Ummm (and a giveaway)

Hello! I'm still here, I just haven't had much time to post on the blog since Maura is now tall and mobile and yeah... The toddler years are upon us. I thought I could quilt for little bits here and there and keep Maura entertained and out of trouble with all of the toys that light up and make noise in my studio. I *thought* (like a naive first-time mom) that since I could hear her I didn't need to keep an eye on her like a hawk. I WAS WRONG.

One day I was quilting along trying to finish a section after she woke up from her nap and I turn around to see this:

And then I had a mini heart attack. And it's only gotten worse since. Maura is now 13 months old and is half my height. No joke. So not only is she young and inquisitive, she can get into so much more because shes so tall. She didn't get her height from me!

But alas, I'm still quilting away like a mad woman (during naps and bedtime) and you can see everything I'm working on (or everything I'm allowed to show) on my Facebook page (Ruby Blue Quilting Studio) and Instagram (@rubybluequilts). It's so much easier for me to post quick little tidbits over there than blog posts here. So for the meantime that will be where you can see the most updates.

I'm still adjusting my quilting schedule (on a separate page you can get to here) and you can check back often to see progress. It's not up-to-the-minute updates, but you get the idea.

And finally, the giveaway. Martingale wanted to celebrate the release of The Big Book of Strip Quilts and you can hop over to their blog here to enter to win an ebook.

There are 60 (yes that's six-zero) quilts in this book that all use 2.5" strips. So it's time to bust out those jelly rolls you've been hoarding, maybe use up those leftover strips you have in your stash, or just cut your own out of those lovely piles of fabrics staring at you all day long. There are so many amazing quilts in this ginormous book from a variety of your favorite authors, there's something in here for everyone. I am so lucky to have three quilts in this book, one is Roll of Stamps pictured above.

And like it was meant to be, my very own copy arrived at my doorstep yesterday. Like magic! So head on over to Martingale's blog and enter for a chance to win! You have through the 25th to enter!

So that's what's going on here. Don't be a stranger on the other social media platforms, and if you need anything you can always shoot me an email too.

Yes I'm here. Yes I'm still quilting. And yes I spend my days chasing a crazy toddler. Life is good :)

Happy Holidays!!!

Phew! We made it through our first Christmas with little Maura and she did so well! Much better than I anticipated considering the hustle and bustle and excitement the last few days.

Sorry it's blurry, it's off my phone, but she had the most adorable Christmas jammies that she didn't actually wear on Christmas because we had a heat wave and it was just too hot for fleece! That's definitely not the norm here in Ohio, yesterday we hit a record high of 68* and today it's supposed to snow later. It's weird.

Anywho, as far as quilting goes I am taking this week to do some selfish sewing of this guy:

I finished this top almost two years ago and it's just begging to be quilted. I had a plan, it was all drawn out - but somehow in the last couple weeks of Christmas chaos it disappeared and I'm starting over. Hopefully I can figure out the plan this morning and get to quilting tonight after everyone else is asleep... Cross your fingers. I have coffee, a pencil, a printout (or three) and a napping baby at the moment, I think I can, I think I can! 

I'm hoping to get this one quilted up and enter it into the Lake Farmpark show this year, which means I have to quilt fast! The quilts need to be entered in just a few weeks. I think I can! I think I can!

After this little pause it will be back to quilting and cooking and playing with the baby (whose not such a baby anymore I guess). I'm taking in quilts and planning ahead for this year, if I play my cards just right I may even be able to post my schedule here soon. Granted the computer and I don't get as much one-on-one time as we used to, but that's okay with me! 

I'll be posting more soon. From my little family to yours - I hope you had an amazing Christmas and I hope 2017 has all the best in store for you! I have a feeling it's going to be wonderful! -Rebecca

Confessions: It Happened Again

This is a little revisit of this previous post. I was quilting along the other day, about to finish another quilt and I sewed my long arm into the quilt... So I took pictures to share here:

 How did this happen? Well, it wasn't a hole to begin with, but a very teeny tiny seam allowance was trying to hold these fabrics together. Literally it was hanging on by a thread or two. The added tension of the machine about to move over it was enough for the seam allowance to give and the hopping foot found the new hole and stitched itself right into place.

This is what it looked like when I brought the needle up. There were about 7 or 8 stitches in there holding the machine in place. It took me about 20 minutes to undo because it's so hard to get in where you need to with the machine in the way. Plus, you want to take out only what is needed without doing any further damage. Easier said than done!

So to repeat myself until I'm blue in the face - PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not give your quilter a quilt top with a hole in it that you know of and PLEASE use the proper 1/4" seam allowances to avoid situations like above.

