Tuesday, December 14, 2021

I didn’t have much hand stitching to do today after all. I came upstairs at the end of the night to get the binding attached to that quilt but found that it needed more work before I could bind it because the backing was a bit short on the side I started to stitch on. Maybe the quilt tops I do aren’t as bad as I think they might be. I guess it is aways harder to work on someone else’s project and know that they haven’t done them they way I would have done them.

I had barely started my stitching before it was time to go to my appointment. After that I had one more stop to make at the Post Office and then a stop at the pharmacy to fill a prescription. On my way back from sewing I stopped for gas so it was almost lunch before I got back to work.

Since I had finished my stitching, after lunch I took some photos for the blog, packed up and headed home. I had to pick up my prescription around 1:30 so I quickly got the last of my cards addressed, stamped and ready for today’s mail. I bragged to Pat that this time I wouldn’t need to stand in line I just had to drop them in the outside bin. Of course when I got to the Post Office there was no one in sight so I didn’t feel like I had a win!

I’m back to doing some clean up in my sewing room – putting away Christmas bags, tags and paper and putting away some Christmas fabric. It won’t take long but I’d like to get it done so I can have a fresh start tomorrow morning.

Monday, December 13, 2021

I wanted to sort out some hand sewing for tomorrow’s bee as I have an appointment in the middle of the morning and I didn’t want to take my machine and all the gear if I wasn’t going to have a full day of sewing.

I finished off the last birthday card I needed for January (except for the hand sewing) and then started the binding on a Community Quilt. I didn’t make or quilt the project but Gail handed it to me at one of our Thursday sewing sessions and I thought I should get it done and pass it along. The binding is cut and pressed and hopefully I’ll be able to get it attached either tonight or first thing tomorrow morning.

I had a busy afternoon. I had a couple of things for the post office and expected a line-up. It wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been my last trip but I did wait a bit. My next appointment wasn’t until two so I had some time to kill. I went looking at a particular shop for a birthday present only to find that it was closed. From there I dropped a deposit at the bank and headed to another shop that has some locally-sourced gift ideas. One more stop and one more small gift picked up and I’m pretty sure I am finished everything I need for Christmas and beyond.

When I finished my two o’clock meeting I headed home to get one last package ready for the mail. I received a notice this morning that my library book was due back today and I had another meet-up scheduled for the library just before 4:30. Once the package was wrapped and ready to go I sat down to try and get my book finished. I was still reading when it was time to leave for my appointment.

Once I had picked up what I needed from my meet-up I headed back to the post office to get the parcel mailed. Then I drove back to the library and sat in the car and finished my book. I thought I could sit in the library to finish it but they close earlier than I expected so I parked near some store lighting and managed to see well enough to finish.

I haven’t done this much running around in one day for a long time.

Sunday, December 12, 2021

I had two things on today’s to-do list and they were both done before we had lunch. That should have left some time for cleaning but instead I did some website updates and got some Christmas cards ready for the mail.

I also got a birthday parcel ready to mail tomorrow. As I was packing things up I had two gift cards sitting in my stack – but I only had one gift that required a gift card and I wasn’t even the one who was purchasing it. I went back to my list, counted the number of cards I needed and then found my receipt. I had purchased the right number of cards. So did I forget to include one in someone’s present?

Fortunately before panic really set in I realized that I still have another January birthday to deal with and the gift card is for that parcel. Whew!

Except for those brief moments it has been a very relaxing day.

Saturday, December 11, 2021

I woke up this morning in a tizzy because I could see no way to accomplish everything I had on my to-do list for today. More cards, some cleaning, and some decorating both inside and outside.

I’ve been following a blog that is meant to lead you in decluttering (or divesting as we like to call it) and living a more stress-free life. For me, it isn’t the things I have around that stress me out it is all the things I want to do, feel I should do, and feel guilty about not doing. But the way seemed clear this morning – no more hand-made cards for this year and no Christmas decorating.

I decided much earlier that I wouldn’t be putting up the tree this year. I didn’t plan to decorate until I had all the cleaning done and by the time that was finished I didn’t think there would be much time to enjoy the decorations. And if I put the decorations out before cleaning it meant I’d probably come home from Calgary with a messy house and decorations to put away.

I’m not depressed and I’m not a grinch. I’m just doing some self-care so I’ll be relaxed and enjoy my Christmas.