elsie's life and stuff

I've been thinking...

2012-02-09T17:32:00.001-06:00

Seems like the time has come when I no longer move with reckless abandon. No running across the yard, or jumping across a log (or probably more likely a toy), and my bones and joints speak to me quite often. And there's the self-preservation factor. I don't want to be laid up and barely able to roll over in bed.

However, I came across this the other day, and some reckless abandon is still in my life. It may not be the physical kind, but yes, it does feel good. :) There was more hilarity that wasn't caught on video, but this helps me remember.

May you live well, and laugh often.

let's get past the colds

2012-02-05T17:10:00.001-06:00

It's that time of year for colds. Elise had one a couple of weeks ago, and was kind enough to share with both her mother and me. I'm almost over mine, and Elise is doing good. Here's how she looked in the midst of the sniffles and coughs. Poor little thing. Good thing she had her owl quilt to curl up with.

And here she is the next week at the library, planning her strategy on moving the little beads. Isn't it great that kids are so resilient?

This has been a nice in-doors-y type of day with a bit of nip in the air. Fortunately there's been an all day marathon of House episodes. Heckuva deal! As I mentioned in a recent post, I've started watching it through Netflix. Now Netflix is good, but there are only 4 episodes on a disc, so it takes several weeks to watch a season when you factor in the time to mail the disc back and forth. This is giving me a nice little push on through the shows.

In other news, I made some curtains for Robert's office and took them over last week. They're Dallas Cowboy tab panels, and I thought they came out well. Darn it though, I forgot to get a picture. Oh well, you can use your imagination. :)

That's it for now. Have a good week everyone.

Singer has a new machine

2012-01-27T08:10:00.002-06:00

I love the old vintage Singers, maybe because that's what I learned to sew on. They're heavy metal, and can sew forever. Well, Singer apparently has realized that quite a few people feel that way, because their latest model has taken on the look of the old with the technology of the new. I'm sure they're plastic, and not near the solid weight of the old, but she sure is pretty! They've been for sale on the home shopping networks, and it appears they're sold out already. Not to worry, I'm sure there will be plenty more to come.

I doubt that I'll be running out to get one, since I really like my little Janome and have Mom's Singer as well, but I do like the looks of it. Not to fear, I think this one's pretty snazzy looking too.

newest Texas wall hangings

2012-01-23T09:50:00.002-06:00

Here are the newest Texas wall hangings I've finished. Robert will have his choice of which one he wants, and the other we'll hang in his outer office.

The colors don't show real vibrant, but each one I do is different, depending on the color combinations I have on hand.

this and that

2012-01-20T23:56:00.000-06:00

Well, now I'm watching episodes of House. As usual, I'm several years behind from when it started, but it's pretty much new to me, so that's okay. I'd only seen bits and pieces of the show, but liked Hugh Laurie (the main character) with his quirky ways. Well, I happened to see a public television performance a couple of weeks ago, and was surprised to see he's a musician. I liked the show and his performance, and decided to watch his television series from the start. Truthfully I didn't know his name until then, but I do now. So far I've finished the first 8 episodes, and my next dvd came in yesterday's mail.

Who knows, I may even get one of his cd's.

We had a couple of birthdays in the family this week. David's was earlier in the week, and Nolene's is today. Woo hoo! Happy birthday to both!

Here's David. You've seen it before, but it's my favorite picture of him. He and Elizabeth celebrated their 4th anniversary this week too. Glad you're part of the family, David. :)

And here's Nolene. Again, I think you've seen this before, but I like it because it shows her interest in learning new things. Whether its her Ipad or geocaching, knitting or losing weight (about 35 pounds over the last couple of years!), she jumps on in and does it well.

That's it for now. Hope to have pics of the next two Texas wall hangings in a couple of days.

are you motivated?

2012-01-11T09:56:00.000-06:00

The quest for organization continues. I prepared the bags for donation to a local charity, and Elizabeth added a couple to the stack. (You might notice Elise being a helper by holding the door for me.) I also shredded a few years of tax papers, old enough of course to be off the retention schedule.

I also went through some files and tossed some papers that were no longer needed, but taking up file space. Most all of my organizing projects are things that noone will notice, but I feel better for being on top of it.

I never did show pictures of a couple of projects I made for Christmas. First is a lounging beach towel with pillow. Pretty easy to make, and just used a couple of bath towels and stuffing for the pillow part. I liked the bright orange, and thought it would work great for Elizabeth to laze around the pool next summer.

The other project was a little notepad cover, another Elizabeth request. It came out cute, if I do say so myself. :)

Okay, that's it for now. Catch you later.

what the new year brings

2012-01-09T15:07:00.000-06:00

I've been bitten by that organization bug. I know it goes with this time of year, and in fact it bit a month early, but I've got to say it feels good to let things go.

I've had a tv on top of my dresser in the bedroom since I moved in here over 3 1/2 years ago. And I don't have active connections in there, so it really was a dust catcher. I'm proud to be able to speak in the past tense, because David loaded it into the back of my car a couple of weeks ago, and it has been delivered to the local Salvation Army store. It's amazing how much "lighter" the room feels.

This weekend I tackled the guest room closet. I've had a box of Christmas ornaments tucked away in there since I moved in, and they hadn't been used for several years before that. I pulled the box down, and sorted through them, designating them to either Robert or Elizabeth, tossing, or going in the donation sack. We're not talking major heirlooms here, just little things that might have meaning to the kids (or not). There were 3 ornaments from my childhood that I kept out, along with one or two others, that I might come up with some way to display them next year. Much simpler than a cumbersome tree.

This Wednesday a charitable organization will be picking up my donations. I get calls regularly from 2 or 3 of these, and am usually able to come up with a sack or two. Nice to see some space opening up here and there.

And, with the new year I have plans of eating out less. That of course means cooking more. I figure it will overall be healthier, depending of course on what I fix. Yesterday I cooked country style ribs, which came out really well. Then today, I took the left over ribs and incorporated them with some hamburger meat into 2 Alarm chili. Using the chili in frito pie at lunch was great. I may end up freezing one or two meals of the chili, but with the weather being cooler this week, maybe not.

On to other things, can you believe how crazy the gas prices are? A week ago, I saw $3.05 on QT's big sign. Overnight it went up to $3.15. Today I saw it was at $3.25.

Better get around. Have a good week!

2012 is here!

2012-01-03T11:44:00.000-06:00

It's going to be a good year. At the beginning we anticipate all the good things we'll accomplish, and you know, I really think it will happen. In the meantime, I just try to enjoy each day as it comes.

I got an email the other day that had pictures of amazing paths...in fact, that was the name of it, Amazing Paths. There were a few of the traditional that looked somewhat familiar, though I couldn't say for sure where they were. You know the kind, the steep city street, or the twisty ones.

And then there were the ones that spoke to me, places I'd like to see.

These two I especially liked.

On the last one, I tried contacting the photographer...partly to ask where it is, partly to see if he minded that I put it in my blog, and partly just to let him know I like it. Unfortunately, the name in the picture is hard to make out. However, in my quest I did send an email to photographer Victor Paul Borg. It's not his picture, but if you click on the link you'll find his website. Turns out he's a photographer and journalist. Isn't the internet wonderful???

On to other things. Rhett's tooth came out when I was at Robert and Angela's the other day. This was taken on my phone, and I'm still learning about sending pics with it.

And of course it's that time of year for working puzzles. Here's the first of the season, 1000 pieces. I have a 2000 piece waiting in the wings for my next project.

And last, but not least, I'm working on two more Texas wall hangings. One will be for Robert, the other I think we'll see if it finds a buyer. He said I could hang it at his dealership. They are now in the quilting process.

So this year's off to a flying start! 2012 is going to be another good year, I can just tell. :)

Christmas and the day after

2011-12-26T14:02:00.001-06:00

Christmas has come and gone again, and again a time of family and good cheer. And too much food. Sigh. I will do better, I will do better, I will do better....

And today is another special day...John's birthday! He and Bonnie have been in Texas about 6 years now, and he's adapting well. Awhile back he bought a piece of property, and has enjoyed putzing around on it experimenting with different plantings. I'm glad to see he dresses appropriately, our Texas sun can be brutal. Carl used this picture and drew an ink and watercolor painting, which he graciously gave me. I have to say it's one of my favorites. I don't think John has seen it yet, so seeing this will be his birthday surprise!

Happy birthday, John. I'm glad you decided to make Texas your home.

good wishes to all

2011-12-21T14:18:00.000-06:00

I've been participating in a secret sister swap this year. This time it was a bit different in that we swapped quarterly instead of monthly, and it worked out well. Monday I got my "reveal" package...and my secret sister has been Kentucky Sunshine, Trish in Australia!

Trish has such a loving and giving nature. She's been in Australia several years, moving from Kentucky. She and her husband have a young son, and it's fun to read of their adventures in the land "down under". She's a talented lady. Take a look at what she sent, much of it hand made.

The teapot trivet and 6 coasters...handmade!

The Christmas stocking, needle case, clown pin cushion...all hand made! She didn't have time to embellish the stocking, so I'll work on that myself, but she got the hard part done.

These last two pictures show the wonderful sewing caddy she made to put over the arm of my easy chair. I think she must have an embroidery machine...really pretty work. Each side has pockets...one big one behind the sewing machine, and 5 on the other side, and there's a pin cushion on top. Elizabeth mentioned it could also hold my remote controls. Not a bad idea. :)

I talked to Trish last night, and she's been working on the gifts throughout the year. Since she's far away, her quarterly gifts were via internet shopping, so her handmade items were waiting for the reveal package. I'm tickled with it all. :)

Along the lines of spreading Christmas cheer, I decided I'd make some cookies for the garbage pickup crew. They've been especially helpful this year with the tree limbs, as well as any other unusual items I'd set out. Yesterday was trash pickup day, so I put the cookies in the oven nice and early, and had them ready and waiting. The big truck pulled up in front, and I stepped out and handed them the little bag telling them "Merry Christmas". As the truck pulled away with a perky little toot of the horn, I noticed the trash was left. Huh? Turns out it was the recycling truck! Ah well. I bagged up the rest of the cookies, and added a bit of fudge, and gave them to the garbage crew a little later. Everyone can use a little cheer, right?

I may or may not post again before the big day, so I'll go ahead and say "Merry Christmas" to one and all.

note to self

2011-12-16T05:27:00.000-06:00

Haven't had much to say lately...or much that I'm able to say. With Christmas just 9 short days away, some of my projects are still behind zipped lips. However, I have finished one that I'm able to share. I talked several weeks ago about a pattern I got for a Texas wall hanging...and here's my completed version. It's already gone to its new home.

It was on a yellow wall, so it seems to have picked up a bit of a yellow-ish tinge, but you get the idea. I'm pleased with it, and will be making another.

It's nice to know that I'm still learning things as time goes by. Keeps the mind sharp. Of course, there are times I have reminders that I need to pay more attention to things. While making Texas, which uses a fusible webbing, I got distracted and...well, let's just say I made a mistake. Now it's on my design wall as a reminder to be more observant.

Can you read it? It says "note to self...do not iron on right side of fabric".

small frustration in the scheme of things

2011-12-04T09:04:00.000-06:00

There's so much in this world we can either be very thankful for, or have a major gripe. So I know my petty little grievance doesn't amount to a whole lot...

But really! Don't you think the paper delivery person could find someplace other than the middle of the very wet grass, in the middle of a rain, to toss the paper?????

another milestone...mine!

2011-11-28T08:16:00.001-06:00

Arrgh! I had prepared a totally fantastic post and then got an error message and it went away! So, here I am again, and hope this one can make it through.

I've reached another milestone day, and can't say I really feel any different than I did yesterday. But, since it is my birthday, I will offer up a few thoughts. I know, I'm only 62, so I don't have nearly as much wisdom as I will have in another 20 years, but that's okay. It's my birthday, and I can do what I want. ;)

I've noticed that as the muscles have been shifting a bit in the last few years, my mouth muscles are right there with them. I used to be able to whistle well enough to recognize a tune, now I can hardly get out much of a whistle at all. Sigh.

About clothing. I've always been pretty good about not making outrageous combinations, but lately I've come to appreciate that its not that big of a deal. Oh yeah, I still try to dress respectable as I leave the house. But, as I sit here in my pink flowered pj bottoms, and a lavender t-shirt with Christmas trees, I appreciate the freedom of comfort. The top is long sleeved, and since its a bit cool, I think they look perfect together. :)

And when did I get so particular about toilet paper? I'm an over-the-top person myself, but recently in the middle of the night when it was necessary to change the paper, somehow it got on with paper coming off the under side (I started to say bottom, but that just didn't present a good visual image). In the light of day, nothing to do but change it out to the proper way. Would it have hurt anything to stay that way till the next change-out? No, but it got changed anyway.

You thought I'd wax poetic about all the days of my life, didn't you??? I know I'm blessed, and I'll leave it at that.

Here are a few pictures from Thanksgiving.

Yes, good eats, the kids playing outside to run off some energy, and a good game of Scrabble at the kitchen table.

Yesterday I met Robert and his family at Red Lobster and enjoyed some shrimp. I also introduced him to the pleasures of Boggle on my Ipod.

Today I was able to open a package I received from my Birthday Secret Sister over on the HGTV quilting/sewing forum. This was something new this year, several of us participated and were given the name of one person to send something for their birthday. We had a limit of either $20 or $25, I forget which. Goes a long way with sales, printing off the internet, and making projects. I drew Sue B., and sent her package in August. Sewnso had my name, and I got my package Friday. It was hard to wait till today to open, but finally....here it is! The patchwork pieces in the top photo are mug rugs, which are over-sized coasters to hold a snack and cup or glass. The embroidered garden piece will find it's way into a garden quilt/wall hanging I've been turning over in my mind. Great thought went into these gifts that are so "me". Thanks, Sewnso!

I better get around and get a few things done. Have a good week, all.

had a nice visit

2011-11-22T13:04:00.000-06:00

Nolene and I made it to Sue's last week for a nice little visit. Always good to catch up, laugh, and eat! While there, we also got Sue set up with her blog. You may have noticed over on my sidebar that I have a new listing...Rednecks, Firefighters & Life...well, that's her! Go by and visit, and welcome her to the blogging community.

While there, Nolene got some knitting instructions from Brenda. No pictures here, but it was fun watching the leftie learn knitting by mirror imaging Brenda. And she actually did pretty good. ;)

On the way home, I got a kick out of one of the trucks we passed. On the back it said, "Haulin' Liquid Chicken". It caught my attention....what was it??? Egg yolks? Chicken broth?

In a google search on the liquid chicken, one comment said that it was fat rendered from the chickens and sprayed on pet food to add to the nutrition level. Whatever it may be, it definitely catches your eye.

That's it for now. Have a great Thanksgiving day, and count your blessings.

happy birthday!

2011-11-14T05:19:00.000-06:00

Happy birthday to my sister Sue! As I mentioned last year on her birthday post, she's better known as Karen to most of those in her life, but she'll always be Sue to me. Apparently as a little one Dad used to call her Susie Q, and it stuck.

This talented lady has many interests, and writing is one of them. She's written books (not published yet, but that's a minor detail), done book reviews for a local newspaper, created haiku everyday for a year, written songs, and has always had a way with words. Oh wait! She has had a book published! I forgot about a counted cross stitch book that she put out quite a few years ago.

She's also the one who entered a recipe contest with her Tijuana Taco Salad, using hot dogs as the meat. She even won a prize. Third place? Can't remember, just that she won. Of course, in her own true style, she never actually made the recipe, just thought it sounded like it might work and wrote it down.

