Some of my stuff

This is a picture of the second collage book I did. This one went to a friend.

So now I have figured out how to post a picture, I have a lot more to post. Will have to download from a cd and the new stuff I have done will require me getting out my camera.

After all, tomorrow is another day!

Later all
Stay safe Stay warm

This is really fun

I can't say thank you enough to the ladies for making comments on my blog. Also to all the ladies that have looked and emailed me. And all the ladies I talk to via the blogs. And can't forget all the ladies, now friends, I am making from the yahoo groups I belong to. The is an awesome and a reality check for me. Thought I would spend a lot of time here in SE Ala alone. Not so, in fact I am getting really busy answering and sending emails, reading blogs and of course my quilting. In between I cook and wash and all those other boring things.

I finished the second quilt top and now into the third one. Not using any pattern so to speak. Sort of just putting them together. I think I mentioned earlier about the Moda fabrics I am using. Also that I had been out of quilting for a few years. As with anything else quilting has grown. Moda, as many of you probably know ( but I didn't ) takes a group of material that have been designed to go together and makes a bundle of 5" squares ( called charm blocks ), then they have the same material cut into 2.5" strips ( called jelly rolls ). So you can buy a set of charm blocks and jelly rolls and some extra material and wola you have a stash of material all matched up for you. You can cut it, fold it, just anything and then sew it together and you are done. I love it. No decision to make on what goes together, it is all done for you. I have to say they have some real talented designer's and artist's and the quality of the material is top of the line. Since I have been out of touch with the process and all my material is in Central Florida in storage this is working out great. Beautiful colors, darks and pastels, and all kinds of prints and solid and everything in between.

Mentioned earlier about the little tote bag I made and sort of messed up. Well I have started a second one and this time will do it right. Especially now that I know where I went wrong. Also made a cute little mini bag. It is going to hold my thread and bobbins and stuff for when I take a class or are working on something that I am taking camping with me. One of those good things.

Now I am stuck or tired. The last two or three day's I have been thinking of things that I wanted to say in this post. I guess I should have posted then because now I can't think of the things I wanted to say. Let's see, 61 coming in June, I wonder if that has anything to do with my forgetting. Now it is getting deep.

So will close for now. I am sure when I go and lay down all the thing's I wanted to put down and can't remember will just pop into my head. Then I will lay there trying to decide if I should get up or not. Decisions decisions.

Hope all are well and safe and warm.

More to follow.

My dollhouse

I belong to several yahoo groups and have been talking with a member of one of them. They just bought themselves and used Cabin A3 just like mine. They took it on their first trip and had a great time. Course after they had more question's to ask me. I don't mind that at all cause I just love my little rig and love to talk to anyone about it.

Finished the little bag and it turned out quite nice. Been working on the second quilt top and am over half way finished that. Am on quite a roll for now. It is all because sewing with my new Bernina is just a dream. I am really enjoying having such a great tool to work with.

Haven't decided what I am going to do next. I have gotten two of the three deliveries on the craft/collage stuff I ordered. The third order shipped and should be here in a day or two and then I want to get started on some of that. The black paper I ordered is here now so that means I can get started making and working on the pages for the journal. I have had the cover made now since the summer and couldn't find the black paper I thought I had. Got tired of waiting and trying to find it so just ordered some new stuff. If I start that I will have to put off sewing for a little cause that will take some time to work on.

I have a altered book I started for use with my craft info. I can put info, stuff I want or need, or anything I want to add to it. So have decided to make one for the quilt stuff I do. I figure I can keep a record of the quilts I am making, the kind of thread I am using, or anything that pertains to that particular quilt in there. Have to do some altering to it first. Thinking of covering the outside in pieces of upholstery material . Make it look like a quilt, but sturdy and will hold up to a lot of abuse. Just thinking about it at this stage. Will be a work in progress as most of my stuff usually is.

It is chilly tonight and I have the heat on low. I am feeling colder than usual and hope that is all that it is. Don't feel like I am coming down with anything, just cold. Hope I am warmer tomorrow. It is in the low 40's so it is not as cold as a lot of other places, thank goodness.

Today is bill paying day. Boring, but it has to be done. I will just have to hurry up and do it so I can get back to playing, which is so much better.

Got to talk to daughter and find out if there is anything more definite about her coming in March. I can hardly wait to see her. I really miss her so much, and my son in law and my grandbabies ( the three dogs ). I miss the love and attention I get from them and the hugs I get from my daughter. Course my son in law will hug me, just not as often as my daughter does.
Miss cooking in the kitchen with her and doing other things too. Maybe soon.

