Brookie Pookie Lemon Cookie

2/22/09 • 5 Blankets Completed! Going in for the homestretch!

Our goal today was to crochet borders on all the blankets and weave in all the ends ~ there were so many ends .......  A marathon day on the couch and our goal was accomplished! All but one blanket is now on this blog. A few squares are still waiting for more squares in order to be made into blankets. A few squares are oversized and haven't quite made it into blankets yet. However we have 31 completed blankets! Amazing! Thank you to Aunts, friends and grandma ~ without your help there was no possible way to have all these blankets complete in this short a time! Thank you to everyone for making this possible by giving your time, enthusiasm, ideas and creativity! The incredible response to posts asking for help proves there is a lot of love in this world! The blankets will be handed out this week, can't wait!

Here is a photo of the blankets that ate the bed! It is amazing to see this giant pile of blankets and know they were made from individuals from all around the world! They are all so pretty and special! We plan on placing each blanket in a pretty gift bag with ribbon and attaching a notecard for each.On each card will be written where all the squares came from and, to use words of Valerie from Homestead, Florida also written on these cards will be: 

"While I worked to finish these blankets, I prayed that God would bless and comfort the child that held this blanket made by the love and hard work of my family, friends and the many helping hands around the world who reached out when I called. Love, Reiley."

The blankets that ate my sister's bed ..........

Marathon day spent on the couch .........

 

Notecards purchased on etsy to be included with blankets for little girls ........

Notecards purchased on etsy to be included with blankets for little boys .............

Kalamazoo, MI

Mystic, CT

San Antonio,Waco, TX

Hoboken, NJ

Moravia, NY

Charolette

Houston, TX

Concord, NC

Mt Vernon, WA

This is one of my favorite blankets. It is so fluffy and colorful. There are so many fun and joyful patterns to this blanket. My grandma put this design together and I really love it. Melissa, from San Antonio wrote "How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." It is a quote from Anne Frank. This blanket feels like that quote because it is going to bring a little girl such joy and happiness instantly. How could this blanket not be uplifting to a little spirit who needs it most? The blanket has Valentine's colors, confetti, fluffy squares, happy designs all throughout.

Dallas, TX

Seattle, WA

Hayward, CA

Welland, Ontario, Canada

Toronto,Ontario Canada

A very good looking blanket for a little boy. 

Holland, MI

Fountain Valley, CA

Winston Salem, NC

Andover, MN

Southhaven, MS

Plano, TX

Lake Mills, WI

Ukiah, CA

Richardon, TX

Welland, Ontario Canada

Oakland, CA

Lincoln, NE

Albuquerque, NM

Hokkaido University in Sapporo, Japan

Jeanie from Holland, MI wrote that her squares with love and healing energy. This blanket is a very worldly blanket. Squares came from Japan, Canada and 13 different cities in the US! Some of the squares were larger than the others so the columns are not perfectly straight however it has the most diverse background coming from different cultures throughout the world yet they all manage to come together beautifully and make for a colorful, happy blanket!

Edison, NJ

Canada

Albuquerque, NM

Kalamazoo, MI

Houston, TX

Southaven, MS

Harrison City, PA

Hillsboro, AL

My teacher, Mrs. Church knit squares for me. Most of her squares are in this blanket. She said she would have her husband drive her to work so she could work on her squares while on the road and during any extra time she could find. I like this blanket for a little boy. It has fun, boyish qualities to it. 

Fremont, CA

Candi from Fremont, CA sent 48 squares and three completed blanket in the mail. The squares she wrote come from all over the world, Canada and New Zealand included. Over the years she has participated in exchanges and has accumulated diverse and colorful squares . I am so thankful to her for being thoughtful and kind enough to send all these squares to me! I hope she appreciates this blanket and realizes how beautifully the squares came together to make such an exceptional blanket! I love the spiral flowers on the white square! 

I would like to share this poem Valerie from Ravelry sent to me, I hope you can share it as well .......

‘People are often 
unreasonable and self-centered. 
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, 
people may accuse you of ulterior motives. 
Be kind anyway.

If you are honest, 
people may cheat you. 
Be honest anyway.

If you find happiness, 
people may be jealous. 
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today 
may be forgotten tomorrow. 
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have 
and it may never be enough 
Give your best anyway.

For you see, in the end, 
it is between you and God. 
It never was between you and them anyway.’

—-Author thought to be Kent Keith

Thank you to so many for sending so many words of inspiration! 

