2019 is quickly coming to an end. The conclusion of the a year is always hectic with Thanksgiving, Sinterklaas (Dutch Christmas), D's birthday, and Christmas. By the time we get to the last week of the year, I am wiped. This month, I also finished 4 quilts. I'm operating on fumes!
In my pre-brain injury life, I loved the week between Christmas and New Year. My type-A personality loved to reflect on my year, make new goals, create new files and spend the week planning and organizing. Now I just want to curl up and take a nap!
I am getting plenty of sleep this week --and always!--and since I have finished the quilts I really wanted to finish in 2019, I want to take some time to write about my recent finishes before I jump into the new year.
I already wrote about the memory quilt I finished for my friend Shanna. The quilt I'm sharing today marks something much happier: the friendship between my son and one of his best friends, Jacob.
These two have been besties since kindergarten. In addition to their love of learning, they shared a passion for trains, and then space. After five years being classmates at their STEM school, the boys are now attending different schools, but stay connected through Minecraft and their Gizmo watches. What a gift technology is for today's kids.
As D's friends from elementary move on to different middle schools, I've started to make friendship quilts. As a mom, I want to show my appreciation to the good kids D's tribe. I've already made quilts for Max and Caroline, who moved to Texas.
Jacob's quilt got started last January when I saw that Pat Sloan was hosting a quilt along based on space called Out of this World.
Readers of this blog may recognize Pat's name as she also hosted the Grandma's Kitchen quilt along, which was the basis of the six (nearly) identical memory quilts I made for myself, my mom, and my four aunts.
When I told my son about the new quilt along, he said I had to do it, then suggested I make it for Jacob since he was having a rough year and he wanted to give him a quilted hug.
I had grand plans to have D write a bit about each block's topic, like I did when I was making Gramma Ann's quilt, and his friendship with J. But then we sold our house and found a new house and moved and remodeled and ran out of time and energy.
I did get some cute pictures of D every month, though, especially after we moved and we used his super cool mural of the ISS as a background.
The main change I made to my version of Pat's quilt is the addition of Jacob's name. Once again, I used the letter patterns in Lori Holt's book, Spelling Bee.
D and J share a birthday week in December so my goal was to finish in time for D to deliver it at J's birthday part. I sliced my thumb on a mandolin on Thanksgiving so quilting this, especially with minky, was quite a challenge.
But I pushed through and finished in time for D to complete the most important step. Sleeping the love into the quilt.
D also helped me with the label by drawing this...
...which I turned into this.
I have been really proud of D for the friends he's chosen. He is kind to everyone, but the people he gravitates to kids who are smart, inventive, creative, and polite. Jacob is no exception. Every time we have given him a gift or had him over for a playdate, he always thanks me. When D has a rough day or moment, J is able to comfort him or help him find a solution to his frustration. I have loved watching their friendship deepen and strengthen through the years, from silly kindergarten antics to deeper conversations about life.
Quilt delivery was especially fun because D got to do the delivery. I loved listening to him talk about how I made the quilt. J didn't even see the whole quilt before bolting over to give me a huge hug. It is so gratifying to have a quilt received with such appreciation.
I look forward to many more years of friendship between these two.
To see more pictures of this quilt in progress, look for #JacobsWorldQuilt on Instagram. To see what I'm currently working on, please follow me at deJongDreamHouse.
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