Where Have I Been and What Have I Been Doing?

Since my trip in September, I have been unable to find the docking station for my camera. I keep thinking the battery is going to die soon, but in the meantime, I have been able to make a few pictures of what I've been up to. This two piece suit has kept me busy for a few days. There are two of them, one for each of the princesses. One a size 6, the other a size 7. I have come to learn to hate making multiples of anything. The first one was no problem, but I had to beat myself over the head to get the second one finished. I purposely left the first one unhemmed so it wouldn't be finished until the other one was as well. It's sad when you have to play mind games with yourself to get things done. I have to tell you a little history about this fabric. The mother of the two princesses was a bride's maid in a wedding 13 years ago. For each function she attended, I made her a new outfit. This is some of the fabric I used to make a suit for her. I have no idea why I would have bought so much, but when I figured it up, I had to have used about 2 yards for her suit, 1 yard each for the girls, making 4 yards, and I have two left. That means I bought about 6 yards of this fabric. I must have gotten a real deal. I have plenty left to make the banty hen a jumper and even a vest for superhero(if his dad will let him wear it.) The jacket is a chanel style that is short. The skirts are pleated like a kilt. I think the girls will wear black turtle necks and leggins.


The other thing I've been doing is working on a rocker. It's one I found out in my storage building. Most of the varnish has long since gone, and the boards in the seat had separated as you can see by the pictures. I got out my mouse sander and worked on it for about two hours one Saturday morning. Since I work full time, that's about the only time I have to work on anything.




I think it's a cute rocker and will look really cute once I get it painted and some cushions made for it. My plan is to stencil something on the back and down the center. Make a cushion for the seat and a roll pillow for the back. But first things first.

I used wood glue to fill in the crack and some wood filler on a few other places that needed some attention. I put clamps on the chair to hold it in place until the glue had time to set. The instructions said overnight. That took up the rest of that weekend. So, finally the next Saturday, I was able to put two coats of primer on it. I'm painting it white by the way, so of course the primer is also white. I don't have any pictures of the chair after priming, but if the weather cooperates, I should have a couple of coats of paint on it this coming weekend. I've got more sanding and smoothing to do as well, but I think it's going to be a really cute chair for a little girl's room.






Sorry to have been away so long. Love one another.

Bloglines.com Going Away!!

If you use Bloglines.com to get to your blogs, you have seen this message:

As you may have heard, we are sorry to share that Bloglines will officially shut down on October 1, 2010.
More detail can be found on the Ask.com blog - http://blog.ask.com.
We want to make it as easy as possible to transport your feeds to another RSS aggregator, so below are some simple instructions:


I'm not talented at using these types of tools, so when I found Bloglines, I thought I had died and gone to blogland heaven(not really, but it's so convenient). I had added the blogs I read each day, and the nice thing about it is that as new posts are done, the blog name shows up in BOLD. That way you only click on the blogs with new information. And as we all know saving key strokes allows for more time to actually read our favorite blogs. Also, I can login to Bloglines.com no matter where I am, and presto, right there before me are all the blogs I need to see.

Therefore,I have a cry for help. If you know a great RSS aggregator, please tell me about it. I just don't think I can make it without this type of service.

I hope you are having a great day. Pray for our nice weather to continue. Love one another.

#@% BUGS

We were without electricity last night after the power station was hit by lightening. It went out about 8:15 last night, and didn't come back on until 7:40 this morning. Needless to say, I had to open the windows and try to get a cool breeze, which I was able to do.

However, the bugs singing outside my window were terribly annoying. They sang alllllll night long. Then there was the generators that keep the sewer pumping stations going down the street, and the one that keep the water pumping up the street.

Needless to say, I kinda like having to be closed up in my house with the a/c running so I can sleep--peacefully.

But I did think about what it would be like to be blind and have to get around all the time in the dark. How fortunate I am to have my sight.

I hope you have power today. Pray for those in the California gas explosion. Love one another.

My Daughter's Birthday!!

Today is my youngest child's birthday, and even though I remembered the day, I got the age wrong. I commented on her facebook page that she is 31 today when actually she is 32. I just can't catch a break. This first picture is of her at about 6 or 7(I'm sure I'll be corrected, if that's not right).
This picture is of her in senior high.
Thirty two years ago, I was one miserable camper. It was a Saturday, my then husband was golfing, and before he left that morning, he said don't go to the hospital til I get home about 6pm. He got home about 6pm and almost to the minute, my water broke. My beautiful little girl was born about 9pm that night. I didn't believe in prolonged labor.
This last picture is her senior picture. Happy Birthday Daughter#2.

