Big Finish, Little Finish

I finished two--yes, two!--quilts this week.  One was a small, quick, fairly easy finish, the other took much longer.

The big finish was preparing for and binding The Blue and the Gray quilt, a pattern from the book The Blue and the Gray: Quilt Patterns using Civil War Fabrics by Mary Etherington and Connie Tesene.  I doubled the size of the original quilt and made 9" 9-patch blocks and 4½" cornerstone blocks and sashing.  The color in the above photo is more accurate than the one below.

I thought about using red binding but finally decided on dark blue.  It mostly disappears against the dark blue sashing.  I like the rounded corners on this quilt.  I think binding around a curve is a little easier than binding a corner.  

In the photo above (if you click to enlarge it) you can see how the quilting curves to mirror the rounded corners.  And the photo below shows the backing fabric though the color is just slightly off.  The fabric is more grey than brown, as it looks here.

I'm really slow when it comes to stitching bindings and with November being both a short month and one with a holiday, I set this as my One Monthly Goal.  I'm pleased to have accomplished it before Thanksgiving.

My daughter was here when I finished this quilt and asked to use it while she was watching TV.  She asked what batting I'd used because it seemed warmer to her than other quilts I'd made.  I told her it was the same but I thought maybe the backing was slightly thicker.  But now that I think about it, it seems to me that darker quilts are warmer.  What do you think about that?  I know it's probably not true; it's probably a psychological thing but I think it's funny she thought it was warmer than other quilts.

The little finish is my version of the 50 Shades of Brown sew-along shared by Lori of Humble Quilts on her blog a few weeks ago.   I call mine Ohio Winter Browns.  When winter comes to Ohio this year I'll take photos of our browns and post them with this quilt.  Thanks for the great little sew-along, Lori.

This quilt finishes at about 15½" x 19".   It has a layer of muslin instead of batting.  I was surprised at how much it shrank and crinkled.  I love that about it, and the fact that it's soft and pliable (instead of stiff like other small quilts I've made with batting between the layers)!

The quilting is simple:  diagonals in the 4-patch blocks, around the edges in the larger squares.  I quilted it by eye, that is, without marking any lines, and it's very primitive quilting.  I'm good with that. 

It was late one night when I was ready to cut the binding.  I remembered that Janet of Rogue Quilter had posted a tutorial for binding a miniature quilt.  I was so glad to find it!  Thanks, Janet. 

I have no intended use or purpose for this quilt.  My daughter insists that her cat, Jack, would love it as a Christmas gift.  Ha!  I really don't think Jack would appreciate the hours of time spent on this quilt.

I'm linking this post to
> November One Monthly Goal Finish Link-up at Elm Street Quilts
> Can I Get a Whoop Whoop? at Confessions Of a Fabric Addict
> Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More
> Brag about Your Beauties at From Bolt to Beauty
> Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts
> BOMs Away at What a Hoot Quilts
> Off the Wall at Nina-Marie Sayre's blog
Thanks for hosting, ladies.  Dear readers, click through to see more creativity at any or all of these links.

--Nancy.

Binding the Blue and the Gray - One Monthly Goal for November

Hooray!  I finished the quilting on the Blue and the Gray quilt yesterday, and today I cut around the edges.  

I think maybe you can see the quilting a little better in this photo, below -- diagonal in the blocks and cornerstones, lines in the sashing.  At the time I took this I still had one border rectangle and one corner to quilt.

The corners of this quilt will be rounded.  The sashing on either side of the corners are quilted in straight lines so  I decided to continue the quilting lines right around the curves of the corners.  I marked the corners before I layered and basted the quilt.  But by the time I was ready to quilt them, the marks were too light to see.  (I know, they show up in the photo below, but not so much in real life.)  So I marked them again.  I couldn't remember what bowl I'd used the first time and couldn't find one that was the same size.  In the end, I used a 10" quilting hoop because the pattern for the half-size quilt used a 5" bowl.  

I couldn't find sequential sizes of anything to trace the curves so I just measured from the outside edge using pins, then quilted toward along the pins.  Not a perfect solution but it worked well enough.

My One Monthly Goal for November is to choose fabric for binding then attach it for a finished quilt.  I'm a little uncertain how to bind around those curves, unless I cut the binding on the bias.