2/22/09 • Three blankets finished

Saskatchewan, Canada

Lake View, MI

Val, from Saskatchewan, Canada lives on her sheep farm. On her farm there are miles and miles of prairie grass and nothing but big sky. She has a journal "to share the joys of life with sheep and learning to work with their wool." I've enjoyed reading about life on her farm, her animals, and reading of her knitting projects. She dyes her own wool and takes beautiful photos letting us see snapshots of her life most people only see in movies. 

http://lifewithsheep.blogspot.com/

Duluth, MN

Plano, TX

Los Angeles, CA

Columbus, OH

Goose Bay, NL Aopico Canada

Rock Springs, WY

Southington, CT

La Plata, NM

Marylynn from Columbus, OH also sent a pretty crochet turtle and hat. I plan on giving them to the little girl who gets this blanket and showing her the pretty postcard of Ohio. I am not sure who the turtle and hat was intended for, now I am thinking they were for the little girl who gets this blanket. I am sure she will love this colorful blanket!

The blue and white square with the four lines pointing to the center flower came from Newfoundland and Irabrador, home of icebergs and whales. When she sent the two squares she said it was -32 degrees outside! The squares are the color of the cold from which they came!

Edison, NJ

Trappe, MD

Dallas, TX

Mt Vernon, WA

Lake View, MI

Welland, Ontario Canada

St. Thomas, Ontario Canada

Edison, NJ

I helped my grandma arrange these squares. She quickly put the blanket together. A lot of these squares were different sizes and I thought she would have a hard time however she put them together and they look really good. I put the border on and had a little difficulty putting a border on knit squares. I think it is a little easier putting borders on crochet squares. The blanket looks so much nicer than the photo :) I love the heart square and the pink with blue stripe square that has bobbles because they look fun for a little girl's blanket. The colors are very bright and cheerful. The blanket is very soft and pretty.

2/19/09 • Blanket made by Lindsey ..... complete!

Salisbury MA

On January 23rd I received so many squares!

And they kept coming ...........

In a panic I quickly started calling friends and family.

I called all my aunts, my grandma, even my neighbor's mom asking for help with all the squares.

I asked my brand new Aunt Lindsey.

Soon after, early Saturday morning while we were still in our PJ's she arrived fresh, looking and smelling great asking for her squares.

My mom and I gave her a box of beautiful rainbow crochet squares. They even came with matching yarn for easy assembly. The squares were all exactly the same. Even though we only have known Aunt Lindsey for a short while we knew she was meticulous and would appreciate the box of perfect squares the colors of the rainbow. 

Trying to make the project easier my mom told her to stitch it together any way she could and not worry about learning different stitches, etc.

Lindsey took the project very seriously. She looked online, examined diagrams and directions to figure out the best stitch to use. 

She even purchased matching rainbow colored crochet hooks!

She took hours working on the layout of the blocks and stacked them in order on the dining room table.

My Uncle David is very ornery, he knocked down the stacks! 

Just about every evening Lindsey took the squares out and meticulously assembled all the squares.

She took the squares to work and back home again. She worked on the blanket every free moment she had. I didn't know how hard she would work on the blanket ............. I am very glad she did ........

The unveil ............

It really is one of the brightest and happiest blanket I've ever seen!

And, in true Aunt Lindsey style .......... the stitches are superb!

Mrs. Childs from Salisbury MA will be proud because these are her squares!

This blanket will surely make the child who receives this very happy. It would cheer anybody up!

2/19/09 • 4 blankets completed!

Kalamazoo, MI

La Plata, NM

Clarksville, TN

Algona, IA

Iowa City, IA

Bowie, Maryland

This blanket was assembled by my Aunt Diane. This is blanket #2 she stitched by hand!

She used clear quilting thread and the stitches are so very small and invisible. She

did a great job with her blankets! Thank you Aunt Diane for your hard work! 

Welland, Ontario Canada

Rock Springs, WY

Elliottsburg, PA

Trappe, MD

Huntingtown, MD

This blanket was also assembled by my Aunt Diane. This is blanket #3 she stitched by hand!

This one I really like because of the three dimensional heart and bobble squares. It is 

a very sweet blanket and soft. Thank you Aunt Diane for helping to make the blankets

so special! This blanket is really pretty.

Tucson, AZ

Hayward,CA

Oak Park, CA (one square of which is from a 6 year old named Alina)

Concord, NC

Mission, KS

Kalamazoo, MI

My grandma put this blanket together. She really takes her time to lay out the blankets and puts a lot

of thought into them. This blanket has a three dimensioal heart and colorful flowers. The block that is second row down all the way on the left was a square knit by a 6 year old from Oak Park, California. She crochet the block just for my project and it was her first crochet square! She sent a pretty drawing of a blanket with a nice letter. These blankets are so special because they all have such care and well wishes put into each square. I am glad my grandma is so fast at putting blankets together because we have so many! This blanket is a really happy looking blanket.

