Cold Air and Warm Bread

The leaves on the tree in our front yard are falling fast! We actually got a peek at the sun today. It has not shined for 3 full days. It is not planning on sticking around too long, as the clouds are moving in late this afternoon. Tuesday is the next time we may get to feel it's warmth. It is cold and windy. Charlotte and I went out for a walk and only made it a block down before turning around and coming home. Brrrrr....that wind actually bites!

Today is a home blessing day. Charlotte is working on laundry.
Sweetheart is cleaning carpet, Zach is helping with his laundry, and Kyle...well Kyle will deep clean his room, eventually, today. He is in the middle of a movie and promises to get it done when the movie is over.
I baked a couple loaves of whole wheat bread. I used honey and molasses in place of brown sugar to feed the yeast. The kids loved it. One was sliced, using my Amish bread slicer.... ....and one is cooling for the freezer.I make 1 pound loaves so the portions are smaller.
Nothing to show in the area of quilting. I have done little the past week and really need to get moving on the gifts I have planned for Christmas. I will share a project from a swap I did a couple of years ago. Some of you may remember this. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this quilt and swore I would make another one for me...of course I didn't. I really do plan to though.It is hand applique, hand quilted and I did a double cross hatch behind the basket of fall colored flowers. The effect of double cross hatching is one of my favorites!!I would like to make one for each season for my home.
That is it for now. I have done a couple of posts at The Offering of Thanksgiving this last week, but don't think I was neglecting this blog....just nothing to write about.
Have a blessed weekend!!!!

Honey Crisp and Flannel Sheets!

It is officially Autumn and boy can you feel it in that crisp, cool, air! We have Honey Crisp apples from Lane's Country Market in the bowl, and flannel sheets on the bed! Yep, it is fall.I even have beautiful new fall themed towels and pot holders, thanks to Joann!!!! Aren't they pretty! I was saving them for Thanksgiving, but yesterday, I just could not help myself and I put them out!
Another wonderful thing to do in the fall, is to curl up with a quilt! Mine happened to be in a hoop with a needle and thread attached to it, but that is the BEST kind!!!I am soooooo close to the end and I really pushed myself this past weekend to get it done. Sadly, I did not make it. I have 1 more basket and 2 more setting triangles and then the 4 corners. Two days work if I can get my fingers to cooperate. Yesterday morning this is what they looked like....
Both my index finger and middle finger have a nice callous (perfect for hand quilting), but my index finger was pretty sore. I decided to rest it for the day and only used my middle finger. Here is what it all looked like at bedtime....
I pretty much dug a hole in my middle finger. Today I will start a callous on my ring finger. I only use my ring finger to quilt(this is the hand under the quilt) when my index and middle finger are too sore. Usually only near Christmas when I am meeting a deadline. Just one day will have my fingers healed nicely, but I can not waste a full day at this stage. No need to share any tricks on preventing this....I have heard them all and I am one of those quilters that NEEDS to feel that needle with her skin. It gives me control over the stitch and is very worth it all.

I also finished another little top on my Christmas gift list. Now I have 4 ready for the hoop. I am going through thread like crazy and was thrilled to find my favorite hand quilting thread at the new Acorn Quilts. The owner kept her word and had my thread and needles in stock. I bought a cone of YLI holding 1200 yds for only $8. That should last me a while!!

I am starting a new diet today. I know...I hate that word too, but what else can you call it? A life style change? That would mean changing my life style....no, it is a diet.I won't bore you with it all, but I want to lose some weight before surgery. I have decided to have it in early January. My mother in love is having a, much needed, hip replacement on Oct. 20 (prayers are appreciated) and Rachel may be having a procedure done soon also. Being available to help them is important. I am more than comfortable and since I host Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day, I believe after the holidays seems more logical. Then I can get babied for as long as I can drag it out!!!!

The girls have crochet class this morning from 10-12 and Zach and I will work on catching him up from last weeks sick days. We so appreciate your prayers and good thoughts for Zachary. He has made a full recovery, though he gave that virus to his Daddy. I am praying it stops there and does not continue on.

