Too Hot To Sew

(affiliate links to my designs)

I can't remember why I picked this particular color scheme when I began my 2026 digital temperature quilts, but I am rather liking it now. The color scheme. Not the theme. The theme, broken hearts, absolutely breaks my heart now. I had no idea when I began this project I would be spending at least 11 weeks with a heart so broken, it has been difficult sometimes to keep going on the project.

I am so thankful I decided before February ever hit that I didn't like the broken heart temperature squares and didn't continue them the whole year. I would have abandoned this project all together if it had been 12 months of broken hearts in mid-April.

I thought adding in colors for the weather conditions would be interesting when I first began this particular temperature project, one of four, but the only one with sky conditions. (And I neglected to add a color for smoke, which we've had heavily for nearly a month now!) Before the end of January, I no longer liked the idea. Perhaps I need a different color scheme for this to work, or perhaps I was just too easily bored by the same daily sky conditions over and over and over.

Now that I have six months complete, I wanted to create a cheater quilt panel on Spoonflower fabric, but I didn't want to do the broken hearts AT ALL. I confess, I hate those segments now.

I decided to make a few changes going forward. I decided not to delete the original project yet. But I decided I liked some of my edit screens so much, I made Spoonflower fabric of them. I did a six month version with revisions, too. I like all the new designs so much better than the original.

I will finish the original I actually like the Septemberr and December segments. I might convert the January and April segments to similar designs one day. But for right now, I'm going to finish what I started. It might get permanent filed away. But that would be better than later regretting never finishing it.

Linking up with Alycia Quilts.

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Wordless Wednesday

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Back in the Saddle Again

I'm finally beginning to get back on my bicycle, and I've finally begun recording the miles of the new chapter of my life.

It is not easy. I cry every single ride. My first time back on the bike, I cried the whole way. And so did the sky.

It was the only real rain we've had so far this season.

I miss my Chief Riding Partner. I miss his encouragement. I miss his humor. But I'm beginning to reclaim the wonderful memories. I'm beginning to mentally put the difficult memories in a box on a shelf I hope will be too high for me to easily reach.

From about the second week after Lizard passed, I've been saying, "Our anniversary is coming" instead of "It would have been our anniversary".

Because we've been sealed. This is forever. We can't spend our 21st anniversary together tomorrow, him enjoying a chicken fried steak, but we can both observe a tremendous milestone. Just in different places. He's in heaven. I'm spending the day in the temple. That's the closest I can get to heaven. And that's where I hope I can feel closest to Lizard.

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Snowflake Monday

Today's snowflake was designed while I listened to this wonderful message.

You may do whatever you'd like with snowflakes you make from this pattern, but you may not sell or republish the pattern. Thanks, and enjoy!

Finished Size: 5 inches from point to point
Materials: Size 10 crochet thread, size 7 crochet hook, empty pizza box, wax paper or plastic wrap, cellophane tape, water soluble school glue or desired stiffener, water, glitter, small container for glue/water mixture, paintbrush, stick pins that won't be used later for sewing, clear thread or fishing line

Plan B Snowflake Instructions

Special Stitches

Popcorn Stitch (pc): Work 5 dc in designated st, take loop off hook, insert hook through top loop of 1st dc and replace loop on hook, pull loop through top of 1st dc.

Make magic ring.

Round 1: [1 pc into ring, ch 3] 6 times, omitting last 2 ch of final repeat; 1 dc into starting pc. Don't pull magic ring too tight.

Round 2: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 2 dc over post of dc directly below, [in next ch 3 sp work (3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc)] 5 times; in next ch 3 sp work 3 dc, ch 1, 1 dc in 2nd ch of starting ch 2.

Round 3: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 2 dc over post of dc directly below, [ch 3, 1 sc in gap between next 2 3/dc shells, ch 3, in next ch 3 sp work (3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc)] 6 times, omitting last 3 dc and last 2 ch of final repeat; 1 dc in 2nd ch of starting ch 2.
If you're not reading this pattern on Snowcatcher, you're not reading the designer's blog. Please go here to see the original.

Round 4: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), [3 dc in next ch 3 sp, ch 3, 3 dc in next ch 3 sp, in next ch 3 tip work (1 dc, ch 5, 1 dc)] 6 times, omitting last dc and last 3 ch of final repeat; 1 tr in 2nd ch of starting ch 2.

Round 5: Ch 2 (counts as 1 dc), 4 dc over post of tr directly below, [ch 5, in next ch 3 sp work (1 sc, ch 15, 1 sc), ch 5, in next ch 5 tip work (5 dc, ch 5, 1 sc in 5th ch from hook, [ch 5, sl st in sc] 2 times, 5 dc (tri-picot made)] 6 times, omitting last 5 dc of final repeat; sl st in 2nd ch of starting ch 2; bind off. Weave in ends.

Finish: I've been stiffening my flakes with undiluted, full-strength water soluble school glue for quite a while now, and I've been squishing the glue onto and throughout each flake with my fingers (yucky mess!!!) instead of gingerly painting the flakes with glue. Yes, it's a mess. But it's faster. And stiffer.

Tape wax paper or plastic wrap to top of empty pizza box. Pin snowflake to box on top of wax paper or plastic wrap.

If using glue, mix a few drops of water with a teaspoon of glue in small washable container. Paint snowflake with glue mixture or desired stiffener. Sprinkle lightly with glitter. Wash paintbrush and container thoroughly. Allow snowflake to dry at least 24 hours. Remove pins. Gently peel snowflake from wax paper or plastic wrap. Attach 10-inch clear thread to one spoke, weaving in end. Wrap fishing line around tree branch (or tape to ceiling or any overhead surface) and watch snowflake twirl freely whenever you walk by! Snowflake also may be taped to window or tied to doorknob or cabinet handle.

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Friday Funny

I typically don't look when I grab my shoes in the morning. I don't think I will EVER in my life not inspect my shoes again before I touch them! I'd just taken these off hours earlier!!! It had completely webbed both of my shoes while I slept!!! And it had bypassed my hardly ever-worn dress flats and my only-five-times-so-far-this-year cycling shoes! The everyday shoes must have been warmer and more moist...

It hid deep within the shoe when I tried to shake it off on the porch. The only thing I could think of was to fill both shoes with water. Which worked, thankfully. I really miss my Chief Spider Remover! Hopefully, this little garden helper will live happily ever after in the garden, where it belongs.

Below was last year's surprise... thankfully, OUTSIDE the house!!!

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Wordless Wednesday

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Garden Grand

I thought I'd lost all my amaryllis back in April because I forgot to bring them in during an overnight freeze. I planned to dump them all and use the bowls for salad greens. Then things happened, and I never got around to dumpring them. Good thing. Many did survive, and two are preparing to bloom! I love that the red and white striped one opened on the Fourth of July!

My first tomatoes of the year are ready to join my next salad! They are small, but they will taste out of this world.

One of the last things Lizard did with me was buy a wisteria to create shade for our trellis/pergola over our back porch. I was so excited when I went out to water (by watering can) this week and discovered the wisteria is beginning to climb! All on its own! I did not have to show it where to go!

I had my best pea harvest ever last week, even though it's been unseasonably hot for going on two months now. I typically get three or four pea pods at a time. Lizard liked the young pods whole in a salad. I like that, but my favorite is a bowl of fresh peas. This is the first time I've ever had a big enough harvest to enjoy a bowl of peas!

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