It's always nice to be right....right?

I predicted that if I bought replacement candy we wouldn't need it.

Tonight we had NO trick-or-treaters

which means now we're 'stuck' <G> with all the chocolate...

Oh well...

This morning I have gotten more mucking/organizing done with regard to my quilting stuff.  It's always good when I can actually see progress, and expect that at "some point" I should be able to find whatever it is I'm looking for...

This afternoon I made a quick trip to the store because "somehow" 

we've managed to almost annihilate the second bag of Halloween candy Tom bought.  Murphy's Law being what it is, we're now likely to get very few trick-or-treaters, which means we'll be 'forced' to eat all that chocolate ourselves.  But if I hadn't replenished the supply, I expect we would be inundated with hordes of hungry kids tonight... so I really had no choice.

Stopped in at Jeannie's on my way to the store to see a Laurel Burch horse quilt a client will be picking up later today; her custom quilting, as usual, is stunning.  Today I learned that Laurel Burch suffered from osteopetrosis, a bone disease that was quite debilitating (over her lifetime she had suffered from more than 100 breaks, once even breaking her jaw just eating dinner.)  Still she continued to create her colorful cheery works of art until the end.

Laurel was a self-taught painter. She saw herself as a folk artist, telling stories. “In our fast-paced, changing world,” she said, “we need symbols that are a reminder of the ongoing world of the spirit.” On some level, her work was always about bringing different cultures together, and about our connection with the earth and all living things, ideas that have only increased in relevance today. Laurel was always incredibly prolific. Even during her long periods of convalescence, when she was forced to paint from a bed or wheelchair, she seldom put her brushes down. Laurel said, “I refuse to have anything in my life that I can’t turn around into something magical and beautiful. I just refuse.” Her art will forever convey a sense of joy and passion and lightness. There is an inner strength in her figures, with their bold lines and sinuous curves, and something irrepressible in the explosion of her colors. The universe of her imagination was fertile, burgeoning, uplifting, egalitarian, a place where every flower and dragonfly was transformed into something...magical and beautiful. 

A quilting friend sent me to a link for 23 Adorable Penguin Products You Need In Your Life (because when you love penguins, you REALLY love them.)  Here are a few of them that made me smile:

I've been waiting and checking for my first Social Security check to show up in my bank account.  Even though I got to start Medicare on Sept. 1, for some reason I would not get my first retirement benefit check until mid-October.  This morning I was all set to call the SS office and sit on Hold, in hopes that the person who eventually answered the phone would be able to figure out where the $ is.  Just as I was getting ready to dial I had an idea....

Because this would be "found" money I wasn't used to having each month, maybe I had decided to have it deposited into my Savings account where it could sit unmolested?  And sure enough, that's where it's been since October 14.  

Always happy when I don't have to wait on Hold - and even happier that after all the headaches I had signing up I didn't have to deal with yet another clueless person at SS!

We did get some rain/wind yesterday afternoon, right on schedule (translation: yesterday afternoon we had flood irrigation.)  With all the clouds in the sky it's possible we might get some more today.  Yesterday's winds sent this 25' pumpkin flying through Peoria.  

http://www.12news.com/story/news/local/valley/2015/10/29/inflatable-pumpkin-loose-peoria/74837360/

When Alex posted this picture on FB yesterday of him "chillin on forklift" it reminded me of some photos of him when he was just a little guy but already interested in "big boy toys".

So it seemed like a good opportunity to try out the scanner on our new printer.  While it is a totally different process from scanning with the old printer, surprisingly (!) I had no problem actually scanning the photos in.  Unfortunately figuring out where  on my hard drive the printer had stashed them was not easy, and soon turned into a major issue.  (Yes it would have been convenient if the computer had just asked me where on the computer I'd like to put my scans - but of course it didn't!)  

Eventually (after I'd exhausted the few search options I had) I enlisted Tom's help, and after much additional searching (at least Tom started out looking everywhere I had originally tried) and head scratching the deed was finally done.  Now that I know how the computer "thinks" it should (!) be a piece of cake next time...

Here are those pix of 2-year-old Alex his recent post brought to mind.

Cheri and I made substantial progress on the flower project yesterday, but though I was there until 4:00 (and we really did work on our flowers most of that time!) we did not actually finish as she had (naively!) predicted.  Here are the 6x18 pieces of fabric folded (first to 3x18) and ironed, then folded in half again (to 3x9) so they could be wavy trimmed on their outside edges.

I had to do that wavy trimming at Cheri's house (my mats are all green) because although I had splurged and bought a wavy blade for my rotary cutter, that blade is still in the package - and so safely tucked away "somewhere" that it didn't turn up when I was looking for it to use for this project. It could be hiding in plain sight, like this guy...

Here are the flowers at this stage in their 'growth'.

While I was working on my flowers, Cheri was making up a small patriotic bouquet of her own to give to a friend (originally from the Phillipines) who is becoming a naturalized citizen today.  Cheri turned these 

into this perfect gift to celebrate her friend's big day.

I stayed up reading last night (it was after 11:30 when I finally turned out my light) so of course I was up before 6:00 this morning.  Hope I have enough energy for my workout at the gym today. <g>  The good news is that my elbow feels considerably better today; the big question is how it will behave once I start using it at the gym today. This 'getting old' process is definitely getting old!!! 

Today I also need to run some errands (mail off  my birthday present to Terry, pick up a couple more baby bibs for next two babies who have recently made their appearance in the world, pick up a couple of books waiting for me at the library, etc.)

