College Quilts are a labor of love

Anyone who knows me knows that sewing is not my forte. I would rather touch a gross dead fish more than sew a piece of clothing. However, with my skill set I can sew a relatively straight line, so blankets, stockings and aprons are all I've successfully made.

I made this tree skirt that my goofy daughter is wearing--from a panel and that even took me more than 10 years to get to! I once tried to make a maternity dress with a friend...she did more of the project than I did and the dress still fit 3 pregnant Tiffany's in it. No lie!

So....7 years ago when I made Kara a quilt that the whole family help tie together, I failed to consider that the other kids may want a college comforter from mom. ( can't find a picture of my first college comforter but here are the other 2.

Natalie leaves for college in 6 days and I just started her quilt today.

My big last labor of love for each kid has been their college comforter. I take the kids shopping to choose their material, I put it together (which takes a bit of sewing to start), then put on quilt frames Jim made for me (ions ago), and then we all tie it. I will post more about quilt making in a bit...stay tuned...if ya want...it's a sweet memory I have of my great grandma Wetzel. We make memories, as we share memories. It's how we find joy in the adventure of life.

Wisdom discovered at Pentatonix Concert

My goal is to have this blog post be as inspiring as I found Rachel Platten at the Pentatonix concert last night. I was fortunate to be able to take my 2 youngest girls to their first concert.

 It was so fun to see the concert through their eyes. Both girls are  huge "music nerds." (honestly, all 6 of our  kids are.) So an A Capella concert was the perfect first concert for them. (Big thanks to Jim who heard they were coming to town before I did and scored some great seats!) It was a huge surprise when Rachel Platten's name showed up on the big screen because she wasn't listed as a performer. Naturally my girls freaked out because...well who doesn't love the messages she writes and shares with all who listen. Be Brave. Fight for--YOU. You Belong.

This was taken seconds after PTX took the stage. Natalie smiled the whole time.
I think Becca forgot to breathe for a minute or two. 

I love hearing backstories....of movies, books and songs. Rachel was my favorite part of the concert because while I realize she is a performer, she has mastered the ability to make you  feel like she is talking to you in a private setting. Sharing her struggles as a working mom, her struggles with self doubt and feeling like she was less than with 10,000 people that in the arena was one of the coolest things I've experienced.  She shared the story of her new release You Belong, written while she was still pregnant. How she wondered who's smile her daughter would have, who's hands would she have, and singing to her that no matter the mistakes she makes, "You Belong." As I sat there with my 2 youngest girls, one turning 16 that day, my eyes got a bit moist...it might be that as I age, I'm losing control of my tear ducts a bit or maybe because I loved that how she wrote what every mom and parent feels about their babies.

Though my favorite song she talked about and sang was Perfect For You. She said that it was a low point in her life when she was trying to get her career going and had multiple failed attempts and was low on money. All she heard were the negative things and started to believe those and the little voice in her head that told her she wasn't enough and  why keep trying. Then how one day she decided she'd had enough and that she had the ability to change her attitude and what she believed. She had talked about social media and how it's a staged perfect life everyone shares, we need to be vulnerable and show vulnerabitility to have real relationships/friendships and to get big love. This hit me hard because as an adult social media affects how I feel sometimes, I cannot imagine how hard it would be to deal with adolescent or  teenage stuff and then add social media pressures too.  Last spring I saw all these posts my friends were showing about softball games and crazy schedules, it made me feel sad and lonely because we are no longer in that season and our evenings are a bit calmer.   I see the posts about people who have lost so much weight and are now modeling, I see posts about a perfectly finished bedroom, lawn, or house and I found that those do affect my heart, my mood, my energy level. If it affects me, an adult that should be past peer pressure, self doubt, listening to that voice in our heads...how is it affecting our kids?

Why is it so hard to put real stuff out there? Why do we feel the need to share only the great, amazing stuff we do?  At my son's graduation party he made a poster board display of all his fails and labeled it, "Wall of Shame." It had things like a speeding ticket, a failed test, a bad hair color choice, pictures scars or scabs from bike wrecks, injuries from being so "out there" when playing a sport or just being a kid outside.  I will never forget his response when I asked why he felt the need to share this stuff. "Because at graduation parties everyone always shows their successes, their awards, honors cords and never the mistakes they made along the way. I find it refreshing and like I'm normal when I see that others had struggles too. So why not show mine?"  At 17, he was wide beyond his years.

So, in an effort to follow what I learned while listening to Rachel Platten at a PTX concert I will be living a more present, "real life" sharing all the good, bad and ugly my life has to offer. My social media viewing has been diminishing anyway, but after the concert, it will be dropping a lot more. My posts will be more positive, real and hopefully inspiring to others. I try to be positive and inspiring to those around me in general and I hope that on social media this effort will also shine through.

Find joy in your life adventure.

Ellen

Today is Easter and it's the perfect day for this post. As Christ was resurrected on the first Easter, He brought with him, along with so many amazing gifts, is eternal life and hope. Today I want to focus on hope. Hope that we too can be resurrected like Christ was, hope in the future, hope in our Savior and Heavenly Father, hope that we will one day be reunited with our loved ones that have passed from this life on earth, hope that we can go on and keep memories alive of those loved ones that have passed on.

I'm a lucky girl to have had 3 very best friends in my life. Of course, Jim is my first best best friend, but the one I'm writing about today is Ellen.  My best friend of nearly 26 years, will soon lose her 3rd battle with cancer.  It has been heartbreaking to hear and read weekly updates her husband and mom text me. Today Adam texted  that she will probably die today or tomorrow.  As I tried to text him words of comfort and send him my love via text, which felt so inadequate, I was so grateful I was texting because I don't think I could've used my voice at that point.

I don't have a sister but I imagine our relationship is similar to what it would be to have a sister. Ellen has taught me so much about life, faith, strength, love, compassion, determination, service and charity. The world is brighter, happier....better with her in it. She says I've helped her in so many ways, but I really think I got the better end of the friendship deal.  While I was visiting with her and her sweet family in late January, she looked at me with tears in her eyes and said, "I have faith in my Heavenly Father and in His plan for me and my family." I couldn't speak, tears rolled down my face as I realized my dear dear friend has accepted the fact that her time on earth is nearing it's end. Until that time, I was in denial. I kept thinking, "you kicked cancer before, you can do it again."

She won't beat cancer again. Cancer is winning. I'm mad and sad about it but knowing that our separation from Ellen will not be forever, gives me so much peace.  So, as the Easter season rolls to a close, I hope that you will find peace in your life, hope in the future and know that life is eternal and we will see our loved ones again one day.