A Hot Pad Quilted

 Yesterday was cool and windy and we had lots of flurries. The high got to -1C. This morning it is clear (stars are shining) and -6C. Today is suppose a mix of sun and clouds with a high of -3C. 

Lifestyle

I spent half of the morning cleaning part of the living room. I moved furniture, vacuumed, and mopped the floor. It is nice to half part of the area cleaned. I also did the spare bedroom as it needed doing. Elliott's litter box is in there and I have to keep it clean every other day. 

After lunch, daughter-in-law and I headed out to Bedford to pick up posters for an event next Saturday. We went to Peavy Mart and snooped at the left over Christmas decorations and then got smoking pellets. We also went to Giant Tiger which is in the same mall. There we snooped around and bought a few things. 

We went up to the other shopping area and got the posters and then to Walmart. I got a few things I needed and while there, we ordered batteries off Amazon as I couldn't find the ones I wanted. The clear plastic rings I want for the wall hanging were nowhere to be found. I am in think mode about what to do. 

We got home just after 4 pm and I was tired. My knee was sore with the weather and cold wind. I had a wonderful time which was more important than the cold. 

Sewing

As I knew I was going out in the afternoon, I spent 40 minutes in the sewing room. I have no subscriptions to get rid of and I had decluttered my in box in November. I did do more unsubscribing of emails last night. On my last attempt, only 50% unsubscribed. Hopefully this time I will have better luck. 

I spent my time quilting the large hot pad. I was done and tidied up at noon. 

It is thick having 2 layers of batting/insulbrite in it. But I love how cheery it looks. I am ready to make a square one and then bind both of them at the same time. 

I have decided to resubscribe to Sewing With Cinnamon for 3 months as she has changed her format. I want to see what it is like before I commit to a full year. If I don't like it, I will cancel. 

Knitting

I cast on the front of the vest and knit 10 rows of ribbing. 

I may get this vest finished by Valentine's Day if I am lucky.

Thoughts

    I am starting back to loosing the weight I gained and will be focusing on it for the next several months. I need to find a balance between eating too little and too much. I have made a few changes to my diet which has included more fresh fruit. I am going to order Chef's Plate again as I do like the meals. Daughter-in-law and I have committed to walking on the indoor track 3 times a week. The track opens at 9 am so we now need to choose the days and times we will walk. 

    Daughter-in-law asked me if I wanted to travel this year. I am not sure where I would like to go and am thinking on it. I know she will come with me as I am will not travel alone. I would like to do it as I am mobile and enjoy seeing new countries. 

    I had quite a bit of cracking in my back last night. I wonder if it is realigning after having my SI joint out. On the up side, only the muscles in my back are sore. The rest have stopped hurting which is nice. Though I am sore, I am not as stiff as I was. I am doing moves I couldn't do a couple of days ago. 

Today

My plan is to clean more of the living room and do a couple of loads of laundry. If I don't go out this afternoon, I will cut out and start the next hot pad which will be square. My declutter project in the sewing room is books. I need to go through them and make a pile to take to the used book store. Tonight I will knit on the vest. 

Until the next time.......................................................

A Great Day Cleaning and Sewing

Yesterday was cloudy but it didn't rain much. The temperature dropped all day and it went from 5C at 6 am to 1C at 5 pm. This morning it is snowing very very lightly and -2C. Today we are to have flurries with a high of -1C (windchill -7C). 

Lifestyle

I did the balance sheet yesterday and finished 2024. I did go over budget but not as much as I had thought. It was about 50% less than I had thought. I paid the bills and am ready to have a spend less 2025. I did well with it in 2024 so I am ready to try again. 

Once done the balance sheet, I decided to clean the floor at the front closet, down the stairs and the front door area. I struggled with it as I was very sore but I got it done. It was dirty as we take our shoes off in that area. I had thought doing this area on my hands and knees would stretch the soreness out of my back but it didn't. 

I did a couple of things in the garage yesterday but need to back out the car so I can find a missing item that rolled off the work bench. I will do it next week when there is one sunny day. I may spend a bit of time out there organizing some of my stuff. I do need to do that. 

I rolled over in bed and my right SI joint cracked into place. I slept well as the pain disappeared. I am a bit sore this morning but not like I've been. I am looking forward to osteopathy next week. Hopefully she can work on what is out of place. 

Sewing

My first job of the afternoon was to clean up the serger area. By the time I was finished, I had done the whole sewing cabinet area. I wiped both machines, the cabinet, and organized items. Only what I want close at hand is on the cabinet and everything else is put away. 

Next up was to find what is called squatters in the challenge. I found two. One was a small level. I don't know why it was in the sewing room so I put it out into the garage. The other was a kitchen towel that needed a button sewn on since November. I put the button on and put it upstairs in the kitchen tea towel drawer. 

