Project updates...

The biggest project I have been undertaking over the past few days is cutting and sewing up a sample for the Advanced Beginner Quilting (Steppin' Out) class I am planning to offer over the month of May and beginning of June. This one will take more than the 4 nights that the Beginner's class was; I'm thinking more like 5 solid work nights with a couple of hours of "homework" every week. I had seen a picture of a quilt similar to this in my browsing on the web a year or so ago; it's use of 4-patches is enough to keep it still at a beginner's stage, yet can be considered a bit more advanced due to the HST's (half-square-triangles.) I also plan to demonstrate the Quilting-in-Sections method for those individuals who want to attempt machine-quilting on their DSM (domestic sewing machine.)

DH went to play open-gym volleyball tonight (since we had a bye in our tournament series), so I headed downstairs (UNWILLINGLY if you can believe it!!!----still dog tired! I can't seem to shake it; it must be this poopy, gloomy, rainy, cold weather!) Anyway.......

.....I headed down with intentions of just doing something small; cut and sew up the March block for Beth Ferrien's Now-n-Forever BOM (block-of-the-month) quilt . I needed to see something "finished," (even if it was only two blocks) since I have so many loose ends downstairs. Seriously; I should take a pic of all the projects I have laying scattered all over the basement floor! DoubleDelight is laying out on the main carpet area, untouched in about 2 weeks; Steppin' out is in the main concrete area; the Seven Shirts is hanging on one main wall reminding me it needs batting and quilting; my 100+ Perkiomen Daydreams blocks are scattered next to DD; Oklahoma Backroads is folded up waiting for batting and quilting; Country Spirit, Chloe's Colors, and Scrappy Irish Chain are all laying over the back of a spare matress, all in different stages of quilting, Lake-n-Lodge is also in that stack, basted; March green quilt blocks are on one shelf, and then 8 or so other UFO's are stacked in some kind of order in a spare book case......

*sigh*

When the two BOM blocks were done, I worked some more on Steppin' Out and have most of the rows sewn together, but quit at 9:00 to head up to blog......

Catching up from Monday and Tuesday.....

I know I said in my blog post yesterday that I hadn't been done any quilting on Monday or Tuesday, which is true, but I helped Cassie put together her own special blanket from fleece; one of the simple "cut and tie" blankets. She measured up the fabric and matched the bottom and top up, trimmed up the edges, and then cut slits about an inch apart. The whole project took about an hour and half; she was very excited to sleep with it right away Monday night!!!





Last night, pretty much from the moment we got home from school/work/day care and after supper was finished, I relaxed in the glider with a good book : New Moon, the second book of the Twilight Saga. I'm re-reading it (ONLY for the 2nd time---honest!) Candace and Caitlyn were going around the house with my camera, snappin' pics from their perspective again.


A few other shots they took....... Happy Wednesday!

A quick hello....

*wave*
hey everyone

I'm alive
But dog tired lately
and not really interested in bloggin' :0(

I've been keeping myself busy with quilting, of course. But I've taken tonight and last night off (again, due to just being tired). Sadly, DH JUST realized he forgot to take care of a down-spout for a customer's house (one he built last summer) and the owner lives out of state; and we've been getting quite a bit of Spring rain over the past two days. Anyway----long story short, 9:00 pm and he just left for the house that is 20 miles away.....*sigh*....I figured this was a good a time as any to put my feet up and check in. I've thrown Twilight, the movie into the DVD player.......*chuckle* You MUST have known I would get a copy :0)

Anyway----hopefully all is going well with you all.

Volleyball Night...

I haven't blogged much about my Wednesday night Volleyball team.....but tonight, DH and I are still pumped up from our late playing time (9:00 start!). We've been playing since mid-January, every Wednesday night in a town 30 miles away; indoor league. Years ago, this league was a bit of a joke, but over the last 3-6 years, a good handful of "good" teams have signed up for playing. This year, there are three "top" teams, us being one of them. Last week was the first week of "tournaments," and we walked away with a challenging, yet solid victory over the 6th place team. Tonight brought on the big battle between 2nd and 3rd to guarantee a spot in the Final Showdown in two weeks. We are coming into tournaments in 3rd place, having only lost to the 2nd and 1st place teams. (Makes sense, huh?) :0)

