Quilting

I have finally gotten back to doing a little quilting. These are six of the twelve blocks that I'll use to make a charity quilt per request from one of the ladies on QOR. Hopefully, I'll get it done right after the new year begins. Yes, 2007! LOL This one will be assembled with the quilt-as-you-go method that I've become so fond of. Thanks to the ladies of QOR for the beautiful blocks! I hope I can do them justice with the quilting and assembling.

I have NOT even begun to clean my sewing room. I just can't seem to get in the mood. I'd rather quilt! LOL Imagine that... Oh well. I like to think of it as "organized chaos". I know where everything is. Well, almost everything. But, if I don't know exactly where something is, I know where to look for it.

It's been steady at work the last few days. I'm feeling much more rested since my son has taken over the task of driving Dad to his wound therapy sessions every morning. Thank you, Rob! If we can just get that leg of Dad's to heal, I think he would really feel almost normal. He's doing well otherwise.

Not a whole lot going on around here, and, quite frankly, I like it that way. Cleaning ladies came this week so my house is relatively clean. Except for the sewing room. :-)

It's getting late and I've got a busy day at work tomorrow, thank Goodness! Thank you, Lord, for faithful clients!

Christmas Eve

Merry Christmas!

Can you see the Santas on my socks? Judy took this picture of my ankles at the gym last night. I thought I was looking very festive as I was working out! LOL

I can finally show ya'll a picture of the Sister Quilt I made for Judy. I used pictures of just the two of us. I had a time finding pics with just us two in them! This pattern is one I found in Houston this year. It was actually a kit so I knew I'd be able to make it up pretty quick. She loved it. :-) Oh, and my brother and sis-in-law loved their respective quilts, too! His the Brother Quilt and her's the "Birds in the Windows".

Wow! So many wonderful things did Santa bring me! I know, it's just Christmas Eve, but that's when we exchange the gifts. My brother and sis-in-law sent me a Rowenta Professional iron! How great is that! I love it! Dad gave me a gift certificate to Dillards (yayyy!). Robert gave me a great NMSU sweatshirt with hood and some wonderful silk lotion. Jim gave me the handiest gift, a new laser mouse for my laptop! Judy gave me a new pair of jeans that zip (she and Rob decided I needed to quit wearing elastic-top pants, lol), Prescriptive face make-up (eyes and cheeks), cute ornaments, Starbuck's coffee and chocolates, and a new calendar for work. Thank you, all! Hope I didn't miss anything.

I woke up early this morning and decided to get to Wal Mart before everyone else did. Not a bad idea..I got there around 7:30 and there were some folks shopping. You could tell they all had the same idea I did. Everyone was rushing around trying to get out of there before the rush hit! LOL Could hardly concentrate on what I was needing for wanting to hurry up and get done. Well, I didn't have enough. I went back around noon with Judy. Finally got it all done and came home to wrap gifts. Oh, had to run to Hancock's to pick up a Rowenta iron for Judy for Dad to give her as a gift.

Jim and I came home around 9:30. It had started raining and looked like it might ice up if it gets much colder. Hope not since Robert is taking Dad to the hospital in the morning for them to dress his incision. That Robert has been an angel! He is living with Dad now and has taken it upon himself to help his grampo with anything he might need. I offered to take Dad for his dressing change and Rob said, "I've got it under control!" lol I'm grateful to him. How did I rate such a dependable child?

No quilting in the last few days. My sewing room looks like a tornado and an earthquake have hit it! I'll try to organize a little before I start working on some charity blocks that need quilting. I'm falling behind on the Midget blocks so I need to work on them. But, it's getting late and I think I'll go read for a bit.

Merry Christmas!

Last Minute Santa

I finally got about 4 hours of uninterrupted sewing last night and I was able to put these blocks together. I won't say who this is for, in case he sees this, but if you look real close I bet you can figure it out. I am not crazy about the whole design. I was going for a different effect but when you don't sit down and work things out on paper, sometimes it just doesn't work. But, it's finished with hanging sleeve and all.

Now I only have two more tops to finish quilting before Christmas. I'll keep you informed.

Dad's doing well. Hopefully, the infection in the incision is being beaten down by all the antibiotics. I think he's going to have to start seeing the wound care specialist right after Christmas if it doesn't begin to really get better soon. If it's not one thing....

Snowy morning so I'm not headed to work until a little later. Guess I'll work on one of those tops.

Rob, the graduate

We're back from Las Cruces and my son is now an official Aggie Alumni! He also has a job interview with a local communications company on Tuesday. We are so excited. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers during this exciting, yet stressful time, for him. He's pretty anxious.

