Day 345 of 365

It's Day 345. 20 days to go to 365.

I'm anxious for it to get here. I feel like I'm in limbo. Knowing it's almost over I'm dragging my feet on starting any new changes in my life.

When I started a year ago, I had a clear goal. Take a picture every day to show that I had lived. I've accomplished that goal. Now it's getting time to come up with a new goal. While I'll continue with the picture-a-day, I need something else, too. But right now I don't know what that "else" is. I'm hoping something will present itself to me in the next 20 days. Something that will inspire me to reach another goal.

While I don't have a clear, life-changing goal, I do have some charity goals laid out. I'll do more sewing than I did this year - more quilts for kids, more stockings for soldiers, more turtle pillows for turtle camp. That means more than 35 quilts, more than 80 stockings, and more than 24 pillows. But other than that it's unknown. (Although it probably would be smart to start working on beating this past year's exercise streak of 120 consecutive days.)

So here I sit and wait. Wait and work on another quilt. I took a quilt top from my unfinished project basket and cut it up. I added some fabric left over from the baby quilt I made on Day 11, some crumb blocks from Day 111, and strips I organized on Day 334. A new quilt top is born.

Day 344 of 365

Yesterday I was quite discouraged about my charity quilting-for-kids work. Linda gave me some encouraging words that helped.

It also helped today that I received a large envelope in the mail addressed to me, the "YouTube Video Director". It was from the Stockings for Soldiers organization. (I sent them 80 stockings on Day 222.) On  Day 237 my tutorial for the day was on how to make the stockings for the program. I had sent them the link to the video on YouTube and they used it with their volunteers. In the envelope I received a nice thank you note signed by a couple dozen of the organization's folks and a couple of certificates of appreciation. One was for me and one was for the kids at Marsing High School who had gathered all the goodies for the stockings on Day 252.

The kids almost didn't get their certificate today, though.

The disagreement discussion negotiation started before 5 AM this morning. I was planning on sleeping in since I had the day off, but PJB (AKA Pajama Boy, AKA hubby) decided he wasn't going to school today. Again. So the agreement to get him (and me) through the day was that he would take the morning off and go to school after lunch. He followed through on his end of the bargain and the kids got their certificate.

And since I didn't get to sleep in, I got a picture of the foggy, hazy moon before six o'clock in the morning.

Day 343 of 365

This week I've been feeling like I'm on shaky quilting waters and have started questioning my work. Am I doing the right thing by sewing all these? Is it a good use of my time, is the quality up to par? When I send the quilts off, do they really go where they are supposed to?

I've been making quilts for Operation Kid Comfort. (That's the group where the kids have parents serving in the military.) I make those quilts with pictures sewn into them, but they haven't sent me any more pictures in a couple months. I've e-mailed several times since before Christmas hoping to receive more pictures, but I haven't even received an e-mail response. It makes me wonder if I'm being ignored because they got word from parents that the kids didn't like their quilts.

Quilts for Kids is another group I do work for. Typically I request a couple kits from their fabric and then I make a couple out of my fabric. Every time - and it has been many times now - they send me those kits. This week when I received my kits, I only received one. It made me wonder if they don't trust me with two.

My daughter called the other day when I was working on a quilt and she asked if I was selling it. (She doesn't read my blog so she doesn't know how much time I really spend on making them to give away.) I went through the whole explanation of how many I do and where I send them. She was concerned I was spending too much money on all of it - the fabric, thread, batting, and postage - to continue doing it without any income from them coming in. It made me wonder if I am spending too much money doing them.

And then the Disaster Auction quilt has been in the back of my mind. Since Pajama Boy didn't go, not knowing how much the quilt fetched has been bugging me. My husband has been doing some checking with the folks running the thing and I knew an answer would be coming soon. I fully expected that today I would be writing about how I would never do a quilt for the auction again. That $25 is all that the quilt raised and that it was a waste of my time.

With the lack of responses from Operation Kid Comfort, the reduction in quilt kits from Quilts for Kids, my daughter's concern about the pricey-ness of the work, and the $25 thought looming over my head, I wasn't looking forward to going into the sewing room.

My husband's phone call saved the day and saved my sanity.

$150. My wall quilt fetched $150 at the Marsing Disaster Auction. I can move forward now. 

I've quilted waves throughout the sea turtle quilt. It's all done and I'm ready for the next one.

Handmade Chocolate Covered Blackberries - Day 342 of 365, Tutorial Tuesday

I love strawberries. I love them with sugar, I love them without sugar. I love them covered with chocolate.

