Our male Anna's hummingbirds are keeping us entertained right now.  One in particular visits the fuchsias I have out side my studio window many times during the day.  His brilliant flash of color when the sunlight catches it just right-gorgeous hardly seems to do it justice.  So for day 90 I came across a block called Darting Birds.  I immediately thought of our hummer friends and the bold color that stands out against the green.

This is one of those blocks that has some bulky seams, there is just no way around it sometimes.  Even so my block lays pretty flat which makes me doubly happy.  
To get the pattern for this block click on the link below:
Passing the Days pdf patterns

A big thank you to one of the quilters making these blocks who pointed an error in block 87.  That pattern has been corrected in the files now.  

I also want to mention to those of you with a Joanne's nearby.  I had to stop in for some beads  to embellish a quilt that I will have ready for you in September.  If you need buttons-they are buy 3 get three free-I found some really cute ones for my quilt as well.  Also they had the Fiskars rotary cutters 40% off.  I came away with one of those as well.  At checkout I then was given two coupons: one for 50% off any item and one for 25% off my entire purchase online.  I love bargains!  Now to figure out how best to use those coupons!

I hope you have a blessed day and
​Happy Quilting!

We woke up to such a sweet surprise in our backyard this week.  This fawn was just a few hours old and still trying to figure out how to stand and walk on its wobbly legs.  They have gotten stronger each day and now this little one is bouncing and jumping through the tall grass like a pro.  I just had to find a block to represent one of the joys of June around here.  I looked for blocks with deer in the name, I looked for blocks with new, and baby, and finally landed on one that had nothing to do with the names I was looking for.  Instead I came across a block called Grandma's Hop Scotch.  It looked rather jumbled and I thought immediately of those wobbly first attempts at walking.  So block 84 I have named Wobbly.  

This one goes together a bit like a puzzle so the main thing is to keep an eye on the direction the various units are facing as you put them together.

When it comes to matching those points I used the little pinning trick I have shown you before.  First placing a pin through the tip of the one on top...

...and then putting it straight through the tip of the one underneath.

This holds them together so that I can place pins on either side and holds those points together as I sew.  (Remove the pins carefully before sewing over them!)

As I was finishing up this block the little oil light on my machine came on.  It comes on every 180,000 stitches.  So it is time to clean and oil my machine.  

I use a vacuum cleaner attachment to remove most of the lint, then use a tiny brush to loosen even more that I also vacuum up.  Now my machine is looking much better and purrs like a kitten.

With my machine ready to go I made Day 87's block Thursday.  I love this time of year for some of my favorite fruits.  The berries in Oregon are starting to appear, my apricot tree is looking very promising despite the snow and freezing temps we had this past weekend.  And cherries and apples and pears are growing as well.

I struggled with the color choices on this one.  At first I was leaning towards the colors of grapes which my current fruit bowl is overflowing with.  But I also have all kinds of berries and apples and bananas as well.  Then I stumbled upon some leftover strips of Tula Pink fabrics and decided to just make a colorful bowl.

There is a lot more difference showing in these fabrics before I made them into
1-inch  squares.  That is something to be aware of when working with large prints and cutting them down; the color values can drastically change.  This block went together really quickly.  I did repress one of the 4-square units to get the seam to lock together when I joined the rows and found I needed to pin all of those locking seams when completing the block.  Some days the seams just will not match together unless I pin them and I don'r have a clue why that is.  I hate pinning, but I really did not like the look of seams that did not line up when I pressed the block.

Click on the link below for the pdf's of these blocks.
Passing the Days pdf files

Have a wonderful  weekend and...
​Happy Quilting!

Day 80 actually fell on my brother's birthday so I made a cake in his honor.  I found an old block called Birthday Cake.  His favorite color is blue so I knew I would use blue in the block and found some other fabrics that seemed to say celebration.  I don't think it looks much like a Birthday Cake but it was fun to put together.

