Loads of updates and latest OBSESSION!

Oh where to begin.....
Wednesday, after the frantic packing of the car after spending the morning and afternoon creating the C'mas Stockings quilt, I grabbed the girls and headed to Mom's. Once all things were unloaded at Mom's, I parked my butt in the glider, and started hand-sewing bindings. I wrapped up Andre's by 10:00, and started in on the C'mas Stockings quilt and got half done by 11:30, when I finally decided it was time to get to bed.

I have other updates to come yet, but I must jump into my latest "obsession" that my post title hints to. Last week, my 8th grade girls kept nudging me to read "this book" over and over and over. Finally, after seriously five of them kept saying I HAVE to read it, I went to Amazon.com to get an overview of what the book was about since I had no idea about it. Well, being as observant as they are, suddenly one of my girls shouted (during silent SSR time, by the way) "Mrs. Skattebo! you don't have to order it, you can just borrow my copy!!!" Then, after class THREE of them came running (literally!) down the hall with their copies, begging for me to take her copy over the other's. It was quite funny! But, I chose the first girl's, and seriously watched the others sulk, but.....oh well. Anyway, that night (I think that was last Monday), I started reading a few pages, nothing major..... The next day, my girls were wondering which part of the book I was at, HINTING that once I "get into it," I wouldn't be able to put it down. Anyway, that night (Tuesday), I read a few more pages finishing Chapter 2 before my eyelids said it was bed time.

So---fast forward to Wednesday night after sewing bindings. It was 11:30, but I figured I'd read a few more pages before sleeping, and I think I finished maybe three pages before I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore.

But then, Thursday morning, I wasn't in the mood to sew yet, so I grabbed the book and read. And read......and read......and read.......snacked a little for lunch....read some more......shirked off helping in the "Thanksgiving meal prep" for as long as I could.....sighed when I had to put it down......ate some dinner.....cleaned up dishes.......and went RIGHT BACK TO THE BOOK. There were a few other mini breaks I needed to do----get the girls to bed, etc....but by 11:30 that night, I was done. OMGOODNESS!!! IT WAS SOOOOOO GOOD! And then......I did the BIGGEST BOO-BOO ever!!! I read the proloude (sp?) to the next book in the series that was printed at the end of this one. OHHHHHHHH----that was a mistake!!!!!!

So, at this point, I was frustrated for a few reasons....
a) I didn't really think it would be that good
b) I didn't realize it was a SERIES
c) After spending all day FRIDAY searching EVERY BOOKSTORE IN TOWN, I STILL wasn't able to read more because not a single store had a copy of book 2!!!!
d) Finally------while watching TV Friday night, suddenly I looked up during a commercial movie review. OMGOODNESS! It was the BOOK!!!! The girls NEVER TOLD ME it had been made into a movie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, fastforward to my drive home Saturday afternoon, I was working on a last minute plan of arranging a babysitter for the night so I could go see the movie, and I DID! I took my babysitter while her mother watched the girls. Yup.....her mother watched the girls. That family adores my girls, so "mom" was more than excited to watch them.

So.....have you guessed Book/Movie Twilight from my descriptions????? Ohhhh....*sigh*....it was Soooooooo good! So now, I can't WAIT until tomorrow to ask the girls if anyone has book 2 to loan me????? *chuckle*


Okay, so time to rewind back to Friday. As Angela wrote about on her blog, for those non-Americans out there, Black Friday marks the official start in the USA for C'mas shopping. Two years ago, my sis and I were bonkers, starting the day hitting stores at 4:30 am and went until 11:00 pm! CRAZY! Last year, my mom and I hit the stores for a few hours. This year, my sis and I looked at the sales flyers the night before, but really didn't find any "we HAVE to get this" deals! So, we weren't in any big rush that morning---headed out and hit the stores at 8:30. We really thought we'd be home after a few hours, but amazingly, we were finding some great deals even after the "4:00-10:00" Bargain Door Buster bargains. The next thing we knew, it was 4:00, and we had to get back soon so Cass could open presents for her Birthday. She turned 8. So, we bought a B-day cake, ordered some Papa-Murphies pizza, and headed home.
While the pizza was cooking, we had Cass open her presents so the evening wouldn't get too late. She stocked up on some new Littlest Pet Shop presents and clothes, and also "Alvin and the Chipmunks" movie. So, once we were done eating, the girls played in G'mas toy room and watched the movie while my sis and I unloaded the car



For the next couple of hours, we sorted all the packages, and I even WRAPPED EVERYTHING! There was no point in me taking everything back to my house, ONLY to schlep it back down to Mom's as C'mas time. So, I can now say that I am 95% DONE WITH C'MAS SHOPPING! I only have DH's parents to buy for yet....that's it.

