It's ALIVE!

Yep, me! I'm ALIVE, I'm happy to report. I've finally started to feel a little better and actually dragged my germy old body out of bed and to work today. I didn't make it the whole day--I had to come home mid-afternoon and take a nap--but I was feeling pretty triumphant, nevertheless. And--AND--I actually cooked dinner tonight! Nothing fancy--just some Trader Joe's chicken fajitas--but at least I did more than lie on my dying rear end and sneeze and cough and drip. At this point, I find I have an hour or two here and there where I feel pretty darn good and another hour or two here and there where I feel icky again, but mostly I'm doing okay.

This past Monday night I had my Christmas List class. You know I gotta be sick when Friday rolls around and my quilt shop purchases lie untouched on the kitchen table.

Yes, obviously my cold tablets are much more vital than a bag from the quilt shop! But what did I buy? Do you want to see? Okay!

I've been feeling the need to jump on that Prairie Paisley bandwagon and saw the quilt shop had charm packs, so I picked up a couple and this Schnibbles pattern--it makes a 30" quilt. Maybe I'll play with these a little bit this weekend.

And here's the pattern for block number 5 of the Christmas List BOM (along with another pattern I won). Did I hear someone ask what the other 4 blocks I made look like? Well, that's the problem--I haven't made any yet. It took me the first two months to decide what fabrics I wanted to use, and since then, I've been busy with other projects. I sure hope I can start the Christmas List blocks soon! (And don't even ASK about the Thimbleberries Hometown Christmas BOM--that's another one I need to get back to!)

But I have finished the patriotic quilt top. I worked on it in short bursts this week when I felt up to it, getting that final outer border put together. I'd like to get this one pinned over the weekend and start quilting it.

Stop back by tomorrow. I think I'll have something you'll enjoy! As for me, it's time for my Nyquil and my pillow!

Nothin'!

I have nothing for you guys tonight. My world has shrunk to a sadly soggy mountain of Kleenex. And a bed. A bed filled with stray, random pieces of Kleenex. When I wake in the morning, I discover them tucked here and there, under the pillow, down near my feet, underneath my body. Oh, and vaseline. Vaseline for my bright red nose. Sometimes I abandon my soggy paper mountain atop my bed and wander the house, carrying with me my Kleenex and vaseline, in search of comfort and entertainment, but there's little to be found. Pitiful, aren't I?!

Thanks for all the well wishes. It sounds like a couple of you are in the same boat--or atop the same mountain. I hope you're feeling well soon too!

What's That Sticking Out of Your Nose?

Oh, that? That would be Kleenex. Is there an on/off knob somewhere that I'm missing? 'Cause I can't seem to turn this darn drip off!

Are you tired of me being sick? I'M tired of me being sick. I'm missing my Thimbleberries Club meeting tonight too. If any of my Thimbleberries Club peeps are reading this, sorry I couldn't be with you and see what you've all been doing. I sure hope I can be there next month!

I came home from work sick this afternoon but I can't really seem to rest much and I don't feel like doing anything. Argh! On the way home, I made a flying stop at a clothing store in a strip mall to pick up a few summer tops for work. Our temps are in the 90s, soon to reach 100, and I have three short-sleeved tops for work--I got rid of everything else I had last fall when I lost a little weight. Twenty minutes in the store and about half of that was waiting in line to pay; I didn't even try anything on. I had pre-shopped online last night so I had a good idea of what I wanted to grab. I hated to stop when all I really wanted was to get home, but the thought of trying to find something to wear--probably in the dirty clothes basket, which would mean doing laundry--seemed far more daunting.

I also stopped at the grocery store for various medications--I downed the last of my nighttime cold medicine last night and popped the last decongestant this morning. And why do grocery store clerks always politely ask, "How are you today?," when you've just dumped several packages of cold medicines and a box of aloe and lotion tissues down on the checkstand in front of them? Isn't it obvious?

There's a Starbucks in our grocery store, so I stopped there on the way out for a nice, icy latte to go. The "barrista" also politely asked me how I was, and when I told her the truth, she said she had seen me in the cold medicine aisle and wondered what I ended up getting. So I showed her. And she told me a story about having a cold and taking cold medicine and then cutting off a cop on the freeway. We bonded over the caffeine and cold medicines. I got my latte and went home--no freeways to negotiate between the store and home.

I'd really like to sew a little; but it seems too hard. I tried reading a little; but it was hard to get comfortable. Non-drowsy cold medicines and an iced latte mean sleep's out of the question for now. Hubby's in the living room watching soccer, so laying on the couch doesn't entice me. Why did I come home sick from work? 'Cause I'm sitting here in front of a computer, and that seems like a reasonable way to spend a little time--and that's pretty much what I do at work too. Maybe, though, it's the freedom of being able to sit here with Kleenex hanging out of my nose that makes being home the better option.