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal November at Elm Street Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.

Choosing Clothing Fabric for Quilting & My One Monthly Goal Finish for September

You wouldn't think quilting 5 rows 12" long in a sashing rectangle would take very long but it does, for me at least.  One of the reasons is the fabric I used for some of the sashing rectangles on the Blue and the Gray is fabric that was once a shirt.  Though not Civil War-style it was a great, warm grey, the perfect color.  So I used it. 

I guess I hadn't checked to be sure it was good for hand quilting.  The fabric is denser than quilting cotton so I have to really push and pull the needle to get it through the three layers, sometimes 2 or 3 stitches at a time.  I can't remember when I bought this; perhaps it was an early purchase before I learned what to look for in clothing fabric. 

There are three things I do these days before buying clothing to use in a quilt.

1. I check to be sure the fabric is 100% cotton.  I do sometimes buy linen/cotton blends and occasionally pure linen (though I've not made a linen quilt yet).  All cotton is my favorite.
   
2. I evaluate the thickness of the fabric.  Some shirts are made of beautiful plaids but are really thick and tightly woven cotton.  Great for grocery/shopping bags but not so much for quilts.  Other pieces of clothing, especially women's blouses/shirts, are made of thin, fine, cotton.  It may be too dense to quilt easily or it may be just fine.  Some shirts are woven in a twill pattern.  They may quilt well or they may be too dense, and they seem to fray a little more than an even weave fabric.
   
3. I carry a needle with me when I go to thrift stores and "quilt" a section of fabric to check how easily it pushes and pulls through that single layer of fabric.  I've learned that appearance won't tell me.  Some cottons look like they should be easy to quilt but aren't.
4. I also look for wear -- threadbare elbows, tattered collar and cuffs, faded fabric on the front, etc. -- and evaluate where the fabric is less worn, then make a decision whether what's usable for a quilt is worth the cost.
   

My One Monthly Goal for September was to hand quilt 6 blocks, 5 cornerstones, and 8 sashing rectangles on the Blue and the Gray quilt.  I finished the goal plus more for a total of 8 blocks, 8 cornerstones, and 11 sashing strips quilted.  Yet to quilt are 2 blocks, 7 cornerstones, and 30 sashing strips.  30!  All around the edges plus a few in the center.  But only 2 or 3 of those are the dense grey fabric.

I love this quilt and most everything about it.  Even though I used the same batting I've used for other quilts, it seems heavier, thicker, somehow.  I think the backing fabric may be a little heavier than usual.  It will be a great, warm, winter quilt one of these months, probably just about the time the first snow falls here in Ohio.

I'm linking this post to the One Monthly Goal September Finish Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thank you for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.

One Monthly Goal - Another One Almost Like the Other One

You may be thinking, She does go on about this quilt!  It's beginning to feel to me like I may never finish it.  Either I'm a slow quilter, not devoting enough time to quilting, or I'm quilting it more heavily than other quilts.  No matter, I will eventually finish it.  

This quilt has
30 blocks
38 cornerstones
71 sashing/border rectangles

I've finished quilting
20 blocks (more than half)
20 cornerstones (more than half)
28 sashing/border rectangles (not yet half)

This month my goal is to hand quilt (at least)
6 blocks
5 cornerstones
8 sashing/border rectangles

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal September Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thank you for hosting, Patty.  I appreciate it more than you know!

--Nancy.

Significant Progress & One Monthly Goal Met

At the beginning of August I set the goal to quilt 15 sashing pieces on the Blue and the Gray quilt.  I'm pleased to have quilted 21.  And since I wanted to move out from the center, I had to quilt a few more squares and cornerstones to get to the next sashing rectangles.  

You can't really see the progress in the photo below except possibly to look for pins and know I haven't quilted those blocks or sashings.

I'm almost to the edges of the quilt all the way around.  I always think that's a milestone in a quilt--almost done!--until I realize that the edge blocks comprise more than half a quilt.  Still, progress is progress.

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal August Finishes Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.

