My introduction to the love of needlearts all started with my grandmother, who we all called "Mow." Needlepoint, crochet and quilting were her favorite ways to keep her hands busy.  She was the product of another century, born in 1899, but always kept up with the times.  In the 70's she crocheted granny square blankets for each of her grandchildren.  She also hooked and stitched a wardrobe for my vast collection of Troll dolls.  As I grew older and she grew old, we spent hours on the sofa watching The A-Team, stitching canvases and eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with an iced-cold Coke.  Her last Christmas, she gave me an embroidered baby quilt, that wrapped her future great-grandchildren in love long after she passed. 

Needlepoint became the way that we shared our time.  Every summer I would fly down to Louisville, KY to visit for a week or two--just me, one-on-one with my grandparents without my sisters or brother.  It was tradition for us to go...