A T-Shirt Quilt for Taylor

 I started this quilt before Christmas last year. I had enough shirts for two of the girls. I completed Whitney's quilt and then proceeded to work on Taylor's. I was finished with the quilting and started to serge the squares together when my serger started to give me all sorts of issues. I was breaking needles left and right. So Taylor's quilt was put off to the side for a few months. When I finally got my serger back from repair, I devoted a day to get it finished.

 As with Whitney's quilt, I tried to quilt a couple of little surprises. Here you can see I quilted her nickname.

Move-In Day

This was the day that both Jeff and I had been dreading. The youngest birdie was ready to leave the nest. But Jeff and I weren't quite ready for it. Certainly it was a time that Jeff and I had talked about. Freedom for us both. No more soccer in 40 degree weather, no more quick runs to the grocery store for items needed for school the next day, no digging thru the laundry looking for a missing uniform, you get the picture. However it's bittersweet. Our freedom comes at the expense of being alone. Not having a child around or the friends filling the house. But this is a time to celebrate. We were able to keep all three girls on the straight and narrow. All three doing well with Lauren and Whitney gainfully employed with places of their own. The feelings of sorrow were deeper with Taylor. No, she's not the favorite. She is the last one. As the other two left the nest, I knew that we had another child at home that would keep us busy. As we said goodbye and walked away from her, I felt like I was delivering her to a prison. I had such sadness. But things are going well for Taylor. She is feeling more comfortable with Whitewater each day. Doesn't her room vaguely remind you of a prison cell?

And Now for the Celebration

We held Taylor's graduation party two weeks after graduation day. There were several other parties that day so we had a lot of food leftover. My mom came up from Florida and three of my sister's made the party. My sister Jackie is Taylor's godmother. I did not get a picture of the two of them together. Darn it all. I really only took two pictures that day. I took a picture of the family getting the tent ready. Then at the end of the party, I took a picture of the cake. I was too busy cooking and chatting with neighbors to take any pictures.

Before the party started, Jeff took the niece and nephews to a farm that also has a petting farm. Jeff's client hooked up a wagon and gave them a ride around the property. Don't you love little Miss Kayla. She looks like a true southern gal. Can't go off to the farm without a dress and a crawfish necklace.

Graduation Day

Well, the baby has graduated. She'll be off to college very soon. Graduation Day was four days after my return from Italy. I had to work the graduation party which started at 10pm. I told the organizers that I would work until midnight. I got to bed about 12:45 am and had to get up and go to work the next morning. That might have been one of the longest days ever. Besides watching your own child, you watch for all her friends that you've known. You remember all the slumber parties at the house. You try to take pictures of all her friends. I hope they remember to stop on by when they are home on college breaks.

The Cute Couple

Finally pictures of Conor and Taylor. Is it no wonder why they were voted "Cutest Couple" for the yearbook. Awww, they do look cute. Pictures were taken at a park near the house. The kids then came back to the house for dinner. We served 5 couples for dinner. In addition to the prom attendees, we also had the parents and siblings. The adults got the leftovers. We were going to wait until the kids left before we broke out the alcohol but once the men went out to grill they thought it would be a good idea to open the Italian beer. So beer, wine and food was passed around in the kitchen all night. We did break out the blender when the kids left and Tyler's mom and sister made grasshopers for all of us. Jeff and I had a great time. I hope the kids and parents did also.

The Final Prom Dress

The final prom dance arrived last night. It was bittersweet. I drag my feet getting started on the dresses. I do enjoy picking out the fabrics and trims. I'm always so fearful that I will mess something up and have to start over. Taylor and I picked out the fabric in about 10 minutes. She's pretty particular on fabric and color. It did take a few trips to find the trim for the bodice. It so happens that I bought brown lace on clearance at Hobby Lobby. It was perfect! The fabric was a plummy taupe and when you put the brown lace on top of the fabric, it looked like it was dyed to match. We did have some problems with fit. The waist was about 3 inches too big. I solved that problem by tacking the excess fabric down like a bridal bustle. Hey, there was no way I was going to dismantle the dress so close to prom. Taylor and I agree that it's our favorite dress of all of them that I made for her.