A tale of too much heat.

Yesterday it was 110 degrees and I had to stop by Target after church to pick up a few things, like root beer and ice cream and my car wouldn't start. It had to be 250 degrees in my car and just knew I would get home with root beer and a half gallon milk shake. Within five minutes my car started and I made it home before the ice cream melted but I felt sick. I've never had heat stroke but I think that's what I experienced yesterday. All I wanted to do was lay down and drink ice water. Today it's only 105 and since I worked I was blessed with air conditioning and since I park in a covered lot my car wasn't heated up. When I got home I spent some time piecing a quilt I'm making for my brother's 60th birthday in November. It feels good not to be rushed when I'm working on a quilting project.

I've been practicing my free motion quilting too. I can see a lot of improvement. I am looking forward to having some time to focus on that skill. Meanwhile here are some pictures of the quilt I made for a friend's first grand baby. I struggled with how to quilt it and I'm happy with the way it turned out. I wish the pictures showed more detail.

It's a panel with pieced blocks down one side and across the bottom.

This is a picture of the entire quilt. I quilted a butterfly pattern in the triangles at the bottom to mimic the butterfly's in the quilt and flowers and leaves in the squares and panels. Sorry about this picture. I'm not sure if I should blame the camara or my computer.

I have so many quilts I want to do and so little time. When I'm done with my brothers I will finish my Patch Work Party quilt. I could probably finish that in a few days.

It's still warm out so I'm going to cool of in the pool and hit the sack. I'm sure tomorrow holds many surprises and blessings.

Gods peace to you.

Happy Father's Day

It's that day of the year when we honor our Dads and recognize them for all they do. I think we should make everyday Father's day. Being a Dad isn't an easy job but hopefully it will be the most rewarding. My Dad passed away 35 years ago. So much has happened and changed during that time. As I reflect on my Dad and who he was and what he stood for I think he would be very dissapointed at what has happened to our country and our government. My Dad was a man of integeraty and honesty. He was a fair and caring man that respected people for who they were. My Dad was a very hard working individual who believed you should work for what you want. He always told me I would appreciate the things I have because I worked for them and he was right. I don't know what he would think if he was here today and saw our welfare system and what it's done to our state. I say state because California has welfare programs that are so lukerative people move here from other states. 35 years ago we didn't need police in the schools. Okay, enough of the negative. My husband never got to meet my Dad and my Dad wasn't able to see his beautiful granddaughter grow up with children of her own. So if your blessed and have your Dad around enjoy this time and be thankful for the opportunity.

Today was a special Sunday for me because my nephew's girl friend came to church with me. I've been sharing my faith with her and praying for this for two years. She brought Baby Joey and he played in the nursery. He had a good time and was a very good little boy. She said she enjoyed it and wanted to go next week too. Praise God!

So I finished the baby quilt and I'll post a picture at the end of the week. I'm designing a special quilt label. I'm pleased with the improvement in my quilting. I used my Mom's Pfaff because I couldn't get the bobbin tension right on my Viking. My next project is to finish my brothers 60th birthday quilt.

God's peace be with you until next time.

TGIF I THINK

I don’t know about you but for me, one little thing can go wrong in the morning and turn my entire day upside down. Today was one of those days.
I got up early this morning so I would have time to stop and gas up my car. I’m on the road at 6:30 and the traffic is light, which is a good thing because the developmentally delayed seem to populate the roads at that time in the morning. These people creep along 10 – 15 miles under the speed limit, and wait until they are actually making the turn to use their turn signals. My favorite are the ones that wait until you are almost at the intersection and then they pull out right in front of you and creep along. You check your rear view mirror thinking there must be a line of cars behind you and this is their only window of opportunity, but no, there are no cars behind you, so I figure they must be visually impaired. Tonya, you know what I'm talking about.

