The Lottie quilt

This quilt is for middle. She chose the pattern and the fabric. The backing will be solid bleached muslin.

It is a scrap quilt, made with blending fabric of different colors. I purchased the bleached white muslin. The other fabric is mostly from my collection and a friend’s collection. 

Many people have made this quilt and posted photos online. Googling “Lottie Quilt” and then choosing “images” will yield lots of photos. 

This is one of the posted pix and is our inspiration -

We purchased the digital pattern -

I made myself color key cards (one for each block) and a placement sheet to keep track of the pieces. 

I increased the size of the pieces. Mine are an even 4” unfinished, so I could use a 4” rotary square (above) to trim my sections. So I cut my fabric at 5”, paired and sewed diagonally, and then trimmed to 4”. (The instructions used 3.75”.)

Each quarter section of the block is a 9-patch -

We realized we only need 9 blocks, not 16, partially because I increased the block size, and partially the way middle makes her bed.

As this posts, I am still sewing.

Tomorrow is National Gift Card Day

 

The blue and white quilt

Finishing piecing the indigo and white quilt for my niece, I had a lot of the white print fabric remaining.

I also had a collection of blue fabric. This was not indigo, it was regular fabric.

I decided to make a second blue/white half square triangle quilt. My intention is to save this for my granddaughter who is currently 8 mos. 

I cut the fabric at 8.5”, paired, sewed diagonally, trimmed blocks to 7.5” using a 7.5” rotary square with a diagonal line through the center.

When I had made as many blocks as I could with the Chambray Sunrise Side collection, I dug through my fabric and found other blues (below) that blended well. I also purchased 8 additional white background prints.

I used every bit of the Chambray Sunrise Side collection in making this blue and white half square triangle quilt. 

There was one fabric that was tricky, it was the large floral on a white background. 

I used this floral fabric as a “dark” by carefully surrounding it with strongly contrasting fabric. The whites around it make it read as a dark. Yes, several of those pieces are solid white fabric. 

There is also light blue fabric with white dots, in this quilt, that I carefully surrounded with light fabric. It is visible in the last photo, below.

The indigo and white quilt

This quilt is currently at my long arm quilter’s. 

When it is finished, it is headed to the same niece who is getting the Grandmother’s Flower Garden. She picked the indigo/white fabric and also the half square triangle design. She knows the indigo quilt is coming. The Grandmother’s Flower Garden is a surprise.

This is the long arm stitch -

Indigo is a very specific fabric, usually made in South Africa. It has labels on the back, identifying it. It comes in small pieces, not on a bolt like regular yardage, in my experience.

All the blue fabric in the photos below is indigo. I paired it with (regular) solid white and white background prints.

I cut 8.5” squares, paired them, and used the diagonal sewing method that generates two half triangle squares from each pair. I trimmed these blocks to 7.5” using a 7.5” rotary square with a diagonal guide in the center. 

The grandmother’s flower garden

This Grandmother’s Flower Garden is hand pieced. They usually are because of the angles. 

I did not make this quilt top. I purchased it from my long arm quilter. It is an estate piece she acquired from a friend’s family when the quilter died.

If this type of quilt is new to you, here is a good explanation by someone who made one -

https://susies-scraps.com/2022/03/25/grandmothers-flower-garden-quilt-like-grandma-used-to-make/

I bought batting and backing. My long arm quilter used the Baptist Fan stitch pattern, which shows beautifully. 

Bonus, it holds all those hand stitched pieces down firmly. This quilt should wear well. The quilting is secure.

The floral fabric is quite old fashioned. It is perfect to represent the “garden”. I like that the colors blend beautifully and are rich. They are neither primary nor pastel. They hold their own. I love the uniform centers. I love the white background. I think this is a lovely quilt.

I came home, made the binding from the leftover backing, and sewed it on the quilt. It is currently at the binder. When it is finished, it is headed to my niece. 

2025 quilts

I posted a collection of quilt photos a few weeks ago - 

https://baby-steps-v.blogspot.com/2024/12/quilts-i-made-between-july-2023-and.html

Those quilts were made mostly one right after the other between July 2023 and January 2024. I made a baby quilt in May/June 2024 also, when our granddaughter was born.

I updated that quilt post to include the sizes, quilt patterns, and stitch patterns. 

I am currently working on another run of quilts. 

Note - I prewash/dry all fabric. I use 100% cotton Warm and Natural or Warm and White batting. My long arm quilter uses real thread on my quilts (not fish line).

My six winter 2025 quilts are - 

1. Niece’s Grandmother’s Flower Garden (at binder’s).

2. Niece’s Indigo/white half triangle square quilt (at long arm quilter’s). 

3. Granddaughter’s Blue/white half square triangle quilt (pieced and ready to go to long arm quilter).

4. Middle’s Lottie quilt (piecing).

5. Youngest’s best friend’s scrap quilt (made with the leftover 5” squares from Lottie)

6.  Granddaughter’s Scrap quilt (have fabric). 

Yes, six is an ambitious number of quilts for one winter. But that seems to be how I get things done. All these quilts are gifts for family members (and Youngest’s best friend).