Thanks for putting up with me and my whining!

Gotta Keep Going . . .

I'm easy. I can be bought with donuts. Raised, chocolate glazed donuts to be exact. See? Easy, right? I don't even require anything fancy!

So, this is what I went to work for today. Oh, and I guess that big rush project I was working on may have had something to do with it--that kinda got me in to work too, much as I wanted to just roll over and go back to sleep when I first woke up this morning. Of course, by then I was coughing my lungs out, so going back to sleep wasn't much of an option anyway.

After finishing my coffee and donut and working on the big rush project for nearly two hours this morning . . . working on three documents simultaneously because they each had to include a lot of the same stuff and there was a lot of copy and paste work . . . and after making substantial changes to two of the three documents, I went to add the signature block to one of the documents and all three of my document screens went blank. ARGH! My screens showed I had three documents open, but there wasn't anything there!

So I went to track down one of the two computer guys who happened to be in the office today (sometimes I wonder if they work Tuesdays because of the donuts) and he came back to my desk and fussed around with things for awhile, without any luck. We finally resigned ourselves to shutting down and rebooting (mostly I was the resigned one--I'm pretty sure he didn't care quite so much). It was then, in the process of shutting down, that the computer asked us if we wanted to save the documents. Hummmm. Do we risk saving and hope it really DOES save the changes? Do we risk saving and end up saving three completely blank documents and wiping out what I started the day with? Do we say "no" and start making all the day's changes all over again? Door number one, door number two, or door number three?

We saved. We rebooted. We opened the documents. We cried for joy to find the changes--the TWO HOURS worth of changes--were saved! WE were saved! (Yeah, okay, he didn't care quite so much, nor did he cry for joy, but I was happy!)

I thought I might finish that project and go home--my pillow was calling to me across the miles. But just about the time I was ready to give up for the day, the last changes to the big job came through. So I ended up putting in a full day's work after all--actually more than a full day since I had worked through my lunch hour with the idea I'd be ducking out and going home soon.

So I ate another donut. My favorite kind were gone, but really--are there any BAD donuts? So that was lunch. To tell you the truth, I felt so crummy, I just wasn't too interested in food anyway. What I really need is a mom to make me some cherry jello and homemade chicken noodle soup. The closest I could get were some cherries our neighbors picked from their tree--

--and Round Table pizza, Italian Garlic Supreme. Garlic's supposed to have healing powers, right? My pillow's still calling. I think it's time to answer.

Ah-Chooo!

(Sniff, sniffle, cough.) I've been feeling a little crummy the past few days but I just chalked it up to allergies--everyone around here is suffering now. Today I'm feeling a bit worse--a hoarse voice and possibly a bit of a fever. Or a hot flash. Or something. What little brain power I had, I used up at work, so I'm taking a blogging sick day. Don't worry about me though--I'm sure I'll be fine again before long. And I'll be back at work tomorrow too, because (1) I have too much work to do in the next couple days to stay home sick and (2) my boy boss is picking up donuts for the attorneys' Tuesday morning meeting and is promising to have my favorite for me if I show up. So, I'm just going to go lay around tonight, watch TV, and try to get to bed early. Oh, and I stopped for Chinese fast food on the way home, so I didn't need to cook. I thought my fortune was appropriate--

Blogging is one of the best ways to make new friends and keep in touch with old ones! Thanks for stopping by to visit! You're the best!

Mother's Day

Did you have a nice Mother's Day? Last night, I pulled some Trader Joe's chocolate croissants out of the freezer; we had those for breakfast with coffee--and although it wasn't quite breakfast in bed, it WAS a nice treat to start off the day!

My husband and I had planned to go to the monthly antique fair today, but I was too sore and tired to want to walk around for several hours. After posting to my blog last night, instead of going to bed to await breakfast, I cleaned the rest of the house until midnight. It was nice to wake up this morning to a clean house, but I could have done without all the aches and pains!

Hubby and I actually got ready to go, and I was thinking all the time that I didn't really WANT to go, but I didn't want to let him down either since he was looking forward to it. In particular, we had talked about looking for a few more of those glass insulators we found last time for the project he's been working on. As it turned out, though, he was outside talking to a neighbor, and the neighbor gave him three insulators. Whew! That really took the pressure off me! So I suggested we forego the antique faire and just go to Starbucks for a latte; hubby countered with, "How about if we stop at the Goodwill store in Citrus Heights and then go to Starbucks?" Well, you can guess what I said, right?! So off we went to hunt for more treasures.

