Christmas is Coming

 This time of year I am in the middle of getting quilts to customers before their Christmas deadline, getting pattern submittals to fabric companies for winter releases, thinking about getting continuing ed hours for my engineering license that I hang on to for hard times (but always waiting until the 11th hour before I actually DO anything about it)...and then there's Christmas.  The gift buying, the card writing, the decorating that just doesn't quite get done.  It's a mad world of running at top speed and crashing. Plus, add in the extra bonus that 2020 is and it's just a little bit stressful.  I used to REALLY love Christmas and then I became an adult...or what passes for an adult most days anyway and now, I still love Christmas but don't take time to enjoy it.

So, the other day, I took a pause.  I decided I was going to the Salem Candle Tea.  I've gone almost every year since I was maybe 6 years old and I really didn't want to miss this year because it was going to be so different.  Because of COVID, they were doing the candle tea as a drive through.  So, I left the shop, picked up David at the house and we went to the candle tea.

They had different stations set up around the square and as you drive through, you listened to a narrative on an app on your phone.  Instead of singing Christmas carols accompanied by the old organ, here's where we learn about the importance of music to Moravian life and worship.

Instead of heading downstairs to the dining area and watching them make the beeswax candles, there's a demo.

They have a rendition of the kitchen where we would sit down, have coffee and sugar cake and learn about life and chores in the Brothers House.  

Instead of heading to the cellar to see the putz, there was a small display of sample houses.

And just like in the regular tour, the last stop was the telling of the Christmas Story and even though it wasn't the beautiful putz we love to see, it still had that calming, hope-filled effect on me.

But really... the part that made me smile the most was that Shelby got to go to her first candle tea.

 

So, we decided to keep the Christmas pause going and made a run out to Tanglewood for the Festival of Lights.  We haven't driven through them in years.  We hit the back of the line right at the entrance to the park so I thought, we're not far from the gate so that's not so bad...at which David laughed because he knew they had added a road that took the waiting line all the way around the steeplechase field.

It was 2 hours before we got to the gate.  But, we had lots to amuse us.  Shelby was taking in all the sights and sounds.  There was music and lights and people jumping out of their cars to go to the port-a-potties.  From the other cars around us, we could hear kids laughing and people singing...one guy in particular was loudly singing the 12 Days of Christmas and not well.  It was wonderful.

We finally made it to the gate and the "paid" part of the light show lasted about 45 minutes.  There were some new things but mostly the same lights as the last time years ago.  That didn't matter one bit because it was all the other parts...the being together part that mattered.

(But I really did miss that coffee and sugar cake.)

Miss Thing

Today is Shelby's 15th birthday...or at least it's close enough.  We really have no idea when her actual birthday is.  We just know she was 8 weeks old when she came home with us and we calculated backwards to September 1st.  

I can't remember if I've share the story or not so here it is again just in case.  We had been talking about getting a dog for some time but could not get on the same page as to which breed.  He wanted a Rottweiller and while I love those big goofballs, we live in a small house with a small yard on a busy road.  Small spaces for a big dog just aren't fair and he/she would get out and that would be tragic

It was a Friday because David and I were leaving work to drive to the beach for festival weekend with the family.  We worked downtown in the same building.  My office was downstairs in a back corner and his was upstairs.  One of the women that worked for a different company upstairs came walking by David with a bundle in her arms and asked "You want to adopt a puppy?"  David looks at that little floof and says "do not take that dog down to see my wife."  And, of course, she bee-lined it to my office.  

I look up and she hands me this sweet little 1 pound furball who promptly snuggles up in my elbow to nap.  I never gave her back.  

(The story was that the woman got Shelby (then named Gracie) for her mom who then said she couldn't take care of her.  The woman couldn't keep her because she had big dogs so she brought her into work hoping someone could take her.)

So I message David and ask him what we're going to name our dog.  He said a word but he got over it pretty quickly.  I mean...look at this face.  How could you not take that home?

So, we left work early, went to the pet store and got all the dog stuff...bed, food, toys, leash, crate.

