Spicy Doin's Round Here, Ya'll

Another week has come and gone.  We have been busy.  Besides all the normal happenings of life and gardening, we have been preparing to send our youngest off to college in a few weeks.  Very bittersweet days!!  And, since I don't want to cry all over you I will move onto another happier subject.

Our garden is doing so well.  We are just so excited about the bounty! I spent yesterday afternoon canning jalapenos.  Yes, jalapenos.  We are native Texans, you know!!  I guess it's true what they say...You might take the girl out of Texas but you'll never take the Texas out of the girl. 

So many jalapenos but that's okay because we eat alot of them.

After slicing up all those little peppers, I filled four pint jars full of them along with a vinegar brine to pickle them.  I then put them in a water bath for 10 minutes and out they came.  They will have to set up for about six weeks before we can eat them.  I expect to be able to get at least 4 more pints of peppers put up with the way out plants are producing.  If only the tomatoes would ripen we could have homemade salsa.  Now we're talking!!!

And, I think I forgot to tell you that a couple of weeks ago I spent one afternoon canning 18 half-pints of  homemade strawberry jam.  It didn't have to set up and we are really enjoying it!!

I'm really enjoying the new sewing machine.  The knee lift for the pressure foot is great for speeding along on chain piecing.  Soooo much more to learn!! 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Born To Wander

Why is it that I always let Christmas sneak up on me? It's not like it doesn't come around the same time year after year. I love Christmas. I love all the music and the food and the lights. I plan every year to start on Christmas presents in August but it never happens. My house still looks like Thanksgiving. The snow falling outside should be motivation enough for me to dive into all those boxes of decorations out in the garage but I can't seem to stay home long enough to do that.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We left Wednesday to spend a few days with friends back in Illinois where we moved from last year. It was fantastic spending so much time with such good friends. (We really missed you guys, Lynn.) I even found time (of course) to visit the local quilt store where I spent so much time when we lived there. If you are ever in the area around Oblong, IL (yes, it is the only Oblong) you just have to stop in at the Village Stitchery. It's on Main Street. You can't miss it. Lisa and Sherry are the sweetest and they have that place just full of wonderful eye candy and treasures!! Our plan was to come home on Saturday because my sweet hubby and I were due to fly to Houston on Tuesday and back home again on Thursday (him for business, me for a visit). Instead our friends talked us into staying an extra day.

Well, as often happens, yesterday his trip was moved from leaving today back into the middle of January. So, what's a good wife to do? Cancel her visit too? NO WAY!!! I just called the airline and extended my stay. It's a good thing too because I'm such a dope and had made my reservations for Wednesday instead of Tuesday!! God has to work overtime watching out for me!! However, I'm so excited. You see, my best buds back in Houston now own The Quilt Room. Here are a couple of early pics from her place. I'll be sure to get new ones while I'm there.

Since I'll have to go to work with her every day (Aw, shucks you say!! hehe) I'm taking all my Christmas projects with me and will sew, sew, sew. How convenient will that be? All the supplies I could ever need right there at my fingertips. Can you spell H-E-A-V-E-N? So, here I go again back to Texas for the second time in less than 4 weeks.

Thanks for stopping by. Happy Quilting!!
And Happy Holidays!!

Unintended Blogging Breaks

Well, I really didn't intend to take a blogging break but here it is almost the middle of November and my first post since October 23. What's up with that???

I wish I could say I have been doing a lot of sewing but that would not be the truth. I did follow the little basket bandwagon and made this.
If you are one of the few who haven't seen these yet the tutorial can be found at the Pink Penguin. They are super easy and fun to make!

I have started on a couple of Christmas gifts but, of course, I can't show those yet!! I haven't done nearly enough but can't seem to get motivated. I have always been a procrastinator!!! Truth be known, I just haven't had much to say. (I know those of you who know me well will be shocked at that since I never used to shut up but it's true.) My vertigo has been acting up lately and that is miserable so that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

I'm leaving for Texas tomorrow to visit my mom and grandmother. I'm really looking forward to the visit. I'm taking along my grandmother's flower garden hexagons I started on our trip to Florida. I haven't spent much time on them since returning home. I hope to keep all my supplies firmly in my seat with me this time.

