Mother's Day 2021 ~ Fill the World With Love

This screenshot from today's broadcast of Music and the Spoken Word caught me in a close-up, singing the words, "Did I fill the world with love my whole life through?"  

That is the question, isn't it?

Music and the Spoken Word Mother's Day Special

Mother's Day has been a tough one for me in the past; thinking of my own mother who died of cancer at age 59 ~ gone now for over 20 years. Thinking of my own mothering - feeling inadequate, and sometimes overwhelmed and wondering if I did enough. Did I support and encourage them enough?  Did I love them enough?

   

Stott Family, circa 1991:  Three one-year-olds and one three-year-old

We had some intense child-rearing years - our son was two when his triplet sisters were born. It was busy, it was loud, but it was fun and fabulous too.  

Now we have one thirty-three-year-old and three thirty-one-year-olds!  All grown up with families of their own - we have added three spouses, 3 dogs, 6 chickens, a cat and almost three grandchildren to the mix!  

Blessings, blessings.  And the lyrics to this song have extra meaning today.

Fill the World With Love

In the morning of my life, I shall look to the sunrise.

At a moment in my life when the world is new.

And the blessing I shall ask is that God will grant me

To be brave and strong and true,

And to fill the world with love my whole life through.

In the noontime of my life, I shall look to the sunshine,

At a moment in my life when the sky is blue.

And the blessing I shall ask shall remain unchanging.

To be brave and strong and true,

And to fill the world with love my whole life through

In the evening of my life, I shall look to the sunset,

At a moment in my life when the night is due.

And the question I shall ask only I can answer.

Was I brave and strong and true?

Did I fill the world with love my whole life through?

~the Momma

Who Knows Where the Time Goes?

On this day, half my lifetime ago, there was a big party in a delivery room at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City with about 18 people attending.  This included the Momma (me), a few doctors, the Dad, the mother-in-law who manned the camera, the anesthesiologist, plus a team of four people per baby, waiting for each little girl to make her appearance, about six weeks prior to their due date. 

For the previous 36 days, various tocolytics had been used to try to stave off labor and keep the babies from coming before their lungs were mature, then finally, at 34-1/2 weeks along, they had had enough and were ready to come! 

A Cesarean Section was performed and little Lali was born at 12:47 pm weighing 4 lbs 6 oz., Coco at 12:48 pm even smaller at 3 lbs 10 oz., then tiny Sassy came at 12:50 pm and weighed 3 lbs. 1 oz.

Happy Birthday, Girls!  Funny, I consider it my birth-day too... after all, I'm the one who gave birth...

I don't remember much about the first year, but this picture proves that we survived it!  Here we all are in 1991 with three one-year-olds and one three-year-old!  I really want to re-enact this photo next year when there will be one thirty-three year old and three thirty-one year olds. 😂

Snapshots over the years.

  

Three twenty-year-olds with their "Turning 20" quilts they each made.

 

30 years later, and the girls are off on their own adventures!  I miss my little gaggle of girls wrangling for a spot on my lap, but I'm thrilled by the women they've become and the joy they spread wherever they go. 

Plus, BONUS... a couple of precious little grandbabies arrived last year to fill that space on my lap.

~ the Momma (aka Gamma, Gramma D, or "Ama")

Makers Gotta Make....

After a couple of sewing/quilting sessions with La-li, here is what her little pile of creations looked like. 

Clockwise from left to right:  Naugahyde tulip bag, Sleeve bag, Embroidery, pencil bag, OMQG nametag,
 customized notebook, hand stitched coin purse, fabric billfold purse.

Sunset was coming on, but she was Über excited to "Sew-n-Tell"!

A big, yellow Tulip Bag for Cissy!

Complete with grommets and hardware!

Assorted baggage & ebroidery:

The green zipper bag is made from the sleeves of a cute old shirt she wore in High School; found at the Thrift store, likely from the 70s.  The second is a quilted pencil bag from cute scraps lying around the sewing room, and the embroidery is her own needlework.

Re-do of a quilted nametag for the Oahu Modern Quilt Guild:

Lali removed elements from a nametag she didn't like and repositioned in a new setting.  Momma quilted and bound it with crochet-edged bias trim, then added a ribbon lanyard.  The little sewing machine is based on a pattern HERE. <<

 

New wallet!!

Perfect fabrics for a summer purse in Japan!

Ohmigosh, so cute - both the girl and her collection!

Come back for another sewing day, soon!

~the Momma

Girls' Night - Sew Fun!

It has been forever since the girls and I were able to sit down and sew together!  I usually have to bribe and beg, but this time, they all wanted to work on a project.  Makes a Momma so happy!

Chelsea found this cute fabric last year to make herself a cute Hipster bag, and wanted to use the leftover scraps for an apron.  I just happened to have a colorful dishtowel and some jumbo ric-rac in my stash that matched perfectly, along with some leftover binding strips that she could use for the ties!

A little glue stick, a few pins, a bit of stitching... Done in no time and just "sew" adorable!!  Especially for a girl who loves to cook!

Dishtowel Apron Pattern

Nicole has been trying to finish her Cuddly throw for ages - and the fur was flying!!  It's Cuddlesoft designer plush fur (Minky), with long, hairy white cuddle for the outer band.  And since it was so slippery as well as hairy - it took about a million pins to make it manageable, tucking the hair inside the seam and pinning about every inch.  Or less.

See my  Best Tips for Sewing With Plush Fur

Then the hairy trim turned out to be about 5 inches short - aargh!

So we patched in some more and it worked!  She finished sewing on the back the next day.  Here is Princess Cuddlesoft!

Lauren was finishing up her Capstone project for her Family Studies degree at BYU, a beautiful silk Kimono!

She hand-dyed the Dupioni silk, and found a Japanese pattern which she and her husband interpreted, then she made the kimono and all the accessories to go with it.  She figures it took about 180 hours in research, design, prep and construction.  In this picture, sleeves were not yet attached, but she was pretty excited it was coming together.  Can you see the ombre look she was trying to achieve with the blue dye?  Awesome.

Hanging out in the sewing room with my girls is more than just sewing!  The giggles, the fun, the sheer joy of making beautiful things together has been an enormous part of our lives.  Stitched together with love.

~the Momma

~ ~ ~

P.S.  Here are some photos of Lauren's finished project.  You can see the lotus flower design she created in the skirt.

Beautiful.

Thimblechaser Crafts

Lauren and Ryler had fun with a little craft booth at The Summer Flea.

Ryler did custom Japanese Kanji calligraphy.

Lauren made stuff:
     Mannequin pincushions.

    ... by the dozen...

     Wallets.  See more HERE.

    Other stuff:  Stuffed stuff, Monster Crayon Bags, Book Purses, Framed Marker Boards

Adorable crocheted jewelry.

You can find Lauren's extras on her Thimblechaser Etsy Store!  Custom orders:  801-678-3529, or email stellar.galloshes@gmail.com.  *Ü*

See more of Lauren's creative pursuits on her blog:  THIMBLECHASER.