Day 80 was the first day for us in Phase Two of reopening.  That means I will start do a block every two days now.  

Click on the link below for the pdf patterns:
Passing the Days Patterns

Have a blessed day and 
​Happy Quilting!

I have been so blessed with many and varied friends over the years.  Each brings something unique to my life and I have treasured them all.  Block 78 is called Friendship.  There are a lot of ways one could go with this block but what came to mind for me was a song I learned way back in Sunday School.  Jesus Loves the Little Children.  So I went to it for inspiration as I picked out my fabrics, in particular the line: Red, brown, yellow, black and white; they are precious in His sight.

I was not at all sure how these would go together.  There is nothing in my color theory that says this works really, but I rather like the dramatic way it came out.

This one goes together pretty easily, especially if you watch my pressing directions.

To get a copy of this block click on the link below:
Passing the Days PDF patterns

I hope you have a blessed day and
​Happy Quilting!

Day 76 was the day our small town held a protest for Black Lives Matter.  My heart has been so broken over the murder of George Floyd.  I grew up in a part of Portland, Oregon that was ripped apart by the protests and riots of the 60's.  We were not even allowed to go outside and play most days.  But I was pretty young and did not fully comprehend just what was going on.  I went to a school that was predominantly African American.  As a child, skin color was never something I gave any thought too.  Many of my closest friends growing up were Black.  Of course they should be treated as equals.  To do otherwise never even crossed my mind.
Many things changed because of those years, but we as a country still have a long way to go.  I have never had to worry about being pulled over because of the color of my skin.  I have never had people cross the street when they approached me because they feared me for my skin color.  I have never had the police called on me while I was out birding or shopping or walking the neighborhood.  
Yes, I believe all lives matter-of course they do-but right now we do need to focus on the fact that Black Lives Matter.  My son put it this way:  If you were heading down a block of houses on your way to fix a plumbing problem and another house on that street caught fire what would you do?  Would you proceed to your plumbing job or would drop everything to help those whose house was on fire.  All of the houses on that block are important but one is in very dire need at that moment.  There is a house on fire in our neighborhood right now and it happens to belong to our African American community.  They need us to step up; to step in; to hear their voices of anguish, frustration, fear, and yes, even anger.  We need to stop and listen and then we need to work together towards a solution.  

Just a few short weeks ago it was Mother's Day and I designed this block to celebrate.

My mother's heart has been grieved this past week.  Grieved for a mother who will not ever get to see her son again, never to hear his voice.  I cannot even begin to imagine her grief.  And there are so many more mothers out there who know that pain all too well.  So on Sunday I designed a new block.  I wanted it to represent the broken and bleeding heart of our Black community.  Block 76 I have named Black Lives Matter.

Like many I feel I am fumbling my way through this time.  I have had a lot to learn about what it still means to be Black in this country-the Land of the Free.  I have spent time listening and reading their stories and I have cried many tears over what I have learned.  Maybe I am being naive here, but I think that change has to start within the heart of each one of us.  We have to be willing to look deep within and root out our stereotypes and misconceptions.  We have to be willing to love one another as Christ has loved us.  To be willing to lay down our lives for another. To stand up for the poor and oppressed, the widows and the orphans.  To seek justice, mercy and grace for all.  To work towards peace.  There are a couple of books that have had a huge impact on me in the past couple of years as I have sought to gain understanding.  One is Under our Skin by Benjamin Watson the other is Just Mercy by Bryan Stephenson.  Just Mercy was also made into a movie and it is available to rent for free on Amazon right now.  The book is so much more impactful though so while the movie is good the book is a must read.

I don't write posts like this very often-actually I cannot really think of another one like it.  Some of the days we are passing through right now just demand that I do more than simply share a pretty block with you.   Some of the days we are passing through need to be addressed in a serious way and this is one of those days.

For a pdf pattern of this block click HERE.

At times like this I simply want to wish you peace and love and a better tomorrow.