Z is for Zee End

I have struggled to find anything to write about for Z which relates to my blog or to  my quilting life. This month's challenge has been themed around those 2 things. The only thing that vaguely relates is Zippers and I did that last year here. (I made the decision I wouldn't repeat any topics) so ... I am busted. 

If I had made a Zoo themed quilt that would have qualified but I haven't. I have made some animal themed ones... Elephant Parade, 


and some other baby quilts which used a jungle themed panel. 

I have made some baby quilts that have featured Australian animals as well 

but have decided to steer away from them but instead will completely stretch the boundaries and write about

ZEE END

The last post in this challenge. I resisted the siren call of the A to Z Blogging Challenge this year. I went in it last year and admit I really enjoyed it. I got organised ahead of time as we were in Malaysia for 10 days (well Malaysia for 7 and travelling for 3). This year though I knew I was going to be away for all but 4 or 5 days in the month. 

We have had 2 weddings this month. One was only 3.5 hours from our home but I was chief bridesmaid there and went down at the start of the week to help the beautiful bride (my friend Suzy) get organised. Fixit Guy and I stayed on a couple of days afterwards to get the house put back to rights before we left. (What a let down to get home from your honeymoon and have to wash sheets from visitors and mop floors etc)

Then we went home for just a couple of nights before leaving for Brisbane for 6 nights (busy times buying a car and some other business) and then went on to Newcastle for another wedding - this time my niece.

 That was 4 nights all up (Including time in Sydney to catch up with my mum). Next it was off to Melbourne to visit with our son The Beast and his girlfriend Beauty.

Also we had to pick up our caravan - brand new New Age Mantaray. SOOOO a huge month.

But we have made it and I have managed to get my blogs up each day. I had largely pre written them although tried to check them the night before they were to go live in case I hadn't actually completed them - or not gotten around to adding the pictures.   Sometimes they have gone live and I have realised I have left stuff out so have had to go back in and edit them.( Case in point. Am now back here madly inserting a few photos after the post has gone live ooops)

The more difficult part of the challenge to keep up with as far as I have been concerned is keeping up with reading and commenting on other people's blogs. I could pre schedule my blogs but you can't preschedule reading other blogs. On our travelling days i have tried to hotspot off my phone and catch up then. I am blessed that I don't get car sick reading or writing in the car. My husband does so he happily does most of the driving unless he is tired and wants a rest.

And what have I learned? I have enjoyed reading other people's blogs... mostly... when their interests coincide with mine, when they are well written, and interesting. Have to admit I struggle with the deep and meaningful prose and poetry, the angst filled ones, and the totally weird ones. I got selective and pragmatic. If it was too much any of these I just went on to the next one. If the writer was too far behind (ie we were up to R and they were still back at L) then I skipped ahead to the next  one. I tried to leave comments but if it was too hard to work out where to do that or I had to jump through too many hoops to do it... I didn't bother. (Or if all I could think to say was rather negative and I wasn't in the mood for the bland "all the best with the A to Z challenge)

And I have learned that I want to do it again next year. I am already planning what I will do. I have decided to take a leaf out of my daughter Fangirl (who introduced me to the challenge in the first place) She has cross stitched figurines for her  blog challenge. I am going to (try) to make a quilt block for each day of the challenge - quilt blocks all have names so I shall find one for each letter of the alphabet. I have already started looking for them and putting the patterns into a file on my computer. This hasn't been as difficult as it might be as there is a great website that has a huge cache of patterns listed alphabetically. 

So how did you go with the challenge? Did you keep up? Did you enjoy it? Are you in again next year?