In The Garden

I feel like I have been repeating myself for weeks - like a broken record that just skips and skips and skips... Vintage Flower Garden Quilt, Paper Dolls, Santa Fe Trail Blocks.  While I have made progress on all of them, I haven't had an official finish in weeks!

This!  This is why I don't like to have more than one project going at once.  I feel like I am stalled.  Grrrrr....

There are 80+ "flowers" in the vintage quilt... As of Monday afternoon, I finished all of the vines and leaves are done and I have about 75% of the the flowers quilted.  I am so close to being able to move to the binding.

Would the current generation even understand the statement "broken record"?  Would they think it was a one upping of a previous best time or score?  

As I quilted the free-motion flowers I recalled the hymn, In the Garden... It seems as though I have been "in the garden" for weeks.  Life has been busy and a few times I put the quilt and the machine into time out because the top thread was breaking (way too often!).  I can deal with it when it happens once in a while.  But there seemed to be an issue when I was going in one particular direction.  I still haven't figured out if it is the direction, the speed, or just me.  But it was after an ugly temper tantrum that I set it aside for two days and worked on block designing and pattern writing for the Pieces of the Santa Fe Trail Sew Along.

But yesterday hearing that old hymn playing in my mind brought peace to me and reminded to tarry there...

I come to the garden alone

While the dew is still on the roses

And the voice I hear falling on my ear

The Son of God discloses...

And He walks with me

And He talks with me

And He tells me I am His own

And the joy we share as we tarry there

None other has ever known

Of course, I couldn't help but chuckle because of the joke about God's name being Andy... "Andy walks with me, Andy talks with me, Andy tells me I am His own"...

But mostly the song brought peace and calm.  It seems appropriate to be thinking of being in a Garden during this Holy Week recalling the time that Jesus spent in prayer the garden... "Not my will, but Yours Father".

 So my time in the garden is being well spent.

As much as I look forward to this finish, I also look forward to a new beginning.  The beginning of a new sew along!  The Pieces of the Santa Fe Trail sew along.  The "formal" announcement will be on Thursday!  Watch for it...

And with that I am reminded that there are just two more days to link up for the Quilt Parade of your Pieces From the Past quilts.  Remember... there are FIVE copies of the Kansas City Star Sampler up for grabs.  So far I have just one top that has been linked up.  No need for a blog post to link... you can use an instagram link, a fb link or you can always email me a picture of your quilt top and I will link you up.  Use the hashtag #piecesfromthepastsewalong so that everyone can see your beauty!

Time to return to the garden quilt... I am so close!

Stay calm and keep quilting,

Melva

P.S. ~ If you missed it and might be interested... I was nominated by two quilty friends last week as an "outstanding blogger".  With each nomination I was given five questions to answer.  You can see what the questions were and learn a bit more about me by following the link above.  It really was an honor to be thought of.  💕

Linking with:

Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts

To Do Tuesday at Chris Knits & Sews

Mid-week Makers at Quilt Fabrication

Wednesday Wait Loss at The Inquiring Quilter

Stitch Sew & Show at Life in the Scrap Patch

Monday Making at Love Laugh Quilt

Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts