AAQI

Here's my latest purchase from AAQI, made by my friend Juliann. This was her first quilt donated and I am thrilled to have it in my home. We have a lot in common, unfortunately, both our mothers have Alzheimer's. 

"The Neighborhood Has Changed"

Juliann's artist statement about the quilt:
My mom is living with Alzheimer's and her memories of home have begun to fade so every time I go to visit her she says, "The neighborhood has really changed.” 

Here is my latest top for AAQI. The liberated strips remind me of my moms confusion, but the orderly rows remind me of how she likes to stay in her comfort zone. It is somewhat orderly and reassuring to her. Although we have had a bit of strippy confusion lately. 

 

My mom forgot (again) that she does not administer (or have in her apartment) her own medications and it upsets her very much. She really obsessed about it for several days. She went so far as to call the drugstore and ask them to refill all her prescriptions and deliver them to her room. When they delivered them to the dispensary she was really mad. (she calls me and says she is not happy at all!)

She also thinks she has plates missing-(cups and drinking glasses too) what she says doesn't make any sense to us but only to her. It doesn't matter that she hasn't had plates in her room since she has moved in 4 months. It's the liberated strips and tangles in her mind causing these twisted thoughts. She seems to get hyper focused on a particular thing for several days, then it passes and all is well with the world.....until next time!

I think I've gotten better at dealing with her than I have in the past. For me it is realizing it is the disease that is causing this. My therapy is making little quilts for AAQI research.

By the way, the monthly auction is going on right now at AAQI. Bid generously and bid often...or just purchase a quilt or two. There are so many to choose from.

Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative

I've got several things I want to share today all revolving around AAQI.

Here's my latest AAQI quilt. I'll send it as soon as I get permission from the designer, Susan Briscoe. Sue from I Sew Quilts UK gave me a wonderful book (Japanese Taupe Quilt Blocks)  when we met in NYC last year. My little quilt is anything but taupe, but it reminded me of windows that can see a little here and a little there, but unable to see the full view from a big window. This reminds me of my mom's view of her world. Only last week we (my siblings and I)  have made the decision to move her into an assisted living facility. When the time comes they also have an Alzheimer's Unit that will be easy to transition to. The change will be very difficult, but in the long run it will be better for her. I've been busy dealing with a lot of the things that will need to be set up in order to make this happen. Hopefully everything will be in order, so when I go on vacation I won't have to think about it until I return. We are planning on shit hitting the fan pretty good when my mom finds out, so hopefully I'll be able to go to my happy place and not take it personal. I'm hoping to bring some of the relaxed vacation mode back with me!! (excuse my bluntness!) lol

Next: I've committed to raising $1000 for AAQI with their $1000 promise. I'm not officially on the list yet, but these things take time as this organization is all run by volunteers!! 

Next: I loved this! A thank you letter from Dr. Domenico Praticò, Professor of Pharmacology at Temple University in response to receiving a research grant from the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative.

May quilts are up for auction right now! Bid generously. We can all make a difference, one quilt at a time! Check out this video! AAQI has raised over $730,000!!!

More AAQI Quilts....

I found out that Judy from Small Quilts and Doll Quilts has 2 quilts up for sale at AAQI. 

Click on the caption to go to the AAQI page.

Ocean Waves Remembered

Homespun Hope

Fantastic looking little quilts and for such a great cause. I have 1 1/2 more bindings to do on my newest AAQI quilts, so save a little money.... hahaha

Love to you all.

The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative

I committed to making another quilt for AAQI before the end of the year. Here is my final 2010 quilt. It's called the Hobbit House and the pattern is from a class I took with Tonye Belinda Phillips last winter.

Did you know that AAQI raised $54,000+  at the Houston festival?! It's amazing and wonderful!!

What is also wonderful is that they were able to donate $140,000 to Alzheimer's research in 2010! Pretty darn good for a grass roots effort!!

