Tumbler - How to do the straight stitching?

I have pulled out my tumbler that I basted last year.  Might be I have to unbaste, iron and baste again - but I will try to just go with it.

Front - Accucut template sewn as leader ender project. Basted with pinmoors and curved pins.

Back Tumbler basted

I've been using Pinterest to find tumbler quilts finished the way I like them.  Instead of doing an all over design I would like to echo all the stitching lines.  I'm going to use black and blue thread so the stitching becomes part of the quilt pattern.

I have been leaving comments on blogs asking the folks for help.

I don't know if I start in the middle or the edge.

I don't know if I do all in one direction (the straight seams or the angled ones).

I don't know if I do an X to divide and do one quarter at a time.

I want to do the straight stitching for this quilt but can pick another edge to edge design and finish using a LeahDay design too. I would like this quilt finished so I can give it to our friend in Colorado.

I have been back from Boston since mid-August but only feeling like I have time to get organized to start new projects and finish old ones!

: )

I forgot to keep all the URLs for the tumbler I saw.  So many beautiful choices....
Here are the some of the pages I visited:
Holiday Dog Tumbler - http://stitchified.com/2013/11/27/wip-wednesdays-holiday-edition/
Holiday Dog Tumbler Angles at Edge - http://stitchified.com/2013/12/06/tgif-zig-zag-style/
Small Baby Quilt - http://embabiak.blogspot.com/2012/10/tumbler-quilt-for-baby-g.html
Tumbler - http://henhousehomemade.blogspot.com/2011/10/pretty-interlude.html
Tumbler different FMP - https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizmPmsHNtKw8Wu-sIlu8QcbAg2k-OSh2iuDj5jye4w14L_yEE3nTWMdXDQLKA5btVfak3o4vNxF0WybzyX70LRQ1PMQ6ZC6HX-bMqG7OlJBGU46pRYauVmpijm6Ude3MH7UTOQ2ane-4Ph/s320/DSC01517+%25281024x813%2529.jpg
Tumber shows how to press - http://joanne-threadhead.blogspot.com/2011/12/tumbler-quilt.html
Tumbler -extra strips - https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYypNnhBQgBL8PLmaveG9lZFsBe69UZ55XQ61Hpt3wdrZQ2oCuQeg1mFwDp37G3_U37jcuHVaMOiLDig_3WxAKG97a-vEzmnPIZE5R_70Vxgp3ANoP2BOBe5XyWFN013OL7bzvzwcnvtFI/s1600/DSC03291.JPG
Tumbler - http://www.modabakeshop.com/2009/09/sweet-baby-quilt.html

I don't really know how to use Pinterest, but have been collecting some sites there... it's really fun to look for different images...

YouTube Beginning Quilting Tips

MATERIAL

How to Prewash Your Quilting Fabric, Leah Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5A4Pe60je58

How to Iron and Starch Your Quilting Fabrics, Leah Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwrETCcgMX0



SUPPLIES

(4) Supplies Needed for (rotary) Cutting Quilting Fabrics, Leah Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oj3WFE0464

• cutting mat - pick color you do not use very often in fabric
• rotary cutter
• rotary blade ruler - optima is brand she uses but in any case suggests using same brand all the time.
• invisible grip - to help ruler not slip

 
CUTTING

How to Cut Fabric with a Rotary Cutter, Leah Day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybQLai6Mv58


How to Make a Perfect Cut. Quilt with Aimee!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4Xz2CkKTUY

• 12.5 square ruler
• 6 x 12 or 24 inch ruler
• rotary cutter

Point trimming, JudyMartinBooks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDLCt2o3wkc
Almost a non-example of how to do a demonstration, but she has thought about points to trim...







BASTING and BATTING

Quilting Batting and Basting Tips, Leah Day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S40Z7TLHDVQ&feature=youtu.be

Which Quilt Batting do I use and Why?  Gourmet Quilter

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fhb15h_-pSg

 

1/4 INCH SEAMS 

Why and How to Sew With a Scant 1/4" Quilt Seam, Marci Baker 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSCBzwJ1lB4
Uses tools to buy and uses the fingers each time, seems like it would be tiring to do but still good ideas to consider.  I think using an index card would work too! She puts tape in front of the needle.

