COCO does a blog post

 Friday.  My favorite day of the week!  Mommy takes me for a drive so I can go play with my fourpaw fur-friends.

OK, now that I've burned off some steam it's Break Time!

Meh.  Don't like that pool.  More space in this one.

Self-explanatory? 😂

It's a dog's life... 🐕

New Collection of UFO's in 2022

 I'm sitting on the back patio, 8:30 on Friday evening.  Current temp is 24c with a feels like 30c.  Saturday and Sunday are both forecast to be 30c with a feels like 40c.  Given a choice between this heat or late January temps of -20c I will take this.  In the wilting heat of the day I'll stay inside and do whatever is on my necessary list but as it cools down a bit in the late afternoon I'm back outside.  I'm blaming this love of summer for my new little crop of UFO's.  The first one was a test run of the Modern Curves pantograph that two customers wanted.  At some point I plan to reload it and quilt it again on the crosswise grain - I think the resulting grid will be kinda cool.  Very 60's op-art-ish.

I'm not sure what I'll do with this...tote bags maybe?  Super cute fabric though.

As the Program Chairperson for the Binbrook Guild (fancy title - I was actually the ONLY Program person, ha ha ha) I made some samples of a fun quilt and shared a pattern for the ladies.  The first sample is made using a layer cake.

This second sample is made using a border print.

I'm also in the midst of making 20 flannel pillowcases for the hospice in Leamington.  And I've purchased 7 1/2 m. of fabric to make a Christmas quilt as a gift for someone.  But when it's nice outside I can't get myself to stay in the house and sew.  (or clean, but we won't go there, hmm?) 

At least once a week sleep eludes me - something wakes me up at 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning.  I lay there and I lay there trying to go back to sleep.  Sometimes I'll get up and read.  But usually what I want to do is go down to my workroom and turn on my sewing machine.  I never do though.  I assume that I'd wake up DH and since he doesn't sleep much better than me it wouldn't be fair to steal any of his precious shuteye.

Here's a shot from 5:47 am in mid-July.

In dogland, we're going to dog classes twice a week.  DH is doing most of the work with Coco, hoping to improve their relationship.  We're making tiny strides.

I did put her to work:

Coco helped me harvest the volunteer garlic.

Then she cooled off in the pool. 

 I haven't warned her that the potato harvest will start soon.

Two Pretties from May, and life-in-general

 Here's a gorgeous, soft & gentle quilt made by Margaret (of the Kawartha Margarets 😄).  She manages to seriously tackle several UFOs every year.

Margaret & I talk almost every Tuesday just to keep up with each other's lives.  It's nice to get a parcel in the mail from her and send back something interesting in return.  Those boxes don't usually contain a whole quilt, but sometimes...

As you know I love scrappy quilts.  That shot of pink running between the columns adds a great touch.

I've never made a braid quilt myself, but it's on my list.

One of the items on my to-do list for the last few years has been to GET TO THE LAWYER.  That was finally taken care of, so we now have proper Power of  Attorneys for both property and medical, and we have updated wills. 👍

Coco has been having a great deal of fun at Doggy Daycare. 

But I'll tell ya, she's not good for anything later on.

My plan for today is to try and get the garden planted.  I don't think I've ever been this late with it before, and there's no really good reason for it.  I've been out there quite a bit pulling weeds.  Apparently what I should have been doing is pulling a weed out and sticking a cabbage seedling in.  I've been eating lots of asparagus (pulling weeds out of that patch, too!).  The other day I made an asparagus quiche for the first time and IT IS DELICIOUS.  Recipe here.  I substituted dried basil for fresh, but otherwise I followed the recipe.

I still have lots of fruit in the freezer from last summer, so I decided to make a cherry/strawberry pie (since I was in the kitchen anyways making the quiche).  I made a full batch of pastry which splits into 6 x single pie crusts; I used one for the quiche and two for the pie.  The others are in the freezer, keeping the fruit company.  Now, half a block of lard has settled on my butt.  I guess I will have to move my diet to another day. 

Two More "Same But Different", Movie, Book, Dog

 Here are two more quilts of the same pattern, but different colour choices.

