a pieced and quilted life

your welcome senoritamommy...so so welcome!

i don't know if i mentioned it or not, i'm pretty sure i did, but i got my first etsy sale last week.

if i do say so myself, it was for this beautiful bag, that i loved to pieces.

but this is not about me getting my first sale. when the lady, senoritamommy first inquired about the bag, i visited her etsy page, and found out she had a blog. of course me being me, i visited her blog to find out more about her.

once i got to her blog, i discovered that her beautiful, and i do mean beautiful son, d, not quite 2 years old was just diagnosed with leukemia, during a routine check-up. once i read this, my heart gave out.

i told e and the kids about little d the kids decided that they wanted to  "make him happy" and that they wanted to "make his ouwies go away." they decided to make him a card, which turned out to be lots of cards and pictures, and we all went to find a gift to "make him laugh," as the boy said he wanted to do.

we packaged up the bag with all the goodies we could muster up for momma and son as our way of sending out some love and letting them know that we care.

and, yay...she got the package.

and let me be honest here, i was a little afraid that she would think that we were crazy, or a little off. my little people wanted little d to know that they loved him and was not afraid to write it. i didn't know how this would be received, being that we didn't know them...and to be honest as hard as it was i didn't post anything on her blog, because i wanted her to be surprised, i thought this may be coming out of left field. but nevertheless, i let the kids be themselves and say and express themselves however they saw best.

she was not in the least bit weired out, and i am so, so, so, so happy to know that they received the package and loved everything in it. the kids were so excited yesterday to see little d on the computer with their gift and their cards and his beautiful face smiling and laughing. hear me when i say, they were soooo happy! the boy said, "we made him happy! yay! yay!"

i have to tell you though that i am so in love with this mama and this family because it is so easy to say "why me" to complain to get down and beaten by such a hard blow, but when you go to her blog...you don't see that, you don't hear that...and honestly i admire her for that. i really felt moved by that.

so...i am so happy that we were able to make them happy and to touch them the way that they touched us.

that is why i do what i do. to give love back to people. making them happy has made this whole year of trying to get to the point of selling on etsy worth it. every moment good or bad worth it.

what is so funny is that i was just having a long conversation with jorge yesterday morning about why we are artist. we go back in forth on this, and honestly mull over it a lot. it is not easy being an artist, but we do it...and sometimes ask ourselves why.

why?

for me?

all i could say to him was that there is something in me that i want to share, something that i cannot put into words, i couldn't tell him if it was love, or what...it just felt more deeper than that. but later that night when i read the response on her blog, i read it to him and i said that is why.

i create from my heart for the love of the people, and to spread goodwill...that is as best as i can say it. and like i was telling him earlier in the day, i don't know if that makes me a real artist, because i dunno, it doesn't seem like it really fits...but i dunno...its me...its my way. i see that i can't really explain what i am trying to say...but nevertheless...just know that it all comes from my heart.

so here is another day that i am soooo happy!

i am sooo damn happy! (excuse my french)

everything seems worthwhile today, and the possibilities seem endless...it is all worth it, and like my brother keeps telling me daily...

everything is everything...

to read her post, and see the expression on little d's face go here.

is he not the cutest little soon to be 2 year old kicking some cancersmacer's butt?

you are soo welcome senoritamommy...lots of love to you, d and t.

off being happy...

paz,
ki

love kicks butt

sadly, my cousin's dad passed away last night at 10:05 pm, of breast cancer.

death always takes me by surprise, and takes my breath away. when my phone ringed in the early morning and i heard the caller i.d. i knew that it was donnie, that he had past away. it was only saturday morning that my cousin called to tell me that things were not looking good, and that he would not get better...just three days before.

i'm happy that she was able to tell him she loved him sunday, a few times, and hear him tell her that he loved her back. i'm happy for her to have had those few moments, and all the other moments that she has had these last six or seven months. even if those days were spent taking care of him, taking him to appointments, and filling prescriptions...she was still there.

tasha, i know that you sneak here every now and again, so one day you may read this...i want you to know that this is about me being proud of you. i am proud of you...you stepped up and was a strong woman for your father, even after everything. i love you and i am so proud of you.

