Happy Post - Wedding bells and Giveaway winnings!

My younger sister got married this past weekend. It was a wonderful, relaxing three-day affair. We rented out all of the Lydia Mountain Cabins for the 40 or so guests, and arrived Friday afternoon and didn't leave until Sunday afternoon. The weather, the food, the company, the activities - everything was great! What fun to happen upon a cabin to see this:

or to come across a pack of roaming kids enjoying the freedom this remote location afforded them:

or to come across a cluster of adults just relaxing and enjoying each others' company:

or fun times on the zip line:

(Um, Curtis, the zip line is for KIDS!)

It was an outdoor Quaker ceremony, which meant quite a bit of time sitting in quiet reflection. I was so proud of my boys for sitting quietly, but when I peeked over, I saw why they were so quiet - Donald had fallen asleep! Oh well, whatever works!

Once the ceremony was over and the band started to play, the kids danced the night away.

The beautiful couple!

Aren't her flowers gorgeous?

My mom, my sisters and me - so many cameras were flashing at once, we are all looking in different directions!

And not only did I come home with great memories, I came home with goodies from my sisters! Ericka brought me some bone china tea cups that she found in her new house that she is fixing up, and Kerry brought me some fabric remnants. Aren't sisters the best?

And when we got home today, there was a surprise in the mail. I won a giveaway from Rebecca at Our Busy Little Bunch in the Fall Into Fall Giveaway, and she sent aprons for my boys. Of course, they wanted to cook right away, so we scoured the cupboards and found the fixings for oatmeal raisin cookies, which we took to our Cub Scout Den meeting tonight. Thanks, Rebecca, the aprons are fantastic - I love the design, the durability, and the fabric!

As you can imagine, I am not only really far behind on reading blogs, but also pretty far behind on sleep. I promise to catch up with you all later - right now I'm off to catch some ZZZZZZs!

Daydreaming about the future

Remember these plaid Dresden Plates I worked on while traveling (before they took my needles away, that is)?

Here's where I am going with them.

I'm making quite a dent in my plaids and homespun stash, and since the blocks and sashing are so big (16" blocks, 3" wide sashing strips), it is coming together quickly. If I add one more row, it should measure 76.5" square. Notice I said "should", it won't, and I'm OK with that.


Anyway, here's the plan. My sister and her husband bought a second house in rural New Hampshire, walking distance to a swimming beach on a lake, just across the road from some hiking trails through the woods. They've spent the summer (and their savings) fixing it up with the idea that they can use it as a vacation home, but also as a vacation rental and retreat location. Her husband is an English teacher and a triathelete, so he was thinking of running creative writing and triathalon retreats. My sister is a knitter, so she was thinking of running knitting retreats. Guess what I get to do?


You guessed it! Quilting retreats! My head is spinning with the possibilities! I'm thinking of starting with a weekend flannel rag quilt workshop for beginners. I've not only made them, but also taught two other people how to make them so far, so it seems like a good place to start, as well as something that can be completed prior to the end of the workshop.


So anyway, back to the plaid Dresden Plates. I am making quilts for the beds in the house. It will take me quite some time, but what better advertising for the quilting retreats than sleeping under quilts by the instructor, right? (OK, there's probably better advertising out there, but humor me; I'm excited!) And since there will be retreats there that will attract both men and women, I wanted to make something that might appeal to both. The plaids say "masculine" and "cabin in the woods" to me, while the Dresden Plates say "a touch of femininity" and "an appreciation of pretty things." Do you think that works, or am I way off base?


And since I'm dreaming about the future, let me just tell you how my kids are making me realize that the future is rushing up and past me, despite my best efforts to slow it down. When I came back from abroad, Donald showed me how he now knows how to tie his own shoes! I am so proud! But gosh, that wasn't a milestone I wanted to miss, and it feels like one that just opens the floodgates for more independence.


Then yesterday, Jason was elected to student council. I don't even think we HAD student council in third grade. But he is walking on cloud nine. I must say, his poster was pretty,

and his speech was earnest and heartfelt. Again, I am so proud! I just hope he doesn't take this elected office idea too far and try to run for president one day. He just might win, and I'd really hate to have him have such a thankless job.

And finally, I'm worrying about my friend's future. Remember my neighbor who moved to a retirement community with her husband who has Alzheimers? Remember my recent visits with them and the adventures we had? Her husband died yesterday morning. I'm so sad, and so concerned for her. They were married well over 40 years, possibly over 50 years. I can't imagine being left alone after all that time together. I need to make sure to make a greater effort to go see her more often; she's only a little over an hour's drive away, but she's no longer driving, so it is up to me.

We never know what the future may hold...

The last 63 hours

Friday, October 15
6 AM: I woke in time to get in a run and some weight lifting in the hotel gym before my first school visit. Trying to run at 10,000 feet above sea level when you ordinarily live at 1,000 feet above sea level is quite a challenge. It took me 12 minutes to run a mile because I had to keep slowing down to a walk to breathe. Oh well, it is the thought that counts, right?


