Friday, May 29th, Home

Catie and her friend Steve drove all day today to be home with us for a week. I was doubtful that they could actually do it in one day, but they were determined. After leaving Charleston at 5:30 (4:30 our time) and confronting traffic in Indianapolis and the construction mess in Chicago, they arrived here at about 11:15 last night. That's more than my behind could endure in a day.
Catie's car actually made the trip. Her mechanic told her about a month ago that she needed to start looking for another car, because putting more money into "Betty" (as in Ford) would be fruitless. She is going to try to hold out for another year to save for a sizable down payment, but that means no air conditioning in a Charleston summer. Again, more than I could endure!!!

Thursday, May 28th, Cough, blow, sniffle....

It started with a little tickle and a headache on Sunday morning, and now I am in the full throws of the flu. The headache has not gone away and I am sleeping 1/2 the days away. I couldn't work last night and I already called to say I couldn't work tonight either.
I haven't worked out for a week and my house needs attention, but I am needing to get better before Catie gets here tomorrow night.
I slept all day yesterday after working on Tuesday night and then went back to bed at 10 last night and slept until 8:30 this morning. Yuck....I don't even feel like sewing or crafting.....

Wednesday, May 27th, finally satisfied

Catie spent the summer of 2007 in the Black Hills of South Dakota and we drove out and visited her for a week. She had classes most of the time, so Chuck and I explored the area. We spent a day at Mt. Rushmore, which was a wonderful highlight as I had never been there before.
Of course, I looked for quilt shops. I like to keep my spending for quilt supplies close to home, so when I travel, I ask if there is something unique to that shop that I won't find elsewhere.
They had fabric commissioned for their shop and one of the gals there designed a table runner. It was rather complicated using templates and some paper piecing, but I enjoyed making it. The sample in the shop was tea stained and I loved the look, so I tea stained mine as well. Well, wouldn't you know it, but all of the reds and blues ran into the white!!! I was devastated and it has hung in my laundry room for over a year as I was contemplating throwing it out.
A few weeks ago, I soaked it in Iron Out, which didn't help at all.
Then about a month ago, I found these sheets at Aldi:
The cloth on the left is the one I used and the ones on the right are the fresh ones.
All this to say, I am not ashamed to display this table runner. This week I stippled all of the white sections with variegated red, white and blue thread and it now looks good. I am actually proud of it!!

Tuesday, May 26th, fun with friends

For the past several years, a group of us traditionally get together for the holidays. We take turns hosting and providing pitch-ins.
Yesterday was our turn and we had a lovely feast!! It was a bit too cool and damp to eat outdoors, so we had a picnic in the dining room.
Chuck and I found a wonderful slab of meat at Sam's on Sunday. We have enough pork for all summer and it was only $1.48/pound. We cut it into 3 pieces, froze two of them and dry rubbed the largest for last night:
It was wonderful and we have a piece for the rest of the week. Enough left overs in the fridge that Chuck doesn't have to cook til Catie gets here this weekend.
The gal on the left is Lynn and our girls and her boys went to school together from 6th grade through high school. We became friends sometime in that whole era because all four kids were in the theater and music programs.

Her husband Andy and Chuck are adventuring buddies. That's Andy in the middle and their youngest son, Aaron on the left.
Lynne, on the left above and Roland on the far right are neighbors and I work with Lynne at the hospital. Because of our friendship, Roland and Chuck became friends and are also adventuring buddies.
We had a wonderful time, even though I am getting sick. Not pictured are Tim and Kathy which made the total 11. What a bunch of great cooks and the meal was perfect.

Monday, May 25th, Remembering...

"A nation that does not honor it's heros, will not long endure." President Abraham Lincoln.

Sunday, May 24th, I guess it's not that bad

At the brown bag auction in October, I got some fabric that I challenged myself with by making a table runner. I started it in February at retreat and just finished it. I took a while to finish, because I am so critical of my quilting.
After I washed it, many of my quilting flaws were hidden and I am please with it.

Saturday, May 23, overnight guests

We had the pleasure of hosting two girls that Catie worked with this year. They took a week to drive home to Minnesota from Charleston and visited friends along the way. We were their final overnight stay before the drive home to the Twin Cities.
Deanna and Bethany were just a delight to have. They were in bed long before we were and we barely even knew they were here.
Next week, I get my own girl here!!!

Friday, May 22nd, it's not done til it's labeled

It is very important to always label finished projects. Especially for the future, so others will know when it was made and who it was made for.
Printed Treasures is such a great product. I can print them off on the computer and then I back the fabric with Heat and Bond and just press it on the back of the quilt.
Today I labeled 4 finished projects. Done is good.

