June Quiltvillians Plus One!

I was 10 when the Alice Cooper song “School’s Out” was released as a single on April 26, 1972.

I remember it playing on the little clock radio I had wished for and received for Christmas in December of 1971.

My 10 year old self would sing “School’s Out for the Summer! School’s out FOREVER!” at the top of my lungs when school let out in June – feeling like this song was written just for my school.

And yesterday when I brought Casden over to “meet the ladies” we ALL broke into that song when Casden said he was out of school – and will be going into the 4th grade in August.

“No more pencils, No more books
No more teacher’s dirty looks
Out for summer, Out ’til fall
We might not come back at all!”

I think we all connected to those “School’s Out!” feelings through the presence of an adorable 9 year old almost 4th grader.

Remember when summer seemed to last forever?

With Ashlyn at work, and school being out – I am thrilled to get to spend more time this summer with my favorite red head.

Meanwhile, son Jeff is busy with some landscaping, repurposing stones from the wall that was knocked over by Hurricane Helene.

The ultimate waste-not-want-not.

These pavers have seen a lot over the past year, and will be used in other places.

The ground at the side yard is not only sloping, but rocky and grass doesn’t really grow up here. SO we are putting a bit of a decorative wall, some additional soil and some mulch.

And this is as high as it goes – this is the low corner. It will be much nicer and neater to be able to mow closer to the wall, and weed-eat around it.

Building up the soil will help the azaleas and rhodies that have been struggling a bit here to poor soil.

So what did Casden and BoNana get up to while Jeff was landscaping?

I had made a promise to him a few months back that when he had more time to spend with me that I would show him how to quilt. He reminded me first thing!

So…we brought over a folding table we could set at a lower height, used a stool that would allow his feet to work the foot pedal, and set up my 301 for some simple string piecing basics.

This kid. When I asked him what colors he wanted to work with, didn’t say BLUE – he said INDIGO. LOL!

Where does a 9 year old learn to lean in to INDIGO!?

SO we pulled out the blue string bin, talked about the different shades of blue, including indigo, and set him free on choosing which fabric would end up next to what.

I first had him practice sewing straight lines on binder paper. He did pretty well. Little crazy on the speed, Needed to be told to STOP at the end of a seam. LOL! He laughed, I laughed, and no one sewed over fingers.

We used 5” phone book paper squares because they do not stretch or pucker as a foundation. Fabric foundations proved to be a challenge. The paper did not.

5” blocks were easier to sew straight on than larger blocks requiring longer seams.

And he liked the tearing OFF of the paper part.

Great job, Buddy!

Several hours spent with “Got any snacks?” and “Can I go show this to the ladies?” and “I think I want to watch TV now for a break.”

I completely understand. I mean, I need snacks too, and I often take breaks to “go see the ladies.” And sometimes the TV pulls me in.

We are on a great trajectory!

He has a box for his project. We will add more blocks to it through the summer. I just hope he doesn’t lose interest, but boys will be boys.

My own sons learned by string piecing and would often ask to sew until they were about 12 when the question of “Mom, can I sew? But you can’t tell anyone” started. At that point I knew they were somewhat aging into other activities with friends.

These days, though, there are many male quilters making amazing things and I think I can share those things with him. Sewing is not just for girls. Quilting is not just for girls.

Just wait until he discovers graph paper!

As for the ladies? I think they loved having this 9 year old cutie making visits.

And just like any 9 year old – he knew that one smile would win him a whole plate of food and 12 more grandma-types full of encouragement and praise.

The whole concept of “retreat” was kind of lost on him, however. “Why do these ladies come here?” he asked.

“They are on vacation.” was the easiest way for me to explain it.

“They are friends who all like to sew so they bring their machines and make quilts while they talk and laugh and visit and eat really good food. They go to bed way too late, and get up in the morning to do it all again.” was my reply.

Needless to say by the time evening rolled around and the day was drawing to a close I was completely exhausted.

How did I do this with two boys in the house at the same time? How did I get anything done at all?

And it’s true what they say “If I knew how much fun having grandkids would be, I would have had them first!

Mountain Laurel from my yard last night.

Today – No Casden. It’s raining with thunderstorms expected so Jeff won’t be up to work on the retaining wall.

Tomorrow is an option if things clear up.

I’ll be at my desk pattern writing for Fireweed (shown above behind Casden showing his blocks) so it will be ready to release when I return home from Iceland.

And I’ll spend time “Visiting the ladies.”

Life is good!

Just a reminder –

The PDF pattern for Summer Picnic is currently 25% off in the Quiltville Store through tomorrow, 5/31/25. No coupon needed.

Stars For The Win!

Stars and Scraps were meant for each other! Create this stunning star quilt in scrappy plaids from recycled shirts or with your own stash yardage. Piecing options, full color photos and graphics and many tips for easy piecing pleasure included.

Quilt Size: 72’’ X 72’’