What I have been doing

I haven't felt too creative lately so I have been making cushions to take to the animal shelter. I was given some used drapes by someone who thought I could use the fabric for quilts, but I wasn't too sure of the content and frankly, didn't really like it much. The dark fabric was the lining and was pretty faded, but when I used the back, it was fine. HRH had found a few, well, many, bags of fiber fill in the garage that someone also gave me to use in quilts thinking it was batting. I had plenty of that and fabric bits that I trim and put in an old crock until I get enough I use them for dog beds too. So I accomplished a few things, cleaned up things I don't need. made HRH happy to get the stuff out of the garage and I'm sure the pets at the shelter will be happy and at 18 degrees F today perhaps a little warmer.

We are about as boring as a cabbage most of the time and New Year's Eve is one where we really shine in the boring department. We will probably watch movies and maybe see the new year in, probably not. I figure it won't look much different the next day. I hope it has been a good year for you and that 2011 will be even better.

Happy New Year

Carline

One more in the can..so to speak

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas. Ours...well, it was just the two of us and we only heard from one of our three sons which was rather disappointing but I have to suck it up and go on. We had a nice ham dinner and watched Marley and Me and both HRH and I cried like babies at the ending. I read the book, but forgot how sad it was and Maggie laying with her head on my lap, didn't help. It was nice to have a quiet day actually. No mad dash to clean and get ready for a big dinner or get the packages wrapped. We just rested, read and watched Christmas movies after Marley.

Speaking of HRH, he got me a new Droid phone for Christmas and I am having quite a time even making a phone call. Steep learning curve. I have always said "I don't want to do anything with my phone but make or take calls" Someone wasn't listening! I haven't had my number switched yet so until tomorrow, I can still use my old one. I will make a trip in to the Verizon store then and hopefully have the nice young man teach me how to use this and perhaps I can even talk them into showing me how to hook up my built in blue tooth in my car. To be helpful, hubby had the store load all of his 233 phone numbers into my phone. I don't want his choice of numbers and will have the nice man at the store remove them too. I'm not quite sure why he thought that would be helpful to me. Oh Well. I did find out how to text so my grandson and I can communicate!

Truth be known, I'd much rather use my time learning a new quilting technique.

I'm not setting resolutions this year but will have a few goals to shoot for. How about you?

Baby gift finished

I finally finished an afghan I have been working on for a long while. I like to have something to do with my hands when I'm sitting watching TV. This is a checkerboard pattern and made with the softest of yarns. A young mom at church had a new baby and had also lost her mom this past year so I wanted to do something special for her and didn't have the time to make a quilt. I hope she likes it. I took it to her and she wanted to wait until Christmas to open it. A lady at the Assisted Living Facility where I used to work showed me this pattern, just alternate 5 stitches of knit, and 5 purls by 5 rows, then purl on the knit and knit on the purl for 5 more rows. Really fast and you can make any number of rows if you want the checkerboards a little bigger. I don't knit very often so like something simple. I have a book of knit stitches that shows squares of each pattern, I think they are 18" finished. Then you sew or knit them together to make a sampler quilt of sorts. I may tackle this in the new year, but I'm not sure yet.

I hope all of you have a very Merry Christmas. Enjoy your families if they are close. Ours are not so we are by ourselves on Christmas. We are having a couple of orphans (neighbors) over for Christmas Eve for dinner and that is about it for the celebrating.

Baking like a mad women

I have been baking for days and the kitchen looks like it too...what a mess! I hope to finish up today and get my cookie plates made up for friends and neighbors. I love to bake and at this time of year I have a good reason. Usually I just bake and HRH eats it or I share with an elderly couple I know, this time the sharing goes a bit farther.

I made this pie for a Christmas party at church and it went like wildfire. I even saw an older man using a spoon to get the last of it out of the pan and it was just scraps. I love coconut cream pie, just like my dad did and because I am trying to lose weight (down 30 pounds), I didn't do anything but taste the filling when I was making it.

