Blessings, Joy and Sadness

I have found that I haven't blogged as I should.  I felt that nobody was interested in what I was doing, so I just decided to slack.....
Well to my surprise there are a few of you out there interested in the "happenings in my world".  So here goes:
This has been a year full of joys, blessings and some sadness(grieving) thrown in for the mixing.
Our Grand children are 4, 3, and we have 2 that are 1....grand total of 4 grandchildren.  Our son and daughter were expecting #5, but God had another plan....we feel the loss of our little grandson, but know that he is in a much better place and I am going to meet him someday. Quilting is something that keeps me busy and helps me heal.

Our Precious Gifts!!!

play mat made for grandchild #4 (boy)

crib quilt made for my nephew's first child (boy)

You see we all have areas that we can heal from and hobbies help us to keep busy, stress relief or just enjoyment.  I also have found that fellow quilters are full of life, joy and comfort.  We are a group of women and we are far a few between.

I have just celebrated 50 years in marriage with my parents over the last weekend...What a joy to have all of my younger siblings here and all of our kids and grandkids...What more can I say, we camped out at my house, sat by the fire, laughed and ate together...Sunday morning my husband gave a sermon around the fire pit!!!

Worship on a cool Sunday morning in June

As you can see the blessings outweigh the terrible things of the world when you have a family with love and joy!! God's blessings

The gift of Love

I started a quilt for our son and future daughter in-law for Taya's shower, but did not get it finished until their wedding.  I  did not give them the quilt as a wedding gift because they had not settled into their home and gave it to them when they moved into their home outside of Hyannis.

I designed the center blocks and placed them on point.  They were real sticklers, so I changed my design to finish making the blocks.  I don't suggest trying this without paper piecing and the center is soooo bulky. 

I embroidered a brand on each side for our son...Several years ago our son and daughter designed this brand for their livestock.   

Embroidered brand

Close up of the block

I quilted saddles, boots, hats and a bucking bronc as an all over design on this quilt.  There is a panograph with this "rodeo" design on it.  The design fits our son perfectly.

Close up of the quilting motif

The back of the quilt

I pray that this quilt will give our son and daughter in-law  comfort and warmth in their marriage. God has given me the gift to make and give.  I give this to them with all my heart and love!!

As God has given each of us a gift to serve, guide and love...it is our duty to give and share our gifts with others.