A Place to Share

Valentine's Day and Love

2012-02-13T16:04:00.004-07:00

I hope that you will be enjoying a lovely Valentine's Day. I "love" this plant stake almost as much as I love the luscious geranium in the pot. Glen brought the geraniums home in 4 inch pots from Berridge Nursery last fall and over the past month they have come into their own. Such a lovely color and the leaf foliage is also beautiful.

This year I was not going to be in Arizona for the traditional sugar cookie decorating so I prepared "cookie kits" and delivered them to the grand kids before I left. The kits included sugar cookies made from this recipe, butter cream frosting, and red sugar sprinkles.

On the lid, I taped this love note explaining why they were getting a kit. I love the computer and word processing. It was so easy to select a template with the gingham red and white, insert my own pictures, and change the text.

This morning Glen and I went to Shirley's Bakery here in Provo. There was a table stacked with Valentine cookie kits, but they didn't have a cute cover letter. There were also mounds of decorated cookies as well as undecorated cookies. As we paid for our bread, the lady behind the counter said that they had baked thousands and thousands of cookies.

I just baked 150, one batch in Arizona and another in Utah. It took several hours, but it was a great way to spread the love.

The grand boys have a turn

2012-02-12T22:21:00.000-07:00

The grand boys also had a sleepover, the first of 2012. They got to go with grandma and grandpa to pick up the new to us used car.

I'm excited about my new wheels. It has lots of extras which make the hubby happy. He was even happier to find an almost new car with low miles plus all the extras for a good price.

Guess who drove it all weekend?

Of course, we had to feed them lots of pizza on Friday night. Saturday morning found us at Chick-fil-A for breakfast. I love that they serve my favorite orange juice.

It turned out that this sign was false advertising. It states, "Give us one pound of chocolate cookie pieces, and we'll give you and your friends 384 large Cookies & Cream Hand-Spun Milkshakes." The help claimed the 384 was just our table number.

Grandpa Glen is responsible for this out of focus picture. He wanted to document Toby's current tooth situation.

After breakfast, we were at the theater for the first movie of the day. We went to Tempe Market Place to see "Hugo" in 3D. "Hugo" is based on this book that won the Caldecott Award in 2008. We all enjoyed the movie and I loved the way the 3D effects were so well used in the story.

I took the above picture to point out one very disturbing event. TJ has almost caught up to his grandpa in height. What!!?

Now for a bit of a repeat. Once again we stopped at the new Dunkin Donuts for another dozen.

As you can see, this made Toby very happy.

The over two hour movie made TJ tired, so he decided to take a nap (probably because he is growing so fast!), Toby got his favorite toy bins out of the closet, grandpa mowed the lawn, and grandma planted some more flowers before returning the boys to their home. As we used the key pad to get through the gate, a male voice welcomed us. We quickly decided that that grandma's "car girl" should meet "gate guy." They both have such nice voices!

1st grand girls sleepover of 2012

2012-02-11T20:49:00.001-07:00

We drove the big circle and picked up the oldest three grand girls for a sleepover at grandpa's and grandma's house. There were bags for big girls as well as bags for their dolls.

After Friday night fun with each other, their dolls, and ebelskivers (per Sadie's request) they were finally all asleep. Saturday morning found everyone up early and on our way to Phoenix. First stop was breakfast at IHOP.

Next stop was grandpa's favorite nursery, Berridge Nursery on Camelback. Each girl picked out a plant and a pack of seeds after looking over everything and going everywhere including the greenhouse.

They last went with us to Berridge Nursery in 2009. See here. They have not only gotten older but taller in three years.

It was then time for a new stop, Papago Park and Hole in the Rock.

They loved it and climbed everywhere while under our watchful eyes.

They found holes.

And niches.

And grandpa's knee.

Their bravery grew and they climbed higher. . .

and higher.

So I zoomed in

and in.

One last pose in the hole looking east and then time to go.

Glen climbing out and looking west.

Final stop, the new Dunkin Donuts at Brown and Gilbert. They had fun picking out a dozen.

They spent the afternoon in the backyard creating a special spot including this shelf of goodies from grandma's garden.

There was also a cleaning station.

This visit there surprise was new skirts for their dolls. I used the skirt pattern from Josephina's Doll Dress Patterns by Pleasant Company for American Girl. The pattern had the smaller contrasting band as a skirt yoke, by I decided that I liked it better as a border on the bottom. I really like how well these old patterns fit the dolls. I took a quick picture of the dolls modeling their skirts before driving the big circle in reverse and taking the girls home. It was a very fun Saturday.

This little one always gives me a sad look as I pick up and then return her sister, so I made sure that she had a special day just she and grandma later in the week. We took walks, looked at flowers, and collected rocks. Her special surprise was a new quilt for her dollies. I love being a grandma.

Norvelt Newbery

2012-02-07T18:50:00.003-07:00

There are some things that don't change with retirement. As a retired elementary school librarian, I still get anxious in January waiting to hear about the book award winners in children and young adult literature for the year. Then I quickly add the winners, especially the Newbery, to my TBR list. Dead End to Norvelt by Jack Gantos was this year's Newbery and the boys out there are going to love it.

Gantos book is largely autobiographical, the main character is even named Jack Gantos, and the setting is a real one. The town of Norvelt, located in western Pennsylvania, was built in the 1930's and named after Eleanor Roosevelt (nor + velt) in 1935. There is lots of blood (bloody nose kind of blood), WWII souvenirs, rodents, mysterious deaths, and even a few Hells Angels riding through town. What's not for a boy to like? There are also interesting multi-age characters, tidbits of history, and great examples of service being performed for others.

Did I like it? Yes, I did and I immediately found myself typing Norvelt on Google. I enjoyed the writing style and the easy interweaving of history throughout the narrative. I immediately thought of my oldest grandson. I'm almost certain he would love this book.

Border is on!

2012-02-03T11:21:00.004-07:00

I finally finished sewing on the border of my Civil War quilt. Next step, the hand quilting.

My final solution for the border was to find another fabric that coordinated for a stop border. I then took all the left over fat quarters and cut out 2 1/2 inch squares which were sewn together randomly for the 4 inch outer border. I really like how it all came together.

Because there were left over squares and border strips, Julianna has a new doll quilt. I love my Julianna!

Singing Mothers (and aunts and grandmas)

2012-02-01T08:43:00.005-07:00

Last evening's program, "The Spirit of Relief Society," which included a tribute to the "Singing Mothers" reminded me of this picture from the past. These are the "Singing Mothers" of Sugar City, Idaho. It's not dated, but the hair styles appear to be from the late 1930's or early 1940's. My childhood memory recognizes many of the faces, all sisters or sister-in-laws of my grandma Georgianna Ricks Ostler. For your information:

Back row: Mary Ricks Thomas, first on the left; Georgianna Ricks Ostler, fourth from left; Fontella Ricks Davis, second from the right.

Front row: Marjorie Ricks Romrell, fourth from the left; Rachel Jenkins Ricks, third from the left.

Last night, the generations of Relief Society were honored. I thank my great-aunts and my grandmother for their service and good example. They all influenced and enriched my young life.

The Spirit of Relief Society

2012-01-30T13:50:00.005-07:00

Reminder: You do not want to miss the one time production of "The Spirit of Relief Society" tomorrow night, Tuesday, January 31 at 7:00 PM. It will be entertaining and you will be soooo happy that you turned off the TV, got up from the couch, and joined with the Relief Society sisters of the Mesa East Stake for a delightful evening.

AND there will be dessert! You may choose from fresh apple crisp or cherry cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. (I have been taste testing :) See you soon!

Romney's true wealth

2012-01-29T16:45:00.002-07:00

In this morning's paper I read an article stating that if Romney does indeed win the presidency, he will be among the wealthiest ever elected president. As I pondered on that, I decided to share the above picture with you. I am sure that Mitt Romney would agree that his true wealth and treasure would be his grandchildren. I was delighted to see his oldest granddaughter standing next to him as he addressed the public last Saturday at the conclusion of the South Carolina primary election.

I have learned that one of life's greatest rewards are the grandchildren that come later in life. As I visit with my age related friends, I find that they agree with me. They, too, find that one of the great joys of life comes from grandparenting. If I had the opportunity to ask, I think that Mitt and Ann Romney would also be on board.

I recently read of a released study by BYU that was not only thought provoking but also reaffirming. Grand parents can and do make a difference according to the years long study. I know that my grandchildren are my joy and my treasure. I enjoy being with them, encouraging them, loving them, and being entertained by them. I am a blessed and happy grandma!

*We received a Christmas card from Mitt with the above picture. What a great reward for sending his campaign a bit of money.

My two worlds

2012-01-26T20:52:00.008-07:00

My two monthly physical environments are often a great contrast, especially in winter. Utah was finally full of snow. Snow it was all the way to the Utah/Arizona border. We stopped to take this picture in Glendale. I finally know how Warren Foote's apple orchard looks with snow.

Once back in Arizona, I walked out the back door and picked this basket of goodness.

There is more to come!

There is also lovely color all over the yard. Cyclyman by the fireplace.

Pansies in pots.

Violas, too.

Icelandic poppies by the garden gate.

In the time we were gone, the flowering pear not only leafed out, it starting flowering as well.

Last year the begonias in the Down Under pots were white. This year they are red. I love the contrast.

There is stock near the sidewalks so that walkers can catch a glorious whiff. Don't you think that they could come up with a better name than "stock" for flowers that smell so good?

Daisies are blooming.

Geraniums are exploding.

And the window box is bursting. Welcome to Arizona in January!

My quilt retreat for one

2012-01-23T21:01:00.005-07:00

I packed up my sewing machine and took it with me to Utah this month. It was time to put together my Civil War Quilt blocks. I set up in the master bedroom and went to work.

It turned out to be pretty big. (Yes, I am standing on a ladder to take this picture :) I laid it out on the king sized bed to figure out how to assemble the blocks. There were 53 block patterns shared online each Saturday morning of 2011. My quilt is 7 x 8 blocks for 56 total. You will see that I made 3 more of block 2, North Star, using different fabrics. They are placed immediately before each corner block as one moves clockwise around the edge.

I really like the red with darker figured red material for the sashing. When I first bought the fat quarter sets of fabric for this quilt, one group included a large red star motif. It was hard to use in many of the blocks, but worked well for the sashing corner blocks. I fussy cut the stars so that the points are facing the same direction throughout the quilt.

Once I had it all together, I did not like the fabric that I had earlier purchased for the border. It just didn't feel like it belonged. Eric's family had presented me with a gift certificate to Quilt Etc. for Christmas, so I was off to shop. I was able to find a fabric for a stop border that I liked better as well as a stripped fabric for the binding that coordinates though from a different fabric line. My gift certificate also covered my purchase of the quilt backing. The shop also had a Civil War inspired quilt on the wall with a scrappy outside border made of squares. I really like the way it looked, so I am currently working on a scrappy 2 inch squares x 2 wide border made from all the left overs from the fat quarters I purchased for the quilt. I have learned that randomness is harder than it looks!

It will be easier to sew on the borders with my sewing machine now back at home in my sewing table for added support. I plan to take the finished quilt top back to Utah next trip and setting it up for hand quilting in the quilt frame that used to be my mother's.