Quilting Tutorials - The Perfect Seam Allowance, JudyMartinBooks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JH9QdMHjnugAlmost a non-example of how to do a demonstration, Seam allowance test - she has tape only by the needle

Achieving a 1/4" seam allowance for patchwork - Quilting Tips & Techniques, GourmetQuilter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdzIMEqAAbc

How to Use a Quarter Inch (1/4) Foot & Quilting Bar / Guide, Sewing Parts Online
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ct3G0Nh-pw

Precise Piecing Tips: Precision Pathways Block, McCalls

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rChpKpfM2dA

HST chain piecing and square in square - uses scraps instead of leader and ender!

 

01052014: Sunday Nothing Much

 Sunday January 5, 2013

01052014: Thinking about Building Block Quilt colors - need two colors.  Think I will do grey and white. That will show off the stitching for the project.  I can use a colored thread to add interest to the project.

1. Daily Photo - yes
2. Daily Food - yogurt/granola, english muffin PB/marmalade, limabean soup hummus/nan, chickpea stew/apple/crackers, ice cream, cookies
3. Exercise - nope
4. Sewing - Building Blocks,  RSC14 (Jan Blue) - I think I have decided on doing Building Blocks in shades of grey and white - maybe with red thread.  I haven't decided on the backing material yet.
5. Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes - Day 3: Start exploring The FlyLady website. Be sure to read the Launch Pad section. This is where you will find the Daily Flight Plan - Day 4: Your next thing is to write these things down on a sticky note and post them on your bathroom mirror and above your kitchen sink. This is the beginning of your Control Journal. The little notes help us to remember the habits we are trying to establish. - Day 5: Recognizing the negative voices when you hear them and changing the words to be nice to you. That is what FLYing (Finally Loving Yourself) is all about. - 
6. Family
7. Others - organization emails
8. Paperwork
9. Vitamins - AM
10. Tasks: QG to QB, og emails, mint categorize, health insurance for DS, paper for family

Didn't do a lot today.  Watched TV, made food, read blogs fiddled with pinterest.  I do not quite understand how to use it, but it is nice to collect images.

Got fabric out and started measuring.  At first I was thinking blue and brown.  Light colors of different blues that are mainly tone on tone and plain brown.  But I didn't have enough plain browns - the other brown had little dots of a different tone of blue so it wouldn't look right.  So now I'm thinking my precious grays and plain white and some tone on tone white.  I do not know the backing yet or the color of thread.  I do have grey and black thread I think - I will check tomorrow.

The organization is starting to send emails again. The outgoing lady doesn't realize how her tardiness has cost me so much time and effort we work around her.  I wrote an email to her but she wrote back that it wasn't her fault, etc.  She has made what was a joy and fun so unpleasant, now I just want to get out and away.  She misrepresents things - wrote an email just today about how we had monthly meetings and how agendas usually went out a week in advance - there haven't been enough meetings or emails answered.  But she has only called max of three meetings in a year.  It's a mess.  I can only help behind the scenes I can't keep covering for people not doing what they said they would do.  Just now the guy who was tasked with emailing the folks not elected copied me that he finally notified them. Shameful. I wrote to the group that I would not be attending the meeting and the email for one of the new board members bounced back!  She hadn't even fixed that in the second email she sent out.  Shameful.

Tomorrow
Decide on fabric for the backing and thread - and prep the fabric to cut the strips.
QG to QB, org emails, mint categorize
Contact boston dentist

daily 2014 template

Day, Date

Photo here

Appts here

Next day plans or to do list

1. Daily Photo
2. Daily Food
3. Exercise
4. Sewing: Building Blocks,  RSC14 (Jan Blue)

1. Flylady: Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes - Day 3: Start exploring The FlyLady website. Be sure to read the Launch Pad section. This is where you will find the Daily Flight Plan Read flylady emails - Day 4: Your next thing is to write these things down on a sticky note and post them on your bathroom mirror and above your kitchen sink. This is the beginning of your Control Journal. The little notes help us to remember the habits we are trying to establish. Day 5: Recognizing the negative voices when you hear them and changing the words to be nice to you. That is what FLYing (Finally Loving Yourself) is all about. - Day 6: Spend 2 minutes working on a hot spot. - Day 7: Pick out clothes for next day - put them out! - Day 8: Today, go find an old three-ring binder and just put some looseleaf paper in it. Then, at the top of one page, write Morning Routine, and on the top of another page, write Before-Bed Routine in pencil. - Day 9: Today we are going to learn how to declutter our homes a few minutes at a time with some fun tools that you might have been wondering about from the reminders you have been reading in our e-mails. Making it fun will get the job done! Read the Decluttering FLYing Lesson!  Today, add a five-minute room rescue to your Morning Routine.