Well, it is late and I am getting tired and I think I will just get covered up and crash.

Stay safe Stay warm Take care

Finished

The quilt is done. Now I took some of the leftover square's and made a cute little bag. It is about 3x3x6 with a little handle. Have to get a zipper for it tomorrow so I can finish it.

Tired tonight. Guess I tried to do too much. It is what I do a lot of the time anyway. No one to blame but me.

Beautiful day today and spent it inside. Tomorrow it is supposed to rain. Then clear for the rest of the week. Will get out and do some cleaning up of my little dollhouse to get ready to go to Florida the end of the month or the first of next month. Either way it will be strawberries and more strawberries. Can't wait for that.

Must mention about something I picked up last week. I had seen the advertisement on TV and had thought about getting one. Looked at it a time or two before. I finally got one at WalMart for the RV mainly because of the size. It is one of those new hand held vacuum systems for the storage of food. You can get quart and gallon size bags to use with it. It wasn't that expensive it it lasts for awhile. First time I tried it I was following the directions, but was pushing down too hard on the counter. Found info on use on the web site and decided to try it again. This time with positive results. In fact it works great and will be a neat tool to add to my little dollhouse.
It would have been great last year when we went to Jacksonville and I found fresh caught shrimp for 2.50 a lb. and bought 40 lbs to take home. Of course I had to wash them and take the heads off, then pack them in ice so they would take the trip home. Could have used this little device and also gotten them ready to freeze. Oh well, next time.

Later Stay warm and safe wherever you are. Happy quilting/crafting or cooking.

All I Have to do is Dream

That's right. Got the Everly Brother's playing on my Windows Media Player. Sewing my sister's quilt on my new Bernina. Looking at a beautiful Valentines card from my daughter. Just talked to hubby. All is right in my world.

You know, maybe what my crazy workman's doctor said is right that day in his office when he told me I would have to go 100% disabled. He had tried the same thing a year earlier and I refused. Told him I would die if I couldn't work. So I kept it up for another year and just made myself worse. I loved my nursing and I was good at it. My patient's liked me and in the area I was living in we got a lot of repeats. Young diabetics having problems learning how to adjust the meds and diets to keep the sugar in control. Older folks with all the problem's that come with age. Then the surgical patients and so on.

So after another year of trying and having several episodes that put me on the floor and then unable to barely walk for over a week, he said " that's enough ". You will end up in a wheelchair before it is over and then you will be no good to anyone. So that left me with no choice but to stop.

To get back to the doc. He told me it might take 5 year's or more , but that I would be ok and happy again. Well he was wrong about the time frame. It has been more like over 8 years, but I am better. Got diagnosed with severe depression and post traumatic stress syndrome because of all the stress and not being able to work. Tried medication's and didn't like the side effects of wanting to sleep all the time and not have any get up and go . Other things factored in to make my life a mess.

It is better now. I love my little Bernina and I think that is the best medicine I could take. I love to create and to have the right tools to do the job is the best.

I am in a better place and hope to stay there. Climbing up out of that dark hole took a lot of hard work and effort. I am over the edge right now and hope I don't ever fall back in. It is a kind of hell all in it's own.

It is not over, some day's are good and some not so good. I hurt a lot and can't do what I want all the time . My energy level is not what it used to be, but then it may be that at 60 I am not suposed to have what I had at 20 or 40. I still want it.

So now I am going to listen to my music and quilt. That is a good thing.

Take care Stay safe and warm

WOW My first comment on my blog

What excitement, my first comment on my blog. And wouldn't you know it would be from one of my favorite bloggers " Fab Grandma ". Bless your heart, thank you and look forward to more of them. She is camp hosting in North Georgia at the moment. Hope it isn't too cold up there.
Cold here last night, I think it got down to 29, but still not as cold as other places. So I am grateful, but still cold.

Well I did it again. Just had to go back to the quilt store for some more thread. Couldn't finish the little tote bag I had started with out it. And of course I had to get a few more things!!! Too many, costing too much, but had to have it. And now I have a few more projects to do.

Well tonight I finished the little tote and it turned out cute even with the mess up I did with the construction. Will post a picture tomorrow if I can figure out how to do it. Now I am back to finishing my sister's quilt. Almost done with the top. One more row to add to the sides and then I have two rows to add to the top and the bottom. Then I can take it back to the quilt store, hurray, to have it quilted.