The pink quilt got a fun back too - made with a floral panel.

Whenever I go to a quilt show I hang around the aisles where they've hung all the quilts that were made at a workshop, so you can see the "same but different" quilts.  I've learned a lot about colour by paying close attention to how other people make use of their fabrics.

MOVIE:

I watched West Side Story and did not enjoy it.  It was depressing.

BOOK:

I finished reading The Diamond Eye.  It was good.  Except for the people who died, everyone lived happily ever after.  ha ha ha

DOG:

OMG, Coco loves doggy daycare.  When I took her last week she was whining in the back seat all the way there.  I thought maybe she needed to poop and I almost stopped at the side of the road.  I didn't (see:  proof right there that I'm a bad dog mom).  When I got her out of the car at the trainers' she was CRAZY to go see the handler, wagging her non-existent tail, rolling over for belly rubs, and jumping up in excitement.  After my little burst of joy at her happiness, I felt a bit like chopped liver.  Sigh.  Taking here here (The Canine Bond) was definitely the right thing to do to help her get out of her anxiety after the traumatic move from Mexico.

Coco's the little one on the right, with one of her new friends. 

SOCIAL OUTING:

Yes.  I went OUT.  The Beach Girls met in St. Jacobs for a celebratory birthday lunch.  Afterwards we hit the outlet mall, and then drove three minutes over to the Market.  I've never been to the market that I can remember.  We got a bonus deal on blueberries so the next time you see me I might have a slight purple tinge. 

And speaking of food, I made a batch of DELICIOUS Maple Buttertart Bars.  If you're like me you might scratch your head a bit over the cranberries, but trust me - these are delicious.

What I should be eating:

Same but Different, Coco updates, More UFO's

 I love seeing the same quilt made two different ways.  These are customer quilts, but this pattern is definitely on my "to-do" list.

Example #1 - dark geese with light background.

Example #2 - light geese with dark background.

COCO UPDATES

• She's still terrified of DH.  I keep reminding both of us that we should expect to have 14 years with her, so calm down.  If it takes a year for her to get comfortable, then so be it.
• We go out in the backyard in the afternoons now.  She kinda plays but not for very long.  She HAS barked at me a couple of times out there.  The first two or three barks really made me laugh - you could tell she hadn't used her vocal cords for quite a while.  You know how weird you sound first thing in the morning?  Transition that to dog barks. 😄
• Morning walkies can be a bit of an adventure.  She likes to pick things up, carry them for a while, drop them, pick them back up, repeat...  She also likes to eat dirt.  Ick.  That can't be good for her, can it?  She also likes to eat grass (which might explain the middle-of-the-night puking).
• The most recent "normal dog" event - twice now she's gone and picked up one of her toys from the dining room and brought them to her bed in the living room.  Is she corralling them?  Maybe.
• She looked like she had fun at doggy daycare this week.  
• I washed the floors on Easter Sunday.  OMG they were filthy with dog drool.  And that's all we're going to say about my housekeeping.

MORE UFO'S

Yes I need to have my head read.  I have two more ufo's on the go.

I'm working on a quilt for Ukraine with a friend of mine.  We're each making blocks, then we'll assemble them into a nice sized quilt (double bed size I think).  It will go to one of the refugee families.

Working on those blues & yellows has temporarily interrupted my other recent UFO.

I have 98 of those little blue/grey half-square triangle blocks, which are cutoffs from a baby quilt I made a few years ago.

JANUARY 2022

The are getting the log cabin treatment until they hit 7" x 7".  At that point I will make two baby quilts from them.

APRIL 2022

And speaking of Ukraine and the atrocities being wrought by the Russians, I just started to read The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn.  It's too early to say good/bad but it's about a female Russian sniper.
 

Log Cabin & Stars

 This is quilt work from January.  During the pandemic I didn't really have a lot of opportunity to go over quilting ideas in my studio - we were all afraid to get within six feet of each other.  Quilts would get dropped off on the front porch and we'd visit for a little while.  The quilt would stay in quarantine for at least three days, then I'd photograph it and email doodles to the piecer so we could kick around ideas.

