Debt

My parents have been going to this finance class on Wednesday nights at a Presbyterian church in Manteca. They wanted us to join them for it but it's $100 and however many nights of a commitment and we just decided not to. However this week it was bring a friend night so we decided, why not, it's just one night and it will be fun to have a double date with my parents.

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The class is by Dave Ramsey. He has a radio show, a couple books and a program (manual, Cd's, DVDs, website resources) for how to get out of debt. This particular lesson was about the myths that are spread around in society today and he was straitening them out with the truths.

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Some of the myth's were about car financing. He said on his radio show that the answer to half of the people that call in is to sell their car. Why pay so many hundred a month when you could just have an older car for a couple years while you save up for a nicer one? The money your spending on your car payment could go towards paying down your debt and once you are debt free there are a million things to do with that money, guilt free.

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He also talked a lot about how the credit card companies are REALLY good at what they are doing. He said it is kinda fascinating in an evil way. But they know just how to make you beg for money. They will send you and your grandma and your dog (really, he had proof of an offer that went to this guys dog that had been dead for 4 years) an offer that says, "You may be approved for up to $100,000!" So you go to the bank or go online and apply (beg) to be approved.

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He said that in our great grandparents generation, it was a sin to buy with credit. It was frowned upon. Sears, JCPenny and Ford would not allow credit options in the early 1900's. He said those company's started offering credit after their original founders had passed away because they had been so against it.

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Another myth was about the lottery. He said the truth is it is just a tax on the poor and the people who can't do math. If someone spends $50 a month on lottery tickets, they expect to win something. But if they were to put that $50 a month in a mutual savings account then including interest and all that you will be a millionaire within your lifetime. (I can't remember exactly how many years he said for it to get there but it is true)

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Another myth was that 30 year mortgages are good. Typically we sign up for them thinking, "Oh I will pay it off sooner than that. I'll make extra payments and it will be fine." But life happens and that extra payment is the first to go. But if you sign up for a 15 year mortgage it only adds a few hundred to your payments but it will save you over $100,000 in interest.

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There was about 10-15 myths but I can't remember all of them. I do remember the last one but I will save that for the end. He also talked about how he took a finance class in college from a professor who was broke just like everyone else. He said, "That's like taking shop from a guy with no fingers." Obviously they don't practice what they preach right? Or they don't even know what to preach because they don't live it.

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He said if you want to be a finance major, study Proverbs. He said he reads a Proverb every night and one night he came across Proverbs 6:1-7. I just looked it up and it must be a little different in his scriptures versus our King James version. But from his opinion it is talking about if you are in debt your stupid and you need to deliver yourself from the hunter like a gazelle from the cheetah or a bird from the falcon.

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He said when he came across that he was confused, what does a gazelle and a bird have to do with debt. But the very next night he was flipping through the TV and stopped on the discovery channel. (Not sure how much is true or if he was just dramatizing his story) but he proceeded to show a clip of a cheetah approaching a mom and a baby gazelle in a flat plain. The gazelle started running long before the cheetah was close (they have a cheetah sensor) and they were pretty fast. I mean the cheetah is supposed to be the fastest animal around and this gazelle was faster. The cheetah decided to go after the little one thinking he could get him. But that little guy ran and ran and eventually the cheetah gave up.

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He was relating the cheetah to the debtors and the gazelle to the few of us willing to run away. He said the little one was a college student because more college kids quit school because of debt rather than academic failure.

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He said some of us pray at night saying, "Jesus I am so in debt, I don't know what I'm gonna do, Please help me Jesus, Help me." Then the next day you go out to the mailbox and get a credit card offer and say, "Thank you Jesus." When we really should say... "CHEETAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!" and run away as fast as we can.

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But like he said, the credit card company's really know what they are doing. Then he told another story about how cow's are tied at the rodeo and how the cowboy lets it run and then ropes it's neck and it falls on it's back and the cowboy jumps on it and ties it's feet. He said, The girls can't do this because cow's are just too big, so they do the same thing with a goat.

