Black Ant Beads: Number eight: The excitement of new product in the shop.

Oh my gosh! New stuff is awesome! Seriously it is great to get packages. Well, you know I love to get mail and parcels. Anyway, it seemed like all summer we were getting packages. Some of them were just items that were restocked, but others were new products. Still, there was one shipment that we all were waiting for.

Jo Morton is a fabric designer that creates Civil War reproduction cottons for quilting. She does really great work and those who follow her are often very loyal. Jo Morton fabric also makes up the entire list of designers that the shop purchases the entire line of fabrics. Other designers make some fabrics in a line that are not as pretty, but Jo always does great. So, we were waiting patiently for the newest line to come. We knew that it was supposed to ship "August/September." But what does that mean? The shop always gets the fabric quicker than others because she buys the whole line so we thought that we might get it by the end of July. By the way, we were expecting 30 bolts in the line.

Everyday when UPS or FedEx came I would rush to open the package. I just could not wait for the new line to come. Then one day....

I was in the backroom which opens to the alley where the deliveries are made. I was pressing something, I cannot even remember what it was. I heard the door open and glanced over my shoulder to see who was coming in. My eyes saw a man in all brown backing in. I turned back to my work...Wait! Brown! That is UPS! And he was backing in! I whirled around...yes, I left the iron on and plugged in...By now he was in with a little trolley holding 4 huge boxes! I ran over to see who they were from...meanwhile he was pushing them into the room. "Where do you want them," he asked, "I don't care! Put it anywhere! Who is it from! Hold still!" Seriously, that is what I shouted out! He finally put them down and I read the shipping label. "Oh my gosh! It's from Andover!!" That is the company that makes the fabric with Jo Morton's designs.

I ran to the front of the shop babbling something unintelligible ...Nancy, the shop owner miraculously understood what I was saying as I was jumping up and down. "It's Leesburg" she exclaimed. She, Ronda, and I dashed to the back to tear open the boxes...leaving four customers in the front. Once we got back there the poor UPS guy with the most bewildered look on his face handed me the electronic clipboard to sign. "So...do you get this excited over all of the packages?" he asked. "No, it's just that we have been waiting for this one for so long!"

I cut open the boxes and we oohed and ahhed over the loveliness Then the customers came to the back and asked if they could help us carry the bolts of fabric to the front. We said yes, we would be thrilled to have help! The ladies were happy to do it too. So fun! I think we each took two or three armfuls of fabric to the front. It was great! Thirty bolts of fifteen yards each!

The rest of the afternoon we were busy cutting fat quarters and we even had a lady come in to buy an entire fat quarter bundle. It was truly thrilling.