ScienceWoman is an assistant professor in -ology. She blogs about the intersection of science and real life - primarily based on her first-hand experiences. Her older posts can be found 
Alice Pawley is an assistant professor of 
This is Minnow's baby quilt. I started working on it in my second trimester, just after turning in my dissertation. I was working on it the evening I went into labor, using some of the nervous anticipation and energy that I couldn't channel into any academic work. After Minnow arrived, the nearly-finished quilt sat out for a while, until I couldn't stand it anymore and hid it away for several months. Around Christmas, I decided that I really wanted to finish the quilt for Minnow's 1st birthday. I didn't quite make it in time, but now it is done, and I dare say it is fabulous. And I'm already dreaming of the quilt I will make for her "big girl" bed.
Humanities & Social Science
Comments
Wow! So pretty! I'm impressed.
Posted by: Becca | April 11, 2008 11:05 AM
That's great! I like how it's so colorful.
I know what you mean about sticking projects away. I have so many half-done or unstarted ones, I think I'm going to go crazy this summer once I've finished up my masters business.
Posted by: Cherish | April 11, 2008 11:53 AM
Beautiful!
Posted by: Elf Eye | April 11, 2008 12:45 PM
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Beautiful indeed. Especially when looking at the larger pic at the flckr page. You really get a taste of the patterns in the individual colors.
Very nicely done.
...tom...
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Posted by: ...tom... | April 11, 2008 1:08 PM
That is absolutely gorgeous! I have a couple of dozens of unfinished projects in my four different homes...
Posted by: hypoglycemiagirl | April 11, 2008 1:35 PM
Lovely. I bet she adores it.
Posted by: Lab Cat | April 11, 2008 1:43 PM
Beautiful! I love it! I also like that it's bright primary colors, and not the standard *P*I*N*K* for girls...
Posted by: OmegaMom | April 11, 2008 2:35 PM
Wow! Since I consider sewing on a button high accomplishment, I am blown away by anyone who quilts. This is beautiful!
Posted by: phd me | April 11, 2008 3:04 PM
Beautiful! Makes me feel like learning to quilt... Did you teach yourself or is it a family tradition?
Posted by: justapie | April 11, 2008 3:17 PM
Wait, so that means you didn't do a postdoc before getting a tenure-track position? (You can tell where my mind is right now.) I've been reading your blog for a while now, but somehow I missed that detail.
Posted by: Emily | April 11, 2008 4:42 PM
How cute!
Posted by: Gabriel | April 11, 2008 6:21 PM
That's fucking awesome!
Posted by: PhysioProf | April 11, 2008 9:48 PM
It's beautiful!
Posted by: stepwise girl | April 12, 2008 3:19 AM
Beautiful. :) (And I also didn't realize that you hadn't done a post-doc. It's getting harder and harder to get tenure-track jobs without additional research and/or teaching experience. Clearly, you are awesome! :) )
Posted by: Kim | April 12, 2008 12:00 PM
Emily and Kim: I did do a post-doc. I just stayed in Utopia and worked with my advisor on a different set of projects. It wasn't long (~9 months, 2 of which were on maternity leave, and 3 of which were ~1/2 time), but it was long enough to count for Mystery U's search comittee. I also had taught a summer course as an instructor while working on my PhD. I think that helped a lot as well.
OmegaMom: A big reason it isn't a pink quilt is that I started it while pregnant, and I didn't know that Minnow would be a girl until she was born. But even if I had known, it wouldn't have been pink. I'm more of a purple fan.
justapie: A wonderful friend in Utopia taught me how to quilt. My mom never taught me how to sew or even iron, but she did teach me how to do science and to love the outdoors.
Posted by: ScienceWoman | April 12, 2008 1:55 PM
Wow, that's masterful -- you really hit everything; great quilt overall, awesome colors to attract a baby's eye, interesting and mentally stimulating pattern, the whole schmear. It's beautiful.
Posted by: Helen | April 12, 2008 9:02 PM
Wow! It's beautiful!
"And I'm already dreaming of the quilt I will make for her "big girl" bed."
That's the spirit! Sometimes I even start dreaming about my next project while I am working on something else.
Posted by: acmegirl | April 12, 2008 9:19 PM
Very beautiful.
Is it just a teensy bit hard to let Minnow use it after all that tedious work? I sometimes kinda don't want to wear things I knit so I don't mess them up (but I do wear them of course).
Posted by: ecogeofemme | April 13, 2008 8:37 PM
Actually, she shows no interest in it, which was a bit disappointing at first, but is fine with me now. I've got it draped over our banister, so I can enjoy looking at it.
Posted by: ScienceWoman | April 14, 2008 10:33 AM
Don't be disappointed in Minnow's current disinterest in the quilt. She will appreciate it more and more as she gets older. I still have--and use--the quilt my mother made for me when I was a baby. It's a little small, of course, but it makes a perfect lap quilt!
You really did an amazing job on this quilt. I love how the squares look like they are interlocking. And the bright colors are wonderful. You're right--it's fabulous!
Posted by: Mrs Whatsit | April 15, 2008 11:41 AM
Wow, that's awesome! So: you're a mom, a tenure-track prof, a blogger, AND you quilt. How do you do it all? Seriously, you're making me feel like a piker.
Posted by: Zuska | April 17, 2008 6:26 PM