Using a GO! Cutter for Applique

Weekends don't count unless you spend them doing something completely pointless.
~Bill Watterson

What a great weekend we had.  Friday afternoon we headed south to my BIL and SIL's.  Four and a half hours later through LA traffic we finally arrived at their home.  Saturday was very relaxing as we visited and just enjoyed each other's company.  Sunday we ventured further south to a fantastic little Mexican restaurant for a delicious lunch.  After stuffing our faces, we headed even further south to San Diego's Balboa Park for a viewing of Tornado Alley.  I am so happy to have been able to see that movie in IMAX - what amazing cinematography.  Afterwards we headed back north to SIL's home where she prepared a scrumptious dover sole piccatta.  We are heading home today, possibly as you are reading this post.  I so enjoyed our visit and being able to where long pants and my zip sweatshirt for three days.  I hope you had a wonderful weekend too!

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PHOTO FACT OF THE DAY

Today, August 22, is National Tooth Fairy Day.  Hundreds of years ago in Europe, when a child lost a tooth, often they would bury it, a sort of symbolism that a new tooth would soon grow in its place. They also believed that if a witch or evil spirit were to acquire their lost tooth, then a curse could be placed on the child. That’s why they buried them underground; it seemed like the best way to avoid such a curse.

When Europeans began moving west to America, they brought their beliefs and traditions with them. However, since many of them lived in cities and towns where land was scarce, people started burying lost teeth in a household planter or flowerpot. Eventually the original meaning faded, leading them to placing the tooth under a pillow.

The tooth fairy as we now know her didn't make an appearance until the early 1900s, as a generalized "good fairy" with a professional specialization. The child loses a baby tooth, which is put under the pillow at night, and the tooth fairy exchanges it for a present, usually money but sometimes candy. She became widely popular from the 1950s onward, with a veritable eruption of children's books, cartoons, jokes, etc., including more focus on children's dental hygiene. Parents cheerfully bought into the idea and the tooth fairy became part of family life.

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APPLIQUE WITH A GO! BABY CUTTER

I have discovered one of the best uses for the GO! Baby Cutter by AccuQuilt.  Cutting applique pieces!!  Well, and as I have previously mentioned, hexagons.

I'm going to use the Critters die for this tutorial.  First I outlined the different shapes with a Sharpie as I had seen suggested by others.  This helps so you know exactly where to lay your fabric for cutting.

After cutting the appropriate size of fabric, I adhered the Pellon's Wonder-Under according to the manufacturer's instructions to the wrong side.  Of course, you can you use your favorite fusible web for this step.

I placed the both of the (2) prepared fabrics over the two critters that I want to cut out.  After placing the fabric on, I then topped it off with a cutting mat (I forgot to take a picture of that)

After easily rolling the die through the cutter this is what you get.  Two perfectly cut critters.  Well, actually their are four but you can't see the layers here. 

Peel off the backing and now you are ready to press it onto your quilt.

And here is the little bee all ready for stitching.  I used a satin stitch on this as I know it will be going through the washer many times.

And here are the 3 of the 4 little critters completed.  You can't get any easier than that.  No tracing of patterns on the fusible web, no cutting out of fabric into tiny little spaces.  Just run the fabric through with the fusible web already attached and your ready to GO!

PS.  Keep an eye out because I just may be having a GO! giveaway some time in the not too distant future.

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TODAY'S GOAL

Today I will be working on my September little quilt

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GIVEAWAYS

Sew 4 Home is having a giveaway.  You could win a Free Spirit Artist Trio: A generous selection of Loulouthi fabric in one-yard cuts , a copy of Seams To Me by Anna Maria Horner, and Anna Maria Needleworks new pearl cotton threads and 6-strand embroidery threads.  This giveaway ends September 16 at midnight PT.

Jackie's Art Quilts is having a giveaway.  You could win 6 FQ's from the new collection Taza by Dena Fishbein for Free Spirit from Intrepid Thread.  This giveaway ends Friday, August 26.

Lily Pad Quilting is having a giveaway.  You could win a Flurry charm pack, a roll of Heat Press Batting Together, and some Presencia threads or six fat eighths of Flurry, a roll of Heat Press, and yummy Presencia thread.  This giveaway ends Thursday, August 25.

