Prize Photo

This is what Scott from Blue Nickel Studio sent to me...one of the winners in his blog anniversary. Love it all!And this is what Mama asked me to make for her this week. I hope it looks like a toaster cover to you. ;o) It's made out of a couple of terrycloth cup towels. I made a cover for her just a few months ago. That toaster died and she replaced it. The new toaster is bigger.

I got very little quilting done this week because of subbing at high school.

I Won a Blog Prize!!!

Scott, over at Blue Nickel Studios, celebrated his 200th post with a 7 prize giveaway. http://bluenickelstudios.com/?p=1221#comments He asked what we came to mind when we thought about a bungalow, a cottage, and where would we want to spend our holiday.

I won prize #2 (which included more items than he showed in his phot0) in the Form category. Scott said, Sherry’s entry reminded me of a very long Haiku poem..with beautiful descriptions to boot….

This is what I wrote:

Seaside bungalow…
Well-worn board floors, sand in the cracks than can never be swept out.
Children never in the house, playing in the sand dunes, in the water, tracking in that sand that settles in the cracks of the floor boards never to be swept out again.
Beautiful dark woodwork worn down and darkened by years of living…and loving.
Scuffed Adirondack chairs on the porch with well-worn cushions.
Wicker glass-topped table.
Pitcher of lemonade.
Fiesta plate piled with gingersnaps.
A good book.

Cottage at the edge of the woods…
White picket fence needing another coat of whitewash.
English country garden outside with an explosion of color.
Antique roses of every color and hue with delicious perfumy aromas competing for attention.
Same large floral prints, ginghams, checks scattered throughout the interior on sofa, chairs, ottoman, curtains, bedspreads, and floors.
An overstuffed chair in a corner well-lit by a lamp on top of a crocheted scarf.
A cup of tea.
Royal Doulton plate full of teacakes.
A good book.

Where do I want to be? Right where I am. Content.

Especially content right now. I'm listening to the Washington R&B CD he sent. LOVE IT!

Penny Said...

...that I'm pretty! ;o) (From photos in my previous post.) My humble self says, THANK YOU! I keep going back and looking at the only me photo I cropped off the photo with my sister-in-law (now X), younger brother Billy Joe (aka BJ), and Mama. Sigh.

Got my car washed again. I love watching the red strips... Doesn't take much to entertain me! LOL Speaking of red! I don't know how they got in there, but a pair of Sam's white underwear was washed with the colored clothes. And there were quite a few red items in the wash. His whitey tideys are now pink. LOL I took a photo of them against the white washing machine top, but the pink didn't show up very good.

Progress on Sherry's Rose...after 5 1/2 hours of quilting. It's about 9 x 24" or so. The crosshatching and most of the applique in that area is outline quilted.

"New" Photos

Before we loaded up in Mama's car to go to the visitation in DeKalb, Aunt Ruthie handed Mama a bag with some photographs in it. She told me that I might want some of them. Well...DUH! I scanned them and have them in date order here.

I have to return the original of this to Mama. Taken in 1952 or 1953. Daddy worked for Lone Star Boat Company (He is posed in front of his truck here) in Grand Prairie (between Dallas and Ft. Worth). While I was in the second grade, LS sold out to Chrysler Boats and the whole operation was moved to Wylie. Daddy found another job, we moved to Daingerfield then, and I started school here. At mid-term we moved to Wylie...Chrysler asked Daddy to come manage the trucking department! Quite an offer for a man who dropped out of school in the seventh grade. Well...he didn't take to management rules very well. He couldn't visit his former co-workers' homes and play dominoes with them. Then during a strike, the union officials made promises that they immediately reneged on when the strike was over. Back to Daingerfield for the beginning of the fourth grade for me.

Awww...ain't I a cutie?! YEP! A fat little cutie! I don't ever remember seeing this portrait!

My junior high graduation in May or June 1967. If I remember correctly the dress was a very, very pale yellow. Or pink. I don't wear yellow because of the yellow undertones in my skin. I look sick in yellow. That's why this might've been pink. But for some reason I'm thinking yellow. Mama made it of course.

Janis is pregnant here probably with Billy...and I'm SKINNY! Hmmm...probably 1978. Don't you LOVE Janis' BIG glasses and Mama's BIG hair?! LOL How about a closeup of skinny me?! I LOVE IT!

September 1992, the printed date from developing says September 1994. How many roles of undeveloped film do YOU have?! Thinking about events during that time...it is 1992.The big man sitting in front on the right, petting the dog, is my first husband Ron...Jonathan's daddy. Jonathan is in the yellow shirt with suspenders right behind him. I'm in front of brother Billy who is getting the rabbit ear treatment from Daddy. WOW is my hair TALL! LOL

Aunt Ruthie took this photo of Jonathan while she was visiting us in Lake Jackson in 2001. Love you!

