Snowmageddon!!

WOW -- that's all I can say about the snow! Where the heck did it all come from? I don't even know when it started, but it was early in the morning, and the girls and I had a lovely walk in the snow. And then it kept snowing and snowing and snowing and snowing. 

The wild and long snowstorm

I went out to shovel at 2 PM and shoveled for about 40 minutes. I cleared half the driveway. I had put the car in the garage in the morning because it would make it easier to clear the driveway. This was the end of the driveway -- that's how much snow was in the street! Only once before did we have that much snow in the street. Our street didn't get plowed within 24 hours, and we were supposed to go to a quilt retreat on Monday morning. We had to postpone the retreat by a day because my car had very low clearance and I couldn't get out of the driveway!

The amount of snow in the street at 2 PM

It almost seemed that as fast as I was shoveling, it was being filled in again! Last night, when I shoveled, I did one swipe with the shovel where I had started! Look how much had reaccumulated! 

I could barely keep up with the falling snow

KU went out and did some shoveling in the afternoon. I went out again at 7 PM and shoveled for another half hour or so, and there was as much snow in the driveway as there had been at 2 PM. How is that possible? What does one do with the snow? Get a shovel, bend, and lift! Those snowbanks along the side of the driveway are a tad tall now. 

Oh my gosh -- look at the depth of snow on the house! When this stuff finally starts to melt, we're going to have icicles on the front of our home. GRRRRR! We do need to resolve that insulation issue. 

The snow on the roof

So at 3 AM or thereabouts, the plow came by. Actually, it's a massive backhoe loader. The sidewalk plow had already been by, so that is a huge bonus! My tax dollars are going to an excellent cause! But there was a massive windrow at the bottom of the drive. I know it doesn't look too big in that photo, but it was substantial. 

After the plow passed

Shortly after, the backhoe loader came back to take care of the windrow. And it's not always the windrow's height, but its width! Because we're on a curve, it can be a crazy situation. I happened to catch him cleaning the windrow, which is another new thing for this year and well worth every penny of tax dollars I paid for that service. 

Clearing the windrow

And this is what we are left with. The guarantee was to have a 10-foot opening at the end of the driveway. I assume that is the width of the blade. I know I can't live with that bit on the right-hand side, so I'll be out later to get rid of it. That'll be easy - just push it out in the pile at the side of the curb. No lifting required - or not much. 

The end of our driveway is clear (ish!)

I've already been out shoveling again for 40 minutes and cleared almost all of the top part of the driveway above the sidewalk. And the front step. At least when I was done, NO MORE snow had fallen, so it was much more satisfying. I figure it'll take me another 40 minutes to clear the bottom part of the driveway, and that's OK. I rather enjoy being outdoors, and again, if you dress appropriately, you are warm. No need to overdress with all the exertion, but my hands were cold at one point, and I had to get a warmer pair of gloves. 

I will say that they were super fast with the plowing. We are one of the last streets to be plowed because we are a cul-de-sac. They showed up at 3 AM, but the sidewalk plow had already passed, and then they came back to clear the windrows. It was very efficient! 

I know there's going to be a ton of people complaining to the city about the amount of snow. The last time I checked, the city isn't responsible for the amount of snow, and there are only so many places to put it. Get over it -- this is CANADA! 

It makes me think of one winter in Montreal. There was a brutal snowstorm, and the city couldn't keep up. I was on my way home, almost at the condo, when I got stuck. People were just abandoning their cars in the middle of the street, as did I. It was a residential street, and with the help of others, I got it out the next day. 

Speaking of snow - look at this girl! She is super happy to be outside, and I don't know how many times she has gone out and plunked herself in the snow. The Husky? Oh - she was asleep in her warm bed in the house!

MOM - I love the snow

The next quilt waiting to be quilted on the long arm was a big one with a Minky backing, which I wasn't too keen on loading, so I loaded a small wallhanging of mine instead. And got it quilted before we started the Virtual Retreat. 

