Snippets

I have been doing a lot of a little bit of quilting.  There is nothing to take pictures of, I am just inching closer to finishing things that may never be finished.  It has been nice to be back in my sewing room.  Helen was moved from her apartment into the health center, so I got a little bookshelf.  It looks nice in my sewing room and makes me think of Helen and Peter and their house in California.  Ned came in and said, "wish I had a bookshelf."  "Ned, you do have a bookshelf in your room," I said perplexed.  "Yeah, but mine has books on it."  I am not sure we were having the same conversation?

Hoover had to have part of his tail shaved, a bit more than a snippet.  Poor guy has a licky spot that got all nasty and infected.  Dogs don't like you messing with their tails, so I have to sneak up on him to spread goo. 

I am getting excited for the Grand Canyon.  Teri and I have all sorts of things planned.  We will also be in Phoenix and Sedona - whoohoo.  

Quilt Confidence

On our trip west,  I got to visit several of the quilts I have made and given away.  The first one was folded on a chair in the living room and what drew me to it was the chewed spots from the dog.  I opened it up and realized I had made it AND it was quite nice.  I saw the quilts that I made for my niece and nephew and they looked great also.  I usually send the quilts off without taking a picture and then forget about them.  I am going to pat myself on the back and acknowledge that I am a good quilter.  It isn't just that the quilts are made well, it is the thought of color and design for the recipient.   It makes me happy to see the quilts being used.

Homage and Farewell To Summer

I had wanted to write a post about our wonderful trip to Oregon and Washington, but now summer has passed me by.  Farewell and see you next year.  I will detail a few highlights.

COUSINS, lots and lots of cousins.  Cousins are special and I wish we all got to see them more often.  I live too far away.  I found my dream house in Chehalis, WA.  It had a windmill, cute old-fashioned barn and looked like gnomes could live there.  It was painted light blue with red trim and of course my picture is terrible.  

We went to Seaside, OR and almost froze to death.  We showed up in bathing suits and everyone else was wearing long pants and sweatshirts.  We did a quick change in the car.  It was freezing.  The town had the best bumper cars.  I was slamming into old ladies, my kids and terrified strangers - a blast.  We met up with a friend, who did the teacups with the boys.  I won't do any hurler-rides.

Mount St. Hele

We raced from there to a fun wedding in Salem, Or.  The kids got to go for a ride in their uncle's tractor, wished I had climbed in.   Other cousins took us to a dahlia farm, absolutely beautiful.  Acres of bright colors.  We also had to check out a dead gopher.  We had a really long drive up to Bellingham, but listened to Ellen's summer reading.  She was required to read "Moon Over Manifest",  all four of us really enjoyed it.   Since weather was hot, we were able to see Mt. Hood, Mount St. Helens, Mt. Rainier and spent a day sledding on Mt. Baker. 

The tide pools in Bellingham were a huge hit.  The water was like glass.  We found giant purple sea stars, crabs and a dead bull shark with only part eaten.  Bellingham has a really nice farmer's market, many unusual items.  I wish I had taken a picture of the woman in the blueberry booth, container after container of big, fat blueberries.  I was grossed out by the girl selling washable menstrual pads.  They were cute, but eww, a little too back to basics for me.  The market was loaded with artisan cheeses, chocolates and roasted nuts.  I bought locally dyed yarn in a bright green color. Ned got to celebrate his birthday with a big cake.

The kids as usual had many great quotes and I wish I could remember them all.  Here is a quote from each.

As we drove by a Christmas tree lot, Ian asked if I thought the owners were Jewish?
During the wedding Ned points up to the front of the church and says, "is that a piano or a coffin?"

Ellen was doing a book of scratch off hangman.  I asked her what the word was and she said, "dared evil."  What, is it really two words?  "No, one word, daredevil," she notices.

We are now into school, which seemingly has brought never-ending rain.  Never-ending rain has brought never-ending traffic, floods, downed trees and power outages.  Summer is really over, our pool is closed. 

I Really Want To

I really want to post about my trip to Oregon and Washington, but I need to upload the photos.  I am also worn out - chemo blues.   If I don't get anything posted sooner, Happy Labor Day to all. 

Candy, Candy Corn and Syrup

I made a pie that was beautiful, the color was so pretty.  I forgot to add enough sugar and so the pie was not good.  Plums need to be sweetened, Ned took the first bite and was gagging.  It was disappointing, that is what I get for talking and cooking at the same time. 

Ned is an elf, if he had pointy ears there would be no doubt he was a changeling.  He lives on the three food groups above and is mischieviously elfish.  If you have not watched "Elf" then you must.  It is a cute, cute movie.  I finally took it away and put it with the Christmas decorations.  I can't find my Christmas spirit in July.   Ned's birthday squirrel reflects his true passions in life.  This is also my August quilt.  I added glittery, shiny things to make the squirrel stand out after I looked at this picture.  The background fabric is my favorite fabric right now.  Aunt Teri decided she wants a squirrel quilt, she poo-pooed me when I offered her one for her birthday.

We went go-carting for the first time ever - it was a blast.  We had to put on thick-soled shoes and mohawk Ned's hair to make him tall enough.  I went two times, but there is no photo to verify my claim.  The kids would laugh each time they lapped me.

We also went to the Science Center.  The SC is in the summer of "irresponsible science."  We watched as melons and water balloons were launched off the roof through a giant tube.  We shot pool noodles from the third floor into the lobby.  The most fun was shocking each other with the electric current experiment.  I even snuck up behind a stranger and shocked him, the docent finally shooed us away.  We had cousins in town, therefore we crammed a summer's worth of activities into four days - yeehaw!

I am going to end this post with one last photo that sums up my love of summer.  There is no such thing as too much relaxation.  In fact I am off to float in the pool with the kids.  I have a good fiction book that combines quilting with Colorado history, cousin Nell left it for me.