I am sitting here in my chair with my laptop as I do most Sunday mornings. I have the patio door open and the morning air is cool(ish) and quiet (except for the cardinal singing his little heart out).  There is a nice breeze blowing, the humidity has not yet crept up and although it is 82 degrees out there in the shade, it feels quite pleasant.  It's nice to enjoy some fresh air.  It's been exceptionly hot , then coolish, then blisteringly hot, now coolish...I won't say cool, because it only feels cool compared to the heat.

I usually surf through blogs on Sundays, some that I let slide and others that I come across as I surf.

I was reading some previous posts from Angie at http://blog.ajpadilla.com/  called

"I am CAT and I will sleep where I want"

Having a cat myself,  I know how quirky and independant they are.  And having found my cat in some weird sleeping spots, I thought some of the pics were cute. I've seen some of them before, but thought that I would share.

If this doesn't make you want to take a cat nap...I don't know what would.

Here is something you might recognise...

Do you know what it is?

It's supposed to tenderize meat...

You can buy a less tender cut, bounce all over it with this thing and it is supposed to "tenderize"  it for you.

I remember years ago, when I would buy a whole side of beef, the butcher would run some cuts through a tenderizer (it was electric) for me.  Back then I had the whole family eating here every night.  I would make Salisbury steak with those cuts.  Now it's just the mister and I most times.  Sonny boy was a really good eater.  Daughter dear had a thing  (I should say HAS a thing)  with textures..and didn't always eat as heartily as the rest of us.

Sooo...

I am a sucker for gadgets..

I personally think it doesn't work.  I tried it on a fairly good steak ...not the best and I didn't see a difference except it was now dry...

I really don't like the fact it is so hard to clean...yuck!  Don't need to get sick! And look at those lethal looking knives...don't want to cut yourself with that!

It's still in my bottom drawer...I should really get rid of it.

It's been hot...really hot.  Too hot to be outside, even in the pool..it was 99* in the SHADE! before noon!  I had all the blinds closed, any drapes I had were closed...And the A/C ran and ran..
So we stayed in where it is cool.
Thing One watched TV all day, played with her ipod...was impossible to motivate.  While Thing Two came up to my sewing room and wanted to iron fabric. ...I said "No!"... "Oh" she giggled  "It's too hot..Right?"..lol!
She brought her doll,(Journey Girl) and all the clothes she had for her and the other doll (Michael's), plus what I had sewn for her.  I wanted to see how much too big the clothes were.  The Journey Doll (Toys R US) is a much slimmer doll.
And it really wasn't that bad.  I could easily take a bigger seam and that would suffice.
I had her leave the doll over night while I made a couple of outfits for her.
I am so forgetful....Thing Two had all her dollclothes  that I made for her here...I gave her a small suitcase for them all..and I forgot to take pictures of her fancy dresses that I made...
Anyway....
So, while I sewed, Thing Two played with all the fancy stitches on my other machine.  She played and played then wanted to do more.  I had a "cheater panel" of a heart pillow.  She sewed on that for a couple of hours, trying out all the embroidery stitches..then I sewed the 2 halves together, we stuffed it and sewed up the opening...and she gave it to a friend.

She certainly had fun! she didn't want to stop to go home.  I have a couple of Christmas stocking panels that she can sew next.   She really loves my new machine...the touch screen was easy for her to use.  The fact that my sewing desk is so low makes it easy for her to reach the pedal, it makes the whole experience more fun.
I think this will be a good way to use up some of the panels that I have accumulated and put away over the years.
She says next week she would like to make another quilt.  She has camp this week.
We can try an offset log cabin.  It wouldn't matter if is not square or even..I can square up the blocks for her.. or she can work on more panels...  We'll see..
In the meantime, I am still struggling through all these scraps...OMG!  there are soooo many of them!

Well, the grand kids are finished school now and have both been promoted to the next grade.  Thing Two has had a sore throat, so not feeling quite herself.
I've been in contact with some of her friend's parents, maybe they would like to come and swim and maybe we can sew, too. 
So we had a friend over the other day, dollies were brought, and swimsuits...pancakes for lunch...play all day long..the young girls can play downstairs, or if the mister needs quiet, then they can go upstairs to one of the bedrooms to play...there should be no boredom!
And one of her friends is having a birthday party today, so she is excited about that
Next week Thing Two has an ART Camp.  Sounds like fun...Maybe I can go too?
Thing One has dance camp...I think she is excited...I really don't know...I just have to pick them up afterwards and keep them entertained until mom is ready to pick them up after work.
Thing One  doesn't want to do much with me anymore...give her an ipod and that's all she wants. Well, maybe some chocolate.   Keeps her occupied all day long.
I have some things planned for us to do this summer, I wonder if she (Thing One) will want to do anything.
Haha....I know she will gladly  go shopping !!
Gramma's wallet  seems bottomless!
I wonder how much time I will have to sew?..or blog?

When I worked cleaning up and folding my fabrics, I found I had far too many scraps.
I have been using up quite a bit for the " farmer's wife", but I find it's stymieing me.... I am blocked by all these scraps.  When I work on a block, I spend too much time looking for scraps big enough...or just pawing through them all.

