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You might remember a week or two ago, Katy started a Swoon-along. Well, it has grown to over 700 members *crazy*, and the quilts in the pool are a-mazing. I've been staying up way too late writing a book manuscript, eating peanut M&Ms by the pound, and checking in the flickr group every chance I get. It really cheers a girl up.
So head on over, check it out, and if you are in the flickr group, make sure you enter my little giveaway over there. You might like it.
Are you Swooning along?
(Our visit to the motherland, right before our first fabric line was released, right around the time I got diagnosed.)
This is a post I have considered writing for a long time. But never quite got around to it, and wasn't sure if I should share. But I read Mauby's post today, and realized I wanted to. So hey, here goes.
About 4 years ago, I had had it. I was exhausted. I felt awful. I am 5'9" tall and was a whopping 106 pounds, and felt completely miserable. I had been feeling this way for about 3 years, since boy 2 was born. In fact, after he was born I went in to my OB and told the nurse practitioner (who I'm sure is usually lovely and was just really busy that day) how tired I was. I remember she didn't even look up from her pad and said "Well, you just had a baby, probably post-partum depression." She scribbled a prescription and walked out. I took the prescription for 6 months, didn't feel any different, got more and more tired, felt awful and lost more weight.
This continued for 3 years, and we moved away. I started my business, took care of my two boys, stayed up way too late, and got even more hooked on the Dr. Pepper (my favorite doctor). I went to a new OB (love my OB!), and he checked my thyroid. When the results came back, he sent me straight to an Endocrinologist (love my endo!). Sure enough, rotten thyroid, all nice and hypothyroidy. (Yes, hypo.) Well, technically I have Hashimoto's Disease, which is an autoimmue disease where my body is always attacking my thyroid. Some days more than others. It fluctuates a lot. It is all super fun.
It took about a year to get things under control, and I started to feel like myself again. When I was pregnant it took another nose dive, and after Nic was born, I spent a whole year changing doses and having blood draws/endo visits every 6 weeks or so. (I do not love my phlebotomist. On principle really). But a few weeks ago when I went to the doctor, things were finally stabalized.
Hallelujah!!
If you know me in real life, whether you are a friend or are family, I have probably at one time or another (or you know, 20 times or another) suggested you get your thyroid checked. Several of my friends/family members have gone in to have their thyroids checked and have had problems similar to mine. I also have a few friends who have had their thyroids removed, poor things. I'm crossing my fingers it doesn't come to that with mine.
The point of me telling you all this? Well, mostly I just wish I had known. I wish someone would have told me, that that first nurse practitioner would have taken the time to listen to me, and I wouldn't have just survived those three years. It doesn't matter how old you are, get it checked, watch for the symptoms, and take care of it. The end.
Now I better get back to my favorite doctor (yum) and writing a book manuscript (yuck, but yay!). I'm just so thankful that I now have the energy to do so. Thank you doctors.
Yay! I have been dying to show you these for months now. Seriously. I turned the digital designs/covers in to Moda for the playbook (a book with all the new fabric/patterns in it) in November so it has definitely been tough to keep under my hat.
I may have taken too many photos...
First up, Vintage Holiday.
This is a super simple, clean, fun to put together quilt. It uses fat quarters, is 54" x 68" and the fabric is all from Vintage Modern, our new line for Moda. (Which will be available in May!)
I pieced and free motion quilted this one on my sewing machine and had a lovely time. It was about super late and I kept saying, "okay, I'll just do one more block..." then I'd do one more, and one more after that. I think I finished about 4 am. The next day was a looong day. :-) Totally worth it though.
Next up is On a Whim.
This is also a fat quarter quilt, is 71" x 86", and isn't nearly as tricky as it looks to put together. This one was quilted by Andrea Marquez and pieced by the lovely Moda Lissa.
When Vintage Modern came a week before Christmas (and I was in the middle of packing the fam for Christmas in Idaho) Lissa emailed me and asked if she could help me by piecing (and testing) one of my new patterns. I may have gotten a little teary. So sweet of her. She did a wonderful job. No surprise there. Thank you Lissa!
Um, I really love this one. Can I say that? I want to make it for my sister's baby boy (coming in March) out of a bunch of grays, greens, and aquas. Hopefully she doesn't read this post. Although to be honest, my "baby quilts" as of late have been more like "first birthday quilts." Sad, but true.
