically pick a day other than Christmas or Christmas Eve that works for each family so they don't have to "make the rounds" on either of those days. We usually aim for the 23rd, but sometimes it is a day or two before that. We have not all been together for quite some time, so this was extra special.

Jack and I picked a theme this year - Relax. We decided that after a year filled with such chaos, stressing the idea and importance of relaxation was paramount, even for the young kids. I know first hand that they worry about school, their friends, and their family. It makes sad that they worry about us and their friends; but at the same time, I am proud that they are developing into caring and loving people. 

Along with a few other items, each of the nine grandkids received bath bombs, a towel, pjs, and a bathrobe. I was hoping that they would enjoy the gifts and know the love that went into choosing each one specifically for them. Without any kind of pushing or encouraging, the kids all put on their robes (right on top of their clothing so they had to be hot!) and wore them for the next couple of hours while they played with their gifts and just relished in being together. I was filled with joy and love! We are blessed!

We enjoyed our annual seafood dinner that includes crab leg dinner, shrimp, salmon, various veggies, etc. It is a wonderful tradition and I'm glad that everyone enjoys it. We added Grinch Punch this year, and that was fun. The kids and Grandpa Jack decorated the pitcher. 

There were a few other changes with the dinner too. Quinn joined the "adult table" this year and it was fun to listen to her. She was thrilled when she saw that there was a place set for her, but she tried really hard not to show it. At twelve years old, she really has developed a wonderful sense of humor and she fit right in with the rest of us goofy adults. 

The "kids table" was fun to watch too, as all of the kids are getting older and need much less help. It was hilarious to watch and listen to them reenact what they figured was the conversation between the shrimp and crab legs. They weren't really playing with their food, but it was close - and it was totally ok with me. They were having such a good time and they really are funny. We adult should sit back and watch a group of kids. We could learn a few things about relaxing and enjoying the moment. 

At the end of the day, the kids were all tired; and truth be told, so were Jack and I. It's a tired that I welcome though. There is nothing that I cherish more than spending days like this with my favorite people. It is a wonderful reminder of what is really important in life and that I am fortunate to have them all live so close.

Lynn and Ty had to make a quick trip to Michigan Thursday morning to pick up the crib my brother Steve made for them. To make it a little easier for them, I offered to have the older kids stay here while they made the trip. 

Isn't this crib beautiful? Steve is really good at what he does and he was so kind to make this for Lynn and Ty. This crib joins another one that they have, which had been used in Ty's family. This second crib has significance and importance too, as the wood came from Lynn's grandfather and was built by her uncle. These cribs fill our hearts with joy and love, and I know that the twins will sleep well for a long time. 

Layne spent the morning with Ty's parent's but I was thrilled when Peyton and Avery were dropped off a little after 8:00. They made pancakes with Jack and keeping with the Christmas theme, added green food coloring to the last batch and made them into Grinch pancakes. It was fun!

After breakfast, we did some coloring, drawing, and other paper crafts. While doing this I saw that Peyton was making a Christmas tree. I asked where she was going to hang it and she said that it wasn't for her. She wanted to give it to someone who hadn't been able to get out and get a tree. She said that she thought it would make someone happy. My heart swelled. Remember when I commented about them being so caring and loving? She decided to leave it with her treat for Santa Claus with a note asking him to deliver it to whoever he thought would like it. Good planning!

Avery and Peyton wanted to do some sewing and I thought it was a good time to pull out the Featherweight and let them try it. They made pin cushions and did a really good job. They've been doing some hand sewing and enjoying it, but I know for certain that Avery is ready to move to the machine. :-) 

Today, Jack and I will enjoy a quiet day with just each other, and that's ok. I'll play my Manheim Steamroller CDs and do a little reading and hand sewing. Jack and I will enjoy a dinner using the raclette and relax and relish in the love of the season and our family and friends. 

As I said earlier - we are blessed!

Merry Christmas!  

Friday Finishes

Happy New Year!

May 2016 find you happy, healthy and with lots of time to quilt!

2015 ended with some finishes and for that I am happy. It's been kind of crazy around here and the first few months of 2016 doesn't look like it will be much different. I've decided to look at this as a positive, as I could be struggling with things and not able to quilt or teach at all. :-)  

I finished a t-shirt quilt for a friend. She and her daughter started it, but soon ran into issues so they asked me to complete it for them. I was happy to do it and it's done and was delivered in time for Christmas, even if this picture doesn't show that. (I send them this picture to determine if they liked the border corners and forgot to take a picture when the quilt was completed. Oh well...)

And, I finished and delivered this Carpenter's Star quilt, complete with embroidered names to my friend Janet. It was a gift for her mom. I love the fabrics in this quilt!

And Brandon's quilt was presented to his twin brother and mom on Monday. This really was an emotional challenge for me.  I am glad I made it and hope that it brings comfort to the family.

I hand-wrote a message to the family on the back of the quilt, along the binding.

I promised Quinn and Sadie that they could sew a little bit over Christmas break. They each chose 6 strips of fabric from my "collection" (That's what they call my stash and I love it!), and sewed them together to make a baby quilt. I set up the machine with a guide for them to keep an accurate (or close to accurate) 1/4" seam allowance and they both did exceptionally well. Here they are showing Grandpa Jack what they've created.

