Busy Weekend

I opened my package from Nancy Saturday morning and fell in love. Too bad it was the day for the youngest grandson's birthday and I have to go shopping for the party. I thought I'd get to play after the party, but the oldest grandson and his best friend butted heads on the slip and slide at the beginning of the party. Grandson only ended up scared and with a great big goose egg on his forehead. Unfortunately, the other one ended up with 9 stitches in his forehead. We had brought him with us, so off to the Emergency Room we head. I broke more traffic laws yesterday than I have in my whole life. My son and grandson were hysterical. The parents were on their way to a wedding and we had to turn them around to meet us at the emergency room. Both boys are fine, so we are lucky. By the time we got done at the ER, went back to the party to sing Happy Birthday and eat cake, I was exhausted when we got in and went to bed early.

Hubby was out of town visiting with his mom for Mother's Day, so I was only me, my son, Scott and the oldest grandson, Dayton home today. DD Ashley came home for a bit this afternoon to visit, but went back to her boyfriend's for a Mother's Day Luau.. So I got to play today. Here is my progress....



















What do you think? What color should I use for the outside border? I moved the border with the name from the bottom of the original design to the top. Thought it kinda looked like clouds in the sky and belonged there more that the bottom. There will be a 1" pink border and the side panel is a mottled pinky/purple with blue and pink stars. Opinions please before I start cutting into more fabric.

My best Mother's Day gift came from my sister. This was one of our mother's most prized possessions.... Her cookbook. It is full of her favorite recipes and still has all the clippings stuffed in it she had in there for years.


















Nancy, did you ever see the last page in the book? I either had not, or it was so long ago I had forgotten. It made me cry and lifted my spirits at the same time. Thank you for this precious gift.
Happy Mother's Day, Mama. I love you and miss you.

A Senior A Last

Last night was Ring Night at the Princess' school. The seniors left yesterday morning after picking up their caps and gowns and the Juniors/now reigning Seniors got their class rings. The program was nice, the kids looked great and were SOOOOO excited. Hubby and I went out to eat afterwards with the boyfriend and his parents. All in all a great night, even though I missed American Idol last night. I really think the school should have done better planning.

I have worked on some quilty things, just no pictures yet. I'll be home alone this weekend, so should be able to get some sewing done and pictures posted. I worked Saturday cleaning my sewing/spare bedroom. I can actually get to the desk I sew on. I cleaned up about 50 quilt magazines, keeping the patterns that interested me, and trashing the rest. I have 4 binders with the patterns in sheet protectors. One has Children's/Baby quilt patterns, one Lap sized and wall hanging, one has bed sized quilts (of course, separated by twin, double, queen and king!) and one for miscellaneous instructional materials including quilting motifs.

I got the last of the HST sewn into squares for the borders on the last quilt posted and have 1/2 of the trimmed and ready to construct the last 40 blocks. I was going to just put on the black paisley border, but think I am going to add a narrow solid black to transition to it.

I am now a proud member of the Quilting 4 Pleasure ring. I thought long and hard about reestablishing my membership in the Stash Quilts ring, but to be honest, I really don't have a stash. I rarely make scrap quilts. I am too anal for that. I really like order in my life so "matchy" quilts please me. And I quilt for my pleasure, and mostly in colors that please me, so the Quilting 4 Pleasure ring seemed to fit me better. I'll still be visiting with many of those special ladies as many of them are on my bloglines.

I received my package from my sister today. I have not allowed myself to open it yet. That will be my joy on Saturday morning when I get ready to begin Bailey's quilt. Only one more day to wait.

Dinner time. Gonna try to finish a run around the ring after dinner.

