OMG

Today was day one of the closing of Bearpaws and Hollyhocks. The store will close for good on Friday, December 31st. Everything was 50% off and there was a mob scene. There had to be more people than would be allowed by the fire department. I got there at 10:20am and tried to shop. It was so crowded that I chose to concentrate on purchasing more of the Martinique fabric line. Because of where it was, I found myself bypassing the entire fabric cutting line, ending up number 6 in line instead of number 100. The purchasing line went a bit faster, but still I was there until 1:40pm. I called home and my sister and her girls had arrived from Southern California. She called me a slacker fro not being there to welcome them--my son was there. I will have to make up for that!

I had this dream of walking in and finding only a few people there since it was a Monday and don't you think people would be a t work??? I thought I would walk in and grab a few things I knew to be there last week and I would shop leisurely and be out of there by 11:30am. Ha! I wasn't the only one who thought this. Imelda told me she had the same vision. Why weren't these people at work????

I am thinking of going back to see how it went on Thursday. One final good-bye and maybe there won't be so many people--everyone seemed to be shopping today--and I can look for somethings for my friend, Sandy, who is out of town for the week. I am sad to see it all end.

While I was there, I remembered to get the particulars for the quilt that Lindy was going to do as a block of the month. She seemed so excited 5 weeks ago. I asked for the advertising poster and was told to put my name on it and see what happens. It is Micheal Miller/Swirly Girls Bonne Ami in blue and green or pink and white.

One last mention. My friend Sandy is one of the dearest people I know. Today she is sad because her brother is in the hospital with a blood infection. Please include them in your prayers tonight. I know I will!

May you be healthy and happy this lovely evening and enjoying the love of family as I am.

Merry Christmas

We are here stuffed from dinner with the in-laws, finishing up last minute things and making preparations for breakfast. Kim of Kim's Big Quilting Adventure was talking about what brings the magic to us each year. I was just saying to my sister that I missed filling the stockings. My children are adults and we have agreed that it wasn't necessary, but I am constantly walking through stores seeing little things I want to buy and I just miss it. Next year, I am going to fill those stockings again.

Every year there is one thing that really brings it home. Christmas Eve, after the hustle and bustle of the day, at night it is really quiet. Lights are off at businesses, and it is usually cold and foggy. It is peaceful.

This year my daughter and I stopped into Walgreens to pick up some milk. No milk--no breakfast casserole. It was doing a booming business and the parking lot was full!

There is all kinds of sadness out there, but this one night I look up in the sky knowing that Santa is in Newark, New Jersey and my family is safe and well and I am grateful for all the blessings I have.

I am wishing everyone a merry Christmas and hope the blessings in your own lives are plentiful.

Julie

Spiders

When my mother died 15 years ago, she had this cusinart mixer/chopper that was specially ordered. All of her counter top appliance type items were specially ordered in a specific color--cobalt blue. I took these home. The coffee maker has since died and a few others have gone, but the cusinart was my favorite. I had it put away for space reasons, but I began wanting to use it as I watched more and more of the Food Network. I have been looking for it for months.
I was convinced that it was in my pantry. I made my daughter look for it several times. I finally accepted that it may have been given away. Then I thought, "we haven't looked in the shed." The shed is a black hole for dishes, small things with no place and my parents stuff that is too valuable to get rid of. My sister would love it if I let her in there to clean it out. It is possibly the one bit of proof of my hoarding tendencies. Today I sent my son out there to take the door off so he could look for it. A while back the door fell off and my husband screwed it shut. My son tells me it isn't in there--the spider infested shed, so can he put the door back on. Turns out he barely looked inside. He hates spiders. There weren't really very many spiders--mostly spider webs! I actually went in and looked and I found it!!! Not sure it works yet, but I can only hope!

Julie :)

Alice

Alice was the principal of Holy Family Catholic School seventeen years ago. As an employee, I saw her quite frequently. One day I noticed something was different. It had to do with her hair--it wasn't that it was different, it looked like her hair, it looked like a wig. I asked her if everything was okay and she said it was. Not so much time goes by and Alice looks thinner. I ask again and she still says everything is fine. Now I am starting to hear rumors and parents are asking me what it wrong with Alice. I truthfully say that nothing is wrong, after all, I am feel close to Alice. If there was something seriously wrong, she would tell us. Never did I suspect she had cancer. People were only told after she died. For all the secrecy, Alice was the subject of gossip among the parents. A few people knew. Some people guessed, but a lot of us wondered why?

A great party

Friday night I went to a party. Some women met and had dessert. Yummy dessert! Then we passed out presents. Lovely, sweet, from our heart presents. There were Christmas tags, snap bags, a recipe booklet, cookies, and paper gifts. I found out that Bonnie is really talented with cards. I have only known her to quilt or embroider. I had a really great time and I found out new information--such as Pat can crochet, and LeeAnn likes beading. It didn't hurt to end the evening watching Eat, Pray, Love with Julia Roberts and finding my new passion--men with a Portuguese accent!

Here is a little tidbit about Friday. It was originally a pajama party--a sleep over. I did at one point agree to sleep over, but it later occured to me that My husband would never understand that since I was at Barbara's house who literally lives around the corner. He would not get why I wouldn't come home and sleep in my own bed. In the end, it was better to come home because I had to be up at 7am to make it to Quilter's Corner for the Saturday Square the next day. So he starts calling me at midnight because I guess I didn't make it clear when I would be home. I think he woke up and couldn't find me.

Julie :)

A Little Upset!

Yesterday I found out from my mother-in-law that Bearpaws and Hollyhocks is closing. Not that I want to be unsympathetic, but really. I have a group there. Nice sharing! I was at the store today and there isn't even a sign, nor are the employees sharing this news. You have to go to the website and how did I find that out? Another person called to tell me. Who cares about the website? Why would I go there regularly? Does anyone? And why are some customers being told and not all customers? I know this because that is how my mother-in-law heard--from her friend, a customer who happened into the store that day. Those of us who are part of a group (groups extending into 2011 when there will be no shop) should have been notified. That would have been common courtesy. I was just there Monday evening. Who decides to close a store in one evening? For heaven's sake, I was there less than a month ago with Lindy going on and on about a new block of the month she was starting after the first of the year. I have recently spoken of this to her, telling her how excited I was and how I was thinking of doing the green version and she never said a word. Thanks.

We should have been told.

What comes out of my mouth!

I was looking at my comments and I read one that Kim left a long time ago. She was surprised that I ever said a bad word. I am deceptively sweet. Just read my yearbooks from school and you will think EVERYONE thought I was just the sweetest thing! Not really. Just last week I was in the office I share with three others. The office is just off the staff room and our door is always open. That day, I dropped a pen and (sure I was alone), and I said "Oh Shit!" As I bent down to pick up the pen I hear our school secretary say, "Julie, I can't believe I heard you say that!"

Of course I said "sorry" immediately. I would have said that even if I was alone, after all, you just never know who might be listening!

Good night for real this time!
Julie :)

Caramels

Tonight I made caramels. I just poured the caramel mixture into the pan to cool so I don't know for sure that it worked. Pretty sure!

My dear daughter is 23 years old this December. Seventeen years ago, I made caramels at around 9pm--long after the children were in bed and (I thought) fast asleep for the night. When the caramels were done, it was 10pm. I poured the mixture into the pan and went to do household chores that never seem to get done with two children ages 4 and 6. My daughter was not asleep and she thought there was this wonderful pan of candy and she got out of bed and dipped her hand into the mixture that was approximately 240+ degrees. We figure it was that hot because I had just poured it and caramels are cooked to firm ball stage on the candy thermometer (245*). It was the most horrible moment thus far. She cried for 2 straight hours. When I called the pediatrician, I was told just to run her hand under cold water--which I did for 2 hours, as I cried with her. Every time I took her hand out of the water and into the air, she would begin to scream. The next day, the doctor bandaged her hand with a huge white bandage. To make matters worse, we were taking a family picture that my parents had paid lots of money to set up the next morning in Fresno. There was no way to unbandage the hand because every time we did, my daughter screamed. Her hand was tightly bandaged for days.

We ended up taking the family picture and it was beautiful. It paid to have an experienced photographer take the picture. The photographer was able to redraw her hand so no bandage appears in the picture. I was so traumatized by the whole experience, I didn't make caramels again until last year. Caramels are one of my favorite candies. I live for the vanilla nut caramels that Sees Candies makes. I don't put nuts in my caramels. There is something so satisfying about the creaminess of the caramel that says it doesn't need anything else.

