Bulls Eye!

This is the start of my Bulls Eye swap. These circles are sewn on, one on top of the other and edges left raw. Then you quarter each block.
You put each block back together using different quartered pieces. A set to swap is made up of 3 of the same block. I'll send them off and, in return, will receive as many as I send out and will have a variety of quarter blocks to sew together with the one block I leave for myself.
This is a great way to use up some of your scrap fabric. I was able to sew three blocks today while watching Kerrington. She slept through most of it and then watched me while lying on her pillow while I finished.

Dad got home from the hospital. I will call tomorrow to find out more information on what they will do for him.

Kerrington noises

Here is Miss K. being her sweet little self. I thought you might enjoy just watching and listening to her instead of listening to my rantings.



Dad spent the night in the hospital last night to undergo more testing. The urologist said that it is, more than likely, prostate cancer. He is so sure that he does not plan to do a biopsy of the prostate but he does want bone scans and a CT. He'll get that done today. Please keep him in your prayers. He was actually his old self last night, according to Judy who stayed with him until 10 p.m. He had her ROFLMA (rolling on floor laughing my a** off) saying his silly little things. We had not seen him like that for a few days now. I think he's really been hurting and now that he knows things are going to be done, he's more relaxed.

I'm off to see Kerrington again. Hope you enjoyed seeing, and hearing, her, too!

Help Us Choose Home

As some of you may or may not know, my sister runs a local home health agency (which we rely on to help us with dad). She is also very involved on a state level and says that the current federal administration is looking to cut homecare dollars. The national homecare association is fighting the cuts and is working on a grass roots campaign to stop the cuts. Please take a moment to view the video on this website Help Us Choose Home and, if you are so moved, the site has a link that will allow you to contact your legislators to show support for homecare dollars.

Now, back to our scheduled blog post...

Graduation gift

It's graduation time again! I've only received one announcement and it's from the granddaughter of one of my co-workers. Audi used to clean my station before she got busy with high school stuff. So, I've fixed her a little gift. I'm sure she has plenty of quilts made for her by her grandmother, so I put together this little "work of art". That's what the magazine calls it, anyway. I found the idea in the summer 2009 issue of Quilts and More. Very simple but striking, I thought.

I'm off to finish some chores. I will spend the night at Dad's tonight. He seems a bit better, but the night girl is out of town and Joe can't be expected to be up with him all night and work the next day. He took his turn on Friday night, Judy stayed there last night and now it's my turn. I will probably get some hand work done while there.

One year old birthday gift

Have I ever told you how nice it is to be able to work on small projects between the big ones? I really, really like to sit down and finish a sewing project from beginning to end in one evening. Tonight, I made this little cloth book for Mattie's first birthday. Mattie is April, my daughter-in-law's, niece. There is definitely reason to celebrate her first birthday since she had a rough time the first few months of her life. Mattie has grown so much this first year and is a beautiful little girl and my granddaughter's cousin.



My kids, my sister and I had our usual Friday night dinner date at Juanito's tonight. I brought home some enchiladas for Grampa Jim. He was tired and wanted to watch boxing. We sent big Grampo a stuffed sopapilla. Little Miss K. was a sweet baby and slept through most of the dinner conversation flowing all around her.

I am now working on BullsEye blocks for a swap with my online group, Quilts on Review. I'll post pictures when I get more done.

Fabulous flooring and a curly Joe

Curly Joe! Yes, folks, his hair is naturally curly. Now I wonder why, when he was about three or four, did I perm his hair? I guess I needed the experience. I have to admit..I have two handsome sons. :-)
This is the new floor in Dad's kitchen and the picture below shows part of the dining room floor. Things have not all been put back but it looks great.

She's growing so fast!

Here is Kerrington. On the left, she is one week old and on the right, she is two months old. Unbelievable how quickly these babies grow!

I have been too busy to sew. Betcha never thought I'd say that! Taking care of Kerrington is a breeze. Combine that with staying with Dad all afternoon makes it a little harder. Dad has had a bit of a setback lately with his legs hurting enough that he has a hard time walking. So, someone has to be with him all the time to help him to the bathroom and back to bed and/or his motorized chair. But, Kerrington has been an angel during these afternoons. Maybe she knows I need her to be sweet while tending to "Big Grampo". Dad has really enjoyed having her there. She smiles at him and he loves it.

They have put in a new floor at Dad's, in the kitchen, dining room, laundry room and front bathroom. That, too, has been a bit of a trial the last few days. Hopefully, tomorrow will be the final day of all the installation. It is looking great. I hope I remember to take my camera to take pictures of the new floor.

