Life in western Washington is going well. The house is shaping up and starting to feel like home. I wanted to check in and share a bit about the past couple of weeks.
It has been many months since I sat at a sewing machine for any reason. No quilting, mending or sewing has been enjoyed since who knows when? Maybe January or February?
Clearly, this had to be fixed. I spent an evening shuffling bins and plastic totes around to create a path to the corner of the sewing room.
For the time being, I set up a folding table in the corner to hold the machine. I have a sewing table where I can drop the machine down which is great but it is currently in pieces and one of the pieces was damaged in the move. At some point Ray will fix it, but for now, this is good enough. I have a wonderful view of the yard and room to sew.
Currently I am working on matching summer dresses for H and A. After moving all of the fabric tubs to the wall, it became painfully clear how much fabric I have. So, time to use it up!!
I was honored to attend the Mother’s Day Tea at H’s preschool a week ago. She was so excited. My daughter-in-law has a very inflexible schedule and the preschool didn’t give enough notice for her to arrange to be there. So I was the substitute. A sign of the times though; I was certainly not the only Grammy filling in. For a class of 16 children, there were three grandmas in attendance. I had so much fun with this sweet girl.
Not that the guest bathroom is a very exciting topic to write about but I did want to show you how cute my rag rug looks in there! I knew it would fit somewhere. Also, isn’t that flooring cool? It is tile but looks like wood.
My sister and I met for a long walk and a coffee last week. It was gorgeous out. I had not seen these silly chairs before so we took each other’s picture in them. Who is thinking of Edith Ann now? Just showed my age there… ‘and that’s the truth.’ 🙂
Springtime is here – at least as far as the azaleas are concerned. It has actually been quite cool and rainy. But these gorgeous shrubs are not bothered in the least. They are so pretty!
It took no time for the girls to make a mess in the play room last week. We had them for a short while when their parents were out buying some equipment for their latest hobby, beekeeping. H and A settled right in and we had a lot of fun. It is just nuts that we can do this all the time!!
I will be back soon to share the dresses I am working on. Hoping all of you are doing well. Feel free to leave me a comment and tell me how you are!
What fun to set up a new space, and spectacular light for sewing! Edith Ann was my first thought when I saw the picture, LOL, before I read the paragraph!!
Good morning Carole. Glad you got the Edith Ann reference. Lily Tomlin has done so many funny bits over the years.
Have a lovely Sunday!
So glad to see that you’re enjoying your new home and especially, lots of time with your darling grandchildren! Sewing for little girls is SO much fun, too. Looks like you have a large quilt room, and its full of natural light. It’s getting close to fire season up in the foothills here in Northern California – aren’t you glad you moved, for that reason, too? We don’t miss Placerville — especially since when we sold & closed on that house last summer it was a short 8 days later the fire broke out. It missed our old neighborhood, but too close for comfort. We are now in Roseville, and close to everything we need for shops, our doctor & close enough to both son & grandson and daughter & granddaughter that we go to lots of activities for them. Now that the pandemic is over & we’ve got the house more comfortable to live in (although the list of projects yet to be done is a yard long), its time for me to go join a quilt guild locally and start meeting folks around here.
Hi Deb – I’ll admit, I will not miss fire season at all. Glad you are settled in. I know there is a nice guild in the Roseville area. I remember working at their quilt show several years ago as a vendor. I am wanting to get to know some quilters around here too. It is on my list of things to do.
I am pretty sure there is never a time without a project list if you are a homeowner. Enjoy the grand children!! We get to see ours again today for a family lunch. Yay!!
How delightfully fun to sit and read this post this morning! So happy that you are getting things slowly settled in, close to family and enjoying every minute!
Thanks Wendy! We are doing well – having lunch with a lot of family today which I am looking forward to. I made a coconut cake – yum. You keep resting so you will feel better soon, ok??
Edith Ann indeed! What fun to see your new space and your lovely grands as settled in as they can be. So glad it is going all well. The unpacking will all get done…it is exhausting…but lovely once you get each area into shape.
Settling in is a lot of work so I’m glad to see all the joy you’re discovering along the way. Granddaughter time looks crazy fun!
Yes – lots of work! I was green with envy looking at your sewing studio – but then I thought about how long you’ve been working on it. Just takes time to get everything how we want it! It will happen tho.
So fun to get to read this update; Washington looks like it is agreeing with you (you are absolutely glowing in the photo with H)!! I’m so glad that the girls can come over and play with ease and that you are set up and sewing as time allows.
Hi – Thank you for the note – Yes, the Pacific Northwest definitely agrees with us. Just read the weather forecast for our previous home and it will be 90 degrees by the weekend. This is exactly what I am avoiding. Loving being up here and now that things are settling down, we are feeling even better about the whole thing. I know you are familiar with all of this considering your big move to Hawaii. Take care Yvonne.
I too got the Edith Ann reference. I think of that all the time when I see pictures of people sitting in those oversized chairs! I absolutely love the picture of the grands making a delightful mess while playing. I have a big bag of duplo blocks that my granddaughters love to play with and they always ask if they can dump the bag out if they promise to clean it up afterwards. And sometimes they do! Lol!
Hahaha – yes the clean up process is a work in process. When asked to pick up some marbles, the little one looked at me and just said, no – you do it Grammy. She got there but was not thrilled to clean up. She is only 2 though. At 5 years old, H was much happier to help – I love having them though so I even enjoy the messes!
And the smile on your face says exactly why you moved there! Grandparenting means everything to just be there when needed and like you, it’s something I never regret taking time to do no matter their ages or what grade they were in.
Rides home from high school games cancelled were just as important as chorus concerts in elementary school. I loved this post!
Thanks Kathy. My kids were raised with grandparents nearby as I was. I think it is important and gratifying! Takes a village, right?
Settling in from sewing to spending time with your beautiful granddaughters, how fun! And those chairs. Sounds like the move was totally worth it!!
Thank you Cindi. Lots of great reasons to be up here. So far we are very happy with the move!
So good to see you, Bernie! It looks like you are settling in and enjoying the good life. The girls are so big! And Mother’s Day tea at school sounds awesome. Sounds like all the moving hassle was worth it.
YES to the Edith Ann chairs — that was my immediate thought, too! I love Lily Tomlin! The Edith Ann skits as well as the ones where she’s the Operator (One ringy-dingy, two ringy-dingies…). So glad you were able to dig out your sewing machine at last. It looks like you’ll be Living the Dream up there in Washington state with those grandbabies around all the time!
Hi Bernie! What happy newsy news. Isn’t it just the BEST to be able to go to a Mother’s Day tea at preschool?!! And having the girls for a few hours, plus walking with your sister – it just get any better than that. I’m so happy for you and that the move has let you experience these treasures. Plus, what a nice sewing room with a fabulous view. {{Hugs}} a bunch for you. ~smile~ Roseanne
As a grandma, I can “hear” your joy as I read your descriptions of time spent being grandma! I am so happy for you.
If “Edith Ann” is a sign of our age, I happy embrace it! I’m so happy for you, I can see you smiling while you wrote this post!
Thank you Robbin!!
Glad you’re settling in okay. Enjoy your time with the girls.