I'd like to say I'm going to try and do one quilt top a month and complete ALL 12 quilts by year's end. That means piecing the backing, basting it, quilting, binding and possibly giving :)

I've definitely got the majority of my finished quilts from the Holidays loaded on the PC. Now I just need to share them with you!.....well maybe after I sew a bit more.

Also once I get the go ahead I have another pattern to review from Betz White that I know you guys are going to find really fun.

Stars & Banners Quilt: Crystal's Quilt

Almost exactly a year ago I started work on this pattern: Minick & Simpson's Stars and Banners

I didn't know it at the time, but this pattern was created for the Quilts of Valor group and is no longer in print or at least I can no longer find a place where you can buy it.

Ironically I intended this quilt to go to my brother Aaron, who some of you may recall serves on the Army Reserve and was deployed to Iraq for a full year.  When I found the pattern I never knew that it was made for Quilts of Valor but it's so very fitting for him and his family.

So it began as something I thought I could finish within a few months, nevermind that I was, at the time, almost 2 months pregnant.

By the time I took this picture it was March.

But I "pressed" on.

And eventually I had all the stars pieced and pressed and laid them out.

But after April things had to be put on hold.  We had a nursery to finish, two rooms to fabricate in the basement and my ever expanding belly was starting to hinder me both mentally and physically.  So the quilt was put on hold and packed away.

Fast forward to November.  With a new baby waiting off to the sides and sometimes sitting on my lap to sew I dug out the quilt and sewed on the the top bunting.

Amid the jumble of still packed boxes of fabric and general sewing chaos in my new sewing room I had a quilt.

And it was awesome.

 I pieced my backing and basted the whole thing all in one day. It was now December.

But a quilt isn't a quilt until it's well, quilted and bound.

And then I washed,dried, and gently folded it up.  It was ready to give.

I didn't get a chance to get a "cool, stylish" shot of the finished quilt before I gave it away.  It was, afterall, Christmas Eve when I finished it, but my youngest sister Sarah managed to take this snap at its unveiling.

I have a goal to make a quilt for every single person in my family.

It's ambitious, yes, but quilts are something you give to those you love the most.

Still Out and About

I promise you that I'm still around these parts :)

Though I haven't been posting I have been sewing up a mean storm of quilts, the last of which is about to be given away this January.

I know I've promised pictures of the whole lot of them and everything that's been happening, but for now Instagram snaps will have to suffice till I get practically 100+ pictures uploaded, sorted and eventually blogged about.

Fiona's new Christmas stocking made using a Lil' Twister template.

A baby quilt for a friend whose having their first boy!

And of course a fun shot of Miss Fi who is now 4 months old, good grief and here I thought I wouldn't make it to January.

See you in the New Year with some fun goals and better pictures!

Turkey, Holidays and Learning to Sleep

Can you believe Thanksgiving is in 3 days over here in the States?

 (OMG!)

Halloween was awful around our area because of the Superstorm, but we managed to have a good turn out for Trick-o-Treat night and I did a mini-shoot with Fiona just to be festive.

It makes me wonder if there will be a Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade because of Superstorm Sandy.  It also makes me think about all those people who lost everything in the storm and I wish I could give even more.

Reminds me that there is alot to be thankful for and grateful for this year.  Here's a small list:

- being able to donate

- getting 4-5 hrs of sleep at night now!

- that the election season is FINALLY OVER

- the ability to bake

- learning to quilt on my home sewing machine

- feeling like my old "pre-baby" self

- going back to yoga

- being able to go to my family's Thanksgiving this year to see everyone

- having common sense to know when to slow down now

- and a very loving husband

I do have pictures of my sister Rachel's baby quilt.  Chris needs to re-route my old cutout that I had in my sewing table so it fits my new machine properly and so I can glide and slide the fabric thru the machine.  I need to have this done rather urgently because I know it's going to take me a while to quilt that one AND the patriotic quilt (Stars and Stripes quilt ) for my sister-in-law Crystal.  Yes! She is getting it for a present this year :)

I feel so "pro" being able to get these gifts done, mostly thanks to Fiona for learning to nap longer and for Chris watching her in the evenings.