I worked on the wall hanging and it is done to attaching the blocks together. I will have to get some when I go shopping. 

As this project is deemed done for now. I cut out the next large hot pad I want to make. This one is sunny and cheerful. 

I put a layer of Insulbrite under the batting which has increased the cost by just under $4.00. I am going to stick to two layers of batting. This is ready to start quilting with green thread. I have another fat quarter of this print to make a square hot pad and, hopefully, 2 mug rugs. 

I will still focus on buying less fabric again this year. I did well last year. Most of what I bought I used but I do have some pieces that ended up in the stash. I have some gift certificates for one quilt shop and I will use one towards having my next quilt long armed and the other will be spent very carefully on a project or two for me. 

Knitting

I did not knit last night as I was exhausted from the pain I have been having. 

Thoughts

    We are heading into cooler weather again. There are to be flurries which I am hoping won't turn into heavy snow falls. The temperatures are going to be in the more normal range. 

    I sat in my sewing room looking at the clean spaces. I need to keep them clean by picking up after myself at the end of each sewing session. I have been making a point of it and it is nice to come back the next day to tidy spaces. My goal is to come back to a tidy room. 

    As I sat and looked at the clean spaces, I looked at the capacity of the room. As it is large, it can hold a lot of stuff. I was doing a great job of it but it was making me stressed out. Though I love my large space, I also love it having less in it. One reason I am decluttering harder this year. The other reason is having less means I have less to worry about when I no longer can live here. In the mean time I can keep this room tidy and with in my clutter threshold. 

Today

I am hoping to start cleaning the living room this morning. This afternoon I will sew as I have met today's declutter challenge of subscriptions. I may not sew either as I may go with daughter-in-law to get something printed. If we are close to a store where I can get the rings I will do that. I am not sure about tonight but if I am home, I will cast on the front of the sweater. 

Until the next time........................................................

Progress On The Halloween Wall Hanging

 Yesterday started off sunny and ended up pouring rain for about 2 - 3 hours. The high got to 5C during the day and 7C during the night. This morning it is cloudy and 5C. Today is supposed to be wet with the temperature dropping to 4C. 

Lifestyle

Yesterday morning I cleaned the dining room. It went fairly quickly starting with cleaning off the table, wiping it down good, and putting on the usual placemats. Next came moving all the chairs, cleaning their feet from fluff and moving the table. I vacuumed, and mopped until the floor was done. I even moved the server and did the floor under there. 

I was not too surprised at how much fluff, cat hair, and dust was on the floor (the vacuum cleaner light does not lie). It happens. What surprised me was how easy it was to clean up the space. It is decluttered, everything has its own place, and there is no extras in the room. A couple of hours and it is deep cleaned. 

After a couple of months of watching very few decluttering videos (like 4), I watched one which helped me think through several road blocks. It is the Minimalist Mom. This one was about 6 techniques to controlling your stuff. I don't always agree with her but I do listen to what she has to say. I wrote notes to help keep me on track for 2025. 

At the end of the video I realized that I need to buy carefully so what comes into the house has a job to do to help me live here independently. I also realized that I need to have a few things in each room to have it warm and cozy. I am realizing that I don't have the time to do everything I want to do and need to let go of the projects that I am the least interested in. I don't need to stock pile anything -- food, fabric, etc. Keeping extra stuff becomes a burden and clutter. 

It was a great video and it made me really think about how I want to move forward in 2025. 

I was out to family's for dinner. I had a bowl of homemade chicken noodle soup and it was the best I have tasted. Instead of rice, daughter-in-law use orzo. I am going to use it rather than rice or noodles when I make mine. We also had meat, cheese, and crackers. Dessert was carrot cake that grandson made. We watched a soccer game and I enjoyed that. It was a lovely evening out.

Sewing

My main job of the day was to get the garbage out of the sewing room. I had a bit floating around and I put it into the garbage can. All was emptied plus some from the family room. Later on I found more in the family room. It was in a box under a table and I missed it on the first round. I know I will find a bit more when I continue to clean up the room. 

My second job was to clean the space where I have the embroidery machine. I put away the thread from the project and then started cleaning. It was mainly dusty. I organized a small tub that I have beside the machine. 

I also wiped down the table, pulled it out from the wall, wiped the baseboards and dry mopped the floor. It is ready to have the floor wet mopped. 

I spent the rest of my time sewing the binding onto the two wall hanging squares and hand sewing the binding down by hand. 

I found 3 spider buttons that I need to sew onto the squares. I have had them for years and don't know where I bought them. 

Once the buttons are sewn on I am ready to assemble. Not sure how I am going to do it but I may need to get the plastic rings for it. 

I also cut out the pattern for the rabbit's head and ears. I need to finish the video on how to do this part and start on it. 

Knitting

None done last night. 

Thoughts

    I had a wonderful evening with family. It did me good to go out and be with them after being home for a week on my own. I was sad to hug our friend as they are leaving tomorrow for Florida where they will stay until spring. 

