This post will be a bit of a ramble as I try to catch up on what has been going on in my life and sharing the progress of one of my project. I intended to share a bit of an end of the year review, but God had other plans...I'll start with the most major life event...

On December 21, my beloved father in law, Wayne, went to be with the Lord Jesus. He was 87 years old and I loved him dearly. 

Here he is working on a puzzle with Russ a week after he was moved into memory care last August. His passing wasn't unexpected as he has been getting more frailer these last few months, but it was surprising. 

It all began with a fall on December 15 at our family Christmas (5 minutes after we arrived, so he missed the whole thing!) which resulted in several fractures in several of his ribs. The dr at the ER called it a "catastrophic life event" due to age and prior lung damage due to smoking years back. By the end of the day, the news kept getting worse. A neck fracture was found as well as an aneurysm. The decision was made to make him comfortable in hospice, as he did not want any extraordinary means to be taken to keep him alive and that's what would have had to take place. He said, in one of his lucid moments that night (he had mild dementia), "I have lived a good life. I am ready to go." The blessings of that week, though sad and stressful at times,  we (all the children, grandchildren, brother, etc) were all able to say what needed to be said and could love up on him until he met the Lord on the other side of the veil. I am thankful I could be there the whole week to sit with him and with my mother in law, Mathena. Wayne's funeral was December 26...

Christmas in my home was simple and low key. No complaints there! Russ got a battery. Exciting, huh?? He is converting his recumbent bike into an electric bike. Why? I don't question is choice of "toys" because I appreciate he doesn't make me justify my sewing toys. =)

My Christmas gifts were all fountain pen related. I fell into the fountain pen hobby last year and haven't stopped loving them! I received a Pilot DecimoVanishing Point pen and lots of ink. You can never have too much ink! Or pens for that matter. ;-) 

With the week-long stay at hospice with Wayne, his funeral and Christmas all bunched on top of each other, my sewing time was non-existent until New Year's Day when I finished up my 2018 Temperature quilt. 

In the last two rows, I added a temperature key. The actual temperatures are not written on them in any way but they do show what the colors were in order from coldest to hottest temperatures. That way you can look at the quilt and get an idea of what the temperature was. 

Here it is all finished!! It measures 72" x 88". I still have the first of the months marked with a piece paper pinned to the quilt. I am not sure if I want to mark those days in some way or not. I am leaning towards not, but I'm not ready to take the papers off until I am sure. 

  

I am organized to start another temperature quilt for 2019 but haven't firmed up my choice on block and layout yet. What I do know is it won't involve applique!! ;-)  I am going to use the same colors/fabric and same temperature key. You can read more about my process and find out what colors I chose on this post from April - Temperature Quilt.

 My quilting goals for 2019:

1 - Make more donation quilts for Bridgehaven. 

2 - Continue to use up my stash. 

3 - Continue with being very selective about what I add to my stash. 

4 - Learn one new technique out of my comfort zone. Last year I did curves! Not sure what I want this year's challenge to be. 

My personal goals for 2019:

1 - Love my husband more.  

2 - Memorize at least one new scripture verse a month. I have this months already mostly memorized, so I expect to exceed my goal. 

3 - Continue to stay on the Low Carb High-Fat eating plan. I haven't been on it very long, but I feel better already! 

4 - Be an encouragement with those I meet. Greg Koukl at Stand To Reason sums it up well in his mentoring letter: Give 'Em Heaven

Whew! If you stuck with me all through this post, thank you!! 

I wish you and yours a year of PEACE! 

This post will be a bit of a ramble as I try to catch up on what has been going on in my life and sharing the progress of one of my project. I intended to share a bit of an end of the year review, but God had other plans...I'll start with the most major life event...

On December 21, my beloved father in law, Wayne, went to be with the Lord Jesus. He was 87 years old and I loved him dearly. 

Here he is working on a puzzle with Russ a week after he was moved into memory care last August. His passing wasn't unexpected as he has been getting more frailer these last few months, but it was surprising. 

