Finishing the Rambler and Family Memories

I finished up the Rambler Block this week in At Piece with Time.

I fussy cut the petals with the swirls in them.  I liked the way it indicated motion and change.  And since that's what this block is all about, it seemed appropriate.  I also made the center a little bigger than the pattern indicated - both on this square and the forget-me-nots in the center triangles.

I used the Perfect Circles to make the centers and I've found that after a certain tiny size, my circles get all kinds of wonky.  So I made all of the centers about one size up than the pattern indicated.  I believe I like them better a little larger anyway.

We don't have that many blocks left in this quilt.  I really hope you're working on your setting triangles as we're moving near completion of the individual blocks.

I also wanted to remind you that there will not be a blog next week.  Next Thursday my family will be heading out to Oak Island, NC to celebrate my son's wedding. 

Jon Matthew is my youngest.  And although he hasn't lived at home in several years, he has always lived nearby.  I love the young woman he is marrying.  She is smart, a hard worker, and she loves him. 

So in so many, many ways, I thought I was ready for my baby to completely fly the nest.  Then Wednesday, which is always my errand running day, I passed a group of teenagers walking down Mackey Road.  In this group was a kid about 17, shoulder length brown hair, baseball cap, dark jeans and a black t-shirt.

Instantly I was carried back to another young man at another place and another time.  This kid looked so much like my son I nearly had a nostalgia overload.  I was misty-eyed all the way home.

Don't get me wrong.  I'm glad he's all grown-up, through with school, has a good job, and is a responsible adult.  I'm glad he's marrying a wonderful gal.  I am looking forward to watching the next phases of his life.

All is well in that part of my world.  I guess what pulls me up short is how quickly this all happened.

And you must understand that this ties into my quilting world because Matt is the reason I quilt.  With my daughter, I learned how to smock and do all that beautiful heirloom French sewing.  When the hubs found out that our second child was a boy, he firmly declared "There will be no lace on this child."

I did get away with smocking for him for awhile, but not long.

So...I learned to quilt for the kids.  While my great-grandmother's quilt was my inspiration, the birth of my son pushed me to find my wings as a quilter.  The first quilt I made was a baby quilt for Matt.

It is backed with cotton flannel.

There is so much wrong with this quilt, it's easier to make a list of the few things that are right with it.  But it was much loved and much used.  The batting is poking through in quite a few places.  He took it with him everywhere and it's a wonder it survived.

So the quilting addiction in my life?  Yeah, it's all my son's fault.

Thank goodness for sons and daughters that push us to try new things!