She's been busy the last several years taking care of her husband Troy, and doesn't get out and about a whole lot. Enter the internet! She may be somewhat tied to the house, but thanks to the marvels of technology, she travels all over the place gathering ideas and inspiration for whatever project she's working on. In fact, she's hoping to start a new blog soon. I'm going to visit her this week and we'll be working to set it up. Once it's up, go visit her and let her know what you think. I'll keep you posted, and of course she'll be in my sidebar listing of links to other blogs.

So happy birthday, sis. Carpe diem!

the making of "who's there"

2011-10-31T11:59:00.002-05:00

When I started the Scraps to Treasure challenge, I had a few sketches made out. I thought about me looking over my shoulder at various squares in my life. That's squares as in quilt blocks, not people. I'd have some broken dishes, bear paw prints, and who knows what else. Then I thought about making a fence, and how fences make better neighbors. That didn't quite gel.

Then I saw the Spring 2011 Quilts and More magazine with Mr. Owl on the cover. I used the owl portion of the pattern, but the rest of what I came up with was mine. I knew I needed a background for him to sit on, and I wanted it to be on point. We weren't allowed to use the 6" blocks without them being cut in some manner, so I did half square triangles. I then appliqued him onto a branch on the background, and added a border using one of my focus fabrics. (We each had sent in 6" squares from two fabrics, enough for all the people involved in the challenge. Of the two fabrics we sent in, we were allowed to add extra fabric to work with and I think it was 1/2 yard. That's what I'm calling my focus fabric.)

Once he was stitched on, I worked with my layout, and wanted to incorporate other animals into it. On the first round of rows around him, there's a raccoon, some geese flying in the sky, ducks on a pond, deer, and some bugs. To bring a little more nature into it, I also put in some floral elements, leaves, and trees.

Then I played with some arrangements of getting it squared up as the center panel, taking pictures to see what I liked.

Ultimately I chose a single strip for the corners in the center of cream fabrics. Those single strips, one in each corner, had butterflies, a bluebird, wheat, and a flower of some kind.

With those in place, I added a border at the top and bottom with my second focus fabric.

My next thoughts were that it needed more length, to be a rectangle rather than a square. I had other fabrics that had to be incorporated into the quilt (we're required to use at least 2" or 2.5" of each of the squares we were given), so I gave thought to a dresden plate, possibly one at the top and one at the bottom. Again I played with the layout.

Eh, that wasn't doing it for me.

Then I thought, how about cutting the dresdens in half? I had two, that would give me four, and they could go in the corners. That's what I did, and here's the final result.

The idea of these Scraps to Treasure quilts is that they are to be donated to a charity. As some of the others have done who have grown attached to their quilts, I will either be making another quilt for charity or making a monetary contribution. As for Who's There, this will be going to Elise. She was my original inspiration for the owl since she has her friend Owlie who goes everywhere with her.

So that's it. I see another scrappy quilt in my future, it's been fun.

ah, it's been a week

2011-10-30T10:49:00.000-05:00

Have I got an "old into new" theme this week?

Elizabeth had a birthday. We went out to lunch on Monday, and it's always good to spend time with this woman who happens to be my daughter. How does old into new fit in? In her I see a bit of me, but in a much shinier and brighter, newer if you will, version. Happy birthday again, daughter. (The picture is from Elise's birthday.)

I went shopping for some new shoes this week. A couple of years ago I was gifted with some really comfortable shoes, and they now have seen much better days. So I got some new ones in the same brand. Continuing the theme, although it is a stretch, I took another look at my old shoes and decided with a good polish maybe they could make it a bit longer. Maybe not new looking, but an extended life none-the-less. No pics available, but they turned out fine and will still be serviceable as knockin' around shoes. (Yes David, I can picture you rolling your eyes over that term, but there are those of us who understand what it means.) :)

And last, I entered a quilt into the Scraps to Treasures challenge over on the HGTV forum. Everyone was given the same sets of 6" squares, and we were allowed to add a certain number of squares and fat quarters from our stash (hence the "old"), with the challenge to create a quilt. I'm very pleased with mine. Though it didn't place in the categories of Use of Color, Best Design, or Viewer's Favorite, it did get the write-in award! Take a look at "Who's There?".

If you're able to click on it and enlarge the photo, you can see of course the owl in the center, and in the surrounding row and corners, other critters or birds. Fun project, and I look forward to doing it again next year. To take a look at the other entries, go here.

Have a good week everyone.

quilting stuff

2011-10-18T18:00:00.002-05:00

Where does the time go??? Blink twice, and another week has rolled around.

I went to a quilt show in Gainesville (TX) Saturday at their civic center. I really liked the size of it. There were several rows of quilts to look over, and vendors set up around the perimeter. Gainesville is about 90 miles from here, and made for a nice little Saturday drive. I got a couple of patterns, an older magazine that's not in print anymore about miniature quilts, and a few fat quarters. The larger quilt shows are nice, but I like the flavor of the small town venue. Here's a sample of what they had to show.

There was also a Texas theme redwork. Following it is a close up to see more of the detail.

They only have a show every other year, so I'll have to mark my calendar for 2013.

Friday night there was a tutorial over on the HGTV quilting and needlework forum, this one on making fabric postcards. It was taught by Gonesewin, who also happens to be one of my on-line Scrabble buddies. Several years ago I tried my hand at the postcards, but wasn't pleased with it. This class helped simplify it, and I'll probably make a few. This was my class project. Of course there are areas that will improve with diligence and practice, but I think it's cute.

And in the bright idea department, I came up with the idea of getting a pocket protector to use in a purse pocket to hold pens and pencils. 99 cents for three of them, heckuva deal. For years I've carried a purse insert that had all the little pockets and compartments, but it was a bit big for this particular purse, not to mention it's wearing out. Sorry, no picture, but I think we've all seen pocket protectors before.

Oh, and before I forget, these are the patterns I got in Gainesville. They're by JudyDidIt Designs, and my patterns came from Barb's Quilt Nook, Etc shop. They'll be cute little wallhangings.

Guess that's it for now. Have a good week everyone.

ah, October!

2011-10-08T20:47:00.000-05:00

It's nice to be able to step outside and wear my jeans. Nothing like a brisk Autumn morning. Granted, those jeans give way to some shorter pants before too many hours have passed, but it won't be long until it's cool all day.

I got busy this week and made a couple of my little witch towels. Well, not mine. The pattern is shown here. I deviated a bit from the instructions, as do a lot of people. That's the fun in making it, you can be creative if you're so inclined. On these two, one was made with the little ruffle, one without. One of the ladies on the HGTV Quilting and Sewing forum mentioned that she cut the towels in half, making two from one towel. I really think I'm going to go back and do that. They're basically decorative so the full size isn't necessary, and too they won't be so easy to fall off the handle since they'll attach with a velcro folded top. Don't you think the purple shoes give it a nice little flair???

I've also been doing a bit of embroidery. Nice relaxing handwork.

In between all of that I managed to read a book this week, Condoleezza Rice's Extraordinary, Ordinary People. Autobiographical, she talks a lot about her parents and family. She's an only child, so maybe I should say extended family. Very good, I'd recommend it.

Then today I went to Ashlynn's first dancing performance at Burleson's Pioneer Days. She looked really sweet, and did a good job...as did all the little performers. In this picture, she's in the middle.

And, last but not least, I tried my hand at another sketch today. I know, I'd do better if I'd draw some everyday, but sometimes there just aren't enough hours. Seems odd to be retired and saying that, but it's true. The nose isn't right, as well as the beard, but oh well, at least I'm trying something different. Maybe this old dog can learn some new tricks. ;) Hmmm, I've just noticed he reminds me of my first husband...

Here's what I was going by:

Enjoy the cool air and crisp Autumn leaves!

e-books and smiles

2011-09-28T21:42:00.000-05:00

I've been reading a few e-books lately. I almost dug in my heels thinking I wouldn't get involved with them, because I'm one that likes to pass books on to others to read. However, I've found that there are plenty of e-books out there that are either free or very low cost. And even better, if you don't mind the possible wait, city libraries are an excellent option. Yes, for the latest best-seller you may be on a waiting list for a bit, but there's been plenty of times I've waited for the hard cover version, so that's okay. And there are any number of books that are readily available. Being able to download at any time of the day or night is great. And think how environmentally correct!! You're not using gas to drive there, and less paper is used.

I've read a biography on Susan Boyle, the singing sensation from the Britain's Got Talent show. Also a couple of Debbie Macomber's fictional pieces, Grisham's "The Confession", and currently "The Help". I'm pleased. But I still look for bargains in garage sales. :)

I've been doing a bit of embroidery here and there, and starting to pull a few thoughts together for another quilt. My Stash to Treasure challenge quilt came out fine, and the idea is inspiring me to use up some of the smaller pieces that I've had forever.

Here's a bright little picture to close this up. Elise and her daddy! She's usually a momma's girl, but she did just fine with dad when mom had to go out of town for a couple of days.

it was a grand weekend...

2011-09-19T09:55:00.000-05:00

Yep, anytime you can spend time with the grandkids, it's grand. :)

Friday was a nice jumpstart on the weekend when I had lunch with Ashlynn and Rhett. Their school had Grandparents Day. Elise went with me, so she got to have lunch with her cousins. It was nice to see such a turnout, and it looked like all the kids enjoyed it. That's a good thing.

Then on Sunday we celebrated Elise's second birthday, just a small gathering but perfect for a 2-year old.

Happy birthday, sweet little girl!

On another note, I've finished my challenge quilt except for the binding, and that will be finished within a few days. This is the quilt that I can't show any pictures until after the voting is done.

Have a good week!

another year older...

2011-09-04T07:38:00.000-05:00

Brother Carl's birthday is today. I've said for a long time that Carl is one who will age well. Why? He's active, and has a variety of interests. He rides his ATV. He does metal work, enamelware, and jewelry making (I think it's called silver smithing). He's learned how to play the mandolin. And he's pursuing an interest in art. He's not afraid to take classes in whatever he's interested in, and often encourages and shows others how to do what he's learned.

When I went to visit last month, I was lucky enough to latch onto a few of his pictures, with his blessings of course. I've put them in frames, and they now grace my walls and the top of my hutch. Here's an example of his work. This one is in my seaside themed bathroom.

I came across this picture the other day and forwarded it to him, knowing he likes faces with character.

This is what he sent back to me. He says it's not done yet, but I think she's looking good.

And this is what I came up with.

Rather light, but maybe you'll get the idea. And don't be too critical. I know she's not smiling like the original, and her neck's too dark, but here's the thing...I'm trying something different. Thanks Carl, I appreciate you.

Happy birthday!

another project

2011-09-01T11:06:00.000-05:00

Last week Robert forwarded me an ad from Craig's List...an old Singer sewing machine in cabinet for sale, $40 or best offer. The picture just showed the cabinet, and the top is in rough shape. I got in touch with the guy, and yes he still had it. Yes, he would accept $25. So, I got Nolene to drive over with me to take a look.

Here's what I got. This doesn't show the top of the cabinet, but the machine is a beauty!

Someone had painted the cabinet, probably back in the 60's. I'd say it's a harvest gold paint color. (eyeroll) I may be biting off more than I can chew, but I've already started stripping the cabinet. We'll see how long that takes and how it comes out.

The sewing machine looks to be in good shape.

I found the serial number on the bottom, not on a tag in the front as I've seen on others. In looking up the number, it was manufactured in 1930!

I've got to do some more research, but I've not seen a machine with the little dial thing on the right front...possibly stitch length? And I don't see anything to backstitch or sew in reverse. If anyone has any thoughts or know the answers, feel free to speak up.

Thanks for thinking of your Mom, Robert. :)

the rest of the story...

2011-08-30T12:31:00.001-05:00

After Ketchikan, our next port was Juneau. Another pretty coastal town, as well as the state capital for Alaska. And more rain. But that's okay, because it wasn't bitter cold, just wet.

We started out with the Glacier Gardens, and it was my favorite part of the whole trip. I didn't realize that the second largest rain forest in the world is right there in Alaska...the Tongass National Forest. If you see nothing else, see Glacier Gardens.

The last one is a bit blurry, but I wanted to include it because it shows the upside down tree planters. The trees came down in a storm, and in the clean up process, the owner did some damage to a rented crane. Upset with himself, he (with the help of the crane) hoisted a tree, and slammed it down. Buried as deep as is tall, with the roots on top, he decided to put a planter in it. He liked it so much, there are a lot more around.

Next is the gift shop at the Garden. Very pretty. I picked up 3 bottles of blueberry honey to bring home for me and the kids. Sad to say, I put it in my carry-on bags to bring home, and it was confiscated at the security gate. Sigh.

From there we went to the Mendenhall Glacier National Park. It has a scenic overlook to the Glacier, as well as several trails in the area. Tammy went down one of the trails and managed to see a bear. I chose not to do the trails, so I missed out.

Not the best picture, but the glacier is off to the right, and you can see some of the ice that has broken off. I got a 2012 calendar in the gift shop full of wonderful scenic shots, and the photographer, Mark Kelley, was there to autograph it. Follow the link to the calendar, and you can see a true picture of the majestic beauty of the glacier (I think it's the May photo).

The next day was Skagway, and we rode the White Pass Yukon Route train 20 miles inland and back. More beautiful scenery! This was a terrific way to get a somewhat up close and personal look at Alaska. The construction of 110 miles of track started in May, 1898, and was completed two years later. I can only imagine the hardships they must have endured.

After the train ride, Tammy did the walking tour, and I did the tour from a street car. Very informative, and lots of fun. Skagway's a small community in the winter with a population of about 850. My guide said they haven't had a baby born there in years because the mothers-to-be leave so they can give birth in an area better equipped to handle it. They have a new clinic, but the nearest hospital is 45 miles away.

The next day we stopped at Prince Rupert in Canada. I really don't know why this was even on the itenerary. We were the only ship in port, and the tour consisted of driving around the neighborhoods and going to a museum. The museum was nice, but could easily have been accessed from the ship. The highlight was seeing an eagle swoop over us to land in a tree across the street.

So there you have it in a nutshell, my trip to Alaska. Circumstances probably won't bring another visit to this great state, but I'm certainly glad to have made it this time. :)

the beginnings of the 2011 summer adventure!

2011-08-23T17:18:00.000-05:00

Just got home from my vacation to Boise, Idaho, and Alaska. We'll cover this in increments, it would take forever otherwise!

I flew to Boise on a Wednesday to spend a few days with Carl and Billie. Carl was busy getting his 4-wheeler ready for an upcoming adventure, and here he is on it.

He has a trailer he can pull behind it, and it all fits into the trailer in the background. Pretty nice setup. He was scheduled to go this past Saturday, so I imagine he's out there having a grand ole time.

He went with Billie and I to visit a few garage sales, and we all found little treasures. Carl grumbles a bit about going, but he managed to snag some good finds. ;) We got home, and Billie fixed up some tuna sandwiches.

That night she made some enchiladas (I got the recipe and made some yesterday), and Rich and Leeann came over to join us.

Leeann brought some hot brownies, so our dessert was hot fudge brownie sundaes! Yum!

Saturday morning I left Boise and went to Seattle, meeting up with Tammy to start our cruise to Alaska. This was my first-ever cruise, and I was impressed with how smoothly everything went on getting everyone on board. Especially after we got off the next Saturday morning and realized they would be loading up again that afternoon.

