2019 - Week 1 & 2 - Getting Started

Well, 2019 started off right nicely without us forcing ourselves to keep our eyes open and welcome the New Year.  We went to bed at the usual time, and, TA DA!  When we awoke on January 1st, the New Year had successfully been ushered in without our help.  I love that!  

Again, this year, I will try my darnedest to post a blog update each week...no promises.  Just Try!  I just heard Yoda in my head saying "There is no Try, only do or do not."  Well, that little green guy doesn't live at my house and here we certainly do Try!  

We passed a relatively quiet and pleasant and uneventful holiday season...the new year began with just the 3 of us plus the fur people and cows and chickens.  The weather stayed pleasant - cold but no snow or ice.  Here we are on the 13th of January and our first snowfall occurred last night.  It wasn't supposed to snow, it did anyway.  Fortunately, we only go about 1/4 inch of snow so it won't prevent me from going to work tomorrow.  

We don't expect any more snow today...just really cold temperatures.  I'm so glad I don't have an outside job.  

Earlier this week, this was the view outside my studio window...yes, that is a herd of deer grazing just past our south field, in the neighbor's front yard.  Our neighbor texted John to tell him we almost had a deer on the front porch. 

Well, I'm off to start work on another quilt.  Since finishing DA BIG QUILT for my friend in New Jersey, I've completed 5 table runners, 2 wall hangings, and one full sized quilt.  Yesterday I finished 2 table squares - need to make up a backing for each of them and then they can go to the quilter.  I have 2 big quilts already cut out and ready to sew up.  That doesn' include any knitting projects, either.  

I've finished 3 pairs of FlipFlop socks to send to a friend in Georgia.  She doesn't want to give up her FlipFlops but her feet get a bit cold so I did some FlipFlop socks to wear that cover most of her feet except the toes...that should help.  Got the box ready to mail tomorrow so that's one more thing off my list! 

John hung new curtains in the Great Room for me, and he took down some miniblinds in our bedroom (we also have blackout curtains on those windows so the miniblinds are superfluous - and the kitten has destroyed them playing with the cords).  I've got a huge pot of spaghetti sauce simmering on the stove - enough for dinner and then several more dinners worth to freeze.  The laundry is almost done. Now it's off to help mom get started on knitting a sweater for herself... And then I can spend the rest of the afternoon either knitting or sewing.  

I wish you a peaceful and happy week to come.  Thanks for stopping by. 

Week 52 - Wrapping Up the Year 2018

This past week we celebrated Christmas - just as so many other folks around the world did.  There were different traditions, different foods, different gifts....but mostly the same Christmas.  The joy and happiness of the season permeated the entire world - well most of it anyway.

While we didn't decorate as effusively as in years past (we have a new kitten and didn't want him climbing the tree and knocking it down and breaking ornaments), we did put up a tree - with lights and a topper - and stockings; couldn't NOT put up stockings.  

And while we were sleeping, Santa came!

And The Skipper cast himself as the Safekeeper of the Gifts! 

He abdicated his job once the gifts started to be unwrapped.

Gilligan, on the other hand, is an Old Hand at Christmas....he simply couldn't be bothered.

We invited our neighbor and another couple to Christmas dinner.  It was wonderful to spend a few hours with friends and catch up.  We got to talk to the Grands that evening and our son and his amazing wife, too.  Honestly, it doesn't get any better!

Well, 2018 is so close to being done that I'm going to call it a wrap!  We only have 3 more days left and I don't see anything crazy or noteworthy happening to make me want to add a post.  

We hope all of our family and friends (and anyone reading this is truly a friend!) have a safe and Happy New Year.  May 2019 be better and happier and more filled with love and joy that years before.

Thanks for stopping by.

Week 51 - All Things Considered, It's a Wrap!

This next to last week of the year was a bit unreal!  My Mr. Wonderful underwent a heart surgery earlier this week.  We really won't know for another 3 months if it was truly a success.  He spent the night in the hospital and came home the next day.  Gotta admit, he had a ton of bandages all over him and he looked like the little boy who found the band aids and put them all over himself!  Not really. That's just my dramatic side coming out!  He had 3 IV's and 5 lines for the surgery so there were a few bandages once they removed all the hardware.  With the amount of Heparin they needed to give him for the surgery, it was kinda dicey when the removed it all...took about 45 minutes of intense pressure by 3 different nurses (after about 15 minutes, each nurse lost feeling in her hands and wrists from the pressure they needed to use ) to stop the bleeding so they could put pressure bandages on the wounds.  Honestly, that was scarier than the surgery even though THAT involved lasers and cryosurgical techniques.  John took the rest of the week off (doctor's orders) and goes back tomorrow.  He is healing quite nicely.  

