Quilting

Grandma S liked to quilt. She wasn't very good at it, but she loved the social components--inviting your friends over for an afternoon of quilting was a really good excuse for gossiping and doing something besides churning butter and cooking food.

Her house was so small and crammed full of stuff, that when she had the quilting frame in the middle of the living room, you literally couldn't walk around. As I kid, I just went under. I never played under there like my mother did because I was usually being chased by my brothers or cousins and the other side of the frame was safe.

I have one quilt that she made, that I have to assume was meant as a baby quilt because it's so small. It's made of pink and turquoise polyester and is probably the ugliest quilt I own. The stitches are huge (some approaching 1/2 long) because she was almost blind when she made it.

She kept stitching up until she went into the nursing home. I expect I will be the same. And I'm sure that my great-grandbabies won't care if the quilt I made them could trap their toes and fingers with my big stitches. The bright colors that only we can see and appreciate will rock our world! And who knows, that quilt may keep off some chill and help them sleep better, too!