Quintessential Quilting

Yes-I had to use spell check to spell quintessential correctly. Thanks for asking.

Finally getting around to posting pictures of my quilt blocks. These are the two I finished just this week around midnight the night before my class. Yea, I like to do things at the last minute. Actually, I don't-that's just how it worked out.

I don't think I ever mentioned that this is a Civl war quilt so all the blocks are named for States on either side of the Mason Dixon line. In fact, the pattern name is North and South. Clever, eh?

This block is called the Oklahoma Ladder



This block is called Baton Rouge, LA



Now, add these to the first two I finished-Indiana Puzzle




and Philadelphia Pavement



and I've done a grand total of four! I should have 8 done by now! And they technically aren't supposed to give me the new blocks until I've finished the ones from the previous month....so hopefully nobody reading this blog will squeal on me. I'll eventually catch up.

Someday

Hopefully

Maybe

Quilt blocks and appologies

Well, maybe not apologies. I have sworn never to apologize for not blogging because it feels trite and frankly, a bit overdone in the blogging world. So not an apology. Or an excuse. Maybe just an explanation.

See, my loyal follower will tell you that I'm starting to slip up. Yes. Me. Getting behind. First there was no Flashback Friday last week.

And today you will not be seeing a new Name that Movie Monday.

Life has dictated that I take a summer vacation. Not from blogging altogether, just from set deadlines on my blog. Because due to my life feeling a tad bit like a soap opera lately my time and energies are currently being spent elsewhere.

I am happy to report that my immediate family is fine. We are happy and healthy. Unfortunately close friends and extended family have experienced things in the past few months that have made it necessary for me to focus my attentions outside my blog.

Death
Divorce
Cancer
Miscarriage
Surgery
Suicide threats
Layoffs
Foreclosure

And that's just the beginning of the list.

Add that to family reunions, weddings, quilt block classes, book group, birthdays, baptisms, and projects in the yard and in the house and well, you get the picture.

I figure summer is a great time to take a little vacation anyway since most of you are off having fun and enjoying the fine weather anyway.

That's not to say I'm disappearing completely. I finished 2 new quilt blocks last night that I have to show off. And it's been brought to my attention that I still haven't shown pictures of my new floor in my family room. So I'll be here, posting when I find a spare moment or two.

And I promise that I'll bring back the weekly features you have come to love and count on, I just need a few months to catch my breath.

Lovin' it

I am seriously loving my new camera. I still have a TON to learn about using it. But I'm having fun with it just the same.

This past weekend my niece was baptized and my sister-in-law asked me to take a few pictures to remember the occasion. And, if I can say so in a humble manner, I even surprised myself at how good some of them turned out.

The Dress



Daddy's little girl



Contemplative



Okay, she was actually squinting because the sun was so stinking bright-not a single cloud in the sky! But I like to pretend she in contemplating the covenants she'll make when she is baptized.

Nothing I can say but super beautiful girl!




My first storyboard



My second storyboard: More than just cousins



Like I said, I still have a lot to learn and much to improve on. But not bad for a beginner, right?

Name that Movie Monday-WIth a free movie code!

Today is a special edition of Name that Movie Monday! Since it's the first Monday of the month there is a free movie code!!!!

And I'm going easy on you, too. A quote I think all of you will get.

"Just keep swimming, just keep swimming......"

Do you know it?

You do!

Well, for being so smart here is a code for a free movie from Redbox: 4J7LF6

ENJOY!

Flashback Friday

In my time zone I still have 2 hours left until Saturday, so technically it's still Friday so I'm right on time with my Flashback this week.

I thought I'd bring you a 4th of July memory this week. How original, I know. But it's a good one so I don't think you'll blame me for my lack of originality.

The summer before my Sr. year in high school I actually attended a semester of college. I was accepted into a program at the former Ricks College (now known as BYU-Idaho) that gave high school students a real college experience and college credit to boot. For summer semester I lived in the dorms, attended classes, went on field trips, wrote essays, and got to know a lot of really cool people.

Since we happened to be in school for the 4th of July the college sent all of us that were in the Summer Honors Institue program (as it was called) to the Rexburg Rodeo. But the really thrilling part was the fireworks. As the arena lights went out and the fireworks began so did a scratchy recording of Stars and Stripes forever. The song got over but the fireworks display wasn't yet and apparently that was the only song on the tape (yes, I do believe it was a tape) because it was silent for a few minutes, time I can only assume they were rewinding the tape, and then Stars and Stripes Forever started again. And once again the song ended before the fireworks display. So, you guessed it, there was a few blessed moments of silence (well, fireworks were exploding just a few feet away so not really silence....but you know what I mean) and then we were once again honored to hear that scratchy recording of Stars and Stripes forever.

I like a good Sousa march as much as the next guy but I for one was thankful when the fireworks were finally over only because it meant we didn't have to rewind the poor tape yet again.

I hope that for tomorrow's rodeo that the city of Rexburg has invested in CD player, and a CD with a larger variety of patriotic music.

Name that Movie Monday

Uncle! I cry Uncle! I haven't gotten around the posting today's movie quote. You may not realize the amount of effort I put into each Monday post. I don't simply rely on my own memory, or even the internet, which is often wrong. (I know, you're shocked) Oh no. I actually put in each movie I use a quote from and make sure I am quoting it exactly right, word for word. And well, I just haven't gotten around to that part yet. Sigh.

And since I still have miles to go before I sleep I don't plan on getting around to it today.

So instead of putting it off and doing a Tuesday Edition again this week I decided that I am going to let YOU, my faithful reader, quote YOUR favorite movie and see if I can guess it.

Go ahead. See if you can stump me. Could be fun. :) I won't even cheat and try to look it up. If I don't know it I'll admit so. How's that for a fair deal? Will you play along?

25 words

Tonight our lesson for FHE was given by my Sister-in-Law Emily. She took her lesson from President Monson's talk, Finding Joy in the Journey

A portion of the talk read as follows:

In the 1960s, during the Vietnam War, Church member Jay Hess, an airman, was shot down over North Vietnam. For two years his family had no idea whether he was dead or alive. His captors in Hanoi eventually allowed him to write home but limited his message to less than 25 words. What would you and I say to our families if we were in the same situation—not having seen them for over two years and not knowing if we would ever see them again? Wanting to provide something his family could recognize as having come from him and also wanting to give them valuable counsel, Brother Hess wrote—and I quote: “These things are important: temple marriage, mission, college. Press on, set goals, write history, take pictures twice a year.”

She then handed out paper and pens and challenged us to imagine we were in the same situation-having only 25 words to communicate to our family whom we haven't seen for 2 years and who we don't know if we will see again. What would we say?

So this is what I came up with.

Jesus is Savior. Atonement is real. Be generous. Serve others. Pray always. Be believing. Be responsible for choices. Eat your dinner because I LOVE YOU.

What are your 25 words?