Sister's Choice Quilts

Cataracts

I've been blessed with pretty good eyesight during my life.  I need readers to magnify the print when I am reading, but my distance vision has always been all right. In the past few years, I have experienced a gradual worsening of my vision.  I walk three or four days a week with a friend.  I began to notice that the individual leaves I used to be able to see up in a tree were now a blur of indistinguishable green. And when I read a page of a book, there would be a blurry area in the upper left of the page.  I could always shift the page around so my eyes could read the blurry bits, so I didn't worry too much. Then threading needles became really difficult.  I kept wanting more light for whatever task I was working on. More light always seemed to be the answer to my issues. And it helped. Up to a point.

I went to the eye doctor yesterday and she confirmed I had cataracts in both eyes, worse in the left eye.  The good news is, it is fixable. No rush.  I think I'll wait a few months until the COVID issue is more clear, then schedule my procedure.  I have never met a person who has had cataract surgery who has regretted it, so I am pretty excited for good results.

My husband is having some health issues as well, of a more personal nature.  I don't think he would like me to discuss them specifically, so I will respect his wishes.  Let me just say, a general wish of good luck would be welcome on this end right now. Getting old sure is the pits. 

On a lighter note, Eva was having homeschooling with her dad Monday and Tuesday of this week while her grandpa and I were away seeing doctors.  She is such a creature of habit.  She kept texting me, "Nana, can I have my morning break now?  It's 10:30."  "Nana, can I have lunch now?  It's noon".  Good heavens. I will be home soon and we will be back in my kitchen doing homeschool and the Earth will keep spinning on its axis.  

Hope you are all well.  A random quilty thought popped into my mind: have you heard of Joanna Figueroa's (Fig Tree Quilts) new Winter Solstice quilt along? It looks very interesting.  Eight-inch blocks with a dark background.  I do miss the nice big PRINT HERE button for printing the patterns, but you can copy and paste and work around it.

Hope your week is going great. Not long until Christmas.  I just want to get back home and stay put until mid-February.

Coming Together in Fellowship

 Thanks for bearing with me while I took a short break.  Last week was a rough one for many of us and my outlook on life was not the best.  A few days finding joy in small close things has helped me tremendously. 

Something that occurred in my neighborhood this weekend has made me so happy.  What you see in the photo above is a Truck Concert.  A local musician named Grover Anderson performed songs from his most recent album for friends in our small community.  Folks brought their own chairs out and sat in their driveways while he sang from the back of his truck.  It was unbelievably lovely to come together and see other people after such a long time of staying at home.  I assure you that proper social distancing was observed.

I am still feeling the warm glow that experiencing fellowship, kindness, and friendship gives.

A Quarantine Story

I hope you all had a nice weekend.  Our weather turned cold and rainy, so I spent a lot of time inside reading my books.  I zoomed through a couple of them, so at the end of the month, I should have a decent number to review for you.  

My husband had a hankering for Potato Leek Soup, so we indulged ourselves in some of that along with our home-baked bread.  From the comments I received last week, it sounds as if a lot of you are bread bakers too!  I also had bought some fresh cherries and made a delicious bar cookie called Cherry Garcia Brownies.  I will definitely share that recipe with you this week.

Speaking of sharing, I meant to share this with you all last week but got sidetracked.  A reader of this blog named Dianne and I have been corresponding recently, and I think a lot of you will be so interested in her quarantine experience.  Dianne and her husband live half the year in California, and half the year in Australia.  Her husband's mom is still with them and they like to spend time with her.  This is their typical time to return to their home in Australia, and have they ever got a travel/quarantine story.  Australia requires all persons who enter the country to shelter in place for two weeks in a hotel when they arrive.  Fourteen days and they cannot stick as much as one toe outside their hotel room!  She and her husband have been put up at the government's expense at a five-star hotel in Sydney. Dianne has shared her adventure on her blog Calfornia GIrl in Oz, and I invite you to hop over and read her adventure.  To my knowledge, she and her husband are on day 10 of their lockdown at this point in time.  After 37 hours of travel and fourteen days stuck in a hotel room, I'll bet she'd be real glad to get some comments.  Be sure to start on Day One and read through all her posts.  They're so good!

No Words

My son in law's stepdaughter is a college graduate this month.  Of course her graduation was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns, so the family decided to host a special celebration in her honor regardless.  There she is, in her back yard, watching an old Steven Spielberg Commencement address on her stepdad's lap-top before the special dinner he had made in her honor.  

After the recorded address, some of the family made celebratory remarks, but that was pretty much it.  She decorated her mortarboard cap, as you can see, and wore her school colors.  We did our best for her, but it should have been so much more.  

I think this is one of the saddest pictures I have ever taken in my life.  It was a proud day, but she looks so isolated, so alone, on what should have been a day of celebration with other friends and family members she loves but can't see.  How many graduates are forgoing a day that should be full of so much meaning and shared joy?  It makes my heart hurt.