Sorry for the delayed post this week - Maura is pulling herself up on everything and starting the "Look Ma, one hand" with that look in her eye she wants to try no hands... That and the Hubby had to go into work extra early (like 3am early) which means a broken night of sleep for everyone and no time for Momma to blog. I try and write the blogs early in spare time here or there but earlier this week was some crazy time in the kitchen - My S-I-L asked my Hubby if we wanted a few tomatoes - she sent home a couple dozen so an impromptu day of simmering tomato sauce was in order. Then I asked Hubby to grab some apple seconds to make applesauce... He came home with a 1/2 bushel and two full crock pots later and two apple pie fillings in the freezer, I am finally through all of the apples! I was beginning to think he bought the Mary Poppins bag of apples and they were multiplying when I wasn't looking!

If you want to know my applesauce recipe, you can find it here.

Anywho, that's what we have been up to here. I hope you're enjoying all of the quilting pictures, I still have a lot of catching up to do! Gotta go feed the munchkin breakfast. Apples it is! Lol

Last Day! (& Maura)

Today is the day I pick a winner for the new That Patchwork Place Quilt Calendar 2017. I will be choosing a winner later today (I'll give you all day to enter) and I will post the winner tomorrow. To enter into the giveaway and read more about the calendar, click here. Be sure to enter the giveaway on the original post, not here.

I'm writing this kinda quick in between dishes, making baby food, trying to get Maura to nap and finally finish laundry (laundry may have to wait). I haven't given a Maura update in a bit so here's a quick recap and some pictures from a couple weeks ago:

 Maura will be 5 months old next week...She's eating baby food like a champ and there isn't anything we've given her yet that she doesn't like (phew). I'm busy making green beans for her as I type this too.

 She's been teething FOREVER but nothing has broken through just yet. She's a spittle fountain most days (just like in the picture above). She's also on the move and has been chasing our dog Rosie around in a walker for the last couple weeks or so too. She's attempting to crawl and nothing has happened quite yet, but she can wiggle her cute little butt all over the floor. And her crib. And everywhere else.

She's got the cutest giggle and the prettiest smile and she's just growing up way too fast. She's doing all sorts of things months ahead of schedule and she seems to be a girl on a mission. I'm just hoping once she becomes completely mobile that I can still entertain her enough AND still have time to fit some quilting in between naps and such.

Alrighty, I think those green beans are good to go, that laundry is giving me the stink eye (it's all done and folded, just needs put away), and this sweet little miss in my lap is avoiding her naptime like the plague. Wish me luck. Good luck to you and check back tomorrow for the winner of the calendar giveaway and maybe some more Maura cuteness. Toodles!

Oh my my! (And a QUILTING SALE!!!)

First things first, happy belated Father's Day from this little cutie!

She is definitely a Daddy's girl in the making. Maura is growing like a weed, has four teeth driving her (and her mommy) mad, but hopefully they will cut through here soon, and she is doing just wonderful otherwise.

Next, THE CAVS WON!!! THE CAVS WON!!! THE CLEVELAND CURSE IS GONE!!! Okay, I am still in shock (as is the rest of Cleveland) and I keep pinching myself to see if it's still true. Watching the game last night was brutal but SOOOOO WORTH IT!!!

Okay, and onto the main reason you all come here and read what I type and look at the pretty pictures - quilting.

How about a little quilting sale???

I'm getting settled into the new house, Maura is doing well and we are figuring out our schedule. However we are both the color of jellyfish (neon clear), the sun is bright, and it's getting a little too hot outside for my little miss. So what are we to do? Stay inside and hibernate where it's cool.

To celebrate let's have a little quilting sale! From now to July 9th (first come/reserved, first served basis) send me your quilt for all over (edge to edge quilting) and get 10% off of quilting. Send two quilts and get 15% off your quilting. Send three quilts or more and get 20% off of your quilting. I have batting here, just send your quilt top and backing ready to go and I will work my magic and get your quilts back to you. The $50 minimum still applies to presale pricing.

If you have questions, please email me at rubybluequilts (at) gmail (dot) com or call me at 440-567-1688. For more information about my quilting services you can read more here.

I'm still doing custom quilting too, but I will be saving those projects until after the sale. I am taking reservations for all quilting, contact me to reserve a spot for your quilt.

Thank you all for hanging in there with me and being patient while I learn this new mom gig and settle into our new home. I am blessed to be able to call this my job and I couldn't do it without all of you!

Holy Cow!

I have no clue where the last month has gone. How can my baby girl be a month old already???

Well, I know how. It's been an insane month and it's going to still be insane for the next couple weeks or so and here's why:

Not only did we have our little girl and bring her home and have to get acclimated to our new life as we know it, we sold our house, bought a house, have been packing as well as all of the other things that go along with selling a house and life with a newborn... I swear this is why the good Lord gave us caffeine and alcohol. Just saying.