Progress Report

Okay, this it the long promised picture of the redwork wall hanging Nancy and I purchased and began the last time Dad was in the hospital last year. We took over the reception desk in the ICU waiting room and traced the pattern. Then we sat in the waiting room and stitched. Mine in red, and Nancy's in coral. Don't know if she has finished hers yet, but decided to go ahead and post mine. The wording in the background is difficult to see and read in the picture, but it says, "Some things have to be believed to be seen." It seemed fitting at that difficult time in our lives and gave each of us comfort and companionship as we worked on them. They of course have our individual stamps, not only in coloring, but mine is done in a stem stitch, where, Nancy chose to use a back stitch, so they look similar, but very different, just as we are.

This is the progress I made on this project last week. I got the right side second border on. In addition to that I got all but 20 of the pairs of squares stitched and cut apart for the HST to complete the last 40 blocks for the top and bottom. I hope to get some work done on this one over the weekend, but as Nancy spoke in her blog this weekend I have a special project I am going to be working on, at least the planning...

One of the guys my husband works with has a new 6 year old daughter. She is his niece and both parents are in prison. She has been placed in their care, the the probability of adoption in a year. I decided she needed a quilt of her own in her new home. So Nancy is doing her name in wonky letters for me in girly colors so her name will be on her quilt. I am piecing 12 - 5 1/2 in framed 4 patches in girly colors. It will have a 1 inch border surrounding it, then there will be a wide border down the left side with balloons appliqued (OH NO, THE "A" WORD!) with narrow rickrack "strings". Then the bottom border will be Nancy's wonky letters spelling her name. Finally, an outer border. I can see the completed project in my mind's eye, or maybe it is in my heart, and it is a little girl's dream. I cannot wait to complete it and send it to her. Gotta' get to work pulling fabrics, so I can see my vision brought to life..... Will check back in soon.

I'm Back

I have been in a blue funk for the last few months. I have not even thought about pulling out the sewing machine. I, however have participated in the Shop Hop in March and April and in March fell in love with this Block of the Month at Homestead Hearth call Windy Day. I enrolled in my first ever Block of the Month program. I decided I could MAYBE manage to get one block a month done without feeling overwhelmed by an entire project all at one time like this one... I have "drawn" the lines on the last 86 squares to sew to the red and green squares and cut apart. Then I can finish this top.

This is the block of the month I will be working on. Nancy, I'm counting on you to harass me for pictures of my progress monthly!!!! I would try to direct you to the picture on the website, but the BOM is sold out, so is no longer featured on the site.

These are the fabric for the center square. the ones on the left are the center pinwheel, the ones on the right are the small pinwheels around it. I LOVE these colors.

Gotta go... back to the sewing machine.

Apologies to Mama, New Year's Resolutions

I hate the telephone! I spend so much time with one stuck to the side of my head at work, I DO NOT pick one up at home. We went totally cellular about 4 years ago, and I only have to answer mine, and everyone knows I hate the phone, so the only time it rings is when it's work or a kid. Occasionally, my older brother, John.

Mama knew that if she wanted to talk to me, she had to call me. The only time I called her was to get a recipe (how do you make cornbread dressing - right in the middle of a delivery!!!) We had wonderful visits on the phone. Precious times, but ALWAYS initiated by Mama.

Now that I am the Mama, and experiencing empty nest syndrome, I have to say, "Mama, I am so sorry I didn't call." You see, my baby is no longer a baby and no longer needs her mother to hold her hand daily. I know this is part of life, but there is an empty place in my heart waiting for her to refill it. It is days like today, I loved to walk in Mama's back door and tell her "mother me". I hope that as she grows and matures, she and I will become the great friends Mama and I did as adults.

So, if it is not too late in the year, I resolve to pick up the phone and call my siblings, just to chat. No itineraries, no favors to ask, just a call for the sheer pleasure of hearing their voices. Nancy, I love communicating via our blogs, private and public, but it is not the same as the phone. When you get ready to change your cell number, post on our private site so I can save it for calls. Expect to hear from me this weekend - I may need a friendly voice after completing our part of preparations for the pageant next week!