I am making caramels for a secret Santa thing we are doing at work. We were given a name (I like the person I got) and are supposed to give a small gift every day until Thursday when there was going to be a breakfast--probably potluck. Then the principal, as usual, got involved at the last minute and decided to have a breakfast for the staff. Now we have one extra day to give a gift and will reveal ourselves on Friday. On Thursday, the first day, I gave a small jar of peppermints. I am gone before the end of the day and didn't get my slip of paper until Thursday, so I went prepared. Friday, I gave her a Christmas plate of Turtle brownies. One the the things that was listed was caramel. I understand that she LOVED the brownies. And, yes, the darling daughter made them....Yesterday, I gave her a Glee CD (she loves Glee-the show on channel 40) of the songs from the season finale. Then I had people email here a gleefull Monday from her secret Santa--of course without using my name. Today I gave her red socks with snowflakes on them. Tomorrow will be the caramels and then I have to come up with something for Thursday--an extra day. The best is Friday when I give her breakfast in a bag for her last present. I bought the pancake mix that you add water, mix in the jug and pour. I added a bottle of maple syrup and a box of hot chocolate with mini marshmallows. The idea is that this will only cost us $20.00 for the entire week. It was fun.

Have a great day tomorrow!
Julie :)

Knoty-ladies

It was my knoty ladies embroidery group tonight. We had yummy food and great fun. There is a sale at Bearpaws and Hollyhocks--all gifts 50% off. I have my eye on a bear that I might go back for this week. I bought one bear for me and two bears for baby gifts.

Tricia made a savory cheesecake for tonight. It was fabulous. I don't think I will be making it soon as it needs to bake in a water bath and I am not sure I can manage this. There was an artichoke dip that went fast. We also had rockyroad fudge, apple pie, cinnamon twists and tea.

Have a great week!

Tamales 2

We were at the best decorated house EVER! Above is the best idea for towel storage. If I could get the loving husband to do this for me, I could free up a closet for my scrapbooking. I am marshaling my argument for a shelf as we speak. Look below at the tree picture. I took 26 pictures because it was all so beautiful. What a talent for decorating.

Here is the evidence of my hard work yesterday.

We were at the house of one of my friends. Her son came by and tasted all of the fillings and pronounced the chicken to be the best. I still like the pork best, but I opted to make beef filling. I have enough filling left over to make another 2-3 batches of tamales. I am thinking that it would be worth it to purchase them, but I love to cook and this was really fun. I am the worst tamale maker! Mine were anemic and looked like cigars.

One thing this did is make us all want the tamale/seafood steamer that Wal-mart sells. Sandy got the last one in Sacramento, so we are going to be disappointed. I may have to use my faberware pot to steam. I have pots for steaming, just not that size.

Have a great week! I hope to. One of my favorite people has been out for 2 months and she is coming back Tuesday. How great is that!

Julie :)

Tamales

Tomorrow I will spend my day making beef filling for tamales. I am going to learn how to make them Saturday with 5 other friends. I believe we are making beef, pork and chicken. Yummm.
I was given two pages of instructions and a Sunset Mexican Cookbook. I know that it came from the thrift store, so when I opened it and the pages fell out, I wasn't very surprised. I took the book and pulled the rest of the pages out and put them in page protectors and put it in a binder.
My husband thought I was insane. He was drawing pictures of cockroaches to go on my binder. Not funny! Okay, it was a little funny. Don't tell him though. His head may grow big.

I took a day off work for this. Vacation is a joyful thing. I have to get up early and drive the beloved daughter to work--at 4:30am. This means I can go back to sleep until 8:30am. Oh how i love to sleep in my bed. It has a pillow top on the mattress and a goose down mattress on top. I have an electric blanket that I seldom use because I prefer blankets and quilts piled up on me. Just lovely. I will go to the store, buy my ingredients, make my filling and hang out at the sewing machine. I might give a small gift on Saturday--very small. I am making a small gift for my embroidery group--the Red Sewciety--and I may make more than the twelve I need. I am making the gifts for embroidery in red in honor of our name.


Here is my December schedule:
December 4th: tamale making with friends
December 5th: decorating for Christmas
December 8th: Potluck with Thimbleberries
December 11th: Morning Potluck for Guild
Afternoon gift making class at the library
Evening Dinner with Noel and Lisa
December 13th: Embroidery with Shirley at Bearpaws and Hollyhocks--Potluck
December 17th: Embroidery group--Red Sewciety sleepover--Dessert
December 18th: Last Saturday Square at Quilter's Corner (8:00am)

There are a couple Christmas concerts in there that I have been invited to. Better get them on the calendar! Mass on Christmas Eve and then dinner with the in-laws. Wow. My plate is getting full.

Have a great day tomorrow. Think of me cooking tomorrow!
Julie

The End of Vacation

Tomorrow I go back to work. I have been so happy all week. Now back to the salt mines.

I thought I would have a ton of things to say, but I am consumed by the thought of going back to work. It isn't a place where I feel wanted and appreciated.

Have a great week.

Think good thoughts.

Thanksgiving dinner

I just finished reading Kim's Big Quilting Adventure. Kim was describing her thanksgiving dinner. So here is mine:

Turkey--a must. I do not stuff my turkey because of the whole food poisoning issue. I do cook it with lemons, carrots, oranges, celery, etc in the cavity if I have them.

stuffing. I am okay with Stove-top Stuffing, but I really like homemade. I make it if I am the cook, but my mother-in-law makes Stove-top for us who refuse to eat stuffing with oysters--me!

mashed potatoes and gravy. I use golden/yellow potatoes.

sweet potatoes--not the kind with the yucky marshmallow on top. I have a recipe from Bon Appetit` that has a topping of brown sugar, pecans, butter and cornflakes.

cranberry sauce. I make my own. It is really good and so simple. I will serve the canned kind.

green bean supreme. Green beans, cream of mushroom soup and French's onions.
rolls (I make my own of these too--see my earlier post for recipe).

Dessert. I am not partial to pumpkin pie, but it is acceptable. I like apple pie a lot!

Wine. Pinot noir--no white wine for us! We like red. A merlot will do nicely also.

I LOVE THANKSGIVING DINNER!

Friends

A funny thing happened. I have a lovely group of friends who I meet with once a month. I see them in between times, and as lovely as that is, I love the times we hang out because there is lots of laughter and togetherness. Now we were supposed to meet in November, but the hosting friend was not feeling well, so we postponed our visit. As I met up with one or another of the little group, I would hear how they all heard from the one who cancelled--everyone except me. All this time it never once occurred to me that I was being slighted or that she didn't care about me. I just figured she knew I would hear from this one or that one and I knew she was ill.

Turns out that I did indeed hear from her. She left a message on my cell phone that I completely missed. I wasn't worried in the least and when I accidentally found the lost message, I laughed! It is so like me to miss a message. I have a cell phone, but I am not in the habit of checking it all the time. I also tend to think all the message are from the daughter and I call her back. This time I missed/accidentally deleted three messages. Two of those people should know me by now (including the friend) and one is from someone who only met me two weeks ago and is probably thinking I am a flake. I will call her back. On my todo list is to call my friend who is probably wondering why she hasn't heard back from me......

As I am writing this, I am munching on a roll that is leftover from dinner. I love these rolls. They are the best--soft inside with a touch of sweetness. The rolls are made from scratch. Now, people tend to think there is so much work in making your own rolls, but these are foolproof and so yummy. Yeast rolls only take time--and a bit of love. These don't even need to be kneaded.

Perfectly Easy Dinner Rolls

1 cup warm water (105* to 115*)
5 teaspoons or 2 packages of active dry yeast
1/2 cup (1 stick) of melted butter
1/2 cup of sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon of salt
4 to 4 1/2 cups flour

Makes 2 dozen rolls

Combine the warm water and yeast in a large bowl. Let the mixture stand until yeast is foamy, approximately 5 minutes. Stir in the butter, sugar, eggs and salt. One cup at a time, add the four until the dough is too stiff to mix. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours (or up to 4 days). Grease a 13x9-inch pan. Divide dough in 4 equal pieces. Divide each piece into 6 pieces. Roll each piece into a smooth round ball; place the balls in even rows in the prepared pan. Cover and let dough rise until doubled in volume, approximately 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 375*F. Bake for 15-20 minutes until rolls are golden brown. May brush rolls with additional melted butter.

I confess that I have never let the dough sit for more than 2 hours and I have never brushed with more butter. Tonight they weren't rising as fast as they should have, but I baked them anyway and it turned out just fine. They are so yummy, but I am a bread person. I bake it, toast it, spread it with jelly or jam. I love sandwiches, french toast and dumplings. Bread is a staple in life. Bread, bread and more bread!

Happy thanksgiving to all! I love the holiday because it means being with family and eating. What could be better????

Today was just fun. I went to Bearpaws and Hollyhocks to take a class from Kim. We "made" wreaths--I cut fabric and shopped--and got lots of ideas for other crafts. I was a little obsessive and cut 300 strips when I only needed 180. On one side of the room were all the women I knew. Opposite us was a very nice woman named Anisse (not sure of spelling) and two other women who were together, Susan and Brenda. I think it is funny that all the people who knew each other sat together. There is a class where the children are grouped by ethnicity. All the Hispanic kids sit together, the black kids sit together and the Russian kids sit together. One time the teacher gave them all new seats and she grouped the special ed students together. We go where we are comfortable--we sit with our friends. Adults do it and then we wonder why the kids do it!

