Buh Bye October

SterlingFest was on October 8. It was a cold and rainy day. Resulting in a disappointing turnout and very few sales but I did get something.

A cold.

A Soggy Affair at SterlingFest

Since Paul is the susceptible one, I told him to stay away from me.  Fast forward a week - I am half recovered, but Paul is sick.

Me: I told you not to kiss me
Paul: But you are so hot
Me: You can kiss my toes. Why did you have to kiss my mouth?
Paul: Because I like how my mustache tickles your mustache

Rangoli

He makes me laugh even when he is sick.  Love him so much.

Master at Work

Today is Diwali - the festival of lights.  Last night, we (Paul was in-charge) made the rangoli, to welcome the Goddess Lakshmi.

Completed Rangoli with tealights

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Being sick really does a number on your mojo.  Things moved rather slowly.  However, I am relieved that I managed to complete my October goal in October itself.

The first blocks - 10" finished square

Blogging had to take a back seat. I am deeply touched by the emails (from a few friends) and a phone call, asking me if I was well. They had noticed my blogging absence. Aw... you are so sweet.

Finished Flimsy

Well, I am back and I do have something to show for my rather long silence.

Aqua, Blue, Teal and Turquoise

This quilt is for Erica. Erica is my sister's sister-in-law.  My sister is married to Erica's brother. For the sake of this blogpost, we shall call her Erica, but that is not her real name.

Baste? Shall we?

Backing Fabric from Connecting Threads

Erica was in New Delhi when mom was "visiting" the hospital back in April of 2016.  When mom was told that the surgery was required "right now", mom panicked.  It was Erica who made all the arrangements and talked to the doctors before calling my sister.

Quilting the Beast

Erica is a doctor too and she understood all the medical jargon and eased mom's fears.

Mom's follow-up surgery was scheduled for June and we (my sister and I) flew to India to be there for her.

Binding in Process

When we reached New Delhi airport, I was very surprised that Erica had come to the airport to receive us.  It was a very hot, sultry night. By the time, we cleared customs and immigration it was past 11:00PM. As we loaded our luggage into the car, I noticed she had brought cold water for us.  So thoughtful!!!

In the morning

She had also brought my sister's favorite sweets :-) to snack on in the car!!!
Although it would have been perfectly acceptable to wait till we got home to offer tea and snacks, I was completely floored by her attention to our comfort and joy.

A queen size beauty!!!

Erica escorted us to the Metro station next morning and ensured that we were always at ease. Further, she does this with such laid back attitude that I never felt like a guest. Her home felt like our home.

Oh, how those blues sing together

Erica also took us to the indoor mall where we ate street food.  That is such a treat.  Much as we crave street food, we absolutely cannot eat it anymore from the street vendors in India.  Our systems, have been too insulated from Indian germs now and any exposure to unclean food/water will send us to the hospital.  No, I am not exaggerating.  It happened to my sister once and to me in 2012 before we learned our lesson.

I finally learned to make neat bindings :-)

Pictured in soft morning light

As we were finally packing our bags, Erica provided more snacks (sweet and savory) not just for the flight but also to take back with us.

All rolled up

I said to my sister - I need to pay her for the snacks.
Sister: Nah, she is family.
She is your family.  I am a step removed, remember?

When I asked Erica about the costs, she said pish-posh (or the Indian version of it).

A glimpse of me

I asked her - what is your favorite color?
Oh, I like all colors, she said.

This was not going to be easy.  In any case, it had to be done. I will be delivering this quilt to my sister this weekend and her husband (Erica's brother) will deliver it to Erica when he visits her in December.  Hope she likes it.

For Erica

Linking with Red Letter Quilts for the October Finish, and all other favorite linky parties.

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Being sick may limit the sewing, but stash acquisition continued.  I won a giveaway at Scraptastic Tuesday and got this bundle of nine fat quarters from Mad about Patchwork.

Not sure what I will do with them.

However these 6" strips from Tonga Treats are already spoken for  - a queen rise quilt sometime soon.  Will keep you posted.

Please stay well, get your flu shot and vote (if you are a citizen). How did October treat YOU? I'd love to hear from you.