Another beautiful day in the neighborhood!

Our weather here in Northern Michigan has been so gorgeous for March, record breaking highs. Who needs to be a snow bird this year and seek warm weather! Robins are chirping, spring plants are blooming (tulips, forsythia) and leaves are growing. Hmmm, we usually get/have snow until April so I am not expecting this to last but I will enjoy it while it is here. We had a big storm last year in April of 10 inches of snow, and I have seen snow in May.

DS had all 4 wisdom teeth out Friday. He was so sick afterwards and he now has fever, swelling and a bit of pain. I think it will take a bit longer to heal than expected but at least the teeth are out and won't be a bother any more. I haven't done this much hands on nursing care in several years!

 

I have sewed a few quilt blocks this weekend and feel like I have things in order around here before jumping into the work week.

Thursday already?

I am feeling better today because things are back to a normal schedule. Next Monday will throw things off again but until then I am feeling at home in the normal schedule. I was able to pin a quilt on the long arm frame yesterday with some help from my Mom. I worked out and I even played my voilin a bit. Things feel back in balance.

I had a funny experience yesterday, I have an old email that I had to reactivate. I checked it and found some email that I needed to respond to. It made things feel very comfortable, familiar and made me happy to find this familiar email. Weird. I am keeping the email because it has a purpose. I will check it more often now, it felt like the right thing to do.

I continue to work on my book project. I am in a the process of making samples of patterns. If I worked on it all day every day it would be done, but that would make me a bit nuts. So it is a slow process and I hope to have it all together this summer. That may be a bit ambitious.

Happy Thursday! I will be home this weekend being domestic as DS has all four wisdom teeth out tomorrow.

Off Schedule

This whole month my schedule is off. I have been working at another office one day a week and it is throwing off my life. I am working late and then the ripple effect starts....I miss my Monday workout. Now last week I went to the gym T/Th/Sat. I can't this week. So now I am off all ready.

Then the stress eating and late eating starts. Ugh. Now I am off.
I am tired and grumpy and off.

So I took last weekend off. It was wonderful. I had the best time looking at a prospective college with my son. As a family we spent time doing silly things, watching old TV shows on YouTube. Sang songs, went for drives. I bought a fancy phone and was schooled by my family on how to run it.

BUT I haven't sewn a quilt block in 4 days. I tried last night after a stressful Monday and it was a disaster. I did minimal cleaning and I have plans to to a proper job this weekend because I will be home.

I am trying to make the best of it because the schedule is going to be like this and I won't be in control of my schedule. I hate that because it spills over in to my personal life and then I have to sacrifice things that I don't want to. I start to feel like I need to put on my big girl pants, just be an adult and I feel bad because it isn't any one's fault the schedule is like this.

Thought for the day: The best way out is always through

It will end before long and life will get back to normal. :)
Ahhh, I feel better already. Off to do my morning routine, because that may get me back on schedule.

Simple Living

Spring is right around the corner and I have been thinking about spring cleaning. I usually take that time to do things like wash walls, wash cupboard doors and wash windows. Another thing I do is get rid of things that aren't useful any more. Especially items that accumulate over the winter because they are too big to take outside in bad weather.

My parents are having a yard sale in a month or two. I am selling several things and hope to be rid of those large items that aren't useful any more and taking up space. Things like an old console TV, old dining room table and a queen Anne's couch. I want to keep streamlining this house. I find that I am ready to part with more and more because they serve no purpose other than taking up valuable space. And in this little house, space has to be approached like a rare commodity.

Living in a small space has it's advantages though. It takes less to heat and cool. It cost less in mortgage. It has less time invested in cleaning and maintaining the property. It is a size that we really use and rooms don't sit empty waiting for someone to visit them. It means joining a gym because there isn't room for a ton of exercise equipment. Besides, if we don't have a gym membership we tend to not exercise.

All that said, it has it's challenges. Living small means you have to keep only the things that have purpose, meaning and a place to live in your home. It means constantly sorting, organizing and getting rid of excess. Hmmm, sounds like a life lesson for me in that last statement.

Simple living for me means living small.

Tiny Tuesday and Happiness Project updates

a small 6 inch block- I have been making a twin quilt

ear buds ready for a workout. Part of my happiness project is working out three days at the gym. I feel stronger and healthier. A must in the key to seeking happiness.

This is bread I made before going to work yesterday. I think a huge part of the happiness project is approaching what I do for other people with a heart full of love. I do things for others in my life because I want to promote a moment of joy in their life. Not because I have to. I want to, spontaneously, do a "random act of kindness." That makes me happy in turn.

Design Wall Monday

Constellation of Stars BOM

I am really proud of my work on this. I have had some challenges with the small blocks. It is paper pieced but in a different method than I was familiar with and I did it! The sashing makes an interlocking chain, that will come more clear as I make more blocks and they are in proper order.

I had a wonderful weekend. It was sunny and warm. My son went skiing in 60 degree weather, last trip out I think.The snow is melting. I was able to sew up blocks. I tried to "relax" more. I watched a couple movies, and parts of the Nascar race with hubby. How did I overlook the X men movies? I enjoyed them.

I am also in a great debate of what smart phone I want to get. I think I am going to get an upgrade of what I have a Motorola Droid phone with 4g network capabilities as well will get 4g in the next year. I just don't know....

Happiness Project and Tiny Tuesday

Starting something new and finishing things makes me feel accomplished and ultimately part of being happy. We need to have new and challenging things to keep our brains active and healthy. I need it to keep from being bored. I have started a brain training exercise game for fun. I want to work up to going through a review book for the ACT. I think I need to just have an academic refresher.

I started a new quilt. It is constructed differently from anything I have done before. The fabrics are different from any I have picked. I love it, after a slow start. My tiny Tuesdays are the small 5" blocks on the left. They were a challenge!


Finishing is important to me. I don't like things half done things piled up. I like to be able to have a clear "list of things to do." I have 8 quilt tops to finish of my own. I have three in the works. One customer quilt waiting to be quilted. I have a list going on all of that.

I work out on Wednesdays and I feel like I have finished a good thing every time I leave the gym. Definitely part of what I need for health and happiness. To work, so I can get to the after work fun things.

Design Wall Monday

I started a new block of the month, it is called Constellation of Stars. It is paper pieced and has 12 inch and 5 inch blocks. These are 5 inch blocks. It is pieced differently than I am used to, I have to trim the fabric to have a seam allowance around the paper. And the pieces just fit, not over sized for my mistakes. I think this will make me a better piecer.

Quilting that I have completed for Holly's quilt. The leaf border and feather surprise in the middle.

Here is the back.

I did an inventory on my finished quilt tops. I have 8 in the stack and new ones started. I am buying batting this week and put one of my quilts on the frame. I think I have the backing fabric sorted out for one. I am working like mad to complete something!

Little Jewels

I am approaching the halfway point in the paper peeling process of the Civil War Diary Quilt blocks. (I love alliteration, don't you?)

They are looking very good. I have a dark brown sashing purchased for this project. I am hoping to start joining the blocks over the weekend. We are supposed to get a storm beginning tonight and a foot of snow is in the forecast. Perfect weather for quilting at home. Wait, gotta get through the Friday schedule at work, first! Mandatory training, would it be rude to bring blocks to peel paper off of? :)

Simple Living

How do you deal with a common cold? In simple living, I tried everything. I tried zinc. I drank fluids. I got rest and ate well. Bottom line: sometimes you just can't avoid the inevitable. I have a cold and and ear infection.

So I went to the doctor and I am taking meds. I feel better.

Simply stated: I am not against modern technology, modern medicine or modern convenience. Simple living to me is keeping life less complicated.