One Monthly Goal: The Blue and the Gray

The progress on this quilt has been so slow that I've decided the only way to speed the progress is to choose it as my One Monthly Goal and push myself.  It has 30 blocks, 66 sashing &border rectangles, and 38 cornerstones.  As of today, I've quilted 12 blocks, 6 sashing rectangles, and 12 cornerstones.  And parts of several other blocks.

I can only quilt so long before my fingers wither so I'm giving myself the rather easy goal of quilting 15 sashing rectangles.  (At least I think it's an easy goal.  I've not noticed how long it takes to quilt just one.)

I knew I didn't want to quilt Baptist Fans on this quilt but I wasn't sure how to quilt it.  Because it's a Civil War-style quilt, I looked up quilting styles of that era and found that they often quilted diagonal rows across quilts, often 2 or 3 rows together.  So that's how I began with the 9-patches.  Except I decided to cross the diagonals in the center, then go in only one directions on the rest of the block.  And in my imagination, it would all work out that I could just continue smoothly from one block to the next.  But didn't take into account what would happen across those large sashing rectangles.  (They're 4" x 9".)  Trying to make the connection across them I realized that it wouldn't work out smoothly, removed the several rows of diagonal stitching in the sashings, and decided to quilt straight lines.  It's probably not the greatest solution but for this really simple quilt pattern I think it works.

You can't see any of the quilting in the photo below but this is a view of most of the quilt.  You can tell what's been quilting because there are no pins in those blocks.

So, my One Monthly Goal for August is to quilt 15 sashing rectangles.  I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal August Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Patty.  I can't tell you how helpful it is to my quilting progress and accountability when I publicly state a goal every month.  

--Nancy.

Hand Quilting the Blue and the Gray

Progress on this quilt is slower than it should be.  I need to devote more time to it every day so I can see steady progress. 

I intended to quilt diagonals across all of the quilt, including through the sashing and cornerstones.  It worked well when I went from corner to corner on the 9-patch blocks and through the cornerstones, but the pattern was broken when the diagonals moved down the block and across the sashing in only one direction.  Reconsidering, I decided to continue with the diagonals in the 9-patches and cornerstones and quilt straight lines in the sashing.

I quilted many of the 9-patch blocks and am going back to quilt the sashing.  It seems very puffy though I haven't found that there's excess fabric top or bottom when I quilt it.  Just puffy.  I usually quilt from the center out (except for Baptist Fans) but the way I'm doing it now leaves those sashing blocks for a little later.  I'm sure it will all come out in the wash, so to speak.

I'm using masking tape as a stitching guide.  I noticed that the tape kept shifting as I stitched so I began pinning it in place.  It seems to work well enough.  I'm grateful I don't have to mark this quilt.

If you're wondering what this quilt looks like, here it is.

When my daughter cut a watermelon in half last week we were surprised to see a star across the center.  Nature gives us such delightful surprises.

In the room where I sew I have a wooden shelf, painted off-white, with small compartments where I keep odds and ends--old lace in a glass jar, spools of green thread in an old, cup with green decorations, vintage square glass kitchen containers, beautiful and interesting seed pods....  Useful is not always beautiful and because the shelf is also useful, not every cubby has something beautiful in it.  But I thought this view was beautiful.  Behind one glass container I've stacked some wooden spools of cotton threads in one of my favorite color ranges. 

I'm linking this post to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Kathy.

I hope you have a good Sabbath.

--Nancy.
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Layered & Basted: Another Step Toward a Finish

Getting the parts and pieces of the Blue and the Gray ready for quilting has been my One Monthly Goal for May. 

Backing prepared?  Yes.  The pattern match is not perfect along the seam but I don't believe it will be noticeable after it's quilted, bound, washed, and dried.  In some places the flowers match exactly, in others, not quite so well.   It seems like the stitching (or maybe it was the pinning) was in line, went out of line a little, then back in line. 

Batting chosen?  Yes.  That was a hard choice.  A while ago I bought a wool/poly 80/20 Mountain Mist bat on sale at JoAnn's.  I've been wanting to try wool batting and when I saw this king size bat for $20.00 I thought I should take it home.  Several people said they loved wool batting, not only for quilting (like butter, they said), but also for lightweight warmth.

