Mischief Night

I guess I'm ready for Halloween, I bought candy and we have all the vehicles in the back of the yard so any enterprising soapers can't get to them without turning on all the outside lights. Last year we got zero trick or treaters- being the last house on a dead end street, and on the bottom of a little hill, I guess it's too much trouble to trick or treat us.

The time changes this weekend! Maybe we won't be getting up in the dark, at least for a little while. That's so depressing, waking up when it's not even light out and having to get up.

The Phillies won the World Series. I did my part, I watched the last 3 minutes or so of the game. When I was little we used to play baseball with about 6 kids, so you'd be pitcher, 2nd baseman, and center fielder. Made for interesting games! I find it much less fun to watch than it was to play. The guys at work were so excited, you'd think they'd participated in the game!

Steph and Toast came to see us last night- Toast stayed, and Steph went off to a World Series party, then she slept over and went to work from here. Toast is still here, and she and Ralph are napping on the couch.

It got so cold here that I bought a new electric blanket, and we used it last night. Brrr!

Holly

October is almost over!

How did that happen? It feels like I lost a week, with being sick last week, which made the month go by faster!

It's been a busy weekend. Friday night I finished cutting the fabric for quilt class, after taking my traditional Friday afternoon nap. Saturday I had quilt class from 10-2, which was fun. I picked up milk at Wawa for Mom, dropped that off, came home, checked email, then ran to Joann's for thread which was on sale. Grabbed dinner while I was out, came home, collected things to go to Heather's and to Sharon's, and went to Justin's birthday party. Ralph came from work, and Steph came directly from her apartment.

Heather and Ed had pix of their new NC house, so we go to see those. We visited with the family, in between kids running around, and eating a wonderful cake. By the time we got home, it was almost 11 p.m.

Steph stayed over, and she and I are going to do some shopping, while Ralph goes and helps the guys move a pool table from Frank's to Kevin's new house. Then she's taking grand-d0g Toast home to Philly.

Goals for the week:
Work on "crossed canoes"
Get ready for next weeks quilt class

Holly

Already midweek!

I may survive The Ick after all! It was touch and go there, but I feel at least almost human today. We had an all day inservice, and it's always fun to be able to lunch with my co-workers.

Eddie's pirate coat is done, and Zac's Jedi robe is done! Now I have to cut the fabric for the quilt class on Saturday, which is called Crossed Canoes, but is much prettier than it sounds. The fabrics are all browns and creams, and it'll be very rich looking. The following week is another quilt class, at the Village Quilter. That one is a New York Beauty wallhanging, and Barbara and I are taking it together.

Steph is going to Heather's tonight, and staying with Julianna while Heather, Ed and Eddie go down to NC for Heather to have an inperson interview, and to see the house and Eddie's new school. It's a fast trip, and they'll be back late Friday.

I googled Albemarle NC quilt shops, and there's several in the area. It seems like a nice area, by the websites.

Holly

I've got The Ick

I actually feel a little better today- I slept most of yesterday. I'm taking mucinex, cough syrup, tylenol, and advil for my jaw. I really felt out of it most of yesterday, and stayed in my jammies all day. Finally I got up last night and did some work on Eddie's pirate coat for his costume.

This morning I got up and went to the food store, since we were out of milk, bread, iced tea mix and Fancy Feast. It's nice out- in the mid 40's, with a nice blue sky.

This week we have an inservice on Wednesday- the kids are off school. Saturday morning I have quilt class at Quilted Treasures, and Saturday night is Justin's 3rd birthday party.

I've been taping almost everything I want to watch on TV, so I can fast forward thru the commercials. I'm so sick of the political commercials- I'll be so glad when the election is over. Of course, then it'll go right into Christmas commercials.

Christmas will be stranger than usual for us this year. With Ralph and Heather working in the hospital, we tend to celebrate it at odd times, depending on who's working when. Since Manda and Ben are officially a couple, they're both going to his parents in Nebraska, then both coming here. I think the latest plan was for them to arrive the day after Christmas. Heather, Ed and the kids will have moved to NC by then, and they're coming up here, maybe the day after Christmas. So we'll all celebrate together, at some point, and being together is the important part.

Steph is staying at her apartment this weekend, which is just as well since I don't want to give her The Ick. We'll see her next weekend.

Goals for the week:
Get over The Ick
Finish the pirate coat

Holly

Thursday evening

I've been on the penicillin and advil since Monday. My jaw is still very tender, not quite hurting. I hate teeth! And it the teeth weren't a big enough problem, I have a cold. I was at a meeting of Camden County School Nurses last night, and I was fine. By the time I drove the 15 minutes to home, I had a sore throat. Today I coughed intermittently. I'm taking Vitamin C every time I go into the kitchen.

The meeting was fun- dinner was provided, so we got to eat and visit. One speaker was really good, the other was dreadful. Some topics just can't be made interesting.

I think I'm going to bed early tonight, after more meds.

Holly

An afternoon with the dentist

So the area where I had the root canal was feeling weird- not sore, just strange. I called the dentist this morning, and they had a cancellation this afternoon. So off I went, hoping it was all my imagination.

No such luck. I needed a crown on the root canal'd tooth, and the tooth next to it wasn't in good shape, so he did both. And cauterized some "diseased gum tissue". And gave me an Rx for penicillin, and told me to take advil around the clock for a couple of days. The permanent crowns will be ready in about 3 weeks.

Dental technology has come a long way! Numbing stuff to numb your cheek before they inject the novacaine. Xays that go right on a laptop. Two crowns done in an hour.