Saturday morning, we visited my sis-in-law's house on the way back home to ours. We had a brunch, ate some more bday cake, and Cass opened a few more gifts. We needed to head out though by noon so we could get home for Cass to have a friend over from 3:00 - 6:00.
While she and her friend were playing up in her room, Candace, Caitlyn and myself started putting up the C'mas tree. Cass and her friend came down for some Bday cake (sigh---it's ALMOST gone now!) and then wanted to help decorate the tree, so I popped up some popcorn so they could make some popcorn garland. The tree is almost done, we have a few more garlands to string up, and then I'll snap a pic.

The rest of the night, I already talked about------*sigh*----the Twilight movie. We went to the theater in Rice Lake, a town 20 miles away. Spooner (just down the road) isn't showing it (yet). I may have to convince DH to take me out once it shows here.

Anyway----today has been an "unwinding" day. I've tidied up the sewing room a little, spent maybe an hour sewing some odds-n-ends, but I just don't feel like much more than today. Clothing is beckoning to me after being out of the house for a few days. *sigh*......back to the realworld again!

UGH! I almost forgot---I also have some Pre-Calc tests calling my name to be graded too. Will it be bad if I hold off until Prep time tomorrow?????

Happy Sunday!

I love you Angela!!!

Angela (SoScrappy) has dagone saved my life!!! Seriously----PRIOR to her tutorial, my binding corners looked like that hacked-up-need-to-fix-with-additional-binding that you see pictured on the right. But NOW-------v'iola! Her tutorial made my corners a BREEEEEZE! (see red corner on left). I have yet to sew the binding to the back, but.......THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

In fact, I was SOOOOOO excited at how easy the binding was, that I needed to come up with another project FAST so I could practice again! So, naturally when a lady has an ENTIRE DAY OFF, and a handful of C'mas deadline quilts on her hands, she would work towards finishing one of them. But...........sometimes I wonder if I'm a bit beyond crazy!!!

So, what does one "beyond crazy lady" decide to do?????

8:30 am: Pull out some scraps (left over from the new C'mas stockings this year that my mother made)

8:45 am: Cut into 4.5" charms

10:00 am: Piece together

12:30 pm: Throw on some borders

12:50 pm: Sandwich and baste (using a blanket that was a $.10 garage sale find from this summer)

1:25 pm: Quilt with simple lines, using a decorative stitch

2:15 pm: Practice Angela's binding method again

2:30 pm: And v'iola! Finished (well, almost) QUILT IN A DAY!








What great, silly fabrics some of them were! I'm dying to know whose stocking the C'mas animals belong to!!! How funny!!!!!!









Okay, I know this was a short post, but I really need to fly the coop! I'm off to my parent's house, with hand-sewing projects in tow, but first I have to run to the bank and then pick up the girls from Daycare.

THANK YOU ONE LAST TIME ANGELA!!!!

Happy Thanksgiving

On a roll....

After finishing up Jan's Family Gems last night, I was still raring and motivated to go when I got home tonight. DH was home nice and early, and since the Packer game is on tonight, he had no problem hanging out with the girls. So, after an early dinner (4:30), I was downstairs by 5:00.

A few weeks back, I finished piecing Andre's Out of this World." I hadn't planned on quilting it until Wednesday, however I figured I would at least prepare the backing tonight and get everything sandwiched so that I could jump right in Wednesday. Well----as with many things, one thing lead to another: Backing was cut and pieced....taped down. Batting was cut to size.....top laid atop.....and pins (OVER 100 of them!!!!) were used to baste it. I wanted to make sure there weren't ANY puckers with this baby, so I think I went "over the top" with the amount of pins used.

It was 5:45 by the time I wrapped up all the "prep" work. I stood for a few minutes looking around my quilting area to see what to work on next. Naturally, I have Scot's Camo waiting for some border layers; I have Derek's Storm at Sea that could be prepped for quilting; I have Ron's Old Tobacco Roads that need some touch-ups on the corners, and then a large handful of other UFO's waiting patiently for me to finish up the Christmas lists. BUT, rather than work on any of the projects begging for my attention, I decided to go ahead and start quilting Andre's.

