Blocks - Both Old and New

Grown don't mean nothing to a mother. A child is a child. They get bigger, older, but grown? What's that suppose to mean? In my heart it don't mean a thing.

~Toni Morrison, Beloved, 1987

It's so hard to be miles and miles away from family.  Yesterday I found out that my DD#1 and her two young sons were in a car accident.  Nobody was injured but her car received a lot of damage.  It's a terrible feeling when you can't go and give your daughter a hug.  Or you can't give your grandsons a great big kiss.  Megan has a lot of stiffness and some bruising in her back.  The grandsons were safely tucked into their car seats and came through with not so much as a scratch.  In fact, they got to go sit up in the great big fire truck and wear the head phones while mom talked to the police officer - how cool for them.  I don't care how old your daughter or sons is, they will always be your child.  Being a mother doesn't end when they move out as adults, even if it's to another state.  The constant worry you had when they were small has diminished some but you still want to be there when something happens - good or bad.  Your children are still your babies no matter how old they get!

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PHOTO FACT OF THE DAY

May is ALS Awareness Month.  ALS stands for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and is commonly called Lou  Gehrig's Disease.  ALS is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord.  Based on U.S. population studies, a little over 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS each year. (That's 15 new cases a day.) It is estimated that as many as 30,000 Americans have the disease at any given time.  Most people who develop ALS are between the ages of 40 and 70, with an average age of 55 at the time of diagnosis. However, cases of the disease do occur in persons in their twenties and thirties.  There are several research studies – past and present – investigating possible risk factors that may be associated with ALS. More work is needed to conclusively determine what genetics and/or environment factors contribute to developing ALS. It is known, however, that military veterans, particularly those deployed during the Gulf War, are approximately twice as likely to develop ALS.  Half of all people affected with ALS live at least three or more years after diagnosis. Twenty percent live five years or more; up to ten percent will live more than ten years.  As some of you may know, I was diagnosed with ALS in 2001.  I am one of the lucky 10%!  If you should have any questions concerning ALS, please do not hesitate to ask either through a comment or by email.  Or you can click on the big red A on my sidebar.  I'm NOT looking for sympathy - so please don't tell me how sorry you are -  I just wanted you to be aware that May is ALS month.

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ANOTHER BEE BLOCK

Yesterday I made another block for one of the May hostesses of Let's Bee Together (we have two groups)...

Mollie sent some beautiful fabric to work with but the pieces were a bit small (3 pieces of 9 X 11 - half of a fat quarter) so it was difficult to find a block pattern that would work.  I used a block called Antique Tile but altered it just a bit so it would work with the fabric available.  I like how it turned out and hope Mollie does too.

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UFO FOUND - NOW A WIP

The other day when I was rearranging shelves I found this bag.....

What did it contain?  It contained some blocks, some bags and a few computer printed pictures.  Looking through I discovered it was a Thimbleberries BOM from 2005!  It's called Americana and was purchased from Quilters Quarter ( a company I think is no longer in business).  I vaguely remember working on it.  I also remember getting quite discouraged.

This is what the quilt will look like once I get everything made up. I had previously made up 12 of the blocks......

 

I think Weasley has found his favorite block - lol!  I think I know why I quit working on it.  Looking at the seams, these were obviously made before I bought my 1/4" foot for my sewing machine.  A lot of the seams measure 3/8" while others measure the correct 1/4".  No wonder I got frustrated if the blocks weren't coming out to the correct size.  I did do a fairly good job with matching seams and making nice points though.   I don't think there's a uniform size block in the whole bunch.  I really like the colors and the design of the blocks.  So today I decided I will start working on this quilt again.  Even if it's just one block a day or one block a week.  Heck, if I've waited this long I don't think I need to be in a rush to finish it.  It will be interesting to see what happens when I try assembling the entire top.  I may have to do some fudging here and there. I made a block yesterday.....

This block is called Spinner.  At first I tried sewing the seams a little larger than I normally would.  Do you know how hard it is to make the seams larger than 1/4" when you now always make 1/4" seams?  It was very frustrating so I just gave up and made the seams the right size.  I did have to substitute out the light blue fabric as the first cut I made was 1/8" off and there wasn't enough fabric to make two more blocks.  Oh well, the colors were almost identical to the original piece.  Only 13 more blocks and the center flag to make!!

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TODAY'S GOAL

Today I will make two more Americana blocks.  And hopefully have time to work on the Birdie Stitches BOM.

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GIVEAWAYS

Quilter In The Gap is having a giveaway.  You could win the book Modern Basics by Amy Ellis and 10-1/2yd cuts of Sunkissed and 5/8 yd to use for the binding to make the 1,2,3 quilt in the book.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, May 10, at midnight.

Hawthorne Threads is having their weekly giveaway.  This week you could win a Dena Fishbein Kumari Garden fat quarter bundle in Morning.  The winner will be selected on May 11. 

I Have A Notion is having a giveaway.  Kelly is giving away a Beam and Read Light.  She will announce the winner on Sunday, May 8.

Green Fairy Quilts is having a giveaway.  Judi is giving away a fat quarter bundle of "Trick or Treat" by Doodlebug Design Inc for Riley Blake Designs.  The winner will be announced on Monday night, May 9.

Red Pepper Quilts is having a sponsored giveaway.  Canton Village Quilt Works is giving away a half yard bundle of Robert Kaufman Kona Solid quilting cottons in a range of lovely Spring colors to one lucky reader.  This giveaway ends Saturday, May 7, at 2:00 pm EDT.

A Latte Quilts is having a giveaway.  Paula is giving away four different kits to four lucky winners.  This giveaway ends tonight at midnight CST.

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FINAL THOUGHT

Sunday is Mother's Day.  Do you have big plans?  Will you be celebrating with your Mother or with family?  We will be having my mother and sister over for dinner on Sunday.  Probably barbecue of some sort but beyond that I'm not sure what will be on the menu.  My DD#2 and her husband will not be coming up since they were just here two weeks ago and will be returning in two weeks for my birthday.  Actually, that was my choice - having them here for my b-day instead of this Sunday.  I will honor my mother as I should by allowing her to do absolutely nothing while she is here.  It will be a time for her to stay out of the kitchen, away from the cooking chores and the clean up.  A day to celebrate her.  After all, she has been a mother for 55 years and at 83 years old I think she deserves a day of rest.  And to all of you mothers out there....HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!