Quilting Time Vacation

In July I went to Wichita to spend 3 weeks with my sister, Karen.  We had so many plans for sewing and quilting.  But first we babysat with her grandchildren for most of a week.  Emily & Ryan were working on getting a house ready to move into so we watched Flora.  She was 7 month old and just learning to crawl and stand up and move around things.  She was so fun and warmed up to me pretty well but there is nobody like Grandma.

After that we kept Dianne & Derick's two kiddos.  Braedan & Kinsley came on a Thursday, spent the night with us and stayed all day on Friday.  Braedan was so funny when we went to their house. When we arrived, he came on a run to us but ran right past Grandma Karen to me with a huge hug.  What a sweet boy.  The decided that since I was staying at Grandma's house for 3 weeks maybe he should stay with her 3 weeks also.  I love you but you are too busy for me for that long.  Kinsley, at 10 1/2 months old, is walking (running) everywhere already.  It was a fun time with the kids.

Finally we had time to sew.  I had fabric and pattern for a paper pieced project and Karen wanted to learn to do that technique.  We worked on it and got the quilt top completely put together. I now have the back ready and just need to get down to Mom's to quilt it.  I'd like to have it done by the time I take Mom and her sisters to Manhattan for their Sister's Week in October.  Better get busy, Rose.












  I was already working on a hand pieced applique of a camping scene and did get it finished while I was there. 

Then on to my third project, Larua's baby quilt.  I finally came up with a plan and Karen helped me to make it come to life much easier than it could have.  We went to school and cut out the alphabet letters from the fabric with the fusible web on the back with the cutter that they do letters for their bulletin boards.  We also cut out letters for the names on the backs of her grandbaby big girl bed quilts.  I fused the letters then machine appliqued them, & put the top together.  When I got home I machine quilted it on the long arm machine.  I am so excited to give it to her  The baby is due mid September.

It sounds like this was selfish time and all we did was projects for me.  Karen did not have as much sewing to do as I did but she had more 'getting ready' things.  After cutting out the letters, she assembled the quilt backs for Kinsley's & Flora's big girl bed quilts and appliqued their names on them.  We also got another quilt back ready to take to the farm to quilt.  That was for the 3 quilts she wanted to quilt on Mom's long arm machine when she went to the farm for the Summer Family Gathering.  We put a quilt on the big frames and pinned it so she could hand quilt it in a lap hoop.  After that quilt was removed from the frame, we put in Liz's graduation quilt to be hand quilted in the large frames.  That quilt is so big that it took up a huge part of the basement with barely room to get past it to go to the other end of the room.

We also changed a light fixture in the basement so that we had more light to work by.  I am scared of electrical projects but Karen is not.  I helped but actually she did all the hard parts.  I did the holding and handing of tools.  We also took a good look at the basement to figure out what she would like to do to make it more waterproof and repair any water damage.  Then she wants to removed the big room in the basement into a family room and kids play room that can be used for her large quilting frames also.  We had a lot of fun going out to eat and going to fabric shops collecting Row by Row patterns. 

I had a fun time at Karen's home and always feel comfortable and at home there.  I also was able to bring her home with me for another 2 weeks.  What a fun quilting vacation.


Rose