Stash Manicure: A Big North Carolina Hello!

Stash Manicure: A Big North Carolina Hello!
Hi Bonnie
My favorite quilt is Chunky Churndashes and also my crumb quilt. Would love to win one of your new books.

#comment-form

#comment-form
Hi Bonnie
My favorite quilt is Chunky Churndash. I'd love to win your new book.

Quilts for Kids

This is the basic pattern for all the quilts and the other pictures show the fabrics I used. Hopefully I'll improve my blogging skills in the future.

Last week we drove to Vermont because I'm in a great internet quilting group called the Beehive and once a year we get together someplace for a Swarm (cute, huh). We went to the Shelburne Museum and saw the Alzheimer's exhibit - very moving, but also a bit depressing. I came down with some kind of bug tho so missed seeing the Vermont Teddy Bear Company and the Ben & Jerry's tour. Sat, I went to the Vermont Quilt Festival. It was not quite what I expected. I had heard of it for years and pictured it in my mind somewhat akin to the Houston show. Don't get me wrong, it was a good show. Lots of beautiful quilts. I bought 2 books, 3 patterns, 2 -1/2 yds of fabric. It was great seeing my internet friend irl, good to get out of the city and the scenery was beautiful.

July 3rd we went to a friend's house in Brooklyn, a beautiful 4-story home in a quiet neighborhood. The hospitality and company were great and the food delicious. July 4th we watched the fireworks over the Hudson River with a group of GTS students and friends. Everyone was ooohing and ahhhing. The fireworks were quite impressive. The only thing missing was the 1812 Overture:)

The last couple of days were beyond hot - 99 and 103 degrees, but today was in the 80's. I went to physical therapy and worked out for about an hour then walked to the movie theater to meet my husband and we saw Toy Story 3 in 3D. It was a lot of fun. At first I didn't want to go because it was $25 for the 2 of us. We can afford it but everything is so expensive in NYC. Then we went to a Mexican restaurant - good food and pina coladas were only $3 during happy hour. Walked to the grocery store and bought a half gallon of ice cream - $7.99 for Edy's. Ouch! Anyway I was proud of myself for being able to work out, then walk 8 or 9 long blocks back to our apt. My sisters have been nagging me for a couple of years to get a cane but my physical therapist insisted and it's really helped a lot, I must admit.

Sunday we're flying to Seattle, meeting my sister and my aunt, then driving to the ferry and on to Victoria, BC, to see our son, daughter-in-law, grandaughter and granddog:) We're all very excited about this trip. Haven't seen everyone except my sister for 2 or 3 years.

Boy, time has really gotten away from me lately. Since I last posted, a group of us from school went to Katz's Deli and then to Southside Seaport on Memorial Day. I had a delicious pastrami on rye and the sandwich was about 4" tall, at least 1/2 lb of meat. Had to take half of it home with me. Three of us took a taxi to the Seaport (temp in the high 80's), the rest walked and it took them about 45 min. So while we waited, we found we were near a Hagendazz (sp). Well, what you going to do when it's so hot? I had a mango sorbet drink - yumm. Howard and I decided we didn't want to climb onto the ships for a tour and would come back another time for a tour of the museum so caught a taxi home and took naps.

Well, the rest of the days between then and now have been taken up with physical therapy, eye dr and dentist appointments. And packing. We are moving on up - to the 5th floor - I'll finally have a room for my "stuff" and a design wall.

Jamie wanted me to post some pictures. Earlier this year, I quilted 8 kid's quilts for www.quiltsforkids.org. If you fill out the form on the website they'll send you a kit all cut out. They ask that you make it and send it back, hopefully with a few more to donate. I made the tops but couldn't baste and quilt them until I could have room to set up my table. All 8 are the same pattern (had it down to a formula and couldn't stop) so I'll just show 1 quilt and the rest of the fabrics. If I can figure out how to do it.

