A Quilty Post

Some of my quilting partners in crime have been complaining that they haven't seen a post about quilts from me in a coons age. Come on ya'll - it hasn't been that long! Unlike many of you, I haven't been able to churn out those finished projects. There must be a secret to it that ya'll aren't telling me.

I have my reasons though. OK - excuses. Its all in your perception. Here's the list. I'm good at making lists.

~I need sleep and you don't want to be around me if I don't get it. Heck, I don't want to be around me if I don't get it and I'm thinking that all of ya'll who are whipping out these fabulous quilts are not sleeping.

~I've been in Texas for a couple of weeks.

~I'm missing my kid. It's much too quiet around here. Yesterday while I was in town running errands I picked up some odds and ends to put together a care package for her.

~I am mowing. And mowing. And mowing some more.There are about 5 acres that constantly need mowing and weed eating around here. The push mower and I are forming an intense relationship this summer.

~I am trying to keep my garden alive and its a battle. 100+ afternoons are taking its toll and I am bracing for the return of the winds later this week. The tomato worms and I are waging war as well.

So, in the heat of the day here's what I'm currently working on:

Yes, its another project. And no, I have not completed the Texas Log Cabin quilt. Nor is the horse quilt finished. And the Hexagon quilt is still in pieces too. I guess that makes me a flighty quilter. But hey, at least I'm honest and owning up to my flighty-ness.

I couldn't help it. The 30's prints I bought just kept hollering that they needed to be a quilt...NOW. Impatient little things.

I should promise you that I won't start another project until I have completed one, but I'm not making any statements that may incriminate me - I'm going to plead the 5th. Last time I checked, I still had the freedom to do that.

Cajun Cake

Breakfast was at 4:30 this morning. That makes for a long morning. It's only 6 and I've already gotten a lot done, but the boys were headed out to gather cattle and as hot as it's been around here lately, the earlier they get started the better. The other day the thermostat looked like this:

I'm hoping we won't have a repeat like that! Sure makes me super thankful for that new air conditioner!

I was visiting with a friend a few days ago (Hi T!) and she inquired about this recipe when I mentioned I was making it for dessert. I was almost certain I had already shared this with ya'll, but apparently I was wrong.

It happens more often than I care to admit.

Another cattle buyer was heading this way and I was scrambling for ideas. I have let my pantry dwindle away and I was avoiding a trip to town (surprise...surprise...surprise! Said in my Gomer Pyle voice).

I've been making this for about 15 years. DH was off helping on another ranch for about a week and the kids and I were invited to a church supper. The men did all the cooking and the women provided the desserts. I like the sound of that!

DS was 4 at the time and DD was 1 and they were overwhelmed with the insane amount of choices on the never ending dessert table. DS chose this cake and he ate 3 pieces...after eating an entire plate of dinner. I told Debbie that I needed to find out who had made it and wouldn't you know, she had! She said she found it in a church cookbook (isn't that where so many of the best recipes come from?) and had never tried it before. She was sweet to share the recipe with me. I've given this out so many times through the years so now its your turn:

I haven't a clue as to why its called Cajun Cake, but I have a lot of recipes like that. I would really like to know the story behind some of them. Seems like Hawaiian Cake would be more suitable, but either way, its a keeper around here.

Cajun Cake

2 c flour

1 1/2 c sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

2 eggs

1 pinch salt

1 large can crushed pineapple - undrained

*Mix all ingredients well for 3 minutes. Pour into 9x13" cake pan sprayed with Pam. Bake at 350° for 30 - 40 minutes.

Frosting:

1 stick butter

1 small can evaporated milk

1 c sugar

1 c chopped pecans

1 c coconut

*Add butter, evaporated milk, and sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Boil 4-5 minutes until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat. Mix in pecans and coconut. Frost cake. Devour.

Good Mail Days

I love getting fun things in the mail! Who doesn't? I'm kind of like a little kid in a candy store when the mail arrives. Since the Internet, mail days have become much more fun! Growing up, I thought everything ever made in the entire world could be found at the General Store store. If you couldn't find it, you didn't need it. Now it's all at Amazon or somewhere on the Internet!

However, there is still something to be said for that old general store! Amazon can not compare to the character of that place. I distinctly remember the smell. I think it was the hardwood floors. Or the paperback books. Or the sacked feed. Or that cute boy who just winked at you as he sauntered past. Or maybe it's the soda fountain. Either way, I miss the ambiance of those stores. I've run across one or two in recent years and they just have that 'feel good' atmosphere. Even growing up they were few and far between. By the time I arrived, the General Store was already nearing extinction and that makes me sad. Even today, if I am traveling, I will go out of my way to take the back roads and stop for a spell if one catches my eye. The people there are always plucked straight from the streets of Mayberry.

I don't go as far back as the Waltons or Leave it to Beaver generation, but I was around before Walmart. Ugh! I really dislike that store!

So even though things are more accessible and 'new and improved' today, I have to wonder whether we haven't lost something along the way.

I'll shield you from the soapbox that I could climb upon right about now and just leave it at that and curl up with this, which arrived in the mail, and will transport me back to the days of General stores.

So, while I was in Texas, the mail, as well as the weeds, piled up. After tossing the junk mail, I finally got to dig into the good stuff.

Feeling a bit like a hypocrite though. Here I am bemoaning the loss of days gone by (especially the days I wasn't even around for yet) and yet I am enjoying the fact that with a few clicks of the mouse, I can find this in my mailbox:

Yummy reading material and quilting inspiration!

And a box of these:

I have fallen in love with these 30's prints and will be cutting into them before the day is done. Hopfully while watching the Andy Griffith Show.

I'm hoping that I'll be so thrilled to sit behind my sewing machine again that I'll completely block out the fact that the boys didn't eat all of the Krispy Kreme donuts I brought home!

One Came Home and One Flew the Coop

Gosh its good to be home! I can't breath in the city and the humidity just makes me wanna wilt, so first thing this morning I headed out for a walk. The crisp, clean, cool, non-humid air was just perfect! The pastures are green and filled with blooming Yuccas. We should be spotting baby antelope before long!

DD did a good job tending to the garden and various plants while I was away. She called me Thursday and brought up the fact that she wants to be a counselor this summer at a Christian Camp. Not a problem except she had to be at said camp on Sunday. Ummm...a little notice would be nice. This is the first we've heard of this.

But let me just say that she'll be great at this! She'll be a 'Wrangler' - in charge of the horses and down at the barn a lot. She'll be in her element. She's great with kids and super at group discussions. What a cool opportunity for her!

However, I miss her. Her Daddy took her to the camp on Sunday (yes, that was only 2 days ago, but I'ver been gone for 10 days and haven't seen her) to meet the people and check things out. I was headed back, but still on the road and apprehensive about sending her somewhere where we didn't know the people, but at some point, I've got to let go a bit and I know DH wouldn't leave her there if he didn't feel comfortable. She's just about 10 miles from her grandparents though and she will be able to come home on Saturday afternoons and return Sunday evenings.

She's been wanting to travel for some mission work for a while and this sounds like it fits the bill and its not like she's going to some foreign country right off the bat.


I'm almost certain she forgot to pack towels and I'm sure she took along mismatched socks, but oh well...I guess its just all a part of her charm!

I'm just praying that she walks safely in His will and that she is a light of His love and mercy to everyone she encounters and that the summer zips on by so it won't be so quiet around here!