Travel Day

I'm HOME!!!  Murphy was quite happy to see me when I arrived home. Lexi was outside and came out from her outdoor home under the shed to say hello and then stayed out. I'm NOT that exciting in her world. She's like me - very independent and likes to be alone!

Holy - it's the Friday of the long weekend! How the times flies when you're having fun. It was a bit tough to get up this morning, but now that I'm up - it's time to get rolling. I've got Sit n Sew today and I haven't even checked the status of the studio. I know machines are sitting on the tables that need to be moved, but I think that's all.

And I'm having oatmeal for breakfast! Yeah! I didn't step on the scale - that's a job for tomorrow. I don't think I put on any weight with all the walking. It's more what I ate than how much I ate. A wee bit too much sugar but that can be fixed. I noticed that the meals were very heavy on the meat where we were. I'll suggest that we have less meat and more veggie options for next time.

Since we had to move to the casino hotel, it's been great to have the coach buses to transport us, however on the last morning, we had to use the hotel shuttle. Hey - no problems. One must be very flexible about travel. Things happen. It just happened that a lot of people were transporting their luggage as well. BIG suitcases. MULTIPLE BIG suitcases. It became a game of how many people and their luggage they could get on the shuttle.

This is where strategy comes into play. If you get on the shuttle to help load luggage, then you're guaranteed a seat because you can't get off! My large suitcase was back at the other hotel, so I had nothing with me as we were coming back later to the casino hotel to check out. Phew!!!

On the hotel shuttle

It was a small group at breakfast. The dealers were on their own. It was a wrap-up breakfast and then we were basically dismissed from duties. Well, the freelance educators were. Our flight wasn't until much later in the day so I pitched in to help. I mean, what else was I going to do?

It was about 10:30 when the Canadian crew was able to leave. Back to the casino hotel to kill a couple of hours. I took care of the luggage for our team as they continued on the shuttle to the Outlet Mall. I got the last of my luggage packed, ordered our transport to the airport and then I had time to kill.

I decided to walk to the Outlet Mall. I mean - it wasn't far. I wandered through the casino and popped out the door closest to the mall.  A short walk - I mean 10 minutes and I was at the mall. Matter of fact, there's a nice pedestrian pathway to the mall. TEN minutes. I was looking for something to eat. I wanted something healthy so I found a nice salad and a protein shake. I was in my glory!

Inside the casino

The day was gorgeous. I walked back to the casino hotel and found one of my travel mates in the lobby. It was getting close to pick up time so I got my bags from the room and all the luggage that I had temporarily checked. Pam and I sat and chatted and one by one, the rest of the team showed up. Our Super Shuttle showed up. Oh boy - that's a LOT of luggage for 6 people. I did mention on the reservation that we had TWELVE suitcases (might have been a wee bit more) and I think the driver was going to faint. But it all fit in the back of the van and we were off. It doesn't look like a lot here, but there were at least TWELVE large suitcases.

Our luggage

Having a NEXUS card means I'm always in the TSA pre-check which is most helpful when getting through security. I was through in no time, but we had to wait for some of the others. We didn't even have to remove our electronic devices which is nice. 

We met up with a dealer and proceeded to our gate. Along the way, the others stopped for lunch while I continued to the gate. I had been worried that my luggage would be over the 50-pound limit. One of my colleagues graciously offered to check it for me (she was allowed THREE bags because of her status). My suitcase only weighed 40 pounds. The lightest of her three bags!

Thanks to whoever enlightened me about the entertainment on Air Canada Rouge. I figured out how to connect to their WiFi and watched movies all the way home. I watched Toy Story 3 - OH - I loved the movie, but it's quite sad in some places, but it all worked out.

Our plane landed a wee bit earlier than anticipated even though we left 20 minutes late. We must have had a massive tailwind!

This is another spot where that NEXUS card shines. I was through the security line and waiting for my luggage within mere minutes. I was very lucky as both of my bags came through fairly quickly and I was out of the arrival lounge before the others even showed up. Hey - I wasn't waiting to say good-bye - that's what texting is for. DH was waiting and I was gone!

Of course, it took a wee bit to fall asleep with the time difference, but then I was out like a light!

So the convention was fun. Lots of hard work in case you think we sat by the pool all day, but so worth it. Let's just say that I was extremely happy, learned lots, networked lots - at least with the other educators, but there's no place like home - right Dorothy???

