Oldies but goodies

While I was at home in Chicago, I had the chance to take some better photos of the quilts I made for my dad and sister in 2007.  I love going home at taking the time to pour over them again, studying, remembering, reliving the making of both quilts.  It's different then seeing the quilts I have around my house that are just part of the backdrop of my daily life.  I miss these quilts, but I'm happy they provide color for the backdrop of my parents' house.

Crosses - front:

Crosses - back:

I loved this fabric and I'm so glad I used it here because if not, it would probably still be in the stash..

Comfort Star for Lori:

This was my first attempt at crumb blocks, and "making" fabric for the 9 patch center:

a close up.  I could stare at this quilt for hours:

Whenever I go home my sister patiently listens as I retell her about every patch in her quilt.  Where it came from, how long I had it, if I used it anywhere else.  She is so patient with me.  I guess she has the patience of a quilter, but she has the gift to spend it on people instead of fabric and stitches.

10/23

I love my sister and I wish she could come visit more often...

Birthday!

Not much sewing around here lately-- with the exception of George's halloween costume which he wore for his BIRTHDAY PARTY!

He was a scarecrow, easy-peasy except for the hat which I ended up making out of craft foam and stitching by hand. He wouldn't keep it on -- not even for a picture..

My sister has been here for the past week and there is NO WAY I could have pulled off the party without her. It's great to spend time together and the extra hands/eyes are a Godsend!

We went all out for the desserts-- cupcakes (idea came from a family magazine I read in the Dr's office waiting room last month, snapped pics of the recipe with my camera phone, but I don't know which magazine it was, sorry!), an eclair cake, and a birthday cake:

George enjoyed it all, and so did the rest of us.And thank you for the many peaceful wishes.. My mother has been in the hospital for the last 2 weeks and it got quite scary there for a few days. She is doing better day by day though, came off the ventalator yesterday and may move out of the ICU this week. She has a long-term illness which I'm not quite ready to answer questions about yet, but thank you, thank you for your prayers and good thoughts.

pictures, travel, and stories

aagh! no substantial posts for almost a month! I'm ashamed that I stopped documenting my life like that, how will I ever remember what we did with June?

Things We Did in Chicago:

+relaxed with family
+drank tea
+sang songs from my childhood
+spent time with Aunt Lori

+Practiced crawling
+Played with cousins (and got our first taste of rough-housing)

+went to garage sales
+Learned about dogs

It was a very good, relaxing 2 weeks with my family. George traveled well, but didn't sleep that great once we got there. It took him a few days to get into a rhythm (me too). I love love love my family, it was good to see them.

Things We Did in Boston:

+enjoy the ultra-posh hotel Costas booked
+learned to sit in a high-chair


+Played with Japanese girls


+George went to his first wedding (and the bride fell in love with him!)


+and he wore a suit!
+Visited lots and lots of friends in just 3 days
+Enjoyed the roadtrip~

Summer travels aren't over yet-- next stop= Athens. George's first international flight (any advice for how to spend 10 hours on an airplane with an 8 month old?), more family, more food, more fun. I have no idea what the status of the internet connection is at the house in Greece, will post if I can. I pieced a lot of stars in Chicago and more while Costas drove to and from Boston, I'm sure I'll keep at it through the rest of the travels, let's see how big it gets by september..

Fruit Pizza

I'm at home in Chicago and loving it. Today Lori & I made a dessert pizza for a family party:
This is an old-school Pampered Chef recipe from when my mom used to sell Pampered Chef products in the late 1980s. We hadn't had one in years.
So satisfying to make, even better to eat..

Tomorrow they're throwing me a baby shower, yay! more food and family, my two favorite things these days.

Wishing 2008 would slow down already..

We had a very nice visit with my aunt and uncle in NH. Lauren & I had never been there at the same time before, it made the family connection feel really strong. We ate a good meal, cuddled & relaxed on the couch, and went through some of what my aunt called "emotional hangover."
The holidays were rough. Now that the 6 month anniversary of losing Theresa has passed I'm still shocked with the reality that she's really gone. She's not coming back. Going places with Lauren is great, we've never done this before, but when the two of us are together there is a very strong feeling that Tea is missing.
Lor took this awesome photo of the trees in the sky. There was excellent light at Aunt Cathy's place yesterday morning so we took a lot of photos. So far Lor's visit has been full of what my mother would call "sisterly love and bonding,"
We took some nice shots but also a bunch of goofy ones, like one us strangling each other, which I promptly sent to our parents.
On the drive back down to MA we stopped in a small quilt shop in Kingston, NH, where I may have bought more if I wasn't on this healthy fabric diet. I got a pack of thimble-its instead. We got stuck in Friday rush-hour through Boston which wasn't too fun. By the time we made it to Quincy we were starving. We met up with some of my co-workers and introduced Lori to Japanese food (language, and culture-- at times it must have felt like we were totally in Japan..). She goodheartedly tried everything we put in front of her, much better than I did on my first trip there. After a few hours it was leaning towards becoming a more rowdy drinking party so I think she and I were both happy to get back in the car for the final stretch home.
We drove out to Marie's house for a charity sit & sew this afternoon and she got to meet a large portion of my guild. Everyone asked if she was a quilter, haha. No, not yet.
I'm pooped, tired of driving, and just want to sit down and sew something. My thumb feels better today; I gave it a rest and started working on a crocheted rag rug in NH (still squeezing in a few sewing stitches each day to keep my resolution). That's a big thick project, but it grows really fast. I'm using all the leftovers from my t-shirt quilt (still in progress, of course). Aunt Cathy mentioned that she's got 2 boxes of t-shirts that she'd like to put into a quilt. I said I'd help, but she'll have to come down for a sewing weekend at my place. That's something to look forward to. Anyway, I've run into a possible dilemma with my travel quilt #2.. I may need to order a third pack of templates, but I'd like to avoid that if possible. I have two big sections going from opposite ends and now I think I won't have enough templates to make them long enough to meet in the middle.. must take pictures and show you soon....

Pancakes

My sister Lauren is visiting this week and today I followed the recipe she learned in kindergarten for apple pancakes. Delicious.
We're headed out for a New Hampshire adventure this afternoon, wish us luck~

I've been stitching up a storm and made tremendous progress on Travel Quilt #2. So much that my left thumb has started hurting.. I am obsessed with the project and don't want to stop, but I know I should give it time to rest... when should I worry that I've done serious damage?