In the midst of all this craziness I have been able to get back to the quilting machine slowly and practice a bit. It's definitely much different after several weeks off as well as having Maura in tow with me while I work (but I wouldn't trade it for the world). I just loaded my first client quilt and I am proud to say I'm back!!!

Well, I'm back but not in the same way I was before. It's still going to take me a bit to get on a schedule as Maura and I still figure out our days AND I still have to move the machine to the new house once we get in there which will also help streamline the process a bit more in the future. It's going to be an adjustment for us all here in our house, but I can't wait.

If you're interested in getting on the schedule for quilting, please email me at rubybluequilts (at) gmail (dot) com. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to comment below or shoot me an email and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Thank you all for being patient with me as I neglect the blog and adjust to life as a Momma! I would love to say I'm going to start posting more, but I think until we get in the new house and get settled in - it just may not be in the cards for a bit longer... But I have some things in mind so stay tuned and I promise the wait will be worth it.

Oh, time to go, Little Miss is waking from her nap! Toodles!

Well Hello There...

Please let me introduce you to:

Maura Avilyn!!!

Born 3/9/16

7lbs 3oz

20" long

And she stole Mom and Dad's hearts instantly!!!

Last week was just one of those weeks let me tell ya. I thought my next doctors appointment was Wednesday. Well, it was on Tuesday (glad I looked at the calendar). Ben and I had to prep our house for another house showing and after a couple small scares where we thought Maura may arrive early we decided it was best to just go about life like it was any other day. Boy were we wrong. 

Anywho, Ben went to work, I went to my doctors appointment (first appointment he didn't go with me in awhile - we hadn't made any significant progress in weeks) and low and behold she made enough progress that the doctor asked me whether I wanted to have her that night or the next morning. It all happened so fast, I went straight to the hospital and Ben met me there and the next morning Maura greeted us with her beautiful slatey blue eyes and precious face. 

We finished our stay at the hospital, have been home for a couple days and are starting to settle in nicely. The pups have been amazing and our families have been the biggest help. 

(First bath at home yesterday) 

So far my major accomplishments since we've been home have been getting a shower each day and that's about it. (And I'm completely fine with that) Now maybe, and just maybe, if I find some energy these next couple weeks I may actually start her quilt. I have the fabric and a plan, I just have yet to start. Plus it's not like she doesn't have stacks and stacks of quilts here to choose from! 

Before you ask...

Nope, no Little Miss yet. However it seriously could be any minute she's making her big debut, so by the time you are reading this, she may be here. Who knows. Not me.

Sorry for the long pause this past week, but we had a small scare and had to make a trip to the hospital for an exam to make sure everything was okay. And it was and still is, just had to get it checked out to be safe. So last week we weren't sure if she would be arriving that much earlier than anticipated or not and then I've taken some time off to rest and prep for when she actually arrives.

While we were at the hospital though, Ben got to test out the couch in the maternity room and had himself a little nap. Snoring and all. Just getting himself acclimated to the surroundings before our actual stay.

Aside from that we've still been busy showing and trying to sell our house and we had another little family emergency. My aunt had a heart attack and with her own hospital stay every step forward results in a step or two backwards and now she has to have more surgery this week. Say a prayer for her if you could.

So needless to say I haven't done any quilting, it's been a little crazy here on the other fronts and I'm trying to stay calm and relaxed before Little Miss arrives. If I get more energy and a little break from everything else I may try to post more quilt pictures, but no guarantees at this point. Family life has been top priority lately - I'm sure you can understand.

Check back soon though for updates, whether the baby or quilty kind! I'm not sure myself! -Rebecca

Yippee!

Today is a happy kinda day in more ways than one. The first could be that I have a massive load of baby laundry in the dryer and one waiting to go in the washer as soon as her other outfit arrives later today :)

Well, honestly the first happy moment was that I officially heard back from mamajan and she has claimed her book (sorry to those of you hoping she wouldn't respond so you could claim the winnings). And as promised I have done a little research on how to change when you comment on blogs to be able to come back to you rather than no-reply.