Thursday, May 21, Quilt group

We had quilt group at Celia's tonight and we were almost a full group!! What fun and laughter we always have. I even finished a project that has been on my sewing table for over 3 months.
Celia's main objective tonight was to learn how to hand quilt. Diane and Kathy are good teachers for that.
They insisted that I be in a picture, so I am trying to let them get a candid shot of me.
Saline hasn't been able to join us for a while, so it was good to have her back again.

Wednesday, May 20th, We've go a winner

The American Idol final show was last night, and my favorite wasn't in the top two. But my second favorite was declared the winner:
Way to go, Kris. Looking forward to some great stuff from you!!! Mind you, Adam was absolutely incredible, but he was becoming rather predictable and theatrical for me. I loved the musicality and versatility of Kris.

Tuesday, May 19th, Guild speaker

Tonight was quilt guild and the speaker was Kathleen Tracy, who is a small quilt designer and book author. Since I am such a fan of Civil War Repro prints, I loved her little quilts. She is giving a workshop tomorrow, but I can't attend, darn it!!! This is one of her larger quilts, but most of the rest are doll sized.

Monday, May 18th, Fraud

Starting this morning at 8 a.m., my home phone was ringing about every 30 minutes with a 1-800 number. Since getting caller ID, we don't usually answer those, but after getting a message on the answering machine that it was the fraud department at Discover card, I decided to answer it and find out what it was all about.
I was skeptical, as usually these calls are about selling us some kind of insurance to protect the card. However, it was not that trivial. Someone got a hold of our credit card number and made several erroneous charges over the weekend. We haven't used this card for about 2 years and are attempting to pay it off. The company immediately closed the account and cancelled the charges, but it is so frightening because whoever did this probably hacked into the company's computer and randomly chose us.
Very scary stuff!!!

Sunday, May 17th, Time for grillin'

Since the middle of last summer, we have had issues with our grill. After I got the tank refilled, it never worked again.
This year, we had to fix it, because a new grill in the size we would want is about $500.00 on the low end and we can't do that right now. We got the tank filled and found out that the tank attachment has changed, so Chuck had to work on that part. After that was in order, he opened it and about half of the "flavor bars" had rusted and broken. So we were on a quest for those. The interesting part is that the size we need are not easy to find because this grill is about 12 years old. Yesterday, he found them at the "Big" Ace here in Round Lake.
So for about $120.00, we have a functional grill, which isn't pretty, shiny and new, but it works and tonight we had our first grilled meal:Steak, baked potato, garlic bread, and salad. It was divine. Looking forward to some great meals this summer.

Saturday, May 16th, the list is getting shorter.

Yesterday, I had every intention of getting the house cleaned, but it was sort of rainy, cold and a good day to play in my creative space..
So, I spent the majority of the day at my sewing machine.
One thing I have wanted to tackle for at least 9 months is the memory block for my mom in the hospice quilt. Beryl and I found the perfect fabric on the sale table at Field's Fabrics in Holland and I went on-line and found an easy pattern.
Sewing the block only took about 20 minutes, but printing the picture took much longer. We were drawn to the plate fabric, because anyone who knew my mom well, knew how much she loved to entertain. She was the Martha Stewart of her time!!!

Friday, May 15th, Reminisce...

I cruise Facebook many days to see what my family and friends are up to and today I found some excellent pics that my nephew Peter posted. The artistic quality and views are stunning and they tugged at my heart strings:
This is where I grew up and where my dad still lives. He has lived there since he was two and this fall, he will be 84. There were three generations of Salzman's raised in this house and it holds many memories. It was built in 1910, so next year, will be 100 years old.
My dad has a very hard time getting rid of anything, so hence the property is full of treasures, both usable and those long past their expiration date. This was the car that is my earliest memory. Fixed up, it would be a gem, but I fear the rust has taken over. Last summer, while my sister and I were there, we could hear howling at night. Come to find out, the dug out area is a den for coyotes and when Peter was there, he found quite a few pups.
This was a dairy farm until 1978.
Now, it is primarily corn and beans. Dad no longer does the active farming, but leases the land to a neighbor.
I hope you enjoyed a glimpse into my past. Memories abound....

Thursday, May 14th, Transported to another time and place

I just finished this fantastic book, the second by this author and I am eagerly anticipating another one by him. He has the ability to make you taste, see, feel and smell what he is writing about. I had a slow night at work on Monday night and finished the last 100 pages, blinking back tears the entire time. What a great read!