By 7:15 (girls early bedtime tonight), I was half completed with the blocks, using the simple and classic medium-size stipple. At 7:30, I turned the game on the radio, and decided to continue. Again, one thing lead to another, and all the stippling was complete. I plopped on the walking-foot and changed thread to filament for some in-the-ditch work along the border's edge. Then, placing the FMF (free-motion-foot) back on and changing the thread back to eggshell, I went to work in the borders. NATURALLY, it only made sense to use some random stars to follow the theme of the quilt. By the time 9:00 rolled around, I was finished. WOW! I definitely did not have that planned for tonight!

So, I schlepped the quilt upstairs to actually WATCH the game, and besides, it's easier to cut the edging scraps on a wood floor rather than carpet. Finally, by 9:30, I was able to fold it up after removing all the pins and snapping a pic. So, it's now waiting patiently for binding, which I have yet to decide on. I have plenty of the blue star fabric left, but I think I want to use RED!. I will be sure to wait on the binding until Angela (SoScrappy) has a chance to give her tutorial on binding. I'm tired of messing up!!!

It's nearing 10:00, so time for me to do a quick check in on some other blogs.
I am working the girl's BB game tomorrow night, so I don't expect to be home much before 9:00 pm. But then---ALL Wednesday off to myself. The girls all want to go to Daycare since there will be a party. So.........*sigh*........a whole day off!

Happy Monday!

10:10 update I just peeked over to Angela's site, and she has the 1st and 2nd part of the binding tutorial up. Her pics make it look soooo easy! I never understood what "pivot and fold up binding strip" meant before because I'd never seen pics. THANKS ANGELA!!!!

Jan's Family Gems

At 9:00, I headed downstairs to put the final touches on Jan's Family Gems borders. The loopy-meanders took about 15 minutes, and I was done. But then........I decided to do one more straight-stitch 5/8" from the edge of the quilt. *SIGH* Bad idea-----the wavy border appearance showed as soon as I did that! It was laying flat prior-----HONEST!

The outer border / binding has a short story behind it. I had put on the 2 inner borders, with one more 3" border yet to go. However, I knew I needed to add some batting since I had been short when sandwiching the other day. But, I just didn't have the ambition to piece a 4" strip of batting to each end though......so.......what to do, what to do, what to do. Instead, I "played." I ended up folding the backing to the front, creating roughly a 2" border on the edge, which also took on the roll of binding for this quilt. I ironed the edges over 1/2" and used a decorative stitch from my machine to top-stitch the "border binding" to the quilt.

So, my To-Do list today was accomplished. Yes...I even wrote the Algebra Team Test earlier AND made the key right away. I even created two extra credit problems, one for Math 8 and one for Algebra 8. *patting self on back*

Alright, alright---I have to admit that I still have one load sitting on the entry-way floor, but 'twill get done!

Happy Sunday! Here's to a short week!

Almost Noon Update

The To-Do List:

• Finish laundry (UGH!) Almost done! 2 loads left
  
• Return movies : DONE
  
• Buy diapers and socks : DONE
  
• Write Algebra Team Test
  This will wait until "laptop time" later tonight.
  

So......now that the ICKY list items are done, it's time to get to the funner ones!!!!

• Put borders on Jan's quilt and quilt them.
  After my 11:45 coffee "snack," I'm heading downstairs to work on this....
  
• Add binding and finish : Ditto
  

Post #150; Jan's Family Gems gettin' there

I didn't realize I was clipping away on my posts--afterall I just hit 100 in August when Angela (Soscrappy) won my 100th Post Giveaway. I suppose I should start thinking about a giveaway for 200 so that once I get there, I'll be set :0) (chuckle)

Anyway, here is the lovely Quilter's cliche, but.......ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh! What wonderful therapy I had yesterday!!!! I spent most of the day in front of the machine, quilting all three sections of Jan's Family Gems. The sections were two rows each (about 24-30 inches wide), so it was not a struggle under the machine AT ALL!!!!! Not a single pucker on the back, no sore neck or back muscles----yup! This 'quilting in sections' method is wonderful! But, for those of you who frequent my blog already know my opinion on this method. :0) Of course, there is ONE minor downfall with this method-----more hand sewing is needed than the normal method because of the need to hand-stitch the connector strips on the back. However, I finished piecing the sections together by 5:15 last night; came upstairs and made some meatballs and spaghetti for the girls and myself for supper, and then we plopped down for yet another movie, The Bridge to Taribithia. SERIOUSLY!!!! What a SAD, SAD movie (with a partial happy ending)......oh! I was NOT expecting the sadness of it.