So I didn't get much sewing done. (Translation: I didn't even get into the sewing room). But at least I didn't have to take another sick day to go to the dentist.

Toast is still here. Last night Steph stayed over, and went to work from here. We'd gone to niece Sharon's for birthday cake for Charlotte, and we got home about 9 from there. I was glad Steph decided not to make the trek home last night. Tonight is her rock climbing night, so she'll pick up Toast after work tomorrow. Funny how I see so much more of my granddog than I do of the grandchildren!

And the beat goes on!

Holly

A three day weekend!

What lovely words those are! A time to recharge and catch up, and do some quilting!

Today is my sister in law Charlotte's birthday- I won't say which birthday, but it is a milestone one. Happy Birthday Charlotte!

I've spent the week reading the instruction book for the embroidery machine, and joining and reading yahoo groups about it, and ordering thread for it. I want to play with it, but I have two obligations to do first- Eddie's pirate "Captain Hook" coat, and Zac's Jedi robe. They are this weekend's projects.

Granddog Toast is still here. Steph was going to pick her up Thursday, but developed The Ick and stayed home. Since she's going to be down here this weekend anyway, she'll stay over on Saturday and take Toast home Sunday. I left some windows open last night, and it got chilly, so it was Ralph, me, Toast and the two cats all snuggled in.

Heather and Ed have an offer for their house, and have signed papers. They also signed papers to buy the house in Ablemarle, NC, that they wanted to buy before. The people are divorcing, and the house is still for sale. Probable settlement in early December. I so want to be happy for them, but it's real hard. Even though we don't see them frequently, due to all our work schedules, it's a lot easier to see someone who lives 25 miles away than someone who lives 10 hours away. But we'll all survive.

Holly

I hate sick days!

Actually, what I hate is wasting a sick day on actually being sick, which is what happened yesterday. Sunday night, Ralph was up half the night being sick. At 4 a.m. he finally called out of work. I got up Monday, started to get ready, and was so nauseaus that I was afraid to drive, so I called out and went back to bed. Slept til noon, and felt human. Ralph was still sick, and was running a 102 fever! I was afraid he had the flu- he was shivering so much he almost spilled his juice!

By this morning he was feeling better, and seems like the temp is gone. Must have been something viral. And I feel fine- may have been lack of sleep, or just a touch of what he had. But I lost a sick day, which is annoying. And of course going back to work after a day out means being buried in paperwork.

Steph left Toast here, before we started feeling icky. I had offered to keep her for a few days, to give Steph a break from early morning and afterwork walks with Toast. I admit it, I missed having Toast around. She's such a snuggler! She's my favorite (and only) granddog.

We had a nice weekend. Saturday I wanted to go look at an embroidery machine, and there's a Janome dealer near Steph, so we met her for lunch, then went back to her apartment. I bought a Janome 9700 embroidery machine! The dealer spent an hour with me, and I also get 2 free lessons. I've wanted one, and looked at them at the Houston show last year, and have been reading reviews. I'm a sewing machine snob, I wouldn't have anything but Janome. Does everything the Berninas and Babylocks do, for half the price.

Sunday I spent the afternoon quilting "Purple Haze" for Manda, with a cloud groovy board. I'm really happy with how it came out. Now I have to bind it and take a pic, and it can go off to Texas and join "The Wind Cries" on her other couch. I'm getting more confident on the HQ16- going to the retreat really helped.

Holly

Here are Manda, Steph, Juliana and Heather last weekend. They had some sister time at Smithville, and had a nice day of it.

Friends

I've been thinking about friends, near and far. Our friend Charley, his wife Janice, and toddler were up last week for his dad's funeral, and stopped over my Mom's so she could see Matthew. Charley started out as my brother John's friend, way back when they were teenagers. When John had his accident, and Charley spent tons of time at the hospital with John, our family adopted him, and he became more than a friend- like another brother. As the years went by, John moved, Charley went back to school, then married, then moved to Georgia. So he kind of wanders in and out of our lives. When he calls, or comes back, it's like he never left. And he's married to a lovely lady that wanders in and out with him.

Other far friends that wander in and out are Pat and Linda, who are sisters. Linda is a friend from when we were in high school, and when Pat moved down the street from me, we got real close. Linda is now in California, and Pat is in Florida. I don't hear from either of them real frequently, but when I do, it's as if I just talked to them yesterday.

I have other friends that I see and talk to much more frequently, but my far flung friends are so important to me!

Holly

It's October!

Wow, September just zipped on by! Work is always so busy in September, and this year was no exception.

It was so nice to have Manda home for the weekend! She did the tour- Friday night at Steph's, Saturday night at Heather's, and Sunday night here. Monday I took off work to follow up with the oral surgeon, so I got to have lunch with Ralph, the girls and Julianna, then Steph and Toast took Manda to the airport. Since I'm not going to Houston for The Quilt Show this year, I won't see Manda again until Christmas.

Ralph and Eddie's party was very nice- good food, good company. We have a lot of birthdays in October- Ralph's Mom, Florence is tomorrow. And there's Charlotte and Justin in a few weeks.

I got Manda's other couch quilt up on the HQ16, then ran out of time and ambition. It's definately this weekend's project. I have groovy boards in a cloud pattern, so she picked them.

Seems like Fall has arrived! We've had a lot of rain, and it's been cool in the mornings. And it's so dark out when the alarm goes off at 0630! I really hate getting up in the dark- it just doesn't seem natural. At least it's light by the time I leave at 0710 or so.

Holly