Monday again . . .

I am not sure where the last 7 days went, but I know there was a lot going on. The weather has been gorgeous and my flowers are still blooming as we have not yet had a frost - that is good!

Here is a wonderful picture of Weston in his "Buzz Lightyear" costume that I brought him from the Disney Store in Portland. He put it on and it was tough to get it off him. I couldn't believe how quickly he became "Buzz" - right down to the "infinity and beyond" cry. I am always amazed at how much "three year olds" understand and love to become different characters.

And, along with some customer quilting, I also got this cute Halloween top pieced for Meagan. I am planning to have it quilted on Wednesday and in the mail. So, I made my deadline. When I was in Portland, she helped pick out the fabrics and we fussy cut all of the little scenes of Halloween characters. She then picked out purple minkee for the back so she can cuddle. It is a cute pattern in the current issue of "Quilts and More".

I am off to Missoula very early in the morning and Weston is going along with me. It is a good thing the LilyB has a DVD player built in so he will be entertained - or asleep. Of course we will stop at a couple of good playgrounds between here and there to run off some steam. I want to get a picture of him with my Dad. Dad is not participating in the world around him much, but he is doing okay and doing what he wants.

Have a great week!

Home again . . .

I am home again and looking forward to some wonderful fall days filled with lots of friends, gatherings, get-aways, tons of UFO's and other things. I unpacked the car this morning, got caught up with laundry and put stuff away and I am now heading off to my studio.

Things I love about autumn . . .
Here is a little list I did about fall . . . things I love about this time of year and want to make sure I include during these next few months.

A - Apples, tart and crisp
B - Berries - all kinds
C - Colors of the leaves
D - Drives - long and winding
E - Earrings - time to make some more
F - Football games and the friends who gather
G - Getting ready for winter
H - Harvest time for everything
I - "Indian Summer"
J - Jeans - my favorite ones
K - Kicking the leaves to hear them crunch
L - Leaves - all colors and shapes
M - Meagan - pictures and talks on the phone
N - Nails - paint 'em red
O - Oatmeal with apples, raisins, walnuts
P - Parties for just any reason
Q - Quilting - and lots of it!
R - Retreat - an annual get away with good friends
S - Soups of all kinds in the crock pot
T - Tomato salsa - fresh
U - UFO - lots of fiber projects to finish
V - Vote - absentee this year
W - Weston - all the visits
X - Xeriscape naturally - no more mowing
Y - Yummy - everything and everyone
Z - Zestfullness - filled to the brim with all there is to do, to see, and to enjoy.

And with that I will be busy, busy enjoying the next few months.

Today was just like dessert . . .

This whole week was wonderful. I could have lived without having the horrible cold I had, but it is much better and I am on the road home in the morning.
I loved my shopping trip to E.E. Schenck this morning. I got everything on my list - thread, batting, backing options - plus some things I just plain had to have.

This afternoon we (Roy took the day off) walked to a nearby park and played for a couple hours. This evening we went to a favorite restuarant, "San Felipe Taqueria", which is a tiny little place that makes the best pollo verde gordita. I can't begin to eat it all, but it is always just like I remembered it. We then watched a wonderful movie together and are now turning in for the night.

The pictures are of the time in the park with Meagan and Roy playing. And the last one if of her watching the movie tonight.

It has been a very special trip and I have loved every minute. It is okay now to go home. They are going to be fine.

"We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today." ~Stacia Tauscher

Friday morning . . .

One more day and I have to head for home. It has been a wonderful time with Roy and Meagan.

Today I am heading off to E. E. Schenck for a batting/thread purchasing trip while Meagan is in school. Roy has taken the day off and we will have more time for good talks and some fun stuff. This afternoon, we are going to enjoy a special movie, paint our "puppy heads" that we made yesterday from paper mache, bake those cookies we have been saving for today, and cut out more "eye spy" squares from the Halloween fabric. It is going to be a busy day.

Tomorrow it is time to head for home. I will stay in Missoula tomorrow night with Mom in her new apartment in the senior center there. And then head on for home on Sunday. At first I thought I would stay in Spokane because of this cruddy cold I have had all week and not feeling very good. It is a long drive so I thought I would break it up, but I am feeling so much better - back to normal!

And it is Wednesday . . .

What are little girls made of?

Sugar and spice, and everything nice,

That's what little girls are made of.

You may know that Wednesday is my favorite day of the week and today was right up there with the best of 'em. I picked Meagan up from her school at noon and then we went shopping.