One of my quilts - DONE

That quilt got trimmed, and now I have a stack of FOUR small projects that are trimmed and waiting for the binding to be stitched on. I ran out of the small tags I use for my projects, so these are on hold. The tags are in the mail, but where? They gave me a tracking number, but I don't know how they were sent. I'll see if I can figure it out today. Of the four projects, three have been hanging around for a very long time. It's good that they are now quilted. Think PROGRESS!!

Projects waiting to be bound

As someone mentioned in the comments, small successes are actually ENORMOUS successes because you get into the habit of finishing. You can see progress, and it all counts!!!

I was getting tired towards the end of the Virtual Retreat, so I tidied up all the threads, fabric, and other bits and pieces from the recently finished projects. That included rolling up this partial ball of yarn that I had been using. 

Rolling up leftover yarn

I had a great discussion with someone about to-do lists, and I'm going to try using an app. It's going to take me time to ease myself into it, but I do like the fact that the list will be with me always. But that didn't stop me from creating a written list on a small clipboard I found while decuttering the office. 

My week's goals in Studio B

I am a very visual person, and the fact of handwriting those items on the list is almost enough for me to mentally commit to them. It's like if I write it down, I'll remember it. If I don't write it down, I'm not committed. I also love my bigger visual to-do list with the main projects I want to complete this year. 

Of the 21 items on the list last week, I think 6 were not completed. But that's OK. I rolled them over to this week, and there are only 12 items on the list. 

By the way, that big quilt with the double-wide Minky backing? It's now loaded on the long arm, and I'll get to it today or tomorrow. 

I have to laugh because I started to burn my Christmas pie candle, and I can definitely say that yesterday I was burning the candle at three ends as I attempted to use the long arm, the embroidery machine, and the sewing machine at the same time! 

My Christmas Pie candle

That is always a challenge because one or the other needs attention, like a new bobbin, trim fabric, or whatever. 

Once I had finished tidying up, I put some items on the cutting table to work on today. My Scan n Cut fabric cutting mat needed to be cleaned. After cutting all that foam, it wasn't very sticky. I had attempted to clean it with non-alcoholic baby wipes, but it was still unusable. I was going to use a glue stick to restick it, but the girls suggested I get the LA Totally Awesome out and use that instead. OH MY GOSH -- with mere minutes that mat was super sticky again! There was so much lint and fuzz from the foam! What a TOTALY AWESOME product. You can only buy it at Dollar Tree. And so that mat lives to see another cutting session!

Using LA Totally Awesome to clean my digital cutting mat

Spin class was canceled this morning because the gym didn't open until 6 AM. That would allow the equipment to clear the parking lot. And I don't mind, I got my exercise from shoveling. Now that all the sidewalks are also clear, it's going to be easy to walk the dogs. I think we might bypass the forest this morning - the snow is DEEP. We had record snowfall, with 40-50 cm. For those who understand inches better, like me, that is 15 to 20 inches! Yikes! At least it was light and fluffy, but it was a challenge to shovel because it was also very granular, so unless you threw it OVER the snow bank, it had a tendency to fall back down into the driveway. Not very productive shoveling at times!

I did a little bit of decluttering, but there were other things on my plate, so the decluttering will have to wait another day. No big deal! I got this! 

Today is Monday sewing, and I have a bunch of small projects I'd love to clear up, so that's on the agenda. 

On that note, I'm out of here! 

Have a super day and be safe!!!

Ciao!!!

Be careful what you wish for!!!!

 Oh my— I read the comments every day, though I'm terrible at responding directly. In addition to your comments, I also get spam comments, which I delete when I see them. 

Can you believe this one? It was NOT a general comment, as most spam is -- it picked up on things I said and replied to them as if it were a real person. That's pretty freaky!

I am thrilled to report that I accomplished a lot yesterday. I have almost completed everything for one class. It was a long day, but I needed to get this done. The issue was that I had NOT completed the homework from the previous month, so I had to play catch-up. That was what I did yesterday. And on top of that, it was appliqué, which takes a long time. Thankfully, all the pieces were prepped, so all I had to do was turn a few edges, stick it in place, and then stitch it down. 