It all began with a fall on December 15 at our family Christmas (5 minutes after we arrived, so he missed the whole thing!) which resulted in several fractures in several of his ribs. The dr at the ER called it a "catastrophic life event" due to age and prior lung damage due to smoking years back. By the end of the day, the news kept getting worse. A neck fracture was found as well as an aneurysm. The decision was made to make him comfortable in hospice, as he did not want any extraordinary means to be taken to keep him alive and that's what would have had to take place. He said, in one of his lucid moments that night (he had mild dementia), "I have lived a good life. I am ready to go." The blessings of that week, though sad and stressful at times,  we (all the children, grandchildren, brother, etc) were all able to say what needed to be said and could love up on him until he met the Lord on the other side of the veil. I am thankful I could be there the whole week to sit with him and with my mother in law, Mathena. Wayne's funeral was December 26...

Christmas in my home was simple and low key. No complaints there! Russ got a battery. Exciting, huh?? He is converting his recumbent bike into an electric bike. Why? I don't question is choice of "toys" because I appreciate he doesn't make me justify my sewing toys. =)

My Christmas gifts were all fountain pen related. I fell into the fountain pen hobby last year and haven't stopped loving them! I received a Pilot DecimoVanishing Point pen and lots of ink. You can never have too much ink! Or pens for that matter. ;-) 

With the week-long stay at hospice with Wayne, his funeral and Christmas all bunched on top of each other, my sewing time was non-existent until New Year's Day when I finished up my 2018 Temperature quilt. 

In the last two rows, I added a temperature key. The actual temperatures are not written on them in any way but they do show what the colors were in order from coldest to hottest temperatures. That way you can look at the quilt and get an idea of what the temperature was. 

Here it is all finished!! It measures 72" x 88". I still have the first of the months marked with a piece paper pinned to the quilt. I am not sure if I want to mark those days in some way or not. I am leaning towards not, but I'm not ready to take the papers off until I am sure. 

  

I am organized to start another temperature quilt for 2019 but haven't firmed up my choice on block and layout yet. What I do know is it won't involve applique!! ;-)  I am going to use the same colors/fabric and same temperature key. You can read more about my process and find out what colors I chose on this post from April - Temperature Quilt.

 My quilting goals for 2019:

1 - Make more donation quilts for Bridgehaven. 

2 - Continue to use up my stash. 

3 - Continue with being very selective about what I add to my stash. 

4 - Learn one new technique out of my comfort zone. Last year I did curves! Not sure what I want this year's challenge to be. 

My personal goals for 2019:

1 - Love my husband more.  

2 - Memorize at least one new scripture verse a month. I have this months already mostly memorized, so I expect to exceed my goal. 

3 - Continue to stay on the Low Carb High-Fat eating plan. I haven't been on it very long, but I feel better already! 

4 - Be an encouragement with those I meet. Greg Koukl at Stand To Reason sums it up well in his mentoring letter: Give 'Em Heaven

Whew! If you stuck with me all through this post, thank you!! 

I wish you and yours a year of PEACE! 

All done!

But I think the back is the best!!

Note to self...Prewash the dark rich colored fabrics. =(  Only two yellow blocks got this bit of bleed, so it could have been worse, but still. *sigh*

I hope you never have to sing the, "I Should Have Pre-washed," blues. 

Happy Thursday to you all!!

All done!

But I think the back is the best!!

Note to self...Prewash the dark rich colored fabrics. =(  Only two yellow blocks got this bit of bleed, so it could have been worse, but still. *sigh*

I hope you never have to sing the, "I Should Have Pre-washed," blues. 

Happy Thursday to you all!!

As you can see from this picture of my granddaughter, Brooklyn, and her parents, Jen and Steve, they are big fans of their alma mater the University of Northern Iowa. 

A month ago, Russ and I went shopping at a new-to-us quilt shop in Iowa Falls and look at what we found! 

It's Steve's turn to get a quilt!! 

When they came for a visit in February, Steve was wondering around in my sewing room and found the fabric. His face was priceless. He was hoping and afraid to hope, all at the same time, that the fabric would be a quilt for him. =) He is so sweet...I confirmed that I was making him a quilt. Gotta put a man out of his misery! =)

Sports themed quilts are difficult, I think. You don't have a lot of colors to work with and making a quilt for a guy just makes it that much harder. 