But anyway, after dinner and while the movie was playing, I hand-sewed both connector strips down. I used a longer needle than usual this time---I think it went so much quicker because of it. FYI.




So----today's goals....

• Finish laundry (UGH!)
  
• Return movies
  
• Buy diapers and socks (for Cass!) MAN! Her feet grew overnight, I swear!!!
  
• Put borders on Jan's quilt and quilt them.
  
• Add binding and finish
  
• Write Algebra Team Test
  

Happy Sunday

Weekend goals...

This past week has been another "full" one. There were times I could have blogged, but seriously, any little bit of free time I had, I tried to get downstairs to continue working on the C'mas list.

Scot's Camo quilt top is about half done. The flying-geese border is complete, and another border has been added to that. More to come later....maybe by the end of the weekend I'll revisit it.

Yesterday, we had the day off of school. I've never quite understood why we have that day off, when we go back for Monday and Tuesday, and then we're off again. Many of us staff have the "gripe" session by saying..."good golly! Let's have school on Friday, give us Monday and Tuesday off (therefore have the whole week off for Thanksgiving), and then we'll find some other time in the year to make up the other day."

Anyway---back to yesterday. I had high hopes of accomplishing LOTS of quilting.....BUT......
the day started out by dropping the two little ones to daycare. (YUP! I'm trying to justify that by saying I'd have to pay for the day anyway since I've used up my 5 "free days" she allows us. I figured I'd get more accomplished without the two little ones underfoot----I hope you all understand that I DO Love my children and don't just mean to "pawn them off," but it's just "easier" some days by taking them to daycare EVEN when I have off. Judge as you wish.....)

THEN, my DH pleaded with me to take a drive with Cass to pick up the last batch of Pork meat from the butcher. *sigh* A whole hour away! So, there went 2 hours! By the time we got back home, it was almost 10:30, so.......off I went downstairs.

The other night, I pulled out Jan's Family Gems blocks and sewed them together into rows. THen, two rows at a time, I started piecing the top together. I HAD complete intentions of sewing the entire top together, get borders on, and then quilt. HOWEVER, as I was piecing the rows, I started brain-storming about the quilting. Simple meanders was what I initially was planning, however, suddenly the quilting pattern came to mind......

Inward "triangles" for each of the white tri's, and looping meanders for the white 4-patches. And, as you can see from the top picture, I'm using Quilting in Sections again. It is SO MUCH EASIER to work with the smaller sections under the machine rather than the whole thing! I never would keep it so smooth and pucker free----it's worth it (once again!) to put the extra time in.

So, I was able to quilt until about 12:30 when Cassie wanted some lunch. And, STUPID ME! I turned the TV on while lunch was preparing and while we were eating, and Cass and I "got into" a movie that started at 1:00. *SIGH* We don't have the DirectTV wired downstairs, so it wasn't as easy as "continue watching downstairs." Nope, nope, nope. So, I coudln't tear myself away, so........no more quilting happened (FOR THE WHOLE DAY!)

The movie ended a bit after 3:00. I needed to pick the girls up by 4:00, but wanted to hit the grocery store before that. So Cass and I bundled up, headed out, and make a quick stop at the Movie Rental place as well. We picked out 5 "oldies" and when I went to the counter the lady informed me we had a free rental coming so was wondering if we wanted a New Release as well. Well, golly--yeah! So we also rented Wall-E. AND OF COURSE, once we picked up the girls, came back home, had some dinner, all THREE of them were almost to the point of chanting "Wall-E, Wall-E, Wall-E." So.......I "got into" that one too.......and just didn't make it back downstairs, because directly after Wall-E, we watched Scooby Doo.

So......TODAY.....Goal: QUILT JAN'S QUILT! I have two sections basted and ready to go---the third section will need some finaggling to get a piece of batting cut to size as well as the backing.

OH!!!! I ALMOST FORGOT! One night, I DID have quite a bit of time to dedicate to quilting, BUT that was also the day that our Community Education coordinator talked to me about offering a quilting class or two come January time. I have never taken a class before and don't know much about all the whats/whens/wheres/etc. So, I researched "quilting classes" online for a couple of hours to get a base. If any of you have any tips/suggestions/info for me, PLEASE think about emailing me (or commenting). I'm thinking of Quilt Piecing Fundamentals (terminology, tools, perfecting that 1/4 inch!). BUt I don't know what to charge, what I should be providing (fabric, tools?), how many sessions I should have, evening classes? or a couple of saturdays?...... Lots of questions! I've also thought of basic quilting, but I don't think I'm to that point. However, I have also thought of offering a shorter class just on Quilting in Sections since I use it so much.

