Henry Turns 3

Honestly, where has the time gone? Henry is 3!

He is so much fun and a complete challenge at the same time. I am always so surprised how much I can be so in love and so frustrated with the same tiny human at the same time. Henry is our sensitive little guy. He wears his emotions on his sleeve and will let you know exactly how he is feeling. He loves Hockey and Lego and has more energy in his little finger than I have had in my entire life. He looks up to his big sister so much and will mimic almost anything she does. He can't wait to be an older brother and he keeps telling us that he will change the baby's diaper.... we will see about that one. 

When it came to Henry's birthday party we wanted to do something low key and fun. We let him pick the theme and asked him for his input in everything. We had a great couple of hours celebrating his big day and he could not believe that all of the attention was for him. Let's just say that he was one excited birthday boy. 

 

Mrs. E

Brass & Baubles ~ Smooth Sailing Quilt

When an old friend comes to you to commission a very special custom quilt, it is exciting and nerve racking all at the same time. 

There is something about making something for an individual you are close with that just makes you want to strive for perfection. Any time I make something for a friend I stress about the details just a little bit more than usual. Kevin is one of Dave's oldest friends. He was a groomsman in our wedding and Dave was his best man, so the pressure was on. Kev wanted to put something together as a surprise for his wife Kate. Kate is an avid sailor and had fallen in love with the fabrics I had used in one of my other quilts. After a few conversations and a hunt for the full line of Carolyn Friedlander's Doe fabric line, I was ready to go. 

This fabric line inspires me sooo much. There is something about the colours, the simple modern patterns and the way that everything goes together but doesn't "match". We decided on using the "Smooth Sailing" pattern from Bonnie Cotton Way and I was off...

This quilt involved some pretty serious piecing. All of it was straight line so it seemed like it would be easy... but there were so many pieces and it was so easy to get them mixed up! See if you can spot the difference in one of the boats below....

After all of my blocks were complete I had so come up with the best layout for the colours and patterns. It took a lot of playing around on the floor, but I feel like the final result was worth it. 

Once the top was done I was on the hunt for the perfect backing fabric. Kevin wanted me to use a flannel which I love for softness and weight but it does limit colour and pattern options a bit. I happened to stumble across this super cute anchor pattern that was just enough nautical without being too much of a novelty. 

We basted.....

And quilted....

And ripped a few stitches out....

I pieced together a super cute scrappy binding with some of my binding scraps. It was just enough of a punch to bring the whole thing together. 

I think that the final result speaks for itself. Needless to say Kevin and Kate are so happy with their new quilt! It will have a prominent spot on their master bed in their new home when they move to Edmonton in a few months! They will be a short 10 minute drive from us.... yay!

And this post wouldn't be complete without a few photos of me showing the quilt during our Edmonton Modern Quilt Guild show and tell night. Check out my belly! I only have one more meeting left until this little one comes.

Mrs. E

When the Easter Bunny Comes...

I honestly think that one of the best parts of being a parent is getting to live vicariously through your kids every time there is a holiday.

Easter is one of the best holidays for reliving your childhood. We always have such a good time hiding eggs and coming up with cute baskets full of fun things from the "Easter Bunny". I love the looks on their faces when they come down the stairs and see eggs everywhere and decorations. Our kids are at the perfect age to enjoy special mornings like this. 

Sydney and Henry ran around the house yelling for each other every time they found another egg. They had so much fun and Henry was finally old enough this year to understand what was happening. After the egg hunt we went through their baskets which were filled with colouring books and stickers. I try not to go overboard on the sugar and sweets. They generally get enough from their grandparents. We topped the morning off with a pancake breakfast and some family time. It was perfect!

Mrs. E