Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Tuesday's Trifles

What a wonderfully productive weekend it was here at Chez Nana. I was able to make some good progress on my Kiss quilt ... I'm just about ready to turn the corner to the fourth and final side.  Of course, I must remind you all that the end isn't quite in sight yet as I'm stitching all the way to within 2" of the edges of the quilt ... when I finish the fourth side, I'll get out my border hoop and then I can finish up this quilt.  There were times when I had 4 needles going at the same time.
Too bad I don't have 2-3 more pairs of hands ... I could really go to town on my quilting. Ha!  

I was also able to get some more hexies basted ... I still have quite a ways to go on them, but I'll have plenty of time to work on my hexies on our upcoming trip. 

Speaking of our upcoming trip, we're on the countdown - 16 days and counting. So far, the long range forecasts for Hilton Head are showing lower than normal temperatures and increased chances for rain, we really don't care. DH always says that a rainy day at the beach is still better than a nice day at home. Ha!  And seriously, after the summer we've had, it'll be nice to just get away to our Happy Place. 

The rain we had on Saturday brought in a cool front ... the daily highs have been in the 70s and will continue to be in that range for several more days. It was in the mid 50s this morning when Lois and I set out on our walk. It feels like fall, so it seemed only fitting that I make a big pot of soup yesterday afternoon. 
(Forgive the glare from the vent hood lights.)

DH and our neighbor John (Lois' husband) had been chatting about trapping and relocating those pesky raccoons who lounged on our deck a week or so ago and leveled our green beans.  Their discussion morphed into determination after we discovered evidence of a major raccoon party on our deck.  There were a LOT of muddy little paw prints all over our deck and up and down the steps to the deck.  DH had forgotten to put the grill cover back on the grill Friday evening ... there was enough contrast to really see the evidence they left behind.
After we saw that Saturday morning, DH drove straightaway to Rural King and purchased a raccoon trap.  I'm not convinced that they'll be successful in their efforts ... the bait had been taken, the trap had been triggered but there was no raccoon in the trap.  <sigh>   We'll see if they can outsmart those raccoons. I'm not holding my breath. Ha!

I hope that whatever you have planned for today includes a little something that will bring you joy!
Kathy

23 comments:

  1. Before I forget, I want to tell you that your header picture is gorgeous. You certainly make quick work of your hand quilting. Can't wait to see it finished. I agree with your husband. Rainy days at the beach can be quite delightful! Look for migrating shorebirds while you are there!

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  2. Your header photo makes me want to head to the OBX! You are really making progress on your Kiss quilt - will you have it done before you leave? That cooler weather just came overnight - it really feels like fall is here. Best of luck catching those pesky raccoons. Sometimes they seem awfully smart. ~Jeanne

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  3. good luck on the critter catch! we have more of the wild critters than I like but we live in the country and what can you do! The other day I saw a mama possum giving a ride to 4 babies draped over her back - I have never seen that before and I have seen a lot of possum's around here.
    The quilt will be gorgeous when done and I hope for pleasant weather when you travel - I on the other hand would want dry weather - we do so much hiking and I don't enjoy rainy weather although we do take our rain jackets if we need to - I just don't like being cold and wet on the trails.

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  4. Oh I so know what you are facing with raccoon's. This past couple of months I've trapped approx. 28 of the little devils. First it was because of the peach tree and the fruit ripening, second was they getting into all the bird feeders and lately it was because they broke into the hen house. Last week alone I trapped 7 in 4 days. Mine get relocated 6 miles away (hopefully far enough) Like you I also seen tracks yesterday so I think I need to get the traps out again. I can relate to how your hand quilting is going, I feel that way on the one I'm working on, taking me so long. I love your and have fun on your trip.

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  5. Well it certainly looks like your making great progress on your quilt! Soo satisfying I am sure. Wish it would cool off here if even for a day or two.. We are swirling into another heat wave with temps in the low hundreds all week. Such is August and Sept though here is So. California. Can't wait to make our way through it though. Good luck on catching that pesky raccoon. We use to get an occasional one at our old house and I remember those dirty little prints well, lol. Have a good day!