Hanging On By A Thread is having a giveaway.  You could win a cute little pouch made by Patty.  This giveaway ends Thursday, September 1.

Quilting Ranny is having a giveaway.  You could win a beautifully created handmade blessing bracelet from It's A Blessing.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, August 30, at noon.

Woolie Mammoth is having a giveaway.  You could win one of four charm packs.  This giveaway will end Sunday, August 28.

Little Bits and Pieces along with Peas In a Pod are having a quilt along.  And to help spread the word they are also having a giveaway.  You could win 5 pretty fat quarters.  This giveaway ends Friday, August 26.

I'm Just A Guy Who Quilts is having a giveaway.  You could win some pieces of Strawberry Fields.  This giveaway ends Wednesday, August 24.

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FINAL THOUGHT

With all of the modern conveniences in the sewing room do you sometimes feel like we are cheating in our craft of quilting?  Do you feel it shouldn't be considered an art if it isn't hand cut, hand stitched and hand quilted?  I don't.  I love all of the shortcuts that are out there and available to us.  If it weren't for my ruler and rotary cutter, I probably wouldn't have a straight line in any of my quilts.  If it weren't for my CutRight Bind Up Tool I would still be fighting making that final bias joint in my bindings.  If it weren't for my sewing machine it would take me years to complete just one quilt.  Yes, I know that the sewing machine isn't really considered a modern convenience but to me it is.  If it weren't for the computer, I wouldn't be able to find all of the wonderful fabrics, patterns, and notions that are available to me today.  And, most importantly, we probably wouldn't be friends.  Now how sad would that be!?!  I say thank you for all of the modern conveniences!  How about you?

Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. 
~Theodore Roosevelt

Play Time

The shortest distance between two points is under construction.
~Noelie Altito


Saturday my DH and I were to attend a play down in Hollywood.  We had purchased the tickets months ago.  We debated whether to even go with all of the news about freeway back-ups because of a stretch of the 405 being closed.  There were reports that there could be 25 mile back-ups and that it would take lots of extra hours to reach your destination.  That morning we decided to go for it.  We left the house around 9:15 in hopes that would leave us plenty of time to reach the Pantages Theater and the opening of the play at 2:00.  We arrived in Hollywood at 10:35!!  Record time and very little traffic on the freeways!  Everybody in the L.A. area must have listened to the request to stay at home.  I actually enjoyed the travel down south this time.  With our early arrival we visited the famous Farmer's Market - did some browsing around and had lunch.  Then it was on to the Pantages Theater where we enjoyed the whimsical Shrek, The Musical.  Back onto the uncrowded freeways for another record travel time home.  Thank you, Los Angeles, for staying off the freeways on Saturday!!  I survived Carmegeddon!!

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PHOTO FACT OF THE DAY

Cow

Today is Cow Appreciation Day.  Don't you just love that face?  Here are a few cow facts:

* Pilgrims first brought cows to America.

* A cow can climb up the stairs, but cannot climb down. This is because her knees cannot bend properly.

* A cow stands up and sits down about 14 times a day

* Cows do not bite grass; rather they curl their tongue around it

* Cows can see color

* Cows have an acute sense of smell and can smell something up to 6 miles away.

* Dairy cows can produce up to 125 lbs of saliva a day.

* A cow produces around 200,000 glasses of milk in her lifetime.

* A cow usually spends 6-7 hours in day eating cud and around 8 hours on chewing it.

* Cows have almost total 360-degree panoramic vision.

* The oldest cow till date was Big Bertha, a Dremon, which died just 3 months shy of her 49th birthday.

* The highest milk yield for a single day is 241 lbs, by a cow named Urbe Blanca.

 

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MY NEW TOY

Friday I finally played with my newest toy, or if you prefer, my newest tool.

Way back in May, I won this GO! Baby Cutter from a giveaway at Leona's Quilting Adventure.   I was also the lucky winner of three dies of my choice.....

I selected the Birds, the 2 1/2" strip die, and the hexagon die. Because of delays from AccuQuilt, the cutter did not arrive until the middle of June.  Anyway, I tried some different things.....

First I put 6 layers of white cotton fabric onto the die covering the hexagon in the size I wanted.

When I pulled off the cutting mat, all of the pieces were stuck there but it was so easy to remove them.