Anyway......time to start the day, have some coffee, and head downstairs......

Plain ol' lazy!

Yup! That's me!
You'd THINK with all I need to accomplish by C'mas, I would use every waking, free moment at home to work in my sewing room. But....*sigh*....I'm just plain ol' tired, bushed, and flat out LAZY some nights.

Yes folks....I AM human after all *chuckle*

So, here I sit----actually the WHOLE FAMILY is sitting in the living room watching The Wizard of Oz.
***If I only had a brain.....***

Alright, I have Caitlyn wanting up on my lap, looking at me with those pleading eyes, and I am FINALLY realizing these moments will be gone soon, so........
....I'll tune in on Sunday since I'm heading to my parent's house tomorrow. I'm killing two birds with one stone; we are visiting G'ma and G'pa, AND I'll be a HECK of a lot closer to the BIG GAME that our Football team has tomorrow evening at 6:00. We are in the State Semi-Finals---BIG game tomorrow night! If they win, the State Championship game will be on Thursday. A "fan" bus is heading down for the game tomorrow; it's near a 3 1/2 hour drive. The game starts at 6:00; might be over around 8:30-ish??? So....the fan bus won't return back to town until near MIDNIGHT!!!! NO THANK YOU! Instead, my parents only live an hour from the game location----just PERFECT for me :0) Cass will probably go with me to the game----I have LOTS of blankets/quilts packed already. It's going to be FRIGIDDDDDDD! 30 degrees as high for the day, so I'm expecting closer to 20's for game-time, and snow/rain mix. ICK!!!

Happy Friday and Happy Sewing!

More Camo progress....

I was a bit tired last night, so by 8:00, right after putting the girls to bed, I plopped a DVD in the bedroom player and snuggled up in bed. I had COMPLETE intentions of falling asleep before the movie was over, but PSHT! It's one I haven't seen in a long time (The Interpreter), and I found myself watching it to the end, which was just a bit after 10:00. *sigh*

Regardless, I didn't sew at all last night, so by 6:00 tonight, I headed downstairs to see what else I could accomplish with Scot's Camo quilt. The inner squares (obviously) were pieced tonight as well as two small borders. Then I played around with some Flying Geese since I had a good handful of 2.5" scraps after cutting up the squares. I have 20 completed---I did a few different arrangements with them---trying them with a black brick inbetween each, with a camo brick between each, but in the end, one Flying Geese next to another really just looks the best. So.....I SHOULD need 24 for each side (the inner section with borders is measuring 48"x48") HOWEVER, with the 20 laid out......(seam allowance overlap already taken out of the equation)....ummm.....I don't think another FOUR will fit!!!!! *scratching head*..... I really can't see the border stretching that much. If I could find my stinkin' tape measure, I'd be able to double check the 48x48 measurements!

Anyway......I came up at 9:00 to grade a few papers, write a quiz, and now I'm checking in.

Happy Wednesday!

Insane Puzzle Play

After such a successful weekend, I wanted to keep going with the next project nearing completion. HOWEVER, when I went downstairs, for SOME reason, I found myself digging into one of my tubs to "remind myself what was in it," and I ended up pulling out all my denim-style camoflauge "scraps." These pieces are left over from many, many years ago when I created a bedspread for our (then-time) Queen bed for the colder winter months.

We still use ours, although we have graduated to a King bed. This is a very heavy quilt---the majority of the fabric is a nice, soft-brushed denim (even the backing!) Since it's creation (back in 2000?), it has spent the winter months on our bed, atop whatever other sheets/bedspreads we have on top, and during the summer months, it finds a home on the shelf in the closet.