This was nicely pieced, which makes it much easier to work on.

Feathers, with some nice contrast from the straight lines.

A beautiful combination of colours, don't you think?

My favorite kind of back...artsy-fartsy, using some leftover blocks. 

WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON...

• First use of the solar dryer on March 18th.  That's always uplifting because it means sunshine and warm weather.
• Our s.i.l. passed away from a brain tumor - just heartbreaking, she was only 62.  I contacted the hospice where she spent her last days and they would be grateful for flannel pillowcases.  I had offered them either pillowcases or a Dignity Quilt, but they already have a quilt.  I've got lots of flannel on my shelves (ahem) so that will be my little project for the next few weeks.
• I'm trying to use up some of the frozen produce from last year - I made a nice pot of asparagus soup, rhubarb muffins, and cherry-almond crisp.  You can probably see my arse expanding from there.
• Coco started doggy daycare with the scaredy-cat group.  The first day she spent two hours being a scared/disinterested attendee.  Then she must have figured what the hell and decided to play for the last hour.  Week two was even better - she got right into the fun as soon as she got there. 
• I finished the Superbowl Sunday quilt.  Yay!  This goes into my box of donation quilts that will be delivered somewhere later this year.  Usually I bring them to the Women's Shelter in Hamilton.
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Coco is starting to turn into a "normal" dog.  She woke us up puking at 3 am.  sigh.  Other big events:  she picked up a Kong ball and nosed it around, she's eaten the treats that were stuck into the Kong rubber bone (one of those toys designed to keep a dog amused for a while), she likes to roll around in the dead/rotting bird carcass on our morning walk, and she's chased the frisbee in the backyard.  Mind you, she only chases it ONCE.  Then I throw it, I go get it, I throw it, I go get it...  
• I finished the 2021 bookkeeping and got everything off to the accountant.
• Out here we all have those rural mailboxes at the road.  One of our neighbours has a problem in that their little mailbox door is usually open.  I guess it's loose and won't stay shut.  On our morning walkies today Coco jumped up and tried to rip it off.  Just for fun.  You know.  Thankfully she has bad aim!
  
  
  

A Day In The Life (or five weeks worth of days)

I'm reading Her Turn by Katherine Ashenburg.  It's a good book, and I noticed that each chapter represents a week.  Since I haven't posted in quite a while I thought I'd borrow that format.

Feb 6 - 12

I started the week by giving myself another covid haircut.  I was due for a proper cut at the beginning of January, but it's not like anyone cares what I look like.  37 years married...if you get my drift.  Most of the time DH is happy if he notices that my shoes are still in the closet.  Coco is not settling in yet...some days she only has one pee, which freaks me out.  Everyone is stressed and she's still terrified of DH.  I talked to the rescue's dog trainer who had a few suggestions to improve her comfort level, we'll see how that goes.  

This week's treat was the spinach ravioli that DH brought home from Costco.

Feb 13 - 19

This week included both Superbowl Sunday when I make a wee quilt top, AND Valentines Day which often includes too much chocolate.  I'm burning off the chocolate by taking Coco for three walkies a day.  We are not letting her go out in the yard by herself because we're pretty sure she would not come back in.  Two seniors chasing a dog around the backyard, in the winter, trying to corral her is not something that appeals to us somehow.  So for now, I'm getting lots of exercise.  

The Beach Girls are scheduled to arrive for Winterruption soon, and I'm trying to clean up a lot of crap.  Several years ago my brother & nephew & DH installed built in speakers in the living room.  The old Technics speakers went in the office, and have been collecting dust ever since - but it is time for them to go.  I flipped them down on to a sheet and hauled them out into my workroom (friggin' heavy bastards!) where I vacuumed and wiped them down, then took photos and listed them for free on facebook marketplace.  Holy Sh*t - my devices immediately blew up.  Who knew they were a collectors item???  

More Coco walkies stories include stopping at the neighbour's, where she refuses to take a treat; turning her head away in that "I can't see you" move.  In the past two weeks we've stopped at their place twice for little outside visits.  Coco seems to think that's enough of that, and now turns around just before we get to their driveway.  Ha ha ha...Yah, uh, NO dog.