This is from Ami's blog:

"Our treasurer Debbie Chenail wrote checks for three of those studies on the same day. I signed them, with very moist eyes. We had two volunteers here getting the 1,000 quilts ready for Houston and before the checks went into the mail (in priority mailers, of course) the four of us each held a corner of the envelopes and we wished them Godspeed.
For us, and for most of those involved with the AAQI, this is personal. We know someone with the disease and we know how horrid Alzheimer’s is. And we want so badly to find a cure.
The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative isn’t like other charities. We are all volunteers, we account publicly for every penny that we spend, and we hold impromptu ceremonies before we mail checks because we know what it feels like to lose someone we love one memory at time. And we know what it feels like to make a quilt and pray with each stitch that our work will help win the fight.
Isn’t that the kind of charity you want to support?"

I say YES!! For all of you involved with AAQI- those who have made a quilt or quilts, those who have purchased a quilt or quilts. Thank you!!!
Another quote from Ami's blog-
"If you think you’re too small to be effective, you’ve never been in bed with a mosquito.”

AAQI Finale

Many of you know that AAQI will be dissolved at the end of the year. Ami has done an amazing job and I do not doubt for one second she will reach the goal of one million dollars! Here is my final AAQI quilt that will put me over the $1000 pledge I made. 

It is called Hair Duty.  Bill Volckening suggested the title after I mentioned every Friday I bring my mom to her hair appointment. When I'm not in town my brother has "Hair Duty". When I leave work and tell my hubby, I'm on hair duty, he knows exactly what I am talking about. The strings remind me of her wisps of hair.

I wanted to have a creative backing. My mom now talks about her early farm days so I thought this was fitting.

Drum roll..........

Another research award has been granted! Click on the title to read more.

AAQI Awards $60,000 to Mount Sinai School of Medicine 

PS: Tuesday Randy will post the third border of the medallion quilt and I'll post a linky on Tuesday or Wednesday so we can see round one and two. Thank you for those who are sewing along with us!!

PSS: I've got a Quilt Market giveaway next week too!! Watch for details.

AAQI Exhibit

I hope to post about it tomorrow. If you ever get the opportunity to see it, then you should and tell your friends about it too!!  The more people that know the better chance we have of finding a cure.

Find out more here: AAQI Traveling exhibit From Heartbreak to Hope


PS, I still have two AAQI quilts for sale!!

Buffalo, #11,280

The Warden 11,281  This one is the most personal quilt I've made for AAQI. Thankfully I've moved out of that dark place.

AAQI Finale

Before 2013 came to end and AAQI closed up shop I managed to purchase three more quilts.

This one resides at my moms home. Years past she lived on a ranch, rode horses, and branded cows. I thought this one was appropriate for her. It's called "Ladies Choice at the OK Corral".

Danish Fall

Sampler 2

AAQI is now closed for business but raised over 1 million dollars for Alzheimer's research. Thank you Ami Simms!! We love you!!

Thank you all who supported AAQI by purchasing my quilts.

Have a fantastic weekend!! I am going to SEW!

AAQI

"Windows" winging it's way to AAQI headquarters to be assigned. I'll be sure to let you know when it's up for sale.

Kathie has graciously sent me these wonderful little quilts to finish and send into AAQI. I'm getting caught back up after vacation and finally have them basted. Sweet aren't they?!Thanks Kathie!!

So, it has been an interesting 12 days since returning from vacation. My brother had volunteered to be the one to tell me mom she was moving, but anytime he hinted at it she was adamant that she was not ever moving. She went as far as to say she would sit in her chair and never leave it! lol

She wasn't that way when I talked to her (we think she was being extra nice because I had been on vacation and she missed me) so I ended up being the one to tell her. I picked her up the next morning for a tour and a full day of drs appointments and intake interviews.  Last week was hard. She didn't take the news well, but lovingly we kept moving forward and by the weekend she was ready.
Wednesday evening I was telling her that they would come and clean her apartment once a week and do her laundry and her response was , "That's included in the rent?"
I wish I could get Wells Fargo to include that in my mortgage payment! lol

Moving day is TODAY! I'm looking forward to seeing her in a safer, healthier and more social environment. I hope all goes well.

Have a wonderful weekend.