Presidential health, egos, and deceit

2012-01-22T20:10:00.003-07:00

I just finished The President is a Sick Man by Matthew Algeo. Click on the picture to read the blue print for a synopsis. I never knew that Grover Cleveland had secret surgery to remove a growth on the roof of his mouth while at sea, did you? I found it fascinating to read of the economic upheavals of 1893 and Cleveland's decision to keep his health problems a secret.

But then, think how often the public has not been told the "whole story." FDR's paralysis was glossed over, Woodrow Wilson suffered a massive stroke which was kept under wraps for seventeen months, Kennedy had Addison's a renal disease, and Nancy Reagan tried to pass off the excision of a skin cancer from President Reagan's face as a pimple.

James A. Garfield did not try to hide his medical condition but his doctors did after the attempted assassination of Garfield just four months after being sworn in as president in 1881. The bullet that entered his body did not kill him, but the lack of sterile medical care did. It is surmised that the dirty fingers of doctors probing his wound for the bullet caused the infection which eventually took his life eighty days later.

Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard is a fascinating telling of the medical care provided Garfield and of the egos of doctors which prevented them from doing what was best for their patient. An English surgeon, Joseph Lister, had proven the worth of the sterile, aseptic conditions in the late 1860's but American surgeons were slow to accept his methods. By 1893, Cleveland was afforded sterile conditions while undergoing surgery while on a yacht on Long Island Sound. He lived 15 more years. Part of the reason for Cleveland's cover up, other than the turbulent financial and political times, was the public's recent memory of the horrible death of President Ulysses S. Grant from throat cancer in 1885. Perhaps they smoked too many cigars.

I found both books to be very interesting and enjoyed the additional tidbits of historical and medical information from the late 1800's.

I very much enjoyed some months back, this book, The River of Doubt also by Candice Millard. It is the story of the exploration of an unknown river in the Amazon region of Brazil by Theodore Roosevelt and his son, Kermit in 1914. And yes, it almost killed Roosevelt to do so.

oranges and broccoli

2012-01-20T09:38:00.000-07:00

I know that it may seem silly to post a picture of three oranges, but these are special oranges. Several years ago Glen and I planted four dwarf and semi-dwarf citrus trees in large containers. The first season we had clementines and Meyer lemons. This year there were finally some navel oranges, these three. The Lisbon lemon tree also finally shared, one lemon which did not get a picture, but did get a taste taste. Much more tart than my favorite Meyers.

The best thing from the garden this month, broccoli. Of course, it all came on at the same time. I took a bag full to Toby because broccoli is one of his favorite foods. He was thrilled and probably ate his straight up. I, however, made broccoli cheese soup.

Winter afternoon sunlight

2012-01-19T11:42:00.000-07:00

I adore winter afternoon sunlight. Suddenly in the southwestern sky, the sun comes in at an angle lighting up my backyard in a special way.

In my Utah house kitchen, the sun brings a moment of cheerfulness in late afternoon before disappearing behind the mountains on the far side of the valley. As a young mom in Bountiful I would rearrange the furniture in the winter. I would place a love seat in the dining space on the south side of the house just so I could curl up with a book in the sunlight while my babies took naps.

This little house makes me feel cheerful as well. Glen gave it to me for Christmas. One always needs another birdhouse.

American girls under the stairs

2012-01-18T12:48:00.000-07:00

There are magical things happening on the other side of this door at son David's house.

To participate one must be willing to follow the posted rules for American girls and their dolls.

Open the door under the stairs and you will find a space just big enough for girls and their dolls.

Around the corner in the back is a sleeping space.

And new kittens are included.

Heather's BD gifts

2012-01-17T12:30:00.001-07:00

Heather was very gracious when her cousins received American girl doll beds for Christmas. There was envy in her eyes and she questioned her Uncle Andrew about being family too, but she didn't get nasty. Little did she know that there were two more beds hiding under a sheet in grandma's sewing room just waiting for her January birthday.

Before her birthday, I made two mattresses with matching pillows and machine quilted up this fat quarter that I have had on my shelf for years. It seemed appropriate since I had just received
The Quiltmaker's Gift from Heather's family for Christmas. While an elementary school librarian, I ordered this book for the library. It came as a gift pack with a fat quarter of material which coordinated with the book. It's hard to check out fabric from the library, so I claimed it as my own :)

A fat quarter is just the right size to back or make a quilt top for an American Girl size doll bed. I loved that the colors in the fat quarter also matched my birthday theme of items for Heather's Josephina American Girl doll.

I used this stripe fabric leftover from a quilting project to make a dress for Josephina using one of the original Pleasant Company patterns published 20 some years ago and now available as PDF files online. I had also purchased AG accessories including the golden colored shawl with embroidery and Josephina's doll. Heather was delighted.

Book of Mormon Reading

2012-01-10T17:06:00.003-07:00

Glen and I are reading a different than our usual version of the Book of Mormon and loving it. Glen has been fascinated with chiasmus and other forms of Hebrew poetry found in the Book of Mormon for some time. This is a large, paperback version reprinted so that the poetic forms are readily apparent.

I am loving all that white space. It seems to allow my brain to "see" or visualize what I am reading in a new way. This version is published by BYU. We both recommend it!

Newest member of the family

2012-01-07T22:42:00.002-07:00

Look who came to town! Emilia's sister had a baby girl this week and Emilia came lickety split. She not only met her new niece, but also the newest addition to our extended family.

Santa brought a little male kitty to Ruby and Sadie because they decided that if both of them put a kitten first on their list they would probably get a kitten. They figured that they almost always get the first thing on their list. It worked! Meet Tiger, my first grand kitten. He even climbed up on my shoulder and purred in my ear on my last visit. He's a blur because he's constantly moving just like the grand babies!

Civil War Quilt Blocks finished, almost

2012-01-05T12:36:00.000-07:00

47 Dixie Tea

The weekly posting of Civil War Quilt blocks during 2011 ended on the 53rd Saturday, the last day of 2011. With the holidays, I got behind, so while Glen watched bowl games on Monday I worked on my blocks. When I look at my tin box full of blocks, it makes me very happy.

The above block represents the creativity which people had to use during the Civil War to find a substitute drink for tea.

48 West Virginia

Once again I wrestled with "Y" seams on this block in honor of West Virginia.

49 Yankee Puzzle

Yankee Puzzle looks complicated but was really one of the easier blocks. Look closely and you will see 4 small blocks just the same and turned for effect.

50 Grapes of Wrath

I broke down and bought a fat quarter on sale which was on the purple side just for this block. How can one have grapes without purple?

51 New York

I loved using my tiny flower stripe in this flag block.

52 Christmas Star

I just finished this more complicated block yesterday. I had skipped it until I had more time. I had looked on the flicker group and liked how some had made it look like a wreath in the center. I think in a redo I would move the paisley corners to the outside. I think the blue would have made the wreath stand out more, but there will be no redo.

53 Union Shield

The last block was simple and bold. The suggested layout is to have 7 X 8 blocks. That would make 56 and Barbara Brackman suggested making 4 of this block for the corners. I considered this, but instead have decided to make three more different versions of block 2, North Star, instead.

That is why I am almost finished. I also decided to applique a "Seven Sisters" block now that I am comfortable with hand applique. I have finished 6 stars, just 1 to go!

Glen Jay's day

2012-01-03T20:17:00.007-07:00

This cute baby boy turned 61 today. I love how he still resembles his baby picture.

We dropped by Dave's and Sally's to deliver Sally's birthday present after eating at Tia Rosa's with the sister missionaries and they surprised Glen with a Krispy Kreme doughnut cake.

It worked for Ruby in July and it works for Glen in January.

I think the rule is that you get to start over with just one candle again after your 60th.

Thanks to this cute little family for creating a cake on their red "You are Special" plate.

Cute Mabel insisted on getting a piece of the doughnut with sprinkles.

David quickly led the clapping of 61 times! Happy Birthday Glen Jay!

Good works = food prep

2012-01-02T19:17:00.003-07:00

Yesterday at church a young women gave a talk about "Good Works," one of the Young Women Values which she had chosen to address. As she spoke about the ways we serve others, I realized that most of the service I had rendered during the last month was food related. I had prepared and served food for several large gatherings, as a part of our family Christmas traditions, and as gifts for friends and neighbors. All that cooking and baking included dozens of rolls, dozens of doughnuts, dozens of cookies, 40 chimichangas, a Christmas ham dinner with all the trimmings, and 20 pizzas prepared on the grill and served with salad from the garden.

I started to do some number crunching in my head after church. That means:
* 50 lbs. of flour
* 12 lbs. of butter
* 6 dozen eggs
* 10 lbs. of sugar
* tablespoons of yeast
* several pounds of ham and beef roasts
* pepperoni and shredded mozzarella
* 40 large flour tortillas, two heads of shredded lettuce, a dozen diced tomatoes, salsa and guacamole, plus sour cream by lemon tree (do you recognize the melody?)

I've always felt that when I put on my apron I am putting on an apron of service. Good food shared brings us together and leads to good conversation and special times remembered. Bon appetit!

Beginning a new year and endings

2012-01-01T16:49:00.002-07:00

It is a quiet New Year's Day. Once again, it is the sabbath and we have enjoyed a wonderful 3 hours of church meetings. Now we're at home, just Glen and I, and I've been thinking and pondering in my very quiet house.

It was such a blessing to have so many family members come through our home during the month of December. I can hardly get my heart around the loveliness of being able to hug so many of the ones I love most. Now that same heart is feeling a bit sad, might I say, even lonely.

The big guy, Nate, moved his little family to Utah this past week. Shortly after this picture was taken I found myself in tears in front of the house as I watched him drive away on Wednesday morning. I know I'll see him often, but there won't be all the little impromptu visits from Nate, Nichelle, and Oscar that I've become accustomed to the last two years. Better stop, the tears are back!

Why is Raymond wearing that sling around his neck? Tuesday night he broke his right arm from just a little fall in the hall while rounding the corner quickly. It is the same bone he broke last summer falling off a trampoline in California. Luckily, the emergency room doctor here quickly fixed him right up until he could get back to his orthopedic doctor in California.

He and his family pulled out on Thursday evening. They opted for a night drive.

Their hope was that the boys would be asleep by the time they hit the 202 freeway. Their almost two week visit was a joy. These little boys make me so happy with the funny things they say and do.

My beautiful sister, Lynette, left this morning for Kansas. I love hanging out with her so much. We did our own little quilt shop hop yesterday and then dined and shopped at Ikea (have you seen their red checked area rugs?)

Her son, Gary, and my other sister, Jolene, and her son, Ric, joined Lynette on the drive from Albuquerque to here on Wednesday. It was so good to see them all. It felt so good to have all my sisters in town. Earlier in the month we enjoyed a long weekend visit with my son, Ryan, and his wife, Emilia. So you see, Glen and I really haven't been home alone for a month!

Speaking of endings and beginnings, the Civil War Quilts block of the week ended on Saturday. I still have the December blocks to make and three more to make the 56 total needed for a 7 X 8 block quilt top. I had my fabric out auditioning combinations for the final blocks last night.

Saturday I found the border fabric for the outside edge at Zoe's Quilt Trunk at their end of the year inventory reduction sale. I plan to sash the blocks in red with fussy cut red stars blocks at the corners. I can't wait to begin to finally put it all together.