I have collected these scraps over years, a friend gave me a box of scraps, and I got some from my mom.

When I got the box of scraps I made 6 cuddle quilts (tops) for outreach...and I still had a box full.  But now, it's a drawer and a box full!

....so I decided that they must go.....

BUT I CAN'T THROW IT OUT!  I am just too frugal or maybe just cheap.

I have to stop and make something easy, that would use up the scraps....get rid of them for good!

I thought I would do a spider web.  I made a little one for Thing Two's dolly.
I will make a full size one, well I mean queen size...

the pile half way through the project

So I started...
First I got out the tracing paper and cut the pages 9" square.
Then I measured 2.5 " from the 45 degree angle on both sides, marked it and found the centre on the bottum, drew 2 lines, stacked up the triangles and sewed without thread on the lines to make a pattern..

cut some white fabric for the background, and started sewing

one quarter of a block, untrimmed

and pressing and trimming 

1/4 trimmed

And I kept sewing and trimming and sewing....this what I have so far

half done!

I am half done the blocks!  and the box/drawer of scraps?  doesn't look like I made a dent in it, but I am sure I have...
Who knows....I might even run out !

More pics to follow as I complete and quilt it.

BUT...I haven't been in my sewing room  for  5 days now.  My sister has been here again for a visit.  It was supposed to be only a day or two, but ended up being 5 days...a bit of a surprise!
...

MissT, the huntress, is back at it again.
She is well-fed, so I know she is hunting for sport.   She catches her prey, then plays with it until it either expires or gets away from her.
Again the other day, she staked out the garden by the fence.

There is at lest ONE chipmunk left, and I think it is one that recognises us.  It sits on top of the neighbour's shed and will watch us working or sitting around the table on our patio.
If I notice it and put seed in the feeders, it will come and gather the seeds.  I won't say eat, because it fills up his/her cheeks with the seed then takes off.
The other day I put a few cherries out and it ate them.
If we are sitting at the table it will check out under the table and at our feet.  I have put seeds down to see how close it would come.  It is very curious.
Well, the other day I looked at MissT and she has a chipmunk in her mouth...again!
I made her crouch,and I softly ( I didn't step on it THIS time) took it from her.  It seemed to be fine...I I put in on the woodpile next door.  With in an hour it was back on top of the shed..."chipping" away at the cat ....who was still on the alert for it.
Then yesterday I saw a baby rabbit in the back yard....it scooted off to the neighbours (yes! they seem to have a lot of animals over there!...they have a big vegetable garden)...
Hours later, I am in my sewing room and I hear this squealing!
I looked out and MissT has the baby rabbit.
  I went out to rescue it and there was a lot of loose fur blowing around.  The fence is metal and it looked like the rabbit was getting skinned on the bottom of the fence.  It is sharp!

I freed the bunny, but I don't know if it will survive.
AND..
 I haven't seen it since!
We had a rabbit trying to build a nest in our front garden, and I kept filling  in the hole it dug. 
I knew the cat would kill the babies without a doubt!
Gonna hav'ta bell that cat!

I have finally gone back to sewing in my sewing room.  I have the fabric all folded nicely and it looks so pretty....

I have an awful lot of fabric on the top shelf now....where did it all come from?
Did I really have all that shoved into those cubbies?
Well, I must have!
'cause it's there!
One thing  I did notice,... I had a piece of fabric the was badly faded....was it mine or did it come from my mother?.....hmmm  I don't know...but what I do know is that I get the morning sun in that room...what to do ...what to do...????  That sun can ruin the fabric.
Some of this fabric I have had for a looooong time.
Some fat quarters I bought ...gulp! 30 years ago!!?...could it be?????
Yup!  The mister was in an old timer's hockey league and we went to Florida for a tournament.
A friend and I went to a very popular store that isn't there anymore (spent a few days there) and I bought some....okay..okay ..I admit it...A LOT ...of fat quarter packs  (4 pieces, each a fat 1/4 for only a couple of bucks, but then it was 30 years ago)  and I haven't used it all ...
YET!
But I will!

Any way.............................

The area where I have my fabric was a closet, but I took the doors off because I have a large filing cabinet in the corner and couldn't close the doors.  They were  "cheapy"  sliding doors any way..fake wood panelling...ugh! I threw them away!  Now what?.......

I thought I would get a tension fit rod and put up a curtain.
  So I went to Walmart and bought a tension rod for the bathtub....
I needed a longer one...some hooks ...and I had a new curtain that I hadn't used yet ...
Put them up in the space where the old door hung and it's great.
 Keeps the light off my fabrics.

I open the curtain when I go in my sewing room just so that I can see my fabrics, then pull it closed when I leave.
 I am never in my sewing room early in the day.....sorry....I like to stay up late and so I sleep late.....wait a minute....I don't LIKE to stay up late.  I just don't sleep, so I stay up late.  And when the mister in on the road (seems like he always is)...I don't sleep well at all.  So I sew late, then sleep late.  I have always been a night time sewest... always!
Besides ..I just live in the wrong time zone..lol

I have always said that I live in the wrong time zone,  I need to live in B.C.!