Never thought we'd see this....

*a "Life in Limbo non-quilting post*

While I am not getting in much (any) sewing/quilting time, we as a family are getting some bonding time! Sarge is really starting to trust Al more. It takes time and patience with a rescued pooch.

But it is so worth it!

Some time

My posting has become scarcer and less photo-ed. There was a time (not long ago!) I would have pre-posted in preparation for this time of life in limbo! But, having asked myself about why I am blogging, I decided to be as authentic and in-the-moment as possible with this blog.

I like to blog mostly about quilting and pets and pretty things. I still like them! And I am okay with this time between/in limbo. I have been resting better with less in my life. Less commute time, as my MIL is only 20 minutes from my office (as compared to the 1 hour 10 minutes - each way - in our former home); less after-work obligations (getting home earlier!) means I can get my hounds out walking earlier in the evenings and walk longer; less wardrobe means less laundry. I have more time to just sit. And since my MIL is there even when hubby is not (he is out of town this weekend) I am not alone, nor lonely, and can discuss the day's events with someone.

I am looking forward to sewing tomorrow. My LQS (Sewingly Yours) is having a "Sit and Sew" tomorrow from 10-2 and I am going! I wish you all a restful weekend with plenty of time to just be.

Living with less****

***a "Life in Limbo" post


Nope, no picture. One of the concessions to living with less of my stuff. No home computer to process my digital pics. Yes, I have gotten in some (a tiny bit) sewing, but since I do not have a sewing room/studio/sweat shop I have to get everything out and put it back so sewing involves a lot of prep.


I will admit, at first I was hesitant about staying for this extended time with my sweet MIL. She is a delight, but comes from a background of living through the Great Depression on a little country farm which means she saves things. Everything. I love her truly, but Meme is a pack rat. We spent all last Saturday clearing out drawers in our room so we could unpack. We still haven't done the closet, but we have to space this out. It can get tense while we are convincing Meme that she can give things to Goodwill or even throw them away if they are past their usefullness. So what does this clutter story have to do with living with less? Well, this is her house, so we are not taking up a lot of space. My hubby actually brought more clothes and shoes than I did! But given the situation of moving, I had not refreshed my wardrobe and in fact had purged quite a bit. So, I am living with less clothes and shoes. Right now it is okay, but if it gets cool, I will need to get a sweater! This lessened wardrobe has greatly simplified my dressing each day. And while I am quite good with my wardrobe situation, I really am missing the sewing. Overall, I feel so much less stress than the last few months. We are so glad to have the house selling behind us. We are working on purchasing a new home, but the one we want is in foreclosure and that process takes a while. So, in the interim, we are making do with less. And we are fine.

Prose and cons

Life in limbo has some disadvantages:
lack of private space
all our stuff is in storage
no sewing studio

But it also has some seriously marvelous advantages:
time with sweet MIL :o) [she cooks dinner!]
quiet country living
GREAT logging road for dogs (and they are lovin it!)

Some late summer eye candy:

A student's quilt

At last, I am posting about quilting again!
This is the very first quilt by my friend and student, Tammy.:

She is making this for her son. She wanted something modern, manly and it had to have black in it.

I love the graphic quality and the wolf print as accent. I am going to quilt it for her and will post that when finished.

Pardon me while I whine a bit*

*yet another non-quilting-related post, but I am homeless and the househunting is getting to me.

We spent another Sunday afternoon with our realtor looking for a home. Got in 5 houses, drove by a 6th. The 5th and final was the one I want. It was empty and bank-owned. So we prepare paperwork and are now at the mercy of the parties on the other end.

Of the other 4, 2 showed well, they were clean, uncluttered and smelled good. They just were not what we are looking for. The other 2? Sellers: there is a reason why your houses haven't sold yet. Have you heard of CLEANING? And DECLUTTERING? One of the houses was a For Sale By Owner. Hello? Can you please clear us a path? How can your house make a good impression if I can not see it because of the piles of stuff and boxes of belongings and basements packed full?

