It's a Brown Out!

I got out this morning about 10:30 and it was a nice beautiful summer morning.  The heat hadn't gotten up to 90 degrees yet, but it was clear skies and looking gorgeous.  Why did I leave my house?  I was craving an iced coffee from Sonic.  A route 44 vanilla iced coffee with Caramel and extra cream and sweetener.  It is addictive, a little pricey, but less than a 20 ounce latte from Starbucks and way better than their iced coffee!!  (Jack in the Box has a great iced coffee, too.  just saying) 

Anyway, the main reason I decided to post today is because my gorgeous, beautiful morning turned into a brown, dust and wind blowing day.  It hit so hard and fast that it sounded like a herd of cats had jumped on my porch roof landing hard.  BOOM!  It has been blowing steady now for over an hour and is just brown and yucky out there.  I am so glad I got out early to get my drink so that I can now hunker down inside the house and work on sewing, quilting stuff and class projects.  Also, I can take a nap if I want.  LOL 

I am sitting here at my desk watching the lake white cap and the trees bend as the winds blow in from the north.  (yes, the lake is back full again after 3 consecutive nights of rain that was so desperately needed) The ducks that I can see are balled up trying to hold onto the grass and keep from getting blown away and the cat that sat on the fence last night taunting my dogs is nowhere to be found.  It's definitely a stay inside and sew kind of day.  Or nap - which is what I think I will do first before hitting the sewing machine again later tonight.  My Kaffe fabrics I ordered from Amazon and Missouri Star are here and I need to decide if work in the block swap patterns that my swapping people have chosen.  Light blue Kaffe is hard to come by.  I got a white with light blue dots, a blue with green dots (not as light as the picture made it out to be) and a millefiori that has light blue, but also a lot of yellow.  I need to get those items cut out and ready to sew since I haven't made May's blocks or Junes.  (I can't even remember what June's block is supposed to be.)  Okay, no nap until I figure out the block patterns! 

My friend posted a video from our news station and I am going to see if I can post it over here to share.  It's sometimes hard for people to believe who don't or haven't lived in the panhandle or west Texas to imagine what it's like.  so, hopefully here it is.  had to copy the link for you.  

https://fb.watch/dwEHL3TutH/

I'm Back! Again!

It has been almost six years since I wrote on my blog.  It feels like so much more.  I can't believe I allowed 6 years to pass me by without writing here.  You would have thought that I might have jumped on here while I was isolating in 2020, but I was still teaching the first part of the shut down and because I was on the computer every day for hours, I didn't feel like adding anymore eye strain or computer time to my life.  Then I decided to retire from teaching.  Boom. Just like that. I had taught for 35 years so the transition from school to nothing was a bit weird -  for about a week.  It felt like a typical summer break.  Everyone said, wait until August when school starts up again, it will feel strange then.  It didn't. 

I am still isolating for the most part. Okay, I am an introvert and a hermit so I may call it isolating, but you know, I'm just being me.  LOL.  I stay home A LOT.  I get out for a few things, but where do I really need to go? Why get dressed and put on make-up?  I don't usually see anyone except at the drive thru or picking up groceries or through my office window.  I do get out though.  I am not a complete hermit.  I quilt with my group, keep the books for volleyball and basketball, and have started teaching quilting at a local quilt store.  

I have been sewing quite a bit even these last couple of years though I've slowed down some this year.  I finished 21 quilts in 2021!!  That's an accomplishment. (finish means, quilted, bound and label on)  I also made a ton of quilt tops that need to be quilted and finished.  (hopefully by 2023) I need to put the binding on the last of the little cousin's quilts.  The last two are for my youngest nephews.  One has been finished for quite awhile, the other just needs to be squared up and binding and label put on.  (I have until July to get that one done)  I will have made and given away 23 quilts.  (or will have as soon as I get everyone's quilts to them.  I still have a few that have been sitting here taking up space at my house!  I am just too lazy to make a couple of trips to drop them off.  IE:  hermit)  

Last summer my mother said she should probably give her nieces and nephews a quilt and I was like, "that would be nice" then realized that was my first cousins and I had given all of their children a quilt for high school graduation, so why not them?  OOPS!  My first cousins on my mother's side will all be getting quilts soon, too.  I am raiding my quilt stash,  putting on labels, and getting quilts ready to give to each of them.  It's hard to give away a quilt that wasn't made specifically for a person; at least it is for me.  When I am making a quilt for a certain person, that quilt really belongs to them as I sew it up.  I hope they all know that if I need the quilt back to show for whatever reason, I am coming to their homes and taking it back!!  LOL.  I don't think I would ever do that, but there are a couple I just might have to go snatch back for awhile.  I really loved a few and didn't want to give them away. 

