SUMMER CAMP

I remember as a child I always wanted to go to summer camp like I

saw on television or in the movies. It just looked like so much fun for

an entire week with no responsibilities. It wasn’t until about twelve

years ago that I finally saw that dream come true and I went to camp.

Well, it wasn’t exactly camp like in the movies or on television. But it

was about as close to what camp for adults should be.

QUILTING RETREATS

Picture a group of retired women who all share a love of quilting and

are also good friends spending four days together doing exactly what

they want to do which is quilt all day and have their meals prepared by

someone else. It sounds like heaven to me and to those of us who

attend. At this retreat center we have basic lodging, a large classroom

with tables and chairs, bathrooms, and a small kitchen with just a sink

and refrigerator to chill our white wine and soft drinks. Next to the

classroom is another kitchen with an automatic coffee machine. But

the very best part of this retreat center is the dining room with a chef

who cooks our three meals a day! 

When we first started going to our summer quilt retreats we knew

once a year was just not enough so we made this outing a bi-annual

event with a summer and spring retreat. It is so interesting to walk around 

the room and see what each of my friends are making. Quilts of all 

different sizes, colors, and designs are being made for charities, 

friends, gifts, and for no other reason than trying out a new pattern with 

gorgeous fabrics. It’s therapy at it’s best! We even play some fun 

games and have prizes for winning.

SUMMER RETREAT

I’ve been busy the past week packing for my annual summer retreat.

It’s a bit like moving out of my sewing room as I gather all my rulers,

rotary cutters, scissors, cutting mats, and NUMEROUS supplies. Not to 

mention my sewing machine and extension table. It’s a long list I’ve

printed out so I can check each item off and make sure I don’t forget

something critical. (Not really critical except to me that is). I have all

my assorted projects organized and in tote bags. I always want to

make sure I have enough to do. Of course I have never gotten

anywhere close to finishing what I have brought because of all the

talking and laughing and walking to and from the meals three times a

day, plus playing games and taking breaks by walking around the

beautiful grounds outside.

Going to summer camp when I was a child would have been

wonderful but going to summer camp (I mean retreat) as an adult is

more fun and more rewarding than I could ever have imagined.

                                               A NEW ADVENTURE

Those who know me know that I love to quilt and I love to travel.  Quite coincidentally I’ve been doing both of these things since 2003.  Both of these passions of mine have now led me to a brand new type of adventure.  This is how I’ve gotten to where I am now and why I've chosen the name quiltingtravelerdi for this new adventure.

TRAVELING

My husband and I have always enjoyed traveling and we’ve been to almost every state.  He had frequently traveled internationally with his job but the farthest I’d been was Canada and Mexico.  We took our first international trip together in 2003 which was when I became hooked on adventure travel, which was what we did for the next 16 years.  We both share the adrenalin rush of visiting other countries.  The most exciting places were where we couldn’t speak the language, the culture was very different from ours, including the food, clothing, housing, and customs.

SEWING

I learned to sew when I was a child, first making doll clothes then eventually clothes for myself.  As time went on I sewed clothes for my children, shirts for my husband, and a multitude of sewing related crafts.  I found sewing quite enjoyable and immensely satisfying.

In 2003 I took a six week beginning quilting class.  I found I experienced the same sense of enjoyment and satisfaction that sewing clothes gave me, only now I could make quilts to give as gifts or to use in my home.

The first few years I made quilts using traditional patterns, but after awhile I started to explore art quilts, which were becoming popular.  This was what I was looking for - a way to express my creativity and turn my sketches based on travel photos into quilts that I could hang on the wall.

During the last six years I’ve been designing quilt patterns using Electric Quilt 8.  I feel that the patterns I design still have an art feel to them but are made in a more traditional way with quarter inch seams and blocks, rather than raw edge fusible appliqué which was how I created all my original art quilts that hang throughout my home.

NEW ADVENTURE

It’s been several years now that I’ve been designing quilt patterns on the computer and making many of these patterns into quilts.   During this time I’ve been buying different items from the Etsy website and in the back of my mind I thought about opening my own shop someday.  As the years have gone by the thought of having my own on-line shop has gotten stronger until I finally decided, I’m really going to do this!

I didn’t realize how much time and effort I was going to have to put into getting my on-line Etsy shop ready to open.  The patterns I had designed that I was going to start selling had to be in PDF format, plus all the information that was needed to fill out the Etsy form was a real challenge.  I’m not one to give up so I marched on each day working diligently on getting all my i’s dotted and t’s crossed.  

I finally finished setting up everything that was required and this week I opened my new shop:  quiltingtravelerdi.  If you’re interested in taking a look, the Etsy link is:  https://quiltingtravelerdi.etsy.com.     I’ll be adding more patterns as the weeks go on so please check back often, and I’d appreciate it if you would pass on my link to any quilters you know.

