Heading Back Home

We are heading home tomorrow and I just can't believe how quickly this month in Florida has gone by! I’m not sure if it has been the wonderful weather, the two and three hour walks on the beach, being able to Skype my sweet little granddaughter or, say it ain't so.... maybe I am getting older and time is just passing by faster. Noooooooooooo!

Regardless of the reasons, we'll be leaving soon and I have such mixed emotions. I love the peace and quiet here and I am able to do things I never find time for at home. Out here I can do jigsaw puzzles, read all day long, peruse all of the wonderful blogs that I find on the internet and I even re-organized my files on my laptop - something that I had been meaning to do for over a year!! PLUS the phone rarely rings – yahoo! Since we are renters and the Cape gets terrible cell phone reception, we rarely get a phone call, land line or cell phone. It is marvelous!

BUT I do miss my home... my bed, my sewing room, my kitchen supplies (there isn't one spatula here!), all of my stitching buddies and my girls (my daughter and granddaughter). So I guess it is a toss-up!
I am just so grateful that I get to have this time away from the COLD, SNOW and GLOOM of a Kansas City February. This year, in particular, I am super appreciative since my friends and family have had to put up with TONS of snow since we left Kansas City. I think in total I have heard of about 12” – 16” of snow – unbelievable and unheard of in the last decade! It proves the old adage that there is no place like home. The time away always makes me appreciate how much I love my home and the many wonderful things that go with it. 

 Before I left Kansas City I decided to keep track of all of the things that I make this year. In the past, when I look back on the year it feels like I didn't do much at all. Then I wonder, what the heck did I do with my time this past year. Well, I have a pretty good idea that I am not accounting for lots and lots of projects that were done so I thought it would be interesting to see what I actually do get done in a years time. I am keeping track in a notebook and I will post pictures and processes on here so that it will be documented. It will be fun to post the first few things that I made this year and just didn't get a chance to post!!

Well, I'd better rest up because there will be so much to do when we return, but it is all worth it. I can’t wait to get back to my studio and get cranking on the many wonderful ideas I have read about on the blogs I have been reading.

Kansas City Here We Come!

Just So Proud!!!

Many years ago I met a very sweet and funny gal at quilt guild. We quickly became quilting acquaintances and every month we would get caught up on what was happening in our lives. And then she started Machine Quilting like a demon and rubbing elbows with some pretty big names in the quilting world and now I never see her - at least in person.

This woman is Angela Walters and I am pleased to say that I knew her back when she hadn't even bought her first Longarm quilting machine. The other day I saw her - on the side of a semi truck!!

 Every time I turn around now I see that she is teaching a class at a national quilt show or teaching a new class on the Craftsy website or she is designing a new quilting pattern - this gal is always in the quilting news lately. This week she is lecturing at the Quilt Con event in Houston, TX - the newest big quilting event and it's for Modern Quilters. Of course, she's involved since she is a premier machine quilter for modern quilt makers (and traditional ones, too)!

Angela posts frequently on Facebook and it is so much fun to see what she's been doing and what famous person she has befriended this week! Also, she has a terrific blog that covers a lot of ground. My favorite takeaway is her discussions about why and how she has quilted a top in a particular manner. Since I do my own machine quilting, on my domestic sewing machine NOT a Longarm, I love the abundance of information that is available on Angela's blog.

What amazes me is how humble and sweet Angela has remained in spite of her new found fame. Her blog is NOT a brag-fest, telling us all about how she has done this great thing and that great thing. Rather, she shares what she has learned by trial and error so that we, as readers, will be able to make better quilting decisions and thus, be better quilters. This is so typical of Angela and what makes her universally appealing to so many people. 

I have no idea how she has time to see her husband and three sweet children but she does, and does it well. I truly admire this young lady and all that she has accomplished and I am so proud to say that I knew her back when.....

Her blog is http://quiltingismytherapy.com/ - take a minute and check her out and look her up on Facebook.

Process Pledge

I just added a badge to my blog that says "I took the Process Pledge". It is the brain-child of Rossie's blog    http://r0ssie.blogspot.com Basically the pledge states that as a blogger I will post more about the processes involved rather than posting a finished product. I totally understand this concept because I love to look at other artist's journals or idea books that contain the sketches and notes that contributed to the design choices that were made along the way.

So by taking the Process Pledge I will be posting more about the beginnings of a project and also the various steps along the way with copies of my sketches or photos or books I read that inspired me to take a certain direction in my project. I think it is a wonderful idea and hope to be able to hold up my end of the bargain!