After our introduction to the world of hand sanitizing (upon entering the ship, and on entering any eating area) we enjoyed a late lunch buffet, and later our safety drill prior to departure. Then the cruise got started! On the top deck, there was a party underway as the ship took out of port...music, swimming, dancing, a nice breeze swirling around. A nice taste of things to come. :)

And this was our first sunset at sea.

We were at sea all day Sunday, We went through the inland straits, so there was always land in sight on one side or the other, if not both. I'm thinking that helped make the ride smoother, and neither one of us had any problems with sea sickness. The scenery was beautiful, always something to ooh and aah over.

Then Monday morning we pulled into port in Ketchikan, Alaska!

I liked all of the 4 ports we pulled into, and since Ketchikan was the first, it all looked so amazing. I've never spent much time around cities on the coast, so seeing the boats was a novelty that I enjoyed. As soon as we docked, we made our way to the pier to begin our first excursion. A tour bus took us down the road a bit to see the lighthouses, eagles, and totem poles from a small boat. Nice little side trip, my only disappointment was that we didn't go to shore to see the totem poles. But, Pollyanna that I am, the eagles were plentiful and the lighthouses were nice.

This is the pier where we boarded for the tour. As we walked down the plank and looked into the water below, there were huge starfish, though I didn't get a picture of them.

In this picture, the bare tree has an eagle almost half way down.

And these are houses built on logs in the water. They're no longer occupied.

Guess you can tell it was raining. Ketchikan was the area with the most rain. But at least it wasn't cold, just wet. :)
Back in town there was a neat little quilt shop among the tourist shops, and naturally I paid it a visit and contributed to the local economy. I picked up 12 fat quarters which will work nicely into this year's vacation quilt.

That's it for now. I'll be back in a day or two and the adventure will continue.

what???? it's August already!!!

2011-08-07T18:41:00.000-05:00

"Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin' into the future". Yep, the songwriter got that one right. But that's part of life, the days slipping on by.

Robert had a birthday yesterday, so I went over and watched the kids while he and Angela went out to dinner. Those 38 years seem to be a blink of the eye. Now we're blinking and his kids are growing! Here's birthday boy with his kiddos.

I got to meet my 2010 secret sister and her husband, Audrey and Chris. They live in Kentucky, and came through my area on the way west. We had a good visit, and I fixed them some tacos for lunch, as well as some chocolate chip cookies for the road. Such a treat to meet them, and one of these days I hope to make it to Kentucky and see them on their home turf. Here's Quilty Gal and her hubby.

Haven't got any quilt projects to show this month, but trust me, something's in the works. One of these days I'll be able to show it, but for now it's "sh-h-h-h-h-h". There's a challenge going on over on the HGTV message boards, and the vote on all entries (anonymous) will be mid-October. Wish me luck!

Take it easy everyone, and stay out of the heat. And if it means going to Alaska to keep cool, well, do what you gotta do!

seaside wall hanging finished

2011-07-30T12:52:00.000-05:00

Mark a project finished! I got the binding on earlier this week, and it's on the wall. That's probably a record time for me to start-to-finish a project...somewhere around 4 weeks.

I also made a couple of lanyards and credit card key chains for my upcoming trip to Alaska. I'm going with Tammy, so I've sent her one of the passport size holders, as well as the credit card size. The other passport size is mine, and I already have the credit card size that I made several months ago. These were from one of the Friday nite pj party tutorials that they have over on the HGTV message boards, generally in the Fall and Winter.

Guess that's it for now. Try to stay cool!

birthday(s) time again

2011-07-17T16:39:00.000-05:00

Yesterday we celebrated birthdays for Ashlynn and Lily. Their birthdays are one day apart, and they did their main celebration last weekend, but yesterday was cake and ice cream at Grams house. Happy birthday girls!

Lily turned 9, and Ashlynn turned 5. Since they both like Hello Kitty, I made each of them a cake so they could blow out their own candles. The cakes turned out cute. I did a google search for pictures of cakes, and they were a big help.

Of course, Rhett and Elise were here too, so let's get a look at them. Rhett enjoyed playing with the Ipad, and Elise was a big help in feeding her mom.

How quickly time goes by. Next one up? Elise turns 2 in September. :)

Have a good week, and stay cool.

Tap, swish, wiggle

2011-07-14T15:24:00.001-05:00

After toying with the idea of getting an IPad 2, I finally got it Monday. I guess I was spurred on because Nolene got one, so by golly I had to as well! I never had the original IPad, just was exposed to it at Elizabeth's house, but I sure do like it for playing Scrabble.

So Nolene and I have gotten together a couple of times now in this learning process. "How do I get rid of this page when I'm finished with it", or "how did you get it to do that", along with "hey, look at this!"

We've asked Elizabeth quite a few questions, and she's been shaking her head more than a few times. She realizes now why Apple has so many tutorials, and that there are those who actually benefit from them.

Did I need it? No. Will I play games on it? Yes. Am I glad I got it? Yes. Elizabeth gets to share her knowledge, David has played a game of Scrabble with me over the Internet connection (through a sheer fluke of luck he won because he came up with a 7-letter word right off the bat, and I seemed to be dealt a ton of vowels which we all know are one pointers), and I'm opening new learning passages in my brain, which I'm sure is a good thing. I'll probably only touch on a small bit of what it's capable of doing (the IPad, not my brain), but I'll enjoy the music, books, podcasts, games, access to internet, and whatever else I discover.

Here and there I've met a little confusion. In particular I was trying to do something on my laptop by tapping on the screen, or swooshing my finger across it. Nolene set me straight though, and reminded me I have to use the keyboard, not on-screen tapping. Sigh.

And, yes, this posting was done on my IPad. Well, most of it. Haven't figured out how to get pictures from the IPad photos to the blog without emailing to myself....but if there's a way maybe someone will be kind enough to share. :)

Happy trails everybody.

10-minute blocks

2011-07-07T17:45:00.000-05:00

Back in the 90's Mom sent me a sample block that was a three dimensional bow tie. I came across it in my sewing cabinet a couple of months ago, and thought I still might do something with it someday. I even thought about showing it on the HGTV quilting boards, and telling them how it was made...if I could ever figure out the directions since it's been so long since I made one.

I'm glad I held off on showing it on the message boards. I read a post about ten-minute blocks that has apparently been on quite awhile, but I hadn't gotten around to opening it. Lo and behold, it's the same block, just on a much larger scale. This new version uses 10" square blocks, and the earlier version used 4" squares. I liked the larger version, and after seeing the video explaining how they go together, I ordered the book by Suzanne McNeil.

I decided to make mine as a wall hanging for my beach themed bathroom. It might have turned out bigger but I only bought 1 1/2 yards of the main fabric not knowing what I'd do with it, and the Joann's where I bought it didn't have any more. I could have traipsed around town to find it, but it's hot out there, and I just want to get something finished. I picked up some backing fabric today, and it's now pinned together, so I've made some progress. The room's rather small, so I didn't add borders. The binding will be in one of the featured colors, and that should make it "pop" a bit. With that said, here's my latest...the pieced top!

parade on the 4th

2011-07-04T21:11:00.000-05:00

We moved to Burleson in 1986, and the kids were probably about 7 and 13. One of the draws was the small town atmosphere. The population then may have been in the 12,000-15,000 range, and the "old town" section was where they held parades. Within a couple of years we had met up with the Carvers, good friends who had horses. We had a couple ourselves, and there were several years that Robert and Reggie rode in the parade along with Sam, Janet, Debra, and Kristie. A few more years went by, and Reggie and Robert were involved in the Briaroaks Volunteer Fire Department. They still rode in the parade, but by then it was on the fire truck.

I had hoped at this point to insert pictures from those early years, but couldn't get my scanner to work. Sigh.

Things haven't changed a whole lot over the years. In the parade today, there were still the bands, emergency vehicles, politicians, military vehicles, and horses. The population has grown quite a bit, maybe 40,000? But the parade still travels through "old town", and while there's not as much candy thrown from the participants to the kids on the curb, Rhett and Ashlynn still managed to snag some.

Here are a few pics from today.

Briaroaks Fire Trucks

Some of the old military vehicles

This truck has no particular meaning to me other than I've always liked the style. If I had mechanical skills and abilities, I'd love to have an old truck like this one. I wouldn't even mind if it was orange!

I always like to see the kids who have decorated their bikes or wagons and walk in the parade. I told Angela that I think it would be fun for Rhett and Ashlynn next year to give it a try.

The kids had a good time, and a front row seat on the curb.

And of course a parade isn't complete without the horses. They were the last ones to come through, but always fun to see.

A nice way to observe Independence Day.

(Next post I hope to get a picture of my latest quilt project. Stay tuned!)

oh my goodness

2011-07-01T21:56:00.001-05:00

Have you ever wondered how far a gallon of milk can splatter, say when dropped from the height of a dining room table to the floor below? Wonder no more, I'm here to tell you it can go clear across the room, all the way up the front of the refrigerator, onto the upper cabinets, and to the sink. This wasn't an experiment I conducted just because I was curious. No, I'm not inclined that way. I came in from the grocery store about 9:20 p.m., set the milk on the table, and as I turned around, ka-blam! The milk's on it's way to the floor. Good ol' Pollyanna that I am, I'm grateful that the cap hadn't been opened, but that really didn't matter too much since the plastic split upon impact. Sigh. At least the floor got mopped.

And no, there are no pictures of this enlightening event. I was too busy grabbing towels to grab the camera. I do have to say though that I'm surprised the neighbors sitting on their back patio didn't come knocking on my door about the commotion. It's not often I let out a stream of blankety-blank-blanks, but there were a few that hit the air.

No cereal in the morning for me.

Woo hoo!

2011-06-26T12:36:00.000-05:00

It's been a terrific weekend. Virgil, Brenda, and Stephanie were in town, coinciding with Tammy's son Robert being home on leave after returning from Afghanistan in May. Several of us got together Friday nite to see the Rangers play at the Ballpark in Arlington, then added a few more to the mix on Saturday when we gathered at Nolene's to eat and visit.

The Rangers played a heck-of-a game, winning 8-1. It was almost a sell-out game, and nice to see the Ballpark so full. I already want to go back. :)

Good thing you don't have to hear what's going on too much, we had some people in the row behind us who were so full of themselves that they drowned everything else out. I told Brenda I was curious to see what they looked like, but didn't want to turn around and be obvious...so camera to the rescue!

The guy in the yellow on the left, and the gal in the maroon on the right were quite busy loudly impressing each other and everyone around them with who they knew, where they'd been, and how educated they were (she's a lawyer, he's a professional student from the sounds of it), and the poor fellow in the middle is her dad the doctor. Amazing how much you can learn without being a part of the conversation. But enough about them!

I rode over with Virgil and his family, and Tammy and her family came from Denton. Unfortunately we got our tickets too late to all be together, but were in the same section. I think it was called the All You Can Eat Front Porch, or something like that. Our tickets got us into an air conditioned buffet, no extra charge, with hot dogs, hamburgers, grilled chicken, nachos, soft drinks, popcorn, peanuts, and who knows what else. I got a good pic of Virgil, Brenda, and Stephanie, but unfortunately I was looking into the light for Tammy's group. That's ok, we got pics of them at Nolene's cookout.

As I said, the Rangers won 8-1. Watch out World Series, here we come again!

Yesterday we made it to Nolene's house to eat and visit. Same group, adding several more people. So good to have Tammy's Robert back, and he came from his Washington state base with one of his buddies from Oklahoma, Robert G. They just got back from their deployment in May, so his first trip home since then.

Welcome home, Robert. Glad you're back on U.S. soil, and especially for the time you're in Texas!

second half of June already!

2011-06-19T10:18:00.001-05:00

It's been a busy week, considering it's summer and I'm not watching Elise 4 days a week.

I decided I wanted to change out my shower curtain and go to a beach theme. Of course I decided this after I got back from vacation, not when I'm on the coast where there would be all sorts of fun decorative items. Anyway, I got the shower curtain, rug, rod, hanging rings, and new towels, and decided to take the popcorn off the ceiling before putting everything out. You would think I learned my lesson last year when I de-popcorned the master bath. After several hours of contorting my body to get above the bathtub, commode, and vanity, it was finally scraped, primed, and painted. (The ceiling, not my body.) And of course I touched up paint where the walls meet the ceiling. Then I decided I wanted a new light fixture, and David told me he'd be glad to put it up for me. Well, that led to getting a new faucet. I probably made at least 3 trips to Lowes and Home Depot buying and returning one of each, but I've got my choices purchased and waiting till tomorrow for David to work his magic. Still a few more things that could be done in there, but will probably hold off a few weeks. Ah well.

I've done a bit of embroidery work. This first one is a wall hanging I'm making for my Birthday Secret Sister, and it just needs the binding and the hanging sleeve on the back. This swap only involves a birthday package, and we'll know who gave it upon receiving it (as opposed to the Secret Sisters where there are packages throughout the year and I wouldn't post a picture here until the end of the year). Anyway, I like this little girl doing her handwork, and made one for myself several years ago though I just framed it. I like this well enough that I may take mine down and put on some borders for a similar wall hanging. The border is cute, kind of a plum-y purple with little scissors on it.

While on vacation, I worked on these fashionable ladies. I've got four stamped on the fabric, and am working on the second one. They will also be wall hangings, though I don't have a particular final resting spot for them at this time. Who knows, maybe they'll end up in a craft show. Eh, we'll see. We all know you don't get anything near what they deserve for the number of hours work in them. But, I make them for the enjoyment of doing it, so money isn't a driving force.

I'm meeting friends Monica and Karen today for lunch. Monica had a birthday while I was out of town, so we're celebrating a couple of weeks late, but celebrating none-the-less. Happy birthday, Monica!

Guess that's it for now. Have a good week. Oh, and Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!

back from the coast

2011-06-12T17:53:00.000-05:00

I got back yesterday from a trip to Corpus Christi/Padre Island with Elizabeth and her family. Had a great time, of course.

We broke up the drive a bit both coming and going by stopping at the outlet mall in San Marcos and doing some walking around. It's probably about a 7 hour drive. A couple of times yesterday afternoon, Elise started wiggling around saying "I stuck!" She was ready to get out of that car seat!

We played on the beach a bit...

And relaxed in and around the pool...

We went to the Texas State Aquarium in Corpus, and enjoyed looking around there. Along with the great exhibit of dolphins and sea life, they also had a splash area for the kids. Lily enjoyed spending some time there.

I also discovered some new food. Well, new to me at least. David had some fried jalopeno strips, I think from Sonic, and they were yummo. And he cooked up some chicken one night that was real tasty...chicken strips wrapped in bacon, then topped with bbq sauce when they were close to finished. He baked these in the oven, though the grill is his preferred method. The condo we were staying in didn't have a grill.

Then it was time to come home, and what do I find but no air conditioner! That's ok, I'll go have a sip of my slimmed down version frozen strawberry daquiri.

a momentous week

2011-05-19T21:20:00.001-05:00

Some weeks seem to rock along and nothing special happens. This week comes along, and it's hopping.

Rhett lost his first tooth! He's 6, and I'd say he's right on time. Won't be long and there could easily be two front teeth missing.

And Angela had a birthday this week. She's a great daughter-in-law, and terrific wife and mother. I'm glad she's part of my family.

My chaste trees are blooming. I have three...this one, one by the mailbox, and one in the backyard. Love their purple/lavender blooms. Typically I get 2-3 blooms per year, so I enjoy them when they come.

Then tonite Ashlynn had her pre-school graduation. Yep, moving up to Kindergarten in the Fall. Where does the time go?

so much noise in the morning!