But I wasn't sure about wool for this quilt.  I imagine quilts from the 1800s as relatively flat -- cotton flat.  And how would wool wash and dry?  You can see that the package describes this batting as machine washable.  Certainly I would wash a quilt with wool in cool water on a gentle cycle, but when I checked the Mountain Mist website there was no sign of "machine washable" noted for this batting.  Which left me with the question of whether it really is machine washable or not.

I searched online to see if anyone else had experience with this particular batting and found that Kate Klein of Village Quilters had horrible shrinkage and lots of wool on the front of the quilt after a wash.  She used shot cotton on the front (and didn't mention wool coming through the back) and also washed in warm water.

I decided against wool for this quilt and will experiment on a smaller quilt to see how it goes.  If any of you have experience with this batting or other wool batting, I would love to hear about it.

I used the trusted Soft 'n' Crafty 80 cotton/ 20 poly that I've been using for a number of years.  It quilts easily, doesn't have too high a loft, washes and dries well, and is warm.  It seems more similar to a Civil War era batting than wool.

Layered and Basted?  Yes.  I forgot to take a photo when it was on the floor so here is part of it draped over the couch.

One of my concerns using a print fabric for a back is that it will end up askew because I didn't get the quilt aligned well enough.  I was oh-so-careful and measured the edge every few inches the whole way down.  We'll see.

Corners marked?  Done.

The pattern makers put rounded corners on their quilt which are very appealing.  I couldn't decide how big a curve to mark so I used a 12" pizza circle and a 9" cake pan to mark both sizes.  I don't have to decide now so I'll consider these two options as I quilt.  Looking at the instructions in the book just now I see that they suggest a 5" diameter plate for a quilt half this size.  Maybe I'll look for a 10" circle.

Thread color chosen?  Yep.  Black thread was too dark for the light fabrics, natural was too light for the grey and dark blue fabrics, so grey thread it is.  Sadly, I don't have any.  I checked at Hobby Lobby (because it's open) but their spools of cotton were big enough for 5 quilts and I doubt I'll want to use grey again.  I usually use Americana which I buy at JoAnn but couldn't find it online.  They're not open yet here (except for order and pick-up) and I don't remember Americana having grey thread.  Then I checked YLI online but they are out of grey just now.  I went to my nearest quilt shop today (after calling yesterday and being told that yes, they had Gutermann 100% cotton hand quilting thread in four different greys) and found that they had one very dark grey and one very light grey hand quilting threads and four greys in regular sewing cotton.  Sigh.  I even check Walmart thinking they might have Coats or some other brand but they had nearly no thread and most of their fabric shelves were empty.  So I'll begin quilting when I can find thread.

All this to say that I completed my One Monthly Goal for May.

Linking to
> One Monthly Goal May Link-up at Elm Street Quilts
> Finished (or not) Friday at Alycia Quilts
> Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More
> Put Your Foot Down at For the love of geese
> Off the Wall Friday at Nina Marie's blog

We've had so much rain this week that there's been flooding in our city.  In fact, they put up the flood gates a few days ago.  Roads not far from us looked like streams and rivers.  Our house and street are in good shape -- this time.  I hope things are going well for you!  One of these days (or weeks or months) we'll be safely out and about again.

--Nancy.
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Blue and Gray - One Monthly Goal

For my One Monthly Goal for May, I will cut this fabric. . .














and align it so the pattern continues across the seam, then stitch it to become the backing for this quilt.

Next I will layer and baste the quilt.  That's it for my One Monthly Goal, just get it layered and basted so I can begin quilting.  Whatever happens after that will be a bonus for the month.

I haven't decided on thread (maybe grey, black, or a dark neutral) or a quilting pattern but I'm trying to imagine Baptist Fans or straight lines either on the diagonal or vertical and horizontal.   Sometimes I don't make the decision about quilting pattern until I have the hoop on the quilt and the needle threaded, although I've been considering the options all through the basting process and sometimes longer.

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal May Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thanks for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.
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Backing for The Blue and the Gray

When I last wrote about The Blue and the Gray someone suggested that I probably wanted to layer and finish it soon.  True, but I knew I didn't (and still don't) have enough of any one fabric for a back.  Lying in bed that night waiting for sleep the quilt popped into my mind and I began to think about possibilities.  How about five rows across the back, alternating blue and grey?  Maybe.  The next morning I pulled out blues and greys that I thought might work for the back.