But I discovered something I love covered with chocolate more than strawberries. Blackberries. We still have a few berries leftover from Costco and it occurred to me that if chocolate covered strawberries were tasty, chocolate covered blackberries would be just as good.

I was wrong. Chocolate covered blackberries are even better. They are easier to make, easier to eat, and in my opinion, even tastier. 

Actually, they just might be one of the best things I've ever tasted. So today's tutorial is the quickest and easiest thing I've ever made (and certainly the best tasting).

Click on the video below for the directions:

Day 341 of 365

After much cajoling and encouragement (and harassing) by me, Pajama Boy finally went to work.

A full day at home by myself. Finally, a full day of doing whatever I wanted. Hitting the sewing room for most of the day was the plan. After the way I woke up this morning I was tempted to stay away, though.

When I do repetitive tasks, it's not my muscles that bother me. It's the joints. The swelling in the joints puts pressure on the nerves, which in turns makes body parts numb and tingly. With all the ironing and rotary cutting I've been doing lately, my right shoulder has been getting quite the workout. All through the night my right shoulder was bothering me and by the time morning came around, the shoulder/elbow/wrist/hand joints were so swollen my arm and hand were completely numb. Completely numb and not willing to return to normal. It took quite some time to get feeling back.

But I couldn't give up the sewing. I had to do it.

I did it almost up until that 3:15 run to pick hubby up from school.

When I came home I caught someone napping in my bed.

Day 340 of 365

I feel like I have caffeine in my system or something. I spent yet another day in the sewing room and I again started not long after the sun came up.

While I haven't had any caffeine, I feel like something has gotten me in gear. My mornings are still icky, but starting off the day sewing seems to be helping. Being surrounded by gorgeous fabrics is helping.  I'm sure the sunshine is helping. And probably looking out my sewing room window to see my empty vegetable garden plot is helping, too.

Looking out the window has made me think about spring and planting time. Last year I thought we were going to try raised beds, but we didn't. Then I thought about replacing the landscape timbers in the rose garden and using the old ones to outline the vegetable garden. Now that I'm thinking spring again, I've scrapped the landscape timber idea and want those raised beds.

This entire school year I've felt like I've managed to be able to work without taxing my body too much. I've been able to take my time getting up in the mornings. I wear arthritis gloves to keep down the pain in the hands. I've worked my year around pain and pretty much know what I can and can't do. I know what aggravates my body and how to best relieve it, or at least manage it.

Those raised beds will help. They'll help make my surroundings meet my needs. I remember the difficulty I had last summer pulling weeds, picking tomatoes and peppers, digging potatoes. I'll be hiring some cheap labor - my daughter and her boyfriend - to follow some free plans I found on Sunset.com.

My mind is also spinning with quilt ideas, especially after sewing all those blocks on Day 325. I've been busy matching up fabrics with the blocks and designing some quilt tops. Here's the first one I have put together. Next step is quilting it.

Day 339 of 365

Sunrise was at 8:01 this morning and not long after I was in my sewing room. Have I mentioned how much I love the sun streaming through the window in there?

With another beautiful sunny day, I couldn't resist spending the day sewing in the sunshine. Plus, I had a good reason to keep working on quilts for charity. After all, today was the community's auction and my husband was heading out at 10. Sitting in a metal folding chair for any length of time could set me back a few days so I rarely go. But finally my husband would leave the house and I would get my alone hiding-from-the-world time I had been so anxious to have. He would be gone all day and would deliver me the news about how much the quilt I made on Day 322 went for. The quilt he guilted me into making. He would come home and I'd feel good about the time I spent on it and the money my contribution raised.

No such luck.

Hubby is now past the 72 hour mark of not wearing anything but the same pair pajamas. Three full days of moping around and watching television non stop. Three full days of I don't know what.

So no news on the quilt I worked so hard on. The quilt I made sure was the kind of quality that would make him look good. Maybe it's for the best. If it only raised $25 I don't want to know about it. I don't need anything making me feel any more incompetent about anything in my life than I already do.

I do feel somewhat competent doing kids' quilts. I finished what I'm now calling Rainbow Bright.

Day 338 of 365

It makes me sick to think about how hard it used to be. How hard it was just to get myself to work every single day. I remember the torture it was getting up, showered and dressed. I remember all too clearly the severe pain that filled my mornings. The pain so severe that I cried day after day on my way to work. The pain that stayed with me all through my work day.

Looking back, I don't know how I did it. But I'm sure glad some things have changed.

