Big Changes Afoot ... I'm not ready!!

 First of all - we got our second shot of vaccine!  And no problems!  It was recommended to go off Naproxen 2 days before to 2 days after.  You know when you wonder if your pill-regime is working ... this achey-breaky body tells me it is!  Back on now - but it always takes a few days to get back in gear.

DH went golfing this last weekend.  The first time in a l-o-o-ng rainy season!  I had plans ... I'm sure you know those plans!  AND there were interruptions - each day!! 

I wanted to set up the quilting in the main room - but someone wanted to see the condo.  Okay, that's over, now I can lay out 'Wool around the Garden'.  A 56" circular quilt from Simply Modern BOM - 5 years ago??  I finally have the first 2 quarters done and I got busy getting the second half done.  It's wool applique on cotton background.  

We live in a small condo (and my DH thinks 1/2 of the condo is his too!)  To work on the design, I laid out the finished 1/2 on the floor in the living room; the new 1/2 was on the dining room table with my giant cutting mats protecting the table from pinning.  The colored wool pieces were everywhere!!

I got the pieces traced on freezer paper, chose the colors and cut out the applique. There was a few color mix-ups and change ups.  Hated the base of one lighthouse ... you know I never do follow a pattern exactly!  

Sorry - the only photos I can get to load today!!  Better luck next time!

Late one night I was cutting the windows and doorways out of the houses.  How you ask??  I use a rotary mat and exacto knife to slice a diagonal opening in the windows.  Then sit in front of the TV with a bowl or small waste basket on my lap and trim them out!  One of the hard parts is remembering the correct order of houses to put them back!

The next morning when I was out walking - another call asking for another condo viewing - ran up the hill (ok, scrambled awkwardly!) and whisked it all back into the sewing space.  Afterwards, I was just too worn out to drag it out again.  Hoping today is my chance!

My DH 'stages' the condo for showings - I shovel my project back into hiding ... viva la difference!  And don't tell DH!!  Don't get me wrong, we're keeping it neat and tidy.  But I think people looking at occupied houses should realize people actually live here!  I see no reason to hide the soap dish in the bathrooms!!

And this is our only home.  Not our second!  Quilters have a lot of stuff!  One lady visiting said she loved seeing all my quilts in the online pictures!!  Oh dear!

I'm feeling worn out, my heel hurts, I'm losing things (usually happens when too busy and/or under stress) and I want those pesky elves back to come back to help move my projects forward ... to a more satisfying place for me to enjoy working on them.  NOW, please!

We have a new Grand-dog in Portland!  A new puppy.  She looks very small next to the German Shepard!  Welcome to the family Miss G!

My DS is back in the states.  In Oregon too!  He starts his new job in Medford next week.  Let's just say, it's a dream job for a nurse with small kiddos.  DDIL and the 3 Grands will be back after her teaching contract at the International School ends in June.

Miss E (turns 4 in June) is adorable! (as are all Grandchildren, of course) She returned from a playground expedition declaring:  "Mission A-complicated"!!  I don't know about you, but that sums up the last year for me!!!

 

So I'm fine, how are you???

I must say, time is going very fast this winter-spring.  I keep thinking of things I should blog about, but never manage to sit down to blog.  My bad!

Mod Squad was great fun in March.  Our 'assignment' was to combine doodles into a new design.  Very far out of most of our boxes!!  I started with a spiral and then it just took over!  Luckily, the member teaching us this month works with children and normally hands out a bright orange sheet for them to sign.  The sheet says, "The teacher gives you permission to ignore any instructions as long as you make something!"  Saved by the bell!

My life is spinning out of control ... the spiral was mixing it all up.

Let me walk you thru my problems ... errr ... symbols:  The spiral is black netting.  Might be the only time you see me work with it!!

