September Classmate Dinner...

Front row: Deb B., Dan and Deb N Back row: Cal, Donna, Brad, and Lisa

September's classmate dinner was yesterday afternoon. Our smaller group was perfect for conversation and fellowship. 

I worked an extra shift from 10 am until 2 pm, and it was a busy shift for me. The scheduled cook didn't show (or call in) so I was on my own. Not wanting to turn folks away for the lunch hour, I got busy.

Not only was I cashiering, but rather than turning away customers coming in for lunch, I told them our kitchen was closed except what could be cooked in our fryer. At one point, I had four occupied tables! I also kept our warmer stocked with "grab and go" food. Needless to say, my shift just flew by, and I was pleased that I could manage to salvage a lunch hour where our restaurant would have been otherwise closed.

The third shift cashier clocked in early, I balanced my till, changed out of my work clothes and drove to the restaurant for our dinner. Handsome stayed home this month, but I brought dinner for him home with me...including two pieces of "Fudgy Wudgy Chocolate Cake" (restaurant's name, not mine). All in all, I'd say it was a good day from start to finish. 

Today is (mostly) a home day. I have a mid-day hair appointment, but otherwise I'll be at the farmhouse. I'm looking forward to it!

Happy October!

Seasons...

As we move into autumn, we'll be able to watch the trees showing us just how wonderful is is to let go. Time to say goodbye to September, too. 

More About Sunday...

As I told you yesterday, my Sunday drive began hours earlier than actually necessary. As I came off our hill, my view was beautifully sunny, with autumnal fog lying across the marsh. I thought it looked magical.

I drove the by-pass around Fond du Lac and continued west toward Portage. Within mere miles of Fondy, the "beautiful, autumnal fog" developed into a pea soup-thick blanket that stretched for about fifty of the remaining sixty seven mile trip. I gripped the steering wheel so tightly that my hands actually hurt when I finally stopped (the first time) at Adrienne's.

After eating breakfast in downtown Portage at (what else?) the Portage Café, I took the scenic route through a town near and dear to my heart  I ended up at Silver Lake, located on the north side close to my last apartment before I moved back here and met Handsome.

I pulled into the beach parking lot and turned my Explorer off. I opened my windows and enjoyed the view. A solitary pontoon boat cruised around the shoreline, occupied by a guy and his dog. 

Soon after, a dad pulled in with his young son. Both of them carried fishing poles down to the water, as dad recited the rules of the day..."First fish wins", "Biggest fish wins." and "Most fish wins." I never did see them reel one in. Apparently nothing was biting, and they didn't stay long.

I enjoyed the view until about twenty minutes before everyone would be arriving at Adrienne's, so I put on my seat belt, smiled a farewell, and left Silver Lake not knowing when or if I'll ever return. Serendipity brought me there. Purpose would have to bring me back. I'm glad I took photos to remind me of my well-spent morning, though. 

Oh, and thankfully, the fog burned off completely by the time I made my return trip home. "No fog" was the best ending to a perfect day.

 

September Craft Day...

First, let me apologize for my inconsistent posts. These new hours are wonderful, but this night owl is in bed by 10 on work days, and sometimes I just forget to post first. I'll try to do better.

This month's craft day was yesterday - a Sunday for a change. Of course, I didn't read the info carefully, so I arrived at 9 am to find it didn't start until 1 pm. sigh I realized my error when no other cars were at Adrienne's. 

Rather than ring the doorbell, I checked the messages to find the time change. I drove in to Portage and had breakfast at the downtown cafe. Then I drove around town a bit. I found a small lake near where I used to live and sat and read until it was time to meet up with the ladies. It was a perfect day for a little lake time.

This month, our project was a fall/Halloween floral arrangement in upcycled tin cans. Can you tell which one is mine? 🤭

Adrienne went with a skeleton/ghost theme.

Kim also chose little ghosts.

Linda added a pumpkin to her ghost arrangement.

I'm not much of a Halloweener. We've actually never lived in a place where we had trick or treaters, and although you know I love fall, I've never decorated with skeletons/ghosts, etc, opting for an owl and acorns instead. I painted these and added them to my arrangement.

Marie had a trio of girlie ghosts in her arrangement.

So that's what we all made this month. I got home by around five after a full day in my old stomping grounds. It's amazing how much things change when you haven't been around in about thirty years! (I actually only found my old apartment by the lake by accident!)

I'll share a few photos of that tomorrow. See you then!

 

Sunday Scripture...

Psalm 4:8

 

Party Night...

Thanks to an unexpected printer failure, I ended up with a last minute trip to town to find a print business who would run my images through on my printable fabric (and a piece of card stock). Four places disappointed me (one out of business; one on its last leg requiring a passcode to enter and no door attendant to know I was outside; and two were closed on Fridays). 