I’m following a school bus and I’m staying a safe distance behind. As we approach the intersection the bus enters and the light turns yellow so I stop. Before the bus is out of the intersection the light is red. Almost immediately the light is green again and I take off and while I’m still in the intersection the light turns yellow and then red. My first thought is okay Lord, is this a test? So on to the next intersection. This one is a photo enforced intersections where your picture is taken if you run the red light. Okay, so I’m behind the bus again, the light turns green, we go, and then the light turns yellow then red and I’m still in the dang intersection. This is at West Lane and Hammer, which is a huge intersection, like five or six lanes. I can’t punch it because the bus is in front of me and I don’t want a ticket. What’s up with this? Is this a scam the city has devised to increase revenue’s to balance their budget? The irony here is that I’m very aware of these intersection with the cameras and I always approach with caution. So, while I’m filling up my gas tank, I’m steaming, getting angry and upset trying to figure how I’m going to handle this, it just isn’t fair. As I’m driving to work I hit a couple of the numerous potholes in the road, not good for the car. Stockton has the worst roads. Maybe the city wants additional income from traffic fines to fix the roads.

By the time I get to work I’m really upset. I sit at my desk and in front of me is a tile with Psalm 18:2 on it. The Lord is my strength, in whom I will trust. So I ask him how I should handle this, I can’t just ignore it. I call Stockton’s traffic signal maintenance division and to my surprise a lady answers the phone. I thought I would get a recording because it’s not even 7:30. I explained my situation and she said she would transfer me to the electrical shop. Ed answered the phone and I told him my story. I’m not sure why but he was laughing. He explained that the lights are on timers which operate according to the traffic usage. I explained to him that that should not be the case on the intersections that are photo enforced and the time between yellow and red should be enough time for a car to get through the intersection. He is still chuckling and I asked him if these calls are recorded. He said no and asked if I was going to curse him out, then I started laughing. No, I explained, that wasn’t my style I just didn’t want to receive a ticket for something that was out of my control. He laughed again and said he would call the traffic engineers. So it’s a wait and see. Now I ask you, who should have to start their day like that?
The day continued with computer problems and more regulations from the state that make my work very unpleasant. So it’s Friday and tomorrow is Saturday I don’t have to drive in traffic. After church on Sunday I can work on my quilting project and play with my dogs. Thank God it’s Friday.
Have a blessed weekend.

Marvelous Monday

Of course it’s marvelous, it’s my day off. I had a great weekend. My sister-in-law arrived from Oregon Thursday night. We have Chinese food for dinner and sat around talking until way after my bedtime.

Friday after breakfast I took her to our local quilt store to check it out and meet the ladies who work there. They are the greatest. Debbie, the owner, was there and she and Mary hit it off. They were wheeling and dealing and I was catching up with the ladies and checking out all the eye candy. I love fabric and Debbie has plenty. I think we were there over three hours. Then it was home, dinner, and more chatting. I gave her a trunk show of all the quilt tops I’ve made and need to quilt.

Saturday we headed back to Quilter’s Quarters and Mary and Debbie did more wheeling and dealing. When we left there it was off to Gottschalks for their liquidation sale. The store is closing up and I sure hate to see it go. We don’t have many good stores in town and I was usually able to find cloths that were suitable for work there. Mary picked up a metal display rack that will be perfect for hanging quilt patterns and stacking fat quarters at her quilt shop. Then it was home to get ready for the big wedding in Modesto. It was our great-nephew’s wedding and we had a great time. The evening was fabulous and from my point of view it was the perfect wedding.

Sunday I went to church, everybody else was off doing their thing. It was a slow paced day that ended in a barbeque and a movie. Mary left this morning and it was back to reality. I accomplished a lot today. The laundry is done and I vacuumed. I spent time outside trimming my rose bushes and the hedges in the front of the house. The weather was wonderful and I sat on the side of the pool with my feet in the water thinking about how great it will be when I’m retired and I’ll have more time to enjoy all the blessing I have.

I have a quilt I need to get finished so until next time have a blessed life.