Typepad Issues

Typepad (the company through which I publish this blog) is having some major problems the past couple of days.  My posts are not publishing at the set time, and I am not receiving your comments.  Comments are being published on the blog itself so I can see them, but not respond directly to you.

I have submitted help tickets and have my fingers crossed that these issues will be resolved by Monday.

Have a good weekend everyone!

Quarantine Weight Gain

Have you gotten on the scale lately?  Did you like what you saw, or were you in shock?  Standing on one foot helps, but I am not sure the results are accurate.

Seriously, everyone I know is talking about gaining the "COVID-15".  We have all heard of the "Freshman 15" which refers to the weight gain many college students put on due to their new environment, higher stress levels, different routines, and access to more junk food and alcohol. Ring any bells with you?  I think our COVID-19 quarantine is presenting us with many of the same issues.

Have you been sitting around in elastic waist pants, binge-watching tv and snacking constantly?  Or baking up a storm to pass the time and provide yourself and your family with tasty comfort food?  I know I have been consuming way more pasta and baking more bread and sweet treats than I normally would ever do.  I have had to give up my yoga class and trips to the gym.  Gaining weight seems an inevitable fall out of our current situation.

But does it have to be? Now that the shock of our required self-isolation has passed, I think it is time to get myself in hand and make some healthier choices.  I may not be able to get to the gym or yoga class, but I sure can go on daily walks in my neighborhood.  Especially with warmer weather on the way, this is a great way to spend an hour, along with an audiobook or a favorite podcast.  My husband dragged out some five and ten-pound hand weights that were gathering dust in the garage and has suggested we do daily exercises together out on the porch.

In the end, it is all about our health.  Scientists know that it takes several weeks to set in place a new habit, and if the habit you are setting right now is poor eating, you will pay a price later.  Don't let that fat settle in, don't raise your insulin levels, and for goodness sake, don't let this current over-eating become the new normal.

Limiting junk food is a must.  If the chips and chocolate bars aren't in the house, I sure can't eat them.  The grocery store where I live still has fresh salad greens, nice colorful veggies and wonderful protein sources such as chicken breasts and frozen shrimp.  We don't need to drift away from healthy food choices or pop an Oreo in our mouths each time the news comes on.  I plan to try to limit my snacks to a couple of planned times a day and not eat mindlessly.

I have always been a bit of an introvert, but this isolation is really getting on my nerves.  I miss my girlfriends, I miss my sisters.  They have always been my support system in times of stress or trouble.  I plan to get on the phone or schedule a FaceTime or What's App chat and talk about this issue.  I know they are going through the same thing as I am and together we can come up some great ideas and maybe even take off a few pounds while we cheer each other on. Don't be afraid to call up your BFF and ask for some support. 

Above all, be kind to yourself.  Give yourself some grace.  This is a process and not an instant fix, and it sure doesn't come easily to a lot of us.  If you slip up, forgive yourself and begin again.  In the end, you will have done your health a big favor. 

Year of the Sew Along

2020 is turning into The Year of the Sew Along for me.  In our current lockdown situation, so many designers, quilt shops, and groups are hosting the most fun sew alongs.  If we are stuck in the house, surrounded by our fabric stashes, why not make the most of it!  I have an all-time high of five, yes FIVE sew alongs going right now (technically one is a UFO, but it WAS a sew along lol), and I am loving it.  I will share the details of them with you this week.

Let me tell you about the one pictured above.  Since we are under orders to "shelter in place" in our homes, working on some cute little house blocks seems just about perfect.  I first heard about it on Instagram #modavillage.   There is a Miss Rosie pattern called Village that features an entire neighborhood of these adorable blocks.  I happened to have the pattern, but it is FREE for downloading on the Sew Lux website.  Lots of people are posting on the Instagram site and it is so much fun to see what they are doing.  There are also helpful tips--for instance, some of the houses have little chimneys which look tricky to construct, and I noticed some kind soul had done a tutorial.

You can use charm packs or scraps to make the blocks, and I am telling you, they are absolutely addicting.  Wouldn't this be a remarkable memento of the time we were all stuck at home but found a way to connect with other quilters?

I had a box of American Jane (Sandy Klop) scraps which got me started.  I wanted the happiest, most cheerful fabric I could get my hands on and this fit the bill.  If you have leftovers from Bonnie and Camille, Fig Tree or any of your favorite designers, they will work perfectly for this quilt.  Or just use any random scraps.  Whatever you choose, it seems to work.  Thelma (Cupcakes 'n' Daisies) made one with scraps from every quilt she made in 2016.

How are you all getting along?  Every day seems to bring more bad news, doesn't it?  We will get through this eventually.  In the meantime, I will try to post positive thoughts each weekday.  If you are alone, feel free to email me or comment on my blog.  I will be happy to answer you and be at least one person you interacted with in a day!