If you have made it this far and are still willing to follow me on my blog, thank you.  You won't hurt my feelings if you want to excuse yourself from this blog.  It has been sitting idle for 6 years so you may have not felt the need to delete it from your list.  I hope you stay, but if not, thank you for following me on the first part of the journey.  Now on to the second. (or 3rd or 4th) 

Wonderful Weekend in Hamilton

Just a few more days of summer vacation left for me, ugghh!  I have gotten a lot of quilting done in the last couple of months and that has been wonderful.  I haven't given school much thought other than, "not thinking about it right now." However, it's almost time to start thinking about it.  Thinking about what I want to do differently, how I want to change up some things that went well, but could be improved upon. Things like that.  I love my Facebook group of FCS (Family Consumer Science) Teachers and reading everything they are doing in their classrooms, but man oh man, there are a lot of beginner and second year teachers on there!!  Plus, they come from all over the United States so their curriculum is a bit different from ours here in Texas.  Still, it's a great source to pull things from.  I guess since it's almost time to go back, I need to get on there and start downloading files of things I want to do and plugging them into my plans.  (not that I always write down plans, but I do have a file in my head.  Things would probably get done better if I actually wrote down the plans from my head, LOL) 


Got back a few days ago from a quilt retreat up in Hamilton, MO with my mom's quilt group from Northwest Arkansas.  My mom and I had a great time up there with 35 other women.  We sewed and shopped all day, played games mid evening before everyone gave up and went to bed and then for us late nighters, we stayed up and sewed into the wee hours of the morning most nights.  Fun, fun, fun!!  If you ever get the chance to go up to Hamilton, do it.  It is something every quilter should have the chance to experience at least once in his/her lifetime.  13 stores full of fabrics, notions and fun fills up the entire town.  It's wonderful.  Plus, if you are lucky enough to schedule a retreat there, it's even more fun to watch and experience the town life.  (Friday nights the farmers and Amish have a small farmers market - don't miss out on the hand pies, fresh breads, fresh fruits and veggies and homemade noodles.  (last year they even had two kids for sale, baby goats)  Now, I haven't tried the noodles yet, but we got some this year on the word of one of the ladies that purchased some last year that raved over them and then proceeded to purchase all they had except for the one bag we happened to get.  Now I have to decide how I want to use them. 


This is the only one I have access to.  I had to download it from a Facebook page, but you will be able to see something that I worked on over the weekend.

She wanted to make sure she could see me, but left off one entire column of blocks.  Oh, well, it still needs a couple of borders which I hope to get on this weekend.  (if I can ever unload my machine from my car) 

Three New Bags

I am scrolling through a blog and wanting to read what the blogger has said about what to do with your farmer's market finds and some recipes of how to cook these items and all I get are advertisements!!  I really, really hate that a lot of my favorite blog sites that I used to read everyday or at least every couple of days have totally sold out and allow all these advertisers to come into their blogs.  A lot of the time I don't even read what they said because I am having to wait so long for all the advertisements to load, that I just get frustrated and leave that blog.  Does this happen to anyone else?  Is anyone else totally annoyed with this problem?  I am so glad that they have found a way to make money off of something they used to enjoy doing - and may still enjoy doing, I don't know because I have stopped reading their blogs due to all the advertisements! 


A lot of my favorite quilt bloggers are now famous quilters and have moved on to pattern making, fabric design and other things, that they either don't blog anymore or it's all about selling their items.  Don't get me wrong, I am excited for them that they have found a way to make the money doing something they apparently love.  I am sad that I no longer get to read about their fun innovative ideas, about their lives and what they were creating.  They have all moved on and reading blogs and getting inspired by what I was reading and then creating my own version just doesn't happen anymore and it's a sad change in my world. 


I have been busy creating items since school got out.  I made three bags recently.  I made them to take on our recent shop hop excursion.  One for me, one for my fellow traveling companion and friend and the last one I will probably sell.  I have more fabric and plan on making several more that I will, more than likely, sell.  I have posted them on Facebook and Instagram both, but not on here.  I guess those are easy posts that I can quickly make from my phone and posting over here is a little more involved. 

This last one is my favorite one.  I love the fabric and colors in it and have some more to make another one just like it, but I probably won't. I will make a different style bag with these fabrics.  Not sure what since I don't use a pattern and just wing it.  However, I will try to post here first this next time. 

Schools Out For . . . well, almost out

We are so near the end I can almost reach out and touch it!  2 days with students and one to finish grades, finish cleaning and putting away and finish with school!!  I am ready for it to be over with.  Don't take it wrong, it has been a good year, fast, full of stuff, but a good year, I am just done.  I really wasn't in this mood until memorial day weekend.  having a three day weekend just before the week of finals was poor planning!  It made me not want to return to school today, it made me ready to be done and it made me want to just sit and sew all day long.  Which is what I have planned for my summer!  Or, I should say the next 8 weeks since that is all of a summer we have this year.  I am sure that will fly by quickly and I won't want to return to school in the August, but we will see what the future holds.  I am making my bucket list of what I want to get accomplished this summer and maybe I can get some of that list done, unlike a couple of years ago where I only got a few items marked off.


I was scanning through my pictures I have downloaded and there is nothing new to show.  They are all still on my phone so I will have to do better and get them on here to show you what I have been working on, because I have been working.

Ever have this disease?

I have a really bad case of the "Idon'twanna"s.  This week my students have been testing on their home campuses and only coming over for the last half of my double blocked class and then returning to their campuses for the last class of the day.  Even though I had big plans on getting things done and graded and cleaned up, I have gotten nothing done at all!!  I take that back. I have gotten several things done, but not what I had planned on doing.  After two entire days of mostly sitting around working on the computer, planning future caterings, etc., today (our third day in a row and our last day) I really have come down with the "Idon'twanna" disease and have spread it to my classroom aide.  As I sit here yawning, waiting for two students to show up before taking attendance for the 20 minutes they will be in my classroom, I am writing in the blog.

