Libba Wolfe

Libba Wolfe's column appears twice monthly in Extra.

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Everybody in my neighborhood is raking leaves. Everybody but me. I've had the pedal to the metal -- on my sewing machine, that is.

Our fifth grandbaby, the second granddaughter, is due in a few weeks. As soon as the baby allowed a clear sonogram view, my daughter-in-law Karen started planning the nursery. When you're having a girl, it's all about the fabric.

Besides a garden center, a fabric store is my favorite place to mosey away a couple of hours. Every color and every pattern gets me dreaming of a new scheme. After mailing swatches back and forth and hours of phone and e-mail consultations, Karen settled on a bright citrus theme.

My guest room filled with stacks of lemon stripes, orange checks and miles of lime, polka-dotted ribbon. I set up my 40-year-old Singer sewing machine and got started.

I keep thinking I might get a fancy new machine. I've seen ads for sewing machines that connect to the Internet and perform all kinds of complicated maneuvers. Just the thought of that instruction book makes me headachy.

Long straight seams are my specialty. Dust ruffles, pillows, curtains and duvet covers are fun. What I lack in expertise I make up for with derring-do. Turning the final corner of a flannel blanket, speeding down the home stretch, Singer clanking and vibrating -- YEE-HA!

There's a reason two of the most oft-repeated maxims were born of thimble and thread. "A stitch in time saves nine" and "Measure twice, cut once" should be tattooed on the backs of my hands. Even after years of sewing experience, I hurry along and ignore them. When will I learn "eyeballing" is not accurate?

My mottoes are "Never lose the seam ripper" and "Always buy extra material." My other specialty is do-overs.

Sometimes it's a do-over. Other times, a little fabric glue will do the trick. But sometimes I have to say, "Well, I'll just scooch this 'round back and nobody will know." This must be said quickly and confidently as you scooch and tug. I'm counting on some strategically placed stuffed animals to cover mistakes in this project.

Last weekend I took a movie break from sewing. "In the Shadow of the Moon" tells the story of the Apollo space program through interviews with the surviving astronauts.

I was shocked. The astronauts are old. Wasn't it just yesterday that I got my 6-month-old daughter up for a bottle, and we watched the first man on the moon?

Time has whooshed by. The astronauts are old. The babies are having babies. I'm old. But, like my Singer, I'm still cranking. I'm thankful.