{david's quilt}

I rarely don't love my quilts once I've finished them (I put a lot of thought and heart in them) but sometimes a color combination just makes your heart sing.

I was slow to fall in love with gray but I have decided it is a true and dependable friend in the color world.  It can stand alone and be striking but it can also take a step back and let other colors shine.

This quilt is based on the Vintage Baby quilt pattern by Yoyo Mama Designs.  The great thing about this pattern is that by top stitching the raw edged 2 1/2" squares to a background/batting/backing sandwich, you "piece" the top AND quilt the quilt at the same time!

The first time I made this pattern, I used a water soluble marking pen to mark my grid and pins to hold my squares in place while I sewed.  By the time I was finished sewing all of those straight lines (and trying to dodge all of those sharp pins), my arms looked like I had wrestled a porcupine.

This time I used a Frixon pen (the ink disappears when ironed) to mark my grid and Roxanne's Glue-Baste-It temporary basting glue to hold my squares in place while I sewed.  Lifesavers!!!  If you don't own these two sewing tools, buy them.  I have found many uses for these two items.  They might seem a little pricey but the glue goes a long way and the pen is so versatile.

The pen eliminated having to dab my quilt with cold water to remove the grid lines after the quilt was sewn and four tiny dots of glue - one in each corner - held my squares firmly in place once I had finalized my design and while I sewed/quilted this darling quilt.  I love this basting glue because it washes out and leaves the quilt soft to the touch.  

A white flannel with a tiny green dot pattern and a Bonnie & Camille navy print with a green dot cut on the bias was the perfect binding.

I've realized that every quilt has taught me something about myself, quilting or life (I guess they're really all one in the same).  This quilt taught me to not let long held opinions or thoughts - "I don't like gray." - dictate how I feel or think today.

A few years ago my dad declared that he did NOT like Mexican food.  When I asked him the last time he had eaten Mexican food, he answered "Never".  He just knew he didn't like it.  To my dad's credit, he was willing to go to a great local Mexican restaurant and give it a try.  He found out that some of it he didn't care for but other entrees he actually enjoyed.  Isn't that the challenge and the adventure of daily living, to stay open to life's possibilities and be willing to give new things a try.  Thanks Dad for being willing to try refried beans.

And guess what, I LOVE gray!

{buttercups, blow snakes and becoming Fancy Nancy}

"Never underestimate the power of dreams and

the influence of the human spirit.

We are all the same in this notion:

The potential for greatness lives within each of us." 

- Wilma Rudolph -

You cannot overstate the impact for good in a child's life when adults show interest and confidence in his or her abilities, talents and dreams.

Mr. and Mrs. Klemm were two such people in my life.  They lovingly called me "Fancy Nancy" long before the Fancy Nancy books were written and the Fancy Nancy dolls were sold.  In fact, this week at Mr. Klemm's funeral, I felt honored and loved when the Klemm children, all grown up, called me "Fancy Nancy" as we hugged and visited.

Being "Fancy" was very important to a little girl growing up as number five in a family of seven children.  It was an early acknowledgement of my individuality and value.
Not that my own parents didn't value and love me but the fact that someone else, unrelated, took interest in and loved me was life changing.  And as I added a husband and children to my life, they loved them too.

When I was about four or five and was feeling very under appreciated and misunderstood (I was a bit dramatic), I decided to run away from home.  I packed my essentials in my doll buggy and promptly ran away to Klemm's house across the street.  I don't recall the rest of the day but at some point I returned to my home.  I may not have moved in to Klemms that day but I did spend countless hours throughout my childhood underneath their roof.  The threads of their family are woven throughout the fabric of my life.  I cannot think of my life without thinking of theirs.

My garden contains buttercups in honor of Mrs. Klemm.  When I was young, Klemms had buttercups growing by their irrigation head gate.  One day Mrs. Klemm showed me that you could find out if you liked butter by holding a buttercup under your chin.  If it showed yellow, you liked butter.  I learned that and a thousand other things as I watched, listened and loved my time with Mrs. Klemm.  And yes, I still like butter.

Mr. Klemm taught me that blow (gopher) snakes are called that because they blow.  One day a large blow snake was cornered in Klemm's cellar window well and as Mr. Klemm and I got closer, it began to blow (it sounded like a creepy, heavy breathing phone call from an Alfred Hitchcock movie to my little girl ears).  I didn't know what the sound was and I was terrified.  Mr. Klemm explained that it was the snake making that sound (not a creepy, serial killer crouched in a tiny cellar window well - I had a great imagination) and reassured me that the snake was as scared as I was and was just trying to protect itself.  I felt safe with Mr. Klemm by my side.

I don't think Mr. and Mrs. Klemm set out to "teach" me.  Instead, because of their willingness to make time and room in their hearts for a little neighbor girl, they loved me and I knew it.  And that love, added to my own family's love, transformed me.

Thank you Mr. and Mrs. Klemm - thank you from a five year old neighbor girl and a now grown woman - for the tremendous positive influence you have had in my life!

In honor of the cherished memories I have of your family and your home on Grovecreek Drive, I have a curl in my banister, an arch between my living room and dining room, a room dedicated to creating things that make me smile, a Fancy Nancy doll (or two), beautiful decorations created by Mrs. Klemm, buttercups in my garden and memories and lessons for a lifetime.

My hope is that I can make someone else feel fancy like me.

With all of my love and appreciation for making me Fancy!

Love, Fancy Nancy

{ in the leafy treetops quilt }

I love the the robin IN the bird bath and the look on the other robin's face.

As a child, I loved the song

"In the Leafy Treetops" (the birds sing "good morning").

I still love birds singing in the tree tops.

After reintroducing quack grass to our yard,

Mr. W. and I made a compromise that I would

only use black sunflower seeds in my bird feeders.

This spring my bird bath has been a beehive of activity.

I have been delighted to see multiple birds

drinking and bathing and vying for a spot.

I saw this pattern and loved the two colored twist.

Using this as my inspiration, I set out to create my own.

(I would have been ahead time wise to have

bought the pattern but this is what I came up with.)

 In the Leafy Treetops Quilt

The solid colors are Kona cottons.

The leafy treetop fabric is a Cloud 9 fabric from JoAnn's.

The back is a Peter Pan fabric I purchased in the 90's.

(I'm trying to 'shop' at home more . . . )

The quilt design is a beautiful bird and flower from

Quilts Complete.

Quilt information

Finished size - Width 39" Length 48"

Orange border 1/2" finished (1")

Bird border 5" finished (5 1/2")

{ He knows me }

 Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings,

and not one of them is aforgotten before God?

 But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered

Fear not therefore: ye are of more value

than many sparrows.

- Luke 12:6 & 7 -

{ countdown to heart day - day 10 }

The practical farm girl in me

has always struggled with the high price of roses

for Valentine's Day.

I would much rather receive

something that I can plant

and enjoy in my garden all summer long.

These are my early Valentine's flowers.

I found these beautiful flower pots at Ikea

and my miniature roses fit perfectly.

I will wait patiently for spring

as I watch the rain fall and my roses bloom.