This is an extremely difficult post to write and there are massive tears streaming down my face as I type this.

Those of you that have been my followers for long enough remember this 100 Good Wishes Quilt (120 good wishes actually) that I made for the Spring of 2013 for an 8 year old boy, Joey, who had been diagnosed with a very rare form of renal cancer.



Here is the picture my friend Kris sent to me of Joey and is family when she delivered the finished quilt to him.

This is Joey with his 100 Good Wishes album. That smile will always warm my heart.

So many of you, my kind and generous quilting friends, sent fabrics and wishes when I put out the call for help to make this quilt a reality and for that I can never thank you enough. I know that the quilt and the love that it contains has helped Joey and his family through this long journey.

This boy just was the sweetest.  Even after receiving his diagnoses, he continued to help others.

Of course, you must have deduced by the title of this post that despite trying so very hard, Joey finally has lost his battle. The cancer has won.  And that makes me so very angry!

I knew it wasn't going to be long when I got the news Monday night that he was in a coma and they were med-flighting him from the hospital in Ohio back home to Gainesville. He left this world on Wednesday.

If you would like to post to his mom Kathy's Facebook page, I'm sure the family would gain strength that will help them through the coming days.

No child should be diagnosed with Cancer let alone die from it.  But he tried as best as anyone could and maintained a brave face through it all.

Joey I know you are in Heaven gazing down on your grieving family and friends and I for one am honored that you touched my life. 

Have you heard about this! You must be living under a rock if you haven't. The Box Tops For Education program has been around for years and years and it really is a great way for schools to earn money for extra things that enhance the whole experience. Both of my kids' schools have been collecting them and we happily help as much as we can.

Just in case you've never seen them before, this is what they typically look like.  You'll find them on all sorts of products.

This is the huge sheet of 25 box tops that we just filled.  For each one, his school will get $.10.  That doesn't sound like much to you? Well this one sheet has 25 box tops so it will earn the school's PTA $2.50.  Multiply that by the approximately 600 kids in Jammer's school (if all families participated of course), and they'd receive a whopping $1,500.00.  Not bad for something you'd throw out if you weren't in the know.

This is the new sheet we just started to fill.  The typical monthly themed sheets the school sends home has 10 box top spaces so they still earn $1.00 each. Last month, my boss's wife sent home a big bag full of them and Jammer was thrilled.  Her son is in high school now and they don't collect these at that level.  Some of them were expired so we couldn't use them but he still filled a ton of sheets and his class ended up being the second biggest collector of the month.  The school has a friendly competition throughout the year between the classrooms and the top collecting class each month gets to display the trophy.

You may not have kids in school any more, but I'm betting that your local elementary schools are collecting these box tops too.  Our PTA uses the money to fun all sorts of free events for the kids throughout the year which both Jammer and Sunshine really enjoy.  So if you aren't collecting, start now.  Contact your local schools and find out where you can drop them off.  During the summer we always have a baggie in the drawer were we put our box tops so that we can fill a few sheets early in the school year as soon as they start coming home.  This is really a wonderful and free way to support your local schools. 

Now it wouldn't have been right for me to use Chicken Dinner in the title of this post, would it? The beloved bird of the season would have gotten it's beak all out of joint.

A Quilter's Mission said...

A new recliner! Congrats on your 600th post! Wow, that's so encouraging. 

and the winner of the half yard bundle of Petal Pushers fabric is:

Jeanie said... Congrats on your third birthday and 600th post.... that's a lot of great blogging! Thanks for the giveaway....seems like we should be gifting you. I already have Judy's wonderful book so you can leave me out for that one. May your have many more blogging anniversaries!

Wow! How perfect was that when Mr. Random picked for the 2nd winner someone who already has Judy's book.  I guess it was fate.

Congratulations ladies!  I hope you enjoy your goodies and they will be on their way to you on Friday.

The big snow is coming today so depending on whether or not they close schools early, I just might get a chance to do some sewing this afternoon.  Wherever you are, stay safe and warm and have a very Happy Thanksgiving.
 

