Monday's Strength. Scrappy Love. Pressing On. Book Date.

Monday's Strength:

Now that we've finished the verses from Until We Reach Home, I was wondering where to go from here.  For now, I want to share this verse that speaks of gratefulness.  

You see, we, my husband and I, had a COVID scare, but thankfully we both tested negative!   

As you can well imagine, it’s been hard to find time or even enough focus to blog or craft. 

Drunkard's Path Block. You Are An Overcomer

Drunkard's Path Block
This week has been filled with activity.  I was looking forward to Monday because I had a whole day to sew....then I got sick. But, I had a whole day to recover!  

God is good, all the time, 

all the time God is good!

I did manage to cut out this block for my $7.50 BOM!  It's time consuming because I'm fussy cutting the skulls.  

I'm linking up to

Let's Bee Social at

Sew Fresh Quilts    

Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication    

Needle and Thread Thursday 

at My Quilt Infatuation

You Are An Overcomer
Hi there!
Today was an interesting day.  
A lot happened.
As I was catching up on emails and comments, I found an email from a friend of mine, Amy from Amy's Scrapspot.

She suggested I listen to this song.
She said she thought I would be glad if I did.
She was right.
I cried.
I realized how far God has brought me.
I smiled with joy and love for my Father.

If you know someone facing cancer, 
you might want to send them this song.
You might be glad you did.  :)

Philippians 2:14 Part 3. To Do Tuesday. Kudos to My Longarm Quilter!

Philippians 2:14 Part 3
I began this study here and continued it here!  :)
Scripture
Observation
Do everything without grumbling

or arguing?  

Yup.  
Paul clearly states:  
Do
everything
without
grumbling or arguing.
Application
To be clear about what we're talking about, let's see how Webster defines grumbling and arguing.  

grumbling:  to complain quietly about something : to talk in an unhappy way
arguing:  1.  to give reasons for or against something  2. to contend or disagree in words 

Well, Philippians 2 speaks at length about unity, especially in the church. If there is much grumbling and arguing going on, who would want to be a part of that?  

At a Bible Study last week, a man shared this story.  
"I was involved in prison ministry.  There was a prisoner who was completely closed off from everybody. He would watch us carefully, but would not participate.  Somehow, he began to change.  He slowly opened up and came to the LORD.  He also began participating.

I asked him what caused the change.  He told me, "Many groups have come and gone while I've been here.  Your group was different.  I watched you carefully and I liked how you treated each other."

What had he seen with the other groups?  How was this group different? Does how I treat my family, friends and loved ones really affect someone else's decision to accept Christ.

Apparently so.

LORD, help me - 
here's yet another reason 
for me to do 
EVERYTHING 
without grumbling or arguing.  

Prayer
LORD, this seems like an impossible task, 
but all things are possible with You!
Help me to live 
as You would have me live, in a manner that would encourage people to come to You.

I'm such a stubborn one, LORD!
But, You brought this verse to mind, 
so I know You are encouraging me today!  Thank you, my LORD!
Amen.



Dear Friend, this is my truth!

To Do Tuesday.
For some reason, I am not making my sewing goals!  So, this week I'm kissing them - Keeping it simple, Sweetie!
1) Begin and finish my RSC 2017 blocks.
2) Add those 30 hexagons to my Hexagon Afghan.
3) Cut out fabric for my $7.50 Drunkard's Path Block!

Fingers crossed on achieving these goals!

Focus on the Quilting.
How many of you are checkbook quilters? I am and I love, absolutely love, my longarm quilter.  

Not only is Stephanie extraordinarily  talented, she has a heart the size of Texas, a strength I can only dream about and hugs that are worth a million bucks!

In my last post, I showed you my Victory Quilt and told you the story behind it.  Today, I would like to highlight Stephanie's beautiful quilting!

(Please remember that I'm just an average sewist, 

so the piecing is not perfect.  Chemo didn't help.)

Each block had this beautiful
flower centered
right smack dab in the middle.

Then, she shrunk it and 

stitched it in EACH cornerstone!

Please note the quilting 

on the brown fabric.

She quilted each block's border.

I really  played with the colors so maybe the stitching would show up more....

Here's the corner of my quilt.

Can you see the mini flowers 

in the cornerstones?

Gorgeous quilting from the back.

And the completed quilt again!

My husband and son are braving the cold winds to hold it up....

Sammy Whammy...gotta love him!

Stephanie's quilting makes the back just beautiful.

I'm linking up to

Linky Tuesday at 

Freemotion by the River

To Do Tuesday at Stitch All Things

Join the party - 

they are so much fun!  

Philippians 2:5. Guess What?!! One Monthly Goal

Philippians 2:5 
SCRIPTURE

OBSERVATION

How can we achieve the sometimes difficult goal of living out JOY?

Thank goodness Paul gives us guidance in this verse:

Have the same mindset of Christ Jesus.

APPLICATION

As we recall, Paul is referring to dissension in the church at Philippi.  However, this can also be applied to our daily life at home, at work – in all our relationships.