My body is ready for school to be out and to move to my summer schedule.  I am having a really hard time getting to bed before midnight (more like 1 a.m.) and getting up by 7 (should be 5:30!!).  I have been sewing most nights working on my row quilt.  It's not a large one - only 42 1/4" wide so far.  I know I want to add a wide border on the left side with maybe a tree or branches or possibly floating blocks.

It's Not Easy Being a Sick Teacher

It's no fun being sick!  I woke up Monday feeling bad, but knew I had to go into work since it was our first day back from Spring Break.  Left school a little early, went home and lounged, but could I sleep?  No.  I woke up almost every hour on the hour!  I couldn't breathe!  However, I knew since we were having restaurant on Thursday, we had to get pies made.  So, into work I go on Tuesday.  Still feeling bad, but not totally horrible.  Needless to say, but I will anyway, my week has continued on in this fashion.  I have been here everyday, I haven't slept much at a time (last night was the longest between wakenings at 4 hours!!) Today, I feel HORRIBLE!!!  I am leaving school here in a few minutes to go to the doctor.  I know he is going to ask how long I have been like this and when I say since Monday, he is going to give me the look.  I am prepared for that look.  I know!  But sometimes you just have to do, push through and hold on until you just can't do it any more.

by the way, restaurant was wonderful!  We served Chips and Salsa, Green Enchiladas - with beef - Mexican style rice and beans and a variety of pies - how many varieties you ask - well, let me tell you.  I had purchased graham cracker pie crusts on sale after Christmas for cheap!  really cheap!  so we made:
 1. Peanut Butter with fudge topping, - this was a first for me.  one of my students found this recipe and it is a keeper!  definitely going into the recipe folder.
2.  My 8 minute cheesecake pie with fresh strawberries - this is always a winner in my book
3.  One of my childhood favorites, Pink Lemonade Pie, YUM!
4.  S'more pie - this was a new one - another student found this and wanted to try it.  It was a medium size hit and is also going into the recipe folder.
5.  Key Lime Pie.  this recipe, that a student found, is lacking something, even though some people liked it well enough.  I think my aunt's recipe is better.  I have it at home and I guess I need to add it to my school folder.
6.  chocolate Cream pie - another student find and it was a flop.  literally.  It ran all over the pie pan.  It needs some help or better yet, I think I will throw that recipe out.  I have a better chocolate pie that I will use next time.
7.  Caramel Banana Cream Pie - this one we combined a couple of recipes to create.  It was good, but runny.  It's a keeper with some major altering of the recipe.  it needs some help being more of a complete pie instead of a banana pudding.
8.  Cherry O Cream pie - I wish the students had made a couple more of these.  It's the standard pie from the 70's.

I think that is all of the pies we served yesterday.  It was a lot and when they ran out, we were out! I tried to stay out of the restaurant and kitchen as much as possible and just let my students run it since I was sickly and they, along with my aide, did a great job.  I could mostly sit at my desk and take in the money the waiters would bring me.  

It was a fun week in the kitchen, but I am so ready for a shot and some meds and my bed!  Can't wait until I can go to the doctor.  (Now, how many people do you know say that?)  I am glad I was here all week so my students could cook, but I have to get well so they can cook again next week.

Spring Break is in the Books!

Have had a GREAT spring break!  Started the week taking a two day class with Gail Garber.  The first day we learned how to draft our spectacular stars.  Then after a pot luck lunch, we began making our patterns and paper piecing the pie segments.  I think I got most of one finished before class was dismissed and we took Ms. Gail out to eat at the famous Barn Door steak house.  She was so impressed with the big block of cheese they serve that she just had to take a picture.  LOL She really enjoyed her prime rib and sweet potato fries, too.  Several of us returned to the church to continue sewing our stars and many finished them in time for the next days class.  Gail was so impressed with us! 

Frances' star block

Gerrie's first star block started last year, but finished this week

Donna's star block

Cathi's star block proving you can make magic even when you mess up!

Chelsie's first block.  She was the first to finish hers.

Chelsie's second star block.  She was bored waiting for us to finish so she drafted and made another.

Gerrie's second block drafted and made first and then she finished her other one. 

Glenda's star block

Liz's star block

Ruth's amazing star block.  This took some fussy cutting and patience!



Last, but not least is my star block

The next day we returned for day two of our class and circular borders.  Since not all of us were finished with our blocks, some of us got to have a 1/2 day class on free form drafting!!  Such fun!  She showed us how to draft and draw our curved pieces and then set us free to draw all we wanted.  She would bring us back from time to time - she did need to go to the other room and check on everyone else finishing up their stars - and teach us how to draft another area.  It was so much fun. After lunch, she taught us how to draft about 10 different circular borders.  Then we began making our patterns and sewing our borders.  That evening we took Gail to eat at Osaka's a Japanese steak house (okay, now that I see it in print, it looks like it would be similar, but they are totally different steak houses!)  Osaka's has the traditional Japanese cooktop there at the table and you get a show and dinner all at the same time.  Plus, the food is delicious!  However, it's really pricey.  It was at dinner that I found out Gail and I share a birthday!  She had never met anyone with her same birthday before and was really surprised.  I think she enjoyed her time with us here in Odessa and I know we all enjoyed having her come teach us for two days.  Here are a few of the blocks with their second and in some cases, third rounds. 



