A Few Lessons Learned Dealing with an Aging Parent

Thank you for asking, my Mom is in a Skilled Nursing Center and settling in….Well?  She can walk a bit with a walker, uses a wheelchair most of the time and since the surgery she lost all her bathroom abilities. Which I think is pretty common, from the talk around the lunch table with her.  She is in a wonderful place, LOVES playing bingo, going to drum line, and she has found the spa !   She is not far from me, which is good too. 

Grandma Quilt she made for my Mom
Great Grandma’s Quilt for my Mom

LESSONS Learned

ALWAYS tell the TRUTH: health issues suck, I know you/they are sick and no one wants to be sick, but talk about it, get it figured out, fixed and move on.

LAUGH, out loud and strong: Yes, it’s all serious, but we all know going into live, we are going to die in the long run. LAUGH

ASK the VERY hard questions, of yourself, of others, of services. EVERY thing you can think of, ask the questions.

FIND someone who you can say WHAT ever you need to say and will not judge you. Who will listen, and let you talk.

I have heard SO much the past months about empathy, and I think sometimes I just don’t have ANY ! Or maybe I just can’t have any NOW !

Empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within the other being’s frame of reference, i.e., the capacity to place oneself in another’s position.

I do get it….but,  moving through survival mode. My way is, look, learn and solve the problem.  What is needed and what HAS to be done. I can’t seem to find empathy at those moments, but isn’t that empathy too, getting it done?

Release and be HAPPY ! 

Photo by Beth Ann Strub
White to Grow Photo by Beth Ann Strub

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January Fun Time Quilt Pattern for YOU

Here is a Complete quilt pattern for you. I think it’s a fun quilt because of the colors and the black making it pop. Over the next few days you will beTutorial Orange and Blue Star Quilt Pattern able to make the quilt as shown below.  This quilt LOOKS hard BUT it’s just triangles.

I cut 3 7/8″ blocks to make my triangles, you can cut any size you would like. I made and quilted this quilt YEARS ago and I have used it as a table topper, a front door quilt and as a lay over the back of the couch quilt for color.  My quilt has a finished size of 30 inches by 30 inches.

The Quilt Ladies Book Collection of Quilt Stories and Quilt Patterns

 For the center 

Cut 1 Blue  – 3 7/8″ x 3 7/8″ 

Cut 1 Orange  – 3 7/8″ x 3 7/8″

Make Triangles  How I make my Triangles

Orange and Blue Star Quilt Pattern

Cut 2 Blue  – 3 7/8″ x 3 7/8″ 

Cut 2 Orange  – 3 7/8″ x 3 7/8″

Cut 4 Black  – 3 7/8″ x 3 7/8″

Make Triangles

Cut 4 Black – 3 7/8″ x 3 7/8″

Sew units as shown, sew to the sides. Sew top and bottom as shown and sew 

Orange and Blue Star quilt block

Finished center of the quilt block. 

Orange and Blue Star Quilt Pattern using triangles

Stop back and we will continue in a few days !

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All ABOUT Me!

Yellow Rose by Beth Ann Strub

All About Me, it’s been months since I’ve been able to say those three words, “All about ME” has a GREAT ring to it.   I’m marking this as my year of Only HAPPY !   Writing yesterday made me VERY happy and I’m going to be doing a LOT more, “All about ME” 

We had a fantastic trip to Dallas for the holidays and being on planes, subways and walking, with sounds of people all around us was decidedly wonderful. The holiday inner spirit of family life and of total strangers who smile, laugh or just a head nod in unison. I heard conversations over coffee, the hand shake of friendship and that exhausted Mom who said, “Pappa, please take the baby for just a moment.” His smile, his hand of love for them both, the holiday in perfect motion. 

We are human, all blood, all one, please let us try to keep these moments, feelings and love inside for each other daily, weekly and forever. 

Then it happened…..REALITY. Getting on our return flight. Into my PAID for seat and a seat mate with man spread, arm rest pushy and sleeping on my shoulder and it wasn’t Husband…. Thank you Flight Attendant for the CLASSIC cart bump, and My Spirit was retrieved ! 

ONLY HAPPY ! 

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Prayer of Release – Beth Ann Doing and Learning

Happy 2018 ! ! Purple Flowers, Photo by Beth Ann Strub

My 2017 had higher than usual highs and some really low, lows. In late August my life became overwhelming and not mine, then in early December I found this, or it found me. PRAYER OF RELEASE

Heavenly Father, I release to You the burdens that I have been carrying, burdens that You never intended for me to carry. I cast all my cares upon You–all my  worries, all my fears. You have told me to not be anxious about anything, but rather to bring everything to You in Prayer with Thankfulness.

Father, calm my restless spirit, quiet my anxious heart, still my troubling thoughts with the assurance that You are in control. I let go of my grip upon the things I have been hanging onto, with opened hands I come to You. I release to Your will all that I am trying to manipulate: I release to Your authority all that I am trying to control: I release to Your timing all that I have been striving to make happen.