I do have some sewing projects in progress. I am working on quilting a top for a client, a tablerunner for the same client, some pillowcases and my BOMs. I took a few stitches on one of them today while at Dad's but it was almost a waste of time taking it out of my bag. Dad's beeper worked overtime today. lol That's ok. I'll get them done eventually.

Almost bedtime again. Will take another Benadryl to dry up my nocturnal sinus drainage. Took one last night and it worked wonders. First time I didn't have a coughing fit in a week. Goodnight!

At Grama and Grampa's house

Even though I didn't get to stay with Kerrington yesterday, I did see her. April brought her to the house about 4:30 and we watched her until 9:30. Robert was here, too, for part of the evening so we ordered pizza 'cause Auntie Judy came to visit, too! Surprise, surprise! lol
These hairy arms and big hand belong to Grampa Jim. Kerrington really does love her Grampa Jim but I think I'd be a little worried if I was that small and that big hand was coming towards me! lol

I think the feeling is mutual with Grampa Jim. He thinks she is just too cute! She's a good baby and only fusses when she's needing something. The rest of the time she just smiles and "talks" to us. We had a great time.

I'd better get going. We're having Clint's birthday/going away party today. He's off to go work at Penney's. For those of you that know him, Saturday will be his last day with us. I'm taking deviled eggs, as usual.

Repair work

Front of the quilt.
Back of the quilt.

No pictures of Kerrington today. Instead, I've got pics of a quilt top I made about 6 or 7 years ago for a client's son. He has used this thing so much that the backing fabric was coming apart where the pieces were sewn together to make the back big enough. It wasn't just a seam coming apart, though. It was torn and there were several other spots that showed much love and wear that needed covering. I didn't want to just patch it up here and there, so I did the "sew and flip method after laying down the long center piece. I did not originally quilt this quilt so I was worried that the straight lines might interfere with the quilt design. Not to worry. Plus, the original quilting is coming apart! So, maybe the lines of stitching I've put in will help that. So, now they've got a reversible quilt! lol

I had an unexpected day off from my babysitting play (can't call it a job! Too much fun!) today since April was told she could stay home due to the recent flu scare. Better for her to stay away from those that might have it but I sure miss staying with my sweet Kerrington :-(. I'll run over later and take them some deviled eggs I promised. In the meantime, I've gotten the quilt repaired and starting on another one that has been waiting. I also need to run to Hobby Lobby.

Sweet Baby K-akes!

See why I couldn't stay away? Such a sweet baby girl our Kerrington!

Sunday night was spent getting the rest of the BOMs ready for stitching and making the Bronco pillow to match the denim quilt. I have some cording that I used to make the piping.

Oh, I also made another batch of muffins. Now, since it's 11:30 p.m., I better get some sleep. Have a good week and remember to wash your hands and stay away from sneezing and coughing people! Of course, since allergies are affecting a lot of us, it's hard to know who might really be sick, so just use common sense.

Saturday (or, only 2 days before I can stay with Kerrington again!)

Whew! What a busy three days at the shop! It was great, though. My wonderful clients are almost as happy as I am that I'm able to be Kerrington's sitter for the first three days of the week. I say "almost" because some of them would really rather come in on Tuesday or Wednesday, but they are sweet enough to work with my new schedule. Thank you so much!

The new May BOM was posted yesterday so I was able to finish the stitching tonight. I hope to get it quilted and ready to hang by Monday. I still need to find some Spring stickers for the wooden hanger it will hang on.


Judy got to babysit tonight for about 4 hours. Of course, I went by to visit! lol Judy graciously let me help her 'sit until Rob and April got back from their date night. Too much fun!

It's Sunday morning now. I didn't post this message last night when I wrote it because I was going to post pictures of Kerrington at Auntie J's house. I don't have them yet, so I'll update later. In the meantime, I'm off to Dad's to fix Sunday breakfast.

Fiona's Giveaway

If you click on Fiona's name, it will take you to her page. She's posting a giveaway to celebrate her 50th post. Fiona was my Spring swap partner to whom I sent a package. A lovely lady, and new grandma, too, and a very busy person. She lives in Tasmania.

Slightly longer video

Finally got it to upload to Blogger! The smile at the beginning of this video is worth the wait. She is growing so fast. The first two days were absolutely perfect! Thanks, Kerrington, for making me a silly, happy Grandma!