 PS from Ami

 Vote for the AAQI at http://www.attorneyandoni.com/Giving_Back.html

This blog post will go out at 1am eastern time on June 6th. Feel free to scoop me and send this information (word for word if you like) out right away. Daniel J. Andoni, a local attorney here in Flint, Michigan, pledges 3% of his net profits to a local charity each month. Instead of deciding which deserving nonprofit gets his donation, he uses crowd sourcing: visitors to his website cast their vote for one of five charities. The one with the most votes at the end of the month wins the donation.

The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative is one of the charities listed for the month of June! We are off to a fabulous start, but it's the charity with the most votes at the END of the month that counts. To pull this off, we need to keep growing the numbers. Every vote counts.

Vote here: http://www.attorneyandoni.com/Giving_Back.html

PPS from Ami

http://www.benefitbidding.com/listings/categories/index.cfm?category=965774286

June auction is going on now...bid once bid many times!! 

AAQI and an Escape Concert

 I purchased this beautiful AAQI quilt this week and it came on Tuesday.  Janet O, Rogue Quilter, made it and I was thrilled to purchase it.
Artist Statement: The pinwheels in this quilt represent cogs that turn each other. My thought was that one thing leads to another. Our family doctor many years ago was a soft-spoken, caring man. He was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's and had to retire early.

 

My final AAQI quilt:  "Hair Duty" suggested by Bill V. (aka WillyWonky) who was also the purchaser. Thanks for your support Bill!

Last Friday we went to this concert!

The first act was Black Stone Cherry (I knew exactly one song) and the second act was Bad Company, who exceeded my expectation.
Lynyrd Skynyrd can still rock the house after making music for 40 years!! It was good to "escape" for a night.

We recently moved my 88 yo FIL to our town. It is so hard to see our parents aging and changing.

Quilts for Sale! AAQI Quilts for Sale!

I just noticed that the AAQI site put three more of my quilts up for sale. These are collaborative efforts between Kathie, Inspired by Antique Quilts, and myself!!

Buy 1! Buy 2! Buy all 3!!
Click on the quilt title to be brought to the AAQI page.

Billings

Billings- SOLD! Thanks Julie!!

Cheyenne
Cheyenne- SOLD! Thanks Libby!!

Del Rio

Del Rio- SOLD! I think it is Kelley. Thank you!!

All sold within hours of posting! Oh my! Thank you all for your generosity!!

AAQI x 5

Here's another full post of quilts that support Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative. 
If you've never heard of AAQI please click on the link and check it out. What an awesome organization run by volunteers so all the money raised will go for Alzheimer's research.

Here is my latest purchase. Hokey Pokey by Andrea Balosky.

Back of Hokey Pokey

The next two are named after long ago places my mom still has a memory of.

"Buffalo" Top made by Kathie Holland, quilted by Lori DeJarnatt

"Sheridan"

Kathie H sent me a little kit with all the thimbles cut out and ready to sew. Now I realize it was probably supposed to look like this,  although there was no photo reminding me of that! There is a reason I have not done a thimble quilt. I have tried and had no luck lining up the pieces. Well, this time was no different!Thankfully I had help.

Gabe was getting so frustrated with ripping, ripping, ripping she finally stuck that huge safety pin in that section hoping it would not allow it to move!! We were dying of laughter and eventually had a little AAQI quilt top!! Who knew a little quilt would need three people to make it!?

This next one Kathie H made as well and I layered and quilted it. I titled it "Off Kilter". The patches are liberated so I decided to do hanging diamond quilting, which went a little off kilter. It reminded me of my mom before she had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's, that something was a little "off kilter" but we weren't sure what was happening. In retrospect it all makes sense that Alzheimer's was taking a toll, but it wasn't anything we could see at the time.

The Warden

I have to say that this quilt turned out really ugly. I'm not sure I will register it or do a ritual burning in the burning barrel. The army green reminds me of jail bars that my mom feels like she has been put into with her assisted living. What I see behind the bars is fun, safe, happy, and peaceful.

Moving her has been a change for the good, there is no doubt, but it has also brought out so many emotions, expectations, hurts from long ago.

Sold! 4 Times!!

