Independence Day!

Posted on July 4, 2010 by Barb

Happy Birthday, USA!

 

And many thanks to all our dedicated men and women serving in Armed Forces all around the world.  Defending our liberty!  May we never take it for granted.

God bless us all!
Barb

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A Story for a Saturday

Posted on July 3, 2010 by Barb

I was quietly minding my own business on the way to the Shop this week.  Well, if you want to get technical, I was talking on the phone to my friend, Karen.  And minding my own business.  When I looked into my rear view mirror and saw this:

Actually it wasn’t quite like the picture.  It was daytime and it was a motorcycle.  But it definitely was a policeman with his lights flashing.  And even though blogging is a constant thought in my mind and my camera was in the back seat of the car, I can honestly say that my first thought was not to grab the camera and take a picture of the flashing lights in the rear view mirror.

My thoughts were more like this….

“Oh, no!  Was I in a school zone on my cell phone?”

“Wait!  School’s out so it can’t have been that!”

“Have they banned cell phone use in cars completely?  Did I miss it on the news?  I was sure it was just for school zones!”

“I was absolutely not speeding.”

“And I did not run that red light.”

And all the while I was still carrying on a conversation with Karen on the phone.  So then it crossed my mind that the policeman just wanted around me.  That’s it!  He just needs to get around!  So I pulled into the first available parking lot.

He followed me.  And stopped directly behind me.  That’s when I calmly told Karen I’d better hang up.  Officer Joe (names have been changed to protect the innocent) got off the bike and slowly walked up to my window.  And although I immediately had thoughts of being extremely late to the class I was heading to at the Shop, I did not immediately think to grab my camera to get a picture of Officer Joe to post on my blog.  Probably just as well.  Could have been tragic if he thought I might be reaching for something more threatening.  And I can’t say as I’d have gotten a good response from him when I asked, “Can I take your picture for my blog?”  Believe you me.  The blog was the farthest thing from my mind.

And before you ask…..

No, I was not speeding.

No, I did not run a red light.

I am a model driver.  I obey traffic laws.  All the time.  Well, at least in my own mind I do.

This was the reason for the stop: 

 Except on that particular day, the numbers on the bottom decal were “5” and “10.”  Which translates to May, 2010.  For those of you reading who do not live in Texas, that decal is for car inspections which are performed yearly.  And mine had expired on the last day of May.  Oh, was Dear Hubby in trouble!  He’s the one who takes care of those things for me!  And I told Officer Joe that too.  Didn’t matter.  He didn’t care one iota about my excuses reasons.  I was very nice about them.  I said, “Sir” more times than ever in my history.  Pretty good considering this guy was about 12 years old.  At least that’s what it looked like to me.

But all’s well that ends well.  Dear Hubby has redeemed himself by already taking care of the inspection and then returning my car to me at work.  And Officer Joe escaped having his picture on the blog.  I’m sure he’s very happy about that.  Although in this blogging world of today, I’m also sure that nearly every day he is confronted with answering the question, “Can I take your picture for my blog?”

And next time….. I’ll have that camera ready.

Bloggingly yours,
Barb

Posted in just stuff | 11 Comments

Cotton Theory Part 2

Posted on July 2, 2010 by Barb

Another fun Cotton Theory class this week!  With some beautiful and fun fabrics that I really thought you needed to see…..
 

Look at these fabulous fabrics that Suz is using in her Cotton Theory quilt.  Oh, my!  Now I need to make another one for sure.  I can’t wait to see her finished quilt.  Sew like the wind, Suz and finish this one quick so we all can see it!

This is the other side of her quilt – just as pretty for sure.  Good job, Suz!  Now go to your sewing room and get busy!

This is Carolyn sewing on her placemat that she nearly completed in class (all but the binding.)  Carolyn got the prize for traveling the furthest to come to class, coming all the way from Kansas City.  Except that there was no prize.  She must have heard that she could become famous on a blog if she came to one of my classes in Texas.  Or maybe it was just that she was visiting her sister, Jeanne  and niece, Kelley.  Kelley called the shop and scheduled a special time for them to take this class all together.  They were such fun!  Carolyn informed us right up front that she was the oldest of the two sisters.  She said if she didn’t tell us, Jeanne would be sure to do it.  Little sisters are like that, aren’t they?