We ended the Arizona year with autumn.

The deciduous trees are losing their leaves. The other trees are hoping that there are no hard freezes in their future.

Our seasons are so mixed up. The arbor roses are blooming and the flower beds are beautiful. In just a month, those front yard deciduous trees will have new buds. That's how it's done in low desert Arizona. This week will be our "Indian Summer." High temperatures will be in the high 70's and low 80's. Happy New Year!

Falvia de Luce entertains me

2011-12-31T18:05:00.001-07:00

I first blogged about Flavia de Luce here. I was entranced with 11-year-old Flavia and her unusual skills and ability in solving mysteries while having adventures. Time passed by and I was unaware that Alan Bradley was busy writing sequel after sequel after sequel. That meant catch up reading time during the month of December after I became aware that there was more Flavia de Luce.

I read them in order and realized that Flavia was living out her 11th year book by book and season by season.

So it seemed appropriate that as Christmas approached that I was back in time with Flavia while snow was falling and Christmas was coming to the ancient country house of Buckshaw, home of the de Luce family for centuries. Yes, there was a murder to solve and tense moments, but Flavia made it all so entertaining.

Christmas projects

2011-12-29T20:08:00.001-07:00

Christmas isn't Christmas for me unless there are a few hand created Christmas projects. This year I made "fancy" dresses for my granddaughters and their American Girl dolls. I used the sewing patterns which were sold 20+ years ago when the American Girl dolls were first introduced by Pleasant Company. Fortunately, these patterns have been converted to a PDF format and are available on the Internet. This dress was adapted from Addy's tartan plaid fancy dress pattern.

I found the beautiful blue duponi silk in a remnant bin and had just enough for three dresses. I used a different color silver edged ribbon in the galloon lace to differentiate each dress. Each girl also received a pair of dressy black doll shoes and a Christmas accessory AG kit which included a miniature version of "The Night Before Christmas" by Jan Brett, a purse, a necklace, and some earrings.

The pattern directed that the sleeves be gathered with elastic. I've found that the elastic stretches out over time, so I adapted the sleeves to have a narrow band lined with ribbon trim.

I also found some silver fringe to add to the ribbon sash, just like the one on Addy's dress.

My son-in-law, Andrew, and daughter, Janae, also made the girls American Girl doll beds.

The garage workshop was a busy place as they cut, sanded and sanded some more, and then painted these adorable stacking beds. They can easily sit on each other to form bunk beds. So cute! My daughter also sewed together mattress pads and pillows.

This is my special "just for me" project. The wool nativity is large, about 12 X 30 inches. I used this pattern from Under the Garden Moon to create it from wool pieces. My son-in-law made me a custom frame while he had the miter saw going in the garage. My daughter painted the frame with Martha Stewart gold paint with a darker wipe off glaze. It will look beautiful on my golden wheat hued living room wall next Christmas.

Next step? Vacuum and sweep up all that sawdust!

Last Christmas highlights

2011-12-28T07:59:00.000-07:00

Here are some last pictures of Christmas 2011. Julianna gives a "thumbs up" for Christmas dinner.

Glen, Raymond, and Henry deliver cookies to our immediate neighborhood on Christmas Eve.

Last minute painting in the garage. More about this project later.

Henry was a careful helper.

TJ sans braces and sporting his new elf hat.

New board games to play.

Toby spending time with Oscar before his new move.

Christmas is family time. Christmas is love. I thought it so appropriate that this sabbath Christmas, the wrapping paper and gifts were set aside as we attended church services and pondered our relationship with the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

Christmas Lights

2011-12-27T06:30:00.001-07:00

Last night I took pictures of the "high-lights" about the house. The lights of Christmas are one of my favorite parts of this season.

Husband, Glen, went all out this year. He passed on a few things and purchased some new.

The dog stayed, but the lime tree got new LED twinkle lights.

The big multi-pointed stars and cascading icicles are new.

He added to his "gum drop" Christmas tree collection. They also twinkle.

Together we looked on the internet until we found a special, simple nativity.

Perfect! I love how Mary is cuddling the baby Jesus.

I also love how Mary cuddles her baby in this video. This is one of several short videos being produced. Eventually the series will cover the entire life of Jesus Christ as depicted in the King James version of the Bible. Enjoy!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T22:32:00.005-07:00

Henry as baby Jesus.

Raymond as Joseph and Sadie as Mary.

Julianna and Toby as wise men.

Janae was a manger for the baby Jesus.

Reverence to all.

Heather and Ruby as angels.

Oscar was a shepherd and Mabel was a camel. They were elusive.

Merry Christmas! I hope that your Nativity reenactment was as entertaining and joyous as the one we enjoyed. And too all a good night!

Doughnut Day 2011 and the first annual Jensen Family Olympics

2011-12-23T22:40:00.001-07:00

Doughnut Day 2011 was much like Doughnut Day 2010 except that these two loving brothers decided that we needed some physical activity before making and eating calorie laden doughnuts. Nathan and David also wanted to race one another, so we met at Red Mountain High School track for the First Annual Jensen Family Olympics before traveling the additional couple of miles to Eric's house and kitchen for doughnut making. (Notice how David is dressed for the season?)

There was a variety of events for both young and old.

Fast and slow.

Boys and girls.

Cute cousins.

Best buds.

The oldest of them all.

And the BFFs.

They threw paper airplanes from the bleachers.

And threw sand on the track until the track coach told them to "stop it!"

A fun, fast day

for all kinds of footwear.

Then the children played, just like last year, while the adults rolled, cut, and fried dough.

David was the first fryer. Notice the towel covered pans in the background. We soon figured out the the doughnuts raised faster in the sun.

We were occasionally joined by reinforcements.

Really cute reinforcements.

This year the babies were walking.

Our three youngest grand children are growing up too fast.

Again, there was the bagging of fresh, hot doughnuts which were then delivered throughout Mesa and Gilbert.

Grandpa took over the second shift of frying after a nap on the living room couch. Nate was everywhere, and finished up with glazing.

This year we did follow last year's final decision and made one additional Bosch Mixer full of dough. It was a great decision! Each family also took home their own large pan of doughnuts.

Simple friend gift

2011-12-22T01:30:00.000-07:00

These pincushions are this year's simple gift for friends. I first saw a tutorial for them here.

The tutorial did not add the button in the middle, but I thought it was a nice touch.

I used left over bits of fabric from other projects. The blue and brown pin cushions were made from what remained of the table toppers made for the Relief Society Broadcast Dinner and were given to the women I work with at church. The red, white, and blue pin cushions were made from what remained of an apron project a couple of years ago and will be delivered to special friends today.

I placed three decorative "Pincess" pins in each one which I had purchased from Chitter Chatter Designs last Spring.

The buttons were all found in my button box. The only thing I had to purchase new to complete this project was crushed walnut shells for the filling. I bought a bag from PETCO. It is most commonly used in the bottom of bird cages, but was perfect for this project. I love what I can find in my sewing room.

Birthday week and Christmas

2011-12-21T07:59:00.001-07:00

The week before Christmas, there is always this juxtaposition of Christmas decorations and birthdays. We celebrate two birthdays during the week before Christmas. We celebrated early with a cake and presents on Sunday. Susan and David have always shared their birthday time during the week that we also celebrate the birth of the Savior.

Before birthday clapping and birthday cake and ice cream, we watched this Christmas video, and I passed out this year's Christmas book, A Christmas Goodnight. We also colored, cut-out, and made these puppets and a puppet theater which I printed off from the book illustrator, Sarah Jane Wright's, web site.

I'm sure that Susan's mother would agree with me that a new baby born at Christmas time is a special gift. I still remember well my feelings as I snuggled a precious new born David at Christmas time.

Christmas pillowcases

2011-12-20T08:23:00.002-07:00

While in Utah, I was dropped off at Quilt Etc. while Glen went to an appointment. In the back classroom, I found pre-cut Christmas pillowcase kits in a basket. Better yet, they had already been discounted 30%! Realizing that I couldn't buy the fabric for the price, I decided to sew some up for the grand kids. They were a really quick project and I passed them out the Sunday before Christmas so that they would have a week of "visions of sugar plums dancing through their heads."

The girls thought they were soooo. . . cute! As always, Heather was asking if I had any leftover fabric. I had to explain that unlike a dress, pillowcases use up every bit.

The boys were less excited, but luckily Grandpa pulled out some bomb things which banged really loud when they were dropped. They were pretty excited about those.

The toddlers are still not using pillows. Oh, what to do?! Quilt Etc. also had fabric book panels, so Mabel and Oscar got soft fabric Christmas books.

37 years ago today

2011-12-17T15:15:00.001-07:00

On December 17, 1974 Glen took me from Provo to Salt Lake City to see the Christmas lights on Temple Square. We were BYU students just finishing up finals and preparing to return to our perspective homes for the holidays.

Glen led me to the Visitor's Center and then up the winding ramp which leads to the Christus statue that is visible through the upper windows in this picture.

He then sat with me on this bench and handed me a small gift wrapped box. I took my time opening it (perhaps my intuition told me what was in the box :) and by the time I had unwrapped my gift and opened the box to find a diamond ring we were no longer alone.

And that is why Glen asked me to marry him in front of a group of strangers who were on a tour. Although they did not know us, they still clapped their approval.

We were young and so in love. It's been a wonderful life, though not without its ups and downs, and I can't imagine spending those years with anyone else. Thanks for asking Glen Jay!

Serving others

2011-12-16T18:56:00.014-07:00

I baked 24 dozen rolls yesterday evening. It was for a very good cause.

I serve with these lovely ladies in the Mesa East Stake Relief Society presidency. It was our turn, along with the presidency of the Lehi Stake, to prepare a lunch for one half of the missionaries serving in the Mesa Arizona Mission. That meant that 130 hungry missionaries would soon be joining us.

The tables were set and the food was ready (chicken noodle and broccoli cheese soups were staying warm in the kitchen.)

The cookie buffet looked beautiful. Lisa approved.

There was a kind for every palate.

The room soon filled with all kinds of missionaries, elders, sisters, and older couples.

I was thrilled to see Sister Stephens, 2nd cousin to Glen.

The elders let the sisters go first,

but that didn't keep them from munching on cookies as they waited!

Sister Gina Stephens and friends.

Before the missionaries arrived, packages were brought in. They were stacked around the perimeter of the room. This caused lots of excitement! Hopefully there was a package for every missionary. It was fun to walk around and read the return addresses on the packages. Families from everywhere had sent a box filled with things, but more important with love and support.

It brought tears to my eyes as I thought of my four missionary sons over the years. Now I was experiencing how the missionary felt as a piece of home followed him across the world at Christmas time to Chile, Peru, and north and south Brazil. So sweet and tender!

These young men and women serve with the love of Christ in their hearts. When you see them, take a moment to talk with them. They are living to serve at this time in their lives.

A week ago, Glen was in charge of a Ward Christmas dinner and program for the adult members of our church congregation. This was how it looked just moments before the guests arrived. It was a lovely meal with harp music in the background. Mesa Mt. View High School's choral group, Encore, provided the musical program. It was truly beautiful. They are a talented group.

