Trips

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We recently returned from our ten-day vacation to Oklahoma and Arkansas. It started out rather badly; just south of Waco we were knocked off the interstate during a rainstorm. No one was hurt, but we learned how the PIT maneuver works when used by the cops to stop a car. The white car below did exactly that, hydroplaning into us hitting first our left rear, then swinging us around so that it collided with the left front of our car; it knocked us onto the grass verge where we did a 360 degree spin before limping across the access road into a driveway.

You can see the damage to our Suzuki Aerio below.

We limped into Stillwater and had the scraping wheel well trimmed. After attending my husband's fiftieth high school reunion (much fun!) We went on a tour of the OSU athletic facilities. Below is hubby at Boone Pickens Stadium. We got to see the VIP skyboxes used by Mr. Pickens and the President of OSU.

This dark photo was taken inside Gallagher-Iba Arena. Both these facilities are the best that money can buy.

We then toured the OSU Botanical Gardens. WOW! What a gorgeous garden! Very well presented and maintained, with lots of ideas for garden art and arrangement.


Then we traveled to Fayetteville, AR where we stayed with my sister and brother-in-law.
She has a longarm quilting machine, and was kind enough to quilt my granddaughters' quilts for them. These were the sampler quilts they made in their quilting classes. She also quilted one of my own quilts.

Below is her Maltese, Salty. He poses so well! He is a real sweetheart, and kept us from missing Copper too much.


My sister gave me a couple of snapshots my uncle had sent her of me as a child. This one was taken when I was barely three. The brown dog was mine, the other was my sister's. I only threw that dog away about three years ago, when I realized that it was mostly stuffed with dust mites.

We then traveled to Bristow, OK where we met with all my husband's cousins. Hubby wasn't well by this time (he had developed bronchitis.) We left a day early so we could get home sooner.
All in all, it was a good trip. Now we are dealing with the car repairs, but our insurance company has been very good and it will be fixed very soon.

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Last Friday I traveled to Rockport, TX to test-drive the new Janome Horizon sewing machine.

It's very large, and very nice; but I felt it was more machine than I really needed. So on Monday I drove all the way to San Antonio to test the Babylock Quest. I really liked it. The size is more manageable; the controls more intuitive. Altogether more user-friendly. Plus it was only a little more than half the price of the Horizon. So I bought it (it is now upgraded to the Quest Plus.) It should be delivered sometime next week. I can hardly wait! I spent a couple of hours today rearranging my sewing room to make space for it. I intend to make it my main machine, and turn my old Viking Rose into an embroidery-only machine. I rarely use the embroidery unit bacause it has always seemed such a hassle to convert it from sewing to embroidery. This way I may be able to use it more.

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My sister found an old Kenmore 1560 free-arm machine at a garage sale for $15. It is very clean and looks as though it was used once or twice, then stuck in a closet for years. She cleaned it, but found the stitch length control dial was broken. I bought it from her for my granddaughters, and took it to my Singer dealer to be repaired. They called me and told me they couldn't find the replacement part, so I picked it up this afternoon. This evening I found someone selling parts from a 1560 on eBay, so I asked him if he might have the dial I need. He does! I paid for it and it should arrive in a week or so.

I also took my Touch and Sew 600 in for repair. Once fixed (or not, as may be) it will probably be sold in a garage sale or given to a family member who wants it. It has been an excellent machine since I bought it on eBay about 10 years ago, but I no longer need it. I hope it can be repaired. Right now the needle position control is broken.

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Long time no see!

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Wow, I didn't realize how long it had been since I had posted! I have been uber busy, what with sewing classes with the granddaughters, and going through 31 years of accumulated stuff before our 2012 move. We've already had one large garage sale, and have another planned in late July with more than enough stuff already boxed up and ready to go. We figure we'll have 3 more garage sales before we move! That's a lot of sorting of stuff, folks!

I had some blood work drawn recently, and everything turned out normal. I had asked the doctor to do an A1C test for diabetes, since my dad was a diabetic and two of my sisters are as well. The test result was 5.9--enough that I need to start watching it, but not enough to call "prediabetic" yet. I guess a diet and increased exercise is in the cards.

Poor Copper has had a rough time lately. He had a blow-out of his left anal gland about a month ago, and last week the right one blew out. He was miserable, poor boy. If it happens again we may have to resort to surgery for him. He feels much better now after his antibiotics.

The girls' classes have gone very well--it has been hard to keep up with them, they are progressing so rapidly! I am turning them loose for the summer, then this fall we will tackle garment sewing. It's not my favorite thing, but I am proficient enough to teach them the basics. I already have their curriculum planned out--very ambitious for one semester of work--seven projects plus some extra classes that won't be covered in the projects, like alternative fasteners, mending, taking measurements, and recycling used clothing (field trip to the thrift stores!) It seems like a lot to me, but at the speed they learn, It may not take them the three to four months I had envisioned. Remember--this is on top of all their regular schoolwork! No wonder they are being homeschooled, there is no way public schools could keep them occupied.

Our vacation is coming up, two reunions and a trip to check on our new properties in AR. I hope to post some pictures next time!

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