After a lot of internet and Pinterest searching, I decided on this simple and easy pattern. I used Bella Zen gray instead of white. 

Here is the quilt top assembled. That middle yellow isn't that bright, but you get the idea. I ordered some Bella solids in purple and when that arrives, I will begin to work on the back. I have a plan, but I am going to try very, very hard to keep it a secret. Ha, we will see how that goes!!

For my newer followers, Jen and Steve adopted Brooklyn at birth. My son, Holden, is her birth father. Having an open adoption has been a real blessing for us...I consider Jen and Steve to be my kids. =) We truly are a family. =) 

Have a happy Wednesday, everyone!!

As you can see from this picture of my granddaughter, Brooklyn, and her parents, Jen and Steve, they are big fans of their alma mater the University of Northern Iowa. 

A month ago, Russ and I went shopping at a new-to-us quilt shop in Iowa Falls and look at what we found! 

It's Steve's turn to get a quilt!! 

When they came for a visit in February, Steve was wondering around in my sewing room and found the fabric. His face was priceless. He was hoping and afraid to hope, all at the same time, that the fabric would be a quilt for him. =) He is so sweet...I confirmed that I was making him a quilt. Gotta put a man out of his misery! =)

Sports themed quilts are difficult, I think. You don't have a lot of colors to work with and making a quilt for a guy just makes it that much harder. 

After a lot of internet and Pinterest searching, I decided on this simple and easy pattern. I used Bella Zen gray instead of white. 

Here is the quilt top assembled. That middle yellow isn't that bright, but you get the idea. I ordered some Bella solids in purple and when that arrives, I will begin to work on the back. I have a plan, but I am going to try very, very hard to keep it a secret. Ha, we will see how that goes!!

For my newer followers, Jen and Steve adopted Brooklyn at birth. My son, Holden, is her birth father. Having an open adoption has been a real blessing for us...I consider Jen and Steve to be my kids. =) We truly are a family. =) 

Have a happy Wednesday, everyone!!

The Jelly Roll Jam pattern came out just in time! I am using a fun jelly roll by Robert Kaufman to make the second baby boy quilt I needed to make. I dear friend generously gifted me with the jelly roll a couple of weeks ago. =) 

My husband found these two treasures at a thrift shop for me the other day. I won't have any trouble finding a home for them in my sewing room. When I was a girl, I had a toy iron that plugged in and got warm. I so wish I still had it....

Russ' dad continues to make progress, but it is slow and difficult for him. Yesterday and last night was hard. The nurses are so sweet and patient and they assured us that this was all normal and that yesterday would be the hardest day. The nurse did get a smile out of him last night and that was good to see. 

Oh, and for the geek part of me, yesterday was the huge iOS 7 update for my iPhone and mini iPad. It was released for download at 12 noon my time. At 12:02, the downloads began on my devices. You could say I was pretty excited. ;) I had flawless downloads and the new iOS is a beauty. I find things like this to be fun. =) 

Time to get my day started! Have a happy Thursday!!

The Jelly Roll Jam pattern came out just in time! I am using a fun jelly roll by Robert Kaufman to make the second baby boy quilt I needed to make. I dear friend generously gifted me with the jelly roll a couple of weeks ago. =) 

My husband found these two treasures at a thrift shop for me the other day. I won't have any trouble finding a home for them in my sewing room. When I was a girl, I had a toy iron that plugged in and got warm. I so wish I still had it....

Russ' dad continues to make progress, but it is slow and difficult for him. Yesterday and last night was hard. The nurses are so sweet and patient and they assured us that this was all normal and that yesterday would be the hardest day. The nurse did get a smile out of him last night and that was good to see. 

Oh, and for the geek part of me, yesterday was the huge iOS 7 update for my iPhone and mini iPad. It was released for download at 12 noon my time. At 12:02, the downloads began on my devices. You could say I was pretty excited. ;) I had flawless downloads and the new iOS is a beauty. I find things like this to be fun. =) 

Time to get my day started! Have a happy Thursday!!

