I bought this pattern when Ambrosina was little. I figured: little girl-dolls-doll clothes. Not my little girl with five brothers! This in no way expresses any disappointment in her, she has always been a joy. Anyway, it dates back to when there was a Sprouse-Reitz on Vashon Island over by Beck's Market. A long time ago. Anybody familiar with Vashon will know, anybody else, that was a lifetime ago.
In a mood of hopeful optimism I cut them out when our only grand daughter was born, she however preferred cars like her daddy our oldest boy David, so I never got around to sewing them. Now however, I am going to get all this stuff caught up, I have two large tubs to go. Happily there are several quilts in the tubs so I won't go into withdrawal.

This one is next.

Barbie sized. This pattern is newer, although I cut it out about the same time. I've always wanted to make Renaissance costumes, and this is probably about the closest I will get. I'll probably get done about the time the boys go back to school. Then I go back to quilting and work on UFOs only a short time during the day.

It's been too cold to sew in the evenings down here. Fifteen below with the wind chill 40 below. We have wind chill warning, nobody is supposed to go out unless it's an emergency and try to leave that to the professionals. Meeting was canceled, but I probably would have gone anyway when it's this cold. My fibromyalgia really plays up when it's this cold.

So, although I am not doing anything world shaking I am finding it enjoyable. They say a change is as good as a rest, I don't see myself slowing down any time soon. How boring would that be?

Hexagon Lozenges. Finally finished. My last quilt of the year number 32. It is big, about 86" x 100". It didn't seem like it was that big when I was putting it together, but it sure did while I was quilting it!

Some of these blocks on the back are really old, 30+ years. They were left over from when I was making a sampler quilt and I was glad to use them up. The yellow and white one was given to me before David and I were married. It's about time it was used.

This is the next one in planning. Phillip loves cats and he has outgrown the quilt I made him when he was little.

You can see how tall he is in this picture. He was dressed as Rabshakah in the drama they put on of Hezekiah. Leon was Senakarib.(I know the spellings are all wrong) It was very interesting and fun.

Samuel as Hezekiah and Malachi as the Israelite fugitive, he also played the avenging angel that struck down the 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. A good time was had by all.

I had to come downstairs early today. The upstairs is a mess and I could hardly breathe. Then they turned the power off to work on the wiring and I couldn't sew. The temperature is ten below and that doesn't count the wind chill. That means it's really cold down here so I had to turn the heater on which makes it cost more money. I'll be glad when the house is back to normal.

 This is what it looks like.

And this is what the view is from my sewing corner. I needed thread out of that cabinet in the far corner, I decided to wait. The power is still out and I don't know when they will be done so they can turn it back on. Oh well, it will be done by the end of the week, everybody has to go back to work on Tuesday. To be sure, Leon will want his TV back long before that!

David said the other day he wishes he could build me a studio to work in. I told him I didn't want one, I would rather work around the rest of the family, it is so much fun watching this great group of people I live with.

Power is back on, I think I'll go up and sit at my sewing machine, there is a heater vent in my sewing corner and it helps thaw me out.

I had intended to bind the orange hexagon quilt this morning, however, I was so close to finishing this top that I just kept going until it was done. I will bind it either tomorrow afternoon or Monday morning. This is the only commercial pattern I have ever bought, I wanted to learn the technique, it was a good pattern for that. It's called "Joy" by Jaqueline de Jonge.It will be basted and quilted in the next batch I do, sometime after the beginning of the year. The next paper pieced quilt I will design myself. I already have several in mind, but not for a couple of weeks. Some zip lock baggies of UFOs are sitting under the sewing table waiting for attention.

With the orange hexagon quilt the total is 32 quilts for the year. I still have at least 6 tops that are over 20 years old. A lot more that are current, I don't know how many. I am pretty sure that I won't be able to do so many next year, I am pretty well burned out for the year. Pleased that I got so many done, I am still going to take it slower next year.

Here is a corner section nearly done. Not a really good picture, the light down here in the basement isn't very good. I'll do the last pinning this afternoon. This project is nearly done!

I finished the quilting on the hexagon quilt that is under the needle upstairs.

Tomorrow I bind and get a picture if it isn't too cold. There are no more basted so until payday when I can get some batting I will work on piecing backs. If I get those done before then I have some UFOs that I can work on. No shortage there. I haven't decided the next major project for upstairs on the Viking. Maybe cat quilts. All three of the boys love cats and I have seen some really cute paper pieced quilt blocks featuring cats. No shortage of ideas there either!

Leon suggested that we sell the car and rely on them for rides when we want to go somewhere. I don't like that idea, I would hate to lose what independence we do have, it's not a lot, but it's some. Ambrosina would always be in a hurry when she took me somewhere and not want to stop if I saw a rummage sale. She definitely wouldn't want to go to antique shops to look at old sewing machines, much less bring any home. If I bought something she didn't think I needed I would have to feel her disapproval all the way home. It's a difficult decision, the car is on it's last legs and we can't afford another one. I hate this getting old thing.

Oh well, it does beat the alternative.