I have made about 5 or 6 batches of cookies which include: chocolate crinkles, thumbprint cookies with raspberry jam from our garden. (Actually only the raspberries are from the garden, I only wish I could go out and pick jars of jam already made). I also made butterscotch pecan cookies which I still have to frost, maple coconut bars and some little fussy ones dipped in chocolate and chopped nuts. In the middle of all this HRH wanted to make something for his company potluck, he wanted baked beans, so I coached him and he made the biggest pot of baked beans I have ever seen and only about half of them fit in my large crockpot. I found beans splashed everywhere, even on my toaster oven which is beside the stove. I'm glad he doesn't cook but once a year, my kitchen would never make it out in one piece.

All in all, it's been fun but I will be glad to get the kitchen back in some kind of order.

I hope you are all having fun and not too stressed out preparing for Christmas. Enjoy and remember the reason for the season.

Latest project

This has been a year long project with a local quilt shop, Quilting Delights. We made several blocks per month and the large center medallion, called dream catcher was a single month block. The fabrics were Hoffman Batiks although they don't show well in this picture. The quilt is 107" sq. and I had to wait until I had company to get help taking a picture and as you can see, it isn't a very good one. There was no place to lay it out and it was too big for us to hold up high enough. I didn't notice the bottom corner until I uploaded and saw it...too late to retake. Oh Well, you can see enough. I am glad to say that the top is finished and I will have it machine quilted after the holidays. I want custom work done and I know it won't be cheap! I worked too hard on it to use a panto as there are lots of beige background that will lend itself to some nice feathers or something of the sort. I got the name of a good machine quilter from my bosses wife as I have seen the work of a few wall hangings in the clinic. I promise to get a better picture when it is finished.

The kick off

I kicked off the Christmas season with an ornament exchange party that I was invited to. We were all asked to bring a snack food and a wrapped ornament. We drew numbers and opened one at a time. After the first one was opened, we could either open another one when our number came up or steal one of the others that had already been opened. I brought the silliest glass cow that had a tutu on made of soft marabou feathers. We all got a laugh out of that and it was quite a popular "steal" item. We had a lot of fun and I didn't eat too much. I'm still losing weight even with Thanksgiving.

This weekend was a weekend of must do's I finished my giant block of the month quilt top and got the binding done, I altered a skirt and pair of pants to keep up with my aforementioned weight loss, I sewed down the binding on a friend's quilt since she hates to do that and I finished a fleece quilt for another friend who was struggling with it on an ancient machine. THEN, I did my least favorite thing to do and that is yard work. I trimmed 24 roses, raked leaves and put down 8 garden wagon loads of bark. I was one sore puppy this morning and noticed a few muscles I wasn't aware that I had (and wish I didn't at this point). I actually worked for 3 hours without stopping and felt like I really accomplished something. Back to work tomorrow so I can rest!

The Saturday highlight was the televised football game between the University of Oregon and Oregon State. I went to OSU, but lived in Eugene where the U of O is for most of my life,and our son went to the U of O. So it was a great game for both HRH and me. I always root for OSU, but U of O had a chance at the championship so I was kind of glad they won. (don't tell hubby though).

I hope all of you are gearing up but still leaving room to enjoy Christmas and to remember why we celebrate. Slow down and enjoy it.

Remember when your skin was too tight to do anything fun with?

