Keeping the Faith: Row 1.5 and TAXES

How nice to have so many visitors from Patchwork Times Design Wall Monday Mr. Linky and comments, too!

I worked some more on my Faith quilt after getting home from A's soccer practice. We rushed home from there so he could rush over to Boy Scouts with his dad. Busy, busy, busy. And, so my week begins.... I'm glad to have got some quilting in tonight.



Do you have your taxes done? M finished ours tonight. We made more money since I worked the entire year and we make more than the national average. Where does it all go? Oh, yeah--I quilt and buy lots of fabric and I like Starbucks....A LOT!

so you SAY

An open letter......

(Specifically about quilting, but can apply to other pursuits.)

So you SAY you don't want to be perfect and you don't care about mistakes. So you say you're used to imperfection and and that's good enough for you.

I think people are as bothered by others trying to do their best as I am bothered by people that don't try to do their best.

I'm certainly not perfect, but I do try to do my best. I'm not shy about doing things over if I see mistakes and know that I can improve the next time.

I know people hold this against me.

Does it bother you when people do nice work? I may get a bit jealous--I'm only human--but it usually makes me want to learn more and to do a better job. Or do you become resentful and make them feel bad for being good at what they do?

I started making my blocks for the Keeping the Faith Quilt. I'm paper piecing the blocks. I modified the pattern so that the seams of the strips on each side of the block are opposite and the seams will nest when I sew the two sides together. My first block went together without a problem. My second block with a couple of issues. My third block had more mismatched seams than matching. I left the second block alone for all of..............a 1/2 an hour before I seam ripped the second and third block. I could have left the blocks, but I knew that I could make them right.

I guess it's all about what you can live with.

Design Wall Monday

I've got a couple of things I'm working on this week:

Keeping the Faith Quilt



I'm chain piecing as much as I can, but I had to make some blocks to make sure the fabrics I picked out were going to work. There is some drama associated with making this quilt and church. I can't make a quilt without drama.

These are my fabrics:



This is the quilt from the pattern (Quilts with Style, May/June 2005):



44 more blocks to go!

I also am going to try to work on the New Moon Quilt this week so I can stop thinking about it as I go to sleep every night.

Let the Games Begin

Three of four kids are playing soccer this season. Today was the first weekend for games since they got snowed out two weeks ago and there weren't any games scheduled last weekend because of Spring Break. I like watching the kids play, but I could do without all the practice time as a parent. I know the kids need the practice. I'm always running somewhere, though. I'm glad that C is old enough to be dropped off since her practices conflict with S's, but she still practices three times a week for two hours plus a night and we've not been getting home until after 7:00. I know that they love to play so I guess it makes it easy when all is said and done for me to do my part. We've stocked up on quick foods for dinner. I really should do some crockpot dinners so we're not eating microwaved stuff all the time.

I also need to get together a project I can do by hand to fill the hours. I've been reading so far to fill the time, but I've had some difficulty finding books that are worth my time lately. I usually zip right through a book so I need to stockpile some more, too. I just finished The Help--totally amazing book due it's own separate entry soon.

S's team got trounced. This is S's second year playing and she has fun even though they don't win much. She got to start this game so she was even happier. A's team won big. This is A's first year playing and you can tell. He got turned around a lot. He's not afraid of playing, though, so hopefully he'll catch on.




I was supposed to get a better picture, but I kept forgetting and then he had his uniform off before I knew when we got home.

Some other things for the day, but I'm too tired to write. I did start the Keep the Faith Quilt today and there's some drama about that related to church. I'm loving my fabrics a lot and I can't wait to share the blocks! (Oh, and the fabric I thought I would have to order online? With careful planning and cutting, I think I can get away with the 2 FQs I purchased for the quilt and NOT have to order more. Phew!)

Happy Easter early if I don't post tomorrow. My little church manages to have two Easter services. C and Z are acolyting separately at each so M and I will probably split up to attend or attend both. We hadn't really decided.... I guess we'll see how we feel tomorrow. There's a breakfast in between that I was supposed to make something for, but I didn't decide on that either. So wishy washy am I! I did manage to get the kids' baskets done and I ended up with an extra bunny that I never returned. Oh, well....

Lunch, Quilting, and Fabric

Today is day #2 of my vacation. M and I split up the kids' Spring Break and took days off to cover. He was off for three days and I took Thursday and Friday off. One of these days, we will take a vacation together. I can't remember when that last happened.

My mom turned 60 on the 31st. My sis and I took her to Olive Garden, sans kids, for lunch yesterday. I enjoyed being out with these girls and sharing the two deserts I talked my mom into. I truly feel the love when I'm with them. They know me and don't mind being around me. Yes, it's my mom and sis but still! My sis works crazy hours as an assistant manager for WalMart so I rarely get to see her. We still have plans for dinner and a movie, but I'm waiting of her to say when. She was the best and resupplied my Cinnamon Dolce syrup and Via as a belated birthday gift.

I popped into two quilt shops to get the rest of the yardage I need for my Keeping the Faith Quilt. Now that I decided upon the 7 perfect fabrics, I needed to get enough of them. Well, guess what?! You know it....one of the fabrics only had a FQ left and I need a total of 1yd to be on the safe side. I wasn't thinking when I bought it that there wasn't more to be had. The store looked up when the bolt was finished and it was 3/12. Durn it! I found it at only ONE store online and I have to HAVE it. This is just the way I am folks. So, it looks like I'll be spending $15 with shipping to get my ONE yard of fabric, that is, unless I can find something I like better. 1)I've been searching all over town for the perfect blues and I don't think I'm going anywhere else. 2)If I do, I never buy just one fabric so it's probably cheaper to spend the $15.

Today's plans are simpler. I need to finish two things for my secret quilting project. I'm going to try to start the Faith quilt and I will if I decide that I'm committed to ordering the fabric online. I also need to work a little around the house so I don't feel guilty about doing nothing. (and to one-up M since he accomplished NOTHING during his three days off.) I'd like to fit some baking in, too. This weekend is going to be BUSY so I need to accomplish as much as I can. Church egg hunt, soccer games, and Easter. We're full up!

Keeping the Faith Quilt

I thought I had decided on the fabrics, but then I went shopping again. I choose not to disclose how many extra yards I have purchased in order to find the 7 perfect yards for this quilt. I'm also not going to say how much more I'll have to buy since I only had FQs to audition for some of the fabrics.




from Quilts with Style, June 2005

I made M buy Sherlock Holmes tonight. I didn't see it when it was in theaters. I wish we had rented it instead. I was oddly disappointed with the movie. It bored me. Oh, well!

I had a strange day today. I came home early from work because I had a headache and another embarrassing problem. I fixed it and should have gone back to work, but I went to lunch and fabric shopping instead. Not good! I've done nothing but give in to my cravings lately....

Half Moon: No I Didn't Expose a Cheek

Is it working?



I also picked out the fabric for my Keeping the Faith Quilt. I ended up with four extra yards from indecision and x2 1/2 yards short for what I need. I have such a hard time picking out fabric.... I am using a couple of yards out of the 1-00-s I have in my stash which is a good thing, right? Too lazy to take a pic tonight. I'll spill soon.