Day 13 is Full of Love

.Finished with an hour to go...My March block for.

The 2020 Monthly Color Challenge by Jen

Purple shot cotton by Kaffe with Irish sheep...love..

I must say, Jen has perfect patterns...they go together with ease.

Lynsey made her grandmother the best cup of peach tea with honey and lemon

Dylan put woolie socks on Grandma's feet. ....lovely..

Imagination...They decided to cross-dress...OMG

Dylan wore his sister's South Charlotte Middle School's shirt and

her pink hi-top sneakers. Lynsey wore her Brother's red shoes (they wear the same size)

And, his favorite jeans...she made a fashion statement with his shirt in a knot and her Irish beads.

That Lynsey is our creative queen...she even slicked her brother's hair back for the picture.

She says that at 10 and 11, they are pre-tweens!!

My son went to Aldi...Now, we have decided for only a once a week grocery shopping.

 Tuesdays will be the day.

When shopping, my son wears a mask and gloves and puts his shirt soaking in a separate sink once home..

I am not allowed out of the house, but onto the porch to read.

I am boosted by the love.

My son is realizing that he has to be firmer with his children...Tonight he made the decisions and put them to bed...So happy.

This isolation situation brings me waves of grief for my dear man.

 Tears help let it wash over me.

I so miss him saying, "Don't worry sweetheart, we still have each other."

Grief is still love..so much love.

Dylan put himself on Google Classroom, one tech worry down.

No mask making tonight...just joyful sewing.

From gifted orphan blocks comes top number 4 for MQG outreach

Motivated, of course, by someone else who has all five finished..

Backing for the above top.

Clean cutting table...You have no idea how difficult this is for me..
with my focus all shot from grief and grand parenting and other things.
This is the miracle.

Sooo proud of myself.

You know how we are not supposed to touch our face...so impossible.
Well, I just saw a clip that said, if a person has a glass of wine in each hand, they
cannot possibly touch their face....and so it goes...the truth.

Finding Joy on Day 11

From my girl to her ma!!!  Joy!!

She made one for me!!

My girl is having her own baby girl around July 23.

Delilah?? Matilda?? Petunia??

Who knows?...I will love her anyway!!

It all uplifts me so!

Emails and calls from friends...help 

the beautiful day shine brighter.
.

This plant has been in our garden for 20 years.
This is the first time it has ever bloomed.
We bought it thinking it was a Rhododendron  Actually I had thought it would be purple.
Amazing grace..

The Flame Azalea my mother bought for me 15 years ago.

Masks I made my sister.  The hospital she works in on the weekends
already has two patients with the virus.
She is going to fuss with them a bit so they fit her as she likes.

My son replacing rotten deck boards so we do not fall.
Saving me money.

Propagating my sad old Rosemary bush...a new opportunity.

Snowball tree starting its stunning spring display.

First spring Iris, gift from MP
Irises always remind me of my mother.
They bloom around her birthday.

Through my sewing room window...I see..
my son with his son...a beautiful thing..

This pretty....is a God thing...

This is a God thing too...
Ava's second birthday, a miracle.
Her big brother, Evan made her cake...

All this is love.

Day Nine....Life as We Know it, Changed in a Second

Lynsey and Dylan

Masks...grandma made

Day Eight of Awareness

Successful masks.finally...Tute sent by Emily...used above  We adjusted it to 5.5 x 9
and 6 inch elastic. I am sending off these three to the hospice in Miami that has nothing at all to protect the workers...I will wait for my friend's response before I make more.
I am using batiks because of the close weave.
These are the Masks requested by Atrium but they will take any mask at all as of 3/25/20

The unsuccessful mask above...put me in quite the snit...but it was late at night...
My son used it anyway, today visiting the bank.
Below is the fabric he requested for his permanent one.  Done!

Some times our lives are just the pits...And, each bump brings back all the other bumps we have had  before
Someone here could not get a grip last night nor this morning...And then...then...
The kindness of a friend changed it all around in a sec...
Look at the beautiful new yard of Tula Pink fabric that was left on my front porch...bag handle sanitized and all.
I have been eyeing her new collection, but knew that new fabric was not in my purse at this time.

Well..that kindness of a friend...got me out of bed..into the shower, reading in the sun, making masks and generally getting energized...I thank you so much, my friend.  Evidently Quilt Patch Fabric was having a event...order online and drive by to pick up...ha ha..just like pizza.

More on the happy list.  Dylan is now 10...all his life his mother has called him, Dyl...or Dill
as in Dill Pickle...and all three children love pickles.
At Christmas I was ordering monkey socks for my son-in-law when I saw these too...so perfect.
Christmas came...and I had lost them.
Dylan's birthday came...socks not found..then yesterday, they appeared out of the blue on my
bureau...wahoo...Of course they are men's size, but our Dylan loves them.

