November 2019

Well, if you've been reading along the last few months, you won't be surprised to hear that I did some traveling for work in November. I was gone more of the month than I was home and my travels took me to two places I haven't been in a long time and one new place. 

The month started with a trip to Toronto - an easy and direct flight from home (hooray!) and a week there to work with the team. It was their second week in their new office, so we will all figuring things out together. On my two prior trips to the area, I went to the old office, which is about 45 minutes outside of the city, so it was fun to be in the heart of Toronto. 

Me with some yummy tiramisu on my anniversary in Toronto!

At the end of that week, I headed home for the weekend, changed out suitcases and clothing, and then left on Sunday morning for Puerto Rico! The last time I was in PR was for my honeymoon 19 years ago. It was great to return to the island and work with the team there. The best part is that we stayed right on the beach in Condado and each day either started or ended with a beach walk. On Friday, I met up with a friend who lives there and we did a great tour of Old San Juan. There's a lot of great history in that city and I enjoyed learning about it and seeing some of the architecture that made it possible to live in the heat before air conditioning. 

The morning beach view from Condado Beach

Fortaleza Street Umbrellas

Old San Juan Gate - left side is restored, right side original

In the pool overlooking the beach

The weekend brought another adventure, as we boarded a plane to head further south to Sao Paulo, Brazil! I was excited and a little nervous for my first trip to Brazil. It turned out to be a great trip, a great team, and wow, what a big city! 22 million people! We stayed mostly in our area, but got a little taste of the enormity of the city and the traffic on the way to the airport. We flew out on a Friday night and they told us to allow 3 hours for the drive! Good news is that we got there in just under 2 hours. 

City view - Sao Paulo (on a Sunday, so no traffic!)

Art by my hotel

Kit-kat cake! All the different colors are different flavors. 

Our crew for the trips at the churasceria on the last night in Sao Paulo

Caipirinha - the drink of Brazil

I took some stitching with me along the way and finished off one project. I found most nights were filled with catching up on the work computer, but a few nights I was able to find the time and energy to stitch. The project I finished is an embroidery kit I bought several years ago to make ornaments. I got them all stitched on the trip, then finished them into ornaments when I returned home - I think that's a record to finish up something! 

I also started on my November Lizzie Kate Flip-It while on my trip and made some good progress. I finished it up when I got home - only two more months to stitch and then I will start finishing these cute little pieces. 

When I returned home, I also fully finished on of my cross-stitch pieces in a frame I purchased over the summer. I still need some more practice, but glad to have this one done!
 

No quilting traveled with me, but I did finish up a Ditty Bag before the trips as a gift for one of the women who I worked with. When I got home, I spent some time almost every day in the sewing room or in the stitching spot, and it was nice to take advantage of a few days off to get some good sewing time in.  

I also finished up a UFO - my Mini Pumpkins, which I made at one of my Shipshewana retreats. I did some of the quilting in October and finished it up after I got home, then made and attached the binding, finishing it up on Thanksgiving, so hung it up for a few days before I switched out to the Christmas quilts. 

Overall, it was a great month and I am happy to be home now for the rest of the year! Next year will bring some more travel and I will be glad to do it when it comes, but for now, I am going to enjoy having some time at home. 

Here are the stats for those who want to follow along on that: 
Quilting Time - 6 hours in November
Days with 15 minutes of crafting - 17/30 - 57%

Stash Report: 
Fabric added this month: 0 yards
Fabric used this month: 1 1/4 yards
Fabric added year to date: 9 yards
Fabric used year to date: 44 1/2 yards
Net fabric used: 35 1/2 yards

Hope you all had a good November and a nice Thanksgiving. I am off to get ready for Christmas tree shopping today and hope to find some time in the sewing room this afternoon!