1. Family
2. Others
3. Paperwork
4. Vitamins
5. Tasks: Decide on fabric for the backing and thread - and prep the fabric to cut the strips,QG to QB,
   SD emails, categorize, reports to TP and google,
   Health Insurance for DS,
   Papers for familyt,
   Contact boston dentist,
   contact friends for catch-up notes
   Make appt for mammo and bones
   Lab work
   Appt doctor
   Wear Contacts
   Appt eye doctor
   Appt teeth cleaning

Notes here

Next day appt

01042014: Saturday Tree, Wrapping, B

Saturday, January 4, 2014

01042014  B curled on on sleeping bag.

DS was dropping off B so he and friend could enjoy party in Orange County.

1. Daily Photo - yep
2. Daily Food - biscuit, yogurt and granola, lima bean soup, chicken salad, ice cream
3. Exercise - not much walking
4. Sewing Building Blocks RSC14 (Jan Blue) - only online ordering of supplies
5. Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes - Day 3: Start exploring The FlyLady website. Be sure to read the Launch Pad section. This is where you will find the Daily Flight Plan Read Flylady Emails - Day 4: Your next thing is to write these things down on a sticky note and post them on your bathroom mirror and above your kitchen sink. This is the beginning of your Control Journal. The little notes help us to remember the habits we are trying to establish.
6. Family - a little chat with DH and DS but mainly just sitting in same room with DS
7. Others - nice emails with CW and phone chat with TB (he called here)
8. Paperwork - Nope
9. VitaminsAM PM
10. Tasks: QG to QB, org emails, mint categorize

Took down the Christmas tree ornaments and lights when I woke.  DS arrived as I was doing that in my pj's.  We chatted a little.  He had to wrap box for present for the party they were going to - so I found tape and paper scissors and let him do that while I wound up the lights.  I am still missing the first ornament he made - it's somewhere on the tree branches or perhaps under the tree.

He wrapped the box so it could be opened again - nice idea - but he had to do as the gift wasn't here.  I gave him some scotch tape and scissors so he could fix if needed or wrap the additional gift he was picking up.

I started heating the lima bean soup again and added ham, then sat next to Buffy a while then returned to the computer to do more web 'work' looking for YouTubes on beginning quilting tips and deciding what supplies are needed.  Hard to concentrate.

Took B out two times for short walks - it was a little cold for her. She snuggled under and between sleeping bag and slept most of the day. Every once in a while she would get up to say hi and would go up to B to say hi to him too.  It was nice.

We had soup for late lunch.  I tried again to find my quilting supplies and blocks but can't remember where I put them.  For dinner I heated some Korean Chicken we had gotten at Costco - I made a salad to put the chicken on.  We ate while watching TV.  Then he went upstairs and I did more web reading.

B was in the sleeping bag or walked around to say hi.  She sat with me for a while - but decided she liked the sleeping bag more.  It's chilly in this room anyway but I think the stones being removed from the fireplace make it colder (see yesterday's photo).

A came around 9 - the party was nice.  He was tired though so sat for awhile - he said he had told his friend he was going to hang out a while.  We watched a chatted over Modern Family - then he was really tired so I read and he read and dozed a bit.

When B woke up I gave her her pill and a little food - then DS was up and doing webwork until his computer died - then he left.  I gave him some veggie lima bean soup, some pasta with sweet potatoes, soyrizo, and the little piece of cheese that I double dipped when I wrapped a bit around B's pill and fed to her so it became B cheese....

Ordered some supplies for CW to do the Building Blocks quilt and the pattern and got us each batting. It will come later this week.  I wanted to try to the thicker batting but it wasn't available that I could find in twin size.  I didn't want to get much larger as I didn't want left overs.  I already have too many left overs.

Got some emails about the organization that I stepped down from - the first was treasurer asking me to write her the kind of email that others had written me to get my reimbursement.  What a drag.  I already gave her the print outs of the receipts - I wrote I would do it later.  The secretary wrote to have the new emails set up - but that is something B has to help with and he is busy -and the last was the president to the new and old board announcing the meeting and saying we had monthly meetings, and that everyone had said they would come, except for two.  But we have been asking her for more meetings and they do not happen, and I had written that I would not be attending the first meetings as the new board needed time to get to know each other, and the two people she said had not responded had so I don't know what she was looking at. No matter what I do or do not do it will never be enough - I have resigned so it's too much to keep asking me to go to meetings.  I already lost two weeks in Boston that I will never get back.  I will help the treasurer and the email issue but anything else they will need to wait.