I am taking my wholecloth with me and the calendar pattern with me next week. Got to have something to keep my hands and mind busy during the times I cannot participate and just have to hurry up and wait. So hopefully by next weekend I will have quilty pictures and pageant pictures (maybe even a new crown) to post.

This is the crown we are going after. This is the current queen the night she was crowned last year. Wish us luck. I may not get to post again until after the pageant. I will have the laptop and camera with me next weekend, so who knows I may post from the hotel between events.

Bed time now. I have to go the that place tomorrow. Gotta make the bacon.

Help

I decided to play with my template. I haven't touched it since I updated Blogger and when I updated to template to start playing, I have lost my Stash Quilts link. How do I get it back?

Not much quilty going on here, although I am still working on a 18x18 inch Wholecloth wall hanging. Currently watching the Saints game. Not looking good right now for Super Bowl. Hope things turn around. Sorry, Bears fans, it really is our turn. But, really, may the best team win.


We are 10 days from Queen of Queens. Told the princess, she either had to come home every night this week to get ready, or she could give up her weekend next weekend - oh no, not TWO weekends in a row without the boyfriend - to get ready. I will really be glad when this one is over. This is what her "Queen Cards" look like. I'm not wild about the border, but this is what she designed this time. These are her business cards that she swaps with other queens when she travels. We choose not to have her demographic information printed on the fronts - she also uses them with friends. So I purchase clear address labels, and print her address, phone numbers and email address on them. We only stick them on the ones she uses for the queens. I also had an 11"x14" print made of this picture - no borders or wording - to frame and hand in her room. We will also use it on her scrapbook table next year when she gives up her crown.

This pageant has really been an eye-opener for me. I have had to scrap and beg for any information about what we needed to do, what our financial responsibilities were, etc. She is representing the Lions Club, but we have all the financial responsibility other than the cost of her hotel room for 3 days - but we have to pay for that and get reimbursed. We do ALL the work trying to get THEM a Queen of Queens and they even wanted us to pay for the tickets to watch her compete at $50 each! Her director has answers for nothing. I have to say we were warned the night she won her crown by the previous queen. But if I were the director, I would have all the answers the queen and her mom needed. If I didn't, I'd be getting the answers. I have lost a lot of respect for her director. Guess I am having pre-pageant nerves. Ashley is cool as a cucumber!

Gotta get back to laundry. I anyone can help me fix my page, please comment or email me.

Thanks, ladies.

I'm Still Here

I really do still exist. I have even picked up a needle lately. I finished the redwork pattern I was working on, except for adding on the borders and quilting it. I was not in the mood to get the sewing machine out this weekend, so I moved on. Nancy gave me a calendar pattern at Daddy's funeral she had bought for me which is a combination of embroidered squares and patchwork setting blocks. The only muslin I had on hand was white, so I spent last Thursday coffee dying it. I then cut out my 6x8 inch blocks and have traced the 12 patterns ready to embroider. But then I had to go buy a small embroidery hoop, because the only two I had we 6 and 8 inches 0 much too large.

I have been fascinated with the look of whole cloth quilts for a few months. I found a free pattern for a 18" block on the internet. I cut it out and traced it about 10 pm Friday night. I have got the center quilted, and am in the process of drawing the "rays" in the inner and outer areas to stitch. I can't wait to finish this one.

I would post pictures of the works in process, but the princess has BOTH digital cameras. I probably won't see her until the weekend, so will post pictures when I can.

It is going to be a busy month. The princess is 30 days from competing in the "Queen of Queen's" Pageant. I have to get the zipper replaced in her pageant gown (I DO NOT do alterations and refuse to do zippers. I usually insert by hand, I hate doing zippers so badly!), we need to find the perfect interview suit, make appointment for hair and make up for Friday interview, Saturday morning evening gown prelims and Saturday night finals. The challenge will be finding someone to do hair Saturday morning early. Makeup is possible - we have a great relationship with the local Merle Norman store - they have come in and opened the store on Sunday to do her makeup for pageants before - but to find a salon to come in at the crack of dawn to do "pageant" hair will be a challenge. I will start working on that Friday when I am off. Any great hairdressers out there in Baton Rouge, LA??????

