a missive

 

this is absolutely true!  i confess have hardly picked up a needle in the past six weeks....only after my heart surgery did i abandon sewing for this long.  this recent time was a different kind of heart surgery without a fix...still busy wrapping up mom's affairs, copying pictures for siblings, catching up on exercise and rest.  the hot weather is here for a day or two and will be inside with a/c running.  

i've also been decluttering....looking around apartment with new eyes, er rather my daughter's eyes, to see what can go and how to maximize space.  getting rid of stuff doesn't do anything to fill the grand canyon-size void in my life these days, tho.  just trying to keep occupied and create a new normal for my life.  

and the chookshed challenge for april?  a total bust....so back on the list go the dargate baskets appliques...sigh

in the hoop

 

finally got my sew along cats basted and in the hoop--quilting has begun!  the deadline is may so shouldn't be a problem to get it done.   then i'll be putting it up for sale...enjoyed the challenge but not something i'd keep for myself.

my mom had done a cross-stitch sampler, finished and framed--sort of.  i took it out of the frame and brought it home to make into a wall quilt.  she finished it, but again, wasn't overly fond of all those x's....found them boring...LOL!

knitting was really her thing.  she made me several things, and her favorite things to knit were complicated patterns.  but i am happy to have this....

spring today but summer all next week it appears, temps in the mid to high 80s....summer clothes all ready and popsicles in freezer!  

hello crewel world

eons ago gave my mom this crewel kit, but apparently it wasn't her cup of tea and never got finished.  hardly even started, in fact.  so this very ancient UFO came home with me and will get finished at some point.  

it's a lovely classic kit from elsa williams needlework....raise your hand if you recognize that name from the past!  turns out i liked it more than she did.   

in my early online quilting life i was in a swap with a woman named kay aycock aka cozy kitten from texas.  we swapped 30s tulips blocks, signature blocks, and at the time i included one block from my mom that she signed, telling her she would always be with me that way.  

the fabrics were given to me by dear friend marianne....she offered "scraps" but what she sent was a large box of a huge collection of 30s fabrics, all brand new.  i made four quilts from that box and still have a few bits left.  

and after cleaning out mom's place, i came home with a new and stronger resolve to declutter my own.  already 3 bags are ready for the thrift.  i am offering this book and CD to my blog followers for FREE for postage only if you please.  i've made some blocks and would be happy to send those along also if you desire.  EQ is required to print out the remaining foundation patterns, but some i printed are inside the book.  

slowly getting back to normal here, helped along by exercise and getting good sleep.  trying to stay busy to squelch the loneliness of not chatting with mom every day.  i dreamt about her last night and she told me nobody comes to visit anymore...not sure what that means....but it is true.  

small start

sunday took a tiny foray back into sewing, cutting up more blues for my album quilt blocks....

a pitiful effort but a start nonetheless...hoping more will be prepped today along with the muslin background pieces.  

getting closer to my usual routine with the larder stocked and plans to restart gym visits..laundry next!  first griefshare meeting was difficult but supportive.  in reflective moments, so thankful to a merciful God who answered two of mom's long-term prayers and spared her a long period of suffering--prompts me to extend that same mercy to others.  and among her belongings was a photo i had never seen....

no info on the back, but guessing she was 16 or 18 maybe?  being an only child meant  formal portraits were taken of her at various times, precious reminders of her classic beauty.  her hair remained blonde until her last breath, a genetic gift from scandinavian ancestry no doubt.  *** among her keepsakes were a few letters her mother wrote in early 1929 when she was ill...we read them with astonishment at getting to meet our maternal grandmother through her newsy correspondence to family and tidbits about our mom when she was a toddler....priceless!  she died shortly after when my mother was age 2.  our gratitude was overflowing that God granted my mother, a motherless child, so many years with us her children--a true gift indeed.

a new normal

while in maine, all plans for sewing progress were abandoned but a bit of stitchery did get accomplished....

one of those projects that gets attention now and then....for a finish whenever.  now that back home in MD, it'll get set aside again while adjusting to a new kind of life.  

said goodbyes to my now smaller family with a lobster roll lunch, hugged and kissed with a new ferocity now that we start life without our touchstone and anchor and with fragility of life's reality.  i have already signed up with bereavement support, hoping for guidance on how to live without my mom.  would not wish her back, and having her for almost 75 years was a huge blessing never taken for granted.  woke up in my own bed feeling isolated, alone, adrift, frozen, and still quite devastated at such a huge loss.  unpacking and groceries need to be done, but i just want to curl up with quilts over me and pray for some magic wand to make it all go away....

I praise You, loving God, that no valley is deeper than Your love.

softly and tenderly...

Jesus came calling and took the hand of my cherished mother, leading her home.  She was 97 and although a known eventuality, the heart wasn't ready, still unwanted and heartbreaking.   You may have seen an earlier post when her birthday was celebrated, before the diagnosis, before the shock, before the dread.  

We little knew this morning, the Lord would call your name.
In life we loved you dearly and in death we do the same.
It broke our hearts to lose you, you did not go alone,
for part of us went with you, the day God called you home.
You left us precious memories, your love is still our guide.
And though we cannot see you, you're always at our side.
Our family chain is broken and nothing seems the same,
but as God calls us one by one, the chain will link again.

Author Unknown

quick update - not quilty

arrived in maine just before the humongous april snowstorm to be with my mom.  she is on hospice care now and it's a watch and wait time.  i feel privileged to care for her as my last final gift.  miracles have happened in just a few days with loved ones reunited and estrangements melted away.  have my return to MD ticket but not sure when i'll be leaving Maine.  our strong faith is an ever present main mast but still heartbreaking and sadness beyond comprehension.  God spoiled us four children by keeping her with us for just over 97 years...though we never took her for granted.  as she continues her work of leaving, we cling to each other for strength.  may God be merciful....

lucky #9

 

deana selected challenge #9 for april....so what's that on my list?

the dargate baskets UFO...it's my desire to get all these blocks appliqued this year to at least have a flimsy by 2025....i'm taking this along on my maine visit so i know some progress will be made at least.  a few of my other challenges are less time consuming, so hope i can sneak this challenge in other months.  

awakened this morning by lightning and thunderstorm....i love them!  meteorological conflicts are sooo interesting.  

not much sewing on anything lately...family situations and that horrific bridge collapse  have left me preoccupied plus getting the apartment ready for time away--clean fridge, laundry, all those prep tasks.

had easter lunch with a friend--yummy lamb chops and cheesecake!  she gave me this....thanks easter bunny!

because he lives...

 I can face tomorrow, today, and all the days He gives me....alleleuia!

a blessed easter to all!

Liberty bling

Meet up with dear daughter to collect the prezzies she brought me from the motherland, us being British nationalists and all.  

Just the bag made me squeal!  And what was inside??

delicate pastel-ish prints as only Liberty can do.   definitely a new project in my future...think i will call it ' liberty spring'.  And what else?....

a yummy biscuit tin filled with that classic shortbread...

royal orange marmalade....in case paddington comes for tea......

a lovely reusable bag.....

The scary layover in lisbon will always be remembered....such a pretty magnet.  all these are lovely but having her home safe and sound?  priceless...oh, and the lady on the plane to Lisbon who facilitated information for her?  name was Angelique...no surprise there!

No real sewing this week with continuing family stuff taking precedence...but off to maine in a few and plenty of handwork on board.  i hear there is a 3-day storm brewing with more of that very impermanent spring snow...cuddle-duds on!