We promised the good folks at “Quilter’s Newsletter” that we’d send the first batch of our lovely Quilts for Japan to them this week. Feeling quite prudent about our options, April and I decided to hand deliver them, which meant of course–ROADTRIP!!
The drive from Utah to Colorado is–for the most part–a scenic, beautiful thing as long as you are wise enough to do it in the daytime.
Note to self: Driving through snowy canyons and mountain passes with ice freezing on your windshield is much more terrifying at 11:00 at night–therefore leave earlier next time.
We realized that this was the wrong time of year to judge the landscape and we had to constantly remind ourselves that in a couple of months this prairie would likely be a gorgeous shade of green…
and that this ominous “edge of the world” type drop off would be filled with blossoms and hence even more…umm…scary looking. We stayed far away from that thing–I’ll tell you!
We were chased along by several of these cloud bursts before it became way too dark to see anything. When we finally arrived in Golden, Colorado, we checked into our hotel close to midnight. I personally can’t remember much after pulling the covers up to my chin and closing my eyes.
We woke up to a nice dusting of good old, Colorado snow.
Here’s a sweet little poolside gazebo right outside our window. Alas–no time for ice swimming on this trip…ha ha.
We did our best to write and attach just the proper message to each of the quilts. This symbol is suppose to mean “Love.” At least we sincerely hope it does!
I wrote most of the English messages and April tackled the Japanese. Isn’t it lovely?
Next, we carted all those quilts back out to the car. We got some pretty strange looks from people. I wanted to say, “We always bring our own bedding…just in case,” but I wasn’t brave enough.
After following April’s IPhone GPS–we finally arrived at the Quilting Magazine headquarters…
and even found the perfect parking place.
We were warmly greeted by Senior Editor and author, Kelly Smith, and Contributing Editor Dana Jones. They seemed quite pleased with our quilts.
It was exciting to see that we were not the first to send donations for the Japan project.
Each box held a breathtaking offering of warmth for our friends in Japan, but honestly–
we felt pretty toasty inside ourselves. :}
Thank you Dana and Kelly and Quilter’s Newsletter for giving us the opportunity to serve our neighbors. You’re amazing! Second shipment coming soon.
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I have taken that trip many, many, many times. You were just 30 minutes away from where I used to leave. Plus my Brother lives there so we go as many times a year we can.
I love the quilts. I am working on a top right now to bring to April. They will be so warm and toasty!
So glad that you guys were able to do this so quickly! We have a couple more that should be coming your way as well. Thanks for letting us help!
Launi, that is so awesome. I’m so glad you all did that. What a great idea.
Launi, those quilts are amazing. I know they will be very much loved.
I don’t ever want to take so much of this trip at night. It’s kinda scary that way–with all the random snow just happening and then stopping. But by day–it wouldn’t be too bad.
And one more on the porch today!
It was great fun!
I hope so. Sometimes it’s hard for different cultures to accept this kind of gift. But we’re hoping that the connection actually in Japan will make it an easier thing. It’s really just love that we’re trying to give. I hope they will know that.
So, so, SO glad you were able to get there safely. I love how many people helped with this project… I’m sure it will help a lot of people! 🙂
And the quilts just keep on coming! People are so great. :}
You were practically in my neighborhood–and you didn’t stop in for cookies? That is a gorgeous drive in the summer–but it’s a crazy drive at this time of year. Glad you made it through.
I am truly in awe not only of your quick response to help those in need in Japan but also your tremendous talent, those quilts are so beautiful.I’m sure they will be appreciated not just for their warmth but also for the skill, the craftmanship and the love that comes with them.
And the sweet part is that they keep coming and coming and coming. We have another stack piling up already. :}