I want to introduce you to my wonderful Crazy Quilt Bee. From left to right...Jan, Lynn, Maureen, me, Karen, Lynnis, Dolores, Chris (with grandson Will) Julie and Melanie. We are the infamous Lake Jackson Group. Jan established our group in 1999 with her first CQ class. Lynnis took that beginning class followed by me. All the other girls arrived at different times throughout the years that followed.

I am blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends who enjoy doing the same things as I do. All are extremely talented and do beautiful and creative work. I've written a number of articles about our group over the years. You can check these out through the past issues of CQMagOnline.

Chris rented a beach house and invited her wonderful family from different areas of the United States. They celebrated her birthday on April 11 with fun and festivities. We gathered at the beach on Tuesday for our regular weekly meeting.

We were in for a wonderful and totally unexpected treat. Her sisters, Pat and Petra, served us with shrimp cocktail, chicken salad on a diced tomato with avocado and lettuce. We enjoyed fresh, homemade strawberry pie and coffee for dessert. Everything was as delicious as it was beautifully served. We want Chris to have more birthdays. We also want her sweet sisters to cook for us once a week at our Bee.

I think I caught Karen (in red) swallowing her first bite. You never know when I'll snap that picture! To her right is Petra and Chris. Those shrimp are huge even by Texas standards.

Julie (in black & white) arrived a little late so she's having her first and second course together. Seated to her left is Dolores busy at work on her pin-weaving. She's making a purse.


The beach you see in the background is located on the Texas Gulf Coast. On the Gulf of Mexico, Surfside Beach is a popular area for tourists in the summer season. The beach is located about 15 miles from where I live and approximately 70 miles south of Houston, Texas. During hurricane season you will hear Surfside Beach and Freeport, Texas mentioned often.

Jan, our wonderful founder and mentor, is seated in this picture. Standing beside her is Karen, Chris and Will, Julie and Melanie.

I've taken some photos of two beautiful bonsai plants. We have a wonderful friend who is a master with training and growing bonsai. He started this small tree for us last year. It was a gift from dear friends Tim and Debi.

Liem kept it for a year and began it's training program. He's promised to help us nurture it. I've placed a quarter on the right side of the trunk to give you an idea of the size.

For the past several years Liem brings this beautiful jasmine bonsai for us to enjoy during the blooming season. The aroma is wonderful! I don't remember the exact age of this tree but it's around 50 years old. Jasmine is a vine that sends out long runners. You see it in our area hanging from fences and trellis. It's absolutely amazing to think of the love and patience, not to mention the talent, that went into training this vine to be a miniature tree.

I have a quarter placed in the middle of the trunk to give you an idea of the size of this trunk. Isn't it gorgeous?