Catching Up

Whew, has it really been 3 weeks since I've posted anything?!? Ok, but this time I have a really good excuse. Honest.

I have been busy. I finished a long-standing quilt project and another non-quilt project. The quilt project in one that I have been working on off and on for the past 7 years or so. My great-aunt started a quilt from a kit. The entire top was cross stitched and then quilted with a rather elaborate quilt pattern that had been pre-stamped on the top. Jessie had completed all the cross stitch and about 1/4 of the hand quilting. Well, I can now say that ALL the hand quilting is complete and the binding is completed. I'm just awaiting a picture of Jessie to include on the label before I send it off to Amanda, the granddaughter she never got to meet.

The other rather time consuming project I completed was insulated window coverings for all 8 of the windows in the Westfalia. I used Warm Window and backed the batting side with silver mylar. Then I made yards and yard and yards of bias binding which, due to the thickness and uncooperativeness (is that a word?) of the mylar, the binding had to be sewn in two stages. Then, with Stephen's help we added grommets and suction cups. The window coverings were put to the test when we joined 26 or so other VW's at Bridge Creek Campground outside of Leavenworth for a weekend campout. Sunday morning the temperature was a brisk 35º. With the warm window coverings and my "hot water dog", we only used the portable heater to warm things up in the morning before we crawled out of bed.

Speaking of Arlo, he's finally showing signs of maturing. At almost 18 months we've been able to see little signs of him settling down. He's still in agility and loving it. But, that's with the help of Xanax before class. I don't know that we will ever be able to compete with him because he still wants to kill every other dog he sees, sigh. We left Sneakers at home this weekend and had hoped that on his own, Arlo would react differently to other dogs but that was not to be. If things don't change in that regard, it's going to be a long 12 years or so....