I'm stressed just thinking about it.

Oh well.


Next day plans or to do list

1. Daily Photo
2. Daily Food
3. Exercise
4. Sewing - Building Blocks,  RSC14 (Jan Blue)
5. Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes - Day 3: Start exploring The FlyLady website. Be sure to read the Launch Pad section. This is where you will find the Daily Flight Plan - Day 4: Your next thing is to write these things down on a sticky note and post them on your bathroom mirror and above your kitchen sink. This is the beginning of your Control Journal. The little notes help us to remember the habits we are trying to establish.
6. Family
7. Others
8. Paperwork
9. Vitamins
10. Tasks: QG to QB, org emails, mint categorize, health insurance for DS, paper for family

01032014: Friday Doctor, Walk and Money

Friday January 3, 2014

01032014 TV on while I read quilting blogs

Dr appt 11

1. Daily Photo
2. Daily Food: Yogurt with nuts, English muffin PB and marmalade. Stuffed salmon on top of salad.
3. Exercise - walking around 8000 steps only
4. Sewing Building Blocks RSC14 (Jan Blue)
5. Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes - Day 3: Explore Flylady read Launch Pad and Daily Focus (Friday De-Clutter your Purse and Car Day)
6. Family - yep a little
7. Others - nope
8. Paperwork - none
9. Vitamins AM
10. Tasks: QG to QB, org emails, mint categorize

This was my first time with doctor - it was sort of a meet and greet I guess.  I think she might be a match but not sure.  Have to have lab work, mammogram and bone density then make another appt for the actual exam. She said from what she saw nothing to worry about but who knows what my shape really is?

Walked to and thru nearby Ralph's. Lots of selections - I bought some stuff. I haven't had PB in a month or so but I felt like I needed it. In a funk I guess I am.  Going to walk to bank to get the funds DS requested.  He will either get today or tomorrow when he leaves his dog for us to babysit.

Ate when I got back. Yogurt with nuts, English muffin PB and marmalade.

Read a lot of quilting blogs.  DH said he was walking to get his hair cut so I came along.  It was a loud walk - very doable though.  I called my friend while DH had his haircut.  We stopped by store and got some stuffed salmon for dinner.  DS called as we were on way home saying he was finally done with his meeting.  We saw him as we crossed the street to get home - so walking sort of took the same amount of time!

Passed over the money to DS, chatted a little.

Then he left.  I started another soup - this time lima bean. More quilting blogs for me. Then I baked the salmon and made salad for dinner.

Saturday Plans
DS will bring Buffy over so she is not alone while they go to a party.
Christmas stuff will be down and out before Monday.

01022014: Thursday Stitches out, Baking and Friends

Thursday January 2, 2014

01022014 Friend in tank top in CA & temps in Cambridge.

1. Done - Daily Photo
2. Done - Daily Food > yogurt/granola, sandwich with B&A, BBQ at He's
3. Nope - Exercise
4. Nope - Sewing Building Blocks RSC14 (Jan Blue) - Found out the LQS doesn't have the batting in stock so will need to order online.
5. Nope - Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes Tired after the BBQ didn't do any cleaning up
6. Yep - Family - A surprised by coming over for lunch, then met him again at BBQ.  Unfortunately though he called later to borrow money.  Oh well. Guess I'm glad he needs money so he comes over....
7. Yep - Others - Nice to see friends after so long. Hope we can move back east to see the son's more often
8. Nope - Paperwork
9. Yep - Vitamins AM PM

7:00 woke
7:30 leave for LJ
8:30 stitches removed and doctor appointment - doctor looked at other bumps got the all clear.
Made Pumpkin Pie, Brownies, Salad.  DS came by for lunch (he had come for a meeting but it was tomorrow). DH did his thing.  Tried to make soup but chatted on phone for too long with B&J and it burned!  Went to BBQ.  DH was in an odd friend but it ended up being okay. DS and his friend came later. Later he called to borrow funds.

I really want to move to East Coast.  To be near new friends, to be where I can walk and see new things, to experience the weather. For a fresh start.

