How many ways to procrastinate?

I am the queen of procrastination.  There, I've said it.  And it could be true.  There are a couple hundred thank you  notes to be written and, well, here I am blogging after only finishing five.

I HAD to take a break and catch up on Pam Buda's Market Day Mystery Quilt.  It's a small quilt and so it was easy to catch up. Pam is posting clues every Friday, and I was behind a couple weeks.  Here are the four parts so far:

It's always fun play around with the clues, and after four clues there is something to work with.  This would be a nice arrangement.  What do you think?

I think I should stop procrastinating and get back to work!  We'll see how long that lasts. 

Rhapsody in Bloom: finished and gifted

Amid all the family events last week I actually did finish the wedding quilt for my niece.  And with three hours to spare! Yep, I was still quilting the morning of their wedding.  But, proud to say it was finished on time!

The pattern is Rhapsody in Bloom, designed by Doug Leko and published in Quiltermaker magazine March/April 2011.  I did add an additional row of blocks and a couple more borders to make it bigger.  The pieced star border blocks are made from bonus blocks which came from the corner trimmings.  I enjoyed making this quilt, and the individual blocks weren't difficult, but I had problems making the seams match when I joined the blocks.  Corners were ok, but there are seam lines along the sides that I couldn't quite get to go together well.  But, it was made with love, and that's the important part.

Over the past week we've had the full spectrum of family events.  A funeral for my dad, a college graduation for our DIL- Dr. Sarah!, a beautiful wedding for my niece, and a new grandson for my SIL.  Anything we missed???

I can't wait to get back to some relaxing piecing and quilting!  I've been saving up the instructions for Pam Buda's Market Day Quilt and hope to catch up by next week.

A graduation, a wedding and a funeral

Sounds like the title to a movie, but it's actually what's happening for our family this week.  Our DIL graduates with her Pharmacy degree.  Congratulations Dr. Sarah!  We're so proud of her!

Our Niece will be married this weekend, and their wedding quilt is nearly finished.  I might have time the morning of the wedding to finish up some additional quilting that needs to be done.  If not, my niece and her new hubby will be gone on their honeymoon for a week, so I'll have plenty of time then to finish up their quilt before they get home.

Finally, just before Easter my father's health suddenly declined and he passed away last Wednesday.  Even in his last days he would say, "Stay home this morning and work on that (wedding) quilt."  What a sweetheart!  He was 92 years old and lived a wonderful life of service to others.  He was active in Boy Scouts for 80 years.  Yes, your read that correctly,  Eighty Years!   And he lived out his faith and values daily.   We will all miss him terribly.

Mexican Cross

The  Hispanic community in our area celebrates Cinco de Mayo today.  The day commemorates a significant battle in Mexico over a century ago.  For me, it is a time to remember a wonderful vacation we took to Mexico a few years back.  I made a block on our Silver Anniversary Quilt for that trip and thought I'd share it with you today.  It's called Mexican Cross.

Here's a link for the free pattern for an 8 inch block is at Quilters Cache.  I adjusted the pattern to make a 12 inch block for the quilt.

Enjoy the day!  Ole'!