I'm BAAAAACK! Just Kidding.

So. Don't you just hate it when you're following a blog, and suddenly the blog-writer just seems to disappear? They drop out of site and you wonder, did they just get tired of blogging? Did they lack stamina, commitment, or follow-through? Did they (heaven forbid) die??? I'll admit to feeling so connected to people through their blogs that I've even messaged or emailed them when they haven't posted in a while, just to see if they're ok.

Yet, here I am, popping up 6 years after my last blog post. So what happened?

Clearly, I didn't die. But I almost did. I almost died, and then I had lots of surgeries from almost dying, and then I had long recovery periods, and more surgeries, and then lingering and sometimes debilitating after-effects. And if that sounds pretty vague, it's because I was out for a lot of it, so I could probably describe my weird pain-drug hallucinations better than the actual details.

But I didn't die! And I feel terribly grateful for that small miracle. My career, however, did die. And then my marriage died. And then I went into a financial tailspin that meant losing my home. And suddenly I, who had grown roots deep enough to feel safe and secure, was upturned and tossed around like a tree in a hurricane.

Don't get me wrong: I don't in any way feel like a victim. In fact, in the last half-decade or so, I've learned more about myself and my beliefs and my talents and my faults than I had in all the many decades before that. But my roots are still not planted well enough to grow deep, or to feel secure. I'm less a mighty oak these days than a tumbleweed looking for a solid place to land.

So that's my story--or at least the highlights (lowlights?). And one of these days, I'll share all the details, and I'll find a rhythm that (I hope) includes regular blogging, because I miss that.

In the meantime, take care and be grateful for the miracles (small or large) in your lives.

And if anyone who used to follow my blog just happens to see this, know that I'm grateful to you for being part of my blogging life. And I'm sorry that I left you hanging for so long.

Organization Rocks!

Well, I intended to show the horrifying "before" pics of my quilting space, but it appears I've lost them. However, I can say that, after spending weeks cleaning and organizing, it's a thrill to be in that room now!

Here's the basic organizing scheme: small scraps in plastic bins, sorted by color; fat quarters in storage boxes; anything between a small scrap and a fat quarter rolled and tied and standing in a storage box; anything larger than a fat quarter made into a "mini bolt" (find out how to make your own mini bolts here!):

I've always folded and stacked my fabric on the shelves, and that was a huge pain because every time I pulled a piece out, everything on top of it got a little more disorganized. Now I can slide a "mini bolt" out and back in with no problem, plus I STILL get to see (most) of what I have available.

At some point I will move all that fabric into a closed-shelving system to protect it from sun damage, but for now I'm inspired by it, and it's not in direct sunlight so it should be ok for a little while.

The Canning Count

Peaches are in season here in Central Texas, so it's time for some canning! This year I made spiced peaches for the first time (instead of peach preserves), and bread and butter pickles (which are AMAZING). I also made some chow chow (I think it's also called "picalilli") which I've actually never eaten before and I'm hoping tastes good :-)

This season's can count (to date):

Spiced Peaches: 4 & 1/2 quarts; Bread & Butter Pickles: 2 & 1/2 quarts:

 

 Chow chow: 5 pints:

Still to come: more spiced peaches, peach preserves, and apple butter. Oh, and more bread & butter pickles, since we either gave them all away or ate them :-)

On the quilting front, I have way too many projects 1/2 done, so I need to finish those up. I'm also finally repurposing those paper towels I use to clean up when painting; I'll try to post more on this (and maybe a tutorial?) in the near future:

Oh, and Happy (early) Summer. We're definitely feeling the heat here in Central Texas, where we just experienced our first 100+ temperature day. I'm sure there are many more to come before Fall arrives sometime in October!

She's Here!

Our first girl grandbaby has arrived! We have two wonderful grandsons, ages 12 and 11, so it's been a while since we've had a tiny one around. Her name is Cali, and she's gorgeous! She was born Wednesday, 5/16, at 9:22 pm, is 19" long, and weighs 7 lb. 1 oz. I feel the urge to make pink ruffly things coming on . . .

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope all the mothers out there have a wonderful day. We celebrated with my mom earlier this week--she has the fortune/misfortune of having a birthday on May 9, so it frequently overlaps with Mother's Day. Today we took my partner's mother to lunch. Now the rest of the day is mine to play!

As usual, I've been too busy to blog, but here are a few of the things I've been working on. I used some of the painted fabric I talked about last time to make journals, and listed them on Etsy:

The rest of the time . . . well, who knows where it went! The creative ideas are flying so quickly through my head I can barely grab onto them, but I'm having a hard time executing on anything besides these small journals. I'm going to try to get into a better routine next week so I won't have excuses for not starting some of the bigger projects I want to work on.

The Blogging Dilemma

Where do people find time to take gorgeous pics of their work, post them on their blogs, and write blog posts? More and more frequently, I’m faced with a choice: talk about working on my blog, or do some actual work.

Of course, there’s a slight possibility that too much of my time is sucked up by Facebook.
At any rate, I’ve been happily tucked away in my studio painting fabric and paper. Now I just have to figure out what to do with it!

 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Guess how much I love my leaves thermofax stencil?

Back to work now!