Dragging!!!

I feel like I am dragging my tail today. I had a wonderful time at the retreat last weekend and still haven't caught up on my sleep. I told myself that I wasn't going to let myself get so worn out but you know that doesn't happen. I am sure it is a combination of things but I am going to blame my brain surgery and not my age. I got a few projects done at the retreat and will post pictures when I get a chance. My Mom had a medical proceedure at the hospital early this morning and everything went real well. She has had so many problems over the last few years, I really hope she can get a break for awhile.

A Free Day

Today was a totally free day for me. I was called for Jury Duty so kept today and tomorrow cleared on my calendar. When I called yesterday I was told my services would not be needed, thank you. So, today I gave the house a D & C (dusting and cleaning), washed a couple of windows, cleaned the bathroom and even mopped the floor in there. I have to admit that I don't mop as often as I should and boy the bathroom sure looks nice now. I even managed some time in my sewing room. I made this carrying bag for my sewing table. Last fall I bought one of the sewing tables from JoAnn Fabric and I just love it. But it didn't come with a cover and as much as I haul it around I wanted some protection for the table. I had this upholstery fabric and thanks to Guild member Pearl some strapping. I just laid the fabric down, did a little folding, tucking and pinning and started sewing. I like the way it turned out. I may put some velcro on it yet. I consider myself a pattern person, give me a pattern and I am good to go, but not real creative on my own. Although this was a rather simple project it may be proof that I don't give myself enough credit or maybe I don't have enough confidence in myself. Tomorrow I am taking my Mom in for a ultra-sound in the morning and in the afternoon will finish packing for a retreat that starts on Friday.

A Very Productive Weekend

It has been a very long time since I have been able to spend so much time in my sewing room. The weather here was quite wet and windy the last few days so I enjoyed indulging in my passion. This afternoon I sandwiched two small pieces and the birthday gift. I also made up another one of the little tote bags (this one is for me). I also cut out another 28 bags. They will be used for gifts and for a little craft show that I will be involved in for our school children. I have totally enjoyed myself. I also got another load of laundry done, clean sheets on the bed and made a home made pizza for dinner. This week with be a bit busy but hopefully there will be a little more sewing time. I am going to a retreat this weekend and like to have little "kits" made up so I don't have to do a lot of cutting and thinking. I think I will do a little crocheting this evening.

Donations Items

The weather here today was quite wet and dreary - a perfect day to do some sewing. The parochial school at my church is having a fundraising gala next weekend. I made two back packs last week, one for a girl and one for a boy to donate. I also made this little quilt (33 X 51 inches). I had the kids in kindergarten and 1st grade draw pictures on 4 1/2 inch blocks, then I sashed the quilt. Today I sandwiched the quilt, got it machine quilted and bound. I still want to make a label for it and would like to include the names of all of the students who made the blocks. I also made 2 Halloween bags for our grandchildren just have 5 more to go. I found a really simple and cute pattern on the internet and already have some Christmas ideas. I have left the table up that I use to sandwich quilts and hopefully tomorrow after Church I can get two small pieces sandwiched and a quilt that is a little bit larger that will be for a special little boy as we celebrate his 1st birthday next month. Along with the sewing I also got two loads of laundry done and cooked some squash in the oven. What did you do today? Now I am off to do some hand sewing and hopefully there will be something good to watch on tv.

A Quilt of Love for Perrin

In May our brother-in-law Perrin, my sister Carols husband of 31 years was diagnosed with mesotheleoma (cancer of the lung). He has worked in the plumbing and heating industry for most of his adult life. In June Perrin and Carol traveled to Boston to met with Dr. Sugarbaker and specialist in mesotheleoma. The Dr. did a thorough exam and said that he would operate and he felt the outcome would be good. In July Perrin and Carol, along with their 3 children traveled to Boston where Perrin underwent major surgery. His left lung was removed as was his diaphragm and lining of his heart. He spent about a week in the hospital and them 3 weeks in a hotel close to the hospital so nurses could come in and check on him. The Dr. prescribed 6 chemo treatments and he has already had 3 of them. So far he is doing very well. Their life has undergone some major changes but all is well. While they were in Boston our family and close friends hosted a benefit dinner for the family. Along with the dinner was a live auction, a silent auction, various raffles and games. To our surprise and delight we had over 700 people attend. I prepared 4 1/2" quilt blocks, provided fabric markers and asked each family to sign a quilt block and include words of encouragement. I ended up with 159 signed quilt blocks. thanks to my friend Donna for the suggestion I made the quilt reversible and used the quilt as you go method. The sashing on one side is camo and the other side is black. I finally was able to present the quilt to Perrin a couple of weeks ago. Both he and Carol loved it. And of course there were lots of tears. They said they are still having fun reading the names and messages and there are a few blocks signed by people who they don't even know. It is so great to live in a small, loving and caring community.

Strip Club

No, it is not what you are thinking. In January I thought it would be fun if fellow Guild members participated in a strip exchange. The strips were to be 2 inches wide and at least 22 inches long. Eleven members of the Guild participated and we ended up with over 1900 strips. My sister Carol came over yesterday and we separated and sorted the strips. After discussing how we were going to do it we decided to dump all of the strips into 2 laundry baskets, mix them up, then count them out into piles of 20 strips. It was quite a project but we enjoyed visiting while we sorted, folded and tried to count. We have a class at Guild tomorrow making a table topper using the strips. It should be a fun class and I am anxious to see how the variety work out.

A Little More Canning

I thought that I was done canning for this year but Steve and I talked about the fact that maybe we needed to can some tomatoes. On his way home from work on Friday he stopped at a little produce stand and came home with two bushels of tomatoes. That was my project for yesterday, getting them canned. Steve worked on cleaning off the garden, bringing in the left overs and getting it tilled. He also helped me with the last 1/2 bushel. We ended up with 35 quarts of tomatoes plus enough for a large batch of chili in the crock pot some day this week. It is a lot of work but I do enjoy the home canned tomatoes. Now maybe I can put the pressure cooker away!