Now, I could rewrite the book and do my own version of it, but
1. Ain't nobody got time for that and
2. I really don't trust my preggo brain with important details like that
so I've found some other articles complete with pictures to share with you:

The first article I found was written by the amazing Bonnie Hunter over at Quiltville. She just tells it like it is and is short, simple and to the point. To hear her way to check and see if you are a no-reply commenter, check her post here: http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2014/08/are-you-no-reply-blogger.html

Another great post I found was by Happy Hour Projects. Like I said I could rewrite this whole thing and put my own spin on it, but she did such a great job, I'll just send you all her way to read it for yourself. Knowing my luck these days I'd just screw up or leave out some really important detail and it wouldn't help you at all. You can read Adrianne's article here: http://happyhourprojects.com/blog-tips-are-you-noreply-commentblogger-com/

Now, I want to remind you that by changing your profile settings as mentioned above DOES NOT broadcast your email address across the internet unless you specify it to. Basically the main reason for this change is allowing bloggers to respond back to you when you comment on their blog posts. Basically I get an email with each comment (or most of them, it's not a perfect world) and when I'd like to respond I just go into my email and hit reply. More times than not I can't because I get hit with a no-replycomment@blogger.com error and that's the end of the road for me. I'm not going to save your email addresses and sell them on the black market, I just simply would like to respond to you and would like to be able to.

Now, if you follow my Instagram (you can find me @rubybluequilts) or my Facebook page (Ruby Blue Quilting Studio) you may have seen these pictures, but I have to share them again. It really didn't sink in until I went out to finish up a quilt yesterday, I can't believe how big my belly got lately and the reason I really can't reach very far on the machine these days.

This picture was yesterday at the machine. You see the issue? The widest part of my belly falls right in line with the bottom leader bar preventing me from having the full reach I used to.

And just because I can, I have a baby app that tells me all sorts of stats but lets you take "bumpies" each week to see your progress. I've been steadily growing little by little with minimal changes. More or less each week my "mass" would move up or down depending on where Little Miss chose to reside that week. However this last week there's no mistaking the growth!

That's one week difference! One week! Now please forgive the super frizzy hair - this winter air has not been kind some days. Granted if you read my last post you know Little Miss is ahead of schedule and she may be here sooner than originally anticipated, but I'm here to tell you she is a girl on a mission and this photo proves it!

And before you all freak out and yell at me to sit down and put my feet up - I'm pregnant, not dead. I've definitely slowed down and have been pacing myself but I'm still managing to do little tasks here and there. I am taking this as a sign my energy and my priorities are no longer up to me and I'm using this as a lesson for the future. Trust me the quilt I'm working on would normally take me most of a day, maybe a long afternoon to work on and it's been on the machine for over a week now. I quilt a little, take a break, quilt a bit more... But my days are significantly less than they used to be. I'm hoping to finish up that quilt later today (if the weather breaks long enough for me to drive out there) and I have one little baby quilt left to do and I'm considering myself done until after baby. I have others (and plenty of my own) that I can work on if I feel the urge to get some more done, but no more pressing deadlines in the near future. I'm just taking it one day at a time because that's all I can do!

Well, that's the update for today. I hear the dryer has stopped so I'm going to go immerse myself in folding baby laundry. I know the novelty will wear off very quickly, but I'm too happy I don't hear you haters out there! One day at a time, one baby kick or hiccup at a time, one doctor's appointment, because I know I'll blink and she will be here and I'll wonder where it all went so quickly... <3 p="">

It's 2016?!

Since when? Well, I guess I am a little behind (which seems par for the course these days).

Howdy all! Holy crud it's been crazy over here. If heading into Christmas quilting season (usually my busiest time of year) and Christmas shopping and wrapping wasn't hard enough - adding that I was roughly 6 months pregnant at the same time and we decided like crazy people to list our house on the market... I have no idea what truly happened over the last 6 weeks or so. It is all a blur.

I'm still quilting away and taking in quilts at this moment. However, winter is finally starting to hit here and with the machine still being outside of my home, I'm airing on the side of caution when the weather is nasty and getting a head start on my nesting here at home. I have no clear answer for how long I will be able to quilt and how soon I can get your quilts back to you, but if you have a project without a deadline, ask me what my schedule looks like or go ahead and send it my way.

The hope is that in the near future Ben and I can sell our place and move into one that houses home, office, machine and everything else under one roof. That way once Little Miss arrives and we have our routine down hopefully (cross your fingers) I can get in my quilting time between naps and such.

Speaking of Little Miss, we just had our latest ultrasound (they are so cool) and I am in love! Not that I didn't think I would be, but the countdown is on until she arrives.

At 30.5 weeks she's weighing in at 3lbs 15oz and seems to be right on track. Granted she will arrive when she is good and ready to, but still looking to be mid-March at this point.

So you see why I may not be quilting much in the next couple months. And to be honest I don't know when I will start up again once she arrives. My first priority and focus will be my Little Miss and my own health getting back into the swing of things at an appropriate pace. Not that I don't love my job, but there are more important things that will need my attention.