I am so trying to handle this latest crisis with aplomb.  However, I think my psychic strength has eroded....I think I am going to listen to my sister-in-law in Ireland....a lifelong teacher.
Let them be kids and play and read...They are stressed too.. They will catch up.
Grateful that the high schooler is isolating with his mother  She is making him be responsible with his online learning...so great!!

Next sewing machine I am getting will fit in my car..where I go for respite from chaos and noise...sometimes.

Thanks to a whirl of folks, the children's Chrome books now work.
First on the phone with a smart teacher.
She waited 30 minutes on a phone call from the central district school's internet coordinator, without any response.
She sent me to the school for help from the technology teacher...
That teacher said it was our home internet because the chrome books worked at school
The children had to come with me as I am tech ignorant...

All helpful....at the end of the day, my smart daughter fixed it remotely from Portland, Ore.
Now, we are all set...Except the children think they are on vacation..and they are stressed and loud and boisterous...They do not want to do school work...
They want to play spy or hide and seek or teacher with the stuffed animals.


My ribbon from the show...notes said great use of color...me and great quilting..Katy.

My very favorite quilt artist of all times:

Rachel from Blue Mountain Daisy

I love her work and her blog posts.

She has been a blogging friend for 10 years.

I was so hoping to meet her when she came to America this time,

For some reason our guild could not have her.

I am sad...Now, I am old and wobbly, probably will not have a chance anymore to meet her.

However, now we have other things to worry about..and we stay home and we

fret and we sew and we eat too much...and we breathe and sigh and carry on just fine.
Me thinks that this is not the time to whip myself into shape...sigh..

Just sharing my life as it is now....
Home Schooling

"Want of Foresight, unwillingness to act when action would be simple and effective, lack of clear thinking, confusion of counsel until the emergency comes, until self-preservation strikes its jarring gong.  These are the features which constitute the endless repetition of history."
Winston Churchill.
Posted by Ann at the blog Fret Not Yourself.

Day Five of Self Isolation..hmmmmm

Read this...read all about it!!!
Yeah, North Carolina!!! Mask City!!! Saves the Day.

Above, the last two receiving blankets..
Below, my porch..a sanctuary in tough times.
In the new circumstances, Grandma O'Quilts has had the porch re-arranged.
Life saving things like a quilter's cutting mat and , and....

The old exercise bike not used for  years...pulled out of the garage.
A poor substitute for the pool, but it may just get the job done until it opens again.
See my book in place....I can only do five minutes...but really, 5 is better than nothing,
or, so they say.

Do your homework darlings...NO!!!

Grandma....It is Sunday!!

Who knew??
I told them reading was for every day...Look..just look!!
Reading on grandma's bike...honestly!!!!.
Guessing I was dreaming that it would be off limits.

My son has been to so many stores.
I am grateful that now we are all set for a month with food.
Now, I hear that half the virus cases here are people 30 to 40...so
my son was at risk all the time..
OMG...I told him he could only do isolated jobs like gardening or handy man things where there are no crowds...nothing else.

If I document each day of isolation, it might just be too many many blog posts.
Hopefully, I will get to quilting my 100 UFOs
My outreach quilts, and bags, etc.
Three days till the sun comes back and beautiful spring comes to Charlotte.

Day Four...Ha Ha..No Schooling What-so- Ever

Where is Waldo???

Ok...time for Grandma's walk to the end of the street.

Where are you??  Where are you??
I guess at ages 10 and 11...On a great spring day...having fun is just wonderful schooling.

There is no guilt here, I always liked the 4 day workweek. When I worked at the Indian reservation, I had that...Nice!!!...Anyway, they are again at the creek with their father..
.I am breathing and ignoring the idea of snakes and poison ivy...
I have enough to fill my brain.
 So they are studying creeks?????

When they get back, they will load the little peat pots with seeds...
That should be educational..Science??

Lynsey made blueberry muffins and tea while I was reading outside.
Cooking and measuring?
Tonight they will read...( I forgot)

This is a great article.....Mask making!!!  Great...

Thanks to Sherry, I have elastic...Emily and I are going to work on this tonight.
She made these:

She said that the top one comes out nicer.  Will send them to Miami
for my friend and will see which style she prefers.
Tomorrow I will try out mine. I will skip the bottom one.
Every day the news on masks and virus and whatever...changes..
Batik has a tighter weave.  I wonder if that would be safer.

Now, the school superintendent says no way school will start again on April 1st.

I am supposed to be dropping a few pounds in my tummy for my hernia operation...
However, I am a stress eater...and stress is here!!!
My guess is that I am not the only one around the world and here at home that feels stress!!!
STRESS!!

My girl told me to order food from the local store for pick up., thus I do not have to risk old me with asthma...I am sooo wanting to go myself...but, even though I am not a rule follower, I am listening.
I did that tonight...and...the next available slot for me to pick up food is next Saturday, the 28th at noon.  Can you believe it...and...they warn that the food may not be available...I get that part...but a week wait..Good thing I did this ahead of time.