I was going to label them, but every time I try, it highlights everyone and then deletes a few.  So, Frances added dancing Kachina dolls to hers, Liz added a plain green border and then sewed a picket fence border to add around.  I added flying geese in two sizes and then added a squared up border and another small purple border.  I plan on putting it on point in the middle of a larger quilt.  Ruth added a thin green border and then purple points around hers and last, but not least, Glenda added a big/little border she calls Kristy's Mountains around her block.  It has been fun to see how each one has changed and grown. I can't wait to see what everyone does with theirs.  I do know that Frances is adding some big/little mountains around her Kachina's, Chelsie added some pointy dudes around her first one, Gerrie was adding a border around her first wheat one, but I can't remember off the top of my head what pattern she was using even though I assisted with color choices.  Donna is doing flying geese.  So, maybe by next month we will have some semi finished if not totally finished tops ready to be quilted. 

The rest of the week we had an extra quilt-in.  We sewed from 9 a.m. - 11p.m. almost every day.  Of course, not all of us stayed the entire time.  Some days I didn't get there until closer to 10 and some people left before it got dark.  It was a wonderful time with a lot, I mean a lot of people choosing to spend part of their week sewing up at the church.  (about 32 different people came through, with an average daily attendance of around 18) It was a great time and even though I didn't get anything done that I had on my list of things to do this week, I am looking forward to getting back into a routine.  Getting back in the kitchen with my students.  Ready to finish out this school year. 

Two Birds . . .

Don't you hate it when you are part of a group thing and it gets shut down and you aren't told it's getting shut down and you go to it and it's no longer there?  I had a student in my cooperative learning class several years ago (student goes to school half the day and then goes to work the other half) and she went in to work as she was scheduled and the business had closed.  No phone call, no warning, just shut the doors.  Not even a sign on the door!!  She had been at work the night before.  It was really weird.  That is not what I am talking about specifically, but it relates.  Oh, well.  There was no sign on the door, no advanced warning, just closed.  bummer!!  I really enjoyed that group thingy I was a part of for several years.  Maybe those "doors"  will reopen sometime in the future or something else will come along. 


What is not a bummer though is this fun, wonderful, kills two birds with one stone quilt top I just finished. 

This is my Purple Penny Patch Quilt that I finished this weekend (without the top row showing since this was being held up by two of my students, they don't understand the importance of showing all the quilt!  However, the one on the left did put that edge out over the table corner so it would show, just not the top row.  I started this quilt top as an example of using 4 patch units in a quilt.  I had made two blocks, one had a pink/purple print as the large square and the other had a mottled purple large square.  Two of my little cousins (my first cousins children) wanted purple quilts for their high school graduation.  Well, they have been out of high school for at least 4 or 5 years now and I just can not force myself to make them an all purple quilt.  I had cut about 20 fat quarters and tied them all up ready to make either a Yellow Brick Road quilt or a turning twenty quilt.  I just haven't forced myself to make them.  Purple is not my go to color choice even though I like it, it's just not the first color I think of like soooo many people today.  Anyway, after seeing these two blocks up on the design wall, I thought, "Purple!!!  I can use those fat quarters I cut for a purple yellow brick road quilt to add some zing and pizzazz to this quilt." So, that is what I did.  I only made 12 blocks, (12 fat quarters) and that meant that the top was only 48 X 64.  It needed to be wider.  Of course, I can't do things symmetrical so I cut strips from the remaining 8 1/2" segment that I cut my square from and sewed those together.  Once I got my strips sewn, I planned on cutting that long section to put part on the left and part on the right, but decided to put it all on one side.  Now I needed to cut some more strips to put onto the right side, just not the same size.  Looking good.  However the top and bottom look unfinished, but I don't want to add too much to the length so no piano keys for them, just bricks with a little bit of the leftover keys sewn in.  The top has only one row of bricks and the bottom has two.  Love how this turned out and this will be one of the girl's quilts after I get a purple back (already have the fabric for this) cut out and put together to send off to the quilter.  First, though, it is part of the 4 patch class I will be teaching at retreat in a couple of weeks.  two birds, one stone!  Love it!! 

Stuff again

Writing prompt for the day:  on this day in 1924 the first winter Olympics were held.  What is your favorite event and why? 


It totally shocked me that about half of all my students had never watched the winter Olympics on television and couldn't tell me what any of the events might be.  WHAT???  shocked!  My aide was shocked and my appraiser who was in my class today was shocked.  It was crazy.  I don't know how anyone in todays world of having 3+ televisions per household could ever grow up and not have watched the winter Olympics.  some had never watched the summer ones either.  Now I know these are mostly 16/17/18 year olds, but come on!  I remember watching the Olympics while sitting on my parents bed in their bedroom because it was something special. 


Feeling better.  Stomach has finally settled down a lot and not being so picky which is a good thing.  I just wish it had gotten better before last weekends trip to the FCSTAT mid-winter conference.  I just didn't feel up to going out with the group for Mexican food. (nope, didn't think I could handle that)  I posted a picture of a slice of cheesecake and it was pretty good, couldn't eat it all even though it was small, but even the wonderfulness of it didn't sit well. Couldn't lay down to sleep due to the nausea.  However, I was glad that that was all it was the entire weekend.  Just that feeling of yuck without all the yuck. 


Got a full week of things going on and am looking forward to our stay at home quilt retreats we have in our quilt group.  We will be getting together to plan out our row quilts for the year and coming up with what all we want to go in our quilts and how we want to do them.  I anticipate that we will have at least three groups that come together to plan their row quilts; traditional, modern and improve. 


Gotta get some rest for tomorrow is looking like it might be a long day. 