Now that we are done with the "big" parties, it is time to focus on family activities. There will be a week's worth of them beginning tomorrow night. Christmas time is wonderful, and food preparation and providing service make it even more so.

A surprise 50th celebration

2011-12-15T14:52:00.003-07:00

Luckily for Glen and I, we were in Utah for Joe and Karen Baker's 50th Wedding Anniversary Celebration.

Their lovely family surprised them with a complete wedding reception including a receiving line, supper buffet, tiered cake, and dancing. When they got in the car that evening they thought they were headed to a movie or something. Their son had told them they had probably better put on a clean shirt :)

There was also a bit of "cake smushing."

Joe is Glen's uncle and a younger brother of his mother's. He is a retired German professor and taught at BYU for many years as well as administrating their Study Abroad Program to Austria. His wife, Karen, is a woman after my own heart. She is a retired librarian. We love visiting with them on our Utah trips.

Congratulations Joe and Karen! I loved watching the slide show of your married life that your children put together for our viewing. It was so fun to see the "younger" you!

Impromtu trunk show

2011-12-14T08:30:00.000-07:00

While in Utah with Glen, I often ride along with him to client appointments. Well almost all the way to the appointment. He drops me off at a bookstore or a quilt store on his way. One of my favorite drop off sites is Quilts Etc. in Sandy. This trip I snapped up discounted Christmas pillowcase kits. There were not enough of the pre-cut kits I really liked, so of course I had to buy some additional fabric.

Suddenly I heard from the cutting table, "Oh, that's got to be a Marie Webster! Do you realize what a gem you have? You must match the blue and not use that dot fabric for border and it must be hand quilted."

I rushed over to take a peek then asked if I might take a picture. The customer, a grandmother herself, said that her mother-in-law had given her the top which had been stitched by her mother.

I had never heard of Marie Webster before but the quilt shop employee certainly had. I heard her brief history of Marie and then did a bit of googling myself later in the day.

It turned out that the pink and blue appliqued quilt was not the only treasure in the large bag at the customer's feet. There was this beauty.

A set of fancy lady blocks.

So pretty with all those long ago fabrics.

This reminded me of the Aunt Grace fabric I recently bought for the backing of my current Aunt Grace's Flower Garden block of the month.

There was more!

A set of these beautiful star/flower blocks.

And of course, a hand pieced double wedding ring quilt top.

Once again I loved the juxtaposition of fabrics from long ago. What treasures were in that bag!

I was so glad that I had jumped into the car at the last minute! Just think, I might have missed the trunk show.

2011-12-13T08:22:00.010-07:00

The day after Thanksgiving, we were once again driving up Provo Canyon. We had tickets for "The North Pole Express" and were anxious to start the Christmas season with a trip by train to see Santa.

We would be meeting part of the Sundance cabin group we had shared Thanksgiving with at the train station in Heber.

It was a group of grandpas and grandmas, aunts and uncles, moms and dads, and kids. In fact, there were 7 kids and 15 tag-along adults. One is never too old to take a trip to see St. Nick.

There was a long line of coaches lined up to handle the crowds.

Grandpa Glen couldn't wait to travel in an old-fashioned way on a special evening.

It was a great ride. Santa even rode back to the Heber Station with us and each child was able to visit with him personally during the ride. That created some smiles. This photo taken by a photographer on the train now graces our Christmas card letter. Cards were mailed yesterday, toot, toot!

Thanksgiving near Sundance

2011-12-12T07:30:00.006-07:00

This year Glen and I were invited by our DIL Sally's family to join them for Thanksgiving at a home they had reserved near Sundance Resort. It was large enough to accommodate their extended family for several days of fun. We drove up the canyon from Provo to join them for a yummy dinner on Thanksgiving Day.

The grandgirls were excited to show me the snowman they had created with the help of their dad and my son, David. Youngest grandgirl, Mabel, was less excited. As I held her at the window she pointed and jabbered on about how scary it was. I personally thought it was pretty cute.

While eating our turkey dinner we enjoyed a nice surprise. A large flock of wild turkeys marched down the mountain in full view through these large windows. It created a lot of excitement! After the plates were cleared the grandgirls and their cousins from the other side presented a program that they had written and created all by themselves about the reason for Thanksgiving using the fireplace hearth as their stage. It was highly entertaining!

At the end of the program, Glen led the group in a game of Bingo as a tribute to our Thanksgiving tradition of Bingo after pies on Thanksgiving evening. There was a basket full of prizes including candy bars and $2 bills so everyone was happy.

Sally's brother is in the green shirt leaning against the stair rail. I point him out because he is also newly engaged. I loved hearing him tell his engagement story. It made me think that I might need to share mine in a post sometime.

We so appreciated being included in Sally's family fun.

It's a Wonderful Life

2011-12-11T00:46:00.006-07:00

About the only thing I have been able to check off my traditional Christmas list of things I like to do by this day just two weeks before Christmas, is to watch It's a Wonderful Life. I viewed it on the big screen for the very first time while in Utah. (Dane and Brittany projected it on the wall for me.) I love how watching this movie always changes my perspective for a time. I ponder on those around me whom I love and try to imagine my life without them. That always hurts. Then I wonder, "Have I made a true difference in the lives of anyone with whom I have interacted?" This usually leads to, "Have I lived thus far the life that I want to live?"

While in Utah I viewed the newest exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art, "The Weir Family 1820 - 1920." It was wonderful and brought me back to David McCullough's latest book and how travel abroad influenced the shaping of American culture in the 1800's. I always read all the little plaques on the wall next to the art work. This quote by Charles Erskine Scott Wood, a Weir family friend, about Julian Alden Weir, touched me so deeply that I had to write it down on the exhibit brochure so that I might remember it. Perhaps it best summarizes what it means to live a wonderful life.

"I. . . insist that you (Julian) are the most fortunate man I know. Enough to keep the wolf from the door, a clear conscience to keep ghosts from the window, loving and lovely children, a sympathetic wife, an occupation which is always coaxing you, not driving you."

Founding Gardeners

2011-12-08T22:34:00.001-07:00

I uploaded pictures hoping to publish this post while out of town. Computer problems changed my plans. My visit north provided many things to share, but those posts will be coming. First, I would like to recommend a great book for history lovers, especially those who also like gardening.

Founding Gardeners is the story of four of our founding fathers; Washington, Jefferson, Adams, and Madison and their gardens and other agricultural and naturalist adventures. It also probes their desire for an agrarian United States of America as opposed to Alexander Hamilton and his push for federalism, large urban areas, and industrialism.

Did you know that Jefferson joined Franklin on a tour of English gardens while both were in London trying to negotiate treaty agreements? They were delighted to find that many English country gardens were already full of native American plants by the 1770's.

Andrea Wulf, the author of Founding Gardens, is British and a garden historian. I wish that she had published this book and that I had read it before touring the gardens of founding fathers fiveand a half years ago. What was already a very rich and enjoyable experience could have been even better.

Here I am at Mt. Vernon. Now I know how George Washington planned the lovely approach to his home and planned for each tree in the lovely "forests" of trees framing out his home.

I would have known how he also went to great lengths to provided this sloping view of the Potomac River from the rear veranda of his home.

George Washington could hardly wait to return home to work on his gardens. He sent detailed letters to his overseer as he supervised the building of the gardens.

Thomas Jefferson leveled off an entire mountain top to create Monticello and its surrounding gardens. He also planned every bush and tree.

He incorporated both the ornamental plants and the food producing plants in his plans while creating lovely vistas.

He leveled off areas for the the beautifully planned vegetable gardens. Monticello was a joy to visit. My one regret: we did not take the time to also visit James Madison's home of Montpelier which was just a few short miles from Monticello. It was in initial stages of restoration at the time of our trip, but the restoration is now complete. Maybe next time!

I also need to take a trip to Boston now that their massive road construction project is complete. We only visited the outskirts on our previous northeast visit meaning Lexington and Concord. This time I would also make it a point to visit the farm in Quincey of John Adams. He alone farmed his own smaller area of land slave free.

I found it fascinating to take a trip back in time with a gardening frame of mind.

My little container garden planted out in October is doing well.

It makes me really happy.

Fresh garden produce newly picked is so delicious.

While I was away, my son and his wife were garden caretakers. Nichelle took this picture of the harvest she gleaned from my little garden. Yum!

And finally, before all things Christmas, I just had to share this shot of my last giant sunflower.

Happy gardening to all you gardeners. May you be inspired by our "founding gardeners!"

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T18:00:00.000-07:00

I hope that you are enjoying a wonderful day with family. This year I was able to enjoy a wonderful 2nd grade Thanksgiving musical program starring my granddaughter Ruby.

Well, it really starred all 125 sweet, energetic 2nd graders from Ruby's school. That cute little blond in the middle is my Ruby.

They sang and danced.

And then she gave her spoken part. Well done Ruby girl!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Julianna's birthday dress (and jacket)

2011-11-21T23:08:00.001-07:00

It's hard to believe that sweet Julianna has already been a member of our extended family for three years. Gail Doane provided the inspiration for Julianna's birthday dress and jacket. Gail designs beautiful children's clothing and many of her smocked and embroidered dresses have been featured in Australian Smocking and Embroidery magazine.

The pattern for this dress is found in Gail's fairly recent book Sew Cute Couture.

I picked this brightly colored bishop style dress for Julianna because I thought the color would be beautiful and vibrant on her.

Gail is all about special little details like this entredeux trim with the embroidery floss detail.

The dress buttons up the back.

The jacket is lined and the edges bound with gingham bias trim just like the neckline and sleeves of the dress.

I loved the inverted pleat on the jacket back and the curved front and back yokes.

There are also many embroidered embellishments like the buttons separated by a running stitch.

These embroidered hearts grace the front (on Gail's design they grace the back as well but I thought the front was just fine :) The buttons on the jacket front are also green heart shaped.

Birthday dresses most often are given with a matching dress for a doll. It is always possible to dress a doll with the "leftovers."

This time I also provided the doll. It was fun to dress her, put her back in the box, and wrap her in birthday paper.

Julianna was delighted with all of it.

I also provided white tights and new black Mary Jane shoes to cover those cute little feet and legs.

I simply can not imagine life without this sweet, vivacious, happy little girl.

Gene Stratton-Porter and old fashioned farming

2011-11-19T21:18:00.001-07:00

Some months ago I came across these paperbacks published by Indiana University Press at the BYU Bookstore. They had reprinted Freckles, A Girl of the Limberlost, The Harvester, The Keeper of the Bees, and Laddie by Gene Stratton-Porter.

I ended up buying the three titles pictured, but the first to catch my eye was The Keeper of the Bees. This is a picture of a book that is a part of my favorite memories of book reading during my childhood. I first came across it while staying with my grandmother. She had moved to a new home in Idaho Falls and during the summers I was often invited to stay with her for a week at a time. She took daily naps and grandpa worked at the furniture store full time, so the afternoons would get very long.

There was a bookshelf of books in a closet by the front door and it saved me from boredom. That is where I first found The Keeper of the Bees. You can see by the signature that it was purchased before my grandmother married, so it was already over 30 years old when I first found it.

I loved the book so much and never forgot it. Move forward about 40 years, long after this copy of the book had become my own, and I read A Girl of the Limberlost by Gene Stratton-Porter which I love almost as much as The Keeper of the Bees. I go looking for The Keeper of the Bees and realize both books were written by the same author.