Each tree, there are 16 of them, had three pieces of bias to stitch, then the top of the tree. Not a huge task, but it still took hours. 

My November homework for Colour My World is done!

I am almost finished with the December homework, but you can't see it until the class is over. But thank goodness this part is over because I don't want to get behind with this quilt! It's called Colour My World by Wendy Williams, and we will have our final reveal in June. Everyone is doing a great job so far!!!

We got the quilt quilted as well, and it never ceases to amaze me when a rogue coloured thread pops up on the back of the quilt. Where did this come from? Likely the design wall, but that's why I check all quilts as they advance on the machine. It would not be good to have red thread show through to the front. 

A rogue red thread

And since I was done with the appliqué, I was able to put all the appliqué accessories back - the threads, sewing machine feet, etc. That was good and helps to clean up Studio B. The only thing on the cutting table is my SIL's binding. I moved my stuff off the table and will put back my UFO bucket when she's done. 

The cutting table is clear

While I had no issues working with a messy space in the past, those days are behind me. I need CLEAN spaces to work in. And all is good! 

It was a winter wonderland yesterday morning. It was warm and so pretty to walk with the girls. And of course, they are right in their element. They were thrilled!

That Murphy is very snoopy. I had moved the recycling bin into the room so I would remember to empty it. That left a gap between the desks, and the next thing you know, she was snooping around to see if there were any crumbs on the floor. 

MOM -- -I might find something here! 

At some point in the day, Murphy was playing with her pink ball, and it went under Lexi's bed. Murphy is not smart enough to move the bed, so I moved the bed, and she grabbed the ball. Which she immediately tossed in Lexi's bed. 

MOM -- that ball is mine! 

How audacious of her to then assume ownership of Lexi's bed and proceed to move it out into the middle of the room and muss up the blankets. What was that all about? What's mine is mine, and what's yours if mine? Thankfully, Lexi missed that entire escapade!

MOM - -my ball was in the bed - it's mine! 

After coming back from the gym yesterday, I had to shovel the driveway. Remember how excited I was to have the snowplow clear our sidewalks? Well, this is where you need to be careful what you wish for. Yes -- I am still happy that they are plowing the sidewalks; however, it comes with a price. 

I will need to find some reflector stakes to put along the edge of the grass because they can't see the edge, and we have already had grass dug up along the front. Because the snow was wet, big clumps got pushed into our driveway. And they also put salt down, and when I went to shovel, I had to shovel that salt onto the lawn! Yikes!!! I had not thought about that. 

But it's all good—we will make it work. The silver lining was that the entire length of the street had a clear sidewalk, which made walking so much easier. So while there are a few negatives, we'll learn to overcome those, and the best news is that walking this winter should be amazing even if the neighbors don't shovel their sidewalks. By the way, with yesterday's mild temperature, the sidewalks are clear and dry this morning. ALL of them! It's now minus 10 outside!

The plowed sidewalk on our street

But the best part this morning was that, when I went out at 4:45 AM, there was no windrow at the end of the drive! Yes --- that is exciting. Now they are supposed to leave only a 10-foot section without the windrow, but they cleared the entire width. That was a bonus because all that snow had frozen overnight, and it was like a block of ice! Keep in mind that we didn't get much snow, so the windrow would have been very small. 

The end of the driveway was clear after the plow passed

Yes -- I've already been to the gym to work out with Brooke, and now I'm home, getting myself organized because I'm teaching all day. Then home to finish up everything for the Colour My World class, leaving all day Friday to work on the jacket class prep. I told you I have a plan! I can make this work. And then on Saturday afternoon, I can prep some homework for the two show-and-tell sessions on Sunday. Not much to prep - just some sewing, so that is good. 

It will all work out, and then I still have some writing to do and finish my UFOs next week. Thankfully, the number of classes is less and very manageable - the only issue was being away for two weeks. 

And on that note, I'm out of here! 

Have a wonderful day!!!

