Wolf moon

Last night was a bright, clear night perfect for viewing the first full moon of the year called the "wolf moon", so called because the cold, icy branches of trees rubbing together sounded like a wolf's howl. The Native Americans would closely watch the seasonal cycles and named the moons in reference to their life cycles, their gathering of natural foods, planting and harvesting times. They kept track of the seasons by assigning a descriptive name to each recurring full moon. Variations in the names can be found across North America due to climate and temperature conditions affecting local regions.

In Michigan we have alot of cloudy nights due to the lake so this was great.

The light clouds made the moon seem to glow even more.

Being a "sky" watcher, I thought this would make a wonderful series of blocks to work on this year, a new little moon every month. Then add them to my little earth quilt I've been making the past year.
There's a new book out called Magical Moons & Seasonal Circles by Susan Betz about the study of the timing of the natural periodic events in the plant and animal world influenced by the local environment, especially weather, temperature, seasonal change and climate. It goes into detail about the moons' names and their meaning. (all the moon information in this post is from her book).

So, last night after enjoying the moon I went in, grabbed some fabric and supplies, climbed into bed and stitched my own little wolf moon with ice crystals floating from the howling wolf.
(The moon fabric is icy white but appears pink in the picture propped up against my legs)

The next morning I pinned it up on the design wall with my other "earth" blocks, summer solstice, pink moon (May), sliver of a moon Halloween 2010, lunar eclipse, winter storm with a sliver of a moon and my favorite, twilight.

I had to show you a picture of my grandniece who is 1 1/2 years old. She was over the other day and found my new Hancock's fabric catalog, she laid on my bed for the longest time studying it. A future quilter?