Other than a couple of days of local travel, I think I'm done with road trips and travel for this year. Oh NO - I'm going to miss that!! Well, perhaps I'll have to chat with my travel cohorts and see what can be done about that. But I'd be perfectly happy (I think) to stay home and sew some of the inspiring things that are percolating in my brain. By the way, if you have a neat idea for something you'd like to embroider, e-mail me. I want to try everything and anything!

On that note, I'm out of here to see what needs to be done downstairs before the ladies start arriving at 8:30. I have to unpack my challenge as well as I don't want it squished in my suitcase.

Have a super day!!!!!

Ciao!!!

Last day of convention

Phew - the convention is technically over. I feel like I've been away from home forever! Today I'll be heading home but much later in the afternoon meaning I'll be getting home close to midnight. Yeah!! And I have a Sit n Sew tomorrow. Let's hope the plane isn't late or those ladies will be sewing without me. There's so much cool stuff to play with at my studio, they might actually like that!

So I was the helper on the last day of class which suited me fine. Now, you might think that being the helper would be easy. NOT!!!!  Marsha had a cute cushion cover that was loaded with techniques. We used seven different feet in the class and therefore seven different techniques. That kept the students busy and it kept me busy as I hopped from person to person. I was handing out feet for those that forgot their feet at home or for one reason or another were not able to get them in time.

Then it was trying to remember who had used the feet and get them back. There were loads of pieces in the project so that required assistance as well as we wanted people to use the correct pieces. And let's face it, some of the attendees weren't familiar with the Husqvarna Viking EPIC 980Q which is the sewing machine that I used the previous day and Marsha used this day. If you're into a quilting/sewing only machine (no embroidery), this is a beautiful machine and has loads of space for quilting.

A good majority of the participants went home with the pillow top together which was a HUGE accomplishment.

I did get to chat a wee bit with some of the vendors, but mere minutes. It was crazy as we were either in the classroom, grabbing a quick bite or having a quick pee break. There wasn't a whole lot of time to do much else and once the classes were over you had to prep the room for the next class/day.

I can't complain. This is my first "working" convention and I LOVED every minute of it. I realized that I never got a chance to get out and get my picture taken with Sue Hausmann. I totally forgot about it until I saw someone else's photo with her. Oh well.

So when the final students left the classroom, it was all hands on deck as we started to pack up the sewing machines. Now it's one thing to pack up one sewing machine, it's another to have 24 of them to pack. Some of us got the accessories ready to put away. Then the power cords, remove all the thread and bobbins, and finally, it goes back in the box. Those machines are a tad heavy but with two people doing the lifting, it was very quick and easy work. We managed to get those 24 machines boxed up very quickly.

As we were doing that, the hotel staff were removing the walls that separated the three classrooms in our area. Then we moved to the next room and helped them put their machines away. A good team effort!!

I should mention that we had a team meeting at breakfast every morning. The winners of the challenge were announced yesterday morning at our breakfast meeting. By the way, I took closeup pictures of all the pieces so you could see them better. I'll post some of them when I get home. The first place was extremely innovative and out of the box, the second and third place winners were jackets. One that I would LOVE to own and the darn jacket fit me! Emily (my Canadian colleague) and I both won honorable mentions!!!!  To say that I was thrilled would be an understatement.

It's not that my piece was the most beautiful, the idea was to use the embroidery stitches creatively. The dealers (and I suppose anyone who wanted to) did the voting. Here's my project.

Side One - the beginning

Side two - growth

Side three - the flowers are coming

Side four - the final

 So what is it????  Read the label. Sorry, it's sideways.

The label

It's a grow bag made from landscape fabric. I was first introduced to grow bags when I visited Katheleen earlier this summer. I never thought anything further about them.

Then when this challenge came out, I thought a grow bag would be an innovative idea. The theme was organic and you can't get much more organic than a grow bag.

I have to laugh though about finding the appropriate fabric. I watched a couple of videos on how to make the bags to see what type of material they were using. OK - a heavier landscape fabric. When we were on our road trip to North Carolina last month, we searched high and low at Home Depot, Lowes, and Wal-Mart for the right stuff. Nothing. Oh darn - how am I going to make this work because I seriously thought I would have a much better shot at finding the right stuff in the US than I would in Canada.

I came home empty-handed, but not defeated. I went to my local Rona store and VOILA - they had exactly what I needed. I'm now the owner of 50 feet (less what I used) of heavy landscape fabric!

