Great news!

Anney texted me on Friday and asked if we'd like to FaceTime this weekend. Of course I said yes but was curious as to the reason. I knew they had something to tell us because we had just talked to them last Sunday and usually do the video call every other week. Well, the exciting news is that they're expecting a baby in April! So very exciting!  Finley was cute when he showed us the picture of the ultrasound and told us the baby is in mommy's tummy. When asked what he thought they should name the baby he said "Lucy" because he wants a little sister. Boy or girl? We don't care. We'll love him/her so much either way. This is going to be SO hard to have a new little one that far away though. Time to figure out how to (a) earn more money or (b) spend less and save more so that we can go visit the wee one.  Such a blessing!  They want to surprise the rest of the family in November when we're all together so we're not supposed to say anything. I think Finley will slip before then and say something when they're having FaceTime chats but we promised not to say anything to anyone. That's a hard secret to keep. I want to tell everyone I know that I'm getting another grandbaby to love!

Finley is super excited about Halloween, still over a month away. Anney made him the cutest costume, Kai from the Lego Ninjago movie. Chad says he wears the costume all the time.  He's going to have it worn out before Halloween ever comes!  I miss those times with my boys. I always made their costumes too and it was a fun time. Now I'm an old grinch and don't much like the holiday.

After that excitement Derek, Shelby and Zoe arrived for our Sunday dinner. We were celebrating Derek's birthday (for the second time) and he had asked for "brinner" which is breakfast for dinner. I always have to make him a raspberry white chocolate cheesecake for his birthday so that was dessert. During dinner Derek asked us if we'd be willing to watch Zoe on Thursdays. Of course we jumped at the opportunity and said yes!  Shelby wants to taking training and licensing to become a travel agent. She's interested in that plus is looking for a way to make some money while at home. It will be quite a few years before Derek is earning a good salary and so they're working hard and trying to make things happen.  Doug and I have had a huge hole in our hearts since our Finley moved away and Thursdays have been really hard because that was our special day with him. Now we get to spend it with our sweet Zoe!  Derek comes up to Weber County on Thursdays to teach and so will just bring her with him and then pick her up on the way home in the evening. It will be harder than when we had Finley because we're three years older and I'm sure not as mobile as I was then (stupid knee!) but Doug is usually home on Thursdays and can do the floor thing. Between the two of us we'll manage fine. We're just thrilled to spend more time with the sweetheart and get to know her better before they leave in less than a year.

The big apple

The apples on our tree are huge this year! We've sure been enjoying them. Doug does a great job keeping it sprayed. Some of them are still wormy and some of them that don't look wormy still are because the nasty little buggers go right up the core and you can't tell. Oh well, we just always cut them first and it works out okay. I still have way too much apple butter, applesauce and apple pie filling on the shelves from previous years so I guess we'll just eat and share these this year.

Zoe came to play with me tonight. Her parents wanted to go see Ragtime (the latest musical that Derek did music direction for). She was such a sweetheart and I had fun playing with her. She'll eat anything you put in front of her (such a difference from trying to find anything that Finley would eat). After dinner we went for a stroll around the block and there was a beautiful sunset. I snapped a picture with my phone which didn't do it justice but it helps me remember that fun time with my special little girl. I was nervous that she wouldn't want to go to bed since the last time I tried putting her to bed here was not fun. This time she didn't let out a peep and went right to sleep. Yay!

Derek's birthday

 We had a fun day with Derek, Shelby and Zoe today. I've been wanting to visit Silver Lake up Big Cottonwood Canyon for years. Mom and Dad used to go up there quite often and Greg fishes there as well. It sounded like a fun place to visit in the fall. Since it was Derek's birthday we invited them along and took a picnic.  Doug even made a yummy almond cake for the occasion.

Shelby asked if I'd take family pictures of them since I had a "fancy" camera. I told her that a fancy camera did not a photographer make but I'd do my best. I think I ended up taking about 70 shots and there were a few that worked out okay. The lighting wasn't the best and Zoe definitely didn't want to pose and smile but it was still fun.

Shelby dressed Zoe up in the beautiful dress that the Ostlers brought back from Scotland for her. Such a beautiful dress that she'll only be able to wear a few times before she outgrows it. That's why Shelby wanted some pictures taken with Zoe wearing it.

I think the area would be stunning in a wet year when the colors are more vibrant but it was still a beautiful setting. Shelby said she's been there in the spring and the lake is about twice the size as it was today. I really want to go back in the spring. Derek said that the hills just beyond there at Brighton ski resort are covered with wildflowers in the spring and I'd love to go up and photograph them. I'm a better flower/door/building photographer than a people photographer!