Edit:

I think I have it fixed now. What a mess!! Once again, I lost comments. So sorry about that!

*******************

I had no idea that making my profile link up with Google+ would cause it so that my readers had to have a Google+ profile in order to leave comments, so I switched the setting back to the way it was. Thank you, Sue, for pointing that out to me. =) The downside of switching back is all the comments that were left today, are now gone. =( Sorry about that....

Russ' dad is doing well. Thank you for the prayers!! They removed the ventilator and he is resting comfortably. If all continues to go well, he will be out of ICU in the morning. 

As for how much I got done on my hexagon quilt....

Not much.

And that is okay...=)

Edit:

I think I have it fixed now. What a mess!! Once again, I lost comments. So sorry about that!

*******************

I had no idea that making my profile link up with Google+ would cause it so that my readers had to have a Google+ profile in order to leave comments, so I switched the setting back to the way it was. Thank you, Sue, for pointing that out to me. =) The downside of switching back is all the comments that were left today, are now gone. =( Sorry about that....

Russ' dad is doing well. Thank you for the prayers!! They removed the ventilator and he is resting comfortably. If all continues to go well, he will be out of ICU in the morning. 

As for how much I got done on my hexagon quilt....

Not much.

And that is okay...=)

Waiting

Today I am spending time waiting....Waiting for my sweet father in love to get out of open heart surgery. He is receiving a new heart valve and having a bypass. 

While I wait, I am able to keep my fingers busy...

Today I am spending time waiting....Waiting for my sweet father in love to get out of open heart surgery. He is receiving a new heart valve and having a bypass. 

While I wait, I am able to keep my fingers busy...

Taking time out from a quilty to post to honor the first man in my life on his 80th birthday, my beloved daddy. I am grateful he is still here with me and in good health. =) 

True story...I could never remember his birthday. His mother said he was born on the 31st ( or was it the 29th??) and my dad said he was born on the 30th. He said he was there and he remembers. ;) Back in those days home birth was the norm, you know. Because of that, I could never remember when his birthday was and I would remember late on a regular basis. I am thankful for technology that helps me keep it all straight! 

My daddy didn't want to take time away from playing to do something so mundane as go to the bathroom. =) This is as close to a baby picture I have of him...

I love this picture. It reminds me of the book, "Where The Red Fern Grows." I imagined the young boy in the story looked just like this. My daddy was a foster child, of sorts. His Grandma Oxley raised him, though he lived with other families at times, too. 

This picture was taken by a newspaper man. He was laughing at my dad because he just got his hair buzzed off and the striped shirt made him look like a convict. Look at the pretty dresses and hats the ladies are wearing in the background. 

 Daddy sitting on a ledge overlooking the Cedar River at Palisades Park. Love the cuffed jeans! 

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Taking time out from a quilty to post to honor the first man in my life on his 80th birthday, my beloved daddy. I am grateful he is still here with me and in good health. =) 

True story...I could never remember his birthday. His mother said he was born on the 31st ( or was it the 29th??) and my dad said he was born on the 30th. He said he was there and he remembers. ;) Back in those days home birth was the norm, you know. Because of that, I could never remember when his birthday was and I would remember late on a regular basis. I am thankful for technology that helps me keep it all straight! 

My daddy didn't want to take time away from playing to do something so mundane as go to the bathroom. =) This is as close to a baby picture I have of him...

I love this picture. It reminds me of the book, "Where The Red Fern Grows." I imagined the young boy in the story looked just like this. My daddy was a foster child, of sorts. His Grandma Oxley raised him, though he lived with other families at times, too. 

This picture was taken by a newspaper man. He was laughing at my dad because he just got his hair buzzed off and the striped shirt made him look like a convict. Look at the pretty dresses and hats the ladies are wearing in the background. 

 Daddy sitting on a ledge overlooking the Cedar River at Palisades Park. Love the cuffed jeans! 

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

I love you, Daddy.....

I love you, Daddy.....

