Midwest Keech

Edith Madge Brice was born at daybreak Easter morning April 23, 1916. She met her husband Thomas Bryan Gentry in California where she was staying with relatives. They decided to get married & returned to Utah, where they worked together on the homestead. They raised 2 daughters, Louise & Pat, who both married and started families of their own. Bryan has told me of many excursions to visit his Grandmother in Utah. He always loved that she fed them meat & potatoes. Living on a cattle farm, there was no shortage of steaks & sausage, etc that might be considered more of luxury foods, especially when you're a kid. He always talked about how great of a cook Gram was. It wasn't that his mom was a bad cook, it was more that Gram cooked for EVERY meal & had more time & energy to focus on them when they visited. Bryan's Grandpa Gentry passed away shortly before he left on his mission in 1995, the same day as the Oklahoma City bombing. Gram spent a couple mor...

It's October, and I DO like Halloween. I think it's fun to dress up & pretend. Sometimes it's a little grotesque & scary or pretty or even silly. This year, I felt like I should embrace my "roundness". I kept thinking of ways I could emphasize my prego belly, and this is what I came up with (for about$7 too). I bought a black T-shirt (used a coupon) at Michaels. I got 1/2 yd of orange fabric for my pumpkin (which could have made 2), then 1/4yd of black, green & orange w/ polka-dots. I knew I already had some Under Wonder (Heat & Bond) stuff at home that I could use. I had an idea of how I wanted it to look, so I actually put the T-shirt on wrong-side-out & marked where I wanted the pumpkin, so I could decide how big to make it. I sewed with black thread to make lines on the pumpkin, just to embellish it a little more. I cut eyes, nose & mouth out of black & ironed it on with under wonder. Then, sewed around the outside edges. I attache...

Look! No feet. 12 weeks more. Bummer. Wait! I see one. Wow...Photography really IS all about perspective.

So, the time is quickly approaching when our little blessing will be here. I'm sure it's that I'm nesting, but probably a little of my "grand plans" always popping up in the form of "projects". Well, I finished ONE project. I made several very cute blankets. They are flannel & about a yard, which is a good size. I love the way they turned out, and each has it's own look about it. I love ladybugs for little girls. I actually let Mia & Adelaide choose between red or black for the backing. I think it's awesome with the black ric rac. This is probably the simplest blankie, but still very cute. I think this may be my favorite. I love the contrast of the yellow ric rac & the fabrics. This is the fabric Allison picked out. I had a hard time convincing her that it was for the baby. She had such a hard time, I had to buy a little extra so I can make her a matching fairy pillowcase. Then her pillow will match the baby's blankie. Such cute ...

I DO realize that it is the middle of September, and I have not taken time to post back to school shots of the kids. We've been living & adjusting, merging our new schedules with our old schedules. Adam is in 6th grade now, which is at the Junior High. I was a little worried for him, just because it's hard to juggle 7-8 different subjects with 6-7 different teachers. So far, he seems to be very responsible & doing very well. Amelia is now in 1st grade, and Adelaide began Kindergarten. Mia loves school and is doing very well. Every Monday, there is an assembly where the Principal talks to the kids, acknowledges birthdays, etc. The kids seem to really like it. On the first day, I had to stay with Adelaide, but I still managed to snap a photo of Mia in her class. Kindergarten only had school for 1 hour on the 1st day. It was more of an orientation / come drop off your supplies kind of day. I love how she's ready to get to work. Too bad you have to wait. Adelaide & ...