• Green house - our condo is up for sale, we're not buying it.  Our lease doesn't end until October, and if the new owners want it for a rental, they will want to extend our lease so they have a better chance of getting it designated a rental.  (There is only a small percentage of condos allowed to be rentals out here!)  That would be good for us - but meanwhile ... arrrgh!
• A package of needles to remind me I have Needle Book issues hanging over me ... that's all I can say right now!
• Spools fabric - my sewing room tends to look like a tornado has hit!!
• Peas fabric - a new way of cooking/eating - I don't really like to cook!
• Whale fabric - where the heck are they this year??? Not in our cove.
• Pink fabric - I was in charge of cancer quilt, all pink - What was I thinking?
• Light blue fabric with 3 dogs - that I'm allergic to at my DD's.
• Five kids - the Grandkids.  Doing well, but always on our minds!
• Car - my car was hit in the parking lot.  Kind-of killed the CHI when I got done with Tai-Chi!
• Clock - Out of control! AND what happened to 8 hours of sleep a night??
• Patriotic fabric - don't have enough quilts for the QOV nominees ... 2 months to presentation!  YIKES!!!

I'm happy to say, I'm in a much better place today!  Some of those things are done - pink quilt; (tempted to put scraps in the burn barrel!) there are enough quilts for the QOV nominees; sewing room is neat and tidy, because some of the stash now lives in garage!

Here are the other projects at Mod Squad

I've touched everything in my sewing room!!  And I'm happy to say that quite a bit of it is going to the Country Store at our quilt show in May!  I'm carefully ignoring the boxes tucked between my table and the bookcase.  Pay no attention to them - they are out of here in May!!  There is only one box on the floor - QOV strips.  I can live with that!

This month our book club is reading "Yellow Raft In Blue Water" by Michael Dorris.  It's very good.  Need to finish it this weekend.

Before DH's appointment we stayed with A&J and the kids.  What a busy household.  Miss E (turns 1 in June) is army crawling and smiling at everyone!

At his yearly exam with the cardiologist, the dr had a very serious look on his face while looking at DH's records ... almost gave ME a heart attack!  But at the end of the appointment, he said see you next year!  DH did have to go in for a cholesterol test locally.  Should have results in a week.  Fingers crossed that all small issues will solve themselves!

We went up to Portland after dr appointment in the valley - Miss P had her annual Music Project show.  Last year, I loved to say that it was the first time I'd ever heard Pink Floyd on the Ukulele!!  Didn't get that this year, but Miss P's group wrote their own song!  Pretty darn good for 11 year olds!  As we were leaving L&Js house, my hip twanged! (Yes, that is a medical term!) So I'm officially old enough to hurt myself just standing there!  Pretty scary - but sitting on a cold pack all the way home did help.  I haven't had too much trouble with it since. I feel I dodged a bullet there! I don't have time for 6 weeks recovery!!

Did you know I'm the Honored Guild Member at our Memorial Day Weekend  show??  That was part of the ModSquad spiral too!  I have my own display area, which I have to man during show hours, and I've told you I've had a few panic attacks about it!

I also have our QOV presentation that Sunday.  It's a tear-jerker and hard to speak in front of that many people.  But I survived last year ... so this year will be good too.

My small group - Woolies - met at my house and we looked at every quilt in the house and decided what can be in the show, what can be in the booth.  Our condo is just large enough to get them all out!!!  I also decided they will all keep an eye on me.  Am I drinking water?  Have I gone to the restroom lately?  Has anyone moved into my booth and won't leave???? Do I need chocolate?

That same day Woolies met here was also March Madness Quilt til you Wilt! And yes, we start wilting about 8:35!!   I love these - they don't make you do the project!!  I had a lot of people to talk to and hand things off to; and some figuring/consulting about a new project that I was ready to cut for.  It was wonderful!! Just being in a room filled with quilters working ... magic!

Then at the guild meeting - it finally registered with members that we don't have enough quilts!  So we had an impromptu sweatshop and finished 4 tops and two people brought in their quilts to finish! We now have more than enough and I am breathing easier. Yay!

Until next time!!

Summertime - what ever happened to the l*o*n*g summers we had as kids??

My Grandmother once said, "This summer is going so fast!"  I was in elementary school and thought to myself: "You are losing your mind! This summer is never going to end!!"  Fast forward to 2016 - "Sorry, Grandma.  I know what you were saying now!!"

One exciting weekend in June we were celebrating our DS's graduation from Nursing School.  Look at all that honors 'stuff' around his neck!! So proud of him, it takes determination to go back to school when you have preschoolers of your own.  DDIL is a middle school math teacher - not a lot of spare time there either.  Then to graduate Cum Laude!!  WTG!