These pictures are courtesy of Princess#1. Saturday she and the rest of the grandchildren were at the house. She asked if she could take some pictures. I said sure as long as none are of me. She took 47, many of which were pictures hanging on the wall(hopefully the spiderwebs don't show up). These are 3 of the ones she took.

I hope you are having a great day. Pray for those in the wildfires out west and those in the flood around Dallas. Love one another.

I Brought No Luck To The Cardinals!!

When we arrived at the ballpark on Saturday, they were doing a photo session with fans. We didn't get there in time for me to get on the field(the number was limited, but we got close enough to get some long(and I mean long)shots of my favorite player, Yadier Molina.
We took a few pictures, went to the Team Store and bought me a shirt, and made our way to our seats.
The rest of these pictures are taken of the stadium from our seats. We were in section 342 which lines up with first base. From where we were sitting, we had a straight line from first to second base.
We had a good view of everything. I missed seeing one play at first, but that was the fellow's head in front of me. I got to see Molina throw Brandon Phillips out at second base. I got to see Dennys Reyes pitch to a couple of batters. He's my favorite relief pitcher. Brenden Ryan played shortstop. He's one of my favorites too. I do miss Ryan Ludwick, but I guess that's all part of the game.
We had been listening on tv to the booing that was being done when Brandon Phillips came out to bat, and it was definitely loud, but it was nothing to how it sounded in person. They booed him every time he came out, and cheered when he missed a ball or was called out on strikes. When Molina threw him out at second, the crowd was on their feet cheering.

It was a fun day. I got to spend time with my brother and SIL, we got to see a good ballgame(even though we didn't win).

I hope you had a great Labor Day. Pray for those in need. Love one another.

Plans for Saturday!!

This weekend is a three game series with Cincinati. So, about a month ago, I asked my brother and sister-in-law about attending a Cardinals game on Sep 4th. My SIL is a Red's fan, and I am a Cards fan. My poor brother isn't a fan of either, and doesn't follow baseball too closely. He's going along to do the driving, and the refereeing(is that a word?). My brother's wife has been my SIL for over 40 years and we've never had a cross word. That statement may not be true after Saturday. If you watch the Cards or the Reds, keep an eye out for a couple of women fighting up above home plate. My poor brother will be in the middle.

My daughter commented, 'What has Uncle Larry gotten himself into?' I told her he didn't get himself into anything, he was dragged in. Katherin and I made plans and told him what we were doing and don't think he was given a choice.

We'll leave about 9am and the game starts at 3:15pm. We'll stop somewhere along the way and have lunch, the game should be over about 6ish, unless they go into extra innings, and we should drag our tired selves in about midnight. But it will be a good day. We have fun when we are together. And truly, I'm not terribly concerned about any fights, unless our seats are surrounded by lots of Card fans, and her Red's shirt causes trouble. In that case, brother and I will be called on to protect her.

The weather should be nice, and it will be a wonderful day. Then on Monday, I'm going to make something for lunch and the kids will be around to eat, and maybe the bro and sil will be there too. Aren't three day weekends wonderful?

I hope you are having a good day and have planned a good weekend for yourself and your family. Pray for safe travel on the roads this weekend. Love one another.

My visit to Eastern Tennessee!

I have friends(yes, real friends)in Eastern Tennessee. I left NE Arkansas Thursday morning and arrived at their home around 3 in the Afternoon. Jan, Con, three dogs and five cats greeted me. They live in a very nice home surrounded by woods. It makes for a wonderful place for their animals to run. They commune with nature too. She has four hummer feeders and as we sat on the porch in the evnings and mornings, they buzzed us as they came to feast on the feeders and on the flowers in the yard and around the fountain. There is a little green frog that lives in the fountain. He comes out and sits on the rim, but if you get too close, he dives back into the pump housing. Jan has a beautiful stained glass lotus blossom she made in the pond that the frog sits on as well.

I was treated to a scrumptous meal of roast, potatoes, carrots, wheat rolls and applie pie. I think I made a pig of myself, but I was hungry.

On Friday, we visited with Jan's mom and dad. Then along with Don, we went over to Sgt York's home. In case you don't know or don't remember, he was a WWI hero, and the most decorated veteral of that war. He came from humble beginnings in the hills of Tennessee, and a movie was made about his life starring Gary Cooper. You can read about him here. This is the grist mill his family owned and operated.
This is the water source that powered the mill in it's early days. It was later changed to some sort of motor driven grinding mechanism.













This is the turtle we saw at the edge of the stream. Don't know exactly what kind it was.