2011-05-12T06:24:00.000-05:00

You never realize how noisy your morning routine is until someone sleeps over. Elise stayed the night with me since their power went out, so of course I want to let her sleep in. Ha! At 6:00 she heard the cuckoo bird, and through her monitor I hear her own little "cuckoo". Then she's quiet for another 20 minutes or so.

I decide to make some muffins for a nice little breakfast, and as I pre-heat the oven, it dings. I carefully reach for a measuring cup (they're the metal ones of course, not soft plastic), one falls to the floor. Loudly. The doors creak each time I open them. Funny how you don't notice some of these sounds on a daily basis.

Then the oven dings three times to tell me the desired temperature has been reached.

By now she's babbling, her normal little wake-up routine. I'll go ahead and get her up. I'm glad she's an early morning riser like her Grams. ;)

Have a good day, all.

ah, family

2011-05-09T07:58:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was such a nice day. Being Mother's Day, I joined Elizabeth and her family for breakfast. We were early enough that we got into the restaurant without a wait, and that's a good thing. By the time we finished up and left, there were quite a few waiting for a table. When we got back to their house, David surprised us by washing both our cars! That had been on my to-do list for awhile, and I fully intended to do it this weekend, but I was really pleased I didn't have to. ;)

Then in the afternoon, I went to Robert's for some ribs and baked beans. Yummo! Enough meat on them to sink your teeth in and come out with bbq sauce all over your mouth and a smile on your face. It's always nice to see your kids in their own space, and how well they're doing. Robert's a good dad and husband...and cook!

Elise showed me a surprise this past week. I had slipped into the sewing room to sew a few quick seams, and when I came out she had a bit of a surprised look on her face...or was it a toddler's "uh-oh!" look? I should have known something was up when she didn't follow me to the sewing room, she loves that place. What did she manage to get into? I'd left my purse on a chair, and she pulled out my lipstick. She held out her hands for me to clean them, and wasn't real happy when I pulled out the camera before wiping them off!

simple things

2011-04-23T06:56:00.001-05:00

I've had this set of pillow cases for years. I can't even say where I got them or when. Maybe I picked them up from Mom's stuff when she passed away, or maybe I got them at a garage sale. I just know they were hand embroidered, and are either tatted or crocheted at the opening. Now some of the embroidery is worn away, and the tatting is looking pretty sad. Actually they've been this way quite awhile, and still I hesitate to throw them away. Someone put some time into them. What were her thoughts? Was she frugal and making do? Or was she someone with an interest in making her house a home with these personal touches?

Finally I decided I would make my own embroidered pillow cases. I like having handwork to do while I sit in my easy chair watching tv, to be somewhat productive. So I went to Hobby Lobby and got a new envelope of embroidery transfer patterns. I wanted to step away from the white of the original inspiration set, so went with green and yellow. The little trim piece has the yellow and green, with an accent color of blue in there too. I'm kind of lazy in working with multiple colors of thread while embroidering, and I'm sure that's why I enjoy redwork, so I chose green and blue for the two lone colors. I did stitch one heart in red, but just didn't like the effect so I took it out. Anyway, here's one of my pillow cases. The other should be done in a few days.

Who knows, maybe in 30 or 40 years someone might wonder what I was thinking of as I spent my time stitching pillow cases. I hope they have pleasant dreams.

In other newsworthy events, Ashlynn stayed with me yesterday for a couple of hours. Usually she and Rhett come together, but he was in school for a bad weather makeup day. This was possibly the first time that she and I have had one-on-one time together! Nice morning.

I think I'll put my feet up for awhile

2011-04-16T13:44:00.000-05:00

It's been quite a little process, which I'm sure Robert and David will agree since they did a lot of the work. But I have to say I put in my sweat equity too. Anyway, the sod is set, now it's just a matter of watering it daily till it takes hold.

Elise will be glad to see the grass. The last week she didn't get to play outside much because of the mud. We went to the park one day, and she enjoyed it.

I'm sure we'll be going again soon.

It's naptime. Have a good week everyone.

back on track

2011-04-13T17:56:00.000-05:00

Well, I got with my neighbor, and she and her brother came over with a chain saw. We worked together, and the debris is cleared away. My sod will be delivered Saturday. Woo hoo!

oh.my.goodness...another tree limb falls

2011-04-11T03:25:00.001-05:00

Little miss Pollyanna here is trying to look on the bright side. Trying to find the bright side.

The sod that was scheduled for today has got to be rescheduled. If I can catch them early enough when they open to stop delivery for today. If I can't, I guess I'll have to explain and refuse it.

The problem? A tree fell into my yard. Again. No, not the same tree as last spring, but another bigger tree. Yes, a tree from my neighbor's yard. The same neighbor as the other tree. A big storm came through while ago, and I stepped out to see how muddy it would be for the sod installation, and lo and behold, there's a tree at the porch step. I've got to look when it's daylight, but I don't think it hit the new patio cover. Sigh.

Funny thing is, I was just sitting out there yesterday evening, watching all the trees' leaves sway in the wind, and wondered what would happen if that particular tree were to fall. Here's the bright side...the baby wasn't playing in that part of the yard that she loves to play in. I wasn't sitting in the blue chair that I was sitting in just hours ago. Nobody was hurt.

Here's a couple of pictures. I'll know better in the morning daylight, but looks like a big branch broke. And it looks like the tree itself is leaning my way. I've sent a text message to the young homeowner for her to contact her insurance, and will talk to her after the sun comes up.

Guess I should try for a bit of sleep, but somehow I don't think that will happen.

Saturday

2011-04-10T03:28:00.000-05:00

Whew! Yesterday was a workout! In preparation for Monday's sod delivery, I pulled the little Mantis tiller out of the garage, and got a good start on going over the back yard. While it's already pretty bare, there were still patches of the old grass that hadn't given up yet. Didn't get any pics yesterday, though I might today depending on the weather. We've got some chance of rain today, but if I can get out before it happens, if it does, I'll finish tilling the last little bit. Maybe a fourth of the yard. Guess you could say a fat quarter! (That's a quilter's joke, ha ha.)

I got to visit with one of my neighbors for a few minutes in the midst of all the work. As I was tilling along, I sliced through a cable of some kind. It was only about 6" underground. After checking in the house that I still had electricity and telephone service, I called the electric company to see if I had hit something critical. They said they'd send someone out, but we all know that I could have been waiting awhile. After a few minutes of wondering if I would be safe tilling somewhere else, I remembered a fellow in the neighborhood who is an electrician. I looked over to his house, and as luck would have it, he was out in the front yard. After a moment's hesitation to consider how dirty and sweaty I was, and deciding I didn't care, I went over and asked him if he could take a look at it.

James, the electrician/neighbor, was super nice and left what he was doing to come over. As he stepped into the backyard, he told me "girl, you've been doing a lot of work back here!". Thank you, thank you. I showed him the cable that was sticking out of the ground at a 45 degree angle, and the little hole I dug just a bit to the side to show it was only 6" deep. "What do you think, is it something major?" He stooped over and took a look, and turns out it was an old tubing similar to a water hose. He bent it, and it was hollow inside. The part I saw was clogged with dirt, and I had hesitated to poke around on it. Thank heavens that was all it was! I called the electric company to cancel the callout, and was able to move on. It was rather humbling to walk over to his house in my tacky shorts, tank top, pink visor, and gardening clogs, about as dirty as can be, but it was worth it. Be glad I don't have a picture of me, I was not a pretty sight. Sigh.

On a happier note, I got my April package from my secret sister! She keeps up with my interests, and is great to send "just right" gifts. I got a book for a garden applique quilt with blocks of different flowers, a couple of pieces of fabric that will work into the quilt just perfect, and patterns for a Snap Happier purse/tote and a pair of slippers. I've been wanting to try one of these purses. The closure uses a metal carpenter's tape (the interior part of one of those measuring tapes that pulls out and snaps back in) that allows it to "snap" shut. I'll keep you posted on how that comes out.

That's it for now. If I get a decent picture when it's daylight, I'll post to show what the yard is looking like at this point.

getting closer

2011-04-07T21:05:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm making a bit of progress on the yard. Picked up some plants over the weekend and got them plopped in the ground before the rain rolled in Sunday nite/Monday early hours. Continuing my line of plants-with-a-history, I also gained 5 rose bushes from David that he didn't want anymore. I trimmed them down quite a bit for the move, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they survive the trip. Other "history" plantings I have, though not necessarily in the back yard, include the cannas from my Burleson house, an oleander Nolene was tossing out a year ago, and some mums from Troy. I like to be able to see the connections. Guess you can tell I'm not a "formal" gardener. Not really much of a gardener at all when you get right down to it, but I want it to feel home-y. Know what I mean?

I definitely need to get more plants, but it will come. These are Japanese boxwoods. I wanted a green backdrop, and like the looseness of them. David suggested that I could trim up the lower growth to expose the stems after a year or so if I wanted. Well, I jumped the gun and did the one on the far left. I like, and at some point the others will be trimmed that way. (The little bit of green in the front is from the wind that went crazy the other night, and didn't get picked up till after the picture was taken.)

The St. Augustine sod is going in next Monday, good Lord willing and the creek don't rise. I'll get more pics posted after that.

At the last-of-the-season HGTV quilting and sewing forum Friday night pj party, we were taught how to make credit card holder key chains. I can tell it's going to come in handy when I take my cruise to Alaska this summer. I'll attach it to a lanyard, and wear it around my neck. Will certainly be convenient while going on the excursions. Hopefully these tutorials will start up again about next October.

he called me "baby"

2011-04-05T06:23:00.000-05:00

I know many people would consider it sexist for a man to call a woman he doesn't know "baby", and I'd probably often agree with them. However. The other day I had my hands full as I was walking into the post office, and this nice man opened the door with "here, baby, let me get that for you". Actually brought a smile to my face...it's been several years since there's been a man in my life to hear that on any kind of a regular basis.

Oh! I wonder if it was "lady" and not "baby"? Ah well, it was nice while it lasted. And here I bared my soul for all the world to see.

stepping right along

2011-03-23T14:22:00.000-05:00

My yard has been/is a step-by-step process. Now that the planting beds are in, David put a ramp in for me coming off the patio into the yard. I really like the ease of getting around with it...and Elise does too. I think all of the grandkids will like it, but she's been able to see and use it daily.

Yesterday I had a load of dirt delivered, suitable for gardening. For the $7 a yard difference between the compost mix and fill dirt, it was very much worth it. It looks nice and rich and fertile, and hopefully will accomodate my green thumb. Before I ordered it, I looked around and found pictures to get an idea of how much dirt was in 4 yards. I settled on 3.5 yards, and it worked out well. Here's a picture of it with just a couple of wheelbarrow loads already pulled off. The young man on top of it doing the hard part is Joshua. Couldn't have done it without him.

I did a rough estimate of how much dirt I'd need, and came up with 9 yards. I'm sure glad I didn't order that much, because 1) this was plenty of dirt to handle in one day, and 2) I don't think I'm going to need anymore! Needless to say, my calculations were a bit off.

So here's where I am so far:

Next, figure out a "floor plan" of what plants I want and where I want them. And I'm waiting till April to get some sod brought in.

Shifting gears a bit, a recent Friday night pj party on the HGTV quilting/sewing forum was to make a carrying case for an IPad. I didn't have the need for that, but it could be used for a purse as well, so I thought I'd give it a try. It required a square piece, size optional, depending on what you were doing. Seems like the IPad case called for about a 23" square, but I had this 20" block made up already, and went with it. (leftover squares from this project) I simply joined this to a backing with batting in between, and put a binding on it.

Here's the almost finished project, just needing buttons for closures on the 2 outer pockets. You'll see two buttons to the side of the purse. I'll use the red on one side, and the black on the other. Not bad for using my stash and not having to purchase anything. :) That's a good thing.

old ways or new?

2011-03-19T20:18:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you, but I've noticed some things aren't as easy to do as they used to be. Take whistling for example. Not that I ever whistled a whole lot, but I used to manage to get out something recognizable. I'm blaming muscles that have gone south, because my pucker isn't what it used to be.
I tried whistling a tune for Elise the other day, and it wouldn't come out. Don't know of anything to do about it, except maybe practice and see if that helps tone some mouth muscles.

For some situations though, there is help, and it's a smart person to recognize a need and take advantage of whatever assistance is out there. And yes, I do consider myself smart! I bought this handy little grabber a few weeks ago. I don't expect to use it constantly, but there have been a couple of occasions where it's done the reaching instead of me. Just this morning I dropped a gadget behind the sewing machine cabinet. Rather than move the whole cabinet so I could get to the gadget, I reached for my handy dandy grabber, and had the little thing back in my hand in the blink of an eye. Not even two shakes of a lamb's tail. My kids have given me a bit of teasing about it, but I guess they figure that's their job. The grandkids like using it too.

Anyhow, on to other things.

I decided I wanted to grill a steak tonite, partly because it gave me an excuse to use my charcoal chimney for the first time. You've probably seen them. Rather than put the charcoals in the Weber grill and soak them in lighter fluid, causing a big "whoosh" of flames, you stuff a bit of newspaper in the bottom of the chimney, and put the charcoals in top. Light the papers, and about 15 or 20 minutes later the charcoals are ready to spread and start cooking. No lighter fluid, no singed hair from the huge flame.

I don't know that there would have been enough charcoal from one chimney to cook for a lot of people, but for singles or small gatherings, it should do fine. I probably should have planned this a bit better and thrown on a chicken breast or two, maybe even a pork chop, instead of my lone steak, but se le vie. (I may be smart, but didn't take any French classes to know how to spell that.) Ah well.

In a very short time, dinner was served. Mmmm. Lot of food there, but there was enough left over to cover another meal, so it's all good.

Hope to have pictures next week of dirt in my planting beds. It's scheduled for Tuesday...assuming I can verify I have someone to spread it. I talked to a fellow in the neighborhood the other day, thinking possibly they had a landscaping/lawn mowing business, which it turns out he doesn't, but he does have a son about 22 who needs some work. Hope I can talk to Junior tomorrow to make sure he's agreeable to doing it, if not I'll be scrambling to find someone else.

Have a good week everyone.

another step in the process

2011-03-15T16:52:00.001-05:00

I've got the best son and son-in-law. Since the patio is now covered and painted, the next step is planters. The boys came over this morning, and by noon things were close to completion.

I've wanted planting areas for quite awhile, but everything has been step by step. Have the patio put in, then the pergola, then the painting. Now the planters! I'll be calling about having some dirt brought in to fill them, then next will be a couple of pallets of grass for the yard.

Thanks Robert and David. Thanks to you, my yard is closer to completion.

getting a jump on spring

2011-03-13T18:50:00.003-05:00

After a cold winter, at least for those of us in Texas, things have been a bit warmer and I've had a bit of spring fever. Anxious to enjoy an afternoon outdoors, I had the family over yesterday for some hamburgers.

David did the cooking... and we really didn't drive him crazy, as it looks. He just likes to make faces. He also brought some jalapeno poppers for an appetizer. Didn't get a chance to get a picture of them before they were all gone.

He wasn't working the whole time.

Nolene and Joe were able to make it,

along with their granddaughter Lisa.

It was a treat to see Lisa, since she lives in Abilene. She's visiting for a few days over spring break.

John was here by himself until Bonnie finished a golf tournament she was in,

then she came when she was finished, just in time to eat a hamburger. She made her famous macaroni and cheese, as requested by Robert.