She was a perfect helper at Fabric Depot where we picked out the fabric for her Halloween quilt that I am working on tomorrow and Friday and then finishing once I get home. I brought some quilting stuff with me and my little Janome. My goal is to have it back here quilted and all done by October 1. We decided to follow a pattern from the new issue of "Quilts and More" and make it a bit smaller. (There are some fun quilts in the magazine.) We will fussy cut the little squares from the Halloween fabric. She wants purple minky type fabric for the back so it will be a real cuddly quilt for her. She is already planning on the one I am going to make her for Christmas so she can have "cuddly quilts" here at her Dad's house. I guess I had better start getting up earlier.

We then moved on to Target for a lot of shopping for the perfect "little toy". She said we must have walked up and down the toy aisles at least 23 times. I think it was way more than that. We were also looking for just the right shirt which we didn't find. She wanted one without any decoration so we could put an iron-on sparkly cupcake on it that we bought yesterday. She loves to play with her princess dolls and I even get to be one sometimes if I stay with the story. The wonderful world of a 4 year old is pure magic.

Yesterday, we did the Disney Store at one of the malls here and that was another memorable experience. I love the kids' clothing store, "Pumpkin Patch" as well and always want to spend some time there. She is not as excited about shopping for clothes - but that will come I am sure.

Tonight we went to Pastini's for supper and had some good pasta and Meagan tried her first tiramisu which she loved. We all shared one piece so it wasn't too decadent for anyone. She also tried her first balsamic vinegar and pepper with olive oil for bread and liked that as well. It is so much fun to share time with this very special little person. And - it is twice is nice that her Dad just happens to be my "baby boy" - of course I wouldn't dare say that to him - the "baby boy" part - but he always will be so precious! He is also a great guy and a great Dad!

Good times . . .

Well, no matter what is happening on Wall Street - and it is awful. . . we are having good times in Portland. Here are some photos. We ate lunch out yesterday at "Rock Bottom" and today we visited the Portland Zoo. We saw the new baby elephant, but did not get a good picture.

I hope we have enough money to get home, but if not, I could certainly be in a worse place.

A little trip . . .

I remember 9/11 and still find it hard to talk about the feelings of grief for all who lost loved ones. My heart and prayers are with us all as we remember today. The tears still come at the moment of the memory and I hope that never changes.

"There are moments in life, when the heart is so full of emotion
That if by chance it be shaken. or into its depths like a pebble
Drops some careless word, it overflows and its secret,
Spilt on the ground like water, can never be gathered together"
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Tomorrow we are heading toward Portland with a stop first in Missoula and then on to arrive on Saturday. It will be a fun few days. Bob is going to fly back early and I will stay on for a few more days and drive back. My son and his wife who live there have separated and it has been a difficult many months for them so it will be a very different visit than in the past, but that is our life path and we all walk it with courage and dignity.

Progress . . .

I have been able to work on quilting for a couple hours a day for the past couple days. Here is a picture of the quilt - almost finished - just a couple more borders to go like this one. Hoke (remember him? he is my IQ) did the inner pantograph and the one run of the panto on the outer border. I did the beadboard by hand. I like the look and am very excited about what I have learned. It is just the start for me and beyond what I had thought possible.

Catching up . . .

Yesterday was a long day - I left home at 5 a.m. and drove 200 miles to Missoula. We helped movers move Mom to a very nice apartment in a senior living community. We got her all set up and then I drove home last night. It was a long day, but the progress is worth the trips.

Her house is for sale and things are moving along. Dad is still in the nursing home and when I stopped to visit him he was laughing and telling me how he fell when trying to get from the toilet to his wheel chair. He said, "the toilet went one way and the chair the other". Then he smiled my favorite smile and said, "well maybe the toilet didn't move". His progress to get stronger is slow, but he is okay and his spirits are good.

We had a busy week before that trip as well. Weston was here for a couple days while his folks were busy getting finishing touches added to a couple homes that Rainy is decorating for the annual "Parade of Homes" event starting today. Everything always has to wait until the last minute and in one of them the carpeting was just being put down hours before they moved the furniture in for the staging.

Here is a cute picture of Weston watching "Toy Story" with Bob while he visited. I saw that movie three times in one day this week. He is like that - loves every detail over and over of one movie for several times and then he is "over that one". Last week it was "Toy Story 2".

He then was learning to take pictures and here is one of the ceiling in the kitchen. I am not sure just how he did it, but it is interesting to be sure. He loves to take pictures with my digital camera. I am not sure it is his gift.

And just in case you thought I was not going to ever quilt again - here is a photo of one I am going to work on tomorrow. It is from a client and I am going to have Hoke do a pantograph in the center and we will work together on the borders. Of course this should have been done last weekend, but that is life!

Things just might be back on track . . . whatever that is!