The picture below is yours truly standing by the statue of Sgt York beside his home. Don't know why I didn't get any of the house. The house was very interesting. The original furniture is there(and what I wouldn't give for some of it). Several of their clothes are on display. His now 84 year old son is the park ranger that spends his days there at the house telling about the life of his famous father. I asked him if he realized when he was a kid that his dad was such an important man, especially when very important people came calling. He said no he didn't. Anyone who knocked on the door was welcomed in, and people from every walk of life came to their home. The Yorks had 10 children, losing two in infancy, they raised eight to adulthood. The thing I thought was funny was the names of some of the children. The ranger was Andrew Jackson York, one of the brothers was Thomas Jefferson York and a sister was named Betsy Ross York. He was a true patriot, a person who had greatness thrust upon him, but struggled financially all through his adult life.

















On Saturday, we drove to Chatanooga to the Fresh Water Acquarium. Along the way, we stopped at the overlook to the valley below. It was hazy that day, but still quite beautiful.















Once inside the acquarium, we found this fellow. Can you tell which is me and which is the penguin?












The butterfly room was awesome. There were butterflys everywhere. The blue one was the most beautiful I'd ever seen. When it's wings were open like in the picture, you see this beautiful blue, but when they are closed, the outside looks like a tapestry in browns.

















Jan left Don and me to rest while she went to get the truck. I thought this building was interesting across from the bench on which we sat.
I had a wonderful(but too short)time with my friends. On the way home I got to thinking how long we've known each other. We met in late 1994, so it's been 16 years. My how time flies. Seems like only yesterday.

I hope you are having a wonderful Thursday. Pray that the newest explosion in the Gulf doesn't prove to be as tragic as the last one. Love one another.

Procrastination!

That's me alright. I have been procrastinating, and school started back for the University with whom I'm employed, so time in front of computer at work has been at the max, and time in front of the one at home--almost non-existent.
I'd like to thank Katie from One Scheme of Happiness for sending me the book and the knitted badger in the picture. I brought my badger whose name is now Katie to work. She's too cute to leave home in my sewing room. Besides, she might get lost in there.


I told you a while back about a bookcase/entertainment/china cabinet that I scored 'For Free'. Below are some of the pictures of it. It is 6 ft wide, and I think 8 feet tall. I haven't measured it to be exact, but I'm going by the pieces of backing. There are two of them and they are laid sideways.

I could leave the backing, but I want to remove it and put beadboard on the back. I think that will look much better. I also want to remove the scallops at the top, and put some trim and crown molding across the front. The ends will also have to have something done to them, maybe a bit more bead board. I want to paint it black, and I have the perfect place picked out for it(Kids, not in my house) my son has already told me he isn't putting it in my house. There isn't room, and he's absolutely right.

I'm not sure what I will do to the doors. I don't know if I'll fill in the groove near the edges or what, but the hardware will at least need painting. I'd rather not have to replace it because I'm going to have enough in the beadboard and trim, but I hope to have something pretty when it's finished. In the meantime, we're calling it my white elephant.

I'm not planning to do to much to it until it cools off a bit, and I have a wooden rocker I want to do first. it's much smaller and shouldn't be too much work. I think it's going to be white with some stenciling on the back rest. But we'll see.

I hope you are having a good day. We got a bit of rain this afternoon. Pray for the people at the Discovery Building. Love one another.

Where Have I Been?

I was attacked by a virus last Thursday. It took until Monday to get rid of it and me back on track. Yesterday was a catch up day. Hopefully, I won't get another one of those lovely things. If you want to know the truth, I think I got it from another blogger, because I was reading along on a blog, and everything closed zip, zap, zowee!! Just like that! I could restart my pc and work on anything that was local, no problemo. I could send and receive email, and I had internet access, but when I would attempt to open Internet Explorer, I'd get a message saying 'failure to initialize'. We ran one virus scan 4 times on Friday, and again on Monday. Each time finding something I hadn't seen before. Then we changed to another virus checking software and found some the other hadn't. This nasty piece of work actually changed some of the settings on my Internet Explorer, and it finally took two of us sitting side by side with my pc and a laptop, and comparing settings. Needless to say, I'm back on line, and a measley little ole virus isn't going to keep me away from blogland.

I have some more projects in the works, and lots to do, so come back and see what I'm up to(that is if my kids don't put me in the home first). They think I've lost my mind, and they may be right. They keep telling me they are reporting me to Hoarder's Anomymous. Actually, I'm reducing things as quickly as possible. I just have to work on some before they leave. I found a rocking chair and two chairs in the storage building which is getting torn down. I also found a Holly Hobby babydoll high chair. I had thought about painting it, but I think a good cleaning is all I'm going to do. I have a feeling it's worth some money. It's in mint condition, just dirty.

What projects are lurking around the corner for you?

I hope you are having a great Wednesday. Pray for those deluged in water around the world. Love one another.

One Goal!