Robert and Angela were here too. It's the start of spring break for both Angela and David, and I'm sure they're appreciating the time off.

Tammy and Jimmy made it over from Denton. The little guy in front of Tammy is her grandson AJ. Sweet little guy, he's about 6 or 7 weeks older than Elise.

Here's Rhett, Ashlynn, and Elise.

Let's see, when are we getting together again?

ask me how I know...

2011-02-27T19:57:00.000-06:00

My pretty glass pitcher did not hold up well to making tea today. Something about hot liquids? I remembered when I heard a loud "crack" while pouring the freshly brewed tea into it. Sigh. Lesson learned.

Fortunately Elizabeth had already texted me earlier asking if I could use a glass pitcher. She was cleaning out a cabinet and came across two she never uses. All is not lost! Next time I just need to remember to make my tea in the old Tupperware pitcher, then pour into the pretty glass one. ;)

feel like I'm drifting away...

2011-02-24T05:55:00.000-06:00

I haven't been posting much lately, I don't have much to say. But I keep coming back. :)

Yesterday my patio cover was painted. Feels a lot bigger and brighter than the bare wood. The next step is to figure out a bit of landscaping for the yard around it. I've thought about sodding it, and also like the idea of raised flower beds. Might even do a combination of the two. Got to think on it a bit more.

One of the last projects I made is a thread catcher. This was one of the Friday night classes recently, and it was fun. It's designed with the idea of putting it either by your sewing machine, or where you do handwork, and you can put your snippets of thread in it. But Liz had the idea of putting one in the car. My friend Linda liked that idea so much that she made one Saturday at our quilting bee, and it was in use in her car when she left. The original has a 4x4 tile for weight to put on the table, with the bag hanging down. Linda improvised with a rock, since the console's design wouldn't accommodate the tile. I didn't get a pic of Linda's, but here's the one I made and gave to Nolene. I just love the fabric with the Indian centered on the front.

And I'll finish this off with a picture of Elise eating her first ever (at least at Gram's house) Oreo cookie. Ah, nothin' says lovin' like an Oreo cookie...and a glass of milk!

It's time for the fair...er, stock show

2011-01-26T16:52:00.000-06:00

I have to admit, fairs have always been a special place for me. Dad was the grounds superintendent at the local fair when I was growing up. Our house was on the property just outside the gate, and the fairgrounds were my backyard.

My bike took me all over the grounds. I liked to go to the wishing well, which was in a park-like setting. There were weeping willows, and benches, and nooks and crannies. As I played, I could picture the area as it looked in those 4 days that the fair was in full swing. Right across the way was the pastrami booth, which always had a huge line. That was the only time of the year I had pastrami, and it was such a treat. Of course, this was in the time of very few fast food eateries.

The VFW hall had the hamburger stand at the north end of the grassy area. You never had a grilled burger like they served. The smell of the meat on the grill and the onions permeated the air.

The shish-ka-bob stand was right across from VFW. Chunks of steak, tomatoes, onions, peppers. I never ate that then, but looking back now I bet they were terrific. I had never had food like that at home, and wasn't very brave about trying something new. And as I think back on the pastrami, I didn't try it for several years for the same reason.

Right around the corner was the taco stand. Seems like Mom was part of the group of ladies that ran it, and she helped on serving some. This was another popular stand, and always a line.

The common theme was the sense of community. Organizations were active participants, which of course meant more people could experience the fun and work. When you ordered that burger, or picked up the novelty item from the youth groups' booth, chances were good that you knew who was serving you and could share a laugh or comment.

I liked to ride my bike to the grandstand area, particularly on the day after an event throughout the year. I've pulled many nickles, dimes, and quarters out of the dirt that fell out of pockets and down to the ground!

There was also the livestock area. The 4-H and FFA kids camped out close to their cows, horses, pigs, or sheep, and the fair was a culmination of their work as they vied for ribbons and bragging rights.

Speaking of bragging rights, each of my sisters and I entered our chocolate vinegar cake in the baked goods competition over the years, and I'm thinking we each got a first prize ribbon for it. (I know I did!) And I had some crocheted slippers that got an honorable mention. Good memories.

The Fort Worth Stock Show is on now, and I may have to head over there. Haven't been in several years, and they don't have displays of quilts or handwork, but it's still a good time just waiting for me. There will be lots of those livestock, especially the cows!

Monday, Monday

2011-01-24T18:02:00.001-06:00

Another Monday rolls around, and a good Monday it is. My perspective on Mondays sure has changed since I retired, and that's a good thing.

Not a lot going on, but I did make a little tool caddy for the sewing room. Over on the HGTV forum, they're having Friday nite pajama party tutorials. There's lots of virtual chocolate and goodies and beverages to enjoy while learning a project. Keep You in Stitches was the teacher this time around, and here's my completed project. Actually this is my second one, I gave the first to Nolene.

Speaking of Nolene, dear sister had a birthday just the other day. Let's see if I can find a picture where she's smiling for the camera...ah, yes, I've got one. This was last summer when Carl was in town for our vacation trip. Happy birthday again Nolene!

I got the pillow shams finished and mailed off. They're a cream color (think muslin, only it's not muslin) with a dusty rose binding.

And I've finished altering two of David's Hawaiian t-shirts. I'll let him check them out and try them on before I do the other three. I took off the sleeves to take about an inch off of the shoulders, as well as a good inch or so on each side, and a few inches off the bottom. I'm glad I did these, it's got me thinking about one of my shirts that I need to make some adjustments on. The trick is to get it done while it's fresh in my mind and not have to re-think how to do it.

Oh, I almost forgot. I worked another jig saw puzzle, this one was Las Vegas. It was fun. I like these with all kinds of things to find in it... it's colorful, and while a challenge, not tedious. You can click on the picture to take a closer look.

Guess that's it for now. Have a good week!

where did my muse go????

2011-01-16T17:15:00.002-06:00

I don't seem to have as much to say lately, I think my muse has taken a vacation. However, I've not been entirely useless. More than one puzzle has been completed, I've been working on a couple of shams (which has dragged out wa-a-a-a-ay too long), altered a t-shirt for David since he's lost 20 pounds (this was a test run for 5 more shirts to see if it would work and it did), and stayed in out of the cold as much as I could.

I also caught up on some television, thanks to Netflix. I've watched a couple of seasons of Moonlighting, and I'm on the second season of Northern Exposure. I know, I know, these were from like the late 80's or early 90's. What can I say? Don't think I ever watched Moonlighting, even though it won awards, and only caught part of the last season of NEx. But hey, better late that never. I saw a Bones episode the other day, so now I'm going to check Netflix and maybe I can start that series from the beginning.

I did make me a journal cover, finally. Got the tutorial a year ago, and made one for my secret sister at the time (dtigger) and also one for Donna, a friend who was retiring. It took me clear till now, but I finally got mine made.

I'm in the secret sister exchange again for 2011, and got my January package about a week or so ago. I had mentioned that I want to do a landscape quilt, so she sent me a book about them, as well as some wonderful red silicone potholders (I think they're called silicone), and a package of 5 rotary blades. As I mentioned in my thank you on the forum, I don't think I've ever bought 5 rotary blades at one time...I won't know what to do with them!

And, last but not least, happy birthday wishes go out to David. Couldn't ask for a better son-in-law. :)

odds and ends

2010-12-29T14:24:00.000-06:00

The kids got their colored pencil rolls, and really liked them! I'm glad we had our quiet little get together a couple of days ahead of Christmas, I think they would have gotten lost in the shuffle otherwise.

Rhett was coloring with his up on the table, so you only see his leg in the second picture.

On Christmas day, I went over to Robert and Angela's before heading over to Nolene's. Robert and Rhett were assembling a Lego Harry Potter project, and I think I see a budding engineer in Rhett. He studied those pieces, and was really intent to get it right.

These were two of the 4 or 5 bags they had to assemble, but it was nap time right about here. :)

I haven't accomplished as much the last week or two as I had thought I might, but I've gotten a little done here and there. This is a mug rug I made. A mug rug is a coaster with room for a snack.

And I made an ironing pad for a tv tray for niece Tammy. Now that she's graduated, she'll have a bit more time for her quilting. I got one a couple of years ago, and just love it, but I couldn't quite figure out how to get the elastic casing in nice and neat. So, I used ribbons for ties. This should actually work out pretty well, because it can be modified to fit the size of the tv tray.

On another note, I had a home improvement project put in a couple of weeks ago. I've wanted a pergola type patio ever since I moved in, and talked to Chris about it last Spring when he put in my fence. It finally worked out to be a convenient time for both of us, and he and his helper put it in the week before Christmas. When Spring rolls around, I'll either paint it or stain it, though I'm leaning towards paint for now. This space should be much more usable now, especially with the railing going around it. Gives me more peace of mind with the grandkids playing out there that they won't be so apt to fall off.

That's it for now. Have a good week, and if I don't get back before the weekend, Happy New Year!

happy birthday, brother John!

2010-12-26T21:32:00.000-06:00

If I write nothing else today, I must take time to say happy birthday to my brother John. Hope it was a good day!

those lazy, hazy, crazy days of....December!

2010-12-19T11:20:00.000-06:00

After I finished the hustle bustle of getting Christmas gifts done, this month has been a bit laid back. I've worked another puzzle.

Ashlynn's pre-school had their Christmas program recently, and that was fun. All the little 2-, 3-, and 4-year-olds took part in the singing. The lighting wasn't the best in the room for pictures during the program, but that's ok. They were all so sweet, and all were dressed in their pj's.

Rhett joined her in the last picture.

And here's my niece Tammy. She graduated from Texas Women's University on Friday! It's taken a lot of work over the last 4 years, but she made it, and we're all proud of her.

Over on the HGTV quilting/sewing forum, we just finished up our Secret Santa Stocking Swap. There were over 60 of us participating. We each put up a wish list, names were swapped out by the coordinators, and everyone got busy. The stocking was to be made by the person swapping, so no store-bought stockings. My Secret Santa was Wiley in Arizona, and she did great. I got not one stocking, but two! She managed to tuck in 4 redwork embroidery patterns, 5 fq's of landscape fabric (rocks, woodgrains, birds) for a landscape quilt I want to come up with, a template for A School of Fish and the pattern that goes with it, a rotary blade, some flower head flat straight pins, and a spiral memo book. Very nice.

I was Secret Santa to Downsouth in Georgia. This is what I sent her. Fun to make and prepare, and I'm already looking forward to next year. :)

Of course, I've been babysitting Elise. I'm off the next two weeks since it's Christmas break and David will be home with her, but I did get to watch her last night. She's at the age that she's always coming up with something new, a lot of fun.

That's it for now. If I don't get back on here before the end of the week, Merry Christmas to all!

the puzzle

2010-12-07T18:47:00.000-06:00

I never have tracked how many hours it takes to put together a puzzle, but I've thought for a long time that when you break it down by hours versus cost, it's a very low cost entertainment. And when I figure that this one came from a garage sale, very reasonable indeed.

I took this picture when the puzzle was quite far along, though I guess that's pretty obvious. Probably about 9:30 or 10:00 last night.

These were all the pieces left at this point:

Well, with only those few pieces, I finished it last night about 10:30 or so.

I've taken it down now, and will probably hand it over to brother John to have a go at it. But, the table is still up, and most likely another one will be started within a couple of days!

these hands aren't idle

2010-12-05T07:25:00.001-06:00

I have found that I'm spending a lot of time on the computer, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I shouldn't use the excuse of "I don't have enough time" in other areas of my life if I can make so much time for the computer and computer games. (Chuzzle comes to mind rather quickly!)

I enjoy working jigsaw puzzles, but haven't had one out in quite awhile, so this week I set one up. I like the 1000 piece version, and this one has a cute little theme of things from the 50's. If I remember right, I came across this one at a garage sale! Heck of a deal!

I pretty well approach most puzzles the same way, pulling out the edge pieces first.

I don't always manage to find all of the edge pieces at the beginning. Usually there are one or two that will show up later in the process. This time I lucked out, and I had them all.

Now that my borders are set up, I can start filling in. You know how it is with puzzles, there are several areas that are pretty easy to find most of the pieces.

So it's started. I'm already enjoying it, as I knew I would. This morning when I got up, instead of going straight to my computer, I sat down with puzzle and 30 minutes flew by just real quick. Now, I didn't do all of the above in 30 minutes, but it's not a race...it's a process.

Yesterday I got together with a few friends for what has become a monthly sewing/craft session. Kay was working on panda ears for her grandson's music program coming up next week.

Linda took time from the hand stitching on her dresden plate project to help Carolyn get familiar with the sewing machine. She's working on a ruffled tote bag.

I was real pleased with the progress I made on a couple of wall hangings. Sorry, no pics of me actually doing something! It was a nice day, and made me think of the old time quilting bees, and how the ladies would come together to quilt and visit. It's a concept that still works.

secret sister revealed!

2010-12-02T12:07:00.000-06:00

I've been a part of the Secret Sister swap on the HGTV quilting/sewing message boards for the past year. This month was our "reveal", and we finally got to know for sure who our sis is. I was glad to have my suspicions confirmed...it's Quiltygal in Kentucky! She's been more than generous all year long, and so considerate...never late and paid attention to what I liked/wanted.

Yesterday I checked the mail 2 or 3 times, thinking her package would arrive, but sigh, it didn't. So about 6:00 in the evening I settled in for my evening snooze, er, resting time watching tv. I heard a tap on the door, and lo and behold, I got mail! UPS actually. ;) In the package was a nice little Christmas card introducing herself and enclosed was a picture of her and her hubby. She also included a snowman tin with homemade cookies inside (yum!); a scrapbook-type recipe book for me to write my recipes and include photos and comments about the dish; and knowing how I like the little French chef kitchen accessories, a set of 4 dishtowels and a 7 piece set that includes pot holders and dishcloths as well as more towels. Thanks Audrey, aka Quiltygal.

On the flip side of this, the secret sister I sent to was dtigger! Here are a few of the things I sent her over the year. I couldn't post pictures earlier because she could have figured out my identity, but here they are. Mainly I'll show the ones that have things I made in them.

Can you guess that dtigger is a fan of Tigger, from Winnie the Pooh? On the right is a journal and the journal cover I made for her. One of these days I'll make one for myself. The Bon Appetit was a little kit I put together with a pattern and the fabrics to make it.

Since she likes dragons, one month I made a pillowcase and embroidered a little dragon on it. I really like that one. Who knew I'd be embroidering dragons???

And recently you saw my little oven witch with her dangly legs. Well, dtigger got one of those too, along with some other Halloween goodies.

And, I made her one of the redwork Santa's that I've posted about. Here's hers:

What's next on the agenda, after all this excitement? Well, the Secret Santa Stocking Swap is in the works, and we'll be opening those on the 18th. I'll keep you posted. :)

lunch with Rhett

2010-11-30T13:05:00.002-06:00

I had lunch at school with Rhett just before Thanksgiving break. Sorry to say, I forgot to take my camera. However, there was a mom sitting at our table, and she graciously took our picture and emailed it to me. Thanks, Jordan's mom!

Elise joined us for the lunch, but you can tell her attention was occupied elsewhere. With all the kids, there was so much to see!

Great day...lunch with 2 of my 4 grandkids! Thanks for inviting me, Rhett. :)

happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me....la la la la la

2010-11-28T20:18:00.000-06:00

Another year has slipped away. No, that's not right. Another year I've been blessed to enjoy everyday to the fullest. Great kids and grandkids. Retirement (that was a biggie!). Time with my brothers and sisters. Time with friends.

