Hello January and 2021!! I know I speak for everyone that we are taking a collective breath and crossing fingers and toes for a less stressful year. One of the things I discovered in 2020 was that taking stock of our own capabilities turned out to be a blessing in many ways. I think as a nation we discovered one another - friends and family - again and have come out stronger for it. This year let's have that continue with looks inward. I AM!!!! What does that mean? For me -- it gives me a chance to add a word behind it each month. To perhaps take on a challenge that I have put off or feared. To step outside the box and show strength. There are many times last year when I was writing the monthly themes and Helen Reddy came to mind. Losing her in September only intensified it. When I think of "roaring" she comes to mind - I am woman, hear me roar??? We've done the last part of that sentence, let's try the first part --- I AM _________. Fill in the blanks each month. It can be with more than one word --- it can relate to our craft of quilting or go more personal. I'll try each month to share one of each to keep y'all involved in my own process.
Are you ready? I AM READY!!! Bring on 2021 and all that it entails.
If you are new to the blog, you may be asking, "just what is a monthly update?" I decided long ago that I just can't keep up with blogging daily. I just can't. Sooooo, what happens is I document a day in my life within one post and if something special happens, a separate post takes place. See, you can stay caught up with a once a month check and then, if you're interested, see the other posts too. It's a great system for me.
In years past, I have set goals for each month and I will continue to do that simply to keep myself on track. I AM still in an ongoing UFO mode around here and trying oh so hard to use or clean out the stash. It will be an ongoing project this year. If I want something to come in -- something has to go out. That is one goal. The balances change each month (hopefully) and will always show up at the bottom of the update if you read that far - and they are joined by links to the previous monthly updates for the year.
Now, grab a cuppa and sit back for a fun read and perhaps a new idea or two. (P.S. I format on a computer, so if you are reading on a phone, well sometimes the pictures will be before or after the story. It is what it is.)
So --- here's January and all the wonderful fun it provided. Please remember that any links in here will open in a separate window so that you can keep your place on this page at the same time and there are no ads or popups EVER.
1st - Happy New Year!! We are starting the month with one more BINGO card. It's a great way to get on the right track for the year. If you haven't tackled one yet, this is your last chance for a bit as I'm going to take a break from them for awhile.
Farm Girl also begins today. These are the blocks I completed last month and everyone will be working on for January.
Last, but not least, Grassy Creek has another step today and I'm ready to go. Here is the Clue 6 LINK if you wish to follow along. As part of working on this week's clue, I discovered a way to cut the pieces quick and accurately. The directions said to use the folded corners ruler and after I cut away both corners in the trial piece, I found the center of a flying goose.
Using that cut piece as a template, I added some blue painters tape to my Companion Angle ruler and will now be able to place it on a stack of bricks and achieve the same thing with only one ruler placement.
It works so slick ---
I use a stack of 4 bricks at a time and it takes me less than 10 minutes to cut the whole stack. BINGO mark for cutting for a project.
Mister appears with new smoke detectors to install --- okay, so in the interest of full disclosure, he has been looking for these for about 6 months now. We bought them and he put them away. Today, they've been found and we are once again safe.
Mister and I then settle in to play a game together for a bit. We have commandeered one of the Finders Seekers games from Jen and are settling in for a mystery solving good time. By the end of our journey -- we have this picture painted - can you tell where we find the item we are searching for? (Psst - BINGO mark for me)
A few more minutes of the day are left and I lay out my February skinnie to get an idea of what is ahead of me. For the BINGO card I have Day 1/20.
2nd - Today, I have a few goals. First, I cut the rick rack and iron all the parts into place on the skinnie. Next, I want to start cutting the Farm Girl blocks for February. Time to pet the pretty fabric again.
3rd - Now, back to the Farm Girl blocks. I don't have a lot of time, but a bit gets cut before ---
4th - With a girlfriend on the way today, I am cleaning up the house and that means I need to finish up the FG blocks. They are cut, bagged, and ready to take to Montana to work on and I receive another BINGO mark for working with tiny pieces. Now for lunch. I get a pot of vegetable soup going (with fresh herbs - second BINGO mark) Some final touches on the house and I discover that Paula is arriving later in the day. Mister and I enjoy the soup and I even have time to make a beeline to the studio and do some applique work on two different projects. About half of the Feb. skinnie is done when it's timet o go back in. Day 2/20 for sewing. It appears that we have had a delivery and I can finish the drawer organization for my desk in the office. Woohoo.