Isn't this a hoot. I got this card and many others for my birthday this week. I got to celebrate not only my birthday, but Thanksgiving as well. When I was a kid I usually didn't have a birthday cake, but someone would stick candles in a pumpkin pie and call it good. I DID have a wonderful bakery cake on my 10th birthday and I remember a sheet cake with a small doll standing in the top left corner. I have remembered that cake for many years. I also had a 40th cake. This year since I am on weight watchers, I was glad for no cake. HRH did get me a wonderful new large cutting mat though and I love it. I had my old one on the kitchen island and he just slipped the new one over it and waited for me to notice. What I did notice right away was the smell. It had a slight skunky smell and I looked everywhere to see if that darned cat had brought a skunk in. It really wasn't strong enough for that so I kept looking, then I noticed markings on the mat that my old one didn't have and sure enough, that was the smell. I remember now that my old one (15 plus years old) smelled funny when I got it. I have to be glad that I made that one last so long. It had started cracking on the edges and even gorilla glue didn't work and the lines were non existent in places.

My co-workers also gave me lovely gifts, a plant I had been admiring on our walks and hand and foot cream, flavored olive oil for dipping and a plate of yummy brownies that I had a bite of and shared the rest with HRH which pleased him.

Thanksgiving was nice, just our grandson and his dad and his girlfriend and I even had help from hubby doing dishes. I am so thankful for friends and family and the temporal blessings we have been afforded. I am thankful for religious freedom and the other blessings living in this country have allowed me. How about you? What are you thankful for?

Happy birthday baby

Our new great nephew was born today and is a little one! 6.# 19.5 inches. Proud parents were at the hospital when he was born and are staying there tonight, feeding and holding him. We aren't sure when the adoption papers will be signed and they will be allowed to take him back home, but I pray everything goes ok with that. They met the mother and it looks ok.

This quilt was so much fun to make, I'm sorry the picture is so bad, you can't see the fun conversation prints and can hardly make out the star points. We had to run outside between rain showers (downpour really) to get the picture. If you look at the top left of the quilt and see that second row bright blue hexagon, you can kind of see the star that surrounds it. Now to get a label on it and get it sent to Alaska.

Weight Loss

I've been on Weight Watchers now for 5 weeks and lost 6 pounds. I'm having a fairly easy time of it except I usually have points left in the evening when I really don't want to eat anymore. I save them all day it seems so I can have a decent dinner. I need to balance it out a bit more. I was thinking that 6 pounds was nothing then when HRH and I were at the grocery store, I started looking for things that weighed about 6 pounds. I picked up 2 chickens and kind of held one in each hand at chest height and said "what do you think"? I didn't notice the man across from me looking kind of funny at me over his glasses. Yep two chickens were just over 6 pounds. Then I went to the butter isle and two of those big tubs of soft margarine and one small one came to 6 pounds and that really looked and felt like a lot. Then I picked up 6 pounds of butter and showed them to hubby at the same time that I dropped all 6 cartons of butter, then I looked up and the same man was staring at me, he then said, What are you trying to do, butter him up? I tried to explain that I was trying to visualize what 6 pounds would look like. Hubby was rather embarrassed to be with me then told me I was bouncing the items in front of my boobs and it did look rather funny. OK enough, until I got home and saw a brick laying loose and holding some plastic down. "How much do you think this brick weighs, I asked"? He just shook his head and went in the house. Anyway, I don't feel so bad at only losing 6 pounds, it looks like a lot when it's in butter or fleshy chickens.

I had a busy week, sewing (the favorite part), cleaning, running errands, working, visiting a sick friend in a nursing home, reading, cooking. Whew! Sometimes at the end of a week, I look around me and it seems like I haven't accomplished a thing. In looking back over the week, however, there are lots of things I can check off my "list".

I picked up my I Spy quilt from the quilter (I'll post later when I can get HRH to hold it while I take a pic). I really like how it turned out and want to make another one. I have enough conversation prints to do another and can also see that one made in softer colors, like perhaps 30's prints with greens for the star points.

I had my last quilt block of the month ($5.0o quilt) class. This month we had 8 setting blocks to make and they were boring to make. Again, picture to follow. Now I have to get this quilt together as there will be a drawing for a sewing machine for all the finished quilts. Talk about incentive to finish! Yup, I will make it. It has a large center block and 36 other blocks. This is the quilt that I showed blocks in a prior blog.

