Monday, December 31, 2018

Finally

The Last day of 2018!
I finished two quilts today - well, quilted them and put the bindings on -- still need to stitch the bindings down.
These are two ufo's:

The top one is an old Bunny Hill quilt that was offered as a block of the month online for free -- years ago.  I only did 6 of the 12 blocks and finally put them together a few months ago - it's been aging further on my design wall til today.  The second one was a kit I bought this summer called Old Glory.  Bought it from my favorite quilt shop - Lucky Quilt Co. in Pecatonica, IL.  It's where we meet to hand applique a few times a month!  I just finished piecing it yesterday, so wanted to get it quilted and bound right away.  I hope to stitch the binding down on both of them tonight, but at least one! 

I'm hoping to finish more quilts in the new year.  I have at least 10 applique quilts in progress.  I only hand applique and I only seem to have time to do it at applique club.  Four of us friends are working on the same quilt -- a Bunny Hill quilt called 101 Maple Street. We all bought the kits for this quilt.   The other three are at least two blocks ahead of me, but it's not a race, its a journey and we all enjoy the applique process.
 See you next year!
 Until then......blessings.
 

Sunday, December 30, 2018

Nearing the End!

Of 2018, of course.
I've talked about goals for next year, and I've added another one.  This is what my storage area in the basement looks like:




It's an "L" shaped room that contains the furnace, water softener and water heater also.  All those bins and boxes have been moved at least twice - and I had to pay to have them moved!  It is time to purge.  And I will be tough!  I have some silver-plated coffee sets and platters that were my mother's that I have never used.  My daughter won't want them - no one entertains like that anymore -- nowadays its a more casual get-together.  They are all going to a charity.  My DSIL made me promise not to give any of the stuff to my DD!  So, as I go thru each box/container, I will decide whether to keep, bless a charity, or toss and I hope to reduce the stuff by at least half.  2019 will be the year of the great purge!

Until next time.....blessings.
 

Friday, December 28, 2018

Dec. 28, 2018

Getting pretty close to finishing this year!  Can't wait for it to be over.  It wasn't one of my best - spent 5 days in hospital in July for dehydration and hypercalcemia and another 2 days in September to have my Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm repaired.  Hope not to see another hospital room next year!


I said yesterday that I've started thinking about goals/resolutions for next year.  For all intents and purposes, I think once Christmas is over, we're into the new year - maybe not by calendar days, but in my mind!  One of my goals for next year (which means I start now, I don't wait for the 1st!) is to try to knit a hat a month for the hat and mitten tree at church. We always have a hat/mitten tree for the kids in the neighboring schools.  There is always a need.  I'm just a novice knitter, but I think this is doable.  Of course, quilting the quilts for the homeless is my first priority, but this would be a good thing.  
I've always liked the idea of knitters and crocheters making hats and scarves for the homeless and in Rockford, IL, they hang them on bushes and trees in a downtown park and whoever needs them, takes them.  It's one of those "make your heart fill up with goodness" things!
So, that's one of my goals for 2019.  And I'll be working on it most every evening in front of the tv.
Until next time.....blessings.

Thursday, December 27, 2018

The day after the day after Christmas!

Took this picture last night.  Best remodeling I ever had done was taking out the old wood burning fireplace and putting in a gas log fireplace with brick surround.  It is remote controlled -- I just turn it on like the tv and off the same way!  I started binge watching Bosch on Prime, again, so that's what's on tv!
This is what was in here when I moved in.  And I am glad to be rid of it.  The brown on the fireplace is actually just suede paint and pretty darn ugly!  They also left a huge pile of ash in the fireplace - along with a whole lot of dust and dirty rooms elsewhere.

I spent the day making ham and bean soup today.  It's cooling on the stove -- gotta put it in containers in a little bit - it'll probably be enough to get me through 2019!

Been thinking about new year's goals/resolutions.  More about that tomorrow!

Til next time......blessings.