Thanks for stopping by. Happy Quilting!!

Home Sweet Home

It's fun to go visit family and friends (well, mostly fun; more on that later) BUT it's also really great to be back home. And just let me say, that I'm home to stay (for a little while, at least). Our trip to Texas was looooong but oh so worth it. My grandmother seemed to really love her quilt. It was wonderful to spend so much time with her and my mom. My one regret is that I didn't get pictures of my grandmother with the quilt. I'll have get my mom to help me out there!! (Thanks mom, just helping you finish up that film). I wish I could say the trip down and back was uneventful. Oh how I wish I could!! The trip was 17 hours each way. We were within 35 miles of mom's house on the way down when we heard something unusual. We knew right away (because we felt it) that we had a flat tire. You know that feeling? Well, we pulled over and just looked at each other. We were only half a mile from a rest area which had a gas station but I didn't want to drive that far on the rim. So what did we do, you ask?

Well, I'm pretty independent as you can tell from the fact that sweet kid #3 and I were on this long trip by ourselves. I've made the trip several times alone. No sweat! But it's been about 30 years since I've had a flat without my husband being with me. So I call him, like he can help, being 16+ hours away. (Side note - Aren't cell phone just the greatest little things?) He suggests the can of Fix A Flat in the little emergency kit we have. So (for the first time since it happened) we get out of the van to look at the tire and Nope that's not gonna work. It had flat blown in half. But by doggie, (sorry, we were really close to the Texas border) with his wonderful moral support we changed that there tire and were on our way. (Second side note - Don't you just hate those little donuts they call spare tires?) We were right proud of ourselves.

Here's my third(and final) side note - Do you know that the entire time we were on the side of that busy road (I-44 in Oklahoma) not one person stopped to help two females changing a tire. OK, I said I was independent; I didn't say I was a feminist. I would have been more than happy to let some Oklahoma cowboy change that tire for us. But, NOOOOOO not a soul stopped. This little Texas girl (well, maybe not so little) was sorely disappointed in her Oklahoma neighbors.

Getting down off my soapbox and on to the quilting front, I got back to work yesterday on my Orange Crush. The mystery is solved already but sadly I fell behind. So back to my sewing machine I go to sew up half square triangles for step 4. I also had some interesting mail today but since this has gotten long enough you'll just have to wait until tomorrow for that.

Thanks for stopping by. Happy Quilting!!

On the Road Again

As you are reading this sweet kid #3 and I are wheeling down the road on our way to Texas. We are cruising on down for a quick visit with my mom and grandmother. The visit will be great but after living up north for several years I have gotten quite spoiled to the cooler summer temperatures. This fat, old girl just can't handle those 90 - 100 degree temps any more. I think we will spend most of our time inside.

While I'm away I am going to work on the Coneflower wool penny rug that I started in my class at the NQA quilt show last week. It was taught by Pat Sloan. You need to check out her website and blog. She has been blogging about the quilt show also. She is a wonderful designer of quilt patterns and fabrics. We had so much fun in her class and learned so much about wool. Below is a picture of Pat and me in front of her design Folk Art America. Yes, I did bring the pattern how with me.


















Thanks for stopping by. Happy Quilting!

Big Finish

Today is the final day for the Color Challenge issued by Natalie of Cinderberry Stitches. Red is her color of choice today. I have shown you many of my reds. Just page back to blue day and you will see that they go together so well that I have combined them in many of my quilts. Here's the first quilt I ever made. It was, in fact, the project from my first ever quilt class. It hangs in my studio.

You can probably tell from my banner that I love '30's reproductions. I think I have mentioned it a time of two (gross understatement). Here are a few of them from my stash.
Ain't they pretty? (Shh, don't tell my sweet kid #3 that I said ain't. She's planning on being a high school english teacher and she just cringes when I say ain't.) It's because of this....
This sign hangs in our kitchen. But let me show you what's red and hangs in our entry hall.


















