Checking in

The trouble with posting every 7 days or so is that I tend to forget what I have been up to, LOL. Not much sewing but some baking this past Friday. Apricot Cheese Loaf with some homemade pineapple cream cheese spread (shared that and rest in the freezer), Pumpkin Muffins for the freezer and then I tried a new to me Cheese Bread recipe and added a secret ingredient to it. I thought it tasted a tad salty but my neighbor loved it! She stopped me an hour or so ago when I was walking Oscar and said she wanted the two breads recipe, the sweet and the savory. I've got those ready to deliver then next trip up the lane.  The savory bread went with my "souped up" version of Zuppa Toscana which I had also shared with her.

As a matter of fact, I'm baking something right now.  I've got a guild meeting tomorrow and I'm trying Christy Jordan of Southern Plate fame's recipe for Samoa Brownies.  The brownie crust is in the oven now and then I'll toast the coconut while the oven is still hot.  Smelling yummy at my house.  See, I want to try this tempting recipe but I don't want to have it around the house as I WILL eat it.  No will power.  I just want a taste!  If I share it at guild for treats hopefully the ladies will try it and I won't come home with a lot.  Miss Kathryn said I better sneak her some when her son is not visiting (diabetic).

Saturday I was doing a load of towels (and both my aprons!) and the start knob busted off.  I was able to finish up the load by turning the stub with a pair of pliers but Paul offered to take a look at it.  He is a retired machinist and he knew more about it than I did!  He knew who to call for the parts and we picked it up on the way out to dinner.  (Dinner was planned.--he and his mom had both invited me to come along with them a few days before.)  The fellow at the shop was not actually opened but he answered the phone, quoted me a price and said he would stay there till we could get to the shop.  Paul told his Mama that he was flirting with me and he might have been, LOL but he still did us a favor.  I didn't get it fixed, a 10 minute job till Monday but that was okay.

The next morning when I got up I thought I smelled gas in the kitchen area.  I called the Alagasco leak line and someone was out within 15 minutes time, right after I shooed Oscar outside and thought about getting out the cat carrier.   Thankfully, his detector didn't register and the soap test on the flex line didn't show any bubbling.  We had pulled the dryer out from the wall but were careful pushing it back.  He checked the stove and water heater as well.  No apparent problem.

I had told Paul I would help him fill out his disability papers since he was stressing out about it.  8 pages of questions!  This was a big chunk of Sunday afternoon and evening.   I knew from my nursing background what they were getting at with some of the queries and made few quantitative suggestions and/or clarifications.  Hopefully this will smooth they way for him.  His friend Carolyn waited so patiently while we worked on the forms, cleaned house, worked outside a bit.  We finally took a break, went up to Jacksonville for BBQ and then finished up over at my house.

Today my mission was to get the backyard flood light's bulbs changed.  I only turn it on when Oscar goes out there after dark to do his potties but they both went out at the same time.  Paul offered to help me but he has even less reason to be up on a ladder than I do.  Robert had just mowed and weed whacked and unbeknownst to me was doing some bush trimming.  He saw me with the ladder and I could not quite reach it because there is a needle tipped holly bush right under it.  I got the metal extension one out.  He found that the tip was still stuck in the socket on one of them---I shut off the circuit breaker and handed him the needle nose pliers and then went off to get some bulbs.  Meantime next door they were cutting down the half dead tree between the lots.  Only parts of it were down when I left but they had a bucket truck, a couple chain saws and a 4 man crew.  By the time I got back they were gone.  I got one bulb in myself but asked Robert to do the other one.   He wasn't afraid to go up one more step while I would have needed a spotter!  That job is done and I hope all the weird home stuff is done for now.  My first reaction is always "what am I gonna do now?  Why didn't I pay more attention to what DJ was doing or find out who he called?"

I am preparing to replace my desktop computer.  Now that Google and Microsoft are not supporting Windows Vista it is probably time.  I've had it for 8 years--as long as I have had Skyler actually.  The computer died right around the same time that Pippi, his predecessor did.  At the time we were getting the flooring put down in the kitchen and I had to wait till that job was done before we could bring a new fur baby into the house.  Oscar's 2 year with anniversary is coming up on the 10th.    Here are my two little boys recently.

oh I was talking about the computer.  I was backing up the files I want to move and figured the best way was to re-format the external hard drive I had been using for the monthly backup files.  That took hours but then it was a tb hard drive!!  My documents, files, photos, recipes, EQ quilt projects were just a drop in the bucket in comparison.   I still need to file my taxes and I need to be sure my printer is working so I will wait to do any switching out till that is done.  LOL, I've been trying all week.  Need print ink, got the wrong cartridges, go back get the right ones, pick up another external hard drive.  In addition the cable company says I need to upgrade my modem.  I've had the thing for a month and couldn't work up the ambition to go swap it out.  This is not like me to not dive in with electronics but I'm afraid I'll mess it up somehow and that means, no phone or internet access till I muddle through.  Cut off!  Hopefully, I can approach this some day when I have plenty of time to read and follow the instructions and the frustration level and my knees are up to the task.

I did get some sewing done--not much but some.  I only had to join the sections on the large one as I had done the sewing a few days back.  The other one, I went to the evening sewing group and sewed it up there.  I better have gotten them done since those two blocks for the sew-in have to be turned in tomorrow!!  This is the original version in my friendship quilt that Veronica quilted so beautifully.  There is an identical block up in the left corner of the photo.  V doesn't remember the name of the block so I'm just calling it "Woven Star".

This is my guy's version on the left, spring version on the right----DUH!! 

I had the sections of the big one done several days ago.  That's when I took Oscar's picture.  He was being so good about letting me go in a sew and he just napped in his little bed on the couch.  Skyler looks like he is behaving in that same interval but he had been up on the sewing table, too close to the rotary cutter and iron again.  This morning, same thing.  I was trying to figure out how many blocks one might get from a project I am to share with the sew-in bunch next week.  I was pairing the sections and he kept trying to set on the charm packs!   I know he wanted me to feed him--we both were up waaaaaaay too early but I guess he thought I would tend to his needs sooner if he kept right in my work space, LOL.  He waited because I knew he would be begging an hour later, like I would forget and give him more!

My sister Jan, daughter Amber and her little son Wyatt are in Illinois right now visiting my parents.  Today is actually my dad's birthday so they are helping him celebrate.  Auntie Randi came down from college in Chicago to see them on Sunday and naturally there are some pictures.  I want to share this one with you as you can see how big Wyatt has gotten.  20 oz at birth and now he is growing up, at 9 months old.   I think he favors his mama but she thinks he looks more like her husband.

Lily is doing well in her recovery.  Her nana was saying how hard it is to keep a toddler down.  Mom reported that she was pushing her little shopping cart with just a little hitch in her "get-along".  Praise be to God, that these two are doing so well.

Okay, if the brownie layer has cooled enough I need to get back to my dessert.  The coconut got toasted and the caramel stuff thinned and blended between paragraphs.  I don't know what I'm going to do about supper yet--probably salad!  No brownie sampling till the stuff sets up.

Hope you have had a good day and thanks for stopping by----------till next time.