I have always been the fixer, the one doing all the tap dancing to make everyone happy or everything right, the release to God has moved me forward, to except the good or bad and release it to the universe. I can fix nothing. I can ask, receive and release. My silent meditation. Release and Thank You

ONLY HAPPY IN 2018 ! ! 

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Take Time Thursday – Past Week in Photo’s January 2018

Hope you all had a GREAT Holiday and like me TRYING to make life normal or something close.  2018 will bring me lots of new, as turning sixty, celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary and doing a bit of traveling.  This photo is from our visit to the Dallas Arboretum it’s the time of the year when there is not much in bloom, but the color and shadows were wonderful.  We walked for hours and around every corner things seemed new and different. It’s the welcoming of 2018.

The Quilt Ladies Book Collection of Quilt Stories and Quilt Patterns

End of the Road photo by Beth Strub
End of the Road by Beth Strub
Purple Flowers, Photo by Beth Ann Strub
Purple Flowers, Photo by Beth Ann Strub

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Take Time Thursday – Past Week in Photo’s

My Past Weeks Photo’s by Beth Ann. I have been wanting to do this for a bit and with things a bit calmer, I am going to try. What it really does is get me OUT and taking pictures.
We live in a fantasy area here in Sarasota, Florida, so many things to see and do. We always make it to the Ringling before most holiday’s. I call it a “vacation day”. I took 417 pictures on this day. I found I was a bit involved with the lighting??? I try very hard to just take pictures, not over think anything like portions of thirds, colors, just shoot what my eyes see at the time. photo by Beth Ann Strub

The Quilt Ladies Book Collection of Quilt Stories and Quilt Patterns

I have always loved old thing and this is one of my favorite houses to visit. I  hope that some day they will open it up to special tours and let me take my camera behind the red ropes….BUT until that time, I just keep taking pictures. 

Chandelier Black and White photo by Beth Ann Strub

photo by Beth Ann Strub

Beth Ann doing Logo

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Merry Christmas from Beth Ann and The Quilt Ladies

As the next few days come upon us, please take a moment of time to reflect on your life, your year and the joy that is in your heart right now. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have this happiness in us every day.  From my little company, my family and from my heart

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

Growing Together photo
My Photo Growing Together by Beth Ann Strub

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The Quilt Ladies Holiday Quilt Pattern just for YOU ! Merry Christmas

Here you are…. A finished quilt ! And in only 5 parts….HA…If you missed anything here are the links back.

Part ONE 

Part TWO 

Part THREE 

Part Four

Two Block Quilt Pattern by The Quilt Ladies

Cut 2 Side Borders 5 1/2″ x 42 1/2″ Sew to the sides of the quilt

Cut 2 Top/bottom Borders – 5 1/2″ x 52 1/2″ Sew to the top and bottom.

Two Block Quilt Pattern by The Quilt Ladies

Cut Binding – 2 1/2″ x 205″ 

Here is how I do my binding at The Quilt Ladies

Two Block Quilt Pattern by The Quilt Ladies

Have a GREAT HOLIDAY SEASON

Beth Ann Doing Site

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Putting our Holiday Quilt Together From The Quilt Ladies

If you have missed any of My Holiday Quilt Pattern they are all here for you. Today is adding the outside borders.

Part ONE

Part TWO

Part THREE

Two Block Quilt Pattern by The Quilt Ladies

Two Block Quilt Pattern by The Quilt Ladies

Cut 12 Green – 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″  Cut 12 Background – 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ Sew center unit as shown.

 

Cut 8 Yellow – 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ Cut 8 background – 2 1/2″ x 2 1/2″ Sew corner units as shown.

 

 

Cut 8 Background – 4 1/2″ x 14 1/2″ Sew unit together as shown.

Two Block Quilt Pattern by The Quilt Ladies

 

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My Book, The Quilt Ladies on KINDLE

The Ladies Quilt Pattern Book

“The Ladies” Quilt Pattern

The Ladies Quilt Book

68 quilt pattern blocks, with complete cutting and piecing instructions. Make the quilt blocks as shown, a quilt which is 76″ x 84″ or just as a single quilt project reference of quilt blocks.

 The Ladies Quilt Pattern“The Ladies” are The Quilt Ladies. This project started as a gift idea and turned into a quilt pattern. The Ladies started by deciding the block size of eight inches by eight inches and the piecing of only straight seams. Drawing out each quilt block on graph paper and all hand written directions, they discovered they had lots of star patterns and they liked the quilt blocks that look complicated but weren’t. So, they purchased fabric and made each quilt block.

Here it is today, “The Ladies” Quilt Pattern Book

The Ladies Quilt Pattern Book  One of the quilt blocks from The Ladies Quilt Pattern Book

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