Summer's back! LOL!

Yesterday was cold and rainy part of the day then today it's sunny,  76 and going into the 80's they say!  This is the season for "layering" when you dress in the morning! LOL!
 I finished a great first book in a series.....

 

This is definitely a "cozy mystery" and I loved it!  One of those books that you don't want to put down and can't wait to pick up again.  The tale starts with the main character getting a letter from her elderly Aunt who lives in a small town on the Maine coast.  The main character lives in New York City, works as a textile designer and works for her French boyfriend in his design business.  That's all I'm going to say but the houses and the renovations are really cool and there's even directions in the back for some of the projects she does!  I love it!!!!  I'm already reading the next book in the series and so far so good also!  

Been working on the quilt blocks among other things.  Oh, BTW....that GMA pasta recipe was "okay" but not compared to the amount of dishes dirtied and the time it took to put together.  It called for 4 different cheeses and it didn't even taste that cheesy!  It is good but could be lots better.  Next time I'll choose my own cheeses, the Maria Rosa sauce is excellent but you could use Mario Batali's which to me is tastier considering there is no meat in it and easier.  I used spinach instead of Swiss Chard since I couldn't find it.  Jarlsburg cheese is like a baby swiss cheese so I used baby swiss and I used provolone instead of what they used (I can't remember what it was but the store didn't have it).  I'm adding more sauce to it tonight because it was dry.  I never got my carrot cake made because the pasta dish took so long to make.  Hopefully, today I'll get the carrot cake made....my sweet tooth is aching! LOL!

Here's the blocks so far....I have 5 more blocks to sew buttons on today/tonight....getting closer!  They have to be ready before Wednesday!  

I hope you are all enjoying your weekend!  TTYS!

    

Cozy day to stay inside..........

 

 I was raised with the dictum..."if you have nothing nice to say then don't say anything at all".  Now, I'm not perfect but I also carry that logic into "if you don't have anything positive to say don't say anything at all"....thus when you don't see me blogging or visiting it is because I am wrestling.....this week it seemed like with the devil himself/herself.  I had nothing uplifting to blog about and I was feeling overwhelmed, hopeless, helpless and on the brink of my emotional plateau!  And no, I am not a recovering alcoholic or drug addict although those particular avenues are starting to look tempting! LOL!  You know how you think things can't get worse and then they do!  OMG!!!!  That was my week!  But, I got through it and here I am rested, positive and ready to have a wonderful day and actually I had one yesterday too.  Yesterday was gorgeous and I threw all the windows open and was outside most of the day.  Nature is so nurturing and healing.  Today is gloomy and rainy so it's the perfect day for a fire in the fireplace and some baking and curling up with a nice cup of tea and some needlework.

  I'd curl up with a good book but I have those quilt blocks to finish...remember?  I've made progress....remember...there's 10 of them.....so when you see the progress multiply it by ten please........(Ha! Ha!)

 I have the buttons to do down the front still and a scarf around the neck and there's supposed to be "stick" embroidered arms but I'm afraid they would not show up on this fabric but we'll see....he may go "armless"!
I brought some plants in yesterday as we've had frost warnings already.  Today I'm cooking up an Italian casserole recipe that they had on GMA yesterday and also a carrot cake, hopefully.  I hope you are happy and cozy where ever you're curled up today!  HUGS!!!!!!!

Terrific Thursday! Today I won the Book Lottery!

I finished another book last night.  I seem to remember getting this book quite a while back at one of the book sales at the library.  I've read a few of her Sneaky Pie Brown ( her cat's name) mysteries and they were good but this book was even better!  Of course, I am prejudiced as it was about horses and fox hunting and a private school which all has good memories for me.  I loved this book too because not only was the plot really good but I learned everything I ever wanted to know about Fox Hunting.  It's a great book about animals too as the foxes and hounds talk.  The author is an actual Hunt Master in Virginia thereby she knows her subject very well.  I want to read more of her books...we have a lot in common and she is a great writer!

I've got my white chili cooking in the crock pot.  If it turns out good I'll pass along the recipe...........