Really, it was a good trip. We found all sorts of glass things that my hubby thought he could use in his projects and I found a couple things too--did you doubt it?! Here's my "haul" for the day:

The wooden chicken and candlesticks aren't part of my Goodwill booty, nor is the white wooden bowl that I picked up at the last antique faire, but the wooden apples in the bowl were found today. I'll refurbish that patriotic house with the drawers a bit. My favorite find today, though, is the wooden writing desk--you can hardly see it, but it's there in the upper right corner of the picture. I don't know if I'll just fill in any scratches and wax it up or whether I'll decorate it in some manner, nor do I know what I'll keep inside of it, but at least half the fun of finding thrift store treasure is planning what to do with it! The Warren Kimble birdhouse print will go in my daughter's former room (the one I just decorated), the lighthouse drawing will go in my son's former room (after I do something to the frame), and the apple print will probably go on top of the kitchen hutch at some point--I like to decorate with apples as we get toward late summer. (The tablecloth, placemats, and napkins were found last week.)

After the thrift store, we went to Starbucks and sat outside on the patio and chatted about what we had found and what we thought we could do with it. Hubby has all kinds of plans for using his glass items. When we got home, we found our daughter had arrived from Tahoe, and after visiting with her for about an hour, our son showed up too. We all went out for a really nice lunch at a local restaurant/brew pub. Remember the other day I mentioned I like beer occasionally? I'm such a light weight when it comes to drinking--I got a pretty good buzz from just one beer. When we got home, I needed to take a nap!

Besides the pleasure of spending time with my family today, my best Mother's Day gift was a gift certificate from my daughter for a massage at a local spa. And, just so I didn't have to go alone, she gave my husband the same thing--an early Father's Day gift!

I didn't get to do much quilting this weekend, but I did take a little time today to get the next mitered border on the patriotic quilt. I've put it up on the design wall with the star blocks I'll use in the border--I'll need to work on that border in the next few days, but it's finally to a point where I can give you a little peek:

The center is a printed panel from Olde America Antiques--I had mentioned them before, but if you missed that post a couple months ago and want to check them out, just click on their name.

I hope you also had a lovely weekend! Thanks for stopping in to see what I've been up to!

Voila!

Done! I wish I could say the same about the rest of the house. The funny thing about redecorating a room is the amount of mess it makes in every other room of the house. Now I have several things here and there to put away or find a place for.

I have a lot of photos to share with you tonight. First, here's a pile of some of the stuff I started with:

On the right is a blue tab top curtain I bought at the thrift store for $5 and in the center is a crib sized bedskirt--another thrift store buy for a couple dollars. The first job of the day was to recover the inset panels in the room--these are made much like the "headboard" panels in my bedroom. That green and white mattress ticking fabric on the left is what I pulled from my stash to use. Here's a "before" panel--at one time, my daughter wanted a wild animal theme:

Then here's one recovered and back up on the door. I had two of this size and four smaller ones to cover.

You can kind of see one of the smaller ones there to the side of the chair. The animal themed chair. Yeah, I gotta do something about that too, but I left it "as is" for now.

The next little job was to do something with the navy and tan mats used in this hand painted, signed little picture I found at the thrift shop for 99 cents. The mats reeked of 1980s country decor. I painted the inner mat black and covered the outer mat with a plaid fabric.

Next it was time to get working on the curtains. I cut off the tab tops on the blue curtain and sewed in a casing for the rod. Then I pulled out the crib skirt and cut off one of the long sides.

I sewed a casing in that as well and hung the curtains. I thought about splitting the blue curtain to make two panels, one on each side of the window, but I ended up just using the single curtain pulled back to one side because the bed interferes with a curtain on the other side anyway. (You can see my little picture there on the wall to the left of the window.)

I used some silk ivy and a little rusty watering can to hold back the curtain--there's silk ivy above the valance too.

With some of the leftover bed skirt, I made a pillow cover:

A couple more thrift store buys--a frilly Ralph Lauren sheet for $2 and two Battenberg lace pillow cases for $5. And, below, a blue bowl for $1.99 that I filled with white silk hydrangeas:

And my $5 thrift store lamp--we had to buy a finial and harp to hold the shade, but the shade was in the garage.

And you remember the tea pot I showed you before? I set up a nice bed tray--just in case anyone wants to serve me breakfast in bed on Mother's Day. Maybe they'll write the menu on that little blackboard I found in the Target $1 aisle--have you checked that out? I usually ignore it but I found a couple things there the last time I went in.

The wooden cat I repainted a few weeks ago has found a home--and a bird's nest!

