How do you know you've pushed the limits on quilting time?????????
When does family or work put the guilt trip on you? What do you do to keep the balance?

My family, DH and DD think ANY amount of time is too much. Therefore, I am guilty a lot! Little do they know I am going go my first quilt show tomorrow. It is about an hour away, but I can be home before they are. Being a little sneaky isn't bad is it?

Sounds like your family needs to get a life and let you have one!

My hubby doesn't care how much time I spend quilting or playing in my sewing room.

My guilt comes from NOT spending as much time as I want and should. I can go for long periods without sewing a single stitch, even tho in my head I have so many quilts, table runners, mug rugs, place mats etc that I WANT to work on but my body doesn't follow thru. I actually will lay in bed at night thinking how much I want to accomplish and be upset with myself for not doing a single thing ... just on the computer too much. Like now!

Yup what she said!

Not to worry, (me that is), retired, and live alone, so it only affects me. My friends asked this, "What do you do in your spare time? I said "sleep."
Alicia

When my kids were little I found time to quilt when they napped etc and also some other times as well. As long as they were busy I would get some sewing time in.
My kids and hubby seemed to realize that sewing time for me made me a happier person! That, in turn, made me a nicer wife/Mom LOL
Now that they're grown I have more time- but I don't think I'll ever have as much time as I'd like, say 24/7 LOL :D

NEVER HAHAHAHAH

Ditto. :lol:

I do not feel guilty at all! I spent a lot of years running kids to and from events, having balanced meals on the table at a certain time so everyone could get to where they needed to be, or do what they needed to do, Kept house work up, laundry done, snacks ready, was the offical taxi for sports, unoffical tutor ect. Worked out of the home and kept a job I really didnt care for, because I was able to flex my hrs around the needs of my DH and 3 kids. Now kids are grown, and DH and I are both retired, He says I desirve to be happy in my retirement so Do what you want! We still do a lot together, trips, fishing, gardening, playing with DGK but if I want to takeoff for a couple of days to go to a quilt show, I do not ask, can I go? Just tell him where I'm off to and call when I arrive, so he knows I'm not dead in the ditch some where. LOL I always ask if he wants to go, he askes do you want me to drive? If I say no he will usually stay home. The last time he suprised me and said he wanted to go with to the Sew Expo, That was the trip he got me my first long arm! Never would have bought it without his pushing me.LOL

When I go for several days without cooking a decent meal.

not even if you get caught!!!

only you know that.. If you feel guilty then there obviously is a problem...

My house will never be perfect, I will feed them cold sandwiches for dinner, and yes, I may have laundry that needs washing, but never will the time for quilting take over the time for my lil one & hubby.. She/they come first.. She will be grown up before I know it I can all the time for me after that..

I can sooo agree with you on this!!!
K

I know I've pushed the limit when...my legs hurt to stand up, it hurts to move my shoulders and arms and the kink in the back of my neck is screaming ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!
Rarely, do I get any friction from DH about my quilting time, unless, he feels I need a tea break and to stretch alittle. After all...a Happy Wife is more fun to be around than a guilt-ridden unhappy one.

i'm very lucky because DH is an artist also so he understands how the passion can get in the way of other things.

when i'm in the zone he steps up and keeps day to day life running in our home and with our family and i do the same for him when he's in the zone.

i do try to run my artistic life like a full time job with set hours monday thru friday so that i can spend the weekend with my family.

for the most part this has worked very well and its rare that i have to work over the weekend on my art.

I never feel guilty cos of the pleasure I see on people's faces when I give them one of my quilts.

Quilting is like therapy. My family and quilting both need me, and I need them, therefore I quilt when I can and spend time with family when needed.

I give to work daily Mon - Sat during the day and family Mon - Sat at night except Friday's. I quilt with a friend. One Monday out of the month for my guild, and Sunday's are 1/2 with family, 1/4 cleaning house, and the rest sewing.

Everyone is happy!

I just make dates with my sewing room, No guilt I sewed lots of stuff for my kids when they were younger - now I have my Grandsons to sew for (The guilt I get it mommy guilt) when they ask me for something and I say no I beat myself up....I wont have as much guilt now that I will be going back to work....

While kids are at school and hubby is at work I combine sewing and house(heavy on sewing). I also help with my MIL. When the boys come home from school we do homework and dinner. When watching TV with hubby I have hand work to do. After everyone goes to bed I have been known to do some quiet sewing too. I never feel guilty about any of my quilting, I have spent so many years doing for others that I have now come to reliase(sp) that I am a much happier person when I take care of myself once in a while and for me that is sewing and quilting.

Life is all about balance...quilting balances my life.

Good luck and don't quit now!

What a great story. It's about making each other happy, isn't it? I just hope I do that when time comes I do the way you do.

MY dh told me not to feel guilty about what I do all day. As long as I am happy. he says "you worked all your life you can do what ever it is you want.." So, I do feel guilty being on line alot but I cut out a whole quilt today and one day next week i am going to get to sit and sew them all together.. Its for a Lucky Star. My nephew is going to alfganistan and I want to give it to him for his man cave before he leaves.. (he just got a new house with his family)..

I don't think I've ever felt guilty about my quilting time. I think it's all about have a well-balanced life; that includes a good work/hobby ratio and my husband and I each spending time doing the things we love.

I'm a no guilt quilter...

Thanks all for sharing, and relieving me from a little Quilty Quilt. Now that I have finished my batch of have-to-make for relatives quilts (I have no rels so they are all DH's), I am a little worried DH will stop excusing me from gardening, cooking, domestic chores, working more hours, and sitting with him to watch Sox lose (thank heaven THAT last one is over!!!)...
I think from these posting that quilters are a generous and thoughtful bunch, but the satisfaction of making something beautiful with your own hands is a strong motivator and our families have to respect that it is part of our being.

All that said, do I want to weed garden and clean out all old squash and freeze kale and can green peppers and try to seal up hole where woodchuck dug up in middle of grapevines...or finish the adorable baby quilt????????? :)

The only thing I have ever felt guilty about is the spending on fabric (I got a little too addicted to that LOL), but I have cut down on that and am now using what I have to make things. As long as you have food on the table and the house is livable with happy kids sew as much as you want. My DH has been told by me that I need this or therapy and he chose quilting LOL. You need to have a release from stress and while others bake, I sew.

My DH supports my hobby and I am very strict with myself when it comes to giving myself quilt time. I do housework first, and take care of my kids, but I have decided to forego the evening TV time in lieu of sewing time. We trade off on weekends. I give him time to do his thing and take the kids out and in turn, he gives me time. We are pretty equal about it and the children always come first so there is no guilt. Well, that isn't true... The guilt is reversed for me. I feel guilty for not getting in ENOUGH sewing time! :)

guilt - schmilt. I put a guest chair in my sewing room and the hubs can visit. Other than that, he knows where the kitchen is and how to run the washer/dryer. If he goes hungry and runs around in dirty clothes, THAT is entirely his problem. Gotta train them early on!

Only you can decide what the right balance is for you. Hopefully you can know what works best for you and your family.

Free to do as much as I want. We've been out of milk for days and I think there's two of us here. Should I stop to go get it? HMMM I think not! Seriously I don't take time away from him and he doesn't resent it when I spend all day in my room!