Calico Cottages

 Hello Everyone,

Since I haven't been able to do any quilting in the past couple of weeks, I asked my sister if she would send me pictures of her finished Calico Cottages quilt. 

Her cat, Quinn, wanted to be in the picture while he was checking out the quilt. Her kitties become a problem when it comes time to work on the binding. 

Gail really disliked foundation paper-piecing when she started this quilt.  It took about 3 days for the process to sink in.  Once she got it, she got it, and she couldn't stop making the little cottages. Every time I start paper-piecing I have to get my tutorial out and read it before I begin.

This quilt makes use of all of the little scraps you have in bins and on shelves in your sewing room.  Gail had so much fun selecting the fabrics, and she did a great job combining the different colors.  She loves this quilt as well she should!

The pattern is available HERE in my Etsy shop. 

I'm feeling better and I had a good day yesterday, Friday.  I'm not doing much at all which is hard for me as lounging around is not in my vocabulary.  But I've learned I can lounge around, and I know that's what I need to do right now.  This picture was taken three days after surgery.  I'm standing, and walking, but not for very long.   Alex and Ricky were so concerned about me.  Alex texted me a couple times a day on the trip back to California.  Alex, Ricky and the entire Quilt Show crew are very caring, and I appreciate them.

Soon,

Lynn

A Road Trip to Remember

 Hello Everyone,

So much has happened since my last post a bit over a week ago that it is hard to know when to begin.  As you know, Mr. Joe and I set out on a road trip to Denver on August 10th for the taping of my segments on The Quilt Show with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims.

We took a slight detour through Bryce Canyon National Park.  The clouds parted when we got there, and the thunderstorms and hailstorms stopped. The remnant of the hail is visible in this picture.

We arrived in Denver on the 12th of August.  On the 13th we went to the old, restored Mission Church to drop off quilts and all of my supplies.  The church is now an event center.

Alex and Ricky were filming promos for The Quilt Show.

The church is beautiful inside.  

My scheduled day for taping was Wednesday.  Tuesday night I didn't feel well and then my left leg blew up like a sausage.  It was red, hot and extremely swollen. For those of you who follow my blog, it is the same leg that received the venomous bites a year ago.....almost to the same date.

Somehow, I was able to shower, do my hair and get dressed which was a HUGE deal since I had to keep sitting down. I had great difficulty getting a pair of pants on over the swollen leg. I crammed my foot into a sandal. We set off for the church even though I felt horrible and just didn't look good.  I explained to the crew what was going on and I told them I was going to get through the taping no matter what. It was an issue dragging this weary body up the stairs to the choir loft to tape the before and after show segments.

The crew is getting ready to reveal my super-secret project so we could talk about it.  We sat for a bit and just ran through the segment with the producer.  It is amazing how comfortable Alex and Ricky make you feel so at ease and it's as though you are just sitting and chatting, and you forget about the cameras and crew.

Then we went downstairs to film the three other segments.  My leg was ready to fall off by this point in time so they got me a stool which was a big help because I couldn't stand up for very long.

When the filming was over, Mr. Joe and I headed right to the emergency room at Saint Joseph's Hospital where I was admitted and in surgery Thursday morning to remove a blot clot of epic proportion.  The clot started in my abdomen and ran down my thigh.  One clot started and other clots joined in on the fun!  After the 2-1/2 hour surgery they showed me a picture of the clot and it looked like a string of pop beads.  Remember them?  

I was released on Friday night with a sworn promise not to start driving home until Saturday.  All was well and we left Denver Saturday morning.  They told me to stop every hour, and I know where every Starbucks is from Denver to the California border.  There aren't many across southern Wyoming.

Again, all was well until yesterday. Wednesday when I ended up in the ER again for a 6-hour stay and more ultrasounds.  My blood thinning medication wasn't working, so a pill has now been added to my arsenal of medications.  

Before we headed back to California, we stopped by the church to pick up my quilts and supplies.  The crew treated me like a conquering hero.

We stopped at a restaurant the day I was released, and this sign was over our table. 

Cherish every day you are privileged to live.

Soon,

Lynn

From the Sierras to the Rockies

 Hello Everyone,

We hit the road fairly early yesterday to make the drive from Arnold, CA to Ely, NV, with our final destination Denver and The Quilt Show. We set off over Ebbetts Pass which is a very scenic, yet narrow road through the Sierras.  You enter some harrowing curves called Cadillac Curve and many unsuspecting big rigs get stuck here when their dispatchers send them over the wrong pass.

We drove by Lake Alpine and then on up to Mosquito Lake.  I would love to stay in one of those cabins!

After stopping for lunch in Woodsford, we drove into Nevada.

We then got on highway 50 also known as the Lincoln Highway, and also known as the Loneliest Road in America.  This sign does not lie!  We saw range cattle, wild Mustangs, and elk droppings.  We also saw some rather amorous cattle that got a bit carried away and one of them fell over backwards after the encounter.  I guess it was head of heels in love!

We gassed up in Fallon, NV to make the 4-hour trip across landscape that looks like this.  It is stark and beautiful all at the same time.  I'm standing in the middle of the road, and you couldn't see a car in any direction.

Not only do you need to pack water and snacks, you need to pack an iron-clad bladder unless you want to squat behind a tumbleweed.....but then you run the risk of rattlesnakes. 

We made it to Ely, had a nice dinner at The Jailhouse where we dined 18 years ago.  I doubt that our waitress when even alive 18 years ago!

Soon,

Lynn