104

"Red Sails at Sunset"

These are two of my favorite paintings. They were painted by my Grandmother. I have always admired her sense of color. She spent so much of her younger days exploring nature that I think her eye easily captured the essence of a landscape.
"Home from Market" was painted from memories of a trip to the market in Octavolo, Ecuador. Grandma traveled the world on a retired teacher's salary. She had so many stories to tell.

Grandma gets a visitor.
My father took these photos earlier this summer.



My Grandmother is 104 years old. I had a chance to visit her recently. She was having a good day (her memory is not very sharp these days) and we had a lovely time together. When we were leaving I ran into a friend of my grandmother's. She described my grandmother as one of the most elegant women she had ever known. I had to smile because she had come up with really appropriate description.

Art Quilts Continued

Our Art Quilt Journal group met last night. I had a mad dash to get this piece and a couple others ready for show and tell. This journal "page" is a compilation of early family settlers in South Dakota. Our trip out west earlier this year gave me a chance to see where my father's family came from. The women in these photos were quilters and sewed most of their own clothes. Great Grandma Gertie gave me a baby quilt which I still have. Great Aunt Delia worked as a seamstress on her land claim in Reliance, SD. My Grandma Virginia married Leslie in 1927. She was a school teacher, naturalist and artist. She traveled the world extensively after her husband passed away in the 1970's. She has a wonderful sense of humor and great stories to tell. In the 1990's she wrote down memories of her childhood to share with her children and grandchildren. She is 104 now. She started to lose her memory when she reached 100. She lived in her own apartment in a retirement community until then. She is a treasure and I cherish my time with her.

My baby quilt from Great Grandma Gertie:

Many naps were spent awake marveling at the varied fabric in this quilt. My favorite has always been this satellite fabric. I'd love to find some more of this some day...