Ciao!!!

Should we expect cheap prices at the thrift shop?

I know!!! Wasn't that video about the Ro-Ro carriers fascinating? And now we understand why things cost more, and it's cool to think some of our cars crossed the ocean on a boat! Basically a giant floating parking garage! 

I am home. And I'm unpacked! I'm on a tight turnaround, and I didn't want to keep my samples in the suitcase longer than necessary. Plus, I have to do laundry today. So that's all good! The bonus is that I already have almost 1000 steps - something I didn't get many of while I was away. 

But let's take a look at what happened yesterday. 

It was a lovely morning, so I took a LONG walk to the End of the Pier! Actually, I was following another Adventure Lab, and that's what it was called. The beautiful path along the shore, and in total, the walk was about 6 K, which is my usual morning walk with the girls. 

This was the view back towards Lion's Gate Bridge at the End of the Pier!

The End of the Pier

There was a fundraising tree display near that pier, and when I quickly passed it on the way out, I had no idea what this was. It was only when I was walking back that two ladies said, "Oh, these are the gnome trees!" Duh --- I totally get it, but I think I was too close to the trees the first time. Pretty cute! And original - at least to me. 

The gnome trees

Of course, there were loads of seagulls and other waterfowl. It was fascinating to watch them as many flew just above the water's surface. What was that all about? And when they come in for a landing, well, they make loads of noise. 

Seagull along the shore

I had packed up before I left for the walk, so when I got back to the house, I took Mister Bear for one last walk. He is so slow! It's going to be two FAST walks this morning! I can hardly wait. But he is so darn cute! And very much full of attitude! 

Are you talking to me?

I passed this shop on my way to M's house, but, of course, I couldn't take a picture while driving. So what's this all about? A Value Village Boutique? I guess all the high-end stuff goes there. The outfits in the window were very coordinated. I didn't get a chance to stop. 

Value Village Boutique

OK --- a quick Google search reveals they are smaller stores that mostly carry clothing and accessories, not the wide range of items at regular Value Village stores. Now here's the thing about Value Village or any other thrift shop. THRIFT does not mean inexpensive. They have overhead, salaries, and other expenses to deal with. I am not a fan of hearing people complain about prices. Yes—like all stores, you must be careful, and yes, some items are overpriced!

But let's take a puzzle, for example. A good 1000-piece puzzle costs between $20 and $30 today. You can find them at Value Village for $6.99, and if you are a senior or have a coupon, you get 20% off. So, isn't that a bargain? Do you expect them to be $1? You can't even find anything for $1 at the dollar stores any longer. The same with books—buy 5, get 1 free (I think that is the deal). Books are expensive to buy in a store. Books at Value Village are $4-10, depending on the type of book, so that is still a great deal and comparable to a dedicated used bookstore! 

Yes -- some things are "expensive", but look at the price of the comparable item in a regular store. Not cheap! I got a fantastic pair of name-brand black jeans for $6 at Value Village. One must watch, one must compare, and one must be prepared to pay SOME money. And yes, there are things I leave at the store because I don't think it's worth the price they charge! 

Now you might say that everything was donated, so it should be cheaper. Hmmm—did you consider the cost of dealing with those donated items? I would bet that more than half of what is donated is GARBAGE, and they have to pay to have that garbage removed. Never mind the sorting and whatever else they do. They have a HUGE sorting area in each store. They do not just take your items from your donation box and hang them up! There is a processing cost! 

So don't expect things to be cheap. The idea of a thrift store is to search, find a "bargain," but more importantly, to find something that you can't find anywhere else, and hopefully for less money!

And Value Village is a FOR-PROFIT store. It's always been, always will be! It is not a charity shop!

OH - how did I get that picture? It was on the way to the airport. If you are coming or going from Vancouver proper or the north shore, the only way to get to the airport is to go right through downtown. So while I was a passenger in the car, I snapped that photo. 

And then I got to the airport, with my favorite tiles on the bathroom walls. 

