Always......

Dearest Friends.....

Many of you have been following my blog for quite some time now...

Some of you are new....

I adore every one of you. 

You have been there for the 'Spouse' and me...

 sharing happy times...

crazy times....silly times...

and some pretty rough times....

over the last year and a half.

At the end of my last post...I asked for your prayers.

You sent them.

I felt them.

They wrapped around me like a soft and cuddly quilt.

They have warmed my aching heart.

You may have guessed...

this is the difficult post I have not really wanted to write...

but I must.

It's not about quilting this time around.

This time it's about

Family...

It's about my

Dearest Mom.

Her struggles are over.

Yes dear friends...

She is reunited with the love of her life....

Above is a picture of my dearest parents when they

first came to Florida just a little over 6 years ago.

Truly Love Birds.

Mom joined Dad early Friday morning, Sept.6th.

He'd been waiting four long years for his bride to return.

I am happy in knowing at last...

she is pain free....clear of mind....

Safe in my Daddy's arms again.

I chose today to post this blog.

It would have been Mom's 94th birthday.

Thru it all....she Always smiled....

And she had style...

She found my sunglasses on one of our drives...

they became hers....

Always....

Not too long ago...Bob found these glasses below

She Loved them! 

Last year for Valentines day I made her the wallhanging at the top of this page. I gave her that along with a silk scarf in pinks and purples I had hand dyed just for her.

She thought it would make a great

Hair Bow

Such the Fashionista!

(I just love this picture)

Always.....

I almost fell over one day when I visited...

and found Mom had gotten a 'mani'....

She thought she was pretty snazzy!

And of course...

you see her holding her Favorite snack...

She loved her chocolate....

Oh that Smile....

Always....

And  next to chocolate...

she loved her Bob....and me

This was taken at her "Senior Prom"....

And of course you know...

She loved her

Pink

Last March was her last hospital stay...

even then....Smiles....

(I'll tell you a little secret...WHY Mom was smiling so bright...I told her I would send this picture to her 'special friend' - Mark Lipinski - he was in the hospital about the same time for his kidney transplant. Mentioning Marks name...Always brought a smile!)

Home from the hospital...in time for Easter....

a beautiful basket from our dear friend Sandie.

Shortly after this picture...Hospice was called in.

Mom was getting weaker...losing weight...and random pain began.

For a while she rallied....

She gained back a few pounds...

She almost 

Always

wanted her chocolate...

We had several good weeks...

But I felt her disappearing...

little by little.

There were good days...

and bad.

She was always happy to see me and Bob...

but the one person again who could really make her smile...

was Mark. He even sent her short videos telling her "HI"

That sweet sweet man took time from his own struggles after his surgery

and gave precious priceless minutes to Mom.

I will always be grateful to him for making her smile.

Always....

I am so very grateful for the wonderful caregivers at her assisted living...

they treated her with love...and in the end...were there for her last moments.

She told them all that she "loved" them...

The end came suddenly...

unexpectedly...

...but it was peaceful.

I am grateful for that.

I didn't make it in time for her last moments, and that will haunt me...

but I know she was thinking of me...I know I was loved as well.

Mom had quite a following 'here'...and thru my pages on FB.

She loved when I read her the comments from friends...

Of course she didn't understand the whole 'virtual' world...

but I believe

she knew she was

LOVED by so many.

And she loved her music...

just a few lines from one of her favorites by Irving Berlin...

(with a little 'tweek' from me)

We'll be loving you....

Always...

With a love that's true...

Always...

Not for just an hour...

Not for just a day...

Not for just a year...

but

Always....

Blanche Kaffel Zdon

Sept. 18, 1919 ~ Sept. 6, 2013

Rest in peace and joy my precious Angel.

Love you 

Always....

(Dear Friends...I hope this explains my lack of responding to so many of your comments over the last few blog hops....I read every special word...you always kept my spirits up...even when you didn't know I needed it...please know now that it will be awhile til I'm back 'in the swing' of blogging....mid October is my plan....til then...thank you for your kind words, thoughts and prayers.

Always....

Lynn & Bob

The Thimblemouse & Spouse

Time to Par-TAY!!! Blog Hop Party and Give-Away

There's a Party going on now thru March 14th
and.....

You are Invited!

Down here in Floreeeedah land, there's not much snow for sledding....

...in fact, there's none...

(thank you Mother Nature)

....but I swear it's been cold enough lately that we've seriously thought about digging out our skates...

....Yes, I'll admit it...I'm a wimpette...born and raised in New England you'd think it wouldn't bother me...but my oh my...let it drop below 60 degrees and I just shiver and shake...
...out come the flannel jammies...