We decided not to decorate a tree this year.  Our newest kitten is just too young to know NOT to climb.  We just didn't want him to make the tree fall down and break ornaments.  So here is the sum total of our decorating for this year:

I couldn't NOT put out the stockings...The Skipper has already knocked down the stocking tree...so far, he hasn't shredded either the stockings or the tree skirt....

I've finished wrapping all the gifts so far...only stocking stuffers left to get.  We've settled on the menu for Christmas Day.  And we've invited some dear friends to share the meal with us.  Tri-Tip, mashed potatoes au gratin, roasted asparagus, and Pineapple Upside Down Bundt Cake for dessert. 

Thanks for stopping by....

Week 49 & 50 - The Holidays are Upon Us

I didn't post last week - I know, I'm a bad girl! No excuse so I won't insult you with a lame one I made up.  

The holidays are quickly approaching.  We are putting the tree up today - always the weekend nearest John's birthday (which is tomorrow).  Because of the Skipper, we aren't putting any ornaments on it, just the lights.  Hopefully, he will leave the tree alone and next year we might try ornaments.  He's still a kitten (8 months old tomorrow) and everything needs to be explored, don't ya know!

I finally finished the quilt for my friend in New York...he loved it.  He gave me permission to post pictures...

It's quite huge - 38 years in the making.  The earliest T-shirt is dated 1980 and I finished it this year.  I learned so much in the making of this quilt - and I hope I don't have to make one this big for another 38 years.  Gary said he was going to start a new collection so I could make him another - told him I might be too old in another 38 years!

Here is a little Advent Calendar that made me smile:

And this just made my day - for all you mommy's out there.

Make mine multi-colored, please, Santa!

Finally, I want to wish each of you a Merry and Blessed Christmas and a Happy New Year...

Thanks for stopping by.

Week 48 - Thanksgiving

This past week was Thanksgiving.  A time for family, food, fun, and giving thanks for all we have and all we are.  We gathered several of our family members and sat down to a wonderful dinner of spatchcocked turkey grilled on the Big Green Egg, ham from the charcoal grill, dressing, green beans with ham and onions, butternut squash, rolls, cranberry relish and pies - pumpkin, mince, and pecan.  As usual, we had a wonderful time with family and tons of food.  

The next day several of us gathered to here for what has come to be known as Knotwell Girls Cookie Day.  Tradition says each of us makes a batch (or two) of Grandma's Sugar Cookie dough and we gather together to roll our dough, cut it out in numerous shapes, sprinkle the heck out of the dough and bake it to within an inch of its life....since the recipe makes upwards of 5 dozen cookies, there is potential for an unusually large number of holiday sweets!  This year, we had 5 families represented - that means 25 dozen cookies.  We decided - for time's sake - not to do my dough nor one sister's dough so during that marathon day of baking, we made 15 dozen cookies.  

We had 3 girls who had never come before.  What a gift to see them enjoying themselves.  We've already scheduled for the day after Thanksgiving next year.  

Mom and I made up my dough on Sunday and we decorated with sprinkles and frosting.  They sure aren't pretty but they do taste quite nice.  Especially with a hot cup of tea. I learned something new - don't buy frosting for sugar cookies on the off chance you might need it someday....instead, but frosting when you are sure you are going to make sugar cookies. That way the frosting isn't hard or gloppy when you want to use it.  Lesson learned!  

Thank you all for stopping by.  

Week 46 & 47 - Ugly Achieved aka Mischief Managed

I love my daughter-in-law.  That has never been disputed.  She is the daughter of my heart!  My son may have chosen her but I would have picked her without his help.  For the last 15 years, she will periodically call or text with a simple request....would you make this quilt if I buy the kit?  Would you fix this zipper on Charlotte's hoodie?  Would you pick up these pictures at your Walmart because they somehow got sent to yours in Missouri instead of ours here in Utah.  She is smart, funny, creative, an amazing mother and the wife my son can cherish for the rest of his life.  So when she asked me recently to knit her a bikini top and make it ugly - for their annual Ugly Sweater Party - I immediately said yes.   So, I'm knitting away on the bikini top (that she is going to wear over a neutral T-Shirt) and deciding what embellishments to use to make it ugly, and I suddenly had a thought.  Why did she think of me when she needed something Ugly?  Does she sit there thinking...hmmmm, I need an ugly bikini top - Hey, my mother-in-law can do ugly!  Well, Beansie, I got your Ugly right here. Complete with 3 sizes of purple jingle bells so they hear ya comin'. 

