A Midwestern Fall...

It's been a gorgeous fall here in the Midwest. I spent a great deal of October in Michigan, where the colors were outstanding. I don't remember the maples in my parents' neighborhood ever being this vibrant.

Most of the visit home involved getting Dad's garden ready for winter, weeding and spreading mulch. The japanese beetles decimated the roses this summer, and the blooms were just starting to bounce back (most of the foliage never recovered). A little late, I'm afraid.

Mom's hydrangea is hanging on. It was beautiful this summer, with blooms ranging from red to blue to dark purple all on the same bush.

What's a chilly fall weekend without a football game? My nephew (#82 -- 13 years old and already six feet tall) and his team performed valiantly, but lost their final game of the season.

I took dozens of pictures of him at his game...or so I thought. When I got home and looked at them on my computer, I discovered that most of the pictures were of #62, who is roughly the same size and whose jersey number was barely indistinguishable from my nephew's. At least in my aging eyes.

My youngest nephew loves these days because he gets to play tag and keepaway behind the stands with his friends. I don't think he watches his brother's games at all.

This pumpkin made an early appearance down the street.

This is Madison. He lives two blocks away, but hung out with me a lot this summer while I was in the yard. My mother hadn't seen him since I left in August, but the morning after I arrived home, he came trotting up the driveway. He's the sweetest boy, I think he has a crush on me. Or the treats. Can you see the love in those eyes?

This baby quilt got de-haired and washed while I was home. Lots of parallel stitching, mostly navy threads with some aqua thrown in for good measure. It was getting a little boring as I got out toward the edges. Not sure if those few brighter threads livens it up enough, but at this point, I'm just happy to have it finished and don't care to revisit.

I'm torn between which side I like the most. This picture of the back looks a little washed out -- perhaps because it'd started raining while I was shooting. It's an old Amy Butler print (maybe?) paired with teal Kanvas Palazzo Circles. They coordinate perfectly -- with each other, and with the intended's nursery decor.

On my way back to Chicago, I stopped at the beach in South Haven for a quick overnight, arriving just in time for another spectacular sunset. As the weather gets cooler, the colors get more breathtaking.

It's sad to see the harbor empty, but it'll be bustling again in just a few short (but extremely cold) months.

Lots of little treasures get revealed when the gardens around the beach start to wane.

One last look at the lake to say goodbye...

The B side...

Before you get all "oh, there she goes with yet another project,"  it might not look like a Christmas runner, but it is...or will be. As usual, I've decided to complicate things – because what's better than a table runner that's only good for a few weeks out of the year?  One that's good for at least a few months!

One side Christmas, the other side Fall – this is going to be the back of the first runner. Or "topper," since once trimmed, it's only going to be about 36" x 16". I cut 2" strips for this, and they're a really nice scale for a smaller piece.

Archie even respects it enough NOT to lay on it.

I've held on to these hand dyes for years (seven, to be exact) waiting for the right project, and this was it. I don't think the picture really does it justice – it's a crummy, cloudy day here today with precious little light to deal with, but trust me when I proclaim its gorgeousness. The colors really radiate. I've taped it to the kitchen wall and stop by to admire it whenever I pass through.

This, of course, changes the layout I envisioned for the Christmas side of things, so I'm still debating, but hoping to get this one done in time for Thanksgiving.

And then this showed up...

Man, I get derailed easily!

These Christmasy batiks were on sale at Hancock's of Paducah, and I have at least three table runner gifts to make this year. I hate to be thinking about Christmas halfway through September, but the reality is I'll be down to the wire, even planning months ahead.

I ordered the snowflake panel thinking it was smaller scale, so I was a little surprised when it arrived -- pleasantly, though -- and those snowflakes were 7" square.  It's a bit more olive than the website pic, but man, is it ever gorgeous! It'll make both a great backing and individual squares.

Seems I've created another project for myself. What else is new?

True to form...

My next project pull is done and ready before I've finished quilting the last.