I think I'm going to go to bed now and wait for breakfast. Happy Mother's Day everyone!

Getting Ready for Redecorating!

It's Friday night and tomorrow's the big day--the day I feverishly sew stuff, change bedding, etc., to turn my daughter's former bedroom from a spring bower into a summer haven. Well, those descriptions ARE a little "over the top," I suppose, but I'll be trying to do the best I can.

Do you think I visited a thrift store today? If you guessed "yes," you'd be wrong. Sort of. I actually visited TWO thrift stores today--both Goodwill. Yes, I found a few more "treasures." Even hubby was kind of excited--surprisingly so--by a couple of black metal wall sconces I found for $3.99. They're meant to hold pillar candles, but we've agreed they'd make a nice base for a shelf. I'm not sure whether I want to put that in my daughter's former room or not; if I do, it will probably be a later addition. I DID find a lamp for her room for $5--it needs a shade, but I think I have something I can use.

I'll also want to make a small throw quilt for the bed, but I won't be able to get that done in one day, so that will be added a little later too.

Speaking of quilting, I spent a little time in the Sweat Shop tonight straightening things up. With two projects being worked on simultaneously, it was getting a little crazy in there, and I think that's one of the reasons I've been avoiding it--I don't work well with too much clutter in my work space. I'm the same way at the office--my desk is normally so neat, people probably wonder what I do all day. With organization in mind, I've picked up a couple things at the thrift stores to help out.

These wooden crates are plentiful and fairly inexpensive at 49 cents to 99 cents. They're great for holding a fat quarter collection or the makings of a small project.

Then I came across this "suitcase" at a thrift shop the other day for 99 cents. I have one that's slightly larger that I paid a lot more for at Michael's. I like these for holding materials for class projects or ongoing block of the month quilt projects.

I have resolved to spend some time in the next several months cleaning out cupboards, closets, drawers and--YIKES--the garage. I know I have things that should be gotten rid of and other things that may need a little refurbishing or repurposing. And even though the "kids" have been gone for a couple years now, some of their things linger, lurking in closets, under beds, and in boxes stored in cupboards. So, it's time--PAST TIME--to start getting a little more organized in my home.

I was talking with someone the other day about this need to get more organized and I mentioned my spice drawer. By the way, how do you keep your spices? Because I have tons and they take up a whole drawer in the kitchen--actually more than a drawer; they seem to have spread into other drawers and cupboards. In some instances, I have two partial jars of the same spice. So that may be a good place to start. This gal I was talking to told me she has her spices organized alphabetically. I don't think that's EVER going to happen here, but if it does--if I tell you I'm putting my spices in alphabetical order or turning all the can labels to face outward--please send help, okay? I have too much fabric to use and not enough time as it is, so I really can't afford to waste it by alphabetizing food!

I'll get some photos tomorrow as I'm redecorating, particularly if I come up with any interesting ideas to pass on. Assuming all goes well, I should have a "new" room to show you tomorrow night!

What IS It?

How do you know when you need a thrifting intervention? How about when you buy stuff without knowing what the heck it is?!

Okay, bloggy gals (and guys?), what the heck is this? Tonight I stopped at the Deseret Industries thrift store on the way home (no thrifting at lunch)--I had heard that walking into the store was like walking into a department store and it was. Not as much cool stuff though--mostly clothes, it seemed. But back to "the Thing." I found it in the kitchen/housewares section with a pile of wooden spoons and other wooden items. I figured it was a rolling pin, but I couldn't imagine what you'd roll with it. Still, I like rolling pins, and it was weird; it just so happens I also like weird, so I bought it. When I got home, I asked hubby what he thought, but he couldn't imagine what you'd use it for either. After thinking a bit, he asked me if it could possibly be some kind of back massager--I kinda think he wanted me to try it out on him, but I wasn't going to fall for that ploy. So, any answers out there?

I didn't get to stop by Michaels for the journals I mentioned the other day until tonight, but I bought what they had left. At 50 cents each, they're SUCH a bargain. Each of the journal covers has a bottom space where I think I can add a label, and with seven journals, I can divide the books up into recipe categories. (I may need TWO for desserts!)

Now, here's a peek at some of my thrift store purchases I haven't told you about yet. Except for the bunch of silk flowers and a picture frame, everything else piled on the bed (at least everything on top of the purple/pink quilt) was from the thrift store(s). By Saturday night, I hope to have turned it all into summer accessories for the Wild Child's former bedroom--she's coming home for Mother's Day, so I have a deadline to meet. Stay tuned and I'll get some photos over the weekend to show you how it turns out.

