I like Thursday, August 31, 2017

Although watching the suffering in Texas has grieved me, I like how our country has pulled together and focused on what unites us instead of our differences.  I have found the rescue efforts of the locals in Houston inspiring and it makes me proud of our country during this stressful time.

I like using sewing to relieve stress. I have felt compelled to keep the news on and used the anxiety to propel me to make donation quilts.  I'm just using up scraps and making blocks for quilts.

Scout (or the Scout-essa as I often call her) thinks sewing is fun too, especially when she can invade the scrap bin...oh wait, stop there.

Silly puppy.

It's the last day of August and we can feel Autumn approaching. 

I like caryopteris bushes.  Not many people use them around here but you can't beat the late season bloom and even the foliage has a wonderful scent--reminiscent of lavender.  It's a great bush.

I'm also cleaning out gardens.  The problem with my garden is that everything is happy and then I have to move things.  I actually like the work and like that it looks cleaner afterwards.

I like that this primrose continues to bloom.  It was given to me when Seamus died by my neighbor Denise.  It is very happy and always seems to have a flower on it.  It makes me feel like Seamus is always with me.

Finally, a note for my friend LeeAnna.  LeeAnna as you know is our hostess of the "I like Thursdays" posts and you can see her website here.  You may remember that Milo is recovering from a serious injury and in a brace.  LeeAnna commented that he isn't gaining a lot of weight.  We are seeing the same situation with Scout.

If there is one truth I know about poodles it is this:  they eat in relation to the exercise they are getting.  So it is not surprising to me that Scout isn't gaining much weight, she often leaves much of her kibble in her bowl these days but she is still on exercise restrictions and rest for her leg.  I'm not worried about it (too much) because I know she is really going to shoot up when she is better and can take walks again.  

I hope you have a safe and healthy week!  Be well and happy!

The Texas Diaper Bank

I'm working on quilts for Hurricane Harvey victims.  

There's an article in the NY Times on where to donate to Harvey victims.  I'll post the link below.  If you are interested, the Texas Diaper Bank is in need of diapers and wipes.  We have already donated to the Salvation Army but decided to go on Amazon and send a box of diapers as well.  It's a small thing we can do but it can help a child in distress.  The Texas Diaper Bank address is:
5415 Bandera Road, Suite 504, San Antonio, Tex., 78238.

Continued prayers for our brothers and sisters in Texas!  Hugs!

Prayers for Texas

We are keeping our prayers pointed toward Texas this weekend!  We've been hearing rain amounts as high as 35 inches which just seems unreal.  Many many prayers for the folks in Hurricane Harvey's path.  Our country is with you!  Hugs!

Above painting:  Rainy Day by Paul Klee

I like Thursday...August 24, 2017

I like my son and daughter-in-law and how adventurous they are!  They always seemed to know what the next big thing will be and make an effort to witness it.  This week it was the eclipse in Charleston.  They've been planning this vacation since the beginning of this year and had a great vacation.

Scout is still on R and R for her strained leg.  Our vet decided to extend her anti-inflammatories for another two weeks and I am to keep her calm and quiet.  As bad as it sounds to calm a five month old puppy, LeeAnna--our hostess with the mostess--has bigger challenges with Scout's brother Milo.  You can visit LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color.

I like yard sales.  I mean I really like yard sales and I live in the perfect neighborhood for good finds.   There are a lot of nice elderly people in the community who are downsizing and I find wonderful deals from them.  I've been looking for four new dining room chairs for about 2 years and finally stumbled on a sale where four chairs were being taken out to the yard sale.  I loved them and purchased them immediately:

The dark navy paint goes with my rug perfectly and they were in great shape--until Scout decided to gnaw on a leg (oh yeh, got her off that RIGHT AWAY).  I love them.  

I like old quilts.

Being at home with a sick puppy means catching up.  I am photographing quilts I've picked up during the last months and documenting them in my inventory. 

 I really love the backing to this quilt (above) and it goes beautifully in my sewing room.  

Lastly, although it is still summer, it is not my favorite time in the garden. Things are starting to die back and the weeds have been horrendous this summer because we've had so much rain (8 inches last month and over 8 inches again this month).

Some plants are giving me a second bloom like the foxglove above and that is always nice.   But certain flowers only bloom this time of year like this Turtlehead, a native plant of Pennsylvania.

I'm still sewing my sea-jewel quilts. I finished the third top yesterday.  This one has a wee bit more gold in it because I wanted to incorporate the feel of the beach into it.  It has been absolutely calming to work on these tops because of the colors and the ease of the pattern.  Hopefully I will get the fourth one finished today.  

Have a wonderful day!

Thursday, August 17, 2017

"Compassion and tolerance 

are not a sign of weakness, 

but a sign of strength."

It's been a tough week for most of us.  So here is what I like.  I like Susan Bro, mother of Heather Heyer.  Susan--while experiencing the worst pain a human can endure--has exhibited remarkable wisdom and leadership.  I pray for Heather's family and the other victims throughout my day.

 

Scout is under the weather.  She had cut her paw the first week of August.  We kept her quiet for a week but when we got back to walking, she began to limp. Vet is hoping it is a strain/sprain.  

