Hey everyone. I know, it's been almost 2 months since I've been here, I'm sorry about that. I didn't intend to be gone so long, it's been a busy summer.
You all know I got a new nephew in June that was born 8 weeks early. I've been helping my sister anytime she needs help, which was a lot in the beginning. She's getting used to things now, so my help isn't needed nearly as much. But I'm still at her house about once a week, which is a lot less than the 3-4 times a week that I was over there when they first came home. Greyson is doing great :) He's a healthy little boy that is now over 8 pounds. He still doesn't have that chubby look that new babies have, but he's definitely a cutey. He got our grandpa's big ears - I hope he grows into them soon. He got off his lung/heart monitor a couple of weeks ago. He only had one true alarm after they brought him home, so after being on it for 4 weeks (I think), the doctors decided it was time for him to be off it. This makes things much easier for my sister.
We also got fleas this summer. We've had animals since the first month we moved in together over 15 years ago, and this is the first time we've ever had fleas. I blame the fact that I'm still jobless and we let Pips' flea regime lag a bit this summer. It was a stupid thing to let slide, as now we have to spend the money to get rid of the things. Flea treatments and flea shampoo isn't cheap. So, this week, I'll be buying all the goodies and all the cats get a flee shampoo - I'm sure they'll just love it - NOT!
I have been getting some things done in the quilting/stitching front. Unfortunately, I don't know where DH put the camera cord, so I can't share pictures right now. I will post some as soon as he tells me where he put it.
I managed to get Kendrick's Big Boy Quilt finished this summer. I machine quilted it (first time for me). I can't say as I enjoy machine quilting - I had to force myself to sit down at the machine each day and do at least one line of stitching before I'd let myself do anything else. It eventually got finished - but I realize now that I am a hand quilter, through and through. I decided this quilt needed machine quilting, though, as it's going to a 2 year old - and it'll be through the washer/dryer more times than I care to imagine. At least it'll last a bit longer this way. I just need to get the label sewn on the back and get it delivered before any more time passes...
I also started work on a new project. I've designed a new layout for the Delft Tile Quilt that calls for 388 applique blocks - so I spent some time this summer getting all the muslin blocks cut out. I'm slowly cutting out the green fabrics that I will be appliqueing the muslin to. As well as getting the designs traced onto the muslin. I haven't actually started the applique yet, but it's getting there.
I also pulled out my tiny hexagon quilt. The quilt isn't tiny, the hexagons are. It's still at the stage where it's a good travel project, so I've been taking it with my when I go out and about this summer. Everywhere I go, I get people telling me I'm crazy for making it. But I love it and I'm sure I'll be working on it for a long time yet.
I also started Teresa Wentzler's Unicorn this past week. I had all the supplies kitted already, as well as having the fabric gridded. All I needed were working copies of the pattern and I was good to go. It's been going pretty quickly so far, but then again, I've been able to work on it about 8 hours a day for a week now. I guess anything would move fairly quickly with that much time put into it.
Ok, I think I'll wrap things up for this post. I promise pictures next time.
This next shot is one of my other nephew Kendrick at Thanksgiving this year. He is 2 1/2 years old and this is the first time he had seen Rudolph and he was enthralled :) Oh, and those socks? Kendrick's absolute favorite thing that day. He insisted that he wear them all day - and they had to be OUTSIDE his pants, so he could see them, of course!
This last shot I took last night. I had to include it as it is just so cute. The men in my life, sacked out and snoring together. DH doesn't know I took this picture, and Felix was so tired, he didn't even turn his head at the flash. I think it is just waaaay too cute.
This last pic is Teresa Wentzler's Unicorn. I'm at the half-way point on it and decided it was time to snap a picture - blurry though it is. I'm leaving the unicorn for last, as an incentive to finish the design. I have a tendency to put things down and move on to other projects, you know. I'm now working on the upper right-hand side of the pattern, where the house is. I'm hoping that the greens in the lower right-hand section won't feel as tedious if they are closer to the end of the project. We'll see how that logic works out.
As you can see, it will be a nice large quilt. Here is a close-up shot of the fabrics I'm using in the border.
I added this picture so you could see the scale of the piece. The scissors are Ginghers with the large finger holes. Everytime I show this project to someone new they call me crazy. You don't think I'm crazy, do you?
Here's what it looks like next to my chair in the living room right now. The basket holds everything nice and tidy. I'm using a pencil case to hold all the loose hexagons. The freezer paper forms go into the Altoids tin when I pull them out. That just leaves my pincushion, thimble and thread. It's a very portable project.
I'm working the quilt in rows right now. I've got the design I'm following all drawn out on graph paper, and it's basically just follow the chart to get the pattern to work out. It's very mindless, relaxing work, which is just the thing sometimes.