Thankfully, there's still an actual print shop open in town on Fridays, and they were able to accommodate my needs. With my printed quilt label and brooch insert in hand, I drove home to put the finishing touches on the quilt and get both gifts wrapped.

The party was lovely and the nearly newlyweds (who hadn't planned to open gifts at their hostess' home) humored Grandma by opening their packages so I could see their reactions.

They especially loved the quilt label, and then showed me their new quilt does, in fact, cover them both, which will be perfect for movie night cuddling.

I loved seeing their reaction to the brooch I made. Granddaughter immediately said it will be affixed to her bouquet for the ceremony.

Equally gratifying were the questions about its construction from her groom and his best man! I gave them a short explanation - you know, just enough not to bore the pants off 'em - and then accepted grateful hugs from the kids. 

Grandpa, Uncle and I left shortly after and drove an hour back home. I can say, without equivocation, that every hour I spent creating the brooch and quilt were well-spent. Their reactions affirmed that.

Their wedding is only fifteen days away, so now I can turn my attention to what I'm going to wear to the wedding, and spend the rest of the time relaxing. Definitely no deadlines for a while.

 

I've Hit The Ground Running...

Handsome's brother arrives today from Maine, so I've been running since I woke up. So much to do, since I was busy with other things (and work) the past few days. I only now realized I hadn't dropped in to say "hi" today. (This photo was taken years ago. Heck, that's the old porch behind them!)

Our granddaughter's couples wedding shower is tomorrow, so I'll stitch down the second side of the quilt binding and add the label today. I'll share photos of my finished quilt with you tomorrow.

I still have a few things to finish, so I'd better close for now. See you tomorrow!

Unusually Productive...

 

I was just a busy beaver yesterday! I worked my 6 am to 10 am shift, but came home with purpose. Number One on my list was the lap quilt. I had to split my attention, though, so Handsome helped with that.

I changed clothes as soon as I got home, and then retired to my studio. As I'd already pinned my "quilt sandwich", it was "just" a matter of choosing thread and sewing. But, I had another project to run at the same time.

Two days ago I bought fifteen pounds of McIntosh apples from a local grower who brings bags to the station. I wanted to get them processed into applesauce before they went bad.

I enlisted the help of my dear husband. We got out a Nesco roaster, washed and quartered the apples and set them out on the porch to cook down. All I added was a bit of lemon and some spring water. While I sewed, Handsome monitored and stirred the apples. They simmered all afternoon.

I completed sewing on the quilt binding and preparing it for hand sewing while he made dinner for us. We were both finished at the same time. I turned off the apples and we had our evening meal.

After dinner, he did cleanup and I processed the apples into applesauce. Back on the stovetop with only a tablespoon of cinnamon and half a cup of sugar, those beautiful apples were turned into five quarts of applesauce. Talk about teamwork! A half hour later (at about 10:30), I covered the jars to seal overnight and headed to bed.

I picked up a shift for 10 am to 2 pm today, so I'm on my way out the door now. Can't wait to tell you how today goes. Gotta run...

A Full Day...

Even so, I didn't get to the quilting part yet. I did finish making the binding; assembling the back; layering the back, batting, and front, and then pinning...and pinning...and pinning. 

By the time that was all done, so was I. Handsome came into the studio and declared it "lights out" for the day. I didn't argue. 

I work early today, but when I get home, I'll be quilting layers together. We'll see where I go from there.

The Top Is Done...

I completed piecing my quilt top Sunday afternoon, but needed Handsome's assistance to get it photographed. Measuring 64" square, I was too short vertically challenged  to hold it up to get a pic. He was more than happy to oblige.

I went into my magic drawer and found just enough of the dark Farmhouse Flannels fabric to accomplish the border. whew!

Once that was done, I found another assortment from the same line, so I decided to piece together enough 4-1/2" squares to create the binding for it. I'm going to cut this into two long 2-1/4" strips, which will give me the length I need. I hope I like the unconventional binding, because I don't think I have enough left of the line for an alternative. 

So when I get home from work today, I'll change from my work clothes into my play clothes and get the top, batting, and back set up to assemble the quilt for sewing. 

Before I call it a day, I'll have the binding attached, leaving just the hand stitching - and adding the label. Yippee!

Sunday Scripture...

Psalm 33:5

Saturday Silliness...

I know where you'll find me!

 

Kenny's Back In Action...

I forgot how heavy he was until I lifted him onto my work table. I figured setting up my work space like this was the most effective .

I think the top may be complete, unless I decide to add a border of blocks of all the fabrics I used around the outside of it. It hangs here while I decide. (Input welcome.)