Thank you Willy Wonky for being so quick on the purchase button! My AAQI quilt was sold quickly...then again..and again..and finally one more time! LOL

Here's a funny note explaining how that happened.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lori,

I think you just won some kind of record! Your quilt was purchased FOUR times! Let me explain. Our website isn't automated. We have to visit the website to pull of orders and when we do we manually take the buy button off (when the quilt is sold or when it is ordered and we put "sale pending"). It is possible, tho unlikely, that a second customer can therefore order the quilt before the web page is published. We pulled off the first order and processed it. The order was placed Tuesday. Our volunteer forgot to publish the page to make the changes visible. Somehow, later on Tuesday, 3 more people ordered your quilt! Still not sure how that happened and why those orders weren't visible to us when we processed orders today. Long story short, does it help to let your readers know that your quilts are available to purchase? ABSOLUTELY! That was the fastest $50 bucks the AAQI made this month!

Thank you for making your quilt and for blogging about it! Thank you A LOT!!

Ami :)

 
Founder & Executive Director, Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative
More than $713,000 raised for Alzheimer's research since January 2006. Help us make a difference...one quilt at a time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you readers for trying to purchase my quilt! I think this means I need to get busy and make a few more. I sent an email to join to $1000 pledge. It looks like this last quilt sold puts me at $574.67 raised for this wonderful cause. 

Hit the AAQI link  and find another lovely quilt to purchase. You have hundreds to choose from!!

AAQI Quilts for Sale!

I just saw that my 4 collaborative quilts for AAQI are now up for sale! Kathie Holland made the tops and I basted and quilted them. I'm going to "advertise" on Facebook soon, so may I suggest you purchase it while you can. Click on the title to bring you to the AAQI page.

Holiday Pizazz

Cinnamon Rolls

Blueberry Buckle

Autumn Reflections

Funny how these came up today for sale. I made my mom cry this morning and was feeling pretty lousy about it. I am trying to do something right, though... One thing good about Alzheimer's is she may not remember by tomorrow. Now if I can stop beating myself up about it.

The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative

Many of you know that I have done a few little quilts for The Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative. It's a great cause and I like that they are very transparent with the money they raise. 2 of my quilts were in the auction that ended on the 10th. I received a wonderful touching email from Sue, who bid and won one of my quilts. She gave me permission to reprint that here:

Dear Lori,

I am the winning bidder on your AAQI quilt.

I just wanted to say a very big thanks for making this quilt which I know I am going to love when it arrives from the USA.
I am a quilter and former quilt shop owner . My husband Dick has suffered with early onset Dementia since the age of 52 and now at the age of 64 has been in a nursing home for the past 2 years.

It is a wonderful thing that people are acknowledging what a devastating illness Alzheimer's is. I have been robbed of my husband and those dreams we had for our retirement.

I am going to Paducah in the spring and hope to buy wool for some projects. It is not something that is popular or readily available here in the UK. Quilting has kept me sane when the rest of my life was falling apart.

A small quilt (9"x12") donated to AAQI is a big thing! Will you commit to making one quilt this year? Ami wants to bring 1000 to sell to Houston this year and needs more quilts! She is also looking for themed quilts to travel the country to raise awareness of Alzheimer's. You don't have to wait for an auction to purchase a quilt and support this cause. You can find many right now for sale. If you need more information the AAQI website is loaded.

We can find a cure for this devastating disease and give people like Sue and her husband hope for the future when they get the diagnosis of Alzheimer's.

HBO did a series called The Alzheimer's Project. If you are at all interested in personal stories and the science of Alzheimer's I would highly recommend it. It is available through Netflix and many libraries.

AAQI Quilts for Sale

If you are only a recent reader of my blog you may not know that my mom has Alzheimer's and I make quilts for AAQI.
Kathie, Inspired by Antique Quilts and I have worked together to donate quilts and three of ours are finally up for sale.
Ours tend to go quickly, so if you want one, put it in your cart and purchase right away!!

Thank you Carolyn Forster for purchasing my last quilt. I never even advertised it because she let me know ahead of time that she wanted it as soon as it was up for sale. Thanks to all of you who have supported this worthy cause!!! Now I have two little quilts in England!

Here they are. Click on the title to go directly to the AAQI page.