Wednesday, December 26, 2018

December 26, 2018

I finally managed to finish a couple of pillows.  I joined a great "Skill Builders" club on the Statler longarm and the first project was these pillows.  The quilting and applique was all done on the Statler.  I took it off the longarm before Christmas, but then life and Christmas got in the way and I didn't have time to finish them.  So today, I finished them.
And, after eating a lot of Christmas goodies yesterday, and for the entire month, actually, it's time to get back on track on the weight loss front.  Today I started back on the dreadmill - goal is only 10 minutes a day of some type of exercise.  I'll try to do more, of course, but a minimum of 10 minutes.  I managed to walk a block down the street to my mailbox and back this afternoon to get in more steps!  It's a start.
Until next time......blessings.

Thursday, September 27, 2018

Random Thoughts

My fall decorating:  Gourds on the mantel and a pumpkin wreath on the front door. This is the new fireplace -- I had it converted to gas and added the brick surround and the new mantel.

I'm at home recuperating from AAA surgery.  This means I have three stents in my aorta and femoral arteries to repair the Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm I've had for at least 5 years.  Seems like I've been dealing with it forever.  I'm doing fine, my blood pressure is the lowest it's ever been, but they touched a nerve in the incision on the right side and my right inner thigh and knee are killing me!  Hopefully, this pain will go away when I am completely healed.

I went to Southern Belle Statler retreat the week after Labor Day, in Bismarck, AR.  Had a great time, met lots of people from all over, learned a lot about my digital longarm (Statler).  Came home, put new quick change feet on the longarm and now it won't work - with a problem that has nothing to do with the feet!

Just got back from lunch with my daughter.  This is the reason I moved to Wisconsin - to be closer to my daughter and her family.  So far, she's taken me to the hospital in Burlington for a week's stay in July, and has taken me to Rockford for the surgery last week.  Guess it was a good idea to move up here. I also get to go to quite a few of my grandsons' games.  AJ is a freshman in high school and plays volleyball, very well, I might add.  And Mikey is playing soccer again this year -- and his mother is the soccer coach this year also.  Mikey's games are early Saturday mornings - so nice to be able to be there on time and not have to drive for an hour to get back home. He plays very well, also.  Soon, Will will be starting basketball - he's in middle school this year.

It's too bad the longarm is down because I have lots of homeless tops to finish, and now would be a good time to do them.  I do, however, have plenty of applique to work on and if I got real ambitious, I could piece more quilts, but not really thinking that that is going to happen.  Resting, walking around to keep the blood clots at bay, and not lifting more than 10 pounds is the order of the day for the duration, so applique and maybe a little knitting it is!

Until next time.....Blessings.

Tuesday, August 14, 2018

The actual tubs

Here's pictures of the actual tubs that were put in.  I had them take out the old tubs and the tile that was very much dated, plus the previous owner left everything dirty, so when I moved in, I had to spend days just cleaning the bathrooms so I could use them.

They are smaller and not as deep as the originals, but so much easier to clean and look so much better to me! And you can see the difference in color of the floor tile -- absolutely the same tile in both baths!  The hall bath is the correct color!
Until next time.....blessings.
 

Hall bath

The hall bath took the longest to change and complete.  The only thing removed was the tub and tile and nasty wallpaper.  The floor was so bad, I couldn't get it clean, but it was a mosaic type tile and the contractor and flooring people decided not to try tearing it up, they just poured stuff that looked like clay to fill in the spaces and then installed the new flooring over it.

 And this is the after picture.  It took 8 weeks to finish this tiny room - the plumber ordered the wrong tub to begin with, then the second one that finally arrived had a small nick in it, so we had to wait for Kohler to send down a tech to fix the nick and finally they managed to install the tub.
 There's a skylight in this bathroom - everyone tries to turn off the light when they leave!  The flooring is the same as the master bath - but more true to the color in this bath.
Until next time.....blessings.

Sunday, August 12, 2018

Remodel - after!