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His children wanted to do it too. So he bought them a goat. They named it Practice because they were using it to practice. So they would open the gate and let Practice run and they would follow behind on the horse, rope it, flip it and tie it. They did it about 15 times a day for the whole summer. Practice got to a point where he would come to the clearing where they usually flipped him and he would just lay down and wait. He had done it so many times that he didn't want to fight it anymore.

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We do the same thing with debt. We just give in thinking it's the only way. "You'll always have a car payment" some people say. Or "Everyone else does it, that's just the way it is." But there is another way. If you just run as fast as the gazelle and get away from the cheetah, or run past that clearing where you always get stuck then you might be able to make it.

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The last myth he stated was that Debt is a Tool to get ahead. The truth is that you are a slave to the master(card) and until you get free you will always be tied up and limited in your abilities. You have to figure out what everyone else is doing, and do the exact opposite. If everyone is financing cars, then you pay cash. If everyone is getting a 30 year mortgage, you get one for 15. If everyone is making minimum payments on their credit card, you pay more.

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For Dave Ramsey's program the first baby step is to get $1000 in the bank for emergencies then cut up your credit cards. The second baby step is to pay off your debt in what he referred to as the debt snowball. It is the same format the church recommends. Where you line up all your debts from smallest to largest then you pay off the smallest (he recommends with a garage sale) and then once that is paid off you put what you were paying to that one and add it to your payment for the next smallest one. Once that is paid off you take what you were paying for the first 2 and add it to the 3rd debt. And so on down the list.

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He said it takes the average person 2 years to get out of debt using this method but it does depend on the size of your debt. And he recommends you put a "Gazelle effort" into it which means cutting other things out and putting everything you have (aside from the mandatory bills) into paying off that debt as quickly as possible. If you cut out the fast food trips or going to the movies or buying new clothes or another pair of shoes or another video game. Whatever your weakness may be, give it up for awhile and you apply that money to whatever debt you are tackling at the time then you will be debt free in less than the average person and when you have freed up all of that money that was going towards paying off debt then you will be able to eat out every day and see a movie whenever you want and buy as many clothes and video games because you will have the extra cash to do it.

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Speaking of cash, he made a good point about it. They did a study on peoples brains when they spend money. If they use cash, it registers as pain in their head and they usually thought twice about what they were buying. If you use a debit card it registered as less pain but you are still associating it with cash sitting in a bank. But when you use credit, the pain was substantially less. Interesting huh?

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He said using cash hurts because you know you will never see it again. It hurts to say goodbye to a Benjamin ($100 bill). But don't we always say, "No pain, no gain." If using cash is going to make you think twice about what you are buying then I think we should always use cash. Which also means you have to have it in hand and if you have cash in your hand then your bills are already paid right???? (at least that's how it should be)

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So if everyone is charging things then you should pay cash and if everyone is in debt then you should get out of debt. Most people just work one job and go play after work. If you take a year or so and get an extra part time job to pay off your debt that means working harder than normal for a little while then when your debt is paid off you will have more money and more time to play harder than most people. So if you work like no one does now, then later you will be able to work like no one else. (meaning less hours to pay your bills.)

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Also if you take your extra cash flow and invest it wisely then you can have your money working for you instead of you working for your money. Also, we know you can't dig your way out of a hole. You have to climb.

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If you live like no one else does now, then later you will be able to live like no one else.

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Get out of Debt!!!

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Obviously I am just like the broke finance professor and I need to listen to what I am preaching and follow it as well. But I thought this would be useful information to share even before I have lived it. I hope some of you will join us in cutting credit cards and participating (with a gazelle effort) in the debt snowball payoff.

Stress

When a lecturer was explaining stress management to an audience, he raised a glass of water and asked, "How heavy is this glass of water?"

Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.

The lecturer replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter.

It depends on how long you try to hold it.

If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.

If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.

If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.

In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes."

He continued,

"And that's the way it is with stress management.

If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, As the burden become increasingly heavy, We won't be able to carry on."

"As with the glass of water, You have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden."

"So before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down. Don't carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow."

"Whatever burdens you're carrying now,

Let them down for a moment if you can."

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Here are some great ways of dealing with the burdens of life:

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Accept that some days you're the pigeon, and some day's you're the statue.

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Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

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Always wear stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

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Drive carefully. It's not only the cars that can be "Recalled" by their maker.

