Quite the day with Aunt Lorraine. We cut, we snipped, we cut, we measured and stacked. There was no slowing down until the deed was done. A large stash of fabrics is enough for 230 6″ squares to be used in a scrappy quilt, yet to have fine tuning and much machine stitching left. I am quite weary. Night, night.
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Noreen
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Noreen
After a humid start to the day, the afternoon was perfect to be outside. I did do a bit of weed-whipping in the far east portion of the acre and sure enough, the biting bugs let me know I was more than welcomed. It has been an easy season thus far keeping up with all the flowerbeds. I am a firm believer in using Preen on newly tilled dirt. The weeds that do need to be attended to are those that are snuggled right up next to the stems of the perennials.
I had the scare of Snuggles’ life today. The overhead garage door to the car needed to be put down before the heat of the afternoon sun crept into the garage. As the door was coming down I couldn’t figure out what was scrapping. It was Snuggles. He had gotten on the rafters via my car and then hopped over to lay on top of the garage door. He was scrambling to keep ahead of the door closing hoping to be able to jump back on the rafters. By the time I stopped the door at four foot from totally closing, Snuggles jumped out and down onto the driveway. The fur on his back definitely was ruffled from the narrow . . . literally narrow, escape. Dang kids.
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Noreen
The acre has been mowed, trimmed and manicured . . . a very self-satisfying feeling for Dennis and me. For Dennis, having a nice looking home, including the yards, it is the peace that passes all understanding. Looking out of the east house window and seeing Dennis sitting on the patio without a care in the world, priceless. It has been a blessing that biting bugs have eluded the patio . . . thus far. It’s time to give those creamed cucumbers a stir as soon they will be spooned over boiled potatoes.
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Noreen
I have not peeked at any thermometer but it does feel like a corker. Dennis and I had a road date to Mankato. Not many stops, just those to keep the pantry shelves stocked which now had a huge “Vacancy” sign in the doorway of the pantry. We had really done a great job of cleaning down to the bones of the freezer above the refrigerator as well. Dennis’ one request was a case of Liptons Citrus Green Tea. Cold, it quenches the thirst far better than a can of pop when we are in the depths of the yard work . . . which will be tomorrow.
It does look a little scrounging as we have not mowed for two weeks. Until the rain of earlier this week, the grass looked too stressed to mow. We dined at Culver’s after the errands were done and I think that will take us down to a snack before bedtime.
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Noreen
I am Stauffer Avenue’s Ninja Warrior.
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Noreen
A very warm day. That dictated a short walk this morning. Even at 7:30 a.m it was more than I bargained for. Dennis took apart one of the small fans that I use in the sewing studio. It needed a bit of oil and cleaning and when plugged in . . . it took off just as if it were new. Scrounging around in the refrigerator and we came up with meals that needed no additional heat from the stove top or the oven. Tomorrow may prove to bring rain and even a threat of a thunderstorm. We are prepared for whatever happens.
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Noreen
Lights will soon be shut off here in the sewing studio for the day. With the help of Dennis the backing, batting and the top of this colorful quilt are basted, ready to be put under the needle for some quilting stitches. That next process I need to ponder. I could not believe how much vinyl is infused in little kid’s shirts for that purchase appeal. You can’t put an iron to it when piecing quilt blocks. You can’t be guaranteed that the sewing machine presser foot will glide over it. It does add a lot of weight when all is said and done.
First things first and that will be using the Swiffer on the floors to pick up all the wayward threads off of the concrete floor. Working with the batting on a flat surface is a pain in the drain. The old fashioned quilt frames cannot be beat. Each layer would be stretched taut with dozens of thumb tacks. Nice and tight made for a good finished product. Using our two church tables makes a bit more work, but still gives a good look to the quilt when all is said and done. All in all, I am a very content individual here on Stauffer Avenue, sharing all endeavors such as today with Dennis. It could be worse: sitting up at the bar doing pull-tabs or taking the shuttle to the casino. We are quite the pair of hermits.
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Noreen
Days like this tell me the lazy days of summer are right round the corner . . . like in this weekend. Dennis and I are so fortunate that our schedules are nonexistent. On warm days such as this, I wish I had Dad’s habit of lying down at noon for a quick 15 minute nap. He didn’t need a watch. Be it the floor or a couch, that nap had him ready for more. I would have a hard time coming to my senses after 15 minutes and only wanting more.
Via an email, Dennis’ prescription was refilled by our family doctor, ready to be taken to the pharmacy here in town. Ya, it’s one of those that needs to be refilled on a month by month basis and needs to be hand carried to the pharmacy. A few rotten apples tend to spoil it for the rest when it comes to some pharmaceutical drugs. That was the highlight of today’s needs.
I spent a fair amount of time in my sewing studio and will most likely do that again tomorrow. Yes, I am walking in the mornings but am seriously going to begin looking into a treadmill for the patio porch as it is only going to remain hot and then turn into the winter and ice. No fancy bells and whistles, just a plain Jane. I need to plan ahead.
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Noreen
As muddy as I had gotten this morning, I sure could have saved having to clean off my garden shoes by going bare-foot. Dennis had strung out the garden hose to add water to the Koi pond. A week or so back, the pond was running over from the huge amount of rainfall. The hot winds of the last several days had evaporated quite a bit of water, plus when I do water plants, I take it out of the pond. You cannot beat water that is close to the same temperature as the yard . . . plus fish fertilizer doesn’t hurt either.
Anyway . . . as long as the hose was strung out it made sense to hook up the Miracle Grow garden hose feeder and give the plants adjacent to the patio a bit extra to thrive on. The fertilized water coming out of the feeder maybe will shoot out five feet. Of course, I went right into the flower beds and made sure even the far back ones got a good dose on the first run. Water on black dirt sure does stick to the shoes. After the soil absorbed the first batch, I went back and used up the remaining Miracle Grow on a second round of watering. As I was dragging the heavy wet hose and twirling it around the plants so as to not flatten them, I had mud from here to there. I cleaned up to make us some fried egg sandwiches and the shoes are still by the back door waiting to be cleaned up for another day of a rambunctious gardener keeping the yards tidy, tidy, tidy.
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Noreen
We are home from a day on the road for a graduation reception for great nephew Justin. The reception was in a picnic shelter adjacent to a lake. The heat that had been touted didn’t seem to bother anyone with the breeze that was enjoyed. A great day but there is no place like home. If I had not kicked my shoes off as soon as I hit the entry of the house, I would have tapped my shoes just as Dorothy did from the Wizard of Oz. “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.”