My husband is an artist(a hobby right now). He's really good if I do say so myself. And you know I am not the least bit biased!! He has done a series of seasonal old barns. This one obviously is fall. It is my favorite of the barns. This barn sits just a little south of the small town we used to live in. If you would like to see more of his art you can check out his website here.

Here are a few more shots from around the house with red, of course.













































Well, if you have stuck it out to the end, thanks. This has been fun.
Happy Quilting!

Blue, Blue, My World is Blue

Not really! Natalie over at Cinderberry Stitches has named blue as the color of the day. I am having so much fun with this color challenge. Color is such an integral part of a quilter's world. Now I know some quilter's love to make black and white quilts and they turn out so pretty but how boring would it be if that was it for choices of color. I'm so very, very glad that God didn't create this world in just black and white. Aren't you?

Before we moved here to Ohio most of my home was decorated in blue(mostly Americana). That has changed here but since my stash had so much red and blue in it a large portion of my quilting has been in those colors (until now, as I said - that has changed). Here are a few of my early quilting projects.


























I could go on but I won't. Next come the wonderful tools we have as quilters. Another of my rotary cutters (who can have just one?), seam ripper (not one of favorite tools), and the brush to keep my sewing machine running smoothly and blue thread. There are so many shades of blue.






















Next is a close up of a feed sack I bought at an antique store near here. I would love to begin collecting feed sacks to make quilts from but haven't gotten that far yet.
And last, but certainly not least, is a fun little knick-knack that sits atop my desk in the studio. It was a gift from my bff Claudia. I am a displaced Texan and she doesn't want me to forget it(as if I could). As they say, You can take the girl out of Texas but you can't take the Texas out of a girl. Or something like that!! Yee Haw!!!

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Quilting!!

Mail Call - -Be forewarned...Long Post

Oh, just look what was sitting at my door when I got home from the Antique Mall (more on that another day...this is just too exiting to wait). Did I tell you that my very best friend in the whole wide world (Hi again, Claudia) and another very dear friend (Hi, Julie) own a quilt store just northeast of Houston? I don't think I did but that's who this package is from. They don't do online orders (yet????) as they have only been open for a little under two years. The shop is called The Quilt Room and is just as cute as can be. Their website is under construction right now but if you are in the area just bookmark it then give them a call and they will give you directions. You won't want to miss it or them.

I cut right into that package and what's this? It's a tote bag from one of their vendors. I really need a tote bag for the NQA Quilt Show in June. Now I won't have to make one!! I have another project in mind with what is under that tote bag.
Want to see what it is?? Sure you do!! It's from a quilt store, isn't it?


Oh, just lookie there. I see fat quarters. Sweet '30's fat quarters. I just love the "30 reproductions. In fact, I love all the reproduction fabrics. I'm a traditional quilter at heart. I love the basic scrappy, vintage quilts the best. I think I've probably mentioned that before. You are probably thinking you would like to see it all laid out.

Oh, ok!!



Wow!! Just look at that haul!! If I counted right it is 17 yards of cuteness. I tried to count it as it was going into the washing machine. That's right, it's already in the washer. Since I already know what I am doing with this cuteness, I'm just chomping at the bit(there's my Texas-ness coming out) to get started on it. In fact, I might ought to go check and make sure it's not ready for the dryer.


It was ready and now is in the dryer. Sheesh! Don't you just hate the way all those threads ravel and knot up the fabric. It's a real pain. Have you found a way to circumvent that jumble? Leave me a comment with your hints, PLEASE!!

Well, I guess this is long enough and plenty of pictures for one day. I'll be attached to my iron shortly. I don't have to worry about getting supper since hubby is in Minneapolis on business. I bought a rotisserie chicken and some fresh broccoli on the way home. Sounds like a plan. Happy Quilting!!