I too took care of both my mom and dad...be gentle with yourself...this is a hard time....glad you are getting a long arm...I got one as a retirement present to myself instead of the usual cruise or island vacation.....my quilting has gotten me through many hard times....you will have times saying not to nice things as you work through the learning curve...in my experience 99% of the things that go wrong in the beginning are operator error...reach out Innova and their dealers are a good supplier and will be very helpful....I went with a used APQS Lucey and had two helpful dealers nearby and the company support as well. I found out quickly, I am a get her done type of quilter and my talent is in finishing the quilt top and getting her quilted so as to make a utility quilt...so most of my quilting is free motion over-all designs...I have done a bit of ruler work and semi-custom...but found I really don't get into that much. Part is because at my age, I just don't have the fine motor control anymore nor do I have the stamina to stand for long periods of time....but I have gotten over 50 quilts done and I am happy with that...not a quilt artist here...just a utility wrap around you quilt maker here. find your own groove and enjoy!