I told hubby that we are seriously purging AGAIN as we unpack. All these homes full of crap have made me feel so claustrophobic. I know we do not need to hang onto all this stuff.

I am beyond frustrated in this process. I am now actively looking for a decent rental. Let the market settle. Bank some more cash. Set up my sewing space and get back to that.

a quilt to tide you over

0909102057.jpg, originally uploaded by kheli.

All our stuff is now in storage. The movers came on Wednesday, we signed the deed over this morning and are waiting for the funds to be transferred. Then, the sale will be final! Hubby, myself and the 2 dogs are staying with my dear MIL til we find a more permanent abode. She lives way out in the country, so no internet! I am blogging from my son's place at ASU and the (blurry) photo is of his t-shirt quilt my mom made for him. No quilting for me lately, but as I get settled next week, I have some small projects to sew. I will post as I am able. Keep sewing and quilting!

Thank you

No pix today, just a quick thanks to my blog friends for letting me rant! We are packing and preparing for the move. Lots of stress, but the kind words goes a long way to lift my spirit! Thank you so much for the compassion and sweetness I have received! I will do my best to keep updated here.
 

whole lotta ugly out there

(warning: this is a venting post about the unfun house-hunting we have been enduring.)

So, after well over a year of our house being on the market, it looks like the finish line is in site. We are supposed to close in one week on the sale of this house. Now we have lived here 16+ years, and have done many updates and improvements. Before we put the "For Sale" sign in the yard, we had our real estate agent walk through and make a list of recommended changes. Some were minor (de-clutter, paint touch-up), some major (update bathrooms), but in the interest of putting the best possible product into an already slow-moving and crowded market, we bit the bullet and did them. We cleaned, culled, painted, scraped, waxed, swept, dusted and donated. When they came back through, we received positive reviews. Neutral colors and hardwood floors throughout. Freshly painted moldings. New, updated bathrooms. I have been proud to allow strangers to walk through. Our closets are even organized!

When we started looking for a new home in our target area, I was slightly disappointed. I mean, we are moving from a small town to a larger Metro area, don't they have HGTV on their cable systems? And since, we have experienced a whole lot of ugly. I mean, bad. Black mildew in the dirty bathrooms bad. Strange, organic odors bad. Wallpaper from the 80s bad. One house (whose layout was good) had not been touched since it was built in the 70s! C'mon now, one weekend of "Sell This House" on A&E should tell the sellers to (at the very least) CLEAN!

I admit, I had the misguided notion that due the depressed housing market and record breaking foreclosures, we would find 2 or 3 good options. I can see past the paint colors, I even can live with carpet (temporarily), but I never expected to be 7 months into active looking and supremely disappointed. The new homes on the market are way too big (4+ bedrooms) and the older homes are way too in need of updating. And trying to buy a foreclosure was such a horrible experience (we made an offer that we later withdrew) that I just do not want to do it again. Okay Mortgage Bankers: do you want to keep these places on your books? Then why make it so painful and why treat potential buyers with such disdain? And pricing? Hah! Yes, I know we want to cling to what we perceive how much our house is worth. But the raw, naked fact is this: it is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. I know I wish we could have gotten more for ours; I know that the buyer is getting a ton of square footage and upgrades for an insane price per square foot, but after all the time on the market (and the other dramas in our lives) we are okay with what we will clear and the buyers are okay with what they are paying. 

We made a second offer and the seller rejected it outright. She didn't even counter. Don't get me wrong; I do not like the dicker-dance of house and car buying. But most people tender a counter-offer to be polite. After a week of her ignorance, I told my agent and our agent to withdraw the offer. It isn't my job to educate the seller on the realities of the housing market. And while we liked the house, I know there will be another. We just have to keep looking.

Now we are packing and preparing for living in limbo until we find a more permanent abode. We will keep looking. At least we will be sleeping in the same bed again!

And I did not want to have a Friday post totally devoid of pretty so here's my string quilt top I finally finished piecing:

 Hope we find a place soon so I can quilt it!