auntjo

Am finally getting settled enuf after a couple years of adjusting to what is my new life after DH's death, reconnecting w/a HS BF at my 40th HS reunion, & making a move from AZ to El Dorado Hills in northern CA to begin thinking about finding some local like-minded ladies to get together & piece/quilt with like I had in AZ. Of course I was there for over 18 years & have long established friendships thru the guilds and spin off groups. Will start by going to a local guild meeting tomorrow nite in Folsom & seeing if there are some small spin off get-togethers here, which is what I'm really more interested in.

I really haven't done much sewing or quilting in the past couple years (nor have I done much more than lurk here) & am hoping to get back into getting comfortable w/machine quilting on my Tin Lizzie by practicing on donation quilts. I was quite enjoying the learning curve w/pantographs & I don't turn out tops that quickly, so it was a perfect match before my world collapsed. And, even tho I wasn't quilting, I was still occasionally joining the local AZ ladies for a social visit while they sewed on Saturday mornings, or met for lunch when I was in town. I did take one (of many of my older UFO's) hand quilting project w/me to Iowa when I spent a couple months w/my mom after my dad died at Xmas & have since had nothing but problems w/my right wrist. I'm pretty sure arthritis has come to call big time, which is one of the reasons I'd been pushing myself to learn the machine quilting as it had started in my fingers years ago - but I managed to keep it at bay (yeaa for Glucosamine Chondroitin!). Am hoping that when I get my studio put together w/this move (especially now that I am approaching official retirement this next BD) that I will still be able to enjoy my quilting, because it has turned into real pain w/all the sorting, packing, & moving this past several months.

Anybody here in El Dorado Hills, CA, or close to?? I haven't lived in this area of Cali. for over 28 years.