Monkey Quilt Finished

Here is the small quilt I made for my niece Angie.  I took an old block that my Mom had in her fabric stash.  It was a nice big block that she might have found at an antique shop or a garage sale.  On this block had some kind of substance that would not come out in the wash and that is when I chose to cover it up with applique flowers and leaves and the monkey.  YoYo's flipped over are the flower middles to give a little height. Embroidery for words and leaves give the message and interest .  It is all hand quilted with an outline three times around the flowers in the body to emphasize. It measures 20 X 20 and it had cotton batting.

It has a narrow hanger on the back to slip a dowel rod through or even a stick from a tree. 

Signing the quilt is very important.  It answers questions that people may have.  In this case I embroidered the tag and appliqued it on to the back.  This process took 4 hours, I believe I will find a more time saving process in the future but it will still tell the story and add interest. 

I so enjoyed making this for my dear niece. 

Thanks for stopping.

Happy New Year 2015

It's a cold, windy but sunny New Years Day here in the Midwest.  It is finally
feeling like winter.  We had a really nice New Years Eve together, just the 4 of us.  We
 decided a dinner a movie was on the agenda.  Went to a nice Italian Restaurant in Fort
Wayne named Salvatori's...  mmm mmm....so good.  The breadsticks were fabulous and
 the salad, crunchy and delightful.  This makes me think of one of my favorite songs
 from Billy Joel.... Scenes from an Italian Restaurant. If you haven't heard it...
click here.  If you're wondering....I had a glass of white.... Moscato.



Then we wanted a comedy and Tom and I always like Bill Murray, so
 St. Vincent was it, ( guys didn't quite know who he was.  All four of us enjoyed
 it though, the actors were great. I especially enjoyed the young boy actor.

Jaeden Lieberher

  You know it didn't get such good reviews so we knew that it would be fine. 
 It gave us some good laughs and some tears (at least for me).  Click here for the trailer. 


Then we came home and watched the ball drop in Times Square and observing
all the people there looking like they were having a great time. 

I told Tom that should be on our Bucket List....to make it to Times Square
 on New Years Eve......Ehhh, I don't think so.  All we could think of....where do
 they go to the bathroom...you would lose your spot by the time you got back. 

It's a great place to watch on T.V.
 

                                                                            

                  

I met a friend on Tuesday for lunch and we always go to the bookstore to look around. 
 One of my very favorite places.  I saw this book and it grabbed me and I decided to
download it electronically.  It still amazes me when just out of the air it hits my
Ipad magically when I bought it on my pc.  I am going to use this throughout the next
 year here on my blog.  It has great, thought provoking but light stories. I have had a bit
 of a detour here in this last month of the old year, and thought that it might help me
 through it. 

The story that sold me is Lesson #7...Cry with Someone.  It's More Healing than Crying Alone.
I am confessing that I am a crier.  I cry at happy things, I cry when others are happy,
I get choked up at the National Anthem, I cry when children are singing, I cry when
I am mad and of course when I am sad, let me tell you... then it is excruciating. 

My brothers and sister would make fun of me when I was little (I am the youngest) because
I was a crier.  We always  now say on the NBC Nightly News, that it wasn't a good ending
 if Brian Williams didn't get me to cry.  He usually ends the newscast with some kind of
 touching story.  My son Kevin always says he doesn't understand why I cry at happy
 things.  I said "I just feel it, I am touched by it." I just can't help it.  Then I found this
book.  The author lives in Cleveland and she is the same way.

Here is a paragraph from the book:

Then one day a counselor told me that those tears were an asset. Carol said they were part of me, just like
 my blue eyes and brown hair. “What a wonderful gift, to feel so intensely,” she said.
Brett, Regina (2010-04-01). God Never Blinks: 50 Lessons for Life's Little Detours (p. 35).
 Grand Central Publishing. Kindle Edition.

It was good to know that there are others like me. 

  

So I have been in my studio all day today and most of the time there is at least
one furry kid with me.  I have been updating my blog, and making lists and they were
on my table enjoying the sun.  They are just like human kids...I watched that little paw come out and touch Lily (left) and then I hear a low growl and it pulls back.  Ever so gently it
reaches out again and then I hear a more fierce growl like (Quit touching me!) then the
fight begins and off they go.  At least everything stayed neatly on my table. 

So may you have a wonderful 2015.
Come back and we will go through the journey together. 

Smoothie time

Smoothies for the House (that would be just two of us though)

I made these this morning for Sam and I.

1 1/2 cups Frozen Blueberries
1 container Light and Fit Greek Vanilla Yogurt
1 scoop of whey protein powder
1/4 cup 1 minute oatmeal
1 cup orange juice
1 cup 1% milk
a sprinkling of cinnamon

Blender it and it's good.  Next time I will do 1/2 cup of orange juice and 1 1/2 cups 1% milk to take away some of the sweetness. 

If you have some good smoothie recipes that you have made let me know. 

Thanks for checking in.