A Different Month

This is my Dad - he was 94 1/2 when he passed away this month on October 6, 2016. He lived a long full life, loved the Lord, loved his family and enjoyed being the oldest in his family thus far. He still has two siblings in their eighties coming behind him. In fact, all the children in his family made it well into their eighties or nineties.

He loved to sing as did all his family and began a choir at our church when I was growing up. Many people shared with us their love of music because of what he did to encourage others. He continued to play the piano - by ear - even into his nineties. 

He was proud of me for my abilities to sew. He'd tell people of how I made a suit when I was 14 years old and it looked like it was store-bought. Two days before he died I sat with him most of the day, stitching on a quilt, just being there with him.

My quilting has surely been my therapy these last few months as we had to take him to a memory care center for his dementia and severe aortic stenosis. 

However, as long as I could still stitch some, it soothed my soul and mind and continues to help me through difficult days. 

He is well now, with Jesus, my mother and so many others who have gone before him. I feel blest to have had such a wonderful father and be by his side as he drew his last breath here on earth. I've lived 1 1/2 miles from him for 16 years and shared many days with him. 

Here is some other family that was here during this time.

Fortunately almost all our family was here with us for several days - here my son and his wife and daughter and grands!! 

My husband, Papa, and Jake and Lacey!

After my Dad's funeral, we all stopped at Fresh Air Barbecue in Jackson, GA, where we've been going for 50 years or so. So good!! There's still a lot to process and work to be done but I wanted to share this part of my life not really quilt related, but yet it is. 

When I was 14, my parents bought me a top of the line sewing machine for Christmas - A Singer Touch and Sew - with all the bells and whistles of that day. I had learned to sew at age 12 and truly have been stitching ever since!! How blest I was for this gift from them and the encouragement it gave me! 

And here is where it has taken me!

 I have been working on my Di Ford Mountmellick from 2014.

 Two borders have been completed and there are two more to do.

 My Mountmellick.

Just a close up - I like the little hexagons in the corner.

Another block from my Happy Days Sarah Fielke BOM. Only two more blocks and then the border to do.

 This project is a pineapple Christmas quilt. The papers here are from at least 20 years ago and somehow I continued to save them. I drew up the design I wanted to do in Electric Quilt 7.

I'm using many strips that were already cut from a previous project that went by the wayside - it was a Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt for Christmas. Somehow, I never got more than step 2 done yet all my fabrics were ready for a project so here it is.. . . . . . eventually. . . . not this Christmas!!

Happy Stitching!!

2014 Coming to a Close

It has been quite a while since I've posted so I will try to catch up before we are in the New Year! In November I went on a mission trip to Nicaragua with a group from our church. We have been sponsoring some children to go to a Christian school there and I was able to meet them in person after corresponding for almost four years.

 This is Angely. . .

 Maria . . .

and Moises, who had been out of school for a while because of some surgery. We found him at his home with his parents and what a blessing to get to see all these precious children!! It was a truly great trip!!

A lady from our church began a Sewing Ministry and Sewing School there and here is the classroom. It is amazing what these students have learned. There were 12 who graduated while we were there and took home their very own sewing machine to be able to have a home business. There was a fashion show with many of the garments they had made.

Here is an example of one dress this lady was finishing up that week for the show.

 Speaking of finishing, I really did complete my quilt top, "Words To Life By," SBOW, from Primitive Gatherings. That was all those hundreds of half square triangles I grumbled about earlier! 

 Here is one more block of my Primitive Garden quilt, also from Primitive Gatherings.

And now as the Di Ford Mystery Quilt has come to a close for 2014, I have completed the first round! Oh well, maybe in 2015 this will become a quilt.

I made this little doll quilt for Lacey who is two and loves her babies! It matches her room.

This is our quilt group (minus Gerry taking the picture) at our Christmas luncheon!

Jake has now turned four - where did the time go??

After 14+ years in the making - I have decided to finish my Bible Quilt (designed by Jan Patek as a BOM). The blocks have been completed for years except for the embroidery/words. Since I do much more hand stitching now, it will be prettier than if I had done it years ago. How's that for making yourself feel good about procrastinating!!?

 And now one last project - my Dear Jane quilt that has also been in the making for 12+ years. This is my first triangle/border block. I found a FB group, Jane Stickle Quilt Group, which is very encouraging and I can see that I might now finish this historic quilt. Here are two websites with great information also:

Dear Jane and

That Quilt, where she gives pictures and step by step instructions on how she made her blocks.

 I've had 65 blocks out of 225 completed for a while. I am setting some new goals to finish this quilt.

 It is VERY challenging at times, some blocks have 45 pieces in them and they measure 4.5" finished.

That's a LOT of tiny pieces. I chose all my center block fabrics years ago and identified them in a layout provided with the EQ Software. I chose to make them just a little brighter than Jane's original quilt, OR, as I say, what hers may have been before fading some over 150 years ago. 

Of course, Christmas was celebrated amidst all of these posts, but now the decorations are put away and I am looking forward to new GOALS for 2015. 

Happy New Year!!

Miles of Triangles & More

I always enjoy seeing these beautiful trees in the fall. There are few leaves left now but the colors were just gorgeous!

I've been working on hundreds of half square triangles for my Words to Live By quilt, the SBOW for 2013 from Primitive Gatherings. I've had them all ready to sew but just kept putting it off. However, I can't finish the quilt until they are sewn so half are done. It's hard for me to be exactly accurate so one was 1/2" too long and one 1/2" too short. Maybe this third will be just right. I just have to fudge a little and make them work.

 I've sewn a couple more Farmer's Wife Quilt Blocks - the fabrics are what makes these little blocks.

One more block in my Primitive Garden!

An 8" quilt for a friend's 70th birthday. Our group makes birthday quilts for special years and this time, like mine, it will be small quilts all attached to each other and she loves cats.

I just love this picture! We kept our grandchildren and took them to a fall festival. He won the little pirate's patch and put it on. It was so cute how he felt like he had to close his eyes to wear it. Love the sweet smile and apple painted on his cheek!

Quilt Retreat!

 In May, our small group went on a quilt retreat for a week - well, for some it was two days and others the full week but we had a great time and really got a lot accomplished with our quilting. Gerry and Wonda are sharing pictures on their iPads and always ready with a smile.

 Gerry is stitching now. . .

 and so is Gloria! From early morning til late at night!

 Nancy, from Tattered Garden, got a lot of stitching on her appliqué, plus some other machine projects. 

 We finally got out one day for a quilt shop visit and lunch.

Jane made great progress on a quilt for her daughter and son-in-law. She began with 20 star blocks and when I left a couple of days early, she had doubled that amount so I'm sure she's done even more now. We even took out time to walk and enjoy the beautiful surroundings in the North Georgia mountains.

 Here is one project I worked on - another construction quilt like I made for my grandson last year.

And now it is quilted!

 I've really been trying to finish up my last year's SBOW with Primitive Gatherings - Words to Live By. I should have put the date 2014 on it but I wasn't thinking when I inked it last year that it would not be finished then. Oh well, that was the summer it began.

 I do have all the wool stitched and hundreds of half square triangles in the making.

 My last two blocks in the border.

 Two more finished blocks with the Primitive Garden. . .

A close up. . .

 This is so perfect with all the crows, as they are all around us where we live.

One more close-up.

And now, it is summer again, and time for another SBOW with PG. My first package arrived today . . some pieced blocks and wool sunflowers! I think it's going to be another beautiful quilt!

And last but certainly not least, who I have been spending a lot of time with lately! They steal Nana's heart with every smile!!