Looking forward to see what all being 61 has to offer!

ah, a mystery...and a turkey...and some quilting

2010-11-23T17:15:00.000-06:00

I got out this weekend with long-time friends Karen and Monica and went to dinner and a mystery theater to see Web of Mystery. This was the first time I'd been to this community theater production, and I'm sure I'll go back for another one. It was a nice small venue, maybe seating 60-75 people. Very affordable evening, $11 well spent for a couple hours entertainment. Now I want to check out some of the groups closer to home.

Karen and Monica and I were co-workers quite a few years ago. As life happens, they moved on to other positions, and I stayed in my "other position" that took me through to retirement. They're a few years younger than me, but the age difference hasn't mattered. We still get together at least 3-4 times a year to keep up with what's happening.

Here's Monica.

And here's Karen (she's the baby of the group):

I picked up a turkey Sunday for Thanksgiving dinner. It's not every year that I cook one, so I made a call to the turkey hot line. When I mentioned it to Elizabeth, she got a bit of a laugh out of it. She was surprised that 1) there's a turkey hot line, 2) that I knew about it, and 3) that I called! Hey, it takes a smart woman to know when to call for help!

And, last but not least, here's my quilting update. I did this little snoman wall hanging, and didn't realize till after the binding was on that it was a bit wonky at the top border. The first picture is kind of propped on the couch and you may not be able to tell, but I could. I stewed about it for a few days, back and forth on whether I should rip it and redo. Well, I finally did, and it didn't take all that terribly long...and I feel a lot better about it, so it was worth it.

Before:

After:

I know, it may not be a noticeable difference, but, sometimes its just a matter of doing something you need to do. :)

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Count your blessings, you may be surprised at how many you have.

been busy this week

2010-11-14T09:35:00.001-06:00

Been busy this week. Little Elise is really getting around now, hence Grams is really getting around! No complaints though, I'm enjoying the time with her.

My wall hangings that I've been working on are almost finished. Just need to bind one, then attach the hanging sleeves. There is one that I'm considering doing some frog stitching on (rip it, rip it), and may do that today, but all in all, I'm at a good point. A few other little things to finish, but it's all coming together.

Here's where I am so far. Now this first one looks pretty wonky, but it's propped on the couch. The others are laying flat.

There's a dresden plate pattern too, but it's not ready for a picture.

I wish I could say they were perfect, but, sigh, they're not. Kind of like me maybe???

And, on another note, today is sister Sue's birthday. She's Karen to a lot of the world, but as I understand it, Dad called her Suzy Q when she was a baby, so she's Sue to a lot of the family. Happy birthday, sis!

And . . . this is my 200th post in bloggerland. Who knew I had so much to say???

Nice day today

2010-11-06T22:28:00.001-05:00

I spent the day today with a few friends, working on sewing/quilting projects. Linda and Kay and I have gotten together a few times now, about once a month. It started because Linda asked me to show her and Kay how to make a t-shirt quilt. They were so enthused, and we all had a good time, so we got together again the next month, then again today. And Carolyn joined us today, working on her first sewing project in years. It's funny how life takes us full circle...we took the "home ec" classes in junior high and high school, sewed a few things here and there, usually filling a need. Then the time comes, often after many years of not picking up a needle, when we're back at it again. There's a difference now though...this is because we enjoy it, and enjoy the process. To start with a thought and see it through to a tangible object that we can touch and say "I made that"...priceless.

As part of our day, we had a little pot luck lunch. I fixed tortilla soup, and the others brought the makings for tostadas, some cheese and crackers, and a cake. Yummo!

Shifting gears a bit, I got my November package from my secret sister. Since my birthday is this month (its on the 28th, same as Shawkl) she included a nice little custom made wall hanging. Suits me just perfect...a little wagon loaded with flowers, and in shades of purples on a cream background. Since the room that my computer is in has a bit of a garden theme (other than the crib and toys for the grandkids), it will fit in quite nicely. The identity mystery will come to a close with next month's package.

By the way, Shawkl is having a 7 day giveaway, that's coming to a close soon. Hop on over and see what she has to say. I met her this summer at a little retreat I went to outside of Houston. A very nice and talented lady, so willing to share her knowledge.

check off another project!

2010-10-30T20:12:00.001-05:00

Back in mid-September I decided to make some color rolls to hold colored pencils for the grandkids for Christmas. I got started, then as usual life got in the way. Well, lo and behold, today I got back to it and finished the first of the three. I got the idea from someone's blog to color coordinate the pockets to the colors of the pencils, but changed it up a bit to suit me. And well, to make it easier on the kids' moms. Instead of having a ribbon to tie the roll up, I made a velcro tab. So, here's 4 year old Ashlynn's colored pencil roll.

Here it is rolled up.

I've got two more to make. One for 5 year old Rhett, and one for 8 year old Lily. They're started, so shouldn't take too long.

And how about those Rangers???!!!!! I'm not usually a big sports enthusiast, but I have to say I'm proud to see our Texas Rangers make it to the World Series. And I've even got the t-shirt! GO RANGERS!!

Have a good week...

another ufo finished!

2010-10-26T17:09:00.000-05:00

I finished the Vacation Memories quilt. Turned out to be lap size, which will work well this winter when I want a little something over my legs while watching tv.

It always amazes me on this type of quilt how much arranging and rearranging takes place. I started out with bigger t-shirt squares, and huge bandanas. I decided it gave a better balance to trim things down, since I didn't want a huge quilt.

Another ufo is done! Woo hoo!!!

Also, here's a Happy Birthday to Elizabeth. It was actually yesterday, and we met for lunch. Yes, this picture has been shown before, but it's one of my favorites of her (and Elise just happens to be in it).

Have a good week...

family time and geocaching

2010-10-19T17:37:00.001-05:00

Sister Nolene joined me on Sunday to head over to Arkansas to see sister Sue and her family for a quick visit. Had a nice time, and picked up a few geocaches along the way.

We made a stop at the Arkansas Welcome Center just a few miles out of Texarkana, and picked up two caches there. Nice way to stretch my legs and get a touch of exercise. Wouldn't want to overdo. They were probably the requisite minimum distance apart of 1/10th of a mile, which wasn't bad at all. We did see a snake in one, which was a little disconcerting (also a little bit plastic-y), but all in all, fine. These were our only caches on the way to Sue's.

Today as we headed home, we decided to take a bit of a scenic route, and headed down Hwy. 259, through Daingerfield (hi Sherry!), over to Gilmer, turned onto 155 and caught 20 to bring us on home. We found a couple more caches in Daingerfield, and one was especially interesting. Remember the old drive-in theaters? One was hidden there, and it was so overgrown that it was practically invisible from the road. Indeed, had we not been looking for it, we'd have flown right on by. Here's the booth from days gone by where you'd stop to pay the entrance fee.

Here's the listing for the cache in case you're interested.

We also found a couple more in cemeteries along the way, and wherever people decided to hide them. Here's more info on geocaching.

Driving down Hwy 155, we came across some interesting names for streets. I have a feeling they were probably county roads that had been given regular names at some point, that happened to us when we lived in Burleson about 20 years ago. These were Snapdragon, Begonia, Nasturtium, and Periwinkle, as well as Iris, and Hydrangea. Really rather fitting in the country setting. This was on the stretch before we got to Gilmer.

Changing subjects, my vacation memory quilt is at the quilter's. Ty wasn't able to fit it into her schedule for several weeks, so my friend Linda has a friend who quilts. Linda recently completed her first t-shirt quilt, and took both hers and mine to her friend. I'm looking forward to getting it back. Be assured I'll have to post a picture of it when I can finally say it's complete.

Guess that's it for right now. Catch you later. : )

October has arrived

2010-10-07T21:53:00.000-05:00

It's the first week of October, so of course I have my latest package from my Secret Sister. Too cool! She pulled from her stash this month to help me out on making an I Spy quilt for the grandkids. She sent a wide variety of fq's, as well as packages of 3" and 5" squares already cut. How great is that?!? Believe me, it's a big help. She also tucked in a few books and some tea so I could just curl up on the couch and be cozy when it gets cold. Just another couple of months, and I'll know who she is.

Since I finished one of my ufo's last week, I pulled out my vacation quilt to see what kind of progress I can make on it. Here's a picture from early on in the idea process.

Here's a little further along (actually yesterday). In the process, some have been reduced, some eliminated, and others added.

I've now progressed to having the upper 2/3 sewn together. My shadow quilts seem to take a lot of manipulating to get them to fit. Somehow the pieces are never all the same size, probably because I pulled from a variety of sources...t-shirts, bandanas, and fabric, as well as a patch. Oh, and I printed some of my trip pictures onto fabric, which I was really pleased with. But it's coming along, as you see here.

I'd love to have the piecing finished this weekend. I should, unless life gets in the way. Once I'm satisfied, I'll send it to my friend Ty for her to do the quilting. I may have mentioned I want to do more of my own quilting, and I did on the last wallhanging, but anything bigger than a wallhanging is too cumbersome for me.

Another ufo getting closer to being a fo!

a link to our past

2010-10-06T09:47:00.003-05:00

I received this in an email, and while I don't forward a whole lot of things, I want to share this one. So many who fought in Vietnam were my generation. If you're like me, you have moved away from the area where you grew up, and may have lost touch. This is one way to check in.

Vietnam Wall

First click on a state. When it opens, scroll down to the city and the names will appear. Then click on their names. It should show you a picture of the person, or at least their bio and medals.

This really is an amazing web site. Someone spent a lot of time and effort to create it.

I hope that everyone who receives this appreciates what those who served in Vietnam sacrificed for our country.

The link below is a virtual wall of all those lost during the Vietnam war with the names, bio's and other information on our lost heroes. Those who remember that time frame, or perhaps lost friends or family can look them up on this site. Pass the link on to others, as many knew wonderful people whose names are listed.

http://www.virtualwall.org/iStates.htm

another ufo is now an fo

2010-10-02T20:22:00.000-05:00

On New Years Day there was a mystery quilt on the HGTV quilting forum, and I managed to get the top together. I didn't do it all in one day, and took my time, but eventually that part was finished. Then life got in the way and the mystery quilt got set to the side for several months. It rose to the surface again, and I was able to get it sandwiched in preparation for quilting. Then it only sat around for a month or so before I got to it again. I can justify part of that time because my sewing machine was in the shop getting cleaned and serviced. : )

But, finally, I sat myself in the chair and got busy. Well, during Elise's nap times anyway. And in the evenings. And whenever I could slip in the sewing room and stitch another few minutes away. This afternoon I finished the binding and the hanging sleeve, and wah-lah, here it is. A mystery no more!

she sings again...

2010-09-18T17:02:00.000-05:00

I picked up Mom's Singer from getting serviced yesterday. Since I had to cut the cord to the foot pedal to get it out of the cabinet, I knew it needed some electrical work, and he ended up completely rewiring it. There were visible wires, and it was just time. After all, it's been around since probably the mid to late forties.

The cabinet needed a bit of freshening up, so I sanded down the top a bit, and rubbed in some Old English. I wanted it to still show some age, not look pristine, and I think I got that. There's still some cleaning up to do in some areas, mainly the metal hinges, but for now I wanted to get the machine back in.

When I brought the stool in from the other room, inside were the manual, some extra feet, and the buttonhole attachment, along with the instructions for using the buttonholer.

I've got it in my sewing room, which I admit makes it a bit more crowded, but I'll shuffle some things around to make it work. Seems hard to believe that this is the machine I learned to sew on, oh so many years ago. Guess I've come full circle now.

And wah lah...another project I can check off my list!

fallen tree and witches...is there a connection?

2010-09-15T14:59:00.000-05:00

Into each life a little rain must fall. Okay, I understand that. But trees? That I can do without.

You may remember I had a new fence put in last Spring since the old one was getting decrepit and falling down. Chris did a good job on getting it in. Fast forward to last week, and David looked out to the back yard and told me that my neighbor's tree was down on my fence. Aargh. I hadn't gotten out in the yard much with all the heat we've had, so I don't know how long it had been that way, but sure enough, there it was. There is a blessing in that the fence was new, otherwise it would have toppled on over into the yard and possibly on the house. (I guess I'm basically a Pollyanna...try to find the bright side of everything.)

This is the beginning of the saga.

We didn't realize when Chris and his helper Terry dragged the limbs to the front that the trash company required them to be bundled. We did have them at decent lengths, pretty much about 4', but the trash man told me he couldn't pick them up that way. Robert came over this morning and we got probably a good half of the pile into bundles. David is coming over this evening and we'll get more of it knocked out. This is where we are at the half-way point.

That last picture is what we have bundled so far, and I admit it will be easier for them to pick up. Heck of a lot of work though.

On a happier note, I do have my sewing machine back from the repair shop. This was my first little project to work on, something I could finish pretty quick. I thought they were cute last year when I saw them on the HGTV forum, so here's my witch. It can go in either the kitchen or bathroom and be decorative for Halloween. I've given one to Liz, this will go to Robert's family. I think the kids will get a kick out of it.

My Singer is ready to be picked up, though it will probably be Friday before I make it over there. I'll have to sew something on it for old times' sake, since it's the one I learned to sew on.

So, back to the title...fallen tree and witches. Connection? Nah, but I had to come up with something!

this and that

2010-09-04T11:03:00.001-05:00

It's been a busy enough week, but can't say there was anything major going on. Well, I did make a run over to the municipal court in Venus to take care of my ticket. I chose the option of taking a defensive driving course, and the ticket won't go on my record. What's nice about this six hour course is that it can now be taken on the internet. Of the six hours, one is a one hour break, and I can do it at my leisure...15 minutes here, 12 minutes there, etc. I get something like three chances to take the tests. I've finished the first of three sections, and yes, I passed that test. One down, two to go. I'll probably finish that up this weekend. I've got until up in November, but I'd just as soon be done with it.

I took my sewing machine in to be serviced. I've had it just shy of a year, and when I bought it, part of the package was a free service and cleaning in the first year. It doesn't get real heavy duty use, but since I'm gearing up to do some fmq-ing (free motion quilting), I thought it would be nice to start out with everything tip-top. By the way, it is a nice little machine. And of course, since it's gone for a week or so, there are all kinds of projects that it would be nice to work on! Hope that enthusiasm is there when I get it back.

Since I was at the machine repair shop, I also took in Mom's Singer. It's the one I, as well as my sisters, learned to sew on. Dad always said Mom sewed many a mile on that thing, and he was right. There were 5 kids in our family, and for years she sewed all of the clothes for us girls, and I'm sure plenty of shirts for the boys. Plus all of the mending along the way, and she occasionally sewed for other people as well. When I got it, I decided I wanted to refinish the cabinet and it would be easier without the machine in it. I had to cut the cord to the foot pedal to get it out, so this visit to the repair shop is to get the cord re-attached. Turns out it needs rewired for the electrical plug anyway, and they'll do a service job on it so it will be running. The real trick will be getting it back in the cabinet, I don't know that they can make the foot pedal cord a plug-in. Wish me luck.

I got my September package from my secret sister. Woo hoo! With a seasons theme, I got a Debbie Mumm "Seasons" book; 2 packets of bulbs for the garden...one gladiolus and one fresias; 3 one yard cuts of fabric, and one that's 2.5 to 3 yards...spring bunnies, winter snowmen, and autumn leaves; 9 fq's, several are patriotic; a cute little tin of pins; a couple of puzzle books; and last but not least, Riesen chewy chocolate caramels. I still haven't figured out who she is, but truthfully I haven't tried too hard. The not knowing is part of the fun. :)

This morning it was nice and cool when I got up, so I headed over to the park and walked around the path. I know 1/2 mile isn't a whole lot, but I was proud that I got up and out to do it. Then I headed over to the grocery store to get that chore out of the way. As I was pulling out of the parking lot, Elizabeth called to see if I wanted to meet them at the park. Made me feel good to say I'd already been!