Now I most likely wouldn't use this grow bag outside, but I could. And I might except that it makes a great sample. I might make another one and this time, make it a wee bit smaller. This one is quite large as I used the designs at full size. All those designs are new builtin designs to the Husqvarna Viking Designer EPIC 2. NO - I do not have a Designer EPIC 2  - we were provided with the embroidery files.

I love challenges and I'm up for a challenge again!  Let me know if anyone wants to also do a challenge - this is how we learn and how we grow and how we keep our minds active. Let's just say that there was a LOT of stitching to get my bag completed. I didn't do the exact count, but well over 200,000 stitches. But it was fast. Oh and I should say that I used my SewMonitor app to babysit the embroidery one night when DH and I were watching a movie. This app is the BEST.

For dinner last night, we had a food truck event in the parking lot of the hotel. It was great fun. We got to meet Corona (the donkey who carried two cases of cold beer around). So sweet although I don't think she was very impressed with everything that was going on. To be honest, I wasn't very hungry, but I found something to eat. I really want to have something light and raw when I get home - like a salad! Not that we haven't had salads here, but I just want a LIGHT lunch. I'm not sure if I'm going to stand on the scale when I get home. But yesterday was another 15,000 + day of steps and there was no walk in my day.

We're back to the convention center this morning as there will still be stuff that needs to be packed up. Then we'll be free to go!  We need to hit the airport around 2 PM so there might even be some time to head back to the Outlet Mall as I know a couple of my colleagues would like to go there. I might just even sit down for a change! I don't know how that will ever work!

I was thinking that I should download the Air Canada app on my iPad so if I choose to watch something, I can watch on a large screen, not my piddly phone screen.

Got to meet some new Canadian dealers, revisited with some I've met before and all in all it was a super time. I know my calendar for next year is getting full and I'm excited about that as we have new projects to teach next year.

I'm so excited to get home and fire up the embroidery/sewing machines and sergers and dream up new samples. It's going to be insane. Now all I need is to focus and have a wee bit of time!

On that note, I see it's getting close to time to head downstairs and get on the bus that will take us back to the other hotel. Then I'll collect my sample suitcase before heading back here to get the rest of my luggage and then head to the airport. So much fun with all that luggage, but I'm pretty much packed and ready to go once we get the go-ahead.

Have a super day!!!!!

Ciao!!!!

Teaching Ruler Work

At the last minute (I knew late in the afternoon on the day before we left), one of the instructors wasn't able to attend the convention. My classes had low attendance so I was asked to step in. I was asked first if I was comfortable teaching the class which I was. So my class got canceled and I stepped in for the full class.

I didn't have any samples of the ruler work but I had my own quilting samples (and embroidery) packed. That's what got hung up in the room.

The two classes were full! It was a wee bit unnerving as you're not sure of the timing - how long will each step take, etc. I had a helper who was awesome. Thanks, Marsha.

The classroom was completely set up when the students arrived. It's always a mental challenge when there are dealers in the room that you know and will be teaching/lecturing at their stores. But then one must always be a professional in this business because you never know who you will meet along the way.

After running a wee bit short on time in the first class, we sped through the piecing in the second class so we could get right to work on the rulers.

I have to say for the FIRST time ever teaching rulers that the class was pretty successful and people thanked me for the knowledge and the class. I'm sure there will be a few comments about that first session especially since we ran out of time. But that's life and what can we do about it? Move on - that's all.

One lady (who was happy with the class) asked me how long I've been teaching the ruler class. I wonder why she asked that. I didn't confess that it was my first class (well, technically it was my second). But it's also hard when you're teaching a class that someone else prepped and the only fabric and thread you have are what's in the kit. Let's just say that we made do with what we had.

Each day has been totally hectic from the moment we arrive at the convention center until we leave at the end of the day. I haven't had a chance to visit with a couple of the vendors and certainly no time to see the other products that we have on display - the irons and ironing boards for example. Do I need a steamer???

Today, I'm a helper in the class. Now that doesn't mean I can skip out because Marsha was there for me. But it does me that it's going to be a much more relaxed day. Yeah!!!!!

I hope to pop out at lunch and chat with a couple of people. I've got to know my fellow educators a whole lot more during this convention and that's been a very good thing. They are my support peeps and my inspiration. Some of them have been in the business for many, many years. Their knowledge is incredible and just shows me how much I don't know. There are so many samples that I want to make and well - I could be making samples forever. I need to create some that will do double duty!