Anyway....when we played the 2nd place team two weeks ago for the last game of "normal season" before tournaments, we kinda got killed! The first game was neck-n-neck: however 24-25, we lost. Then, the wind was out of our sails, and we fell apart! :0(

So, going into the match tonight, I already just had the mind-set that we were going to lose, so I just wanted us to go out and play the best match we could. I'm VERY competitive, and really try to work on my sportsmanship and attitude once the chips start falling against us. BUT, I still struggle and can sometimes be a "sulker" when we start to lose. Hence, I needed to just tell myself that we weren't going to win so I could just enjoy the match. Afterall, I DO follow the motto: "It's better to have played a good game and lost, than not to have played at all."

To get to the point-----We won! In two games, even! 25-23, 25-21. Go figure! We even played with a sub for one of our "manly-girls" :0) (We have a lady who plays like a man---kills; blocks; you name it!) Our sub is more of a defensive player and setter like I am, so we REALLLY had the mind-set of "play to have fun" tonight. We didn't expect a win.

It was FUN tonight! Not so for the other team, unfortunately. Sadly one of the male opponents started throwing in the towel early and "sulking" (hmmm.....that must be what I look like sometimes!!!). It's actually quite embarassing, and I was bummed because it really was fun playing GOOD, HARD volleyball!

Anyway---pictured is Misty May (Turner) who is probably a house-hold name in the USA. I actually watched her play college ball during one of my first years coaching. Little did I know then that she would go Beach, and be an Olympic Champ. Heck, little did I know that Beach VBall would be an Olympic sport!!!!!



On a quilting note: I basted up both sections of Chloe's Colors last night and finished up quilting one of the sections. I may be able to finish up the other section tomorrow evening ??? This weekend, I will be heading back down to Mom's house for Cassie's 2nd weekend of First Communion instruction. However, this time, it'll only be Cass and I; the other two are staying home with DH.
Plans this weekend: start cutting/sewing/writing instructions for the next quilting class I will teach. Deadline for the printing of brochures is April 1st, so I want to make sure I get my ducks in a row to have a sample top pictured in the printing. Ahhhhh!

YES, I know I have vowed not to start anything new, BUT.......... this is "different!" This will probably be a finish before any other of my WIP's see their finish!

Okay----I'm not ready for bed yet; 11:30 pm! So, I'm off to layout a training schedule for my racing events this year. OH!!! Yeah.....got outside running last night! We have had absolutely BEAUTIFUL weather this week!!!!! Anyway, running buddy (Julie) called me tonight and we talked about upcoming races we wanted to commit to. Between the weather and her call, I am pumped and excited to get back on track running!

Alright-----*breathe-breathe-breathe*--------

Night all!

Some quick work...

I didn't get any quilting done last night, at least not with the sewing machine. Instead, I grabbed the markers and graph paper and started planning a quilt top for the next "Advanced Beginner" quilting class that I'll be offering during the month of May. Some of my ladies from the Beginners class has shown interest in the "next" class, so......

But tonight, I did head downstairs for two hours. During which time, I finished putting together all the pink double-nine blocks.....





......and sewed together 15 more March blocks, which now brings me to a total of 20.




I am now upstairs watching "Castle."



Boy----I have a lot of projects on that WIP and UFO list! AND, this new class is right on the horizon, so I'll have to put some time into that this weekend.....

One day at a time :0) I can't really say One project at a time, though!!!! :0)

Happy Monday

It wasn't meant to be---UGH!

Sitting at mom's right now, watching the newest National Treasure movie, NOT QUILTING!

After school yesterday, I entered "warp mode" to get packed up and on the road by 5:30 to get to mom's by 8:30. All in ONE HOUR, I put Cassie on "Shadow-duty" (feed our dog) and then she and Caitlyn were on "outfit duty"; each of them picked out a Sunday-church outfit and two other play-at-grandmas outfits while I packed up clothes for Candace. I threw a load of whites into the washer and folded up a few items that were awaiting in the dryer. After that, I headed downstairs to pack up all supplies I needed for quilting; Stars-n-Stripes, walking foot, quilting foot, scissors, Chloe's Colors, stacks of fabric to piece a backing for CC, two different colors of thread for quilting CC (since I hadn't finalized it yet), the machine, rotary cutter and ruler and batting for CC. I also grabbed the back-up batteries and charger for the camera. I checked my pile many times before thinking "good-to-go." So, 10 minutes later, everything was packed in the car and we were literally bolting out the door. WHEW!

