I'm Home and a New Chapter Begins

Hello friends,

I've been away for almost two weeks in the interior of the province. I've been visiting mom at the hospital, packing up and clearing out my mom's apartment, readying things for her move to the nursing home and making  her a "welcome home' quilt. (If you like you can see the finished quilt here).

She is now in the home and her personal things are with her. Photos are on the wall (I forgot to take a picture of them) and her bookshelf is set up with her TV, small stereo system, a few books and even more CDs. Her other mobility aids are with her. They are still settling her in and she hasn't really gotten into the routine yet. Everything is done very systematically there and it takes time.

Mom is chomping at the bit to get up and around. She also misses her telephone which unfortunately took a few days to connect. She should be able to make phone calls to her heart's content after today.  I think it is hard to make the adjustments in the transition as everything is so completely different. She is now on someone else's schedule and not really in charge of herself. Someone else will decide what she can eat and a whole lot of other things but overall I think the changes will be beneficial. They already have her blood sugar at normal level. I am confident that once mom is able to get around and explore, she will be very happy there and she is looking forward to be able to get around.

As for me, I got home last night and I now have a lot of mom's things to sort through and organize to put away in my own home. Some of it will replace things I have which will go to the thrift store. I also have my own major decluttering project I am working on so this project has expanded.  As I won't have to travel to visit mom on such a strict schedule, I will have more ability to get things done at home and my visits to mom will be real visits as opposed to trips to get things done for her. I will likely also need an adjustment period but an adjustment of a different kind. I am relieved that mom is now in a place where they can monitor her and help her though to be honest it hasn't really sunk in yet as I've been far too busy.

I have been extremely tired over the past week and I can't believe I didn't go to sleep very early last night. I didn't even sleep in this morning. I'm now getting ready to go out and get my hair done as it is in dire need of a refreshing.

I want to thank all of you who stopped by to comment on my blog posts over the past two weeks. It means a lot to me. Please accept my apologies for not being able to respond to the comments or spend as much time looking at your blogs. Now that I am home and have much more bandwidth to use, I can review and comment on blogs again. I will also be uploading more photos and resuming my series on Kenya.

In the meantime I leave you with these beautiful photos of spring blossoms which will soon appear here in  my city.  I also want to wish you all an awesome and refreshing weekend.

My Quilt Project is Finished

A long view of the quilt.

A close up of the quilt.  Don't look to closely or you'll see all my errors.

This is the backside of the quilt. I just machine quilted following the different sections of the crazy quilt. You can also see the binding from the back. This approach to quilting was suggested by my instructor because I didn't want to do free motion quilting on my first quilt or I might never finish in time.  This quilt is actually ironed but I didn't have a flat surface to iron it on.

It was a challenge to finish the quilt in the timeline I had but I did finish it and was able to deliver it to mom on Thursday at the nursing home. She loves the colours and the patchwork design.  I know my errors in making this quilt but I also didn't have all the right tools so I am pleased with how things turned out. I did want to "fix" some stitching but in the end I decided it was an adequate job given the time frame and there isn't any error too great that I should delay giving mom the quilt.  I meant to take close ups of the quilt's mitered corners but in my haste to get to the nursing home I forgot all about it.

I have to say I really enjoyed making this quilt and feel encouraged to make another one. But first I have some other projects to make headway on.  If any of you are like me, afraid to try quilting, I would encourage you to take a class and give it a whirl.  It is quite relaxing and enjoyable and if I can do it, I am certain you can do it.  I'd love to see your quilt if you do make one *wink.

One helpful tip I learned from my instructor after I purchased plain fabric for the quilt back, is to purchase a fabric with a pattern on it.  This way any errors you make won't be so readily viewed. I won't forget this tip!

Look What I'm Making ~ Part Two

Monday was an exceptionally busy day. I went to my quilting class in the morning after packing all night and half the morning.  My brother thought I was crazy to go to quilting class on moving day, lol, but frankly I needed a diversion and a stress buster and this class seems to do the trick. I also want to finish the quilt for mom to have it in her new home.

While I was at my class I found out mom was going to be moved from the hospital to the nursing home on Tuesday morning. Yikes! So much to do and so little time. We were of course expecting the transfer and we are pleased it happened so soon but we were also very surprised to have things move so quickly.  I thought I would be here another week and a half or two, preparing things for the move.

Though I have been busy packing and my brother and nephew have been busy moving furniture, there is just so much to do. Ready or not the end of the month is here and the apartment has to be cleared out pronto.   We are working as fast as we can.  Tuesday we managed to move most of mom's things to the nursing home and I had to deal with a lot of administrative and financial matters. These matters continue on Wednesday and I will also be setting mom's room up properly with her photos and things.I hope to finish the quilt too or most of it.