Do you remember the song from Sesame Street, you know the one that said "Three of these things belong together, three of these things are kinda the same"? Well, that's what I'm going for here in an offbeat sort of way.
Just looking at the four pictures here, you probably couldn't in a million years find any connection to even get two of them together, but there is a connection.
The first three are connected because they go into the princesses room. The first one is the first initial of their first names. They aren't finished. I had planned to paint them the turquoise that is in their bedding, and may still do so. Their parents have painted the bedroom two colors. The top half of the room is a soft yellow and the bottom half is a pink. This will be divided by a chair rail, but I don't know what color it will be. They are putting it up today. I will need to ask their mother what color she wants the letters painted. I don't know if she will hang them on the wall or maybe set them on a shelf(that is assuming each girl has her own shelf). Another decision mom will have to make. The second is three girls dancing. There are only two girls, but I got this for a dollar at Abilities Unlimited. It was painted gold, and I'm painting it white. I have some work to do on it. It has some little holes in it, and they need to be filled with something. I thought it would look cute on their dresser. The last thing is a dresser scarf/runner that I made from some of the leftover fabric from the bedding set. It will cover most of the top and hang down about 12 inches on each side. It is very plain. I thought about trim on the ends, but that would have meant a purchase, and stash reduction is the ultimate goal here.
Then there's this little dress. I'm not very good at lace insertion and I originally made this for one of the older girls. The first time she wore it, some of the lace separated from the fabric. It has hung in the sewing room for a couple or three years, and in an effort to reduce the contents(aka stash), I did some machine stitching around the insertion using some of the decorative stitches on my machine, using a machine embroidery thread. I'm hoping that The Banty Hen will be able to get a couple of wearings out of it before summer is over.

The way all of these are connected is that 1. they will help reduce my stash, and 2. will finish some unfinished projects, and 3 get them out of my house before the hording people come.

As a side note to my children, I have another piece of furniture to play with and will be bringing it home soon. It's not as big as what's sitting on my carport right now.

I hope you enjoy driving your children crazy like I do. Pray for them. Love one another.

Stash Reduction!!

I mentioned in an earlier post that I had made a new pair of slacks and they fit pretty well. So, since I can't seem to buy anything that fits, I decided it is time to work on some things for myself. As I began thinking about what I wanted to make, it dawned on me that there were three goals I could accomplish. 1. Have a few new pieces of clothing to wear. 2. Save some money, and this is an important one, 3. Reduce the amount of fabric in my stash.

It seems that about the only thing I ever do is add to my stash. I've heard a couple of gals call this a 'stash enhancement'. So, I've decided to call mine a 'stash reduction'. This 3rd thing is very important since my oldest daughter mentioned an intervention from a hoarding group - again! BTW, my hoarding isn't filth like so many of those on the show. You won't find any rotting food, empty fast food cartons, or empty wine bottles in my house. I just can't seem to pass up a bargain, but in some areas, it seems a bit out of control. Should I be attending meetings or something?

So last night, after the Reds and the Cards settled down to playing ball and not fighting, I began working on my latest project. First I got out these two pieces of fabric. Thought there was enough to make a pair of capris and a shirt. Plenty to make the shirt, but only enough to make a pair of shorts. Not to be deterred, I went ahead and cut out the shorts, since I'll need a few things for a short trip I'm taking the later part of the month.

Then I spied this piece of knit I had bought to make a top. I cut it out and had a finished shirt by bedtime.

By the way, I have this on today. The pattern amounted to a front, back, sleeve and neck binding. By using my serger,I was able to cut it out, and sew it up in about an hour and a half(this was with one eye on the ballgame too.)

Tomorrow, I will have pictures of the big bookcase that is now sitting on my carport and that my son is not happy with me for asking him to move. It's big, and it's heavy. I hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew.

What project are you working on? Pray for cooler weather. Love one another.

I'm Definitely A Sucker!!

I tend to be a follower. I'm easily swayed. You can talk me into almost(I said almost)anything. I go with the crowd. Whatever you want to do, I'm usually with you.

When I first started reading blogs, my daughter told me about the pioneer woman. I didn't follow her down the path of becoming a rancher's wife and having 4 children(I only have three), but as she cooked, I cooked. I thought I had to make everything she posted in the way of food. And I kept up for a while, but you have to remember, I don't have anyone to cook for on a daily basis so you know where I'm going with this. Either I eat everything I cook, or take it to work, and my grocery budget just didn't like that.

Then I decided I needed to find some sewing blogs since I do a lot of sewing. I found more quilting blogs than clothing blogs, so what did I do, I made a couple of quilts for my grandchildren. This made both them and their mother happy, and I was tickled to do it for them. But as much as I'd like to quilt, I don't seem to have the ability to put things together enough to make pretty quilts, plus I just don't know if I can commit that much energy to one project.