Tiles in the Vancouver Airport

I once designed a quilt for A Needle Pulling Thread magazine based on those tiles. I didn't have a picture handy, but a friend happened to be in Vancouver, and I asked her to send me a photo! You can read all about that story here. 

I was sitting almost at the back of the plane, so it took a while to get off. I really, really hate it when people start pushing, and there is NO room to go! Patience!!!!! But I got off, and my luggage came through - again, people pushing! And they line up in the boarding zones way before it's time. What's the rush? We all have a seat and a few seconds here, and there will NOT change your life when boarding or unboarding a plane. If you have connection issues, the airline is aware. And if they are not, make them aware! 

The girls were, of course, very excited to see me. We had stopped at Tim's because I wanted soup. It was later in the evening, and I hadn't eaten much all day. They accidentally gave us three chocolate Timbits. I gave one to Lexi, and she took it outside and hopefully ate it. Murphy just stared at it. WHAT? 

MOM? I'm not allowed to eat people food! 

Usually, she just gobbles anything in front of her! 

And there she is - watching TV again. She likes to bark, depending on what's on, and I'm not usually there to guide her through her exuberance. However, since I was eating my soup, I just said a few words, and she didn't bark once. If I hadn't been there? Well, that would have been a different story. Dogs, like people, need some guidance to help them through stressful situations. DH should know by now. But he lets things go until they have escalated. Sigh...........

MOM - I LOVE the Christmas commercials! 

I couldn't help myself. After I ate, I dug out my Noro yarn afghan. OH!!!! I see I have even started the sashing. I knew exactly where it was, and there were a few other surprises in this bag, as well as a few more in the cupboard where the bag was stored. OK—I need to get that knitting done! 

My Noro yarn afghan

And there's the drawer with all the knitting needles and crochet hooks. Yep—everything's neat and organized! And I know where it is - that's very important. 

Needles and hooks

Speaking of neat and organized, I should mention that the two suitcases are unpacked, but that doesn't mean everything has been dealt with. The items were sorted - what goes in Studio U, what goes to Studio B, and what goes in the laundry. I still have to sort and put away the items. Studio U needs a good clean-up, now that all the events are over for the year. And I want to set up a jigsaw puzzle. 

There are items on the cutting table in Studio B that I'll deal with later today as I work on a customer quilt. 

So this happened last night. It started about midnight, and there are a few inches to contend with this morning. UGH - welcome home to Ontario! 

Winter wonderland

I had a bit of trouble falling asleep, so I got up and read. I had a chuckle because the book I picked to read is set in Toronto, and the family just moved from Vancouver! It's creepy - it's very creepy from the first sentence! Yikes!!!! 

Here's one more blog post from QUILTsocial. Today it's all about another machine embroidery technique called Thread Velvet using the Husqvarna Viking Designer Topaz 65. I LOVE the textured embroideries!!!

Well, on that note, I've got oodles to get done today, and I had better get started! And nice to have the blog back on schedule! 

Have a super day! 

Ciao!!!

Forest bathing at its best

Where are the days going? Yikes-- before we know it, the end of the year will be here. I'm not ready! 

I spotted this on Facebook yesterday, and I thought it was so appropriate for us sewists. This is what happens to me. 

It's all the prep work that takes so much time, and the actual sewing is just a small part of it. 

I have sewn part of the sixth binding onto one of the dog quilts. It was the black one, and I knew I would need more strips, but how many? So I sewed what I could. Then I got stalled doing other things, so I've pulled out some black fabric and I'll get to that later today. 

However, I've completed a customer quilt! That is such a pretty design - I think it is a block of the month. I could try a Google search, but I won't make it, so I don't need to know the pattern. 

Customer quilt - DONE

I have four more customer quilts to get completed by the end of this month. However, a few events are coming up, including some time away, so I don't really have a lot of time. It's all scheduled, so there shouldn't be an issue. 

When I was searching through the thread cupboard, I spotted several spools of thinner thread, and I decided to try winding my own bobbins. And it worked! Those spools were set aside for use on the long arm. I usually use that thin thread for applique, but I have enough set aside in those same colors. I'll take a picture to show you. Each spool did almost three rows - it was glorious and looks fantastic. 

