It's a Dog's Life

Shortly after I adopted Oliver he got a hair cut.  I had him cut very, very short has he was just a mess and very smelly.
I prefer keeping my dogs fur short and in summer it is the best options.  They left the hair on his tail too long, but next time I will have it cut shorter.  He also had a vet appointment - a freebe from getting him from the shelter.  We now think he is mainly Shih Tzu, with some poodle thrown in for good measure.  Doesn't matter to me.  He is a great dog and fun to have around.  He and Sam and best buddies. Oliver sure makes his presence known!

Sam had eye surgery.  He had a "cherry" eye that kept popping out.  So, for about 10 days I had a little cone head.   Still wanted  to play, play, play.  Unfortunately, Oliver was afraid of his cone.  But, until his eye was completely healed, Sam had to wear the cone.  And, I am happy to report that the surgery was very successful.

The two of them love to chase each other around the house.  Around the couch, around the dining room table, into the bedroom and back.  Oliver will be at one end of the couch and Sam at the other.  They will eye each other and one will start to chase the other and it starts all over again.  They play tug of war with the toys.  I can't wait to see what happens when the hard wood floors go in and they won't have the carpet to run around on!

Since my Lover's Knot quilt is complete and waiting to be quilted, I decided it was time to break them of the habit of sleeping in bed with me.  I don't want them dragging their dirty paws on this beautiful quilt.  It took 3 nights!  Once in a while when I go into my bathroom I will come out to see Sam curled up on the bed, but basically they know it is now off limits.

However, they do have other comfy places to rest!

Sam the Man with the Playtime Plan

I can't resist blogging about my Sam. Always up to something, he keep me on my toes. Here are some recent pictures.

OK, Mom - let's PLAY



Belly rub?

Am I cute or what?

Betty Davis eyes

Sound asleep

A Zen Kind of Quilt

Finished quilt top spread out on a sheet placed on my basement floor!

Double click on picture for a better view of the fabric.

I remember seeing this quilt, entitled "Zen" in the February2009 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting magazine and thinking, "Hmmm - interesting." At the Chicago Quilt Show last April I saw it hanging in a booth along with the very last bundle of fabric to make the quilt. I grabbed the bundle.

I had never worked with batiks before and wanted to try. And, despite an error in the magazine cutting instructions, and one of my own, it was easy and quickly put together. I also had fun pairing up the colors. Each fabric was prettier than the last.

Organizing on basement floor

I really needed a design wall to put it all together, but don't have the wall space. So, I spread a sheet over my basement floor, laid out the blocks and stood on the steps to get a good view. Despite a lot of rearranging, there are still a couple of blocks of the same print and/or hue too close together. Oh, well . . .

Now I need to purchase the backing and have it quilted. I'm excited about purchasing the backing. All those beautiful batiks in all those beautiful colors and patterns! Maybe I should go with more of a solid or a marble fabric. Picking out the backing may take a while!

Planning for Retirement

HEHEHEHEHEHE

I went for my retirement seminar today.

I'm very excited.

Learned all kinds of new things I wasn't aware of.

I'm a-hoping August 23, 2010 is the big day!

Feeling kinda giddy.

Oh, You Beautiful Doll(s) . . . ahhh, Dog(s)!

My blogging friend, Misti, painted these awesome portraits of my girls. Aren't they the cutest little doggie girls you have ever seen? Both in real life and in art.

The Paris Hilton of the dog world, Gracie

Gracie thinks she should have her own show. She believes thousands of 2-leggeds as well as 4-leggeds would come to see her one and only portrait. No cats or squirrels allowed. Lucy Lou sniffed the portrait and went back to sleep. If it is not a walk or food, she isn't interested. Although she did ask Gracie if food would be served at the "opening." Gracie is thinking about it.

My shy Lucy Lou

I think Misti did a fabulous job. Check out her blog and you can find her on Etsy, too.

Gracie is taking appointments for private views. Lucy Lou told me she won't let anyone in the door. Not that she doesn't love her portrait, but that it will distrub her beauty rest.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

I am here in Mesa, AZ - staying with my good friend, Nancy. It's been a great vacation. Well - except the trip to the Urgent Care Clinic on Sunday, due to my allergic reaction to her kitty! The weather is just beautiful and we have been all over the area. I have also seen my sister, Linda, and we will all spend today together. (More on this trip when I get home).

Last night Nancy and I watched Slum Dog Millionaire together. It is a great movie and I highly recommend it. At one point - watching the poverty of India - I looked over at Nancy and said, "Thank God we were born in the United States!"