And in no time at all I had 14 colored hexagons and 52 white hexagons cut.  I really love this cutter for the stepping stones (white hexies) and for non-fussy cut petals.  I will still be using a template for my fussy cuts.

I also cut out some 2 1/2" strips.  I was rather disappointed with this part of the cutter.  I could only cut 4 layers at a time.  I tried 6 but it pushed the fabric under the mat and I ended up with some wavy strips.  I really don't think the strip cutter saves you any time.  I still had to cut the fabric to fit the die and make sure it wasn't too long for the cutting area.  I honestly think it is quicker to just rotary cut 2 1/2" strips.

I didn't have time to try out the birds but I can see how the cutter would be a time saving device for applique and pieces that have to be cut with templates.

Thank you so very much, Leona, for having the giveaway.  I know I will find many uses for this little cutter for a long time to come :)

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FMQ - DAY 4

Friday I started the day with some free motion practice.

Leah calls this pattern Tree Roots.  I actually enjoyed working on this one.  Some of roots like the have leaves and I definitely need more practice on retracing my stitching but I do feel as though I relaxed through this one.  I thought half a block of this one was enough and I can use the other half on Monday.

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I SPY BLOCKS

Friday's mail contained I Spy Blocks from the swap I was involved in.

Here is just a sampling of the squares that I received.  Aren't they cute?  There are over 200 four inch squares here and I think I only saw two duplicates.  I'm thinking about separating them into girl and boy groupings and then using them to make some more Loving Hands quilts.  Wouldn't they look cute in the NICU?  So bright and happy in what can be a very stressful and sometimes depressing place.  Thank you, Mrs. Sassy Crafter, for hosting this fun swap!  She is thinking about having another I Spy block swap next month.  I'll let you know when I find out anything just in case you are interested.

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TODAY'S and TUESDAY'S GOAL

Today I plan on working on block #2 of the Designer Mystery BOM.  Tuesday I hope to start piecing together the backing for the Colors Thru The Window quilt.

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GIVEAWAYS

The Intrepid Thread is having a giveaway.  You could win a fat quarter pack of Farm Fresh in the green colorway.  This giveaway ends Friday, July 22, at midnight.

Happy Quilting is celebrating her one year blogiversary with a giveaway.  Melissa is giving away a Summer Breeze quilt kit.  This giveaway ends Thursday, July 21.

Want It, Need It, Quilt is having a giveaway.  You could win a GO! Baby Cutter and your choice of three dies.  This giveaway ends Tuesday, August 16.

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FINAL THOUGHT

I really debated about letting you all know the trouble I had with the GO! Baby Cutter - well, not the cutter but the strip die.  After all, the machine and its dies did not cost me a thing - I won them all.  I hated criticizing something that was free.  You know, 'don't bite the hand that feeds you'.  But I felt honesty was necessary.  I didn't want to sugar coat something that really didn't live up to expectations.  Personally, I would much rather read both positive and negative reviews before making a purchase for something that is not cheap.  I can spend hours looking through reviews before making a high dollar, and even a medium dollar, purchase.  I have abstained from purchasing something that has a lot of negative reviews.  And, on the other hand, I have also ignored negative reviews and still ended up purchasing an item only later wishing that I had followed the advice of others.  So, take my thoughts as you wish just know that they come to you with honesty.

If you tell the truth you don't have to remember anything.
 ~Mark Twain

Follow The Mystery

Success isn't a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.
 ~Arnold H. Glasow

I really felt like sewing yesterday!  What a nice change compared to last week.  I attacked my project with a purpose.  The rotary cutter sliced through the fabric.  The sewing machine hummed along.  And all with only one miscut and two seams that had to be ripped out.  I even accomplished more than the goal I set for myself.  I think I'm finally coming out of the January rut.  Took most of the month but I'm well on my way to seeing the sunshine - well, not literally as we were socked in with the old grey stuff today.  The weight is lifting and I feel productive once again!  Hooray!!!!

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PHOTO OF THE DAY

Hershey Kiss

In keeping with the question for my giveaway, I thought a little history on another candy was fitting.

