Saving at Joann's

Today Mary and I went to Joann's to save lots of money. Hubby blanches when I come home and say, "Boy, did I save lots of money!" I wrap the children and grandchildren's presents in pillow slips which I make. Today holiday flannel was on sale so I bought it for next years Christmas. I really love that store. When I retired my fellow workers gave me a generous gift certificate to Joann's. Mary says she has so many projects to do but even she admitted I have a much larger list. I even have a doll house in the basement(really it is Mary's) that I have wanted to decorate but haven't got around to. I even thought it would be fun to try weaving but I must admit that would be unlikely. I would love to try painting ceramics but have no interest in scrapbook making. I really love most crafts but not cooking.

Mary's Apron

Mary came up from Ohio today and is spending the weekend with us. Well, the weekend days, evenings are spent with her friends. She had season opera tickets with one friend and a movie with several others tomorrow. This afternoon she was making a fancy apron and she always asks my help with these projects although she doesn't really need it. It is fun for me too and I sure wish she lived closer.

Still at the Student's Quilt

Here is another pretty square designed by a student,Xzherieh. Can you figure the mathematical formula?

Quilt Squares

I am still putting together quilt squares for Gretel's class. It is lots of fun and the kids are quite imaginative. I think they will hang the quilt in the hall at school. The parent group wanted to have it for their auction on the 6th of December but that just isn't possible. Some of the squares take a lot of time to fit together because cutting fabric exactly is not an easy skill for kids(or grownups either) These are some of the pretty ones. Can you tell which is (x+2)(x+2); (2x+2)(2x+2); and (x+3)(x+3). One of them was (x+10)(x+10) which means I had 100 little squares to assemble.

Perfect Square Trinomials

My daughter, Gretel, is a high school math teacher in Brooklyn, New York. She teaches her students about multiplying polynomials by making quilt squares. The challenge beyond the algebra is having her students measure and cut out the pieces. They make a 12 inch square with sides (x + a) and have to calculate "x" once they have decided on "a." They also have to remember to include the seam allowance. She buys fabric and away they go. After they have cut out the pieces she mails them to me to put the quilt together. I have decided that some of her students are color blind and some of the pieces look like they were cut out with nail clippers instead of scissors. One student aptly names Raphael designed a square that looks like a miniature quilt by itself. Most of the squares are beautiful and the overall effect is stunning. The picture above is the math quilt I made for her class several years ago.

Grandchildren

I have 5 grandchildren but not one within a hundred miles. I saw these cute advent calendars at Target with doors to open and had space to hold little gifts. However I don't see a grandchild until Christmas Eve and this year only one at that. I was sending letters and have been a little lax at that, they all have gmail addresses. As a kid getting mail was so important to me, I don't know if an email has that pizazz. The grandchildren usually come for a week in the summer and we did a grand rush through every science museum, zoo and petting farm we can find but it would be nice to have them occasionally for just a few hours rather than a week at a time. I guess it is a sign of the times. My kids grew up quite close to my parents and not too far from their other grandparents. I grew up quite close to my maternal grandmother but my Dad's parents lived down in Ohio and I never knew them as well.

Hummingbirds

Last week we went to a class taught at the Master Gardeners Society about hummingbirds. The speaker was very knowledgeable and had beautiful pictures to show us. Here in Michigan there is only one species of hummingbirds and of course, hummingbirds look very different from other birds, so they are easy to identify. We have the ruby throated hummingbird here, The speaker said the hummingbird feeder should be put out by April 15th. He suggested putting out some potted flowers to attract them but you will need to take them in at night to protect them from frost. He said a good date for taking down the feeders is Halloween. He also said a 1 to 4 mix of sugar and water, but don't add red dye. He also suggested taking the bee guards off of the feeder as they become clogged with bees. Hummingbirds like the sugar but they also eat bugs. Hummingbird enemies include blue jays and spiders. The birds eat bugs caught in the spider web and make their own nests out of the spider silk. Sometimes they get caught though.

Hubby took this picture in our backyard.