Haircuts, etc

Haircuts and dyes at beauty parlors are expensive here but we found a barbershop which only charges $12 and I've stopped coloring my hair cause it's too much trouble. So yesterday Howard and I walked to the barber's and I got my hair cut, then we walked to the physical therapist's and I started p/t for my knee - after a fall in which I smashed my kneecap and subsequently had to have it removed, it keeps buckling on me so the dr sent me to p/t. I really hate the walk -it's about 9 long blocks each way. I know the walking will be good for me but I'm so unsteady walking. My sisters will be glad to hear that the therapist has recommended I get a cane(:

This morning we went to the chapel on the close for the ordination to deacons for 2 of our seniors who were ordained as transitory deacons. When they're assigned to a church then they'll be ordained as priests. It was a very nice service and reminded me of when my husband was ordained almost 7 years ago. He has an MS but not an MDiv which is why we're here. I can't believe we've been here almost a year. Only 2 years to go. But we've had some good news. We're moving to a larger apartment next month and I'll have a room for my quilting! The only downside to it is that we're moving because 2 of our friends are moving out. He's graduated and has a position in Buffalo. They befriended us when we came to GTS in Feb 'o9 for a visit and have been friends since.

I took a nap after lunch while Howard went to the gym. After a quick dinner, we went upstairs to say good-bye and have a look at our new digs. We'll be on the 5th floor instead of the 2nd and I'll have an even better view of the close. Howard's staying down in the basement tonite at the shelter and I'm on the internet and sewing. Hope you're getting some quilting in, too.

Long Time, No Write

Well, it's been over a month since I last posted. So many things have happened. We had our 26th anniversary the end of April and went out to dinner at a nice restaurant near the school. It's called Moran's and we had eaten there when we first came to check out the school in Feb '09. We split a crabcake and had shepherd's pie. Very good.

May 4th was my birthday but Howard had a make-up class he couldn't get out of. I wasn't really looking forward to spending it alone, but then I got free ticket to the opera which had been donated to the school . So a group of us went to the Metropolitan Opera to see Renee Fleming in Armida. It was very exciting to actually go to the Met after hearing about it all my life. And the music and singers were great. It was long tho - 4 hours! Afterwards caught a taxi and we came home.

May 6th was the last day of school. The next night after evensong we had a dinner for the class of 2010 and all the students, spouses and partners and the faculty and staff attended. Lots of fun, good food and lots of toasts.

Saturday I went to the Empire Quilters meeting. We had an interesting lecture on the underground railroad. I took the beautiful quilt and tote bag that Cane Cutter Quilters in Houma made for me when I moved and you can see it by clicking on show and tell here http://www.empirequilters.net/.

Then the following week was final exams and Howard really sweated over his philosophy paper and his patristics exam. I spent a lot of time sewing and then proofreading. Then there was the baccalaureate evensong followed by a great farewell party for the retiring head of school and his wife. Even saw Sam Waterston from Law & Order there. The next day was graduation but the chapel is so small they only gave 2 tickets to each senior, so I stayed home and sewed. Howard got to go because he was an usher.

So I think I've caught up and next time I'll post some pictures.

My iron conked out last night and I can't find the one I use for workshops so I was going to have to walk to Bed, Bath and Beyond (since we don't have a Walmart and the closest Target is in New Jersey). But I was able to borrow one from a friend for a few days until I'm in the neighborhood. I've been going through a box of scraps and cutting them into strips and squares and some of them needed ironing. Actually I was taking a break from putting borders on Judy Laquidara's Peaches and Dreams quilt which I took in a class along with Jamie in LA last month. I'm on border 6 and there are 8 borders. It's a neat quilt and I did it in my favorite color - orange. But I wanted to play with some other fabric.
Sort of a typical day today, woke up about 8 am, ate breakfast, showered, dressed then sat at my sewing machine cutting up fabric. Walked over to the close (that's what they call the campus), looked at all the beautiful flowers and trees, met my DH for lunch in the refectory (dining room), got the mail (got an order from Stitch-N-Frame with some beautiful Fairy Frost fabrics on sale), walked home, checked email, took a nap, ate a sandwich for dinner and left for Schola (choir) back on the close. Walked home at 9:30 and am writing this. Now for a snack and to bed with a good book, Killer Cuts by Elaine Viets. Kinda lonely since DH is in charge of the women's shelter tonight. The seminary students volunteer to oversee the homeless women's shelter. All of the women are employed and this gives them a safe place to stay until they can save enough for an apartment of their own. They can have a meal, wash their clothes, shower and sleep safely.