Well, its been awhile and a lot has happened since April.  The remodel took forever - finally finished on June 26.  It will take me awhile to catch up.  But, here's the first installment!
This is the after picture of the Master Bath.  The tile floor is shades of gray, I think the dark green walls brings out the little bit of brown in it.  But, new tub, new sink and new countertop, including new floor, of course.  The walls are the same color as the Master Bedroom and the curtains in the bedroom match the shower curtain and valance.  I'm happy with the rooms, so that's a plus - it was a challenge for me to use such a bold color, but I like it!
Until next time....blessings.
 

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

And so it begins....

The remodel of course!
The master bathroom.  Tub is outta there, sink is outta there.  New tub and sink and counter top will be installed next week. Then painting, then flooring!  Yay!
And this is the hall bath.  With Steph's help I got the wallpaper and border off the walls.  That border did not want to come off either.  So, once the master bath is done, they'll rip out this tub and tile, replace it, paint and new flooring. Doesn't look too bad in the picture, but trust me - it's nasty!
Then the painter will finish painting the living, dining, and kitchen.  The contractor will replace the idiotic mirror behind the cooktop with real tile backsplash, plumber will remove the garbage disposal and install new kitchen sink and faucet.
Meanwhile, the roofers have half the roof done.  They can only work on weekends, and our weather has not cooperated at all, so probably won't be done with the roof for a couple more weeks.  He has to replace 3 skylights in the process.
But at least it has all begun!
Until next time....blessings.

Wednesday, March 28, 2018

Spring is here

Spring is here, but who knows for how long!
I've been down with a nasty cold and cough and finally started feeling better this morning, so I actually went outside and did some raking of leaves:


 (Looking from driveway to center of yard).
 I raked under the shrubs next to the driveway and under the shrubs next to the front of the house.  Still haven't finished raking the front yard.  This pile is where there is a bald spot in the front yard - we think the former owners put a kids pool there and killed the grass completely.  
Anyway - every fall Burlington vacuums any leaves you rake or blow into the street.  Honestly, I know the former owners did not bother doing that last fall and between a messy willow tree that I had taken down last month and a few other big trees around here, the leaves are a foot deep in some spots.  I had to go buy paper lawn and leaf bags so I can bag up all the leaves and take them myself to the compost site.  It's going to be a lot of work - but hopefully look a whole lot better when it's done.
It felt really good to get outside -- it was above 50 degrees today!  I'm hoping I won't be so sore that I can't get out and at least get these leaves cleaned up and hopefully rake some more!
It's going to be fun to plant some things and clean up the rest of the yard this year.  Apparently, the former owners never planted anything - at least nothing that flowers or if they did, they planted things in the wrong place -- like beautiful burning bushes right under the eaves in the front of the house -- way too small an area for a burning bush.  We're going to try to trim them down to almost the ground to see if we can control their growth a bit - otherwise I'll need to take them out completely.
I've not done any quilting or sewing this week at all, so I'm going to be even further behind than usual!
Until next time....blessings.

Thursday, March 08, 2018

Decluttering Update

I've been a bit busy trying to finish decluttering enough in the basement that I can actually walk down there and get to the business of quilting.  I took pictures last week, because I thought I was there, but found a Longaberger basket on the table that had stuff at the bottom underneath a pile of fabric and scraps!  So today, I cleaned that out and stuffed the fabric scraps back into it!
 The cutting table area -- no bins underneath, the ironing board is perfectly accessible. And I put up another of my thread racks.
 The antique table has been cleaned out (there's a shelf underneath that now has everything in its place, and two drawers that are now cleaned out and organized.)
 The pool table that came with the house is mostly used for laying quilt tops and finished quilts on!  The 16 cube organizer that my daughter and I managed to drag down the stairs and put back together is now full of backing fabrics and tops that need quilting and some donated fabric for our homeless quilts project.
 And the longarm is back up and running!  The table to the left is piled high with fabrics and scraps (and the basket that needed to be cleaned out!), which I will work on as I have time.  Most will be sorted and cut and donated for our charity projects.  The rest will be put away for stash for any project I decide to work on of my own.  I'd like to say I won't buy any more fabric, but I will!  But mostly it'll be fat quarters or specific lengths for a quilt I'm working on.

