Sunshine. Oh, the beauty of sunshine, warm, bright and invigorating. You know, by now, how I love sunshine.
We have also had beautiful rain in the last week. Both of our rain gauges are broken so I can't tell you how much it rained except that it was a lot. Streams came down the hills, the creeks swelled and the rivers rose.
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| Daffodils and lilies |
All of creation responded with joy and the meadows are turning a verdant green. I never cease to be excited by the return of green.
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| Toad's bellies |
Or the sprouting of seeds. It makes me feel like I could dance to the moon and back. Or burst.
Thomas removed these "Christmas roses" (below) from a landscape job he did. They were not faring well in that location so he brought them here. Hellebore is their sophisticated name. They missed Christmas but they are the only blooming thing I've seen outdoors this winter.
I've completed two more comfort tops in the last week for relief work. This blue one (below) took me many days to complete. All the pale blue blocks (every other one) are a fuzzy type of fabric that slipped and slid and crawled all over the place as I sewed. It was a miserable thing to work with.
The one below with bigger blocks was a sight easier. I picked up a bag of blocks (that someone else had already sewn in rows) and sewed the eleven rows together. The outcome is always rewarding.
February ends tomorrow. It feels like we haven't had much winter. Even the couple weeks of extreme cold seem like a dim thing of the past. Spring is showing her (spring can't be a "he", can it?) welcome face.
Can you believe I heard spring peepers early last week? I almost couldn't believe it. But there they were, very loud and very real.
What are you doing today? I would love to peek into your house or wherever you are and see what life is dishing up to you. I pray you find God's grace sufficient for your needs.
More words to enjoy-
Erudition
Cornchandler
Ophthalmic
Tuesday a week ago was the monthly Sisters' Sewing at the church house. We meet in the basement and work on comforters to send to the needy.
Some ladies cut out blocks from donated fabric, others lay out blocks in patterns to make the tops and some piece the tops together with sewing machines. Still others cut and sew backings for the comforters. Then the tops, quilt batting and backings need to be put in a quilt frame and knotted together with yarn.
After they're knotted, someone cuts off the excess batting and prepares the edges to be bound with a sewing machine. A lot of work goes into these blankets that will keep someone, somewhere a bit warmer for the winter.
Each lady has her part to do and no one feels overwhelmed. My spot last week was at the sewing machine, piecing a top. I didn't get it completed so I brought it home.
When I start a top and see the colors I'm working with, I want to see the end product. If I put it away unfinished until next month, someone else might complete it and I'll forget which one it was.
That's my thought process. I sewed the rest of it yesterday and here's what it looks like.
Like I said, we work with donated fabric and the ones who work with what we have, to design the tops, do a super job. Of course, it wouldn't be the same if you could choose your colors.
This one is done with a nine-patch design and a border added on three sides to make it the size it needs to be.
Someone will look at the patterns and either enjoy them or think about how they would have done it differently. Or maybe they will be so cold they can't even think except, maybe, to be grateful for something to keep them a bit warmer.
Today I am thankful for...
...a warm house. (It's getting really cold and windy outside!)
...shoes.
...a coat.
I was just reading about the homeless....
Watch a short film about Operation Silent Night.
(Sorry, I wrote this yesterday 12/12 and didn't get it up until today 12/13.)