8:30 AM: I'm at my first school, starting my presentation and one girl in the front cuddles up with a friend and closes her eyes to take a nap. I stopped mid-sentence and said, "Don't go to sleep; that is rude," and then continued on with my presentation. Little twit! They were some of the rudest kids, as a group, that I've ever encountered. Ugh!



10:25 AM: Even though my next school visit was scheduled for 10 AM, and I was there 5 minutes early, the counselor didn't come get me until 10:25. Just in time, too, because I had told myself that I was leaving at 10:30 - c'mon, do you know how far I traveled to get there!?! Show a little respect! So I shouldn't have been surprised by the kids' lack of respect when I finally got to see them, since the counselor was so lax. They were eating, doing homework, talking amongst themselves; I couldn't wait to get out of there. I have a feeling I'll be cutting those two schools in the future - nowhere else do I experience such rudeness.


12:00 PM: My flight from Quito to Atlanta doesn't leave until 11:30 PM, so I ask my driver to take me somewhere I can try some typical Ecuadorian food. I can definitely say it is not my favorite type of food, although I do love that avacados are so pleniful there. Here's an example: I try the soup. It is passable. I recognize potato and onion and, "oh, what's this?" I ask. I thought perhaps it was calamari, because that is kinda how it was cut. Think again, it is pig intestines. "I'm full; let's be on our way, shall we?" Yeech!

2:00 PM: Since I have so much time to kill, I have the driver take me to Papallacta, a small town about 40 miles outside of Quito, known for its hot, natural, mineral springs. $7.00 gets me admission to a series of tiled pools. I tried them all, but spent most of my time in this one, the hottest and therefore my favorite.

5:00 PM: I'm paying the driver by the hour, so I have him drop me at the airport where I can kill time before my flight for free. It turns out, I couldn't even check in until 8:30, so I spent 3.5 hours just sitting in the lobby reading. And then, when I do check in and go through security, you KNOW what happens (read my last post if you missed it). Not the most pleasant 6.5 hours I've ever spent.

Saturday, October 16

1:30 PM: I'm finally back in Lexington, VA after 2 long, miserable, uncomfortable flights and a two-hour maintenance delay tacked onto my 3.5 hour layover in Atlanta. I was so glad to see my family, and the screech of joy the boys let out when they saw me was the loveliest ear-splitting noise I've ever heard.

8:00 PM: I'm finally back home. We couldn't come home once I picked the boys up from their father at the gym because there was a cub scouts cookout at 3 PM followed by a fundraising event at the elementary school at 6:30 PM and we wouldn't have had time to come home and go back out again. I am a walking zombie, but I am proud that I stayed awake through reading the boys a bedtime story.

9:30 PM: I'm showered with a fresh (home bathroom) haircut and swept floors. I crawl into bed with a book thinking I'm going to stay awake until my husband gets home from basketball practice. Think again.

Sunday, October 17

9:30 AM: I can't remember the last time I slept for 12 hours, but I feel great! I spend the next 3 hours cleaning house and doing laundry and unpacking, then spend a few hours outside with the boys enjoying a spectacular fall day. I'm so glad to be home!

9:30 PM: After a wonderful day, which included some belly laughs as the boys decide to give yoga a try,

I'm ready to head down to my sewing room. This week's goals include:

• 2 more Dresden Plates prepared for Wednesday's trip to Atlanta and this weekend's wedding festivities
• Finish sewing together the rows for the scrappy lap quilt currently on the design wall
• Sandwich and baste my great-great-grandmother's quilt. I'd love to have that one done by Christmas

What do YOU have planned for this week?

Me robaron!!!

When they took my tiny sewing scissors in Costa Rica, I wasn't so upset, even though I've traveled with those very same scissors for years; after all, I had my backup thread cutter medallion. But now they have gone too far! I'm in Quito, flying Delta, and they removed EVERY SINGLE basting pin in the tablerunner I'm (still) quilting, took two packs of quilting betweens, and all my flower head pins that I've been using to hold my Dresden Plate blocks together!

I have been traveling with sewing supplies for years, and the only thing anyone ever objected to before was scissors. This is outrageous! I have 10 and a half hours of travel before I get home, and I can't even sew! Argh!

(Actually, I had a pretty good day today, which I will share when I get home. Right now, though, I am just seeing red. I never thought of those pins and needles as weapons, but oh, what I was tempted to do to the security guy with them!!!)

Greetings from the middle of the world!

Quito, Ecuador. I'm in my third time zone in a week. What day is it? What time is it? Yawn!! But before I retire here (loving the rose - nice touch),

I thought I'd share my purchases from today. After I arrived in Quito this afternoon, I walked to the Mercado Artenesal. I love the place, and could spend hours and mucho dinero there. But I was good. Kinda.

For me, a necklace and a hat.