I have yet to decide on and start a quilt for her, I should probably do that soon. Maybe I will get a chance this week as the weather looks quite ick here in the near future. I'm just having too much fun pondering the future and getting used to this wiggle worm in my belly! She is a mover and a shaker which has been making quilting difficult at times - she has actually pushed me away from the machine a time or two!

I still have plenty of catching up to do and quilts to share from the last 6 months or so to share and I hope to get to those soon, but I'm not promising anything. My energy level still seems to be at one extreme or the other - I either have tons of energy or I feel like a zombie, there's no in between. So, when I do have energy it's been spent cleaning and trying to sell this place, looking for a new house, quilting, or getting ready for Little Miss. There hasn't been much energy left to sit at the computer and come up with something witty to say. I hope you understand!

Well, that's the latest from my little corner of the world and I will update you all as I can (or as long as I have the energy too). Stay tuned and stay patient with me, this has been a learning experience like no other and I can't wait for the future! For now I think my goal is to try and get out of my pjs for the day :)

It's official!!!

We are having a little girl!!!

I'm still processing that little fact. I honestly had absolutely no intuition and didn't think I cared regardless, but now that it's a girl, maybe my heart was 51/49 leaning towards a boy. Alas, we are super excited and I'm starting to plan the nursery and her first quilt!!! 

Granted I have a ton of quilts and she can love on them all as she grows, but she needs one for her. I'm thinking large crib/small lap for now and maybe a twin when she's ready for a "big girl" bed. 

What have been your go-to quilt patterns lately? Have any you'd recommend? Now I know I design quilts, but there's nothing wrong with making a different designer's pattern now and then too! 

Here I am!

After we last spoke, things got a little hectic here. Yep, even more hectic than before.

First and foremost though, thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts for the emails and comments wishing Ben and I luck as new parents! Your words have been so kind and they mean a lot to the both of us as we prepare to transition into these new roles.

I'll spare you most of the craziness around here, but basically Paco (the kitty dog) is getting older and with getting older, that means more complications. He's now 16. His eyesight has been slowly getting worse, his hearing is sparse at best (or maybe it's just selective) and he just looks like an older dog to me.

Well, he got diagnosed with glaucoma right after I last blogged and then he had an infection. So little dog plus four medications later and he's finally stabilized and is back to "normal". We're finally down to only two medicines, both eye drops that he's not fond of and is getting wise to our ways which makes giving his drops quite interesting.

Add in to that I was thinking once I hit the second trimester I was feeling much better and getting my energy back, but then lil munchkin had different plans and for a week I was back to square one... It's all better now and I'm learning my limits and getting a little bit more energy each day, most of which I've spent catching up on long arm quilting.

So all in all, I have been quilting up a storm which has been great! But usually once I get home, give Paco medicines and do our daily activities, then I sit down and I am done. No energy left to write on the blog and come up with something witty to say. Plus, preggo brain is a real struggle and I'm afraid some days I may write something that when I read it later on will read as gibberish at best. Probably like how this reads today.

Hiccups...

I don't think I've ever left this blog unattended for over a month before! I just wanted to pop in today and give you the God's honest truth about what's been going on.

First off, the first trimester of my pregnancy officially kicked my butt and I'm happy to say I just entered the second trimester and things are looking up. I still have my moments where I need to relax and take breaks more than I'd like, but I'm learning early on that my body and my needs are no longer my own. Thank you all for the kind words, well wishes and emails checking in on baby and I, they are much appreciated and we are doing well. The only constant lately that has been hampering my progress is signs of early pinched nerves that make parts of my legs go numb if I stand or walk too long without a break, so I'm taking a lot of resting breaks these days.

If pregnancy wasn't a whirlwind enough, we unexpectedly lost my Father-In-Law a couple weeks ago. His health wasn't great but it wasn't that bad either so his passing was a shock. The day we got the call was a definite circle of life experience as Ben and I spent the afternoon starting our baby registry and looking forward to the future... As much as we miss him so, Ben and I are taking solace in the fact that our lil munchkin now has a guardian angel looking over him/her.

This is one of my favorite pictures I took of my Father-In-Law riding his horse, Maverick. The family keeps joking that Tom (my FIL) will more than likely be the little angel and devil on our child's shoulders as they grow up. The angel side for when he's actually being a guardian angel and the devil side for when he says into their little ear, "Hey, do this... It'll really freak out your mom!"

So, between resting, trying to stay calm and making funeral arrangements as well as carrying out Tom's final wishes, I've been a little busy on the family front these past weeks.

Then just when things started to slow down and I wanted to get back to work my machine started acting up and has been in the shop waiting on parts... Needless to say I haven't gotten much accomplished lately that I can show for, but I plan on quilting like a mad woman here (hopefully starting later today) as much as lil munchkin allows.