This part time work is a better fit for me and my issues. There are some days where it is hard to get myself up and out the door, but there is comfort in knowing I can sit when I arrive at work. That I can throw myself into whatever I'm doing - which usually involves sitting - and keep my mind off of it. It's not like it was before when, despite how horrible it was, I was spending the entire day teaching 25 kids. There is also comfort in knowing that I have days off each week for me to regroup.

Today was the second day of my attempt at a five day escape-from-the-world plan. And the second day of it where my husband stayed home.

So I plopped myself in my sewing room and worked the whole day. The quilt top from yesterday is progressing nicely and I freshened up my little plastic drawers with some jazzy labels.

Day 337 of 365

What the hell.

Yesterday those words popped out of my mouth at work. My coworker and I were talking and they just slipped right on out. Hearing those words in an elementary school building is quite unusual. (Thank goodness we were in my office.) What was even more unusual about those words was how loud the one word came out. I had started into a whisper and when I got to that last word it unintentionally exploded from my mouth. We had quite the laugh about it.

I thought about using the same phrase today at home but there would be no laughing involved this time.

My quiet, alone, disconnect from everyone and everything five day respite is off to a bumpy start. My husband picked today to stay home. There's nothing like a mopey, TV-watching husband who stays in his pajamas all day to throw a wrench in your plans.

I was practically giddy last night knowing I would get time to myself. Lesson learned. Back to one day at a time living. Stay away from thinking ahead.

Today's picture is the one I was originally going to post yesterday. The dark border is being chopped to make it a bit narrower and a white border is going on. Hopefully tomorrow's picture will show more progress on it. (Oops, gotta get away from thinking about tomorrow.)

Day 336 of 365

I'm going into hiding. I'm dropping off the map.

The huge project I've been working on at work ended today. The preliminary report from the State Reviewers who were on site today was quite complimentary. Now it's time for me to breathe. To rest. To cut back on these 10 hour work days. I'm taking five days off to start anew.

What better way to make a clean break and come away with a clear head but to disconnect from everything. They'll be no working on school stuff from home, no going into work this weekend, no looking at the Blackberry. (Don't worry, the blog will continue.)

Five days of no driving. Five days of no dress pants and no makeup. Five days of nothing but becoming reacquainted with my cleaning supplies (my long days have left my house lonely and devoid of shiny surfaces).

It goes without saying that the bulk of my time over the next five days will be spent working on kids' quilts for the Quilts for Kids organization. I have a couple of quilt tops in progress, and today I finished up a quilt top from the blocks I made on Day 329.

I'm not happy with the dark outside border and was thinking I'd make the border a bit narrower and add an additional white border. I took a picture of it, hoping to get affirmation that my idea was a good one. After picking up my husband from school, using the car for the last time until Tuesday, I was going to post the picture.

But that picture isn't winding up here today. For when we came home and pulled into the driveway, I noticed the front screen door ajar. We usually use the side door that leads to our carport so it was quite by accident I noticed the door.

There was a package in the door. A package from Paula. Paula O. is a reader of this blog and frequently comments. The other day she told me about some extra fabric she had and offered to send it my way. Free. No charge. She wouldn't even accept my offer of postage. It felt like Christmas as I was going through the box of gorgeous fabrics and threads. Of course my mind started racing with the possibilities.

I am so blessed to have caring folks reading along as I wander through my days. 

Paula, thank you, thank you, thank you for your generosity, and boy - am I ever glad I have five days to work on quilts!

How to Make Fruit Dessert Crepes - Day 335 of 365, Tutorial Tuesday

I've been trying to avoid food tutorials lately. When I think of food, I think of dessert. When I think of dessert, my mind always turns to that easy-for-me, quick-to-do tutorial. Sugar cookies. But I'm really trying to keep cookies out of the house.

So no Valentine's desserts or cookies, at least not yet. And after my major, months-long project culminating at work this week, my mind is not thinking about crafts.

My mind is still thinking about crepes. I've been in a breakfast rut for some time now and I'm using crepes to break out of it. I whipped up another batch to eat on throughout the week and made a tutorial along the way.

There are lots of crepe recipes out there so you could use your own. I'm using my late mother-in-law's recipe.

2 eggs, beaten
2 TBSP sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 c. canned evaporated milk
1 c. flour
1 c. milk
2 TBSP melted butter

As for directions, you'll have to watch the tutorial.

Click on the video below to find out how:

Day 334 of 365

I figured it out. My sewing room is my balance place.