I Survived

Whew! Still had a bit of a tender tummy this morning, but other than not being very hungry this evening, I'm doing pretty good. I did find out that there is evidently a virus making its rounds at high school. The secretary said a teacher went home before the end of the day yesterday making the same statement..."If I could only throw up, I'd feel better." AHA! I resembled that remark Wednesday evening!! After I thought about it, I remember seeing a girl last Friday or this past Monday, she had one leg of her jeans rolled up about six inches. I asked if she was making a fashion statement...someone had thrown up and it splattered on her leg. Yucko...she was handling it pretty good I thought. She cleaned the leg of her jeans, rolled up the one cuff...and went about her day. LOL I've been quilting on Sherry's Rose!!! Progress photos later...if the crosshatching shows up on camera...

It's been a while since I showed off a cookbook. This one has some great old faithful recipes in it.

This and this should make all of us feel better. ;o)

Sick Puppy

Poor Me! I ate something yesterday that did NOT agree with me. Blech. I didn't realize it at first. Of course, or I wouldn't've eaten it!! Duh.

Anywho...after school I stopped at the grocery store for milk and some chocolate to replenish my depleted stash at home. I've been keeping it at the library to squelch the temptation. NO FUN at all! After I hid the chocolate...I mean...after I put the chocolate away in it's secret place... ;o) ... I got a small piece of peanut brittle. Within 30 minutes...my tummy is bothering me and I'm (excuse me) burping peanuts. I haven't had indigestion in a loooonnngggg time! But, I keep a package of Zantac in the cabinet. Got one. Thirty minutes later took another. Then I left to go vote...almost forgot. After voting, I picked up my Aunt Ruthie and drove to Mama's house. We swapped to Mama's car, and I drove them to DeKalb. Their last remaining uncle, Reuben Houston Sanford, died. He was only two years older than Mama...he had a different mother from my grandfather, Grover Weldon "Punk" Sanford. I don't have a photo of Reuben Houston (yep, that's what my Little Papa called him), or I would post it.

Mama, Aunt Ruthie and I stopped at a restaurant known for their delicious hamburgers. Poor Mama and Aunt Ruthie. They both list to the right. I asked Aunt Ruthie if I should lean too. She said her posture embarrassed her so much. I straightened up and told her she shouldn't let it embarrass her...it was just life. I didn't enjoy my meal very much. Took another Zantac. We then went to the funeral home for visitation.

The longer the evening got, the more I thought, "If I could just throw up (sorry), I think I would feel better." I drove home keeping an eye on the shoulder of the road just in case...

Rolled Aunt Ruthie out at her house. Jumped out of Mama's car at her house and got into mine. Stayed just long enough to shine my headlights on her front door so that she could get inside. (That is very unusual for me. I generally help her get into the house. I know, I know. When she's by herself, she does it alone. But when I'm there...I do it.) So...I get home. Walk into the house and go straight to the bedroom. Hang up coat. Put purse away. Put on my pajamas and go to bed. It's barely after 8 p.m. I doze. When I wake up not quite an hour later, my belly feels like a helium balloon. Oh my! Once again I think about how much better I'd feel "if only." All of a sudden...run to the bathroom. I did it! Blech again. Double blech. But afterwards, I went to bed and slept just about all night. Not another repeat.

My tummy is tender today. Even though my jeans aren't too tight, I'm running around with them unbuttoned and the zipper barely up high enough to keep them from falling off. I've been afraid to eat much but crackers and drink a cup of tea. Sam went to Don Juan's for Mexican food. hahahaha I stayed home, ate a baked potato and drank some iced tea.

Feeling ill did not keep me out of my sewing room. After Roolen showed off her ruler organizer, I visited her blog, www.roolen.blogspot.com , for the directions. And this is what I made.
It's two-sided! When I got through, I pulled out my Swiffer. I don't have any of their sheets, so put on an old makeup stained washcloth. Worked perfectly! All I had to do when I finished was peel the washcloth off, shake it outside, toss it in the wash. I'm happy!

Peanut Brittle

How about some Sunday afternoon peanut brittle?
Get out a good thick saucepan. I have one that belonged to my grandmother. Mama let me have it. It's about a 3 quart size. This will boil up a bit so don't use a small saucepan. Grease a cookie sheet, marble slab, granite countertop, etc. with butter.

3 cups sugar
1 cup light Karo syrup
1/2 cup water
3 cups raw peanuts
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

Bring the sugar, syrup and water to a boil stirring almost constantly, and boil until the temperature reaches 230 degrees F on your candy thermometer. Pour in raw peanuts. Stir constantly until temperature reaches 320-330 degrees and the color is a pretty amber. Remove from burner. Stir in butter, salt, and baking soda. Immediately pour onto your buttered surface.

IT IS HOT! And will remain hot for a while. When cool, break into smaller pieces.Enjoy!

When Jonathan was a little boy, he was banned from the kitchen only when I was making candy. It entailed carrying a hot saucepan from the stove across the kitchen to a large counter top to do the pour. That hot sugar syrup was dangerous stuff.

