What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

I am definitely a creature of habit, and if I go outside that world, I'm in big trouble!!!

I had pretty much packed my suitcase the evening before, so not much to do in the morning except have breakfast. But I thought I would give the wardrobe one last look. I checked the drawers - nothing. But when I opened up the hanging clothes area, there were THREE of my things in there. Good grief!!!!! 

I never, never, never unpack my suitcase, and so all my clothes are hanging around or in the suitcase in the room. That would not ...

OMG—I am stunned, and I'm exhausted. But I managed to finish everything I planned on getting done! If I had had that extra day, I might have finished the two samples I knew I had run out of time for! 

I'm thrilled to death. Did it help that I started listening to a hilarious detective story? I don't know, but whenever I was doing something mindless, I listened to the book, and it helped to keep me on track. 

Let me share the samples that are done. 

You already saw this sample - it's the tablet ...

You did not miss a post with an update on the Visual To-Do list. I will get my act together when I'm back later this week and give you an update. I need to refocus when I'm back and get to work on those items. I have been working on them over the last couple of months, so there's been lots of progress, but no finishes. I need some finishes!

Speaking of finishes - I have two more projects to share with you. Actually, make that three. 

Here is the table runner that has been finished for several ...

I sat at the computer yesterday morning and did some catch-up with email, and I have part of the class information written up! Saturday is still my deadline to publish that information, and I should be OK with that. So much other stuff sitting around the computer that needs to be dealt with -- how does it accumulate so fast? OR am I pulling things out when I see some open space? 

And to answer the question - will Busy Beach be a sew along? It's on my plan (the price is right)  -- just not this year. 

Speaking of sew-alongs, let ...

What an insane day yesterday was! I started the day with Brooke, and we focused on the upper body to avoid further knee issues. I took shorter and slower walks with the girls (they were NOT impressed), and Murphy hung around the front door for a good part of the day, hoping to go for another walk. Then it was off to the dentist. I did walk there, but not before icing the knee to keep things under control. It's not that far, and if I walk slowly, I'm OK. 

Can you believe I got a reasonably good ...

OH MY GOSH!!!! Irons from The Devil Wears Prada? How cool is that!!!! I never watched the first movie until the other night, but after all the hype, I'm obsessed and just watched Meryl Streep on Jimmy Kimmel. She is such an amazing actor (are we allowed to say actess?). And I even purchased a ticket for Tuesday to see the film. Holy cow -- I'm excited!!!!

That was in response to Barbara's comment!!!

I went to bed at my regular time and woke up 1 hour earlier than usual, but that's OK. I had some last-minute ...

I had several cat naps yesterday and slept in a bit this morning, so I think I'm all caught up and good to get back to serious business today! 

I don't know about you, but this Artemis 2 space mission is just amazing. I know it's over, but hearing all the back stories about the astronauts and what it took to get them there is incredible. It should also teach us, our children, and their children that if you want something, it doesn't come easily. Those four people are the most humble people I've seen ...

OH --- I had the blog already to go and then forgot to press PUBLISH!!!

OH MY --- I'm totally obsessed with making up these presentations. When people are interested, I'm prepared to go to the ends of the Earth to find the information. I spend tons of time researching stuff for my groups and even if they don't appreciate it, (I'm sure most of them do!), I still learn a ton of stuff by finding the information. 

I just discovered something else that I need for my research. I'll share it all next week! 

Did anyone ...

Oh my --- What a crazy day, but it was a great day!! Three things went off without a hitch! 

I was up early and had those suitcases loaded in the car - the girls were NOT happy that I was leaving without taking them for a walk. More on that in a bit. 

The drive was great even though there was a lot of traffic. A lot of truck traffic, but no accidents, so that was a bonus. I didn't have time for accidents or major slowdowns. 

The Thames Valley Quilt Guild is a great group of people, and OH ...

OH - I love the fact that puzzles helped calm someone down. I can see that. I find it extremely relaxing to sit and work on a jigsaw puzzle. I am going to try to always have one on the go since I have learned how to tackle my addiction to them. 

MOVE OVER MOM!!!! 

Hello everyone, this is Murphy and Lexi, and we have something to say. 

It's the girls -- Murphy and Lexi!!!