Well, I have to go back to work. Am at home, kicked back in the lounge chair, but have about 3 more hours of work to get payroll ready for tomorrow's deadline.

UFO No More!

I got to sew this weekend. I finished the Log Cabin Wreath I posted a couple of weeks ago. I am really pleased at how it turned out. What do you think?

Now the decorations on this hanging are very special and dear. The buttons all came from my mother's collection. Nancy knew of my plans to use buttons as ornaments, so she brought me a double handful of Mama's buttons when she came for Daddy's funeral last weekend. And she was sure to include a purple and a hot pink button, those being Mama's favorite colors. It made me feel really close to her and Nancy this weekend as I sorted through buttons and decided which went where. I really love the way it came out.

Now this was my second project I completed Sunday afternoon. In my last post I told of stopping by the LQS in Vicksburg on my way home from the funeral. One of the girls I work with got married in June. She wanted a Wedding Ring wall hanging. Now, I don't like to sew curves, and I found this kit that was laser cut fusible. It was PERFECT. I gave it to her this morning, the day after her 6 month anniversary and I thought she was going to cry. She couldn't wait to take it home and show it to her husband. All in all I think it was a perfect weekend.

Now Nancy, I have all but 2 of the colors of embroidery floss to begin the pattern you brought me. I think I will start it as soon as I finish the lettering on the redwork I am doing. I found a more perfect print to border it with in Vicksburg, so that should be the next picture posted.

Well, I'm on Grammy duty tonight. I have the almost 5 year old and I have to get him bathed and in bed for school in the morning. Will visit with all you soon.

I Won!

Somehow in the madness of the last month, I managed to participate in the November 2006 Quilter's Mall Crawl. I WON a gift certificate. Now, here's the strange part..... I won the certificate from Stitch-N-Frame in Vicksburg, MS. Now I have visitied this quilt shop in the past with my mother and sister. Nancy, remember us looking for "sky" fabrics???? Well, on my way home from the funeral Monday, I decided to stop and stretch my legs in Vicksburg. Guess where? That's right - at Stitch-N-Frame. I purchased the red border and backing fabric for my redwork pattern I am working on now. I also purchased a KIT. A young lady that works for me recently got married. She wants a wedding ring wall hanging for her living room. Now, I am not one to want to sew curves, or tiny scraps of fabric together, but they had a laser cut iron on pattern. I have got the pattern ironed to the background and purchased the backing for it last night. I think I will try to finish it this weekend since her 6 month anniversary is Sunday.

Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers when we lost Dad. It is great to have friends like all of you. This passing has been harder than mom's, even though she was a great friend as well as mother. I guess it is just the finality of losing the last parent. Makes you a little crazy. Someone at work commented the other day how much they missed me while I was gone and I kinda snapped and told her, "guess it's good I have no more parents to bury". I've felt bad about that since I said it. Think I better get my hormones refilled tomorrow. I've been snapping at everyone.

Home alone tonight. Gonna just chill and sew all day tomorrow! Waiting for pizza delivery now.

Time to say goodbye

I thought I would be spending the weekend sewing, but looks like plans have changed. Nancy and I lost our father earlier today, so we will be traveling to Mississippi to send him home. See ya'll when we get back. Who knows what we may work on while there?

Help

I spent last Sunday pinning the Log Cabin Wreath for quilting, as well as a fall wall hanging Nancy made several years ago and gave to me when I visited this summer. I have chosen the quilting patterns for the borders and the center blocks, but am unclear as to how I am supposed to quilt the Log Cabin Blocks themselves. Any suggestions????