Remember Philippians 2:1?  It’s not hard to achieve unity:  If you have any of these it can be done.

Crawling leads to walking, 

walking to running – 

baby steps of faith 

are all that is needed 

to learn and develop 

the mindset of Christ Jesus.

I must say this, however.  Putting others’ interest first DOES NOT mean being a doormat and solving their problems.  If it’s not in your back yard, it’s not your problem.  There is a fine line between being a servant and being an enabler.  Be cautious.

That being said, if each of us (Philippians 2:4) are looking out for the interests of others, we are in fact taking care of each other. 

I’m so grateful Paul goes onto provide much needed guidance regarding this mindset.  

Dear Friend, this is my truth!  :)

Guess What?!!!
OH
MY
GOSH!
I'm am so flying high!  
I was featured for the first time!!  
Can you hear my squeals of joy?
Can you see my dance of happiness?
Hmmm!  It's probably best you can't see that one!  :)

First I was featured on Midweek Makers for these coasters!  Thank you, Susan!

My daughter asked me to please write a tutorial for these, so I will be doing that soon!
Then, today I saw that Beth from Cooking Up Quilts mentioned my Pinwheel Quilt!  

I am beyond excited about these happenings!  Thank you so much Susan and Beth!  Thank you!

One Monthly Goal

 I am in the process of writing a rather ambitious 2017 craft goals.  One way I plan to complete these lofty goals is to link up to One Monthly Goal hosted by Patty at Elm Street Quilts.  I'm hoping to finish a flimsy a month and get it to my cherished longarm quilter.  This month I missed the link up deadline, but I'm still presenting my OMG!  

Without further ado, here is my One Monthly Goal Quilt!

Well, if I squint and use my imagination, it looks like a real quilt!  :)

I started this Clover and Violet Simple Scrappy Sampler  back in 2014.  The blocks are made from a combination of Happy Tones distributed by Michael Miller and a variety of white on white fabrics.

After making these few blocks, I was diagnosed with Triple Negative Breast Cancer.  Then my focus was on surviving chemo and radiation.  

I'm back on the saddle and raring to ride and finish the many UFOs me and my chemo started and forgot about!  So, 2017 is my year!  

Let's have fun

clearing out our UFO's in 2017!

I'm linking up to:

Monday Making at Love, Laugh, Quilt

Main Crush Mondays at Cooking Up Quilts

Moving It Forward Monday at Em’s Scrapbag

Linky Tuesdays at Freemotion by the River

Walking. Bible Study. Crafty Stuff.

Physical Issues
I have been battling my second cold in one month.  So, in an effort to rest, my posts may slow down for a bit....but maybe not...I so enjoy them.....but they may be more....simple....for now.

Fatigue is again my companion - 
from what I hear fatigue will be around for a while - 
maybe even years.

It's an "after chemotherapy, radiation and too many surgeries" effect.

Or so they tell me.

It's very frustrating.  
I really hate it.
And I don't hate many things - 
not even boiled okra.  
                           
I have heard that exercise helps.
So, tonight I'm gonna try 5 minutes on the elliptical again.
Tomorrow I'll walk for 10.  
There's something about the great outdoors....that's healing.

http://www.successconsciousness.com/blog/happiness-fun/things-you-can-enjoy-doing-while-walking/

Bible Study

Being that energy is in short supply around here, I'm simply sharing a couple of encouraging songs.  Be blessed!

I first heard this song when I was living in another city driving to my radiation appointment.  It's so true, especially that first line.

Just Be Held was written a year before his own cancer diagnosis.  Here's the story. 

All you 
cancer patients and survivors,
people with other illnesses,
hurting people
out there, 
we don't have to be strong - 
this is our time 
to 
just 
be 
held.  
I know it's hard.  
Let's do this together, yes?

Crafty Stuff
Isn't crafting the best?  It's so healing!

 Here's is Baby M2's baby afghan with the first border on it!

  Here's is my go to book of patterns for choosing crocheted borders!  

Here's the border I chose!

9/19/16

OMG Pink and Brown Baby Quilt:	Ray’s pjs	Baby M2’s crochet afghan
Embroider and attach label Done!	Hem Done!	Design and begin border Done!

I met all my goals for last week - even the pajama pants!  Funny thing is, when my husband tried them on for me to hem......they were already hemmed! 

To Do List for 9/26/16

1) Hand Sewing – binding ABC quilt

2) Quilting - Secret Project

3) Regular Sewing - Frankenstein sew           batting scraps

4) Crochet - Baby M2’s crochet afghan,         crochet ½ of the 42 Blue Dots for             border 

5) Quilt Labels - Michael’s Dallas Cowboy       Afghan Label

6) BOM’s & QAL’s – make squares for             Drunkards Path – Blue and Quilty 365

I'm linking up to Linky Tuesday at Freemotion by the River and To Do Tuesday at Stitch All Things.  


Dear Friends, this is my truth!

Heartbroken. I'm Not There. Slow Stitching.