She is on anti-inflammatories, rest (god help me--she is only 5 months old) and we are keeping a keen on our her brother's problems. 

 Milo--her brother who is the baby of LeeAnna--is also experiencing problems with his right leg.  It's very weird to me that they are both recovering at the same time with problems in the same leg.  LeeAnna you know, she is our hostess with the mostess for the I like days.  You can see other blog posts at her website here.

I like the new upcycled table my husband is working on.  His brother had a glass top table that crashed during one of our storms.  Instead of trashing the table, he gave it to Mr. Fix-er-upper and he is building a nice table for us.

Well I'm back to work here.  I hope you have a great day. 

 My last like is simple:

BE KIND

I like, August 10, 2017

I like having SANDRA AND DENNIS here!!!!!

Sandra and Dennis arrived Thursday and we had dinner at Olive Garden to celebrate their 32nd anniversary! We had a grand time and fabric shopped on Friday, toured a local cave on Saturday (and did some more shopping after we fed the guys lunch), and hung out here with Scout on Sunday.  This beautiful bird bag Sandra made for me and the tail is embellished with ribbons :)  

It's made of seersucker!  Her machine applique work is really impressive, I wish I was that even with my stitching.  She also gave me this little bag:

 This is my stash bag now.  I use it for fabric samples and measurements when I am shopping for specific fabric.  I love this little charm, just makes me smile everytime I see it :)

Mostly I just loved that we could get together.  There have been so many things going on as we get older and often my social plans get pushed to the side because of family responsiblities.  A photo from Lost River Caverns:

It was relaxing and fun and thank you Sandra and Dennis for taking the time to come down.   I'm so appreciative!    I'm getting some serious lobbying from my neighbors who want Sandra to move to Pennyslvania!

Scout was a big hit with the gang and got a LOT of attention while everyone was here.  She did cut her paw (we don't know how) at one point running around--so we are keeping her quiet until it heals.  

I like my neighbors and Scout likes them too.  She seems very content with visiting them instead of taking long walks these days:

Scout was weighed last week and is a whopping 27 lbs!  

Be sure to visit LeeAnna and the others who like at Not Afraid of Color!

Have a wonderful day!

Sea Glass

My favorite thing to do at the sea shore is to take long walks on the beach and collect glass and sea shells.  It's been many years since I've been to the shore so maybe that is why I am wishing I could go lately.  

Sometimes called "Mermaid Tears", I love the frosted look of the pieces and the colors are wonderful.  I'm definately in a sea glass phase so I decided to name my new quilt tops Sea Glass I, II, and hopefully soon, III.  I had talked about the blocks on a previous post.

Sea glass I

I started doing the Rear Window pattern (from Blue Underground Studios) for my goddaughter who requested a quilt in a robin's egg blue and/or green.  Then I realized I had enough blocks to make two lap quilts!  Yeh!  One for my cousin!!!  I looked at the leftover fabrics and yes--I think I have enough to make a third quilt (okay I know I do) and I don't feel like putting any fabric away.

Meanwhile, my friends Carol and Kathy are going to be working on special Christmas favors and gifts.  Kathy has been seriously ill for a long time with kidney problems and needs some kind of diversion and a craft is perfect.   We decided to play around and see how Krylon's Sea Glass spray paint looks on old jars and glass pieces.  It's fab!  Of course it helps that my husband is the King of the Spray Paint and can put a perfect finish on our project.  Having Brad do the paint means Kathy isn't exposed to fumes.  

 We like the results of the paint and will keep you posted on a crafting. 

 Meanwhile, we are having a wonderful visit with Sandra and Dennis.  We went to three different fabric stores yesterday.  Today we are going to tour a local cave and have a Mexican lunch at our local burrito bistro :)

I always find it interesting to go through a color phase.  I think I love these colors right now because they are calming and remind me of slow leisurely walks on the sand.  Our summer has been full of fun and activities but I think my color conscious is beckoning some days of sewing and restfulness when my husband goes back to work.  I hope you have a day of blues and greens and comfort!

I like...a day early

We have company coming on Thursday.  Sandra from Sandra Sews is going to be in our valley and we are going to do some serious fabric shopping and mostly play with a (now) 5 month old puppy.

What do I like this week?  I like that things turned out okay for Greta, my mom's poodle.  To make a long story short, there was a wound on her tail which seemed mighty infected.  We were afraid it was a contagious infection like staph (or worse) but she is going to be okay.  It was a cyst that blew up and did get infected so she is going to take it easy and do antibiotics for a few weeks.  She's not contagious.

Greta, Brad, and Scout last week.  Obviously, we were concerned because little baby had been around her but it all turned out okay.  Whew, that was a few stressful days.

I like the new message board my husband made for my sewing room.

I have shutters on my windows in the attic and it goes nicely.  Also, the red piece you might remember was an homage LeeAnna made in honor of Seamus.

I'm not canning anymore so we upcycled a canning basket for some plants in the garden:

It's a busy week so that is it for me this week.  Be sure to visit the other I likes by visiting Leeanna's Blog :)