Ms. Paula arrives and her whole "need" for being here is to graph out her Farm Girl quilt and get started on it. After some chatting, it's time to start. Graph paper and pencils to the rescue. It doesn't take us too long to figure out how to make two twin-sized quilts for her during the quilt-a-long. Once we have that, we are trying to figure out which blocks for her to use and Mister walks out with a great idea. He photocopies the fronts of both books and then Paula gets to play. All the little blocks are cut apart and then can be laid on the graph paper until she has the variety she desires in the right places. A glue stick finishes the job and the whole thing plan is ready to travel. It was a great idea - Thank you Mister.
5th - Good Morning! An early morning jaunt to the studio and my Feb. skinnie has all the applique finished. Woohoo. Now back inside to make breakfast. It just seems like a German Pancake day. So, so yummy.
Paula and I escape for a bit of shopping. She needs a BINGO mark for a new store and I want to pick up some socks for my tables/chairs. We are off to Plano and Paula LOVES Daiso. It's like a Japanese Dollar store. I'm pretty pleased as well as I found the socks I needed and brought home several sets (think 5 or 6) along with multiple other items. Then to Jusco for her mark on her card.
Back to the house for lunch and then some sewing for me and Paula is starting cuttng on her Farm Girl blocks.
I've brought out Dawn's Early Light to get ready for the quilt-a-long beginning on the 16th.. I am leaving town for a bit and want to have several weeks done and ready to go before I leave. I will still be able to post and keep everyone else current as I do. Today is strings!! I do love playing in the strings and it is perfect for while I am visiting with Paula. BINGO mark for following a pattern.
One more quick trip to the machine and I have added my red ribbon to the Feb. skinnie. It's getting closer to quilting. I've already cut the backing, batting, and strips for border and binding. This will happen. Day 3/20 sewing.
6th - It's the first Wednesday of the month and I have chosen to dedicate Wednesdays to UFO's this year. I have selected four of them to begin with and each week a different one will see progress. Today is Scrap Crystals. Paula is still here and back to the cutting board. Her goal for today is to have all her blocks cut and another one sewn before she has to head home. I'm taking the time today to add socks to several of the items we use for sewing. It just makes it so much simpler to stop worrying about scratching the floor if we get off the rug.
Now, back to the bread. Rolling the dough out, cutting into equal amounts, rolling those into balls, and then baking it on the griddle all follow. And . . . I guess, for the record, eating ensues as well. These are really the BEST right off the griddle with butter and sea salt. So, so good. Bingo marks for both of us.
7th - First thing, I tackle the rest of the units for Scrap Crystals. Progress was made and they are ready for their final seam next month. That's right --- I packed it up and put it away. I need to get back to Dawn's Early Light (which is also a UFO for me) and that means strings, strings, and more strings.
8th - It's Friday and the reveal for Grassy Creek is out. As I've been keeping Fridays for this project, today is going to be a VERY busy day. We'll see just how far I can get on this step. Here is the Clue 7 Part 1 LINK so that you can follow along with all that happened and the methods used. I get a lot accomplished before I call it a day.
9th - An early rise allows me some time to finish up the HST's from yesterday. Just snip, press, and snip dog ears. They are ready to go. I even have enough time before Mister wakes to put together another Farm Girl block. Some trimming still required.
I set up an appointment in Haslet this morning to pick up the shirts for an upcoming trip to Virginia. Once that is accomplished, Mister and I have some play time available and start wandering the area. Of course, this nets me a BINGO mark as we have no destination in mind and are happily locating fun things. Here is the LINK for our fun day.
Home again and back to the machine. I feel a time crunch right now and want to use as many opportunities to progress as I can. Somehow, in the big scheme of things, I have managed to catch my sleeve on the stack of trimmings (all those HST's and FG parts) that are near the machine and send them to the floor. How big of a mess can I make today?
It's the last day of sewing with my lovely tree. This makes me a bit sad and it's really early for me (I think) to take everything down, but we are going to be gone for three weeks and I don't want to come home to the task. Thus, the packing up is soon to begin. At any rate, more FG blocks for February are put together. Aren't those skeins of yarn super cute?
At this point, I have a few silos in my layout for the blocks being made. I am really excited to try them and can't wait to see how they go together. They are laid out and ready for tomorrow. (sorry for the blurry pic) Day 7/20 sewing.