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  6. We have homemade vegetable soup yesterday too! I am so glad it has cooled down enough to enjoy a hot bowl of soup. Your kiss quilt is getting there stitch by stitch!

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  7. That soup looks really good.

    You are making great progress on the quilt. I hope you do as well with the raccoons.

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  8. My, you are productive! I'm so lazy these days! But I did get a little sewing done yesterday, after we made juice from our grapes.

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  9. I love little critter footprints :) Mischievous little guys!
    Soup & cool weather.. totally a sneak peak of fall to come!

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  10. That reminds me of the John Candy movie - The Great Outdoors with those raccoons! Hope you are able to relocate them far from your home. Soup must be the thing - I just got one together in the crock pot this morning with the stock I made in there last night from the roaster chicken carcass. So happy to hear you turned the corner to the fourth side - the end is in site once you get to the edges! 30 more minutes of outside work while my work area is in the shade and then I'm calling it a day.

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  11. You HAVE been productive! Don't you just love it when you have the end of a project in sight? I'm so sorry about those raccoons. We had a huge possum roaming the neighborhood for a while. I don't know what happened to him, just glad he's gone!

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  12. Anticipation!!! I'll be heading to the beach with my mom in late October and can't wait!!! We actually love rainy days at the beach - we sit on the balcony and watch the ocean and listen to the rain - and we talk about everything that's in our hearts for hours on end. Time with my mom at the beach - the best therapy in the world :*D

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  13. Lovely to have a getaway to look forward to, isn't it?
    Great progress on your quilt. If you find out where to get an extra set of hands, let me know. : )
    We have pesky raccoons, too, but in our neck of the woods, if you trap them, you have to dispose of them. It is illegal to "relocate" them. Go figure.

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  14. Fantastic progress on your quilt. I thread up multiple needles too. It saves a lot of starts and stops. It's surprising how much time just that little idea saves. Good luck with the raccoons. Cute but a nuisance.

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  15. I'm not sure I am smarter than a raccoon. I think I would start by eliminating their food supply

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  16. Great progress on your quilt! I also use multiple needles, in fact right now there are seven in the block I'm working on in the Blockade quilt. Sure helps a lot when you can only quilt in a couple directions, saving constant hoop rotations. Good luck with the raccoons. We have woodchucks and slugs taking out stuff here.

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  17. Hi my friend, I tried to enlarge your quilt to see what pattern you are doing, but couldn't tell. As for weather, we are stocking up our freezer-today we got fresh corn from the farmer and cut it all off the cob and put it in freezer bags-7 double servings so far. We also put up some green beans, but they didn't taste really good when we were cutting off the ends(hope they are better when we cook them). We will get more corn and end up with about 12-18 servings. I want to know what type of soup that is? Looks like a vege but can't tell aside from the peas. I'm always on the lookout for new soup recipes. It was cold here this morning and has been cool at night. That is a bummer about the raccoons-they can be such a nuisance. I'm heading downstairs right now to work on the squares. Hope you have a wonderful evening.
    Lots of love,
    Noreen

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  18. What lovely weather. I think it sounds wonderful to just be at the end of August and having fall weather. Your soup looks so yummy. I can't wait until I can start fixing cold weather food. Your quilt looks wonderful. Wow, 16 days? How nice. Well I hope you get your raccoon's.

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  19. Mmmmm...your soup looks wonderful! It is getting that time of year here too...things are cooling off and Fall is just around the corner. Love seeing the progress on your hand quilting. I hope to do more of that this winter.

    Have a wonderful and Blessed day!
    Kristie

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  20. Your right, I think a rainy day is better than being at home. Our beach trip will eventually happen and we will most likely get rain with El Nino heading out way. Have a wonderful time. Your soup look yummy. Hopefully you can relocate those raccoon's.

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  21. I always like making homemade soup. I think it will be a while before there is a chill in the air here! We need to make a trip to HH sometime.

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  22. Raccoons are really smart and really hard to catch. Good luck with that. Right now we're dealing with an armadillo.

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  23. We always need extra hands and more time in the day to accomplish all we would like sometimes. Any progress made on the hand quilting gets you that much closer to the finish. Take care with those Raccoons; they can look so sweet. Happy Stitching.

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