I made some Oatmeal crisps (cookies) last night and still have another roll of them in the freezer.  It was nice to have some tea and cookies in bed reading that good mystery last night!
A friend called and dropped off "a whole slew" of books to me today! They are all "cozy mysteries"....my FAV!!!!!!  There's even a DIY mystery series....I'll be reading that one first!  Plus, she threw in the 4th book in the Magical Knitting series I've been reading so as long as it's here I guess I have to read it.....I was getting "into" those books, I have to admit! LOL! 

And I got all my snowmen ironed onto the blocks and stitched down!  Ta Da!  Moving right along I hope and so far so good.

Yes, those are threads I need to clip still.  thank goodness I didn't have to do these all by hand! Whoa Nellie, that would have REALLY taken forever....I still have "miles to go before I sleep"!

I hope your Thursday was fun and joy-filled and you laughed some and enjoyed all that's special in your life!
TTYS!!!!

Food lottery and quilt block progress!

I won the food lottery today!  Look at all the goodies I snapped up at "reduced" price...........

All these potatoes for .90 cents!!!!!

more potatoes and some onions for $1.09

\

1 lonely Roma tomato and 4 avocados for .59 cents!!!!

green peppers.......79 cents!

Cauilifower for 79 cents!   Yep!  I won the food lottery today!

I also got all my appliques for the quilt blocks cut out last night.  I could hardly move my fingers when I was done!  LOL!

Tonight is the presidential debate and some cookie baking and hopefully applique placement onto the background material.  I hope you had a great day and wish you a nice calm, relaxing evening

Oh, Fall...how I love you...let me count the ways!

Perfect weather....no heat needed, no air conditioning needed and no watering outside needed!  A gal couldn't ask for more! LOL!  I am overjoyed and enjoying every minute of it!

Yesterday, I had to pay taxes and do some "running around" but grateful I had the money to pay them and again enjoying the weather.  When I got home I worked outside checking the wood pile and getting wood and kindling into the garage and into the house for when it starts getting cool.  Mostly, it's nice to have a fire in the fireplace when it rains and it's not that cold out but you want to take the chill and the dampness out of the house.

 

I still need to bring in the fireplace tools and redo the fireplace decor for Fall and Halloween......(upcoming post me thinks!)  I also called the chimney sweep and he'll be here next Monday. 

 

I received a great catalog in the mail today which I will be perusing tonight when I go to bed........they have beautiful items in this catolog and my daughter even got her wedding dress from them!

I also got my appliques ironed on to the material today so I'll be cutting those out tonight too......

I'll be using one of my hand wovens for the scarf on the snowman applique.  I bought these a while ago and they weren't cheap but they are all fat quarters and finding hand wovens isn't always easy so when I saw this packet from Moda I bit the bullet!  I love them and they remind me of the pioneers.  They're great for "primitive" projects and I vacillate all the time between that style and the British style of bright and cheery florals.....can I combine them?  They're really totally different but I love both styles!  What's a gal to do? 

I hope you had a wonderful Tuesday and are looking forward to a really wonderful Wednesday!  TTYS!  Oh, BTW....the 2 new books I'm reading (1 non-fiction and 1 fiction) are both great so look forward to some book reviews in the near future!  Ta Ta!

Sunday YOP Update..........

I haven't gotten a lot done on anything it seems.  I didn't even post an update last week.  I have been running around "helter skelter" both physically and mentally.  I love Fall but whoa Nellie, I haven't even had time to enjoy it but hopefully I'll get caught up this week and back to a "normal" schedule.  Here's what I have and have not gotten done yet............
THE sock....the one and only so far...little progress and see the "hole"?!?!?!  I'll have to darn them before I even wear them.....but I'll get better...won't I? LOL!  At least I recognize what it's going to be now!

 

Here's the 2nd potholder for a Christmas present but forget what I said about getting 2 potholders out of one of those Peaches and Creme skeins.....Ha! Ha!  What was I thinking?  I need to go get more now. 

Cross stitch project...no progress at all really.....not even an honorable mention..... the yellow part is all I've done, the rest is preprinted on the fabric! Ha! Ha!  I had to be honest about it lest you think I did all the pretty parts too.  It's going to be a little zippered purse.  It's from the Cath Kidson book Stitch.  The kit came with it.

Below is going to be (say a prayer, please) 10 Snowman blocks for my Quilt Guild exchange October 17th that I almost totally forgot about....see.....I told you it has been "willy nilly" around here....who am I kidding....probably will be this way from now until Christmas! 