Nancy, I am currently redoing the "bluework" in redwork. Learned my lesson on washing first. When I washed the bluework after it was assembled, the outer fabrics shrunk. The high quality muslin we bought did not, so the hanging doesn't hang flat, and you know that drives me crazy. Will post pictures when I complete it.

I have so enjoyed the Redwork, that I have been surfing for wholecloth patterns/kits. I think that is the next hanging I am going to do to rotate through the office. Right after I complete the Log Cabin that I want to hang for the holidays. Have found a couple of sites with kits that I have bookmarked to go back and look again. If any of you know of any I can look at, please let me know. I have always enjoyed the handwork more than machine work. Nancy and I have been known to partner on sewing in the past - she the machine work and me the handwork, because she always hated handwork, and I prefer it.

I rearranged my office last week at work and hung 2 cafe rods on 2 walls and have quilted wall hangings on them. They are great to look at when I am stressed. I will try to take the camera to the office next week and get pictures.

Gonna be a busy weekend. I won't get any sewing done this weekend. I'm on call and my princess gives up her teen crown tomorrow and crowns her successor, so I'll be playing queen mother tomorrow. Got to get her a dress today to wear.

Pictures soon, I promise.

I sewed today

I got to sew today! Nancy mentioned a website on her blog several months ago... www.peachquilting.com. I HAD to check it out and found this Log Cabin Wreath pattern. The only fabrics I bought were the 2 outer borders. The rest came from stash. I am going to add some buttons as ornaments and a large gold wreath once I get it completed. I got the top pieced today and now I need to go upstairs and see if I have something large enough to back it. I don't have many large pieces in stash, so completion may have to wait. I felt great to do just what I wanted to do today. Tomorrow will be for housework and laundry. Today was for me. I will post again when I get it completed. Now to go pick up my mess from today.

Okay, Okay, I'm SHAMED!

I know I've been lost in space for a while, but since Ashley won her crown, we have been on a whirlwind. We've taken "queen" pictures (after I spent 13 hours one day making their formal and fun banners - I finished at 1 am the morning of pictures), done her festival, complete with parade, throwing beads and cups imprinted with her name and title on them.

Last weekend, she and her teen queen debuted as visiting queens, representing the Boucherie Festival. In November, they have 2 pageants to attend on the 18th, and one with day events on the 27th. Ashley gives up her "teen" crown on the 12th and crowns that successor. We have to complete her application for Queen of Queens pageant by December 1. Then on to finding the perfect dress and interview suit for her to wear there. It's gonna be a busy few months.

I haven't gotten to get even close to my sewing machine since I finished the banners. Work has been horrendus. I did sit in my room last weekend and pet some fabric and drool over some bagged up projects I have. Nancy alluded to my computer problems on her blog.... My new work laptop that I just got in May before I went to visit her had a hard drive crash. Sorry, I didn't talk to you last night, baby girl, but I was intent on getting my hard drive loaded,, since they shipped me a "blank piece of paper". I managed to get everything set up on it, except 3 drivers I couldn't get to load. I called our IS folks out today and they got 2 fixed, but still can't get my wireless working. They're gonna try again tomorrow. Told them that was essential.... I can't work in my lounge chair at home without wireless... Besides, I have to fight the princess for the computer at home in the evenings.

Sorry, I haven't made the rounds of the blogs lately, but I really have had no spare time. I hope to do a little sewing this weekend. We found out that many auditoriums that these pageants are held in are freezing. My girls almost froze their buns off in their little strapless formals. Many of the more experienced queens had blankets and throws with them to wrap up in. So I am going to have to make the girls throws in their festival colors to keep them warm when they travel. I might even try my hand again at the dreaded "A" word and applique the pig from Ashley's cape onto the throws. We'll see how adventurous I get.

No pictures tonight, but maybe this weekend. I have high hopes for this weekend. No pageants, no grandkids (I hope), hubby out of town hunting, daughter at a friends..... Just me and my son. And he probably will be home only to sleep. Sounds like heaven.

