Friday Fragments

It’s Friday, and once again I’m following along at Half-Past Kissin’ Time’s Friday Fragments, where as Mrs. 4444 says “disconnected thoughts are applauded”.  Since my life is chock full of disconnected thoughts, this meme is right up my alley!

My legs are reminding me of my age this morning.  They’re definitely not used to playing kickball.    I was at DD’s yesterday, where they participated in an impromptu neighborhood kickball game.  Of course, Nana joined in the fun (even though she went 0 for 3). 



For once, our smoke detectors have decided to warn us that the batteries need to be replaced when we’re up - instead of in the middle of the night.  It’s still annoying when we get that annoying beep and the message “Warning – Low Battery”.  But if we’re going to get it, far better to start getting it at 6:30 AM instead of 2:30 AM. 



I must have the slowest-growing toenails.  I had a pedicure done on March 22, and unless you look really, really close, you cannot tell that it’s been 5 weeks.  The polish is still looking good, so I think I’ll leave it on for our upcoming trip.  Gotta have painted toenails when on the beach, right?



Our few days of lovely weather have passed.  The next several days will be cooler and rainy … sounds like perfect quilting weather, doesn’t it? 

Thursday’s Thoughts

Not a whole lot going on here at Chez Nana.  A sign of a boring life?  Or just the calm before the storm?    Either way, all I’ve got today is a bunch of randomness.

Don’t you just hate it when someone “steals your thunder”?  Over the last month, we’d lost our internet connection 3 times.  It would go out … and our router would revert back to the factory settings (with no assigned password, even though it required one).  I’d have to call our ISP, who would always get us back up and running.  It happened again Sunday night, and to say that I was frustrated was an understatement.  I called our ISP and was determined that this would be the last time that I’d have to make this call.  I was determined to be polite … but insistent that they do something to fix this permanently.  After I explained the problem … but before I could insist on a permanent solution, the tech said that this was unacceptable and that they’d have a tech out on Monday to get this resolved.  While it seems to be a popular thing to badmouth our ISP, we’ve had nothing but very positive experiences. 

We watched Faith Like Potatoes last night.  We’d had that DVD for a loooong time (I’m surprised I didn’t get an email reminding me to return it when we were done viewing it … but I guess that as long as they’re getting their monthly fee from us, they’re ok – ha!).  It was a good movie, although it got off to a rather slow start.  It’s based on a true story, which always appeals to me.  I need to go check my queue to see what’s up next … I wonder how long we’ll have it before we get a chance to watch it – with Cardinals games almost every night and with the Blues still playing, we don’t have a lot of free evenings to watch movies. 

I seem to be on a reading kick lately … and the subject of my reading has been dogs.  I finished up Dean Koontz’s book A Big Little Life: a Memoir of a Joyful Dog while we were in Florida.  Earlier this week, I finished Leigh Brill’s book A Dog Named Slugger.  And yesterday I started Amazing Gracie: a Dog’s Tale.  As you may know, we’re currently dog-less, and I’m wondering if I’m getting my “dog fix” through books.  Neither DH nor I are quite ready to add a dog to our household (DH is even less ready than I am) … and while I hope that we are able to find the perfect dog for us, I don’t know what the Lord has in mind for us as far as dogs are concerned.  In the meantime, I’ll be content with reading about dogs. 

In yesterday’s post, I mentioned pork steaks as a food unique to the St. Louis area … that made me so hungry for pork steaks that we got some and cooked them out on the grill. I think we’ll grill some chicken breasts today.

Every morning I check the long-range forecast for Hilton Head … and every morning it changes.  One day the forecast is for warm weather and sunny skies, the next it’s for cooler weather and rain.  I know that meteorologists have a hard enough time with a 24-hour forecast, so expecting a long-range forecast to be accurate is unrealistic.  Still, it just seems odd that the forecast can change so much in such a short period of time.

