Knitting?

 My work had a 'cabin fever' event yesterday where you got to select from a bunch of 'classes' and then select 10AM or 2PM for a 1 hour time slot to attend. On the company time! I do love how this company thinks of their employees well being.

There were a lot of things to select from... I should have attended the decluttering one .... but in the end it was a toss up for me of Yoga, Mediterranean cooking or knitting. I went with knitting.... and it got me to pull out the sheep pillow project for Aidan that has been sitting and sitting and waiting for way too long. I don't feel right finishing up Emily's crochet project until I make progress on his.

This is the pillow design.

The class had an array of levels and I took the time while listening to some great tips to untangle all the yarn from the bag. I knit one row... then remembered one part is knit and one is pearl. I did not realize that knitting in a round is different from knitting on straight needles where you turn the work! It was a lightbulb moment for me. I got stuck on the pattern part with multiple colors involved. The lead had asked questions and compiled a list of Youtube video's she had found for the different levels of questions with some free pattern links. When I was watching one on color changes, I noticed one on the side said Intarsia. When I reread the pattern.... it said Intarsia! I never clued in that it was a type of knitting. I watched the video at lunch and low and behold, now I have a clue how to do those sheep! I have that gap in between with the bit I had done before so I think I will try and pull out the knitting up to that point - wish me luck on that one - and start it again and see if I can do better. Aidan was happy when I told him on the way home that I think I figured out how to do it now.  Emily of course piped up with - can you finish my blanket now too Mom!

Thursday is my day off from work.... so after I post this I will head out to the garden to weed and see if I can get something produced from it this year. I think everything has popped up now. I also need to move the buckets of things in there to protect them from the chickens, and replant the herb seeds. 

A Zoom with Gyleen Fitzgerald

Tuesday night I was able to attend a zoom presentation by Gyleen Fitzgerald on her It's a Polygon affair. It was a really interesting presentation. Turns out she is an engineer and from a 60 degree diamond shape, she showed how you get the pyramid (half), cone (1/4 off the top)  and hexagon shapes (1/4 off the top and bottom). She also explained how they all play nicely together. That was followed by a slideshow of some quilts she designed using the different shapes and how color changes the design. Each of her quilts has a name and a story of how she came up with it which was fun to hear. Sew many possibilities when you add new shapes in the making of quilts.

Grandma called around 9PM. She just got home and is happy to be there. The tests showed her heart was fine and they are puzzled as to what happened Sunday. She is on a 10 day no lifting and no driving. 

Lets see - Monday after school Em needed a book to read so we headed to the library to check out a book. Aidan decided to go too. One of the people that worked at their elementary school saw us and commented on how big they were - taller than Mom even! Yes, the boy has passed me and Em is only about 2 inches shorter than me! I guess they have changed a lot in a year and two years!

Today - after picking up the kiddo's from school and dropping them home, I had to go 30 minutes across town and collect some specific cookies for one of my parents. I chatted a bit with the other troop leader... who happens to be originally from Vermont! I've met her once or twice before. I arrived home to Aidan making a bag of mashed potato. Greg was emptying the dishwasher and had turned on the skillet I had the asparagus sitting in some water waiting to cook. Dinner was in the crock pot - Roasted Chicken in the crock pot. I didn't have the herbs so just tucked some spring onions and garlic inside the cavity. Once I took the chicken and carrots out, there was about 3 cups of liquid. I started it with no liquid and love the surprise of it. Half the liquid got made into gravy by Greg and the other half was used to make a box of stuffing by Emily. I guess everyone participated in making some portion of the meal tonight! I have a nice bit of the chicken left over which will be made into chicken pot pie for dinner tomorrow night - thanks Julierose for the idea!

While listening on the Zoom I prepped some green hexagons and got one of them stitched down.

I also cut the parts for the other 3 square in a square units for the Harmony sew along. The first one is completed but I will plan to make 4 blocks for a throw size.

It is 10:30 at night.... and the boy is still working on his Genius Project that is due tomorrow. I know, he has been told repeatedly to get it done before now. By the end of the weekend would have been nice. The report is written. The political cartoon is found and printed with explanation. The 'baseball card' front and back with photo and stats/info on the back is printed (cardstock worked for this one so the photo did not bleed through the paper!). He is working on the bibliography, his least favorite part. Sigh..... let's hope he is done by 11.  The project for his gifted class is due tomorrow and the presentations will be next Wednesday. Honestly.... he gets his procrastination from me so I really can't knock him too much on it but boy.... does he put so much stress on himself when he does this. This is for his Civics class and they are each doing a governor of Florida. He got Farris Bryant who was governor from 1961-1965. The only one from Ocala and Marion County where we live. 10:45 - done, printed and being stapled now. Big sigh of relief.

A few more yellow blocks for the RSC

 I managed to get my last set of yellow blocks completed on Sunday, the last day of February. These are the Garden Path blocks.

I think I like the yellow ones better than the pink ones! I'll link this up on Saturday to the RSC... where hopefully I'll have a little green sewing done before then. Maybe I'll tackle the green ones on Thursday - hopefully my day off this week? The overflowing bin of green is right near the sewing table. Maybe a bright green and a dark green one..... I could also do a sage green one... I seem to have a lot of those shades too. 

We found out my MIL is in the hospital as of Sunday (she texted me Monday after 4PM!). She is in for observation and will do a Cath Lab sometime Tuesday. She just let me know they are moving her to the cardio unit late Monday night since they just scheduled the Cath lab. Fingers crossed it is something easy and fixable. Her bp has been off (really low) for quite a few weeks now.

March OMG.....