I learned how to cut out and attached the internal and external borders. My instructor is behind the quilt cover and holding it up for me to take a photo.

This is a close up with the two borders sewn on and the batting and quilt back attached and ready to be quilted.

This is the quilt after I've attached the backing and borders with a seam or two and cut off the excess batting.  I only have Wednesday to try and finish the quilt as well as finish packing so I was up late again. After the progress seen in the photo above, I am machine quilting by making a bit of a border/margin around each sections of the quilt cover. I am rushing this process a bit and it will have do.  Wednesday I hope to attach the binding and give it to mm

It is now almost 1:30 a.m. and I'd better get to sleep.

Look What I'm Making

I have finally got around to taking a class on quilt making. The evidence of my first session on the Wednesday just passed, are in the photos below.  I was in a class with one other person and we were together for 3 hours being instructed step-by-step though we were at different steps of the quilt making process.  The other lady was not a true beginner. In fact she has made several quilts and was half way through a similar one as mine though she was making one for her nephew.

This quilt is called a Stack and Slash Lap Quilt and is perfect for beginners like me. While the fabric shop had all kinds of wonderful fabric I chose to use 6 fat quarters that were on discount for my first quilt.  Even at that the fat quarters and the trim fabrics came to a whopping $32 (Canadian) dollars and that was after the sale price and the 20% discount.  The tally also doesn't include the quilt batting, binding and backing fabric I still need to buy. I am making the lap quilt as a "welcome home" gift for my mom who will soon be moving into a residential facility for seniors.

On Wednesday morning I made and sewed these squares together.  Here they are on the design wall at the store where I had my lesson.

This is a close up of my "crazy" lap quilt on the pressing board.

This isn't the best photo but the "yellow-beige" strip of fabric in the middle-left of the photo will be my inner border.  The burgundy floral on the far left will be my outer border. I will add a picture here later when I finish the quilt.

I probably need one or two more sessions with the instructor to finish this lap quilt. It will depend on how quickly I can pick up the rest of this project and how long it takes for the actual quilting part of it.

Move! The Coach Potato Gets Serious

Many of you know that I started my new year with a goal of doing more exercise. I have started slowly in an effort to simply get used to moving more. It doesn't matter how long I move, just as long as I am moving.  The key way I do this is through my new exercise bike.  But on those days when I have to go out, I count my walk as my cardio exercise instead of my stationary bike routine.

There are streets like this in my neighbourhood. I  love walking in a city which is full of green space.

I also try to incorporate some stretching and resistance training (weights) into my routine, but this needs  more effort on my part.  I am trying to take things slowly and not worry so much about doing it all right.  I am happy just as long as I keep up a steady effort to move.  What I'm trying to do is establish consistent routines that will be lasting.

There are days when I am simply too tired  because of my health conditions. On those days, I don't push myself to do much of anything.  So far, those days have been few and for that, I am grateful.

If you were reading here, you would perhaps remember that my diabetes group meeting members all received a nice surprise, a gift of a DVD "Move for Life!"

Front of the packaging.

Back of the packing.

I will have a chance this upcoming week to try out this DVD and I'm looking forward to it!

If you're like me (and dare I say at least 30% of the population) and are trying to exercise, you need a little encouragement from time to time. One of the  most off putting things for those of us who aren't naturally thin or athletic in any way, is being pushed by others to exercise far beyond our capabilities.  Especially when we are just starting out. I figure it is better not to bite off more than you can chew and simply take baby steps at the beginning.

I believe that it is far better to do something, rather than do nothing, even if it is only for a few minutes a day.  This way you can build up your strength and interest in doing more.  Just "move" . Once you have got the hang of things you can get more aggressive about things, adding more time and different parts to the program to incorporate cardio, flexibility/stretching and strengthening exercises.

So far in this new year, I can already feel my cardio endurance is much better than what it was in December.  Despite all my efforts though, I still haven't dropped any pounds. It is frustrating as I've been watching my diet since November and I really did not indulge over Christmas like so many people do. I've determined to make even more changes like eliminating coffee and cream or milk, stop baking sugury sweets and  do a cleanse. You can read about my whole body cleanse here.  In addition, I'm adding more antioxidant power to my diet through drinking rooibos (red bush) tea.  Those of my readers from South Africa will know all about rooibos. If you haven't heard about rooibos, you can read more here.

I'm not expecting quick results. I know my body and I know how slow it is to release toxins and weight. My first simple goals will be to feel better and I am encouraged so far. I will keep you posted from time to time on other progress on both the cleanse and the fitness/health regime.