 

Flu

Sorry for the radio silence around here.  Some of us have been down with the flu.  Actually pretty much everyone in the family has been down with the flu.  Except for me.

Eva's daddy had it, Sara had it, Eva had it, then my husband got it.  It's been quite the infirmary in our little part of the world.  So far I have remained unscathed.  And I am the only one who had a flu shot.  Go figure.

That being said, I have been just a bit busy in the sick room.  Hope to be back with some quilty posts this week.  Unless the virus catches up with me that is.

Taking Pleasure in Small Things

I waited for the longest time, but the hummingbirds knew I was lurking and just wouldn't come to the feeder.  With these last days of summer, in the days before our annual trip to Ireland, I have been enjoying the simpler things in my life.  It has been fairly hectic, trying to prepare for the trip, check off all the "to do's", and sort out what we need to pack.  This past week I haven't had much time to blog, but I have had some time to step back, take a breath, and enjoy some of the simpler things in my life which give me so much pleasure.

Love this furball.  He is always sitting in my favorite chair when I want to sit down and read my book.

This is what I am reading right now.  Remember The Chilbury Ladies' Choir?  So good.  This is the author's "sophomore effort", and it definitely is not as good.  But still, I am enjoying it.  A curmudgeon of a middle-aged lady goes to London to search for her daughter Betty, who has gone missing during the Blitz of WW2.  She finds her daughter and a whole new outlook on life and what is important.

I pick up this memoir by Ruth Reichl when I have a chance, and so enjoy reading about her life.  The book documents her life after she was fired as the editor of Gourmet magazine, and is so interesting.  She pretty much cooked her favorite dishes for a year while she licked her wounds.

Speaking of licking, I am so in the mood for some fall-inspired food.  Last weekend, I seasoned and browned up some boneless pork chops and covered them with a mushroom cream sauce.

Is there anything more heavenly than perfectly browned and caramelized mushrooms?

Except maybe that first cup of coffee in the morning?  My favorite is Cinnabon coffee pods for the Keurig.

Or maybe sitting on the front porch to watch the sunset with a glass of wine?  Oh.  Except the dog is in my spot.

Whatever they are for you, try to enjoy the simpler things that add the most pleasure to your days.

 

 

 

Eva's School Experience

Advisory:  this is a chatty, kind of ranty, non-quilting related post.

We went to my grand daughter Eva's second grade open house last night.  She was so proud to show us around her classroom, pointing out her projects on display and her art work on the walls.  She was especially excited to show us the huge amount of work she put into this life size paper rendition of her organs and skeletal structure.  In the picture, she is showing us her brains!  It has been a great year for her.   Up to a point...

I am going to backtrack here.  Last year Eva was placed in a combination kindergarten/first grade class.  Typically combo classes are a challenge and are assigned to well seasoned, organized teachers.  Not in this case.  The teacher was teaching for the first time ever, was listless and socially inept.  She could not even make eye contact when speaking with parents.  I decided to volunteer to help her in the classroom, because if you can't see anything good in a situation, try to make it better, right?

I have never seen a teacher so low energy.  It was all she could do to keep some semblance of order with the kindergartners, much less teach anything to the first graders.  Then she got pregnant.  Her energy level dropped even lower, her classroom was an unappealing slovenly mess,  and then she quit.

Luckily an amazing substitute was called out of retirement to finish out the last couple months of the school year, and I swear, those kids learned more in those few weeks than they had the entire year so far.  She also cleaned up things and made the room attractive and inviting.  All was not lost and we ended on a positive note.

Then this year Eva was assigned to another combination class--second/third grade.  Our hearts sank and we prepared ourselves for another poor experience.  But we were wrong.  This time she got a great teacher-experienced, organized, fun and high energy.  The third graders were doing more advanced work of course, and I swear the second graders picked up on many things above their grade level. We were giving each other high fives, saying that Eva deserved a great classroom experience after last year.

Then spring break came.  Her wonderful teacher was in a bad accident and broke both arms.  She tried to break up a dog fight and one big dog grabbed one of her arms and snapped it and the other big dog grabbed her wrist and broke it.  And she's out for the rest of the year.  Obviously she can't help it, but what bad luck.

It's been substitutes since April and now that the end of the year has come, I have no clue how or who will do end of the year assessments and report cards.  At the open house last night, there was no teacher to greet the parents or tell us how great our kid was.  The principal was acting as hostess.  I introduced us to her as "Eva's family" and it was clear she had no clue who Eva was.  We are a small town.  It is a small school. Wouldn't you think the principal would know all the kids in the school especially when they have been there for three years?

Eva is undaunted by this situation and as you can see from the photos, was as proud as punch to show us around her school and classroom.  But it makes me sad.  She deserves better.