So, the first thing I realized that I forgot was the camera when I wanted to get a pic of the girls last night! Sure, I have the backup batteries and charger, but what good are they without a camera?!?! Okay....minor! No biggy.

Then this morning at 9:00, I headed downstairs to start quilting. I didn't even get the machine out of the case when it hit me-----OH NO! I FORGOT THE POWER CORD! Aghhhhhhhhhh!!! Seriouly Amy! Not more than 5 minutes later, DH called to see how things were going and if the drive down went smoothly. Naturally, I was still fuming at my stupidity of forgetting the power cord! And his chuckling DID NOT help! *NOW, I'm able to chuckle though* Anyway, so I brainstormed and thought maybe Hancock Fabrics might carry a power cord-----yeah, it was a long shot, but what was I to do in a panic'd state that I was in!?!??!?

But----I DID have a moment of brillance! I called my MIL, who THANKFULLY happened to be home this weekend, and she had NO PLANS of using her machine today. So---10 minutes later, I was at the in-laws picking up her Janome to use for the day. Wooo-hoooo! And another 20 minutes later, I was back at mom's sewing away. I worked on putting the final border squares on Chloe's Colors, and then started piecing the backing. By lunch time, I was up for a break, so mom and I took the girls over to the in-laws for the afternoon while we went to town to pick up a few things. Naturally, we needed to stop in Hancock Fabrics. And, like usual,-----BAD IDEA! :0) HUUUUUUUGE sale today! All Absolute Cottons were 40% off, many cottons were 60% off, some fabrics were on a 2.95-3.95 table........HEAVEN! I walked away with my share of goodies (amount undisclosed since DH might be reading this later on) :0) HI HUNNY! Nahhhh, I didn't go overboard, but sure enjoyed sifting through all the selections.

Anyway, back at mom's without the girls, I was able to layout the 10.5" squares that I was piecing for the backing to CC. By the time the in-laws showed up for dinner, I was ready to baste.

And then.......ummmmmmmmm............ looking around the basement............ double-checking the car..........looking in the bedrooms............NO BATTING!!!! Seriously! I KNOW it was on the pile to be packed into the car!!!! BUT, I when I really sat and thought about what I all carried to it, batting was never in my arms!! UGH! One of the girls most likley "played" with it while I was getting other things packed up, and it left the must-go-in-the-car pile. *SIGH!* SERIOUSLY! I just wasn't meant to get very far on quilting this weekend!!!

So, I'm done. I packed up MIL's machine and sent it back with her when she left tonight. And now...I'm out putzing on the net.

I hope to hit the road back home around noon tomorrow which will bring us in the driveway around 3:00. I really should work on my school work tonight so I don't have to tomorrow, but.......need I say that "i jes don't wanna!"

So....Happy Saturday. Hopefully your day has been more productive than mine :0)

Oh my Gawwd

If you don't recognize this lady, that's probably a good thing! Tonight, rather than heading downstairs, I parked my butt in the glider and worked on a presentation for tomorrow's inservice (that I need to present, duh, right??) Anyway, so DH took control of the remote like he usually does (not a problem with me, REALLY!) and he leaves it on the Bravo Channel which was showing a back-to-back-to-BACK evening of the show "Millionaire Matchmaker.

((*rolling eyes*))

You have GOT to be kidding me!!! I'm sorry, but even now I sit here, chuckling, and shaking my head at what I watched during these three hours. And it's not even so much the guys and the girls that were "dating" that got me rolling my eyes, but it was the HOST! For instance, tonight she was "scolding" one of her male clients to "get over the 20-somethings already! You want the 20-something, air-brushed cover model and they don't exist!!!".......

uummmmmmmmmmm..........


but yet....when I got to the Bravo website to find a picture to post on here......what do I find but a CLEARLY "airbrushed" and "face-lifted-with-wonderful-digital-imagery" picture! HA! It's just kinda goofy and hypocritical. I suppose I just need to say......"to each their own."