Well.......what better than to start a NEW PROJECT?!?!??!? *voice-over of an insanity scream*

Actually, this DOES have a purpose. I HAD been working on a project for DH's boss, Scot. However, DH (nor myself) was liking how Scot's Leavenworth Nine-patch was coming along, so it has taken a spot on the shelf of "eh--don't think so" blocks. Those blocks WILL find completion someday---maybe as a simple lap quilt for one of DH's brothers, or as a snuggler for the farm. However, for now, since DH LOVES our quilt so much, I figured "why break something that isn't broken?" I'm recreating as much of our quilt as possible as a C'mas quilt for Scot and wife. *crossing fingers* I'm hoping this baby will go together rather quickly----not going to do anything fancy. OOO!! Except, as I've been cutting squares, I'm finding 2.5" strips being left over, so I've contemplated creating a pieced-flying-geese-border somewhere in the quilt. Most likley, bordering the main center medallion section. And there is NOT going to be any fancy quilting on this baby! Uh-uh! It will be HEAVY and THICK, so I'm thinking of even tying it, just like ours is done. IF I quilt it, it'll be VERY simple stitching-in-the-ditch.

Okay.....Just about 10:30----time to head to bed.

Happy Monday.

The Quilting Fairy visited....

That's all I can say! She MUST have visited during the night and sprinkled me with Quilting Dust because NOTHING else can explain the sewing/quilting frenzy I've had this weekend!

I didn't even get downstairs until 11:00 this morning, because once Cassie woke up and I folded a few more loads of clothes, we decided to run into town to grab some donuts and return the movies before the "day really began." *hmpf!* :0)

Anyway, the first project I tackled was to baste and start quilting Isaac's Blue Heaven. The Packer game (Green Bay Packers) started at noon, so I turned the radio on and quilted the game away. By the time our punter missed the game winning fieldgoal, I was putting the finishing touches on it and did the "cheat binding" method again. The quilting was a simple meander in all the white areas.



Then, after a late lunch (DH drove into the yard as the game was ending), I headed back downstairs, and BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I decided to work on Derek's Storm at Sea. One sewing minute lead to another......and the rows were together within 30 minutes! Gosh, that thing has been a monkey on my back! Then.......holy buckets, after a little contemplating, a small red border was added to the sides. Then..........hmmmmmmmmmm......then I sat at looked, and looked, and debated. I still had almost a yard of the blue Nautical fabric yet, and I knew it would just sit to collect dust if I didn't use most of it up. So......the original "lap quilt" ended up being rather large. I needed to do a little visual measuring to match up the lines of the nautical objects since the border needed to be pieced. All-in-all, I have about 4 inches of the fabric left----and what's more!!!! THE TOP IS DONE! WOW!!!!! It is pictured on a King size bed, so.........its a wee bit larger than I originally intended! *grin*

I decided to shoot a pic of the OTR at the same time since I hadn't yet. This is almost done---still working on hand-sewing the binding down. This is going to be gifted to my brother for Christmas.




Masha's Wonky Nines was finished up yesterday. This quilting was quite fun to do, although it was difficult (as always) to "fight" the bulk in the sewing machine. There are puckers on the back, but overall, I like the flowery meander.

So, a dent was finally made in the C'mas project list.

• Isaac-DONE.
  
• Masha-DONE.
  
• Ron(brother)-BINDING.
  
• Derek-TOP DONE.
  
• Jan (BLOCKS MADE) that's right---I still need to get those out and snap a pic.
  
• Andre (NEXT to be quilted)
  
• Scot? Hmm......I suppose I can still set him as a goal by C'mas.
  

Finally, taking a moment AWAY from quilting.....I almost forgot to have Cass open up her birthday present from my sister so she could wear her new jacket. I had to call my sis to find out which box it was in since there are four of them sitting in the entry way. Cass's bday isn't until the 28th, but winter weather temperatures have been with us for awhile.


Okay-----I suppose. I wrote my three assessments for tomorrow: Pre-Calc HW Quiz; Math 8 Pre-test; Algebra 8 Pre-test. Everything else can wait....

Happy New Week!


o

Busy morning already....

Morning everyone! I absolutely could not sleep anymore at 5:45, so I figured I'd get up and start tackling the pile(S) of laundry! I don't know WHY I do what I do, but, usually (here-n-there) throughout the week, I throw loads of laundry in the washing and dryer, BUT rather than folding it right away, I keep mounding load after load in the two baskets I keep in the laundry room, using my excellent balancing skills to keep the load from toppling over. Well anyway, I probably had about 4 loads amidst the baskets, so I folded, and folded, and folded. At the same time, I started another load of whites and colors during the hour folding session. So, it's now 7:30, and I'm sitting down with my earned cup of coffee, checking in on my worldly friends while yet another load is in the washer/dryer.

