Everett Quilt Show

 A guild in Everett called All in Stitches had an amazing show last week and I was lucky to attend. I haven't seen so much talented quilting in my life. Enjoy!

Here is Shelley's Georgetown on My Mind that I quilted for her.

I have a Circle Play in process. I would complete it but there are no papers for it (EPP).

Shelley's New Hexagon

 It's always interesting to receive a quilt to complete which I am working on myself. Shelley dropped off a New Hexagon Millefiori last month and now I've been working on it. 

Recently Shelley showed her beautiful quilt in an Everett show downtown. I really need to get mine finished.

Jim and Chuckles

 Jim has come to play at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Chuckles is concerned. She hasn't spent any time around small children.

She emerges from her hiding place to investigate.

Both are interested in the fish. But for different reasons.

Jim is a good model for Grandma. This is a good time for Grandpa to replace the hot water heater.

Yard Work

 I can't tell you how hard yard work is when you are overweight and out of shape. Paul and I worked all day trying to buck this dead snag that fell into the lawnmower path.

It will take us more weekends to get this done and then a first to clean up the remainder. However, we will have more firewood for next winter.

Cleaning up

 

Paul sat down to rest for a minute and Chuckles thought that was an invitation to crawl into his lap. We're about ready to light this pile.

Look how gorgeous this is! April can be glorious, but there are still months to go until warm sunshine stays around. Our Spring in the PNW is January through June. It's a slow warmup.

Easter 2017

 We stopped by Katie's house in Snohomish to see Jim on his first Easter Egg Hunt. It's so fun to watch children experience finding candy for the first time. There's just giving it away?

Grandma hiding an egg very carefully.

Oh, he is so smart.

Got it!

I got another one!

Happy Easter!

Walk with Grandpa

 Growing up in the PNW means puddles. And to a little boy, this means jumping and throwing rocks. Our driveway is perfect for both.

Grandma is blowing bubbles just for fun.

Siblings

When Tami married her own Paul on the deck of our Escondido house, we all dressed up for the event. I loved the opportunity to dress up, play the piano a bit, and enjoy cake and mints. I don't know that I miss Tami yet. It feels uncaring to admit it. But Tami was a tornado to live with difficult for me to understand. 

I remember the screaming and the plates flying. We didn't have very many good times together. And as the youngest, I was always being told what to do. Not endearing. But I did always want her to be happy. It just seemed too hard for her to do.

Sampler Quilt

 This customer quilt is so much work. Each block needs to be treated differently. My brain begins to hurt after awhile.

And although each should be a little different, they should all be cohesive in theme. I can't have an immature flower in one and tight cross-hatching in another.

My Childhood

 When I was a little girl, my mom gave me a new set of sheets. The artist was Joan Walsh Anglund who was a children's book author who lived from 1927-2021.

All these years later, I still have kept this pillowcase. But it's time to go. It is thin and faded. You should have seen it in its glory. On Etsy you can find fabric that looks like my sheets for $60/yard.

The Wild uncontained

 I have two plants that must be confined to their beds. They are a little too exuberant. One is a golden raspberry and one is an own-root rose. The raspberry plant's roots and crown are perennial, while the canes (stems) are biennial. A raspberry plant survives and produces fruit for many years. However, individual canes live only two growing seasons and then die.

These stems have no thorns, thankfully, but I must be careful to cut only the ones from last year and not next year's crop. Raspberries like to crawl out of this bed into the walkway. 

The rose has decided to wander around a few other plants and must be extracted. 

The After shot shows the benefit of a good trimming.