Up for grabs for giveaway winners and/or officemates and/or my mom and sisters, (and you know I'll be keeping a little something for myself),

a zippered, lined bag,

a scarf/shawl that I had a terrible time trying to photograph,

a table scarf, although I must say, I like the way it looks draped over the bed,

a bunch of earrings made mostly from seeds and nuts and wood (a weakness of mine in case you hadn't noticed),

and some artwork made from leaves and bark and whatnot which reminded me of applique

Check out the detail of the flowers

Anyway, giveaway winners, I'm probably done making purchases. I hope you see something that you like either in this entry, or this one from Costa Rica or on this one or this one from Mexico. If so, let me know your 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice in an email or comment, and I'll pop your winnings in the mail to you when I get back to the States. Thanks for hanging in there with me on this trip.

Now, off to bed so I'll be ready for tomorrow's school visits...

Costa Rica

I left Mexico on Sunday morning, early. Too early. When I arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica, it was still only 10 AM. I came to my hotel, played on the internet until it was late enough to eat lunch, ate, sat reading by the pool for a while soaking up the Costa Rican sunshine, then came up to the room to take a nap. I spent the rest of the night in my room (you KNOW I was tired if I missed dinner!), watching TV, doing some work on the computer, appliqueing my second plaid Dresden Plate.


Monday morning, I had to leave the hotel at 6:30 AM in order to make it to my first school visit on time. How lovely to have a driver to deal with the traffic! I sat up front and practiced my halting Spanish with him all day as he drove me around the city. Did you know that they don't have actual addresses in Costa Rica? The addresses are like "200 meters north and 300 meters south of the catholic church". Can you imagine being a foreigner trying to find your way around here?


Anyway, Monday was a long day - I didn't get back to the hotel until 7:30 PM. It was all work except a quick brunch at a small corner restaurant eating a typical Costa Rican dish, gallo pinto con huevos revueltos (rice and beans with scrambled eggs). Isn't this the cutest little place with the colorful walls, the hanging bunches of onions and plantains, the coffee bags covering the ceiling? And the food was GREAT!



Today there was a bit of time between some school visits, so my driver took me to the Sr. y Sra. Ese Souvenir factory and store where they make and sell wooden souvenirs from some of the fantastic exotic wood found in Costa Rica. Of course I had to pick up a couple trinkets, wooden earrings,

a little wooden painted lizard,

and a wooden hotpad(?).

There were so many cool things there, just not many that I could 1) afford and 2) fit in my luggage. Exhibit A - this awesome carved bull's head.

This evening, I'm lounging in my room, watching TV, sewing, reading, catching up on blogs, and generally just relaxing prior to tomorrow morning's flight to Ecuador. I'm still having fun, but I SO miss my family!!

I love tequila!

Remember when I posted yesterday that I was a bit tipsy? Today I am sloshed! If what I have to say makes no sense, please blame it on the tequila. I swear to you, I only drink one of two times a year, only when I am traveling and with friends and not responsible for my children. Today, I let loose!

We had a 4 hour college fair today. 4 hours standing behind a table saying the same thing over and over again. 3 hours is torture. 4 hours is unimaginable. But salvation came in the last hour when a girl approached me and asked tentatively, "Um, do you have a twin sister who is a guidance counselor at a high school in Western Massachusetts?" My answer, of course, was "Yes!" How is it that I met a girl IN MEXICO for whom my twin sister had been her guidance counselor two years ago? It's a small world, after all...

After the fair, I hit the executive lounge in the hotel for some free hors d'oerves. I'm loving my upgrade!!!I get free laundry service, so I sent my gym clothes off to be laundered this morning (I've been hitting the gym for a mile run and and upper body free-wight circuit while abroad), and lo and bhold, they are back in my room wrapped in a cute package - free of course. Then, my two new professional friends, Lisa and Leticia, joined me on my adventure taking the Metro to a place to buy traditional Mexican dress. Jackpot! I bought this dress

and this shirt. Loving them both!

I also bought a small woolen bag in autumn colors with a butterfly on it.

When we returned, there was a reception for all us college counselor folks and the bar was serving a drink called a Paloma (dove). Lemon juice, tequila and Squirt (grapefruit soda). It is my new favorite drink, and I drank them down like lemondade, and didn't notice until I stood up that I was drunk, having drunk more than I have since before I graduated from college 17 years ago. My wake up call is in 5 hours for my flight to Costa Rica, so I'm not sure tomorrow morning is going to be all that pleasant, but boy did I have fun hanging out with the girls this afternoon and evening!

And before you think I have spent all my waking hours in a cup of tequila, I did finish one Dresden Plate block, and started in on number 2.

And guess what I forgot to share with you all? Remember my string quilt that I sent away to be quilted last February,

only to have the quilter disappear off the face of the planet? Well, she's back, and she contacted me on Thursday to get my mailing address to send my quilt back to me. Yay!

OK, must go. My cheeks are numb and my eyes can hardly stay open. I hope to catch up on blogs when I get to San Jose tomorrow afternoon. In the meantime, ciao!