We got the word the other day that Jo had decided to come home from Kyrgyzstan now rather than waiting to see if the PCV's were going to be evacuated. Tonight, I called her and she said she's not sure when but will likely be back in Wisconsin by the weekend! She sounds very happy with her decision and knows that it's the right thing for her to be doing. She will be able to apply for another country if she chooses to do so, at any time, not just immediately. I think she will need some time to decompress from all the stress she's been under the past few months.
So, my sewing room continues to wait to be reassembled. Nuts! But I'd rather have my daughter in the spare room than a mess of fabric! GBG (great BIG grin)
Monday, June 28, 2010
Oh no! I did it again!
I was out making home calls this morning and when lunch time came, I stopped by a local yarn and fabric store to see if I could get another skein of yarn that I need. As luck would have it, they were celebrating 6 years in business and EVERYTHING in the store was 20% off! I got the skein of yarn--as well as enough extra yarn to make a sweater, the pattern for the sweater, and the needles to knit it with! Why did I do that since I have 2 other sweaters waiting for me after I finish the one I'm working on now!!!! Which is looking like it's going to take some months to finish. On the side of restraint, I'm happy to announce that, not only did I not buy any fabric, but I didn't even wander into the fabric side of the store! Thank goodness for 30 minute lunch hours or I would have been doomed! There's only so long I can restrain myself when I'm near fabric, without being put on a short leash!
Sunday, June 27, 2010
A view from my front door
We had a damp, drizzly day last week but the clouds broke as evening arrived. I stepped out my front door at dusk to watch the fog settling in among the hills in the distance and this is what I saw:
My house is located in a broad shallow valley created during the last ice age, thousands of years ago. By my calculations, the glaciers stopped right about here--in my backyard literally!--and when the ice melted and the glaciers receded, a lot of rubble was left behind, creating the rolling hills that form the sides of the valley we live in. Every once in awhile, I'll stop what I'm doing and REALLY look around. When you see it every day it's all too easy to overlook the beauty that surrounds us. I guess that's true of too many things--the people that surround us, the things we take for granted until we lose them--electricity, and jobs, for example--the flowers we grow, etc.
My daughter Jo, I think is learning this. Being in Kyrgyzstan, she has seen a bit of how the rest of the world lives and it's not nearly as luxurious as in the US. Things like flush toilets are a luxury as is instant access to electricity, internet and cell phones. She'll feel like she's in heaven when she returns home!
Yesterday, I worked outside almost all day in the garden. Don too, was pulling weeds, etc. so it's starting to look pretty good for a change. Today, a bit of housework, some shopping, and more weeding. Still knitting a few rows every night before I fall asleep--I'll get that sweater done before Christmas, I'm sure. :)
My house is located in a broad shallow valley created during the last ice age, thousands of years ago. By my calculations, the glaciers stopped right about here--in my backyard literally!--and when the ice melted and the glaciers receded, a lot of rubble was left behind, creating the rolling hills that form the sides of the valley we live in. Every once in awhile, I'll stop what I'm doing and REALLY look around. When you see it every day it's all too easy to overlook the beauty that surrounds us. I guess that's true of too many things--the people that surround us, the things we take for granted until we lose them--electricity, and jobs, for example--the flowers we grow, etc.
My daughter Jo, I think is learning this. Being in Kyrgyzstan, she has seen a bit of how the rest of the world lives and it's not nearly as luxurious as in the US. Things like flush toilets are a luxury as is instant access to electricity, internet and cell phones. She'll feel like she's in heaven when she returns home!
Yesterday, I worked outside almost all day in the garden. Don too, was pulling weeds, etc. so it's starting to look pretty good for a change. Today, a bit of housework, some shopping, and more weeding. Still knitting a few rows every night before I fall asleep--I'll get that sweater done before Christmas, I'm sure. :)
Friday, June 25, 2010
I'm worried
about my daughter, Jo, in Kyrgyzstan. The Peace Corps Volunteers have been sequestered again in a "safe place." That's twice in three months. There are rumors of more violence to come--who knows if the rumors are true or not. I've been calling her almost daily and she's quite stressed about the entire situation. At least, she's safe and not at her work site so that's a relief. I just wish things would settle down over there so she and the other volunteers can get back to what they came there to do--assist the local folks and try to make their lives a little better.
My vacation at the lake was wonderful! So peaceful and relaxing. There were about 30 of the extended family at the resort including babies, grannies, and dogs. We had 5 cabins and it was like open house all the time. People coming and going and I loved it. I told my husband that under no circumstances could he go around the cabin in his tidies since people used our cabin as a route from Cabin 5 to Cabin 7 instead of walking around. I even made friends with the dog--and I generally avoid dogs at all costs! It was very hard to have to pack up and go home, but we did and now it's back to the routine.
Gardening has taken priority for me. I'm scheduled for surgery on my knee next week so I want to get all the weeding, planting and transplanting done before that. I know--fat chance! But I can try.
No quilting going on. But I did shop at a wonderful quilt shop in Bemidji while I was gone and picked up some fabric--don't know what I'll make but I liked the patterns and colors. I took some knitting along and worked on that. I'm making a heavy cardigan sweater for myself that will be more like a jacket, I think. I also took along some embroidery and I plan on working on both of those things during my recovery period.
That's what's been happening in my life.
My vacation at the lake was wonderful! So peaceful and relaxing. There were about 30 of the extended family at the resort including babies, grannies, and dogs. We had 5 cabins and it was like open house all the time. People coming and going and I loved it. I told my husband that under no circumstances could he go around the cabin in his tidies since people used our cabin as a route from Cabin 5 to Cabin 7 instead of walking around. I even made friends with the dog--and I generally avoid dogs at all costs! It was very hard to have to pack up and go home, but we did and now it's back to the routine.