I have so very many things to be grateful for and I will spare you the list as it is long! But today my thoughts will drift to all of the wonderful things in my life - past, present and future - and I will be filled with awe and gratitude.

I am a very blessed woman.

It's a Brand New Me

Well, almost a brand new me. It's a brand new look for my blog.

Joanna, from Southern Girl Blog Designs, developed this new look. I gotta tell you - I love it! Joanna is great to work with !

It's not completed yet. I have pictures to add and other things; but, like me - it is a work in progress.

Hope you like it!

Look Familiar?

I made this lap quilt for my nephew, Patrick's, family. Pictured are Pam, Aaron, Patrick, and little Shannon. If the quilt looks familiar it is the same pattern I gave to my Aunt Virginia last month while I was in Colorado. The only difference is the backing material. This quilt was part of the mystery quilt group I participated in earlier this year. At first I thought I would make one large queen sized quilt, but then decided to make 2 lap size quilts and give them away. I had the recipients in mind already. I hope both Aunt Virginia and Patrick's family take a lot of good naps under these quilts!

And, just to show off sweet little Shannon, here she is with the holiday dress her Aunt Suzanne and I bought her. We have started a tradition of purchasing her holiday dress every year. She got it a little early this year. Truthfully, I was afraid I'd forget to give it to her as we bought it a year ago!

We tried to get Shannon to pretend she was sleeping, but she wasn't going to "nap" pretend or not! Here's the Halloween pillowcase I made for her.

Happy Birthday to Me

August 23rd was my 54th birthday.

Phil came up and we had a nice time together. He gave me a Kindle for my birthday present. I wasn't sure I would like it, but I do. More on that in another post.

That evening I invited a few of my gal pals over and we had a s'mores party. Very low key, but fun. My great niece, Shannon, stole the show. She wore the "princess" outfit I bought her. I think it fits her very well! And, how many

people get to have a real live princess attend their celebrations?

Pam and my sister, Linda to the left and Sharon and Amy to the right. Amy and Janet below. Didn't get everyone, including me!

Gracie and Lucy Lou had on their party attire, too, but Lucy Lou was camera shy.

Shannon has a s'mores face!

Poor Doggies

My Lucy Lou had been pawing at the side of her mouth so I took her in to the vet. Well, she had an infected, impacted tooth - poor dog.

One vet bill wasn't enough as I decided Gracie should have her teeth checked and cleaned, too. So, yesterday both girls went to the vet early in the morning for a tooth extraction (Lucy Lou) and cleaning (both).

Luckily, after Lucy Lou's bad tooth as removed both girls where deemed to have healthy teeth and just needed a good cleaning. No other teeth removed.

Since they were put under for the cleaning, both were still groggy when I picked them up last night. Down right silly, too, until Gracie started shaking and had the dry heaves. I got her curled up on the couch with a quilt over her and towels under her and she fell back into a sound sleep. She hardly raised her head the whole night. I had to carry her to the back door to go potty and carry her upstairs when it was time for me to go to bed. Have I ever mentioned my dogs are spoiled?

Lucy Lou needed to be by my side the whole evening. Unfortunately, her back legs kept giving out from under her due to the anesthetic. The first time I heard a "thump" and looked to see Lucy Lou sitting there with a dumb look on her face. The second time I heard a "thump" I saw Lucy Lou sitting with a bewildered look. The third time I actually saw her butt go down. I gave her lots of hugs and cuddles. She was really confused. When it was my bed time I walked up the steps behind her and sure enough, I had to help her back end up the stairs.

Lucy Lou has to be on a soft diet for a few days so about 8pm I added a mixture of hot water and beef broth to their dry food. After an hour it was mush and Lucy Lou gobbled it down. Gracie turned up her nose.

This morning they seemed almost back to normal although Gracie would only eat the "mush" if I hand fed it to her. It delayed me by 5 minutes, but again - they are very spoiled dogs!

The bill for all of this? $301.17. The beauty of their sweet doggie smiles? Priceless.

UFOs (Unfinished Fabric Objects)

Look!

Up in the Sky!

It is a plane? Is it a satellite? Is it a Unfinished Fabric Object?

And, just what is a UFO (in the quilting world)?

Now, I have at least 7 or 8 projects in my quilting queue. They are neatly stacked and/or still in their packages. I haven't started them, although I look at them a lot. Are these considered UFOs?