Speaking of weather, we’re in store for another nice day here.  A high in the mid 70’s with sunny skies.  DH has taken our car into the shop this morning for some routine maintenance.  Maybe we’ll go for a bike ride when he gets home this afternoon.  In the meantime, I think I’ll do some quilting.

Wednesday Hodgepodge

 

 

 

Another Wednesday is here … and so is another Hodgepodge.  I love the Hodgepodge, don’t you?  Why not join in?  Just click on the button above.  Easy-peasy!

 

1. William Shakespeare's birthday is celebrated on April 23rd...when did you last read Shakespeare? What's your favorite Shakespeare play?

As far as I can remember, the last time I read any Shakespeare was in high school.  And to be honest, I only remember reading two of his plays – Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet, so my favorite of those two would have to be Romeo and Juliet … although I remember more lines from Hamlet than I do from Romeo and Juliet.   

 

2. What food(s) would you recommend a foreign visitor try when they visit your home country?

Is there one particular style of food that truly represents the US?  I can’t think of one … but there are certain foods that are closely identified with St. Louis – toasted ravioli, pork steak, gooey butter cake.  I would recommend these to a visitor.

 

3. What's a lie you often tell yourself?

I’m not sure if it’s a lie that I tell myself or a lie that the enemy has convinced me to believe, but I struggle with thinking that I don’t read my Bible enough, that I don’t pray enough, that I’m just not good enough.  While I do desire to grow in my walk with the Lord, I know that my future isn’t dependent on how often I pray, read my Bible or how good I try to be … that there’s nothing I can do to make Jesus love me more nor is there anything I can do to make Him love me less.  But in this performance-driven world, it’s too easy for me to begin to believe the lies that the enemy keeps telling me.

 

4. What's something you're good at that might surprise us? Remember this is a family friendly blog!

I’m at a loss on this one …   

 

5. Who is your favorite animal character from a book?

I’ve always been an avid reader … I remember walking to the library as a child and returning with so many books that it’s a wonder that I didn’t drop a few along the way.  But I cannot remember reading any books with animal characters … surely I did, but I certainly cannot remember any.  But then are you surprised?  After all

 

 

6. April showers bring May flowers...do you have a green thumb?

I don’t know that I have a “green thumb”, but I don’t have a “black thumb”.  I’ve got an aloe plant and a philodendron that I’ve been able to keep alive for several years.  I also doubled the size of our landscaping here, chose the plants and planted them myself.  This will be the 3rd summer since I planted them, and they all are doing well (of course, we had a mild winter and everything is thriving).

 

7. Speaking of rainy days...which one of the following activities would you most want to spend time doing on a rainy day-

• sort photos and create albums
• bake cookies
• read a good book
• hold an all-day movie marathon
• organize closets, cupboards, or bookshelves
• try a new recipe
• fix something that needs fixing

If I have to choose one of the 7 that Joyce has listed, I would choose an all-day movie marathon, but if I could choose whatever I wanted to do on a rainy day, I suspect that I’d choose quilting, but then again I’d probably put on some of my favorite movies to “watch” while quilting … so maybe I am going with one of Joyce’s choices after all.

 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

There’s nothing much on my schedule for the next several days.  Since the last several days have been fairly busy ones, I haven’t had any time to get some quilting done … so I’m hoping to spend some time with needle and thread these next couple of days.     

The Weekend Wrap Up

 

 

Usually our weekends are slow-paced and relaxing … this past weekend was anything but slow-paced and relaxing.  And while it was a fun weekend and we had a good time, I have to confess that I’m glad to get back into our normal routine.

 

My sister and her S.O. came down to spend the weekend visiting my dad and us.  She lives almost 4 hours away, so we don’t get together all too often, so we usually have a great time when we get together.  They stopped here to pick us up to go with them to St. Louis to pick up some candles that my sister will be selling in her new little retail space.  The shop where she picked up the candles had a retail space, so we spent a little time browsing.  By the time we left the shop, we declared that it was time for lunch, so we headed to a cute little place … a general store with a deli in back where we had some of the best sandwiches we’ve ever had!  I wish I had thought to take my camera with me so I could share some pictures of the fun we had.     By the time we finished up with lunch, it was time to head out to our dad’s to watch the Cardinals game … which they won. 

