Running Stitch

It’s really July 2007. Shhhh. But I’m making my Blog into a book…it’s slow work and it may never be done, but I realized I don’t have documentation of the first Turtledash in here. And now I will.

I’m not a fast runner. I started running in college as part of training for Crew. (We rowed boats, up and down the snake river- I wasn’t very good at that either).

After college I kept running. In October of 2003 I participated in my first organized run the Great Columbia Crossing 10k. In December of 2003 I participated in my first half marathon. The Seattle Half Marathon I continued to participates in runs throughout 2003 until at the end of May I found myself…Knocked up.

So I didn’t run for a while. Like nine months. Or more. When I began my training again, I was nervous. Never a strong runner I was worried about getting back into shape both birth. I wanted to a Half Marathon again but was afraid that it would be a waste of money.

And speaking of money. I was now a SAHM and no longer had disposable income. Disposable diapers? Check. But income? Not so much.

And then it came to me, brilliantly.

I would start my own Run. And it would end at my house, where the food and beer was. It was brilliant! And I would call it..The Turtledash (too obvious? did you see it coming?) because my friends Slow and Steady wins the day. If not the race.

And my goal was to finish.

And the Turtledash was born. That first year I was only able to bribe talk five others into the run.

Talia and Keith, My sister and her roommate all showed up. And of course they all beat the pants off me. The stinkers. But that made me the first official Turtle of the Turtledash. I managed to talk my sister into designing the official Turtledash shirts. Awesome? No?

I wasn’t able to talk The Man into running but someone has to stay home with the baby, apparently. And man the barbecue and beer. We ate well that day I tell you. You should come next year!

Having the finish line be at the end of your driveway? Priceless.

Both of the babies are crying in their respective containers. Cookie Monster is inconsolable, because he lost not one but three pacifers, in the disaster that used to be my sewing room. So he can’t nap.

Uh, not me

Mr. Moo has an cold and is having problems sleeping even though he is tired, snotty nose and congestion with a screaming, unhappy Cookie Monster crying upstairs in his crib isn’t helping.

But sometimes you have to let them cry….so they keep telling me. Two babies is A LOT OF BABY. I’m not sure how mothers of twins make it through. I know how I’m making it through. I HIRED A BABYSITTER!! I’m so excited! Paint me green and call me Gumby, cause I’m no longer Pokey.

Today I invited a young lady over, lets call her Pixie Potter, she is eleven, and I used to be her nanny. She is riding the bus to my house after school to help me out. She is a little too young for me to leave Mr. Moo with her alone, but not too young to play with Mr. Moo while I (hysterical laughter) finish up my table runner, (only hours till it’s presented). I’m looking forward to an excellent business partnership where I get two hours in the afternoon of sanity, so I can clean the house (more hysterical laughter), sew, go for a run, play on the computer.

I’m SOOOO excited and only twenty short minutes till she arrives. The Cookie Monster is not going to sleep obviously so I’ve got to go!

What mess?

Notice the boxes on the left (which contain squares cut in different sizes)have been pulled down by the Cookie Monster, Mr. Moo hasn’t figured this one out yet.

She’s MY mama!!

And the number one reason, that I’m not getting anything done…I only have one lap!

Now that I am not getting up at 5am to run anymore, (because Son of a Nutcracker I have a nine-month old who wants to play starting at about 2:30am, and screams if you don’t agree with him about this agenda) I am able to stay up past the little guys’ 8am bedtime.

I was up until eleven last night playing the SIMS and so I didn’t have time to work on my tablerunner. Um. Yeah.

Here’s the thing, each year my Stitch In Time group does a Christmas exchange. Last year we did stockings, and this year we are doing tablerunners. The real problem is I don’t know who my Secret Santa person is. I had never seen her before last November and she hasn’t come to a meeting since. Okay that may technically not be true, since I have had to miss a few meetings (we meet once a month) here and there because my classes sometimes conflict with our meetings.

Not knowing who I’m making the tablerunner for really slowed me down. This is the reason I will never be a good retail sales product producer. I need to know who I’m making the quilt, giraffe, elephant, wool pillows (holy cow am I hooked on these now) for, it makes a big difference to me in the colors and patterns I choose.

For instance one of my favorite quilts was one I made for my nephew out of Pooh fabric. Now Pooh is not terribly original but I loved the quilt because I used a Bear’s Paw pattern. I love doing subtle things like that in a quilt.

I did mark the quilt last night, and begin machine sewing the crosshatching. Here is a picture of Mr. Moo attempting to help. This is of course after he wreaked havoc all over the rest of the room. He is into everything!

Marking the runner

This is my first venture into machine quilting. I don’t really like it. While it is technically faster, it is more stressful for me, I love the calmness and fluid motions of hand sewing. That’s probably why I’m getting so much of it done. *eye rolls*

I’ve given myself an excuse. Christmas. I don’t have to work on anything that isn’t a Christmas present until January.

Of course January is when I plan on ripping down the sheetrock in my sewing room. But more on that later.

Uh yeah, table runner, not finished. I have two very good excuses. One is that my mother -in-law got me hooked on wool this weekend. She decided we needed to make wool pillows for the bazaar on Saturday.

Talk about instant gratification. These babies are slick and so easy! I made this Santa pillow yesterday and am working on a Gingerbread man pillow next.

Santa Pillow

Next, The Man taught me how to play an game called the SIMS. This game is like playing dollhouse on Steroids. And boy did I love playing house. If this keeps up I may have to get a babysitter for Mr. Moo so I can stay home and play on the computer…I may even give up sewing !

That won’t happen, for one thing my sewing room is warmer than the computer room, which is the COLDEST place in the whole darn chilly house!

Lets end positively. Things I did do today.
-went for a run
-marked the table runner for quilting
-snuggled my little sick buddy
-watched Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

walking

Some of the best naps are while you are moving.

Well, the newsletter is done and sent out on the airwaves, the BOM is done and posted below.

Turkey Tracks

On the not done list we have the table runner for Tuesday, crafts for the bazaar on Saturday, un known Christmas gifts, and everything on the UFO list. On top of it all Mr. Moo is miserably sick, but he was introduced to chicken broth today and is a very happy though snotty baby.

LAZY BOY

Moo is still feeling puny, plenty of time to snuggle with mom and drink apple juice and chicken noodle soup. And most exciting of all watching Baby Einstein’s Baby Neptune on repeat. Oh Boy!

Tonight I’m working on my Mad Quilter’s Newsletter, I suddenly realized that it was the end of November and I hadn’t gotten it out yet. This month’s Block of the Month is not quite done either. With an unfinished table runner that needs to be done by Tuesday night I’m starting to stress a bit. I did finish a giraffe today and I got a request to make another!!! My UFO list is growing by the minute!

Below is the picture of August’s BOM it is called Hourglass. I’m hoping some off the other Mad Quilters will send me pictures of their BOM’s so I can display them as well.

Hourglass