School of Nursing was the LAST college to walk.  The weather was surprisingly cool for Ashland OR in June!  The boys were very patient and well behaved but we had our work cut out for us to keep the entourage entertained for 3 hours.  

Victory Lap!!

And of course, with every graduation comes a quilt! Found this quilt on Pinterest - a very dangerous place for me to hang out!  It had been in "Easy Quilts" magazine last year.  Great - because I was working last minute - no surprise there!

  

At our quilt show I found these "Nursing charms" Great sayings on them - "It's only poop!"; "Nurses call the shots" and so on!  So I pieced them into the back.

Way back when  my DS loved the back of his kindergarten quilt more than the front.  So every time I told him to make his bed the Kilban Cat sheet backing was up and the log cabin piecing was down! I wonder which way will be up for this quilt!

Two weeks later we were back for babysitting duty with the boys.  DS and DDIL were in Hawaii!  It was very hot.  Saturday morning the little old neighbor lady came to our door and said, "It's going to be really hot today.  Here's some money to take the boys for ice cream!!  I really like the way she thinks!  So we bought Rainbow Sherbet and ice cream cones and enjoyed them all weekend!

We also watched "Charlotte's Web" and then made spider webs. (Another idea from Pinterest!)  Cut slits around the edges of paper plates and weave some yarn around the plate.  D had a really big plastic spider, we wove him into the web and he hung it in his closet!! Glad I knew about it - that would have been a big surprise to someone not quite awake!

When we got back to the cool weather coast from that - we had a sweatshop here at our house.  Three of us sat and worked, worked, worked on languishing projects.  Okay, we took too many breaks out on the deck; and had time for smoothies ... but we did get alot done.

P and I worked on - wait for it - a quilt we loved on Pinterest!!! Vintage Stripes Quilt by RedPepper. Of course, the original idea was a crib quit and we were making it MUCH BIGGER!!!

We'd collected stripes for a couple of years.  Cut 5.5" squares and then made giant checkerboards alternating the direction of the stripes.  They are so 'summer-y' and the tops are done.  I ran into problems with too little backing fabric.  But hope to simply quilt it and get it on our bed yet this summer.  IF it slows down long enough!  Our bed quilt is quite heavy and DH doesn't need it in the summer.  He tends to throw it over on my side.  Now I sleep 'cold' but the quilt doubled is so heavy that I can't turn over without waking up!!  Not good.

Sisters Outdoor Show - July 2015

This weekend is the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show.  I've been going to it for 17-18? years.  We even came from NE on vacation in July each year so I could go to the show.  This year - so far - the weather forecast is for 80 degree days!  Much better than the 100+ weather in past years.  Looking forward to strolling thru the town with friends and enjoying the quilts.

Our small town has an outdoor swimming pool that is open now.  Every year we hope and pray that the pool will open again.  And we have quite the phone chain about developments.  The very first day it was open for Water Aerobics at 8 am - there were over 30 people in the pool!!  The next week there was a day with 45 people there and 5 of the regulars were missing!!  It has settled down to 25 - 35 each day - just about right!

I love water aerobics - I even drive to Crescent City twice a week during the rest of the year for Water Aerobics at their indoor pool.  (35 minutes each way!!)  But summers, the 5 minute commute; the outdoor air, the camaraderie of meeting everyone at the pool - it's the best.  You feel like "Iron Woman" afterwards! And oh-so-virtuous!  FUN!

We bring Miss P and Mr M back from our trip to Sisters next week.  We'll see how long we can get them to stay this year.  Crossing our fingers for 5 days!!

Home again, home again, jiggety-jig!

I'm back!!  And the sun is here to greet me - at least for today!!  I had so-o much fun on all of my travels.

First up, my daughter and I went to "OVO" a traveling Cirque du Soleil production in Portland.  Bugs - it was delightful.  I've now seen three Cirques - Kooza, Dralion and now Ovo.

Kooza, my first, is still my favorite!  It was so unlike anything we'd ever seen before - but it reminded us of so many other things!!  [How do they do that???] Ovo is now a close second.  And I think the only problem with Dralion was our seats ... we were below stage level so didn't get the full visuals Cirque creates. 

It was a wonderful spring day and Ovo was in a tent ... perfect all around.  I love spending time with my daughter - we rarely get uninterrupted time to talk, she has Mr M - 3 yrs old; and Miss P - 5 yrs old.  Need I say more! LOL!