I am so very glad you are here today! Once again, Madame Samm has created a fun blog hop for us to participate in, wether we are on the creating side of things or just hopping along to see what other people have made.  Hasn't Mary been the perfect cheerleader to cheer us on? They both worked incredibly hard to make this blog hop a successful one. 

Ladies, I tip my hat to you both...

Here is the list of the other participants for today's blog hop....

http://www.intheboondocks.blogspot.com

http://mychellem.blogspot.com

www.thimblemouseandspouse.blogspot.com

www.quiltingandsewingarts.com

http://Sewgratefulquilts.wordpress.com

www.aquiltingsheep.com (You are here!)

http://tricia-ramblingsofaquilter.blogspot.com

http://sewmanyyarns.blogspot.com

www.moosestashquilting.blogspot.com

http://bethstrand.wordpress.com

http://quiltoo.blogspot.com

http://teatimecreations.blogspot.ca/

http://secretlystitching.blogspot.gr/

On to my project for the day! I need to share the story to explain my inspiration.  =) 

Once upon a time, my oldest son and his girlfriend found themselves expecting a baby too soon in their lives. They made the hardest and the best decision...the most selfless decision any couple could make. 

They chose life...and placed their sweet baby girl up for adoption. 

Their decision created a family....

Jens' first day as a mom

Gotcha Day! Adoption is finalized....

 Jen and Steve chose to have an open adoption. Being blessed to be able to watch my first grandchild grow up is priceless. Instead of losing a grandchild, I gained two more "kids" for  my own family. 

I chose to make my project a Mother's Day gift to Jen...The perfect mom for Brooklyn....Who waited many years to have a child of her own. I know she would say Brooklyn was

worth the wait...

The dress is one that Brooklyn wore when she was a wee tiny babe. =) This next weekend, we will be traveling to see Brooklyn participate in her first dance recital and I will be able to give Jen her Mother's Day gift myself. 

I am sure there will be tears....

I love you, Jen...

I am so very glad you are here today! Once again, Madame Samm has created a fun blog hop for us to participate in, wether we are on the creating side of things or just hopping along to see what other people have made.  Hasn't Mary been the perfect cheerleader to cheer us on? They both worked incredibly hard to make this blog hop a successful one. 

Ladies, I tip my hat to you both...

Here is the list of the other participants for today's blog hop....

http://www.intheboondocks.blogspot.com

http://mychellem.blogspot.com

www.thimblemouseandspouse.blogspot.com

www.quiltingandsewingarts.com

http://Sewgratefulquilts.wordpress.com

www.aquiltingsheep.com (You are here!)

http://tricia-ramblingsofaquilter.blogspot.com

http://sewmanyyarns.blogspot.com

www.moosestashquilting.blogspot.com

http://bethstrand.wordpress.com

http://quiltoo.blogspot.com

http://teatimecreations.blogspot.ca/

http://secretlystitching.blogspot.gr/

On to my project for the day! I need to share the story to explain my inspiration.  =) 

Once upon a time, my oldest son and his girlfriend found themselves expecting a baby too soon in their lives. They made the hardest and the best decision...the most selfless decision any couple could make. 

They chose life...and placed their sweet baby girl up for adoption. 

Their decision created a family....

Jens' first day as a mom

Gotcha Day! Adoption is finalized....

 Jen and Steve chose to have an open adoption. Being blessed to be able to watch my first grandchild grow up is priceless. Instead of losing a grandchild, I gained two more "kids" for  my own family. 

I chose to make my project a Mother's Day gift to Jen...The perfect mom for Brooklyn....Who waited many years to have a child of her own. I know she would say Brooklyn was

worth the wait...

The dress is one that Brooklyn wore when she was a wee tiny babe. =) This next weekend, we will be traveling to see Brooklyn participate in her first dance recital and I will be able to give Jen her Mother's Day gift myself. 

I am sure there will be tears....

I love you, Jen...

Did you all have a good Christmas? I hope so...