MLK Day Break

Martin Luther King Day and I am home from school.  That is a good thing.  I am sick.  That is a bad thing.  I have gotten nothing done today and I am okay with that given the circumstances.  I had planned on going to get soup in Midland - Harvest Café - Bahama Chicken Enchilada soup, yummm! I had planned on sewing a few more blocks in the 4 patch variations segment.  I had planned on taking out the trash, washing clothes, cooking. . . . none of this got done. Well, I did wash one load of clothes, but that wasn't even a drop in the bucket on the clothes front.  I may have to stay home tomorrow, too - depends on how the night goes, if I am still running fever - and that is not the best thing.  There are way too many things to get done this semester and it is already cut into by FCCLA regionals (I have to work two other ones beside ours) and possibly state. That means I will be out at least 8 or 9 days just with FCCLA.  Then there are the quilting things.  You know I have to have my quilting things.  That is another 4 days of being out.  I have to attend the FCSTAT Mid Winter conference so add in a couple more days and I am going to miss about 3 weeks of school just attending to other things.  That doesn't even include in case I get sick.  Which, knock on wood, I haven't had a sinus infection so far this year!  (I was really, really sick with a couple of them back to back last year and then had a reaction to my meds.  It was not good.  I even had to miss out on some of the FCCLA and ALL of the quilting last spring which is why I am NOT going to miss out on the quilting this spring!  If I can help it)  Even though its a nice break and it's mostly for the kids, it's still hard to get the rhythm going and flowing in the classroom.  We were just picking up speed and then we have this day off from school.  We will just be picking up the speed again and then it's spring break.  Don't get me wrong, I love the breaks we get.  It's just hard sometimes to keep the flow going when you are in and out of the classroom.  But that is life. 




Here is the top for my word of the year quilt.  I just need to quilt and bind it - hey strips are cut at least!  Then I will have one completed quilt for the year. 

I had planned on posting the 4 patch variations I have been working on, but apparently I deleted them from my e-mails and will need to resend them from my phone again.  On the good side, that will be another post!  I will try not to be so whiny in the next one.  Maybe by then my body will feel better.

From my phone

Words and Water

Today was the first day back at school with students after the Christmas Holiday break and I introduced the concept of one word for the year to my students.  Tomorrow, they will have to write in their journal what their one word is and why.  It will be interesting to see what they come up with and their reasoning behind choosing their word of the year.  I will have them periodically check back in - through their writing about once a month.- to see how they are doing with their word.  They won't have a quilt wall-hanging in their face to remind them of their word, which is why I will have them write in their journal about how they are progressing in their year.  I have never done this before, but since my word is "better", maybe this will help me make (mold) them into better students, people and family and community members. 


Of course, being the first day back (actually the second, I had to be at work yesterday, too, just no students yesterday) I stayed up too late last night and hit the snooze a few times this morning.  I will have to work my way back into the routine of going to bed earlier and getting up earlier again.  I allowed myself to get out of it during our two weeks off. (by Saturday and Sunday I was way off my schedule.  I went to bed Sunday morning at 3!!  That is summertime schedule!)  In this instance, every time I do this, it is usually on Thursday that I have the absolutely hardest time getting up and moving.  We will see if that holds true this time, too.  Okay, as I look at the clock on the computer, I see that I am already late getting in bed tonight.  (10:42) And I still need to move the wash to the dryer, kennel the dogs and find some more water!  (that is in the garage - so a cold trip out there for me! - for those of you not in Odessa, Texas - our water is horrible!  I only drink bottled water - I refill my gallon jugs with RO - reverse osmosis - water and I keep my full jugs in the garage.  Since I ran out this morning filling up my quart drinking bottle, I forgot to bring one in when I got home from school)  So, since I still need to get some stuff done tonight, I will sign off for now. Hey, two blogs this week.  Doing Better!

Better

Life got really busy this last 6 months since school started back up and I dropped a lot of balls.  One of which was blogging.  I have really missed it, believe it or not.  I would think about what I wanted to blog about, but never made it to the computer to put those words into the blog.  Most weeks I didn't make it to the computer to do anything!  I know that this spring semester is already jam packed with things I have to get done for school, quilting group, FCCLA, the dogs, and life in general.  I know I am going to be super busy, but I also knew as this new year was coming at me fast and furious, I needed a word for the year.  I originally thought I would use the same word from last year as my word for this year since I didn't really get to "create" much for more than half the year, but the more I thought about it, the more another word kept popping into my head.  I had gone on the blogs and written down words other people had chosen over the years and filled up a full scrap page of words I could choose from.  I read through them again and again, but nothing seemed to fit.  Then I started thinking about how I wanted to be.  What I wanted to do.  Yes, I want to create.  I am happier when I am creating.  It relaxes me and makes me more complete.  Therefore, in order for me to be able to do that I needed to manage my time better and carve out some space just to create.  I want to get healthy.  No more knee braces - even though I have done well in that area this past year.  This means I need to make better choices about food - come on - I teach foods and nutrition.  I know how to do this, I just don't always have time.  So, I need to plan better to make the time.  I want my courses to flow better.  That means I need to work better at planning out the year so it coordinates with what we want to accomplish in class, competition and restaurant.  I need to make time to get together with friends and be a better friend.  Quit hibernating so much.  Okay, I don't really want to totally go back to my "social" year, but I can do better about getting out.  Maybe have a girls night out from time to time or a girls lunch on Saturdays. 