We discussed names until we got to Etc Crafts in Cary (now Cary Quilting Company) and while wandering around gathering quilting supplies, ladies were trying to help us come up with a name.  Someone said Shelby and it just fit.  No idea why she came up with it but it stuck.

She rode on my shoulder the whole way to the beach and hardly made a sound...until my nephews blew into the house.  One high BARK and that has set the tone for her relationship with them ever since.  

The crate...we tried.  We made it nice and nesty and put her in there when we were going to bed.  She whined and cried...we moved our heads to the foot of the bed so she could see us.  She whined and cried...and we put our hands near the door so she knew we were near.  She whined and cried...and I took her out and put her in the bed with us and that's where she has slept ever since.

She pretty much goes where I go.  She loves people (most people) and is not much on other dogs especially big dogs.

She is an expert beggar

and a professional napper

In the last couple of years, she's had to deal with surgery and crate rest and wearing the cone and new diets but she's stoic and brave and keeps on wagging and sassing.

It's amazing how one split second can change your whole life.  Had David not been walking down that hall...had I not been sitting at my desk...there's no telling what our lives would be.  They would not be as joy-filled.  I do know that.

COVID Hair and Brain

So, today has not started off as fabulous as it should have. First, we've been awake since 4:45 a.m.  Shelby can't hear the thunder anymore but she can see the lightening.  Maybe that's what woke her up but I thought it was the need to potty...which how we ended up standing in the yard at 4:47 a.m. in the rain.  We have those little solar walkway lights that by the wee hours in the morning have lost their juice and are dark.  While I'm standing there watching Miss Thing find just the right spot, lighting flashes...lighting the sky for just a split second.  That split second lightening flash from 3-4 miles away (because I can't help but count the second between the flash and the boom) was enough to juice all the solar lights to full brightness.  THAT was freaky.  I scooped up Shelby and hightailed it in the house.

No more sleep for me at that point.  Shelby, on the other hand was snoring like a bear in a matter of minutes.  So, I work for a bit until it's time to take her to the groomer because the poor girl has some serious COVID hair.

This photo was Wednesday night.  I was so engrossed in Brothers & Sisters on Hulu (because I am binge watching it like it's my job), I did not notice Shelby had somehow stolen my fork and licked it clean.  Just look at the hair do! 

Back to this morning...so I do some work, get the handful of shipments together so I can drop them in the mailbox, grab my stuff and Shelby and we head to the groomer.  I have three stops...groomer, mailbox at Thruway and Chick-fil-a for my free biscuit (the app...free stuff and no contact payment..yay).  I get back home, start gathering my stuff...where's my wallet? 

I search the car...nothing.  I run into the studio...it's not sitting on the table.  I call the groomer...no it didn't fall out of the car in the parking spot.  I go to Thruway...it's not in the lot at the mailbox.  At this point, I'm convinced I threw it in the mailbox with the packages.  I'm freaking out thinking...do I call the post office?  would they even come open it up for me?  what if it's not in there?  do I have to sit here all day and wait for the post carrier to come pick up the mail and how do I prove it's my wallet?  Am I completely losing my mind?

Then David calls...my wallet is laying on the couch in the studio...where I saw it about 6 a.m.this morning and thought "I need to remember that's where my wallet is".  I never even picked it up.  All that freaking out and I never had it in the first place.  COVID brain. 

So, I get back home and David is sitting in the studio waiting to pat my head and say it'll be okay.  While we're talking, I'm doctoring my Chick-fil-a coffee (which I had left on the studio porch  when I dashed in the first time to look for my wallet...and left, leaving the door unlocked).  I'm opening the little mini moos, pouring the creamer in my coffee and tossing the empty moo in the Chick-fil-a bag...until I start opening the mini moo and pouring the creamer in the bag instead of my coffee.  COVID brain..again...at which point I decided I will do nothing today that needs excessive brain power.  I'm taking the day off.  I will be sitting at my machine sewing quarter square triangles together listening to a no-brainer audiobook.  And there will be a nap once Shelby is home from the groomer.

All this before 9:00 a.m.  This is why I am not a morning person.