Now, on to the other fun thing I got to do. A small, quilt show. A friend called me from a quilt show and said, "you've got to get down here". So being a good friend, I got in the car and was glad I did. It was a small show, but a good one. Here are a few of the quilts featured. I would like to make one of those Christmas Tree quilts, does anyone have clues as to the pattern and availability?

A finish!

I love Fall and the colors and crisp days. I decided this year to finish a quilt from a block swap I did over 6 years ago. It was quick and although some of the blocks weren't perfect and a few of the points were cut off in seam allowances, I figured that the love that went into a friend's swap made up for it.

I have about 12 blocks left and am not sure what they will become yet. A table runner, a lap quilt, a twin sized quilt if I use sashings. Who knows? This past year I have really been trying to finish a few of those UFO's that have been languishing in pretty boxes. I get those photo type boxes, only larger, and put all of my UFO's in them and label them so I know what is inside. At least I know where they are and can pick one and work on it when I have time. It's made a difference in them getting lost and never finished or perhaps getting some Sew time after all.

Not too exciting

It's been pretty dull around here this last few weeks, but sometimes, dull is ok. I am enjoying the fall colors, (it's my favorite season) The days are in the high 60's, low 70's and the nights are cool.

I have been doing mundane things like grocery shopping, cleaning, laundry and working. While I was in Costco yesterday, I became really annoyed to people standing in the middle of the isles talking on cell phones, or walking, trying to push a basket, talk on a phone and choose an item. It didn't happen once, but many times. COME ON PEOPLE! I have answered the phone in the store too and from now on, I will wait if there are a lot of people around. People usually talk so loud, you'd think they were on a can and string and some of the conversations (most) I don't want to hear. Ok, I've had my rant.

I think the reason I'm a bit crabby is that I've started Weight Watchers and food is no longer used to soothe the moods! Do any of you find that you do that. I weighed in for my third time and have lost 4 lbs. I know it's not much, but I got 4 packages of margarine out and hefted them and it's significant. I think I've lost in my fingers and wrists and face though. I have the biggest (other parts) and I lose in my fingers. GEECH! I guess I will eventually lose in the important parts, but for now fingers will have to do. I work them to the bone, it might as well look like it.

Make it a great day.

I spy top finished

I finished the top of the I Spy quilt last night. It was hard to decide what to use because the quilt itself is so very busy. I decided to frame it with a 1/2 " border, then just use the same red as the star points. It was a real fun quilt to make. I had planned on going to Fabric Depot in Portland today because they are having a 35% off sale of quilting fabrics, but I went online instead and found a red children's print and ordered it. That freed up a day for me.

I have to work tomorrow as it's my Saturday to work. I don't know why I hate it so when I only have to work every other one, but I always dread it. I need an attitude change, I think.

I Spy

I am making a baby quilt for our nephew's expected adoption in November. They are having a boy and are so thrilled. This quilt is so much fun to make. First, I collected conversation prints for over two years, all children's prints. Then cut the 6" pieces into hexigons 1st picture. Then cut and sew triangles to 2 of the sides of the hexigons. The next step is to sew them into rows. Then the rows are sewn together, stars form from the red triangles. This is as far as I've gotten, but I will post another picture soon of the top. There are so many different things for a toddler to FIND in the quilt that as they get a little older it makes it a fun game too. I think I will make more than one of these as last week at a women's meeting at church, we had a give and take table and someone had aKeepsake Quilting packet of children's conversation squares. I thought they were put there just for me so Hello quilt 2.

We had a glorious day weatherwise, yesterday and HRH got a lot of yard work done. Our front yard is almost finished. Today, however it is raining cats and dogs. So a good book and quilting after church is in order.

Why these are in the wrong order, I don't know, but I couldn't seem to get them changed. You get the picture though.