There were the greys.

From left to right, the black and grey plaid comes from a pair of women's shorts; the next two greys are fat quarters or a little more; the gingham is brushed cotton from a shirt; then two more fat quarters; the grey and white grid and the very light grey are also brushed cotton from shirts; and the one on the right was a shirt.

And the blues.

From left to right, a piece of solid, medium quality cotton; leftover fabric from the sashing; another solid; two fabrics from shirts; another solid cotton; and a piece of flannel that had been a shirt.  I debated using that last piece for sashing but it catches threads like crazy.

Then I went back to look one more time for any other blues or greys I overlooked or missed the first time and found this piece of fabric.

Ohhh, the perfect fabric for the back of this quilt!

Sadly, I had only a yard but since I bought it at Connecting Threads I hoped they might still have some in stock, even though I bought it two years ago.  (This non-marketing person has no idea how long it takes to sell out a line of fabric.)

I headed to their website and typed "Arcadian Dusk" (the name on the selvedge) into the search box.  Yes, it came up, but this particular fabric was not among those shown as available from that collection.  Oh, too bad. 

While I was at their website I thought I might as well look at their clearance fabrics to see if there might be one I could use instead.  Scrolling, scrolling.  Wait!  What's this?  That's it!  And there were yards available.

I have no idea why their search engine did not find this fabric when I searched by name but I was pleased to see that they had it.  I ordered 5½ yards, thinking it would ship in a day and I'd have it in a few days and could wash it, layer, baste, and begin quilting.  But no, not so fast.  After finishing the purchase, a notice popped up telling me that Connecting Threads was taking orders but not currently shipping.  Well, okay, I'll wait.  I didn't think there was a way to cancel the order and I wasn't sure I really wanted to try to piece the back using 15 different fabrics, anyway.  I'll be patient until this Covid-19 pandemic wanes and stores are open again.

And then a strange thing happened.  On Friday, April 10, Connecting Threads sent an email saying that my fabric had shipped with an estimated arrival date of April 14.  Go figure.  I might actually get this quilt ready sooner than later!

In the meantime I'm playing with possible layouts for Baskets of Plenty #6 and choosing fabric for Cheddarback so I can cut those blocks.  There's plenty to do.  I just wish I had the energy to do it more quickly.

I hope all is well with you and yours. 

--Nancy.
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The Blue and the Gray, All Stitched

Hey, the blue and grey blocks have become a finished top!  I like it.

This photo and the last one were taken with a flash.  The middle photo was without a flash on a day with sun.  (Yes!  We really had a sunny day in Ohio this week!)

I can't decide which colors are more accurate but I think the first and last photos are closer to the true colors in the quilt except the outer border is a very dark blue, not black.  Sunlight does something strange to colors even though this was not taken in direct sunlight.

I'm happy to have these blocks together and have a finished top.

This is 5 blocks by 6 blocks so it's a little squatty, but I doubled the size of the original blocks in the pattern, The Blue and the Gray, by Connie Tesene and Mary Etherington.  These blocks are 9" square and 4½" square.  I usually like longer quilts but I think this will be fine for a nap or the top of a bed.  As it is now it measures 72" x 85½".  It'll be smaller after quilting and a wash and dry.

I still need to round the corners, something I'll do just before I layer it.  Now, if only I had a piece or several of good fabric for the backing.  I truly don't have enough pieces of blue or grey (or blue and grey) fabrics to put a back together!  It's one more top that will have to wait a while, unless I order fabric online. 

I really like the idea of pieced cornerstone blocks.  It's something I haven't done before and I think it adds a lot to a simple quilt pattern like this 9-patch.

I'm linking this to:
>  One Monthly Goal March Finish Link-Up at Elm Street Quilts
>  Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts
>  Beauties Pageant at From Bolt to Beauty
>  Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More
>  Off the Wall Friday at Nina Marie Sayre's blog
Thank you for hosting, ladies.

I hope you and your loved ones are staying healthy!
--Nancy.
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Shades of Grey - One Monthly Goal for March

Grey is almost like black (as far as the mood it conveys), just not quite as somber.  We had grey skies again today as I was cutting grey sashing for The Blue and The Gray quilt.  Most of the grey fabric is lighter than the grey outside my windows. 