When we heard Michele over at Quilting Gallery was hosting another one of her simply Fabulous parties...
(we were hoping it was a pajama party...oh well, maybe next time)

"Beat the Winter Blues"...

...the KiDees pleaded and begged me to let them be in charge of the of the party post...

they said they could get things really warmed up...

(they can be quite conniving convincing at times...)

Before I lose total control here - let me just say
Thank YOU
for joining the festivities.
If it's your first time here
(and oh how I  love newbies),
I hope you'll come back again after the party because I am really enjoying this virtual 'diary'...
I like sharing what's happening in our little corner of the quilting world...
sharing with you things that I've made or are in the works...
as well as little stories that I hope will make you smile.

I love to talk about my sweet lovin' Spouse...

(clownin' for the camera)

& of course, my favorite Pink Girl...
my 93yr old Mom...

This year I decided to make the most out of every day...
...I've been having a blast challenging myself  to write more
  tutorials ...
....joining in more Blog Hops
(check the sidebar on the left for some sure to be fun ones  you won't want to miss)
and stretching my brain...some days more then others *wink*
Plus getting to know you thru your comments and such...
you give me more then I can ever return...
....new friendships are blossoming...
I'm one lucky gal!

Ok...the KiDees are mewin' and hissin' and starting to give me evil "cat eyes"...
I guess it's time I let them take over....
so Break out the catnip...
Pour yourself a bowl of cream...
Let the ParTay begin!

Take it away, Mia!

Mia?
Psssst...you're on...wake up!

(oh yes sweet Mia...Mama's got big ears...she heard...maybe this is a job for someone more adult)
Willy?

Mom wrote a blog about 'her' - it was really about US. She has been promising to show you "who's who"....thank the kitty Gods..she finally did it...
(*whew* I thought for nanosecond I was going to have to do it myself.)
From a previous Blog Hop
"It's All About Me"
HERE WE ARE! 

The KiDees - Revealed

And guess what?
This party post is just the beginning...
we've been asking Mom for one more favor...

Marvin can be sooooo dramatic!

But it worked!

MeOwZa!
We're getting our Own Page!

That's right...starting on Monday
(unless of course we're out cattin' around)
we'll start sharin' the load - givin' Mom a little more quiltin' time.
Each Monday one of us KiDees will bring you the Mews!
(We really wanted our own blog...Mom just LOL at that one.)
It's a start.

I guess that's all for the party...
we know you're anxious to hop on to the next one...
Oh wait...there's something going on...

Of course!
How could we forget?
We found the Purrrrrfect thing for our Give-Away

The Kitty Chronicle!
MeOwHaHa
Anyone on the planet could be a winner of this 7/8yd piece of great fabric from Timeless Treasures
(why 7/8? We were trying not to cut thru kitties heads....meOuch)
Simply tell us in the comments below  - because inquiring feline minds what to know:
1) How many blogs do you actively follow?
2) What makes YOU click the "follow" button?

Deadline to leave your comment for a chance at the prize is midnight March 14th. Sometimes later we'll let Mr.Randomness pick a winner.
It could be you...as long as YOU have a way we can make contact.
If you comment as Anonymous - or you're a 'no-reply' blogger....chances are, without an email to find you - we'll let Mr.Random pick again.
(click the link on the left side bar - way back up there near the top - to see if you're "no-reply" blogger)
Added 3/15/13: Congrats to our Winner Pat.V!

Don't forget...there's over 150 more parties going on...be sure to visit to jump back over to the Quilting Gallery and see who's next on the Party List!
Thanks again Michele, for another Blog Hoppin Good Time!
Party Hardy!
Lynn ~ The Thimblemouse >"<

Time for Quilters Show and Tell - A Valentine for Mom

A few weeks ago I "Dared To Dresden" and told ya'll I'd be back with a pic of Mom's "Valentine" when I finished it.

Ta-Da!

It's now hanging on Mom's wall - yes, finished in time for Valentines Day!

She loved it!

Lynn ~ The Thimblemouse >"<

Project Quilting - Some Wonky Eye Candy for Mom and a Quickie Tute For You

One of the things I love most about blogland is discovering new places and sites to see. Late at night I do most of my poking around looking at this and at that...so many ideas...my head could just burst! 

My New Years resolution is to make EVERY day COUNT! So when I find a new challenge or blog hop that just tickles me...instead of sitting on the sidelines... this year I'm jumping in with both feet.

Last Sunday I came across Project Quilting from Persimon Dreams and I couldn't resist giving it a try. A new challenge is posted weekly - due on the following Sunday - and it must be finished and done. Yikes! 

The first challenge for Season 4 (wow - I missed out on 3 Seasons already?) - was a "Square in a Square".  Thankfully it could be any size or shape, not necessarily traditional...as long as it was started AND finished during that week. 

