Jodie Ann, you'd be proud !

After 32 years of not driving, and 20 something years of Jodie Ann and Wanda picking me up for all quilt-related affairs, I'm finally doing it myself. If you had seen me loading those quilt poles into the back of my jeep this morning, you'd think I'd been doing it forever.......well, I have, but not in my own vehicle !

I started this day by tacking the ticking back onto the quilt boards, but then came grey skies and a few drops of rain. When the rain threatened to ruin my basting day, I called the bank where I used to practice piano lessons in the back/community room, and asked if they still had such a room, and whether or not it was busy today. The lady graciously said that I could use it all afternoon, so around 11:30 a.m., I gathered up all my supplies and headed out. This is the room where all of my friends held their bridal or baby showers when I was a young woman. I found that the bank has cut the room down to a third of its old size and are using it as a conference room, complete with a HUGE table that must weigh about 3 tons ! When the young lady realized that I needed an empty floor space, she helped me move the table, and left me to my work.

It took me about 2 hours to baste the quilt all on my own,........not bad, I think. The cotton batting fought the curved needle with every basting stitch, so I know it will be kindof slow quilting. It would hand-quilt better if I had rinsed the batting, but that shrinks it some, and I like to save that for after the quilt is quilted, to give it that wonderfulllllllll rumply look that I love.

As I loaded the basted top and the frames back into my Jeep, I couldn't help thinking how proud my friends would be of my NEW independence......(as dependent as I was on them, I always ACTED like "Miss Independence" !)

You know what though..........I still need you guys for the BEST part......doing it TOGETHER.

WISH YOU WERE HERE !