There are so many things I would like to accomplish in this year and the one word that kept jumping out at me was, BETTER.  I could do better, be better, work better, eat better.  Yes, that word is my word for this year.  I want to do, be, etc. BETTER. 


What about you, do you have a word for the year?  Instead of having an entire list of resolutions that I am unable to keep - or don't want to keep - I have chosen just one - see, easier if you only have one - one word for the year that I need to work on.   I proposed to my quilting group that they come up with a word for themselves this year,  make a wall quilt so they can see it, refer back to it from time to time during the year and next December, evaluate how they did during the 2016 year. 


In 2015, I didn't do so well on my word, create.  I started off the year with a bang, but it fizzled.  So this year, I am going to do . . . BETTER.  Happy New Year! 

patience

today was a day for practicing patience. It all started this morning at the Sonic in Burkburnett. They are awesome and have a drive thru. I pull up and wait my turn. After at least 12 minutes without one single car moving, there are at least four cars I can see, I decide to move to a hop spot. I push the button and wait. Meanwhile, the cars in the drive thru have moved one spot. still waiting and they have moved two, now three and I have yet to order. They are not moving quickly, but at least they are moving. If I had stayed in line I would have already placed my order. Okay, now finally I get to order. It should be here soon. . . . . . . . The car that was behind me plus 4 more have gotten their orders in the drive thru. . . . . . . Only two cars are in the drive thru, it has been about 30 minutes total at this Sonic so I back out, pull into the drive thru behind that last car and up to the window. I tell the guy that I had placed my order over at the hop spot, tell him what it was, a large sweet tea with raspberry, he goes to fix it and the hop walks out with my drink on a tray. she notices that there is no car - did I mention that I was the only car in the hop spots??? - she turns around to go back in and the guy hands me my drink. She still hasn't made it back in the door with the first drink - she was maybe 5 steps away from it when she turned around. I thought the window guy was the only one working since I hadn't seen anyone else so I wasn't mad, just frustrated.  

later today, I had to wait in a line of cars for the one lane construction. Not a bad wait, but patience was needed again. That wait was a nice break from all the driving.

When I got back into Odessa, the right -left-turn lane had about ten cars, but the left one only had one. Thinking the majority of those ten might turn into one of the two shopping centers or a hotel I got into the inside lane planning to quickly move over before my street came up. Nope! I had to go down two main streets -approximately twelve to twenty block/streets before someone was nice enough to let me get over. Thank you red pick-up. Really frustrating so I got to practice my patience once again.

since I have been gone for two weeks, there is no food in the house so out once again I go  to get food. The guy in front of me decided at the last minute (he was already at the speaker) that he didn't want Panda Express so in order not to have to wait in line he has to back up a bit to exit before the concrete makes him go all the way through. I notice what he is trying to do and thankfully no one is behind me so I can back up and give him more room. He backs up, turns a little, realizes he needs to back up more, turns a little and once again, make another back up adjustment and he is free to go around the corner. Totally embarrassing driving for a guy in a little black sports car. (little and black reminds me to post again tomorrow. Can't have two posts in one evening). I am done practicing my patience for one day and just want to crash, but will have to keep practicing while the second floor cools off after I remembered to turn the thermostat down to live-able.

Summer of Fun and KFC

It's never fun being sick, but it's especially no fun in the summer!!  It probably started out as an allergic reaction to a spider bite on my arm.  Then turned into allergies and asthma - or so I thought - but was finally diagnosed as another sinus infection.  Thank goodness I had been taking breathing treatments along the way because the doc said that probably kept it from going into my lungs since I waited over a week to go see her.  Yes, I am bad and put it off - read above - I just thought it was allergies!  Well, that is not where it ended.  Nope, can't just have a sinus infection.  I have to have a reaction to the medicine, too.  Now that the first meds are out of my system, I am starting on round two!  I really slept most of Thursday away.  20 hours of sleep, 3 saltine crackers, about 12 ounces of sweet tea and 102 fever - it was not a fun day!  (not to mention when I was up, I was not enjoying myself, if you know what I mean!)  It has not been a great start to July.

I haven't gotten into much sewing this summer like I had planned.  I can't seem to latch onto a project that I want to work on.  I have taken apart 3 blocks from my KFC swap (Kaffe Fassett Collective) that were either too small (about 1/2" to 3/4" too small) or were wonderful, but just too dark to fit in with all the others. 

 

 

I couldn't use the ones that were too small, they were mostly cut wrong, but the too dark one, I have taken apart and put back with other fabrics.  I was able to use one of the middle squares from the too small ones which I am glad since they were two of my favorite blocks.  I may try to remake the two, too small ones if I can find fat quarters of those fabrics since I don't have any of those fabrics in my stash.  I have received a few more blocks and made one more myself - to make up the numbers.  I hopefully will have 20 blocks sometime soon (2 more members yet to mail theirs - or for me yet to receive) 

 

I have another set of blocks from the earlier KFC swap and here again, there are a couple of blocks that are too small.  I think I may just sash them and off set the setting and I will get to keep the too small ones in there.  The sad thing is, these too small ones might be made by the same person that made the other too small blocks.  She has great color sense and it's not a sewing problem which would be an easy fix.  Unfortunately it's a cutting problem and that can't be fixed on this end.  All I can do is try to make it work. 

