We made it home this morning, after a 2 -3 hour delay at O’Hare airport. They had to find another plane and a new crew. We were due home at 10:15 pm, but it was after midnight when we arrived. By the time we got the luggage and the car, it was 2 pm when we hit the pillows. I managed to get some sleep on the plane, but it was a bumpy flight. This morning, we awoke to sunny Portland. After January in upstate New York, Portland seemed like the tropics.

After breakfast, I found an e-mail from Thelma Smith, the curator for She Made Her Mark. My Breaking Boundaries piece was accepted. She has made a mock-up of the Quilter’s Hall of Fame and has miniature photos of the accepted quilts hung on the miniature walls. She says mine has "pride of place in the entry way!" I am not sure how many pieces were selected for the Quilter’s Hall of Fame; there will also be a show in the LA area of other pieces that were entered. So, that is the happy dance.

Karey Bresenhan has another project for us. It is to make valentine postcards to be delivered to the wounded men and women in the military at Walter Reed hospital. For my first batch, I decided to try discharging some heart shapes on red and pink fabrics. First I carved some heart shaped stamps from erasers.

I use Softscrub cleansing gel to discharge cotton. It has a nice gel quality for stamping or screening. Here is some hand-dyed fuchsia fabric with hearts stamped with Softscrub. After is sets a bit, I wash out the Softscrub and dry the fabric. This is before the washout.

One of the commercial fabrics discharged the best. I cut and fused it to postcard size batting pieces.  I cut some hearts from Angelina fibers and glued them to the top and then machine stitched. These are OK, but I am not thrilled with them.

I just want to say, one more time, how much your messages of condolence have meant to me. Sometimes, I just can’t believe that my brother is gone. It has made me realize how much I cherish my life and family and friends and that I want to live each day with purpose.