Thank you very much,

Diane 

ONE YEAR POST OP

NOVEMBER 2023 - MAY 2024

Houston International Quilt Show

As a long-time quilter I had always wanted to go to the the largest quilt show in the USA which is the Houston International Quilt Show.  In 2020 a group of my quilting friends and I made plans to attend the fall quilt show in Texas.  Of course we all know what happened in March 2020 and that was the end of our plans.  We decided to wait several years until the show was back up and running at full speed, which ended up being 2023.

A month before I had surgery I made reservations at the hotel in Houston, as well as booked my flight.  There were ten of us going to the quilt show and I was very excited as well as worried about how I would be feeling.  November would be just six months post op and I had no idea if I could even manage a trip like that.  I needed a goal post and the quilt show gave me just that.  All summer long I worked out daily to keep improving and getting stronger.

All my hard work was worth it too. The quilt show was absolutely amazing and enormous too!  Plus the amount of vendors was incredible as well.  Enormous doesn’t even begin to describe the size of the three level convention center.  I couldn’t have navigated how far I had to walk every day without the aid of my trusty cane, as well as being physically capable.

Every night I was so exhausted I was fast asleep by 9:00pm and each morning when I woke up I was so grateful for how good I felt.  I had reached the goal I had set for myself and even though I still had a long ways to go toward healing I knew I was on the way.

 

The quilt show, vendor stalls, classes, and lectures were beyond what I had expected and I loved every minute of it.  I’m already looking forward to when I can go there again.

I had seen my ortho PA right before my trip to Houston and he was quite pleased with my progress.  The latest X-rays showed that my spine was almost completely fused which was great to hear.  

Sometime in November I stopped using my cane.  By then I felt comfortable taking my daily walks without it.  I was super cautious about watching where I walked especially with uneven sidewalks and loose gravel or debris.

The months flew by and before I knew it my ten month appointment was just around the corner.  This appointment was going to be very meaningful to me since I was going to be seeing my surgeon, Dr. Allen.  The last time I saw him was the morning after my third surgery when he came to see me and he sat on the foot of my bed while we talked.  He was leaving on a planned vacation and his orthopedic Fellows would be looking in on me every day.  I got to know two of the Fellows well during my stay at the hospital.

The day of my appointment I felt very emotional.  This surgeon gave me my life back, the life I used to know before all the pain began.  I wanted to tell him that and more.  When my husband and I were in one of the rooms a young doctor came in to see me.  I recognized her immediately as one of the Fellows who took care of me.  We hugged and she said how pleased she was to see how far I had progressed.  After she left the room Dr. Allen came in.  I asked if I could hug him and he gave me a giant bear hug and he and I each got teary-eyed.  I thanked him for giving me my life back as well as other things I wanted to say to him.  He was extremely pleased for how well I was doing.  The X-rays that day showed my spine completely fused.  He said I no longer needed to use the bone growth stimulator machine.  

When my husband and I left the clinic I felt such a sense of peace and happiness inside.  I had come full circle from my first appointment in August 2022 to my ten month post op appointment in March 2024.

On May 4, 2024 my husband and I cheered my one year post-op date.  I’d come a long ways in that one year too.  

This is the end of THIS story, but not the end of MY story.  Hopefully my story will continue on for a long time to come.  Thank you for taking the time to read this.  Diane

HOME SWEET HOME

(PART TWO)

June 2023 - October 2023

THE FIRST SIX MONTHS

I really couldn’t believe I was finally going home after an entire month.  As my husband and I drove out of the parking lot of the skilled nursing facility he asked me what I’d like to have for lunch.  My answer surprised him as I said, “Rubio’s fish tacos.”   I hadn’t had any fish for a month and the thought of fish tacos made my mouth water.  What can I say, I’m a Southern California gal!

I had a big smile on my face as we drove along.  Everything outside looked beautiful to me.  For 30 days my only views of outdoors were through the window in the hospital and Skilled Nursing Facility.  When we pulled into the parking lot at Rubio’s I waited in the car while my husband went inside to order.  We decided to have a car picnic.  I wasn’t ready to go inside someplace to eat and the food would get cold if we took it home.  Those were the best-tasting fish tacos I’ve ever had!  

When we arrived home my husband got the walker for me and I made my way inside.  As soon as I got inside the house I started crying tears of joy.  I couldn’t believe I was finally home.  I was completely overwhelmed.  My husband had rented a hospital bed for me to sleep downstairs since all our bedrooms are upstairs.  He had it all made up with one of the quilts I had made on the top.  It looked so inviting.

The first few weeks home my husband slept on an airbed in the living room so he could be there to help me get my brace on and get the walker in front of me for my nighttime trips to the bathroom.