 

I am doing one more KFC only quilt and then I am done for awhile.  This may be why I am having such a hard time finding a project.  I am finishing up my scrappy trip with KFC quilt.  Or I would be if I could make myself work on it some more.  I think I have over half of the blocks completed, all of the strip sets sewn together and just need to cut and sew and unsew and sew and unsew and sew and well, you get the picture. (I am not making mistakes when I unsew - it's what you have to do to make this quilt.  

Distractions

I always have great intent on posting something new, but get distracted by all the games on Face book.  Then I need to read and catch up with what is happening in my friends and families lives around the country and never make it over here to post.  Truth be told, I have been too busy and too exhausted to even get on the computer most nights in the past 2 or 3 weeks.  I think I went an entire week without even opening my home computer.  That is not to say that I didn't get on a computer or phone or tablet.  NOPE!  That just means I didn't get on my home computer to blog.  (I have been known to blog at school, but that is usually when I have everything done and need to either A) immediately write down or post a blog about what I am thinking or B) fill time or C) avoid doing something I don't want to do - like grade projects or papers.) I have been on here twice - no, three times this weekend and I am finally getting over here to the blog.  Looks like I made it here twice this month.  That is really good considering it was May with all the things that happen during this month - school coming to a close, parties and graduations (not that I go to either one of those, but have catered a few), cleaning the class, restaurant and kitchen - well, getting my students to clean all those things, grading. grading and more grading making sure everything is in the computer and accounted for, packing away everything in the class and labeling all the equipment readying the room to be cleaned by the custodial staff and last, but not least, typing up finals.  I am not one of those teachers that teaches the exact same things every year where I can use the exact same final year after year.  I really don't know how they do that.  Life happens in my classroom that knocks plans out the window on a continuous basis and I never know what will be on the final until the week of finals.  I was in and out so much this spring (sick, competition, sick, state competition, caterings), that I realized when I pulled up part of last years final for Restaurant Management, that they may not have covered what was on that exam. I know I didn't remember going over it.  Although, it was part of a sub assignment they were to cover.  So, instant review sheet!!  Now, to pull several exams, cut and paste and add some new stuff and voila!  new finals!  Now, for the bad part.  My final exam schedule - due to double blocked classes and the set schedule, all my classes have two different parts.  What I mean by that is for example, my 2nd/3rd period class comes to class for second period and then leaves for lunch and returns for third.  (the next day my 6th/7th period does the same thing) However, the fun one for me is the 4th/5th period class that comes the last session of the day on day 1 and the first session of the day on day 2, but since it's the spring semester - only the juniors come on day two because the seniors took their exam spread out over the two days before finals even started.  Got that?  It totally confuses the majority of my students the first year they are in my class.  So, I literally give two different final exams!! Part of one exam we started this week - is cleaning!!  It gets my stuff all clean and gives them a grade.  The best part is - it's part of the TEKS (Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills)   It's part of the curriculum!!!  That is a fairly easy thing to grade.  You either did it or you didn't.  Or like one group - you part way did it and another group had to come in and re-do it?  very few points are coming your way.  However, you have another day to try and earn more points for that part of the final.  Works for me!  I am hoping to wrap up the rest of the cleaning tomorrow and have Tuesday as a quiet study day - knowing my classes it won't be quiet - before giving the finals on Wednesday and Thursday.  Woo Hoo!  I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  However, it's not shining very bright since we have 3 - count them 3 - inservice days after the students are gone.  One is our normal records day where we finish up grades and last bit of cleaning and putting away items.  The other two are new this year and are inservice days.  WHAT???  Why would you put inservice days in the calendar after the school year ends?  You have teachers that have already resigned and retired or are looking to get out and you want to do an inservice?  I think it is totally ridiculous and don't know what everyone else will be doing on those days, but our crew is giving a test.  (This part has been deleted by me because it was more of a rant and I don't think you want to hear what I have to say about this situation and will quit right here.)  I hope to be on here more this summer and share with you what I make, cook and create.   Okay since I have used this as a distraction and avoidance of typing up exams, I can leave you and go feed my barking dogs.  It must be close to 5.  It's amazing how well they can tell time some days.  (They are usually spot on, but some days they try to get food early and start in about 4:00.  Not, today.  It's 4: 55 and time for me to go feed them)  

Geat Reviews

Everyone LOVED the salsa!!  I just laugh because it is Pace Picante sauce that I added extra spice and flavor to and it just disappeared out of the kitchen!!  My students were upset that there wasn't anymore left today to eat with the leftover enchiladas.   Now, that one of my students finally came by to pick up what he left in my classroom I can go home and sew!!  I am working on backs to quilts to I can send  4 or 5 quilts off to the quilter.  I haven't sent anything to her in so long!  I am excited to pick out quilt patterns and thread choices.  Now to just get some tops out of my house!!  I still need to put on the binding for about . . . 12 quilts that she previously quilted.  Oh, well.  I am only in it for the fun part!  Picking fabric and sewing tops!  gotta go!