I do have a ton of quilts to share pictures of from the past few months and as my energy returns I will be posting all that I can! Thank you all for being patient with me and understanding my family needs and personal limitations. I need to get back into my quilting mojo and get hopping on this nursery for lil munchkin! So much to do and not enough energy for it all these days!!!

Einstein Fluff

So I just wanted to pop in and show you all this Einstein fluff Miss Rosie Roo has:

 Can you see it?! That little fluff patch between her ears?!

 This dog literally has every type of coat you can think of. Her ears are velveteen soft. Her back is coarse wiry curls. Her sides have super fine hair that you can only see when the light shines on it and it sticks straight out.

 But this little Einstein patch is unlike anything I've ever seen! It looks and feels like a cotton ball and I can't get enough!

Rosie is settling in just fine and we've made some huge improvements in the few weeks we've had her! I love this pup and I can't get enough!

My Valentine...

This year Ben and I decided to not be eachother's valentine... Instead we chose to share our love with this sweet girl:

 Meet Rosie! We honestly didn't plan to adopt her around Valentine's Day, but it just worked out that way. She's a terrier mix (we're thinking mostly Airedale Terrier), she's 6 1/2 years old and she's fitting in great!

 Paco is responding well to having a new dog in the house and most of the time these two could care less where or what the other dog is up to.

So far this is what we've learned in the few short days we've had her:

* She is very kind and respectful. She hasn't tried to get into anything (thus far)

* She is extremely alert with those massive ears of hers. She checks the perimeter often and is getting used to the new sights and sounds of our home/neighborhood.

* She has had obedience training in the past. She can sit, lay down and stay really well. Come is the command she chooses to ignore from time to time.

* She loves her bed and sleeps really well at night.

* Sadly she has had a traumatic past... we are finding out much more than the "happy home life" we were led to believe she had prior to being at the shelter. We are dealing with it slowly and building trust. So far she loves Ben, but not when he's standing or if it's dark in a room. She also has moments where she won't come near you with anything in your hand. Yesterday I had her full food bowl in my hand. She knew it was me, knew it was her food but the combination of the two struck something that made her afraid... It made me sad...

* Each day has been a new adventure and she's opening up more and more showing us her playful personality and what toys she likes.

* However, as she eases overall, the traumatic events get fewer but more extreme... She shredded a couple blankets when we were gone, so at the vet yesterday they suggested no blanket in her crate. She was in a wire crate for a few hours by herself and she completely destroyed the plastic liner! We switched some small details around and got a plastic crate to try for when we are both gone and moved it closer to Paco's crate to see if that helps...

All in all, she's a great dog with a troubled past and we just need to build her confidence and trust. It will happen with time and I know we can't break down all of her barriers in the first four days. So, wish us luck, I will keep you posted as we move forward and welcome Rosie into the family!

We ran away...

And it was wonderful! Ben and I kidnapped each other and ran away over Thanksgiving. We headed down to Florida and spent some time at Disney World!

 We stayed near Downtown Disney and found ourselves walking around the restaurants and shops almost everyday. I probably walked past this gorgeous tree a dozen times before I realized that it was covered in empty spools for the garland... I think I have an idea for next year!!!

 Ben and I had so much fun exploring all of the parks and enjoying the food (especially in France where I took this picture at Epcot) and I miss getting to spend all day with him... But it was a great time and I can't wait until he gets home from work (it must be this snow and icky weather that's making me sappy... I can't help but worry when he has to be out in this junk)

 Many of the parks were decorated for Christmas and this was one of the most gorgeous trees I've ever seen! It was right at the entrance to the World Showcase at Epcot and it was soooo tall. It had to be 75 feet tall or better. What you can't see are the sparkling lights that reminded both Ben and I of the Eiffel Tower from out trips to Paris. It was gorgeous but it made the trip weird and here's why...

I live in Northeast Ohio. I have all of my life. Right smack dab in the middle of the snow belt. However I saw Christmas trees surrounded by palm trees. And it was warm... And sunny... It did help put my into the holiday spirit, but it was strange. It felt surreal I guess.

We spent most of our time either at the parks or Downtown Disney and even though it was just the two of us, no kids in tow, it was fun! What we probably did more than anything was walk. I wish I had my Fitbit for this trip, but I do miss the walking. It was gradual enough that we covered a ton of ground, but didn't really feel sore until the super end of the day. Then coming home to winter and snow and ice has made us get creative to get moving as much. Our elliptical is getting a good workout as long as it holds out (it's dying a slow painful death and we need to replace it), but we're still moving which I'm proud on because it's so easy to be lazy and sit on the couch this time of year.

Well, that was our trip. Now it's back to reality. And winter. And snow... I'm trying not to complain, but I wish it was a bit warmer... That's all.