life without a parent is difficult, especially when you are young. i've lived my whole life this way, and in someways its all i know...so its okay. yet i wish that wasn't the case. i wish a lot when it comes to my father to be honest. and i know that this is the life my cousins, the girls will have to live. and i'm sad for them.

this is the third death in the past year of my life. my good friend ted left us last november, whom i'm still mourning terribly, my grandfather passed in may, which we were prepared for but still hurts nonetheless, and now my uncle, my cousins father.

honestly, i'm sad. i'm sad today, but i am refusing to give in to it. i am refusing to exist in that space of emotions...i'm choosing to love people to day...loudly, silently, easily, hardly...

i'm loving today...

and loving beats sadness.

loving kicks some sad butt.

please keep my family in your prayers today, and for me....love someone today (and everyday for that matter).

off loving....

paz,
ki

ooh and find a way to fight for a cure...one day i know we will kick breast cancer's butt...i just know it.

i'm so happy

i just want to say that i am so happy that i sat down here and got a post together...it feels good to get my thoughts together and place them here...i really need to get back on my blogging gig...if i was an employee i would be fired...if i was a girlfriend...i would be dumped...if i was a store...i'd be closed...if i was a business..........

wait...

i am a business.

and i am not bankrupt!!!!

at least i hope not ...

let's just say...get back to blogging ki!!!!!!!!

i also want to use this space to just send a huge amount of gratitude out into the universe and to the big guy upstairs...

this past saturday, was the one year anniversary of my suegra (mother-in-law) having her surgery to remove breast cancer. soon, in jaunuary it will be the anniversary of her starting chemo.

i was speaking to her last night and we, together, were saying how happy we are that she got through this, and how grateful we are for eachother, and our families...she went on to tell me how happy she is to have me as her daughter in law, and how much it meant for her that i helped her soo much, with finding out all i could and educating the family on breast cancer...because she knew nothing, nothing at all, heck she doesn't even speak english.

but we got through it together.

and i told her i loved her like i love my mother, because just like my mother gave me life, she gave my most wonderful gift in life, my husband life...and besides that she is one...(excuse my french) kick-ass woman.

she never complained, never cried, never said "why me," never questioned God...she just took it all and made us all laugh with her and at her as she took it.

she was scared to loose her hair, but once it happened and we went to go look at wigs, she had me and the wig lady laughing to the point of tears.

she was scared about being sick, yet when she got sick, she got through it, did everything she was instructed to do by the doctors, and never complained.

when she had good days, that week of not being ill, and throwing-up nothing...she gardened, she stayed happy, she stayed positive and kept us laughing.

i am so proud to be in the company of such beautiful and wonderful women, her, my mother, my grandmother...such beautiful, wonderful, strong women...

and i am sooo happy.

happy to be their daughter, grand-daughter, friend...

sadly though, saturday is also the day that my cousin, who is like my sister called me to tell me her father, who was recently diagnosed with advanced stage 4 breast cancer was not doing so good. his treatment is going to be stopped and he will be made comfortable for his remaining days. he is a young man, only in his 50's.

and to be honest this scares me for my cousins, whom i love as sisters, there father, his mother and his father have all been diagnosed with extremely aggressive cancers. in fact, her grandmother just passed away from a rare bone cancer a few years ago, and now her father.

i am going to stay on my cousins (the girls as we call them, my aunt had 3 girls) to get checked yearly, starting now. even though they are young...there is a strong family link to cancer...and the only way to fight it, to beat it, is to catch it early. so i will be their yearly mammagram reminder, just like i am for my mother...

i hate cancer.

i do.

i hate cancer. and i know that hate is a strong word, in fact, i believe that you can only hate what you have once loved...in this case, its my loved ones...that cancer effects...which is why i hate it. i hate to see people suffer, people i love, people i don't know, but love because they are humans, even animals that are afflicted with cancer.

one day, i will do something, something to help further the fight. but until then, in my own little way, i will be the yearly mammogram reminder for the women i love and cherish, and i will stay on the men i love to take care of themselves too.

