Getting ready

The batik quilt is finished!  It's quilted, bound, washed, dried and labeled, ready to be given to its new owners.  The pattern is called Bits and Pieces.  I have used this pattern several times, using various fabrics.  Once I had prints with large vegetables.  Another time the recipient asked for pink and purple.  And I did one using some of these same fabrics, incorporating the leftovers from that one into the current project.  I really like these colors and hope my friends will, too.

Several quilts are waiting for my attention.  I'm not sure which I will work on next.

I finished dealing with Liz's papers yesterday, so the desk where I was working is clear, ready for E to use when she comes.

Last night we pulled out the floor plans for the green and blue rooms, placing the various pieces of furniture in different configurations, trying to determine the best arrangement for each room.  Adding a queen bed to the guest room presents a challenge and will probably require us to rent a storage unit, at least temporarily.  I've been reading about mattresses, looking at various websites, thinking about what I want to replace our current mattress.  Randy has taken on the task of moving the TV with all its accoutrements downstairs.  He will also put locks on various cabinets to keep little hands from getting into cleaners and other harsh products.

Meandering

Yesterday I finished quilting the batik quilt.  I chose to do a meandering free-style machine quilting, which seemed to fit the quilt better than my usual diamond grid pattern.  It's a little harder on my hands because I have to move the quilt around under the needle without the help of the feed dogs, but if I spread the work over several days it helps.  I plan to begin binding it today.  Tonight is our turn to host the dinner/game group, so some house cleaning needs to be done first.  I think we will play "Old Maid," a game requiring little thought, no reading of small print, and not much strategy.  Only one other couple is coming.

We watched "Love and Mercy" this week, a movie about Brian Wilson of Beach Boys fame.  His creativity during the 1960's was outstanding; he had mental health problems but music poured out of him.  The film's director chose Paul Dano to portray Wilson during the 60's and John Cusack as Wilson in the 80's.  Great choices!  We didn't find it distracting at all to have two different actors for the changing time periods.  Each was equally believable.  Dano even sang well.

Work continues on clearing out closets and other spaces.  I cancelled my trip to Phoenix next week, as K will not be out of town after all.  So I will be able to sort through more books, clothes and other things.

Closets

As we prepare for family visits this summer, I worked in a couple of closets yesterday trying to clear space for guests to put their clothes.  Some gift bags went in the recycling bin, others in the donation pile.  Ditto with books, class notes from college days, CD's, and general stuff.  I sent pictures to our girls asking, "Do you want this?"  But much remains!  I had planned to work just a bit then get to the quilting, but I was on a roll so sorted through things till it was time to make supper.  As I prepared lentil soup and cornbread, I watched my first-day-of-summer video.  Can you guess what it is?  Yes, that original summer blockbuster, "Jaws."

Father's Day weekend, 2016

The Hawaiian print tablecloth is finished and on the table.  It emerged from the dryer without the lumps seen with its previous backing fabric.  The time spent re-doing it was worth it.

The A's lost the game Saturday, but we enjoyed sitting in the stands sharing the event with friends.  Another friend, Dena, called during the game to invite us over for supper.  We accepted and ate delicious mixed-grill at their house.

Last night while we watched the NBA finals game 7 (the Warriors lost) I pin-basted the batik quilt and now must decide how to quilt it.  A diamond grid?  A large meander?  A small meander or loops?

This week I plan to continue cleaning out closets, recycling or donating things we no longer need.

A good week

Today is Friday.  The Hawaiian print tablecloth is quilted, waiting for the finished edges.  I bought the binding fabric for the batik quilt.  I had lunch with a couple of friends on Tuesday.  Randy and I went to see "Love & Friendship," based on a Jane Austen story.  The heroine, Lady Susan, was no Elizabeth Bennett!   Yesterday I bought a new cell phone.  My old TracFone is 2G, and by the end of the year AT&T will have upgraded their service in this area so my phone will no longer work. I bought another simple phone and transferred my phone number and remaining minutes from the old phone to the new one.  Last night as I worked on my new phone Randy watched "The Water Diviner," with Russell Crowe.  He was recording the Warriors' game 6 in the NBA Finals, but when we hadn't heard any fireworks from Oracle Arena by 9 we figured they had lost.  We may yet watch the game, though.  This morning I have done laundry and vacuumed; this afternoon I plan to sew.

I am reading Fourteen, by Stephen  Zanichkowsky, one of fourteen children. Subtitled "growing up alone in a crowd" this memoir is hard to read.  There was so much unhappiness in this family, lots of physical punishment, no affection shown by the parents to the children or by the children to each other, just over whelming fear.  I can't read too many pages at one sitting.

Tomorrow we will go to the A's game with some friends.

Monday, Monday

Today begins the last week of school.  My piano students will get some end-of-term note tests and general assessment so I can send progress reports to their parents.  They both plan to take some lessons this summer, but between their travels and mine there won't be many times we're both available.  I need to prepare a letter regarding summer lessons.  Yesterday I checked the school district website and discovered classes resume early this fall, on Monday, August 22.  I think that's the earliest I've seen for first day of school, two weeks before Labor Day.

Today I will take a walk, do laundry, record a song for Rod, work on the piano lesson things, and maybe buy the binding fabric when I go out to get milk. The flower tablecloth is waiting to be sandwiched and quilted.  There's always something to do!

Play-Doh, music and signing

Thursday night, while K was out of town, E and I finished the Charles Wysocki puzzle we'd been working on this week.  All three of our daughters still enjoy working jigsaw puzzles, and we all like the Americana style of Wysocki.  Figuring out a landscape scene is easier (and more fun for me) than an abstract drawing.  I wonder if Lynn has finished her puzzle with the ruffle edge pieces.

Friday I kept e home with me and E worked from home, so e had brief interactions with her mom all day.  After breakfast I played a Raffi album on my iPad, and we sang and danced.  Well, I sang along but we both had fun walking around the family room, swinging our arms, stamping our feet.  Then we brought her little table into the kitchen area; I wanted to let her play with her Play-Doh without having to worry about getting it on the carpet.  The set includes six small containers of the clay, each a different color, as well as some animal molds like cookie cutters and three rollers that put texture/patterns on the clay.  It was fun to see her play with this.  She was intrigued with making balls and rolling "snakes" we could form into letters.

Seeing e use sign language still surprises me, but it does help her communicate.  She can sign "help" when she needs assistance and "more/again" when she wants more food or another reading of a book.  One of my favorite signs is when she points to her wrist then to her mouth, "time to eat!"

I head home this afternoon, eager to see Randy, but I know I will miss this little family.  Fortunately I have tickets to return the end of the month!