Moving On

We've just barely launched into summer vacation (school has been out for 2 weeks) and we're already preparing for the first trip of the summer. We are flying out to Oregon to visit relatives and it should be quite a visit. My mom has organized a big family reunion weekend with my siblings and their spouses, nieces and nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc., etc. I'm really looking forward to seeing everybody.

Looking ahead to the trip also brings to my mind the baby quilt that I started, back when my newest nephew was a baby. Zane is now almost 2-1/2 years old, and the quilt is STILL not finished! This past weekend I decided that I had to finish it once and for all, and if I get my act together and work fast, I can deliver it in person. This weekend I was able to finish up the quilt top.

Here it is hanging on the line. I am very happy with the way it has turned out, and I didn't have any problems with the pattern, other than how long each star block took to put together. I love the result but I wouldn't make this quilt again because of how fiddly and time consuming those blocks were.

Now I need to put the backing, batting, and top together and baste. I am going to pin baste, and then machine quilt. I'm not sure just how I'm going to quilt it though. I'm leaning toward quilting some stars in the more open sections of the blocks and in the borders, and then random swirly stippling, similar to what the pattern in the magazine suggested. I may outline the stars, or quilt just inside the stars as well. I'll be sure to do LARGE swirls and stippling though, so it doesn't take me forever to finish. My batting is cotton but can be quilted up to 8 inches apart, so I've got a lot of leeway.

Last week we said goodbye to Aya, our exchange student from Japan. She's back in Japan and has sent us emails to let us know she's home safe. It was a very sad few days before we brought her to the hotel where the exchange student group gathered before going home. Hard as it was, I was glad to know that the reason  she was sad was because she had had a good year with us and didn't want to leave (though I know she was also anxious to get back to Japan and see her family and friends whom she hadn't seen in 10 months).

Here are the "sisters" saying a teary goodbye.

We've been trying to add some learning for the kids to the summer this year. They are both learning how to do their own laundry (yay!), though right now, I still need to lead them through it. Our plan was also to have them cook one dinner a week, but it's been difficult to put that one in motion. They also both have part-time jobs this summer, but there is still plenty of time left over for them to spend hours at the computer, texting with their friends, and sleeping until noon when they can get away with it. Today we're going to get out in the sunshine and go to the town craft fair.

Lots to do this week to prepare for the trip. I have hopes of getting a relaxing day or two visiting with my folks, in between the family reunion, meeting up with old friends and possibly even a college visit. I'm not holding my breath though.

Shelley in CT

Progress!

The quilt top is finally all put together! Well, mostly put together. I still have to put on the borders. I haven't decided yet how to quilt it, but I'm leaning toward stippling. Or maybe just outlining the stars and stippling the checkerboard sections. Hmmmm.

Today I also finally got myself out to do a track workout - interval training. (Yuck!) It's so much easier with a partner to suffer alongside me help me get through it. I have to say, though, that my daughter helped me out with motivation. She forgot her chemistry notebook, and I had to take it down to the school for her. And the track is right next to the school. So I got dressed to run and dropped her book at the school on my way to the track. I tried a different formula for my intervals this time: timing instead of just sprinting the straightaways and walking/jogging the curves. I had found a workout online that suggested 30 seconds hard and 90 seconds recovery, so I set my watch timer for 30 seconds. It's a little fiddly, using the watch timer, but it was a good workout. I think in the future I can blend the 30/90 with the straightaway/curve and come up with a middle ground that's easier to keep track of. I do like the longer recovery, and the 30 second sprint is longer than just the 100 meter straightaway so it makes me work a little harder. I'm going to feel this tomorrow.

Well, that all feels like a fair amount of accomplishment this week. Perhaps I can get the quilt bordered and basted this weekend, and get it finished and sent off to my nephew before he graduates from high school! (I started it before he was born and he's already 2 years old. I've really got to explore simpler quilt patterns...)

Hope you're getting some lovely spring sunshine wherever you are!

Shelley in CT

Looking Good

...if I do say so myself. Take a look:

Zany Stars Quilt in Progress

I've decided on placements for all the different star blocks, and I still need to sew up some more of the checkerboard filler, but I really like the way it's coming together. My sister-in-law tells me that my nephew is really into stars these days, so I have incentive to finish it quickly before he moves out of that phase!

I've got my sewing table all set up with the ironing board right next to it, so I can sit down and sew some pieces together whenever I have a spare 5 minutes or so. That has really helped my productivity. Of course, I would much rather spend larger blocks of time and see more progress, but I'll take what I can get.

On the home front, kids have recovered from the school musical and the SATs, and mandatory state standardized testing is finally over. We may actually have a calmer week ahead of us.

I am still running, and trying to bump my running schedule up to 3 runs per week. I was doing pretty well with that, 2 weeks in a row with 3 runs, and then this past week I hosted knitting group on my running day, so the run went out the window. Oh well, I'll try to pick it back up this week.

My local dance studio expanded their classes recently and are now offering an adult tap class. I had taken tap for a number of years, but had to stop about 5 or 6 years ago when the class was cancelled due to scheduling issues. I had been dancing with the high-schoolers, which was often a stretch for me, but it was a lot of fun and a really good workout. This new class is all adults, most of whom tapped as kids and are trying to pick it back up. I find myself the most experienced tapper in the class (besides the teacher), which is a first for me. We are starting slowly, but I do love tapping, so I am going to use this opportunity to work on my technique, which could certainly use some work, and hope that the others will be able to move forward quickly so we can get to the fun stuff.

The sun's been out lately and spring flowers are popping up. Everyone's healthy. Life is good.

Shelley in CT