BIG sigh, and lots of swear words LOL ... So I just realized that I was putting it together wrong. I took the middle parts apart because I was having problems with them lining up ... so then I looked at the instructions and realized I was supposed to make them into "squares" and sew in strips.
So I just spent the last hour taking lots of stitches out! Let's hope that solves my problem, and thankfully I figured it out now, instead of 49 squares later!
I was assembling it like I did the double wedding ring quilt ... guess I should have read through the instructions more carefully LOL