Well, I am off to the showers and then it is time to wake the kids. Have a wonderful Monday...a new week is always a fresh feeling!

Blessings~

Feeling Fall

It is in the air!! Fall. I love this time of year, though I am not ready for winter, so I am praying we have a long Autumn season. Sweetheart's sunflowers are blooming. He has 3. One is fully bloomed, and one is just starting to open up.The other one is still closed up.

I found a treasure today. I have been wanting this certain table cloth for over a year. I even posted about it last year. Well I found it today for $7.99!!It is wonderful! I love all the colors and it reminds me of patchwork, so that is a plus! I moved the table runner to the breakfast bar again. This table runner is probably 10-12 years old. It was the first one I ever made. It has been washed a gazillion times and is still in mint condition...well, I guess the fabrics are a tad faded.

I did no quilting today. I plan to spend tonight hand quilting, but my plans to quilt today were thwarted by the mailman. Two new (used) books were delivered.I am thrilled to read both of these. I spent some time in the one on food allergies today. It is very interesting, and I am certain I suffer from food allergies. Hopefully, I will discover what to do about it! One thing I know....whole foods as much as possible. I made whole wheat bread from scratch yesterday and ground up some slices into bread crumbs for tonight's meat loaf. I put the rest in a baggie in the freezer. Better than processed. I am not reacting to wheat (I don't think), but preservatives and high fructose corn syrup are horrid in my body. I had meat loaf made with all natural ingredients, baked potato, and green beans for dinner. Nothing that should have bothered me. Still I am itchy and for about 1/2 an hour after I ate, had a hard rapid heart beat. I guess it could be the Marie Callendar Coconut Cream Pie I ate after dinner........After checking the box (after I ate some) it contains high fructose corn syrup AND a form of the preservative, glutamate. *sigh* Also, I am pausing (click here if you are pausing too), so who the heck knows!! I know I am sick and tired of being sick and tired and I am the only one who can fix it. Enough whining! I need to educate myself, but for this evening I will quilt!

The Final Week.....

My phone rang bright and early this morning. It was Alphia (the little girl down the street who will be joining us this year).

"Miss Brenda, does school start today?"

"No, Alphia. It starts next Tuesday."

The disappointment was thick!!! She wanted to come down and start school right then and there! I am not as anxious as Alphia to start school. I am prepared. I am organized. I am totally ready to begin this school year.....still, I will relish this final week to sew and quilt whenever my heart desires!

Yesterday was our church picnic. What a fun time it was. Sweetheart has had an awful cold and, though he attended the outside service, I took him home afterwards as he seemed miserable. He tried. It was a nice time for the kids. Here is a problem.....I have NO idea how to handle it. Charlotte likes boys. Yes, I know that is normal. Yes, she is a cutie-pie and the boys will like her too. Yesterday, she was glued to a boy and he was glued to her. No playing with the other children AT ALL. Just the two of them talking and visiting (no touching of any kind). I went looking for them several times. Once I called Charlotte over to me and asked what was going on....Why was she not playing with her best friend Gracie??? Jimmy was showing her what milk weed is. He was giving her lessons on different plants and they shared their dessert in the alcove of the ministry house. PLUS, she was acting much more grown up than usual! I think she had her pinky finger extended the whole time she ate her cupcake....which, by the way, she ate in little delicate bites. Not her usual devouring of the sugar! OH MY! I am not ready for this at all and need to formulate a plan of attack for the next time. Blessedly, Jimmy attends first service and Charlotte attends second service, so they are rarely together, though they attended camp at the same time and I have heard "stories"...nothing bad, but there was some "Charlotte and Jimmy, sittin in a tree" singing going on amongst the other campers!!! She is 12. Only 12 and too young for the boy thing already. God, give me wisdom.

This week is a "do what ever I want week". Sounds very selfish, eh? That's ok. I plan to do some deep cleaning and get my laundry all caught up. I will pull my HMB back out and get my schedules in order. I rarely ever look at my binder as I have it all memorized. I know what needs to be done each day by heart, though with school starting I need to get my days planned out in a more structured fashion.