Then I found a couple of blogs that make adult clothes. So what did I do, I(after years of sewing primarily for small children)have decided to make myself some clothes. I made a pair of slacks over the weekend that turned out very well, so I'm planning to make more. I also want to make some capri's and a couple of pair of shorts. I intended to do some cutting out last night, but a huge bag of purple hull peas that I found in my Living room had to be shelled.

I've also been reading a blog called The Frosted Gardner. They take furniture that has seen better days, usually being that the finish is ruined from years of abuse. They do some sanding, some repair, then they paint and refurbish the pieces. So what do you think I've done? Yesterday, I found out that a fellow behind me who is remodeling a house has decided to remove a custom hutch. It was sitting on his front porch. I marched my happy self over and asked what he was planning to do with it. He said he would give it to me if I wanted it, which, of course, I did. My son will move it to my house today. I have big plans for it. If it gets moved today, I'll take some pictures when I get home tonight and post them here. I'll also tell you what my plans for this piece are, and maybe you can help me with a few minor decisions.

I hope you aren't as easily moved to do crazy things like I am. Pray for me. Love one another.

For Whom Do You Sew?

If you sew that is. I like to sew for my granddaughters, but I'm the one who needs clothes. I have very few dress clothes since I mostly wear jeans to work. But I have need of some things and I can't seem to find anything that fits.

I'm 5'3, and a petite fits in length as far as leg length. But from waist to crotch even a petite is too long. I have a pair of jeans that I've been wearning for 3 years and they are pretty worn. They are too long in the seat, but I wear them anyway. I decided since they are pretty much worn out, I'd make a pattern from them and see how that worked.


I've used garments to make new ones before. Sometimes I have good luck and sometimes it's a disaster. But during my spare time, I ripped one leg out of these jeans, pressed it and used it to make a new pair of slacks.

As you can see, I'm making a pair of white slacks. I got the fabric from Hancocks, and it has the best 'hand' of anything heavy enough to make slacks I've picked up in a while. I trimmed some off at the top so they wouldn't bee too long in the seat(we've already discussed that) and sewed them up in about an hour. They don't have a zipper, but they do have pockets. I don't like pants without pockets. I wore them to church Sunday morning with a white tank top and royal blue shirt with burnout segments in it. Needless to say, I looked like a top model(and if you believe that, I've got some swamp land south of town for sale--reasonable).

I like this pair of pants enough that I've dug out enough fabric to make another pair, and think I will make a couple of pair of capri's. I'm taking a short trip the end of the month, and having something nice to wear would be great.

I'm going to start the capri's tonight. I'll let you know if I finish them before I go to bed.

I hope you've started something new and exciting this week. Pray for a break in the heat. Love one another.

Mary, Mary, How Does Your Garden Grow?

The little garden my brother has planted in my yard has proffered a bit of work. As August rolls around, it's becomming more of a chore to work with the bounty. But here's a little update. The garden has cut into my sewing time also. Would you believe I'm just finishing two of the three sundresses I started back in April. Fortunately, they are running big, so I think when I finish them, they will go in the closet until Spring. Then they'll have something new to start Summer, 2011.

Back to the garden.

This is the first year in a long time I've been involved in a garden. Actually, my brother has done most of the work. We think the cucumbers and the squash crossed. We've gotten almost no squash, and the cucumbers get too big too fast. I've made lime pickles out of them.

The tomatoes haven't done well. The leaves curled up and the production has been sad. I have made some tomato juice. We had an early crop of green beans, and have now replanted in an attempt to get a second crop. We are cutting lots of okra and it looks like it will continue. We've had just enough to eat along and give my son enough to make a few quarts of pickled okra. The purple hullpeas did ok, but a friend had a big patch, so I've ended up canning about 40 quarts, and my brother has put enough in his freezer to feed a small army this winter. I also made pea hull jelly.

The small watermelon patch has about 10 melons, but the one I cut the other night had very little taste. I personally think they got in bed with the cukes and squash.

Oh well, there's always next year.

We are having an extremely hot spell. It got to 103 yesterday and is supposed to get to 101 today. If you don't have to be out, the best thing is to stay in.

I hope everyone is finding a good cool spot. Pray the heat wave won't last. Love one another.

Pea Hull Jelly

I was asked about the pea hull jelly that I made. It was pretty simple. I googled it and got the following recipe:

PEA HULL JELLY

4 c. pea hull liquid
7 c. sugar
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 box sure-jell

To prepare juice; rinse 2 large handfuls of purple hull pea hulls.
This will be almost full in an 8 quart blancher pot.
Add enough water to almost cover.
Bring to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes or until liquid becomes dark reddish purple.
Strain and measure out 4 cups. May need to add water to make 4 cups.
Follow directions on package of Sure-Jell to make "cooked jellies". Yield 8 cups.