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If you can't be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

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If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, It was probably worth it.

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It may be that your sole purpose in life is to be kind to others.

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Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time because then you won't have a leg to stand on.

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Nobody cares it you can't dance well, just get up and dance.

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When everything's coming your way, You're in the worng lane.

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Birthday's are good for you. The more you have the longer you live.

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You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one person.

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Some mistakes are too fun to only make once.

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We could learn a lot from crayons... Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull. Some have weird names and all are different colors, but they all have to live in the same box.

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A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

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Parenting

Yesterday we went to our Business Regional Seminar. The millionaire couple that spoke to us this time was amazing - Bob and Shelly Kummer. I learned a lot more about the business and where I need to change myself but I know no one who reads this is going to care about that stuff. However he did share a story with us that I think you might enjoy.

He has a 15 year old daughter and a 13 year old son that they adopted (I think at birth). Anyways, the daughter has been doing things lately that weren't really like her to do. They have obviously tried to raise her right and didn't think she should be behaving like this so at the suggestion of other millionaires in the business Bob took his daughter to a ranch in northern California. It is called JH Ranch in Etna, CA. They have Student Programs, Parent/ Child Programs and Couples Programs. He said it was like $2,000 for the week but that it was AWESOME. They were obviously there for the Parent/Child Program where the counselors there really helped them talk things out and get at the heart of the problem. But he shared with us one of their teachings...

Picture yourself on a beach in Southern California with your children. When they are ages 0 to 5 you have to keep a very Close eye on them. They have to stay in the shallow water to be protected from the currents and other dangers of the ocean. Then from ages 5 to 13 they get to take these little sailboats out and they get to explore a little farther. You become the Cop. You have to enforce the rules pretty tight so that they don't wander too far in such a small boat or tip it over. From ages 14 to 18 you become the Coach. They no longer need such strict rules but they do need someone to guide them through the waters. They need your support and advice so that when they turn 18 they know how to sail that ship. After that... you become the Consultant, only there when needed.

I thought that was fairly profound. The problem with him and his daughter was that he was still trying to be a Cop. He didn't realize that she was becoming a women and that she needed more freedom to make her own choices but she still needs to be taught and mentored about life and to prepare for what is to come.

I think in this world today we need more coaches for our Youth. They need to have strong mentors and examples around them to teach them the ways of the world. School isn't going to do it. Video games, TV, Computer, My Space, texting, Ipods. Those are what are Youth are paying attention to because no one cares. None of those things can teach them how to be successful in life. If parents (or someone) were to actually take some time each day to share with their children what they have learned in life... To share our mistakes and our successes and our feelings and testimonies... This world would be so much better. And don't do it in a preachy manner or lecture them, they won't listen. What you have to do before they will listen to you is to listen to them.

People don't care how much you know... Until they know how much you care!!!

They need someone they can trust to share their hopes and fears with. After you have earned that trust and truly listened to what they are asking for then you can mentor them.

Lesson To Be Learned

There was a certain Professor of Religion named Dr.Christensen, a studious man who taught at a small college in the western United States . Dr. Christensen taught the required survey course in Christianity at this particular Institution. Every student was required to take this course his freshman year, regardless of his or her major.

Although Dr. Christensen tried hard to communicate the essence of the gospel in his class, he found that most of his students looked upon the course as nothing but required drudgery. Despite his best efforts, most students refused to take Christianity seriously.

This year, Dr. Christensen had a special student named Steve. Steve was only a freshman, but was studying with the intent of going onto seminary for the ministry. Steve was popular, he was well liked, and he was an imposing physical specimen. He was now the starting center on the school football team, and was the best student in the professor's class.

One day, Dr. Christensen asked Steve to stay after class so he could talk with him. 'How many push-ups can you do?' Steve said, 'I do about 200 every night.'

'200? That's pretty good, Steve,' Dr. Christensen said. 'Do you think you could do 300?'

Steve replied, 'I don't know.... I've never done 300 at a time.'

'DO you think you could?' again asked Dr. Christensen.

'Well, I can try,' said Steve.

'Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I have a class project in mind and I need you to do about 300 push-ups in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it,' said the professor.