My plan is to roll right from one to the next, and be done before gardening season starts in April/May.

Here are my tricks 

- I only do very simple quilts these days. 

- I pace myself, I work a little bit every day. I do not over do it.

- I work on one quilt at a time. I finish each quilt I start. 

- I have help. I have a long arm quilter and a binder. I have middle, my husband, my good with color friend.

- when I pick up a quilt from the long arm quilter, I hand her the next quilt. When I pick up a quilt from the binder, I hand her the next quilt. This is key! It gives me a schedule/deadline/sense of urgency.

Photo book

Yesterday’s post mentioned I purchased a small photo album to save holiday cards for our granddaughter.

These little photo cards are a snapshot of our immediate family’s year. It is a family tradition. These cards are distributed to our friends and family, long time friends of the kids, and some of DIL’s family.

I am adding to this tradition by making a photo book for granddaughter each year. The photo book will be an expanded version of the holiday cards. I am including information and photos about all seven of us. It will be a family photo book (not a baby book). 

I am gifting this family photo book at what might seem like an unusual time, Valentines Day.

February 14 deadline (each year) gives me plenty of time to construct and order the book reflecting January 1 - December 31 of the previous year. 

I can get the whole previous year in, including Christmas and New Years, by using Valentines Day as my gift date. 

The title of each book is the year. That helps simplify. The books will be very uniform.

The family photo book gives me a family tradition gift to send each year, on Valentine’s Day. 

This meaningful gift will help avoid gift clutter. It will probably be less expensive to send a custom photo book than buy nonsense and pay shipping. I will have it shipped directly. 

Having the deadline be tied to a holiday/gift should ensure it gets done once a year. A deadline is important. My deadline will be granddaughter’s family tradition.

Granddaughter was born late spring 2024. So yes, the 2024 book will be a partial year, for granddaughter’s pictures, but it will still be a very full book. There are activities for the other six of us, from the whole year. We had two baby showers prior to her birth. There are a lot of baby pictures. We all visited in 2024. There are six pets in the family. 

Saving holiday cards

We have a new granddaughter who was born late last spring. 

She lives very far from us with our oldest/DIL. 

We have all been to meet her. 

I look for little things I can do to feel connected to her. 

Sometimes this means sending something to them. 

I wrote about an annual Christmas ornament here - 

https://baby-steps-v.blogspot.com/2024/11/baby-gift-ideas-part-one.html

Sometimes it means keeping something here. 

Today’s post is about a tiny little collection I just started. I will give this collection to granddaughter at some point in the future. 

I design/order/mail family holiday cards each year. 

These cards go to our friends and family. They also go to many of our kids long time friends and our DIL’s key family members. 

I am saving one of our holiday cards for granddaughter each year, starting with 2024. 

I ordered a small photo album to facilitate this process.

I had granddaughter’s birth announcement, I added it to the album. On the years oldest/DIL send a holiday card, I will add those too. 

Our holiday cards, because they include all seven of us, plus pets, are a great little window into our history. 

I think it will be a great keepsake. And a nice tiny size.

Electric outlet shortage was a problem

We do not have enough outlets in our garage. It is just a fact. 

We have four outlets, with the standard two plugs each, on four different/opposite walls. That is not enough. 

The worst offender is the outlet by the work bench/window. Two plugs is not enough for the pumpkins or the Christmas wreaths nor chargers/tools.

At first I thought the outlets should have been installed with four plugs each, but then I realized even with eight, spacing would have been an issue. Many things in the garage have wide plugs. 

I realized what I needed, solving the window/work bench plug, was a power strip that mounted on the wall, with well spaced plugs. 

I found a great one - 

2025 books

Because of Christmas, the groups that normally meet the last week of the month, met the week before Christmas.  I had two groups that Wednesday and one that Thursday. I read all three books and attended all three meetings.

My first book group of 2025 has already met, the day after New Years. So I am right back in the swing.

I have all my meetings/books logged in my calendar for January - May 2025. Most of those books have been assigned. 

I have the meetings on my calendar June - December 2025, so I do not accidentally schedule something else on a book group day. I will add the books later, as they are assigned.

I am back to four groups a month, sometimes the calendar aligns and it is one meeting a week. Sometimes the calendar is odd and I have two groups meeting on the same Wednesday. If it is two groups on the same day, I read the books and go. It is important to attend regularly and support the groups.

I am very pleased to have found a network of library book groups that work for me. Groups encourage me to read a more diverse selection. And it is great to discuss books in person. Plus it is good socialization for me. 

I might have mentioned, I am also reading the books for Youngest’s book group 2025. There are 11 books, they have a party in December, so no December book assignment. All 11 assigned books are on my calendar, on the date her group meets.  

Her first assignment for 2025 was The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman. This is the first book in a four book series. I read all four books between 12/19/2024 - 12/29/2924. And then I read Richard’s first book in his second series, We Solve Murders.

Note of a wonderful feature on Libby - I have checked availability on Libby for my January-March 2025 assigned book titles. I am on hold for several books. 