Making the Best of Things

One of our favorite things to do when David gets home from work or golf (because that's pretty much what he does if your throw fishing in the mix) is go grab a beer at a local brewery and dine with whatever food truck is on site.  Our very favorite hangout is Hoots Roller Bar especially on off afternoons and evenings when it isn't crowded.  The folks there are laid back and we love all the bartenders, brewers and owners.  They play good music.  The beer is tasty.  And, Shelby is a welcome patron.

Then COVID happened and there's no more hanging out.  So we do what we can, which is David drops by Hoots and picks up growlers and food and we picnic on the little deck outside my studio.  Yesterday evening was beer and taco night.

No, it's not the same but it's still fun.  We're still spending time together and we're still supporting our friends and hoping they will make it through this mess.

The Cone of Shame

Last Wednesday, Miss Shelby had the dreaded eye surgery.  Dreaded because in just under a month, she will turn 13 years old and that makes her not such a young pup and anesthesia is a scary thing.  Dreaded because she is my sweet girl and the thought of losing her makes me sadder than just about anything. 

For years, she has had this little growth on her upper eyelid and all the vet says it's nothing.  No need to do anything and I was happy with that...and then it grew and I was still happy with just leaving it there.  Shelby didn't seem to know it was there so we're all good.  Then it became a management problem.  It grew enough that it blocked the ducts and became angry.  She still didn't seem to mind but Dr. Katie said we should think about having it removed.  She's a stoic little girl, our Shelby.

We went to a veterinary ophthalmologist.  Side note:  I haven't been to an eye doctor in eight years because I don't want to pay for, well...office visit, exam, bifocals because I know that's gonna be the cure but I do not hesitate one second to take Shelby to an eye doctor.  And when the eye doc says yes, she needs surgery, the answer is of course we're going to do it, here's my debit card.  I don't even twitch. 

So last Wednesday,  David and I hung out at the vet hospital most of the day because that's what you do when someone you love has surgery.  You sit and wait.  The anticipation is horrific...I had not slept in days. By this time, I was pretty fragile like a bomb, fragile.  David is a brave man.

It's a bit before 1pm and the vet calls me.  I inform her that we're sitting in the lobby, which surprises her.  I'm surprised she's surprised.  Don't all parents wait it out in the lobby?  So, she comes out and tells us about the surgery and that all is well.  She was hoping to just debulk and freeze the mass but it was too big and had to take the whole thing out which meant cutting Shelby's upper eyelid.  This is a scary thing because if it doesn't heal just right and she can't close her eyelids all the way then we have drops for the rest of her days and other unpleasantness...like blindness and losing the eye.

But the first unpleasantness is the cone and she has to wear it for two weeks until we go back to get the stitches out.  There's been a lot of pouting going on.  And, I don't blame her.  I'd be nuts.  I can't even wear a turtleneck without wanting to rip it away from my neck.

There's been a lot of this...because life is just to hard on a little girl.

What there has not been for the rest of us is a lot of sleep because cones of shame are particular irritating in the middle of the night for some reason.

But today, we're at the half way mark.  One more week of the cone and then all this is a bad dream because her eye looks perfect and all is right with my girl...well, except for the really bad haircut she's sporting right now. 

On the Road Again

Last week I visited two great shops in the Shenandoah Valley area of Virginia.  First stop was Ragtime Fabrics in Downtown Harrisonburg.  Belle has a little bit of everything from quilting goods to leather to all sorts of notions, trims and cool stuff.  The shop is one block off courthouse square and is surrounded by all sorts of other cool shops and restaurants...plus she has parking right beside her building.  Yay!

Usually, our schedules work out so that one of us is not traveling but we had a little overlap this week at the last minute.  And, our usual Shelby-sitters were either out of town or had the flu so Miss Shelby went roadtripping with me which I love.  I would take her all the time but some shops are not dog-friendly and I don't like leaving her in the car that long.  I took a chance with this trip and it worked out fine.  Both shops welcomed Shelby with open arms.  At Ragtime Fabrics, she had her own little fabric nest in one of my suitcases and slept most of the time.

