Mountain Musings

 Hello Everyone,

The calendar, and my daffodils are telling me Spring is right around the corner, but Mother Nature begs to differ.  We received another 6-8" of snow on Wednesday which makes for perfect quilting weather.  Mazey loves to frolic in the snow.  Her fur attracts powdery snow like a magnet, and she ends up with little snow dingleberries hanging from tummy to tail.

On Tuesday we headed out for a hike along the Arnold Rim Trail and watched the snowstorm roll up the spine of the Sierra Nevada mountains.   It's quite thrilling to watch the clouds, listen to the wind, and feel the temperatures plummet like a stone.  It makes all of your senses come alive.....in addition to keeping a lookout for bears along the trail.  The closest we came to a bear was a large pile of recent scat.   Mazie's senses were on overload as she pulled at the leash while investigating every inch of the trail.  For every one mile that we hike, she travels at least three times more crisscrossing back and forth across the trail investigating under every fallen tree, and around every rock.

During the snowstorm, I spent time in my quilting room cutting 204, 1-1/2" x 1-1/2" squares for a project.  These little squares didn't make a noticeable dent in my Betsy bin.

I want to do a remake of my Lovey Dovey wallhanging.  This time I'm going to be using fabrics by Betsy Chutchian.  I also think this will be a good project for my three retreats later on this year.  That means I also have to write the pattern.

Speaking of pattern writing, that's what I've been working on for days/weeks now.  There is an elevated level of effort working on a pattern for a block of the month program.  The pattern is turning into a sizeable book.  I can't show you my design, but I can tell you about it.  The center of the quilt has 16 blocks, which are the same design, but the fabric placement is unique to each block.  So, each block requires its own page in the pattern.

I've been in constant contact with Marcus Fabrics while we develop this BOM together.  Seeing what goes on behind the scenes to bring a BOM to fruition, has been quite educational.  Marcus Fabrics pays great attention to every detail, and so do I.  I should be receiving the fabrics by the end of the month, and I can't wait to dig in and follow along with my directions.

This has been a busy time of year with the completion of the dreaded taxes.  We have to drive to the neighboring town to visit with our accountant and sign on the dotted line.  Pulling everything together was a huge job off of my plate, and I have a giant sense of relief that they are done!

I hope you have a great weekend.  Most likely between time spent at the computer writing directions, we will be taking a hike in the snow with Mazey and her dingleberries.

Soon,

Lynn