Tatum

"Tatum"
Size: 8 1/2” x 28”
Pattern: original design
Completed: September 2007
Made in: Hawaii
Given to: Tatum Erickson

Machine pieced and quilted on a Pfaff Hobby 301

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The story: A little background first. About a month before we moved to Hawaii I saw my dad's cousin Marylou at a family gathering. She mentioned that her son Will and his family were also moving to Oahu that summer. He would be attending nursing school and they were hoping to live near his school on the windward side of the island, which is about an hour from where we were moving.

I hadn't seen Will in close to 10 years, but had spent some time with him and his siblings while were growing up - holidays, family reunions, etc. Well, I went to church on my first Sunday in Hawaii and about 1/2 way through Sunday School I realized that the guy sitting a few rows away was Will! Now it's not like my church only has one meeting house and on congregation on the island - there are tons - so the chances were pretty slim that we would run into each other at church.

After class I went up to him and he recognized me right away. Not only were they at my church, but they had moved into a condo on the same street as us and were literally minutes away. Crazy! Anyway, I met his wife Kristy and their 3 girls, Mariah, Brinlee and Asia. They lived here for three years and just moved back to WA last May. We miss them and try to keep up with them on their blog. Hopefully we'll see them again one of these Christmases.

Anyway, while they lived here they added one more daughter to their family, Tatum (and have since added another - yes, that's 5 girls!) So for Tatum's 1st birthday I made her this wall hanging for her room. Kind of hard to see, but it has the cutest fairy fabric. It was fun to make and I learned a lot doing it. It was only the second word I had done and I would do the "M" differently if I ever did it again and the "T's" turned out a little wider than intended. Oh well. It's all about learning and having fun, right?