Have a good Monday everyone!

A Bit of This

I hear tell that most babies will sleep 5 hour stretches at night. 

I've deemed this poopycock, a myth, and something that is totally not on Fiona's agenda.

Except when she's next to Dad.

But what's really sad is that because I've had so little sleep over the past few months (I will only drive somewhere if I know I'll have a nap before I need to go out it's that bad sometimes) I have to keep Tumus closed for the 2012 Holiday season.

There have been ALOT of additional changes to Etsy since I've been on maternity leave (Direct Checkout, Gift Cards, new Browsing feature, Category Elimination from the Front Page...to name a few) and some of the changes baffle me.  I'm not sure how I would've been found this Holiday with all the new search and browsing changes they've implemented.  Hopefully by the time I return the worst of the kinks will be worked out.

This makes me contemplate the possibility of designing a website for e-commerce and moving in a new direction that is less dependent on Etsy.  Of course that means more work on my part and better time management...something which is impossible for the time being.

I have been busy, in the meantime, helping out with pattern testing and putting in an hour or two on Christmas present quilts and I will eventually get my camera down there to show you exactly what they look like before they're finished ^_~

So for now here's hoping I manage to snag a solid 3 hours of sleep so I can start enjoying these squishy cheeks a bit more.

It's More Than Just Big Bird

It baffled me when I watched the Presidential Debate on Wednesday night to actually hear Mitt Romney say, "Sorry Jim, but I'm going to cut funding to all PBS stations." right to Jim Lehr's face.  

 Sure Romney's been threatening to do this for a while and I'm an avid listener to my local public radio/NPR station, but funding for public broadcasting isn't about keeping the "hippies & liberals" happy. and it's certainly not one of those services that isn't used. 

 I grew up listening to alot of radio, mostly the local Christian station and they used to run all sorts of interesting and insightful programs.  It wasn't just music ALL THE TIME like most radio is these days.

Now that I'm older I've taken a very fond liking to WYSO for much the same reasons, the strong, insightful, well-rounded programing.  Chris might think I'm old fashioned for listening to as much radio as I do and probably finds it "hippy-ish", but I look forward to hearing certain shows each week (This American Life, Wait-Wait-Don't Tell Me, The Dear Green Place - for Celtic Music (locally produced), Alpha Rhythms (locally produced), Fresh Air to name a few).  I try to support this kind of service because doing so means I can help keep it around for others who might not be able to donate like I can.  And that means more people are given the opportunity to learn and discover.

In an age where so much radio and TV is just bland, one sided and boring, public broadcasting keeps the creative spark alive. 

If my local PBS station had to rely solely on donations I might lose great shows like Sherlock Holmes, Downton Abbey, Masterpiece Theater, Austin City Limits, Antiques Roadshow, and the BBC News Hour.  Heck even NOVA is still around and that program is still interesting. 

I won't make this a politcal post so I'll just leave this here for your consideration.  

(via theDailyWh.at)

This is Life

And it's tiring and hilarious all at the same time.  That crappy pic was taken from my phone and for some reason she was pooping up a storm.  It was pure luck that I caught her pointing back at me.  She's going be an onery one I just know it.

I have been doing some sewing as crazy as that may be but it's nice and at times a good way to give my tired brain a break for an hour.  So far Fi likes to hang out in her swing and watch me cut and sew when we manage to get down to the new sewing room.  She's starting to coo over the colors which is pretty darn cute and she's already been to my two favorite quilt stores where she's a mini-celebrity.

(I'm almost finished with that quilt above, it's made using a fun quick pattern called Jellyroll 1600)

Old women are funny, but I think the oldest women give the best advice.  It's usually advice that the modern world as all but forgotten.  It's common sense mixed with centuries of intuition and there's alot to be learned from that and it's nice that they still remember enough of it to pass it on.