Talked to daughter last night. Salt Lake City is getting snow and more snow. Son in law was in his third hour of trying to get home and not half way yet. Normally a 45 minute drive was becoming a trip from you know where. I talked to him for a minute, he was ok, but getting tired of sitting and going so slow when he was able to move. Worry about daughter driving in the mess because her experience doing it is limited. In other words, never before, but definitely having to learn. Not to laugh, but better them than me. Sure am getting too old for that mess.

Since it is Valentine's day I hope everyone got some candy or a kiss or I love you or something a little special. I got my husband some happiness. You see, with being disabled and not working I have been at time's a very unhappy person. Now he is seeing me having fun and doing things, and that makes him happy. He enjoys all the things I do, is proud of my accomplishment's, and encourages me to continue. So buying more stuff today at the quilt store made me happy, so he is happy. That is where the happiness comes from, me buying more material to make him happy. Wonder if I can get away with that for his birthday, Father's day, Memorial day, 4th of July, Labor day weekend, Thanksgiving, Xmas, and New Year's Eve. Did I leave any out. Sure hope not. Wonder how long I can keep it going. For awhile anyway, if not, I will make it last for as long as I can.

OK, have to get back and continue to finish that quilt. Got a jacket pattern today and want to start on that next. This time I will read all the instruction's to begin with. I promise.

Take care Stay warm and stay safe

It Works Great

Well I did it again. Told you earlier that I had gotten my new little Bernina. Well today I had to get out and get a birthday card for my daughter who turns 41 this coming Saturday. Well, been talking ( really emailing ) to another blogger lately who is also a quilter. I had been told about this little quilt shop over in Ozark. So here I go figuring I could knock out two birds with one stone. Looking at all the posting and picture's of the quilts she has done or is working on got my get up and go going. Bad thing.

It is not an old house but the inside is done so that it looks like a little old house. Well here I go, I walk in and almost shout out " A little piece of heaven out in the middle of nowhere". I am so bad. Just cause I am from a big city ( Chicago ) and have been living near Orlando for the last 15 years, I suppose I should expect that I won't find all the thing's I am looking for. I mean, Orlando just got their very own IKEA. What else could you want. I can get my Vienna Hot Dogs, Vienna beef sandwiches, Pannera Bakery's, Chicago style pizza, but no Jay's Potatoe Chips. Oh well, you can't have everything.

So, let's get back to the quilt shop. The lady that owns is so nice and helpful. There is so much to look at. I spent over two hours wandering and looking and asking question's. They even have a longarm so when I finish my sister's quilt I can get it finished. That is one of the main reason's I wanted to check it out. Yea, if you believe that I have some ---------. Anyway, I picked up and picked up and looked and drooled and had the best time. Of course I spent way too much. Won't say how much just in case my hubby, who is computer illiterate, ever looks at this. It's my money anyway, so he can't say anything. I mean he went to Pannera's today in Montgomery and only bought me one cookie and one cherry danish. Could have at least bought me two. Cheapskate. So I got my material fix today. Something I haven't done in so long. It was a great feeling, cause I do love to quilt. Even bought a pattern to make the cutest little tote bag.

Had to come home and cook dinner, clean up and other wifely stuff. Got that over with and then got out the pattern for the tote. Got the material all cut out and then couldn't resist working with my new machine. What a joy. I have it almost done. It required some quilting. Now, I am not a machine quilter. I have tried on my other machine's with terrible results. My little Bernina is a whole different ballgame. Set the number's where they were supposed to be, tried it on a sample piece, and then went to town. What can I say, having the right tool for the job is the only way to go. I just can't say enough about the quality of the Bernina. This one is only one step up from the bottom in their pricing, but they don't skimp on quality. If I had the money I would get the 5 or 6 thousand dollar one. But, for my 200 dollars I am quite happy. This one will do for a very long time. So now I have two sewing machines that I probably will never use again. Anybody need a sewing machine. Got two for sale and I will give you a good deal.

So now I will have to finish my sister's quilt so I can get started on some of this new material I bought today. I think the cute little jacket that I bought the pattern for is next in line. It is not really quilted, but is made to look that way. I alway's need something for my arms when I have to go into a store. I am always cold, especially when they have the a/c running.

Am going to try to get some rest. Going to do breakfast for hubby and then sleep. Got that all turned around right now. Up all night, sleep till noon, then try to accomplish whatever I have to do. At least this way he get's breakfast before he has to leave to go to work. Good for him and I do enjoy taking care of him. After all he brought me one cookie and one cherry danish today.

Have a good day and take care. Over and out for now. More later. Will post a picture of the little tote when I finish if I can figure out how to.