Sunny Day Three...On the Outside, Anyway

Teaching math on the quilt to her dolls...great way to practice math.
Lynsey will be a wonderful teacher and writer!

Todays science....a toad in Lynsey's hand.

The black hole engulfed me today, even though it was sunny outside.
Both yesterday and today, I read a book in the sun...
My son spent four  hours running around town into 10 grocery stores to find meat.
In the end, it was in Target, that he found stew meat and pork chops...wow..lucky us.

Finally, I got a grip and hung the Easter quilt...taking down the Christmas one!!

Tonight I made two receiving blankets.
I only started to feel better, when...I started sewing...really???
No surprise at that one.

This is the link for the toilet paper quilt..
So fun...Thank you Maureen and Myrto for this..
They will have a sew along next week...exciting.
On a Roll...by Java House Quilts

I bought this pattern.  I just had to be part of quilters expressing themselves
during this very crazy time.

When my friend, Anxiety comes visiting, I remember my brave grandmother, my brave mother and my brave husband...I am a wannabee...I want to be brave like they were.
And, so, as I sit in my wonderful yard, the birds, the new buds on the trees, the great way the children are learning remotely and my son...all give me comfort..
Quilters give me comfort
PS...My son took the children to our creek with the dog yesterday..

In March...Ok..it was the first day of Spring..

As Our World Turns

Sitting on the porch reading, on a lovely day

Second day of homeschooling..

Writing in their journals in their  tent.

Zoe is the guard dog of the day.

Nothing soothes the soul like a gift of cup fabric..

Arriving today in a ratty and ripped Amazon Box,  were these:

I have been watching too much dire news.

The rescue came from dear Drenna..

Now, if this may be my last week on earth...what the heck.

I love indulgence!!

Today, the dog and children were washed after a fun time at the creek behind our house...

Can you believe they wore their bathing suits...in March??

I think their father loved it too.

I have been reading outside, napping and enjoying the glory of nature.
Back inside making stuffed peppers for dinner.
Perusing the food.. I had thought we were all set..
No frozen corn??

Ok...Then I looked at the yummy big 25 pound turkey my son bought yesterday
Gulp....It was not a 25 pound turkey, it was a $25 turkey...certainly tiny and even a bit puny.
At first I just took a deep breath...then I realized I was lucky to have it at all..
A portent of times to come...scarcity and increased prices.
We Americans  have been very lucky.  An entire country in adversity is rare for us.

I heard my grandmother's voice...Never waste anything...cook by your own taste, there may not be enough for a recipe, ,but  you can still make it taste good...
We had so many beans in the chili yesterday that poor Dylan got the runs...sigh.

I used 6 fresh peppers for tonight's  dinner, then I said to self, maybe I used too many...There will not be enough for tomorrow....Then I chopped the  tops finely and froze them.
This family eats big...especially little Lynsey..
.OMG..Every 3 hours she wants to know what is for snack.

Day two of confinement and I have already used up 2 jars of spaghetti sauce..OMG
And three cans of beans...OMG and we have no frozen corn.
Eamon got potting soil and seeds for tomatoes...bush beans etc.
We have little sun in our backyard and the front yard is full of deer.
We will find a way.

I wish my grandmother was here now...Oh, maybe she is.
I see her clear as day making leftovers so tasty and being so thrifty.
It is a new day for me, the next grandma in the kitchen.

Still trying to set up the school's chrome book for Dylan..
Not in my skill set.

Feeling a bit guilty drinking anything Corona...but ..I have to cheer the day.

The Changing of Our World

I saw this quilt online somewhere...I do not remember where...
and, I have no pattern.

Day two...homeschooling...reading outside.

This year there was nothing but anxiety for St. Paddy's Day
This fun picture is from 7 years ago

Dylan cheering Grandma..by bringing in two tulips from the garden
I love tulips.

Below, my first finished receiving blanket ..helped along by my
new online quilting group, the Good Vibes Quilters....
This one is for someone who loves NE USA and also loves sheep.

Yesterday was the third worse St Paddy's Day of all..for our family.

We forgot to celebrate any of it...we did not even wear green. Instead, we picked up
a Chrome book from school for Dylan's home learning.
We tried to get the two chrome books linked to the school...
with NO success, and a lot of irritability .

 We sat in shock as our city closed down..from the schools to the malls to the libraries..
Tonight...
My son went to 5 different grocery stores for another chicken or ground beef.
He came home with a huge Thanksgiving turkey...for baking and souping and sandwiching.
I am so grateful.
He also had to find parts for our now broken garage door and our rotten deck boards.
Soon, he too will not be allowed out and about.
More stress is upon us.  I never really liked potato chips...I am a sugar lady...but now
My good old friend, anxiety, keeps me stuffing the chips into my mouth as if they were vitamins.

This note on Cherie's blog brought things into perspective.

Again, I must repeat:

I am not OK.  But, I am trying.