11th - Good morning!!! It's Monday and I have only until Friday afternoon to complete a LONG list of tasks. Today, around 600 HST's must happen. It's a pan of red/white pretties. Chaining one right after the other is the action that goes on for a very long time. An entire movie, in fact. I don't really know what's up with me. It's a crazy political environment these days and I sit here and watch movies with political basis. Today is Olympus Has Fallen. I really think I need to move onto something happier. By the time the movie finishes I have quite the stack of little units.
12th - The goal for today is to finish the white string units. Sex and the City 2 takes me there and I'm thrilled. My trimmed up units are ready and with the quilt-a-long starting in four days, I'm just in time. I'm four clues ready for Dawn's Early Light and that's enough to make it until I get home again. Then I'll be racing to stay ahead once again. This pan of red/white/blue just makes my heart so happy. I can't wait until this one is done and ready to go on the bed for Memorial Day. It'll happen. The benefit of hosting quilt-a-longs is that I actually finish the project a bit ahead of postings. I call that extreme motivation.
I still have time today and ---- well --- the string buckets are right here. I might as well set up for tomorrow. The first thing I do is dump the cream strings and pull out all the shorter and chunkier pieces, leaving the longer ones for another project. What you see on my table is what I have to work with this go round and the bin is STILL full. This Wednesday, the UFO is Pfeffernusse and I have cream string blocks to make.
13th - Pfeffernusse Day - I am set up to rock and roll on these cream string blocks. Sex and the City 2 is playing and away we go. By the time I finish, there is very little left on my table.
14th - First on the agenda today is to make sure all of my pictures are developed and the blog is current. I'm up before the sun and have the opportunity for a bit of a peek at the sunrise. Several hours pass with fingers flying over the keyboard. Retreat info is out, posts are current, bills are paid, pictures are ready to go and I'm tired of sitting in one spot.
Christmas is all packed up and the totes have made it back into the attic. One more item on the list gets marked off. I think it is becoming manageable. Now, I need to get a couple of projects ready to work on while we drive. First up on my Feb. skinnie is to add the ribbon across the banner. BINGO mark for embellishing. Now to quilt and apply the binding so that I can hand stitch it along the way. Less than an hour on the 301 and Boom! That's done. It's at this point that Mister questions my sanity. A quick run to the studio has me hunting down a Row x Row I did last year. It has a camper on it and I want to make it into a small wall hanging for my sister's little trailer. Backing, batting, binding and multiple threads are found and back into the house I go. My 301 gets put to work once again for some quilting and another hour later, a second project is ready for the trip.
With a wee bit of time left, I settle in at the hand frame and make some progress on my ancient quilt. Another BINGO mark for me. Day 12/20 sewing.
15th - As crazy as it seems, I'm still sewing AND packing. It's Friday and I want to make some progress on Grassy Creek. The main thing is to finish up the units so that I can start the assembly. This was all included in the post on the 8th as I just kept adding to the post as I went. It doesn't take long and I can finally put my 301 and table away and clean up the living room. I have this thing about leaving a clean house. We've now made the decision to leave tonight and drive all night to Montana. I REALLY need to kick it in gear. Moving rapidly, the house is cleaned up, all laundry is done, packing commences and any unused food is put into lunch and dinner. Crazy sets in at one point as I check my BINGO card to make sure that everything remaining can be finished while traveling and it appears that the only barrier I have is to wash a window in my home. Okay -- off I go to the front screen door windows. At this point it goes a little bit nuts. Here is the before view.
Cleaning the inside is quick and easy. I switch to the outside and discover that the screen is rather difficult to remove and time is limited so a bottle of windex gets sprayed abundantly through the screen until it is running down the window. Next a bucket of water is taken outside and pitched at the door. Will this work? I have to wait until it dries and I have to admit that it does look better. BINGO mark complete.
The car is packed, and we are outta here. This is my "treat myself to something" BINGO mark. What a great treat. I had day 13/20 for sewing. See ya tomorrow but I'll be a bit more tired as we are going straight through to Billings --- approx. 20 hours.
16th - Dawn's Early Light Began this morning and my post went early as we are on the road. Lots and lots of 3 1/2" neutral string squares are being created. While driving, I finished the Row by Row wall hanging for Sis and it's ready to gift. TA-DA. BINGO mark for finished project and TA-DA post.
Wyoming provides a bit of entertainment.
We arrive in Billings around 3 in the afternoon -- and it's dang close to our approx. 20 hours. Here is a LINK to Rhiana's Time so you can follow along in our fun. I am able to meet my new granddaughter for the first time AND also receive a BINGO mark for "see extended family". (Day 14 sewing)
17th - Spending the day with Rhiana, Kasey, and Mariel is just wonderful but we top it off with a trip to Bridger to pick up the older girls. Elena and Malea are on board and we are on the road back to Billings. Time with them is treasured as well.