But that's for when I get home.

Back to the hotel and it's still somewhat light out and somewhat early. It was now 6:20 PM. I hopped on the shuttle bus that would take me to the Premier Outlet Mall. I was told I needed to take a cab (or shuttle) as there was the main highway between. Well, there wasn't but the shuttle driver told me I shouldn't walk through the huge parking lot loaded with huge semi-trucks by myself. So I took the shuttle there and back.

 Now who in their right mind goes to the outlet mall and walks right through the entire length of the mall without stopping to look. Not even window shopping. I thought about it but what do I need? Nothing.

Hanging out at the Phoenix Premium Outlet Mall

I was on the hunt for my geocache so I could claim a find in Arizona. Not that I'm competitive or anything. The cache was slightly beyond the parking lot. There's no grass here and the cache was located in some short scrubby trees. Good god - while it's not pitch black, it's dark. I did think about the night creatures who live in Arizona, but only for a moment. And oh - there's a walking track just beyond the trees. I had no choice but to use the flashlight on my phone. Although as I walked into the trees, I noticed some rocks that didn't look naturally positioned, I still walked around a wee bit.

The cache is hidden in the rocks

After nearly having a heart attack as two jackrabbits hopped out of the bush, I moved the rocks to find the cache. Yeah!!!!!  I logged the cache, got the Arizona claim and I was walking back to the pickup point for the shuttle.

I made it to the cache and back (it was over .5 KM to walk from the shuttle drop off to the cache and then another .5 back), I made it onto the next shuttle back to the hotel.

The cache was hidden in these trees

Now here's the funny part - as I was leaving the hotel, I ran into a couple of educators who had just arrived. They were having dinner in the restaurant and I could join them if I wanted. I didn't think I would make it to the mall and back and still meet up with them. By the time I made it back to the hotel and into the restaurant, they hadn't even ordered their drinks yet. I walk fast, but holy!!!!







So today really will be a totally relaxed day. It's all about networking and now that the class is over and well - it's the last day. What doesn't get done today won't get done until the next convention.

I'm having a total blast although it's a long time to be away from home. Not that I'm homesick, but I do miss the girls and I miss not being able to sew or do my own thing and I miss eating my own food!

We have the tear down to do tonight and tomorrow before we leave and that's always a fun job! NOT!!! Imagine putting all those sewing machines back into their boxes to make them look like brand new! Oh yes - it's a fun task. Thankfully there are many hands. Like last night. Once my class was over, a group of educators popped out of nowhere and helped pack up all the stuff we used in the ruler class. Our fearless leader really is on the ball and things are VERY WELL organized - at least from my perspective.

On that note, I've got to get ready for today!

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!

An EPIC experience

One good thing about the convention is that the three days of classes start with the most intense day and it slows down each successive day. Thank god - I'm not sure how long I can keep the pace up!

The day started when we took the shuttle to the convention hotel which is an easy process of hopping on a big bus and letting the bus driver do all the hard work. After breakfast and a quick meeting, we zipped off to our respective rooms where we were assigned for the day.

I was in the Husqvarna Viking DESIGNER EPIC 2 room. No, let me rephrase that - I was in one of THREE rooms filled with DESIGNER EPIC 2 sewing and embroidery machines. Wow-what a spectacular sight when you walked into the room. I hope the dealers recognized all our hard work in prepping those rooms.

Forty DESIGNER EPIC 2 sewing and embroidery machines

The first day of classes was called CORE where the attendees were split into groups and traveled to each of the four core classes. This ensured that they would all see and hear the same things. I thought it was well done. While some of the classes were lecture style and so for the helpers in those rooms, there really wasn't anything to do. There may not have been helpers but in the DESIGNER EPIC 2 room and the AMBER Air S/400 serger room, there were helpers.

Matter of fact, there were four helpers although one of our helpers wasn't as mobile as she would have liked so she helped at the back of the room. We were working on TWO of the exciting new features on the DESIGNER EPIC 2. One of them was the laser pictogram stitches. You HAVE to see these in person to appreciate what they do. Loads of dealers were taking videos - but we didn't have time for that. The second thing we helped with was the NEW TECHNOLOGY which allows ribbon embroidery. It's stunning and again - you have to experience it in person to appreciate it. One of the cool things about being here? We get to chat with the people who came up with these products!!!!