No quilting for me this past weekend. Not sure I'll do much this week with Christmas coming up. I'd like to finish at least one quilt for a gift, but we'll see.

Today is Dad's follow-up in Lubbock. He's doing very well. Robert and I spent the night with him and I only heard him get up once. He says he was up 3 or 4 times but that is significantly better that every 30 minutes! One of the incisions on his leg, near the groin where they took part of the vein, is infected now but they've been working on it with antibiotics. He thinks it feels better today.

Just a little sum'n, sum'n...

This is a little paper-pieced Santa I put together one night at Dad's. It's a potholder that may or may not get finished in time for Christmas.

What a week. I'm home tonight to get ready to leave for Las Cruces in the morning. I need to do some laundry, pack, pay bills and sleep. I am so tired I hardly know where to start. I know the first thing I need to do is take care of my Internet obligations before I leave town. The birthday blocks will be in the mail tomorrow as well as blocks for a certain lonely mom in Wyoming. :-) Lotto block draw will be in the morning before we leave.

Dad is home for a bit by himself. Judy will stay with him tonight. He's doing well, but not sleeping as well as I think he should. He is up every 30 minutes to go potty and, even though I don't get up with him, I still hear him. So, every 4th or 5th trip, I'll holler at him and he says, "I'm ok!". LOL He says we're a team. His leg incisions are still draining. We go to Lubbock on Monday for staple removal. All the nurses that have seen him this week say he's doing exceptionally well. I think he may be experiencing the typical depression. We'll get some meds for that soon, I hope.

Ok, enough. I've lots to do. See you on the other side of Las Cruces, or maybe, I'll post a picture of my graduate son! 

Dad sitting, under the weather..

Oh, boy. This is going to be a long week. I have been staying with Dad at night and running over during the day. He's doing very well and has a homemaker with him during the day. One of us needs to stay with him at night. We've all picked up a bug. I went in to work for about an hour this morning and had to go home. I then proceeded to spend time in the bathroom and took a nap. I'm still a little queasy tonight. Sure hope this passes before we head off to Las Cruces this weekend.

I did finish the birthday blocks due this month. I'll try to get them mailed off before the weekend. I've also been working on the binding for a Christmas quilt. Don't know if I'll get to the others waiting to be quilted before the 25th.

I hope to be well enough to go in to work in the morning. I've got a busy day planned tomorrow and Thursday.

Dad

Now I know why I've never been able to keep a diary or journal. I forget to sit down to write something!

It's been a long week with Dad in the hospital. Judy and I got home early Tuesday morning. She went back Wednesday and I stayed in Clovis to work. Hopefully, Dad will be coming home today, Friday, a mere week since his open heart surgery. He's doing well, except for the expected depression that sets in after this type of ordeal. Our brother Henry has been with him since Tuesday. Good thing he is here! He's been a big help in helping Dad to the bathroom and such. I know he's tired and he still plans on staying with Dad once he gets home, at least until Sunday. I'm so thankful he has a job that allows him to work from his laptop and cell phone while being away from the office.

I took this picture of Dad the day after surgery when they'd moved him to his room. He had some delusionary moments but everything he's experiencing is normal, they say.

Since I've been home, I've been working on a Christmas gift quilt for a family member. I have several more I want to get quilted before Christmas but we'll have to see how that goes. They may get a note in a card or just the completed top.

We're still planning on going to Robert's graduation next weekend. Jim and I, that is. I know that child can't wait to get home and help with his grampa! He's a great kid.

I better get my hair dry and makeup on and head off to work. Massage day today!

Dad's hospital stay

In case you haven't noticed, I haven't posted for quite a few days. Here's why...Thursday morning, my dad had a heart attack. Guess what he was doing? Shoveling snow!! He tells us he wasn't shoveling it, he was "pushing" it! LOL All the doctors that have reviewed his case tell us that he is indeed, a very lucky man. Most people that have this type of episode do not survive. After an angiogram on Friday morning, he had a double bypass that was finished at midnight. He is now in his own room and slowly coming out of the anesthesia. It has made him flat "loopy"! He is so funny and everyone has been entertained by him, including many of the folks in ICU! I'd rather have him this way, though, than to have him crying or feeling sorry for himself. They will have him up walking tomorrow.

My brother, Henry, will be on his way in the morning. This will give Judy and me (I)? a chance to go home to get fresh clothes and pay bills. I hope to get back to work at least by Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Hopefully, Dad will be home late next week. They get people up and running so quickly these days!

I hope to get some quilting done when I get home. But, I am so tired right now that even making a block seems like a mountain.

Thanks to all of you that have been keeping us in your prayers. Please don't stop!