When things are too hectic, when I'm trying to do too much, when I'm spending more hours than I should working on "work", when I feel terrible and can't do anything at all, the sewing room is the place I have to go.

It evens me out. It calms me. It makes me feel like there are more important things than what's going on in my life. It helps me keep my mind off the pain. Whether I'm organizing fabric or choosing fabric or cutting it or sewing it, it makes things better for me.

I get more excited than I should about silly things in my sewing room. Things like finding a place for my fabric strips. When I was going through the plastic containers the other day (when I stupidly put fabric on Crystal Light containers) I also came across some great containers to hold my fabric strips. The strips fit perfectly in the containers and the containers fit perfectly on the shelves.

Oh, the excitement.

Day 333 of 365

I'm in love.

It started with the paninis. We got a panini maker several years ago from my mom as a Christmas gift. We used it occasionally but haven't been extremely happy with how our sandwiches have turned out. We never have been able to find the right combo of bread and filling to make a tasty sandwich. But just this week I found an amazing combination. Good sourdough bread, sliced turkey breast, provolone cheese, sliced onions, spicy brown mustard, and lots and lots of romaine lettuce. (Yep, me using lettuce.)

I'm in heaven. These paninis are so darn good I could eat one every single day.

The love continued when I rediscovered crepes today. With all the different varieties of berries I picked up at Costco this week, what could be better for breakfast than fresh fruit crepes? Nothing! Just fresh fruit and crepes - no whip cream, no powdered sugar - make for another meal that I could eat every single day.

Fresh fruit crepes for breakfast and a turkey panini for dinner. Delicious.

Day 332 of 365

Yesterday Paula O asked me:

Hi Deb- I was wondering, with 34 days left since you started your blog, what are your feelings about that? Will you continue? (please!) are you looking forward to day 365? If you choose not to continue will there be a bit of a void in your daily routine? Or do you think you can now leave it behind & get on with things? I hope you know this year has counted- your courage, generosity & love. I hope you continue.

My reply to her was:

Will I continue? Yes. Am I looking forward to Day 365? Yes. Do I wish I could end it on Day 365 and not look back? Yes. 

While things have changed for me over the past year, I still have lots of things I need to continue to work on. As much as I would like to leave the whole blogging and picture taking behind, I know I can't. I have to continue to move forward and the blog is the best way to document my progress (or lack thereof).

So yep, with now 33 days to go, I'm here to stay. Am I excited? Yes and no. It's like when you do something because it's good for you, not because you always want to do it. (Yeah, like that exercise I still can't get back into the swing of.)

How can I not stay when I get to see (and take pictures of) spectacular sunsets over the top of my computer screen?

Day 331 of 365

I love bargains. And I love coming home and finding that bargains have arrived in the mail.

I've been spending a couple days with my daughter and haven't been home. When I got home I had three packages waiting for me. The first two packages were used books I purchased to do research on some children's books. $30 in books for eight dollars. But my third package was the best deal of all - a new purse from Coldwater Creek. I paid $14. The purse was originally $70. (Talk about exciting!)

Also exciting was the run my daughter and I made to another store. We ran across some gardening things at 50% off the last marked clearance price. We always like using a systemic product on our roses, but it is usually so expensive we might only do one or two treatments a year. With the 50% deal, I made off like a bandit. Our rose garden should look pretty darn spectacular this year.

I imagine checking out with a cart full like this you might think I would be someone who:
A: is a hoarder.
B: doesn't care about the environment.
C: is obsessive about a rose garden.

Obsessive about a rose garden is the right answer.

Day 330 of 365

I don't have a Costco card and never have. My mom has a Costco card. My daughter has one, too. (They lived together so they're on the same membership. I think that's how that works.)

I don't know much about Costco. I know they sell items in big sizes. I know some people swear by them. But that's about it.

But I learned more today. I visited my daughter and we went to Costco. Unfortunately, I was the one whose cash was being used. Being used and being spent quickly, mostly on fruits and veggies. It was quite an experience watching folks buy huge boxes and bags of snacks and sweets. (The pies particularly looked mighty tasty.) I was quite proud of myself for not partaking in the huge unhealthy food purchases. $75 in fruits and veggies was plenty for me. Even with my daughter and I splitting the produce, my refrigerator is pretty well full.

I did enjoy one sweet purchase. I ran out to the only Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory in Boise. If you've been reading my blog, you know my obsession with the apples. I bought (and ate) a Butterfinger one. Although I certainly could have had my choice of many.

Day 329 of 365

Like eating a cloud.

An expression I never heard before, but one that came out of my husband's mouth last night.

