Good day everyone. Thank you ever so much for stopping by.

I was visiting with a friend the other day. She asked me about my recent projects; she wanted to know what I had been working on. It took me a minute, but I was struck by the realization that I haven’t created anything of value since my son died.

It took a question by a friend for me to realize that fact.

A few months back, I began an owl-themed, pieced and machine embroidered quilt for my daughter who is very fond of the furry, flex-necked, night hooters. I used a fabric collection which I liked. It was called Boho Owls.

So…nice fabric, right? Cute, colourful and a little whimsical. I was particularly drawn to the feature fabric…the teal was so pretty and who didn’t love the purple.

I began making her quilt, combining nine-patch squares with appliqued and/or embroidered blocks. As I worked, I thought, hmmm….it looks okay, I guess. I mean, the colours are good together and the my pattern isn’t bad. Surely, I will like it better when it’s finished. So, I kept stitching and piecing and embroidering.

Quilt top done! I laid it out on the floor and stood back to take inventory. Did the colours really mesh together? Was my pattern actually working? Did I use too much of the deep green fabric? Right then and there, I decided…I really do hate it! I couldn’t stand the sight of it. So, believe it or not, after all the work piecing, machine embroidering and appliquing, I threw the quilt top in the garbage. Kinda shocking, eh? I’ve never done that before.

So, instead of diving back into that empty creative well inside my head, perhaps a better way to go was to finish my one and only UFO (unfinished object). My All About Bears quilt top that is.

I really love the basic pattern. I particularly loved the hand work involved. Each appliqued bear or bear part on the block was outlined with a blanket stitch – using black embroidery floss.

Sashing stitched between blocks, rows stitched to each other. Quilt batt sandwiched between quilt top and flannel backing. Let the free motion, machine quilting begin! That I know I can do.

So this quilt is under my needle and is actually almost complete. It’s going to cover my nine year-old granddaughter’s bed at her home. I feel a tremendous satisfaction in actually moving forward to get this quilt finished. Sometimes, it really is prudent to focus on finishing up the past before moving onto the future. My true hope is that soon, I will be able to create again. It’s likely more time has to pass.

Kim

This time last year our son, Mike, passed away. It’s hard to articulate feelings of how much my husband and I miss our son…how his death has left a crater in our lives. We think of Mike and his golden heart, his universal kindness, every day.

To ease the pain of March 14, the one year anniversary of him leaving us, we thought it best to spend it out at the Lake, in B.C. Things are different there. Peace and relaxation and nature surrounds us.

It really helps, being at the Lake. The radiant sunshine, crystal-clear blue skies and rivers of melting snow are like balm for a broken heart.

We drove to Beeland in Spillimacheen, B.C. , a tiny town in the Columbia Valley. I love buying blackberry, raspberry and blueberry honey there.

We stopped at the trail head for theBugaboo Staging Area.

Back in Invermere, a Mama Deer owns the road.

Then she stopped and posed for me, which I really appreciated.

Her yearling was more comfortable hiding in the trees.

Kinsmen Beach, in the winter, transforms into a place for skating and walking the Whiteway.

At the end of the day, both my husband and I felt just a little better. Still facing another year and a lifetime without our son, we had found some peace at the Lake.

Kim