I finished the two baby quilts I was working on this month. They are for a newborn and his big brother (age 1) who live in my neighborhood.
They are so soft and fuzzy on the back. Life just gets better when you touch that minky fabric. And look! My friend machine quilted them in a sock monkey pattern to make us smile.
I love that they are similar but each has a unique personality. The brighter one with the yellow back is my favorite.
The kids are posing with their piano teacher at the Fall Recital, which also happened to be Mark’s first piano recital. The younger children in the studio played Halloween pieces and dressed up in their costumes. Mark is Boba Fett from Star Wars. He played a spooky song called If You Dare! and he did a great job.
Daniel played Rondo Sonatina Op. 20 #1 by Frederic Kuhlau and The Entertainer by Scott Joplin. Daniel is very expressive and I don’t think I will ever get tired of hearing him play Joplin.
Timothy played A Neat Beat by Mier and he rocked the house. He is a wonderful pianist. Just… wow!
This is a picture of Paige and her teacher rehearsing the Shostakovich Concerto No. 2 Op. 102 for two pianos before the recital. Paige has two performances in the next few weeks for this piece. It’s beautiful.
Paige played Sonatina Op. 88 #3 Mvt. 1 by Frederik Kuhlau for the recital. She did a lovely job and she always has the grace to smile and give a confident bow after her performances. That’s hard to do.
Watching our four children perform at this recital was really something special.
I’m making two quilts from the fabric I bought last week. One is for a new baby at church. I am not sure who will get the other one. I’ve been arranging the squares on the floor. I’m not loving the way they look right now. I don’t like the brown. Maybe that will change.
This summer we had a few friends walk through our house and our framed children’s artwork drew a lot of positive comments. For years I have displayed their art in simple frames around the house because I love it, but it felt good to hear that other people loved it, too.
Today I framed Paige’s poppy painting and a couple of the boys’ Eric Carle inspired art projects from years ago. I like the shadow box frame for the beach scene. Maybe it would be pretty with a few shells inside.
There are many more to go, but I’m loving how this project is coming together. I also think that I might frame some of their piano compositions in the music room. The frames are from my first trip to Ikea. I truly thought that I would never find the exit in that store.
My friend spent 3 hours standing as she tended my quilt while her machine made row after row of roses across the fabric. That’s a nice person.
I realize that quilt posts are probably boring, but lately I’ve got nothing to give to this blog. Life is like that sometimes.
I have learned a lot from the ladies in my neighborhood quilting group. I have very little quilting experience and I am surrounded by women who can whip out a quilt in an afternoon. There are even some purists in the group who make their quilts entirely by hand. I slink in the door and dine on the scraps of their skill and inspiration.
I read that the “Disappearing Nine-patch” (the pattern of my quilt) is a Novice pattern, which is even easier than a Beginner pattern. With that information to quell my pride in the project, I finished sewing my quilt and I’m having it quilted on a friend’s machine on Thursday. Hooray for me!
Paige is performing as a demi-solist in Paquita this week. Ballet is beautiful and rigorous. Paige’s feet are raw and her pointe shoes are bloody. I tell you this because she makes it look easy. She is strong and beautiful and we are so proud of her artistry and the sacrifices she has made to become a dancer.
I had no words for her last night as we drove home late from her dress rehearsal. I ached for her; I was proud of her; I didn’t say enough, I am sure. All I could do was buy her a milkshake and sit with her while she ate it. I have never experienced anything like she did at that grueling rehearsal last night.
Ballet is one of the lonely battles she faces. She’s an example of how to face difficulties and challenges with a smile and with grace. Only two more nights, Paige! You can do it!
You are an artist.
You are strong.
You are beautiful.
You are loved.
Timothy participated in his 4th grade program this week. It was a celebration of Utah, full of songs for voice and recorders, a fantastic choral reading, and he presented a flawless speech. It represented a year’s worth of Utah Studies and music. I loved it.
Mrs Johnson was a wonderful teacher for Timothy. This was her 35th year of teaching. She’s retiring this week and the school won’t be the same without her.
I have inherited my Great Aunt Susan’s wardrobe. It’s classy and smart with whimsical touches. I love fashion, but I don’t buy clothes very often for myself. It’s a real treat to wear her clothing. I wore this to Timothy’s program with a brown and white beaded necklace. I wore heels with the wide-legged pants and pulled my hair into a loose bun. Overdressed for a school program? Yes, but who cares.
We don’t have photographs of Daniel’s orchestra concert this week, but we were so proud of him for playing the solo for Beauty and the Beast on his cello. He did a great job and was a good sport about playing the girls’ choice of music for the finale: Firework by Katy Perry! I wore this outfit. I love the red corduroy peplum jacket with big buttons. The pants are a nice heavy knit, comfortable, but dressy.
And for church today, I wore this outfit. The beads belonged to my Great Grandmother Spencer. The jacket and dress were Susan’s.
This week there are two ballet performances to attend and two fancy outfits to plan. Although it feels a bit silly and indulgent to post photos of outfits, I am sure it won’t be a permanent habit. Oh, but I do love clothes.
This was the tea party Paige and I attended on Saturday for her ballet studio. It was an Alice in Wonderland themed party and it was full of beautiful mothers and daughters dressed up in their Sunday best, eating dainty finger sandwiches and petit fours. Paige danced. I have never seen a more elaborately decorated party. Mothers decorated each table differently. Many of the delights had little signs which read, “Eat me” and potions bottles with corks read, “Drink me”. There was the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts, cards and hats aplenty.
I watch the little ballerinas and their mothers and it doesn’t seem like Paige should be one of the older girls. However, she has danced for eleven years. Eleven years. This is quite an accomplishment and we’re proud of her. Her last big recital will be in June. She’ll always dance, but not as many nights a week. It’s the end of an era.
I’ve decided to try quilting now that I have willing neighbors to help me.
I had a pretty big quilt failure last time I tried to piece a quilt square. I’m hoping I can overcome this, unlike my continued failure to grow house plants. I’ve made several quilts, but they have not been complicated. I’ve been told that having the right equipment is essential, so I bought the tools first.
Next came the fabric. I needed 11 fabrics. Aaaack! I walked down the aisles for a long while, looking for a fabric to inspire me. And then I found it! It had red! It had pink! It had a lovely pale sage green! It was old fashioned! It was perfect. Once I had this fabric, I knew what I wanted for the quilt: a splash or two of red, a smaller amount of pink, lots of pale sage and a touch of pale yellow.
I’m not a trendy person, so there are no hot pink and orange owls for my quilt, although I loved these fabrics. I’m telling myself I can be a quilter because it really is about color, order, and art, which are three things to which I can feel good about devoting some time.
I got home and realized that these fabrics are Strawberry Shortcake colors. That was my childhood. Lovely.
Now I need to begin cutting. I’m so nervous.