Quietly, Quietly

Both kids are gone this weekend and, boy, is it quiet here. Dan and I are finding our way; we went to church, ran errands, etc. and were fine. But, it sure is quiet! Carrie's 23rd birthday is tomorrow and she is spending it with her roomies and having fun. Ashley is with her BF and they had a fun day shopping in Pasadena, visiting his family who live very near Carrie, seeing his new hotel and new room and having dinner here locally at their favorite restaurant. I am working on my log cabin quilt. Pastor Larry gave a great message tonight on worry. I learned a lot and will focus less on worry going forward. And guilt! No more guilt! Those who know me know I am frequently "packed for a guilt trip." Hmmm . . .

Friday Night

So, it's a weekend without the family and, wow, is it different! Lucy is quite beside herself that Dan isn't here to take her out front for her nightly sniff, etc. Guess I'll have to break down and go out with her. Ended a very rough week at work with the guy from Transport getting into my face because I let a client come in after we were to be closed because they came here from Idaho and got stuck in traffic. Not very "client-friendly" now is he? Trying to forget him. We reduced our workforce by another 100 or so staff on Wed. Very rough time for all. And, my team now has to take one day off a week without pay. That makes it very tough to cover the phones and the walk in clients. But the worst of it was that my counterpart in NY, Kathy, was laid off. What a loss. Can't think about it without shaking my head. But, tomorrow is a quilt class with Nancy and Joyce, so am going to really enjoy that. Scott had his surgery on Thursday, so fingers crossed that he is well enough for Nancy to be gone for a bit on Saturday. Glad he's through it and pray that he heals well and the pain is GONE. Please God, let the pain be gone.

Presidents Day

Ah, how lovely it is to have a three-day weekend. Been running around like a mad woman for two days and decided to take it very easy today. Am going to work on my Feb. block of Tisket a Tasket plus pick out my lights and darks for my log cabin quilt. Our class is next Saturday and I want to be ready! Am sending a recipe for Natalie's bridal shower next weekend; so sad I don't live in TX and can't be part of all the festivities. But, we will be there soon for the big event. Carrie is back in Azusa; she had to work today - she was off on Friday. Ashley is out shopping with Christopher. Dan is dozing on the couch. That's OK; he fixed the heater today, so he can do anything he wants the rest of his day off, too. He and Scott went to breakfast at the Broken Yolk this morning. I finished the PBS version of "Jane Eyre" this morning. Thank you, Ilise, for loaning it to us. It was amazing; kudos to PBS for their remakes of some of our Jane Austin faves. Happy Presidents Day to all!

"Sew" Happy!

I had a great weekend: breakfast with my new growth group ladies, shopping for quilting fabric with Nancy, then having a party with the Heltons, Chrissie and Matthew, Ashley and Chris and Miss Violet. We hit Costco and figured out dinner, amidst about 1,000 other shoppers - it was Saturday and we should have known - then came back to our house and cooked it. We had ham, mashed potatoes, salad and Dan's delicious chocolate chip cookies. And, then we played baseball - our current favorite card game. Today I was able to begin my first square in Anne Sutton's Tisket a Tasket mystery square of the month program. I cut the background out wrong, so had to order another half yard. Love my new Moda "Hartfield" fabric for my log cabin quilt class at Quilt in a Day and can't wait to begin. Looks like Eleanor Burns has an interesting way to sew the "logs" together; that will be tricky to learn I bet. But, fun as Nancy and Joyce will be learning it, too. Looking forward to a great new week, because I am "sew" happy!

TGIF

It's Friday; thank heaven I made it through the week. It was tough work-wise, but the days flew by and I am thankful for that. I learn more and become more confident every day. One thing I know for sure: I do enjoy helping the clients and providing "superior customer service." It is truly rewarding. Tonight is the night of the big dinner/dance/auction in Tucson. I have been there this night for the past six years and it just feels weird not to be a part of it. I hope everything went well and that it was a big success. Amanda wasn't there this year either, so that helped as she was my buddy walking the show and having the celebratory drink and dancing when all the hard part was over. I am looking forward to hearing all about it on Monday. Tomorrow is breakfast with my new Growth Group lady friends, then I pick up Nancy and we are going to Quilt in a Day to buy fabric for our log cabin quilt class coming up later this month. I am getting the new Moda line with pretty fabrics named after Jane Austin characters. Joyce is in Tucson, so we will miss her as she is always up for a fabric jaunt. And, a big woo-hoo to Anne Sutton for the February mystery "Tisket a Taskit" quilt block for 2009. I spoke with Sue and she is going to make it and send me her patterns; now that is a good sister! (Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters!!!)