Day 17 & 18 msqc Jenny's box

 Day 17 is this MSQC string of lights. It is battery operated and super cute.

Day 18, is a pattern and puzzle. I love puzzles but rarely do them anymore. I do envision working this on the new printer table (old library table from my FIL's house) in my office room. The puzzle is 20x20 and looks challenging. They did say there will be a tutorial on the pattern released tomorrow. 

It is called Winter Stardust. I 'might' have peeked at day 19 to see if it was fabric for the pattern, alas it was not. It was something I have been looking at getting on their site though, but have not pulled the trigger to get. 😁

Last night was a GS planning wrap up meeting and Christmas gift exchange. Ornaments was the gift exchange.  I got #1, so had the final 'steal', which I did to get Waldo! 

I've got a dermatologist body check today (just annual check, no worries). They ran the new insurance and got the right amounts, so I guess it is all working! We will see how it goes. I got 2 forms notarized last night from a GS friend for Aidan's 2 overnight trips - the senior trip to PA,NY,DC the end of next month and his Skills USA for a few days up in Jacksonville in April. Waiting on the Dr to fill out the form needed to try for the Tennis team next quarter. Hopefully that is completed for pick up today, so he can turn it in tomorrow, their last day until January 7. I ordered them a couple stocking stuffers - warm hats for both and gloves for Emily. Grandma gave a pair to Aidan a couple of weeks ago that she had from LLBean - leather ones with fuzzy inside. That reminds me... I really need to wash my winter coat and find my hat and gloves. It will be chilly up in Vermont after Christmas.

Day 15+16 of MSQC Jennys box

 I forgot to post day 15, so here it is. A tin that looks like a thread with a needle attached.

Inside were these packages. I had to google them to see what they were. One is silicone thimbles. The others are all versions of bobbin thing or to wrap around thread. Do any of you use things like this? I've never seen them before!

Day 16 is this set of magnets. A slap bracelet, that says 'Sew along with me, the best is yet to be'. A little cat face magnet with a suction cup on the other end. 

Yesterday was a day of phone calls and tasks after work. I need a physical form for Aidan so messaged his doctor through his portal. I need to double check on that status. I had to call the VA - they had denied my mail scripts when I changed them over. Guess they thought I still had my other insurance so a form needed to be filled out. I did the call me back when I got to the front of the line (1 hour and 25 minutes later) and she was wonderful and filled out the needed form for me and the kids so hopefully that will ship in the next week or so. I returned a book to the library for Em, ordered something for my parents I had put off and finished the last 2 Christmas cards. It was a productive day! 

I stitched up this guy after dinner before heading out to the Winter concert at school.

The music director is out on maternity leave and she got a retired music teacher from another county to cover for her while she was out. She attended the concerts (chorus was at 6, symphonic and jazz band was at 7). Her sub was very charismatic and was very pleased with the environment she created in her classes and the leadership and talent she has created. The kids are lucky he stepped in to lead them until she returns.  Of course I missed the one little smirk smile when she saw her Dad and I in the audience. next to her is her co-leader on the JV Winter guard team. She is a senior, but opted for JV to help with the rookies and get a few extra hours a week so she can work a job as well. Crazy the amount of things these kids manage.

Harmony is finished!

 My third finish for the UFO Fall quarter. 

This is Harmony from a Hand pieced quilt along with Kristin Esser and Patty Dudek. I attempted to quilt mine like Patty did with circles going out from the center. 

This finished at 59x59.

Day 14 MSQC Jennys box

 Day 14 of the box is this cute set of 2 ornaments. They match the red and dark teal one I got last year. I put them right on the tree, then had to take them off again for the photo.

I was just working on the binding of Harmony, which I machine quilted on Thursday. Bear was supervising.

I've got about one and a half sides to go. This will be today's task to get the binding finished. Some Christmas baking needs to start as well. 

The kids have one more week of school, and tomorrow is Emily's Symphonic band concert. Wednesday is my Big Cheese meeting (girl scout planning meeting for our county with 2 service units). I suppose I should send some Christmas cards out today as well. 

Linking up with Kathy and the Slow Sunday Stitchers.

Day 13 of MSQC Jennys Christmas box.... and the results of Academic team county meet!

 First off.... I got a text from Aidan yesterday just after 1:30PM.  'Back-to-back', followed by a board - Belleview 196, Westport 195, then a photo of him holding the trophy! They won last year, his first on the team going in with a losing record and won the county. They went in with a winning record and beat the one team they lost to this season by 1 point! Let's just say he was very happy when he got home! The regional match is mid-January. Last year they came in second in that one. He is the captain of the team this year. 