 

Saturday morning we headed out to my dad’s (a 45-minute drive).  We visited the Historical Museum in the small town where I grew up and my dad still lives.  The Museum is housed in the house where my maternal grandparents lived when I was a little bitty girl.  We lived a block to the south, and I can remember my mom walking me about a third of the way and my grandma walking down a third of the way to get me.  It was probably just a few steps without either one by my side, but I remember feeling like such a big girl getting to walk that little way all by myself (I was probably 4-5).  Being in the museum didn’t bring back any memories of time in my grandparents’ house, but there were a lot of interesting artifacts and displays.  We watched the Cardinals game that evening, switching to the Blues hockey game during the commercial breaks.  While the Cardinals lost, the Blues were able to finish the Sharks and win the conference quarterfinal series … it had been 10 years since the they’d won a playoff series, so it’s an exciting time right now for a Blues fan. 

 

Sunday morning we set out once again for my dad’s.  We visited the site of a fort built in 1806, which was the site of an Indian ambush during the War of 1812.  We watched the Cardinals game, which the Cardinals won.  My sister and her S.O. headed home after the game, and we left not too long afterwards.  I spent the evening quilting.  It was a relaxing evening, which was a perfect ending to a good weekend.  

 

Wednesday Hodgepodge

 

 

It’s Wednesday again … and time for the Hodgepodge!

 

1. Spring is in the air (at least in my neck of the woods) and the birds are singing...what's your favorite bird?

This is tough.  I guess I’ll choose the pelican.  There’s a certain majestic beauty about them when they’re in flight … and when I see pelicans, I know I’m at the beach!  Click on the picture below to see the pelicans more closely. 

 

2. Speaking of birds...do you tweet? If so tell us your screen name and we'll come flocking to your Twitter site. Even if you don't let's all pretend here that we do-in 140 characters or less, sum up your week so far.

No, I don’t tweet.  My week has been a busy one so far. Cleaning carpets, quilting, watching hockey/baseball/grands’ soccer.  I hope that’s 140 characters or less … I don’t intend to count. 

 

3. Its been reported recently that employers are not only viewing the facebook pages of potential hires but they're also requesting your facebook password to have a look at what you've kept from public view. What say you?

I think that’s just wrong.  I don’t see how that’s any different than demanding to see a prospective employee’s private correspondence (written, emailed, texted).  If a prospective employer wants to check out a PUBLIC Facebook page, that’s all well and good … but the line is drawn when they want the password.  If I were the prospective employee, I’d say “no thanks”.  I’m not sure I’d want to work there anyway … if that’s what they ask of prospective employees, what are they going to ask of employees? 

 

4. It's April and you know what that means-Major League Baseball is back in action. What's your favorite baseball movie? If that's too hard, what's your favorite sports themed movie?

I’m a fan of baseball … but baseball movies, not so much.  I guess if I had to pick a favorite, it would be Field of Dreams.

 

5. Something else this season brings-asparagus. Yes please or no thanks? If it's yes please what's your favorite way to have it prepared?

Yes please!  Roasted, with shaved parmesan cheese … and tossed with a little balsamic vinegar before serving. 

 

6. What drives you? (Don't you love how I sandwiched that one in between asparagus and jugglers???)

My desire to leave my daughter and grands a lasting legacy.

  

7. April 18th is International Jugglers Day...can you juggle?

No.

 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Here is the complete block that I pieced together Monday evening while watching the Blues defeat the Sharks.  I pieced another half block as well … only 79 1/2 more to go. 

 

Tuesday Trivia

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again:  my life is nothing if not random, so sharing my life means sharing my randomness. 