Holy buckets----I must have been in overdrive after I posted yesterday at 3:00. I DID make it downstairs, but rather than sew on Derek's Storm at Sea, I pulled out Masha's Wonky Nines. This top was completed at the end of August, the night before I headed back to school. I figured I might as well baste it up and see how far I could get with the quilting. Well, IT'S FINISHED! At about 8:00, I finished sewing (by machine) the binding on with the "fold-backing-to-the-front" cheat method. I will take a pic today and post that tonight.

Well, then Cass and I came upstairs to play a game before heading off to bed. FORTUNATELY, we both had the munchies, so Cass mixed up some Lemon-poppy seed muffins while I decided I might as well tackle the stack of dishes that had been piling all week. Yup---another bad habit DH and I have. We keep the dishwasher constantly working, loading and unloading it almost daily, but for those dished that can't go in it, they stack, and stack, and STACK to the point where we no longer have counter space! So, by the time Cass had the muffins mixed, poured, and into the oven, I was almost done washing the dishes, so I tossed a towel at Cass----amazingly she was THRILLED to help out! 15 minutes later, all dished were washed, dried, and put away! Yes!!! (This pic shows the FINISHED state---I didn't think of taking a "before")

AND, the muffins were also done, so we decided to finally sit, enjoy the warm muffins, and played a card game, "Hit the Deck."





9:45 rolled around, and Cass FINALLY won her first hand after mom demolished her with about 20. There isn't much of a strategy with the game, so it was all in the "luck of the cards." But then, we looked outside and noticed that the first snow flakes of the season were flitting down. THEREFORE, she will be opening one of her birthday presents a few weeks early. Tonight, when DH and girls come home, I'll have her open a gift that my sister already bought and gave to me because we KNEW she'd be opening it early----a new winter coat. She's been wearing her old one for the past couple of weeks, and I didn't realize the zipper didn't work!!!!

Alright---the next task? I will spend about an hour getting plans ready for the school week, and ........ WOW! Then I'll have the whole day to quilt again!!! Yes!!!! Okay......getting motivated on the school work!

Happy Sunday!

ahhh...Happy Endings!

*sniffle*
*wiping the tears away*
Oh my goodness---what a wonderful movie! I've been sitting in the glider, sewing the binding on the OTR for the past couple of hours, watching "Enchanted". Actually, I've been watching more than sewing, so I have only finished one of the shorter sides.....*chuckle*....oops!

Okay, I think I'm going to head downstairs to actually machine sew Derek's Storm at Sea. I wonder if I can get the top pieced today before I lose too much ambition.

*sniffle*
'Tis too bad real life couldn't be so romantic, huh? *grin*

I'll check back in later.....
Happy afternoon!

A fun girls' night out

As hoped, DH headed up to the farm tonight, so Cass and I headed into the PTA Carnival from 5:00 - 8:00. This is the first time we've been able to go to it in all my years teaching.





Naturally, MANY of Cass's school friends were at the Carnival, running around like the crazy young 2nd graders they are! And then there's Lucas!!! He's such a HOOT! I seriously love him to death-------****(is it too early to be a 'match-maker'?)****
(giggle)




Cass enjoyed jumping in the big Jumping Castle.








...and smashing eggs on her head, HOPING (??) to have a raw egg break on her head for the HUGE DOUBLE prize, instead of a hard-boiled egg for the "simple little" prize.







And always a hit-----MINNOW RACES!!!!! *shaking head, giggling* T'was quite fun watching those little buggers scurry down the down-spouts.





Oh, there were many other fun moments, and it was just so nice to relax (YES, RELAX) spending time with Cass. After the carnival, we headed to the movie-rental place and picked out two movies for the weekend. At the moment, we are kicking back with The Corpse Bride. This movie is quite a few years old, but I haven't seen it yet, and it ACTUALLY IS quite entertaining. I didn't think it would be.

Enchanted is the other movie we rented, and will save that for tomorrow night (or during the day, I suppose).

Well---it's Friday, and FINALLY I'm feeling "normal" again----not much stress at all. Whew! I know there are piles of laundry calling my name, and stacks of papers that need grading before Monday, and ions of other little tasks, but....PSHT! All in good time. I hope to put at least 4-6 hours of sewing in tomorrow before heading to the Football game (which I haven't completely decided on IF we're going yet.) It's going to be COOOOOOOOOOOOLD tomorrow!!!!!

Happy Friday!

Thy shall not pity me....