Kerrington and Grama V's second day

Believe it or not, she was just as good today as she was yesterday! Although, I hope she sleeps better tonight for her parents than she did last night. Since Kerrington slept so much for me yesterday, it may have interfered with her sleep last night. So, I tried to keep her awake longer today.
Look at this red hair! And, it even has a little wave to it. Her eyelashes are growing and are red, too.

I tried uploading a longer video, but this was the only one that would cooperate. I'll keep trying.

Wonder if I feel like working on any sewing tonight? I'm not sure. I feel like I need a break from the machine. The denim quilt really took it out of me. I didn't even do any handwork today.

First full day with Grama V.

She was the best baby, ever! Ate when she was supposed to, slept when she was supposed to, dirtied her diaper when supposed to and cooed and smiled the rest of the time. I think she knew that I was a little nervous the first day I had her all to myself.
After her noon bottle, we went over to Big Grampo's house. Dad sure lights up when he sees "Kerri". He even played the harmonica for her. After I fixed him something to eat and Auntie Judy stopped by for her Kerrington hug, we headed back home. Rob got home a little early so I let her finish her third bottle and I went on home.



Once home, I decided to make another batch of the chocolate chip bran muffins I made last night. Everyone seemed to like them well enough, so I had to make more for Jim and Joe. I took the majority of them to Rob and April this morning.

While Kerrington slept, I napped a few minutes, too. Then I mended some scrubs for April and worked on my embroidery and applique. It was just a wonderfull day! Even the overcast sky didn't dampen my bliss. I am looking forward to tomorrow. Yeah, I know, don't expect Kerrington to be so agreeable two days in a row, right? Well, ya never know. I'll report tomorrow night.

Who's got the blues? Not me!

No way! Not today! I am finished with the denim/levi quilt! And, I got to spend quality time with my sweet Kerrington. I'd say it was a great day all around. The first picture is the front of the quilt. Jim is holding it up.

The second picture is the back of the denim quilt. I didn't use any batting between the jeans fabric and the orange flannel. I weighed the quilt after finishing and was amazed that it only weighed 8.5 lbs. Jim thought it would weigh at least 25 lbs! lol He helped hold it while I finished adding the rows and the binding so he knows how heavy it is.
The third picture is a sample of something called "snap happy purse". But, I think I didn't do it right. You use a metal measuring tape but I think I used one that was too small. Ah well, now I know what to do.

So, this was a good Sunday. I didn't go to Dad's first thing, (my brother was there so he took over breakfast duties) but I did go on over after finishing the quilt. Rob, April and Kerrington were there so we decided to fix tacos. Ok, Henry fixed them and they were "muy deliciosos!" While Henry cooked, I fed and changed Kerrington and held her while she slept. It was bliss. April had brought her little niece, Maddie, for a visit so we had our share of babies today. Maddie is so cute.

Dad tolerated us all and I think he actually enjoyed seeing the little girls there. He loves to see "Terri" lol. I was so proud that he always gets Kerrington's name right, and today, he called her "Terri". Ah, well.

I brought tacos home to Jim and got the laundry started. Then I worked on the snap happy bag.

Dad and I go to Lubbock tomorrow. His right leg has healed completely and the left leg is almost there. Speaking of laundry, I need to get it out of the dryer now.

April BOMs

Only 5 more days left in the month of April and I finally finished the stitching on my sets of the April block of the month. If you click on the picture, you'll get a closer look. I still want to applique just the rabbit on a 6" square and I'm still not finished with the March applique.

After work today, I stopped by Dad's to see my brother who is here visiting Dad for the weekend. His wife was at her sister's so I'll see her tomorrow. Rob, April and Kerrington were at Dad's, too. Little K was wide awake and put on a show for all of us. From there, we went back to Rob and April's so my brother was able to see their new house and I got a little review of what I'll need to know to start my new "job" on Tuesday. I can't wait! I'm a little nervous, I have to admit. I think Kerrington and I will do fine and I hope that you, Rob and April, won't worry too much! I feel so blessed to be able to do this for you.

Umm...no, I did NOT work on the denim quilt today. Seems I have to "feel it" to work on it and it didn't happen today. Maybe tomorrow after I get paperwork out of the way. Always something, huh? I must finish it soon because I have a couple things that need doing for clients. They're not rush projects but I still want to get them done ASAP.

It's nearing midnight so I will close for now. By the way, my blood pressure seems to be under control for now. My heart rate seems to be a little more difficult to tame, but I'm working on it.