Tomorrow

Dr appt 11

1. Daily Photo
2. Daily Food
3. Exercise
4. Sewing Building Blocks RSC14 (Jan Blue)
5. Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes
6. Family
7. Others
8. Paperwork
9. Vitamins
10. Tasks: QG to QB, org emails, categorize in mint

The Free Motion Quilting Project: Introduction: New Building Blocks Quilt Along

The Free Motion Quilting Project: Introduction: New Building Blocks Quilt Along

We've got the pattern!  Very clearly written.  Has a master list of all the initial cuts needed for the different blocks.  All patterns and projects should have this!

Next will be shopping my stash for fabric and getting the batting.  Leah doesn't sell the batting but recommends http://www.quiltersdreambatting.com/  I found a LQS on the list to sell the batting so will be going there to pick that up.  Added later: The LQS didn't have the batting in stock so ended up ordering via Amazon.

: )

01012014: Tuesday & Wednesday Buzzfeed - End of the Year/Beginning of the Year Things

Tuesday, December 31, 2013 and Wednesday, January 1, 2014

01012014: Transfixed watching the NCIS Marathon on New Year's Day.

Via a friend:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/mikespohr/37-things-youll-regret-when-youre-old

Via my Swedish friend:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/expresident/woodie-guthries-new-years-resolutions

Last night our son and his friend (and dog) surprised us by texting to see if they could come over for the evening.  Aside: I'm remembering an old book I used to read with him - "Sweet Surprises". 

I had spent the day (12/31) with my friend Jo after going to the DMV for my new photo and fingerprinting.  (the man said I could return after my face healed for a new photo!) She had gone to Whole Foods and gathered together a nice kale salad with extra toppings - and had even gotten a few of those meringue cookies that I've been seeing everywhere but hadn't tried.  Very sweet that she remembered me talking about them.  After lunch we drove to her bank, then walked over to Sprouts and had a nice time looking over the offerings.  We chatted some more at her place before I left for home.  We said we'd meet for dinner with the husbands in January.

I stopped and got some Mexican food for dinner.  DH and I ate everything quickly. Then received a text from our son asking if they could come over to watch the end of the year TV celebrations.  Of course we said 'of course'.  Be had to finish grading - I read quilting blogs then we left for grocery store to get last meal food.  We got stuffed mushrooms, tomato soup, cheese, bread, and stuff to make a great breakfast and pumpkin pie and brownies.  They were playing Boggle when we returned so we joined in for a few games. I'm terrible at the game but there was one round where I had 7 words the others did not see so that made me feel okay about it.

The evening passed quickly.  There wasn't much time to watch pre-midnight TV but we did manage to each get a little pile of coins to shake while we watched the last 30 seconds of the count down. Ma said it would bring money in the the new year to hold money - we'll see!  Once in the TV room we stayed there so there was no practice with learning Spades.  Oh well.  We watched a few episodes of Little Britain - the most politically incorrect show I've seen. The two of them fell asleep so I covered Ma with a sleeping bag (Al already was covered with one), we cleaned up the kitchen and went to bed.

They were gone when I woke, so the great breakfast was postponed.  We made some new yogurt - then time starting with room temperature milk.  Will be interesting to see how it turns out.  We each had some store bought yogurt, then were on computers with NCIS on the tube.

Around 3 I made a salad: red onion, little bell peppers, cucumber, white cheese, mango, lettuce and dressing with oil, vinegar, hummus, and sugar.  Quite nice.

So I'm thinking about new resolutions while jumping around looking at different sites.

I think the only (resolution) one I will make now is to do Leah Day's Building Blocks 2014 project. I intend to do more but that's all I can commit to now in the quilting area of life! I hope I can get some other folks to join me. I really like the way she has a list of all the strips to cut out for the different blocks.  It's not a beautiful quilt, but I know from previous experience that I will learn a ton by doing this project.  Piecing, FMQ and following through! One of my friends said she would also be following along - will be fun!

So will this be the year I record what I eat - and that I prepare more meals at home?  We'll see.

I am absolutely so missing being in Cambridge - would be so nice to be near our friends B&J there - to be able to walk around to interesting places - to volunteer and meet new people too.  Ah well.

More NCIS, then I got Be to walk with me to the store to get more supplies for the party tomorrow at Ri's.  Needed more salad materials and whipped cream for the pie that I'll make tomorrow.