Now they are all sold! Thank you!!
 All three of them need a proper home...

Rim Rock

Forty-One

Red Cloud

AAQI and Giveaway

Here are my two little quilts for the Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative . I love to make them but have a heck of time coming up with a name for the quilts.
If you leave a comment or send an email with a suggested name for both quilts and I use it I'll send you a prize. (I'll figure that out later, ok?)

Even better than that for every comment left on this post I will donate $1 to AAQI. I do have a limit but cannot even imagine getting close to it. If you are one person you can only leave one comment. We aren't voting for The Biggest Loser or the best singer on American Idol. Just trying to raise money for a good cause.

I started hand quilting this last night. It should be ready to go soon.

I'm looking forward to creative quilt names and lots of comments!!

You do not need to have a name in order to comment.

PS I jsut spotted this on the AAQI site:

The Heartbreak to Hope Exhibit will be in Portland next year! Yay!

Northwest Quilting Expo Portland, OR

September 21-23, 2012
Portland Metropolitan Expo Center
        

More AAQI Quilts

I just mailed these off so they will not be for sale for some time. Some time ago I made the $1000 promise and I'm hoping I'll get close to that goal with these final quilts. I will be making one more for sure, since I have a name for it already. That seems to be how it works for these little quilts. I think of a name, then I make the quilt.
What will my Mom therapy be when AAQI is no longer?

"Buckin' Hay" is one I enjoyed making the most. Lately my mom's aching joints and arthritis are always from the days of buckin' hay!! I thought the strings were appropriate because whether you are buckin' hay or feeding the cows you seem to have pieces of hay all over you.

You guys saw the center of this one I'm calling "Dark Side".  I would be referring to my dark side. There are days I just cannot let certain things my mom says pass. Are you ready to hear a dark side story?
One day she told me the girls were not doing their job so she went up and got the vacuum cleaner and vacuumed her own room. My mom hasn't vacuumed in a long time, she doesn't even see that her floor needs vacuuming so I knew that she had not done this and said that her. "No you didn't." was my response. Then, of course, that makes her upset because I don't believe her. We have a bit of an exchange, she feels bad, I feel bad...  we let it go, she forgets, I do not, so I make a little quilt for therapy! lol  Slowly, I'm learning to knock it off...

"Independence" It is so hard to move a loved one into assisted living as they think they are losing their independence. It has been the best thing we have done. I really feel like the progression of Alzheimer's has slowed down because her body and mind are so much more active now. She is well liked by the other occupants and staff.

Recognize some cowboy fabric?!  I'm calling this one "Rodeo" as my mom loves a good rodeo....and even a bad one! LOL

"The Here & The Now"

I read this saying somewhere and it really resonated with me.

"Without a memory of today or an understanding that the past is past, the future ceases to have meaning."

I only know that the present is what is important. That's the only thing she understands and if I can make her happy in the present, then that is all that really matters. Can you tell that this quilt came about after the Dark Side?! 

I'm a slow learner.

I'll be sure to let you know when these get up for sale on the AAQI site. 

Love and hugs to you all,

Lori

A Tribute to a Mom

I didn't plan it at all, but you have been on a journey with my mom and I since she moved to my town in 2009. Here are a few blog posts I made since that time:


September 2009 

"It is estimated that 5.3 million Americans have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.

Recently my mom was diagnosed with this disease. The future is unknown for my mother and the rest of our family. The one thing I do know? I can make quilts to help the cause."

My first little quilt for AAQI- Alzheimer's Art Quilt Initiative  started by Ami Simms. This little quilt was purchased by Sue in UK and that was the start of our friendship.

August 2010
 I had a particularly rough week with my mom, feeling like everything I did was wrong. I took a bit of time out from my usual sewing and created this quilt. I've called it "improvisation", which means to make, invent or arrange off hand. This is exactly how I was feeling as I take care of my mom who is suffering from early stages of Alzheimer's.

