Step One - Spend lots of money

The first night of class the point was clear: we want your money, and lots of it. I bought my tools and my materials. I can't describe how this thing is going to be put together except the big piece is the back and frame and the 3 stacks will be used to make blocks - green-ish, purple-ish and pink-ish. This week the homework is to wash the material and then iron it. The next class will be 2/1 and I think we will be cutting? Maybe some sewing?

And if I get lucky, I may be the only person in the class. There was one other lady this week, but she was only there because she couldn't make it to the day class. I hope to heaven she doesn't decide to come at night. She drove me AND the teacher crazy, though the teacher tried to keep it from showing. But if she does come at night, I will be nice. For a while.

How old am I?

Lately I've been having a bit of fun. Going to concerts, meeting the band. Keeping one niece as much as possible (she is a 4 yr old bundle of energy!). These activities would suggest that I'm young. That I have energy. That I am not yet ancient.

But. I have decided that I need a new hobby. I have quit scrapbooking and will be selling all my supplies on Ebay. I crochet, but that takes a while to complete anything large. I have decided that I am going to learn to quilt. It's something both of my grandmothers did. The both had me cutting and hand-piecing quilt tops when I was 7or 8. And when I say hand-piecing...that means sewing a billion squares, rectangles and octagons together BY HAND. With a needle and thread. But I never learned the actual quilting part.

I have signed up for a beginner quilting class. The first class was last night. I got all my tools and my material. I am ready to go home tonight and get my material prepped for the first 'real' class. I think I'll even post pictures of my progress... I'll tell you one thing right off the bat - this will not be done by hand. I have a machine and I WILL be using it.

But this hobby makes me feel old. Like I should be wearing a shawl and slippers. And reading glasses hooked to a gold chain around my neck so I don't lose them.  I guess it's because the only women I know who do this are old. But I honestly want it to be an art form that isn't lost in our family. I don't have a daughter, but I can teach my nieces if they want to learn. Or I could teach Evan. He did learn how to sew rectangles together this past Christmas (we made heat packs for the women in the family). But that will be up to him.

I guess age is just a number - but I think I'll stop telling my number pretty soon.