*chuckling*
HUGE hugs going out to my faithful followers for their supportive comments on the last two posts. I appreciate the "permission" to kick back, but I must admit, I was playing into the classic "victim" mentality and am mature enough to realize that (unlike some of my students.) Although I realize life is NOT "all that bad," I still am fighting an amount of lack of energy, minor depression, and just NO motivation!! I am procrastinating with too many things, and the world just seems to be closing around me because of that procrastination. The house is in constant chaos, and rather than DO SOMETHING about it, I put it off and put it off, untill.....()#*$)(#*^E(*@&#(*&@^$(* I EXPLODE!

And seriously! I have a new hypothesis for my latest "BLAH" feelings. I have not been eating anything REMOTELY "decent," NOR have I run in almost 2 weeks. I suppose I could do some research based on one participant (me);
Hypothesis: Nutritious diet and regular exercise promotes lack of fatigue and an increase of "warm & yummy" feelings.
*chuckle*
(okay, I don't know if warm & yummy are very scientific)
BUT, in order to collect some data, I FIRST have to get MOTIVATED again to get my lazy butt on the Dreadmill (dark & cold outside---ewwww: NOT my best combination for running). I also have to RID the house of all that Halloween candy. GOSH! I've consumed so much junk and sugar......ugh!

So........here I sit, having graded at least SOME of my papers tonight, but.......*sigh*....the dishes sit for yet another evening, the laundry still awaits in the entry-way, growing more massive day by day. Can't it be summer again???? Gosh----winter clothing doesn't take long to pile up rather large!

DH will be heading up to the Farm this weekend with Caitlyn and Candace. I will be staying home with Cassie, heading to the school's PTA Carnival tomorrow night. I would do ANYTHING if Cass could be motivated enough to pick up the loft area on Saturday---I wonder what I could bribe her with. Saturday evening, we're thinking of heading to the Football game---(our boys are 2 games away from heading to the State Championship game.) And, of course, there's other house work to be done, trying to tackle that mountain (LITERALLY) of laundry, and sewing projects too. PLUS prepare for Monday's new quarter at school; new students; new classes.....*sigh*

Okay, okay.......*self-talk*......try not to get overwhelmed! Just one thing at time.....one thing at a time.....

*sigh*
Thy shall not pity me.... We all (sadly) reach this moment at one time in our lives....

"this too shall pass."
(just not soon enough)

Very little progress; struggling to find time

I've been fighting internally; the two shoulders talking to each other; debating the big issues of "to sew, or not to sew" "to clean, or not to clean" "to go to bed and try to find SOME kind of energy or to just keep pushing and pushing and pushing."

Sorry that the posting has been so little lately.....and yet again tonight, I am beat and tired and will be off to bed soon.

I HAVE finished up Jan's Family Gems quilt blocks that I had started last week--all 30. I was able to finish those up on Sunday, but just haven't found the time (or energy) to lay them out and snap a pic for uploading. Also----golly, I guess I did have SOME motivation on Sunday, because I did pull out the OTR again to quilt up the sections. I want to check at least ONE of my C'mas quilts off the "done" list soon.

I think I'm just depressed because I haven't been able to dedicate ANY of my evening time towards sewing/quilting. And then, the weekends FLY BY so fast with almost non-stop quilting; and then I spend the rest of the week trying to catch up with housework, and schoolwork that I SHOULD have done over the weekend. *nod, nod*....yup...I think I've finally put my finger on my down-ward-icky-slumpy-feeling this week.


On a different note; typically I am not a political type of person, but I must say that I am very optimistic for America's future over the next 4 years. I am quite pleased that Obama is President-elect; and I, as many other Americans, stayed up a bit past my normal bedtime to watch the acceptance speech. Hence, 'tis time to head to bed.


Finally----I read this quote on a co-worker's door today....
Life is like a one-way street; you can look back but can not go back.

Happy Wednesday....*sigh*...ONLY Wednesday???????

*sigh* wishing for an end...

...to the constant feeling of endless laundry, housecleaning, school work, bills, cooking, "disciplining" ....... *sigh*....and so on and so forth...

RIGHT when I think I get caught up, I turn around, and THERE SOMETHING ELSE IS! Seriously! *sigh*...... when do we ever get "ahead?"

I'm at least trying to kick back right now, watching the Saturday Night Live (SNL) Presidential Bash of '08 (and toggling between Monday night football, too). I'm also out surfing .....for nothing really ....just surfing and catching up on blogs.

Alright---I seriously think I'm off to bed........

Happy Monday