I Get to SEW!!!

Looks like I will get to sit and sew tonight and this weekend. Unfortunately, it will not be on quilting but on new banners for my new queen and her teen queen. We went and picked out the fabrics and trim last night. Now I have to get them made and find someone to do the embroidery really quickly, because they want to have them to take their queen pictures next weekend.

This will be the formal banners. It is a pink "mink" and will have black trim around the banner. It will be embroidered with their festival title on the front and their first name on the back, probably in black thread. It will be worn in the Boucherie Parade, when she is presented at the festival and to pageants she attends as a visiting queen.

This will be their "fun" banner that they will wear when they travel to pageants that have day events for the exiting queen and to their festival. It of course has pigs on it and will again be embroidered in black with their festival title on the front and their first name on the back. It will have pink satin ruffles around it.

I will hopefully get these done this weekend and to an embroidery shop (already got the phone book out and have the name of 5 places in town to call today to check prices and turn-around times) for them to take pictures. They want to have their queen cards printed before the first big pageant they will represent their titles at on October 9, and definitely before their festival on October 13, 14, 15.

Got to go to work now. Will visit with ya'll soon and make the rounds.

We have a new Queen

Join me in welcoming the newest member of the weekend rhinestone sisters... the newly crowned 2006 Miss Boucherie Festival Queen, AKA, my special daughter, Ashley. She really outdid herself tonight. 2 of 3 judges scored her straight 10's and the 3rd scored her 2 10's and a 9.5. She was confident, worked the judges, excelled in interview. She also won prettiest hair, smile, photogenic and fashion. She will ride in the festival parade and reign over the festival. Then on to a year of attending pageants and festivals as a visiting queen. She already has invitations to answer.

These are her first pictures for her scrapbook that will be on display next year when she gives up this crown. My husband was at the camp (opening day of teal season stops for nothing) and we called him and told him we have to go shopping for a new pageant gown, since she will now compete against all the state queens for the title of Queen of Queens. While I doubt she stands any chance of winning that crown, due to her young age, it is the chance of a lifetime. So, Mom and Dad will be eating tuna sandwiches between now and February to provide that opportunity to her.

Poor baby, we got home and hauled her dress crown, sceptar, Mantle and Train and all the gift bags the visiting queens brought her in the house and ordered supper. While I was out picking up supper, she got a call from her boyfriend that he was in a bad automobile accident on his way to see her. He was only about 1 mile from our home when he got hit. She is at the emergency room with him now awaiting xrays of knees, ankles and ribs. She is distraught. I hate that he is hurt and hate that her "special" day was disrupted. I am exhausted and am going to go to bed and wait to hear that he is okay and she is safely on her way home. I'll keep him in my prayers tonight.

Just a quick post to let ya'll know I survived survey, it was not as bad as expected although things got really tense Tuesday. Had to catch up on the work not done Monday and Tuesday the rest of the week. DD is doing a pageant tonight so I will be working on completing the handwork on the secret project Nancy and I are working on and hope to get the borders on tomorrow so I can post. It's 8 a.m. and time to rock and roll. Interview is in 2 hours and is 45 minutes from home. Then on to hair and makeup and back to the Lions Club for 4 pm so she can get dressed and I can sew her into her dress.... SUCH fun.

Your Brain is 73% Female, 27% Male

Your brain leans female You think with your heart, not your head Sweet and considerate, you are a giver But you're tough enough not to let anyone take advantage of you!

What Gender Is Your Brain?

Just a quick post to let ya'll know I'll be out of pocket for a couple of days. I am the Director of Nursing for a large home health agency and the state surveyors are in the building for their annual survey (they are about 2 months early, but better now than the week before Thanksgiving like last year and the week before Christmas the year before). It is 10:30 pm and I am just getting home. Gonna eat a sandwich and fall face first in my bed to start this merry-go-round again in the morning. If all goes well, they should be gone tomorrow (this is a minisurvey), then I can catch up on all the work not getting done now for waiting on them hand and foot (hope there are no surveyors on the ring, if so, sorry). Hopefully by the end of the week, I will get to post the pictures of the latest family quilt and the current projects I am working on. Til then, I'm thinking of all of you in the spare minutes I have, wishing is were time to retire and sit at home and quilt all day.