So now, I have reached the point that I can go to the basement and start working on whatever I want to work on.  I can load a quilt (I just loaded a kid's quilt) and quilt it whenever I go down there.  

I still have some paper down there to deal with, but not a lot.  I am in the process of trying to sell my pantographs, red snappers, and rulers for the longarm that I no longer need.  I also have a couple of boxes to go to the donation center again, but I can see daylight now and feel much better having gotten rid of stuff and reorganized what I'm keeping.  I am not planning on ever having to declutter again.  I am not keeping stuff I don't need or don't use.  And, hopefully, I made things a little easier for my daughter when I'm gone!

Until next time.....blessings.

Sunday, February 18, 2018

Decluttering Big Time!

First, yesterday was my grandson, AJ's 14th birthday.
His grandfather gave him his first shaver!

So, today I've been cleaning up my messes. I finally straightened out the spare room and got rid of the clutter.  Still need to reorganize the closet in there, but the clutter is gone:

Then I decided to clean out the dry sink in the dining area.  I had tons of candles and candle holders and Scentsy and etc. in the spare room and in the dry sink.  I have now thrown out a lot of old candles and holders, organized what is left in the dry sink and the bottom drawer holds cards and card games, etc. (who really needs two dozen decks of cards?)
And then I went to the office and cleaned out the closet in there:
I have spent half the day shredding papers and haven't made a dent.  I fixed a black trash bag in a box and have unloaded the shredder 4 times so far:
And I still have more to shred, but needed to give the shredder a break for the rest of the day, it was getting tired!:
But that's the rest of the stuff in the office that needs cleaned up.  I have not cleaned out the file cabinets, so there will be more shredding when I do, and I know there are two more bankers boxes of paper that will mostly get shredded.
I'm getting pretty serious about cleaning out and decluttering.  Never have to move this stuff again.  I took the second car load of stuff to the Rockford Rescue Mission on Friday.  I'll hopefully not have too much more to go, but I still have some tubs to clean out in the sewing room, so who knows!
Feeling pretty accomplished today!
Until next time.....blessings.



 
 
 

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Happy Valentines Day

I'm having a steak for dinner tonight -- that's the extent of my Valentine celebration! (It was on sale!)
But, I walked 30 minutes on the treadmill this morning, 10 minutes on the recumbent bike and did three exercise groups on the weight machine! Yay me!  
And then I finished cleaning the house.  Loaded another box in the car for donating, and pulled out a Longaberger basket that I kept on the Hoosier cabinet with little things in it.  Cleaning it out and putting it back on the Hoosier!
So, then I went to the basement after lunch.  Did not load a quilt (aren't you happy, Nancy?).  I bought a couple of patterns to make a couple of welcome banners to donate to the preschool where my daughter works. They have a fundraiser every year, including a silent auction.  This is the first one:

Here it is partially completed!:
I have the birdhouses done -- not putting on the perches on the hole that it calls for -- I didn't like it!  I have the piecing done except for the letters, and I've appliqued the bottom E so far. Should be able to finish it tomorrow.
Well, blogger is acting up, so I'll close.
Until next time.....Blessings.

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

And the latest:

So, after 13 inches of snow from Friday thru Sunday, I think I can see the concrete on the drive, in patches!
I counted my 10 minutes of exercise as clearing the driveway those three days.  Yesterday, I have no excuse - I went to Pecatonica for the day -- sewing!   Last Friday was supposed to be our day for sewing/quilting, but that became impossible, so we managed to go yesterday.
So, today, I'm counting my work as my 10 minutes!  I did four loads of laundry, including a load of rugs; cleaned my bathroom, loaded 4 boxes of stuff to go to the donation place and still working on at least one more box and as much other stuff as I can jam into the trunk!
Here's the next box to go in:


I've been going thru all the magazines - cooking, quilting, cross stitch, including books for crocheting, knitting, etc.  Making sure to take my name off them or out of them.  Still have about another 6 boxes to go thru.  I took a load yesterday -- 5 boxes of stuff including kitchen stuff.  There's also kitchen stuff in today's boxes!
I dream about the day that I can just go to the basement and quilt and not be buried under so much "stuff".  
I also did a few minor things as I was going along -- finally took the hardware down for the nasty shades that were in my bedroom.  Put out some Valentine quilts -- a day late and a dollar short -- but I'll keep them up for a week or two!
There was a lot on my list that didn't get done, so tomorrow I'll have to hit it again -- clean the other bathrooms, dust, vacuum, etc.  
I need to start on a couple of welcome wall-hangings to donate to the silent auction for the preschool where my daughter works.  I only have a couple of weeks to get them done, so gotta get busy on them!
So, that was my day!
Until next time......Blessings.

Friday, February 09, 2018

Time for Celebration!

I have just unpacked the last box from the moving company.  I have put the last bag of packing paper into the garage.  I have tons of broken down boxes to haul out to the garage, but I am done unpacking!
This was the last box that the jerk movers left in the garage, marked kitchen in basement.  
I had to bring the wrapped stuff in because the box was too heavy to move.  So, there you see the unholy amount of paper they use and I need to get rid of.  It fits into a large black trash bag and I still have a bunch of those!
These are the last of the quilts I had stored in bins and I'll carry a few up every time I go upstairs.  I'm putting them in the fabric cabinet that the jerk movers refused to move to the basement, so now they reside in the spare room.

And these two pictures are the storage area.  The two clear and one lavender bins are empty for now.  The big box on the left is batting.  I will eventually go thru every bin I have and reduce the amount of stuff in them!  I have unpacked, but I have not started to put things away yet.  I'm keeping a bunch of the book size boxes to put stuff in to haul to the donation centers -- it's going to take awhile!  Also throwing stuff out or put in the recycling bin to get rid of.  This is going to be a major purge!

And, today, I cleared the drive of 8" of snow, walked a block down to mailbox and back and did a lot of bending and lifting, so I'm counting it as my 10 minutes of exercise.  My neighbor came over and used his big blower to clear the end of my drive!  The plows come thru and tear up the road, which is gravel, and dump it just past the end of my drive.  So I end up with a lot of gravel in the two feet beyond my concrete pad.  I'm afraid to ruin my snowblower with the gravel, so I shoveled a little bit of it, but gave up!  Figured I'd go out later and give it another go, but he came over and did it for me.  God bless him!
So, that's been my day and it's only noon.  Gonna eat some lunch and load a quilt!
Until next time....Blessings.
 
 
 

Thursday, February 08, 2018

Getting it all together

So, first, I'm on day three of 10 minutes of exercise. Tuesday I walked on treadmill for 15 minutes and did a few minutes on the weight machine.  Yesterday, only 10 minutes on the treadmill.  Tuesday, I also cleared the driveway and opened a couple of boxes. And did some grocery shopping.  My step count was 5816.  I'm happy if I make it over 5000!  Yesterday's count was only 4156 -- I quilted a quilt and loaded another one and cut fabric -- so I was standing a lot, but apparently not moving enough!
Today, I haven't made it downstairs yet, but planning to do at least 10 minutes on the treadmill and then back to quilting.  I'll also be unpacking another box downstairs.  I'm packing boxes to take to the donation center and loading them in my trunk as I go.  I will be making numerous trips to the donation center!  And my stash of boxes and paper is slowly diminishing.  (Today is recycling pickup!)
 I hate the mess in the garage and can't wait for spring to clean it up.  Can't wait for spring and no more snow either!
Until next time....Blessings.