The current EXIT game has been sitting on the kitchen table for a while, and with a lot of coming and going in our house, there really hasn't been a quiet evening to focus on it. Last night was that night. 

Our current EXIT Game

It is a three-circle puzzle, categorized as a moderate difficulty level. The first two puzzles were easy, and we thought we had it covered. Then they start throwing in rogue cards, and you have to figure out which cards to use for which puzzle. We had that figured out, but we also had an issue. We got the riddle, and we were on the right track for the answer, but we missed some visual clues. 

We are getting good at searching everything that comes in the box, and we did - several times, except we missed a couple of minor things in our search, and of course, that's where the answer was! DUH!!!! I hate when that happens - it makes me feel like an idiot, but such is life! Then we went on to solve the following puzzle, and no issues! I feel vindicated!

It was a snowy day yesterday. I don't think our first snowfall of the year has ever been this snowy. It snowed all day, although there wasn't much accumulation. The little guy got out his winter jacket! It's bulky and stiff, and I don't think he likes it, but he needed to go out. 

Grandma - I HATE my winter jacket

Lexi, on the other hand, was prancing around. This is her element! And Murphy was happy too; several times during the day, she went out and just flopped on her stomach on the deck. That girl runs hot!

Mom - Snow, snow, beautiful snow

But then she joined me downstairs and is getting used to the new spot for her rug in Studio B. 

Mom - I need a nap!

OH -- I should mention that while I was working on the long arm, I also had another machine working, but it wasn't an embroidery machine. Nope - it was the digital cutter. 

The Brother Scan n Cut

I hadn't used it in a while, and I needed to get something cut for the Digital Cutter Club. I feel pretty comfortable with it now for the things that I want to do. I still have a lot to learn, and, well, there just isn't enough time. BUT in twenty minutes, I unearthed the cutter from under a stack of batting, found the pattern I needed to cut, cleaned up the image after it was scanned, added seam allowances to the image, and within nineteen minutes, I had my homework ready to show! 

It's never good to leave the homework until the last minute, but what could go wrong? Nothing! I have also developed some good habits, aside from leaving things to the last minute. After a cutting session, you should ALWAYS clean that mat. There is nothing more satisfying than getting out the cutter and having everything ready to go. And yes, even though the mat wasn't too dirty, I cleaned it before putting it away. 

Nothing like starting the day with a clean mat

So I don't need to cut something every month, but when I do want to cut, I need to know how to use it, and so far, so good! Yes, I have three different digital cutters, and I'm okay with that. Each one has a purpose, and the Brother Scan and Cut was the perfect tool for yesterday. 

And now back to the weather! There are still many leaves on the trees, so the forest was quite beautiful. Yep -- I had to go to the grocery store in the afternoon. I know -- who in their right mind walks to the grocery store in a snowstorm? I do! It's not far and I needed a walk. 

Snow on the leaves

And honestly, you never know what you'll find if you look. Remember, we talked about the Tactile Warning plates on the sidewalk? Isn't it nice to know the names of things? I love it!! Well, look at these. Hmmm --- there must be a bar or something on the underside to cause that image with the snow. You would never have seen that from a car! Yes - I've learned a great deal from walking around and then using Google to help me understand. 

A cool pattern on the tactile warning plates

The one thing I've noticed is that I don't really feel those plates when I'm wearing my running shoes. I suppose if I were visually impaired, I would be walking at a slower pace, and I would be feeling for them. But just walking? I don't feel them. And your foot only touches them ONCE when walking by, so you have to be on your toes or you'd miss them. Again, I have zero experience with being visually impaired. Hmm — wouldn't it be interesting to take a walk as a visually impaired person? You would "see" things from a completely different perspective. 

Honestly, how can you not enjoy a walk through the forest on a snowy day? The trees protect you somewhat from the wind. It wasn't super windy, but enough that the snow was nasty on your face. But here? It was forest bathing at its best! 