It was one of the easiest jellies I've made. I washed a bunch of pea hulls(fortunately mine were pretty clean and had no bugs, but I washed them a couple of times anyway). I put them in a big pot that I use to do tomatoes in. It has an insert with holes in it for straining. I put as much water as I thought I could without it bubbling out, and cooked them probably a half hour. The recipe said 5 minutes, but I just didn't think that would be enough. I added water about midway through the process.

Then I strained the liquid through a cloth to make sure there was no sand or anything left in the liquid, and followed the directions on the package of sure-jell.

I ended up with enough to make 4 quarts or 8 half pints.

My brother laughs every time I mention it. I gave them a jar, but I haven't gotten any feed back on whether they liked it or not.

The folks here at work liked it, but then I brought hot biscuits for them to eat it on. It tastes a bit like grape jelly.

Then I

Oh Fall Where Art Thou?

My brother planted a small garden in my yard space. I didn't think it would offer a lot of veggies, but if we all got a bite or two of something, then it would be worth his time.

For the size of this plot, it has produced abundantly. First we had green beans. They were totally delish. They didn't last a long time and we didn't have enough to can. When they finished, he pulled up the vines and re-planted. We don't know if they will make before cool weather, but no reason to allow the space to go to waste.

We are getting several tomatoes, lots of cucumbers(most of them are going to our step-mother. She's making pickles). We are getting bell peppers. They are small, but will be great in soups and other recipes this winter. Once the okra started bearing, it has been a real treat. We've had several 'messes' and should have okra until fall. My son got enough to make some pickled okra last week.

Our pea patch didn't last very long, but my brother began picking from a patch of a friend of ours. He picked a lot of peas, and my son picked enough for 3 cooker's full.

We also have a few watermelon vines. They aren't ready yet, but should be soon.

I've posted a picture of the 'fruits of my labor'. It includes peas, tomato juice and pea hull jelly. Since this picture was taken, I've canned 2 quarts, 5 pints and 2 half pints of lime pickles. I added jalepeno peppers to give them some kick. I don't know how they taste yet, but I'm hoping they will be good. The cloth on which the canning is resting belonged to my children's great great grandmother. The bowl on the easel is depression glass and belonged to my great aunt.

But I'm about ready for cool weather.
I'm also posting a few more pictures of the pillows I made for the girl's room. I'm glad this project is finished. I haven't seen the room yet, and don't know if it's been painted or not.
The girls are going to Nana and Papaw's for a week to attend Bible School. I figure the kids will paint while they are gone.


Now I have their dresses to finish and on to something else. I really need to do some housecleaning, but don't know how much will get done.

What have you been doing during this hot weather? Pray for a reprieve from the heat. Love one another.

What I Should Have Learned!

When you have a commute to work, you have time to think about things. So this morning, my thoughts took me to things I should have learned. Things I should have learned from my mother when I was a kid. Things I should have learned from my grand-mother-in-law after I married(way too young)and she had to finish raising me. Things I should have learned from reaching out to others who had information I could have used later in life.

My nephew is going through some difficulty, and has been on my mind a lot lately. I think one of the things I should have learned early on and something he is learning the hard way is that life(real life, not the board game)is the hardest game you will ever play. I've digressed.

Yesterday, I was out looking for some dill weed for my son who is the pickle maker in the family. The lady, who was gracious enough to give me some, even though I offered to pay for it, and I were talking about how Mrs. Rosie(my grandmother-in-law)used stems and whatever else she could get when making pickles. So this morning, on the way to work I was thinking about her and all she had to offer in the way of knowledge. Why didn't I ask more questions? Why didn't I pay closer attention when she was making pickles and chow chow, and canning vegetables? Looking back(and I know you are going to say 'Hind sight's 20,20')I should have been at her elbow and looking over her shoulder, taking notes and learning everything she had in her vast intelligent mind.

My mother taught me to sew, crochet and make a mean pan of biscuits. I was only 19 when she died, but why didn't I know how to churn, how to make butter. Why didn't I learn to quilt rather than sit and read a book. She and Mrs. Rosie were veritible fountains of knowledge, and I allowed all that knowledge to go to the grave with them when I could have had it in my head or in a notebook.

A lady from our church quilted beautiful quilts. I expressed a desire to learn to quilt, and she offered on more than one occasion to teach me. Did I take her up on that...you know I didn't.

So now I have to do what so many people who want to make things are having to do. I'm having to go to the internet. If there's something in particular I want to do, I google it and find out all the information I can. The ladies I've mentioned above would have imparted their knowledge and wisdom(a subject for another day)with love, love for the craft, love for the sharing, and love for me. However, google just spits it out. No love with that knowledge.