On Libby, if a hold becomes available too quickly, before I need it, youngest can put a specific future date in the system so I get the hold later, when I need it. Great computer magic. It is tricky to time holds so the dates are perfect, this feature makes it work.

Also it is very helpful to share a Libby account with youngest. If I have a problem, she fixes it. She works magic with the dates. She keeps an eye on what I am reading which generates discussion for both of us.

Reading the same book at the same time is not a problem because we each have separate Hoopla accounts. 

We also share an Audible account. Audible is smart enough that we can listen to the same book at the same time and the system keeps it separate.

Book summary 2024

I started attending local book groups (again) in April of 2024.  

Youngest persuaded me to open a Goodreads account and log as many books as I could from my past. I used blog posts and memory to not only log the books but also include fairly accurate read dates. 

I also started logging my current reads. This is extremely helpful.  

Goodreads does a nice summary for the year/2024, this reflects 9 mos of books, I started with my book groups in April 2024  -

These are nicely in order -

I started a list of authors, in the notes section of my phone, where I have read all or *nearly all their published works. 

*An example is John Grisham. I read all the legal mysteries. I skipped the one on football.

The Personal Librarian and Marie Benedict - list of possible future books

I first heard about this book, The Personal Librarian, on Pop Culture Happy Hour in 2021.

I started it 2021 or 2022, during a road trip with my husband, somehow that did not work. We only listened to a bit if it and then stopped. Which is weird. He is a (long time) audio book person, he listened to books on CD, in the car, before iPhones and Audible entered our lives. 

Somehow I then forgot all about this book/author until I was reviewing my list of finished books on Audible for my Goodreads project fall 2023. I made a note at that time. I lost the note, and could not think of the title nor the author. I just refound the note. I am saving it more securely here, under my “book TO READ list” label.

I still have not read any of these books. I have no idea if I would like them or not. 

Maybe one of these books will pop up as a book club assignment and I will read at least one. Maybe at some point I will be looking for a good book list and will have it ready, here.

NPR article -

https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2021/08/31/1031802246/the-story-of-j-p-morgans-personal-librarian-and-why-she-chose-to-pass-as-white

Author Marie Benedict:

Consolidating medical records

My priority in my medical care, at my current age of 63, includes continuity of care and good medical records. I am seen by all my doctors regularly. I am extremely compliant. My asthma/allergies and arthritis are now manageable. My migraines ceased.

We fill all prescriptions at Walgreens so our medication records are all on one system. I feel very strongly about having a single pharmacy. I use one location in our town the majority of the time. It is open 24/365. 

The Walgreens computer will likely catch drug interaction problems and errors in dosage. Our long history of medications is housed on the Walgreens computer system. When we travel, a Walgreens is usually available. A real person is available by phone or in person. 

Walgreens app is easy to use. I like their notification options. I order and correspond thru the app. My history is readily available on the app, so I can look up past medication.

I also keep a typed list of my current medications under “Walgreens” in the notes section of the address book on my phone. Then I can easily pull it up at medical appointments.

I am in the process of purposely consolidating my doctors for the same reason, to have as many of my medical records as possible on the same computer system. 

This is where I am in my consolidation process -

I have all lab work and scans, including my annual mammogram, done through one/the same medical network specifically, so those records are on one computer system. 

My PCP who happens to be an internist, my cardiologist, my physical therapist, my sleep doctor, and my OBGYN are all in this medical network/same computer system too. 

The PCP and cardiologist and physical therapist are new to me within the last 3-4 years. My sleep doctor was added 2 years ago. My OBGYN is new to me last fall. These were purposeful changes to the same medical network/computer system.

The walk in clinic, that I use for illnesses and injuries, is also in this same medical network/computer. So they have access to all my pertinent/important/main records instantly. 

This walk in clinic has many locations and is open every day 8am-8pm. It is well staffed. If I have a problem, I (now) go quickly. Access to this clinic has increased the speed at which I am seen and improved my quality of life. This is a big change for me.

On the rare occasion I go to the emergency room or am admitted to the hospital, it is in this same medical system/computer.

Starting this year, my colonoscopies will be through this same medical network/computer. I am switching doctors so this happens.

Starting this year, I am also switching my eye doctor. My current ophthalmologist is getting ready to retire. I am proactively switching to a new ophthalmologist who is on the same system as my other doctors. UPDATE - Staying with my original ophthalmologist. There isn’t one available in my primary network. 

I have three sets of doctors, I am keeping so far, who are NOT in my main medical network/computer. They are four orthopedic physicians all in the same practice  (hands, knees, back/neck, feet), my dermatologist, my asthma/allergist. 

I see all those doctors at least once a year. My records with these doctors are on separate systems at each office. 

These stand alone physicians are not easily replaced within my main medical network. So far, it is not causing problems to have the medical records separate.

My ENT is also stand alone. I see that doctor as needed, a few times a decade.

My dentist is also stand alone. I see them every 6 months. Sometimes the dentist refers me to a stand alone oral surgeon, knock on wood, that rarely happens.