Fall Break Means SEWING!

 Tomorrow is our quilt guild's small quilt auction so when I finally got a minute to sew I started with this Rock Candy tabletopper.  I made some awhile back and had this one all cut and ready to go.

 I also got the 35th Ave. BOM together. Not my best block as I was a bit rushed.  My parents finally came back from their summer in Wisconsin and were staying here this past weekend (they were doing a craft show nearby) so it was nice to see them and catch up.  My brother got engaged and his engagement party was last Saturday night so we went north to celebrate with them and Ashley asked me and my sister to be bridesmaids.  Wedding is tentatively scheduled for March 2019.

I also found time Sunday to sew the last two blocks of the Pat Sloan Library BOM.

 I sewed the top together up until the last two borders and got this picture.  I will get better pictures outside now that I added the last two borders.

 I am saddened by the news of the shooting in Vegas and have been working this morning on last month and this month's Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks.  I have orange and pink to do...almost all parts are sewed and ready to be put together.

I am off work for two whole weeks for Fall Break....we are going out of town to San Francisco ( I have never been there!) on Friday with my mom.  We will see Alcatraz and Angel Island, China Town, the Pier, a Deaf Pizza Place called Mozzeria and Winchester House...and whatever else catches our interest in the few days we have.  Next week I am training back at my old video relay job for three days.  I also picked up a little freelance so I am not completely off work...also I have TONS to do for planning and prepping for second quarter.  So trying to get in some fun sewing while I can!

Not Even Close to Catching Up...but Moving Forward!

 Last weekend BJ met up with us since this weekend (our usual meet up) she is out of town.  Always so good to see her!

 I am liking teaching high school.  Hard work but already had a parent email telling me her daughter's attitude about school has completely changed since starting ASL class. She loves it and me!  Another student told me my class was her favorite and I was her favorite teacher.  Not bad for two weeks in!  I am so excited to make a difference in these kids' lives!  So this Prince picture is me dressed for spirit week--I chose the 80's for my decade and wore my shirt from seeing Purple Rain in Minneapolis back in 84-85.  The shirt fits me again!  The green jewelry and headband (socks) are mine from the time too!  I dressed up each day and played music to match between classes.  Might as well make it fun!

 My mom and dad sent me birthday money so I promptly spent it at 35th Ave. when we went to pick up our blocks today.  I have eyed this cool baby quilt for the past few months..I bought the die to make all these animals and though I do not do applique I had to add it to my list.

 I also bought all this fabric at 40 percent off.  Mostly neutrals but some fox fabric for a gift too.  I went to Barb's to sew for the afternoon and made these blue Straits of Mackinac blocks for the Rainbow BOM for July. Yep, I am behind and I rarely get behind!

 Barb made the most recent Pat Sloan Children's Library BOM today.  I do not even have that cut (or last months' rows sewn)!

A Stitch or Two

 We had quite a turtle  um tortoise adventure yesterday.  We were on the way out to drop off my car for an oil change before Weight Watchers (yes still at it, up a few pounds overall but still down over 110) when I spotted this guy in our yard.  Kathy had already left and we were running late so I called her and after dropping the car came home to throw this dude in a box with some water and food.  We posted his picture on a local site which finally led to him finding a foster home while the owners find him.  The gal that took him thought he was hers and just as she got to our house hers was found at home.
Later we were near Fry's when Kathy found someone's credit cards and driver's license.  We drove it to the address, no one was home and the neighbor said they had moved.  We drove it to the PD and dropped it all off there.  So much for a chill day.  Out karma better rock!

I sewed for a short bit today since my life is all about teaching high school right now.  I have been SO busy planning four preps (while teaching six classes a day with no prep hour) and even though I have tons of stuff to tap into it is still alot of stuff at start up and changing from college to high school and the different times for the classes at each.  Anyways, the first week with kids went well.  Better than I remember from my last time around teaching high school!

So here is my 35th Ave. BOM.  Happy to have it ready for next weekend.  It is the first I have sewn in July at all I think...or at least since I found out about this job.  I also cut out the stuff for Pat Sloan's BOM.  No time to sew any of it and of course this month is a doozy...all the rows in between instead of just one block. UGH.

 I still have the Rainbow Scrap Challenge BOM to cut and sew two of.  Not sure it will be happening before the new color comes out.  ACK!  I have two weeks off in October so I may be catching up then!  The good news is the number pulled for the UFO Challenge I am doing is one I accidentally already made!  YAY.  So that is caught up.
Bonnie's pumpkin pattern came out in Quiltmaker...love hers with the grey.  I made mine last year and like it too!

March Sewing I Kept Mum

This morning I was cleaning out my emails when I found several pictures I had sent to myself in March (my dropbox is full so that is how my pictures get put on the blog) and in searching the blog I guess I never posted them!  So here are a few of the things I didn't mean to keep mum about sewing in March!

If I already did blog about this, I cannot find it but I am only on my first cup of coffee so...I had to make this block so I could complete this Tula Pink Stacks top.  I won the blocks at Nimble Thimbles  awhile back but did not have the right fabric to complete it..the other winner shared it with me later on and then it just hung out waiting.  It is all ready to be quilted, might have to talk Barb into doing it...too big for me!

 I also finished putting together the 35th Ave BOM so I can send it to Alycia.  I made a backing and binding too. Barb's joined it (I did blog about hers) and Kathy is almost done with hers so all three will go out together once Kathy is done.  Hopefully they will make some veterans feel our support!

 This is the March block for Pat Sloan's Children's Library BOM.  I have been keeping up on the blocks, just not the blogging about it!