Have a great weekend!

-Rebecca

Weekend Sewing

Well, I think I'm that much closer to being ready for Christmas with a little sewing I just finished this morning. I did a bit of long arm quilting on Saturday with a little break that night to celebrate our anniversary. It was wonderful!

Then yesterday I was able to finish the top for my Schnitzel & Boo Mini Quilt Swap:

I love it soooo much and many people on Instagram do too! I may cut out another one just for me later this week! 

Granted since I combined patterns and wasn't all that awake while putting the top together, it required a bit of un-sewing and some try try try agains, but now that I've worked out the kinks, just time to layer and quilt and choose a binding. 

Then last night I cut out and prepped pieces to make my niece a stocking to match the stockings I made the rest of the family four years ago. 

It turned out well and wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. Since it had been so long since I made stockings last and since I didn't keep any that I made, I had to research my own pictures and luckily I kept a computer file with the original templates and was able to fudge the rest. Hopefully it doesn't look too different than the others, but I think it will do. 

And with that last stocking complete, I think I'm ready for the holidays minus some cooking, but I will do that as we go. Are you ready? I hope so!!!

That Quilt

We all have that quilt. It may not be pretty, it's probably seen much better days, but you love it and you can't get enough of it. Well, this is the day I share with you the story of the quilt I talk about the most. I've mentioned it before, but I don't think I've actually shared pictures on here. Well, today is that day. To talk about that quilt... My hubby is going to kill me! :)

 Welcome to our bedroom! (This isn't that quilt) Under this comforter we have strictly for quilt protection and extra snuggle stuff if someone steals all of the covers (like the littlest dog we have). Our room is actually much darker than it looks here, we have dark furniture (complete coincidence) but we have dark red walls and black suede curtains with blackout shades behind them... Here's why:

When we bought this house and moved, Ben was working third shift. He would go to bed around noon so we had to make this room as dark as possible so he could sleep at the brightest part of the day. He's now on days, but we never repainted, yet. Too much furniture and moving stuff and painting over red... (what was I thinking?) But we love it.

Under that comforter or some icky comforter that comes out of a bed-in-a-bag thing would be this quilt:

 This is the quilt I made for my Hubby. Sorry for the bad picture, but I scanned this in off of a photo I found last week while reminiscing. Here was evidence of how beautiful this quilt once looked. The vibrant colors...And the white. Look at all of that white fabric! It was so pretty. Notice I said "was".

Well, if you don't know the story, here goes: I made this quilt for Ben. It was supposed to be a lap quilt, but when I laid it out, Ben looked at it and said, "That's it?" with this super exaggerated sigh. So I added a border, and another one.

This was one of the first quilts I made, I think the largest up to this point. It was also the second quilt I ever long arm quilted and it was the first I custom quilted. My feathers on this one are a far cry from what I can do today, but you have to start somewhere!

The picture above was when the quilt was hanging at the local juried quilt show. Ben went with me to pick it up as he thought it was quite insulting that I make him a quilt that he couldn't have or use for months since it was at the show... Oooopppps. So, Ben and I picked it up and he bear hugged it the entire way home.

Once we got home, he disappeared. Here, he went into the bedroom and promptly put this quilt on our bed. Our queen size bed. Remember it was supposed to be a lap quilt... Well, it only hangs over the sides by a few inches, but he then explained to me that I use blankets on the couch and I fight with the dogs over them, but he doesn't. Honestly in the almost 11 years we've been married I can think of maybe 4 times he's had a blanket on him and it's usually when he's really sick. That's it. So the only way he would get to use his quilt would be if it was on the bed. Okie dokie.

Meanwhile, while he and I were picking up said quilt, we lived next to my grandparents at the time and they fed both of our little dogs tons and TONS of treats. Probably more food than they get at dinner... Fast forward to 5:30 the next morning to where I'm woken up by a dog getting sick from all of those treats all over the quilt! PANIC MODE!!!

I tried to take the quilt off of Ben and the bed without him knowing, but I failed. Miserably. In my failed attempt, I heard "where are you going with my quilt?"... I replied that the dog got sick on it. Ben was like, you can have it!

Well, that was Dilemma #1. Dilemma #2 began in the wash. I prewashed (or thought I prewashed) the fabrics in my young little quilter mind... I know much better now... But alas, we washed the quilt and the dark red woven I used for the back bled. EVERYWHERE. I'll show you how bad in a minute. I really could have used a box of Color Catcher sheets back then!

So without further ado, here is the quilt in it's current state...