Happy modeling the center of the current project. I am very pleased with the way this project is going. The name of the pattern is "Joy" by Jaqueline de Jonge. This is the only pattern I have ever bought. I choose this one because it was on sale and I wanted to learn the process before I started designing my own. It is fun, fun, fun! I have so many ideas that I don't know which one to start on next. The fabrics are those plaid flannels and homespuns that I bought in a bag at a thrift store a few months ago. There are not many left but I am thinking of piecing cats out of what is left. We will see.

Speaking of cats, this is one of the blocks that is on the current quilting project.

 And elephants.

And little furry animals, and a little bee.

It's fun to be quilting along and rediscover some of the fabrics in it.

I am still piecing along with my hexagons. Yesterday I felt the urge to do some hand quilting, I don't know how long it will last, but if it persists I may hand quilt the next hexagon top. That's another thing I can leave for the future to decided, there is no hurry.

I hear from the noise our little boys (and I don't know why I keep calling them little) are home, time to go up and say hello.

Leon has the next two weeks off of work, they are doing a diy project. That means lots of noise and dust! The cats don't like it and I don't much either.

 They don't often come onto the quilt at the same time but the living room was too noisy and everything was covered in plastic. And dust.

In fact I had to come downstairs early because I was getting sick from the dust, so, not much sewing done.

 Some more of the hexagon blocks I am quilting on. Tweety Bird. So funny

Watermelons, strawberries and cherries.

Ambrosina had a dress out of this lavender fabric when she was a teenager. She looked adorable.

Losing a days sewing isn't that big a deal, I guess. I can always work down here on Ernestine the treadle, if it were warm enough that is. And there is always the gift of hand sewing. Speaking of which--time I got busy.

Center is done. Not a really good picture, it's a little difficult at that angle. I'm satisfied. That's more than I can say for my assistant.

She drove me crazy this morning. I quit sewing a little early this morning so I could come down here and make a lap for her. Of course, she decided she wanted to do something else.

The next quilt is on the sewing table now. This one is going to take me a while, especially if I keep getting so much help. It's big. It also has some of my favorite fabrics in it. I enjoyed piecing it and I think I will enjoy quilting it, although I didn't get much done this morning.

Chickens. The one in the middle is goldfish but they are hard to see.

Fussy cut animal faces.

Musical signatures, and these are just a few. I used up all my scrap solid oranges too.

David just came in from his walk complaining of chest pains, a trip to the hospital may be in order, we don't need any more heart attacks.

I really love this quilt! Kentucky Chain. I pieced the top when Timothy, who was born in 1984, was a baby. Scrap quilt all the way. The zig zag at the bottom was totally accidental. All these years it's been looked at and unpacked and repacked I never noticed that I got the some of the blocks rotated the wrong way and the "chain" wasn't straight across the quilt. One of the fabrics was leftovers from a quilted jacked I made when Ambrosina was a baby. Another was a maternity dress I made when I was expecting Timothy. Still another was leftovers from a dress Nancy, David's sister, made when she was a girl. That's going back a long way, she was older than David. I am very happy with the way it turned out.

The back is a Ralph Lauren sheet that I picked up at a thrift shop. Wonderful fabric. I wouldn't even know where to go to buy one new, but I really know about thrift stores!

This is a closer up picture of it when I was finishing up the quilting this morning. It was a bit bright outside when I took the pictures and the back shows darker than it actually is.

This makes 31 quilts finished this year, I think, I have lost count. Of them all this one is the oldest. I still didn't get them all caught up, but I made a good try. This next year I will not set my sights so high. This game of catch up might not be possible to win and I got pretty tired.

For this afternoon's work I have to remove papers from the back of these blocks:

I got the center of it done this morning, I forgot to take a picture. Tomorrow for that. I am taking it slow to get it right the first time.

There is a Hairy Woodpecker on the suet block outside the bedroom window. I can't see it without standing up but I am going to hang a mirror up there so I will be able to see the birds' reflections. The window is so small and the wall is so thick that I only get about an inch sliver of it so I can't really see anything, the mirror should fix that.

That's it for today, a good working morning. Any day that I finish a quilt is a good day!

Our Ben's turtle quilt webbed. So it's half done yippie! Looking good, I do love this pattern. Since Ben is getting so big I will also put borders on it.

This is the latest hexagon quilt. Probably about half done. I figure it's about half done. I like it so far.

Today was my monthly class, I didn't get as much done as I usually do but I did finish quilting my red and black quilt. Tomorrow I will bind it and get a picture.

I got a little bit done on this today. Not a lot of time to spend on it, but a little bit of time here and there on a project eventually gets it done.

Tomorrow will be a better work day, I hope. We are supposed to get snow, no surprise this time of year. The car was running hot on my way to class and leaked fluids after I got there so the problem isn't fixed. I am wondering about the water pump, it sort of acts like it. Sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. We will see. Did the same thing on the way home. I guess I'll be relying on Ambrosina to run me places for a while. I don't have too many errands, certainly no money to go shopping. So I guess I can be grateful that it doesn't complicate life too much.

And that was what class was about today, being grateful as a part of self care. Interesting idea. Applying it should be interesting too.