I'll complete it over the weekend...which is once again upon us. sigh

 

Dream Life...

Via Old Fashioned Life on FB

May Be My Next Insect...

I came across this image of a beautiful Sphinx moth while perusing Facebook and was really taken with the colors and shading.

While you already know my next needlework project will be the goldfinch wall hanging, I think this will be on my butterfly/moth to do list in 2027. Isn't it beautiful?

I'm working on the "couples lap quilt" at the moment, and will share photos when it's complete. Lots to do in a short time. Gotta run...

 

A Gift From A Friend...

On Saturday, I met a former classmate who now lives in Oklahoma. She was back in Wisconsin visiting with family. 

She contacted me before she left home to see if we could get together while she was here because she "had a surprise for me". Ever a fan of surprises, we planned to meet last Saturday.

She told me she's been seeing my Facebook posts sharing photos of my baked goods, so she gifted me with two pounds of gorgeous Texas pecans! Then, she told me to just let her know if I ever wanted more.

She enclosed a card with the company's information as well as instructions for long-term storage (like they could even be around that long).

We had a nice visit, then hugged and parted ways. Her dad recently passed away, so she had plans with siblings to clear out his house. She got an extra hug from me.

Now I just need to decide what I'll make with them. I'm leaning toward pecan pie tarts. They're something my paternal grandma made for us when I was a kid and it might be fun to make some for nostalgia's sake. 

These early morning hours are really agreeing with me, except that - even setting an alarm - I can't seem to sleep through the night for fear I'll oversleep. Hopefully that will resolve soon.  I'd better get to it. I don't want to be late!

 

I decided to make a "lap quilt for two" for our granddaughter and her fiancé as a shower gift. I think this flannel assortment will be perfect. Soft for her, with a neutral color palette for him. Plus, I don't know their preferred color scheme for their home, so I think these colors are safe.

The fabrics are the Moda "Farmhouse Gatherings" line from Primitive Gatherings. I originally purchased the fabrics for a new "nap" quilt for myself, but we've always been told to gift something you'd like to receive, so I think this qualifies.

I'll continue working on this over the next week, and will do straight line quilting after I finish piecing it. I should complete this ahead of schedule (for a change). More progress photos later.

 

Sunday Scripture...

Matthew 6:26

Saturday Silliness...

Oh dear, Steve. I don't think that's what it means.  

Everything But The Acorn...

Our granddaughter's brooch is finished, save for adding Grandma's signature acorn to the back.

I used silver-finished kid leather for the backing, and a pin back to secure it to her gown or bouquet.

Grandpa and I will give this to her at the upcoming couples' shower. I'm also working on a large lap quilt for them. I'll be shooting for their shower date of September 25th. Once again, I'm going to be busy. sigh

We actually had a cool wedding gift planned, but found out that it's not going to work. The kid's bought a duplex as their starter home, which we think is smart and practical. So was our idea.

We wanted to gift them a quarter beef share, which necessitated a freezer for storage. We asked their dad to slyly find out if that would work. He contacted us yesterday to inform us that, not only is there no freezer (which could easily be rectified), but having no basement, there's no space in the house to accommodate one either.

So now we have to rethink our plan and come up with a new one. Any ideas from my wise and creative readers? Let me know.

 

They're Still Here...

One of three feeders on the front porch

Sorry my post is late today. Google wasn't uploading my images. Anyhow, I wanted to share a couple photographs of our wee hummers who are still visiting my feeders.

I've been changing out the nectar and cleaning the feeders to make sure they get safe food as they fatten up for their long migration south.

Feeder outside the pantry sink window.

I leave the feeders out well past the last sighting, just to be sure any stragglers are nourished. We've had at least three (probably more) here all summer. 

I've read that they remember where the feeders are placed from year to year, and they return to them. Also that they remember faces. I like that thought a lot because they're never far away when we're rehanging the feeders, and sometimes they even hover around us when we're outdoors.

So, I'll continue feeding these little bugs this season, and look forward to their return next year and beyond.

 

The Light On The Other Side...

Anyone who knows me well knows I already embrace this philosophy. Equally important is taking time for a walk with nature, and combining that walk with art or creativity is a bonus.

I have "chores" to accomplish today...bookkeeping, shredding paper, and tossing "dead weight". I'm going to try to do all this with a happy heart, knowing my outlook will be lighter once it's done. Knowing tomorrow will be better after I do this stuff I don't like to do. I'll look forward to tomorrow as I throw myself into today. See you later.

PS. We've had great news about our loved one They've moved to a facility where they'll receive physical therapy and the extended care necessary for the transition to returning home. Our gratitude for all the healing prayers and good wishes is immeasurable. Thank you.