Steve said, 'Well.... I think I can...yeah, I can do it.'

Dr. Christensen said, 'Good! I need you to do this on Friday. Let me explain what I have in mind.'

Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the room.

When class started, the professor pulled out a big box of donuts. No, these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were the BIG, extra fancy kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls.

Everyone was pretty excited it was Friday, the last class of the year, and they were going to get an early start on the weekend with a party in Dr. Christensen's class.

Dr. Christensen went to the first girl in the first row and asked, 'Cynthia, do you want to have one of these donuts?' Cynthia said, 'Yes.'

Dr. Christensen then turned to Steve and asked, 'Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?' 'Sure.' Steve jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve again sat in his desk. Dr. Christensen put a donut on Cynthia's desk.

Dr. Christensen then went to Joe, the next p erson, and asked, 'Joe, do you want a donut?'

Joe said, 'Yes.' Dr. Christensen asked, 'Steve would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?'

Steve did ten push-ups! Joe got a donut. And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten push-ups for every person before they got their donut.

Walking down the second aisle, Dr. Christensen came to Scott. Scott was on the basketball team, and in as good condition as Steve. He was very popular and never lacking for female companionship. When the professor asked, 'Scott do you want a donut?' Scott's reply was, 'Well, can I do my own push-ups?' Dr. Christensen said, 'No, Steve has to do them.' Then Scott said, 'Well, I don't want one then.'

Dr. Christensen shrugged and then turned to Steve and asked, 'Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?' With perfect obedience Stevestarted to do ten push-ups. Scott said, 'H EY! I said I didn't want one!'

Dr. Christensen said, 'Look! This is my classroom, my class, my desks, and these are my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it.' And he put a donut on Scott's desk.

Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration coming out around his brow.

Dr. Christensen started down the third row. Now the students were beginning to get a little angry. Dr. Christensen asked Jenny, 'Jenny, do you want a donut?' Sternly, Jenny said, 'No.' Then Dr. Christensen asked Steve, 'Steve, would you do ten more push-ups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?'

Steve did ten....Jenny got a donut.

By now, a growing sense of uneasiness filled the room. The students were beginning to say 'No' and there were all these uneaten donuts on the desks.

Steve also had to really put forth a lot of extra effort to get these push-ups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get red because of the physical effort involved.

Dr. Christensen asked Robert, who was the most vocal unbeliever in the class, to watch Steve do each push up to make sure he did the full ten push-ups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts. He sent Robert over to where Steve was so Robert could count the set and watch Steve closely.

Dr. Christensen started down the fourth row. During his class, however, some students from other classes had wandered in and sat down on the steps along the radiators that ran down the sides of the room. When the professor realized this, he did a quick count and saw that now there were 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would be able to make it.

Dr. Christensen went on to the next person and the next and the next. Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was taking a lot more time to complete each set. Steve asked Dr. Christensen, 'Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?'

Dr. Christensen thought for a moment, 'Well, they're your push-ups. You are in charge now. You can do them any way that you want.' And Dr. Christensen went on.

A few moments later, Jason, a recent transfer student, came to the room and was about to come in when all the students yelled in one voice, 'NO! Don't come in! Stay out!'

Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve picked up his head and said, 'No, let him come.'

Professor Christensen said, 'You realize that if Jason comes in you will have to do ten push-ups for him?' Steve said, 'Yes, let him come in. Give him a donut.'

Dr. Christensen said, 'Okay, Steve, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now.. Jason, do you want a donut?' Jason, new to the room, hardly knew what was going on. 'Yes,' he said, 'give me a donut.'
'Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?' Steve did ten push-ups very slowly and with great effort. Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.

Dr. Christensen finished the fourth row, and then started on those visitors seated by the heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with each push-up in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity. By this time sweat was profusely dropping off of his face, there was no sound except his heavy
breathing; there was not a dry eye in the room.

The very last two students in the room were two young women, both cheerleaders, and very popular. Dr. Christensen went to Linda, the second to last, and asked, 'Linda, do you want a donut?' Linda said, very sadly, 'No, thank you.' Professor Christensen quietly asked, 'Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?' Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow push-ups for Linda.