Doing my best to exercise some self-control and finish the green flannel quilt before cutting into that stack, but it's not easy with all that luscious linen and those pink and purple prints taunting me. And with sticky temps in the high 80's today, maneuvering that heavy flannel sandwich isn't exactly pleasant.

I'm using the new project as incentive to forge ahead with the old -- sometimes that works, sometimes not.

Hope everyone's having a productive Labor Day!

Well, I'm back...

Six+ weeks spent sleeping in my childhood bed on a mattress that's been there since Richard Nixon was in office doesn't do wonders for one's back. Neither does weeding five hours a day, or ironing or washing windows or raking bark (sycamores:  the messiest trees ever!). But it's all been done, and I came back to Chicago with a little peace of mind that the house, at least, was in decent shape.  My parents? That's another story.

Mom's neck healed beautifully, which, at her age (93), surprised everyone. Her refusal to use a walker or wear her neck brace in the car, however, is a great source of worry, given my father (90) is the one ferrying her around, and she has balance issues. His health isn't ideal, either -- the result of some major back issues and dehydration (at what point does the dislike of running to the bathroom more frequently outweigh the sensible intake of fluids? This baffles me.) Anyway, it's the age-old conundrum:  they really shouldn't be living independently, but nobody can talk them into moving until something major happens. So until the other shoe drops, my siblings and I will take turns checking up on them.

I did manage to get pics of my little Urban Indigo lap quilt while I was there:

It washed up beautifully, and I was pretty happy with the way it turned out, except for the two sides quilted more densely. While they look good on the front, I used neutral thread on the back and it's a little too noticeable...which is why the top and bottom are different. It was too dense to rip it out (and on flannel), so I had to commit to at least two sides for symmetry's sake.

Lesson learned, and another quilt finished. 

It's strange to be back in the city. I'd gotten used to the suburbs (though the Japanese beetles ravaging the roses were driving me crazy, I was killing hundreds of them a day), Michigan prices (a dollar goes a lot further there than in Chicago), eating dinner at 4:30 and the convenience of handicap parking everywhere we went.

While I am very happy to be sleeping soundly in my own big bed (Archie too!), even after a few days back it still feels like my shoes are on the wrong feet. It's going to take some time, I think, to find my groove again.

Not exactly how I planned to spend my summer...

Father's Day weekend, my 93-year old mother tripped, fell, and broke two bones in her neck. She's doing well (remarkably, no pain, and she's up and walking and in physical and occupational therapy twice a day at the rehab center), but my father, absolutely lost without his wife of 68 years, turned out to be the one who needed the most tending.

So home I went to cook, clean, do laundry, garden, grocery shop and make daily visits to Mom (which, after a couple days, tended to coincide with the afternoon ice cream social). I pined for my sewing machine, wishing I'd brought it with me but acknowledging that there wouldn't be much sewing going on, anyway. I was trying to do actual work after he went to bed every night, but a project needed special attention, so I returned to Chicago for four days, leaving Dad with plenty of hot dogs (the only thing he can cook in the microwave), yogurt and my sister's gift certificate to the local diner.

The first thing I did when I got home was sit down and start quilting.

Excuse the horrendous amount of lint! That Kona Nightfall shows everything!

I could feel the tension leave my body as that walking foot chugged along. I believe I also kissed the machine once or twice. And look how well I lined up the backing!  There's a first time for everything.

I didn't finish it, but made enough progress that I'm not going to be antsy when I return to my parents' today. Mom's coming home tomorrow, so it's back to caretaking.

I'm going to miss that ice cream.

Untitled...

Not sure what to call this one just yet. I think it's going to have to wait until it's quilted. It's very "City Quilts"-ish, which is probably my subconscious inspiration.

It may be picking up some reflection from the kitchen wall (can you tell I love yellow?) because despite what my camera tells me, these are all shades of blues and greens, no yellows or purples, at least thirty different scraps. That one dark teal in the middle is bugging me a little bit, but not enough to go pull it out. It's a cross-weave and may be photographing more on the black side; there's better contrast up close.

Still loving Kona Nightfall, and I see many possibilities for it in my future. I should have ordered more!