Graduation Quilt with School Skirt

My Customer chose a royal blue fabric for her quilt

She had a grade school skirt that she wanted to use as a block.

There were three shirts with collars that needed some assistance to create some squares. 

She chose the same basic color blue flannel backing and I found a multi color blue fabric to make the handmade cotton binding.

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

National Honor Society Junior Year

National Honor Society is awesome. It really helps celebrate your successful grades. I love that they get together at school for a few hours afterwards to just have some fun. What is nice this year is it was the last day of a weeks worth of testing. After all that testing its a much needed break.

Zekaryah works just as hard in class, sometimes harder as its difficult for him at times to retain information, copy it from one text to another etc. He has improved so much this year. I love how far his writing has truly come. He does an amazing job at giving time to the Lord. He is always willing to serve in any capacity he can. He works as a student leader for the ministry, he serves in the band, he works with little ones in our younger areas called Son Harbor, he also helps with sign language on stage during the music time on Sundays for the youth. He really loves this portion of serving. He is involved in Track, Cross Country, Men's Choir Ensemble at School as well as Mixed Chorale. He is BUSY~
I love hearing from other parents about how hard he works, how honest he is and just what a blessing he is in their lives. While he may not make grades enough to be in Honor Society he does an amazing job in my book. 

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

Retirement Quilt for Principal

I absolutely love teachers and principals. I think we are truly blessed to have people who step up to take on these jobs. Helping to raise other parents children is a huge task and so much work.

I am always honored to create quilts for principals that are retiring. I wish there was a way to offer these for free. I think it is a wonderful way for them to have a keep sake of something from their school to cherish with them for the rest of their lives.

I was able to do some extras on this one, like adding a logo from a front of a shirt to this square

Combining the front and back of this shirt into one square. It represented that years shirt better.

Another block with a front logo added to the back of the quilt. I pray that this principal loves the gift from the teachers at WestHoff Elementary. 

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

Catching up from Time Away from Blogging

Sometimes you have to step away in order to see more clearly. I had to take some time off from blogging it seemed like we were in the middle of so much chaos and I needed to take something off my schedule. We went from such a busy Senior Year with Jakob to constant doctor appointments and medical situations with Zekaryah. I think the hardest situation is truly not knowing what is going on. I never know what will activate one of his episodes. The neurologists are convinced he is not having seizures, the heart doctor can't find any problems. We decided part way through the year during spring break to pay a crazy amount of money out of pocket to go to a functional medicine doctor/chiropractor. While I was relieved to have a few answers it really isn't something that works with school. They were given supplements that cost a fortune because insurance does not cover them, they also cannot be administered at school because they are not FDA approved. The kids were not even convinced that they really were helping so they decided it was money being wasted. I felt like they did seem to feel better but when they are strong willed teens at some point you give in a little.
We have made major changes with food in the house. I see that has been a hard adjustment but for the most part it isn't too bad. Its probably hardest on my oldest because items like chips, crackers and cookies are not part of our pantry anymore. Its definitely difficult money wise. I can't believe how expensive it is to constantly keep fresh produce on hand.
So the bottom line is that Zekaryah potentially has an endocrine gland issue. It doesn't produce or distribute correctly. His heart stopped at camp this year. I think that has conversation in our house changing. He told me this summer that he is secure in the knowledge that he will go to heaven. I never thought much about that part of life with him.
Mekenzei is having issues with her endocrine system as well, although her main issue is her pituitary gland. I cannot believe how much that does in our bodies. We are using oils and diet at this time to try and help them. They seem to really be listening to their bodies and learning the signs of when they need more rest, food and what oil to use to feel better.
 I can't believe how much they have both grown in the Lord through this experience. MeKenzei wanted with all her heart to go to Ecuador to minister to others. Zekaryah decided he will try to help raise the money for both of them to be able to go next year. I see their involvement in church becoming a constant in our schedule. They participate in band, student ministry and children's ministry. Sometimes I find myself gripping because the church sees them more than I do. I feel bad for those times. I found myself telling them they can't live at the church. I had to step back and evaluate my attitude. I should be thrilled that they want to serve and volunteer. I am interested to see what next year holds. Zekaryah will be back at running for Cross Country again. Mekenzei will be taking 6 AP courses- a very heavy load, her only fun class will be choir- which really still is work. I am super thankful for family and friends who have prayed for us this past year. Prayer is what helped us, especially me, get through some very dark places.


