A Colorful Port In A Storm...

It's that time of year again...Time for the Row By Row Experience for quilters all over the United States and Canada. Last year was the first year and it was a resounding success for quilt shops. It's no surprise that they all got on board again this year.

Between June 21st and September 8th, 2015, quilters can go into participating shops, pick up a free pattern designed by the shopowner or an employee, and some even choose to compete their completed quilts to win fabrics.

I was in Sarasota yesterday for my monthly haircut, and was only about a block away from Cotton Patch Quilt Shop in Cooper Creek (an area of Sarasota). Of course, I stopped in to pick up the pattern, fabric kit and...

their fabric "license plate" (participating shops also order these for their customers). This year, shops also ordered their license plate in a custom pin. I added those to my shopping cart.

I also found a cute pattern for a quilted, stuffed turtle that begged to follow me home. Who could resist?

If you're interested in participating (even by just collecting patterns) in the Row By Row Experience, click HERE for a list of shops in each state that are joining in the fun.

Shortly after returning home, the weather turned (again). There was thunder and lightning and our Tuesday night monsoon was under way. This was my view out the back window of the studio.

This is my view of the courtyard from my other studio window. It was raining buckets - or as Handsome refers to it - a "toad strangler". I found myself reconsidering whether or not to go to Paneras for my usual Tuesday night with the girls.

I took this picture as the storm was (thankfully) beginning to let up. The pool was full and I was happy to see that the trees weren't swaying back and forth in the wind anymore. Then I looked out the left toward the courtyard.

I was officially sick to my stomach. My archway and one of the lush star jasmine bushes had been toppled by the winds. I ran out into the rain and managed to pull the arch upright, but I could see that the jasmine was going to take two people.

I'll ask Handsome to help me this morning. We'll assess the damage and decide whether or not we can lift the bush back onto the arch...or whether or not we have to cut the top half off it and trust that the bottom half will fill out again.

I'm really hoping we can salvage it with a minimum of trimming because whatever happens to the bush on the right, will also have to be mirrored on the left side bush. I have to consider that we're in hurricane season, too. We're likely to have winds like this again and I want to avoid this happening a second time. Decisions will have to be made.