Day of Service

On Sept 11, we had a work day for the local food bank. They use Washington State's test farm to grow vegetables and fruit for the food cupboard. We joined 75 or more people to pull, wash and sort carrots, mulch blueberries and weed other plots. HRH and I were assigned to work in the blueberry patch pulling mulch from the trailer behind the tractor and putting it around the plants. HRH had his hand up so fast when they asked for a tractor driver, I couldn't believe it. It had to be the easiest job assigned. I had to give him a hard time about it. He said his neck hurt fro turning and looking around and his backside from sitting in the cushioned seat. The rest of the crew were wielding rakes and shovels all day. I didn't have much sympathy. It was a fun day and I met a couple of quilters there, so the conversation was nice too. It was nice to give to others and do service that we know was appreciated and will be as folks needing food get those nice fresh veggies.

block of the month

These are a couple of the blocks for a block of the month I am doing at a local shop. It's called a $5.00 quilt, but for the life of me, I can't see why. You know the concept of $5.00 quilts, buy the first pattern and fabric for $5.00, then bring it back the next month and you get the next one free, etc. This one is different because at the beginning, we had to buy all the background and focus fabrics, the dark green and center in the above photo, at the beginning. This was presented in a box with a handle and a notebook with the finished quilt on the cover, along with a bill for over $150.00 or more, I can't remember the exact amount. I loved the quilt and have been keeping up with my investment each month. Most months we make two blocks or more and we were able to choose from 3 colorways. I chose Summer, but there was Americana and Autumn as well. Funny thing is that they never ask to see anyone's blocks so I guess we never get charged 5.00 after all. It's a good thing after that initial investment. I really don't think I will do next year as I think having one of 350 identical quilts is not my thing. I would rather make an original. Fun though while it lasts.

Off to college

We have been helping our grandson, Talon get ready for college and his first apartment. He is going to play baseball for a small college, north of here and they don't have campus housing. He was frantically looking for a place to room or room mates so he could afford to make it, and his coach put three players together and found an apartment for them. NONE of them had anything to get started living independently so I put out the word and got to work. I gave him my day bed from the guest room, ( no guests for a while) then decided I really wanted a new couch, so we gave him that, my neighbor had a kitchen table and lots of towels, kitchen things, etc. Between all of the garage sales and shopping and raiding my pantry storage, we got him settled. I didn't realize how extensive my food storage was until I started filling boxes for him. I don't think he will starve at least. When I left him, I slipped him some cash, quite a little in fact and we were on our way home, a two hour drive with a bouncy, noisy empty utility trailer. As we were driving, HRH said, I slipped him a little cash. I said, so did I. We both gave him the same amount, not knowing the other was doing the same. Yep, he'll do ok. He is a good money manager. It sure felt good to be able to have him here for a week and get to help him move. He is from Montana and we usually don't get to see him more than once a year. Now that he is closer, we will see more of him. No pictures! I got busy and the only ones I took were of the guys packing the utility trailer and pickup and they look like the Clampet's movin' out west. We didn't have a rocking chair on top like granny, only a bike!

Duck Hunting

Well, not really duck hunting. It was more like rabbit hunting. We went for a little walk after it cooled down this evening and Maggie stopped dead in her tracks and pointed. We knew there must be a rabbit somewhere as she LOVES rabbits. Sure enough she saw one and off she went. A lady who had stopped to watch her said "oh I hope it's not one that the neighbor lady has named" Me too my dear. I told her that Maggie likes to Think she can get rabbits, but hasn't brought any home yet. Maybe she should stick to ducks. Nobody around here names the ducks.