My video relay interpreting job update.  So the company I work for bought out another company and I won't get into the reasons they are telling us versus the reasons we suspect, but they are shutting down all the Arizona centers on July 15th.  So since that is my main income in the summer that was a shocker.  Quite a few interpreters are scrambling to find other work.  I have applied for another high school teaching position...HR has my stuff and if the negotiations go well as far as money, I will accept the job.  I am kind of excited about it though my last high school teaching job was hell.  I do not think I was ready to go from University students to high school students at the time.  I have now taught community college and my expectations are more in line than they were!  Cross your fingers something works out for me please!
Yes it is about 120 degrees here in Arizona.  I have been grabbing all the hours I can get at my job before it shuts down, so today I will do the second nine hour day this week. It is not a nine hour type job...most people come in for two to four hours because it is so demanding.  I will be happy when today is over!
In better news, Barb is coming to sew tomorrow and I do not work at all tomorrow!  I plan to get borders on the Rainbow Scrap Challenge Sampler from 2015. Then I want to get a backing made so I can cross it off my list.  After that maybe back to my latest March on Green Bay Packers quilt.

Tuesday Fun

I did not get many hours at work this week so I am enjoying the sewing while I can.  I got caught up on the Pat Sloan BOM for June.

I went to Barb's for the afternoon and hung with her and sewed til Guild time.

 I sewed the June yellow BOM blocks and decided to to light purple for the rainbow choice a few months ago.

 When I got home I had to take a picture of all of the blocks together.

rs

Antics at My End

I am now doing the blog and calendar for my quilt guild Nimble Thimbles.  Today I wrote a post that some of you might be interested in--organization for quilters.  I have mentioned these pages here before but thought I would share again.  Also, if you are local or visiting, feel free to join in on one of our Tuesday night meetings.  We would love to have you!

 Here is our sweet Rosie plopped down before I could even grab my camera.  Rosie is heading over the Rainbow Bridge in less than a week...we are really going to miss her but it is time.

 Stash Kitty also never misses a change to plop down on a quilt before I can grab the camera!

 I am sending a suitcase full of quilts (and a few other gifts) to Wisconsin with my siblings going for a wedding.  I did not go as I was scheduled to teach but the class fell through..too expensive to get tickets at this point.  Anyways, I posted about the quilts I was sending back (wedding quilt for Luke and Ashley and Linc and Christin, baby quilts for Luke and Ashley's soon to be born son, my other cousin Ashley's just born son Knoxton, and my cousin Crystal's already born daughter London) and my other aunt popped in to the conversation to complain her daughters and grandson did not have a quilt.  Her daughters are not yet married (and they will get one when they get married) and I swear I sent one to her grandson...in any event I finished up this Packer quilt (blocks were gifted to me but I sadly cannot recall who gave them to me-if you read my blog remind me!) and so Brayden will be getting it.

 I did some Skype cutting with Barb on Sunday.  I got the next Pat Sloan Children's Library block cut and laid out.  I also cut Straits of Mackinac blocks in yellow and in light purple (to make up for the rainbow month I skipped for the RSC.  I will be sewing these later today at Barb's before our guild meeting tonight.

 I had to share these fun pictures from the Denver Art Museum.  Hannah and I ran across these statues and immediately wanted the other to take a picture.  We had different ideas, but sort of the same.  We are definitely related!

Gotta love art that speaks to us!

February Goals Progress

 Last Friday after an early morning shift I sewed at Barb's.  We had planned to go to the Rusty Barn Quilt show the Friday before but I wound up in the hospital with another gallstone and got pancreatitis.  UGH!  Seems like the stone passed (or fell back down so pain went away) and this week I got to hiking FOUR times!  I did not realize it had been nine months since I had hiked.  I really missed it.  I am super sore though.  And I am happy to have gotten back to it now because my Pilates instructor shattered her knee (skiing--a snowboarder plowed into her).  I am at 111.6 down.  Super slow but not going up so I am happy about that!

 So I joined the All People Quilt UFO Challenge and they pulled #8 for February which is my "Little Bit Hexie" so I depapered them all and spray basted and pinned them to the squares.  I think I am going to try to hand attach them.  These are the little flowers I made each day on the Quiltville Cruise in October 2015.

 I also made both of my "Straits of Mackinac" blocks in the Rainbow BOM color of aquamarine.  It is not too late to join in if you want to go visit Angela's blog.  So fun to have a simple goal and a place to link up!  This group has grown and grown over the years and I have made friends of many of the participants.  I love to see what block or project everyone chooses to work on all year!

I also made block two of the Pat Sloan's BOM for 2017.  Barb and I are both doing this one.  Nice to use up scraps and be surprised by how it comes out.

In other news, Kathy was super happy the Patriots won last night.  It was quite a nailbiter for awhile and then there they were!  I do not have as much time to sew as I would like...I am teaching three classes this semester (and interpreting too) and the prep keeps me busy.  One of the classes is a new curriculum...so much work setting everything up,  Should be easier here on out though because I will finally have the basics together and can just improve as I go! 

I entered two quilts in the AQG Quilt Show in March.  I wanted Talkin' Turkey which I made for the Rainbow BOM to be shown.  I am not that kind of quilter and wish I could enter without getting any feedback. I have heard they are super picky and none of that matters to me.  That has held me back from entering anything but I could not resist this time.  The other one I entered it the mystery I made with my guild.  It is nothing to write home about at all, and my colors were the peaches--it is a bit much, however those in the guild who did it are entering them as a group thing to represent our guild so I went along with it.  I need to make and attach the binding to it soon.  Kathy is also entering for the first time!  Her Allietare is going to be in the show.  She got half the binding on yesterday.  We also need to make quilt sleeves for them all too.