Post Snowstorm Flurry

Not only is it amazing what can be accomplished in 20 minutes a day, as I am hoping you are all finding this week, but it is shocking to me how much can be accomplished when one finally has all of 8 hours of kids in school this week. Thank you, Snowmageddon 2013 and parents who are much squeakier wheels than I am (I know, it is shocking that it is even possible, but it must be) who are influencing our new superintendent to go back to the ways of our old one when it comes to calling off school if conditions are not perfect in all ways. God help future generations and their abilities to function in the face of adversity.

Anyway, it was finally back to school for all of a day and a half this week, and this is admittedly partially my own doing as we leave for Florida tomorrow, but I have sewn my face off for all of that time and I am thrilled to have done so. Allow me to find my face and I will enlighten you.

So how are we doing on that list? Well, Yay and Yippee, #1 "Finish my tree skirt pattern completely" is finally done as of this morning and the joy of finding my fixed photos from my photo fixer woman in my inbox! Woo hoo! I mean really, let us compare:

Before

After

That is the SAME PHOTO, people! The same one! She kills me with her skills, I tell you.

"Ripple Effect" is now up on my Craftsy store for instant download and will be available as a print pattern in time for Market. I'm waiting to finish a few other patterns and then plan to make a print order with an invoice that will choke an elephant closer to May.

I also completed #2, "All 8 packets for the other members of Taking Names group quilt" and said packages are going out in the mail this afternoon. So Denise, Kelli, Lou Ann, Glen, Anna, Darlene, and Meg - be on the lookout! Angie, I'm cheaping out and will hand deliver yours. Here are a couple more examples:

Glen's blocks - these will reside in Louisiana.

Anna's blocks - these will reside in Wisconsin.

I love how these projects help me bring the nation together as one. It makes me want to sing "My Country 'Tis of Thee."

But I won't.

Finally, I have been playing with my quilting machine a little more today. I found a very old bedrunner sized UFO that I had quite literally balled up and thrown in my UFO basket, not even finishing the machine applique before doing so. I have no idea what it had done to make me so angry, but after working on it the last two days it is really growing on me again. I finished up the machine applique yesterday and today have machine quilted the middle part. I'll move on to the borders after I find some thread that matches the green, because in my 200+ spools not one even comes close. You know how it is.

So that's my week. I've also started writing "Taking Names", have done battle with the Girl Scout cookie website, and made sure my children didn't suffer the agony of not getting to go to the Book Fair at school just because they get to go to Florida and hang on the beach on the day their classes were scheduled to attend. So all in all, it was fairly productive even if a very short week.