Happy Birthday Bekah!!
Bekah is five years old, and she and Eva decided that they would like to celebrate their birthdays, together, this year. Their birthdays are three days apart so they decided to split the difference. They want strawberry cake with strawberry ice cream, with strawberries and whip cream on top! Maybe they like strawberries...Bekah wanted 4 "bobbies" (Barbies) and of course, her daddy got her five. I heard her whispering with her sister that she was going to ask for 4 so they could both have 2. Being a sweet Daddy, he got her the little miniature ones that are dressed like pretty princesses instead of the unrealistically proportioned ones that are dressed like... well, you can't even say what some of those dolls are dressed like. What kind of parent would buy those dolls dressed like.... It just mystifies me. And then they wonder why their 11 year old is acting a bit too old for her age... OK, end of rant, It just doesn't seem right to see children or their toys dressed in ways that an adult should be ashamed of dressing... Really, end of rant. I never had this problem with GI Joe! Everyone teases the girls that they better brace themselves for their courting days 'cause with five older brothers, it isn't going to be easy!!

Happy Birthday, Evie...

Eva is 7. She and Bek are still at the age where they like being very helpful. I was thrilled when Eva volunteered to snip the threads between my chained blocks. While she clipped, I sewed. It was a great partnership. She wants a bike for her birthday and it made me cry because she wasn't really to be trusted on a bike before(or with snips)- with seizures, it isn't a real good idea. But now, she is able to do some of those normal kids' stuff. Isn't that just wonderful? I am so thankful. She added corndogs and chicken nuggets to the menu- oh, and strawberries that you dip in choclate and strawberry dacqueries. Yep, I think they like strawberries.

Flower gardens in March...
are pretty pitiful, here, but I did see some lovely golden crocus above ground, this morning. Finn, here are the 9 GMFG blocks that I have finished. I bought enough chubby 1/8s and fat quarters to do almost 12 more. My blocks are not near so tiny as Lucy's- whose pieces are smaller than her thimble. These pieces finish out at about 1 1/2." Small enough for me, my eyes start to cross as it is. I can do one block in an evening- that includes frequent staring off into space and such nonsense as that. Not that I do one an evening. They also make a great, very small, take along project. I am hoping to finish this for our first grandchild- yes, I'm slow, slow. I am surprised at how difficult it has been to find fabric with tiny flowers on it. I remember when that was about all the quilter had to choose from- tiny flowers(calicos) and solids. Now the scale is larger than ever, but I am enjoying the hunt. I am planning on using blue for all the centers- repeats are fine. Different yellows in the first round of petals and then assorted flower prints in the final round of petals. I was hoping to put a bug(butterfly, dragonfly, bumblebee, lady bug) of some sort in every flower, but now I realize that I was narrowing the field too much. Thinking I'll set them in a nice leafy green- maybe literally a leafy green.

I bought this little book at an antique store, today. The cover was so sweet, I couldn't resist. Finn, I know how you like vintage things. This is circa 1933. The little girl reminds me of pictures I've seen of my MIL- who would have been about the same age as that Little Red Riding Hood. She is going into a nursing home, tomorrow. It is such a sad time for all of us. They call it "rehabilitation," nowadays. What does that word mean and where does it come from, I wonder? To be "re-" anything, one would assume you were already there. "habilitated." But you know, I think there are some places you can't go back to. I guess it's a way of being hopeful. And you never do know, do you?

Chocolate...
The universal language. I met the Goodwill Ambassador to Poland, yesterday. Actually she's a nurse at the hospital where my MIL is staying. She gave my DH a bonbon, and he, being the sweetheart that he is, saved it for me. Actually, York peppermint patties are about as exoctic as he gets when it comes to chocolate. But he is still a sweetheart. The candy was by a Polish candy-making company called Meisko. Man oh man oh MAN!!! Was it good. I couldn't quite put my finger on flavor of the creamy center... very rich. My goodwill toward Poland has grown by leaps and bounds. So, of course I had to track down the nurse. Of course. She was a doll and had the loveliest accent. Her sister sends her the candies, and she shares so she doesn't eat them all- and to let the world know that Poland makes very fine candy. Very FINE candy. The unusual flavor might have been the vodka... Oh, guys, it really was lovely. Alas, she said that it couldn't be bought here in the states. Now I took that as a personal challenge, but I'm afraid she might be right. I did find a Canadian importer, but they don't send to the states. Ask me how I ascertained this when their website was entirely in Polish. Well, I can recognize the word Praliny z Advocatem when I see it! And one of the ladies there speaks very good English. But now all my hopes are dashed. sniff. The Lindt chocolate- Swiss, made in France- is decent. My sister loves it, but then she is a big fan of Cuban coffee. Splutter, splutter, cough, cough. It is the one chocolate that I can leave out on my desk without fear that the little people will snitch it. Oh, they might try a nibble, but it will be promptly returned to it's rightful package.

The sewing and quilting activities have been severely squelched around here. A sad state of affairs. I have started working on my grandmother's flower garden, again. 9 blocks, so far. I have one more cut out and then it's time to find more fabric. No, no, please don't pity me because I have to go fabric shopping. It's such a trial, but one I'll bear up under, no doubt. Now if the shopping trip involves lunch at my favorite Chinese restaurant... well, such is life. Sarah, why must you live in Alabama? Sarah sent me a notice that the quilt shop, Needles, is for sale, so I pressume they are closing and wanting to reduce inventory... That involves a little road trip. Maybe I'll need to visit the tea room, instead of Chinese...hmmm.