If you have an opportunity to learn something from someone who has been there and done that, don't pass it up. Learn all you can from older people. They are an absolute wealth of knowledge.

I hope you learn something new from someone else, not the internet. Pray that we have people who will teach us about life. Love one another.

All Finished!

The quilts I've worked on since April are completely finished. I made the quilt tops, and had them quilted. I fell out of the sewing mood, and they sat for a couple of weeks(about a month actually), then I put the binding on them and gave them to the girls. Next I made the pillow shams, but they seemed a little blah, so I laid them aside for a couple of days(about a week actually).
I made wide bias binding and stitched it around the shams, and they looked much better. I made two little square pillows and added some bling I found in my sewing stash(girls, what would we do without our stash?). The bolster pillows have a section in the middle that has their initial embroidered and a pair of flip flops appliqued on them.

When their mother took them in, the girls got excited and both said they felt rich. Doesn't take much to make two little girls happy. I was a bit worried they might argue over which got which little pillow since they are different, but they didn't. I just know they slept much better last night for having their new pillows. They now just need their parents to paint their room. They are two very lucky little girls. They have wonderful parents.

I hope you have had something lately to make you feel rich, whether it's financial, inspirational or anything else that can make a person feel rich. Pray for someone special to you. Love one another.

A Shrimp Recipe

We played cards last night, and the hostess served shrimp creole and an appetizer called 'Bang Bang Shrimp'. Her husband is a fabulous cook, and he did the cooking. The recipe for the Shrimp came from a place in Memphis Tn called BoneFish Grill. I'm putting the recipe in my blog because 1. I can, and 2. It is wonderful. If you enjoy shrimp, you will thank me at least a hundred times for putting it out here.

The recipe is not hot, hot, it just has a bit of heat left on the palette after you swallow. Not enough to burn or make you grab a glass of something to drink, but just the taste. I don't know that I'm going to buy the bottle of Hot Chili sauce just for 3 drops, so I'm going to leave that out the first time I make it, then I'll decide if I think it's important enough to add it in the next time. Then if I see I'm going to make it often, I'll splurge on the Sriracha hot Chili Sauce.

1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup Thai Sweet Chili Sauce
3 drops Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce (or to taste)
1 pound shelled and deveined shrimp
Dry cornstarch
oil for frying
lettuce
chopped scallions

Directions:

Mix mayonnaise with Thai Sweet Chili Sauce. Add hot sauce to taste. Dredge the shrimp in cornstarch. Deep fat fry the shrimp until lighty brown. Drain on paper towel, put in a bowl and coat with the sauce. Serve in a lettuce lined bowl, top with chopped scallions.

This recipe for Bonefish Grill's Bang Bang Shrimp serves four.

I hope you've had a wonderful post 4th of July week. It hasn't been quite as hot as a few weeks ago, but still pretty warm. Pray for those less fortunate than yourself. Love one another.

Half This Year Is Gone!!

Just the other day, I was trying to remember to use '2010' rather than '2009' on my checks. Now, suddenly, I am writing 'July' on everything. Where has the time gone? It's funny how time flies whether you are having fun or not.

Have I accomplished anything this year? Not much! Am I exercising like I was sure I would? Not Much! Have I cleaned out my sewing room? Nope! I'm just 6 months older is about all.

Are you doing anything special for the 4th of July? Since we had the big catfish feast last week, I'm not really planning to do much of anything. I'll have 3 days off, and the weather is a bit nicer than it has been, so maybe I'll get a few things done. One thing that is really needed is to clean my vehicle out on the inside. It needs to be vaccumned and all the interior dusted and wiped down. I even bought one of those long handled sponge washer thingee's like you see on tv(except I got mine at Bed Bath & Beyond)to wash the inside of the windshield about 6 months ago, and it's still in the package. Who knows, maybe this weekend, I'll break it out and get busy.

We're getting purple hull peas, okra and cucumbers out of the garden. Our squash has been disappointing. We've gotten a few bell peppers, and some several messes of green beans. I think they are going to be removed and replanted for a second harvest. The tomatoes have been loaded, but the leaves have curled up and they look awful. We either have a bad case of heat stress or possible contamination from chemicals used on the farms nearby. We've had a few ripe ones, and since the weather has cooled, we'll see if they do better.

Oh, and we have watermelons. Right now there are 4 that are pretty good sized, and more small ones in the vines. I'm just hoping they don't taste like squash.

I hope you are planning a perfect holiday. Be sure to thank God for his kindness in allowing us to live in this country. Remember all those who serve and have served to give us the freedoms we enjoy. Love one another.