The Binbrook guild will be meeting in person again at the end of the month, so I've started working on a small quilt as a sample of a 3-patch block.  Flying Geese blocks make an excellent chevron design.

Feb 20 - 23

Continuing with the sh*t-shovelling before Winterruption, I'm purging old paperwork.  The idea of names, address, account numbers, etc going in the garbage freaks me out a bit.  Well, ok - maybe more than a bit.  I don't want a Nest thermostat, or security camera, or Alexa...all of which can SPY ON ME.  1-800-LUKE just shakes his head and smiles.  For paperwork disposal, I tear off the personal information and burn it then put the rest of the stuff in the recycle bin.  

Guest speakers for the Binbrook guild for April and May have been confirmed... yay!! 

 Neighbour Sophie gave me some focaccia bread, so I've been having runny eggs on bread.  Mmm, mmm, mmm.

Feb. 22 get a real haircut!  The biggest housecleaning chore before Winterruption is cleaning the office, where one of the girls will be sleeping on a blow-up bed.  All the storage totes, file boxes, travel bags, piles of photos, etc, etc, have been moved down to the basement.  I vacuumed within an inch of my life and then got out the Murphy's Oil Soap.  I washed the baseboards and both desks.  Really, I should probably do that more often (she says rolling her eyes).

Feb. 24 - 27 the girls are here.  Thursday afternoon and evening was catch-up time.  This past year we implemented Video Cocktail Hour on Friday afternoons, and it's been great but it sure doesn't take the place of a real hug. We spent Friday at the Van Gogh exhibit, then headed out to Waterford for lunch & Quilt Junction & the antique mall (where I picked up a cute little gift for Margaret's birthday).  Saturday was spent in my workroom talking shop and doing quilty-things.  Sunday morning breakfast of Eggs Benedict (my birthday!), then they packed and headed off for home.  Coco was pretty good with them but mostly tried to follow me around while staying out of their way.

Feb 27 - Mar 5

Much of my birthday was spent cleaning up after the girls left, then the rest of the day I finished the prep for the 3-patch block presentation I'll do on the 28th.  

Coco has had a breakthrough and is coming downstairs in the morning all by herself, without prompting.  She's still really freaky and prancing around the house, but at least she's willingly coming for walkies.  

A birthday lunch out with a friend included a couple stops at quilt shops and more word fabric in my shopping cart.  I also got some anti-anxiety dog treats that were recommended by the dog trainer, hopefully they will help.   I booked an appointment with a dog groomer who comes to the house for nail trims.  I'm pretty ticked at her...she got lost on her way here, and now will not return my messages to rebook an appointment.  WTH.  It's not MY fault she got lost.  sigh.

Mar 6 - Mar 12

I'm in charge of the Red Hat outing in March, so I made the arrangements for that.  We're going to the movies for the first time in two years.  For an afternoon matinee the cinema should be empty (and post-outing I can report that it WAS empty).  I felt like such an ass though, one of our gals was not on my email list so I neglected to invite her.  I definitely owe her a little something by way of apology.

I had my blood pressure checked at the doctor's office and it's good.  Normal.  Within a tolerable range.  Thank God.  After my appointment I took a drive in to town, with the back of the car filled with two years worth of booze empties.  A couple people have organized a bottle drive with proceeds being donated to the Red Cross in support of Ukraine.  I was crying in a restaurant this week over the atrocities taking place in Europe right now.  Giving away my empties won't make much of a difference, but every little bit helps.  Here is a link to the Red Cross if you want to make a financial contribution.

Back in January I was up late scrolling through the Costco website, and in a weak moment ordered new bedroom furniture.  I was 15 years old when Mom bought my current bedroom set.  I just turned 66.  I will not be living with the new stuff as long as I did the old stuff.  Anyhow, the new stuff was delivered on Saturday.  I was really worried about how different things can look in real life, as compared to online photos, but I'm very happy with the real stuff.  Yay!  Please, let this motivate me to finish the bedroom drapes that have been lounging on my pressing table for (omg, embarassing...) a few years now.