Here is my next crochet project.Attic 24 pattern for "pretty birds"...you start out with circles.............

 

 and they turn into birds!

and more birds............I love them....but that itsy bitsy circle in pink is all I have done so far........woe is me!

 In my defense....there has been all sorts of things going on to divert my attention....cooler temps which have gotten me going on the outside projects which were impossible to do in the heat this past Summer, football started, new season shows on the telly although after watching some of them I was able to discern that drama is not something I want to watch on t.v. since I've had enough of that in my own life! LOL!  I love a good comedy but they throw in so much sex in everything you'd think they invented it plus it's always women doing the disrobing and making fools of themselves...I had to cover my girl's (dogs) eyes!  I don't have cable but it's probably worse.  I am getting old...can you tell? LOL!  I do like The Middle....it is closest to anything I can relate to and I love the little guy Brick.  I guess I'll stick to PBS and my Pollyanna state of mind.  So, that's my story and I'm sticking to it!  I got a little bit (very little) of stitching done on my applique and that's it for the past 2 weeks....sad I know but I had to be honest.  Look closely in the lower right hand corner and you can see some.

I hope you all got LOTS more accomplished than I did and that your week ahead is filled with progress, great weather, LOTS of laughter and happiness! 

Back up and regroup..............

 Sorry I didn't blog or visit yesterday.  I was on the phone on and off all day "dealing" with "issues" but today I got my mojo back!  I finished another book.....you can tell I'm not sleeping well because when I can't sleep I read. LOL!

This was a great book to read for the Halloween season but not terrible scary or I would never have been able to finish it.  It was unusual, well written and a New York Times bestseller.  I was disappointed in the ending but then I realized it is going to be a series!  It didn't say that but the ending certainly left the door open.  I won't read the series but with "strange" vintage photographs strewn throughout the book it certainly grabbed my attention and it kept me interested throughout the entire book.  It's nice to read something out of your usual "genre" of literature.  I think it helps you keep your mind open to something you may truly enjoy that you didn't realize was even out there.   That being said...it's an "unusual" read but will definitely keep you turning the pages!  BTW, it is fiction.....or is it?  BOO!
Made my (Mario Batali's with some adjustments) eggplant parmesan....the healthy version!  I love this recipe and make it about once a month.  It's great because it's fairly inexpensive, easy to make, vegetarian (I'm not but I'm a wannabe) oh, and did I mention DELICIOUS!!!!!! It's better than the original which used to take me all day to make and was definitely not healthy!  This picture is before being baked for 20 minutes.....I had to get my blogging done!   

The trees are starting to change color!  Yay!!!!!

The mums are starting to flower....the few that are left.....most of mine died out this summer in the extreme heat.  Planting in metal containers in the South is probably not a good idea.

Things are starting to get "cozy" at night and the temps are going down.....YAY!!!!!

Oh! BTW, some of you asked what the quilt blocks were for and I forgot to tell you so here's "the rest of the story".  I belong to a quilt guild and last year I committed with a bunch of the gals to have a snowman quilt block exchange...it sounds like a fun idea at the time, right?  When will I learn?  It is fun when you don't have a deadline!  I had too many all those years I worked and now I am a "no deadline", "no committment" kind of gal but sometimes I forget! LOL!  I did manage to get the snowmen traced and hopefully tonight ironed on to the various fabrics.  So, that's the rest of the story.

     I hope you had a great Saturday and your favorite college team won! LOL!  TTYL!

OMG! I have 10 quilt blocks to make before 10/17!

Granted, I knew about this a year ago but they were snowmen blocks...I had plenty of time and I had picked out a pattern and downloaded it BUT......I thought it was due in November!  I was going to order material but instead now I've grabbed what I had planned for a Christmas quilt for MOI!  Serves me right!  I'm not sure how this is going to turn out....unfortunately they all have to be the same so I only had the backing fabric for MY Christmas quilt to use where I had enough yardage....I hope this works out...I'm not great at improvising. 

 

This fabric is a little "busy" but the snow person is white so hopefully it will work out....I really don't have many options at this point! LOL!  Here's the pattern for the snow person.  Most were so "hokey" that I didn't care for them but I liked this one except it is for a door hanger, not a quilt block...like I said, I'm not too good at improvising so we shall see........