Forest bathing

More video watching and more reading were accomplished during the day. As well as a long nap! It was just one of those days. My "to-do" list is waiting for me, although it's Monday, so I don't think I'll get too much done on the paperwork side. 

And on that happy note, I'm off to spin class this morning. Stay safe on the roads, as I imagine they are slippery. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

The art of buying bananas

Have you ever had one of those days when you wish you could go back to bed and start over? Yesterday was that day. Now, it wasn't all bad, but things happened that just went wonky!

But first, let's talk about bananas. I'm so confused about the banana issue at the grocery store. I've spoken to several people about it. One person said that at their store, the produce manager takes some of the bunches apart intentionally so those who want only one banana or two can buy those single ones. Then Tammy just mentioned that she bought six singles for HALF PRICE. Totally conflicting stories! Because if the bananas are half-price, they are trying to get rid of those single bananas. And the produce manager wouldn't pull them off the bunches to turn around and sell them at half-price. 

This calls for a personal chat with the produce manager, and I'll also email my nephew. When I use self-checkout, I can NOT get a half-price discount on bananas, so the next time I buy bananas, I will go to the cashier and discuss it. 

You can find anything on Google. I just saw a conversation about buying single bananas. Most of the comments were ridiculous, but here's a good reason some people might want a single banana. They will eat it on the way home or buy it for their lunch. That would likely be at a store where many people work, not in the suburbs. Let's say there were many ENTITLED comments about buying a single banana, but the craziest was - why would I buy a bunch when they ripen simultaneously. Eat them! And the craziest thing was that they liked to purchase odd or even numbers. Well, search for a bunch that meets that requirement! 

I'm the only one who eats bananas in my house, and I buy five or six at a time. Bananas do not go ripe overnight; I eat one daily, so I never waste them or let them get overripe. In the past, we used to waste bananas by not eating them, and they would get super ripe, but since I buy my groceries with intent, that never happens. 

Wow --- so much mystic in the world of grocery shopping. 

I went to the thrift store to buy those two bedspreads I spotted last week. For some reason, my brain wasn't functioning, and as I was cashing out, I handed the person a coupon for 20%. She returned the coupon to me and gave me the senior's discount instead. Oh gosh -- I forgot that Tuesday was senior's day; for some reason, I thought it was Wednesday. I think I was a little flapped because I had just enough time between Zoom calls to get there and back, and there were too many things on my mind. So, I got to keep my coupon for another day, and I got 30% off the items. 

But the worst screwup of the day was in my software class, and it had never happened like this. I had been playing with the software for an earlier class and bouncing between the various levels. I did not restart the software for the final session of the day. When I wanted a specific tool, it was not there. Then, when I tried to move to a higher level, I realized I was stuck on one level. I should have stopped and restarted the software, but I did not. 

I did that as soon as I was off the call, and everything returned to normal. Sigh........... We all have days like that. I'm glad that one is over, and I can return to normal today. 

It appeared that the entire education team had one of those days. I heard from my colleagues, who had equally stressful events yesterday. The stars must not be aligned in our favor! Today will be better!

The sidewalks are still a mess, and the wind was bitter yesterday. I even wore my wind pants to walk the dogs in the morning, and I was toasty and warm. But walking back from the thrift store with my two big bedspreads was challenging, as I was now walking into the wind!

Today is going to be a better day. I can feel it. I have one presentation tonight, and it's already been prepped. I need to finish the preparations for my weekend machine embroidery retreat, and I should be able to do that with no issues. No deadlines today until 6:30! I think my brain just needs some downtime and no deadline. Today and tomorrow will be easy!

I also finally got a computer issue resolved this morning. I've been trying to renew my membership to track my walking miles. You don't have to pay just to track the miles, but I am tracking them as I walk across the US - the trip I created. Well, that requires a premium membership, and it's been back and forth trying to fix it. I'm happy to report that this morning, I see that everything is back to normal, and I can now enter in the miles for the last 30+ days and get back on track. Or - I can see if I'm on track. I have no idea where I am. 