Sherri pieced this one for me the week of Christmas (great timing, I know! Thank you Sherri!) and I just love the way it turned out. It doesn't have any Y seams or tricky type sewing, and uses a Jelly Roll and a little yardage. I quilted it on my sewing machine with my walking foot and about 200 million straight(ish) lines. My walking foot is giving out on me and was really struggling by the end. This quilt is 60" x70" so there were a LOT of straight lines.
And last but not least, Piece of Cake 3.
Piece of Cake 1 and 2 are two of my best sellers, and are such great quilts for beginners or a quick project so I thought it would be fun to design one more. When I have friends that want to start quilting I always give them a Piece of Cake pattern and a Layer Cake. So easy.
I pieced this one the day after I pieced Vintage Holiday (At least I think I did. That day is a little fuzzy) and quilted it with an all over meandering stipple. I still love me a good stipple. Especially after a quilt is washed. This quilt is 63" x 74".
Always a little scary to show something I've been working on and hope that you like them as much as I do!
All four are now available in the shop. Yay! Which one is your favorite?
Today the munchkins have the day off. If you are a mother you know what this means. Certainly not a day off! But doesn't that sound lovely? I have been working so much lately, and it fills every moment of my spare time. 10 minutes til school pick up? Cutting out a quilt. 20 minutes before school? Binding a quilt while directing kids. (It never ceases to amaze me they are unable to find their shoes EVERY morning!) On occasion, I'll scoot Nic's high chair up next to my sewing table and piece or machine quilt up a storm while he eats his lunch. I am once again staying up well into the 2 or 3 o'clock hours. I'm too old for this!
A few days ago I was exhausted while I was trying to get some dinner on the table. Aiden looked at me and asked. "Your mom did this too, right?"
I must have looked confused when I looked at him, because he clarified, "Made quilts and patterns like you and was a mom at the same time?"
I smiled at him and said "Yes, she did. She has worked really, really hard my whole life."
To which he responded "But mom, she had FIVE kids. You can handle this."
I couldn't help but laugh. He was absolutely right. My mom did this with a new baby and four other noisy kids while my dad was the bishop in our church (a very time consuming responsibility). How the heck she did it all, I'll never know. And continues to do it. For 22 years so far. Amazing.
(mom and me last Market)
Well, things are about to get even crazier over here, we are in the process of buying a new house! Well, not a new house, it is actually almost 10 years older than our current house, but it is bigger (and less expensive!) not to mention in a wonderful neighborhood filled with young families like ours. The only catch? It needs a lot of work. A lot. Really. Everything, pretty much. I'll be sure to take some before photos next time I'm there so you have something to compare the afters to. Not that the afters are going to be anything super fancy, but we are so excited to make it ours. And paint over the yellow and fushia walls, pink trim, blue ceilings, and yellow (yes, yellow!) banister.
(On a side note, we will be renting out our current house, if you are in the area and know someone who is looking, please have them email me!)
So to new patterns and fabric, working on spring Quilt Market, writing a book (and sewing 13 quilts), a seven year old, six year old, and barely one year old, lets add "renovating an entire house and moving". Fun!
Yep, a day off would be lovely. Maybe next year. :-)
I've been sewing my guts out over here. Really. Next week I'm going to have four new patterns and quilts ready to show you. Two of the quilts are done and done, I just have to finish sewing eighty zillion straight lines on one quilt and take the other one to my local quilting wizard, Andrea. And bind them both. Hip hip!
(if you can't wait til next week to see the quilts, the new patterns might already be here...)
There were a few awesome things that happened this week amidst the sewing frenzy that I thought I'd point you to.
*Also over in the FQS world, Simplify is the book of the month for January. It is 20% off, and I wrote a little bit about it over here. Including a giant hint. Which has something to do with why I've been sewing my guts out.
*And last but not least, Katy started a Swoon-along! How awesome is that?? She started a Flickr group yesterday and there are already over 200 Swooners. Hooray! Grab your Swoon pattern and feel free to join in, the more the merrier. (update- 400 Swooners!)
Last but not least, a little shout out to the man of the house. He has been so unbelievably helpful the last few weeks, and hasn't complained once about the fabric that is covering the kitchen table, bar, hallway, etc... or the fact that my sewing room looks like a bomb went off in it, or that every conversation we've had is about quilts/quilters/fabric/sore shoulders. Love you, hun. Thanks. And all you little boys, you are pretty great too.
(waiting for hot Krispy Kremes)
Oh, and you L, and you Sherri, and of course my mother (hi mom!).
I'm a lucky girl. Even though my hair hasn't been done in a week and my total sleep for the last two weeks is like 4 hours. Church starts in an hour and a half. Hair or nap? Nap, it is. See you on the other side.
Happy Sunday!