I love the door hanger and I think I'll make that someday too.  It's a free pattern (along with some other freebies) on All People Quilt    It is a magazine but I don't subscribe anymore I just go to the website. LOL!  I get plenty there without spending the money.....try it with your favorite magazines!  You might be surprised at how much is out there for free.

Here are the other coordinating fabrics for the machine appliqued snow person.

I'm using quilt batting for the snowman as it is nice and soft and "snowy" looking.  The finished block has to be 12 1/2 inches so I am making my squares 14 inches for now and will trim when I'm done.  I wanted to make them plenty big in case I mess up which is fairly likely!  I've pressed the material and I have 5 of the 10 background blocks cut out and will get that done tonight and probably trace the applique pieces and get the paper patterns ironed to the fabric if I have enough of that Steam n' Seam or whatever it is.  I spent most of the day trying to find the email about the blocks, re-finding the pattern and downloading it and then going through my "stash" to find material for the blocks.  Whew!  Never again!  Every Fall when I want to be outside and NEED to be outside getting projects done other things always pop up....the family thing, the city water thing, and now the quilt block thing!  What was I thinking?  I'll get it done but what about my outside painting and caulking?  Maybe I do need a husband?  No, scratch that...I DID NOT just say that!!!! LOL!

Nothing against them and I'm sure yours are wonderful, I've just not had very good luck in that category so I am a confirmed bachelorette! LOL!

Oh!  Tonight is the season opener for Grey's Anatomy!!!!  I have watched that show from the beginning and quilt blocks or not I am watching it tonight!  I hope you had a great Thursday!  HUGs to all!

 

This is for the birds!

 Literally!  Remember when I asked you what to do with all those "snippets" of yarn I had leftover from projects?  Well, most of you said to put them out for the birds to take and use for nesting material...so I did!  I have an empty birdfeeder I used in my back yard but I have to go out and pick it up once a day because they do come and take one strand but others stick to them and fall off on the ground.  I just keep putting it back up there and hopefully I'll spot some pretty yarn in some area nests one day!  Thanks for the tip!

 I made another loaf of my no-knead bread today....easy peasy and it tastes like sourdough.  I love it and it makes the best toast too.

 Isn't this a gorgeous plant?  It's huge too and I have several clumps of it in my yard much to the chagrin of my neighbors I'm sure.  I think it's ragweed but I'm not allergic to it and I think it's beautiful AND it's my favorite color.  It just glows!

 Remember that big bunch of bananas I got for .70?  Our little grocery store here in town sells stuff that's not "prime" at really low prices and I grab what I can.  This time it was bananas that I peel, smash, and freeze for banana bread or any recipe that calls for banana.

I just smashed them up with a fork and there are still chunks which I like in my recipes.

I had enough for 3 recipes of banana bread and a little more.  You could put it in smoothies too.  I think I'm like a squirrel gathering nuts for Winter.  Get that larder full!

The "city workers" were here the other day.......... they do this once or twice a year right in my front lawn.

  That cement piece is where the city water connects to my house.  I was brushing my teeth and low and behold no water and the girls were barking like crazy so I looked out and there they were....4 or 5 of them with one in a front loader making a mess and scratching their heads.  The water came on about an hour later and then this morning when I was brushing my teeth it happened again!  But they weren't in my yard so they must have gone to dig up someone else's yard!  This is how they leave it too....no smoothing out or anything.  I called city hall this morning after the water was out for over 3 hours.   They said there was a leak somewhere and they were trying to find it.  I told them this happens at least twice every year and is there a reason they can't fix it once and for all.  I got my answer........we have little earthquakes and also this year because it was so dry the earth shifts and knocks the pipes out of alignment causing leaks.  Pipes in the South aren't buried very deep...(thank goodness or my front lawn would look like a gravel pit!).   I do understand though because I have cracks inside the house and also the caulk next to the foundation has cracked and separated for the same reason.  Maybe those townhouses and condominiums aren't such a bad idea after all.

On a brighter note....the flowers are really making a comeback and they sure make me smile with their bright shining faces!  Hope you had a wonderful Wednesday!