This is Kelley’s placemat as she works on it.  She used some cute fabrics to appeal to a young person.  Like this:

I know this picture is very blurry – but I had to share it anyway.  It’s a frog cowboy!  I guess frogs ride chickens instead of horses?  Wish the picture was better…. next time I’ll take six pictures so I’m assured of getting at least one good one…  for the sake of the blog, of course!

This is the front side of Jeanne’s placemat.  Kelley’s Mom, Carolyn’s Sis – it was a family affair kind of class.  She was making this placemat for her grandson in high school.  Apparently all of her grandchildren have special placemats for each of them when they come to visit.  What a great idea!  She makes each one feel very special in her home.

And this is the back side.  Remember the Cotton Theory quilt?  I posted about this technique a couple times before.  Very cool because the back side is as fun as the front.  You get two for the price of one!  You can see pics of both sides of my quilt here.

It’s also a chance to use lots of fun stitches that we all have on our fancy, schmancy sewing machines and never use.  So we used some practice muslin in class to determine some good stitches on everyone’s machines.  It’s a good technique for a lot of reasons.  Maybe someday I’ll gather a list of all the things I like about this quilt and share them.  Remind me, will ya?

We also had cookies in class – or maybe I should say cookie crumbs.  Quilting can be hard work!  And requires frequent breaks for snacks.  To keep up our energy and all.

Susan took this class two weeks ago and came back for a refresher course.  What?  This quilt isn’t totally finished yet, Susan?  Remember how obsessed I said she was?  You can read all about Susan’s obsession here.  She does have quite a bit of it done.  And I’m sure she’s working on it right now as I write.  She needs to finish it so we can flip it over and you can see the back side.  It’s gonna have a big ‘Ta Da’ finish and I can’t wait for you to see it!

This is approximately how one row will look.  Except if she’s like me, she will move them around again and again and again and again until all the colors are just right.  Or until the cows come home and the eagle has landed, whichever comes first.  And she doesn’t even have any cows or eagles, but you get the idea.  Have I mentioned how hard it is to do scrappy?  Yes, I think I have.  It might not be hard for you, but it is not easy for me.

So it is very wise to do some planning as Susan did and then take a picture so you can keep it all straight before you start sewing.  Thus proving once again that even blondes can get it right some of the time.  Love ya, Susan!  And this is a picture of a picture, in case you were wondering.  The things you can do on a blog!

Happy Sewing!
Barb

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Another JSS Food Post!

Posted on July 1, 2010 by Barb

These JSS Bee gals really know how to eat.  I think we’ve already proven that over and over again on this blog.  And apparently we know how to find great new restaurants too. 

Lani came to town! 

This is Lani and Judy at the restaurant tonight.  I am really glad I took this picture so I could tell you what the name of the restaurant is.  The Yucatan Taco Stand!  It says so on the wall right behind them.

 Lani is a JSS Bee member who recently moved to New York City on a great adventure with her dear hubby.  They will be in NYC for about two years.  We absolutely, positively refuse to let her stay there longer than that.  And Lani is blogging about her experiences in big city life.  We thought Dallas was a big city!  Maybe – but NYC is very different.  And we actually want Lani to stay there long enough so that we all have an opportunity to go and visit.  At least I know I do!  If you’d like to read about Lani’s adventures in New York, check out her blog, Lani’s Lyric-al Blog.

And now…… on to the important stuff…… the food!

This was the tortilla soup that Lani ate.  And we actually thought the shape of the bowl was really very cool.  We are highly entertained by the simple things.

Karen and I shared these nachos.  There was enough for Judy and Lani to share them too.  Do you think they could have piled them any taller?  And they only cost $8 – a bargain when you consider that four people ate them!  Karen and I were happy to share.  We were saving room for dessert.  (Notice Lani’s very cool bowl just to the right and behind the nachos.  Again…. easily entertained we are.  And apparently I just turned into Yoda from Star Wars.)

One of the gals had this to drink.  I don’t even remember what it was called, but it sure was pretty!  And she said it was pretty tasty too.

Even the kids’ meals were really well presented.  I believe this is an enchilada with rice and pico de gallo.  We had a couple of cute little girls with us for dinner.  They were old friends who hadn’t seen each other in a long time.  They were excited to be reunited!