Lindy is having a 35% off sale. It was fantastic. I bought some fabric for a Dear Jane quilt. Sammy from my guild is starting a Dear Jane group. On the first night she announced it, Sammy had 15+ sign-ups. It is ideal. We show up at 6pm--just before the guild meeting--on the 4th Thursday. There is no cost (hurrah!!) and we get patterns each month. Notice patterns with an "S". Sammy is so sweet. We start on the 4th Thursday in January. I can't wait!

Later, after the class, we went to the River City Quilter's Guild quilt show. It was smaller than I remembered. There were great vendors. Crazy quilting seems all the rage now. I guess I am not a trend setter, but a trend follower. I am seriously thinking that I will do my crazy quilt in more Victorian colors--using lace, doilies, etc.

I am very tired from all that and am ready for bed at 9pm. I am watching the lovely daughter clean up the kitchen because she doesn't want me to and she is afraid I will if she leaves it until tomorrow. She is probably right. Smart girl.

One project a week

Okay, it has been one month give or take since October 11th when I officially began one project a week. I have finished 3 community service quilt tops, caught up with a 3 month mystery wallhanging project, and completed (with quilting) a Saturday Square quilt. I picked out my fabric for a class next week and am well on my way to finishing the first square of my blue and white quilt.

Tomorrow I go to embroidery class. I have a square that needs to be done by January. That will be my next project. I get so much embroidery done during Dancing With the Stars. I have been putting it off because it has to be done in back stitch and I prefer other stitches, but after tonight, I am dedicated to getting that done. It won't stop my quest to get other quilting projects done. I have a pillow to make for my friend, Sandy. She has already seen the piece, but have I made the pillow? No. Time to stop that!

I want to let you know that there is a little give-away from Tattered Threads and Willing Hands (www.julieisa.blogspot.com). Go there and check it out before Wednesday, Nov 17th at midnight. Leave a comment and tell her where you heard of her give-away.

Julie :)

I love this....

The human heart has hidden treasures
in secret kept, in silence sealed,
The thought, the hopes, the dreams, the pleasures,
whose charms were broken if revealed.

This is the language of Jane Eyre

Just as I promised last night, here is the picture of one of the squares. It might be hard to discern, but there are 4 hearts that come together to form a star in the middle. The fabric I have for the sashing is black with bits of color in pink, purple and blue. I guess I should have taken a picture of that too. Tomorrow is a new day. I will get it all out again I am sure.

This is a mystery wallhanging designed by Margaret Ward. She has a knack for design. This one is done for the Golden Valley Quilt Guild. We picked up the center block pattern in September. Last month we picked up the first border. I did mine differently because I have directional fabric and I was not getting it to go in the correct direction. Even though I was told that it didn't matter because the fabric together is so busy, still I will know. Therein lies the rub.

Just a bit of literary reference. I went over to a local store, Runs With Scissors, and picked up 3 fat quarters from fabric called Ephemeral Antiquity--pictures, music notes and words all in French. It looked not so busy when I picked the fat quarters out. It isn't anything like I usually sew on. We will pick up the last border at our meeting in November (11-18-10; 7:00pm at St. Marks Lutheran Church on Kingswood Dr in Citrus Heights) and then display our wallhanging in December at our Christmas Brunch meeting.

I have to say, I consider the wallhanging border one for the done column. I am thinking that tomorrow will bring out the 30's quilt and I do want to finish a friendship star that could go for a community service quilt.

Today my daughter tells me how she and her brother had an argument. At the time she was not speaking to him and he not speaking to her. So she tells me this tale of woe that includes hitting one with a towel, throwing things off the table, unkind words and name calling. After the recital of who did what, I said, "so you are saying there was violence (the towel), name calling and lots of unkind behavior, but was there any blood?" When she agreed there was no blood, I declined to get involved! That is the new rule--if there is no blood, I need not trouble myself with their little squabbles!

One last note: I am reading a great book by Cecelia Lamb called Henry's Sisters. It is very interesting. Such really bad stuff happens, so beware. That is where I am off to now, to read on to find out how it ends with Henry's Sisters.

Goodnight.

Project of the week

I have this goal to finish a project each week. I confess that I started on one of the unfinished gems and then got stuck. I am finishing the heart quilt that I began as a class with Kim of Kim's Big Quilting Adventure. I think it was her very first class. Her original was a small throw. I got excited about a quilt I had on my bed that was similar and I made it into a much bigger quilt. SO I have the blocks sewn into blocks of four and have only to make a decision about the sashing. I am thinking I will bring it to my Thimbleberries group this upcoming Wednesday evening at Quilter's Corner and get some opinions, including Kim's. I had planned on using a black with bright pattern for the sashing. The blocks are hearts in various pinks and a background of cream with small pink dots. It is really PINK. I have to go to bed early tonight, so I will get it out tomorrow evening as I watch Medium and that new show, Bluebloods. I plan on taking pictures and putting it on here tomorrow, so if you want to put your two cents worth in, come back late Friday evening or on Saturday to comment.

I did finish a part of a mystery wall hanging that was supposed to be done by October 28th. I would have gotten November's part done also, but I ran out of fabric. This piece is really busy. Oh well, I have until Saturday evening to finish and make my goal.

Have a lovely day tomorrow. It is Friday!

I don't feel so bad now....

I was just replying to Kim on Kim's Big Adventure about her son's pennant. Then I took a look at Gran's blog and found that she hasn't posted since October 1st. She must be really busy.... Then I went to Pam's blog. She hasn't posted since October 11th. I just don't feel that bad about the entire week I didn't share once!

Pam is such a wonderful person. Pam makes me laugh. She is funny and smart.....so smart that she is inspired by ME! One project a week. I was doing so well, then I got sidelined by some not so nice stuff--another post, another time--and I am climbing back on the wagon. I am thinking that my project for this week will be the middle for my Saturday Square in 30's fabrics. I really want to finish this and I need to return the book that is going to be my inspiration. It is a book written by Lynda Milligan and Nancy Smith. When I finish it, I am planning on sending a picture. I have to thank Pam for helping me keep on track!

Speaking of Pam--she has two friends with the same last name--me and Colleen. All she needs to do now is find one more person with our last name and she will have a collection. Collections come in 3's. To be the same, this new friend must have our last name and not be related as Colleen and I are not related. Happy hunting Pam!

Julie

Rainy Days and Embroidery

Rainy days are just the best--especially if I have no where to go. I listened to the rain and watched one of my favorite movies, While You Where Sleeping. It was wonderful.

On Saturday I went to my embroidery group, the Redsewciety. I had brought cookies--regular chocolate chip and pumpkin chocolate chip. I was completely unaware that we were having a decorated cookie contest. I did win a prize because only two of us brought any cookies at all.

This week I am working on staying happy. I have to confess that I have already failed, but tomorrow is a new day and we can only learn from our failures. Even though I failed somewhat, at the very least I didn't cry at work--which happens everyday, until today. I have only been working on my embroidery as I am cleaning up my kitchen. I am making so much progress. I wish now that I had taken a picture of what a mess I had. Too late now. One funny thing is that my husband caught the bug and he did some cleaning out of the closet that I may have mentioned. I found a bunch of gifts I had planned on giving last year. One was the movie, Gremlins, that I bought. I told that person that I had another gift that I couldn't find and I think she didn't believe me--until today. Today she got a big laugh out of it! It is always good to laugh.

This has nothing to do with anything, but I have been wearing two different earrings. Tomorrow I am wearing silver hoops that I borrowed from the daughter. We shall see if anyone notices.

Have a lovely day tomorrow.
Julie

Cookies

Today we made cookies. Really it was my lovely daughter who made the cookies. She made plain chocolate chip, chocolate peanut butter chip and her favorite standby cookie--pumpkin chocolate chip. Tomorrow I going to meet with the Redwork Sewciety and I think we will need a bit of sustenance. I will bring coffee because there is never coffee. Not sure why. Could be that Barbara just doesn't feel that she wants to supply us with coffee every month without contribution or it could just be that she doesn't drink coffee. I find it hard to believe that people don't know that coffee is the elixir of life.......

Tomorrow I will drive the daughter to work at 5:45am. I plan to make breakfast around 8am then work on cleaning up more stuff. At 10:00am I go to Redwork group with the cookies. I pick up the daughter from work at 2pm, drive over to BestBuy to try and find a copy of Pleasantville, stop at Barnes & Noble for a calendar and most likely a coffee at Starbucks. A stop at Trader Joe's for baking pumpkins for the soup for our dinner will be next, followed by a stop at Sam's Club for the package of sliced roast beef and Swiss cheese for the sandwiches that will accompany the butternut squash soup. A quick nap and then dinner prep. It will be a busy day. We might even fit in a game of cards with the in-laws. After all that, I intend to spend Sunday sewing!

For those who are wondering why we need a copy of the movie Pleasantville--the lovely daughter has a speech class and her group is using the movie for their next project. They had to choose a movie on communication. Their sceond choice was Mrs. Doubtfire. Now that movie we could find! I can safely tell you that Pleasantville is not at Target or Walmart--both places the daughter choose to check first.

