Happy to have you back to your machine. As for the fabric you can use it as others will say for backings and stach building, but you can also trade with other sewer and quilters (ie: fabric swaps). And as far as the quilt pattern with the Scotty Dogs, I've seen the pattern and I'll be going back to get it. But I wont be using it as a small quilt, I'll be hitting the copy store to enlarge the Scotty Dog to use in the center of another quilt. You might find applique is fun, but starting out with small applique is not easy - blow the picture up to make it easier for your first time and then use stick glue to hold in place and use your machine to sew the dog down. These are all things that are outside of your comfort zone, but you might find that you can still have fun with. Good luck