Then Dr. Christensen turned to the last girl, Susan. 'Susan, do you want a donut?' Susan, with tears flowing down her face, began to cry. 'Dr. Christensen, why can't I help him?'

Dr. Christensen, with tears of his own, said, 'No, Steve has to do it alone. I have given him this task, and he is in charge of seeing that everyone has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not. When I decided to have a party this last day of class, I looked at my grade book. Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade. Everyone else has failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior work.

'Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes up he must do push-ups. I told Steve that none of you could come to my party unless he paid the price by doing your pushups. He and I made a deal for your sakes.'

'Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?' As Steve very
slowly finished his last push-up, with the understanding that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 push-ups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.

Dr. Christensen turned to the room and said. 'And so it was, that our Savior, Jesus Christ, on the cross, plead to the Father, 'Into Thy hands I commend My spirit.' With the understanding that He had done everything that was required of Him, He yielded up His life. And like some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk, uneaten.'

Two students helped Steve up off the floor and to a seat, physically exhausted, but wearing a thin smile.

'Well done, good and faithful servant,' said the professor, adding 'Not all sermons are preached in words.'

Turning to his class, the professor said,
'My wish is that you might understand and fully comprehend all the riches of grace and mercy that have been given to you through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He spared not only His Begotten Son, but gave Him up for us all, for the whole Church, now and forever. Whether or not we choose to accept His gift to us, the price has been paid. Wouldn't you be foolish and ungrateful to leave it lying on the desk?'

Push on the Rock

There is an old story of a weak, sickly man. The man was very weak and sick, but he could not afford to go to town and see a doctor. The man lived in the deep back woods, in an old log cabin and his condition seemed to be getting worse. Out in front of the cabin was a massive rock. One night he dreamed that God told him to go outside and push on the huge rock all day long, day after day. The man got up early the next morning, and with great excitement he pushed on the rock until lunch, then he rested a while and pushed on the rock until his evening meal. The man loved pushing against the rock, it gave his life meaning and hope. The dream had been so real, so something great was about to happen. Day after day he pushed. Days rolled into weeks and the weeks rolled into months. After 8 months of pushing the rock, the weak sickly man was getting tired of pushing the rock. In his tiredness he started to doubt the dream. So one day he measured from his porch to the rock and after a day of pushing he measured again. After 2 weeks of pushing and measuring, he realized that he had not moved the rock at all. The rock was in exactly the same place as when he started months ago. The man was so disapointed, he though the dream had been so special, and now, after 9 months he saw his work had accomplished nothing. He was tired and cried and cried on his porch. He had invested many hundreds of hours into nothing. Nothing, it was all for nothing! As he sat on the porch he fell asleep. In his sleep he had another dream. Jesus can and sat down beside him on the porch and said, "Son, why are you crying?" The man replied, "Lord, You know how sick and weak I am, and in a dumb dream you gave me false hope by telling me to push on this rock. I have pushed with all I have for over 9 months and that dumb rock is right where it was when I started." Jesus was kind and said to him, "I never told you to move the rock, I told you to push against the rock." The man replied, "Yes, Sir, that was the dream." Jesus told the man to step in front of a mirror and look at himself. As an act of obedience the man stepped in front of a mirror and looked at himself. The man was amazed, he had been so sickly and weak, and what he saw in the mirror was a stong muscular man. The man realized that he had not been coughing all night. The man started thinking of how well he had felt for the last several months and the strength he now had built up by pushing on the rock. The man realized that the plan of God was not for the rock, but for him.

At times, when we hear a word from God, we tend to use our own intellect to decipher what he wants, when actually what God wants is just simple obedience and faith in Him... By all means, exercise the faith that moves mountains, but know that it is still God who moves the mountains. You just P.U.S.H.!

P.U.S.H. = Pray Until Something Happens!

The Second American Revolution

I've always been the type of person that has a hard enough time fighting for my own life that I haven't ever really paid attention to politics. Then when I became voting age I had a lesson in church encouraging us to vote and stand up for what we believe in because we CAN make a difference. So I've voted a few times but I usually go off of what my parents or John says I should do because I trust them and they understand what is going on a lot better than I do. With the major politics going on last year I got a little more into it. We helped with prop 8 of course and I got in a few discussions trying to stand up for the candidate that was the least worst choice. But I still didn't do as much as I could have or should have. So many of us are like myself where we are so wrapped up into our own lives that we forget to fight for what is really important. Especially the things that allow us to have the life that we have.