so if you are a woman, and are reading this...i love you too...if you are of age, or have a strong family history of cancer...go get your yearly exam if you have not done so yet. if there is a woman in your life who fits the discription, or a man in your life...go tell them to get their exams.

lets save lives.

despite it all...i am still so happy...why?

because life is here for us to live it now...no matter if your last day is today, or sixty years from now...there is still a lot of life to be lived...in every second.

love
&
live

and for me and other artist

create.

be happy people...really be happy, and tell your loved ones you love them...because you never know what road your life will be heading down in a year, a month or even a day.

please keep my cousin, her family and father in your thoughts and prayers...

off being happy....

paz,

kiki

currently working on...

whew!

the weekend just flew by. i've been working on getting my patterns ready to print for my upcoming beginner's quilting class. it could be starting as soon as august!

man, designing patterns for print is a lot of work. designing for myself...not so hard, i know where and how to adjust here and there. but, when you are creating something for others to re-create, you have to be very specific, and keep things as simple as pie. especially if your designing for beginners.

look at my worktable:

in designing for the class, i've decided to keep the blocks simple so as to better teach basic rotary cutting and piecing. in addition to that, the classes will run, 4 weeks and i want the students to be able to walk away with a quilt.

i'm designing two different quilts, each teaching basic blocks...and the students can choose which design they want to work on...depending on their work style. i'm also going to make the size variable, again give them the choice on what size they want to create.

here are the "preliminary quilt designs"

this one is tittled "bubble gum," i don't know why it reminds me of bubble gum, maybe is the sugary sweet pink and yellow and green, and the bubbles.

this one is "3 block sampler," pretty obvious why. i don't know that i like the samplers with tons of different blocks, sometimes i do...sometimes i don't. for the purpose this quilt fills, i needed to keep the the blocks simple...and honestly this was how it looked best.

i don't know which one i like best, i will have to make them both and see which one i like best...

the sizes are:

48x 48, bubble gum, and
56x56, 3-block sampler.

i will say that creating/designing these quilts for the class...has really been challenging. its been hard not creating what i want...and creating what will teach what needs to be teached.

now, the challenge has been marrying the two...creating something that speaks to my quilting aesthetic, but that is easy for someone with no quilting knowledge to make...and that also teaches them the basics of quilting.

look at my new fabric, and tool supplies,

my new iron...she's a hot one! i love pressing while i'm sewing...and it was bout time i got an iron to make me an honest quilter. no more sharing with e...one all for myself! i wish i could of used my 50% off coupon at jo ann's..boy, i got molded when i found out i couldn't use coupons for irons...that hurt.

however...i could use the coupon for this rotating cutting mat i've been eyeing for at least a year. i could not justify spending $38.99 for such a small mat...but the 50% coupon coupled with needing a mat for class, made this a totally justifiable purchase of $18.99. the 28mm rotary cutter was also on sale, half off of 10.99...can't beat that with a stick...so i bought it too...and an extra 45mm blade, also on sale.

new fabric i added to my stash...i'm still collecting black and white prints...can u tell.

fabric for testing my new quilt patterns...aren't they summery?

and these two are for the hawaiian quilting class i'm taking starting saturday. i am so darn exciting about taking this class...and this one come july.

i've been wanting to start dyeing my own fabric for what seems like forever..and the stars finally aligned and obliged...!

i've had some visitors in the sewing room also:

this particular boy...loves to come in and make funny faces...for me to take pictures off

and, line up all of my pins..and count them...heaven forbid i stick them back into the pincushion.

this particular girl visitor is very chatty...she loves to make conversation telling me what patterns she wants me to sew for her and loves to admire my attire...

after her telling me "i wish i could where that dress when i'm a big girl," i thought...why wait, i took it off, and put it on her for in impromptu photo shoot...starring her, and my favorite dress from the 11th grade. ooh but she didn't want to stop there...she wanted...

a necklace and bracelet to match...

and all my rings for her too admire...only then was she truly satisfied.

we giggled, and posed and had so much fun...playing dress up...we'll be doing it again, often, and soon.

