May FNSI sign ups

Seems all I blog about these days are Friday Night Sew In sign ups.  Not that my life is boring......it's anything but.  There has been so much happening here of late, and not all of it good....mainly family health problems and work.  I promised myself that this year's blogging would be better than last year's.  I said that last year 'flew' by in a flash....this year seems to have grease on the skates even moreso, don't you agree?

I've decided as it's mid-year, I'm making a pact with myself to slow down and take time for stitching and blogging because it feels like there's a big chunk of my life missing and I want it back.  That's what blogging and stitching does for me.  I need some normality back to my hectic life, and if I don't schedule it in, I'm sure my levels of insanity will rise higher and higher and we don't want that!

So here's what I have done this month.....

A quilting friend of mine passed away from cancer two years ago and her husband recently asked me if I'd finish a quilt she'd begun to quilt by hand.  I felt honoured but I'm not one to hand quilt so I was pleased when he said he didn't mind how I quilted it, he would just be happy to wrap himself up in his wife's love and to 'feel' her one more time.  

She had begun to hand-quilt crosses through her nine patches and echo-stitch each pieced-section within each block and then again around the outside border of each block.  She'd already done a couple so I finished them off, using my machine on a large stitch  and the same coloured thread that she'd used, so you couldn't tell (too much) of the difference. I also stitched in the ditch around/through each block and stitched cornerstones in the four corners of the border fabric with perpendicular parallel lines of stitching around the border.  I think she'd like it.....Milo does!

I didn't really realise till I threw the finished quilt onto the bed how big it actually was.  It turned out it was a king size.  Our bed is a queen and the purple borders hung generously over each side.  I'm very proud to have been gifted the chance to pay it forward for this lovely couple.  I'm sure Bob will be snuggling up warmly wrapped in Gail's love tonight now the nights are getting colder, even up here in the tropics.

We celebrated dad's 83rd birthday at the beginning of the month.  He'd had a turn a couple of weeks before and they'd told us to prepare to lose him that night....he didn't go anywhere but stayed on stronger than ever and here we are, celebrating another milestone with him.  He even sang happy birthday to himself!  Love this father-in-law of mine to bits!

Now it's time to get ready for FNSI this month.  I see I missed last month's draw so I'll do a double draw this month for two lucky FNSI-ers who will win a little something from me.  Make sure you sign up below and let others know it's 'that time of the month'!

Now for me, it's time for bed!  Sleep tight and dream sweet dreams of your Friday night stitching with us!
xox sugary sweet hugs :o)