Annabelle's *Under the Sea* Quilt

The first thing I want to say is this: I am so grateful that we are able to know the gender our little babies before they are born. I love that when these little ones get here, where we can see them, we already know them. What a blessing.

That said, this is baby-Annabelle's quilt.

Annabelle will be arriving sometime around her Daddy's 30th birthday in just a couple of weeks. Spencer and Deborah have waited very anxiously for this little girl. We've witnessed great blessings from our loving Heavenly Father where this little darling is concerned. (And since I am already crying we will leave it at that!)

Deborah said she wanted to have an under the sea theme for Annabelle's nursery, but not cartoonish. I was just about to despair of finding anything like that when I came across some wonderful foundation-pieced patterns.

As soon as I found these patterns I made a mock up of the quilt using PhotoShop as I envisioned the wonderful melting colors from the lighthouse in the upper left corner across the quilt to the deep blue sea in the lower right!

I started with the lighthouse, enlarged 200%. Yes, I liked that very much. My very second block was the *baby* dolphin. He measures 3" by 6" and is comprised of 58 teeny, tiny pieces. He was just too little to be allowed!

I certainly didn't want teeny, tiny whales. I ask you, have you ever seen small whales? So the grey whale is 200% and the orca is 150%. (I also enlarged the sail fish and a mama dolphin)

As I played with ideas on setting the blocks I dug in my stash and found this great fabric that was *just made* for the back of this quilt. Frankly, I've had it for so long I have no idea what I originally bought it for. I had 4.5 yards and bought it when we still lived in Palmdale! I love that there are little smiling fish and sea anemones floating among the sea flowers.

And, serendipitously, there was just the right spot to personalize a label. I will add her birth date once she arrives.

Now Mr Octopus waits patiently, just like Grammie (and Mama and Daddy), for Miss Annabelle's arrival.