Or, are UFOs projects started, but put aside for a while? And, what length of time makes them UFOs?

I have one quilt that has been sitting in my office for 6 weeks waiting to have the binding hand stitched on. I just finished up the binding on another quilt last night, so I will start on this quilt tonight. Was that considered a UFO, even though it wasn't put aside for long - just waiting its turn?

I'm confused!

I'm trying to do my projects in the order that I purchased them (or the fabric). My Friendship Star fabric was purchased last fall, but I am now plugging away at it. Then comes the Broken Dishes wall hanging, then my dragonfly king sized quilt (in between someplace a lap quilt for my nephew), then the 1930s quilt, then a "shoe" wall hanging, then one other quilt I can't remember, then a big block quilt, then an Irish Chain queen for my great nephew, then a twin size patch, then. . . . .
I'll be throwing in some quick projects, too, since most of these are large quilts and I will need some immediate gratification.

Are all of these UFOs?

After reading a lot of quilting blogs UFOs get mentioned a lot. I really don't want to have too many sitting around. However, is it just part of quilting?

Help!

P.S. I forgot to mention the 2 block of the month (BOMs) I started. Yikes! Who has time to work?

Camera Shy

I swear that every time I take a picture of Lucy Lou she will look right into the camera until a split second before I snap the picture. She will then demurely look away.

Ahhh, all it takes is a treat! She is such a sweet, shy girl!

Princess Gracie

Remember the fairy tale, "The Princess and the Pea?"

Need I say more?

I Think He Likes It ! !

I think Paul is laughing because he knows Lucky ain't getting anywhere near this quilt!

Poor Lucky.

Lucky Paul. He loved the quilt and it made me feel good!

Applique

OK, a seamstress I am not! But I can sew a relatively straight line, which is why I love quilting. I can be creative without having to sing, draw or play an instrument.



A big part of quilt is (or can be) applique work. This is a design layered on top of the fabric of the quilt. It can be machine sewed or hand stitched, with different methods of both.



Last night as part of my sample quilt class, our very patient and talented instructor, Diane, taught Terri and me three different versions.



First, using all scrap material, was a blanket stitch using the sewing machine. Luckily, my machine has that stitch on it. It worked out good and practice will make perfect. I liked it. Terri's machine only offers her a zigzag stitch and she had trouble getting it the size she liked.



Next Di taught us how to hand sew the blanket stitch. Turns out we both knew this stitch, but Di gave us very helpful hints and techniques. I enjoyed this very much.



Last - oh, God - is the hand turned (also called needle turned) applique technique. Now - I had taken part 1 of a 2 part hand turned applique technique class so I knew what I was in for. Let me first say that when the day came for part 2 of the applique class I awoke with a terrible headache and the thought of sitting there for 4 hours doing tedious sewing did not appeal to me in the least so I skipped out of the class. You use a needle so small and thin that Thumblina would think it tiny. The hand stitches are so carefully set in that the best hand turn applique work the stitches cannot be seen. A tooth pick is used to turn under the fabric before the stitches are made. Boy - did I mention it is tedious? Peg, the instructor of the 2 part class, is a master appliquer. One of her quilts in progress is hanging at Ye Olde Schoolhouse it is a work of art. She is an excellent instructor. However, I learned quickly that this was NOT for me.



So, when it came time for poor Di to show us hand turned applique I was bitching. And, guess what? I kind of liked it! Maybe I felt more relaxed. Maybe I learned two other techniques that I could do and I enjoyed so I felt the pressure was off me to learn this - I don't know.



The sampler quilt we are making has three different appliques in it. One is a small heart set in a square of a block, one is a block of a trailing tulip design and the other is 12 small leaves that go around a square within a block. I have decided to use all three techniques. After all, it is a sampler quilt and I should show a sampling of all three techniques. The little heart will be hand turned (least amount of work). The trailing tulip block will be hand sewed using the basket stitch and the 12 leaves will be machine sewed basket stitch.



I learned more than applique techniques last night. I learned I need to be more open to new ideas and techniques, even if I think I don't like them. I will never be as good as Peg or Di when it comes to hand turn applique, but I do really enjoy hand stitching and I will not be afraid to try it when the opportunity arises. Or, just do the basket stitch!

Luck be a Lady (Feline, that is)

A while ago I was talking with some friends and we were discussing rescue animals. Specifically, some very odd and wonderful ways animals came into our lives. It reminded me of my nephew Paul's story.

