Category Archive: Life

2015
10/05

Category:
food
Life
quilts

COMMENTS:
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Warm wishes quilt with planets

 

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Today was intense.  After the workout this morning, I came home and made pear sauce and knowing the freezer is too full to add more fun, I canned some of the grapes I had frozen.

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Did you know the grapes would float like this?   I filled the jar with grapes and because they grapes are very sweet, I didn’t want to add sweetening.  So I just added water and canned them in a water bath.   They don’t look the same as the fruit cocktail ones, but then maybe they wouldn’t look so full if it was just grapes.   It was a good experiment and since I’ll use them in smoothies, nothing is lost.

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After lunch, I headed to the studio as I had cut out a quilt top last night that I really wanted to sew.   So I pushed myself and the flimsy is done.  It is 59 x 70, which is about the same size as the one I made yesterday.  I like this pattern as it is so fast and easy and looks harder than it is.  The binding will be the blue color.   I see this as going to a kid of any age.

  Now tomorrow morning, I must clean all this mess up as Mary is coming over and we will do some embroidering and she will help to fix the quilting machine.   And I must get a lunch ready as well.

2015
10/02

Category:
Life
quilts

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

Patchwork

IMG_3299The blocks are finished.   I decided on 4 across and 5 down, which with the sashing and border will give me approximately a 60 x 70″ quilt.   I’m happy with that size.

We spent the afternoon at the doctor to find that DH does not apparently have Parkinson’s   – great news

2015
09/29

Category:
Knitting
Life

COMMENTS:
2 Comments »

socks

 

IMG_3290What do you do when half way down the leg, you realize the repeat was for 3 rows each time and you only worked it for 2 rows?    I will just keep going and will knit the socks correctly the next time.    They are still socks which will work just fine in shoes.

NOW FOR THE BIG NEWS

Today, I went to the doctor and he decided he could do a bone graft on my ankle instead of a complete ankle replacement at this time.   So instead of 3 days in the hospital and 3 months off the foot, it will be a 90 minute day surgery and 2 weeks off the foot.   He believes this will buy me another 3-4 years before the big surgery will have to be done.   I am delighted he could do something less invasive and scheduled the surgery for his earliest time which is in December.

2015
09/25

Category:
farming
Life
quilts
Sewing

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Fallen deer and ?sewing

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Last night at dusk, we found we had a dead deer by the driveway.   So this morning we made many phone calls while government departments passed the buck and gave us wrong phone numbers.  The wildlife people won’t come out unless it was poached.   Now how would I know that?  Well, they could come inspect and if was an attempted poach, they would take it, but if not, they would leave it.   Seemed like a waste of my tax dollars.

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We finally had someone tell us that while it is on our property, no one will touch it.  Move it off the property and they have to deal with it.  So DH took it up to the corner where the school bus turns around and another neighbor reported it.   They probably didn’t want school children seeing it as it was removed.

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So after a workout, cleaning, and making a meal, there wasn’t a lot of my day left.    I started to make this cute little quilt, but stopped when I couldn’t find my roll of double stick stuff that I just purchased.   I need it to do eyes, wings, etc.  And this is how UFOs happen.

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So I moved on and cut out 4 doll raincoats.   Once cut out, I should be able to get them all done in the coming week.  The plastic is really cute tweety bird fabric that I think was intended for children.   I am lining it with solid yellow.

Have a great Saturday and I’ll see you back here Sunday evening.

2015
09/24

Category:
farming
Life
quilts

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Day at the fair

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We did make it to the fair today!.   Fairs are so busy and fun that I forget to take photos.

 

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First we headed to the quilts.   These were my favorites

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Then it was off to the sales pavilion where I found this interesting DVD

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And Bill found this ratchet pruning shears

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Our last stop was to see the sheep.   I picked up this  card and sample of wool because the sheep was so cute and small and with all the talk about the sheep, totally forgot to take his photo.

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We came home and just about dark – after I thought we were stood up, the men who wanted these two sheep actually showed up for them.   It was a good day.

2015
09/23

Category:
Life

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Some days aren’t perfect

No photos because not all days go well.    We went to the gym this morning and did our workouts.  Then home for lunch.   This afternoon we went to the dollar store and they no longer had what I wanted.  We went to the tile store and they didn’t have anything we wanted either.  So the trip out was a disaster.   Came home, had dinner, and finally put the animals to bed.

In between all this, one of the yarn balls I’m knitting into these socks, decided to fall apart.   Has that happened to you?   What a mess.   Rewound it and did some knitting, but not enough that you would even notice.

Now if tomorrow goes better, we will spend a good portion of the day at the fair.

2015
09/21

Category:
farming
Life
Sewing
spinning

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Finding something fun to do

IMG_3232 After finishing the last quilt, I’m having a very difficult time, getting in the frame of mind to start another project.   I found this lovely wool and angora roving when we were cleaning out the closet, so  started spinning it.  It feels so soft and yummy.  I don’t even remember purchasing it, so it has been here for some time.

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DH wanted a small pillow – about 6 x 9 – with sleeping herbs for night time.   This is what I came up with.  So when he wakes in the middle of the night, hopefully, he will relax enough to go back to sleep. The pillow contains a combination of lemon balm, hops, skullcap, chamomile, mugwort, and peppermint.    I found the ingredient list in an old herb book and put them together awhile back, so don’t have the exact amounts right now.  ( the corner is just bent under – it really is rectangular.)

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And we can’t forget the sheep who love being under the maple tree when resting.  It must feel safe to them.

2015
09/18

Category:
Life
quilts

COMMENTS:
2 Comments »

Machine issues

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Front and back of the quilt.   It still needs to be squared up and bound, then washed.   At 77″ square, it is large, and someone who has lost their home will be happy to cuddle up in it.

The machine had issues which I tried to fix with the technician on the phone, but didn’t succeed, so will need a service call.

I wish for all of you a wonderful, restful day, tomorrow.

 

 

 

2015
09/17

Category:
Life
quilts

COMMENTS:
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4H quilt machine issues

 

IMG_3224Today was spent getting the machine set up and quilting the pink 4H quilt.   Everything went fine for the first half of the quilt.   Then on the first half of the next row, the machine decided to jump, not once, but 3  times.   So I spent 3 hours removing all those stitches and either tomorrow or Sunday, I will tackle the quilting once again.   And people have said to me, “you have a computerized machine – that makes it easy as it does it for you.”   I just smile while they show how little they know.

2015
09/14

Category:
food
Life
quilts

COMMENTS:
Comments Closed

“Warm Wishes” completed

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“Warm wishes” has been completed.

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The quilting is quite simple but looks nice on it.

Mary and I spent the afternoon at the sewing center learning about the new machines and other products and we came home empty handed!

Tomorrow I will be back to finishing the grapes.  After using all our will power to keep from making a purchase, I was just too tired tonight to finish them.