More Trimming

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Tonight we trimmed the second tree in our front yard.  I can’t believe how many times we filled the back of the truck with tree limbs before we cleaned up all that mess!  We have definitely reduced the amount of raking we will have to do later this fall!

Thanksgiving

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Today is Thanksgiving Day in Canada.  We had our turkey dinner last night.  I like to have our turkey on the Sunday of Thanksgiving Weekend so that the kids do not have to worry about fighting traffic when they go to head home at the end of the evening.  Also, it is nice to have the holiday Monday to relax after the preparation of that big meal the day before.

We have had exceptionally good weather for quite some time.  Chilliwack has recorded the driest August in 82 years and the driest September in more than 133 years since the start of weather records in 1879.  In September we had just 6.6 mm of rain which all fell overnight on September 10 and 11.  The 30 year average for rainfall for August is 64.8 mm and for September is 112.7 mm.  The last day of significant rainfall for us was July 23.  Further temperature records that were broken were 31.8 degrees on September 8 and 30.5 degrees on September 17.
Because of the fantastic weather, we were able to enjoy our Thanksgiving dinner outside.  This will likely be our last picnic in the backyard for the season.

The weather forecast is supposed to continue through the week with a change in the wind for next weekend.  We have enjoyed this unusual run of dry weather.
Yesterday, while waiting for the turkey to cook, I put the last of the stitches in the binding of my fall rail fence quilt.  This quilt finished at 68″ x 86″.

Happy Thanksgiving fellow Canadians!

Some People Will Go to Great Lengths to Not Have to Rake Leaves!

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Some people will go to great lengths to not have to rake leaves!
Today, my husband decided that the Japanese Maple tree in the front yard had to be trimmed.  The leaves on this tree turn the most beautiful red in the fall of the year.

This is a picture of my husband trimming the branches.  I am sure that tree was crying as the branches fell to the ground!
This photo was taken  November 16, 2008 and shows the beautiful red leaves as they are falling to the ground.
This next picture was taken November 5, 2006.  This picture shows how large the tree had grown and how much of the yard was being overtaken by the tree.
This picture shows our house just after we moved in – November 1988.  You can see the tree to the left of the photo – just a bit bigger than a stick in the ground.  That is our son holding the shovel (ready to help Dad pull out the Spreading Junipers next to the drive way) and our daughter in the stroller.  In the lower right hand corner of the picture are my husband and our faithful German Shepherd cross–Marlo.  Boy, this picture takes me back!

And my favorite picture involving this tree was taken November 2, 2001.  This is my daughter and our German Shepherd–King.  Dana was raking leaves that year and raked them into a heart shape before filling up the bags with leaves.  The heart shape was not so evident in the picture but I remember how distinctive it looked from the front room window.  True love–a girl and her dog!

My husband tells me that the tree will forgive us for the severe pruning and it will recover.  ……I sure hope so!

Why I Make Quilts

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While enjoying my coffee this morning, I came across this video on the Internet:
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This got me thinking about the question that I am often asked by others, “Do you sell your quilts?”  I then started looking at other bloggers’ posts regarding this subject.  I came across this post from another blogger:
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The author was discussing the selling of quilts.  Usually when the subject of selling a quilt comes up in a conversation, the person asking me if I sell my quilts doesn’t have the faintest idea how much the materials to make a quilt cost, let alone the value of my time and skill in making a one of kind quilt.  Once you educate the person as to what the materials to make a quilt cost, the next comment you usually get is, “Wow, you should sell your quilts!”  Remember, this comment is coming from the same person that had no idea what a quilt was worth and quite likely was not prepared to give me what a quilt is worth let alone enough to cover the cost of the materials to make the quilt.  What makes this person think that someone else would give me the kind of money that they aren’t prepared to give me?  So you see, I can totally agree with the author of the article, “I would rather give a quilt away than sell it for a price that offends me.”
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I then came across another post:
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This blog writer has calculated the cost of a quilt–up to $19,260.  Now obviously no one will pay you that kind of money for one of your quilts.  Does this mean that the quilts we make as quilters do not have worth?  On the contrary.  The author states that, “We who quilt all have worth. When we are motivated by showing love, concern and comfort to others, what does it cost? Our talents are gifts and we make treasures. Made with love and consideration…. OUR QUILTS ARE PRICELESS!! Not enough money in the entire world can buy a quilt of THAT kind. QUILTERS DO HAVE WORTH!”
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So why do I quilt?  It obviously isn’t for the money because I am not selling my quilts.  I quilt for the pleasure and relaxation it brings me personally and the opportunity to explore and develop my creative side, but also for those special moments when my quilts can touch and impact the lives of others that I love and care for.  This year, my brother-in-law was diagnosed with inoperable cancer on June 27.  He was given 2 weeks to a couple of months to live.  When I heard the news, I immediately went to my stack of finished quilts and with the assistance of my husband, we picked out a quilt that we tought would be suitable for sharing with my brother-in-law.  After delivering the quilt to my brother-in-law, I received this e-mail from my sister-in-law:

Rick wants to say ‘Thank You’ for the quilt. His exact words were, “That was nice of her to do.” It hasn’t left the couch since you gave it to him but he did have to fold it down for a while because he was actually warm, and that hasn’t happened in a long time.

It is words like this that bring tears to my eyes and remind me of why I truly continue to make quilts.  I make quilts to touch lives.

Rick passed away September 2, 2012. Rest in peace, Rick.  You were loved and will be missed.

Made with love

And blessed with prayer

Especially for you

From someone who cares. 

Butterfly Trails – Finished Flimsy

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This photo was taken of the daisies in our yard.  I don’t have much time for a flower garden but I love flowers.  These daisies are perfect–perennial and low maintenance.  They keep coming back year after year, despite my neglect!

This weekend is a long weekend in most provinces in Canada.  Monday is BC Day here in British Columbia. I used one of my annual leave days from work and made it an extra long weekend–4 days.  That extra day proved to be a very productive day.  I finished this quilt to a flimsy.  Today, I will be loading it on the long arm and I will start the quilting.  The colouring in the photo is off–it looks blue, but it is really purple.

This is a close up of the blocks. 

This quilt is called Butterfly Trails from Terry Atkinson’s book, Time Out Quilts. This quilt is lap size–finishing at 63″ x 77″. I love Terry’s quilt sizing. So many patterns say they are lap size but they are really no bigger than something that would cover your legs if you were sitting down. Terry’s quilt sizing is generous–when Terry says lap size, you know you will have something you can cover up with when you are having a nap on the couch with enough quilt to wrap generously around your feet.