Pittsburg, PA

Bellevue, NE

My grandma put this blanket together. Her cousin from Bellevue who she hasn't seen in 40 years asked his wife to make squares. They sent a giant box of pretty pastel squares. They made this pretty blanket and there were squares left over for another blanket! A little girls is going to love this blanket.

2/18/09 • Already assembled blankets arrived today!

Fremont, CA

Thank you so much Candi!

These three blankets came already assembled today with a big box of beautiful crochet squares as well!

This is so very generous and very much appreciated! The blankets are so soft and beautiful!

2/17/09 • Special blanket for a boy

This blanket will be a nice boy blanket. It is so unique and is assembled from 13 different cities and two countries!

Toronto, Ontario Canada

Albuquerque, NM

Goodlettsville, TN

Plano, TX

Wadsworth, OH

New Castle, PA

Columbus, OH

Andover, MN

Los Angeles, CA

Bloomington, Indian

Walker, MI

Goose Bay, NL Aopico Canada

Winston Salem, NC

2/16/09 Three Blankets Complete!

I think I was able to identify where all the squares came from!

It's getting a little more challenging .........

Hoboken, NJ

Idyllwild, CA

Wadsworth, OH

New Castle, PA

Glendale, OH

Rochelle Park, NJ

Holland, MI

Ukiah, CA

Plano, TX

Albuquerque, NM

Florence, AL

Hamilton, OH

Hernando, MS

Bellevue, NE

Plano, TX

Wadsworth, OH

New Castle, PA

Gilford, NH

Glendale, OH

Bastrop, TX

Fairfield, OH

Winston Salem, NC

Welland, Ontario Canada

Arlington, MA

Andover, MN

Derry, NH

Richardson, TX

New York City

I put this blanket together. I used very bright squares for this. Some of the squares are from New York City. In a letter I was told the squares were dyed with Koolaid and Wilton Icing colors which is perfect for a blanket for a child! She said her squares are as vibrant as her New York City neighborhood. The middle square is from Canada. A few knitters got together and sent a large box of goodies from Canada and really pretty squares. The red square has a design of a maple leaf, the symbol of Canada. This blanket is a really special blanket and will make a little girl feel happy.

Toledo, OH

Battle Creek, MI

San Diego, CA

Hawthorne, CA

Lake Oswego, OR

Stevenson Ranch, CA

Ohio

This blanket is so colorful and fun. Some of these squares came from Ohio's Amish country. Helen from Oregon took time to crochet 12 pretty and colorful squares, all are on this blanket making a happy combination of squares. Most of Rachels' blocks from Toledo, OH are in this blanket as well. She crochet all different color squares of the same pattern. You can see her soft squares in burgundy, green and pink on this blanket. My grandma put this blanket together and my mom the border. I love this blanket.

2/15/09 Knit blanket completed

This blanket is so fun and turned out really nice!

My mom started the border last night and I stayed up late finishing it.

This blanket has parts  from all around the world!

It's pretty incredible when I think of where all these blocks came from!

Blocks came from ........

New Zealand

Dublin, Ireland

Toano, VA

New City, NY

Hamilton, OH

Florence, AL

Dietrich, ID

Akron, OH

Oak Park, IL

This blanket is very special and some little girl is going to love it! 

2/12/09 Hello Kitty Blanket Completed

These blocks came from Bastrop, Texas

The ends still have to be woven in This hello kitty blanket is so cute in person and very soft! 

A little girl is going to be so happy to get this blanket!

2/9/09 Three Blankets Completed!

Sebastian, FL

This blanket's squares are easy to figure where they came from because all 20 squares were knit by Jane from Sebastian, FL!

My little sister's best friend's grandma put this together for me! She did a great job, the blanket is so pretty and soft!

Hillsboro, Alabama

These two blanket's squares all came from Mrs. Smith from Hillsboro, Alabama! I put together the blue and pink blanket and my mom crochet together the multi-color solid crochet squares. She might put a border on the blanket I put together if she has time before they are given away.

2/5/09 Two Blankets Completed

I assembled this blanket all from large crochet squares.

The squares are from 46 squares that were sent from San Diego, California.

I still have more squares from San Diego to use on another blanket!

My Aunt Diane put this blanket together. The blanket is so pretty and soft for a baby. She did a great job putting it together!

Squares came from:

• Aurora, CO

• Mobile, AL

• Bowie, MD