March 28, 2009 Just over half way there.

I think we all look great. Mostly because we are happy. Don't we just look happy to be together?




Weary traveler-- Mother of three year old-- Mother of five and three year old.



Row G X 8 All our quilts are individual except we decided to all share an identical middle square.



RITUAL



RITUAL



RITUAL




GREAT LUNCH WENDY.



BETH IS LEADING OUR DISCUSSION
WHAT ARE WE DISCUSSING YOU ASK?
IT ALL STARTED WHEN JB POINTED OUT THE SQUARE SHE WAS GOING TO REMAKE.
"REMAKE!!! YOU CAN'T DO THAT"
"WHY NOT?"
"IT'S A RULE, WE CAN'T REMAKE THE SQUARES"
"WHY? IT'S HORRIBLE, I HAVE TO REMAKE IT"
"NO, YOU CAN'T REMAKE, IT'S A RULE"
EVERYONE AGREES WITH THIS RULE, EXCEPT JB APPARENTLY.
THIS LEAD TO THE INSTITUTION OF A NEW PRACTICE.
THE TRIBUNAL COURT
ONCE A YEAR WE CAN BRING ONE SQUARE TO THE COURT
WE GET TO PLEAD OUR CASE FOR REMAKING THE SQUARE
WE MUST GO BEFORE THE COURT ALONE, NO ADVOCATES TO PLEAD FOR US, NO ATTORNEY,
WE MUST PLEAD OUR CASE FOR THE REMAKE BY OURSELVES.
THE COURT WILL VOTE AND DECIDE IF THE SQUARE CAN BE REMADE.
VOTING WILL CAST BY BALLOT
THE DECISION IS FINAL AFTER "THE COURT HAS SPOKEN"
(I THINK I HEARD JB MUMBLING AS YOU WALKED OUT "THAT'S JUST NOT FAIR" I CAN'T BE SURE BUT I THINK THAT'S WHAT SHE WAS SAYING.





I Think your Tattoo is showing?




Sweet Sweet Girl. (I HAVE SOMEONE I'D LIKE YOU TO MEET)

THAT WAS A FUN DAY

Last minute rush

Some of us wait. To the end. Some of finish in the car on the way to the luncheon. Some of us bust out all the squares right after our luncheon. Some choose all the fabric, print out the patterns and wait so long that they can't find the fabric and have to frantically choose random fabric in her studio on the way out the door to the cabin. AHH!!!! the cabin. That is where I work best. Put in a movie, sit at the table and cut & sew. I can do it all day if I have to. That is in between, Almond trout at the Awanee Hotel and a trip to my favorite bookstore in Sonora, Murphy's for lunch. Still I will leave here on Friday and all my squares will be done or prepared to the point of sewing on the 7 hour drive home. I am not sure why I am even writing this because only two people read it. Jen and Beth. They always read it. They seem to enjoy blog life as much as I do. Come on the rest of you, get a life will ya. What are you doing with all your time?

There is a huge battle going on within Dear Jane 8

Two of our members are having a feud. I hate to be a busy body but I feel I must bring it to the groups attention. This could be serious. Especially if you find yourself choosing sides. This has the potential to divide us. We can't let that happen.
These two women have come face to face and are doing battle the old fashioned way.
"I'm going to have all my squares DONE for this row by our next meeting"
"I don't think you can do it. Actually, I think you CAN do it but you won't do it."
"No, I will have them all done"
"Yeah, we'll see"
"No, I mean it, I will have them all done, I'm going to do it."
"OK, let's do this. If you have them ALL done by our next meeting, I will take you out to lunch"
"OK, you're on."
"And, If you don't have them all done then you agree that you will not buy an iphone for one more year"
"AGREED"
So you can see the pressure these two have brought to our peaceful fun filled group.


Who would have ever thought that there could be so much tension and excitement with quilting?
Will she have them done?
Will she get her iphone?
Will they even want to go to lunch together after all this bitter challenging?
Who will end up paying for lunch?
The tension mounts with every day that passes.
Only 33 days left.
How many are left undone?

