QuilterSal wrote to me with some great tips for hand quilting so things are improving already. After her helpful tips I stopped at the store and picked up some betweens (shorter needles for hand quilting) and a new thimble to try. I'm about 3/4 of the way around with my first row of quilting. A bit of research informed me that this should be a "stitch in the ditch" row so I've moved it a shade closer to the applique, after this the rows will be space about 3/8-inch apart. Thanks for the tips Sally! We did brave the rain on Tuesday to make it to the grand opening of the farmers market this season. We had some lovely halibut on Tuesday, some fresh spinach and goat cheese ravioli on Wednesday and last night we had beets and broccoli with our baked potatoes. I roasted off some garlic along with the potatoes for the most amazing baked potato ever. Why didn't I think of that sooner? While the potatoes baked I pinched off a little catnip for the girls who were blissed out, except for Gabby who we swear thinks she's a dog. She wasn't interested in the catnip at all.