The First....

Daffodil this spring!

Or Jonquil if you're from the south and that's what your Grandmother called them.  :)

My violets are blooming again too...

And I saw my first Robin of the spring yesterday and today I saw Forsythia blooming!  We're supposed to have a short cold snap next week but I think Spring is really here.  :)  I'm doing a happy dance!  Spring makes me want to pull out my bright green fabrics, and pretty pinks and sunny yellows - and tomorrow I'm going to do just that!

Lookin' For Suggestions

The last few months my mother was living she was able to do a little stitching by hand.  I cut out squares and she sewed them together into four patches.  Her stitching wasn't good because she often forgot what to do next while she was in the middle of the stitch and would simply sit and look at the needle for a while until it came back to her what she needed to do.  Then she would slowly take another stitch.  After she died I put the last few squares together into this quilt top..

I've shown this quilt before so it may look familiar to some of you.  I call it A Garden Quilt.

I love the fabric but don't have a clue what it is and don't have any more at all.  I cut up every bit of what I had for the squares.
I put a wide white border around it with plans to add something to the border...either some applique or embroidery.  But it's hung in my sewing room for several years now and despite taking it out and looking at it multiple times, nothing is coming to me.  The colors are bright and spring-like.  The flowers are petunias.  I'd love to hear some suggestions for that border.

I'm also wondering if someone knows the name of this pattern.  This is an antique top I found at a flea market last year.

It's hand appliqued and I think the white background is muslin.  Isn't it gorgeous!

Small Things

Sometimes when I'm in the mood to stitch but don't want to tackle anything big I make a few small things instead.  Like this mini purse for my Kindle.

Is that hard to see?  I wanted to "stage" it in the sunshine as it slants across my bed in the mornings but we all know my photography skills are non-existent.  Even if you can't see the purse isn't the sunshine wonderful after these past days of gray and gloom?  :)

I have a small wall hanging like this one and it's one of my favorites so I made another for a friend.

More staging ya'll.  It's not working for me....get thee over thyself Marlene!

I made this bag before Christmas, loved it so much that I gave it away to a dear friend.  Do ya'll ever do that?  It just looked more like her than me.

But I kept thinking about that bag and I had more fabric and we don't live in the same town or country even so I just made another one for myself!

Now this one looks more like me - a bit slouchy and soft, a little oversized, vocal about my faith.

I also made a few new lavender sachets for my dresser drawers but they're already in the drawers and if you think I'm taking a picture of them you are mistaken.  While they aren't completely a mess they aren't as neat and tidy as a magazine and that's what it would take to get me to show them.  :)

I need a few more small things to do - got any ideas for me?

Have You Seen This?

Doesn't mean much to me...does it to you?  Or it didn't until I read this post at Reverent Irreverence.  Go read it.  Please.

I'm doing a study right now that was written by Beth Moore and is called "Seeking A Heart Like His."  I think these men have achieved that goal.

Tuxedo Cat

I found this pattern in a magazine several years ago and I'm sorry to say I don't remember which one.  At the time I had a cat named Jackson who has since departed this earth but at the time most of these silhouettes reminded me so much of him that I couldn't wait to make the quilt.  Oddly enough the one silhouette that doesn't look like Jackson (who was a Maine Coon) is Tuxedo Cat in the very middle.  The background is made of several different cream on cream fabrics though it's hard to tell here.  All the cats are in black and there's only the one splash of red in the tie.  I put a little bling on the tie - a couple of clear, sparkly crystals.  I was thinking of Jackson today.  He was such a bother - his hair was long and thick and he shed terribly.  He only wanted to sit in my lap when he wanted to and never when I wanted him to.  He used the litter box like a good cat but he scratched the litter out onto the floor all around the box.  He was left at the city dump where he was found and rescued by a friend of mine.  When she brought him to me he was covered with fleas and ticks and was wild and angry.  I took him to the vet and got him cleaned up and got his shots and when I brought him home he hid under the bed for days and days, only coming out at night.  We didn't lay eyes on him for weeks!  Eventually though, as is the norm with cats, he "owned" the house and us or so he thought and he lived with us for 12 years.  We don't have any pets now but every once in a while I think I catch a glimpse of Jackson out of the corner of my eye.  I don't give much credence to that, knowing that it's just a shadow or a bit of light.  Except today when I found a little tuft of Jackson hair.  He died three years ago.  Hmmmmm.

One Thousand Blessings - Day 21

676.  Medical folks - especially those that work with children
677.  Seeing a sick child start to get better
678.  Snow
679.  People who clear away the snow  :)
680.  Birds sitting at my feeder
681.  Mothers who make courageous, but hard, decisions for their children
682.  Small gas heaters in bathrooms
683.  The internet
684.  Homegrown vegetables
685.  Broccoli Cheese Soup on a cold day
686.  Praying over a child
687.  Being able to buy a size smaller slacks that you used to
688.  Soft, warm pajamas
689.  Crock Pots
690.  Pictures of my parents
691.  Church day care centers
692.  Thank you notes
693.  Books that make you think, and the ones that don't
694.  Those that make sure Bibles are in hotel rooms
695.  Krusteaz fat free muffin mix
696.  Friends who make me laugh
697.  Friends who cry with me
698.  Recipe cards written by my father-in-law
699.  My daughter's dog, Zuri
700.  The first green shoots of the daffodils
701.  Deep purple violets on my windowsill
702.  Really good lemonade
703.  Those that serve the homeless
704.  Those that put  flowers on their loved ones graves
705.  Preachers
706.  The woman at Starbucks who is always cheerful and welcoming
707.  Dry cleaning services
708.  Icicles hanging from the roof  reflecting the sunlight in a million colors
709.  Business cards when I want to save a phone number
710.  Thermometers that tell me the temperature outdoors and indoors at the same time
711.  Voice mail
712.  Senior citizen day at Kroger
713.  "Green" bags that are so much easier to carry than plastic ones
714.  Our knitting ministry at church
715.  People who work in Hospice