Hershey's Kisses were introduced in 1907. While it's not known exactly how Kisses got their name, it is a popular theory that the candy was named for the sound or motion of the chocolate being deposited during the manufacturing process.  Hershey's Kisses were originally wrapped by hand. Automated wrapping began in 1921. The same automatic wrapping process allowed for the insertion of the distinctive paper "plume", also called a Niggly Wiggly, that the company used to guarantee that consumers were getting the genuine Hershey product, rather than an imitation.  Hershey's Kisses were originally wrapped in silver-colored foil, and were only available in this color for decades. 1962 marked the first year that Kisses were available in different colored foil wrappers: red, green, and silver-wrapped candies were manufactured to coincide with the Christmas season.  I allow myself two Special Dark Chocolate Kisses every afternoon.

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IT'S MYSTERY TIME

Yesterday I worked on the latest block from the Designer Mystery BOM from Fat Quarter Shop.  Won't you try to guess what it will be as I go along?

These were all of the cuts that needed to be made.  One block had to be re-cut as I made it too big the first time around.

Here are the first four blocks assembled.  I don't think you probably have a guess just yet.

Here are the next two blocks assembled.  Sort of looks like a skirt and legs, doesn't it.

Another block assembled.  No clue yet.

Now those last three blocks are made into one big block.  Looks sort of like a steamship on the ocean - but it isn't.......

Made these two with fussy cuts........

And one more set with a fussy cut.  Why is the bird standing on his nose?

Had to make two of these.......

Do you think you might know what it is now.  See, the bird is no longer on his nose but flying high above.....

I bet you had already figured it out.  This is block 8 in the series and is called "Welcome To Our House".  I had fun with all of the fussy cutting for the windows.  Did you notice that I even fussy cut the roof and have Santa with his reindeer front and center?

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ROAD TO CALIFORNIA PURCHASES

I just couldn't resist making a few purchases at the quilt show on Saturday.  I saw so many things that I would have loved to have.  A long arm machine......an Accuquilt GO! Cutter.....quilting kits.......thread kits......and so much more.  I ended up buying......

This little pattern called Garden Fancies by Nutmeg Hare.  It is a table runner to be made out of wool.  I ordered the wool yesterday and can't wait for it to get here.  For those of you who work with wool, where do you purchase your wool online?

I couldn't resist this darling little wool table runner pattern either.  This one is called An Autumn Mood - also my Nutmeg Hare.  I will order the wool for this project in a few months. 

And then I purchased this little fabric packet to make a miniature wall hanging.  They were out of the pattern but I have it on back order and should be receiving it in the next couple of weeks.  The packet comes complete with the buttons and fabric you need to complete the top as well as the backing & binding.  This fabric goes with........

Isn't it just too precious?  It works up to a 12" square.  I love this little block.  Oh, and I bought the metal stand too!  The kit and pattern come from The Wooden Bear Co.  I guess I'll be ready for Halloween when I get this and the table runner made.

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TODAY'S GOAL

Today I will be making the 2nd mug rug for my secret swap partner.  And, if I have time,  I will finish up my little February snowman stitchery (ran out of time yesterday).

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GIVEAWAYS

Not too many new giveaways.  If you have a giveaway you would like me to include on my blog, please contact me and I will put in on the next posting.

Housewife Eclectic is having a giveaway.  How would you like to win a $25 gift certificate to CSN stores?  If you would, you must enter by Sunday, January 30, at midnight.

The Quilty Home is giving away 2 charm packs!  And not just any charm packs but 2 charm pack of Hoopla by moda.  Jen will draw the winner on Monday, January 31st.

Blushing Rose is having a beautiful giveaway.  She is giving away a wonderful tea cup, a gorgeous insulated tea cozy, and a sachet of gold tea sugar.  To win this lovely set you must enter by Sunday, January 30th.

400+ FOLLOWERS THANK YOU GIVEAWAY is still happening!  You could win.....

6 1/2 yards of fabric.  Doesn't it look luscious?  Just click on the link above and follow the instructions to enter.

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FINAL THOUGHT

Do you ever feel like you need more hours in the day?  I've finally decided that there are just enough to keep me from getting into trouble.  I find that if I work too long then that is when I start making mistakes.  Too much pressure can cause those mistakes to happen too.  Well, so can lack of concentration - which is usually the case for me.  If we had more hours in the day then just think how long the work week would be.  Our weekends would be longer but do you really think you would be that much more productive?  Would you use those hours to sleep?  I will keep my 24 hours in the day and use what hours I can to create.

Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresea, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.

~Life's Little Instruction Book, compiled by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

Today is Tuesday - make it YOUR terrific day!!

Thankful It's Thursday

"The foliage has been losing its freshness through the month of August, and here and there a yellow leaf shows itself like the first gray hair amidst the locks of a beauty who has seen one season too many. "
                                                                ~Oliver Wendell Holmes


Thundering Thursday!  I can only wish we were having thunder.  That would probably mean rain!  Something we haven't seen here in over 3 months :(  Everything is looking dirty and tired as we are heading into fall, nothing a little rain couldn't help remedy.  I know it will come - think positive - I know it will come!!  I'm still looking for the first fall coloring in the leaves of the liquid ambers or in the mulberry trees.  I envy those who live back east with all of the fall color splendor.

Photo Of The Day:

Orange Trumpet Vine

The truth, as in many things, the Orange Trumpet Vine is somewhere between a plant thug and the garden answer for this millennium.  To begin with, the vine is aggressive and can reach thirty to forty feet, climbing and scrambling over any obstacle. It never met a trellis it didn’t like and it will cover a screen or trellis very quickly. When planting it, jump back quickly as it has been known to break gardener’s ankles ;) in its zeal to find growing space. It self sows and you’ll quickly have little trumpet vines (I wonder if the babies are called “coronet”  or "pocket trumpet" vines?) popping up.  You have to prune it heavily to keep it in bounds. And do not worry about whether you are pruning it properly or not. It grows back so quickly, you’ll have to wonder if you did it at all. Some people (never myself you understand) say that the proper way to prune this plant is with a chainsaw.  It is currently climbing a neighbors pine tree (that is mostly dead) adding odd orange blooms to an evergreen.  The hummingbirds really like to stick their beaks deep into these flowers, sometimes irritating a visiting bumblebee.
         
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Yesterday when I went out to collect the mail, there was a large envelope waiting with MY name on it!!  Last week I had won a giveaway from Char over at Cloth Stitched!  This was the first time I had won anything in blogland!!  I opened the envelope to find a nice note from Charmaine and pretty pink tissue paper sealed with a bright yellow happy face:

I almost forgot to take a picture before opening it :)

Inside I found the charm pack,  Park Avenue by 3 Sisters for Moda, I had won and a darling hand made scrap pincushion made by Char.

Here is a close up of the cute little Scrap Pincushion Char made.  I'm going to put it on my stitchery stand to hold all of the stray pins that seem to find their way there.

Thank you, Char, for having such a great giveaway and for the very special scrap pincushion!!

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Some of you may remember my posting about my friend, Leona, and her request for help in making her sister a comfort quilt.  Yesterday morning I spent some time making up two 9" blocks for the quilt.  She had requested either a nine patch or a 4 patch block in any type of fabric with white or off-white combinations in the block.  So I couldn't decide which to make to I made one of each (these are the first two blocks I have made without following a pattern):

Here's my four patch block

And here is my nine patch, sort of a nine patch inside of a nine patch

These will go out in today's mail to Leona.  I thought I would get them to her early so that maybe she can get a head start on piecing the blocks together.  If you are interested in helping Leona create a quilt for her sister, jump on over to Leona's Quilting Adventure for all of the information.

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Maybe some of you noticed a couple of new buttons on the right hand side.  Would you like to know what they are about?

Are you ready to Blog Hop.  Starting September 27th, Gudrun is hosting a Fall-O-Ween Quilt Designer Blog Hop.  Gudrun has 10 designers lined up and each day she will bring you a great project and 10 themed blog posts.  Sounds like loads of fun!  

The cute little scarecrow is announcing that Debi of Quilting With Debi is hosting Fall into Fall Quilters Giveaway beginning October 1.  She is hoping to get at least 200 quilters to participate in this blog giveaway.  What a great way to get your blog out there and noticed!  If you are interested in joining in the fun, just link over to Debi's site for all of the information.


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Today I received an email from AccuQuilt in response to my request to be considered to host a GO! Cutter giveaway.  They said I had to have 100 followers :(   Currently I have 82 followers, and a big thank you to all 82 of you!!!  Could you help me find 18 more followers?  Tell your friends, your fellow bloggers, your relatives, to come join my blog and then maybe, just maybe, I will be able to host a GO! giveaway!   Oh how I wish for a GO! Cutter to come into my life.

