Wednesday, May 8, 2013

Dancing as fast as I can ...

Before I begin, here are pix of two little mats I finished recently and just got them steamed this a.m.  IF (and that's a big "if") I get them bound, I'll sell them at the fiber fair on the 18th.



I think I like the little orange cat the best.  Also have a teeny, tiny baby bunny mat actually complete.  That cat was blown up from a little applique for a quilt and the bunny pattern was given to me by Bonnie G. from Evansville a long time ago (we miss you Bonnie!).

Today has been so hectic and I'll be glad when it's over.  Wendell and I both agree that some days we feel like we're spinning out of our selves and splintering into lots of little pieces, all useless.  Then the next day we're back together again.  Go figure.  I guess God does that for us.  If I didn't have that time in the a.m. to sit down and do my devotions I'd be a mess.  And that cup of coffee helps, too.  Just that little bit of quiet time makes all the difference.  I don't know what I'd do if I had to go back to getting up early and going to work every day ... I just couldn't do it now.  My last two years of work, working from home, were the best years of my work life.

Today I'm getting ready for the extension homemaker meeting tonight ... I'm co-hostess.  After breakfast I started by baking and frosting some brownies for a meeting Wendell has tonight.  Then I started prepping for my meeting tonight.  I'm doing a fondue lesson for the club so we're doing a fondue "tasting" as refreshments.  Cheese/sausage fondue with hearty bread as one fondue, a big Cesar salad, and chocolate fondue with dippers for dessert.  So I started by cleaning six heads of Romaine, spinning, tearing, etc.  Got it all ready to go.  Bagged the ice.  Went on to dicing pound cake, cleaning whole strawberries, putting the other "dippers" in the box for the car -- marshmallows, dried tropical fruit, pretzel stix.  Wrapped the cutlery in napkins and tied them with a ribbon.  Got all of the paper goods in the car.  Then I made chili for lunch since Randy is here for the last day of working on the master bathroom (YEAH! ... it's almost done!  then it's on to the guest bathroom ...). It was good to share a bowl of soup with the guys.

Just got back from setting up the meeting room with Sandy.  All I have to do late in the afternoon is make the chocolate fondue and get everything else over there (Freedom Community Center).  Don't you hate wishing your life away sometimes, saying "I wish this were over."?  Saying "when this is over then everything will slow down"  ... never happens.

We have been working on plans for our 50th anniversary celebration and just today got an invite from some old friends from Ridgeville for their 50th!  What a nice surprise!  I hope we can go; it's very close to ours ...

Sunday, May 5, 2013

40 more days and 40 more nights???

Wow.  I think it may never stop!  And chilly!  We had the furnace on today!  In May!  Enough already ...

But seriously, I have another Extension Homemaker event this week and I'm starting to fret about not being able to attend because of flooding on our road.  I'm co-hostess of the regular local meeting and it would just be the Foster luck to be flooded in again.  Like I said ... a continuing disappointment to family and friends for 68 years.

Sandy and I have a fondue night planned for club.  We went to the lesson conference in Cloverdale a few weeks ago and the fondue session was one of the two I attended.  So besides "serving" fondue, I'm going to talk to them about fondue as they eat.  Like killing two birds with one stone I guess; should make for a slightly shorter meeting.  I guess I'll eat when I get home.  Sandy is making cheese and sausage fondue with hearty bread as dippers.  I'm doing a basic chocolate fondue as a dessert with several different dippers (pretzels, fruit, marshmallows, and pound cake).  Also a big Cesaer salad and drinks.  Hopefully all will go well.  I have just two meetings to go as treasurer!  Yeah!  I can't wait to be done with that job; I never wanted to do it in the first place.  I've been secretary of several different organizations but never treasurer.  I don't know how it happened ..... (lol!  Oh yes, another time I couldn't remember to use the word "no".)

I just put a new "page" on my blog.  The pages section is on the right.  For those of you who are new at rug hooking and want to bind your rug in the traditional method (and not that whipping stuff) and need some direction, I've added a page called "How to Bind a Traditional Hooked Rug" or some such title ... it's the first 'page' listed anyway.  It has lots of pictures because as they say "A picture is worth ........"  Thanks to Wendell, my photographer.

The 10th Annual Wool Arts Fiber Fair is in Washington in two weeks.  Our hooking guild is the sponsor.  I'm getting nervous and excited.  I have to prepare the patterns for the beginning rug hooking class and I haven't gotten a count yet.  I'm hoping not a lot to do.  The limit is 12 so it shouldn't be too bad.  I have 9 drawn and ready but otherwise have to cut all the wool, etc.  It's just two little stars (found the template online) on a rectangular mat.  I think beginners should start on something do-able.  Yesterday, in the rain, W. and I went to several places and left ads (mostly to gift and antique shops).  I hope we have a good turnout AND that it's not still raining!  

Tomorrow I paint the master bathroom.  Then Randy will come back and put on the bull nose (baseboard) tile.  The floor looks excellent!  All we'll have to do then is re-hang lights and towel bars, put up the two new mirrors I found at TJ Maxx for $25 (!!!), and Wendell and Randy will re-install the toilet.  I got a new shower curtain at the Maxx, too.  Wendell promised to put in the new faucets I bought (maybe Randy will help with that, too, hopefully).  THEN we'll start the process all over again in the guest bathroom.  But it will all be good when it's done ...
 
Our garden is doing well; enjoying green onions and asparagus.  My flowers are all planted and I am waiting for them to come up.  May showers also bring flowers, right?