Hobby#1: Quilting

I know some of you are thinking, "quilting? isn't that something old ladies do?" Hey, don't worry, I thought the same thing. Actually, I was surprised at what a mommy friendly thing quilting can be. I discovered that sewing the blocks of a quilt by hand is a fabulous past-time for moms. It takes a little practice and certianly develops patience but it solved on of my biggest problems. I get bored. Okay, after sitting at the playground for an hour I get bored. There isn't always someone for me to talk to since I go during the day and even at home there are chunks of time that get swallowed up in sitting, watching, and waiting. Hand quilting is easy and fun. I put the pieces of the block i'm working on in a ziplock baggie with a ruler, pencil, scissors and thread. This baggie stays in my purse and I can pull it out in the Dr.'s office waiting room, at the park or even at home on the back porch. It is an activity that keeps my hands moving and keeps me from going stir crazy especially in our long New England winters. I was pleasantly surprised at how fast my first attempt went. I made a log cabin patterened throw quilt for my sister. I finished all the blocks in about 3 months. Not bad since it took me an average of 2 to 3 days to complete a block. You know how it is, you never get more than ten minuets to work on anything!
If you are interested in trying out hand quilting, there is a great site for getting started by picking out a pattern.
http://www.quilterscache.com/QuiltBlocksGalore.html

This site is full of ideas for patterns and easy to follow directions for putting the quilt together. The actual mechanics of sewing by hand are pretty straight forward. Spend about 15 minuets with an older, experienced quilter and you can lear the technique. Quilting by hand is a lot like motherhood. You can't stress about when you will finish the project, you have to focus on the little bit you can do today and most improtantly enjoy the journey!