Then off to Nebraska for Mom's birthday.  A great time was had by all!  I arrived Easter Sunday - unlike other holiday travel experiences, the flights were full.  In fact, we apparently had a 'baby' section that I was sitting in - and after the dirty diaper incident ... well, we would have loved to have the air masks drop!!  LOL!

I was soon at Mom's apartment visiting until it was time to go to my sister's for dinner and the birthday party.  So much fun to fly in and see all the family first thing!  The party was fun, fun, fun and getting caught up with my nieces, sisters, great nephews and nieces ... lots of news.  I gave my great-nephew his college graduation quilt.  Double slice done in homespuns - he liked it and so did everyone else who saw it.  I was an Indian giver - and took it back for the week to take for show and tell at guild.  I rarely get to show anything - I barely make it under the suitcase wt limit as it is!!  He graciously allowed it - seeing how he hasn't really graduated yet!  Thank you, J!

Monday [and every day I was there] was filled with 'honey-dos' for mom.  There's a list.  We start it about one week after I've left the year before!!  I whip thru it pretty fast and we visit throughout the week.  Chores go fast when you have time to visit too.

Monday night was guild.  I love the Lincoln Quilters Guild.  So active and energetic!  I miss them and always love to visit and make the rounds!  I had a visitor's nametag.  One gal said, "Since when are you a visitor?"  I answered, "Well, since I moved to Oregon four years ago!"  "Oh," she replied, "I was wondering why I didn't see you much!!"  LOL!  I hear my name is still mentioned regularly!  Especially when talking about quilt backs that are - shall we say - unusual!!  I showed the double slice and lots of members came up afterwards to get the details.

The rest of the week flew by - I visited the Intl Quilt Study Center and Museum and loved the AQSG challenge quilts along with the Jean Ray Laury exhibit and the signature quilts exhibit.  If ever you're in Lincoln ... don't miss the Museum - even if you only have a little time to enjoy it!

Then there was the 'Doni's Here' Shop Hop!!!  We started out early on Friday [my day off from mom duties] and drove to Omaha and Gretna.  First stop: Country Sampler. Apparently my DH called while we were driving to Omaha, I returned his call from the store ... 'you're sleeping late,' he said. "Nope, I'm in the Omaha quilt store." "Oh, no!! Get out of there fast!!" he begged!! LOL! Too late, dear - my hands were already filled with goodies!!

Then we found a new favorite shop - "More Sew for You" in Omaha.  All reproductions and wool - do I really need to say more??? 

I took my "Pies and Tarts" finished top that I've been working on for the last year.  They promote English Paper Piecing and even have Sue Daley coming in May to their shop.  [She created the Pies and Tarts BOM in Australia]  Oh, they loved it, oohed and ahhed and took my picture.  Until ... I told them I paperless-paper-pieced it!  You would have thought that I killed their puppy!! LOL!  "Oh, don't tell anyone THAT!!" they said! 

So-o, of course, I'm telling everyone!!  I think it creates a bigger market for their kits - not all of us do English Paper Piecing - nice to know there's another successful way to do it!  I still bought lots of stuff there, so I'm sure all is forgiven!!

Last stop was Quilted Moose in Gretna.  Unfortunately, Deb the owner was out and about; so I didn't get to show her my "Pies and Tarts".  But the gals working that day liked it too.

I left my Pies and Tarts in Lincoln with a friend's "Altar Society Quilting group" to be hand quilted for me.  I'm so excited that I don't have to do it myself!!  And I have a goal - by the time I get P&Ts back for me to bind - I'm going to have the dreaded "Birds of a Feather" finished quilted too.  That's my plan - not that I've added a stitch to it since I vowed that!  ... any time now I'll restart, I'm [almost] sure!

While in Lincoln, my sister wanted to commission 3 twin size quilts for 3 of her grand kids.  We went shopping at the Cosmic Cow in Lincoln and she bought the fabrics - lots of fabric.  I pieced the backs while there and handed them off to a friend.  I pieced the tops [mostly done] at my retreat last week here and will mail them back to Lincoln for that same friend there to machine quilt them for her.  Then they will be handed off to J&D to bind and monogram and then presented to my sister to give at Christmas. 