18th - Good Morning from Montana and Day 2. I'm settled in quietly binding on myValentine skinnie before anyone else even rises but it isn't long before a Rhiana and Mariel join me.
Mister and I have time out with the girls in the afternoon and part of our adventure is hiking on the Rimrocks. Day 15/20 sewing.
19th - Finished my Valentine Skinnie - TA-DA. So fun to have lunch at the Montana Club with Starla as I haven't seen her in ages. Great to re-connect. The rest of the day hanging with family and a movie in the evening. Day 16/20 sewing.
20th - It's Wednesday and my plan for UFO's is not able to continue. Xing will have to wait until next month. It is Inauguration Day and we have a new President in the U.S. Onward we go. Part of the day is spent developing pictures and a little blogging/organizing thrown in. I was able to take the girls to swim practice and it's the first day for spectators. Win-win. Mister manged to get some really great pictures of Mariel. Check out this cutie.
21st - A morning spent with laundry and packing for the to transfer to Matt's house. I can't believe how quick time is already going. Another friend lunch for me at Sophie's Kitchen and it was wonderful to see Glea again.
A little more time with Rhiana while Mister finishes work and we are loaded up to switch homes. Selfies with the girls --
Once Mister is off work, we make the change and enjoy visiting, dinner and a game for our first evening at Matt's. Here is the LINK to Time at Matt's Home so you can enjoy all of our fun too.
22nd - With grands off to school, it a day with Matt and Becca and lunch at Panerra. Once the kids are home again, let the games begin. We have brought juggling balls and magnetic coins which are both hits. Just a really fun afternoon/evening.
23rd - Another week for Dawn's Early Light and this week a ton of red/neutral hst's are on the docket. As for me, some early morning blogging followed by making breakfast with Zyra,
Lunch is with the whole gang at Red Robin before the good-byes with Rhiana's family. I hate this part. Games and fun for the remaining part of the day.
24th - It's another travel day but we have the morning for some last minute fun and then good-byes and tears. So, so hard. A few selfies.
They don't want to let go of Grandpa either. It is what it is.
Finally, off we go and the beginning of our drive to the Flathead Lake area. My mom and sis live in Woods Bay and that is about 7 hours away.
Luckily, the roads are great and I'm able to get a little sewing in while we drive. The Christmas stocking I brought along will give me a chance for hand stitching here and there.
As we near the Mission Mountain range, the view just becomes spectacular. Snow-capped mountains are crazy beautiful and in real life -- even better.
We arrive at a decent time and have dinner with my mother, sister and brother-in-law. Day 17/20 sewing. Here is the LINK to Bigfork Fun if you wish to share in our fun.
25th - Spent the day with Mom and caught up some pictures and blogging along with lots of chatting and sharing stories. Dinner with Brock and Jill my great-newphew, Greyson. A little hand stitching took place as well and I have the embroidery finished so that the piece can be attached to the stocking itself. Day 18/20 sewing.
26th - Mister is working today so Mom and I are just hanging out. It's a bit chilly here, so staying put is the obvious strategy. I manage to work on a few pictures and even add the embroidered piece onto the stocking front. Day 19/20 sewing.
27th - Once again, it's Wednesday and I'm unable to work on my Sandcastles UFO. There are still 11 more months though and it'll definitely see forward progress next month. The big moment for the day is a trip to the grocery store in the afternoon and upon our return things change a bit outside --- a light dusting of snow but it's not cold enough to stay very long.
My stitching today involves embellishing with sequins on the next few pieces. Red on red with red thread. Oh the eyes. Onto the stocking the three pieces go. They are stuffed and starting to take on the appearance of a person. Day 20/20 sewing and a BINGO mark for me.
I also brought along some future skinnies and row by rows that need to have their pieces traced onto fusible webbing. It takes several hours and I go through a few sharpened pencils, but two sheets of webbing are covered in marks. Whew. I'm not cutting these out here, but just rolling the pages back up until I'm home and ready to add fabric to the mix.
28th - We have a trip to Kalispell on tap for today. This time there is a bit more snow and Mister is out with a broom clearing the driveway for us. A little shopping before the main reason to go to town. I pick up a Roku to put on Mom's T.V. so that we can share Netflix with her.
At the fairgrounds, we meet up with Jill and she is able to do Mom's COVID vaccination. Her second one will be in three weeks and all finger's are crossed for minimal reaction.