We love our Mom, and she is very good to us, although we do NOT get nearly as many treats as we need. We are starving ...

I LOVE that others are getting things done as well! And YES—sometimes we don't have the right color thread or the right whatever —but if you look in your stash, you probably have something that will work!!!

Well, we have a problem at our house, and I don't think it's going to be cheap or easy to fix. Remember that ice dam I've mentioned several times? I cannot find the picture I took of the front of our house, but it's considerably smaller than the one I shared with the neighbors the other day ...

Oh crap --- it's likely that I messed up the links again. I'll repost the link for that video on how learning a second language can save your life. Please tell me that it is only some links, not all!!!

Here is the missing link from yesterday. 

I cannot tell you how happy I am these days! Getting those niggling little UFOs done does way more for my happiness level than money or happy pills ever could. And I've taught (forced) myself to be persistent and focused. And get the darn thing DONE - don't just move it ...

Yep --- I'm a believer in the scale as well for keeping weight under control! I check at the gym twice a week. But in all fairness to myself, I don't really need to lose weight—OK—10 pounds would be amazing, but I want to tone up, and that is measured by BMI!!! 

It doesn't matter what measurement type you use, but sadly, we need to keep on top of it! As we age, our metabolism slows, so we have to be even more diligent. 

I don't let pain stop me from walking. There are days ...

The UPS guys are working overtime these days. A package was delivered at 8:15 last night. If they have something for us, it's usually here by 5 PM. I knew it was coming, but it must have come just minutes after I checked and went upstairs. And they send a picture in an email as proof. I'm sure they appreciate that extra part of the job, but with all the porch pirates, they don't have a choice. 

Well, it was another slow, methodical day! I did NOT complete all the UFO commitments, but I still have ...

Like all the quilters out there, MOST of us struggle with focus. We spot a new class, a new pattern, some shiny new gadget, and we are off in another direction before we even know what happened. After many years of following my eyes and ignoring the ever-growing mound of UFOs, a few UFOs are hanging around. 

I also had no issues buying fabric, like it was candy! It was because of that mound of fabric that several years ago (around 10, I believe), I stopped randomly buying fabric just because I liked it. I still buy fabric, but only ...

 Oh my— I read the comments every day, though I'm terrible at responding directly. In addition to your comments, I also get spam comments, which I delete when I see them. 

Can you believe this one? It was NOT a general comment, as most spam is -- it picked up on things I said and replied to them as if it were a real person. That's pretty freaky!

I am thrilled to report that I accomplished a lot yesterday. I have almost completed everything for one class. It was a long day, but I needed to get this done ...

Although it was a busy day, I don't have much to show for it. 

But I do have something to show you about my table decor rod. I bought these a while back (IKEA). They were brought to my attention because someone used bungee cords attached to the rod and then to their quilt to prevent the entire weight of the quilt from causing issues with the arm on the embroidery unit. They can also be used for free-motion quilting to prevent the quilt from falling off the table. Both are excellent places to use that rod. 

I liked ...

 OH MY GOSH --- someone else calls that fabric FORTREL!!!! They must be from the west, but what a great idea to make quilts for the homeless. That fabric cannot be destroyed. And now I have two boxes to deal with! But at least I know what to do with it! 

You are going to start saying that I sound like a broken record, but this new system of mine is working like a charm. As the number of projects in that blue box diminishes, I am so tempted to walk to the current projects table and pick up a couple ...

Today has not gotten off to a good start. I had a bad night and finally fell completely asleep at about 3 AM, so I'm late! But that's OK. Thankfully, that doesn't happen often. I missed spin class—big deal. 

I will not show you a picture of the office. The new computer is in here, along with a sewing machine box and those two bags of quilts. What amazes me is how much paperwork there always is. I don't even run a business (well, I manage my own things), but it's not like running ...

I'm so sorry to everyone for switching the dates around for the Virtual Retreats! I had to because I'm away this coming weekend, and the same is true for November. I could let you all have fun having a virtual retreat without me, which I've had to do occasionally, but if I can switch it, I will. I try to give advance notice, but I don't think I did for October. 

Someone gave me a Waterpik challenge—I need to get one first. But I will let you know that I flossed my teeth last night ...