Seems overly complicated, doesn't it!?!?  But I'm hoping it will run like a well-oiled machine.  Why am I not finishing them ... time and postage!  I'm hoping the tops all fit in a flat-rate box.  But I'm glad to make the tops for her - she does so much for mom - just my little way of paying her back.

So I used retreat here as an excuse to get them done.  Newport gals do A LOT of charity quilts and are always looking for a quick pattern to vary their donations.  Double slice is one of the quickest methods I have ever done!  Google "double slice - layer cake" and the Missouri Star You-tube demo will come up on top.

I had to clean my sewing space before I left - because we brought the kiddos back with us.  I blame that action on why I couldn't find my YBR pattern!  But, I did find the "Wicked Easy" pattern I saved years and years ago, never got around to making!  I have to say - excellent pattern!  It's even still available free on the web as linked above.

I decided to cut the selvedges off in a usable size for my selvedge projects. So-o I didn't get many of the border pieces cut the right size.  The good news is I didn't need them!  The 20 blocks created were big enough to stand alone!  And another 'go to' pattern for kids quilts!  I'll show the three tops next week - when I hope to have them done.

The last day of retreat I pulled out another project that I had been putting off - scared to work on.  Yep, we all have them!  The portrait created in LuAnn Kessi's class at the Philomath "Jannilou" quilt store.  I took the class last January - traveling thru all the aftermath of that tremendous winter storm we had.  I loved the process - LuAnn is such a great teacher!  But was scared I would 'ruin it' with the quilting.  I KNEW that darling face was too big to stand alone without surface quilting!

So, with the Newport gals encouragement, I 'got'r dun'!!  Presenting "Best Buds".

I used wool batting and boy - is it fluffy!  I had to quilt it to death!  but it worked out well.  Stipple, stars, lines and "Jill's waffle" quilting in the center. I did my 'signature' frame quilting - using the walking foot and just following the lines around the center, one 'frame' after another until to the edge.  But boy, was the border really wavy!!  Now what?? So I went to the ironing board and steamed that border into submission!  We were all surprised how well it flattened for me!

And one more project got done this month - "It's a bird, It's a plane ... it's the flying challenge". 

A challenge piece for our guild.  "Flying" was the theme.  I love to use cancelled postage stamps in fabric post cards.  So I simply 'super-sized' it!  Using the 'stack and slash' piecing method I made a pond, a tree and lots of sky in 3" blocks.  I added postage stamps from my little collection - then found pictures of stamps I'd like to have, cut them out and put them on.  Well, then, it just got silly!!  Miss P and I brain- stormed about what flies and added everything we could think of.  Superman, Mary Poppins, kites, balloons, hot air balloons, the house in UP, pigs??!!  All sewed to the quilt. 

Oh, oh!  How am I going to block it?  Can't wet it - so I laid it on the table, laid a cutting mat over the top of it, piled milk crates of books on it and left for NE!  Nicely flat as a pancake when I got back!!  No prizes at the guild 'reveal' - but it will be in the show Memorial Day weekend.

Whoo hooo - you're now all up to date in all things 'doni'!  Here are a few pictures of our fun with the kids on the beach and Mr D's first birthday party too! 

3 yr old Mr M discovered the coolest thing ever - throwing rocks into the ocean!  Let me tell you, that stretch of coast was BARE of any throw-able rocks!!

A magical picture - really, you should see the un-magical ones before and after this one on the camera!!  Don't you just love those little faces???

Happy First Birthday, Mr. D.  May you always be as happy as you've been this year!!  He's all smiles most of the time!

Okay - see you next week!

It's time for grandkid's pictures post!

I'm finally feeling more like myself - I still have a cough that makes people turn and glare ... but I'm better. I'll be glad when I get my energy back.

We babysat the last two days and both L and I had great fun taking pictures.


Alas - the 2 bears are not really allowed outside, even though they are used to going everywhere Miss P goes. So they had to sit on the porch and watch the baseball game between beach-papa and Miss P.



Mr M turned 6 months old this week. He's growing like a weed - and has just started eating baby food - alot of baby food. Two containers 3 times a day PLUS 5 bottles of formula!



Isn't she adorable? This was taken one second before she fell back down the ladder of the slide. It knocked the wind out of her and scared Nana to death! But we were all okay in a minute. She was wearing my hat - and that was the end of the pictures today!