I posted yesterday that we cleaned carpets.  Whew, that job is over, furniture is back in place, and I’m hoping that we won’t have to do that again any time soon.  At least it was worth it … the carpets do look a whole lot better.  Next on my to-do list: clean the windows.  I keep putting them off … partly because only the bottom halves of our windows drop in for easy cleaning.  Since our house is on a sloping lot, the windows in the back are essentially 2nd-story windows.  We don’t have a ladder that would reach … and even if we did, my fear of heights would keep me from getting up that high to clean those windows.  My rationale is why clean the windows when they’re not going to be 100% clean because I couldn’t get the exerior top half of the windows cleaned.  This year I’m going to see if I can’t find some way to get the exteriors of our back windows cleaned … and get all of our windows cleaned.

The carpets took a lot longer to dry this time, so we had to wait until this morning to get the furniture back in place.  That meant that I had to come up with an alternative to my plan to hand quilt while watching the Blues game last night.  So I decided to work on the piecing for my next quilt.  A month or so ago, I finally decided to sort through my leftover fabrics and discovered that I had a whole bunch of 1 1/2” strips of blue and of white-on-white … enough that I could make a good-sized log cabin quilt.  It didn’t take much arm-twisting to decide that would be my next quilt … I love log cabin quilts (this will be my 4th), and since cutting fabrics is my least favorite part of quilting, this meant that I had to do only a minimum of cutting.  The only “problem” is that I didn’t have any red in my leftover fabrics for the “chimney”.  We stopped at Wal-mart on the way home from T#3’s soccer game last night, and I bought a couple of yards of a pretty red with small white dots.  The fabric was half the price it would be in a quilt shop (and it’s 100% cotton), so I picked up a couple of yards.  Not sure if/when I’ll use it since the majority of the fabrics in my “stash” are colors that just won’t play well with a red …but it was such a nice price that I couldn’t resist.  I was pleased to see that they were expanding their sewing/craft area.  I hope they add more fabrics.  I normally buy my fabrics at quilt shops, but their prices are just so high, their service isn’t always that great, and it’s a 30-minute drive to the nearest quilt shop of any size.  Having a nearby alternative (with much less expensive fabrics) sure would be nice.

I was able to get all the strips cut and pieced together 1 1/2 of the 9” blocks.  Today I plan to get back to the hand quilting of my Irish chain … the end is in sight.  I had hoped to get it done before we leave for Hilton Head, but I don’t think that’s going to happen.  And it’s ok, but now that I’ve got a little bit of a head start on my next quilt, I’m kind of anxious to get some more work done on it.  Oh, the dilemmas!  Ha!

The Weekend Wrap-Up

 

 

Another week has come and gone … how times flies when we’re having fun. 

 

Friday was the home opener for the Cardinals.  I’ve not seen the opening day festivities for other teams, but I have to admit that I think that the Cardinals put on a pretty good show.  This year, the pregame festivities didn’t disappoint, in spite of an almost 2-hour rain delay.  Too bad that I can’t say the same about the game itself. 

 

Saturday’s soccer games were cancelled … it had rained quite a bit Friday evening, and more rain was in the forecast for Saturday.  I spent the afternoon watching the Cardinals game (with a much better outcome) while preparing the snacks we took to our first ever Trivia Night.  We had a good time … and our team took 3rd place!  None of the other team members had ever been to a Trivia Night either, so I guess it must have been a case of beginner’s luck.    We won $18 (our share of the $75 prize), which we gave back to the youth group. 

 

Our Sunday was pretty uneventful.  We were at church in the morning, and other than working out in the yard a little, we didn’t accomplish too much.  It was kind of nice to have a fairly quiet end to the weekend.

 

 

Today looks to be a little busier than our Sunday … we will be cleaning carpets and finishing up the yard work that didn’t get done yesterday.  I hope that I’ll be able to get in some quilting, too.