May 1, 2012
but it reminded me of windows that can see a little here and a little there, but unable to see the full view from a big window. This reminds me of my mom's view of her world. Only last week we (my siblings and I)  have made the decision to move her into an assisted living facility. When the time comes they also have an Alzheimer's Unit that will be easy to transition to. The change will be very difficult, but in the long run it will be better for her. I've been busy dealing with a lot of the things that will need to be set up in order to make this happen. Hopefully everything will be in order, so when I go on vacation I won't have to think about it until I return. 

June 8, 2012

So, it has been an interesting 12 days since returning from vacation. My brother had volunteered to be the one to tell me mom she was moving, but anytime he hinted at it she was adamant that she was not ever moving. She went as far as to say she would sit in her chair and never leave it! lol
She wasn't that way when I talked to her (we think she was being extra nice because I had been on vacation and she missed me) so I ended up being the one to tell her. I picked her up the next morning for a tour and a full day of drs appointments and intake interviews.  Last week was hard. She didn't take the news well, but lovingly we kept moving forward and by the weekend she was ready.
Wednesday evening I was telling her that they would come and clean her apartment once a week and do her laundry and her response was , "That's included in the rent?"
Moving day is TODAY! I'm looking forward to seeing her in a safer, healthier and more social environment. I hope all goes well.

March 6, 2013
Buckin' Hay" is one I enjoyed making the most. Lately my mom's aching joints and arthritis are always from the days of buckin' hay!! I thought the strings were appropriate because whether you are buckin' hay or feeding the cows you seem to have pieces of hay all over you.

August 9, 2013
Here's a recent photo of my mom after her hair appointment and wearing her new birthday blouse. I took her for a drive to Bend yesterday to retrieve my car that was in the shop (one hour one way). She enjoyed it but what a hoot!! She thought the Enterprise rental car woman was my good friend and gave her a hug when we left.  She shook the guys hand at the body shop like "It's been great doing business with you." You have to have a sense of humor when dealing with Alzheimer's that's for sure.

October 1, 2013
There was a message on my phone yesterday from my mom (who has Alzheimer's) "Sorry I missed you,  I was out front." Nice of her to call and tell me that, but I saw her yesterday! lol lol She has gotten a bad cold twice in the last few months and every time she gets sick her mentally capacity shrinks a little and never gets better. It's funny that I notice it now, where as a couple of years ago I would not have. Overall she has been doing pretty good.

October31, 2013
Ami Simms started Alzheimer's Art Quilt initiative when her mom was diagnosed with Alzheimer's. It was a complete grass roots organization run by volunteers and 2013 will be the final year. With Ami's vision and many, many volunteers, quilt maker & quilt buyers AAQI has reached their financial goal of raising $1,000,000 before the end of 2013.

January 3, 2014
Before 2013 came to end and AAQI closed up shop I managed to purchase three more quilts. 
This one resides at my moms home. Years past she lived on a ranch, rode horses, and branded cows. I thought this one was appropriate for her. It's called "Ladies Choice at the OK Corral". 

For most of 2014 my mom has been doing relatively well, holding her own mentally and physically. But now she is wearing down. 

Summer2015:  enjoying the flowers and sunshine in her back patio. 

July 2016: Interesting for me to read the progression. She has been on hospice for a year now but only the last 3 weeks was failing fast. Thankfully she never had to move to a memory unit and passed away peacefully in the same room we moved her into in 2012. 

I've learned a lot dealing with my mom with Alzheimer's. She made some pretty big mistakes in the past, but since her mind had erased them, I had to as well. No use holding on to things that she never remembered doing. I saw her capacity to love others and bring joy in her sassiness! 

She was tired, but coherent as we celebrated her birthday on Friday. Her brother had visited her that morning so she was extra tired. We knew her time was coming. She slipped into a coma early the next morning and we stayed with her all day, playing Elvis and Jim Reeves and a variety of other oldies, until she breathed her last breath. 

I felt honored and privileged to be with her at the end of this life on earth. (She still got the last laugh since hubby and I had plans to go out of town!) 

I leave you with a few of my favorite Instagram photos. 

 My mom's best friend Virginia who has lived across the hall from her will miss her terribly. 

Best friends at the retirement home luau. 

  Thanks for all your encouragement and comments on my blog, instagram and facebook over the past 7 years and these past few difficult days.

Love to you all.