There's a boardwalk nearly all the way around the lake (which is why mom and dad would go up there to walk) and so it was easy walking and a nice walk to enjoy the beauties of nature without having to overdo it. I'm not in shape right now so this was perfect for me.  It was a really fun day with family!

Crafty

  Jerri and I escaped for a while today and went to the  Utah Quilt Guild show at the Davis Conference Center in Layton. I've never been to this one before. We had a great time in the vendor's area. The area is about an eighth of the size of the one in SLC in May but we still had fun looking. One of the first stops was at a pottery booth. I'd read three of the author's books (multi-talented man who is an author as well as a potter) and so was interested to see his pottery. I found a great magnetic pin bowl that read "I quilt so I don't kill people." Oh, so true. I also bought a larger bowl; not sure what I'll do with it but I couldn't resist. It had a portion of an Alfred Tennyson poem on it along with flowers and it made me think of my mom quoting me Tennyson so I had to have it. Other than that we spent a lot of time at a booth selling rulers to do quilting on home machines. It was fascinating and Jerri bought a bunch but I'd already spent my money. If it's something she likes (we both played with them a bit there and they were fun) I may get some later. I'd really like to be able to do some quilting on my own machine, especially since I bought the new one with the big throat for that purpose. We didn't want to pay the $5.00 fee to see the 40 or so quilts (especially since we could see several without paying the fee...) but there were some beautiful ones to inspire me.  Jerri had made us matching owl bags and many of the quilters there commented on them. 

I'm trying to get my purple batik quilt put together to put on the bed in my office/spare room. I've got about 30 of 80 blocks done and up on the design wall. I think I'm going to replace some of the lighter ones though with some darker pieces from my stash. I think I'm going to call it Shadow Play!

I'm also working on a crocheted afghan to go in the room. I have way too many hobbies and not enough time to do them all, but it's nice to always have a project to work on. I guess I'm too much like mom that way. She always had a bad case of "startitis" and I think it's an inherited trait!

Ramblings

Moon Lake, here we come!  Well, in July 2019 that is.  I talked to Julie on Friday and made our reservations for next year. I’m SO excited. I really missed going this summer but when the choir tours that just takes too much of Doug’s vacation time and we can’t do both. I went ahead and reserved three cabins although I don’t know yet that we’ll need all three. It’s hard to plan life 10 months in advance! Derek, Shelby and Zoe will be coming for sure and that will be fun to introduce the little one to our happy place. I hope that Chad, Anney and Finley can come but that’s pretty unlikely with them taking time off in May for our Disneyland trip.  I’ll invite Matt and Sherlyn too but doubt that they’ll want to come. No matter who comes we’ll have a wonderful time.

Derek’s gang came up on Sunday for our family dinner. It was fun to have them but sad that there were only the five of us. We took “sad” pictures to send to Matt and Chad. Zoe was very confused when we were all being sad and it made us laugh! She’s getting so big and learning new things every day. She eats with relish and enjoys anything put in front of her. She’s not crawling yet but is scooting, rolling, and getting where she wants to be. She’s growing up way too fast.

Derek had a Skype call today with the head of the theory department at CUNY (City University of New York) and said it went really well. While he hasn’t officially applied anywhere yet for his doctoral program it seems to be looking more and more like he’ll end up in New York. They’ll live out of the city, probably out of the state, in New Jersey or somewhere and he’ll have a long commute but downtown NY is no place to raise a family.  Time will tell if they end up there or somewhere else but at any rate it’s getting to be real. By this time next year Doug and I will be the only ones left in Utah. That’s going to be hard.

I’m getting the urge to pick up my cross stitching again. I haven’t worked on any cross stitch projects for well over a year, probably closer to two. I have so many things going at once but that has never stopped me from starting something else! I promised myself that I wouldn’t start a new cross stitch project until I finished the family tree that I started probably four (or more) years ago.  I’m SO close to being done with it. I got discouraged when I realized how much it would cost to frame it and so stopped working on it. I think I’ve finally decided to just sew a border on it and make a wall hanging. Who says that it has to be framed, right?  Hopefully I’ll have a finish within the next few weeks with a picture to prove that I got it done!

Speaking of family trees, I’m also vowing to get back to my genealogy research. There are times and seasons for everything but I’ve been neglecting that and spending time on things that really don’t matter. My Crohn’s flares have prevented me from attending the temple like I want to but I feel if I’m working on family history and finding names for temple work that I’m still participating in this important work.  Time to shift priorities again!

One last thing. Tonight as Doug and I read together in the New Testament a portion of a verse (John 12:35) jumped out at me and I’ve been pondering it since.   “...for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.”  Plain and simple yet profound. Where am I walking?