Gene Stratton-Porter not only gave me characters that I enjoyed, she also made the natural world come alive. I just reread Laddie. The farm life it described made me homesick for my childhood on the farm.

I recently read The Dirty Life by Kristin Kimball. It is the true tale of a couple who find a farm and decide to farm the old fashioned way, not just organically but also using horses instead of tractors. It made me think of Laddie, the story (closely based on the childhood of Gene Stratton-Porter) of a family farm in Indiana after the Civil War. Both books describe a life of hard physical labor, but satisfying hard physical labor. There is something truly special about working the soil.

Birthday month

2011-11-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

Over 1/4 of the birthdays of our extended family occur during the month of November.

Often we celebrate in pairs. TJ celebrates with Emelia if they are in the same town.

Toby and I usually celebrate together having birthdays just two days apart. Julianna is watching carefully preparing for her coming November birthday.

Toby blew out his candles. . .

and then Grandpa Glen led us in the birthday clapping, 7 for Toby and a lot more for me. Then it was time to open presents followed by homemade ice cream and cake. Toby chose a Tron cake. I made my Grandmother Nyborg's stove top chocolate pudding cake. May I say that it tastes especially delicious with homemade vanilla ice cream?

Both TJ and I were showered with presents. Thank you everyone! You are all so kind.

Glen let me do my own shopping. Last Utah trip he dropped me off at Broadbents in Lehi on his way to an appointment in Saratoga Springs. Broadbents is a delight. The store has meandered this way and that over the years and you can find a bit of everything in one of its many parts.

More recently they added a quilting shop in the north end. When Glen picked me up, I climbed into the car singing, "Happy birthday to me." I had purchased the last remaining quilt kit and pattern for "The Night Before Christmas" from Bunny Hill Designs. It will be my own block of the month after I finish "Aunt Grace's Flower Garden" in February.

I'm all caught up and waiting for the instructions to come for the next row!

Our other November birthday is this very day! Happy birthday to Henry who came to grandma's house in June but is now in Connecticut celebrating with his father's family. Henry, I'll make sure that Grandpa Glen calls you today to sing to you and to do the birthday clap!

A weekend of great weather and grandkids

2011-11-16T09:29:00.000-07:00

Veteran's Day was a school holiday so that gave us two non-school nights for sleepovers, one for girls and one for boys. The girls always bring along friends.

Our weather has finally cooled down into the lower 70's. In Arizona that is enough to bring out the winter coats.

It also means that we leave the doors wide open and the kids are mostly outside.

The garden plants are so happy. They are making colorful blooms rather than merely surviving. Grandpa Glen lets the girls pick all the flowers they want to decorate their little garden nooks. This visit they were playing "Boxcar Children." They created a space of their own next to the greenhouse.

I love how smart and capable they are becoming. Ruby brought the book with her. Tradition has Heather reading aloud as the three of them cuddle up to go to sleep in the guest room brass bed. It warmed my heart to hear Ruby taking turns with Heather and reading aloud from "Boxcar Children" as well. Soon Sadie will be able to take her turn as well. She loves school.

Grandpa Glen always has some new gadget type toy to share.

This time is was bubble blowing guns.

Which also light up. The girls loved them!

They put two fingers up, not because they are two but because it is 11/11/11 and the clock behind them just turned to 11:11 am.

The boys stayed the next night. Toby needed Raymond and Henry to help set up the Playmobil. TJ turned teenager on us this month and he's not so much into playing anymore. He'd rather watch movies, listen to music, and things like that. I still find it hard to believe that I have a teenage grandson!

Saturday morning, Toby and I were off to his soccer game.

We met up with his dad and Julianna.

She may be our next soccer player. The rule about sleepovers at grandma's is that you have to be fully potty trained. It pretty much breaks my heart when I hear Julianna say, "Nana go to grandma's, too?" I'm happy to report that she is making progress with the training.

They didn't win but they didn't seem to care much because there were still treats.

Saturday afternoon, TJ and Toby helped grandpa plant out his flower bed along the wall of Italian cypresses. Toby says that he wants to do that every Saturday. Did I mention that he loves Home Depot and Lowe's? When we dropped off TJ that evening, Toby packed up his Sunday clothes and hopped back into the car with us. He decided to go to church with Grandpa Glen and help Grandma Laurel prepare for our joint birthday party Sunday night. More about November birthdays next post.

5 more Civil War blocks

2011-11-15T17:32:00.000-07:00

42 H is for Hospital
While in Utah, I picked up a few more fat quarters. One of those was the blue Barbara Brackman designed fabric which forms the "H." I thought it important that I include some fabric designed by the author of Civil War Quilts in my quilt blocks. I tried to pick a fabric which would go well with those that I was already using.

(This block really is square. This is how it looks when the camera is not right on :)

43 Right Hand of Friendship
I liked the way the corners looked with stripped fabric on the diagonal. The sample block used stripped fabric this way and I followed suit.

44 Union
I have been using some other fabrics by Barbara Brackman for Marcus Brothers. The large floral in the center as well as the fine figured fabric on the outside edge are part of her Lewis and Clark fabric line from 2003. I thought that the Lewis and Clark fabric went well with the reproduction fabric.

45 Port and Starboard
I liked how the center block was different than the rest on the sample block, so did the same.

46 Apple Tree
One of my new fat quarters was the fabric with the red berries or maybe they are apples. I decided to call them apples. I haven't used any greens in any of my blocks, so I decided to use the foliage parts of the Lewis and Clark large floral fabric. I have used that fabric for most of the blocks which have a center floral motif and my fat quarter is full of holes from the fussy cutting. I was delighted to find enough fabric pieces to cut these four blocks. The brown fabric used for the trunk was also part of my new purchases.

I'm starting to think about of how can put the blocks together into a quilt. Barbara Brackman's blog recently included a post showing what others are doing. Just 7 more Saturdays in 2011, thus 7 more blocks to go!

A last look at New Mexico

2011-11-14T21:52:00.001-07:00

I love it when I visit family or friends and they show me places, not necessarily tourist spots, that are special to them.

Emilia took me to one of her favorite places, this stretch of road through a tunnel of trees. It is now one of my favorite places.

One of my favorite rides was on the Rail Runner into downtown Albuquerque. It was just a two block walk to Ryan's office from the station where I got to see their beautiful decorating done on a dime. We took a walk around downtown and then ate at Tucano's next to the transportation hub that is light rail, regular train service, and bus station before taking the train back home through the dark. Tucano's is a Brazilian style barbeque and it was delicious and fairly priced, much better than our Phoenix choices for Brazilian. Emilia ate chicken hearts to her own heart's content.

But Tucano's may not be her only favorite place to eat. On her birthday, she chose Outback. Something to do with a "blooming onion." She is wearing a birthday girl button chosen for her by her husband. My brother, Farrell, and his wife, Eveline, along with my sister, Jolene, joined us for dinner. There was lots of conversation (some of it silly Farrell/Ryan style.) Yes, my only brother and my 2nd son are a bit like two peas in a pod and only they understand some of their shared humor.

Things to Remember:
* Temple visit with Emilia and Jolene
* Checking out Eveline's new kitchen
* Making friends with the "grand dogs" Max and Lucy
* A drive to Belen where they were making a movie in the old downtown
* Roll making with Emilia on a rainy day (and Emilia's yummy chicken tortilla soup - perfect rainy day food!)
* A gigantic hug from Ryan as I left him at the airport

Los Alamos and Bandelier

2011-11-13T21:20:00.001-07:00

After leaving Santa Fe, we traveled west to Los Alamos and Bandelier National Monument. Los Alamos National Laboratory and supporting town is located on a number of high plateaus. It was opened during World War II and was very top secret. As we drove on to Bandelier National Monument and Frijoles Canyon we noticed "Tech Sites" related to the lab everywhere. It is still very much an operating laboratory.

We took the mile or so walk through the Frijoles Canyon. It was fascinating to view the ruins and imagine the hustle and bustle that must have once existed in this quiet, out of the way place. This picture shows the foundation of what was probably a large ceremonial kiva.

There were living quarters on the floor of the canyon as well as in the walls of the canyon.

Emilia stands near walls where multi-storied structures once stood surrounding a central plaza.

The canyon walls were covered with lines of holes where roof timbers once extended. The canyon walls were called "tuff" and were formed when volcanic ash fell from a nearby volcano and formed a 1000 foot layer. It could easily be carved out to form additional enclosed areas.

There was also wall art and pictographs. These two people seemed to be cataloguing the art work and taking pictures. This path followed a long wall which had once been lined with structures.

Ryan and Emelia catch up to me after taking a side trail including ladders and steep steps. They were able to enter into some of the carved out areas. I had declined attempting the ladders and small spaces.

There was also fall color in Frijoles Canyon along with the calls of sand pipers immigrating south for the winter. It was a great side trip.

Rereads and Santa Fe

2011-11-12T21:30:00.002-07:00

After Ryan and Emilia picked me up at the Albuquerque Airport from my early morning flight, we headed north to Santa Fe via the Turquoise Trail on the eastern side of the Sandia Mountains. We arrived in Santa Fe in time for a breakfast of blue corn pancakes, hot chocolate, and snow flurries. It had been years since I had been to Santa Fe and it was as charming as I remembered it.

I was excited to see the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, commonly known as Saint Francis Cathedral. It was built during the time of Bishop Lamy.

He was sent to Santa Fe after my ancestors, as members of the Mormon Battalion, marched through Santa Fe during the Mexican American War in 1846. Bishop Lamy was assigned by Rome in 1851 to head the new Diocese of Santa Fe as bishop as the current Southwest of the United States broke ties with Mexico. He was later made archbishop. This bronze of him stands outside his church.

The stone for the church was quarried from rock near what is now the town of Lamy, New Mexico.

In commemoration of the restoration of the church, these bronze doors were created with panel depictions of the history of Bishop Lamy and Santa Fe. It reminded me of the bronze Baptistery doors of Florence, Italy.

You are only allowed to photograph the interior without flash. It was beautiful.

The original stained glass windows had been sent back to Europe for cleaning and restoration recently.

They were stunning.

They depicted the apostles.

Ryan and Emelia study these beautiful works.

The morning sun flowed through bleeding colored light.

It was warm and lovely.

The rosette window and organ pipes on the west end.

Looking toward the transept on the south side.

On the north side is the original adobe chapel (not the first as it was destroyed during a Native American uprising in the 1600's.) Notice the hand-hewn wooden beams.

This space holds the statue of Our Lady of Peace.

As you can see, the statue has led a storied existence.

I enjoyed all the special details and hand done touches.

The towers were meant to have steeples but they were never completed.

One tower is one brick layer higher than the other.

When Borders held its closeout sale, I purchased paperbacks of these two books. I had read both many years earlier and decided to read them again. I was curious to see if I would like them as much as I once had.

I first remember "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier from my childhood. Mrs. Shoemaker of radio fame in Rexburg, Idaho in the 1950's would read aloud from a novel every week day. My mother would sit at her sewing machine and listen to her read. (Perhaps its genetic that I listen to NPR while at my sewing machine.) I would lay on my mother's bed and listen as well. I remember my mother especially enjoying "Rebecca" so I checked it out of the library and read it as a young adult. I was less enhanced in my current reading. I decided that there was not even one character which I really cared about.