google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

Prom with Friends

Prom was a great experience. She went with a senior friend and then one of her dear senior girlsfriends and her date from Acadec

Her hair makes the most beautiful curls

I am thankful that her dates mom has a wonderful camera, the pictures look stunning

They looked so amazing

too cute

love the black and white

Photos from the dance turned out great too

She had a wonderful time

After Prom they come back to the High School for a game night- called After Prom

Table Settings

Amazed with the texas weather that her curls stuck. i am thankful her Aunt helped her get her hair made up

They had so much fun~

After Prom the Acadec team sets up a hallway of games, video, board, ping pong. Its a long evening but all three of my kiddos and I helped out on the hall from set up to tear down.

Its nice that you don't have to wear your dress to this portion, you can bring clothes to change into

its such a long night Zekaryah and I played monopoly

Always got to get in one crazy photo

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

Retirement quilt

Retirement Quilt. This gives you an idea of how large my lap quilts can be, this is laying on a full size bed. its a great quilt for the couch and a movie

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

Art Quilt

Unique Art Quilt

Students drew on fabric for this quilt and then I created a block with the school shirt and sweatshirt

We added a border fabric that was fun on the front and back

It made a very unique gift idea

google.com/+JennWellsandSunshineOfAutumnQuilts

School Projects

Having two children in the same grade can sometimes prove expensive and time consuming, esp in months like this one where a teacher assigns various projects to choose from as long as you have 100 points worth. Our middle son always requires more help as he has trouble in school. Above is a snake he made, I helped him transfer it to foam board, hot glue all the characters of his rain forest and make up 30 playing cards about a Rain forest ecosystem and cards about his snake. We played the game "Eaten Alive" last night to make sure it would work and it was interesting..He also made a brochure on oil spills and the effects that has on an ocean ecosystem (with my help), he also made a quiz on a pond ecosystem, a collage on a desert ecosystem and then a 3 Fact and 1 Fib powerpoint slide..I am happy to say it is all over~!

This is our daughters game it is called jumper. She used frog pieces to move through the lily pads, using 20 cards and dice to play her game. Her ecosystem on this one is a pond- hence the blue foam board. She also made a collage- which was based on an ocean, a 3 fact 1 fib power point presentation on the Arctic- which was really neat!, She made a quiz on a desert and instead of a brochure she chose to write up a two page news statement on rain forests and their importance as an ecosystem. She also has had to read a novel, which she is done with and now she is working to write a 2 page typed paper on that, which is very complicated for 7th grade since they have a rubric they are graded on, for this same book she will need to create a game- much like this one. It will have to deal with the themes characters etc of the book, so I have purchased $20 in wolves for her game, I am praying they arrive soon. She also had to type up her first ever RESUME so that she can be looked at for National Junior Honor Society. Lastly she volunteered four and a half hours with me on Saturday helping to sort, tag and hang clothing donations. I am so thankful she is a little more independent but it is still a lot of work.

What we have been up to

Thursday Kenzei had a Choir UIL concert, it was really neat being able to listen and watch these girls Sight Read a sheet of music they had never seen. After a four minute coaching session I would have guessed their was one error in the entire piece. I can't wait to see them perform next thur at their competition.

Zekaryah had a track meet thur night, since I attended Kenzei's event I missed it. He ran the first mile in a half race coming in 6th place with 22 boys. Not bad at all.

The second race was a mile and his time was 5.55. That is really good!

Friday we started helping Jakob with a Spanish III project. He had to write and memorize a 1-3 min speech on his pinata, which he also had to make. He decided on a Day of the Dead theme to represent Mexico. It turned out really good. He got a 92 on the Speech and then the pinata raised his grade to a 96, she gave him 4 extra points because he did impressive work, which of course we helped him with. It took Friday evening, Saturday morning and evening and Sunday morning to complete it.

This is the back, really cool. He competed Saturday at a Math UIL all day. He came in second place for his division, very impressive.

Today I worked on a Baby Genius Quilt order. I really love doing these. The customer picked out this cute tool fabric that I recommended. I hope her son loves this quilt.