Flood Waters Gone and Stitching...

We were very lucky and the flood waters didn't enter our home and as we were stranded I spent the time quilting. I finished 2 tops as shown here and also 5 quilts which I'll post on the other blog at Oz Comfort quilts. One of the tops was made from 2 separate sets of donated blocks and the white, red and blue top was also donated in parts. It was possibly a beginner's quilt and it was impossible to match the squares in the design. I didn't use sashing as I didn't have anything which looked good with them and the size was large enough without adding sashings and borders, so I made an executive decision and just joined them together. Someone will appreciate the warm hug even if the points are nowhere near matching. I did manage to put another 3 QAYG quilts together and the pile of blocks is diminishing.
I also decided I needed to work on some of my WIPs too so I have some finished quilts to give to my kids eventually. The floral block is from my Civil War Bride quilt and the other blocks are from my Tribute to Mrs Williams quilt. Both of them are from patterns drafted by the talented Corliss Searchy of Threadbear quilt shop in Castlemaine. They are based on my favourite time period of the American Civil War and they are based on quilts from that era.
I am really enjoying doing some hand work and find it is very relaxing which is just what I needed for a stressful week.
I also want to sincerely thank all of you who sent messages of support and sent prayers and good wishes. I have decided to add my address details on the blogs again at the request of some of my followers. I'm still amazed that anyone takes the time to see what I've been doing. I love reading other people's blogs and when I know that people are also reading mine it does encourage me to blog more often. On the other hand I also need to limit my computer use so I get enough time to make the donation quilts.
Have a great day.
Hugs Jan Mac

Flooded But Holding...

Here's a few more photos of our flooded farm. We are still surrounded by flood waters but they are holding at the moment. It will be a few days before they recede and we're praying that the rain predicted for Thursday won't be a problem.
We expect to be stranded for about a week but I'm hoping for a good night's sleep tonight.
In the meantime I'm almost finished a block of hand appliqued flowers and leaves for my Civil War Bride quilt.
I find hand stitching to be the best stress reliever so at least my time has been productive.
Thanks for all your prayers and good wishes. It looks like the river has peaked and our house will stay dry. I may even get some more tops quilted for the next shipment to Pakistan tomorrow.
Take care, Jan Mac

Anxiety

We live on one of the rivers which are currently in flood in Victoria. Actually at the moment we are living surrounded by the river and the flood waters are still rising. We've done as much preparation as possible and have gotten enough food and supplies to wait it out and now we just hope and pray that the water won't come into the house.
The river flooded in 1993 and at that time we had 12 calves to feed and the kids thought it was a big adventure to be living on an island. Ray and I are the only ones at home this time and we're grateful that we don't have any animals to feed.
Dealing with the uncertainty about how high the waters will rise is the most stressful part of living on this beautiful river but at least it's not as life-threatening as bush fires.
To help to pass the time between checking the water levels, I decided to bring out my hand sewing and have been working on one of the blocks for my Civil War Bride quilt. We'll probably stay up overnight in case we need to move things higher in the house so I hope to get more done and will show my progress soon.
In the meantime keep us in your prayers that our home won't flood, especially as I have a large number of boxes of finished quilts which are ready to go in the next shipment. I have raised them all but don't want to have to have any quilts go under the muddy water.
Check out my other blog for photos of more finished quilts at http://ozcomfortquilts.blogspot.com.
Take care, Jan Mac

What's Happening?

The last two weeks have gone very quickly with lots of boxes being packed with quilts and warm clothing for the people affected by floods in Pakistan. The last news report said that 6 million people have been affected and what I'm sending is a drop in the ocean compared to the need but if just a few have been helped then that's better than doing nothing.
I also received more utility quilts from Gladys and her lovely team of quilters from Dimboola (Vic) and these have all been packed and are ready to be shipped off.
I also managed to make a pair of blue cord pants for a 7 yr old boy and with family commitments and finishing off several quilts my time has disappeared with no blogging updates.
I have more bindings to finish off and then more quilt photos to share on my other blog at http://ozcomfortquilts.blogspot.com
More later. Jan Mac

Back To Work

It's been good to be busy getting more tops finished and as well as the QAYG quilt I put together I also quilted 10 quilts this week. I still need to bind the rest but here are the first 3 which are finished.
As there are over 2 million people who have been displaced by devastating floods in Pakistan, these will be donated to help provide some warmth for the people there. I'm working on getting some of the utility tops of simple squares quilted too and it's good to use up some of the backings I pieced ages ago.
All in all it's been a productive week and I've enjoyed getting back into the quilting routine again. The only problem I'm having is the continued spamming of my blog by several people who leave nonsensical comments and question marks. That's why I've had to set my comments page to be moderated. If anyone has any ideas how to stop these nuisances please let me know.
Stay warm.
Jan Mac

It's Good To Be Home

We had a great trip but decided to come home after being on the road for almost 8 weeks. We are still planning to spend 2 weeks in Sth Australia in Sept but thought we'd enjoy it more if we come home first. It's been lovely to be home again and living in a house with heating instead of in our camping trailer.
We awoke to heavy rain last night and then this evening we had a hail storm so we're getting some extremes of weather.
I finished off another QAYG quilt yesterday and today I found some donated blocks and bits and pieces to make a top. I spent some time putting them together to make a top and now I'm looking for some fabric in my stash which will be suitable for borders and a binding. I also managed to quilt 4 tops which I'll bind and photograph tomorrow. I'll show the photos on my other blog at Oz Comfort quilts.
I've missed my quilting and it's lovely to be making progress again, especially as there will be a demand for quilts to be donated to the survivors of the floods in Pakistan. The news reports have indicated that millions will be affected and are homeless in a very severe climate.
I'll write more about the quilts I'm finishing and how many I will be sending there.
Until later.
Hugs Jan Mac

Still On The Road

We've been on the road now for over 6 weeks and have finally reached a town where we could get a caravan site with power as well as the internet. So far we've camped on the beach at Kalumburu at the top of WA, visited Windjana Gorge and Tunnel Creek, seen the dolphins at Monkey Mia, and visited the memorial to HMAS Sydney in Geraldton.
Due to the large number of people traveling we've been unable to get powered sites or access to the internet so it was lovely to finally be able to catch up on phone calls and the internet.
Tomorrow we're off inland again and we're going to Kalgoorlie and Gwalia to see gold mining towns. I think we'll be heading home from there and will leave seeing Perth and the southern areas of Perth until next time.
As we've been 4 wheel driving we've been on many corrugated and rough roads and have camped in the bush for most of our trip, so we're starting to look forward to the comforts of home again. We're having a great time but I am looking forward to getting back to my quilting again. As we've been camping all the time I haven't been able to do any sewing without running the risk of getting it soiled with red dust so I've been crocheting blankets and knitting beanies for the homeless. I'll add a tally when we reach home.
Take care everyone and I will write more frequently when we return home as we probably won;t have much access to the internet again while we go inland across Western Australia.
Hugs Jan Mac