Monet's Dining Room

Mom, Me & Tracey in France 1999

Dear Blog World, it's time to share that my mother has terminal cancer.

Me in Front of Monet's Home

Skipping on the drama, I will say that when I turned 21, and was going through a difficult time myself, I went to Monet's home in Giverny, France with her and Tracey. (Leslie had just had a baby and we missed her a lot.) My mother is a very talented watercolor artist, and she loves all things art. I enjoyed being there with them to take in all that his house and gardens have to offer. This last weekend was the first time I've visited my mom in Portland since we found out the cancer had spread and become terminal. Her studio has many reminders of that trip, including a little shadow box of a miniature set of Monet's china I brought back for her when Paul and I went a few years later. And so, I've decided to do a quilt based on his dining room in honor of my mother.

I wanted to do something to honor her and all that she is, but frankly, she's a fairly complex person. I'm glad to have this idea of a symbol of something we both love. When life gets hectic or stressful or emotional, my first response is to quilt, I don't know about you. People ask me how I quilt so much and there's my secret. I have to.