    Once again, I am starting to get into the rhythm of cleaning the sewing room and am also looking at the family room. I still have a bit of cleaning left in there and will do some each time we get to the category (tools). I realize that both rooms were messy and that my initial decluttering and purging were helpful for me to start once again sorting through my stuff. 

    I have started to realize I have the upstairs decluttered to the point where I am happy with what I have. I need to maintain it on a daily basis. I need to have the one in/one out policy when I buy something. What I need to do is get the house painted and make it warm and cozy to live in. 

Today

I need to do the balance sheet this morning and then clean the landing if I have time. Today's job in the sewing room is to find items that don't belong in there. I will also start cleaning my main sewing machine table today (20 minutes). I want to press the ghosts and attach them to the bottom block. Once that is done, I will start cutting out the next large hot pad to work on. Tonight I would like to cast on the stitches for the vest front and start the ribbing. 

Until the next time........................................................................

Hello 2025

Yesterday was very sunny with a high of 9C. This morning it is foggy and -1C. Today is suppose to be rainy with a high of 4C. 

Lifestyle

Yesterday morning I went out and brought in the two LED projector lamps. I am so happy that I bought them for my outdoor decorations. Rather than worry about getting lights down, I just have two items to bring in and two extension cords to put away. Perfect for me. Easy to put up and easy to take down. 

 Next I was out to get groceries so I would miss the crowds. I didn't get a lot as I am trying to use up what I have in the freezer and pantry. The store wasn't too busy until I was ready to leave. People were coming in to get what they needed as the stores are all closed today. My one splurge buy was to get some finishing sugars for next year. 

I have been looking for these for a month or so and finally found them where I least expected to -- in with the Christmas candy. They are in the freezer ready for Christmas 2025. 

Once home I put the groceries away and had a short rest. I cleaned up the kitchen, vacuumed the floor and mopped it. They weren't overly dirty, more dusty with a lot of cat hair on them. It is nice to have the kitchen cleaned up for the next few days. As I clean up the house, I will try to vacuum the floors. 

I also laundered the blankets and got them folded and put away. I have our old blankets on the couch for now as I am looking for new ones. It may take me a while to find what I want. I will keep the old ones to put over the vegetables in case of frost. I will find a tub or basket to put them into. 

Sewing

I spent most of the afternoon in the sewing room. I got the last letter stitched out. I trimmed the blocks to the proper size.

I also stitched out the three ghosts to at the bottom of the wall hanging. They are ready to soak in warm water so the stabilizer will dissolve. While they were stitching out, I cut out the binding strips and got the first square ready to hand sew the binding in place. 

While the machine was stitching out, I looked for the Spanish hemstitching foot. I found it but it won't work on the Diamond. It was bought for the SE. 

What I do remember is that the lady who sold it to me didn't know how to use it on the project we were making. The plate had never been removed from the package. No wonder I hated this foot. I am deciding if I will order the foot or not. My question is "Will I use it?"

Knitting

I finished the back of the vest last night. Now to start the front. 

Thoughts

    I sat and thought about 2024 last night. It was a year of highs and lows. The biggest high was going to Denmark and Sweden. I so enjoyed the 2 weeks we were there. It left me wanting a more simple and calm lifestyle. Another high was the improvement in my hip until both SI joints came out of place. I am 90% back to where I was prior to that incident. And the last high is still being independent and living in my own house. 

    The lows I had was depression. The cause was weather. We had a lot of dull grey days that left me feeling sad and unmotivated. Pain from my hip also affected my mood. I also noticed that I felt lonely at times and missed the Spousal Unit. This was mainly when I reconnected with old friends, heard about people who passed, or the need to talk about things I only shared with him. One of my focuses this year is to work on my mental health. 

    I put the Scandinavian Winter quilt onto the couch yesterday and realized that I really want navy and light blue in the main part of the house. I can bring in grey and white along with textures. It had me scrambling to find this picture. 

I have ideas popping into my head about what I want to do. 

    I finished reading Swedish Death Cleaning last night and it was a good story. I have done most of what she said to do and am working on peeling away the clutter I acquired in 2024. I am focusing more on keeping my areas clean and tidy as I have decluttered a lot over the years. If I remove the stuff I don't need on a regular basis and tidy up after myself daily, I feel that I can have the house in good order. This will help me keep it clean and tidy. 

Today

My goal is to clean the dining room and vacuum and mop the floor. It is day 1 of Karen Brown's declutter challenge. My job is to find the remaining trash in both the sewing and family rooms and take it out. I also have to take garbage to the curb this afternoon. I want to bind the remaining 2 squares so I can start hand sewing the binding in place. The ghosts need to be soaked in water and left to dry. Tonight I hope to cast on the front of the vest. 

Until the next time............................................................