Missed it

Guess some folks had a run in with some bad weather last night. We are in SE Ala so we missed all the bad stuff. Have to give thought to those who lost family or house or more. A horrible thing to live through. We just moved up here from Central Florida so have lived through some of the hurricanes before. No fun at all, it is so disruptive to everything. Things can be replaced but not family and friends. With hurricanes you can prepare a little for the storm, but with tornadoes there is no preparation. They just come and if you are lucky it doesn't strike you or yours. It is kind of like the lotto, but in this there is no winning, just a break or not.

So I have my new sewing machine and do I love it or not. She runs like a dream. Not anything close to the top of the line, but for me it works. I don't do a lot of fancy stuff so will work for me for a long time. I would like to have an embroider machine some day. I just got a serger a couple of weeks ago and still have to learn how to use it. Got to keep busy.

One note. I made a comment on one of the blog sites I read. More like a question and lucky me I got an email back tonight. A Quilter's Life in a box is the lady I wrote to and she was so sweet to have answered me and so fast too. I guess this blogging stuff and the folks that do are kinda like RVer's. So helpful and willing to share.

Life is good.

Not too much to post about. Went to Target tonight cause some folks on a Yahoo group I belong to were talking about some lp cannisters that were marked down and a little single stove too. Guess the Target in my area is not doing a clearance, but I did pick up an electric space heater. Actually the box had two in it for the price of one. Then they were on sale for 30% off. So two ceramic space heaters that are thermostatically controlled for 20 bucks. A good deal for me. Now I have one to put in my little camper for heat if I need it. My camper has a lp heater, but it is so powerful it just blows you away. It should probably be in something a lot bigger. So a little space heater is much more effective. Plus I don't plan on camping too much in the cold anyway. Gettin too old for that stuff. My body talks to me when it is cold outside. It is one of those just in case deals. In case it gets cold outside, like below 60. I can also use it here where I keep my little rig so it doesn't get to cold inside while it is just sitting here.

Guess I will shut it down for tonight.

Stay safe and warm.

New Toy

Well I sure did it tonight. Bought myself a little Bernina sewing machine. The local Hancock Fabrics store had a sale. That wasn't why I went in there. I needed a piece of material to go with my new stash I received from the quilting club I belong to. Then I saw it, a little Bernina for a 100 bucks off the original price. Couldn't pass it up since I have wanted a Bernina for years and years. Of course it isn't the 5 grand one I wanted, couldn't afford that , but this one will do for now. At least with Bernina I can trade up later for a fancier one. This little one makes a beautiful satin stitch and that is why I wanted Bernina. They do a pretty job, so now I am happy. Also got some material to make daughter a fleece robe. All that snow and cold in Salt Lake City say's she needs one, especially made for her by mom. Hubby picked out the material and it has Tweetie Bird on it. I am sure she will like that.

Nothing else is new. Still reading blogs, dreaming of the places I want to go and things I want to see. Just keep learning about new places, things and stuff to do.

Weather is nice today. Able to get out and drive with the windows open. Can't say that for a lot of the country though. Don't think I could deal with all that cold anymore. And who wants to drive and have to deal with all that snow or sleet. Not me , that is for sure.

So tomorrow I work on sister's quilt and my collaging stuff. Thinking about printing on velum and then with gel medium transferring it to some cloth to use in the journal/altered book I am in the process of making. Got some wire at Wally World and a new book on making jewelry and want to try some wiring stuff with beads. Then of course, there is dinner to cook and the dishwasher to unload. Boring stuff for sure.

Time to close for now. Till then!

No specific reason

Another day and another dollar or two or even less. Nothing much accomplished except I got a little running around done. Went over to Enterprise, Ala to check out some shopping stuff. It is known for the statue of the boweevil in the center of town. Those of you who are Yankee's like me and are not familiar with it, it is the little bug that came and wiped out the cotton crop here in the south. Sorry, don't know any more history than that , but it sure is a little ugly looking thing. This pretty statue of a girl holding some ugly bug, right in the middle of the intersection.

Anyway, been spending time reading a lot of other people's blogs, and looking at their pictures. What a joy that is. Can't wait till I can get out on the road and do a little traveling too.

So that is the whole of the day. Talked to daughter in Salt Lake and it is snow and snow and more snow. Looked at my weatherbug and checked out some of the traffic cams to see what her area looks like. Roads clear but snow on the sidewalks and buildings and stuff. Glad to be here in Alabama and not there. Just getting too old for all that cold.

On to another day and another dollar or two.