If you are out there, reading this, but not commenting......On Thursday is my guild meeting. We meet at St. Mark's Lutheran Church on Kingswood in Citrus Heights. Our meeting begins at 7pm. This Thursday we will have the Pixel Ladies speaking--landscape and portrait quilts. Very exciting. We would love to have you join us......

Julie

I know, it has been a while

I knew this would happen eventually. We ran into a problem here. The modem died. It was sad and was not able to be revived. Found out that Surewest uses another modem and I had 2 choices. For my first choice I could "lease" a modem for $5.00/month. Now we all know that means $5.00 plus all taxes. My 2nd choice was to buy one from someplace like Staples or Best Buy. Thinking that I could go and check out any new pens, I called Staples first, but they didn't have a modem that was RCF 1483 capable. I have that imprinted on my memory. I figured buying one was the best way to go. We are now connected again!

We don't even begin to realize how connected we are until it goes away. The modem was a must for us because both of my "children" are in school and some of their courses require homework done on the internet--especially the Statistics class. Very scary!

On Monday, I was at embroidery class. A very bright spot in my week. On Tuesday I was home. Wednesday I was running around after the modem and tonight I had dinner with my in-laws. How does all that wear me out?

My new goal

I am going to finish my projects. All those unfinished projects that linger around for years--I am going to tackle them and take charge. I was hoping to finish one project each week. Yesterday, I finished three projects. Okay, I started with three easy things, but still. Also, I made a decision. I love it when I take charge and make real decisions. I am tired of the rust colors of the Thimbleberries fabrics I have and I am going to use reds and raspberry colors. I am going to use blue. I will finish the quilt and I am not doing the one next year. I will still join the group--love the group--but I hate things about the patterns. I hate trying to decipher what is the correct color. I am tired of seeing right beautiful colors and ending up with rust. I am taking a stand.

Wish me luck.
Julie

Friends and Dinner

Yesterday I spent the day with 5 friends. We had a wonderful tea and pastry, then worked together, had lunch and snacks and toddled on home around 6pm. It was so much fun! The chicken and brown rice salad was so good I am making it for dinner tomorrow evening. You can find the recipe at Kim's Big Quilting Adventure (www.kimsbigquiltingadventure.blogspot.com).
I always have such a great time when I hang out with them. You have no idea how I look forward to each get-together.

The salad has to be made the night before, so I have been diligently chopping and cooking my chicken, rice, snow peas, green onions and peppers. The recipe calls for red pepper, but I buy a package of small peppers from Costco that come in red, yellow and orange. I choose a variety of colors to give my salad a bit of color. Tomorrow after school I will make the dressing and then we will have this salad with garlic bread. I may make a green salad to go with it for my husband. He may not recognize the rice salad as dinner unless it is accompanied with a green salad--as in three items on the plate.

Have a lovely week if I don't check back soon. Tomorrow night is Dancing With the Stars and I am supporting Jennifer Gray, Florence Henderson and Bristol Palin. Yes, we all know I think her mother is an idiot, but Bristol is cute and I was impressed with how hard she was working. I have to admit that Rick Fox caught my eye.....I may be sending him a vote or two.

Julie :)

Why oh Why?

Why do I torture myself? I am home today because I had a stomach ache and I am watching an episode of Law & Order that I would have missed if I had been at work. This episode gave me nightmares. So here I am watching it. It was a very good episode. This woman is found to be in a coma induced by a drug NTPT. The person appears to be in a coma, but is really frozen. They are alive under the coma aware of what is going on, just unable to move or "wake up". A real nightmare! It is positively chilling.

While I was on the computer wishing a friend Happy Birthday, even though she is mad at me because she thinks I forgot, I went on Kim's Big Quilting Adventure. She got her flu shot today.
I have never gotten a flu shot. Reason #1: I have been told that it only protects you from previous strains of the flu, not the new ones. Unfortunately, it seems that the flu everyone gets is the new strain--therefore why bother with a flu shot. Reason #2: I haven't had the flu for YEARS. I am totally tempting fate here, but it is true. I wash my hands ALL THE TIME. I am obsessed with hand cleaners. I don't touch children's faces or hands and I take great care that they never touch me. I am also known to be not a hugging type of person, therefore don't have to deal with that too often. Reason #3: I am not in any high risk group of people who we are told need the flu. I would rather my father-in-law get a flu shot than me if there is a a shortage and there always seems to be a shortage. I happen to know of at least 2 people who have died from the flu. Honest-to-God! I know you can die from it if it is bad enough and can die quickly, but again, I try hard to not be sick. I do get colds every year--every season. I eat vegetables and fruits all year. Imagine how surprised I will be if I die from the flu!

I hope I remain healthy and I hope the same for all of us!

Looking Forward

I am looking forward to sewing or rather hand stitching with friends on Saturday. I seriously cannot wait! I am emailing obsessively and calling. Just talking about it makes me happy--not twitterpated (go to Kim's Big Quilting Adventure--you won't be sorry)--just darn happy.

I am having such a hard time all week--work is wearing me down and I look forward to the weekends like never before. I have even stopped sewing all week! So unusual for me. After tonight, I vow to stop letting stressful days stop me from spending quality time with my sewing machine after tonight. Tonight I went over to my in-laws so I could spend some quality time with my sister-in-law. I really do love her. She is part of the good in my husband's family. In fact, I am lucky because there is a darn lot of good in this family that I have made my own!

I hope you all have something wonderful to look forward to this weekend. I just love it when people are in my boat.

Another happening this week. I have made a new friend. It is unusual when I find I want to be friends with a guy. Most guys don't really interest me except to exist as husbands or boyfriends of my girl friends. Gary, husband to Leah--wonderful guy, but really the friendship is with Leah, although I could call Gary in an emergency and I am sure he would help me out--car problems, removing dead animals etc. Bill, partner to Sandy--just adorable, but don't see us hanging out together, Sandy is really the friend. You get the idea, but now I think I will have three guy friends. I have Noel and Paul and now I am adding Larry. Larry is just sweet like Paul and Noel. So now we know what it is that I require in a guy friend.

Hope we chat again soon.

Meeting At Walmart

Today I took my daughter to Walmart. She was intent on purchasing a fall quilt that she saw in the Better Homes and Garden magazine. I have to admit that I do shop at Walmart--for specific items. Since we were there, I did make a turn through the food isle to pick up a few things. As I walked down an almost empty isle, I thought I saw a co-worker, Missy. There was a girl with her,who she introduced as her daughter. I introduced my daughter and Missy replied, "You are blocking the isle." This while I was remarking on how many of us live in the same neighborhood. We went our separate ways and later in the car, my daughter remarked that she seemed a bit rude. I do think Missy doesn't like me. She just doesn't seem the least bit friendly, yet all I hear about her is how friendly she is! It only bothers me because I've heard how great she is and I was looking forward to getting to know her. One thing I do know is that we have scrapbooking in common, but it may not come to be that she becomes my friend. I can't be friends with everyone.

Just a word about names. Another blogger, who is my friend, gives some people pseudo-names to protect their privacy I expect. After all, some people might not choose to be mentioned on some one's blog--to have even a smidgen of their personal life out there for anyone to read. When I rename someone, you can't count on my using their first letter of their name and then changing it or using a middle name--that kind of thing. If I am going to rename you, then you will get the name of someone you remind me of. Take Missy. She reminds me of this girl I knew in school whose real name was Anna. One day she decided to be Missy and no one told me so I kept calling her Anna. All of a sudden, we weren't friends anymore and being nine I couldn't figure it out. In fact, I called her Anna until we went to middle school. We probably would have parted company anyway by then because she was moving to be part of the popular kids. I know it is hard to believe, but I have never been part of the popular crowd. I was known and generally liked, but not popular.

So, sorry Missy that we missed this chance to be friends, but there will be other opportunities. I don't give up so easily.

There is always a new quilt to make

The blue and brown quilt has been put on hold. I have a new idea for a 30's quilt I have ready to go with 12 blocks. I have only to come up with a setting. The blocks are from a block-of-the-month from Quilter's Corner. Their block program is fantastic. There is always more fabric than you really need, so if you make a mistake--like I did today, then you have options other than crying and praying that someone else out there in that vast quilting arena has a small piece that will save your life! I think I am going to use the medallion from the Wild Flowers quilt by Nancy Smith and Lynda Milligan. They were great speakers at the guild luncheon last Saturday.

I might start tomorrow. Stay tuned whoever you are out there!
Julie

blues and browns

I mentioned that I was thinking of making a blue and brown quilt to go at the end of my bed.
Linda of Little Bits and Pieces asked to see the fabrics. This one above is much more cream than the picture leads you to believe. I have 4-5 yards of it and it will be fabulous for a back.

Here are the fabrics I have set out so far (see above and below). I may not use all of them--some are white with blue and brown while the others are really cream with blue and brown.