"Death Comes for the Archbishop" by Willa Cather, however, was an even bigger treat as a reread. Perhaps is was my familiarity with the Southwest as I have traveled it and studied its history over the years that made the rereading so enjoyable. Most probably it was Willa Cather's skill as a writer and her beautiful prose which brought the landscapes and characters to life.

I was so happy that I had read this book again before planning my trip to New Mexico. I slipped it into my suitcase and left it for Ryan and Emilia, my new New Mexicans.

Ryan and Emilia had spent a day in Santa Fe in honor of their anniversary in July. They had taken the bus tour that day and so retraced their route for me by car. Ryan even stopped a time or two for photo ops. Enjoy!

Leaves of gold along the Rio Grande

2011-11-09T23:17:00.008-07:00

I flew from Salt Lake City to Albuquerque before flying on home to Phoenix. It was a wonderful four days with my son, Ryan, and his wife, Emilia. It was a delight to realize that I had once again landed in autumn splendor. Emilia and I drove a mile or so from their home to walk the banks of the Rio Grande River.

It was an unexpected treat to walk under these massive trees.

It was a gusty day and leaves of glittering gold swirled to the ground.

As the water flowed south, so did flocks of migrating birds and the air was filled with their bird calls.

As we traveled about the next few days this flowing water snaked through the desert marked by groves of golden trees.

From a distance it seemed to be a path of gold.

A perfect path to walk with my lovely daughter-in-law, Emilia.

It was a special gift, those dancing leaves and time to talk.

And just on the other side of the trees. . .

farmland nourished by the water of the Rio Grande.

Fall color shots while walking in Provo

2011-11-08T21:12:00.000-07:00

Down by Provo River, I hug the brightest of them all.

BYU campus shots.

As I walk back to the townhouse.

And for Janae, her favorite Provo house.

I always have to have an autumn trip. As many of you know Fall is my favorite season and low desert Arizona just doesn't deliver. This year I was blessed to have three "color" trips. Early in October, I posted our Utah mountain drive. Then I was fortunate to return to Provo at the end of the month for its show of color. Next post, Fall color along the Rio Grande River in New Mexico.

A traveling two weeks

2011-11-07T22:21:00.003-07:00

I've been away from home the last two weeks which meant no sewing machine. I can't be without a project so I hand appliqued the handles for my flower basket blocks while away.

And I also prepared Julianna's bishop style smocked birthday dress with its coordinating jacket so I could do the smocking and embroidery work while away. I finished all the needlework except for three embroidered roses on the jacket front before returning home. Now on to the sewing machine! I can't wait to show you the finished project. It's colorful, just like Julianna's personality.

I realized on the way to Utah that I would be able to hear Senator Joe Lieberman speak at a Forum at BYU the next day. I was up early to hit the BYU Bookstore for a copy of his new book before heading to the Hinckley Center for the book signing then the Marriott Center for his presentation.

(And yes, there were secret service agents with ear pieces accompanying the Senator.)

His new book is titled "The Gift of Rest." While explaining the tradition of the Jews weekly Shabbat, he also challenges everyone to honor the Sabbath as a day of rest and renewal and a way to a better quality of life and strengthening of moral values. I very much enjoyed reading "The Gift of Rest" and found much to ponder and to think about in relation to the way I keep the Sabbath Day.

You can read a review of Senator Lieberman's book in The Washington Times here.

Because I was early, I made my way down to the floor of the Marriott Center.

Senator Lieberman's remarks had much to do with politics and religion and the current presidential election. He will be retiring after 20 + years in the Senate. That is the current president of BYU in the corner of the picture. President Cecil Samuelson and the Senator must have some kind of personal relationship as President Samuelson's review is one of those included in the front of the new book. Elders Quentin R. Cook and L. Tom Perry were also in attendance.

For the text of Senator Lieberman's remarks entitled "Faith in the Public Square" go here.

Provo was in the midst of autumn splendor and as I walked back to the townhouse from campus, I snapped away. I'll share those pictures tomorrow.

A Better Life

2011-10-23T16:36:00.003-07:00

Glen and I watched "A Better Life" on demand from our cable company Friday night. Granted, we don't watch or go to many movies, but this one really touched me. I've thought about it many times over the weekend.

I feel that actor Demian Bichir deserves an Academy Award nomination for his role of Carlos, illegal immigrant and father who is fighting for a better life for his son, Luis. He reminded me of the gardeners who have helped Glen over the years on some of his big projects. Because of Glen's Spanish speaking ability, we often learn of their stories, many of which parallel that portrayed in "A Better Life."

This movie reminded me that immigration is less black and white and more shades of gray. This is the latest statement by my church regarding illegal immigration. Part of that statement reads:

The bedrock moral issue for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is how we treat each other as children of God.

The history of mass expulsion or mistreatment of individuals or families is cause for concern especially where race, culture, or religion are involved. This should give pause to any policy that contemplates targeting any one group, particularly if that group comes mostly from one heritage.

I feel that any stance on immigration which forgets that we are all children of God coupled with attendant feelings of power and alienation is dangerous and even frightening. Compassion coupled with a study of the issues which fuel immigration might lead to solutions which do not divide families nor cause despair and hopelessness. We are all God's children.

Appliqued Civil War Quilt Blocks

2011-10-19T17:19:00.002-07:00

40 Order Number Eleven

Imagine my surprise when I opened Civil War Quilts on a Saturday morning and found that the block for that week was the first applique block that I did in my class last August. That class taught the back basting applique method. I was no longer feeling incompetent as I tackled Block #40. I had already practiced. Here is how I did this block.

Here is the pattern which I received from Jeana Kimball in her class. Fortunately is was just the right size. I cut the background fabric for my block adding a generous 1/2 inches. Once the applique was finished, the excess would be trimmed off. I folded the block in half each direction hand pressing a fold so that I could center the pattern. I then traced the pattern on the wrong side of the block.

Starting with the fabric which would be on the bottom of the finished applique design, I placed a large square of the fabric on the right side of the block base with the right side facing out. (Wrong side to right side of base block.) I then basted through both fabrics ignoring the lines for the second fabric which would be the top fabric.

After the basting is completed, the excess fabric is trimmed away leaving a scant 1/4 inch.

Next find a fairly straight section of basting and clip to the basting line to begin the needle turn of the fabric clipping about every third stitch of basting as you go, pulling out the basting thread, and clipping the fabric as needed at the curves. Turn at the basting line and then attach the top fabric to the base fabric using the applique stitch.

You will find that your stitching line will match almost exactly the traced line. Now take a large swatch of the second fabric and baste it to the base fabric as before.

The front will look like this.

After the basting is complete, trim this design as before - a scant 1/4 inch from the basting thread.

Note that the red fabric design is all one piece as will be the top blue design. Work carefully to keep the point.

The front side will look like this.

And the back will have the colored thread stitches sitting right on top of the initial tracing lines. EASY!

I was so excited that I decided to applique Block 41 as well.

41 Red, White, and Blue Quilt

The directions called for piecing the star and there were lots of "Y" seams. At this point, I thought the applique would be easier. I might try hand piecing this block later.

(LaNell, thank you for the star background fabric. I just had to use it for this block!)

This week, the second pattern and fabric for "Aunt Grace's Garden Party" quilt arrived. Have I told you how happy the fabric for this quilt makes me? I saw the flower baskets with the appliqued handle and it reminded me of Block 13 of Civil War Quilts.

13 Little Blue Basket

My block now has a little blue handle. I may also have to revisit Block 3, Seven Sisters and applique those 7 stars after all.

September Civil War Quilt Blocks

2011-10-17T11:20:00.005-07:00

38 Ohio Star

I picked up some more fat quarters while in Utah, the tone on tone brown and the tan. I visited American Quilting in Orem for the first time this visit. It will become a regular stop. I really enjoyed making this block.

39 Hovering Hawks

This block was a challenge. There was some picking out and starting over. I had to be really careful to repeatedly lay the components out so that the fabric designs all went the right way. All of these fabrics were already in my stash selected for this anniversary quilt.

Click on the block name to go to Barbara Brackman's Civil War Quilts blog to find the story and directions for each block in this year long series.

I've also been working on the first two October blocks. It involves applique. At least I'm making both blocks be about applique. I'll share soon.

The Iron Rod

2011-10-16T06:30:00.003-07:00

In the Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 8, Lehi relates in detail a dream that he has had to his family. The dream is full of symbolism. In the painting above the artist, Minerva Teichert, depicts part of the dream. "The great and spacious building" in the background represents the pride of the world and its worldly enticements. "The rod of iron" in the foreground represents the "word of God" and how holding on to the rod brings one peace and safety.

Minerva Teichert painted two slightly different versions of Lehi's Dream. In this version, Lehi's wife, Sariah, is once again pictured kneeling but her focus has changed to the muddied waters in front of the spacious building. The first time I viewed this version, I felt great emotion. As a mother I related deeply to Sariah who is on her knees, one hand on the rod while the other reaches out toward "the great and spacious building" which has claimed some of her own. I feel her mother's heart pleading for their safe return to the rod which will lead to great blessings.

Both versions are pictured side by side in this book, "The Book of Mormon Paintings of Minerva Teichert" by John W. Welch and Doris R. Dant. During one of my readings of the Book of Mormon I also turned to this book and its beautiful illustrations. It helped to personalize the many stories of The Book of Mormon.

Autumn flowers

2011-10-13T13:00:00.002-07:00

The first week of August I gathered up all the packets of sunflower seeds I could find and planted any remaining seeds in pots where geraniums had long since given up. I knew there were still many days of 1oo + degree days but thought I could try for some autumn type flowers anyway.

My ratio of flowers to seeds planted was low, but at least a few brave ones made it through two very hot months.

The butterflies and bees have been ecstatic.

I've just enough fall color to keep me happy.

Indeed, the sunflowers are making me very happy. One BIG one has yet to bloom. Can't wait to what it looks like.

I didn't plant this beauty from seed. Heather gave it to her grandpa several years ago in a gallon pot for his birthday. Once Glen re potted it into a bigger pot it has grown nicely. I count that color of orange as a bit of Fall as well.

I'm growing (sewing) yellow blooms inside as well. This is one of the first blocks for the "Aunt Grace's Garden Party Quilt" that I'm working on.

This is a block of the month quilt, but it really works out as a strip or row of the month. I am trying to get this row of ten flowers completed before the next directions arrive any day. And these are not the only flowers I have been working on. I've replanted the window box, some pots, and baskets in annuals this week. More importantly, I have all my heirloom tomatoes in the ground! Welcome to Fall (more like Spring) in Arizona.

Disappearing places from the past

2011-10-11T17:15:00.001-07:00

This post is not about our first home as a married couple. Our first summer was spent in a Love Carmella one bedroom apartment just around the corner from Glen's parents in Hawthorne, CA.

This post is about our second home as a married couple. We moved back to Provo to attend BYU at the end of our first summer. That hole in the ground is where we lived for over a year and where we brought home our first baby boy.

It was a bit of a shock to drive by while we were in Utah and realize that they had just demolished this place of so many good memories. Glen picked himself out a brick to keep as a souvenir.