There was ZERO time for us to be videotaping anything. We were hopping amongst the 40 attendees and answering questions. I did almost 13,000 steps yesterday and there was NO walk in my day!!! Speaking of walking, when I was walking to the bus stop to catch the shuttle on the way home, the bus driver commented that I was a fast walker! You bet - no time for dilly-dallying!!!

After the first class left, we had 30 minutes to get the sewing machines back in order before the next group arrived. We're talking FORTY machines. And the fabric that needed to be hooped. Let's say that we were fast. The process also got better as the day went on so that was a good thing.

It was a super day and we had a load of fun - well I did at least. Let's just say that if I stumble when showcasing the new Ribbon Embroidery Attachment at the upcoming CreativFestival - well, I know I won't because I did it many, many times yesterday or assisted many times.

So guess who was in our class yesterday???  A well-known TV personality from years gone by. The class had already started and someone was struggling with the door so I opened and there was Sue Hausmann!!!  I got her settled at a machine. A very nice lady! But no time for photos!

Here's something else that's super fun here. If you have a problem with a machine, guess what? The techies from Sweden are here to help. It doesn't get any better than that. We had someone jam a machine and help was quickly on its way.

It's also a bit shocking, but then I shouldn't be. The knowledge (or lack thereof) of some of the people attending the classes. Some of them have no idea how to operate the sewing machine. One guy was a service guy attending with his wife and he never sews, but he did pretty well. And you have to be VERY clear on what you say and how you say it. We learned that as the day went on.

All in all, it was an exhausting, but fun day. I learned a ton, got to chat with some of the Canadian dealers, my fellow educators and it was a super day! Needless to say, we were all pretty wiped when the day was over.

But it wasn't over yet! Oh no - I had to go to my own classroom where I'll be teaching today and get that room prepped. I'm stepping in for an educator who was ill and teaching her ruler class. I've got 24 people in each of the two classes. Each class is 3 1/2 hours long. Yikes! All the supplies had to be distributed to the machines and I had to finish quilting my sample according to the instructor notes. It's one thing to teach a class but quite another to teach from someone else's notes.  My sample is far from perfect, but it's a super teaching opportunity.

I still have to change needles in all the machines - I sure hope my helper shows up today because I don't know where she was assigned yesterday. No worries. This is life. And a couple of the other educators came in last night as I was setting up to help. Bless you, Gina and Gail.

After a quick shuttle ride back to the hotel, we went to one of the restaurants in the casino and had Chinese food. I think at that point, we didn't really care what we ate - as long as we ate something.

Once I was back in the hotel room, I decided that I NEEDED to repack and organize myself. My suitcase which is normally very tidy when I travel was a disaster. I NEVER unpack all my stuff. Now the stuff that I'm finished with is all packed. My outfits for the remaining three days are spread out on the desk. Garbage is in the garbage and I'm good to go! I feel much better for getting that all organized.

I'll be happier when today is over and all that will remain for me is to be the helper in someone's class tomorrow. But I know how to quilt and I know how to quilt with rulers. So it really shouldn't be too difficult to get through these two classes today. And since I don't have to do any set up for tomorrow, I'll be able to chat with a couple of the vendors here (Kimberbell and Lunch Box) and hopefully, get back to the hotel in time to walk to that darn geocache. Now that we started that up again, I'd be truly disappointed if I couldn't get my Arizona cache before leaving here.

On that note, I'm out of here. I hope to catch an early bus to the other hotel so I can get those needles changed before breakfast. Oh - and in case you think - that I have a cool job and how much fun it is. It is a cool job and it is a lot of fun. But seriously - you have to work at it to make it fun. Since I'm still a big kid at heart, that's easy. But I see people much younger than I am who are totally wiped at the end of the day. It's all about taking care of your body!!!!!  I don't need a soak in the tub at night. But it's hard work. It's hard to be "UP" for an entire day and teaching when you never know what's going to happen. I love it and wouldn't change it for the world.

One other thing I forgot to mention - as educators, we were issued a challenge to use the new embroidery designs for the DESIGNER EPIC 2 and make something. The finished items are super impressive. I'll try to get some closeup shots another day, but here's the entire grouping of items. Can you tell which one is mine???

Challenge pieces made by the educators

Have a super day!!!!


Ciao!!!!

Let the convention begin

My last walk in the desert - at least for this trip. I'm going to miss that the next couple of days, but then there isn't going to be as much time either as the classes are starting today and we need to have breakfast, get to our classrooms and get organized before the dealers arrive.

