The 20th Annual Quilt Show

We made it to the quilt show Saturday!

Of course, the children wore the same sullen faces they do every year when we go.

They were busy doing their own thing when I announced we would be leaving soon. 

They took it as drudgery and got dressed and ready to go ‘for Mom’s sake’. 

In the car on our way there I was pretty sure it wasn’t the picturesque countryside that was leaving them speechless.

They always get like this; they’re convinced they’ll be bored stiff walking around looking at quilts.

They are polite, they do not say a word, but I can hear them thinking in their minds: ‘My mother doesn’t even quilt, so what’s the deal?’ and ‘Why do we have to go to this stupid thing?’

When we first arrived at the Farmpark, I was parking the car and they started talking. Each recalling a past visit to the Metropark for other events. (We visit the park several times a year.) 

Remembering the most recent times, they discussed the time we were there for the Fall Festival and enjoyed cider and treats. They also mentioned the time we came and viewed the new baby pigs after they were first born and watched Dry Dogsled Racing.

This was a good sign.
 
They were a little livelier than when we first left the house… thank goodness... because I was A) beginning to regret taking them and B) losing patience with their moping.

I knew how ecstatic I was about going to the Quilt Show and I just wanted to have a good time.  
Preferably, without complaints from a certain Peanut Gallery.

Just after getting through the final set of doors to the exhibit hall the kids began chattering excitedly...
 The ladies at the front desk had given each of them a scavenger hunt paper. 

Within seconds the kids were off, pencils in hand, cheerfully hunting for the items on their list. (They hadn’t even waited long enough to hear that there’d be a prize at the end.)

This is the kids’ favorite part of the Quilt Show (though they seem to forget about it each year until they get there).

As always, it was a race to see who could find everything. (They are sweet though and helped each other out.) 

They were having fun! And they hadn't even noticed...

Each year I ask them to choose a favorite quilt and tell me why they liked it. 
(This tends to be more of a challenge than the scavenger hunt. They’re all so amazing and unique.)

This year I noticed there were several more male genre quilts as well as nature quilts, than past years. 
From teen rocker with black and white skeletons to hobbies like fishing; all the way to green leaves, forests and the ocean floor in 3-D.

You just never know what you’ll see at the Quilt Show.

With the show going on until March 23rd there is still time to check it out.
Visit their site for hours and admission or call: (440) 256-2122 /  (800) 366-3276
http://www.lakemetroparks.com/programs/quilts2011.shtml#Home

Here is our list of favorites (sorry, but the specific names may not all be here, the kids were moving too quickly for me to write them all down...lol):

My son:  the Snowman
My oldest daughter (born a horse lover): ‘Horseplay’ a puzzle quilt
My youngest daughter (a dog lover): the dog head quilt
And Mom’s favorite: The ‘Metropark Quilt’ by Carol A. Kraiger, from Parma. It’s complete with a koala from the Cleveland Zoo and our own Squire’s Castle. (Though I have to say ‘Monkey in the Middle’ took a close 2nd. I can’t help it; it’s that adorable Sock Monkey!!!)

If you go… check out these fun ones: 'Ebb Tide’ (the 3D Ocean), Harry Potter, Halloween, ‘Skulls and Roses’, and finally ‘Winterscape’ is definitely a must see!!! ‘
This is Winterscape - What you cannot see is that this is only half of the quilt and there are words all the way around it and the fabric glitters like fresh-fallen-snow. Stunning! We were in awe...



My fiancée now wishes he decided to go with us!
Ha ha ha…maybe next year he can pout along with the kids, until he gets there and does the scavenger hunt;)

‘America is not like a blanket-one piece of unbroken cloth, the same color, the same texture, the same size. America is more like quilt-many patches, many pieces, many colors, many sizes, all woven and held together by a common thread.’  -Jesse Jackson

Truly,
Amber


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