Puce...
What kind of color is called puce? Well, you're lookin' at it! This quilt is one of those hideous quilts that was made by a poor distant relative... ok, I can tell you're not buying it. I confess... I made the ugliest quilt on the planet. But, but, but...I had help. It's all Sarah's fault. She is the one who gave me the ugliest fabric on the planet, so how could anything good come from that? She knows how "thrifty" I am. You give me fabric, I must quilt. It's that simple. I mean, I don't have a built-in mechanism that says things like, "This fabric is simply horrid. I can't bring myself to work with it." I've tried doing that, but as my DH says, I'm just too ornery. I have to try. And while it is true that ugly quilts can keep you just as warm as pretty quilts, it's extremely difficult to keep them in the dark all of the time, "John, how many times have I told you to keep that quilt hidden until sunset? Sheesh!" But I have ways of getting even with kids who carelessly wound my pride by outing a quilt in broad daylight where anybody could see it- you should see the ugly quilt I made for John!! bah-ha-ha-ha (From more ugly fabric that came from... you guessed it! And she calls herself my friend!)

And while I'm confessing and airing my dirty laundry... you won't believe what I did last night. As most of you know, I have been having trouble sleeping, lately. I was concerned about Eva, and while your head says, "let it go," your heart sometimes has other ideas. So I got over that hump and I slept like a log, Thursday night- ok, a log that awakens every hour, on the hour, but I fell right back to sleep, so I considered it a success. Well, last night I was awakened at 3am by a peculiar noise. Over my head. It sounded like a cat playing with a bead. Great. The kids let one of the barn cats slip into the house when we got home. I'm so sleepy, I just stumble out of bed to get the cat (started purring right away, weird as they are usually stand-offish) and put it back outside where it belongs. Oddly, there was another barn cat sitting in the door wanting in- figured he missed his buddy... well, his buddy starts hissing and being all aggressive- I can't figure that out because they are very close. Then, I get this sinking feeling... Moira- Grandma's cat, is missing. I just threw Grandma's cat out into the cold. She stays in Grandma's room, but she had found a way to escape... oh dear, I called her and called her, but she wouldn't come back. Well, who could sleep after that? I felt so bad... slept like a baby. Opened the door, this morning, and she was waiting to come home. Shew. I don't think Grandma missed her. I really think the fact that Grandma had to go to the hospital, today, is completely unrelated.

It's all fun and games, now...

Eva's Dr. appt. went very well. It couldn't have gone better. We are so relieved! The doctor was very sweet- a Romanian- my DB used to live in Romania. He is, gradually, doubling her meds, and then there will be more tests, just see how that's going. But all in all, a very good report. Thank you all for your kind wishes and prayers.

Darilyn- I plan on sleeping, tonight. See if that fits into your schedule:) In fact, I am so tired now, I think I could turn in, but then I'm afraid I might just nap and be up by the time I should be going to bed. I thought I might watch a relaxing movie and that will set me up for a good night's sleep. I usually watch Band of Brothers when I want to relax. No, I don't find bombs and missing limbs relaxing, but, oddly, I like the music and it makes me thankful. I'm veering toward Gladiator or A Walk in the Clouds or Sense and Sensibility. See? The sleep deprived don't make good choices or easy decisions. Here's hoping we both sleep long and hard, tonight.

Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters...
I love old movies. White Christmas is one of them (but Holiday Inn is my favorite. That was my first Fred and Bing experience and it was so delightful.) My girls love the song and dance with the sisters in White Christmas. Evie does a pretty good imitation on the kareoke machine. I promised a picture of the zig-zag quilt on the girls' bed, so here it is. I stayed home from bible study, this evening, with a couple boys with bad colds. They helped me surprise the girls by lending a hand in cleaning up their room and making their bed with their new quilt. Whenever Sarah used to visit with her daughter Maddie, Eva would be so thrilled she'd stick her finger in the air and yell, "I'll go clear a path!" That is the sum of much of our cleaning efforts around here- a path. You should have heard her squeal with delight over her nice clean room! We each got nearly a half dozen hugs for our effort. Bekah kept exclaiming over found toys. I love the way this wool quilt looks on the bed. Jacob says, as he helps me spread it out, "It's pretty obvious that you made this quilt to go with this room." The zig-zags might be a little "over the top" with the striped walls, but I like it all the same. The floral backing- folded down at the top, is more traditional and tones it down- a little bit. Thank you Aunt Isobel for the wool. The girl's daddy made their bed for them from a fence section. The "canopy" is made from an old Victorian piano scarf. The linen had dry-rotted, but the lace was still lovely, so I salvaged that and sewed it onto a nice cream fabric. The rest is just extra wide muslin.

Tomorrow is a "big day" for us. That's what Evie calls it when we go out. A big day. We are taking her to Riley Children's Hospital to see the neurologists. The medication she is taking does seem to be helping and I think she is doing very well. But don't doctors just make you a little nervous? I suppose you rarely see one under good circumstances and it would hardly be fair to blame them for my nerves. And that hospital is very family friendly. We've decided to take Bekah with us, also. I think Eva will enjoy the distraction and the company. So, wish us well!