The days are going so fast, that I can barely remember what we did yesterday. We did spend the morning during some rehearsals. I'll tell you why in a minute. After lunch, we had some "free" time whereupon I was in my classroom so I could get my class sample finished. Actually, I decorated the room before so that would be done. By decorating, I mean hang up my samples of projects I've completed.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it, but one of the educators was unable to make the convention, so I'm taking over her class on ruler work. Both classes are FULL - 24 students each. That's going to be a hopping class. The class I was originally supposed to teach had fewer people in it, so it got nixed. I'm OK with that. That's just life and one must be flexible.

I had managed to get the sample for the new class partially completed before I left so I was attempting to finish it off yesterday. So that was a fun couple of hours working on the sample. I'm not quite finished so I need to eke out an hour or so later today so I can get it done in time for tomorrow.

Today, I'm a helper in the classroom. There are 40 in the classrooms today for the NEW Husqvarna Viking DESIGNER EPIC 2. Matter of fact, there are three helpers so that should help to keep everyone happy.

Last night was the opening ceremony. We listened to some very exciting and very upbeat speeches by the top - and I mean the very top of the company. It's refreshing to hear their plans and goals and they are NOT just for the upcoming year. Set the goals high - have a bar to aim for and go for it. I love it and can't wait to see what's coming down the pipeline in the future.

With Husqvarna Viking, it's not all about the sewing machine, although that's a very important part of the business. But it's also about the technology and marrying the sewing machine to the technology which is something that we're seeing with mySewnet which is something that I'm very excited about.  There's a new tab on the mySewnet link called Library. EXCITING!!!!!  You can click on mySewnet link and get the pulldown menu.   Click on the library button to get all the details of what's new.

If you don't have a mySewnet account, you should go and have a peek.

So why did we do some rehearsing? Because the educators did some skits to "introduce" the new products. We had been split into groups and I was in the DESIGNER EPIC 2 group. How exciting is that???  Thankfully, the skits were to be funny so we could have a bit of fun with it and not be so caught up in the logistics. We're not professional actors folks! But we all had fun and I think the audience was entertained and that's all that counts.

Two local Native dancers then took the stage. They did a hoop dance. One did the dance while his brother played the drum. Unfortunately, when we left the stage, I exited right and my phone was on the other side of the room so I wasn't able to get pictures. I know!!! It's tough to sit there and NO PHONE!!!!!  I'm sure others got some pictures so I'll try to find some from someone else. It was very entertaining and very colorful!

This is when the two brothers unveiled the FOUR colors of the Husqvarna Viking DESIGNER EPIC 2. The standard and ongoing color is burgundy blush. Three special colors were also introduced for a limited time. You can't buy one of these colors any longer. There is a blue one (I've forgotten the official name, but it had Indigo in it), there's a mint green one and there's the Vivid Sunset (bright orange and pink). I had to get my picture taken with it. Of course!!!!

I match the Vivid Sunset color of the Designer EPIC 2

Oh - the other thing we had to do was to switch hotels. A small detail but necessary due to some delayed construction at the resort hotel. Now we're at the casino hotel. But the whole transfer was pretty seamless as there were big buses to transport us back and forth. The only SNAFU? I was going to leave all my luggage in my classroom. However, I decided that I could bring my backpack over since I wouldn't need anything from it.

The casino hotel lobby

Back to the resort hotel and then realized that the rulers I needed for the ruler work were in my backpack. Fortunately, the folks from Sew Steady are here and I was able to borrow a set to get my work done. My set of rulers is with my bag for today.

I will say something about the hotel system. I think they must look at me and say - you can walk the furthest so you get a room the furthest from the elevators. At the last hotel, my room number was 66 which was very far from the elevators with the last room being 84. This time, my room number is 4. Hey - did I get close to the elevator? Nope - the smaller the number, the further from the elevator! I love it and my FitBit is going to need that anyway since there's no walk in my future. Now I'm 1.1 KM away from the geocache so I have to figure out how to sneak that in one morning. It might come down to blog or geocache and I know that you all want the blog.

I'm at the end of the hallway

I do miss the open window and the balcony, but that's life. One must move forward, not backward.


We had a lovely dinner on the outdoor patio and got to visit with the dealers.