Talk About an Attitude Adjustment

I 'visited' Penny Quilts a few minutes ago. (Her blog is listed in my blog list down on the right.) While I was reading her post, I thought...she's married to the same man I'm married too! WOW

When Sam and I first married, my 13-year old came with me...and his 18/19 year old son eventually moved in with us for a while. I can still hear, "Who left the lights on?" Since there were four of us in the house, and I knew that I didn't leave the lights on, the brilliant deduction would've been 'one of the boys.' AHA!!! Now there are only two of us in the house. I never hear "Who left the lights on?" Because we both know who did...SAM!

Sam is a good cook. He made beef stew yesterday, and it was delicious (even if he did omit the bay leaf...he said he didn't miss it...I did...another story). I heard him stirring, then whacking the spoon on the slow cooker insert. It's ceramic. Ceramic chips/breaks/cracks/crazes. So, once again, "Sam, don't whack the spoon on the side of the bowl!" The reply was "Who's cooking?"

But...he is using MY tools!

He forgets the time I used the wrong drill bit to drill a drain hole in the bottom of a ceramic pot. When he told me what I'd done (I thought a drill bit was a drill bit was a drill bit)...from then on, whenever I used his tools, I'd ask if "this" one will do what I wanted it to do. I mean, I never used his screwdriver like a chisel or a punch and whacked the handle end with a hammer. (So this is my argument for next time.)

Meantime, my stainless stirring spoons are getting rough edges where they are whacked against cast iron...and my bowls (cooking AND serving) are in danger of being chipped. I do not use chipped, cracked, or crazed dishes, ceramics, glass. Yes, I can go buy replacements. But some of my things are rather nice. Some are collectibles. And I'd much rather buy more fabric or yarn than replace a chipped bowl. Let's keep this in perspective please.

But you should see my new floor! Sam did a wonderful job!!

Rainy Day But NOT Monday!!

It rained all day long. From the time I got up until the time I got home. It may still be raining now. Of course the heaviest was after I backed out of the garage and drove to school. Just poured down...then between the car and the building. I am so glad for that London Fog raincoat with a hood! I carry a purse and a bag filled with a book, my current knitting project, regular playing cards, Uno, Scrabble Slam, and a set of dominoes...think I've mentioned that before...just in case the teacher didn't leave any work...or not enough.

First period...had a student with an attitude at the very beginning of class. She didn't get any better. After a back and forth to the office, I sent her the second time. She is now in detention. Hopefully she won't try to convince me again that as a freshman she has an empty class slot, and that she's not who she really is. I sure wish that they would leave their attitudes at home!

Thanks for all the wonderful comments full of envy and jealousy. Yes, my friends, I can read between the lines! LOL I am having a blast with my new floor and chair. Tomorrow I plan on sorting through the last of the things on my guest bed and do a bit of quilting.

Sam said that he was going to do a cardboard mock-up that would represent the height and size of my requested cutting table to make certain that it was what I wanted. Silly man.

Another of my comments pertained to a post on Christmas Eve when I made gumbo. http://keepyouinstitches.blogspot.com/2009/12/cooking.html

I use Tony Chachere's wild shrimp caught off the coast of Louisiana. Cindy wrote:

Thanks for buying wild caught Louisiana shrimp!

Cindy Adams-Ardoin
Food Scientist
Tony Chachere's

Now, how neat is that?!

Not Even ONE Stitch!

I haven't quilted a single stitch yet! I subbed at high school Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Watched American Idol, then the Olympics while I did a bit of knitting on that knit along that I've flunked out on. I finally got all the stitches for the front and back cast on the circular needle but am still working on the lower ribbing. I told y'all. I'm slow!

I didn't work today, but Sam did...and yesterday too...helping his brother Elton with texturing and priming in the apartment Elton and Carol are working on. (They've lived in an Avion travel trailer since August 2008. The apartment is the next step on their journey to building a farm house.)

So. After Sam left, I walked into my sewing room to start quilting. Looked at my big desk chair and thought...SHOPPING! I went to Longview and bought a smaller "task" chair. I'm not sure I'm going to put the arms on it...I might and if they get in my way, I can always take them off.

Here's my desk chair in it's usual location. LOL I can reach around behind me and touch the other chair. At least I have a second chair for when Sam comes in and visits me. And I'm sure you noticed the clutter...things are just about back to normal.

I made a stop at Hancock Fabrics. All sewing notions, buttons, etc. were 50% off. Couldn't resist these. I need to get back to my crazy quilt blocks and finish them.

After Olive Garden...;o)...I made a stop at Sears and purchased a new canister vacuum. Got so tired of pushing that upright. I didn't realize how much work it was until I ran the canister this evening. I might vacuum more than once every other month now. AND sooo much more QUIET! I get lazy and instead of running the dustmop over the tile, I vacuum it. The old Hoover was LOUD!

Back at school tomorrow...ta-ta!