When we left Harrisonburg, it began to snow and I don't do snow.  Don't get me wrong...I LOVE snow...when I'm home with nowhere to go and a pot of chili in the crockpot and lots of sewing to do.  But this southern girl avoids driving in the mess as much as possible.  I know my limitations.  So we hightailed it back to the hotel in Staunton and kept an eye on the situation.  I figured if it amounted to something, we could camp out in the hotel until it was clear.  We had all we needed...a Cracker Barrel across the street, cable in the room, coffee and cookies downstairs and two quilts to bind.  (I was kinda hoping to get snowed in actually...there would be napping  and staring out the window at snow...heaven on earth!)

So it snowed until about  midnight and we walked around in it...which I enjoyed much more than Shelby did.  The next morning, this was the view out my window.

Pretty but not enough to keep me off the road so off to Charlottesville I went.

Les Fabriques is located in Downtown Charlottesville, another very cool place to hang out.  Her shop is in the ground floor of the new parking deck so there's plenty of parking and she'll stamp your ticket so the first two hours of parking is free.  Yay!

This shop is so very chic and caters to all kinds of sewing projects from quilting to garment to home dec.  She also has vintage textiles on consignment and cool beads and jewelry that a local artist makes.  The wood behind her sign is recycled from the goat shed on her 200+ year-old farm.  She's very cool like that.

Shelby was again greeted with open arms and snoozed on the fabric samples as we looked through fabric.  Here she is helping Carla pick out stuff.  We had the best time!

We were supposed to stay one more night and go to another shop on Friday but the weather was iffy and the Friday shop is extremely isolated so we're postponing until the mountains are clear of snow.  So, we headed home sweet home.  One of the hardest parts of this job is leaving my girl behind.  Having her with me this week was the best.  I could get used to it.

Once More With Feeling

Well, we got Dad home for a few days but last Monday he started having difficulty walking.  By Tuesday morning, his legs would completely give out on him.  We called the neurologist and he sent us to the ER.  They were waiting on us when we got there and took him in for an MRI...then a chest x-ray...then a brain scan...

And then we waited for a few minutes...

Then the orderly came in, very busily getting things done and made the comment "we're getting this one ready for the OR"

WHAT?!?

Mom and I thought he was in the wrong room.

Then, Dr. N came in.

Though the first surgery was successful, it wasn't enough.  Dad was going for a second surgery, same thing but from the pack of the neck.

My Dad asked "so when are we doing this?"

Dr. N said "right now".

My poor mom and I just looked at each other thinking there is no way this nightmare is happening. He was already in so much pain and having so much trouble getting around, we could not imagine how he was going to be after a second surgery.

Many hours later, we found ourselves back in the Neuro ICU but we could already tell something was different.  By that night, Dad was feeling better.


After another five days in the hospital, we're back home again.  It's still a bit rough.  He's weening off the steroids now which is making the pain come back and making him dizzy so walking even with a walker is an adventure.  So, I'm sticking close... just in case.

And so is Shelby...

Hiding Out at Home

It was rough going in the hospital but Dad got to come home on Friday.  I got to drive him home because he can get in and out of the BAL (Big A$$ Lexus) easiest.  Mom went to the pharmacy so I was on my own to get him in the house...a little daunting for many reasons.

We made it home with no problems.  I asked him to wait in the car while I got the front door open.  Next thing I know he's out of the car and decided he's going to take his "walk".  (The doc wants him to walk, you know...on flat ground with now obstructions for about 20 feet.)  Dad decides he's going to the mail box...about 70 feet away...by himself.

Did I mention he's a little hard-headed?

So I run to get the door open...then I run to catch up with him.  He makes it to the mailbox and about 10 feet back towards the house before  the power slump happens.  If you've ever had surgery, you know that feeling...something that usually takes no effort at all suddenly becomes impossible.  It took a while to make it back to the house but we did.

We're figuring out our new routine, our new ways of doing everyday things...like taking a shower, getting in the bed, eating.  Mostly, I'm sitting at the kitchen table working on the computer and being quiet while he catches cat naps in the recliner five feet away from me and doing whatever he wants when he's awake - feeding him pureed soups, checking his blood sugar, feeding him drugs, putting a new movie in the DVD.  The only one keeping a closer eye one him right now is Shelby...she's a great little nurse's aide.