Today is the last chance to enter my Double Celebration and Double Giveaway.  I'm celebrating both the 3rd Anniversary of this humble little quilting blog and

my 600th post. I'm still in awe that I've had that much to write about over the past 3 years. 

Not 1 but 2 winners will get the happy news tomorrow that they have won.  One of them will win Judy Madsen's Quilting Wide Open Spaces and the other will win the half yard bundle of Petal Pushers by Whistler Studios for Windham Fabrics.

Entries close today at Midnight so hurry on over to the giveaway post to enter.

I can't believe how swamped I've been over the past couple of weeks but there is plenty of good reason and I'll fill you in on that shortly but today is just going to be a day to celebrate.

A few days ago this blog became 3 years old.

Unfortunately I didn't have time to write this post then but I do now. It is hard to believe that it has been 3 years already.  Time sure has flown by fast. It is fun to look back at my first months of posts and remember just how much of a newbie I was and think about where this journey has taken me so far.  It really is amazing

One of those amazing things that recently came my way was an invitation to be a guest speaker. My friend Sharon of Vroomans Quilts asked me to speak to her guild, The Schoharie Valley Piecemakers, at their November meeting about 100 Good Wishes Quilts.
It was a thrill and an honor and from the feedback I've heard, it was a huge success. Whew! I admit that I was just a tad bit worried about that.  My friend Alana came along for technical and moral support.  That group is fantastic and so much fun.  Too bad they aren't close by....I'd join in an instant.  I'm happy to report that they "got it" and many of them are now thinking about making some 100 Good Wishes Quilts, for new babies or weddings or graduations. I can't wait to see the pictures of what they create.
(Thanks Sharon for allowing me to use your picture.)

But not only am I celebrating this blogiversary, but this just happens to also be my 600th post!

Have you seen it yet? I just did, thanks to the photo posted by my friend Christa Watson over on her blog Christa Quilts. It is the quilt created by the folks at American Made Brand fabrics with the license plate blocks made  by me and 49 other quilters from every state in the nation as part of their AMB Blog Tour.

So here it is!  Isn't it fabulous? I just love it and I'm betting that you do too. Oh how I would have loved to have been in Houston to get to see it in person but I'm betting that it got tons of attention from those that were able to be there.

Can you find my New York block?

Today is the day!  The big reveal of my new blog name and my new look. I really hope you like it.  It is so Me!

Welcome to my new home

Crayon Box Quilt Studio

The new name is really similar to my old one . . . there was no way I was getting rid of the "crayon box" part since I love it and totally believe in it's magical powers . . . plus I think it is an easy morph for all of my followers from Quilts From My Crayon Box

Along with the new name for my future pattern company, I wanted a totally new look that reflects who I am and what my quilting is all about.  I think that I've accomplished that.  The fabulous Emily of Blogaholic Designs helped me out with this. I can't thank her enough for all her hard work tweaking it to suit my style. If you are searching for a new look for your blog, you've got to check out her work.

Plus not only do I have a new name and a new look, I now also have:

 . . . my own domain name which I will be switching the blog address to very soon. Just in case . . . the new place will be at www.crayonboxquiltstudio.com.

. . . a new email address michele@crayonboxquiltstudio.com

. . . a new Facebook page, though you have remember I'm not big into Facebook but I'll try my best.

 . . . I've even set up an Instagram account at #crayonboxquiltstudio but now I have to figure out how to actually use it.


I'm really going to try to get a little into the social media thing but please be patient. What about Pinterest you ask? Not yet.  I think getting used to Facebook and Instagram is enough for me at the moment.  Plus I have a few hundred posts to go back through and see if they need prettying up.

For all my loyal readers, I thank you so much for continuing to follow along on my quilting journey. Many more exciting things are to come and I can't wait to share each and every one of them with you. Until then, here is another sneak peak of my first Moda Bake Shop feature that will go live very soon.
I know, it is a little mean to tease you like that but I don't want to ruin the surprise.  Trust me . . . you'll love it.