Dinner is served

My husband never ceases to amaze me! I went out to dinner with friends the other night and he had to fix his own dinner. Well, let me back up a bit. The night before I was cleaning the freezer out and found some chicken breasts that had been in there too long. Freezer burn upon freezer burn. So, I chopped it up and slightly cooked it for the dog and cat. I told HRH that I was putting it in a baggie and that it was essentially "dog food". Well, when I came home from a lovely dinner with friends, he was on the couch eating his dinner. Upon closer inspection, I saw that he had a baggie of "something". I yelled in my not so lady like voice. For heaven's sake, you are eating dog food!". We had a good laugh and I gave it to Maggie. Hubby said, I wondered why the dog was looking at me funny! I told him that from now on I wasn't going to worry about making a delicious dinner, I was just going to open a can of ALPO! Can you believe it. A few months back I bought dog biscuits that looked like those vanilla and chocolate sandwich cookies and left those out and he ate a couple of those. Then he told me not to buy that brand anymore because they weren't very good. Discriminating taste. He doesn't dine, HE FEEDS!

General maintenance

You know how you need to do general maintenance on the furnace, car and the roof of the house?

Well, we need to do the same with our bodies, especially when we reach that menopause (little feet, paws, as my grown son calls it). Well this past week I visited the electrologist to get that ever appearing stuff on my chin removed. Even though it is blonde, or white. I can't tell the difference, I still didn't want it there. I get it done every 5 years or so and I remember the pain, although minimally, even after that long. Boy, howdy, how it hurts, but really no more than waxing and it's permanent! Have any of you had this done?

As a teenager, I had dark hair over my lip and was teased to no end about it. It hurt so bad I still remember it. When I married and had the money to have it permanently removed, I felt like a new person. I only wished I had known about it sooner. I would have babysat, done yard work or whatever to earn the money to do that.

The second thing I did was get a body perm. I have very heavy hair and a lot of it and wear my hair in a modified wedge cut. It seems that by the end of the day it is flat. I hate the first few weeks as I'm not supposed to blow dry it straight to preserve the curl. So curly I am and curly I'll be for a while.

Thirdly, The perm takes the color right out so I have to get it colored, or do it myself. I also have to wait to put permanent color on for a couple of weeks. THEN, I'll be like a new person, almost.

Next in my dreams, a personal trainer and a tuck and suck (tummy tuck and liposuction).

I can't quite work that one into my budget, but a girl can dream. I think that would be a lot easier than just dieting, don't you?

Until next time, take care and make it a great day, week or month.

Carline

Block of Month

Is anyone out there doing the Thimbleberries block of the Month this year. I signed up and although I am making the blocks, they aren't too exciting. I like a little more challenge than this one is giving me. It will make a nice quilt when it is all said and done, but not what I expected. I will look a little closer next time.

I am also doing a $5.00 quilt with one of the shops in Oregon. Just a little drive once a month. I signed up with a friend but her husband got seriously ill and she dropped out. It sure isn't the same going alone. There are lots of people attending, but it seems they come in little groups and so far, no new friends. I keep introducing myself and trying to take part, to no avail. I even take a shower before I go. Nope, not that! Oh well, the quilt is fun and very challenging, which I like. I'll show pics later.

Block of Month

Coup du jour

Can you believe this title? Coup du Jour is the title of an event going on in Vancouver, WA where you buy tickets to tour urban chicken coups. Now I like excitement as much as the rest of you, but I don't know if I could take this much in one day. CHICKEN COUPS! You pay $10.00 and you get a map. Kind of like the tour of homes around the holidays where you see the lovely decorations.

What are we coming to where we need to tour chicken coups? Can you just imagine our ancestors shaking their heads and thinking we are not "quite right". (that's a term I see in reading pioneer books). Well, I'm not going to buy tickets, I have to work that day. DARN! I won't have any guilt for not learning all I can about urban chickens. By the way . . . are urban chickens different than Country chickens? hummm.

SUN, finally!

Here in the Pacific Northwest, we have had an unusually rainy spring and early summer. We broke a record from 1866 or somewhere near that, back when they first started keeping records.

You know what rain brings out??? Mosquitoes! We can hardly go outdoors without getting bombarded. They love me and seek me out of a crowd to nibble on my sweet skin.