I had a great time this past Saturday at a luncheon. My guild, Golden Valley Quilt Guild, put on a luncheon with Lynda Milligan and Nancy Smith from Possibilities in Colorado. There were lots of door prizes and I won a table runner. The food was yummy--especially the dessert, a lemon and raspberry frozen thing that was just yummy. The food was done by students at San Juan High School Culinary Program. They should be so proud of the professional way they prepared and served our meal. Hurrah for the students....

Tomorrow is Embroidery class with some of my favorite people. Tuesday is iffy as of now. Wednesday I will be meeting with my redwork group. We normally meet on the 3rd Saturday, but we were all at the luncheon....Thursday I am doing a demonstration on how to make easy pillowcases. Friday I have tea with Shirley at 2pm. Saturday I go to Quilter's Corner for the Saturday Square class and then sewing with Sandy for the rest of the day. I am praying for Sunday when I have nothing planned.

New projects await

Oh my God! I think I figured it out.....on my own!

I bought this magazine on Sunday. I love reading about other quilt shops, even if I will never get to the lovely vacation state of Nebraska, or Utah......

This first quilt comes from a shop in Stafford, Texas--wherever that is. The most I know about Texas is that my Uncle Wilburn is from there and it has these nasty bugs called chiggers, so thinking of visiting, oh sometime like never. I am picturing this in blues and browns. The pattern is called Chocolate Mint, but I am a lover of the color blue!

This next project is a wool wallhanging from Williamsburg, Iowa, a mere hop, skip and a jump from my nephews Sammy and William who live in Bettendorf, Iowa--not that I will be visiting there anytime soon. That saying--a hop, skip and a jump--is what my dad always said to us as we were backpacking through Desolation Wilderness in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Our destination could be MILES away, as in REALLY far, and he would still try to convince us (me, my brothers and my sister) it wasn't too far. We only fell for it the first couple times.

Back to the wallhanging. This new obsession can be blamed on my friend Kim (Kim's Big Quilting Adventure). She had to teach a class and I had to take it. I got lots of compliments on my bunny pillow (my $40.00 pillow that I gave to my niece for her birthday with instructions to treasure it for the family heirloom it is) and I was hooked. Now I visit Thrift stores regularly, think of crazy quilting, etc. I suppose there is room to blame a few others--Sandy, Shirley, Imelda, Irene.....Thank God for friends to drag me with them. Otherwise I would be really bored all the time.

So, now I am looking forward to Saturday when I will attend a luncheon for my guild and then on Monday when I get to see Shirley, Kim, Pam, Colleen....

My daughter just came out of her room. She isn't as impressed with me as I am, so I am going to bed. My husband appreciates my talents.........where did I go wrong with her???

Julie :)

Confession time

Today I am admitting that I (can I really say it???) bought a quilt from a store. I am so ashamed. Until now, I haven't bought anything for my bed that wasn't made by either me or my mother-in-law. I saw an advertisement in my magazine--Better Homes and Gardens--and I had to go see what was there. I saw this particular one. I stopped some poor helpless male who worked there--someone who probably knew NOTHING about that part of the store and was just passing by when I asked him, "does this ever go on sale?" Imagine my surprise when a week later it was on clearance. I threw caution to the wind and made the purchase. Yesterday I put it on the bed and my husband came in and laid on the bed in his dirty socks--and his clothes--and all I could think was, "damn, does he always have to do that?" Then I remembered it was from the store, not made at my sewing machine with hours of work poured into it and did not cost the major bucks that come with buying fabric and the quilting (even though my mother-in-law does it for free--I still have to buy my own batting), and it was on clearance, so do I care if my husband has on dirty socks? I do, but not as much.

I have another picture to show, but I can't figure out how to move it down and I have bothered my daughter a few too many times tonight (and she did give me her treat receipt for Starbucks and I got a grande non-fat coffee frapacchino with whipped cream), so I will post a 2nd time.

Julie

Opportunity Quilt

Tonight a few of us got together and made up the arrangement for our guild's 2011 opportunity quilt. It is bright batiks and black kona cotton fabric. This quilt has caused quite a lot of grief. The board from last year was very concerned about the person in charge of the project and she in turn was going to quit the project because she was questioned all the time, rumors flew and pretty much she was just tired of their rudeness. There was a small group of us who were sure that Margaret was just the person to lead this project. We were supportive and helped make the blocks. It is going to be spectacular!

In 2007 I was in charge of the 2008 opportunity quilt. I had a meeting and invited anyone interested in joining me. We sat at my kitchen table and voted on a pattern. Our choice was not popular. There was no applique. I am not proficient at applique and I felt I could not commit to a quilt that required it, just in case I ended up making it on my own. There were people who were encouraging in person, but were running down my skills behind my back. I was too inexperienced. I had not been in a guild long enough. The rumors were out there and I heard them. This kind of thing is really hurtful. I admit that my feelings were hurt and it was hard to not listen. In the end, my quilt brought in approximately $2000.00 to the guild--which I believe was our biggest profit up to that point. When I showed the final project, I got so many compliments and the person who won my quilt loves it. I had 7 people working on the quilt--all good quilters. What I learned from this is that you can't listen to the nay-sayers. You have to harden your heart and listen to the people you know and trust. There will always be someone out there who doesn't believe in you, but there are usually more that do and will give you the support you need.

Yesterday, I almost missed my Thimbleberries meeting. I was grateful that my friend called an jogged my memory, otherwise I would have missed seeing good friends. One is Kim from Kim's Big Quilting Adventure. She is so darn creative with her decorating. Each season she has these elaborate decorations--and most seem to be thrift store finds. A rival for Kim, but she has no blog, is Imelda. She goes all our with her decorating and she has the house for it. I am completely okay living through my friends. I don't have the decorating gene, so I stick with the tried and true--a Christmas tree in December, quilts with a holiday theme.

I will close with this. After I came home from Thimbleberries, I went over to drop a from off to Anna, my next door neighbor. Anna also has the decorator gene and she is a great neighbor--even my husband likes Anna. Well, I went over and she was drinking a glass of wine. One thing leads to another and the next thing I know, it is 10pm and we have finished the bottle. It was a really good cabernet!!! I think Anna and I will be friends for a long, long time!

Julie

The family is back together

Wow! Did I whine just a bit last night??? Thanks to Orcs Mom and Gran for their hugs. Isn't it nice to have friends that will put up with a bit of whining form time to time??

Today my husband came home from a long trip to Montana. He goes every year. His parents have 33 acres in Emigrant and it is a yearly vacation. He goes up and does little jobs for his dad. This year he redid the root cellar, had the trees trimmed and did little fixit projects. This year he also made a huge giraffe and hung it in the trees so that when you are driving down the high way it looks like a giraffe is peeking out at you. My husband has quite the sense of humor and loves to find ways to make people laugh.

It is always a vacation for me when he is gone. Dinner is more casual, the bed is mine and mine alone. The kids and I go our separate ways a bit more and no one leaves the toilet seat up in the middle of the night. On the other hand, he is pretty handy to have around. Yesterday the lawn mower died. When my son started it up, oil came flooding out. Even I know that is not supposed to happen. My husband was home only a few hours before he had taken that darn lawn mower apart, put it back together and was out mowing the lawn. When he is gone, the whole house seems more relaxed, but I am always happy to see him come home. Tomorrow night I am making a steak dinner for him with campfire potatoes and green salad.

This homecoming also means the constant stream of friends comes back. I swear they just know he is home. When they begin to call, I will tell them (like this time) he won't be home until Monday, but that never works.

One thing I did this time was to stay out later than usual. A small circle of friends got together and we sewed all day a few weeks ago. Some of the group left around 5pm-ish, but I stayed until 7:30pm. I usually go over and sew with this one friend at the end of the month and I always go rushing home to make dinner by 6pm. I have realized that it won't kill any of them at home if I don't get home by 6pm. It was gloriously lovely on the freeway with very little traffic and we had pizza at 8pm for dinner. I might not be so antsy to leave in the future. My children are adults and were fine with me getting home at 8pm bearing Round Table pizza (large chicken and garlic). My husband can make do with a later dinner from time to time. What a revelation!

My circle of friends will be getting together again in October. I can't wait and I think I will be coming home bearing pizza......

I Said I Was SORRY

Last night was a board meeting for my quilting guild. I had been secretary before and thought I had done my time, but last year we had an issue in the guild that I and others thought needed to be brought to an end and my running for secretary would solve the problem.

Last year the member who was secretary was doing things that were making others (me) angry--speaking out of turn, acting like she was in charge, making decisions without input--and she was planning on keeping the job for another year. It was so bad that she (let's call her the mad secretary) announced a change in our fiscal year without any kind of vote--she just decided so we should have all gone along. People were calling me and threatening to quit. I think they called me because I am a long time member and, unfortunately, I agreed with them. It got so that you couldn't meet up with someone without this coming up as the topic of conversation. The solution was to get this woman away from the microphone and put her in the audience again. The years she was in the audience, she was quiet and rarely made anyone angry. During her year as secretary, she spoke at every meeting, often taking the microphone out of someone hands as they were speaking. Every time she spoke, she began with "I wasn't going to speak tonight, but...." and then there would be some really not nice things that came out of her mouth. What we needed was someone to run against her. I was the perfect person because I was willing to do the time should I be elected, I was okay with losing (although I never thought that would happen) and I am well known. I heard the mad secretary decided against another year when I was nominated.

