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We had to cut our road trip short. We had planned to stay in New York until Monday but Mother Nature had other plans for us. She suggested there might be snow in the higher elevations of Pennsylvania. And my sister and myself being the chickens we have always been about driving in the snow, left on Sunday around dinnertime. I had made homemade spaghetti sauce, homemade filling for stuffed shells. Everything was put together except for adding the sauce to the shells. We packed our car did a quick tour around Manhattan, left the kids on the curb and started our drive back to Ohio. We got a hotel room in Harrisburg and slept the night away and we were back on the road by 7am. My sister, Karen, was the driver and I was the navigator. And we were on the road for about an hour when it started snowing. (in April). The roads were pretty clear and well treated. We did hit a few patches of snow on the roads, but slow and steady wins the snow race. Once we hit Ohio the sun was out but it was chilly. We made it home without incident.

I ended up with a head cold and on Saturday I was pretty much out of it. I was running a fever, coughing, sneezing and blowing. My sister, Karen, and my kids Nick and Tania left the apartment to explore the Brooklyn Flea Market. They got some cool things. Food. Jewelry. Art work. Karen got her ride on the subway but no taxi ride. Karen made dinner for us on Friday night and it was yummy. My son had three helpings!!

The quilt was a big hit with the kids. It is on the bed and even Frankie, my grand dog liked it. I had a wonderful time and wished that we could have stayed longer! Guess I should start planning my next trip to Brooklyn,.

In stitches,
Judy

Road trip

We are on the road! Who knew stopping along the highway for a hotel would be so tough? The third stop yielded a hotel! Also found out that us Ohio gals are spoiled! Stopped several places in Pennsylvania after 9pm looking for a grocery store or drug store. Closed!! It is expensive to get cold medicine at a truck stop convenience store. Oh well!! Getting ready for bed! We are due in Brooklyn at 6pm! In stitches, Judy

When did Quilting become so hard

Don't get me wrong, I love all aspects of quilting, but when did it become so hard to do. I am struggling with a design. I bought the fabric before the design was in place and now after much trial and error I have the design worked out. I have been to the local JoAnn Fabrics to get another yard of the yellow fabric I am using in the design because I cut the nine patch units too small. Last night, I went to cut the last pieces for wall hanging and low and behold there is not enough. I got this fabric at the Fabric Shack. So I went online and ordered another yard of this fabric. I am hoping that I will be able to run up there tomorrow and pick it up. Plan B is to have it sent to my mom's house as I am leaving for my road trip on Wednesday and having all my mail held at the Post Office until I get back.

In stitches,
Judy

Stuff

Life has gotten the better of me lately. I have been working on a wall hanging design that has kicked my butt. I have EQ7 and it is a wonderful program, but it does not give directions for constructing the block. I am a smart gal and with some trial and error, I have finally overcome the design and this weekend I should be able to assemble the blocks. I had to dig thru books and templates to finally get to this point. I used books that I had brought and barely looked at. I am so glad that I have such a nice library and I will start using it more often to get other quilts started and finished.

I will be posting the fruits of my sewing these past weeks, later this weekend. I am so excited about everything that I have finished.

I am getting ready to go on a trip to Brooklyn, New York to see my kids and grand dog. My sister and I are leaving Ohio this week and driving to Brooklyn. I will be cooking for them once I get there and I think we may be helping my daughter in law finish emptying the boxes from their recent move. And who doesn't love a good road trip.

Got to get upstairs and fire up the work computer. I have an Alzheimer's quilt for the Ami Sims initiative to work on until the calls get hopping. Hope everyone has a great day. And remember the weekend is almost upon us!!

In stitches,
Judy

Done

The yard is finished. It only sprinkled on me as I finished. And I am fine, though it is a shame that I don't melt in the rain like sugar does. My Alzheimer quilt is pin basted. Cannot decide if I am going to hand quilt it or machine quilt it. I have started hand stitching the binding on the quilt I have been hand quilting. Still have two more sides to do. Should be finished before Easter.

I am having issues with a quilt I designed. It looks great in EQ7 and it looks great in the mock up I did with fabric and a glue stick, but I am having trouble getting the angles just right. Guess it is back to the drawing board for the quilt. I am going to enter it in Timeless Treasures quilt contest. I am sure that it is going to work itself out. I just hope that it is soon. Trial and error is not my strong suit.

In stitches,
Judy

Getting things done

I think I have accomplished quite a bit today. I finished appliqueing the grandmother's flower to the background fabric for my Alzheimer's quilt for Ami Sims' project. I worked an eight hour shift. Even with a lupus flair up, I was able to cut the front yard. I also got 2 hours of overtime in after cutting the front yard. Made couscous. I opened 750 safety pins for my next quilting project. Sounds a bit disjointed but I am happy with everything I got finished today. We are finally busier at work and they are offering bits of overtime. I am hoping to replace my car this year, so the overtime will help with my down payment. Time for bed!!

In stitches,
Judy

Days to go

I am counting down the days until I leave for my trip to New York. I have packed in my mind, so hopefully, I won't forget anything. Doubtful! The quilt for Nick and Tania is done!!! I am hoping if the weather co-operates tonight to get a good picture outside. I am also hoping to get the front yard cut tonight after work. I have had a flare up of my lupus and most all weekend could hardly walk. I am feeling better and thinking the front yard is calling my name. And of course, the back yard is saying "Pick me on Wednesday"!!

I have a tiny bit of quilting to do on the hand quilting project and then stitch down the binding. I am doing a quilt for the Ami Sims Alzheimer project and I need to get that finished. I am hand appliqueing a block. I have not done these in years. It is restful. And almost done. And then I want to start on the bright orange, yellow and pink fabric. I have my design and I need to execute a block to see if it will work. It worked fine when I did the mock up with fabric and glue stick but sewing it on the sewing machine is much more different and not as forgiving as glue.

I need to get my stuff together and find the chair for my desk. It is time to start my week at work. From what I have heard we had our first bit of the promised overtime last night and I went to my guild meeting instead. Imagine that. I had a good  time at the meeting and we had some awesome show and tell and a speaker. I am hoping there will be more overtime in the near future!!

In stitches,
Judy