Gardening has taken priority for me. I'm scheduled for surgery on my knee next week so I want to get all the weeding, planting and transplanting done before that. I know--fat chance! But I can try.
No quilting going on. But I did shop at a wonderful quilt shop in Bemidji while I was gone and picked up some fabric--don't know what I'll make but I liked the patterns and colors. I took some knitting along and worked on that. I'm making a heavy cardigan sweater for myself that will be more like a jacket, I think. I also took along some embroidery and I plan on working on both of those things during my recovery period.
That's what's been happening in my life.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Not quilting!
I'm not quilting anything! Or sewing, knitting, crocheting, embroidering or anything! I'm getting ready for vacation--we leave on Saturday and I have a ton of work to do in the gardens before I can go.
On Saturday Lily and I will pick up my niece and her canoe and head to N MN for a week at the lake! I'm as excited as Lily and that's pretty darn excited! Don is coming up on Monday with my nephew and his 2 kids. I'm going to take some knitting and embroidery with as well as several novels to read and I'm not planning on doing much of anything else. I suppose I'll HAVE to do some swimming, canoeing, riding on the pontoon, play some frisbee, and other chores like that. And go to Bemidji a couple of times to check out the quilt shops.
I was informed late last week that daughter Tessa has been offered an affordable apartment in Menomonie and will be moving out of the house the last weekend in June! Yippee! Lily will stay until she's finished her summer school activities--the end of July--and then she moves to be with her mom. It's been about 2 1/2 years that Lily has lived with us and it's high time that she and Tessa have their own home again. Don and I are looking forward to being "regular" grandparents for a change--have her for weekends and overnights, then send her home to Tessa. I have loved having Lily living with us, but it's time for all of us to rearrange our living arrangements.
Tessa moving out means--I'LL GET MY SEWING ROOM BACK!!! She's been using the spare bedroom and I moved all my sewing stuff into a corner of my bedroom for the past year. I want my sewing room back! I also want a cabinet like Nancy-Rose's for my fabric but there's not a chance in H(eck) that I'll find one like she did.
GTG. The boss expects me to get some work done before vacation, can you imagine!
On Saturday Lily and I will pick up my niece and her canoe and head to N MN for a week at the lake! I'm as excited as Lily and that's pretty darn excited! Don is coming up on Monday with my nephew and his 2 kids. I'm going to take some knitting and embroidery with as well as several novels to read and I'm not planning on doing much of anything else. I suppose I'll HAVE to do some swimming, canoeing, riding on the pontoon, play some frisbee, and other chores like that. And go to Bemidji a couple of times to check out the quilt shops.
I was informed late last week that daughter Tessa has been offered an affordable apartment in Menomonie and will be moving out of the house the last weekend in June! Yippee! Lily will stay until she's finished her summer school activities--the end of July--and then she moves to be with her mom. It's been about 2 1/2 years that Lily has lived with us and it's high time that she and Tessa have their own home again. Don and I are looking forward to being "regular" grandparents for a change--have her for weekends and overnights, then send her home to Tessa. I have loved having Lily living with us, but it's time for all of us to rearrange our living arrangements.
Tessa moving out means--I'LL GET MY SEWING ROOM BACK!!! She's been using the spare bedroom and I moved all my sewing stuff into a corner of my bedroom for the past year. I want my sewing room back! I also want a cabinet like Nancy-Rose's for my fabric but there's not a chance in H(eck) that I'll find one like she did.
GTG. The boss expects me to get some work done before vacation, can you imagine!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
It's Finished!
Yesterday, around 9 pm, I put the last stitch in the auction quilt and threw it in the dryer to tumble and get out the cat hair, lint, thread bits, human hair, and all the other assorted debris that collect on a quilt during the process. It's at work with me today and I will take it to the gal in charge of the auction at lunch time today. After so much work, I really hope it brings a good price--it's for a good cause.
I feel as though I've been running a marathon, working feverishly to get this done on time. I don't think I'll start any new quiltng project for awhile--I'm pretty burnt out right now. It's into the weed pa--um, flower garden--I go now, to get things up to snuff in the outdoors. I have loads of pots to plant up, bushes to dig and transplant, and new things to plant as well. I think I'll be kept busy.
On Saturday, Tessa was weeding in the front flower bed and discovered a small nest with one very small blue egg in one of the red barberry bushes in there. She didn't see the bird but we thought it might be a gold finch since we have a lot of them at the nearby feeder. Over the weekend, she looked at the nest a few more times and by yesterday, there were 3 eggs in there. Today, before I left for work, I took a peek and Mama was sitting on the eggs--she's a Chipping Sparrow, nothing so glamorous as a Gold Finch, but a good sturdy little bird to have in the yard. We'll have to leave that flower bed full of dandelions (Awwwww) until the little ones fledge, hopefully in only a few weeks.
I feel as though I've been running a marathon, working feverishly to get this done on time. I don't think I'll start any new quiltng project for awhile--I'm pretty burnt out right now. It's into the weed pa--um, flower garden--I go now, to get things up to snuff in the outdoors. I have loads of pots to plant up, bushes to dig and transplant, and new things to plant as well. I think I'll be kept busy.
On Saturday, Tessa was weeding in the front flower bed and discovered a small nest with one very small blue egg in one of the red barberry bushes in there. She didn't see the bird but we thought it might be a gold finch since we have a lot of them at the nearby feeder. Over the weekend, she looked at the nest a few more times and by yesterday, there were 3 eggs in there. Today, before I left for work, I took a peek and Mama was sitting on the eggs--she's a Chipping Sparrow, nothing so glamorous as a Gold Finch, but a good sturdy little bird to have in the yard. We'll have to leave that flower bed full of dandelions (Awwwww) until the little ones fledge, hopefully in only a few weeks.
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