For dinner we had Campbell's Go Soup Chicken with Rice Packet (250 calories, 14g fat (I didn't realize this - not something to have again I think) 2g fiber) also I heated some leftover refried beads and put between two flour tortillas - we split that.  I heated some water added some rum and made myself a Tom and Jerry (with Trader Vic Mix) to end the night!

Slightly over 7500 steps according to Moves.

Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes Done!  My friend said she'd go thru the baby steps too....! I have been working on a lot of these already so may be able to jump to creating a control journal - but probably better to do more decluttering - I'll read more closely later.

Fun to start new things!  more fun to do things with others!

Kate is not hosting the 15 minute challenge this year.  I just found out, haven't read back far enough to find out why, but hope all is okay with her.  I was thinking of setting up a new weekly check in screen as I had when I was doing her recording challenge before.  Well it wasn't really supposed to just be a recording challenge but I morphed it into what worked for me.  So I will do that again.

Will be fun to finish old and new things!

: )
J

Today

1. Done - Daily Photo
2. Done - Daily Food: Preparing, recording, eating healthy food
3. Done - Exercise: work toward 10K steps a day and more! 7600
4. Nope - Sewing
5. Done - Flylady: Babystep review, once a week quick cleaning and declutter other areas
6. Done - Something with Family
7. Done - Others: keeping in touch and doing something (only email today)
8. Nope - Paperwork: monthly, yearly, scanning and clearning out!
9. PM - Vitamins (supposed to be Both AM & PM)

Tomorrow

1. Daily Photo
2. Daily Food
3. Exercise
4. Sewing Building Blocks RSC14 (Jan Blue)
5. Flylady - Beginning Baby Steps - Day 1: Clean Your Sink - Day 2: Lace Up Shoes
6. Family
7. Others
8. Paperwork
9. Vitamins

Thursday Special

7:00 wake
7:30 leave for LJ
8:30 stitches removed and doctor appointment

• To Do's:

1. Pumpkin Pie
2. Brownies
3. Salad
4. 6 pm for Richardson's

Friday

1. QG into QB
2. org emails
3. mint categorize

Not Managing __________

Back in San Diego.

Working on a volunteer project that consumes my life until the event, then lingers on afterwards as I'm also the event treasurer.  I've been chairing or co-charing this for a few years.  The other committee members all have out-of-the-house jobs so each year more and more of the tasks fall to me to finish up. They don't realize how much time this costs me.  I'll be glad when this is done.  I told the board I didn't want to do again next year (I hope to be back in Boston then)!  For the new committee, hopefully there will be a professional pre-made system available so it doesn't take as much time to register 1000 attendees.  Thank goodness for Google docs. It's the only way I found to register groups of attendees.  It's easy to find systems to use to register individuals, it's the group buys that take time.

San Diego has nice weather.  Wide and smooth sidewalks, pretty much unused as most every trip is driven. Yards mainly with grass or cactus.  Houses were built at the same time, so my neighborhood has houses all of the 1970's.  Makes for uninteresting walks.

When we first returned in August, I had a week or two to clean up and clear things out. As we had been gone for eight months it was easy to box up things to give away.  So most of the the kitchen and bathrooms are cleared out nicely.  But then the volunteer conference planning kicked in and I had to concentrate on that.  I hope I'm not used to things again and after the event I can proceed with clearing out to make the move easier.

My friend who was at the house while we were gone made me two lovely design walls for quilt projects.  I have moved to the living room and started moving around some drunken path pieces I cut before I left.  (After returning from Boston, I went to the adult ed quilting class where I cut the pieces and found out they no longer have the AccuQuilt Studio Fabric Cutter or the large queen size basting tables, so will probably not be going to that class even when my volunteer project is done.)  I'm glad I was able to cut what I was able to cut.  I'm looking forward to sewing my projects again and know there are classes with the same teacher by different company where the AccuQuilt Studio Fabric Cutter is available.  Like a lot of quilters though I have many projects that are in various stages of progress that will keep me busy for a long time.  I can learn and improve my skills on what I have already in progress.  I don't really need any more fabric or pieces or projects....

But I'm only really managing the volunteer project.  Not managing the yard, meals, exercise or much else. I missed paying a credit card for myself, but am up to date with the finances for the organization.  Things are twisted up and not being done in the correct order.  But after November 2nd things will be easier.

There will be more complaining posts before I really get to sewing again...  Sorry!