Our former home wasn't the only house to go. This is where the house next door used to be and that pile of rubble in the background was the home of Hugh Nibley and his family.

Where the alien destroyer is standing was my garden plot. It was just a tiny square of land behind the garage but it overlooked the large family garden of the Nibleys and they inspired me to give a garden a try. While experiencing my first natural child birth that summer, I would go in my head to my garden and count the plants to help manage the pain. It sort of worked.

This is a picture of a picture that my daughter took and framed as a special gift for us. Dear Sister Swapp lived upstairs and rented out two apartments in the basement to girls. I lived there first with my friend Glenna. Then I became engaged to Glen and we convinced Sister Swapp to rent to us. Those were the good old days. Our monthly rent was $100 and included all utilities. From then on, she rented to couples.

She was so excited about baby Eric. She came out on that front porch to welcome us home from the hospital in our little dark blue VW bug. In the summer, all of the house plants (some very large) were moved out onto that porch. I loved sitting there and visiting with my elderly friend. Before baby, we were great temple going companions.

I was also Phyllis Nibley's visiting teacher and daughter, Martha's, YW leader. Hugh Nibley was such an interesting man. "Why buy new clothing? There is plenty of perfectly good clothing at the DI," he would say. I often watched him walk briskly by headed for campus while munching on a carrot.

We had three rooms and a large storage closet. We had an outside entrance just off the driveway by the porch. We entered into our combo kitchen and dining area which had a darling Hooiser cupboard like the one pictured above. The closet and living room opened through separate doors off the kitchen. The front basement window in the above picture was in our living room. There was another window in the living room on the north side. I loved seeing the light on in that window as I walked home from campus in the evening. It welcomed me home. Our bedroom door was on the west wall of the living room and the bathroom door was on the west wall of the bedroom. We could only hear the people in the back of the basement apartment from that bathroom. When Eric would cry, Glen would move his bassinet from the bedroom to the kitchen AND then close both doors. That would also make me cry.

We had to make some adjustments as the first couple. We dismantled the bunk bed and bought a king sized mattress at Hugh Nibley's favorite store. It filled the space but we still had walking room. There was an old fashioned dresser in the bedroom which later became a changing table for Eric.

I loved our little homey space. It took less than an hour to clean from top to bottom and it was our "home." I can't believe that it is really gone. I guess prime real estate right next to campus is pretty irresistible. The two houses on the corner to the south were empty and will probably be down by our next visit. It will be interesting to see what goes in. Time really does march on.

Rainy day with the Ranes family

2011-10-10T09:30:00.000-07:00

We drove from Utah to California and surprised Raymond

and his little brother, Henry, last Tuesday evening. We had come to town to take Raymond and his family to Disneyland for his birthday!

Apparently the weather man had not been made aware of our plans and he surprised us with a very rainy day. We made our first stop a souvenir shop where we purchased rain ponchos with the Disney logo and a Disneyland price tag. It was a wise move as it rained non-stop until about 4:30 in the afternoon. I didn't pull my camera out until we were under cover at what was supposed to be Jedi Knight training but became a meet and greet.

The Star Wars characters emerged from dry quarters and then lined up for personal conversation and picture taking. Did I mention that Raymond loves Star Wars (just like his uncles did/do) and that Star Tours and these moments were the highlights of his day?

Andrew is tall so Darth Vadar must be really tall or wearing elevator shoes.

See that button on Ray's shirt? I think that every Disneyland worker we came in contact with wished him a "Happy Birthday!" Gentleman that he is, he replied, "Thank you," every time.

Raymond wants to be a Jedi Knight when he grows up.

The carousal was also under cover.

Some rides were closed due to the rainy weather, but there was indeed a silver lining in those rain clouds. No lines! We basically walked on to every ride and we counted almost 20 rides experienced on the way home. Hate lines? Watch the weather, carry a rain poncho, and find some rubber boots.

This was about the time the rain finally stopped.

I took a picture of the rainbow that soon appeared, but unfortunately it doesn't show up.

We went to 'Toon Town to visit with Mickey Mouse at his house. Did you know that Disney characters stay inside during rainy weather? Not a fairy in sight. Good thing that this was a "boy" trip.

Mickey Mouse is a pretty short guy. Raymond is a very tall six year old, but they are still practically eye to eye.

The boys tried out Mickey's car.

Their mom snapped away. For more pictures of our day (she brought her waterproof camera) go here.

Grandpa took the grand sons on board.

They honked the horn and checked out the view.

Disneyland was all decked out for Halloween. The Haunted House was made over as "The Nightmare before Christmas."

Notice the blue skies and sun glinting off the castle in the distance as the sun goes down.

I loved all the orange and yellow. It made me almost want to go back at Christmas time to see the decor.

It was after six and time to head back to California Adventure, which wasn't decorated for Halloween.

But it did have a new Little Mermaid ride and cotton candy for the birthday boy.

We waited on the bridge for the music, light, and water show to begin in the lagoon.

It would be Mickey's grand finale for the day.

And it was pretty spectacular. This was one of my first and last shots. I knew my camera just couldn't do it justice. You will have to make a trip to California to see it for yourself.

Utah Mountain Autumn

2011-10-07T11:38:00.002-07:00

Last weekend Glen and I enjoyed a beautiful drive through the Utah Wasatch Mountains while we listened to General Conference talks. We only lost our signal once as we were near the top and drove past a cliff. We began our drive by going up Provo Canyon at the base of Mt. Timpanogos which still has vestiges of last year's snow.

We drove to Midway and then turned west past the golf course and headed up.

September was unusually warm making up for the late start to summer, so the aspens were still changing.

I loved the undulating color on this mountainside.

After reaching the highest point of the road, we found ourselves driving toward Cascade Springs.

It was a perfect day. The clouds were also beautiful.

We soon found ourselves gazing back at the road we had first traveled past Deer Creek Reservoir.

We realized that we were going to connect up with the Alpine Loop which is known for prime leaf peeping.

We found these beautiful leaves near the road.

Oranges . . .

Yellows . . .

and Reds . . .

Thanks Utah for a beautiful autumn trip. I always feel a need for an autumn color trip somewhere. The Utah mountains delivered.

Provo Tabernacle to become a temple

2011-10-01T11:42:00.003-07:00

This morning in General Conference in Salt Lake City, it was announced that the Provo Tabernacle which was heavily damaged by fire on Dec. 17th of last year will become a temple. The above is a rendering of how this temple will look upon completion. For more go here.

I blogged about the terrible fire and its aftermath here. This news today was perfect news. How appropriate to take the shell of the historic building that is left and making it into an even more Holy House of the Lord.

General Conference weekend

2011-09-29T17:48:00.000-07:00

What is General Conference? Read this article published in the Washington Post to find out.

I look forward to this special weekend which comes twice each year, the first weekend in April and October. The messages shared will help to shape the way I choose to live my life. They will buoy me up and give me hope. I can't wait!

Watch with glittering eyes

2011-09-28T12:18:00.002-07:00

I went on a long walk this morning. When I came home and checked for what was new on the computer, I came across this quote. I hope that I not only "watch with glittering eyes" but that I listen with sensitive, wide open ears (no ear buds) every time I walk in God's glorious world.

Forget Me Not

2011-09-27T09:05:00.004-07:00

Small, beautiful forget-me-not flowers took on a new meaning for me last Saturday evening. Elder Deiter Utchdorf gave a beautiful address specifically for women at the General Relief Society Meeting broadcast. The forget-me-not flower with its five petals prompted him to address five things which we should not forget in our lives. It was timely and gentle.

Please go here to read a summary of his talk. Go here to watch his address. It is worth your time.

Elder Utchdorf has led an amazing life. As I read this article, I became aware of his Arizona ties. Some how that made him even more personable.

Bread, butter, and more

2011-09-25T13:31:00.003-07:00

Women are so generous. We asked for donations of homemade bread.

Loaf after loaf of beautiful bread flowed into the stake center kitchen yesterday.

We provided the butter and honey, but the music and speakers of the General Relief Society Meeting Broadcast provided the true sweetness.

Our generous Relief Society sisters also provided homemade butters and jams which provided more flavor. Watching the women enjoying one an other's company added that extra something to this long planned for event. Thank you for donating these things made with your very hands and for joining with us for an evening of genuine sisterhood.

This week's fabrics

2011-09-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

I've been using these fabrics to make table toppers for a special yearly event to be held on Saturday.

The women who are members of my church from around the world will gather in their respective church buildings to listen by satellite to messages prepared just for them by church leaders. After they are spiritually fed, we will feed our local sisters (about 325) a simple bread and butter dinner partly in honor of the emphasis currently being placed on the History of Relief Society, thus the picture on the invitation of Emma Smith who was the first Relief Society president in 1842.

A book detailing the history of Relief Society was announced at the annual Relief Society Broadcast a year ago and was recently made available to all members. I am honored to be a part of this women's organization to which my great-great grandmothers, great-grandmothers, grandmothers, and mother all participated. I feel it has enriched the lives of generations.

The UPS man just dropped off this box and I am so excited. Once this busy week is over I can start my "Aunt Grace's Garden Party" quilt. It is a block of the month quilt (really row of the month so it looks like a garden) which I will receive a month at a time through next February. All those primary colors are making me feel a bit giddy!

Mornings are nice

2011-09-21T08:02:00.002-07:00

My garlic chives are blooming! So dainty, lacy, and beautiful.

The highs may still make the low 100's but the mornings have become delightful. Back to an open back door in the morning because it is cooler (and fresher) out than in. No more dreading stepping outside to water a plant or two or trimming things up a bit.

So if the mornings are 20 degrees cooler than they were a couple of weeks ago, what does that mean for a morning swim? I'm on my way out right now and I will grimace a bit when I first hit the water but then it is all pure refreshment.

Sadie's birthday dress

2011-09-20T07:05:00.001-07:00

This year I have been smocking and sewing birthday dresses for the granddaughters. Sadie's dress has it all; hand smocking, embroidery, and hand crochet trim. My inspiration for this dress came from Australian Smocking & Embroidery, Issue 93.

The fabric that I found at Sally's Fabric had roses rather than fuchsia blooms, but the coloring was similar to the dress in the magazine.

I embroidered little rose buds rather than fuchsia flowers on the contrasting bands.

I learned a new embroidery technique while working on the embroidered band.

It had shadow work bows where most of the thread ends up on the back of the work.

On the front, it gives added dimension to the white on white work.

I also sewed with entredeux trim for the first time which provided the basis for crocheting the trim.

The back of the dress also had a contrast band and closes with buttons and buttonholes.

The embroidery was a bit simpler on the back.

The hand smocking was simple and worked all in white.

I loved all the decorative touches of embroidery, smocking and crochet trim on a lovely old fashioned kind of dress.

Of course I needed to make a matching doll dress out of the left over fabric. I even have a tiny iron and ironing board for use when making the doll clothes.

The fabric had a very large print, so I fussy cut the doll dress. There was just enough left of the cotton sateen to fashion a little jacket.

The birthday girl and her doll. So sweet!

A weekend of grandkids

2011-09-19T12:32:00.004-07:00

I was a fortunate grandma this weekend. I got to see and interact with 8 of the 10 grandkids. How I miss the California boys!

