Mom and Dad's Memory book

This is a LONG post so those not interested just feel free to move on! A number of you tho have asked about the Memory book as it's been in the works for weeks now. And you've all said I wish I could see it! Well I'm sure now that my parents have it they'll be glad to share it with you and also all you that are coming for the family reunion, you'll get a first hand glance and may even find yourselves in there. But I decided since it consumed a great deal of my life I'd go ahead and post some photo's I took during the process. Last June, my sister Marcy and I decided a memory book for our parents 60th anniversary was needed so we got together (usually by email or around 6:30 AM as we'd chat before work about it, making plans etc.) We had such fun doing it and finally in July had 80+ envelopes ready for the mail, they included a letter explaining the project and a return envelope, postage paid, with hopes of them returning to us by Oct. 1. I'm still not totally sure how many we sent, I just kept running back to the PO for more of the stamps!And all the sudden come Sept. the mail started coming in! Even the Postman stopped Ken one day and asked what was going on! Oh so exciting as they came in! At this picture we had about 1/2 of them back. I didn't open any of them waiting until Marcy and I could do it together, I know it drove MB nuts as each time she saw the pile she said How can you stand not looking! Finally by my sisters fall break from work we got into them and had such fun opening them all, We started putting the pages into sleeves and couldn't believe the wonderful things people had done, or written to our parents. Many included cards which we had a big box all prepped to include them with.
Still the envelopes were coming. Many were preceded by emails of MY PAGE IS ON THE WAY. We even had one come 2 day so they'd make the deadline! So here are some photo's of the book before I wrapped it up. And funny as it seems that day another envelope showed up! I included only the pages that I made as I felt like the rest are private for them to share, sorry the photo's are a little rough as the sleeves reflect the light of course. So here we go, this very THICK book and some of it's contents...

Holy cow it was thick!
The title/dedication page...

I did alot of pages with some of my favorite photo's of them together...


And there were some photo's from years ago! That's Jeremy and Amy by my Mom at the piano! And my Dad playing Santa for them!

This one was all about my sister and I, that is me on the right side...

This page was just Mom and her girls.... the page oposite you can see was my
Dad's basketball team in highschool that someone sent!

This one on the right was one I did as part of our family's pages of the generations, that is my baby photo with my 3 kids above and then my grandbabies around.

I did a page then of each of my parents familys...my Dad's...
and my Mom's. We were so lucky to have a couple of our cousins send us some thumb drives and some digital scans of some very old pictures we didn't have!
A page of the great grands and one of Marcy and I from then to now...
I loved this old photo of my parents, I think as newlyweds and then the other is them on the church steps where they had their wedding photo's taken!
And the final page...
So if you hung in there looking at all that, thanks! It was such a fun project and made me want to get back to my fun books and pages again!

Twister

Here is a new little twister that I did last week to hang up for some inspiration at Scrapbooks. This is the Mini twister and was SO MUCH FUN! They are itty bitty and lots of fun to do, Louise and I teach this twister class on wed. Once you do one you'll be doing another!

What a fun Class at Scrapbooks Etc.!

Lucky me, I got to attend a class at Scrapbooks Etc.! Yep, I got to go and have a kit and have such fun! It was at Susan and Jamie's Scrap and Go. They've modeled it somewhat after our Sew and Go concept and they had a great turn out. We made this cute little book, I choose a halloween kit...It has little tags and pockets to slip tags out of.... I typed up little papers with names and dates and glued them near each photo since alot of costumes get "rerun" so we'll remember "who wore the baby pumpkin in this photo!"
So I sent a bunch of photo's out for printing of my favorite shots over the last 7 years of having Grandboys and have some fun things now in there. It'll be fun to add this years.....Noah/Bode/Ethan/Garrett/Aiden spooky photo's to this!

Cute Pincushion!

Here is one of the projects I got done at Quilt Camp. A watermelon Pincushion! It was so fun to make, I had the kit from a class I'd signed up for at Scrapbooks and missed, what fun to have a kit, I make kits so much it was fun to open a kit and make it! Thanks Louise and Theresa!

Witches are flying!

I had to post a photo of my finished witches quilt. We are right in the middle of this Buggy Barn class at Scrapbooks and I brought my top home to finish it up before the next class. It was alot of fun to quilt and I did the spider web and little spider to top it off. I'm glad to have it done to hang at my house for Oct.....only started it 2 years ago! For now it's going back to Scrapbooks to hang there.

A quilt for Becket

Here's another "blurry" photo of a finished baby quilt. Ken asked me to make a quilt for one of his clients a new baby, so here it is. This one is for Baby Becket. I found some leftover block parts from a quilt I'd done for Bode, added a few things, cut out 2 circles and a big B at work with the die cut machine and ironed them on to applique and it's done. It was great to use up a few more scraps and now little Becket will have a quilt. I havn't meet him or his family but it's ready for delivery. I guess Becket was born around the same time our little Noah came so he should be ready for some tummy time on his quilt too.

new bags

I got ambitious this last week and made my 2 youngest grandboys new bags....back to school bags :-)

It's not like they need them but the other boys were getting fun shirts and things and I figured little bitty boys need something to haul all their things around in. So the little baby animal one is on it's way to little Noah. I'm sure Mommy and Daddy will find something to throw in there to haul to Day Care. And this one went to little Bode. I hear it's already hauled the weeks supply of clothes and diapers to Miss Robins house where he plays each day with his friends.

Friend celebration

We had a fun time celebrating Linda's birthday this week. We had a fun day shopping at some local quilt stores and then going back to Denise's house for this lovely lunch...Then we did some sewing and each made a bag. Here is mine....

And this is Denise's. They are out of the vinyl coated cotton fabric. It was so fun to have a day with friends!

Anniversary present

I continued the tradition this week of giving my sister stockings for her family. They've had a new baby this year in the family. So it was time to get Landon's stocking made so they'll be ready for Christmas. Today is Marcy and Vince's wedding anniversary so they got this for a fun little treat.

block swap

There is a block swap coming up at Scrapbooks Etc. that I joined. I wasn't going to as the fabrics were all pretty pinks and greens and I was thinking....what do I need with another feminine pink quilt, well peer pressure got me and I started feeling guilty that I wasn't supportive of the block swap so I caved. So I have my blocks finished and ready to turn in. I made this "star of hope" block, they are 12 1/2 inches square and ready to go. They are having a big "soiree" for people to receive all their swap things they've been doing and it's not until the end of July. I've seen a few of the blocks that have come in and they are great. Tash made some darling tea cups and a coworker who swears she doesn't sew gave it her all and made some great blocks too. So I'll be sure and post the finished blocks I get after the party!

Quilt Visiting

Yes we quilters are an odd bunch....we went quilt visiting! Actually there was a great purpose to this. Linda and Judy and I stopped down at the Gilbert Museum to visit another one of Linda's quilts that she's having quilted by the ladies there. They hand quilt peoples quilts for them. Here is her quilt, it's just beautiful....I don't think the beautiful stitches that the ladies are doing on it will show up in the photo but it was amazing. Linda and I decided to make this quilt a few years back, we traded the triangle shaped pieced parts and Linda got hers done.....mine lives in a baggie....sigh...
Here is Linda with her beautiful quilt on the frame, it'll be wonderful to see it finished, scalloped border, applique and now the hand quilting, what a family heirloom that is being created!