It's the little things that count

And, are faster to work up! June, if you're reading this, I hope you are happy with the bag I made for you last night. I've run out of bigger pieces of the fabric I used in the first b/w bag, but this one is is just as nice.
I am such a sucker for a well-made tutorial. I wanted to try my hand at making these cute, but very simple, headbands. (I tried posting the link to the tutorial, but kept getting an error. Leave me a comment or email and I'll send you the link to make these little cuties.) I ran into the dollar store yesterday afternoon, just before I had my pedicure, and bought the hair bands to do these. Sometimes a girl just needs a headband to keep things off the face and out of the eyes, ya know?
Especially when it's hot. I made one to wear last night (not in this bunch) and it works well. I got carried away, again, and made several more. I'll pass them out to friends and relatives today.
You might remember a photo album cover I made last week with Kerrington's initial on it. I wasn't really crazy about the embroidered "K" I did, so I fixed up a different one last night. This one is appliqued and the lettering is crudely embroidered by me, by hand. What can I say, it was nearly midnight when I finished! lol
Fine! I'll work on the denim quilt now. Well, when I get home from work. I've put it off long enough. I'm only about two or three nights from finishing it, but I just can't muster up the energy, or strength, to work with it. I'll say it again...it's heavy! Maybe I'll work on the matching pillow...

Time to get ready for work again. I will soon be getting up early to get to Rob and April's before 8 a.m. to take care of baby K. three days a week. Next Monday, I'll take Dad to Lubbock for his wound care checkup then Tuesday and Wednesday will be my first two full days of caring for Kerrington. I can't wait! I hope I'm up to the task. Saturday afternoon I'll go over for a while so I can have my "training session". LOL Just like any other job, I need to know what I'm going to be doing and where everything is so it's imperative that I be shown what's going on. I don't wanna mess things up! Rob and April are doing a great job and I wouldn't want to disrupt K's schedule, unless it's absolutely necessary. Just kidding, April!

Fruitful Sunday

Another day gone by without working on the denim quilt. But, I did get a few things done. The first photo album cover is for April. She asked me to make one for her little album with a "K" on it. I hope she likes it.

The second cover is for my sis-in-law, Shanon. If you're reading this Shanon, you'll be able to pick it up when you guys come for the weekend this week. Can't wait to see you guys!

Here you see the back of the third cover I worked on this weekend. I've been using ribbon and attaching velcro to the back and the ribbon. Makes for a very neat, nice closure.
This one will go to my sweet daughter-in-law, Brenda, full of pictures of her new little niece, Kerrington.
These "Runaround Bags" are made for friends. I'm not sure I should mention any names because they might be a surprise and I don't want to ruin that! lol Fun to make and only takes 30 minutes, yes, thirty minutes! to make one purse. The hardest part is deciding on the fabric.



A Dad update....He is doing very well getting around on his motorized chair. My son, Joe, who lives with him, attached wheelchair ramps to the front entrance of the house today. A very big thanks to one of my clients who graciously shared the ramps with us. Joe also rearranged their living room today and there is much more room for Dad to move around in now.

It's time for bed since I've got to get up early to go have some blood drawn. It's time for a check up especially since I've had the dizzy spells and the fact that my blood pressure has been on the rise. I've decided that I MUST change my eating habits and start back exercising. This is ridiculous. Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers that my blood tests come back within normal limits. Thank you!

Three fourths of the way done

I was hoping to show you a finished picture of this quilt by now. But, I've put it off since I've not been feeling well. Tonight, I finally connected the first eight rows together. Can you imagine how heavy it is? I knew it would be, but I was actually a little surprised at how much it already weighs and I still need four more rows! Yikes. Jim had to help hold it as it was coming off the sewing machine and that made it easier. I will connect that last four rows and then put them on as one piece onto the rest of the quilt. I will be so glad to bind this thing!

Dizzy Dame

Not much to write about since Easter. Although, I did wake up with quite a bad case of vertigo on Sunday morning and it got progressively worse on Monday and Tuesday. It only hit me when I would put my head on the pillow and then again when I would get up. The room would just spin for about 15 seconds. So, I had Jim take me to the doctor on Monday afternoon because I just knew that I have a sinus and/or ear infection. They gave me an antibiotic and and anti-dizziness 'script. After only one dose of the antibiotic and a couple of the anti-dizzy pills, I woke up this morning with very little spinning. Thank You, Lord! The PA did say she wants me to take my blood pressure twice a day for 5 days then go back to see her on Monday for a full blood workup. I probably need that anyway since I haven't had a checkup in quite a while. My blood pressure was up a bit during the vertigo episodes and I hope that's all it is. I know I need to lose a lot of weight, but just a 10% loss would help a lot. I'm thinking Jim and I need to start walking in the afternoons, too.