Lots of thought has been put into this months - one monthly goal. I was advised to 'pick the one closest to a finish'. I decided to listen to that advise (thanks Chris!).

I am currently hand quilting the first Hand Pieced Quilt along quilt. I made 2 of each block so have 18 blocks in a on point setting. I have 12.5 of the blocks quilted. Sashing and setting triangles still need to be quilted as well.  My goal for March is to finish the quilting and get this bound and completed. Started in March 2019 with the quilt along. Let's hope for a 2021 finish in March! 

 

Linking up with the March 2021 One Monthly Goal.

Slow Sunday Stitching.

It really is a slow start today. I was the first one up a little before 8AM to let out the chickens from their coop. The call at 8:30 from my MIL got hubby out of bed. She was just calling off having the kids over today as Papa Andy is having a bad weekend. He is 88, and has a leaky heart valve that can not be operated on again. I checked on Em at 9:15 and she was still sleeping! I guess those teenage years of sleeping in are hitting as opposed to the 5AM and raring to go as toddlers! She is out now with Greg paining the modified nesting boxes. The rain was getting in so some fixes were in order.

I enjoyed some stitching time on the back porch last night working on a few of my hexagons. I have 2 left to do... and those might be stitched under the umbrella today on the pool deck along with the circle of the butterfly onto the wings! I hear 88F today..... 

I took this tin with me to car line this week and both kids grabbed it thinking their snack was in it! Their faces when they saw fabric was oh too funny!  I believe it was from a Girl Scout fall product chocolate peppermint this year. I love the snowmen and it fits my things for this project perfectly. Spool of thread for piecing and the hand quilting, pin case, pin cushion and scissors. The prepped hexagons tuck right in for easy access.

The butterfly needs those circles attached to the inner wing, then I'll finish basting it down. I need to cut out the background square so I can hand applique it along with the pink one. Are there green butterfly's? It sounds like there will be by the end of next month in my sewing room at least!

I was making great progress on the hand quilting of the hand pieced quilt along until mid week when binding projects took over. I plan to add some stitches into this at some point today as well. 

Speaking of the hand pieced quilt along- this years is called Harmony and I need to prep and make my first block before tomorrow. Thank goodness it is a simple square in a square block. It is a fun little sew along if you are interested in picking up a few tips on hand piecing. Mine will be red and white this year. 

The chickens are all back and the three home from the fair are enjoying the freedom of roaming in the back yard.... and dust baths in the section of the garden I left open for them. It was the first thing they did when we let them out of the travel cage.

Yes Mom, the garden is finally getting some things coming up - beans, peas, radish, spinach are up. The beets, swiss chard and carrots are starting to show now too. I need to move the buckets in the fenced area to replant the herbs. The chickens are playing in them where they are!

I headed out last night to offload a few cases of girl scout cookies to another troop to sell today. Seems the weather is affecting the shipments to the warehouses and I figured they could use them more than my troop! I wandered around Joanns and picked up some cream 90 inch backing that should work for 2 quilts with my 50% off coupon and then got a baby flannel 1.5 yard at 50% off for a backing of a little 40x48 quilt that I hope to get finished off this coming month. I also looked in the remnants bin and got 2 sky blues - one was a Kona and the other a regular cotton. Not bad for $24! This is what I saw on the way there - a big full moon. Good thing I pulled over for this shot on the way there, the clouds came in and it was cloudy with a little sprinkle on the way home after 9PM.

Linking up with the other Slow Sunday Stitchers at Kathy's Quilts. 

RSC Table Scraps Challenge

 It feels so good to get extra bits from a quilt turned into something fun and useful! I was able to make 2 - table toppers this month!

The first one I shared earlier this month and it has been getting used as my dinner placemat at the table. Such a sunny spot on my table.

The second topper got finished off tonight. It is double sided using extra bits from the same graduation quilts parts that made the placemat. One side is logs of yellow in a windmill type block. 

The other side is 5 - 16 patch blocks in yellows and blues. I do love these colors together.

This is the graduation quilt that the scraps came from.

I'll be linking up with Joy and her table top challenge.

I have also been making hexagon quilt as you go blocks this month in yellow. I admit... this pile is missing 5 of the 28 blocks.... but they are all prepped and waiting to be stitched. After all... there are 2 more days in February and plenty of time to get them stitched up before the new color is announced. I still have one set of blocks to make in yellow.... and hopefully they will get completed this weekend to show next week.

Linking up Saturday with the RSC.

Stashbuster 2020 is completed! February OMG complete.

 2 for 2 in 2021! I do wonder if I can keep it up!

I finally finished hand stitching the binding on the 48x60 Stashbuster quilt last night with a NCIS marathon. I think I am on season 7. Emily has started watching a few episodes with me - she likes Abby - the scientist on the show.

Lets revisit the February goal - Sandwich, pin, quilt and bind the Stashbuster 2020 quilt made with the RSC last year. I'm very happy to have checked off all the parts on this list and I just put the quilt into the washer so it will be nice and cuddly...... and all the chicken and cat fur will come off it!

Emily kept putting the chickens on the quilt. I think this was Emma. Molly was on it before this.

Then Poppy got held for a photo op with the quilt. This is the chicken that lays our green eggs =).

Aidan was trying to get Rosie over there but she had just laid a pink egg (it was very hot when I checked the nesting box) and was not having anything to do with being picked up right then.

Linking up with a completed February OMG. I have a few days to decide what the March goal will be but I think I'll shoot for another finish.... I wonder which of the 26 quilts waiting will bump up to the top of the list?

Also linking up with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge on Saturday