It's a Brown Out!

I got out this morning about 10:30 and it was a nice beautiful summer morning.  The heat hadn't gotten up to 90 degrees yet, but it was clear skies and looking gorgeous.  Why did I leave my house?  I was craving an iced coffee from Sonic.  A route 44 vanilla iced coffee with Caramel and extra cream and sweetener.  It is addictive, a little pricey, but less than a 20 ounce latte from Starbucks and way better than their iced coffee!!  (Jack in the Box has a great iced coffee, too.  just saying) 

Anyway, the main reason I decided to post today is because my gorgeous, beautiful morning turned into a brown, dust and wind blowing day.  It hit so hard and fast that it sounded like a herd of cats had jumped on my porch roof landing hard.  BOOM!  It has been blowing steady now for over an hour and is just brown and yucky out there.  I am so glad I got out early to get my drink so that I can now hunker down inside the house and work on sewing, quilting stuff and class projects.  Also, I can take a nap if I want.  LOL 

I am sitting here at my desk watching the lake white cap and the trees bend as the winds blow in from the north.  (yes, the lake is back full again after 3 consecutive nights of rain that was so desperately needed) The ducks that I can see are balled up trying to hold onto the grass and keep from getting blown away and the cat that sat on the fence last night taunting my dogs is nowhere to be found.  It's definitely a stay inside and sew kind of day.  Or nap - which is what I think I will do first before hitting the sewing machine again later tonight.  My Kaffe fabrics I ordered from Amazon and Missouri Star are here and I need to decide if work in the block swap patterns that my swapping people have chosen.  Light blue Kaffe is hard to come by.  I got a white with light blue dots, a blue with green dots (not as light as the picture made it out to be) and a millefiori that has light blue, but also a lot of yellow.  I need to get those items cut out and ready to sew since I haven't made May's blocks or Junes.  (I can't even remember what June's block is supposed to be.)  Okay, no nap until I figure out the block patterns! 

My friend posted a video from our news station and I am going to see if I can post it over here to share.  It's sometimes hard for people to believe who don't or haven't lived in the panhandle or west Texas to imagine what it's like.  so, hopefully here it is.  had to copy the link for you.  

https://fb.watch/dwEHL3TutH/

I'm Back! Again!

It has been almost six years since I wrote on my blog.  It feels like so much more.  I can't believe I allowed 6 years to pass me by without writing here.  You would have thought that I might have jumped on here while I was isolating in 2020, but I was still teaching the first part of the shut down and because I was on the computer every day for hours, I didn't feel like adding anymore eye strain or computer time to my life.  Then I decided to retire from teaching.  Boom. Just like that. I had taught for 35 years so the transition from school to nothing was a bit weird -  for about a week.  It felt like a typical summer break.  Everyone said, wait until August when school starts up again, it will feel strange then.  It didn't. 

I am still isolating for the most part. Okay, I am an introvert and a hermit so I may call it isolating, but you know, I'm just being me.  LOL.  I stay home A LOT.  I get out for a few things, but where do I really need to go? Why get dressed and put on make-up?  I don't usually see anyone except at the drive thru or picking up groceries or through my office window.  I do get out though.  I am not a complete hermit.  I quilt with my group, keep the books for volleyball and basketball, and have started teaching quilting at a local quilt store.  

I have been sewing quite a bit even these last couple of years though I've slowed down some this year.  I finished 21 quilts in 2021!!  That's an accomplishment. (finish means, quilted, bound and label on)  I also made a ton of quilt tops that need to be quilted and finished.  (hopefully by 2023) I need to put the binding on the last of the little cousin's quilts.  The last two are for my youngest nephews.  One has been finished for quite awhile, the other just needs to be squared up and binding and label put on.  (I have until July to get that one done)  I will have made and given away 23 quilts.  (or will have as soon as I get everyone's quilts to them.  I still have a few that have been sitting here taking up space at my house!  I am just too lazy to make a couple of trips to drop them off.  IE:  hermit)  

Last summer my mother said she should probably give her nieces and nephews a quilt and I was like, "that would be nice" then realized that was my first cousins and I had given all of their children a quilt for high school graduation, so why not them?  OOPS!  My first cousins on my mother's side will all be getting quilts soon, too.  I am raiding my quilt stash,  putting on labels, and getting quilts ready to give to each of them.  It's hard to give away a quilt that wasn't made specifically for a person; at least it is for me.  When I am making a quilt for a certain person, that quilt really belongs to them as I sew it up.  I hope they all know that if I need the quilt back to show for whatever reason, I am coming to their homes and taking it back!!  LOL.  I don't think I would ever do that, but there are a couple I just might have to go snatch back for awhile.  I really loved a few and didn't want to give them away. 

If you have made it this far and are still willing to follow me on my blog, thank you.  You won't hurt my feelings if you want to excuse yourself from this blog.  It has been sitting idle for 6 years so you may have not felt the need to delete it from your list.  I hope you stay, but if not, thank you for following me on the first part of the journey.  Now on to the second. (or 3rd or 4th)