She's told me she already notified the powers-that-be to get the trophy engraved with her name on it.  She has commissioned her entry and it's gonna win!   I'm mailing it tomorrow!

We got out first snow of the winter this past week.  It's the earliest measurable snowfall since 1951!  Not a lot, just under an inch... but it counts!  Then on Wednesdnay nite, we got another inch or so...it didn't stop me from driving to work (you all know I'm such a weenie when there's snow).  It was mostly melted by the time I got home from work on Thursday afternoon.  

Now for some great news, but no photos yet.  Around 4 years ago, I met a young man who had been a student of one of my former schoolmates.  Jane and I went to elementary school together but were in different school districts for high school.  We kept in not-so-close touch for a number of years after we parted but I totally lost touch after about age 35 or so.  We re-connected about 7 years ago on Facebook.  I knew she'd gone on to become a drama teacher at Thunderbird High School in Phoenix and at the time we met up again on FB, she was retired.  Well, about 4 years ago, Jane (or Mac, as her students called her), passed away.  I made a comment on her FB page and it garnered a response from this student, Gary, who then began a correspondence with me.  He has been performing all around the world, including Broadway, ever since he graduated from school.  He was performing close to here (well, actually in Bartlesville, OK) and I made the trip there to see him.  We had dinner after the concert and, in the course of the evening, I volunteered to make a T-shirt Quilt for him - to commemorate all the places he's performed in the last 38 years.  What I thought was going to be a simple 12-20 t-shirt quilt turned out to be over 50 t-shirts and ended up being quite involved.  I've had those t-shirts for just shy of 3 years and today I put the finished project into a box to be mailed to him tomorrow.  He might even get it in time for Thanksgiving!  I am not going to post a picture of this massive project until he receives it...so you are going to have to wait...but it's huge!  And I'm quite proud of it. 

Those of you readers who celebrate Thanksiving, have a most Happy holiday filled with fun, food, and family and friends.  Not necessarily in that order.  We have several of John's relatives coming and then, the next day is Knotwell Girls Cookie Day!  Pictures to follow next week (if I get to the blog).  

Thanks for stopping by. 

Week 44 & 45 - I lost a week somewhere!

I dont' know where the last 10 days have gone!  I was pretty sure I only missed this past Sunday and in checking the calendar, it appears I missed a whole week!  Darnit anyway!  So, let's get caught up, shall we?

Halloween came and went and, as usual, we had no ghosts or goblins ringing the doorbell...that's what comes from living out in the country.  And it saves us getting a bunch of candy just in case and then eating it all ourselves - candy comas are avoided!

This past weekend I attended a much-anticipated machine embroidery workshop.  Oh, golly, was that fun!  One of the projects was a Christmas pillow made in the hoop....here it is finished.

It's only about 6" by 9" but it sure is cute and really quite brainless to stitch all in the hoop.

We also did a couple of small embroidered tree ornaments and a watercolor card...all done on the embroidery machine.

Our autumn colors are really vibrant this year.  The last few years the colors have been quite dull and not at all pretty. But this year?  This year we have some great colors!  Here is a view while sitting in the bank drive thru lane last week.

Isn't that a stunning sight?  Mom and I are going down to Branson later today to see the show "Samson" at the Sight and Sound Theater.  The colors in Branson are even more spectacular so we are looking forward to being cheered by autumn's glory!

The Skipper is growing like a weed.  He is already almost 7 months old...He tears around the house like he's on fire.  Makes us old folks tired just to watch him.  Gilligan tolerates him...barely.  But they need to figure out how to co-exist cause they live in the same house and that's not going to change.  The Skipper tries to emulate Gilligan a lot - sleeps in the chair with Gilligan, plays mouth-wrestling with him, even gets up on the top of the cabinets in the laundry room.  See?

He spent over an hour up there and then we heard a 'thunk' onto the dryer...then onto the floor.  He's quite the stinker - and then he come up to you and purrs and sits in your lap and goes to sleep, sweet at you please.  

Well, time to get ready for our trip to Branson and the play...thanks for stopping by. And thanks for waiting for me to get off my hiney and post new happenings here at Pieceful Harbor.