I Went to Boca Raton

I was in Boca Raton from August 19-22. I went there with my friend Winnie.

Winnie and I met about four years ago when I moved to The Villages. We were first together in the weekly Happy Stitchers needlework group and then attended a weekly Bible study. Last year we also traveled together to Tampa for a Beth Moore "Living Proof" weekend.

Many months ago the South Florida Modern Quilt Guild, in Boca Raton, contacted me about presenting a domestic machine quilting program and workshop. When I mentioned it to Winnie, she reminded me that she moved to The Villages from Boca Raton, and still has many friends there. She suggested that she would like to visit her friend Bev there, so after contacting Bev, it worked out that I could visit and stay with Bev too! What dear people they are!

Bev (on the left), and Winnie

I had a wonderful time with them. Not only was Winnie my driver to and from Boca Raton, and Bev a lovely and gracious hostess, but the South Florida MQG is a fun chapter! And they treated me like royalty. Every little thing I could want or need was covered - transportation, help loading and unloading my quilts and teaching supplies, water, food, and quilters to chat with over a meal.

The meeting, with my presentation and trunk show, was on Saturday at Patch Reef Park Community Center.

For the first time, I wore my newly-finished, fabric-colored, two-tiered, A-line skirt, made from the book The Essential A-Line. The fabric is by Alison Glass and was colored with Tulip brand washable markers. 

I thoroughly enjoyed being among modern quilters, and gleaned lots of good ideas and information that I hope to share with my own Central Florida MQG.

South Florida MQG is active and vital! They're generous with their donation/charity quiltmaking. These are just some of the more than 22 quilts they have already and continue to make for #QuiltsforPulse. These quilts will be given to the Orlando MQG for distribution to victims of the June Pulse nightclub attack.

Their show and tell is modern.

And isn't their August BOM neat?

The six hour workshop on Sunday was at Sugar Sands Park Community Center. Both venues were ideal for group meetings. Twenty students attended my "Straight Ahead and Around the Bend" domestic machine quilting workshop.

Everyone who attended received one of these buttons, designed by the president. That domestic machine quilter is sweating over her machine!

As all quilters in my classes do, they quilt on fat quarter-sized quilt sandwiches that I encourage them to autograph and date for future reference. As they continue quilting, they'll see an improvement in the quality of their stitching, and a look at these these first pieces will remind them of that.

The time spent in Boca Raton was made special by the nicest people, and I'm thankful for each of them: Winnie and Bev; and quilters Charlotte, Allison, Debby, Debbie, Kate, Linda, Marya, and more. I wish I knew everyone.

This past weekend reminds me to reflect on my 2016 word of the year - lighten. Since my January and February leg procedures, I haven't had further symptoms of arterial blockages, and I'm only 18 months away from completing a five year course of Arimidex, my breast cancer drug. I was able to enjoy this trip, and activities of the past several months, without overriding health concerns. He lightened my load of concerns so I could enjoy the activities I most love doing. I'm feeling very grateful. Linda