Hush Puppies

As I mentioned, our fish fry was a success. I have had a couple of folks ask for the recipe I used for the hush puppies. I actually used parts of 3 different recipes and I think they turned out great. Everyone else said they liked them as well. Here's the recipe.



Hush puppies Serves 20




2 cups self rising corn meal mix – yellow or white
2 cups self rising flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 Tbsp sugar

Mix all the dry ingredients together.

1 large onion chopped finely
1 or 2 jalepeno peppers center and seeds removed, chopped finely(optional)

Add onion to dry mixture.
2 eggs
1 cup milk
¾ cup buttermilk, more if necessary to moisten mixture completely.

Stir until all combined. Drop into hot grease.(about 350 to 375 degrees)
May be cut in half for smaller batch.

After making ½ of the recipe, add the jalepeno’s and fry up the rest.
I used only one jalepeno, and you could see they were there, but you couldn't really taste them, so next time, I'm using two.

I hope everyone is having a great Tuesday. Pray for those affected by the oil spill. Love one another.

Lightening Could Strike Twice!

I know you are wondering why you are seeing this big scratch looking thing on this hand. This is my son 'The Contractor'. This is where he was struck by lightening on Thursday. He was putting away the water hose when he heard a clap of thunder off in the distance, but didn't think much of it until he got struck. This place is more like a gouge than a scratch, and the skin on it is gone. He also has a big red place on the inside of his hand below his thumb.
It scared the bejesus out of him, and frightened his 7 year old son 'Superhero' shown here. Fortunately, he wasn't hurt. And we have teased him unmercifully about it.
Friday night when the cloud came up and it began to thunder, he gathered all the kids inside. His new motto is 'If you can hear it thunder, it's time to take cover.'
If only it had trimmed that thing on his chin.
I spoke with him today, and he said his hand was a little sore and looked like it was trying to get infected. It's in such a hard place to keep covered since he works out in the heat all day and gets sweaty and dirty. I'm just so thankful that he wasn't hurt any worse than he was, and hope there's no residual damage anywhere in his body.

Our birthday supper for my sister-in-law was a great success, even if she did make her own cake/cakes. She made a chocolate and pineapple cake. We had more fish than we could possibly eat. My hushpuppies turned out very well if I do say so myself, my nephew made slaw that was wonderful, and we had pickles, onions, tarter sauce, green tomato pickles. It was all so very good. I think everyone had a good time. We had 20 in attendance. The contractor did the cooking, and we did the eating. He also catches the fish we eat. He and his friend have nets in the river.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend and are happy to be back to doing what you do on Mondays. Pray for rain. We need it badly. Love one another.

Friday Thoughts And The Quilts!

I've been on my soap box this morning. What else is new about that, right?

There are some things that just 'bug' me. The obits in the local paper seem to hit a nerve often. In the last few years, the paper has begun charging for anything over a certain number of words, thus allowing family members to write the obit for their recently deceased loved one. Today a 95 year old lady is in the column. There are quite a number of nice things said, but the phrase that got me is, and I quote, 'She was admired for her spunk, her fire for life and her ABILITY TO ACCESSORIZE'. Accessorize????? Something tells me that just isn't right. I've ranted about the obituary process here before, but when is someone going to help people write these things.

I guess if you allow someone to list all their honors and medals for bravery(which I don't have a problem with), then they have to allow folks to list that their brother had a love of flower arranging and that great Aunt Mabel took a plane ride to Heaven, or that cousin Sam is playing drums in that great band in the sky. If you knew these people, you already knew all these wacky details, if not, then ignorance is bliss. I personally don't care that the 95 year old lady could accessorize. I found it nice that she was a member of a church and that she had taught school and Sunday school, but I just don't care if her jewelry matches her clothes, handbag and shoes.

I've decided that it is important that I write my own obituary. Here is what it should say. Memaw Bakes died (insert date). She has 3 children(insert names here) and 6 grandchildren(insert names here). There will be no visitation, no service. There will be a yard sale at her home(insert address here) next week. She hopes to be missed.

Today is my sister-in-law's birthday. We are having a fish fry in her honor tonight, even though she made her own birthday cake. My son is frying up some catfish, and there'll be about 20 of us in attendance. I'm hoping this will be a great birthday for her since it's her first in Arkansas in a while. Her youngest son and his girlfriend has come home to help her celebrate. Then tomorrow, her sister and her parents will be at her house. Happy Birthday, sister-in-law
I'm getting close on the bedding for the girls.
The quilts are finished, but as I told you yesterday, I'm not happy with the pillow shams. I've attached a couple of pictures so you can see what is finished. I think you will agree the shams need a little something to make them stand out just a bit.

I hope you've had a wonderful week. Pray for more rain(this worked yesterday). Love one another.