Some time in my sewing room will happen this week too. After next week, the weekends will be the only time I will have to spend there. Hand quilting will still have it's place during the week, but sewing room time will be more limited.I am loving those fall colors. Today I will be making some trees.A forest full!!!!!

This first week of September will be relaxed and laid back, cause next week it all changes!

Have a blessed Monday!!!!

The Sights and Smells Of Home

Whew!! It feels good to sit down! I have had a full day in my kitchen and it is only a little after 2 pm! I decided it would be a good bread making day. It is only 63 degrees here and the windows are all open! A nice "sweater day".I got 2 loaves of white bread done and set 2 loaves of whole wheat out for their final rise.The house smells heavenly!!!! While I was making bread, I started a big batch of homemade Macaroni Salad. It will probably be my last batch of the season. I only make it in the summer months.Charlotte helped by chopping up the celery and red peppers. I diced the cheese, eggs and onion.
I always use my Grandmother's old canning pot to mix the salad up before putting it into a big Rubbermaid type bowl and into the frig to set. I have a Ladies Night Out, potluck dinner tonight and the church picnic is tomorrow, so I made enough for both!

I also grilled up some chicken tenders that needed to be cooked. Perfect for throwing on a salad, or on a slice of whole wheat bread!

My bread slicer is a big hit with many of you. I hope you know you can order one from The Wood Loft for $28 and some change, plus shipping (I have their phone number). It is ideal for those of you who bake your own bread.

The slices are the perfect size. Do I sound like a commercial?? I just love this thing so much!

My kitchen is all cleaned up except the 2 loaf pans soaking in the sink, and the draining dishes I washed. Those can all wait.

I am trying to decide if I want to work on the Basket Case quilt, (which is 1/2 way done, btw)....

or play in my sewing room with my latest pleasure....

Look at these new deep greens I got. Think "Evergreen trees". I can almost smell them!

I think I will grab the Basket Case quilt and put my feet up while the whole wheat bread is baking. I better scoot....I think it is about ready to go in!

Have a wonderful weekend!!

Routines

Routines are wonderful things! They are always there when you need them, calling you back to where you should be. I have been spending a nice piece of my morning on the front porch with my coffee and Bible. This has been a wonderful addition to my morning routines. Now that school is more relaxed...mostly read aloud and some math review...my mornings are more relaxed too. Kyle leaves for work about 8:30, so that is the perfect time to head out the door too. I am showered and dressed by then so the little kids are eating their breakfast and getting their morning chores done while Sweetheart is getting ready for the day. NO ONE bothers me. Really.
Uninterrupted time with the Lord. What could be better? Nothing I can think of. It is not that I am not accessable...I think I am out of their sight so....you know, out of sight, out of mind. I have really needed that the last couple of days too. You know I love my kids, but when the strict school schedule drops, they get more difficult. I am planning to get their routines tweaked a little so they can feel more structured over the summer.Don't they look just darling?? So innocent...so loving....so full of trouble those two!
They wanted a picture taken with me, but Zach was full of it! No idea what the number 3 is about....I do not understand how the camera adds 20 pounds to me, but not the kids! How is that possible?Today was spent with my mom. It was a wonderful morning and early afternoon with her. We emptied out her bathroom for the workman to start the remodel tomorrow. She bought us lunch and ice cream and then we came on home. Sweetheart is working at his Mom's too. I pray my own children show up for me in my old age! It is what we are suppose to do.
We are getting ready for the Anniversary Open House in a few weeks. Sweetheart tore the carpet off the deck. It had served it's purpose and was falling apart. He planned to power wash it and then stain it.Look at the difference....the bottom section was washed.We both felt it looked good enough to skip the stain. He power washed the furniture and it looks wonderful!I better scoot and do my own household routines before Sweetheart returns. I have asked for my son to drop TJ for a few hours of play also, so I must get off of here so I can greet him at the door. I just love seeing TJ run to me yelling, "Surprise, Grandma, I'm here!!!!
Be Blessed!!!
Bren