From quiet ceremonies to colorful parades, groups across the country celebrate the commitment and bravery of our soldiers.

One fabulous way to keep those memories alive is through the magic of printing favorite photos onto quilts:

Photo Fabric Memories

Create a fabric photo that can be framed. This could be perfect for your non-quilt-loving friends.

But probably not too much!

Today is Sesame Street Day so I took a look at the website and was amazed at the fantastic resources available for kids -- games, videos, meet the muppets, and even a special area for kids to customize their online Sesame Street experience.

Wow!

One thing hasn't changed, though, and that is the fun and casual atmosphere -- kind of like living in blue jeans!

When quilting daughter, Stephanie, and engineer son, Bubba, were young, kids didn't wear blue jeans.

Now, everyone wears blue jeans, and wears them out, too.

So, when that happens -- why not turn them into a Blue Jeans Quilt?

This design also includes cotton or flannel, so you can include some special shirt fabrics in your quilt and make it a true memory quilt for a child -- or their mom (or grandma, great-grandma .... you get the idea).

And this is really an easy quilt to make:

Easy Quilt Using Blue Jeans

Chenille yarns are made by twisting three strands together. The outer two are the same width but the center yarn is shorter. When they all get twisted together, the result is a plush, fuzzy yarn. Brush it one way and it has a different look, sort of the same way corduroy does.

Chenille is popular in robes, bedspreads, and even as upholstery for home furnishings. It has even worked its way into some quilting!

It was just a matter of time before someone would want to incorporate the soft feeling of chenille with the comfort of a quilt. Patches of chenille can be stitched together to make a big comfy throw.

Maybe mom would like a chenille quilt for her bed - - -

You'll find the rest of the article here: Quilting with Chenille

Happy Quilting! Penny

I decided that my 90 year old mom should be moved from the private home she was living in into an assisted living place.

I didn't take it lightly, since she was really happy.

But it is amazing the community resources available. In addition to her doctor, I found a Geriatric Care Consultant who listened to my story and evaluated both the pros and cons of moving her, and recommended that the move would be the best for her.

She and the people she was with resisted terribly -- for somewhat different reasons.

Hers was that she liked it there because they let her do exactly what she wanted to do -- including sit in a chair all day watching TV and reading.

If her brain were mush, I probably would let it go. But, she is still quite sharp and can retain muscle strength by just walking.

In the 5 months she was there, from what I could tell she was out of the darkened room in the home about 4 times plus the handful of times her caregiver and I took her to the doctor.

Needless to say, with all of the resistance put forth, it was a very stressful week getting everything arranged and her moved. Not just for them, but for me as well.

It's always interesting to see how folks deal with stress.

Some spin around aimlessly; others curl up and do nothing; some direct their efforts toward productive activity; and still others choose to be destructive.

Then there is the question of what to do to relax or even just divert attention away from the stressful activity.

For me, it is quilting -- especially when it's just Jackson and me here and only people I can get on the phone to talk to.

Since she moved in last Friday, I have spent hours and hours sitting with her -- letting her know how much I love her and want her to be happy and well taken care of.

And with hours on my hands, it's nice to have an easy-to-take quilting project that can make the time feel productive as well as relieve at least some of the stress.

Before I learned how to do Quilt as You Go techniques, taking a quilt project was a pain in the neck; and most of the time I went without.

It's difficult enough to take the pins, needles and thread; but carrying a giant quilt top or quilt makes it even harder.

Now that I know multiple ways to complete quilt blocks one at a time, I can always have something to take along.

And you can, too.

Using one of the 9 techniques shown in these videos, you can create any size quilt you want easily while you share progress with people you meet while you are "on the go."

Or, you can just enjoy working with easy-to-handle blocks instead of struggling with the bulk of the entire quilt as you machine quilt:

Quilt as You Go DVD

Here's to happier days - and peace and sanity on the way!

With "moving mom" issues and no small children around, it's interesting how priorities get shifted and events that were so important are now on the waaaay back burner.

And then, every once in a while, I stick my head up from the muck like Puxatawny Phil and take a look around.

Today, I realized that Halloween is only a few days away, and I haven't decorated or even thought about it.

And, even though it isn't finished, I think I'll pull out my Trick or Treat at the Haunted House quilt and hang it on my flannel wall - just to keep in the spirit.

Maybe you've got time to make a block or two - or even the whole quilt - before Halloween.

You'll find all of the instructions: Trick or Treat at the Haunted House Quilt Instructions.

It's your step-by-step guide for the quilt.