Little Projects

There has been quite a bit of running around going on here which hasn't allowed much time for large amounts of progress. So instead I'm working away at projects in little bits of time. I finally finished the last little bit of binding on Whirlygiggles so I can promote I Spy to binding bullet on the list. Tonight is the season premiere of Royal Pains, so that will be the perfect binding sewing time. I thought about taking some Dear Jane blocks to swim team, but that seemed risky with the wind and water and sunscreen. So instead I had the girls pick out a skein of cotton yarn from the sale bin at Joann's and made a dishcloth. It worked up really quick and didn't require much concentration. I Googled a couple of patterns but just ended up winging it. 25 double crochets per row until it seemed square and then two circles of single crochets around the perimeter with a little loop added to one corner in case I want to hang it up.
Kurt's anniversary present finally came in. I was bummed that it was late (our anniversary is the same as my birthday is the same as my mom's birthday). He was going to get me an i-Pad before I committed to the HQ16, so I went ahead and got one for him. He was pleasantly surprised and having lots of fun now playing with all of the aps and figuring out how he can use it. He hopes to be able to take it on business trips and use it in meeting instead of a laptop.

He So Gets Me

Sometimes I just have to laugh at how much my husband understands exactly how my mind works. He was taking the kids to a sand festival this morning and I was apologizing for not going along. He told me there was no need to apologize, spending the weekend quilting was all part of making the new quilting machine into an event.
So instead I continued the quilting machine marathon weekend with Whirly Giggles. This one is for my niece who wanted something soft to snuggle with. I put flannel on the back, which was a little stretchy on the frame, but is so soft and cozy.

I debated doing some feathers allover, but chickened out and went with a basic meander in the background and some simple arcs in the foreground. At some point I'll need to think about catching up on the binding, but for now I think I'll load up I Spy a Parrot.
I did manage to drag myself out of the house last night for an outing to see a play. I girlfriend of mine called to invite Anna and I to go with her and her daughter. The whole family ended up coming along. It was the Pajama Game, which a silly and enjoyable musical.

Bliss

I just love quilt marathons! Somehow saying, "I have to quilt because I'm part of a marathon" has so much more weight than "I'd like some time with my machine this weekend if there's nothing else that needs to be done." Kurt was off to work again today, so it was a stop and start sort of day, but I did get two flimsies assembled. Christmas Lights had a bit of a disaster. Lizzy has figured out how to get over the baby gates we use to keep her in the kitchen. Each time she got out today she went straight over and made a mess on my quilt blocks! First was a number two on the edge and I sort of sponged it off thinking I could wait to wash it after it was quilted. Then she returned for a number one right in the middle and I had to go ahead and wash it. Wow was that a disaster. I got it to the flimsy stage and used a gentle cycle, but it still raveled madly. Getting it flat with all the seams going the right way was tricky to say the least. It is ready for borders now, so hopefully I can get to that tomorrow.
Whirlygiggles has been my leaders and enders, and there were more than enough for this 6 by 7 snuggle quilt. I'm not sure whether this one wants borders or not, I'll sleep on it and see what it tells me in the morning. I am getting to bed at a decent hour tonight after working to the wee hours last night. The Golden Globes just ended and I am fading fast. I will pop in though and see what everyone else got done today. Happy Quilt Marathon.

Good Morning

I hope everyone doing the quilt marathon is having a great time. I know I am. I got all of the whirlygiggle blocks ironed last night and then got up bright and early this morning to get the Christmas Lights blocks together. I think I'm only going for 6 x 7 blocks on the whirlygiggles for my niece Paige who requested a snuggle size quilt. That will mean plenty of leftover blocks for a little baby quilt. There are two more ladies at work having babies in the next couple of months and one of them is having a girl. The other is letting it be a surprise, so I was thinking of waiting and doing a name quilt for that.
Kurt is off to work again this morning, but so far the kids are letting me sew. I'll take advantage of the opportunity while it is available and check up on everyone over lunch I think. It is so much more social to sew with other people, even if they are thousands of miles away. Happy quilt marathon everyone!

Hitting My Stride

That's more like it. I finally convinced everyone here about the importance of my quilting marathon weekend and started to make some good progress. I got the Christmas Lights blocks all put together (even though two of them seem to be MIA) and am ready to get them all sewn together into a top. I'll probably play with the blocks some more, and I'm thinking of going with a different yellow for the triangles, but it is starting to look like a quilt now. Especially if I can track down those other two blocks.
I got some more bonus squares trimmed up during bath time and will probably work my way through some more of the ironing basket before I turn in. I've been working whirlygiggle blocks through as leaders and enders, so those will be next on my list. Now it is starting to look like a marathon around here.

Coming up for Air?

It is hard to believe how long it has been since my last post. It is too easy it is to fall out of a routine when new commitments start pulling on your time. I have only added one extra class to my schedule, but the switch from part to full time has taken over a much larger proportion of my day. It is all going well and my days are full of lots of good things, but full they are. The kids are still loving their time everyday in aftercare. They are signed up for lots of extra lessons and activities and still don't want me to pull them away from the fun too early.
We were able to make it to Georgia this weekend to visit with family. It was great to have all of the cousins together with plenty of time to play and talk and just hang out together.

Zach is doing very well right now. He is happy and getting into everything. The oxygen is still a constant reminder of his health issues as is the feeding tube, but there is still hope that those might go away eventually.

It is great to be close enough to family to see them on a long weekend. I know Mom would love for us to live even closer, but it is good to be able to make the drive on a somewhat regular basis.

Obviously, activity on the quilting front has been slim. I took the Tea Rose Sampler for Paige to have on her new bed and she took to it right away. It hasn't made it onto the bed yet because she is too busy snuggling with it. I hadn't specifically intended that quilt for her, but until the Whirly Giggles comes together, it seems to be making her happy. I took the Sister's Choice up with the materials to put on the final border and get it layered and sized to the bed. I managed to get two of the four sides on, but couldn't make much progress with everything else going on.
Next weekend seems calm so far. Maybe I'll be able to find some quality time with my machine and finish up a little bit of something. Maybe.

Half Quilt

I got half of Mom's quilt put together last night. I don't have quite enough green for the other half of the first border, so I'll either put the other half together and add the border later or run out today for a bit more green. The final border will be enough of the green to make it the right size. Anna's bed is queen sized, so I'll take it up there to see how it hangs. It is supposed to fall to the ground, so the exact dimensions are somewhat important.

I also got a few blocks cut out for my next quilt while supervising swimming yesterday afternoon. I sent those through as leaders and enders while making the top. This is a quilt for my niece Paige and the colors are based on some sheets that my sister gave me to make a dust ruffle. Dust ruffles seem to be a recurring theme around here lately. I'm also supposed to make one for my nephew Zach. If I were a really good sister I'd get those put together and off in the mail ASAP. The kids are standing patiently by the pool waiting for me to come out, so I'd better grab my fabric and go watch.