And I should call the exterminator today to see about the breakdown in communication.  I had cancelled  Ken's visit for yesterday afternoon (and rescheduled for next Thursday) because of irrigation, so when I got home yesterday I was surprised to hear that Ken had showed up (and sprayed) as originally planned; obviously he never got Judy's message about waiting until next week.  Of course I never said anything to Tom about Ken coming to spray while I was gone for the day - because I wasn't expecting him to...!

Yesterday afternoon and evening were spent at the State Fair (where it cost more to park than to get in.)  I enjoyed seeing the quilts while Tom looked at the minerals, which (quite helpfully) were housed in the same building.  He spent considerable time talking with Frank, and plans to attend the upcoming monthly meeting of the area's lapidarists Monday night.

Of course there was plenty of fair food, though Tom did not feel it necessary to try the deep fried watermelon, or this:

I did cave, and had the deep fried brownie.
It was okay, though not quite what I was expecting.

There were plenty of rides, of course, though we didn't take advantage of any of them. <g> They, however, were seemingly taking advantage of ticket buyers who can't do math.  The sign over the booths read like this:

10 tickets for $5

40 tickets for $20

100 tickets for $50

200 tickets for $100

Usually you get a price break when you buy in quantity - but obviously not at the state fair!

 G Force looked like quite the vomitorium, and there was also a bungee jumping 'ride'.  I texted Alex about that, and he said he'd gotten a video of Clay doing it.  Definitely NOT my thing!

Jackson Browne put on an excellent concert (though much too short, at 'only' 90 minutes...) and even Tom enjoyed it (he hadn't expected to.)

Singing with him at one point was Theresa Williams. 

I hadn't heard of her before.... but what a voice!

http://www.wsj.com/articles/backups-larry-campbell-and-teresa-williams-step-forward-1434562763

The good news is that my foot survived the fair, and still feels fine this morning.  I did use my cane, which took some of the pressure off my foot.  The bad news is that during the fair that elbow started to really hurt (from the pressure on it?) I iced it when we got home, but it still aches this morning, and like last night really hurts to bend it.  So has arthritis popped up in yet another spot in my body?  

Now I need to get dressed and head up to Anthem, where Cheri is going to help me make up the flowers.  She expects us to actually finish them today, so I hope my sore elbow doesn't interfere and impede my sewing !!!

This morning I picked up Carol and brought her to Busy Bees - first time she's been able to get there since the January meeting!  Of course everyone was thrilled to see her again.  Here are Carol and Jean, waiting for the meeting to start.

It was a surprise that Pennie brought her daughter Heather and 3-week-old granddaughter Jordyn, though it was certainly no surprise that everyone adored little Jordyn; she's definitely a cutie!  I had expected to give Jordyn's Somebunny Special bib to Pennie, so it was nice to be able to give it directly to Heather and Jordyn.  Heather really liked it, though as you can see Jordyn was not terribly impressed.

Before leaving home this morning I had my usual oatmeal breakfast, hoping to be able to resist the goodies at the meeting.  I was feeling quite pleased with myself when I only took some of the fresh fruit at the meeting.  Until, that is, it turned out to be Peggy's birthday.  She is well-known for her baking skills, so it's not any surprise that I 'forced' myself to eat a slice of the decadent chocolate cake she brought in today.

Sharon, who is known for her exquisite quilts (no one wants to go after her during Show & Tell) brought in a quilt she'd made from some leftover scraps.  Not only didn't Sharon like the final result (it's going to charity, and will keep someone warm and snuggly), but when she showed it to her daughter (who usually kvells over everything Sharon makes), her daughter made a comment to the effect that there was "no hope" for this quilt.

After the meeting Carol asked if I would swing by her old house (just a mile or two away) before I took her back to Assisted Living.  When I saw a car in the driveway I took a chance that someone was home and rang the bell.  After I explained to Aurora that Carol had lived there for 53+ years (until she broke her hip earlier this year) and would love to see all the renovations inside, she was more than willing to let us in for a look-see.

By the time I took Carol home she was pretty worn out from the 3 sets of car transfers and the extra walking, though she agreed it had been a wonderful morning. So we'll do it again next month!

Last night I stayed up until about 11:00 to finish a book (which wasn't really worth it) and so naturally this morning (because yesterday I'd told Cheri I've been sleeping in lately when we discussed a time to meet on Thursday?) I woke up at 5:00.

Marilyn has put in a request for a flower bouquet because she liked the ones I made for Mom for Mother's Day.  (The flowers will not actually be for Marilyn... she wants them as a gift for her friend Gail.)  

This time, when Cheri helps me, I'm going to take copious notes (and pictures!) of the steps so I will be able to make them on my own next time.  That's the theory, anyway!

I already have the dozen fabrics cut out and ironed.  Despite my tonnage of fabric it wasn't as easy as expected since Gail's home is decorated in country style, with muted colors... and my color choices tend to scream fairly loudly. This afternoon I plan to pick up the rest of the necessary supplies (sticks and more green felt) at Michael's.

I'm off to Colleen's this morning to drop off some stuff and see all the great things she made at Quilt Camp, while Tom gets to have a new windshield installed today.  On our way to the hot springs in the summer of '14 a big truck threw a rock up onto the truck, creating an instant nasty crack.  Lately that crack has spread so today's the day he's doing something about it.  

The doorbell rang just as I finished typing the preceding paragraph, and Tom's windshield is currently being replaced.  (No, Tom wasn't even awake yet!)  When JD finishes he'g going to take a look at the chips in my windshield to see if they fall into the fixable category.  If so, he can also take care of that this morning.  Tom has used him before, and he's capable and reliable.