It wasn’t long before I got very used to putting on my brace by myself.  I could also grab my walker and get to the bathroom without help.  It was time for my husband to get a good night’s sleep by moving back upstairs to our bedroom.

During the first few weeks home I got exercise by using the walker just in our neighborhood, with my husband always by my side.  It felt good to be outdoors moving my body.  Indoors I started going upstairs doing it as I learned in the SNF where OT/PT had me practice on a small set of stairs in the gym.  I faced the railing and always had both feet on each step as I slowly made my way up the seven steps to the landing.  My husband had a chair waiting on the landing for me to sit down and rest.  I couldn’t believe how tired I was.  When I was ready I went up the last six steps from the landing to the upstairs rooms. After sitting down resting again I used my walker and I went from room to room.  When I got to my sewing room the tears flowed as I entered my happy place as I always called it.  It was absolutely great to be back home!

A short while after my husband started sleeping upstairs we had the hospital bed picked up by the rental company and I made the move upstairs too.  It meant so much for me to be able to sleep in a really comfortable bed next to my husband again.

Little-by-little life began to fall back into place.  The way we did things was altered somewhat due to my situation but we knew that would be the case.  Five days a week we drove to a nearby park so I could take my walks.  This park had a paved path all the way around it with an incline at the end.  With my husband by my side, my walker and I slowly made it around the park.  After one time around I was completely exhausted and needed to sit down to rest.  I had one walker to use in the house that was easy to maneuver through doorways and I had a larger walker with a seat and a brake for the four wheels to use outdoors.  It wasn’t long before my stamina improved enough so I could go around the park two times, resting after each full circuit.  Eventually I was able to go around the park twice without ever resting.  I was definitely improving!

I finally started venturing outdoors in my neighborhood with my trusty walker.  It was a big deal for my husband not to accompany me on these short walks outside.  I know he was worried about me but he also knew I wanted to be more independent.  I wasn’t used to having him do so many things for me.  I couldn’t even put on my socks and shoes myself.

After being home a few weeks we decided to go out to dinner at a restaurant.  It felt good to put on some nice clothes and makeup and go eat somewhere other than home.  On top of my clothes was my trusty brace that probably looked ominous to anyone who saw me.  Little did they know what I had been through or that I had three lovely scars on my body.  It was a most enjoyable return to real life again.

As July rolled around I still wasn’t driving anywhere.  My orthopedic PA hadn’t said anything about whether I could or couldn’t drive.  I just didn’t feel ready to do that yet.  

I had a big decision to make the beginning of July also.  I had already paid for the quilt retreat I always go to in July and March.  There’s 15 of us that always attend and the fun we have is something I really look forward to.  The July retreat was just two weeks away.  I just wasn’t sure whether I could manage it on my own.  My husband knew how much the retreat meant to me so we talked about what we could do to make it happen.  I reached out to my friends to ask for help for certain things and they immediately offered their help.  I was very excited knowing I was really going to the retreat!

My husband drove me, my trusty walker, my vintage 1950’s Singer Featherweight sewing machine, and all my other “stuff” out to the retreat in Temecula.  He carried everything inside and got it all set up then we said goodby until four days later when he would pick me up.  I’m quite sure he felt worried about me since it had only been two and a half months since my surgery.  My friends were so great about helping me.  I used my walker to navigate the path to and from the dining room three times a day.  Inside someone always carried my food tray to the table for me.  I wore only slip-on shoes so that was easy, and one of my friends put my compression socks on my feet and legs every morning.  Those four days with my quilting girlfriends was great medicine for me!

I began physical therapy in July and that was just what I needed.  My PT continued until the middle of November.  We worked on my mobility issues and strengthening my right leg, as well as the drop foot problem.

I finally began driving at the end of July also, which gave me more independence.  With each week that went by I could see improvement in every aspect of my recovery.  A big milestone happened when my husband and I went to my August appointment with the Ortho PA.  We were both shocked when he asked if I’d like to stop wearing my brace.  I couldn’t believe that after three months I could finally take it off for good.

As the summer rolled to an end I began using a cane to get around and eventually began walking in my neighborhood for exercise 4 or 5 days a week, plus doing my PT exercises at home as well as in-person with the therapist.

My husband and I hadn’t taken a vacation in a very long time so we decided to take a driving trip up to the central California coastal town of Cambria, one of our favorite get-aways.  It was now October and I was less than a month away from my six month post-op appointment.  We had a great time and I was even able to go hiking on some very steep trails at the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve.  I had a hiking pole in each hand and I prayed with every step not to stumble and fall.  It was totally exhilarating to be able to accomplish this!  I enjoyed it so much we went back there the next day too and tackled a different trail.  I was definitely getting stronger.

HOUSTON INTERNATIONAL QUILT SHOW AND THE REST OF THE STORY  

PART THREE coming soon