A quilt for Olivia

First off, I'm so thankful that I happened to have my camera with me today and was able to take these first two photos. When we got home and I noticed Paul Thomas running out to the street as he *LOVES* to check the mailbox and thought that what he was up to - but today he did something new.

He tugged and pulled on the garbage can until he had rolled it all the way up the driveway and put it back into it's usual spot by the garage door!  I snapped a couple photos and even video taped him pulling b/c it was just so cute! and so surreal that he's growing up so fast!!  I asked him when he was done how he liked it - and he gave a thumbs up and a sideways thumb, b/c he liked that he was strong enough but didn't like that the can was smelly. I've never smelt anything when pulling up the can before. Funny! :P

 

I know I've been away from my blog for a while now - and I'm so sorry!!  Summer is suppose to be a time of relaxing, sleeping in, and just doin whatever you want when you want....right? Well not with my kidos! We had 1 week of lazy days of summer, then as of this week activities have started and been keeping us busy each day and night!  Nora's been going to "Safety Town USA" school for 2 hours each day and swim lessons each evening. I'll try and post about that later and share photos.  She will "graduate" tomorrow night :)

Here's what I've been busy with today - not that I actually had time for sewing - I guess it's my kind of crazy to begin a new project when there are about 833 other things I need to be doing.  The twins turned 5 years old Monday - but the party/cookout isn't until Saturday at my MIL's home.  Guess what I thought she needed to have as her gift from momma.... yep you guessed it! A Panda Bear quilt!

The above photo was where I was - when suddenly I didn't like the looks of it. :(  The pink I'd chosen was just too loud beside the panda fabric.  And paired with the lavender, those 4-patches were looking sorta muddy, no contrast.  So then I got the idea to grab "Jack the Ripper" and unstitch a block, use some WOW fabric and make up a white & lavender block to see what that looked like.

 

I put it up on the design wall.  Stood back and looked - even took photos so that perhaps I'd ask my facebook quilter friends for their opinions.... then I noticed this (photo below)

 

A whole stack of "twosies" ready to be sewn into 4-patches.  I'd be NUTS to think about seam ripping all of those apart and starting over!  That would mean I'd be taking Jack the Ripper with me to swim lessons tonight and possible hanging out with him all night after we got home too!  Um, no thanks. Keep on keepin' on Bonnie!

So here's what the design wall looked like around 3:30pm today! This pattern is one that "Quilts for Kids" organization uses and it really goes together fast!  Only theirs is 5X6 rows and I wanted mine to be a little bigger so I made enough that it will be 6 blocks by 7 rows.  I don't want Olivia to outgrow it too soon!  Their pattern calls for a 3.5 outer border of the focus fabric, but I'll use a 6.5" size to grow it a bit more. :)  It's gonna look great!

That multicolored stripe wasn't even what I had planed to use - I had bought several yards of it for pillow cases - but it works! and helps to tie in that darker pink don'tcha think? :)

 

Here's another of the same pattern and nearly at the same stage of completion done up in blue, green and yellow.  I loved that yellow fabric when I spotted it on the "Spot the Dot" sale at Hancock's.  It was 75% off and I'm kicking myself for not buying all that was left on that bolt!  As I would have loved to make this one another row wider and longer too, but couldn't.

Monday I returned to the store and it was NO where to be found. :(  That's when I spotted the Panda Bears on the same table marked 75% off making it just over $2/yard. So I bought the rest of that bolt!!!  Should have enough for Olivia's quilt and pillow and a dolly quilt too.  She loves panda bears.

As for the inner border on this one - not loving it as much as I did when I had it laid out at the store, as from a distance it reads as a clashy green color. Oh well, it is what it is.  Who knows maybe after it's all quilted and washed up it will have grown on me??   It's just a shame that this one can't be for me to use on the sofa b/c it's kid sized... I so love blue and yellow together!

And guess who wanted to race me upstairs?  PT is always shouting "ReadySETGO!" before I'm ready.  That little cheater, look at him with one foot already out the sewing room door!. lol

Love from Indiana!