Anyway.

The plans are to head to my parents this weekend; Cassie is signed up for First Communion classes in the "hometown" church. Yeah---maybe a bit extreme, taking First Communion almost three hours away, BUT there just isn't a place up here that we've committed to and feel comfortable with. Is that a bit of an excuse?......yes, I'll admit that. Sadly, I will also admit that finding a church just isn't a priority in our life. YET, my mother does do her job to remind me the importance of allowing the girls the opportunity to know a "christian" education, and I DO believe in that as well. So, for the next three weekends, I have committed to driving to Mom's house so Cassie can have her First Communion.

While she is at her classes, my plan is to work on quilting in the basement of Mom's house. Within the next two weeks, I need to finish Chloe's Colors since 4th quarter starts up soon. I really want to have this quilt finished and hanging on the wall when I get the 8th graders back.

Other than CC, the only other quilt that has a definite-must-make-deadline is DoubleDelight for Nikki's (our AWESOME babysitter) graduation.







Oh My Gawwwwwd! There is ANOTHER episode on after this one! That's 4! *rolling eyes*. But the sad thing: ............... I'll probably stay up and watch it. *shaking head, chuckling*

I ran

therefore I am.
('Bout time, right??!)


And a quick note regarding the workshop today. Ummm.....we arrived, and were informed that "no registrations were ever received, so we cancelled the class."

Ummm.....WHAT??? But, have no worry. I know my handful of workers down at Cesa11 (an educational agency to help support local schools), and they hooked my coworker and I up in a "work-room" with a Smart board and laptop, so we trained ourselves via online tutorials, etc. It was an AWESOME day! WOW! It probably was more beneficial than what the actual workshop would have been :0)

A Monday evening....

Tonight didn't hold anything quilty for me. Rather, it started with some browsing through the Quiltville Chat photos. Wow---there are some GREAT Double Delights out there.....for instance, here is Nancy's (in Georgia) finished quilt. I LOVE her borders......quite simple, YET pieced to keep it interesting....

Then, I spent an hour 'googling' for some "Notebook SMART board" files for a workshop I'm attending tomorrow. I signed up wanting to know more about Notebook, which I have never used. The paperwork for the workshop VERY CLEARLY STATED that this is not a "beginner's" workshop and to bring samples for a "Share" session. GUILTY! (Do you think there are 'signing-up-for-wrong-workshops' police out there???) I've at least attempted to do some homework tonight, AND I roped our JH Science teacher into coming with me. I don't know if he's used Notebook or not either----but *shrug*----oh well! Really, how "bad" is this???? !?!? We WANT to learn and know more about it, AND our District is coughing up the dough to let us attend.

I should be in bed already (pushing 10:30 now), BUT I'm still waiting for a file to download. Yeah......dial-up! UGH! I have another 30 minutes to wait (I've already been waiting 40 min) for a measly 7.4MB file. *sigh* At school, this baby would have been done within a few minutes...(if that!)

At 9:00 tonight, there was a season premiere for a show called "Castle." I have a feeling this will be new show-to-watch for me. It was quite funny; kind of a comedic-police-drama. Any of you remember the show "Moonlighting" with Sybil Sheppard and Bruce Willis? Back in the 80's? Anyway, my DH said he was reminded of that show after watching this one. ("only this chick is hotter.")

Northern Minnesota and Wisconsin are being "threatened" by a snow storm over the next 24-36 hours. Actually, DH and I just chuckled at the weather report. The 7-day outlook showed ONE HUNDRED PERCENT (100%) snow for tomorrow. Seriously! When have you EVER seen a 100% change of snow or rain in a forcast? I guess he's (meteorologist) is pretty confident. Currently, our region is under a Winter Weather advisory while a bit to the north, they are under a Winter Storm Warning. We are in line for 4-8 inches, while just north is 8-12". I'll be watching the news in the morning since; the workshop is about 40 miles south-east, but still in the 4-8" region. Oh yeah....all of this after a TEASINGLY WARM DAY! It was still upper 40's at 5:30 tonight.

Ho-hum....17 minutes left of the download. I suppose I can go and catch up with others'.....

Happy Monday.