I've seen a couple videos on youtube and have heard a couple things that have really gotten me thinking. This first video is really just a radio clip from Glenn Beck. It's about 4 1/2 minutes but it's really good. (I don't know how to post the whole video in here but just click on the link)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTDmGt1Pafw

To quote the main purpose of this video, "You Americans are so gullible that we will feed you small doses of Socialism until you wake up and realize you are already living Communism." At the end of the clip it quotes a women who believes that if she supports Obama, that she will not have to worry about earning her own money for gas and food anymore, but that he will take care of her.

This country was founded on Freedom. What makes our country so successful is our Free Enterprise system. We each have the freedom and the ability to make something of ourselves. To be in charge of our own life. We have the right to be in charge of our own income and to decide where it goes. We have the freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, etc. But unfortunately we have gotten so lazy that we've forgotten how to fight for ourselves. To fight for what is right. Too many people have the attitude of "What can my country do for me," instead of, "What can I do for my country." We are so blessed to be living at this time in this great country that we should want to do whatever we can to keep it great.

The United States of America is a Democracy, meaning that We the People make the laws and choose who will represent US. Our Senators and Congressmen are there to represent US and OUR beliefs, wishes, wants, desires, etc, to the President who is there to serve OUR country.

OUR Country is in a lot of debt and Our Elected Leaders are trying to "stimulate" the economy by getting us into more debt. Because of this debt they are going to raise our taxes and with these higher taxes there will be more and more people who are dependent on welfare. When I was discussing this a few weeks ago with a few people they pointed out that they are TRYING to get more people to be dependent on the government because then they have control over us. Is this what WE want? Do we want to take the bits of socialism that they are handing us? This brings me to my second video. This one is a little bit longer but well worth it. This guy may seem like a bit much but I think he chose his costume and back drop well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jeYscnFpEyA&feature=channel_page

What are you going to do to fight for YOUR country?

Barbie's Anniversary

Note: This is not my accomplishment, but it is my dear mothers.

A couple years ago my mom started a project. She belongs to a quilt guild that was having a summer contest. Everyone had to make a quilt and they would all get to judge them at the end of the summer. The theme was: "The Little Things." She immeadiately thought of a barbie shoe. 6 months latter this is what she had taken that first thought to. She has displayed it in a few different quilt shows. The latest was last weekend in Manteca, CA. The Manteca quilt guild happens to be good friends with the famous quilting TV star, Alex Anderson who has been present and participating in a few Quilt Shows around here. Last fall I attended one in Livermore where my mom got to meet her and show her some pictures of her fabulous Quilt. Alex Anderson was impressed and was excited to see it in person at the Manteca Show. Monday night we discovered this on Alex Anderson's TV Show Blog:

http://www.thequiltshow.com/os/blog.php/blog_id/1758

Check it out and let me know what you think of my mom's hard work. Those are actually real Barbie dols attached to the 3D quilt. She not only made all the different compartments herself, but she made each Barbie's clothes too. She is quite thorough when she dresses Barbie so all of them (except one) has underwear and a bra on that she also made herself. There are a few other interesting little facts about the quilt, some of them are listed at the end of the slide show but there are a few more detailed things that I'll have her explain in a comment because she put so much work into this and the things she used to make it look this awesome are quite entertaining. My mom is planning on showing it in one or two more quilt shows and then selling it on Ebay. I had no idea it was Barbie's Anniversary but maybe that will make it sell for more.

I enjoyed reading the comments people made to the blog. Not many were about the quilt itself but about Barbie in general and were interesting to me. Especially when they talk about the old dolls and their names because my mom had most of those ones. Ricky, Allen, Tutti, etc. She actually kept them in a box in the top of her closet with all the clothes she made for them when she was growing up because she didn't want us to break them. But me and my sister would always sneak in there and get them out of the box and play with them. We were always so careful with them because they were antiques. I guess to a 10 year old 35 years sounds old.

Enjoy!