Here's a mommy-daughter picture of Elizabeth and Elise. I thought their matching outfits deserved to be remembered. :)

Last but certainly not least, happy birthday brother Carl!

Have a good week.

memorable day

2010-08-29T16:55:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I got my first ticket in years. Absolutely years. Sigh.

I was heading over to Nolene's, and turned off one of our side roads onto a good size road. I no sooner turned, than I saw these overhead lights flashing behind me. "I'm Officer so-and-so, and the reason I pulled you over is that you didn't come to a full and complete stop." I can remember preaching to my kids when they were early in their driving years, always come to a full and complete stop. So, I pull out my drivers license and proof of insurance, and he took them back to his patrol car. A few minutes later he returns with the citation, explaining the procedure for contacting the court and getting it taken care of. He was pleasant, I graciously accepted it, and went on my way.

This morning I was looking over the citation, and realized he may have a problem with his sight. He listed the color of my hair as "gry". I'm pretty sure that's short for gray, not groovy. I went to the mirror, and thought, I've got more brown in there than gray. If he's wrong about something like that when he can see it up close, could he be wrong about me not coming to a full and complete stop?

Well, I can dream. And no, there aren't any pictures with this posting. I didn't think it would be well received to jump out and take a picture.

shifting gears

2010-08-26T20:39:00.000-05:00

I shifted gears a bit on my Santa wall hanging shown in the previous posting. I decided the border was too scrappy to suit me, so I trimmed it up, and added another border. I'm actually working on three of them, so here they are at this point. The one with the single red border will be getting another border to go with it, just not sure what yet. Most likely I'll hand quilt the centers, and try my hand at machine quilting in the borders.

a busy weekend resting

2010-08-22T19:41:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure if retreats are about resting, or going into seclusion to get some work accomplished. Either way, I just attended a retreat in the Houston area, and it met both of these criteria.

There were 11 of us from the HGTV quilting and needlework forum who came together at the Quilter's Cabin. I've been on the forum a few years now, maybe even 4 or 5. As different ones post their questions or comments, you learn a bit about them and oftentimes their families. Because of this, I didn't walk into a room of strangers. While I didn't know them personally, and had only met a couple face-to-face, it didn't take long to establish a nice comfort level.

Quilter's Cabin provided a home atmosphere with sleeping for 12, a nice size kitchen for seating the whole group, and a workroom that easily accomodated our 11 quilters, their sewing machines, and their projects. And we did a lot of work!

Holee recently moved to Texas, so Lisa TX coordinated this retreat to welcome her to her new home. While most of us live in Texas, Jayardi and Shawkl joined us too. What a treat to form new friendships, and learn new techniques in quilting as well. There was a lot of knowledge and talent in that cabin. We got to try our hand at dying lace, beadwork, free motion quilting, crazy quilting, and other things I can't think of right now.

Here's Shawkl and Holee. Shawkl came all the way from Alabama to join us.

Here you can tell Jayardi, Keep You In Stitches, and Will Quilt for Chocolate are up to some mischief.

Sassy Needle Pusher was a day late in joining us, but she didn't waste any time in jumping in on a project.

Lisa TX stayed busy the whole time. Her she is working on dresses for her daughters.

Shawkl gave a class on dying lace. Look carefully and you'll see Needlecrazy in the yellow dress. I realized when I got home that I didn't get an individual picture of her. : (

Of course, there are always the rowdy ones in class. We'll excuse them though, they were having fun. ; )

Happy Erm stayed busy the whole time. She put together 2 quilt tops...one from black, white, and red strip blocks, and one from red, white, and blue strip blocks.

TX Wildflower was a fun addition to our group too. Besides doing her sewing, she fixed a delicious ham dinner along with mac and cheese, and a lemon cole slaw.

I'm proud to say that I also accomplished something. I've had a project on a Christmas wallhanging in mind for awhile. I've had the embroidery completed for some time, and this weekend was able to finish the border. Now all I have to do is the quilting, and my secret sis will have her December present. Yea! I also practiced free motion quilting. I'd been somewhat intimidated about it, but have a sense now that this is something I'll be able to do. I may even do some on this piece, we'll see.

The last bit of excitement at the cabin was a tree falling on Keep You In Stitches' car. It was not storming, the wind was not blowing, it was just time for that tree branch to fall 40 or 50 feet and bounce off of her suv. Fortunately, no one was around the car when it happened. She was able to drive it home today, so that was good.

I guess you've figured out by now that everyone on the HGTV boards have screen names. I'm elsie123.

I left this morning, and started the trip home. I took my time, and decided to stop in at the Huntsville State Park. I have a state park pass, it was right off the freeway, and I guess I just wanted to commune with nature. : ) Pretty park, and not too crowded...most likely because school is starting this week.

So, all in all, it was a good weekend. I just might have to retreat again someday.

a little change

2010-08-18T07:42:00.000-05:00

Life is about change, and we need to be flexible enough to recognize when changes need to be made and then make them. Obviously some changes are easier than others.

Take dietary changes for example. That one is hard. That requires much dedication and thought and commitment. A willingness to consciously make healthy choices.

Exercise. There's another toughie. Get up off the couch and move around. Doesn't sound so hard, but when you're entrenched in, ahem, let's just say "several" years of a sedentary lifestyle, incorporating movement into the normal routine is a challenge.

Comment moderation. Huh? Where did that come from? For some reason, I've started getting comments from some anonymous users that are not even relevant to the posting, and they are honing in on one or two of the older postings. I've never minded they idea of someone remaining anonymous, realizing that some people haven't figured out how to not be anonymous when they post, particularly if they don't have a blog. Anyway, this is an easy change to make. I have changed my comment modification to allow my review on comments made on postings over 14 days old.

That last one was easy enough to do. Maybe now I ought to work on the first two.

the heat goes on...

2010-08-09T08:56:00.000-05:00

We're still in the triple digits, but as long as I do most of my running around in the early hours things are good.

I finished the second of the James Bond series, From Russia With Love. Another one I'm pretty sure I didn't see as a kid. This one came out in '63 or '64, so I would have been about a freshman in high school. The movies are fun, and sometimes far-fetched, but probably not any more so than these current ones. I had to laugh when in one scene the old truck he was driving just missed an explosion and had dirt and smoke all over it, and in the next was shiny clean. I'm pretty sure he didn't run through a car wash as he was continuing his escape from the bad guys.

My vacation quilt is progressing. I haven't decided on the final layout yet, and still have a couple of shadows to put on, but it's coming along.

Robert had a birthday.

Happy birthday, son! And as I see what a loving dad you are, I know I did something right. :)

I missed getting a picture of him and the kids blowing out his candles, but did get one where they fell on the ground in their enthusiasm! Dare I show it? Ah, what the heck. Here it is.

Have a good week. And stay cool!

quilting and stuff

2010-07-31T10:29:00.002-05:00

I've gotten a decent start on my vacation quilt, having put the shadows on several squares. Need to cut a few more strips, so I'll do that today. I didn't get a memento from the Devil's Tower to sew into it when we were there, since we got to the park way early in the day. But...I called the Devil's Tower Trading Post, and ordered a bandana/handkerchief over the phone. Hope to get it in a day or two. And, I got in touch with the Ogallala, NE chamber of commerce, and I should have one of their t-shirts soon. That will probably about cover all that will be on there, unless I come up with something that just says Kansas to me. Might look out for a fq of wheat (that's a fat quarter for you non-quilters, which is an 18" x 22" piece of fabric). Or maybe I'll check in with the Concordia KS c of c. That was the neat little town that we stopped in on a whim.

And...I'm on my next Netflix dvd series. I decided that since the James Bond series of movies came out way back when, and I hadn't seen all of them, and I really like Sean Connery, that I'd watch them in order. I just finished Dr. No last night, which was the first one, made in 1962. I must say, while he was handsome and all that back then, I like him much better now. :) I liked the "action packed" adventure, though it's pretty tame compared to everything they pack in the movies these days. And remember how they showed the credits at the beginning of the show back then? Don't see that now. Oh no! Am I turning into an old person who's always saying "I remember back in the old days..."????? Ah well. At least I've got those years to remember!

too much time on my hands

2010-07-25T10:13:00.000-05:00

You've Got Mail has been one of my favorite movies for years. Hard to believe it was made in 1998, but then it's hard to believe how long a lot of other things have been around. Anyhow, I knew YGM was a re-make of another movie, but didn't think much about it. Then I came across something in Netflix, and I read that YGM was one of 2 re-makes. That got my curiosity up a bit, so I decided to watch the other two. Through Netflix, I can get one movie at a time, so I started with the first one.

The Shop Around the Corner was a charming little film, good characters, and I could see how YGM was a modified version of the original. I could even see how some of Meg Ryan's mannerisms were very similar to Margaret Sullivan. I really like Jimmy Stewart, so all together it was good.

In the Good Old Summertime came out in 1949 with Judy Garland and Van Johnson, and this version is a musical. Still good, and at that point a toss between the two on what I thought of them, leaning towards favoring the original .

I had YGM next on my queue, wanting to see them all in sequence. Well, while I liked the original just fine, I have to give You've Got Mail my nod for the best of the three. It may be a generational thing, but I prefer the modern day interpretation. And yes, even though I've watched it who knows how many times, I still had a few sniffles at the end. That's always a sign of a good movie!

Is this a sign that I don't have much of a life? Eh, maybe. But I must not be too worried about it, because I plan on seeing what other remakes are out there, and taking a look at them too!

lazy days of summer

2010-07-20T15:49:00.001-05:00

I have not been posting regularly, and the only thing I can blame it on...the lazy days of summer! As a first year retiree, I guess I'm just totally enjoying doing what I want to do when I want to do it. And if that means doing nothing...so be it!

I went with Robert and his family to the coast last week. They love it there, and this was my second time to tag along. So nice...the surf, the sand, the eating.

Here are a few pics, and I'll save the best for last. wink These were taken at Padre Island.

And here it is...hard to go to the beach and not show a bit of skin...be sure to close your eyes if you're easily offended.

Have a good week...and wish me luck at tonight's bingo!

Whew!

2010-07-08T16:36:00.000-05:00

Elizabeth and David returned from their Tahoe trip, so Elise's first sleepover x 3 nights has finished up. She did really well. Of course, she's used to the crib over here since I watched her in the spring.

Back in the spring, I could plop her down on a quilt in the living room, put a few toys around here, and she was a happy little camper. Now that she's mobile and crawling wherever she wants to go, forget her activites being confined to such a small space. She plays with more toys in a broader area. This pic was probably taken at the end of the day, shortly after she went to bed for the night. Or it could have been when she was down for her nap. Either way, I went through and picked up toys several times a day! But that's okay, she had fun.

She doesn't pull up on her own to a standing position yet, but I think she's working on it. She gets in this position, holds it for a bit, and plops back down again. This was actually taken a couple of weeks ago.

I can't say I've done a lot of sewing this month, but here's my latest project. Strawberry Shortcake needed a new dress. I made this pattern close to probably 25-28 years ago, and it was still in it's envelope in the sewing machine cabinet. I think I probably should have allowed extra for seam allowances, but it fits ok. I have another one cut out a little bigger and will use whichever works better. The doll in the picture was Elizabeth's original SS. The replacement doll (no haircut) is at Elizabeth's house, and this dress is for that doll. I mentioned Strawberry's haircut adventure here, if you're interested.

And I got my secret sister gift for July in the mail today. My BSS does a great job and puts thought into her packages. This month I have a kit for a table runner, with the pieces already cut to size, and some red, white, and blue fabric. She included a tumbler template too (how's that for alliteration), and I might use it with the rw&b pieces.

That's it for now. :) Don't get too hot!

Shoshone Falls comparison

2010-06-29T05:31:00.000-05:00

In the previous post there was a picture of the Shoshone Falls in Idaho. Carl sent me this picture from April 2009 so I could see the difference from how low it is now. I thought it looked great as I saw it, but have to admit that when it's running full would be spectacular.

I picked up the background material yesterday for my vacation quilt. It's from Hobby Lobby, and has the feel of a topographical map, which I thought was appropriate since I saw a wide variance in topography between the Moab Arches and the Grand Canyon. I had used a small piece in John and Bonnie's quilt to represent the San Andreas Fault in California, (just above and to her right of her knee in the picture, diagonal from Edwards AFB) and when I saw the bolt knew I had to have it for this project. I may come back and edit this to show a picture, but that will be after daylight comes. I also got some of the fusible interfacing for the t-shirts that will be on it. The design will be the shadows, very similar to Ashley's quilt from a year and half ago.

I made a start on a cq challenge using a tea cup panel. We were provided with the panel, about 5-6" square, 2 pieces of fabric to incorporate into it, two pieces of embroidery floss, a bit of lace, and 2 charms. Can't show a picture yet because it will be voted on anonymously, but hopefully it will do okay. I haven't yet finished piecing it, though I've made progress. I'd like to take it with me when I go with Robert's family to the beach in a couple of weeks, maybe I can get a few stitches in on the drive down there.

That's it for now. Time to get some breakfast and start the day...or maybe go back to bed because it's so stinkin' early.

Elsie's great adventure...still

2010-06-19T21:47:00.003-05:00

We had a nice stop-over in Boise, and Carl was able to get some of his honey-do list done. He mowed the lawn, got his hair cut, helped me find a couple of caches so I could drop off Nolene's travel bug Sabrina. I got the oil changed in the car, and picked up a few t-shirts for my vacation quilt that's in the works. Oh, and we helped Billie put together a jigsaw puzzle of Mt. Rushmore. (She did the biggest part, but I'll still take a bit of credit!)

As we started back out on the great adventure, we included a swing by the Shoshone Falls, just a few hours from Boise. Carl said the water was low, but it was still impressive. No doubt about it, anywhere you go in this great country you'll find lots of natural beauty.

From there we headed on down the road to the Moab Arches National Park. Well, we did stop for a cache but that was a nice surprise...because of it we entered Moab through a scenic route. All along the way there were turnouts on the road so we could take pictures...many every bit as impressive as those in the park. Makes sense, doesn't it? I mean, it's not like boundaries are drawn for the park and it's all-inclusive of the grandeur. These next pictures were inside the park.

Oh, and I picked up a Moab bandana for my vacation quilt at Moab. Starting to get a nice collection. I may have to do some scouting around for Mt. Rushmore since the quilt idea hadn't gelled when we visited there.
.

From Moab we headed to the Grand Canyon. On the drive to the East entrance, we pulled into a scenic overlook that was actually run by an Indian tribe...I think the Navajo. They had vendors selling jewelry and pottery, and you walked through them to get to the view. And what a view! The rails were stable enough, but I made sure to watch my step and not slip on the loose rock. It was a simple railing and the underside was open. When you look over the side, its an immediate drop off. My first taste of the magnitude of what I'd be seeing.

I'm sorry to say, before very long the height or depth started to get to me. I found I couldn't look for a great length of time. And seeing how some people would step out on the rocks a bit, on the other side of the railing...well, suffice it to say they were far braver than I. It was definitely a worthy destination, but I think I liked the Moab Arches better. And yes, I got a Grand Canyon bandana too.