I'm always trying to make a little something with my Mom in mind...I love decorating her wall with some kind of eye candy....so I grabbed a charm packet of pretty pinks (cuz we all know that's Mom's most favorite color in the whole wide world!).

I ended up with this wonky little wall hanging...finished just in time!

I thought about foundation piecing the blocks but I was in a wee bit of a hurry to complete this and I really wasn't in the mood for perfection. Don't get me wrong - I'm a neat and pretty accurate quilter...but I just wanted something fun and fast. 

I started with this oh so charming charm pack from Moda...

...and picked out 6 squares to start

Now remember, my head was already bursting from blogland overload...I didn't have it IN me to figure out measurements.  The nice thing about this technique is...you can work with any size starting square - just follow the basic cutting steps. 

Here's what I did....

I stacked up the 6 squares - all right sides UP - picked up my cutter and ruler - eyeballed the side 'centers' - held my breath....and started cutting the outside 'corners' (you can fold the top square in 4ths and finger press to help you find the centers)

One down....3 more to go

Yey! Four corners cut! 

Now for the next 'round'....move the previously cut corners just a tad out of the way so you don't have an 'oopsie' and cut where you shouldn't (but don't move them too far - you want to keep everything in Order)

You'll notice below that I wasn't worried about straight cuts - I like wonky - wonky isn't supposed to be perfect...if it was perfect...it wouldn't be wonky (and besides...with wonky...you can get away with alot...which I did)

Once all cuts are made - we do a little 'switcheroonie' .... just follow the pictures....

Now we're ready to sew these puppies up! (sorry Maggie, no pup...eh...pun, intended)

You can't see it in the pictures below, but I 'chained' while I sewed the first little triangles to the center squares...and I kept it all together when I pressed so I would keep all the fabrics in Order! 

Many of you are probably familiar with this technique...basically you're just trying to be sure that each of your blocks ends up being made with 3 different fabrics.

I should probably tell you I used 'scant' 1/4" seams.

My little center squares (above) with round 'two' triangles all in place - of course you'll trim away the dog ears...(don't worry Maggie, not your ears...never)

*Note: my outer edges were pretty even (surprise surprise) but yes, some were a tad off - I did NOT trim to straighten them out...I just straightened them up when I sewed on the next round.

Next...stack up the centers...remember "In Order"....and add the round 3 triangles. Don't worry if you lose your 'points' - that's what wonky is all about!

Continue adding til all four corners are added - press - and those dog ears?....you'll get rid of them in the next step. (woof)

Here's what we've got so far....

I trimmed everything up to 3-1/2" square. Yes, I'll probably lose more points with the next step...and I don't care...because...they are Wonky!

Originally I was going to stop right here...but I was having so much fun and decided Mom wouldn't have much use for a 'mug rug' - so I grabbed some more charms from the pack and auditioned 'backgrounds' with the blocks made so far...

yes...these will do nicely.  (oh...did you notice there are now 9 blocks and not 6? I couldn't help it - they were so much fun, I just had to sneak away and make 3 more when you weren't looking).

To make the final triangle corners...I cut each charm square 'background' like this

Easy peezy...just cut corner to corner. Handle with care because now you are working with 'bias' edges...don't let them scare you...but be gentle all the same.

Sew the final corners on...press.  

I squared the blocks up to 4-3/4" which gave me a 1/4" seam at each point. (they could have easily been trimmed to 5"square but I wanted hoped the points would "meet" when the blocks were sewn together - it's totally up to you).

Finishing:

Sew the blocks together to make a big 9 patch.

The little yellow accent border was made with TWO strips cut 1" 

The final pink border was made with TWO strips cut 3-1/2".

Binding was made with TWO strips cut 2" (same fabric as the final border)

I simply stitched in the ditch between the rows...and around the first big  'square on point'.

And last but not least....inspired by Bonnie Hunters quick little labels (a square folded on point and sewn to one corner before binding is finished)...ta-da...the label.

I hope you enjoyed this little project of mine. To see more 'Square in a Square' entries...visit Persimon Dreams Flicker group by clicking HERE...or take a peek at her linky party at the bottom of the page when you click HERE (that's where I'm going now - oops..on second thought it's almost 4am. 4:30am....my how time flies...maybe I'll grab a few zzzz's first...lol)

Lynn ~ The Thimblemouse >"<

Pretty In Pink

Busy day at the quilt shop today, but scooted out for a  quick visit  and wanted to share a 'sweet' Pink Smile with you from my favorite Gal. 

Pardon the 'cookie crumbs' and the 3 Muskateer smudges...yes, my visits bring a smile to my dear Mom's face...but really, truly...I can't compete with the chocolate. :)

Lynn ~ The Thimblemouse >"<