We have a very untraditional Christmas at our home. Being a blended family, we have always let the children's other parent have them on Christmas Eve and /or Christmas Day. Now that they are older, we give the children complete control on how they want to spend the day and with whoever they want. My two older children spent the day with family and friends, my two younger kids were home for most of the day. We opened no presents nor did we cook a big meal. We had yummy chili in the crockpot instead. We enjoyed the day and hung out with each other. It was actually the best Christmas Day I can remember for a long, long time. We will get all the kids together and do gifts one of these days. Can you tell I take a very relaxed approach to the whole holiday season? =) 

Much of Christmas Day, I spent on the long arm quilting these two quilts. This quilt is for my sister-in-love, Marci. Most of the fabric are scraps left over from the Triangle quilt. 

I like the randomness of it. It's fairly large at 78"x78". 

That was made from a layer cake of Cherry Christmas. It's a nice sized baby quilt. I have no plans for it yet. 

The back fabric all came from my stash. It's so liberating to see the piles of fabric go down in my stash. That's one of my big goals this year, to do some stash busting, either by sewing quilts up for charity or selling, trading,  giving away fabric. I do not want to be a fabric hoarder. That said, I am not going so far as to not allow myself to buy fabric this next year, but I am going to be much more selective and thoughtful before I purchase more than a fat quarter. 

What are your quilting goals this next year? 

Did you all have a good Christmas? I hope so...

We have a very untraditional Christmas at our home. Being a blended family, we have always let the children's other parent have them on Christmas Eve and /or Christmas Day. Now that they are older, we give the children complete control on how they want to spend the day and with whoever they want. My two older children spent the day with family and friends, my two younger kids were home for most of the day. We opened no presents nor did we cook a big meal. We had yummy chili in the crockpot instead. We enjoyed the day and hung out with each other. It was actually the best Christmas Day I can remember for a long, long time. We will get all the kids together and do gifts one of these days. Can you tell I take a very relaxed approach to the whole holiday season? =) 

Much of Christmas Day, I spent on the long arm quilting these two quilts. This quilt is for my sister-in-love, Marci. Most of the fabric are scraps left over from the Triangle quilt. 

I like the randomness of it. It's fairly large at 78"x78". 

That was made from a layer cake of Cherry Christmas. It's a nice sized baby quilt. I have no plans for it yet. 

The back fabric all came from my stash. It's so liberating to see the piles of fabric go down in my stash. That's one of my big goals this year, to do some stash busting, either by sewing quilts up for charity or selling, trading,  giving away fabric. I do not want to be a fabric hoarder. That said, I am not going so far as to not allow myself to buy fabric this next year, but I am going to be much more selective and thoughtful before I purchase more than a fat quarter. 

What are your quilting goals this next year? 

...and a little bit of 

weeding,

mulching,

sewing,

and tonight, a child young man is graduating. 

...and a little bit of 

weeding,

mulching,

sewing,

and tonight, a child young man is graduating. 

We had a birthday in our home today. 

Kind of a biggie...

Reagan is now 18. 

wow....

That's all I have to say about that...

Mathena (Russ' mom), Reagan, Haley (my only girl and my oldest), and Mitchell (the baby). Holden wasn't able to make it. 

Haley and her baby brother. 

My daddy and step mom. 

Funny story...

Russ' mom always makes the birthday cakes for the kids. This year she had a wee little problem. It seems she didn't get the oven rack in straight, thus we have a lopsided cake. =D

Adding to that little problem, she transposed two letters in Reagan's name. Did I mention that on the way to our house, a package fell on the cake? 

This is one birthday none of us will forget! =D

We had a birthday in our home today. 

Kind of a biggie...

Reagan is now 18. 

wow....

That's all I have to say about that...

Mathena (Russ' mom), Reagan, Haley (my only girl and my oldest), and Mitchell (the baby). Holden wasn't able to make it. 

Haley and her baby brother. 

My daddy and step mom. 

Funny story...

Russ' mom always makes the birthday cakes for the kids. This year she had a wee little problem. It seems she didn't get the oven rack in straight, thus we have a lopsided cake. =D

Adding to that little problem, she transposed two letters in Reagan's name. Did I mention that on the way to our house, a package fell on the cake? 

This is one birthday none of us will forget! =D