Your Prayers are Appreciated

It's been a wild 2 weeks. A rushing trip to Mississippi to deal with a sick father, a surprise visit from my favorite sister (okay, okay, I know she's my ONLY sister, but she's still my favorite), wonderful retail therapy topped by a return home to the responsiblities of wife, mother and JOB. I haven't had time to visit any of your blogs yet, but maybe this weekend (I'm on cal this weekend, so I don't know what that will bring). I have gotten home late every night since I got home. The day I got home, I logged in only long enough to read Nancy's blogs from while I was gone. It was torture being away from the internet for 8 days. Reading the comments on Nancy's blog and all your well wishes and prayers when I returned really lifted the load I was feeling. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are a wonderfully, special group of friends.

Nancy spoke of the old family quilts we retrieved from Mama's while we were there. I will get pictures this weekend and post the one I brought home with me. Not much quilty going on here right now, but Nancy and I have a special project we are working on that we will share when it is completed. Nancy, I should complete mine this weekend. Almost done with the leaves, then only the words to complete. Then the borders. LADIES, when this is completed and posted, I will be asking for help with suggestions for quilting. That's all I'll say about that right now.

Gonna try to catch a couple of sites before I have to turn into a pumpkin. This household gets started about 5:15 am, so I can't be up too late. I have to have my beauty sleep.

MY Prized Possession

This is MY most prized possession. My maternal grandmother made this quilt for me before I got married. I think she thought I needed something to keep me warm at night, since I was almost 25 before I got married.

It has been well loved and used. It has frayed almost all the way around. There are stitches that have popped and is in a great state of disrepair. It drives my husband nuts that we drag it around the house and snuggle under it still. He thinks it should be put away and admired from afar.

Granny made quilts for utility. They were meant to be used. And it is in her honor that I continue to USE this quilt. One day I will spread it out on the kitchen table and do what I can to repair the loose patches and holes in it, but until that day, it will continue to be used. It provides not only warmth, but comfort when it is needed most.

I remember my grandmother beginning to teach me to embroider when I was about 6 years old. Pillowcases, if I remember correctly. I remember her cutting out cardboard templates and patiently cutting out quilts, one piece at a time. The only pair of scissors I ever remember her using looked to be a pair of barber-style scissors. The only sewing machine she ever had was an old Singer treadle machine, that had a motor added to it. Nancy is in possession of that sewing machine.

Granny was my favorite grandparent. She was simple, country folk. She lived in a TINY 3 bedroom Jim Walter house that she and her children chopped cotton to buy. She was SO proud of that house. Now this house had ONE heater in it, and that was in the living room. So winter nights were spent under PILES of quilts on the bed. I grew so used to the weight of the quilts on the bed, that to this day I sleep under a blanket or quilt year round (I'm also the cold natured one in the family).

Granny, like my mother, was one of the most generous and non-judgemental people I have ever known. She, like Mama, accepted people as they were without reservation. Although, my mother and I became great friends as adults, we had a very tempetuous relationship during my teen years. I would threaten to go live with Granny weekly, it seemed. When we really needed a break from each other, I would go stay with her for a few days. We would just sit and talk, and soon I was back home where I really belonged. She was a very special lady and raised my mother to be the same. I miss the ability to walk in that back door at home and say, "I'm tired and discouraged. Please, mother me."

You know they say what goes around, comes around. My teenage daughter and I at times have the same type relationship that Mama and I did. I draw strength from the memories of my adult relationship with Mama, and pray, that Ashley and I will have the same strong tie when she grows up.