I had to get up at 5:30 yesterday to get through Portland to go to Salem, Or before traffic and I was so tired last night that I started another journal project and left it and the dishes all over the place (well, the counter in the kitchen) so that is my goal for today. I planned to sleep until 8:00, get ready for my massage with Helga and then chiropractor and home to finish yesterday's jobs.

Great plans seldom happen around here and today was no exception. The little Yippy dog we are sitting for co-workers, started barking at 6:00, so I got up and watered the plants before the predicted 90 degree day. I even pulled a bucket or so of weeds! (I hate gardening with a passion except for trimming, harvesting flowers and vegetables and fruit). I feel like I need a crown today for being so good, so early.

Have any of you out there in blog land heard of a spaghetti salad? It has thin spaghetti noodles and eagle brand milk in it. It is so good, but I lost the recipe and can't remember what else it has in it. Everyone I have served that to just loves it. It is a bit unusual, but a big hit. I've torn my recipe box and notebook apart looking for this. If you do could you please share it with me. Thanks in advance.

Make it a good day! Carline

Happy Independence Day!

This past year and all that it has brought with it have me thinking about independence and how Freedom is NOT free. I have a son in the military and many friends with sons or daughters in various branches as well. Whether we believe in what's going on politically or not, our children are trying to preserve our freedom and putting their lives on the line to do it.

Yesterday at a celebration breakfast (held early, since the 4th fell on a Sunday), we had a flag ceremony, sang America the beautiful and the Star Spangled Banner and had a man speak who had just returned from Kuwait. He could hardly get through the talk because he kept choking up. It was very emotional. He reminded us that the military here in the U.S. is Voluntary and that most of the soldiers, including him would do it again to preserve this country and all it stands for. He said after being in the Middle East several times and seeing how others live and what lack of freedom exists, that he is even more determined to serve. It was quite emotional and really gave me something to think about.

The breakfast, cooked by the men (fathers and leaders of the Boy Scouts) was nice, well the idea was nice, the food, well..... cold pancakes, cold scrambled eggs, cold sausage and fruit. It is hard to cook outdoors for 100 people and keep things warm. The company was great and it kicked off the holiday weekend nicely.

Our Scout troop has a fund raiser where they sell subscriptions for flags. This means they pay $50.00 and on every holiday, the scouts put a flag up at their curb. My dear hubby is in charge of the behind the scene work. Well, at 11:00 last night, it was determined that we were short two flags. Earlier in the day, DH, also known as HRH, bought 10 flags, the poles and all the stuff to put them together, so we were prepared (scout motto). After much sorting and rearranging, it was all figured out and this morning the flags flew! What a sight they are!

Well, another week rolls by uneventfully. I had an easy week at work since the bosses are gone. I just went in for 3 hours to check for messages, etc. I could get used to this real easy.

Kim mentioned her cat's hunting prowess in catching moths and bringing in mice, well My naughty girl brings in everything! Mice, snakes, voles, moles, birds and rabbits and they seem to all be alive. The biggest problem is that we have a dog door for Maggie and it has to be big for a standard poodle with such long legs and that makes it real handy for the cat and her prey. I came home from work yesterday and smelled something foul, Yup, a dead "something" and we can't find it. That cat and me are going to part ways one of these days. We have a very large entertainment center and it is so heavy it takes 4 men to move it when empty, so no way to look under that. How long before decomposition turns into mummification? YUK! That's one reason I like winter, I don't have to worry about her bringing in "stuff".

I had one of my twice weekly massage and chiropractic appointments yesterday, and today, I'm so sore I had trouble getting out of bed. I hope I survive these treatments. One of these days I sure hope I start feeling better instead of worse! The doctor says this is normal because I have so much scar tissue at the injury site and as long as I'm getting more movement, which I am, that things are on track. I sure wish I would have taken better care of myself when I was younger! Ahh, hindsight, aint it wonderful.

