Sorrows and Joys

The long week finally ended with a very long day on Friday.  I stayed home from work to be with Grant and drive him around.  Our first stop was the towing yard where we had to sign a release to have the car moved to our insurance company's preferred yard.  It was very sobering to see our Acura TL.

Thank goodness this well-made vehicle protected my precious DH!  The tow yard guy echoed our thoughts that this doesn't really look repairable and we might not want to drive it if repaired--it will never be the same.  We await the verdict from the insurance company, but the guy who took Grant's statement told him he probably should start looking for another car right away.  Meanwhile, Grant has a rental.

Following this sorrowful sight of the car we have only owned for six months, Grant had to be seen at the Workers' Comp clinic as arranged by the employer's insurance company.  We arrived shortly before noon and that was extremely poor timing on our part, as Grant did not get called back until the xray tech came back from lunch over an hour later.  They would not let me go back with him at that point so I sat another hour plus in the over-air conditioned room, until Grant texted me that he was done with xrays and was waiting for the doc before they could let me come in.  I left the clinic to grab a very late lunch at home and then returned.  The doc soon fetched me from the waiting room and let me know that there was "nothing bad" to report.  All told, Grant was there for five hours, and left with a bunch of "swag" including a cervical pillow, thumb splint, rib belt, ice pack, and medications.  Good thing we didn't have to pay for all of that!

Luckily our guests were able to delay their departure from town a bit so that we could say goodbye.

Here is darling Alica (pronounced Ah-Lisa) with her bow and arrow from Pixar's new Brave movie--which she got to see here in the U.S. for her 5th birthday in early July.  Earlier in the day she was wearing a red wig like the heroine, Merida, and admiring the curls coming down over her eyes.   

All energetic after her nap, Alica was ready to get on the road but consented to a photo in the car.  She blew lots of kisses from the window as they left our neighborhood, which I made sure to catch and return.  It was marvelous to have a charming 5 year old to be smitten with this past week, and wonderful to see our old friend Mike and his lovely wife Lara.  We were happy they felt comfortable in our home and were able to enjoy some family time before they returned to Arizona and then home again to Russia.  Safe trip, friends!

Some semblance of normalcy finally returned Saturday, though we did have an annual block party going on and then another overnight guest, as Erica's friend was in town to see her.  I did spend a bunch of time burying thread tails on the Caramel Blues I wanted to enter into the County Fair, but there was no way I could get the remaining quilting plus the binding done in time for the deadline today, so I switched to the mini quilt above.  I tied it with embroidery thread and bound it with the same fabric as the narrow border, finishing and heading out the door in the last hour they were accepting entries.  I entered four quilted projects in the Clothing and Textiles department and will be excited to see my quilts on display in early August.