And We Go On
My mother-in-law passed away Monday night. She was an amazing woman. One of her superpowers was her ability to manage a crisis. She would step in, do what needed to be done, and deal with the fallout later. I hear her voice in my head telling me that we need to keep moving, and so we shall.
***********************************************************
We have reached that time of the year that I refer to—even in times of relative calm, which this certainly has not been—as the point at which all hell breaks loose. Besides March being the month of building seawalls on Flathead Lake, it is also the time when general contractors begin jockeying to get on the husband’s pouring schedule. This has been an exceptionally mild winter, so building season is ramping up even earlier than usual. And he needs more help, so I re-posted the Craigslist ad yesterday.
I picked up a chick schedule from the farm store the other day. We need to get our flock under control. I said to the husband that I am kicking around the idea of skipping chicks this year and seeing how many babies our hens will raise on their own. The new rooster seems to be doing a good job of getting on the hens. We had hens go broody (repeatedly) last year, but I think that the old rooster wasn’t doing his part.
I am still thinking on this. Having the hens raise chicks is infinitely easier than getting babies and keeping them in the brooder for two months. And at some point, we need to order piglets.
I called our accountant before I left and asked him to file extensions for us this year. I don’t like to do that as I pride myself on being organized enough that we file our returns on or before the due date, but I needed the breathing room. The only other time we’ve done that was two years ago when I was sick. I am about halfway through getting everything compiled and ready to take in to him. My workspace for that project is in my fabric room, so I’m motivated to get it done and out of the way.
I have a dentist appointment today and at some point in the near future, I’m going to need to get a crown on one of my molars. The dentist has been watching that tooth for years. It has a crack in it and is basically being held together by the filling. I’ve noticed some sensitivity in that area lately, which she said would be the trigger for doing the crown. Yay.
This weekend is the Free the Seeds event at the community college. This is the fifth year and it continues to grow. My friend Susan is doing a workshop this year on “Getting Started with Fruit Trees.”
***********************************************************
One of my tasks for this week is to prioritize my sewing projects. I’ve got clothing, quilting, and miscellaneous sewing projects stacked up.
Clothing:
A couple of basic T-shirts using the Rhapso-T pattern from SewHere.com.
A few more tops using the Nancy Raglan pattern from 5 Out of 4 Patterns; the first ones I made are getting a lot of use.
At least a prototype of the pattern I copied from that Gap knit dress.
Quilting:
I think I have three tops that need to be basted and machine quilted. That number might be higher. I’ll have to check.
A few sessions with the Studio cutter to get pieces for future MCC comforters cut out and ready to go.
Finish up the scrap quilts I have in progress and add them to the “to be quilted” pile.
Miscellaneous:
I need a bag for spring and summer. I see that AL Frances Textiles has been adding new colors of waxed canvas to their Etsy shop. I’ll either make the new Hillside Tote from Noodlehead or an upsized Metro Hipster from Betz White.
Aneela Hoey has two new patterns out that I want to make, because I need some totes and organizers to hold my embroidery projects. I’ve got the patterns for both the Flip Pocket Folio and the Kit Supply Tote.
Those embroidery projects . . . the days are getting longer and I will have less time to sit in the evening and work on them.
A prayer shawl or two; our supply at church is running low.
The blanket strip project I signed up for that has a deadline coming up—that is currently at the top of my work pile as I need to get it finished and sent off this week.
My Maryland apron. I got the appliqué put together Monday afternoon. Now it needs to be stitched and the apron assembled.
I have no shortage of jobs to keep me busy. And the house needs a good, thorough spring cleaning.
Just for fun (because I have nothing else at the moment), here is a picture of our original Buff Orpington rooster from several years ago. Baby, the current Buff Orpington rooster, looks very similar:
Such personalities.