One more day of work and the weekend will be here! In the US, we'll be celebrating Mother's Day on Sunday. The Sacramento Antique Faire will be held again on Sunday, and we plan to go--we'll get to try out that tote bag I made for hubby's wheelchair and see if it works. After that, both our kids will join us for a mid-afternoon meal out--no cooking for this mom! How about you? I hope you have an enjoyable weekend planned--the weekend's are just too good to waste, particularly now that the weather is getting so nice!

I'm Hopeless!

Oh, LOOK! Can you see my cutting mat under there? That means I actually ventured into the Sweat Shop tonight! I didn't spend very much time there though. I'm still excited about the projects I have going on, but I haven't felt a compulsion to sew. Instead, I've been compelled to lounge around on the couch and watch TV with the hubby the last couple nights.

Jo's Club was held tonight and I found the shop had just gotten in their shipment of the Spring Quilt Sampler. Yummy shops, yummy stuff! In particular, I think I need to take a trip to Kansas and Wisconsin. I just loved the photos of those two stores! I've been to the one in Bend, Oregon, when we went to the Sisters Quilt Show a couple years ago, and that's a great shop too--in fact, I think we were in that particular shop twice during the two days we were in Bend. If you ever go--either to the Sisters show or are just traveling through Bend, I recommend a stay at the McMenamin's St. Francis School--it is truly unique and fun, particularly if you have a fondness for beer, since McMenamin's is primarily the brewing empire of the Pacific Northwest. (I don't drink much, but I do enjoy a good beer now and then!) And McMenamin's employs artists to decorate their various pubs, bars, and hotels--quite a treat to experience and a whole lot different from a stay at a typical hotel/motel. Going to Portland instead? Stay at McMenamin's Kennedy School! I've visited a couple of their other hotels to explore and dine, but I haven't been a guest in their rooms; still, I'd be willing to bet any of them would make for a memorable stay.

Well, that was a bit of a tangent! I didn't really mean to get off onto the subject of McMenamin's but I guess my flying typing fingers got ahead of my brain! Anyway, back to my planned topics: Aprons, first of all.

My blogless internet friend Sandy kindly offered to make me an apron since I haven't had any luck finding one at the thrift store, but I thought it might be fun to make one myself. She mentioned a book she has called The Apron Book, so I checked Amazon and ordered a used copy. I have no idea if I'll make the apron featured in the book or something else, but it sounded like a good book. Of course, I couldn't resist picking out some fabric for an apron while I was at the quilt shop tonight.

What do you think? Isn't that ruffled, checked rick rack irresistible? Well, I couldn't resist! So maybe I'll make an apron one of these days.

And were you wondering why I started out telling you I'm hopeless? I went back to Goodwill AGAIN today. Hopeless, right? Is there a 12-step program? My Blogland friend Mary Ann is tickled to death that I've been bitten by the thrifting bug. Mary Ann, who started my vintage apron search when she mentioned a recent trip to the thrift store that had netted her 162 vintage aprons. Okay, I'm exaggerating the number, but she found a TON! Me? No aprons. And Mary Ann, if you're reading this, I'm keeping an eye open for old patterns for you but haven't had any luck so far. Maybe that's my excuse. I HAD to go look for patterns for my friend. Are you buying that?

Okay, well how about if I tell you I went back because I was curious about all those 2-cent books and wondered whether they were still on sale? Yep, that's the real reason. Nope, they weren't still on sale. But I DID find two more books I needed to bring home--$1 each. A fortune compared to yesterday's prices but not bad.

I'm completely envious of those of you who can crochet and make those cute little crochet-edged cards. With dreams of making my own, I snagged the Complete Encyclopedia of Stitchery book. I also figured it would come in handy if I wanted to brush up on my embroidery stitches. Or--and I really can't see it happening, so don't worry too much about me--or if I want to macrame a few plant hangers. You never know. Then there was the book on crafting gifts--it looked interesting on a quick flip through.

I found another teapot today--nothing as special as the other one I found on Monday, but I like this little white teapot too.

And some of the things I've found and haven't shared with you yet--well, remember how I made those curtains and pillow covers and other stuff for my daughter's former room? All that purple and pink stuff? That was great for spring, but now that the rest of the house is decked out in its summer wardrobe of red, white, and blue, the purple and pink just doesn't seem right. Soon, I think, it will be green, white and light blue. I'll show you my other finds then. Unless my husband kills me first because I keep coming home each day with more STUFF!

And the final reason I went back to Goodwill today? I wanted to find out if they really DO put out new items all the time. And they do! I wonder what they might have tomorrow? No, seriously, I don't think I'll go back again tomorrow. But then that's what I told myself last night. And what did I tell you? I'm hopeless!