I don't obsess about the kilometers. I don't check at the end of the day or intentionally add more steps to reach a certain number. I do enough in a day to achieve my goals. But it's nice to see how far I've walked every once in a while. That will be a job for later today. 

Did I mention that after putting those crystals on those mitten ornaments, I found the seventh one in a bag with samples? I was sure I had seven, but then I thought maybe I messed up that count. Now, I must dig my crystals out and add them to the last one. I might do that today to get it out of the way. 

Oh, Murphy—what a dog! At one point, she had the cup delicately balanced on her nose and, using only her tongue, was licking the bottom of the cup! I just missed getting that photo; this was the best I could get. 

Mom - this is good stuff

Do you think she was trying to make a point here? I had put the paperwork on the floor to make room to work, and the next thing I knew, she had her squirrel right in the middle of my piles and seemed quite proud of herself for it. Today and tomorrow's quietness will allow me to catch up on the paperwork. 

And on that note, I'm out of here. I'm off to spin class. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Shoveling is over for now?

DH came home a few days ago, but I've barely seen him. He's sick! And he better keep that to himself because I do not have time to be sick. I'm unsure what the issue is, but I went to the pharmacy to get him some ginger ale yesterday. I made it to the store at 4:50 p.m., they closed at 5 p.m. because of the holiday! It was my lucky day! Everything is back to normal today. 

After walking the girls, I cleared the end of the driveway, which looked great. 

At last - I'm caught up!

We usually keep our front step clean, but there was no way. So, there's enough room to get to the house, and we don't need to clear the patio area until the weather is much warmer. 

The front step

No, not much in the way of shoveling snow, but it was blowing like mad, and I saw drifts in my driveway. I'm unsure how big they are, but hopefully, they do not require shoveling. I'm done with shoveling for at least a couple of days. While my muscles didn't get sore, they are just tired!

But we got icicles. Oh my - I was in the upstairs bathroom and looked out the window. Yikes!!! Those are big icicles. Many of the houses in the neighborhood have some. 

Icicles

There are also big ones on the front of the house. I would be afraid to knock them off because doing so would bring down the eaves trough, and there's so much snow on the roof that new ones will form before I'm done. 

More icicles

We had Monday sewing, and I could putter, which was good because stuff has been sitting on the tables for months, and I need to put it away. I finally got the crystals on my machine-embroidered mitten ornaments. 

Putting crystals on my mitten ornaments

Then, I had to add eyes to the cardinal. A pigma pen worked much faster than sewing on a bead. That leaves the Santa who needs a face, and it's done with TINY applique shapes. I have them all traced, and half are fused in place. The snowman also required fused applique shapes, which are now traced and fused to the fabric. They just need to be cut out. That's a job for next week. It will be nice to finish these things. And then, I can move on to the next project. 

My mitten ornaments

OK - so the subject of hangers for small wall hangings came up, and well, I have a drawer filled with various shapes. Of course, I have a drawer full. Anyway, I want to know if anyone is interested. I already have one person but I want to share the wealth. So, if you are interested in these styles of hangers, and I think there are some tabletop ones as well, let me know, and we can talk. NO - the one with the maple leaf on top is NOT up for grabs. I'm keeping that one. 

Hangers for small quilts

I'm hosting a hands-on machine embroidery workshop this weekend. It's two nights and three days. Oh my—there are so many little details to think out. What supplies should they bring? Fabric, thread, bobbin threads, etc.? But I think I've sorted it all out. Now I have to pack because I'm taking some supplies and samples for them to look at. 

Thankfully, my day job is half of what it was last week. And except for making a few extra samples, I'm good. 

The city-plowed sidewalks are still horrific for walking, so the walks are shorter, and neither is happy with turning around. Murphy was so confused yesterday. She kept walking beside me and looking at me quizzically. This is NOT right! But we took a small side street, and she was in front again! 

Well, that's it for me. 

Have a great day!!!

Ciao!!!