 It actually doesn't look that bad in this picture, minus that gaping hole in the middle. That would be Dilemma #3 courtesy of this little guy:

Duncan had this habit of not really chewing on blankets, but shoving them in his mouth and using them like a pacifier when he slept. When he was a puppy it wasn't bad. The older he got, it turned from a cute little habit into destructive psycho. So, the quilt has holes. LOTS of holes. But it still washes up, it's still warm, we just make the bed so the hole is towards the top so we don't get our feet caught in it. 

 Here's proof of the holes. All of those little arrows (and I'm sure there's many more). Duncan would burrow under the comforter and over the quilt and pacify on the quilt...

 Some holes aren't that bad, like this one where you can see the lovely pink batting that certainly didn't start out that color.

 And here's the larger hole and it goes right through to the sheet. That's a wide open hole there! Oh,and some of those fabrics used to be white. It's interesting to see the fabrics that were once white on white prints. Now they're more light pink on darker pink...

Oh, and more of that lovely pink batting. It's really pink, like REALLY pink.

So that's the quilt. That's the quilt I love and talk about more than any quilt I've made, even my book quilts. I don't know if it's sad or just humbling.

Now, I know I'm not the only person to experience a quilt in this manner. Please share with me your quilt horror stories. 1. That way I don't feel like the total dork in the quilting community. and 2. So that we can prove that these things happen and we've lived through them.

Hopefully your story is in the past enough that you can laugh at it now. Have a great weekend all! I'm going to hopefully go work on a new quilt that won't end up in the same state as the quilt I just shared!

A Sad Day

I try not to post sad things on here, but this one is about a subject I've shared far too much to ignore. I've been trying to write this post for weeks. I've written it in my head a hundred times over and still couldn't actually type it out. Please know this is hard for me to share and I'm crying while sitting at my computer at the moment.

So here goes:

 About two months ago, we lost our precious Duncan. I've shared so much about him and Paco on the blog, many of you ask about them at shows and it seems like you know them virtually.

Duncan's had a rough road with his health since he was a pup, but always was a trooper. He had a spine injury as a pup. He's had a gland rupture several times which lead to tumors and abcesses and several bouts of antibiotics. He had a weird allergy to shampoo that made his eyes swell... He also had liver enzymes that were off the charts and could never be controlled. But right before we lost him he was diagnosed with diabetes.

 Duncan lived a wonderful 13 years and the last month or so was rough. His blood sugar was over 500 when he was diagnosed and it never went below 370 in the month after. The highest it registered was somewhere in the 670 area. He was a Cairn Terrier and little did I know that his breed as well as Schnauzers are prone to diabetes late in life, but are also insulin deficient. Well, we tried shots and different foods and everything we could think of and nothing worked. We were at the vet so much that last month, one week alone we were there 6 times. They knew us and I didn't have to sign in or anything. We'd walk in and the staff would be like, "Hey, Duncan!" We had to have him put down when his body started to shut down and that was the hardest thing I have ever had to do in my life.

I miss him dearly and it was honestly hard to sew after he was gone. He was the best quilting dog ever and the best companion when I was down. I didn't really realize why I didn't want to sew for a few weeks until one day I forced myself to stay home. I opened the door to my sewing room for the first time in weeks and immediately started to cry when I saw his blanket lying on the floor. And his toy under my table. That day I swear I heard him running down the hall and cuddling onto his blanket. Everyday has gotten a little easier, but he was my baby. He was my first dog. As long as Ben and I have been Ben and I, it was Ben and I and Duncan was our baby.

We still have Paco, but he's our kitty dog. We love him dearly and we've agreed (even before we lost Duncan) to not get another dog at the time. Paco is 15, mostly deaf and blind and it wouldn't be fair to him to bring a new wild dog into the house. Honestly, I want to go to the dog shelter every day. I can't because I would bring home like 5 and poor Paco wouldn't know what to do.

I guess the reason I'm telling you all this (if you're still here) is more for a closure thing for me, but also to explain if I haven't really seemed myself lately. I tried to keep this to myself, but Ben and I agreed that I shared so much about Duncan on here, I should probably share his loss too. It's been a little hard to be upbeat so many days I was just quiet.

I still have many of his toys spread around the house and I can't bear to think about moving them or throwing them away. I would love to donate them, but that would probably lead to a shelter and me bringing home a dog or 5. For now though, I take comfort in knowing the wonderful life that he and I shared, the wonderful memories that can never be taken from me and the hope that I will see him again one day. I still find myself crying in these quiet moments where a scent or a sound or something makes me think of him. So I please ask if you can, to love on your pooch a little longer today. Please give them a hug and a kiss and an extra treat for me (and Duncan). Thank you all in advance for letting me share this personal story with you and getting it out in the open. Rest in peace my little Duncan Christopher. Mommy and Daddy love you and miss you.