AUGUST 30, 2008 OUR 7TH MEETING

AND HERE WE ARE AGAIN. ANOTHER 6 MONTHS OLDER, MORE LOVELY THAN EVER BEFORE. WE ARE WISER, AND OUR FINGERS ARE MORE CALLOUSED THAN BEFORE BUT WE ARE COMMITTED AND GOING FOR THE LONG HAUL. WE WILL BE HALF DONE NEXT MEETING. AMAZING!!!!


Happy Birthday JB. Thanks for sharing your birthday with all of us.


This Row F each row represents the hard work of each of us. As you can see we are all going to have amazing quilts when
we are done.


The amazing Beth.


ALL THESE SQUARES ARE Z-LUV'S. SIMPLY AMAZING.



Z-LUV WAS MADE QUEEN OF THE DAY. SHE JOINED OUR GROUP LATE AND SHE WAS AMAZINGLY CAUGHT UP. SHE GETS THE MAJOR AWARD OF ACHIEVEMENT.


JEN MADE CERTIFICATES OF COMPLETION FOR EACH OF US.




MEET SUSAN. SUSAN IS OUR HOSTESS FOR THE COMPLETION OF ROW F.




THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE ON THE WAY TO SUSAN'S HOUSE.

MEMORIAL SQUARE

Z-Luv's mom, Joan Brewer was an amazing woman. And we all know her, though most of us never met her, through her beautiful daughter, Z-Luv. In Z, we see Joan's smile and eyes and compassion and kindness. And I believe that Z got her flair for being creative and daring and wild from her mother, though you wouldn't necessarily know it! When Z looks at her quilt, she will see her mom's ideas for fabrics, her help with the applique, her clothes woven into the squares. The Dear Jane quilt was a project for both of them to work on when Joan was sick. In Joan's memory, we have dedicated the first square of Row F to her. Z-Luv chose the colors and we all chose the fabric. So many of us learned the gentle art of sewing from our mothers and when those tethers are at their best, we are carrying our mothers on and on, for generations and generations.

This is the card z-luv sent to all the dear jane girls. Z missed our last meeting because her mom passed away. We sent her a gardenia plant so she could plant it as a memorial to her mom. A gardenia represents Joy in the flower world and how appropriate that the most lovely fragrance of a gardenia will remind Z of her mom and all the Joy she brought to her life.

We love you Z and thanks for the card.

JANUARY 19TH, 2008 OUR 6TH MEETING WE JUST COMPLETED ROW E

HERE ARE OUR SQUARES IN ALL THEIR GLORY. IT'S PRETTY EXCITING TO LAY THEM OUT AND IMAGINE WHAT OUR OWN QUILT IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE. OK, NOT EXCITING IN THE SENSE OF CLIMBING MT. WHITNEY, OR CANYONING IN SWITZERLAND OR FLYING A PLANE SOLO CROSS COUNTRY FOR THE FIRST TIME. BUT IT'S PRETTY COOL.


WE ARE ALL 6 MONTHS OLDER, 6 MONTHS WISER AND MOST OF US HAVE 65 SQUARES DONE. TWO OF OUR AMBITIOUS MEMBERS, WENDY & JENNIE HAVE COMPLETED THEIR FIRST TRIANGLE FOR THE BORDER. IT WAS INSPIRING TO THE REST OF US WHO PLAN TO DO THE BORDER. SOME OF US HAVE DECIDED NOT TO DO THE BORDER.
WE WERE HOSTED BY JENN BRASINGTON. SHE HAD JUST MOVED INTO HER NEW PLACE AND WE ARE ALL CELEBRATING THAT SHE HAS A 5 MIN. COMMUTE INSTEAD OF THE USUAL HOUR/PLUS. NOW SHE WILL HAVE AN EXTRA 2 HOURS A DAY TO WORK ON SQUARES. SHE SERVED THE MOST AMAZING ACORN SQUASH STUFFED WITH RICE. REALLY NICE. Z-LUV WASN'T ABLE TO BE WITH US THIS TIME. WE SHARE HER SADNESS AT HAVING LOST HER MOM. JOAN BREWER. WE WILL HAVE A MAKE UP LUNCH IN A FEW MONTHS.