I was out in the yard throwing a ball for Zinnia, and when I came in, Maria stuck her head out of her studio – she had one of her elfish smiles – and asked me if I wanted to take a picture. I know what this means.

I am rarely invited into the studio when she is working, and I hardly ever go in.

The smile meant she has either started working on something she loves, has figured out something that stumped her, or finished something and is proud of it.

It turned out to be the latter. She’s been working on this quilt for weeks now, and it was a tough one, I could tell. She goes up and down about the things she makes and only sells them when she is up.

She finished it this afternoon, just as I came walking by.

She is very up about this quilt, and she should be. It is beautiful. She calls it “home,” and it was sold before it was even finished.