Monday, February 05, 2018

More Unpacking

I had a CT scan this morning, and had to wait til 2 pm for the results, so I did nothing all day!  The results were:  No Pulmonary Embolism.  Pain is probably muscular. (I think a combination of unpacking and the stress of dealing with the awful movers I hired). 
I decided I needed to do something productive after that, so unpacked 6 boxes in the spare room -- the last 6 boxes!  Two big ones had candles and Misc. decor and all the pictures I had in the living room and hallway, and my recipe box I've been looking for, and my clock I've been looking for!
The four smaller ones:
Cookbooks, notebooks with quilt stuff in them, and 9 of the magazine holders stuffed with quilt and cooking magazines.  I kept wondering why it said spare room magazines because I did not have these in the office at the other house.  And then I figured it out:  These 4 boxes were from the spare room in the log home!  So, I moved these twice and never opened them at the last place.  Guess what -- I haven't missed them so all the magazines and probably most of the cookbooks are going to Rockford Rescue Mission store!  I will take a bunch every time I go to Rockford!
And, obviously, I just unpacked these and haven't put anything away -- but I'll be getting the empty boxes and paper out of there and start going thru it all as I put things away.  
I still have a few boxes in the basement to unpack and I'm sure a few in the garage.  But, this time I'm unpacking everything and tossing a whole bunch!  
And that's how this day went!  I also had the nurse call in another statin prescription and tomorrow I start back on the health wagon.  Exercise at least 10 minutes every day. Walking is the main exercise -- you can count it if you're walking thru the grocery store for 30 minutes, but getting up from the couch to the kitchen table does not count!  Spark People.
Check out sparkpeople - both for diet and exercise and someone to encourage you if you need it.   I'm committing myself to exercise at least 10 minutes a day, and to watch what I eat -- healthier of course. Next weigh-in is Feb. 25.  I go back to Dr. in May for lab work and I hope to be at least 15 pounds lighter and have my blood sugar and blood pressure back under control, not to mention my cholesterol.
Until next time....blessings.

Friday, February 02, 2018

Weigh In?

So, after announcing that the next day was weigh-in time -- I haven't posted anything!  Broke the scales?  No, just got busy.  My weigh-in -- I gained two pounds!  Back to the ole grindstone -- but only got on the treadmill once since then, so gotta keep trying!
In the meantime, I've been to our Applique Club, and this is the next project! It's a Bunny Hill pattern called Cottage Garden. I bought the pattern, but then Cassie showed us the actual quilt, so then I ordered the whole kit.  I usually use my own fabrics on applique quilts, but I actually like the fabrics in this one, so decided to go that route.  And Cassie called and said the kit is in, so I'll be picking it up Friday!

And today, was a fabulous day -- two BFF's came up to see me today -- so good to see them and spend time doing nothing!  Nancy did bring me a quilt she made that needs quilting.  It's a Lord's Prayer quilt with all the words embroidered throughout the quilt -- it's beautiful.  And they gave me a beautiful housewarming gift:
(Thanks, Sharon, we missed you and hope you're feeling better soon).
We went to lunch in Burlington -- I can get to the places, but I struggle finding my way back!  Thankfully, Nancy knows her way around everywhere!  Anyway -- what a great day.
Reality --  gotta get back on the treadmill track and lose more weight!
Until next time.....Blessings.

 

Wednesday, January 24, 2018

Unpacking Stuff

Not a lot going on here.  Yesterday we got a nice 7" of snow overnight!  Was raining when I went to bed and next morning there it was.
This is looking out my dining room window at the back yard. 

 So, after I spent an hour cleaning off the drive with the snow blower that I put together and my DSIL laughed at me because he figured it would only work in 3 inches of light fluffy snow -- and he was so wrong and needs to show his DMIL a lot more respect because this was 7" of wet heavy snow and the blower did a great job!
I came in and worked in the office all day.  Opened the box of cd's and have added them to the other shelf in the room:
 And then spent the rest of the day shredding paper and sorting thru some of my dad's stuff from 1978 - I have a ton of stuff to go thru!  I emptied the shredder three times and then had to give it a rest, but I managed to get a large stack of stuff reduced to a small manila envelope of my Mom & Dad's birth, death and marriage certificates and a few other mementos.  It would feel really good if I didn't have a 100x that to go through yet!  Seriously needed to do this many years ago and I've moved this stuff at least 3 times!
Had a doctor's appointment today --new doctor in WI -- to analyze the stabbing pain in my back.  Waiting now for a call to schedule a CT scan for a blood clot or pulmonary embolism -- oh joy.  They also did blood tests and my cholesterol and triglycerides are high -- so no excuses any more -- gotta get back on schedule to exercise and back to the diet.  I was doing really well, then fell off the wagon with the move, so time to get back to it.  And tomorrow we weigh in again -- it's been a month that we started weighing and trying to establish new habits.  Wondering how everyone else is doing?
Until tomorrow ......Blessings.