Enough of that. Since I've not felt well enough to tackle the denim quilt lately, I've enjoyed working on little projects. Here's another photo album cover I made last night. This one will cover the second set of pictures of baby Kerrington. I'll have at least 3 little albums of her first few months!
Thank you, Pat H. for the wonderful idea for these book covers.

Kerrington's Easter

Four generations.

This is not her Easter outfit. We had to change her clothes when she got to Big Grampo's house 'cause she had a tummy upset in the car. I washed out the very pretty smocked and embroidered dress so she could wear it to Gramille's house for more Easter pictures.

Does this picture just make you want to smile? It's the cutest smile, ever! Mom and dad look pretty cute, too.

I leave you this Easter night with a picture of a wallhanging I'm working on for Miss Kerrington.

Easter

Easter Sunday started out just like any other Sunday. I ran to Dad's and fixed breakfast. On my way home, I thought I'd run into WalMart to get another cake mix and other things for our dinner. I wanted to make another bunny cake for us in honor of Kerrington's first Easter. I decided this one would be a girl rabbit. I even figured out how to make pink coconut. I poured about half a cup of milk in a bowl, added a few drops of red food coloring, stirred well and added about a cup and a half of shredded coconut. I let it soak to pick up the color and it worked great. Squeeze the milk out and sprinkle on the ears. The pink bow was made by adding a few drops of red food coloring to the frosting.

I got home, fixed breakfast, ate, put the cake in the oven then finished the photo album cover I made for Judy. I thought she needed an "Auntie" book to show off pictures of Kerrington. I thought it made a nice Easter gift.
Do you recognize the face in this helmet? Yup, that's Dad wearing Joe's motorcycle helmet. Yes, Joe bought a motorcycle but that's a story for another day. We caught Dad fooling around with Joe's helmet and couldn't resist a Kodak moment.


I don't have pictures of Kerrington to show you yet, but as soon as Judy and/or Rob send me some, I'll post an Easter picture. She looked absolutely beautiful in her Easter dress. Unfortunately, she had a little stomach trouble in the car on the way to "Big Grampo's" and we had to change her clothes. I was able to wash the beautiful little smocked and embroidered dress so it would dry and she'd be able to wear it tonight at her other Grama's house. They're taking more pictures with an Easter theme.

Easter weekend

Since I work Saturdays, my Easter weekend really doesn't start until tomorrow. I tried to talk Dad into going to church with me tomorrow, but he still hesitates. He is sure getting around the house easier with his motorized chair. Although, he had a little fender bender yesterday in the bedroom. He was backing the chair into the room and it got hung up on the piece of frame that was sticking out from under the bed. Just yesterday we had discussed the fact that we really needed to do something with that frame. Anyway, he knocked the mattress and box spring clean off the risers the bed was sitting on. Never a dull moment around that house.

I am still working on the denim quilt. I am almost 3/4 of the way done. It takes all my energy to work on this now since it's getting so big and heavy. So, I always need a small project or two to break the monotony of a large project. Remember the photo album cover a friend sent me for my birthday? I finally dove into the process and made one of my own to give as a gift.

Me, bake?

Yes! Believe it or don't, I spent the evening making this bunny cake. We're having a belated birthday dinner at work tomorrow and I thought I'd take something other than deviled eggs. A long time ago, I used to make a cute little puppy cake. I made it for the boys on their birthday a time or two. They probably don't remember that. Anyway, I thought a bunny cake would be nice to take in honor of Easter.

Last night I made these three little kitchen towel dresses. Aren't they Spring-y looking? If no one decides they can't live without them, I'll have some nice little gifties.

This was the first one I made. Judy suggested I make these up for Easter so she got the first one. She threw in the fabric for the top of the dress.

While the cake was baking, Jim helped me move my Janome into the dining room and my Bernina back into the sewing room. I need more room to work on the denim quilt and the dining room table affords me just that. I put another row on tonight so you could say that about a third of the quilt is finished. It's getting awfully heavy already. But, it's going to be a great quilt, even if I do say so myself! lol

On a somber note, we learned last night that another one of my mom's brothers passed away. He'd had a heart attack the day before and just didn't come out of it. I think he was in his 80's, maybe early 90's. His wife is also very ill with pneumonia so the family has their hands full. Please pray for them.