Tornado Relief Efforts-How you can help

As most of you know, I'm the area coordinator for Binky Patrol.  Any time there is a natural disaster, we jump into action to get quilts and blankets to the area to comfort the children of the crisis.  Binky Patrol was created by Susan Finch about 15 years ago to help bring comfort to kids and there are chapters all over the US.  Well, the Indiana Chapter needs out help.  If you have watched the news, you have seen the devistation the tornadoes caused to many towns throughout the midwest. 
Angela has run a Binky Patrol for over 10 years and given away hundreds of quilts and blankets over the years.  She is asking for quilts, blankets, hats and scarves to be sent to her and they will be distributed to the families in the surrounding communities that lost everything last Friday.

How can you help?  Do you have a quilt ready to go?  Can you make something in the next week or two?  How about a handmade scarf or hat hanging in your closet that you aren't wearing?  These people are getting snow right now and it is COLD!

Please send anything you can to:

Angela Largent

310 A Knoll Court

Crawfordsville, Indiana 47933

If you would like to be sure your items made it safely, please include a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope or Postcard to be sent back to you, or note with your email address included.

I'm working with my Binky Patrol chapter to reach a goal of 100 quilts.  Last year we had a goal of 300 quilts for Japan and ended up with 1144, so who knows what will happen :)

I'd love to hear if you are planning on sending things, so please leave a comment.

http://sweetpenniesfromheaven.com/how-to-help-the-southern-indiana-tornado-victims-disaster-relief/

Thanks for helping out!

puffy batting

This quilt was quilted a couple weeks ago and is now finally getting added to the blog because I had to unstitch about half of the quilting.  I had some really puffy batting donated and it just gave my machine fits.  I was able to quilt a couple of quilts no problem, but this one got about half way through and then the thread broke about every 6 inches.  I gave up, quilted the thin strips and decided it would take less time to unstitch instead of trying to keep going.  Sure enough, two weeks later, it is finished!  Another one to add to the pile to be bound.

Stressed? I quilt!

This is another big quilt that has waiting awhile to find a backing and is now ready to be bound and sent to the tornado relief efforts.  I'm hoping to get a box out of here this week and start another box.

Harry Potter anyone?

This quilt top was donated last year for the Japan Tsunami relief, but I never did have a quilt back to go with it.  Well, if you save things long enough, they will eventually get togetehr with a backing and get quilted and be ready when the time is right. This one is now ready for binding and ready to head off to comfort a child in Indiana.  After contacting our Binky Patrol group, one of the chapters has stepped up and said they will be organizing the efforts to get quilts and blankets to the families affected by the tornadoes.  As soon as I get the ok to post an address, I will let everyone know where to send quilts if you want to help out.  No sense sending them to me first.

I just wish my body didn't give out so easily on me.  I can feel my shoulder starting to ache again and now my hip is starting to hurt as well.  Too much standing and quilting isn't so good.  I put the word out to my local group and have had volunteers already willing to help out.  :)

another boy one from the scrap bag

Ugh, you can see that I have laundry to fold :) but here is another boy quilt ready to be bound that was put together yesterday and today from pieces I pulled from that bag of scraps last week.  They were 8 1/2 inch squares already cut out and I have another smaller quilt top sewn together too.  Love it when they go together so quickly and I can be ready to give them away when the need arises.

Now, to go finish up that laundry...

boy quilts

I'm furiously trying to get some boy quilts made up.  After hearing of the destruction the tornadoes caused on Friday, I know Binky Patrol will be asked to help out with some comfort quilts and I'm completely out of boy quilts.  One of our faithful volunteers came by yesterday and picked up the last 4 quilts yesterday for a little guy in her kindergarten class who lost his mom in a car accident last week.  He is 5 and has a 9 year old brother and twin 3 year old brothers.  This is what Binky Patrol is for, ready and willing to give comfort when kids need that extra hug.  She said the kids didn't really know why mom wasn't around and were really confused when their teachers showed up to their house.  I was so happy to have the four quilts ready for her when she called.

No more resting and messing around on the computer!  Back to work.  Hope to get at least one more boy quilt ready to go today.

Just waiting to hear of an address to send the quilts and we will be ready to go.  I love how my volunteers always step up when the call goes out!

Saturdays...

 I love my Saturdays.  Filled with potential, peace, quiet and quilting.  Here's a gorgeous butterfly stripe quilt that I did this morning. 

and a farm quilt that I quilted during the week, but forgot to post.  Good morning Saturday!

She's come a long way

My oldest is about to graduate college.  The local newspaper wanted to do an article on how she got started in tennis and asked for a picture of her.  The article came out this week and I can't help but laugh at just how far she has come in her growth and ability on the tennis court.

Take a look at these two pictures and see for yourself!

The old Ariel http://oberlinreview.org/article/locker-room-ariel-lewis/


The current Ariel. http://goyeo.com/news/2012/3/2/WTEN_0302124717.aspx

Man, I miss her :)

conversations with a 7 year old

Last night my little guy asked me who I was going to vote for for President.  I said I wasn't sure who was going to be the candidate against President Obama. 

He said that I should run for president.  I asked him if he thought a woman could be president since we have never had a woman president before.  He said that we should have a woman be president at least one time.

So I asked him what we would do if I won.  I couldn't be presdient from Vacaville, Ca.  We would have to move all the way across the country to Washington DC.  He said, no, that is just two states above us. 

We had to get a map so I could show him that Washington state and Washington DC are two different places.  He got his State coins map and we looked at just how far away the Capital is.  We have driven to my parents' house in Colorado and that took us two days.  We figured it would take us 6 days to drive all the way across the country.

He thinks and then says, "Well, I would have to miss a whole week of school then.  I'm not sure you should be President."

"But then, you could boss everyone around, except for Alaska, because nobody lives in Alaska.  It is too cold there."

My older son has a best friend who moved to Alaska last year.  I reminded him about that.  Oh, well, except for Kyle.

"Who tells Kyle what to do?"

I say, "There are police in Alaska too.  They boss people around and make sure they follow the rules, even in Alaska."

"What about all of these places?," he says, pointing to the US Territories.  "Are there police here too?"

Yep, even there.

"So, the President gets to boss people around from here (pointing to Florida) to here (pointing to Washington).  Maybe you should be President."

So, if you see my name on the ballot, or you aren't sure which candidate to vote for, just write me in!  My son would be happy to have his mom boss people around.  Of course, everyone in the country would have to learn to make quilts.  That would be the first law I would make.  And the police would come to your house to enforce the law.  The Quilt Police of course!

from http://simplearts.com/blogs/?p=2984

Happy Birthdays

Dr Seuss is 107 today and I totally forgot, but my Binky Patrol group had its 8th birthday on Feb 26th.  I can't believe we have been around for 8 years already.  I wish I would have counted how many quilt and blankets we have made and donated, but I'm not really good at such things.  Oh, well, I know it is well over 5,000.  That's a lot of warm, happy kids getting hugged!

Today is a day I miss teaching first grade.  I would dress up in my Cat in the Hat costume and read, read, read!  I asked my son what he is doing today and he says they will 'drop and read for 30 minutes'.  I guess by the time you are old and in 2nd grade, you don't get to have Green Eggs and Ham, dress up in PJ's and play all day.  Too much learning to get done!