This is my senior in HS. He is waiting to hear from his top 2 schools he would like to attend - Dartmouth in NH is a early binding, will find out Monday evening. Second is UF in Gainesville for a mid-January timeframe. He has been accepted to the other 2 Florida schools he applied to. 

The Jenny box - I opened it yesterday! I enjoyed the tutorial that Courtenay gives on how to make it. The Snappy Pouch.  This one looks like a really easy and quick one to make. It comes with 6 of the snaps.... so I guess you can make at least 3 bags. Might be a good use for those Tula FQ's I got in the mystery box over the last couple of years. I think that box is on sale - under 100 and you get such a great and fun variety of fabrics in all sorts of sizes. Maybe the snowflake batiks in blue and white...

I found a similar red that had enough for the whole binding. The quilt is 59x59. I got it made and attached the front by machine. I started hand stitching the back, until the dog decided it was cold and he needed my lap to keep warm while we watched Red 1 last night. Yes, he is a spoiled dog. I'll work on getting more stitching done on this the next few nights. 

Day 12 of MSQC Jenny's Box.... and some machine quilting...

 Day 12 is this little pouch with 3 separate compartments with zippers. One has a rotary cutter photo on cardboard and one has a scissors photo on cardboard, indicating you can put those tools in there. The middle part is bigger for other things - thread, needles, fabrics, etc.

It has a cute star as the middle zipper with MSQC on it. 

My plan Thursday was to get Harmony quilted. I started the day off browsing blogs and the news online. Then after a shower we headed to visit my FIL at his place. He was a little less energy and occasionally was struggling to find a word. Turns out he is only going down for breakfast and lunch now... which when you don't move much, I guess not much appetite. We do have Ensure/Boosts in his Fridge that he drinks if he wants something. I had one stop on the way home to grab something and then it was time to walk the dog. A quick lunch and off to the sewing room I went around 1:30. I grabbed Harmony out of the drawer and a backing and got them pressed. Cut off some batting and laid things out for a quick pinning on the living room floor. I did have to work around the dog at the end, as he was helping to 'hold the quilt down'. I tried playing with the accessory that goes onto the walking foot to regulate the spacing... but could not figure it out. I will play with that in the future with my actually quilting card of stitches, if I can find it! Instead I went with my eye on making the circles and some are closer/farther apart and that is perfectly ok with me! I did get all the quilting on it done, got it trimmed and then had to think of binding. I did decide on a binding and had enough of it to cut strips, but have not sewn them together, pressed and attached to the quilt yet. That is a Friday task after I finish working I think. 

Aidan got home and it was around 4:30 and I said I had no thoughts for dinner. He came back into the sewing room about 5:15 and said, Publix subs? He would go get them.... that works. We all ordered, and I got Emily's usual and he picked it up and was home a little after 6PM. That gave me time to finish up and trim the quilt before I called it a night.

Emily has her last marching practice tonight for the season with the final parade in Ocala tomorrow evening. Aidan has the county Academic team meet today. Fingers crossed they do well. Last year they won as a surprise since they were 1-5 (win-loss) going into the day. This year they are 5-1. 

Amazingly.... the dishes in the sink did not get done at all yesterday! We will see if it bugs Greg enough to do them this morning while I am working or if I get to do them at lunch. 

Day 11 MSQC Jennys box

I peeked at today's gift yesterday.... and looked at day 12 this morning! 

Today's gift is a tiny one - a booklet of little labels.

All a little different but cute! I love the little scissors.

I get a day off today.... and since Aidan opened the 2 boxes I had not done yet and put decorations up high for me.... I'm going to sew today! Well, I will walk the dog when it gets a little warmer.... and he gets up again! He gets up with Emily at 6:30 and I put him out and feed him... but if it is cold (and still dark) he went in to snuggle with Greg for a couple of hours! Aidan comes out a little after 7 and leaves the house by 7:20. Emily leaves by 6:43. We will go visit my FIL this morning and I have an errand to run on the way home from that. Then it is quilting time.

I'm pulling out Harmony and will pull a back, cut batting off the roll and get it pinned for quilting. I hope to get it quilted as well, but that might be pushing it. We will see. I'm going to do machine quilted circle echo's on it, like I did on the Christmas Cactus. I remembered it worked ok on that and I like the effect, so hopefully that top will be finished off this month! I'll have to see if I have enough of one red to bind it or not. This one was stuck on the quilting decision. I'd like it done to hang in February, so done is best! I currently have Christmas Cactus hanging on the kitchen/living room wall now. Next month is the blue snowflake one.