So I am glad I choose yellow to set these blocks together with. I got off to a slow start with them this morning, I couldn't seem to get organized, therefore I didn't get much done on them. Tomorrow will be better, I will know what I am doing by then.

I love the way this black and red quilt is coming together. I think I will be able to finish the quilting tomorrow. That is a sheet there on the back. An expensive one, although I got it at a thrift shop. It is quilting up like a dream. Surprisingly the back looks really good with the front, even though it seems like the pink flowers should clash with the red. Anyway I like it. I am not sure what I am going to bind it in. The top was made so long ago that I don't have any of the fabrics left to use. I have the rest of the day to figure it out. Maybe tomorrow too, I am not sure how long the quilting will take to finish.

Meanwhile it's cold and David has his winter doldrums. He doesn't get enough exercise and sleeps way to much so he doesn't feel good. Then that makes him depressed and crabby, which makes him feel worse. It's the same every winter. It's an excellent chance to work on my quality of patience, something I always need. Ambrosina has got herself a treadmill. I am going to politely suggest to David that he might want to use it, then if necessary get firm about it. She has already suggested it to him which makes it more likely that he will, since he will do just about anything she asks. I should be so lucky. There again the chance to be patient.

Almost halfway on grandson Ben's turtle top. Picture tomorrow. This is the fourth turtle quilt with two left to go. So far I am not bored with them. I wish patience with people came as easy as patience with sewing!

Yesterday was my shopping day. Ambrosina and I went to Joann's and I got this yellow to put my pp blocks together with. I had originally been planning on using a plaid or a "homespun" and either I didn't like what was there, or, it didn't look right with these beautiful plaids and homespuns I had already used. After I tried a few I wandered around looking for a while and this yellow caught my eye. When I auditioned it, it was perfect. Wonder of wonders it was on sale! I am still not ready to put the top together, I have a few more strips to piece, that will come soon.

It was a day for yellows. I am planning a blue and yellow quilt but I didn't have enough variety. I still want some more, but that was all the money I dared spend. It doesn't hurt to work on being patient and I will wait until next month to get some more. I told David I would share most of my fabrics with him but he wasn't getting any of the half yard cuts I bought, he would have to get his own. He didn't seem to have any problem with that.

We got a bit more snow last night with more to come over the next couple of days. I am glad I won't have to go anywhere the next few days. I got the dentist and shopping over with yesterday so the rest of the week will be slow and steady at the machines and down here on the handwork. Life seems pretty good to me today, there is a steaming cup of coffee here too! "Who could ask for anything more?"

I think that of all the quilts I have had under the needle this year this is the one that makes me the happiest to finally be working on. This top is BJ, before John. Ambrosina remembers me making the top, but just barely, she thinks Timothy was a baby. The red with the large print was from a quilted jacket I made when she was a baby. I loved that jacket, but I out grew it, it's hard to believe I was ever a size 12.

As usual I got way too much help. That black fabric with the blue and lavender flowers (in he squares) I made a maternity dress out of when I was pregnant with Timothy. He was born in 1984.

And she just kept right on helping, all morning.

I did manage to get a new zipper put in a skirt for a friend; it didn't take long. I won't make much money on it, but every little bit helps I guess.

David worked on the car and it's back in service, but only God knows for sure how long, He hasn't told us, we just have to wait and see.

It's cold and we are supposed to get snow at any minute. Only 4 more months until spring. I shouldn't start counting this early in winter, but I can't seem to help myself. I keep telling myself I can live through another winter, after all the only other alternative I have is a lot more unpleasant!

Quilt 29 one of my Pinwheel series. This one took a lot longer than usual because I marked it before I quilted it. Definitely I will have to have the special foot and rulers for the machine before I quilt this pattern again, anyway it is done and I am glad, my marking pens were almost dry before I was done and the marks were getting hard to see.

I like the way it looks on the back too. I used a sheet for this one also. Some people don't think highly of using sheets for backings but I see no problem. This is a utility quilt and meant to be used. I think a sheet will be durable and I didn't have to piece the back which meant a little faster.

Next year I won't set my sights so high. The goal of finishing all my UFOs isn't going to be reached, I had no idea I had so many! The burn out level was reached and I have been a lot slower for the last month. It's not that I didn't enjoy what I was doing, just that I got so tired. I am down to two Rubbermaid tubs of UFOs, but that doesn't include unquilted tops. I've lost count of those, except there is one full tub and another partial, as well as two quilts basted that I haven't quilted yet. I don't know if those will be completed before the end of the year but I hope to start one of them tomorrow.

After I put a zipper in a skirt for friend, I offered to look at her grand daughter's sewing machine because she couldn't get it to work right. Very simple tension problem coupled with a broken plastic bobbin. She brought the skirt to be repaired and I will get a little money to go towards our trip next summer.

I have possibly sold the kiln and potter's wheel and molds but I'm not holding my breath until I see the money in my hot little hand. If it is sold, that money will go towards our trip also.

The van blew a radiator hose so we are temporarily without transport. David can fix it when he feels a little better, so it's no big deal, just pretty cold outside to be working on cars. He has my sympathy, but I am glad it's not me!