Waiting to exhale . . .

I am glad to have a weekend to get caught up. It feels like I can just let out my breath and relax. It seems that this might be the last nice weather day we will have in this part of the country for a few months. It has been in the 60's here in Laramie this past week and it will be today. That is above normal and it has been wonderful. But, tomorrow it is going to cool down and there may be some snow heading this way. So, I am planning a big walk today.

We are moving our offices at work this week. The university has remodeled the third floor of the Education Building and the Ed Leadership department is all moving to that new area. It is really nice! I have been using a temporary office so far this semester that is not close to the rest of the department so I am really looking forward to the move. The down side is that I will be spending less time working here in "The Cottage" and I suspect I will have to get out of my jammies much earlier in the day. But, I love change so I am up for it!

I am enjoying the beginning of my self-designed quilt history project. I am doing some reading on how the Oregon Trail passed through Wyoming. The wagon trains came into Wyoming at Fort Laramie. That is not here in Laramie which I always thought it was. It is on the eastern border of Wyoming north of Cheyenne. You can click to enlarge the old map. Which makes total sense as they followed the Platte River and it tributaries to the Continental Divide at South Pass. I found the diary of Narcissa Whitman. She was (along with Eliza Spaulding) the first white woman to travel the Oregon Trail in 1836. Here is a link to her diary.

I am going to start a new blog on my quilt and fiber history related learning in a few days and I will post that when it is up and ready. I am really enjoying this journey.

Moving on . . .

I think a lot about change and moving on to the next place wherever that may be for me. I love stories of the Oregon Trail and how those people came across this vast prairie and these rugged mountains. Many went back and many stopped along the journey. Many died on the trail and many lost everything including loved ones as they struggled to reach their dreams. Those precious items carried along the trail and often lost or left behind included their completed and valued quilts as well as those in progress. The stories of those quilts and the women who loved them keep calling to me.

Here is a great site that tells more about the women of the Oregon Trail. It is found on the website for the "End of the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center" located near Portland, Oregon. I have also enjoyed reading the work of Judy Anne Johnson Breneman as represented on her website, Womenfolk , and from this page on pioneer women and their quilts. You will enjoy a visit through her writing.

So being as I am going to be here in Laramie off and on for the next several months, I have made the decision to focus my learning on the history of quilts starting with those connected to this part of the country. Of course, I am going to keep creating my own quilts and quilting, but those stories of all of those beloved quilts are calling me to listen. I will share some of my journey here from time to time.

One of the places I really enjoy visiting online is "The International Quilt Study Center" at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln. I have found the database an excellent source of pictures and information. You can get there by clicking the link, "The Quilts" on the left of their home page and then searching through their collections. I have been feeling a bit sad that I will not be able to go to a couple quilt shows this spring because of my teaching here. So, I have decided to make the journey through Nebraska from here to Lincoln in the spring when I am finished with my work here to visit the Quilt Study Center.

Maybe this will become my next "career". One thing for sure, I am always so grateful that I have the perseverance of the pioneer woman to keep "moving on". It is all about those good genes!

My Grandmother . . .

My grandmother was Hannah Paulsen Jones. She died when my mother was a young girl, many years before I was born. I never knew either of my grandmothers. This year, the diary of my great grandmother from 1907 is being shared with many, many cousins each week through email by a 3rd or 4th cousin from Minnesota. And, another 3rd cousin is adding photos that she is collecting. It has been a wonderful year to get to know Grandma Hannah. Here are two pictures of her. The first one was taken about 1901 and she is the 2 year old at 6 o'clock. The older girls were the three oldest children in the Paulsen family and the younger girls were the three youngest. Between the two sets of three girls there were four Paulsen boys who were probably in a photo of their own. The second picture of those three youngest girls was taken a number of years later and she is in the middle. I feel so connected now to Grandma Hannah and I never even knew her. I am also very grateful that my great grandmother wrote a daily diary and we are able to share it 100 years later. That has inspired me to keep this journal.

Gratitude . . .

Tonight I got back to Laramie. I would like to share some thoughts about gratitude. Some days I like to just think about what I am grateful for and say "thank you". Here are some things I am grateful for about today.

1. I had a safe trip driving the 568 miles between Bozeman and Laramie.

2. I had great meetings with two grad students who are in the middle of internships so they can be school principals. It is so gratifying to know the future of schools and students will be in good hands wherever these two land.

3. I know what I want to do next year. I want work that I enjoy as much as this within daily commuting distance of home in Bozeman.

4. The cells are limited across Wyoming, but I did have a couple very interesting conversations with quilting buddies and I am glad they are understanding when the call just drops off into nowhere. "Can you hear me now?"

5. I learned that I can speak my mind clearly about strong feelings based on my own experiences and beliefs.

6. I made it back in time for "Dancing With The Stars" so I can see who doesn't get to come back. :(

7. I found a great shirt for Weston that says, "What happens at Grandma's stays at Grandma's".

8. I am healthy, in love, and enjoying each day - those are things for which I am very grateful each day!

Deciding on the layout . . .

Here is another picture of the vintage six-pointed star quilt that I need to finish for a client and then quilt. I have been stumped as to how to get this into a rectangle. Here is the layout of the blocks as they are now. Each six-pointed star measures about 24 inches from star point to star point.

So I decided I will move the first one on the left in the second row to become the last one in the first row. I will then remove the last star on the right in the last row. I will then trim the quilt into a rectange that will measure about 84 x 72 for a finished quilt size. The customer wants the one on the left in the last row gone anyway, so this will work. This is what I am going to do to start. It feels good to have a place to start. I have not wanted to tackle this for several months.

Lots of good stuff . . .

I got a fat, puffy envelope in the mail today from Gina. I won a prize by being the 10,000th visitor to her blog. Her blog is the prize and it is a wonderful, fun place to go every day. I opened the envelope and found this wonderful Presencia thread in gold and blue. I have wanted to try it so I loved getting it. She also included a wonderful quilter card. Thank you, DearGina!

It is so good to be home and spend time with Bob and the Weston. I visited him yesterday afternoon at his house for a few hours while his mom and dad were working. I went out to my car to get a camera and he decided he wanted to drive and talk on the phone. And then today, Bob and I picked him up after the football game (we lost - nothing more to say about that). We watched a bit of the Lion King and he talks continuously while he is watching. "Oh, no!" and then "Poor Simba" and on and on.

Yesterday we got Meagan's school picture through email. She was working on a smile. Last year she would not smile for anything and did not want to have her picture taken. So this year she really tried to work up a smile. I love the picture. She is going to be 4 in a few months. She is not too impressed with the school picture taking process. Smart girl!

An inspiration hit me to make a baby quilt. I want something to quilt tomorrow that will be forgiving and fun so I can "bond" again with Miss Daisy and love doing it. I had this pajama satin fabric that is lined with flannel and then found this cute fleece for the backing. So that is going to be my quilting project tomorrow.

I also have a customer project that I will take back to Laramie to finish some piecing on. It is this star quilt, all hand pieced, but it is not square. Whoever made it decades ago just kept adding the stars and it became a very long parallelogram. I am going to try to get it into a rectangular shape and then quilt it . I love working on these vintage pieces and will enjoy this if I can figure out how to get it into a rectange with 90 degree corners.

Home again, home again . . .

It is good to be home. It has been almost a month and that is too long!

Here is a cute picture of our little Elmo from last night. I guess he had a good Halloween even though he wasn't sure at first he wanted to be Elmo. I love his independent spirit!

I like my new "warrior woman" avatar so I am going to keep it for a few days to celebrate. It is in my Viking blood!