COPD Hobbies

I like to cook and crochet. Do you have hobbies?

Hi, Sam, Thanks! So happy to see that the board liked the idea! Shall I repost some of the pics I have sent, or just add to them as I go? I am currently working on the General Store. There are lots of pieces to that!
Thanks again. I appreciate all your efforts.

Hi Sam,
Have been doing some thinking on how my hobbies relate to COPD, how they help me cope.
-The most obvious thing is that hobbies provide a distraction from the things I can't do, like anything physical. I can always sit quietly and glue parts together for a piece of furniture, or organize a tiny cupboard.
-Pursuing a hobby makes me feel that I am creating something of value. I can do more than read all day. I can make a quilt, sew a dress, or wallpaper a dollhouse kitchen. -Researching the various aspects of each project is a learning process. What material do I want to use for the roofing?
-But I think the most important way they help me cope is by proving that I am not all-engulfed in the disease. I am more than my lungs, the symptoms, the equipment, and the inhalers. I am a regular, normal person who has many other things going on in her life. Though I take COPD very seriously, it does not define me.


I have several hobbies, which ebb and flow in the forefront of my attention. Depending on what I find, or sew, or read about, or remember, I can move freely among several things. I have been sewing since I was ten. Went to a Home Ec. college in Wisconsin in the 60s, and learned all the advanced techniques of fabric art. I have enjoyed this hobby tremendously, as it lends itself to many branches. I have three granddaughters. I have made Christmas dresses for each for six years. Such a pleasure to see them all dressed up for Christmas pictures! This last year I bought them fancy dresses. Much more fancy than the ones I sewed! They weren't as exciting for me, but the girls are beyond matching outfits, and live in different parts of the country now, so we changed up the plan. They all were delighted.
For the past fifteen years I have focused much of my hobby attention on quilting. It is very satisfying to start with an idea, find fabric, design the quilt, and finally put it together. I go for simple, cozy, warm hugs, which I spread around to my siblings, their spouses, kids and grandkids, my kids and grandkids, my husband, and my close friends. I have made and gifted around 45 quilts in the last dozen years. I think I have three more to do as the big versions of baby quilts for my youngest grandchildren.
I have always had a love of crystal glassware, you would know the kind, like our mothers got for wedding gifts in the forties. I have filled two china closets and a hutch with it. Mostly pink. Now I have no more space for it, so I can say that my glassware collection is complete.

The one that gets me up in the morning right now is dollhouses. Building, furnishing, painting, all the finishing details, and all the accoutrements. This started in 1988, when my oldest daughter turned six. I commissioned a big yellow two-story to be built for her, put in the oak floors, wallpaper, woodwork, carpet, drapes, and enough furniture to get started. After her birthday, we began a tradition of Saturday morning trips to The Dollhouse Place, as we called it. We did the same three years later when my youngest turned six. And on it has gone. At some point I bought a skeleton General Store. Just the plywood. At the same time I bought two kits, one for building shelves and counters, and one for all the bins, boxes, coffee grinders, that go in a general store of the 1880s. That is my upcoming project. Will send pictures as I get working on it in earnest.
What does everyone else do to enjoy their spare time?

Hi Whirled, I haven't crocheted anything in a few months. But, would like 5o start a project over the summer. Do you have a hobbies?