the last two visitors of the weekend were:

miss potter and her whimsical friends...i'd hoped i'd get to watch it while i was quilting, but quilting took too much of my attention. and,

abuelita...my mil...the love of the kids life along with abuelito, and nana. as you can see...lots of love was shared and lots of fun was had...and the silly boy face made a return visit for the camera.

cancer smacer...doesn't she look good! she's almost halfway into radiation, and she's kicking radiation's ass! chemo was a tougher fight...but, the test are showing that in the end...she won the chemo war. she showed me that her hair is finally starting to grow back, it's so soft and grew back all even...she's hoping that she'll get curly hair like me with this "new" hair...curly? pfst! i call it nappy! i love this lady!

i'm back to pattern checking...my due date for the finished quilt is 7/3. i'll post updates.

happy summer!

paz,

que

edited: sorry the "picture" of the quilts is constantly being cut off. i'm working on it...i may need to change my layout to allow for wider "pictures"

kinda, sorta...

done!

after much work, lots of long nites, stuck fingers, hunched up shoulders, a tense neck...and a very patient, supportive family

i am kinda, sorta...done.

only thing left to do is finishing. u know binding, putting on the sleeves, and writing out the quilt info on the labels (which i added before quilting...smart trick, less hand sewing)

i am utterly praying that these last few days of finishing will be speedy and not too tideous.  now that i have a sore throat...(maybe #1's cold finally made its way to me and the girl, after taking a trip to the boy.) my energy level is not that high. why on this weekend do i have to feel under the weather?

well, i'm off to lay down and laze around for an hour, muster up some energy...as this afternoon i'm going to help mi suegra find a wig. look for me to be sporting hats, scarfs, etc. in the weeks coming, #1 is going to buzz off his hair with his mom, and me well...being of a certain kind...my hair doesn't grow fast enough. we've joked that my suegra's hair would be down her back, while i was still sporting the twa (teeny weenie afro) look, so my sign of solodarity will be covering up my head as much as possible, and definetly while out and about with her.

i talked to my bil this afternoon, and i know as a family we will get through this, our spirts are in the clouds and we are laughing lots...

hopefully i'll have some pics coming in the next post of the wonderful day i'll have here tommorrow, solo.

btw, have u seen eq6?  okay i know i am probably slow as a turtle or better yet molasses on this, but can i tell you the lust that is in my heart for that wonderful software program.  i sleep, eat , drink, think eq6...i lust it so much i am scared that i will be disappointed that it won't live up to the dreams in my head...does that mean i am not going to purchase it as soon as i get my earned revnue on the 50 @ the 9 show....heck to the no...i can't wait to reward myself for staying focused and working so hard with that gem of a program...my bday present to myself (early but hey)...

be well, i will now go and rest for thirty minutes

paz,
k

the beginning...

i've been away a couple of days, but not to worry...
today is a sort of daunting day for my family.  my suegra starts chemo today.  she was over yesterday afternoon to play with the kids, do some gardening and she straightened up the garage a bit for us.  ooh how she loves to garden, i can hardly wait till spring to see what flowers bloom around her.  unfortunate for me my number #1 didn't inherit the gardening gene...at least it isn't evident yet. over the last week she has taken it upon herself to clear the old vines from around our house...well the front of the house. she also cleaned up our bougainvillea bush that had gotten over thrown by said vine.  she loves to do gardening for us...probably because she hates to see an ugly garden.  we just don't have the time, or should i say make the time to do this.  and when we have the results are never great...or even good.
anyway, she's a strong lady and i know she will fight a triumphant fight...we'll be there to do what we can to support and help ease all that we can. so lets send her tons of strength, prayers, love and fell-goodness.

this is the front window before mi suegra...after pictures to come along later.  i will say we didn't get rid of the vine just cleaned it up significantly.  i told mr. #1 he's in charge of making sure it grows back just as lush...sin brown stuff.  i bought this house for the flowering vine...it can't be gone, though i'm sure its a hope in his mind.

he says, "who buys a house because of a flowering vine?"
i said, "an artist..."

paz,

k