We've moved on to Gallup, New Mexico, our stop for the night. We went in to town for supper, and stopped at a local restaurant, Earl's, located on the historic Route 66. We figured all the cars and pickup trucks in the parking lot were a good indication of the quality of food, and it was. The place was packed, it had a wide variety of food, and tasted really good. In fact, I'd say it could easily be a feature on Guy Fieti's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network.

That's it for now. Almost able to slide into home base, and the great adventure is winding down.

On through Yellowstone

2010-06-14T17:57:00.000-05:00

From Devil's Tower, we headed across Wyoming to Cody. I was particularly impressed with all the wildlife on the open range. Lots of deer and antelope. There were lots of snowbreaks too. I'm sure they need them.

The best and worst part of the trip was going over the range of mountains. We got up to about 8800 feet elevation, doing the hairpin turns all the way up. The views were beautiful, but I'll have to admit to some trepidation near the top until we got down the other side.

Cody is a nice size town, close to 9000 population. They had another nice KOA, though not a match for the scenic appeal of Devils Tower.

We made it to Yellowstone National Park bright and early, while the crowds were light. I fell in love with the place. Everything was so natural, and plenty of turn outs for observation. Turn your head to the right, there's water streaming through the crevices off the mountain. Turn to the left and there's apt to be a bison, or deer. My very favorite thing was an early morning treasure of seeing a momma moose with her little one trailing behind her, getting a drink at a stream. My thoughts are that the little one couldn't have been more than 2 or 3 weeks old. That was the only moose-sighting, but pretty special. Sorry to say, didn't see any bears. There were lots of bison. We'd see anywhere from one or two at a time, to 20 or 30 grazing together. Plenty of room to pull over and take pictures, though getting out of the car is discouraged.

As we rounded one curve, it was fun to see a bison walking down the opposite lane of the road...with a bus and about 6 or 7 cars trailing behind.

We saw the upper and lower falls, and Artists Point, and the mud volcanoes. I didn't realize, having never really read up on Yellowstone, but it pretty much sits on top of a huge volcano. All kinds of geological activity has occurred there over the years...and we're talking lots of years. They estimate in the millions of years on about all of the formations.

The other impressive thing...it's so clean. Everyone is very respectful of the site, and you don't see a speck of litter.

Of course, you don't go to Yellowstone without seeing Old Faithful. We had to wait a bit, as it had just let off steam, so we had a seat at the visitor's center. There are benches all around the area in front of the geyser, but we figured we could see just as well where we were, and it was more comfortable. During the interval, there's a constant small release of steam from it, as well as several other smaller geysers. We had to chuckle when Old Faithful blew, and all the steam drifted in the breeze right across the crowd at the far end and they all took off running...they should have had a clue from the steam that was already spewing!

Feel free to click on any of the pics to enlarge. The geyser is a bit blurred, but you'll get the idea.

We've taken a break in Boise for a bit so Carl can mow the yard and take care of a few chores, but I'll be back. That's it for now!

On down the road

2010-06-13T14:33:00.001-05:00

I think my last posting was Nebraska. I enjoyed Nebraska, but sorry to say it has the memory that caused the most hurt. As we were packing up to leave the KOA site in Grand Island, I drained the ice chest. In the process, I ducked around to the side of the porch to make sure it was positioned right, and I raised my head up and hit the corner flashing. Came pretty close to saying some not so pretty words, let me tell you. I didn't have the presence of mind to reach for the camera, or I would show you a picture of one of my hairs blowing in the breeze while attached to that flashing. Anyway, I've got one little souvenier of Nebraska that if I ever shave or lose my hair will be visible forever, I'm sure.

Going across Nebraska, I thought of my friend Keith and had to text him that we were passing through Keith County. One of the roadside signs mentioned Boot Hill at the next exit, so we took off to see it. This is in Ogallala. The commemorative marker said mostly they were the "bad guys".

The next day was a long one driving, so no geocaches. We made it into South Dakota, and got to see Mt. Rushmore. Seeing it up close and in person really makes one appreciate the efforts that went into the finished sculpture. And I didn't realize that it came about because a politician on the state level wanted to have an attraction to bring people to the state, along with their money. When you think about the dangers these workers faced, without all the safety regulations and modern machinery in place today, it's a wonder.

We also took a walk around Keystone while waiting on the 1880's train. A tourist town for sure, but in a pretty setting.

The 1880's train was a really nice scenic ride. And the price couldn't be beat at $22 for the 3 hour excursion. I think the grandkids would get a kick out of it, but don't know how well they'd handle the drive to get up here. Maybe in a couple of years. I thought it interesting that the attendants on the train also worked the snack stand at the half-way point. No idle time for them!

While in a train station gift shop, I picked up a bandana with the name of the train ride. I've decided to make a vacation quilt with squares representing different spots along the way. Unfortunately, I didn't get anything with Mt. Rushmore on it. It's doubtful I'll see anything now, since I'm on down the road, but I may find something on-line that will work.

From South Dakota we headed up to the Devil's Tower in Wyoming. I'd never really heard about it, but I'm so glad we went. The countryside is beautiful, and a sight to see. Well worth the drive. I have to wonder how people live up here in the winter, but I'm sure they're suited for it.

The KOA we stayed in for the Devil's Tower was an older one, but one of the most picturesque. The cabins were spaced well apart, and we had a small stream running just a short distance away. On the other side the deer would be grazing. When I made my nightly jaunt to the restroom (2:30 in the morning), I knew I wanted to drive the short distance. We were definitely in a natural setting, and who knew what might be out and about. Sure enough, as I turned on the car to return to the cabin, and the lights flashed into the open area, there were 2 deer just a stone's throw away. Fantastic.

Guess that's it for now. We'll say this is "to be continued"!

it's the journey...

2010-06-10T20:13:00.002-05:00

I recently embarked on a journey with my brother Carl. Thought I'd share a few things about the trip. This is a stop and see whatever we want to see on the way to our destination type trip. And we have done some stopping!

We stopped in Addington, OK, where there were some really neat wood carvings on display outside an antique store. It's a good thing they were too big for the car...they were priced from $1800-2400.

We're incorporating some geocaching into the trip, and found a couple of caches in Hennessey, OK. I couldn't find my handheld GPS early in the day, but it showed up in time for the hunt. There were a couple we couldn't find, one because I had sandals on and didn't want to step off the beaten path, and one because of muggles. I've mentioned this before, I'm sure, but as a refresher, muggles are people who could be watching you find the geocache not knowing what the sport entails. We don't want them messing with the caches.

We're staying in KOA's along the way. I was really impressed with Wellington, KS. We had bath and shower in the cabin! Most of the KOAs cabins are situated close to bath and shower facilities, so it's not bad, but in-house was nice. The weather came through while we were sleeping, and it romped and stomped. Thought I heard hail, but didn't see damage on my car. We left early in the morning, and only left the food in the refrigerator and a lamp we took along. They were nice to call about it, but we were too far along to go back so told them to do with it as they will.

Those Kansas wheat fields are spectacular...and so many of them. Sure makes you aware of "the amber waves of grain" in God Bless America.

As we drove along, we noticed some of the big wind turbines in the distance. When we got closer, we took off down the nice dirt road about a mile or so, and got a closer look. So peaceful...a horse grazing in a pasture, and nothing but the breeze in the wheat.

Once nice thing about geocaching is that it gives you a reason to get off the beaten path and see some small little towns with a lot of charm. Belvedere, NE is one of them. We picked up a cache outside the 49er Museum, one in a nice little park, and the last in a local cemetery. As I commented when I logged the cemetery find, I would imagine that Rosa Schulte had no idea she'd get so many visitors over a hundred years later.

That's it for now. I'll add more later.

possible "arrrrgh" should be okay

2010-06-03T20:58:00.000-05:00

You know how it is. Frustration comes along occasionally.

Sometime back I started a reupholstery project. I found a nice little glider rocker with fabric from about the 60's at a garage sale a couple of years ago. Then after I moved here, I finally put it on a table and got started on it. I stripped it down to the frame, then things got busy and it was put in the garage.

Recently I decided to have a go at it again, and it's back up on a table in the garage.

I've put some foam on the bottom seat section. Couldn't find upholstery batting, so I went with cotton quilt batting. Then I thought it could use another coat of stain. Since I had the color that was probably originally used, I put it on, not considering that it's a stain and polyurethane all in one. It looks good, but now I wonder if I should have used the polyurethane. I'm sure I'll go ahead and finish it as is, but I wish I had just stained. That's where the "possible arrrgh" comes in. Ah well. David and Nolene each think it will do fine, and I think so too.

I've picked up a book to refresh my memory on what to do. (I have only reupholstered 2 or 3 chairs over that last 15 years.) And this weekend I got the fabric. Since I'm going on vacation shortly, I'm sure it will wait till afterwards, but I'm excited to see how it comes out. Wish me luck! (oops! Just re-read the earlier post, and see that I've already bought fabric for it! That's what I get for waiting so long, now to find the first fabric and see which I prefer. This is why I shouldn't take so long to finish my projects!)

Vacation, you say? Yep, brother Carl has flown in, and in a few days we'll pull out on our journey. Up to Mt. Rushmore, over to Yellowstone (I keep wanting to say Jellystone), into Boise to rest up a few days, then down thru the Grand Canyon, and a National Park or two. I think Nolene and John are making bets about how long I'll be gone. We'll see who wins. :)

Here's a picture of my chaste tree in the front yard. I'm glad it's bloomed before vacation so I can enjoy the blooms. Pretty isn't it?

That's it for now. :)

weekend

2010-05-23T08:34:00.000-05:00

I went to a few garage sales yesterday morning, picking up a few little items but nothing really special...a couple of books, some Disney Princess things for Ashlynn, some wooden puzzles for the kids. Then yesterday afternoon, about 3:00, I was on my way home from running a few errands and decided to take a different way home since there was a long line at the red light. I came across a garage sale sign, and decided on a whim to swing by and see if they were still open. They were.

Being that late in the day, I didn't expect to find a lot, and sure enough, there were "slim pickins". I asked the woman if she happened to have any fabric, and no, she did not. We talked, and she mentioned she didn't sew, but she did do crafts. I told her I liked to quilt, but wasn't into sewing clothes. One thing led to another, and she mentioned she had her grandmother's sewing machine in the house, just hadn't wanted to drag it out because it was so heavy. I asked if it was a Singer, and yes, it was. A treadle machine, and she said it still works. $35. She led me into the house to look at it, and even with my sunglasses on in a dark room, I told her I'd take it.

I've not seen a base like this one before. They're metal legs, and by the looks of it, I'd say they're original. In checking the serial number on the Singer website, the machine was manufactured in 1936.

I'll clean it up and see if I can work it, just for grins. But if I'm doing this one, I have another that I've got to pay attention to. John and Bonnie brought me Mom's old Singer when they moved out here a few years ago, and it's on my list to re-finish that cabinet and get it in the house. That machine has special meaning, since it's the one I learned to sew on. I have a feeling that both of these projects will move to the top of my list after I return from my vacation in June.

And with summer coming on, I won't be watching the grandkids on a regular basis. Elise has been Monday-Friday, and Rhett and Ashlynn on Mondays. I have a feeling though that I'll still see them pretty often. ;)

That's it for now.

here it is, in black and white

2010-05-15T22:22:00.005-05:00

Here's my finished top for the black and white quilt...and the accent color is blue! I'll be sending it to my friend Ty to quilt on her long-arm.

to tote, or not to tote

2010-05-13T13:01:00.003-05:00

My black and white quilt is coming along quite well. I'm actually putting on my first border! Pictures will come in a day or two.

In the meantime, I had some blocks left, so decided to make a tote. The intentions are to use it for shopping...gotta keep it green you know. See what you think:

Elizabeth thought it might be a bit small for groceries. Actually I think it will work fine, especially if I have several this size. Some of my others are so big they get quite heavy, and the bread has been squished. This should be manageable.

Just think, I'll be stylin' in the grocery store!

option 3, and that time of the month

2010-05-05T16:11:00.006-05:00

I'm still plugging along on my black and white quilt, the one using half-square triangles. As I mentioned earlier, I have options on how to lay it out. I've made some more blocks, and here's a third design. After I thought I was so smart to come up with all of this, I noticed in the back of the book that they showed different layouts and lo and behold, my 2 optional layouts were among them. Ah well, so much for creativity.

As far as "that time of the month", my secret sister swap package came in the mail today! She really is good to me...along with a nice Mother's Day card, she sent 2 quilting magazines (one from 2007, one from 2008, and both new to me!), 2 one-yard cuts of floral fabric that are predominantly lavender, soft cushioned scissors, 2 patterns for turning sweatshirts into jackets, and some cq goodies...ribbon, trim, beads, floss, fabric. Thanks, secret sis!

as the worm turns

2010-04-30T07:17:00.004-05:00

You know, I kind of hoped that time would slow down a bit with retirement. Not so. Time still flies, but it is a lot more enjoyable.

I've been working in the yard (I just read an earlier post from January, and I did mention that as one of my intentions for the year), though the digging in the clay part is getting old. There are times I do miss the soil of my old place in Burleson. Sigh. There's something therapeutic about digging in the dirt, isn't there? This week I've put in a few perennial plants, a pittsporin, a couple of hens and chicks, three sweet broom bushes, and a hosta. A couple of weeks ago I recycled an oleander Nolene had pulled up, and put it in my back yard. I also have tried digging up and planting an off-shoot from a crape myrtle. Don't know how that one will do.

And I found worms while digging! I hadn't really thought about it, but there's a whole subterranian level of life. If you're going fishing, you can come turn some soil for me and keep whatever worms you find!

road trip

2010-04-21T20:15:00.002-05:00

Nolene and I hit the road on Sunday for a quick trip to see Sister Sue and family in Arkansas. We got home yesterday afternoon, and a good time was had by all.

We managed to get in some geocaching. Nolene and I picked up a couple of caches at a roadside rest on the way. Virgil has just recently gotten started, so we helped him hide a cache as well as we found a few. Sue's knee was giving her problems, so she didn't make it out with us, but we had a good time.

Troy's out and about on his wheelchair tending the lawn, despite having been in the hospital recently. But his lawn is looking really good...wish mine was doing that well. This is nothing new, he takes great care of it. And he doesn't let being in a wheelchair get in his way... he's been known to push the lawn mower with one hand, and steer the chair with the other. He's had a riding mower for awhile now, so that's not an issue anymore. :)

On the way home, we decided to take a scenic route rather than head straight in to Dallas. We got off on 259 to head over to Longview, then before we got there, took off on 154 to 155 through Gilmer and Winona to bring us out on I20 a little closer. I've got to make that leg of the journey again, it was so scenic. And full of history too. We stopped at 2 historical markers along the road, and would have stopped at more but Nolene was in a hurry to get to some facilities, if you know what I mean. I bet we passed at least 10 markers on that 20-30 mile stretch, and I'd like to go back and take a look at them.

I've discovered I'm feeling aches in places I didn't know could ache. I've been putzing around in the yard, and dug holes in the clay to plant a few things, along with pulling some weeds. Guess I'm starting to get a bit older, the way I hobble. You know, Sally Fields has been doing a commercial for Boniva. She's about my age, and as I see her sitting on the pier with her feet dangling, I find myself wondering how she does on getting up. They don't show that part. Does she have to hold onto something to get herself into a standing position? On the rare occasion I find myself flat on the ground with nothing to hold onto, it's not a pretty sight to see me rolling over onto my knees and trying to appear nonchalant while I get up.

Ah well, such is life.