One evening about 4 years ago he left some friend's house late in the evening (maybe early morning). He got on the highway (this is the greater Atlanta area) and proceed to drive around 80 mph, which in Atlanta is quite normal. After a bit he began to hear a weird noise so he turned down the radio and listened.

Meow. Meeeeeow. Meoooooow.


Paul pulled over to the shoulder, got out and looked all around both inside and outside of his car. Nothing. Thinking he was hearing things, he got back into the car and drove off, again at "normal" Atlanta speeds.

Meow. Meeeeeow. Meoooooow.

By this time Paul knew he wasn't just hearing things. When he came to the next exit, he pulled off the highway and drove into a well lit gas station. He got out of the car and again looked all around.

Nothing.

So, he opened the hood and there was this little black kitten with a stub of a tail (which wasn't injured during this wild ride) hanging on to the engine.

Paul, being the kind and wonderful man that he is, took the kitten and put it in his car. Well, the kitten was friendly enough, but very scared and probably never knew the inside of any structure, let alone a car, proceeded to "mess" it up quite a bit. Oh, well . . . Paul was more concerned about the cat and the car cleaned up just fine the next day.


Not missing a beat, Paul arrive home. His landlord, Jamie, also has cats, so there was a litter box available and Paul showed the kitten where it was. Cats are smart and it figured it out, but it was obvious that this cat had worms, was a little sick and needed a vet. Paul took the kitten to the vet right away, had it treated and given all of its shots. Turns out the kitty is a Manx, a breed of cat known for its short, stubby tails.

For a few days Paul hemmed and hawed about keeping the kitten, but it didn't take long for the kitten to creep into Paul's heart, something we all knew happened the minute Paul opened that hood!

Paul named her Lucky.

A very lucky kitty indeed.

Nan, Bert, Freddie, Flossie, Nancy, Cherry, Vicki, Trixie and the Rest of the Gang

When Shelley and I were little (we met when we were 8) we both loved to read. Still do, but I digress. Our favorites at that time (c. 1963) were the Bobbsey Twins (Nan and Bert, Freddie and Flossie).

We would walk over to each other's houses and spend the hours reading and trading books. I had copies that my sister's had read.

As we got a little older we moved on to Nancy Drew, Cherry Ames and Vicki Barr. Everyone knows the girl sleuth, Nancy Drew. However, many might not know nurse Cherry Ames or stewardess Vicki Barr. Oh, the adventures these girls took us on. I was especially fond of Cherry Ames as my mom was a nurse.

A few years later along came Trixie Belden with her best friend, Honey. She was more our age by then and we loved her.

We knew all of the characters in these books and would act out the plots or make up our own. It was great fun. At the time we didn't realize that these fictionalized girls probably taught us a lot about gumption, adventure, friendship and that girls can and could do anything, even if (at that time) a handsome boyfriend, brother or father rescued them when they got into trouble ( and they always did). In today's novels that wouldn't happen - the girl hero's would figure it out and rescue themselves or another girl would come along and save the day. The point is, these characters were not afraid to seek the truth, conjure good over evil and help others.



To celebrate our vacation together, Shelley, who is still in love with all things Bobbsey related, made us each the tee shirt below. With the help of her daughter, Brooke, she copied book images off the web, ironed them on to the shirts, added little X's and cute buttons. Shelley had a blast makng them and I appreciate the gesture. They were a riot to wear. Women all over Savannah recognized the books. Unfortunately, I got a couple of stains on my shirt (now all removed), but could not wear it again during vacation, but what fun we had that one day.



Times have changed and books for young girls are more sophisticate. For us though, in the early to mid 1960s we were very innocent. The books were appropriate.



So, hats off to Nan, Flossie, Cherry, Vicki, Trixie and Honey and all the other "girl" book characters. I still love and admire you. Thanks for the memories. And, the lessons.

Poop Patrol

I have two dogs, Gracie and Lucy Lou. Like good girls, they let me know when they need to go outside and are very good about not leaving messes in the house.

This past December we had lots and lots of snow. Now, my girls are "girly" dogs, and while Lucy Lou might tromp through the snow to find a good place to squat, Gracie prefers the concrete service walk. Which means that when I shoveled, I shoveled dog poop along with the snow, into the yard.

December was followed by a very cold January. No chance to get out there and pick up poop, let alone find it under the snow.

But, it has thawed this month and most of the snow is gone from my little yard. Unfortunately, the melting did not include the disappearance of the poop.