Ruby invited me to "Grandparents Lunch" at her elementary school on Friday. I decided to pick up Subway sandwiches on the way instead of eating the "if it only looked like spaghetti" school lunch.

We enjoyed visiting with each other as well as the grandparents across the table from us who took this picture. Ruby and I headed to the book fair in the library after lunch. I always enjoy visiting elementary school libraries. After reviewing the book selection three times, Ruby picked out a book for herself as well as one for her sister.

Oscar came to spend the night on Friday. His dad was camping with the scouts and his mother is working part-time some nights at Sprouts again. Nichelle also came to spend the night after her shift. Who wants to go home to a dark and empty house? I insisted that Oscar help sweep the floor before he went home. Not really, he just likes to sweep the floor!

Saturday morning Grandpa Glen packed up his bubble machine and bubble juice and headed on over to the Ward Primary Activity Day. Since we live in Arizona and it is still 100 degrees most days, the activity involved water in pools, buckets, squirt guns, and on the slip and slide. The bubbles added to the ambiance. Grandpa Glen also learned that bubbles don't pop but stick to wet skin.

Heather, Julianna, and Toby heard about grandpa's Saturday plans and "ward hopped" over a couple of stakes to join in on this water fun. Since they go to church with us at times, they fit right in. Eric discovered that 3D bubble pictures are cool. I borrowed his picture from Facebook. I'm sorry that you are not viewing this picture on his phone like I did last night. It was pretty cool.

Sunday evening found the clan at Sadie's house celebrating her birthday.

Grandma Laurel finds it hard to believe that she is already a kindergartner.

Grandpa Glen brought birthday candles with flames which matched the color of the candle. If you look closely, you will see that this is true.

Sadie had lots of help blowing out her candles.

Grandpa Glen loves the birthday parties of his grandkids. He joins them at the table and feels justified in eating birthday cake and ice cream. He also enjoys the conversation.

It was pretty yummy cake and ice cream. The children, however, were the best part.

Mabel has become a confident walker this month. She is also the cutest little talker.

Oscar entertained us all with his interpretation of "the dancing baby." Julianna was his accompanist. TJ is trying to become a teenager and grandma doesn't think that she likes it one bit. TJ, you are supposed to be at the table eating ice cream and cake with the kids!

Civil War blocks, caught up again!

2011-09-16T08:21:00.004-07:00

32 Carolina Lily

After finishing the boys quilts, it was time to catch up on the Civil War Quilts blocks. Now I'm all caught up until tomorrow morning!

33 Indiana Puzzle

All of my setting in of little sleeves on little dresses helped me with the curved seam on this block.

34 Rosebud

The more little pieces to put together, the more my final size seems to be off. This one was a bit small. I hope I can make it work when I sash the blocks.

35 Star of the West

Wins for use of the most different fabrics!

36 Kentucky Crossroads

I'm getting better with using my stripped material.

37 Confederate Rose

I finally caught on that I can crop these pictures. It was hard to do on this one as I had not held the camera straight on. Perhaps my camera skills will improve with my piecing skills as I finish out these quilt blocks.

How I used to communicate

2011-09-15T11:16:00.002-07:00

Yes, children, I am still taking telephone calls. I'm sorry that I don't always initiate them. Sometimes it's hard to believe that the telephone and letters in the mail were the way to communicate.

And, here is another picture of your father at Iguazu Falls that I found on my sewing room bulletin board (the same one that holds old family photos.) He was seeing the world and I was talking on the phone. Thanks goodness for old photos to show us the lives we each led before meeting each other!

Iguazu Falls then and now

2011-09-13T07:40:00.007-07:00

I came across these pictures last week and thought I should share. Forty years ago Glen was serving a mission in the South American countries of Uruguay and Paraguay. While there he was able to visit Iguazu Falls with a group of other missionaries.

It was one of the highlights of his recreational time during those two years.

Most of his mission memories were captured on slides, so it was a treat to find these photos.

He always hoped to go again some day and take me with him.

So he was pretty excited when Nathan and his family were able to visit Iguazu Falls last May. Glen could tell that there had been many changes making it easier for everyone to visit. What had not changed was the natural wonder that is Iguazu Falls.

Remembering 9/11

2011-09-11T16:11:00.002-07:00

My sister, Lynette, bought the fabric in Denver so that we could each make and quilt a wall hanging as a remembrance of September 11, 2001. Lynette celebrates her birthday on September 10th. She expressed to me her gratitude that her birthday occurred the day before and not on 9/11.

Yesterday as I was cleaning wood floors I was lamenting to myself that they didn't look so new anymore. I clicked through the calendar of my mind to check how old that floor really was and as I went through the memorable events that keep that mind calendar in order, I stopped at 9/11. Yes, the wood floor was installed the summer before 9/11. That floor deserved to show some use. It was 10 years old!

Just like I can reflect on where and who I was during the Cuban Missile Crisis or when JFK was assassinated or his brother Bobby shot down in LA, I will always remember 9/11. In fact, it is probably the most memorable of my national memories, perhaps because I was an adult or more probably because it was horrific for so many and made us all feel so vulnerable.

The TV was on in my bedroom tuned to the Today Show as I prepared to leave that Tuesday for a brand new Augusta Ranch Elementary where I was the new librarian. I listened in horror as I dressed, combed my hair, and prepared to leave the house as the events in New York played out live. I remember driving the 12 miles or so east on the US 60 feeling so numb. Our numbers that day were lower as many parents elected to keep their children at home. I remember the drive home that afternoon without one jet in the sky heading for Sky Harbor. Here I was almost 2000 miles away and yet it was so hard to process mentally what had happened, what was happening.

Fridays at school were Spirit Days. Usually that meant wearing your Augusta Ranch t-shirt to school on Friday. After 9/11, it was announced that a special spirit day would be held the week and that we should wear red, white, and blue to show our support and respect for those affected by the current events. Unfortunately, that day was also a previously scheduled fire alarm practice (unknown to the students.) As I left the Library and headed outside to the playground, my first thought was, "These lines of students will look like targets for a terrorist." And then I saw something that made my heart turn and my eyes water.

Augusta Ranch Elementary was home to a very diverse population. The English language learning program was servicing students speaking 13 different languages. As I watched the students stream out from the building my eyes were drawn to two brothers of Middle Eastern descent. They were searching each other out and they were dressed head to toe in brand new red, white, and blue clothing. I could tell that their parents had made a special effort to show that they supported the United States of America. Tears flowed as I realized that these parents were trying to protect their sons from hate and prejudice. They had purchased new "armor" so that their sons might be protected in this new reality.

That will always be my most personal memory of that week 10 years ago. As a parent I could understand parental love and the need to protect one's own. My mother's heart wept for everyone.

Some like it hot

2011-09-09T19:02:00.002-07:00

When I went outside first thing this morning it felt almost, hum, dare I say, refreshing.

Would you believe me if I told you that the high barely got to 100 degrees and that there were clouds in the sky all day?

I even felt a little chill when I stepped into the pool for my morning lap swim. The water temperature was 80 degrees not bathtub warm.

Watch out sweet potato vines! Your time to thrive will soon be gone. Thanks, however, for liking it hot and bringing a certain lushness to our long, hot summer.

Quilts for the boys

2011-09-08T11:52:00.002-07:00

My daughter and her family are once again stateside after living on the island of St. Kitts in the West Indies. On St. Kitts the two boys shared a bed but now that they are in California their creative dad, Andrew, has built them an awesome bunk bed. (I don't usually use the word "awesome" but it just seems to fit in this case:)

Six years ago after retiring I started to make "I Spy Quilts" for the grandchildren. I managed to finish three and did the fussy cutting for some more. At that time I purchased this book by Marti Mitchell as well as a set of her templates. I loved the templates because I could view the fabric as I was fussy cutting from novelty fabric. I also made them "memory quilts" because I would cut two identical "pictures" to include so that they could find a match.

I always planned to make "I Spy" quilts for Henry and Raymond once they were back in the states and no longer in a tropical climate. Well the boys grew and grew, so the planned quilts grew, too, and became more twin bed size as I worked on them this summer. I had all the hexagons and triangles sewn together and wondered about colors for borders when, viola, problem solved! The above picture appeared on the Internet and aqua green or turquoise or whatever that paint color is called became my answer. I would not have thought of it on my own, but I think it worked out amazingly well.

This is Henry's quilt. I loved the multi-stripped fabric that I found. Not only did it have turquoise, but it also tied in the colors of the triangles and blocks.

The "H" and "G" are the only blocks that don't quite match. I had cut holes in that piece of fabric so many times so that each grandchild could have their first name initial X 2 that there was just no way to cut two of "H". I decided that maybe it was even preferable to have both of your name initials!

Raymond's quilt has gold color spattered triangles while Henry's quilt has green triangles with multi-colored circles. That is another reason way I was so thrilled to find the stripped fabric.

One of the things that I most enjoy about quilting is the color choices and the way a fabric color can change the look or make other fabrics sparkle. I love the color play.

I used common fabrics for the hexagons in each quilt, but I tried to make it so that each quilt had a different motif from that fabric. That way, they can "I Spy" on both quilts.

I decided to use fleece (really wanted minky but couldn't find it in the turquoise color or any other color that I really liked) for a backing. The walking foot on my machine did not do well with the fleece as I was machine quilting. I think that was part of my sewing machine woes. When I got the machine back from the shop, I just started quilting with the standard foot without thinking. It worked so much better!

I can't wait to see the quilts on their new beds and I hope that they always remember how much I love them and want to hug them every time they snuggle down to go to sleep! The quilts should be perfect for cooler weather.

Some weeks are more challenging

2011-09-07T07:40:00.009-07:00

This week has been a busy reminder of how life is when you are responsible for a growing family. It has also been a reminder of the rewards that come when one can view life through a child's lens of perspective.

The day before the commencement of parenting duties, I was running my sewing machine on high speed trying to finish a quilting project for other grandchildren. At about nine at night, there was a not so good noise and all tension was lost. It was a good reminder that all of us as well as our sewing machines need a little loving care once in a while. I packed the machine up for a trip to the "sewing machine hospital," as I explained it to Julianna.

The goal was to have this project finished (more to come later) before leaving for California for Labor Day weekend. Bernina Southwest is so good to their customers and they had my machine ready for me in a day. My Bernina and I have followed them around the East Valley over the years as they have followed the growth from location to location.

It became a week of missteps; hard to hear news from an adult child, sick sewing machine, a true misstep and tumble on unfamiliar stairs, actual spilled milk in my purse covering everything, several of the hottest August days ever (really, soccer practice at 114 degrees), and the cancellation of California plans due to the sickness of our hosts and my misstep's hurting knee.

Thank goodness for a loving sister who always steps in to help when you need her. She was already planning to cover the weekend with the grand kids, but went into action early as I iced the knee. By the weekend, we were splitting up the kids.

Julianna spent the weekend with Becky. TJ also stayed there part of the time.

Toby still got to spend the weekend with grandpa even if he didn't get his promised trip to California. Heather worked with grandma in her sewing room making a little stuffed doll and various other things. Heather loves my sewing room. AND grandpa found an aquarium at Arizona Mills to make up for not being near the beach.

This morning the parents are back from what I hope was a very relaxing trip and a little R & R.

This morning I am enjoying my own R & R.