Gregory's Eagle Project: Part II

March 19, 2011: Gregory's next step was to put the signs together and stencil the lettering on. He had quite a group of ward members come to our house to do the work, and he directed their labors expertly.

Patrick Wells and Dave Johansen putting on hinges, hooks, and screw eyes.

The Weaver family stenciling lettering on the crew sign.

Mom making stencils with Gwen Reese's Cricut Cutter.

Christian Graff staple-gunning vinyl pockets onto reserve signs.

Name signs for the pavilions and picnic areas.

Crew sign for the docks.

Reserve signs

Looking good. . .

Gregory's Eagle Project: Part I

Gregory's Eagle Project: February 26, 2011

After much investigation and consultation with various county organizations, Gregory decided to do a service project for Lake Ridge Park in our neighborhood. Gregory rows on Gar-Field High School's Crew Team, which uses the docks at LR Park for practices, along with four other high schools, and so he felt a desire to do something to improve the park that he uses so often. The park manager, Jane England, proposed several possible projects, and Gregory chose to make reserve and name signs for the eight picnic areas and pavilions in the park; and also to make a sign for the crew teams to regulate dock usage while the teams are practicing.

Gregory approached the store manager at Home Depot about discounts and donations for the materials he needed to make the signs. Mr. Vernon Maupin was so impressed with Gregory's manner and professionalism. He agreed to give a 10% discount on all wood purchased from Home Depot, and all other materials (such as hardware, paint, hinges, etc.) would be donated free of cost.

Gregory's first work day was dedicated to painting all the wood brown--6x6 posts, 4x4 posts, and boards for signs.

Christina and her brown fingers.

Dad painting signs

Gregory painting posts.

Our own little "Stonehenge" in the garage!

Irrepressible Spring

Nothing can keep Spring from coming: not a timid groundhog who's afraid

of his shadow nor a late March snow with sub-freezing temperatures;

not last season's detritus nor an overabundance of weeds;

not 40 mph gusts of wind nor sleet and hail;

and especially not a negligent gardener (me).

I love Spring flowers!

To Quilt or Not to Quilt? What a Silly Question!

I finished piecing a quilt top this month that I started in 2005. That was the year that John and Mary Kennon were married. I told them I would make them a wedding quilt,

but they eloped to Seattle, so I figured I'd finish it for their 1st anniversary.

Life happened, including the escalating of my schoolwork with BYU,

and this ambitious project languished.

After my last summer term at BYU in 2008, I started working on it again. With about a third of it finished, John broke the news that he and Mary Kennon were separating.

We were so sad. I didn't have the heart to keep sewing on the quilt.

My final coursework for graduation from BYU kept me busy until April 2010,

but after I took the last test and finished the last paper, I found I had discretionary

time on my hands, so I exchanged one of my loves--reading, researching, and writing about literature--for another one of my loves--creating beautiful things with fabric.

Just to get started, I made myself a quilted purse out of some amazing coordinated fat quarters I had collected some years ago.

Fat Quarter Bag with multiple pockets inside

and out for organization

Next I tackled another project that had been three years in the queue. When Christina

graduated from high school I wanted to make her a quilt. We chose the pattern and bought the fabrics, but that's as far as it went. Now she was about to graduate from college, and I felt

an urgency to complete the quilt for her. By the time I needed to fly out to Utah for graduation I had finished piecing the top and had it more than half quilted. So she received a partially

completed quilt for graduation with the promise for the finished product when she started

graduate school in September.

Well, I missed that deadline, but I did finish it in October and took it to her personally when I went to visit for a long weekend.

The Campi di Flori quilt for Christina's graduation

After this achievement, I was on a roll.

I had another quilt top hanging on the upstairs banister that whispered, "Finish me, finish me." I call this my "Fall Flurry" quilt since the fabrics were leaf patterns, greens, golds, deep oranges, and maroons. I made this quilt top years ago as a "Mystery Quilt" challenge with two quilting friends, Susan Rasmussen and Carol Goe. We went to the quilt shop together and chose five fabrics that we would each use to make a specified number

of blocks in specified patterns. The border, backing, and binding fabric was our individual choice, as was how we arranged the blocks in the top. It was fun to see how differently the three quilts turned out, even though we each used the same fabrics and made the same blocks.

The "Fall Flurry" mystery quilt

I have another quilt top hanging on the banister, a "Country Village" block-of-the-month quilt that Susan, Carol, and I also did together over a year's time about ten years ago. But I think it is content to keep hanging there awhile longer because I don't hear any whisperings coming from that quarter. That's when Susan encouraged me to finish John and Mary Kennon's quilt, which I have now switched to calling the "Irish Chain" quilt.

It is a double Irish Chain pattern in two shades of blue and white with a creamy butter yellow for accent in the border. Susan felt, with justice, that if I could just get past the quilt's history, it would be perfect for my bedroom.

And of course, she's right. I love the Irish Chain pattern, and Val is partial to blues--seems a perfect fit. To give me added incentive, Susan gave me a fabulous birthday gift: when I have finished the Irish Chain quilt top, she will have me over to her house to cut fabric from her stash for me to use in a scrap quilt of my choice.

Talk about holding a carrot in front of my nose! Just what I needed to get sewing,

and now I'm finished.

And it is beautiful.

Trying out the Double Irish Chain quilt top on my bed.

Lest I forget, though, it still needs to be quilted. I'm off to the fabric store to get batting

and quilting thread! And looking forward to my date with Susan

to cut scraps!

Better Than a Nap

Last Monday I was so tired after staying up late with Gregory and his homework. I used to do this "stay-up-til-all-hours" thing so much better with the older children. There is something about being twenty-five years older than when I first started with a secondary school-age child that makes a definite difference in my stamina.

I was just made of firmer stuff back then. Now, with tail-end Gregory, I find myself

going back to bed, or at least napping on the couch or in my rocking chair, after the boys go to school and Val goes to work--which is what I did this morning when I

began nodding off in the middle of Daniel interpreting the writing on the wall

(my scripture study).

However, a two-hour rejuvenating nap was not in the cards for me today. Just as I drifted off into blissful unconsciousness, the phone rang.

Never one to ignore the phone (it might be important; it might be one of my children, or Val;

it might be an emergency, for heaven's sake!--something I've been paranoid about ever since I locked myself out of the house when Jeffrey had a seizure in middle school and I couldn't be contacted--yes, the cell phone was in the house), I rolled off the couch, grabbed the phone

off the endtable just before it clicked over to the answering machine, and in my most cheerful, wide-awake voice (I wouldn't want anyone to think I had been

sleeping, now would I?) said, Hello!!

It was Gregory. BINGO--one of my children. The person responsible for bringing

pizza to French class for the restaurant skit

had forgotten to bring it. Could I PLEASE go buy some pizza

and bring it in to school ASAP?

Yup--an emergency.

Fortunately, Val had bought four frozen pizzas at the commissary a couple of weeks ago.

Since I don't know of any pizzarias open at 8:30 in the morning, I pulled a couple of

Red Barons out of the freezer to bake while I hurriedly got dressed, brushed my teeth,

and washed my face off and put it back on again.

By the time I was ready, so was the pizza, and a mere 45 minutes after the emergency

phone call I was delivering it to Gregory's classroom

in left-over Papa John's boxes.

When Gregory saw me at the classroom door, he ran across the room and gave me the

biggest smile and hug EVER. I think he even said,

"I LOVE YOU!"

The girl who forgot to bring pizza called out,

"You're the best mom in the world!"

Better than any nap, don't you think? ;)