Heartbroken
I went to the clinic where I recieved chemotherapy and radiation.  There was a kind young lady there who was my angel....you know the ones.....

they are encouraging,

they are indignant for you,

they tell you look great when you know you don't,

they smile,

they see you as you not as Cancer Girl.

She is a seven year ovarian cancer survivor.  Her journey was painful for many reasons that I cannot share here. But believe me, it was horrifically painful on the physical, emotional and spiritual fronts.

Yet, I never saw her falter in her deep rooted joy.

You know something's coming, don't you....

Yes it is.

I found out 
she has breast cancer.  

She has a different type of breast cancer in each breast.  

She is suffering from the side effects of chemo that the 1-2% suffer from.  

Yet she encouraged me.


Yet she finds joy in her circumstances.  She smiles still.

I weep.

Something else happened.
I blogger I follow, Jill at Dancing With Cancer  "danced her last dance" (as stated on her blog) Thursday.  

Please pray for these ladies and their families.  Please.

I'm Not There
As I wrote about these ladies, this scripture came to mind.  

The words "in any and every situation" really stand out to me tonight.  I'm afraid I have not reached this stage of contentment.  I'm in mourning.  

And that's ok.

You know, I try set an uplifting and joyful tone for this blog, but I just can't today. And it's ok. At the end of most posts, I write "Dear Friend, this is my truth."

And today, this is my truth, my reality.
I hate cancer.
I really do.

Slow Stitching

I made a bit of progress on my Embroidery Around the House Club from Mollie Johanson.  I also got Baby C's label sewn back on his quilt.  Someone commented to try Gutermann's hand quilting thread so I did. Thank you!

Take care you all!
Please take a moment to 
1) love each other fully
2) visit Sunday Slow Stitching and Sharing Sundays!  

Dear Friends, this is my truth!  

The Creative Side

Oh Baby! Follow up Test Results. Lovely Morning Chat. Cleaning House. Slow Stitching.

Oh Baby!

I know it’s been quite on my little corner of the internet…..Guess what!  Bright and early on the Fourth of July, my daughter gave birth to our fourth grandchild – a healthy little boy!

https://thecraftyladyincombatboots.wordpress.com/2016/07/04/happy-fourth-of-july/

Follow Up Test Results

Great news!  All my follow up test results are wonderful!  

http://askadifferentquestion.com/prayer/prayers-parched-worship-father/

My diagnostic mammogram is cancer free, bone density shows no ill effects from chemo, bone scan is clear and the nerve conduction test showed only mild neurapathy.  

So, why am I having so much pain in my feet and fatigue?  My rheumatoidologist believes the severe pain is a combination of the neuropathy and fibromyalgia.  All of my doctors recommend exercise.  

So, my daughter and son-in-law generously offered to loan us their elliptical.  Despite the pain, I’m going to try and work out everyday.  I am overweight, so I’m thinking if I lose weight, naturally that will reduce the stress on my feet.  Makes sense theoretically….I hope I can put it into practice! 

As I begin this journey, I wanted you to know what fibromyalgia feels like:

http://quotesgram.com/fibro-positive-quotes/

Gotta love Calvin!  

Lovely Morning Chat. 

Oh my!  Isn’t it wonderful when God gives us a gift?  This morning, my husband and I simply sat on our porch swing, drinking coffee, enjoying our yard, the sound of our waterfall and reminiscing while I worked on my Grandmother’s Flower Garden.  Oh!  It was so delightful!

When it got warm, we came inside and began our day.  And that’s where the weirdness started…..

Cleaning House. 

I just HAD to clean my house.  I definitely wanted to clean my living room because that is where the elliptical is going to be.  But, somehow my one room cleaning plan morphed into a whole house cleaning project!  Which is uber strange because my cleaning lady is coming this week!

And yesterday, I rearranged my grandbabies' toy room - moved furniture and everything!  

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/530510031076384555/

My husband thinks I’m nesting…Do grandma’s nest?

Slow Stitching. 

I absolutely love Kathy’s Slow Stitching Sundays!  Last night as I put away my machine sewing project, I cleaned my machine and organized a bit.  It felt peaceful knowing I would be slow stitching.  I felt eager and…..less rushed. 

I worked on my Grandmother’s Flower Garden.  That will be my Slow Stitching Sundays project for the foreseeable future.  I was able to finish stitching on a flower, some single hexagons and begin stitching on another flower! 

My hope is to finish the first row by the end of August.

My Dear Reader, after two days of heavy cleaning, tonight was a wheelchair evening, so much pain in my feet.  But, life is good, isn’t it? 

Despite

triple negative breast cancer,

fibromyalgia,

weight gain after cancer,

pain,

there’s

new babies,

a loving husband,

lovely morning chats,

beautiful gardens,

generous children,

a clean house,

Slow Stitching Sundays,

and more importantly,

God, my strength.

Life is good!

http://quotesideas.com/life-is-good-quote-motivational-wallpaper/

 Dear Reader, this is my truth!

                                Linking up to Slow Stitching Sunday at Kathy's Quilts!