Rainy Days, the Story of Shelby

I have always loved a rainy day...the kind of rain that is steady and quiet.  The kind that makes everything outside slow and everything inside cozy.  I have always found those days to be highly productive days.  In high school, I remember sitting near the classroom window, looking outside where it was darker than usual and still except for the beating rain...and having the work flow from me like a river.

I love those days.

Sunday was one of those days.

I decided when I woke up that I was not leaving the house...and I made a list of things that needed doing.  I made it easy...all things in the quilt studio...either behind a sewing machine or a laptop.  It was a long list...too long to be done in a day.

But anything is possible on a rainy day...especially a rainy Sunday.  So I put dinner in the crock pot and Shelby and I went to the studio and closed the door.  I sewed most of the day.  Then I wrote most of the night.  I nearly finished the list...nearly.

Shelby decided I needed help and here's where she slept for about 3 hours.

She'll be 7 years old in a couple of weeks.  I have to wonder if she remembers that this is how we met.

The Story of Shelby...

I was sitting in my back corner office...partner in an engineering firm thinking life was all good.  And this woman that worked in the underwriter's office upstairs comes in with this 1 pound fur ball in her hand.  She tells me that my husband (who worked upstairs also) said to not bring this puppy down to see me so she had to do just that because this puppy needed a home.  She hands me this little fur ball...who curled up in the crook of my elbow and fell back asleep and of course, I never gave her back.

So here I am at the end of a very productive rainy Sunday with this puppy still sleeping between my arm and the computer.

I no longer have that corner office, or that partnership in that firm, or that "career" or well, money, or a lot of things that seemed so important then...but...

it's been a long time since I felt the contentment of a rainy production day like Sunday (um...at least 15 years)
at least once a day I shake my head and smile and sometimes an evil little laugh will bubble out...

the dream is coming true...

(footnote...as I'm typing this, Norah Jones sings "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today" on Pandora...okay God...you're making me laugh again...I'm working on it...)

Up Home

After getting home from a hectic week at BU, I turned around the next day and headed to the mountains to retreat with my friends, Ann and Lee.  Shelby was very happy to be getting in the car go along with me this time!

After a meeting at Montreat, Shelby and I met Ann and Lee at The Veranda in Black Mountain for lunch.  They have a pet friendly deck.  I love finding pet friendly places.  Next we headed to the southern highlands where Up Home is located on a mountain near Cullowhee.

We sewed and relaxed and sewed some more.  I taught Lee how to sew little hexagons (a la Bonnie Hunter)  and she then turned her hexie flower into a pin cushion.  Well, of course, I had to make one too.

Lee gave me this great owl fabric for the bottom of my pin cushion.  One owl reminds me when and where we were.  Sweet of him, huh?

We did venture out to do a couple errands.  One involved checking out the paving progress at the Jackson County airport.  (Ann's husband, Lee's father is a pilot.)  They've for a bit to go on the paving...but the view...well, it's kind of like everywhere up there...breath-taking.

After lunch at Nick & Nate's, we headed back up to sew some more.  See what I mean about the views?

Sunday morning we had a visitor...this gorgeous moth hung out with us for a little bit.  On the ground, he looked like a poplar tree leaf.  I've never seen a moth with such a fat body and I have no idea what kind he is...anybody know?  NOTE:  I found out he's an Imperial Moth.  (gotta love google!)

 Lee made this beautiful quilt - her own pattern - and we had a little photo session on the deck.  Shelby became the model.  I'm thinking this may become my new blog mast head.  Isn't it the sweetest photo?

I really did get some sewing done!  I turned this t-shirts into a quilt.  Just need to fine the right border print and it'll be ready to quilt!

Sunday afternoon, we headed home, relaxed and happy...Shelby especially!

  

Addicted

I am.

I didn't think I would be.

But like many things I have been hesitant to try, I have fallen into the abyss of Pinterest with reckless abandon.

It has joined the realm of addiction with the likes of


my smart phone
my nook
texting
blogging
email
blogs
fabric
pincushions
quilting
Shelby
breathing

Some, of course, outweigh others by miles...even if she does like to shred batting.