It is strange to have curated this collection of grey fabrics so carefully only to find that they look too light.  I have darker ones to cut and will probably use some of all of them.  A sunny day is predicted for tomorrow.  It will be interesting to see what the greys look like in the light of day.  Perhaps they won't seem too light after all, or maybe they will seem lighter.  Daylight will help me decide.

There's that one very light blue 9-patch that may get replaced with a darker blue, now that I have more blues to choose from.

This quilt is my One Monthly Goal for March.  My specific goals are:
-- cut and sew 3 more cross cornerstone blocks
-- cut the rest of the sashing and arrange the blocks
-- buy and cut more of the dark blue fabric for the outer border
-- sew the pieces into a finished top

I'm linking this post to One Monthly Goal March Link-up at Elm Street Quilts.  Thank you for hosting, Patty.

--Nancy.
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Into 2020 with Too Many Unfinished Quilts

You haven't seen a quilt on this blog for weeks.  Christmas, family, illness....  You know how it goes.  It's almost true that I haven't touched a quilt in that time but I have slept and napped under a few.  Now that Christmas is over and we're into the New Year my mind is drawn back to all the unfinished quilts I have from last and previous years.  There are eight! Here they are in no particular order.

Baskets of Plenty needs sashing and border, at the very least.  It probably also needs another basket and maybe a substitute basket for the horizontal one.  This will finish as a smallish quilt if I don't somehow increase its size -- more blocks, wide sashing, wide borders, etc.

The Blue and The Gray blocks and corner stones are finished.  The hold up was grey sashing fabric.  Now that I have enough of that I just need to cut sashing, arrange a layout, and sew everything together. 



Cheri Payne's Everyday Patchwork Sampler has 30 6" blocks with 1" borders attached.  They need sashing between (Cheri used black scraps).  If I'm satisfied with a quilt that's 48" x 58" plus a border these blocks are ready to be sewn together.  But I'm thinking I should make at least 5 more to have a 5 x 7 layout for a larger quilt.  (Why is it I can't be satisfied with anything smaller than a bed-sized quilt?!)  Cheri's pattern for this quilt also includes applique on the border.  Maybe or maybe not.

Maple Leaves is ready for sashing.  I just have to choose fabric, measure, cut, pin, and stitch.

Linda Brannock's Flowers.  This is another quilt in which the pattern creates a smaller-than-bed-sized quilt.  I tried to enlarge the sashing by adding more triangle squares than in the original pattern.  But I find it looks odd and doesn't work.  I may just add a border or I may unstitch some of the squares to create the quilt the size Linda originally made.  I know most quilters probably look at unstitching as an awful chore.  I don't love it but I'm happy to do it if it will help the finished quilt.

Red Circles on Green Squares.  I pull these out these quirky 5" squares every once in a while and consider possibilities.  The inspiration for these blocks (which I began making in spring, 2013) was a garden market stand with roses in bloom.  Do you you ever begin a quilt only to stumble along in its creation at some point along the way?  That's what's happening with these blocks.

And Cheddarback has about 3 more months to go.  This month's blocks have three of the hardest so far!  Paper pieced.  I've never paper pieced (and am not really interested in learning how to but I don't think I can escape doing it for several of the blocks this month).  I can't decide whether I'll be happy when Cheddarback's over or sad not to have the challenge every month!

And last (I think), are the Quarter Cabins, just waiting for some decisions about the strips with vines/flowers to go between the cabins. 

I guess I lied when I said I'd only slept under quilts these last few weeks.  I've also been hand quilting Little Rubies.  I have just over two rows of Baptist Fans to finish this quilt.  This is one of those quilts I loved, didn't love, and now I'm thinking maybe I can love it again.  So often I second guess my quilting decisions. 

I think I have too many quilts in progress.  There are eight  -- EIGHT! -- not including tops waiting to be quilted.   I don't think I should dare start another quilt until at least several of these are to the finished top stage, though several are on my mind....

I'm so glad 2019 is over.  It was one of the hardest years of my life.  I hope 2020 will be wonderful for all of us!

--Nancy.
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