The Winds of Change

March winds have blown through and have brought in some April changes.
I don't even know where to begin- the past three weeks have been so jam packed busy. It has been windy here and they say the wind brings change well- there are lots of changes happening just now. We had our spring break holiday the week before last- For part of it I worked at school packing up my classroom- No, its not early summer vacation- Its Renovation time. My school is having a beautiful face lift and it is our turn to be renovated. They are gutting each of the classrooms down to the wall boards and replacing everything.There will be smart boards in each of the classrooms with new mill work,flooring, wiring and lighting. It will be lovely when completed but in the meantime, my teaching partner and I are moving to the gym with our two kindergarten classes. For the next 8 weeks, it is going to be a busy place with 47 kindergarten students, 2 teachers and 4 support staff sharing a large gymnasium. Our boxes are packed ... Ready set go....

This is a photo of my classroom taken last fall when my husband came to read to my students during a special reading event. I will take a picture of our updated look before summer vacation or when we have all the boxes put away in our new room.

On the home front, our son Kevin is moving into his first apartment not far down the road. It is an exciting but a big change for us all. Moving and change seem to be part of our lives just now..

Some spring break outings:
My husband and I went to see a play called the" Science of Disconnection" written by a Canadian playwright named David Belke. It was a fascinating one woman play about Lise Meitner. She was a physicist who worked on a team that discovered Nuclear Fission. Meitner was overlooked when the Nobel Prize was given in 1944, for splitting the atom - Otto Hahn(her professional partner) was awarded it. It was a fascinating story about a brilliant woman who was passionate about physics.

We visited the magnificent new Art Gallery of Alberta and saw La Petite Danser. She is still beautiful with her face radiating her pure joy of dance. The exhibit had a number of interesting Degas sculptures- many were studies of body movements. Degas heirs had many of the pieces cast in bronze. Most were not meant to be shown and were originally made of wax.
The new Art gallery building is truly glorious- so filled with light. We will go back and visit the Dancer before she leaves us. This summer the new exhibit will be MC Escher and Bugs Bunny.

Our family visited my parents and siblings over the Easter weekend. It was terrific to see my sister and brother and their families. There were delicious meals and some together time. My father's birthday was on April 8th. My mother gave me this photo of my dad and their miniature collie, Tammy.
My father has always loved animals and has a wonderful way with them. I love this photo of him with his current beloved dog. Belated Happy Birthday Dad- May the year be rich with wonderful things for you.

Bruce lost a dear friend Ed at the end of March. He had been ill for quite a long time. He was very interested in astronomy, mountain climbing, the outdoors and the Opera. When Ed was first diagnosed with cancer, I made this astronomy quilt for him. Rest easy, dear man, may you find peace now.




Now if you are still with me, I do have a few quilting things to show you. I began a convergence quilt during spring break. I thought I remembered what to do but I sewed four seams together and promptly needed to rip them all out. However after some rethinking- I managed to get the quilt top together - personally it may be questionable at this time whether I am all together LOL)

I have chosen a robin egg blue border to act as a stop border for the convergence quilt. After that, I will extend the four corners out of each of widest outer fabrics for the outside border. I have a second convergence ready to cut into the strip sections. I love this Ricky Tims pattern- I am always excited to see how the grouping works together.

One of the things I book ended my break with, was time with two of my dearest friends. My quilting friend Lou came to the city and we went on our own shop hop. We stopped at 6 different quilting stores and I managed to not to break the bank doing it. I actually only bought fabric in the first store and in my favorite second hand place. Lou and I had a delicious lunch together. One of the reasons I showed some restraint is because I had been coveting some Kaffe Fassett fabrics. They are quite expensive here ( about 18 dollars a meter).I had found some KF fabrics on line for 10 dollars a meter plus free shipping. Here is what arrived in my mailbox last Friday...
I do love all the beautiful colors and was very pleased to be able to touch them. The four fabrics group are not Kaffe fabrics- I just liked them.
On the last day of spring break, my friend Val and I had the opportunity to catch up and have lunch before we returned to the classroom. Was that really only last Monday we had lunch...


These beautiful things came to me from a couple of giveaways that I was lucky enough to win. I love Angela's little bag and hand dyed fabrics.Angela also sent me this gorgeous bracelet and it fits perfectly. Do go and visit her blog called Fenland Textiles.
The batik piece came from one of my Australian blogging friends, Jane. You can find her blog here.Jane I love the leafy batik.
Thank you both so much for your lovely gifts.

Bruce and I are beginning to get the idea of what it might mean to be empty nesters. We went off to a concert of East Indian music featuring a sitar artist last evening.The three musicians sat on a beautiful quilt that I spent some time trying to figure out the pattern. It was made with brocades and silks and the pattern was a simple hour glass block combined with squares. We enjoyed a delicious Vietnamese meal prior to the concert. The restaurant was called "The Golden Bird" and was a new one to me. Our usual favorite was going to be an hour wait... New places are good too you know...

This week will be busy with the move. I hope to fit in a bit of beading and quilting if I am still awake in the evening.LOL

Spring has sprung - the grass has rise... It has been quite windy outside - the weather seems quite fitting for the way life is just now...

I will return when I get the chance,
Warmest regards,
Anna