First week of summer... the blahs... and trying to craft my way out.

I have been working with this great group of quilters since January. We make a block or two a month to practice our free-piecing skills and then most of us have hooked up with a partner and then we make a second to give to them. I get to swap with Heidi in Germany! Here are all the blocks she has sent me mingled with the ones that I have finished for myself.
I just think they look great together. I am noticing that my blocks are tending towards the smaller side, maybe because I have been doing so many small quilt swaps. This past week I wanted to enter a quilt in to a big show in Portland and was QUITE surprised to find that most of my larger quilts were all made prior to the required 2009 date?? WOW, what could I have possibly been doing since then. Maybe taking care of 3 nutty children...
They are very cute, but I guess finishing some big quilts is on my agenda for now.

Summertime and the living is easy.... Who ever thought that was true?? In theory I guess, but I am realizing that with 5 people in a house when a cold rears it's ugly head... we are lucky if it only makes its way once around the bodies. Mango was sick with the highest fever and the weirdest rash. With the third child I am a much more "a wait and see" type of mommy, but when the feet start getting all red and the red polka dotted rash is making it's over the entire body. Well, then we have to go and see the Dr., so that she can tell us "Oh, that is a weird rash. It is probably just a part of the virus" Awesome, I guess that is why you are earning the big bucks! No sooner did her fever break, then I am jarred out of my sweet sweet sleep by Brownie crying that "It feels like glass shards have fallen in to my ears." So after 2 days of ear duty I am going to cautiously say that we can now start our summer vacation with just a broken clavicle and a few runny noses.

I did start a new BIGGER project... I just had to... I have been reading Twyla Tharp's "The Creative Habit" and she talks about having creative rituals that get you on the path of creating work... otherwise you might just talk yourself out of what ever it is you are going to make. She is a dancer and likes to workout every morning so for her, getting out of her apartment at 5am and hailing a cab is what she needs to accomplish doing her creative work for the day. She says that if she does that, then the rest of the day just follows, but if she doesn't she can talk herself in to sleeping in... etc, etc. I was thinking about that for me... and since I have a room to sew in, I don't necessarily see my work unless I open the door-- and maybe I am inclined to leave it shut, to not do work. BUT the other day I was thinking that the act of opening the door and turning on all of the light switches (I like a LOT of light) makes me want to sit and sew and work on projects. It may not be of that much interest to all of you, but for me, it is good to know. What kind of rituals/habit do you all have before getting down to your own creative work?
In order to re-excite myself I needed to post my little zipper pouch that I did not finish in time for the EMQG swap, but did finish nonetheless. I am still not a zipper lover, I think that I need to read some tutorials or something, but I did like making a little zakka-style zipper pull decoration. I just think it is so cute.

I hope all of you are enjoying summer. We are going to be in Bend for a family vacation the week of the 4th of July. I am going to do some things at the Quilter's Affair and also see the Sisters' Quilt Show. That is when summer is going to start for certain... we need a vacation.

:)

JMB