By for now, Carline

A Finish!

I Finally finished the baby quilt for our new great nephew. I made it bigger than normal so Mom could use it on the floor and later for a youth bed. The girls had regular sized baby quilts and even when they got bigger, they want to sleep with them so why not start big. This one is 56X 65 or so. The pattern is by Terry Atkinson of Simple Pleasures and is called "Meet Me at the Corner. I used all scraps or stash fabrics. I like the plaids for a boy. The Long Arm quilter used a panto called Boy Toys and it is so cute. It has wagons, trucks, bikes, etc. I now wish I had used a plain back so it would show more.

The news around here is that HRH was pretending to be 18 again and playing basketball with some kids he works with (DH is 64). He "made a great move" and tore his ACL in his left leg. Great move? I don't think so. Now he is "on the couch" with the TV blaring for the next few weeks. I'm used to a pretty quiet house during the day, but when he watches TV, the neighbors can hear it. No, according to him, his hearing is fine. MEN! I feel bad that he is hurt, I just can't do anything to please him when he is sick. He calls me every few minutes to bring him something. Then a minute later, he thinks of something he forgot, yada, yada, yada, all through the day. I'm thinking of all kinds of errands I need to run. I am kind of glad that this Saturday is my day to work. This will be a long recovery, at least from my standpoint.

We finally got some warm weather here in the Pacific Northwest. The rain broke an all time record and the sun (a UFO) is a welcome site.

Make it a Great Day, Carline

News and Nonsense

Again, It's been ages since I've posted. I don't know what's up with me. I just can't seem to get disciplined to keep my blog or my quilting up. I really have been doing things though.

I got laid off from my job where I didn't have enough to do. No surprises there and really no sadness about it either. I got another job quickly as the acupuncturist I had been going to had been thinking of expanding his practice and adding another acupuncturist and a naturopath. I only work two weekdays and every other Saturday. It's in a funky old house in the historic district of our town and is small compared to the very large assisted living facilities I am accustomed to working in. I really like the change and it is so much fun to walk around the district during lunch hours and admire all the old houses.

This is what I have been up to this past week, as well as a baby quilt for a new great nephew. Little Nate was born with three sisters waiting for him, so I thought I should send along a little treat for them too. I will post a pic of the quilt later.

I made these notebook/journal covers in no time and embellished them with funky yarns, trims and beads. They were really fun and I think I'll make a few more for little gifts. I made one of these to fit a regular theme book 8.5 X 11" and the others are 7" X 10.

Where's Waldo?

Well, not Waldo, but I have been among the missing for quite a while. I just didn't have any news and felt quite uninteresting to be exact. Not that I'm any more interesting now, but Spring has sprung in Washington state and it always perks me up. I look forward to the first daffodil every year and this year it came up right in the middle of the grass. Not what we wanted, but I guess it didn't want me to miss it!

I've been trying to finish UFO's and got this one done and to the long arm quilter. It is 104" so it was a big one and IT'S A FINISH! I am not too happy with the quilting and think from now on, I will pay the extra and get custom work and not a pantograph. This one used all batiks and I chose a variegated thread for the quilting. I didn't like when the dark blues showed up in the light background. I did hear of one lady who ripped all of the quilting out when she didn't like it, but I won't go that far. Just chock it up to experience and go on. Kind of like life, huh?

My job has been so boring for some time. Not enough work to do, even though I work in 4 locations as a relief worker. Well, last week, I found out that "due to this lovely economy" I will be out of a job at the end of March. Not unexpected, I might add and I have been keeping my eyes open for another one, but so far, nothing. I have to work, so I will keep looking. I'll probably get to retire when I'm about 90 and I'm looking forward to it!

Today, I am working on my Thimbleberries 09 block of the month. I'm down to my least favorite part of any quilt I make, the borders, and this one has 4. I have 2 done and 2 to go. Hopefully, I will have a pic soon.