Meet Grace and Peyton.  Aren’t they just the cutest little things?  And very photogenic too!  When I told them they were going to be on my blog, they were even more excited.  Do you think they even know what a blog is?  Maybe.  I think the kids are better informed about these things than we are.  But maybe these gals were just a little too young to know all the latest internet jargon.  One of them asked me later when they would be in the catalog!

And perhaps this is their true selves coming to the surface?  Cute, nonetheless…..

And this was dessert.  It was very decadent.  They called it Deep Fried Cheesecake.  For those of you who have had Karen’s Cinnamon Cream Cheese Thingie (what exactly do we call it, Karen?) – this was similar, only deep fried.  With a big mountain of whipped cream on the side.  And aren’t the drizzles on the plate pretty too?  They brought us four spoons, but Karen and I just picked up a spoon in each hand and attacked the plate.  It was a good thing none of the other ladies got in the way of the spoons.

And this is what the plate looked like exactly 19 seconds later when Judy came from the other end of the table to get a bite.  Sorry, Judy!  Karen and I don’t let any grass grow under our spoons when it comes to chowing down the dessert.  Maybe we can go to this place again next week?  We’ll share our dessert.  Honest we will, Judy.

But you gotta be quick.

Still savoring the Deep Fried Cheesecake,
Barb

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Sizzling Circles

Posted on June 30, 2010 by Barb

Another class at Quilter’s Dream.  And boy, did these girls sizzle!  What fun we had!  Even the teacher had a great time.  If my students have half as much fun as I do, the class is a big success.  This one was no exception.  If laughing is therapeutic and medicinal, we are now healed from all diseases.  I think I’ll cancel my chiropractor appointment tomorrow.

The class was all about circles….. and a really fun way to quilt as you go and do a simple, fun quilt pattern that works with many different fabric choices.  But wait – I’ll show you!
 

The back of Donna’s – aren’t her color combinations great?

These cute little gems are Jackie’s……

…… and these are Jean’s.  Jean and Jackie could collaborate and put theirs together.  But wait!  They did collaborate!  Well, maybe collaborate isn’t the right word…..

…. but new friendships were made!  That’s Jean on the left, describing to Jackie the size of her last quilt project.  Or maybe it was the size of the fish she caught last weekend?  Something like that, I’m sure.  Jean and Jackie worked hard to see who could get the prize for being the furthest behind in class.  It was a competition for them.  And they really wanted to win the award.  Never mind that there is no award for getting the furthest behind.

These cute Betty Boop circles belong to Carlene.  She came straight to class from work and was a bit late.  But she finished her circles first.  She apparently hadn’t heard about the award for getting the furthest behind.  Reminder:  there was no award. 

Carlene did a fabulous job!  And I didn’t find out until the very, very end of class that this was her first quilt class EVER!  That made her achievement double-y good!  Way to go, Carlene!  You rock, girl!

Cindy’s circles sizzled with green and brown.  You can always count on Cindy to be a bit of a rebel.  Her circles were half again bigger than everyone else’s.  She apparently wanted her quilt to grow faster. 

And now a few pics of the process – and the front of these circle blocks.

Getting ready to draw a circle on the fabric for stitching.  Handy, dandy cardboard template makes drawing circles easy!

Trimming away the excess fabric after the circle is stitched.  Jean wanted to save the little bits and we quickly told her to “get over it!”   Some things you just have to let go of.  There will always be more fabric, Jean!

Cindy meticulously pressed her circles after stitching and turning.  But she didn’t hog the ironing board too bad – and gave it up readily for others to use so we didn’t have to stand in line for hours and hours.  She even helped with pressing on the others’ blocks.  That’s just the kind of gal that she is.  Kind, helpful, encouraging…… and a lover of ironing apparently.  The things you learn in quilt classes!

This is the front of Donna’s circles – you saw the back earlier.  Notice how much smaller they are than Cindy’s….

Cindy’s size?  (She was having a Vanna moment.)

Carlene’s……. and the size of everyone else’s too.  Cindy’s circles were on steroids.  Did I mention she’s a bit of a rebel?  (Love ya, Cindy!)

   

Jackie’s, Jean’s and Carlene’s from the front.  These circles are all so cute! 

Once again, a fun time was had by all!  But most of all – the teacher.

Still sizzling from the circles….. and the sizzling students,
Barb

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