Then it was off to bed as it's going to be quite the day today as we introduce the dealers to some of the amazing features of the new DESIGNER EPIC 2 and the NEW air threading serger, NEW home, and sewing essentials (garment care, irons, presses, multi-needle embroidery machine accessories), and NEW applications in the mySewnet ecosystem. OH - I should mention that there's a NEW quilting option in the long arm area for those that don't have a large space.  NEW, NEW, NEW.

On that note, I'm out of here.

Have a super day!!!!!

Ciao!!!!

Set Up Day

The group has been doing set up for the last couple of days and as each of the rooms became available more set up was required. Yesterday, we were called upon to help with set up. I knew we couldn't get away without doing something. But it was so much fun and I know that everyone will call me crazy, but this stuff is exciting - even the setup!

NEW NEW NEW - there's a lot of new out there. My head is spinning with all the new stuff and starting TONIGHT, we get to share that with the dealers. That's even more exciting because then I get to share that with you.

I did get out for a walk again. I saw a lot more people yesterday morning and even walked a wee bit with a couple of them. When I got back to the hotel, I still had time so I decided to find the other shorter walk that I had heard about.

This one followed the "river". There's a man-made river on the property and I followed that. Near the end of the river, I saw more buildings and what's that??  A western town?? So I did some more exploring. Oh yes  - there's a whole western town. It's used for special events. Holidays, concerts, and other such stuff.

Downtown Rawhide

This cannon was in the movie Wild, Wild West with Will Smith

I also noticed that there were two boats along the way. What for?? I found out later in the day that you could go for a ride on the boat. So when I came out of the hotel and saw the boat waiting at the dock, I hopped on board. Nothing like striking out on another adventure. I swear - being independent is truly a fun way to live. All I can say is thank goodness, M learned that from us as well.

I chatted with the lady driving the boat all the way to the end and back. I learned a lot about the property. Near the end of the boat ride and the place called Rawhide place is the OLD casino. People could stay at this resort and take the boat to the casino and the western village. Now the casino is moved a couple of miles away and attached to a hotel - a big hotel which is where we're going today.

View from the boat as we left the boat dock

View from the boat along the river

I had asked about wildlife and she said she had spotted a bobcat just 40 minutes earlier while driving the boat down the river. No way??? Yep - she showed me the picture. The bobcat had something in hits mouth - carrying food to its baby. It swam across the river and up on the other side. I would have loved to see that, but I got to see her picture. Close enough!

At one point on the riverwalk, I saw this in the concrete. Back home, we might see footprints, here we see critter tracks. Very cute.

Critter tracks in the concrete

We're now into eating all together instead of our smaller groups. Fun to see and meet the people that I met last year. A few vendors or outside people are also here with their products. Can't wait to have a chat with some of them (that I know).

We had a group dinner outside last night on one of the patios. I was back in the room by about 7 PM and have to confess that I was in bed about 8 PM. It was a long day and over 20,000 steps. My feet were happy to be out of the shoes.

Of course, that meant that I was up in the night. I mean - I'm not that tired that I need 10 hours of sleep so I read a wee bit, checked that I have access to the Air Canada Rouge app (it was already installed on my phone - I just didn't know what I had to do) and then back to sleep for a bit.

I'm going to pack and then get ready for my walk. It'll be my last one as there won't be enough time in the next couple of days as we have to get to this hotel and have an early breakfast in order to start the classes at 8:30. It's not that the hotels are far apart, but you have to wait for a shuttle and well - anytime you wait on someone else, you know it will take longer than you planned.

I took photos of the rooms that we set up and the machines so I'll post those once we get going on the classes. It's pretty darn impressive to see rooms and rooms of sewing machines - lined up perfectly like soldiers. I think we all did an amazing job. And more than once, I was thanked by my colleagues for "taking charge" for some of the tasks. Dang it - I can't help that. It just comes out because I can't stand to waste time or effort. Make a decision, assign people to do it and keep them happy and entertained.

Two things I should mention about the walk. First - the walk is a total of 2.5 miles. I thought it was 2.5 miles out and then 2.5 miles back. Hey - I had grand visions that I'm a super-fast walker. Alas, the total walk, out and back is 2.5 miles. That's OK - that's a nice morning walk. I think it was the first day that I saw a runner just coming back as I was going out. He had a headlamp on. Seriously??? It's one thing to run in the dark, but another to run in a strange place, in the desert with a headlamp. But there doesn't seem to be much wildlife around, although it is around because you can see poop on the path.

Not going to worry about it - just keep an eye out and keep moving.

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!