A bit of down time

After more than three weeks of a very busy work schedule it felt rather nice to have a few days off. I had declared last Friday a "mental health day" and so wouldn't have worked anyway but it worked out. Doug and I decided to go to Farmington Bay Bird Refuge and explore. They have a brand new education center that had only been open for three days. Unfortunately we saw very few birds and it was rather hot with smoky/hazy skies from all the wildfires surrounding us so we didn't stay long. We'll go back when the weather cools and maybe will have better luck birding. We went to Station Park and had some lunch and then went to see a movie (an annual event for us) and saw Christopher Robin. It was cute and poignant and we really enjoyed it.

Saturday I still didn't have work so decided to start on a new quilt for the twin bed in my office/spare room. I didn't realize that some of the fabric pieces had snowflakes printed on them so I may be making another quilt next year for the summer months but by the time I finish this one there will probably be snow on the ground so it will be appropriate! Notwithstanding the snowflakes I love the fabric and the colors. I had purchased some yarn about three years ago to make an afghan and never got around to it. Imagine my surprise when I realized that the yarns matched my new fabric very well. And then today while working on the quilt I remembered that I had purchased a purple wall hanging kit about five years ago. I dug it out, it's also done with batik fabrics and the colors match perfectly.  It was all meant to be. I need to get busy and finish up my purple room!

Yesterday afternoon we were able to Face Time with Chad, Anney and Finley.  That did my heart good. I'm still missing that little boy something fierce and it's good to see his sweet face and watch his silly antics. Once again I'm grateful for technology!

A few weeks ago Trudy Cragun (a sweet German sister in our ward) approached me and said she had a "doily" she'd like me to have. She knows that I love all things handmade, that I have German ancestry, and that I loved our trips to Germany.  Her accent is still so thick after all these years in America (and thickens up even more after her annual trip back home) and it's fun to talk to her. Anyway, yesterday she brought me two beautiful Hardanger pieces. I was flabbergasted! They're gorgeous. She said one of her relatives made them but Trudy has so many she wanted to share. Wow! The ecru one is a table topper and is about 30" square. The pink one is especially beautiful and is about 13". I think I'm going to have the pink one framed. It's so delicate and I don't want it to get dusty. I can hang it in my purple room since I have touches of pink in all the batik fabrics.

My heart is healing

My heart is healing thanks to family, friends and technology. I still miss Chad, Anney and Finley every day but it's not as painful as it was at first. It helps that we've been able to FaceTime with Finley once (and he took us on a tour of his new house) and they've been good about sending pictures and posting videos. I'm excited to go visit them in October (only six more weeks!) but hope we don't meet any critters during our stay. Anney sent a picture of a lizard in her kitchen sink and Chad has already killed one scorpion. Shudder!

We've been able to spend a bit more time with our precious Zofia, (Zoe, Zofie, Zosia, etc) which has helped a lot. Doug and I went down to Murray last Thursday for a few hours before choir so we could play with her. We then ate a quick dinner at Zupa's, I dropped him off at rehearsal and then headed home. The traffic was horrendous though so I think next time we decide to do that I'll have him drop me off at the train station and I can ride the train home and he can drive home later when the traffic has calmed down a bit. Being on the freeway between 4-7PM anymore is just a nightmare. I'm sure it's bad for the morning commute too and I'm never out them. I keep telling Doug that we're moving to Star Valley, Wyoming where they are fewer people and a lot less traffic congestion!

I've been super busy with work for the last three weeks (a true blessing because my checks will pay for our trip to Tucson) but now I don't have any this week. I was supposed to accomplish a lot in my sewing room but it hasn't happened yet. I did throw together a keyboard cover for Chad's keyboard so it wouldn't get scratched up on the trip to Tucson. His friend Kayla Strong and her mom came and picked up their car and the remainder of their stuff on Friday night and took a road trip down to Tucson and delivered it to Chad and Anney. So very nice of them!

Today I got to play with Zoe while Derek and Shelby went to a movie and that was more fun than sewing anyway!  She has such a personality! We went to Walmart so she could see Grandpa and of course she charmed everyone in the store and the pharmacy. She fell asleep on the way home and then after she woke up we played inside for a while, I fed her, and then we went outside until they came to get her. She's such a sweetheart and I'm glad we're getting to see more of her now. 

My current sewing project is a little dolly quilt for her for her birthday. I pieced a play quilt and will take it to my long arm quilter this week for Zoe but then wanted to make/buy a dolly and then make a matching dolly quilt and pillow for her gift. I love making homemade gifts from the heart. She's probably still a little young for a dolly and blanket but she'll grow into them. I just wasn't happy with the baby quilt I made for Zosia when she was born. It was cute but muted in color and I wanted something a little brighter so made her a miniature version of the 30s quilt that is on my bed. Much brighter and happier! I'm just sewing together 2.5" squares to make the dolly quilt.