It feels so good to be outside and moving! We packed a lunch and biked to Davis Island. 10.24 miles roundtrip. Not sure if I’ll get any sewing done today but I did pull some scraps to use for the yellow Rainbow HeartStrings blocks I want to get made in the next few days.

Our mobile groomer closed her business and moved away to take care for her father right before the Covid 19 shutdown started and groomers were not open for weeks … then when non-essential businesses were allowed to reopen, all the mobile groomers were seeing their regular clients and as a new one, I couldn’t find anyone to groom Finn until mid June. Poor thing, he was so shaggy and hot! And he couldn’t half see!

I’d been focused on the mobile groomers but Chris found me a place nearby and we were able to get an appointment for today. He wouldn’t hold still for a good photo but I was a bit surprised when I picked him up. I’d told them to shave him short! Very short, and for the first time I saw a resemblance to Chesty! Finn is part Havanese and part Bichon and Chesty was a purebred Bichon. Who knew it was just the hair that made them look so different?! Of course, Chesty is 9-10 years older than Finn in the photo below and that shows but Finn definitely looks like his “brother”.

I have not cooked this much in years … 15 years to be exact when we had Keith’s dad living with us before he passed away. I like cooking but between Keith’s travel and going out to eat which I also enjoy, I rarely cook more than 4 nights a week which suits me just fine. Surprisingly, it hasn’t become the “chore” I thought it would be.

Tonight I fixed meatloaf. Usually we have this with smashed potatoes but I decided to use some of the Mac and Cheese Keith had stocked up on since the girls were here. This was the 2nd loaf … I make two smaller ones rather than one large … and there wasn’t a bite left.

Mo didn’t particularly care for the green beans but when I asked her to eat them before I gave her more Mac and Cheese she did …. and she ate every bite of her meatloaf too.

Chris is running an errand for us, Keith and Rae are watching a movie, and Mo is napping so I decided to spend a little time in the sewing room….my sewing room is a disaster area! Keith and Chris took the cabinet for my Jane and another table downstairs … they’ll both go to Big Canoe in June along with some other small pieces of furniture and bins filled with books and fabric and other bits and pieces we’ve decided to move now.

I debated back and forth about whether I was going to take the Jane or the Elna to Big Canoe and went with the Jane because I can quilt small tops on it more easily if I want to do any quilting there. That meant I had to move things around here. I moved the Elna to the back nook with the cutting table and the ironing board and I pulled out Grace … this is the machine I used to have at the condo in Big Canoe. I haven’t used it for over 2 years but it sews fine. I got a binding made and on the other Strippie so 3 of the 5 waiting for binding just need hand stitching.

While I was in there, I pulled some kits to take to Big Canoe and I pulled the old crank Accuquilt GO out of the closet. This one hasn’t been used since I got the electric GO but it also works just fine. I haven’t decided a layout for my triangle quilt but I did decide on a background fabric and I used it to test the GO. I started pulling some scraps but I’m definitely going to have to make a decision about how I’m going to use the triangles before I pull any more fabric.

I haven’t started my May precut quilt yet but when Chris leaves on Tuesday with the girls, I’ll get back to quilting, binding, AND I need to start cutting triangles. I’m still debating the project but I’m thinking since time is short, I might do something with just 6 inch HST to keep it simple. Here’s a vintage Broken Dishes quilt I found on eBay. It would work up quickly with 6 inch triangles but I’m not sure this is the one so I’ll keep looking. I might even find something on my website … a Carpenter Star would be quick too!

I know many of you are not visiting with family and other than Chris and his family we aren’t either … but we’ve stayed with him several times during this period and he has been back and forth helping us. All of us are as careful as possible when we need to be out. Soooo when we decided Rae would come home with us for a week, Chris said he drive down and pick her up … and he bought Mo with him. We’re so lucky to have this time with them.

It’s been fun having Rae here this week … a lot of work … but fun! Chris and Mo arrived tonight and will stay a few days before all 3 of them head back to Georgia.