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Me dreaming of an AccuQuilt GO! Cutter

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Reminder - My 2nd giveaway is still happening. 

Enter today!  Just click HERE to enter - the winner will be announced Monday!
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Final Thoughts
We are almost to the end of the week and into the weekend - nope, shouldn't think that way.  Don't wish days away in anticipation of what may come in the future.  Enjoy today, enjoy tomorrow, enjoy every minute you have!  Thank goodness for Thursdays!

AND THE WINNER IS.................

"Quilters aren't greedy, they're just materialistic"

                                        ~author unknown

Before the big announcement, I thought I would share my picture of the day with you.

This hot pink gerbera is one of my absolute favorites.  I have split this plant many times so I have several of them throughout the yard.  It is a very hardy grower and adds so much color to the garden.

I suppose you all want to know who the winner is of my first giveaway.  But first I want to thank you all for participating!  Without all of you there would not have been any reason to have this giveaway.  I hope that you will spread the word and encourage more to follow because once I reach 50 followers (that's not that many more), I will have another giveaway.

Okay, no more delay.  The winner was selected using random.org.  And the winner is.................

Congratulations, jillquilt

I have sent jillquilt an email notifying her that she is the big winner and hope to hear from her soon so that I can send her all of the loot.

So, now everybody but one is let down and sad - sorry - but maybe next time.  What was your weekend like?  Mine was a big blur.  It was both fun and tiring.

Friday I managed to complete another row of my blue and brown quilt.  Five more blocks, one more row and I will have completed the top.  That is my goal for this week.  Do you have a quilting goal for this week?

                                      

                                        One more completed row!

Saturday morning started out with a cup of coffee on the patio while we read the morning paper.  The weather decided to take a cool down and we relished the cooler morning temp.  Then it was on to the local farmer's market.  I definitely needed to go as all that was left in my vegetable drawers was a few new potatoes and half of a red onion.  I needed absolutely everything else.  We picked up romaine lettuce, carrots, potatoes, purple potatoes, strawberries, yellow onion, red onion, broccoli, white corn, and summer squash.

We did our normal out to lunch at The Village Grill.  Luckily, we were able to get a table on the patio because the weather was absolutely gorgeous!  And, of course, the food was great.  Our next stop was Trader Joes to pick up a few things - brown rice, frozen fish, and 2 buck chuck.  After taking the fish home, we headed for Kohls where we made some really good deals.  We headed in with our $10 of coupon to look for a pair of sandals which I found on clearance. They were regularly $40 marked down to $7.99!  I decided I couldn't beat that deal.  Heck, I could wear them twice and throw them out and still felt like I was ahead.  Picked up a couple more things and went to pay.  We spent about $32 after saving $73!!!  We were quite pleased with ourselves.  When I got home and looked at the receipt I noticed that besides the $10 coupon savings, we also received an additional 15% off!  Sometimes you just gotta love Kohls and their deals.

Sunday we headed down to Simi Valley (southern California) for a 40th wedding anniversary celebration.  What was supposed to be an hour and a half drive turned into a 3 hour drive.  Half way there we were completely stopped on the interstate for over an hour.  When the big rigs turn off their engines, you know you are in trouble.  There were people walking up the hill to see if they could see what was happening, someone was blowing bubbles, and we could even see one person flying a kite.  Apparently a semi truck had gone over the side (this happened in the mountains between the central valley and the Los Angeles basin) during the early morning hours and they were attempting to pull it back up to the road.  As a result, we missed the church service.  But we did make it to the restaurant for a great celebration and some wonderful food.  Unfortunately, had to get back on the freeway and head home along with every other nutty southern California driver heading home on a Sunday evening after a busy weekend.  It was a very long day!

If you still haven't won a new AccuQuilt Go! (and I'm still trying!) check out A Quilting Life - they are running a giveaway until Sept 3.

If any of you know of any giveaways you would like me to post, just drop me a line and I would be happy to do so. 

Final Thoughts:
For the rest of the week I hope to share a couple more recipes with you, share my first hand sewn hexagon flower, and talk a little about living with ALS.  I hope you all have a great week planned!