A quick grocery store stop on the way home for just a few things and then once home, it's a dinner preparation as Zach and his family are visiting tonight. Mister and I watch a video on the Roku installation and then set it up ready to go. BINGO mark for me as the result of our efforts did make something. We made mom happy.
Time with Zach, Rebecca, Wyatt, Scarlett, and Colton was wonderful and it was so nice to have the time to visit. (Mom was also at the table but this pic only had the back of her head showing.)
Hey there nephew.
29th - Mister is off work today and we start going through a chest in the front bedroom. This leads to purging the whole room and two closets in the hall. YES!!! At one point we find an old fur coat made from Persian lamb. Mister has way too much fun making me put it on and taking pictures. Psst -- I'm still in jammies. It went from the closet to the cedar chest in order to keep it nice.
Hanging at the house --- helped mom purge the guest room and two hall closets. The linen closet had been so jam packed I don't think we could have put a piece of paper in there. Now, she has room to breathe and perhaps the next room will add a few things as well.
A small gathering with Mom, Sis and Joe, Jill, Brock, and Greyson, and us up at a local restaurant right at the top of the hill. We seriously had a 2 minute drive. Perfect.
30th - Dawn's Early Light week three begins today and it's back to a little larger string blocks. I am sooooo glad I worked on all these parts in a fever before this trip. Early morning blogging and pictures before the day truly begins. Once everyone is awake I set in with the closet floor in the room we are staying in and cleaned it out really well. My goal is to tackle all of the linens in the house and Mom suggested the kitchen towel drawer. Perfect. As she and I work our way through it, the discovery of some very old aprons makes me smile. They are so stained and worn -- so much love happened here. I cannot stand the thought of them just leaving for good so a nice pair of scissors is brought out and I find places that are still clean to cut and take with me. These will find their way into my Farm Girl top.
One of my BINGO items has me stumped. I have ordered tulip bulbs and they are sitting here along with potting soil that I bought in town the other day. However, all the information I'm reading is that it is impossible to plant them outside at this time of year (in MONTANA) and Mom doesn't want to babysit them in the house. Mister said he knew how I could still get my BINGO mark. TA-DA -- bulb planted.
Jill, Brock, and Greyson stopped by with donuts for breakfast and we were blessed with a bit more time together. After final good-byes, We cleaned out the cabinets in the laundry room. Oh my, what a difference that made. These were also jam-packed. A trip to town by mister gave us some organizational items and a drop off of the "stuff" that is leaving. . Mister made another trip of "stuff" to dispose of along with a visit to the hardware store to help with organizing the laundry room. We ended the day with dinner at the brewery with Sis and Joe. I'm still being super good -- one beer is all and I'm so pleased. Good-byes are hard but I'm trying my best to already find a time to return.
31st - It is the last day of the month and we are on the road once again. Good-byes have been said and tears have been shed.
Mountain views will accompany us most of the way on our journey today. The destination is Cassie's house in Provo, UT.
Arrival happens and a lap full of love is the end result. I will share all that happens here in the next month's post. For now, here is a glimpse.
I've also managed to complete my BINGO card today. YES!!
This brings us to February! The month of love. I truly can't think of a better thing to devote a month to. Honest. It doesn't have to be a "significant other" love -- just LOVE. Period. It was during a good many years of difficulty that I discovered that I was also worthy of love. Look in the mirror. Tell yourself that. You ARE worthy of love. It is your I AM for this month.
Now, how can we apply this in our quilting world? How about this --- let's be worth of love in our work. Share your TA-DA's happily. Don't point out the mistakes to anyone who comments. Basque in the warmth and adoration and love that comes your way. Share, share, share!!! Let everyone ooh and ahh and warm your heart. You are worthy of the love.❤❤❤❤❤
UFO's to quilt:
BOM #2 - quilted and bound
BOM #3 - quilted and bound
Winter Wonderland - quilted and bound
Current Projects:
UFO Items to work on:
All Neutral strings - Completed DEL and Pfeffernusse strings. Still need a few more.
1 Row by Row block - Made into wall hanging for a gift.
BAD blocks as leader/enders -
Stash Buster project -
UFO Handwork Items:
Hand Quilting -- progress made
Links to Previous 2021 Monthly Posts
I so enjoyed your pictures. The quilt you have at the top of your blog is absolutely gorgeous. Love it
ReplyDeleteThank you so much. The quilt you mention is my own design -- Journey. Loved working on it and sharing it with others.
ReplyDelete