We have this Mexican restaurant in town, Alejandra's. It's a small place tucked into the long stucco building that houses an auto repair shop, a Mexican store, the post office, the senior citizen center, and the hardware store. Right there on main street, the building is probably as old as the town. We're talking old, with each business getting its own little hole. When people talk about hole-in-the-wall places, I think of this Mexican restaurant. It has only been around a few years, but it's our go-to place for Mexican food. Great food at reasonable prices.

Great food and great specials my husband likes, particularly on Tuesdays. He loves their tacos and on Tuesday is all-you-can-eat tacos. Last night he again enjoyed the delicious all-you-can-eat tacos with rice and beans that cost something like $7.99. He was in heaven.

He has an obsession with the tacos, but an even bigger obsession with their rice. He's not a big rice fan, particularly of Spanish rice. But he loves the rice at Alejandra's. Every single time we're there he raves about the rice. So after he paid the bill and we were getting ready to go, he leaves the table. Not out the door, not to the restroom. To the kitchen.

He went to the kitchen to talk to the gal who makes the rice. Wanted to know how she did it. Told her how delicious it was. And told her it was like eating a cloud. I kind of think I know what he meant, but the poor gal with the broken English may not have understood.

I don't know about rice being like a cloud, but I am starting to think my head is in the clouds with all the quilt blocks I keep putting together...

Sew Quick and Easy Potholders - Day 328 of 365, Tutorial Tuesday

I'm not sure how and why I started these tutorials, but now that I'm many months into them it's getting more difficult to try and come up with something creative every week. And then there are those days I don't feel well enough to talk to anyone and it's difficult to keep the cheeriness in my voice on a video.

I'm not sure if the cheeriness is there today, but something else is - a background noise.

I usually plan on filming the tutorials ahead of time. Every Thursday I tell myself I'll film, and I don't. Then it becomes Friday when I'm sure I'll get it done. Friday usually goes by and when Saturday or Sunday rolls around I start to feel a bit panicky.

But I get it done. Typically it is when laundry is running in the washer and my hubby is downstairs watching TV. I'll call down to him, letting him know I'm filming the tutorial and will be closing the sewing room door. That leaves me alone with no noises but the loud wall clock, ticking away.

Except this time. I tried to raise my voice over the noise. It didn't work. I tried to repeat things more than once, hoping I could bypass the noise coming from right outside the sewing room door, but it was no use.

Looking for something else? Check out some of my other kitchen sewing and crafting projects!

Disclosure: Deb's Days is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites. This means that, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you new sewing and crafting content.

After some major editing, the little bawl baby (AKA kitty cat) can still be heard about two minutes into the video. You can find the step-by-step how to tutorial for the quick and easy quilted potholder sewing project here:

Day 327 of 365

I spent today trying to figure out what to write. Which then got me wondering about this whole writing thing.

As I look past Day 365, will I continue writing several paragraphs each day? Writing every day, even when things aren't exciting, has been challenging. Do I talk about me? Do I talk about things around me, work, sewing? Or do I complain?  The daily writing has kept my mind active and alive, like exercise of the brain, so some type of writing will probably need to stay.

But it sure would be nice not to have to create something out of thin air. Typically when I sit down to write, the words flow (although sometimes slowly) and somehow, without a clear direction, wind up tying into the picture of the day.

Not today. Random thought about what happens in March don't really tie into today's picture.

I've cut up some of those blocks I filed a couple days back. I combined them with some of my scraps and have sewn them together into different colored blocks. Add some white sashing and borders and I see a colorful kid's quilt in the making.

Day 326 of 365

Six weeks and counting. In six weeks, my take-a-picture-every-day-to-see-that-I-have-lived goal ends. Knowing that the end is near is making me think even more about what the next step will be.

I'm still sure taking a picture every day is a keeper. Getting up every day knowing I had to take a picture is why I'm still around. It's why I'm doing quilts for charity and why I'm back working. It's the thing that has made me look up and see - really see - the world around me. If it wasn't for the picture a day thing, my head would be down and the most exciting thing I would have seen would have been dust on the floor or cracks in the pavement.

One change I'm contemplating is sometimes doing more than one picture a day. Over the past year there have been days where I wanted to take several pictures. So the next year might hold more than one a day every once in  a while.

Actually, today's picture sort of falls into that category. I took a picture of the $3 Target amaryllis when I bought it, and now nine days later there is some obvious growth. I thought the difference was striking enough to post the picture today as well as the picture I took when I first bought it on Day 317.

January 13

January 22