My first baby quilt and a new love--sock monkeys :)

I've been sewing some lately and it's been really fun. A little known fact about me is I received the Betty Crocker Family Leadership Award in high school. It was pretty shocking actually and I've never quite lived up to Betty's fame. I mean I like to cook and try new recipes/foods, but I don't like the mess it makes and the cleanup that is required. I do enjoy making things though. The problem is I like to do lots of things, but I have become an expert in nothing. I started a baby quilt this year and haven't spent much time on it, but I didn't stay on task for long periods of time so it took a while. Here is my creation:



It's far from perfect and I learned some tricks and strategies that I can utilize before making the next one, but it is a super soft cuddly flannel. I know this is pretty goofy, but last night I wrapped the sock monkey in the blanket and took it to hubby and told him, "Here's your new grand monkey, don't you think he's cute?" He continues to think I'm weird and wonders from time to time why he married me, but I do think he must love me and my crazy ways. In case you are wondering, there are NO babies that I know that are arriving any time soon in my family. It was just a quilting project that I could conquer.

I love sock monkeys. I never had one growing up, but I've been searching the internet for them and I've found some great sock monkey fabric that I want to make another quilt with. If you see a sock monkey somewhere that doesn't cost an arm and a leg or something else with monkeys or sock monkeys, let me know. My mom used to call me her little monkey cause I was always climbing trees and when I was little I sucked my thumb for an extended period of time--like past the age of three. She tried and tried to get me to stop by taping my thumb with masking tape, putting that nasty don't suck your thumb stuff called "Thum" on it, but I just wouldn't stop. Finally she found a picture of a really ugly monkey sucking his/her thumb and told me that it was me and she posted it above my bed. Even though I was small, I remember thinking, "I'm not a monkey. I don't want to look like that!!!" So I stopped sucking my thumb almost overnight.