Wednesday, May 13th, My baby is 21!!!

Where has the time gone? My sweet little girl is a grown woman today!!! The time has passed so quickly and this adorable little baby:
Is now this daring, hilarious, insightful woman:I am so incredibly proud of her and the choices she has made in life thus far. I fell honored to be her mom!!
Happy, happy birthday, Candice!!! I love you!

Tuesday, May 12th, the end of an era...

I have made the very difficult decision to disband my small group. It has been a long time in coming and it makes me very sad, but I think God is calling me to do something else. As Solomon said, "For everything there is a season...." Our entire small group structure at church is changing this fall, and I want to be a part of that.
It doesn't make this any easier and last night was our last "official" meeting. We finished a Beth Moore study on the life of Paul. The last lesson was about the end of Paul's life in prison immediately before his death and how he was giving his last bit of advice to Timothy, whom he had mentored. I literally wept all day Monday and all during group as I wondered if I had done right by these ladies and could say, "I have finished the race...."
There have been over 20 people in and out of this group in the last 8 years and I have grown so much as a person.
Heather Gackle, Virginia Kelley, Heather Bernau.....
Angie Sheets, Jean Hackbert and Marcy Knudtson....

We are all neighbors, so it's not like we won't see each other again but Monday nights won't be the same...

Monday, May 11th, growing deliciousness

Before my friend Ruth moved, she gave me a tuber of Rhubarb. Chuck has never been won over by the taste, but the girls are slowly learning to love it.
This morning, I noticed that a few stalks had already gone to seed, which is fairly unusual this early in the season. It forced me to make a delicious crisp for my small group ladies tonight!!! Rhubarb always reminds me of my parents. Mom made sauce continuously and we ate it on ice cream or just plain. Mmmmmm, next item to make??? I need to keep some for when Catie and Candice are home.

Sunday, May 10th, Happy Mother's Day!!!

After sleeping very late this morning, Candice wanted to show us her favorite beach and hang out.

Another beautiful day. We had burgers at Red Robin and then headed for home.

Saturday, May 9th, Any more fun, and I couldn't stand it!!!

What a fun day....there was lousy weather in the forecast and it rained overnight, but we managed to escape any rain today. It was a bit chilly, but not uncomfortably so.
After breakfast, Beryl and I headed to a little quilt show just a few blocks from Candice's house. We only had 45 minutes before it closed, which was the perfect amount of time.
Again, I was inspired and saw many things I would love to try:
This is African fabrics and I loved it!!! I am up to about 8 fabrics now and really want to make something with them.
This was stunning and made totally out of scraps from her stash. There was no rhyme or reason to the fabrics, but it worked just wonderfully.
This Baltimore album was the first place winner in the large quilt category.
This was made out of real ladies hankies.
I was enjoying the hand quilting on this Amish reproduction quilt.
A one block wonder delight.
After the quilt show, we had a few minutes at Field's fabrics. We found several things to add to our stashes and had some giggles along the way.
We are imitating a little Dutch Girl and Boy here.
They have all of the official fabrics, trims and patterns for the Dutch costumes at Field's. Candice told us that if you wear a costume, it has to be approved before it is worn in public.
This store is a Babylock dealer and I bought my Mother's Day gift there. I have been looking for two attachments for my machine and they had them at 1/2 the cost of what I saw them at the quilt show in Chicago.

After we finished at the fabric store, we walked down the street to meet Chuck and Candice for the Muziekparade.
We felt a little out of place as we were not in costume, because many were:
Everything is so festive and lovely:
There is not enough room and I don't want to bore you with everything I took pictures of, but it was so much fun. A real highlight for me were the Klompen dancers and there were many groups of them:
Also, the Holland High School marching band marches in wooden shoes!!
Their color guard:If they aren't playing their instruments, you can hear them coming because of the wooden shoes. It is quite evident that western Michigan schools take great pride in their bands because they were all just fantastic!!!

What a great parade!!!I found these slippers for Candice for her birthday. She loves them and they look something like wooden shoes, but are just a bit more comfortable!!!

After the parade, we walked around downtown Holland for a while before dinner at Candice's favorite Mexican restaurant, then we watched a movie. Beryl headed home after dinner.

I counted today as an exercise day because we walked pretty much to all of our destinations except for the quilt show and dinner.....I was absolutely beat!!! Thanks to my Keen's, my feet never got tired!!