So, here I am taking notes once again. At our last board meeting I wrote the notes to say we would ask our community service person (Linne) for pillow case kits for a kids sew day. Linne took this to mean she HAD to give us kits and she wasn't asked. Really we spoke about whether we had to budget $ for the event or did we have some material in community service that would work and we would inquire. Linne got really angry at someone else who didn't write the notes and I found out from a close friend. I went to Linne and apologised. I took total responsibility for the badly written sentence--in July! So imagine my surprise when it became an issue to discuss at the board meeting. I apologised--again for my badly worded note. How many times must I say I am sorry??? I am really, really sorry!

About the mad secretary--she wasn't happy with me and made it very clear. A little uncomfortable, but manageable. In a chat with a guild member it was mentioned that she hasn't been to a guild meeting since May and I hadn't even noticed. I just thought she was being quiet and avoiding me. Opps.

The Day Before

Today is the day before my birthday. In honor of that, I cleaned, organized and changed my sheets. It felt so good lying on my bed that I would have gone to bed then--except that I started my bread late and it won't be done until 10:30pm. I guess I will just have to have a drink and read until 10:30pm. Poor little ol' me!!! Tomorrow I will be (how can I ever get used to this??) close to 50. Yesterday I realized I was truly old enough to have grandchildren. I thank God that my children are smart and are waiting to make me a grandmother. Love those kids of mine. I am older than my mother was when I married. Older than my mother was when I had my first child.

Tomorrow my daughter is dying to go out to dinner at the Olive Garden so we can have lemonade lemoncello's--really really good drinks. Loved it so much that I went out and bought lemoncello to put in my personal recipe for vodka margaritas:

1 can Minute Maid limeade (has to be this brand)
1/2 can vodka
1/2 can water
ice

Put in blender and blend. Good then or after freezing a bit in the freezer. Great on a hot evening.

The other choice is Felipe's on Auburn Blvd in Citrus Heights. If you live here, this is the most authentic and utterly delicious Mexican food anywhere. We love to eat there.

On a quilting note: I am currently part of round robin for an embroidery group I participate in. We get an embroidered piece and then must do some sort of border. I had a Santa last month and wanted to do angels. I embroidered (almost done) 4 angels and was going to put them in the four corners. In the end, the piece was too small for my 6.5" angels. So, I did a checkerboard border and then put a flower pattern around that. I felt bad about not doing an embroidered border and I did do the angels for it, so I have decided to finish them and will give them to Barbara to use or not use as she sees fit. I am almost done! I confess, I stopped working on them when I discovered how big they were in comparison to the Santa. It is a Christmas theme.
I will take a picture of the next one I do. None of these women even know I have a blog, so they won't see their borders. I also reviewed my Saturday Square quilts in their various stages of undoneness (is that even a word??). If I finish one, it will be hung at Quilter's Corner and people can pick their favorite. Seems like an easy way to see how much people love (or don't love) my work. I also think there is a prize. I love prizes!!!

Have a lovely Monday!
Julie

A few things I forgot

There was something else I was thinking of and so there are two posts for today. Check out the post labeled "The Pillowcase Police".

Today was my Saturday Square. I love going to this. It is very little pressure (except making the block to avoid paying more than the first $5.00) and there are people there I only see at this event. The leader of the group is Elaine. Today she shared something I just loved. Her husband decided he doesn't like California, so he moved to a little town in Idaho. He lives there for a portion of the year with Elaine going to visit him and then he moves back for a bit (the winter) until he moves back to Idaho (when the snow melts??). That is a great compromise. Elaine doesn't want to live in a tiny town in Idaho where there is an itty bitty quilt shop and the next nearest quilt shop is 3 hours away! Right now, my husband is in Montana, where he would live if I just gave in and agreed to move there. I am thinking that one day we will be retired and he will really want to go. The one thing that holds him here, besides me, is that his parents are still alive (may they live a great many more years) and live close to us. When those ties are gone, he might start lobbying much harder for a move there. I love the place in Montana. It is gorgeous and the Yellowstone river is right there. Yellowstone Park in only 50 miles away and there is a cute little town, Livingstone, just down the road. Most important, there is a post office, a bar and a quilt shop not too far away. I am such a city girl and not such a snow girl. There is a lot of snow in the winter. I just can't look forward to that. Here is the perfect solution. My husband could move to Montana for 6 months and then come back for 6 months. What a deal. I will save my perfect solution until the moment comes, but I must thank Elaine some time.........

Another thing......I was at the DMV renewing my driver's licence on Thursday. I made a big deal out of the eye test, but all is fine and I will live to drive again. My paper license is good until October 24, 2010 by which I should have the new license with a beautiful picture.....ha,ha,ha.

I have been sitting here for 15 minutes trying to remember what was so interesting that I wanted to include a posting and it has left my brain. Early dementia. I lose things in my mind all the time. Senior moments and I am not even yet a senior. I am only getting close.......but not too close. I hear that AARP thinks you are a senior at 55years old. I have TONS of time! Things are looking up, if only I could remember........
Julie :)

The Pillowcase Police

Today I got up as usual at 6:30am and got ready to take my monthly Saturday trek to Quilter's Corner for the Saturday Square. Most of the time I go over to spend the day with a friend. We spend the day putting our squares together. It is a great time and I love hanging out there. Every once in a while, one of us has plans that prevent us from hanging out together. I have to say that I have never that I remember in the last 3 years, missed the Saturday Square time because then I would have to pay an extra $5.00. I am such a penny pincher.......

Today I had to go spend the day with my guild who was sponsoring a Kid's Sewing Day. I was really supportive when it was first put to the board, and I might even have volunteered, about 4 months ago. So, when Natalie reminded me of the day, I felt I had to go. Turns out it was really fun. I like kids and these kids were Girl Scouts, so there was that much more cooperation. We made pillowcases for charity. The girls were wonderful and there were plenty of pillowcase kits for all. I enjoyed meeting the girls, their moms and grandmothers and we had lots of great help from the Girl Scout adults. One of our guild members, Cordelia, is the leader of the troop. She was also there helping.

Now that I have been supportive and complimentary, here is one black mark. There was a set of instructions on how to make the pillowcases. I had watched a really great video on the technique of making the tube and pulling it through to produce a pillowcase with the ever desirable French seam. I am going to be making pillowcases with students from the school where I work, so I have made at least 16+ pillowcases to make sure I felt comfortable with the process. I didn't read the handout. Instead, I showed the girls step by step my own method. I had my example and made the girls do their own so they would be able to do more. Come to find out that there is more than one way to get these pillowcases made. This one woman was there and I had no idea who she was. She told me I was doing it wrong and had the nerve to tear out one child's work and made this sweet girl do it her way. The instructions called for sewing the decorative piece between the cuff and the body of the pillowcase down. I have never done that. WRONG. That piece was suppose to be ironed up. I didn't do that either. WRONG. I was so darn tired of that woman. Who does she think she is? Turns out she is a dear friend of Natalie, the one in charge, and obviously the pillowcase police. I totally resisted any temptation and only called her a bitch when I was in the car, alone, on my way home.

We have a board meeting on Thursday. I am sure we will discuss this activity, which was really great and we should do it again, but I will make a note that it isn't productive to be the pillowcase police.

On a more positive note, Donna a lovely friend, was there with her grandchildren who were so darn cute. That was fun. And, I am proud to announce that my little group of three girls each made one pillowcase to take home and, at last count, 10 pillowcases for charity. I also made two and the grandmother who was hanging out at our table made 2 that I saw. I left a little after 2pm (I was there at 9:45am) because I was hungry after no breakfast and no lunch. I didn't think that far ahead to bring food. The girls were beginning to go home at 1pm and there were enough adults to supervise the ones still there. Despite the pillowcase police, it was a great day.

The End of the First Week

Thank God for today. It was the end of the first week of school. The children are still in their honeymoon period (some of them) and the halls are noisy, but still the children are well behaved. It is always this way. It takes time to get to know us and then, for some, the real kid comes to the surface.

The first week is tiring.

Have a great weekend....
Julie :)

Update on football story

I was just checking my comments and I remembered I forgot to update the story. If you can believe this, my nephew is still playing football, although he is now on the freshman football team. I guess golf wasn't as exciting. So, I am thinking there will be some trips down to Modesto to see a game or two. Gotta go cheer him on like the good aunt I am!!!

Have a great day tomorrow.

muffins and jam

On Saturday I received a jar of peach jam. I love peaches and was anxious to try it. Tonight I made apple cinnamon muffins and opened the peach jam. OMG! ` That was so yummy. The muffins were fantastic and the jam was so good I cannot even describe it. Thanks Kim for the jam.

