The Choctaw Spa – Chopin – A Passionate Quilter From Texas

Happy Memorial Day – I love holidays in our retirement years – the phone does not bring me problems to solve because all the “problem makers” are not working!!!! Yea!!!! This is why I crave breaks even from the retirement life which can become boring to a Type A like myself! I like variety and changes! Additionally, when things do not go right, it is so good for the soul to take a short break from whatever “unforeseen requirements” are driving one nuts and change the scenery. Clay and I had a great change of pace last week and went to the Choctaw Casino for 4 days and 3 nights at the Choctaw Lodge, a place where we have always stayed when visiting the Casino. We both prefer to take the RV and stay at the KOA on the Casino grounds, but we did not want to do that much work after the lovely remodeling job fiascal.

Here are some pictures that show how relaxing a trip can be just sitting and people watching by the Oasis Pool. The Choctaw Inn is in the background!

The Choctaw Lodge is on Choctaw land, but not connected to the Casion. I guess those of us who are blessed enough to live on 5 acres and definitely not used to crowds prefer a more secluded hotel. For a change in pace, for our 20th wedding anniversary in August, we have made reservations to stay in the Grand Hotel. There are 3 hotels connected to the Choctaw Casino. The Grand, The Choctaw Inn (the original Inn that Clay and I used to stay in early 2000’s before this enterprise grew) and the brand new hotel now – called The Spa. There is a wonderful new concert hall, convention center, meeting rooms, and of course more hotel rooms. On the other side of the Choctaw Inn, they have added a movie complex, game area for kids, and a bowling alley. The Durant, Oklahome and Dallas, Texas area now have a great entertainment complex for adults and children to enjoy thanks to the Choctaws.

Here are some pictures of the Grand Hotel and the new Spa facility.

The Grand Hotel – This is where we will stay in August!

Love the swimming pools at the Oasis and the hotel views.

We were planning on staying a week, but by Monday evening we were ready to pack up and come home. It is amazing what a short trip away from home daily routines can do for a person! I enjoy day trips too for a break in the daily routine of life.

Now on to quilting. I finally did get to work on Circa 2016 after 2 days of washing new fat quarters and fabric purchased in Arizona this last winter – WINTER OF 2015! Have you realized yet that 6 months from tomorrow will be New Year’s Eve? Summer Stolstice will arrive in 23 days (21 June) and then the days will begin to be shorter – something I love to see coming – only about 4 more months of hot humid Texas weather and maybe a nice cool Fall will be here!

Now on to Circa 2016 BOW. Here are pictures of the blocks I have completed. I am using reproduction fabrics that I purchased from a 2002 trip to Branson Missouri. I have already made a quilt from this fabric and I love it. I have a shoe box size container that has 4″ squares and some 6 1/2″ squares of the remaining fabric and decided that there would be adequate stash for this quilt. I chose a light tone on tone for the 9 patches, but will only use it for the 9 patches. It looks OK, but wish I would have auditioned more background fabrics. The little setting blocks will be another fabric – probably a lighter tan. I thought about redoing the 5 blocks I had completed yesterday but will continue on with 7 more 9 patches and put that fabric back in the stash draw for another day! I laid the blocks (2 3/4″ square) on the background fabric that I do not like – any comments/suggestions? Redo – change? (I am leaning toward changing them before I get too far into this project and definitely realize I made a boo boo!)