What's been going on.

Show and Tell at the Quilt Guild Thursday night was great. These ladies are modeling jackets they made at last months workshop.

These are sweatshirts embellished with prairie points.

Memorial Day weekend was fabulous. Family came over Sunday and we barbequed, swam, and sat around talking and relaxing. It was a beautiful day. Baby Joey had the best time in the water with his Dad. The handsome guy in the picture is my #1 grandson with his dog Jelly. What's better than Fun, Food, and Family?

The month of May is coming to an end and it’s time to set goals for June. I finally received the final Block Party block kit from Calico Cat. I will get the quilt pieced this month and then I’m going to find somebody to quilt it. I want the quilting to be special like the fabrics and blocks. I’m also finishing up a special baby quilt for a friend. I’ll post a picture when it’s done, which should be in two weeks.

I’ve been quilting on my Sisters Twister quilt. I had about ¼ of it quilted and realized the thread tension was off and I had to rip it out and start over. I will finish that quilt in June too.
My BFF (sister-in-law from Oregon) will be here on the 4th to attend a family wedding. I’m taking the 5th off so we can play with fabric and plan my future in Oregon. She is co-owner of Sonja's Sewing Basket in Sutherlin Oregon. The plan is to join the partnership.

Wishing you God's peace. Have a wonderful weekend.

Blessed Event

Congratulations go to my friend and co-worker Renee as she welcomes the arrival of her first grandchild, Ella Shea. As special as every child is, there is something almost magical about your first grandchild. As many of us spent a great deal of time today hovering over Renee's desk waiting for that special call, many of us were remembering the arrival of our first grandchild. Ella Shea weighed in at 9lbs 12 oz. She is an amazing gift of God. Welcome Baby Ella.

Congratulations to Mom, Dad and all the other family members too.

Marvelous Monday

It was a marvelous Monday because I had the day off. It was a bit windy but in the 80’s and I sat with my feet in the pool and started reading a book that I’ve want to read for the past year. The birds were singing and I could hear a cricket off in the distance. There is a gardenia bush in the corner of the yard and the fragrance was captivating. It brought back memories of a trip my husband and I took to Maui and a State park we walked through that had fragranced flowers everywhere. There were pools of water filled by water falls. Back to reality, the book I mentioned is, Philip Yancey’s Finding God in Unexpected Places. I also found time to piece some quilt blocks. This was truly a blessed day in so many ways.

So here is the update on what’s been going on. I finished my cake decorating class. Here is a picture of the cake I did. There are more techniques I want to learn but I think I will wait a month before starting up again.

The wedding shower was fabulous. The lunch was good and the Kate got a lot of nice gifts. I had a great time and I really like Kate. My niece and her daughter did a wonderful job putting the shower together and it was held in a spectacular old private home. I think somebody said it was built in the early 1800’s. Here is two views of the front entrance.

It had rained during the day and everything was clean and fresh looking. I love the rain so it really made everything special. I'm not sure everybody felt the same.

This is a picture of the grooms grandmothers, the bride to be, her mother and the grooms mother.

I’m still waiting on a block for my Patch Work Party quilt but I started a baby quilt for a friend. I picked up some great quilt fabric at Quilter’s Quarters at 50% off and did some catching up. I haven’t been in the store for a few months due to my pledge to use up some of my stash before buying more fabric. Oh like that's going to happen. With our 9% sales tax I can't afford to buy a lot of fabric to store. I consider this purchase a very small relapse since the fabric was half price. The staff at the quilt store are great and I miss not seeing them regularly.

Mother’s day started at church where an omelet brunch was served after the service. How special was that? I got a great card from Brit, Brook, and Bree and a beautiful wind chime to hang in my kitchen window. Tami picked up some Christian music for me and we barbequed, which meant less mess in the kitchen. I hope you all had a wonderful Mother’s day too.

Until next time, wishing you God’s blessings.