Here is the recipe:

1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/4 cups flour (white or part white and wheat flour--1 cup wheat with 1 1/4 cup white)
1 large egg
1/4 cup melted butter (cooled)
1 cup milk
2 apples (cut into chunks or grate)
1/2 cup chopped pecans, raisins or dried cranberries--optional

Cinnamon sugar:
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400*. Line a muffin tin with papers and grease the insides.
Whisk together the sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and flour.
Whisk the egg. Beat in the milk and melted butter. Add the dry ingredients and then fold in the apple (and optional ingredients). Scoop into the prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar topping. Bake for 20 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center of a muffin. Remove from the oven and cool in the muffin tin for 5 minutes or until cool enough to handle. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutritional info: 174 calories per muffin. 4 weight watchers points.

Note: I used white flour, but understand it did well intesting with wheat also. I grated my apple which makes the apple less noticable. Next time I will make chunks. It was also suggested that a 1/2 cup of butterscotch chips would make them into a dessert treat. I thought they were delicious as advertised.

life happens

Tonight I was talking to a friend. We talk almost everyday, but did not speak last night. Her mom and daughter had been on a 3 week trip to Nicaragua before the daughter goes into the Army. Their plane landed in S.F. on Monday and they stayed with family until Tuesday when they drove home--here to Sacramento. At the time they reached West Sacramento, the daughter calls home and says they will be home in 20 minutes. That 20 minutes stretches into 40 minutes, 50 minutes--and then they get a second call from the daughter. They had an accident. Thank God no one was hurt. The current thought is that the driver, my friend's mom, fell asleep. Lots of bruises, but nothing bad. Even the guy in the other car was fine. His car was a mustang and he was broken down on the side of the freeway. He had been standing in front of the mustang and saw them coming, running out of the way to watch his car pushed forward where he had been standing, into a pole. I guess both cars are totaled.

Our family had an issue too. A cousin, Phyllis, who is in her late 60's(?) was boarding a cruise ship and suddenly collapsed and died on the spot. Phyllis had an aneurysm that burst and she was kept on life support until the family could gather. The funeral is Saturday, Aug 28th in Billings. We will send an nice something. I myself had only met her a couple of times, but she was very nice.

Reporting on my goals for July/August: I have gotten my friends together--we meet up on Saturday, August 21st. I have drank more water, but have also been drinking 7-Up. I usually don't drink soda because their is too much salt and they don't necessarily taste good to me, but I do like a really cold 7-Up. I have made progress on two of my Saturday Square quilts, but not finished either, or even begun on any of the others. I need to work on that. I have yet to begin Jane Eyre, but I have read several books including The Cinderella Pact, The Summons (John Grisham), and others. Currently reading The Appeal by John Grisham. Love his books. Also love books written by Jeffery Archer. He was a member of Parliament in England and was sent to prison for bad white collar/political crime. He went on to write crime novels and some really great short stories. I also finished Irish Girls About Town, an short story books by various Irish authors. Maeve Binchy is one of my favorites. I think I have read every book she has ever written at least 3 times each. Firefly Summer and Tara Road are my favorites. Back to my goals: I have sat outside more thanks to our very cool summer. I have watched my portions more and am thinking before I eat. I definitely have walked more often. I don't try to find the very closest parking spot. Love those spots, but still willing to walk a bit further. I have tried to be more forgiving, but I can't be perfect. I still have a few faults to work on. hmmmm.

I hope all is well for all. Good night,
Julie

The Cinderella Pact

There is a book called the Cinderella Pact. I began reading it at 10pm on Wednesday and I finished it Thursday morning. It was the funniest thing I had read in a long time.

So here I am on Saturday afternoon wondering what to watch on television (there was NOTHING on!--literally) and I find a movie on Lifetime and here is the book I just finished a few days ago on the television.

Now, I heard about the book from a woman who could one day be my friend. Unfortunately, she spoke of the book in thewse reverant tones like it would impart some great thoughts and help change lives. I am now afraid to tell her how I enjoyed it. I am sure I have missed some great message.

Got to go, the barbeque is calling.

Saturday Square Quilts

This is a sample of one of the Saturday Square quilts I am making. Actually, I can't remember if this one got done. But most important is that I finally learned how to upload pictures to my blog, so it will be that much more interesting to all!!! Hurrah!

Working on my Saturday Square Quilt

I have a friend who will be really jealous when she finds out what I spent my weekend doing. I finished the medallion part of last year's Saturday Square--Aspen from Quilter's Corner (www.quilterscornersac.com). I am not using the Aspen line, but I am using the Aspen pattern. My fabric line is Provence. So very French! It is blues, yellow-creams, red, green and lots of flowers. I added about 7 inches of border to the top and bottom so it won't be square. I like my quilts to be rectangular. I only need 5 filler blocks to finish and then my friend (S---) will die of envy!!!

The Saturday Square was called, "You get what you get". In the beginning we picked plain paper bags that had a fabric line named inside. The idea was that each of us would have to use what we picked and there would be no whining. You get what you get. My friend (S---) was out of town and I picked for her. When I first looked in my bag, I was happy to see green because I don't usually use green. We were supposed to stretch. As time went on, it became clear that the Provence line wasn't going to make me stretch. It practically screamed my name. I love the fabric and was so happy when I found it sold in another quilt shop. Every month, during the first week of the month when the end of the bolt fabric is 25% off, I would buy a piece. I have enough fabric to make another quilt. I already have plans on using some of the fabric in another quilt I am planning on doing--Crimson Roses (www.plantedseeddesigns.com) If you aren't familiar with Gerri Robinson's quilt patterns, you should check her web site out. Her patterns appear in McCalls Quilting and Gerri sells kits. I have purchased one kit from her and she was just the nicest person. When I had a question regarding the pattern, she remembered speaking to me. Her patterns are adorable and her customer service was first rate.

Back to the Saturday Square....if you remember, finishing ONE Saturday Square quilt (I have 5 of them I think) was one of my goals for the Charming Quilt Girls. I really thought I would complete the called "24" (there are 24 squares--we made two each month) since it is the closest to being done--or rather was the closest. Now it is the Provence Quilt. My darling daughter has promised to show her mother how to import pictures on Saturday. I hope to post a picture. Wish me luck!

Mother-daughter time

Today I went out and got my hair cut. I went with the daughter and now she has 5 stamps on her card toward a free haircut. She is so excited!!! After we took the haircut plunge, we stopped at the post office to mail a package for our cousin Debbie. Now, I know the package contains 20 pillowcases for a charity, some shoes and a few clothes she didn't want to take with her "take-on" luggage--just a bunch of stuff she will need when she is back in Billings, Montana. I think I even said that. The post office person offers to send it for $88.00 overnight. I declined. Debbie won't even be back then. Then the offer was $35.00 guaranteed by Saturday! Think not. Only then did I say, "what is the cheapest way to send this?" Ended up spending $17.00 and I am sure it will be going by camel or very slow donkey. The woman at the post office just seemed disgusted. Who would spend $88.00 for a few pillowcases?????

Shopping in Grandpa's garden was fun. The tomatoes are finally in! I made a yummy tomato-phyllo tart (www.eatingwell.com) for dinner. Sunday and Monday we had completely veggies-only meals and my husband didn't catch on--he is really a meat and potatoes kind of guy--so I thought I would try again with the tart. Very veggie for me with the tart and the corn-on-the-cob from the garden (more shopping in Grandpa's garden), but the husband had popcorn chicken of the run. He is helping a friend down the street build a deck for his mom. Grandpa--otherwise known as my father-in-law--grows the best veggies ever! I am really grateful to be able to shop in Grandpa's garden as our farmer's market moved 30 minutes downthe street. I haven't had farm raised eggs in a couple months.

After the fun shopping then the serious shopping at Costco. I just can't resist that darn coupon book. Bought a few things that were not on the list, but those cookies are yummy. I always get the variety cause no one should have to do without raisin cookies.

I took a nap cause I was so exhausted from my errands!

I am so excited. Tomorrow I am going to Bearpaws and Hollyhocks quilt shop (www.bearpawsandhollyhocks.com) to purchase fabric. I want to make a new quilt for my bed and I choose Tag Sale by Miss Rosie. My friend made a darling Schnibbles version and she is going to help me choose. I want to use the fabric line, Martinique--muted blues, pinks, creams and browns. It isn't too feminine so it will work in a bedroom for a husband and wife. I have a quilt on my bed, but I made 3 mistakes with the Ohio Stars, turning the squares the wrong way. While I can only see one when I lay on the bed, I know all 3 are there and it is bugging me. So, new quilt here I come.......

My Sister Came to Visit

I only worked on my embroidered angels for a round robin border I need to have done by August 21st. I was out having fun!

