Pages

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Five in a Row

Five in a row is the number of quilt tops I hope to complete in the next couple of weeks!!

One quilt is a Sunbonnet Sue for a lady whose grandmother made the blocks. I've sashed it with '30's orange and bleached muslin and added a '30's orange print border. The rows are assembled; I have only to sew the rows together and add the borders and it will be a finish! (Photo at the bottom)

Five in a Row (FIAR) is also a curriculum that I used to homeschool my children when they were younger. FIAR uses picture books to teach children all kinds of things....From the classic children's book, The Story About Ping, for example, you can launch discussion and exploration about the Yangtse River and Japan and ducks and cormorants and boats, and do experiments to figure out why ducks don't get wet when they swim....It's just the coolest way to learn EVER :-) -- and my children loved it.

I'm working on three quilt tops for a FIAR family that lost their mom to breast cancer. The gals on the FIAR message board wanted to do something special for the family, so they sent quilt blocks to a friend who lives near me. As Providence would have it, I met Christy through a yard sale (selling books that my children had outgrown!), and she asked me if I knew anyone who quilted. LOL "Come into my house," said the spider to the fly! :-D

Christy brought me the blocks and I've started auditioning fabrics for sashing and borders. I'm going to keep the assembly simple -- because the blocks are what is phenomenal about these quilts. For both the little girls who lost their mom, the blocks represent the different picture books they studied with their mom doing FIAR.
 
So there's Ping (his block background has little Japanese characters in it!), and Madeline, and The Very Last First Time -- a story about an Inuit child who goes under the ice in the arctic for the first time! -- and The Salamander Room, and so many other classic and beautiful children's books.

There are also blocks for the dear lady's husband a quilt. Within it are expressions of love and commitment and encouragement.

One of the two little girls is adopted -- a beautiful picture of the love of this family.

Adoption is one of God's best illustrations of His love for us. Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus about God choosing us! Choosing us!!!

"For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will -- to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves." (Ephesians 1:4-6)

1 Peter 2: 9 goes into even more detail: "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light."

The center of one of the quilts says, "Emma, Momma's Little Princess." We are "royal," Peter tells us! We are God's princes and princesses!! The center of the other quilt says, "Eden, Momma's Chosen Girl." We, too, are chosen by God. The dad's quilt calls him "Beloved." We are the beloved of Father God, Creator and Sustainer of the Universe. Glorious grace, indeed!

The fifth quilt is a t-shirt quilt for a local girl who graduated high school last spring. And I'm still working on the Circuit Rider, enjoying making progress on it so I can freely move on to other projects. So much to do.

So much easier to do it knowing I am chosen, royal, beloved.

Blessings!







20 comments:

jan said...

Those blocks are precious, as are you for giving your time! Blessings to you, Friend. :)

antique quilter said...

you can do it!
oh love that CR block so pretty...
the pink is just perfect.
I am thrilled with my fabric hope you got my email and today will be adding it to a quilt I am starting :)
yeah today is a sewing day finally!
Kathie

Anonymous said...

That overwhelms me to think about, but I'm sure you can do it. Those quilts are lovely and I will be praying for you to accomplish your goal!

Teresa Rawson said...

Wow! Good luck with THAT goal...maybe I will try 3 things in a row (I'm an under-achiever!). I just finished a top and have 2 more tops to finish for Christmas gifts. I will try to think of "3 in a row" for the rest of the week!

In stitches,
Teresa :o)

Rhonda M said...

So inspiring! What a tribute to the mom who has passed on and what treasures for her family. God bless you!

Mrs. Goodneedle said...

There will be no more worries on my part about creating baby quilts in pairs! I am in awe of your dedication and your testimony. I am your cheerleader, Mary Lou, cheering you on in your FIAR challenge. You'll recognize me; I'm the one sitting in the "Chosen Child of God" section! ;) Great post, thank you.

Lori said...

Wow! You are busy but what terrific projects you are doing!!!

Crispy said...

What wonderful projects you have listed for completion. The children are going to love this quilt so filled with love.

Crispy

Laura said...

You did a beautiful job with our squares! Truly beautiful for a very sad situation.

Becky said...

Mary Lou, I am so impressed with your ministry - you seem to accomplish so much and I am sure these quilts are cherished by those who receive. God bless you.

Unknown said...

I just have to say how wonderful your blog is!! I just found it yesturday and I've been going back reading past posts. As a young mom, who homeschools, quilts and tries to serve Jesus the best of my ability...you are an inspiration. Your creativity is a gift from Him and I admire the way you use it to give back to His Kingdom and worship Him with it. Thanks for incorporating the Word throughout your blog---what an encouragment.

Tracy said...

What sweet quilts for the family who lost their wife/mother! They'll be treasured, for sure.

I have a Sunbonnet Sue made by my grandmother for one of my girls. it has a small hole in it. Perhaps I can let you look at it sometime, and we can decide if it could be fixed.

Barb said...

wow - I'm so impressed. FIAR sounds really interesting as a teaching practice.
I love all your projects, but the one for the girls touches my heart. I made sister quilts for a 2 & 6 old cousins of ours who's mother died of BC. It's a wonderful gift of your time and talent.

~Niki~ said...

well aren't YOU the busy little bee? Can you send some energy my way? I was just recently diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease~which means I guess my thyroid is shot~all outta wack, and I have my appt nov 9 to see if it's cancer or not. ugh. I try to stay positive and quilt for stress relief. love your quilts!

A Plain Path said...

Yikes! Big goal!! The blocks are wonderful!

Patty Sumner said...

All i can say is.....GET TO WORK!!!!!
When is Jeff coming home? Time is flying by as Emily just had a milestone birthday and No, they never, ever, ever stop needing you! Actually, it gets better as they get older...more calm and less drama! We need to get together for lunch or supper some day. I will be over quite often in the next few months. I will call you.

Debbie J said...

You will be a busy bee to get all that done! I'm sure each one will be gorgeous. Enjoy yourself.

This week I have been quilting at night. Finished one, started one and continued working on another.

A mom said...

Thanks for sharing. I love the quilts, the scripture, and your heart! Jo Anna

Erika Mulvenna said...

What wonderful gifts for those little girls! Thanks for sharing, I love that each block will hold memories of a story and the mother who read to her little girls.

Have you had a chance to visit www.WeAllSew.com to see what other quilters and sewers are stitching and sharing, too?

Anonymous said...

I LOVE the Sunbonnet Sue quilt...thanks for sharing it! :)