Happy Birthday, Brooke

Brooke

Monday was my niece, Brooke's, 8th birthday.  She invited a dozen or so classmates over to decorate cupcakes and gift bags.  The girls all had lots of fun with icing on the cupcakes and construction paper, glitter, and rhinestones on the bags.  Brooke got lots of cool presents, too. 

She spends a few days with me a couple times a year and we usually get in some sewing.  When she was five, she made a doll quilt. I've spend an hour trying to find the digital pictures from three years ago and not having any luck.  Those little gremlins who move my sewing stuff took my pictures, too! Last night I was in my studio, and I lost a page of directions.  Now, I'd just had it 3 minutes earlier and I hadn't moved more than 6 inches from the spot I was standing in, and it was gone. I looked all over, and finally found it under a piece of fabric.  Go figure.

Anyway, Brooke took to sewing like ducks to water. She was 5 1/2 years old, chain piecing and backstitching squares together on my new Bernina, then sewing the rows together.  I sewed the border on and loaded it into my HQ longarm machine.  I put a folding chair up for her to stand on, showed her how to move the machine to quilt, and off she went.  She turned it on and off and set the speed higher because I foolishly set it too low.  When she was done quilting it, I put the binding on and took some really great pictures.  Sure wish you could see them.  I was so proud of her.  She was just amazing.

Brooke's cat quilt

Brooke also shares my love of cats and kittens.  She calls me to see what new ones I have and can't wait to come over and play with them.  When she was here last summer, she picked out a cat fabric and border fabric that she wanted a lap quilt made from.  I presented it to her for her birthday.  I also made a pillowcase for her.  It's a different fabric, since I used all I had for the quilt. 

Brooke's pillowcase

Zach's pillowcase

Then, so her brother, Zach, wouldn't feel too left out, I made him a pillowcase, too.  The fabric is royal flush poker hands.  Since Zach was about 7 or 8 years old, he's been a poker player, and I'm not using that term loosely.  At our family Christmas parties, we always have a Texas Hold'em poker game.  Our friends, Fran and Bruce, who were almost pro players (John and I are no slouches at poker, either), couldn't beat Zach for anything.  If we had an ace-hi straight, he'd have a full house.  If we had a full house, he'd have a higher one.  And he knew how to bet, too!  Well, Zach is now a teenager and we have yet to beat him.  I told him Sunday, this was MY year, and I was going to beat the pants off him.  He just gave me one of those, "Yeah, right" grins.