Recipes and Fun Times

Since I have been here last, I have been to Corpus Christi, Texas with a bus load of students for state competition, celebrated Easter, spent 3 days quilting with my friends and celebrating my birthday.  At school, I have done 2 caterings,  2 restaurants, taught and practiced sauces, cupcakes and argued with my students about how to make Green Chili Enchiladas!!  Life has been busy to say the least.  Speaking of Green Chili Enchiladas, I have a friend coming to restaurant this week that has been put on a no meat diet.  It is killing her- a rancher's daughter who grew up eating red meat - to not eat ANY meat at all.  It would kill me, too.  She really wanted to come to our last restaurant this week, but we are serving green chili chicken enchiladas (yum!), but she can't eat any.  I thought about leaving out the chicken, but we use cream of chicken soup, and she can't have any of that either.  So, I created a black bean green chili enchilada just for her.  It is actually delicious despite the turned up noses of my students.  Once they tasted them - we had to bake a couple just to see if they worked - they thought they were delicious!!  This is a recipe that is great the way it is, but I keep thinking of other things I can add or change up to make them better.  (sour cream in the sauce?) ( green chilis inside the enchiladas) See, I keep tweaking it in my head and it keeps getting more delicious!  At least in my head it sounds delicious. 

Speaking of delicious, another item we are making this week for restaurant is tres leches cake.  This is one of those easy, simple cakes that everyone thinks is hard to make.  Trust me, it's not.  One group of students was slicing up strawberries and putting sugar on them getting them ready to go over the cake.  Another group were cutting up cilantro and doctoring up some salsa that I had on hand.  You know that commercial, "you got peanut butter in my chocolate. you got chocolate in my peanut butter" ?  Well, I took a strawberry and a cilantro leaf and . . . the rest is history.  Those flavors go really well together.  One of my students and I were tempted to toss it all together and leave class just so we could enjoy the loveliness in peace.  We didn't, but look for a dessert sometime in the future with those two as the showpiece!  (or maybe even a strawberry/cilantro margarita in celebration of cinco de mayo!)

I am trying to get one or two more backs sewn this week so I can send quilts off to my quilter.  I need to be sending her 2 a month until I can clear all the tops out of my room, but I don't get backs done that fast.  (to me that is the boring part)   It's a sad top overtaking my room situation.  I also want to create more tops.  I see something online and start pulling fabric in my head to create,  but know that I really, really need to work my way through my tubs and try and get some past projects finished.  I know, I will make myself a deal of some kind.  Make 2 quilt backs, finish up a tub and then at the end of the month I can start a new quilt.  sounds good to me, but then when the 1st of June rolls around, what then?  Make 2 quilt backs, finish up a tub and . . . work on the same project I started last month?  that sounds like another tub finish.  Oh, well, I will figure it all out. 

I just love Martha Negley fabric

My mother sent me a video on a new to me technique courtesy of 24 blocks.  You can check it out here:  http://24blocks.com/2015/03/looking-for-a-nice-changeofpace-project-try-this-fold-and-sew-quilt-.html  I wanted to try this out, but I didn't want to use my 10 inch squares that I already have slated for another project.  I also didn't want to cut any 10 inch squares - that would require too much thinking on what fabrics to pull, where do I plan on using them - 5 or 10 inch squares, etc.  Tooo Tooo much thinking.  I wanted a simple fast project to distract from finishing another project.  (which is why it was in a box/tub to begin with - I got distracted)  I received some 5 inch white squares from Missouri Star - okay, I purchased some more fabric and these were the gift for purchasing a certain amount - I had to do it.  I needed these for this project.  Okay, I didn't know I needed them for this project when I purchased that fabric, but the universe must have know I would need them and therefore made me purchase all that fabric.  Okay, it wasn't allll that fabric.  That sounds like there was a lot of fabric purchased.  There wasn't that much.  Only some charm packs (on clearance), a jelly roll - that is getting made into a jelly roll race quilt this weekend, some extra yardage to go as borders for the race quilt.  (side track here - have you seen the new aged muslins by Marcus Brothers?  that is what I am using to make the race quilt.  I can't wait to see this one made up!  go ahead and check them out.  I will wait here) 

Oh, good, you're back.  Don't you just love them!!  I can't wait to get started on this quilt.  In the meantime, I made this little one using the above technique.  Like I said before, I used the white squares along with some pink Amy Butler squares that were previously cut up and waiting to go into the 5" tub.  I then pulled out some 2 1/2" squares from that tub and in just a few hours I had half my blocks done.  In a couple of hours the next night the other half were done and the top pieced together.  I thought I would leave it like that, but decided last night to add a border.  I auditioned several colors when this green screamed at me to try him.  I did and magic was made.  It brings out all the green in the little squares and because it's a complementary color to the pink, it makes it shine!!  I then went on a hunt through the drawers for a final border.  I just love Martha Negley fabric.  Her fabric and Kaffe fabrics have always been a couple of my favorites.  Oh, you want to see what I am rambling on about?  Well, look

 

It's a small quilt measuring only about 23 inches or so.  (it's not square, but I think it's about 22.25 X 25.25 or something like that.  It was late last night and I can't remember)  See how that green just pops some of those blocks?  The coloring on is a bit off in the picture, but it still looks great.  The squares came out about 4 inches for the pink ones.  The white ones were 3 3/4" so I had to trim up the pink ones to match.  I don't know why the white ones were smaller.  Maybe because they were machine cut and I cut the pink ones. (differences in rulers?)  Anyway, now I need to cut a backing - not sure if I want to use my Martha on the back of this one or save the rest for a future project - and then get it quilted.  I will definitely have to machine quilt this one due to the seaming in the blocks.  It's a bit thick when you sew them like this, but like the lady on the video says, it's a fast method. I can't wait to try some of her other quick quilt methods.  Show me what you do if you use this method.  I would love to see it and be inspired by you.