At work it has become a joke for those of us who have dogs to compare amounts of poop picked up on any given day. We all use the plastic grocery bags for this lovely job. And we all have different techniques. We have shared such poop pick up stories and hints, such as "Pick it up while it is still a little frozen as it will get mushy as the day goes on." Or, "grab some latex gloves for this purpose." And, "Yesterday I filled the bag almost to the top!" Yes, such intellectual conversation goes on within the fire department.

Today I am home early. I went to the doctor for sinus problems and have a touch of bronchitics (Thanks for the codeine Dr. Yan!). I stopped at the grocery store for last minute items as we are suppose to get a large amount of snow this weekend and I want to lay low and get better. But, before happily taking my first teaspoon of cough medicine I decided to fill up the bird feeders and, yes, do poop patrol in the yard.

For some strange reason doggie poop seems to multiply in my yard. I know my dogs habits, but there was more than what I feel is necessary for two relatively small dogs in just a few days. However, picking up their poop is a small price to pay for the love, devotion, laughter and pure joy theses dogs give me. As I finished my job and was walking back into the yard after dumping my nearly full bag into the trash can, I saw Lucy Lou raising up from the squat position and try to "bury" her . . . ah, leftovers.

Oh, well . . .

A Very Bitchy, Frustrated Quilter

Jeez.

I spent hours and hours and hours on this mock basket weave quilt. It is a very easy, 4-square quilt, made of 2 materials with stripes. One color is cut vertically and the other horizontally. Strips are sewn together, cut, sewed into blocks, blocks into rows and there you go. A queen sized quilt.

Except that it took forever. Only 2 colors and prints got very boring. It lost its challenge. It is huge. Each block is 6 inches. The quilt is 16 blocks in width and 18 in length. That is 288 blocks. 1,152 squares. 96" x 108". I thought I would never, ever get it done.

I even started a new quilt. Got it just about cut out when I realized that if I didn't finish this one, I never would. And, since I had only 6 rows to go before completed I put everything aside and finished it.

When I made the last stitch, I stood up from the sewing machine and danced a little jig around my kitchen. I pressed the quilt top, pressed and squared off the backing and drove immediately to the quilt shop to have it professionally quilted.

At the shop, they measured it and I completed the paperwork and took one, long look at the quilt.

And, then I saw it. One block on the second to last row was sewn in sideways. Thank God it is the end block, but never the less, the quilt had to go back home.

Note block with safety pins. You can click on the image to really see my mistake!

Now, I am far from being a perfectionist. However, in quilting you have to be pretty darn near perfect. This quilt has been very forgiving as many squares don't quite match up, but it is very hard to see them. And, this mistake is at the bottom of the quilt on a corner. I could have let it slide and I bet no one would be the wiser (well, almost no one). But, after all of the hard work I just can't let it be wrong.

I own several seam rippers. They get a good work out on my quilts! Tomorrow night I will rip out the block, press it, and sew it back into the quilt correctly.

There are such quilt known as "humility" quilts. Quilts with obvious mistakes in them, still quilted and used. They are to remind the quilter that no one is perfect and we all make mistakes. I could have used this as my "humility" quilt, I guess. But, truthfully, knowing there was this mistake in it would have driven me crazy.

Something Sparkly

My very loving, Philip, gave me a cute snowman pin and a top of the line GPS system for Christmas and well as some money with the instructions to, "buy yourself some sparkly while you are in Georgia for the holidays."

Now, usually this would not be hard for me to do. And, since my sister, Suzanne, and I have been shopping in stores within a 200 mile radius of her house, you think by now I would have found something sparky. And, I have looked.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, however you want to look at it) we have been to many quilting stores in our travels. And, I have bought material. One pattern is gem colored dragon flies that I will turn into something for a bed and I bought a blue and white patterned quilt kit that will make up into a "china plates" lap quilt.

But today, while in Marietta at the Red Hen Quilt shop I found beautiful, slightly Asian inspired, dragon fly material with matching green and gold material. Very soft, very pretty and elegant. This is exactly the material I have been looking for to make a king size quilt. The quilt will be used in the house that Phil and I will be building. I bought over 11 yards of it, plus 4 yards of each of the coordinating materials. Well, I'm figuring the quilt, pillows, etc. for our master bedroom. And, the material does have a slight gold thread running through it. There's the sparkle.

I find this a little scary. Spending my "holiday" gift money on something other than a nice piece of jewelry or even shoes?

As I said in previous posts, I am hooked on quilting. This trip proved it!