My sister, Caesar, came with her girls and picked me up to go up to Auburn. We had a yummy dinner with wine flowing. Yummm. On Sunday we all got up and went to mass with my aunt. She attends mass at St. Theresa's in Auburn. It is a cute little church where there is A LOT of singing. When time came for the homily, we were told there was a visitor from India needing help with saving some children somewhere in Africa. Now, when you hear the person coming up to the altar to speak is Sister Mary Caroline, you think she might speak English. NO! I guess I should be nicer. She did speak English, but it was so heavily accented that it might as well have been anything else. I got some part about the fertile soil and how they wanted to plant something there (makes sense), but completely missed other key parts. Caesar caught another part and my aunt got nothing. So, after Sister Mary Caroline finished her incomprehensible speech, the priest started talking about tractors and how there were a lot in Auburn. Turns out that Sister Mary Caroline was asking for money to buy a tractor. Really. That is what she wanted????? After mass and then breakfast, we went to Coloma to walk around and let the girls see gold panning. There is a cute museum there and no cell phone service whatsoever.

All in all, we got a lot of pictures and had a great time. I am going to have to get in some quilting time if I am going to make my goal of finishing a Saturday Square quilt by the end of August. Wish me luck!

A Miracle

My friend, Leah, is wonderful in most respects. There is one area in which she falls down. I can barely even begin to explain, but she hates In&Out Burger. There it is, out for everyone (the few people who read this blog) to see.

Here is the miracle. Leah ate at In&Out Burger and she lived to tell about it! She even liked her hamburger and french fries! I almost fell out of my chair when she told me.

I love In&Out Burger!

Books I am reading.....

Books I am reading

Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo
Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell
Hour Game by David Baldacci

I spend a great deal of time reading. When my darling daughter was in kindergarten she was having trouble writing her entire name. According to the rules, you could only check a book out of the library if you mastered your name. Since she had a longish name, it was taking her a while. One day she came home and cried because everyone else had been able to check out a book. I went back to school and chatted with Mrs. Britt, her teacher and requested, quite nicely, that my daughter be allowed to check out books too--after all I would take full responsibility for the books. Oh no! That just couldn't happen. I went to the principal. He supported the teacher, who shared with me that some kids just shorten their names, like Edward. He only had to write Ed. It was suggested that we let her write Amy. Her name is NOT Amy. I finally wrote an impassioned letter to the school board, noting that reading was like breathing in my eyes. Amazingly enough, my darling daughter was checking out books right away. This wasn't the school's only misstep with my darling daughter. They tested her for special education without my permission. They decided, also without my permission, to let her do less than everyone else because she was just "so young" and then told me she couldn't go to first grade, after they told me she would never catch on to reading. I insisted she go to first grade and they sent her home one afternoon with a playmate and couldn't tell me who that was. I had to call the police to get them to help me cause I was too emotional for them to deal with. We moved her to Holy Family the next day. The first thing I heard from that school was how impressed they were with how well my daughter read. Turns out she is like her mother--not very good with phonics, but reads well anyhow.

He who loves a book shall never want!

Love this saying

Wine is constant proof God loves us!

Ahh, Vacation

Hello, hello. Vacation time at last! I finished my last day of summer school and I am free! Okay, free for 2 weeks, but how glorious it will be for 2 weeks. I celebrated by going to tea with my friends. We meet at Bearpaws and Hollyhocks quilt shop (www.bearpawsandhollyhocks.com) and Gran, as she is known in the blog world, has tea for us. We all bring goodies and then we sit and chat for three hours. It is glorious and so much fun. Today was a birthday celebration cause there were 3 birthdays--yesterday, today and August 1st. It was also great to meet Gran's daughter-in-heart (isn't that just sweet??) before we take her class next Thursday. Now, it will be like meeting a friend when we meet again.

Speaking of birthdays, my brother had a birthday yesterday. My parents had children one after another. I was born in August. 11 months later, Jim was born on July 22. Richard followed 12 months and 5 days later. My sister came last 11 1/2 months later. When my baby sister was born, I was 3 years and 10 months old. My mom always told me that no matter what anyone said, the rhythm method definitely does not work. I had 2 brothers and a sister as proof.

My brother Jim, who followed me, was especially annoying when we were kids. The minute he woke up on his birthday he would start in about how he was the same age as me and he would keep this up for the next 39 days before I turned another year older. A friend of ours, Mark, told me he has the same thing going on with his two daughters. As much as things change and we get older, nothing really changes!

Now that I am free, I expect that I will be quilting up a storm beginning Wednesday. My sister, Mary is bringing the girls to see me. The girls are Juliana and Olivia--my adorable and much loved nieces. I just love every minute I get to spend with them. Juliana just went to girl scout camp. I can't wait to see the pictures! Most people wait to be a parent. I wanted to be an aunt.
I have 3 nieces and 3 nephews. Sarah is so smart and she is just a beautiful girl. She has her mother's looks. I have always thought my sister-in-law was a beautiful woman and Sarah will be also. Jacob is the football player. He is smart like Sarah and just a sweet kid. I love them dearly. Juliana and Olivia are the youngest of the six. I am able to talk to them every week, even though they live six hours away. Sammy is the oldest. He is so amazing. He is musical and just a very nice kid. His brother, William is the only one I have never met because, unfortunately, he lives in Iowa and that is 2000 miles across the U.S. Hopefully someday we will meet. Either way, I still love William and Sammy as much as the ones I see.

I will be hanging out with two cute chicks and their mom as we go visiting our Aunt Pat and Uncle Wilburn, so good-bye until after the weekend!

There is something just so perfect about hanging out with friends. Last night I was at my
Knot-y Embroidery Ladies group and it was just the perfect gathering of women. We made two new friends and had great conversation. Our fearless leader is the sweetest person and we were teasing her (in fun and out of love) unmercifully. I always go home with a smile and such good intentions.

For once I did live up to my good intentions. About a month ago I took a hand quilting class and, besides learning (again) that I just don't like hand quilting, I let my mouth get in my way. I was challenging the others to get their pieces done and then I failed to touch mine until yesterday. If I am going to be honest. I spent more time chatting than quilting. All in the classmates are from my guild, Golden Valley Quilt Guild, and our next meeting is this upcoming Thursday. If I don't finish this piece I just know that I will be the only one, so I have frantically hand quilted like crazy. I finally finished the last stitch this afternoon while watching reruns of Law & Order (the original of course).

I think it is a bit odd that I don't like hand quilting. I love to hand sew my bindings, embroider, cross stitch, etc. Why does hand quilting just bore me to tears??? I love the look of quilts hand quilted. I imagine that if it was 1860 then I would be there sitting by the fire each night hand quilting my little heart out--so Little House In The Prairie. That image goes out the window every time I take a class thinking this time it will be different. This is my third class.......When will I learn?

Only 2 more days of summer school for me and then 2 weeks of "vacation" defined as the time I spend between jobs and more important--between paychecks. I plan to spend some of that time figuring out how to load pictures onto this site. Wish me luck!

Goals for July and August

I am so excited to be a part of the Charming Quilt Girls group. The first item is to post my goals for July and August. My goals are simple.

1. Body: drink more water, walk more often and watch my portions when I eat.
2. Spirit: be more forgiving, sit outside every morning and re-read Jane Eyre.
3. Quilting: finish one UFO--a Saturday Square Project, get a group of friends together and
last, I want to remember to blog at least three times per week.

I thought back over the first goals--body. I am doing all of those. So already I feel good about myself. The others I will work on. I love sitting outside in the morning and I just have to give up a few extra minutes of sleep to do this. Today it is really hot out and I am wondering why "drink more margaritas" is not on my goal list!!!! I am serious about the Saturday Square projects. I want to finish just one!!! I have 3 that are as yet undone. That doesn't count all the others, but if I finish just one.........

In the finished column I can put my curtains for my room. I used a muted pink color that is in my quilt on the bed and put them up last night. I was surprised at how dark the room is now. No moonlight. Very different. I was quite pleased with myself of getting this done--after I procrastinated for about a year--until I woke up this morning and there was this eery, slightly creepy pink glow all over--and where did my morning light go??? I might have to run out to the store and check out cream colored sheers. We will see how fast I get used to the pink glow.

I also went to my guild embroidery group--The Red Thread Society. I also belong to the Knot-y Embroidery ladies through a local quilt shop--Bearpaws and Hollyhocks in Sacramento. Today was the Red Thread Society. We are doing a round robin. All participants were to show up with an embroidered piece not more than 15 x 15" square. I got my first piece today and it is a Christmas piece. Barbara embroidered a Santa on red fabric. I thought immediately of my guardian angels redwork pattern by BirdBrain Designs (www.BirdBrainDesigns.net). I am going to embroider 4 angels for the four corners and then do a pieced checkerboard in green and cream. I am thinking of doing the angels in green, as in "green work".

Now, I'm off to work on that UFO. I think I will choose the Saturday Square "24"--probably so named because there were 24 squares we had to make...2 per month, The quilt has a total of 48 squares and a couple of borders. I saw the quilt on the wall at the store and the fabric spoke to me. I begged Lindy, store owner, to let me in and she gave me a spot for soeone who had just dropped. It was fate. I had to catch up, but I did and now I have fallen down in putting it together. We made our last squares in March and here it is July! It could be my first try at putting pictures up. Just think of all the skills I am gaining! Until we meet again.......