Sadie decided that she thinks hers could be used by Bailey when her baby doll isn't using it. She's trying out the size to make sure it will work. They do love their sister!  :-)

I did the actual quilting for them (in the ditch) and they love them. Since we finished these right before supper, the girls asked if these quilts could be used for placemats too and since I said yes, it was decided that I (or we) need to make one for Ronan. I think I'll try to do that later today. 

I love this backing fabric and have just enough to make Ronan's placemat and maybe one more. 

And finally, although not quilt-related, I am happy to say that I'm thrilled to have finished with what I hope will be first of many purging episodes. 

My sisters and I challenged ourselves to do some "housekeeping" and here's what my car looked like when Jack and I made a trip to Goodwill yesterday. Feels good!

Do you have any Friday Finishes to share? 

I'd love to see them.

Hooking up to 

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Tip Tuesday! Sharing the Love!

"Tip Tuesday!" - Sewing with Children

I love learning new things and then sharing that knowledge with my quilting friends. So, every Tuesday I'll provide some tips, hints, tricks, tutorials, shortcuts, etc. that I've learned over the years and share them here on the blog. 

"Tip Tuesday" will be a collection of information about a wide variety of subjects garnered from a large variety of sources.  I am not an expert by any means and do not take credit for being the great wizard behind all of these hints and tips. I will gladly give due credit whenever possible.

These tips will be archived and accessible to you just by clicking on the "Tip Tuesday" tab above. 

Read, enjoy, and be inspired! 

We all have a love of sewing and quilting. If we didn't, we probably wouldn't spend nearly as much time (and money) doing it. Chances are that if we didn't love it, we also wouldn't spend nearly as much time reading blogs (thanks for reading mine, by the way), checking out websites and wishing we could spend more time with our sewing machines. Somehow, reading about quilting helps when we can't actually do it. I am very appreciative of those people who spend so much of their time and energies sharing their talents with us. 

I too enjoy sharing my love of quilting with others. I teach a fair number of quilting classes at area quilt shops, I give private lessons, I co-host a number of quilting sew-ins (Old Bags' Days), and I am a member to a couple of quilting groups. I enjoy all of it and feel blessed and honored to be able to do those things.

One of the things I enjoy most about teaching is when I introduce a new quilter into "our world" and I watch as they start the process of creating. I love it when that proverbial light bulb goes off and they "get it." And then there is nothing quite like seeing the pride in their faces when they are showing off their first completed project. Oh my, how I love that moment! If you have never spent time with a new quilter, you might want to consider doing so. It is really an awesome thing to do.    

I often work with children and find that very satisfying. All of my grandchildren spend time in my sewing room and I love that. (I do put up scissors, pins, cutters, and anything I don't want messed with.) They all play with my fabric and thread and I'm ok with that.

 

I even like to have them stop in and spend time with the Old Bags' Day quilting people. 

Quinn and Sadie love to "help" me sew by sitting across from me while I chain piece and keeping the sewn units in order and untwisted. They also love to help me organize blocks on the design wall and say "Ta Da!" when it's done.

A couple of years ago, Quinn wanted to start sewing and I bought a simple little chain-stitch sewing machine. It's basically a toy and somewhat of a pain to use, but she loves using it. A couple of weeks ago I showed her some pictures of two young ladies who made quilts for 4-H projects. 

The back of Kelsey's quilt is adorable cow fabric!

Here's a close up of Brileigh's quilt back. Can you see the ants that are heading to the watermelon?

Quinn loved what she saw and wanted to start some "real" sewing. I said ok, but that she needed to practice on her machine before using mine. (I was in the middle of a project with a deadline and couldn't give it up right then) She was fine with that and started working with some basic strips. 

Do you see the Clover Wonder Clips? I often use those instead of pins when I'm working with young kids. 

I wanted to make sure she remembered how to backstitch and I had her do that a few times. 

This machine has a finger guard by the needle but she doesn't need that anymore. If the young person you are helping needs a guard like this, I suggest taping a piece of yarn or cardboard on the front of the machine so that it hangs down in front of the needle. 

When their finger hits that, it's time to stop and re-position their hands. It's kind of like the tennis ball hanging in the garage so you know when to stop. (Oops, no picture of that. I'll have to take one the next time I do that.)  

Quinn sure is concentrating here. I often have to remind new quilters, young and old, to breath. I'm not joking here. They will be so busy concentrating that they hold their breath.

And they need practice pinning, or clipping in Quinn's case.

I don't know yet what she'll be doing with her pieced strips, but I'm sure she figure out something.

Who knows, maybe she'll make something like the two 4-H girls.

If you have the opportunity to help a new quilter, especially a young one, I suggest you give it a try. Just look at how happy and proud can you make someone. I think the grandmas were pretty happy and proud too!

I've linked this post up with Sew Cal Gal's - It's All About the Kids blogging event. (Thanks for the info Sharon!) 

Click HERE to see Sew Cal Gal's page and HERE to see the link-ups that have been posted so far.