October 2022 Volume 3, Issue 10

Dear Quilting Friends,

Well, last month’s family campout at Dosewallips State Park in Washington State was a huge success! Over the weekend I was reacquainted with members of Tim’s family that I hadn’t seen for quite a few years.

Friday morning about 15 of us scurried down to a Puget Sound beach while the tide was out. The kids (and some adults) were amazed at the amount of sea life just laying around on the shore. We saw 100’s of baby Dungeness crab, several hermit crabs, a moon snail, an eel, and a starfish bigger than a man’s hand. In the shallow water was a red jelly fish, the likes of which I’ve never seen before.   

Later that afternoon I (of course) had to scout out at least one quilt shop in nearby Sequim to see if their inventory carried any regional type designs.  Alas, nothing that really screamed Pacific Northwest. But, none-the-less    they carried a lot of fun fabrics.

Counting all the family members that filtered in on Saturday we had about 38 people there for the potluck lunch. As you might guess, I was super tired when I got home. But fortunately, I was lucky enough to come back with only a few mosquito bites. In the end there was lots of good, greasy camp food, lots of good people to mingle with, and definitely lots to plan for next year.

  Just last week I finished my show quilt and submitted it to the Payson (Utah) Quilt   Show committee for judging in the challenge category.  As I mentioned last month,   everyone who wants to enter a quilt uses at least 1/2 of   the fat quarter they   purchased at show the previous year. Both the piecing pattern   and quilting   design is up to the quilter. And look at how it turned out! Can you see   the blue   ribbon in the corner? I’m so excited!!! It’s my first ribbon ever! Hopefully, it won’t   be the last.  

Finally, I’d like to acknowledge all who have, have had or in any other way been affected by breast cancer. October is a month to support many things, but this year I want to focus on breast cancer awareness, especially since I’ve recently been going through many tests to determine if some “abnormal” tissue is indeed cancer cells. While the suspect nodule is very small (about 4mm), the actual diagnosis has still not been determined and subsequent prognosis is TBD.

For the past six weeks I’ve run the gamut of trying to “be strong” thinking that whatever it is was found super early and minimal treatment will be required, to having small breakdowns thinking about more serious outcomes. In the meantime, I’m very grateful for the doctors and medical professionals who are not only skilled at what they do but have allowed inspiration and intuition to guide their steps. Whatever the result, I need to remain positive and put my future in God’s hands. After all, there are a lot of quilts still to make and a lot of life yet to live.

As always, we hope you’re healthy, happy, and finding joy in each 1/4” seam.
~ Beth and Kami