A touch of family time

When I was feeling bummed by being hacked, it was wonderful to get such supportive messages and advice from my blogging friends.



It was also pretty great to get a few hugs from my little sweetie pie, Leia.



I don't believe I have ever told this story but it involves unknown quilters, so you might find it interesting.

When I visit Portland, I like to get a book fix at Powells Books. It is a huge store with many layers of levels, taking up probably a whole city block. It is well organized with new and old and used books all nicely arranged in sections.

On this particular visit, I had flown into Portland early in the morning and my daughter, having something to do during the day, told me I could just rest at her place. Well, a rest during the day is likely to mean not much sleep at night, so I asked her to drop me at Powells and pick me up there on her way home.

I started in one section and worked my way around the store carefully selecting reading material, mostly from the cheaper used, soft-cover ones if I could find them. I had the whole day so I could take my time at finding stuff to haul back to Tokyo.

About the end of the day, before my planned pick-up, I had worked my way to the quilting shelves. Although most of the day I had browsed the shelves alone and had not spoken with anyone, a young girl was looking at the quilt books and asked for advice. She had been given some old fabrics from the 30s from her grandmother's stash and wanted to use them in a school project. She was looking for patterns from that era to use.

Suddenly, seemingly from out of the woodwork, came quilters to the rescue. They not only found her books with vintage patterns, they gave advice on skill levels needed and even told her where in Portland she could go if she needed more vintage or reproduction fabric. I was in awe! Were people from Portland so helpful? Or was it quilters? I tend to think the later. After all, I had been in that store for many hours and the most I had heard was an "excuse me" as someone tried to pass or reach for a book

I have been blogging now for two years. Some of my blogging friends are slow hand-workers like me. Some are whizzes on a machine and everything in-between, but all are quilters. I have found them to be kind and compassionate, helpful and patient, and those I know in person, to be genuine friends. Though we are spread all over the globe,  we are not far off in our caring for others. In times of frustration  have seen many ready to give help, advice, and comfort, and I celebrate you all!

While my computer was taking a break, I managed to fix something that has been bugging me for three years.
I made this little runner long ago for use on the top of our toilet tank. It had not been used for a long time because this house and the last one have sinks in the tanks. I got this out to cover a badly damaged shelf and have been using it hanging off either end. It needed a wash, but before that, I un-sewed one section to make it fit its new location. Now one less irritation!

One other small project got done but I just can't get the picture to rotate and stay rotated so I may show that later.

The last picture is of Leia. Each time she comes, the dolls get lots of kisses and hugs and attention.
At night, before going to bed, she changed both of them into their night clothes. The boy has a striped nightshirt and hat and the girl, a smocked gown and bonnet.  Before leaving, she picked out something cool for the girl to change into and kilts for the boy. Leia insisted doing each button and snap herself. Leia doesn't seem to mind the "old fashioned" look of these dolls and their handmade wardrobe. Now they are sitting side-by-side, waiting for her return and the hugs and kisses they will get. It has crossed my mind that the boy doll can use a few more choices of clothing if a kilt is the coolest thing to be found. Meanwhile I enjoy the virtual hugs fron my blogging friends and await the real thing along with the dolls.