Sunday, January 21, 2018

Quilting Stuff

I've managed to spend a couple days in the quilt studio this weekend.  I've quilted two kids quilts and one homeless quilt so far, and loaded another homeless quilt.  I seamed 8 backings for the homeless quilts and labeled two of them, need to make more labels.  I also spent days doing the 16 blocks for Legendary Loves:

 Those red and cream blocks are a pain to put together.  And there's a lot more red and cream blocks to do on this quilt -- which I may or may not do!
I've been cleaning out stuff when I go to the basement lately.  Threw out some things, set aside some things to give away, etc.  And haven't even started going thru books!  I've gone thru some of my applique projects -- I have one where I have done 6 blocks of a 12 block quilt - and I'm not loving it, so I'll put the 6 together and give it away!  I found an oak leaf applique quilt I started in 2005!  All the fabric is with it, but only 3 blocks are done, so I'll put them together and make a table runner.  I know I'm never going to finish any more than that!  I need to get back in the habit of cutting fabric too.  We're meeting again on Friday to sew homeless quilts and I don't have anything ready for our beginner quilters to work on.
I have to say it felt good working in the basement this weekend.  Hope to find another day or two during the week.
Until next time.....Blessings.

Thursday, January 18, 2018

Finally - new oven!

When I first moved here, I opened the oven door and knew I should have paid more attention to the main floor than the basement!  This is what the oven looked like:
Not only was it disgustingly filthy, but in the upper corners it looked like there had been a fire in it.  It is a self-cleaning oven, but there was no way I was going to turn it on and let it heat to 5-600 degrees.  I called the appliance place -- they came out and I told them to just order me a new one -- I was not going to burn the darn house down right after I moved in!
So, today the new oven was installed:
How's that for shiny and new!  I fixed a frozen pizza in it tonight and it was delicious!  I'm a happy camper!
I had to wait til 4 pm before they came to install it, so I baked a loaf of bread in the breadmaker for the first time in probably almost two years.  And I spent the whole day at my kitchen table working on a couple of applique projects.  Hint -- the lighting is not good at the kitchen table!  But, I finished three blocks that I had in queue - one just needed embroidery, one had to finish the applique and the embroidery and the third one I had to take an applique off and put a new one on - I changed the darn onion, Nancy!
And then I started working on another one, but only got a couple of pieces appliqued before they showed up.  I really needed to work in the basement, but that will have to wait til tomorrow.
Until next time.....Blessings!

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

More boxes and more stuff

Today I managed to finally file all the papers that clutter my desk because I have a very bad habit of just throwing the mail and everything else on the desk.  I also balanced my checkbook.  Yay me!
Then I decided to tackle one box of cookbooks.  Managed to unpack and put away the ones I for sure am keeping and made a stack of ones I want to look thru, but probably give away.  So, while I was there, (in the coat closet at the front door), I unpacked another box because it said it had my fireplace pots in it.  It also had all the fall decorations I had on the fireplace mantle at the other house.  So, now I have a big mess on my Hoosier cabinet because I unpacked them, but did not put anything away!
And I looked at the other two boxes in the closet and unpacked a bunch of dvd's that are on the office shelves right now, but not straightened up.  Last box has music cd's in it and those will probably go on office shelves also, or maybe in the basement.  Haven't decided yet. But now I have 3 boxes out of the closet.
Didn't make it to the basement today, but all in all, I'm happy getting three boxes unpacked!
Grandson AJ has another basketball game tonight.  Love to watch the kids play.
Until next time....Blessings.