Stitching in the Rain

Our heat wave broke on Saturday evening and we thoroughly enjoyed a wet, soggy Sunday! All the antelope hunters were successful and headed back to the city so the afternoon was ours and we were very thankful for the opportunity to recuperate from the previous week.

We dumped .8" from the rain gauge on Sunday morning and enjoyed another good shower in the afternoon that brought our total to 1.6" by Monday morning.  I feel a little guilty celebrating our 1.6" of rain when the Carolinas are wishing it would stop. I hope all of y'all who live in that part of the country stay safe and dry out soon. As much as we appreciate every drop of rain here, too much of it can certainly wreak havoc.

For us desert rats, this is a forecast that has us dancing a jig.

                                                   

I cleaned the stove and worked on apples and cut out a couple of quilts this weekend too.  It feels good to be starting a new project. I've worked almost exclusively on UFO's for a couple of years now. There are still 7 that need binding, but they are still at Jackie's and one is at Shelly's. Besides the Wash Day baby quilt, I cut out this one:

It's a Miss Rosie pattern called Ginger Belle and I was able to cut everything from my stash. The slow, steady cadence of rain drumming on the roof along with the hum of the sewing machine was music to my ears:

It was the perfect way to unwind from the busy week.

Friday Frenzy

It's a little nuts right now. The crew is pulling out this afternoon after they finish working,

but I've got antelope hunters pulling in all day. I don't have to feed them - hunters like to batch - but I'm making a couple batches of cookies

 for them today and cinnamon rolls

on Sunday morning for them and the bunkhouse needs to be cleaned. So this morning I am stripping 6 beds and hauling them to the house to wash. Then I'll haul the vacuum cleaner and steam mop over and get that tended too as well as fix dinner for the crew. Bleach down the bunkhouse bathroom and call it a day! P.S. Today's biscuits were magnificent! :)

I have to make a mad dash to town to meet my in-laws this afternoon. They had gone to get apples and I had put in an order for a box and they are coming into town today. So I'll be peeling apples for days. On a high note - we'll have amazing homemade applesauce to enjoy for the next year, dried apples with cinnamon and sugar will be on the dehydrator before the sun sets

                            

 and baked apples will be on the menu tomorrow!

Good gravy this old gal is plumb wore out after a week of 3:30 mornings and ready for fall. Yesterday it was 100°...it's October for crying out loud and these boys come in hot and dried out and down gallons of iced tea at dinner:

Pulling Fabric and Biscuit Baking at 3:30 a.m.

Our niece is expecting baby #2 in January. Bethany's always been such a neat kid and she is the first grandchild. She spent lots of time with us on the ranch during holidays and summers - treasured memories!  Alas, we don't get to see her much anymore, but when she had her first child, I made this quilt for him:

                                   

Bethany is a teacher now and she loves to fish so this was definitely the perfect quilt for her baby boy. Now he is going to be a big brother to a little sister and this is the quilt pattern I have chosen for her:

Bethany was very involved in 4-H and her Mama taught her how to sew. She sewed all sorts of clothes while she was growing up so I thought this little clothesline filled with cute little girl outfits would be just the ticket and now I am in the process of pulling fabrics. I love this part and end up creating quite a mess before I settle on my final selection.

Maybe this:

Perhaps this:

It's a start:

I'm trying to shop at home. My bins of fabric hold their breath when I open their lids and wonder who will I choose?

Oh, boy! I think I've been spending too much time inhaling bleach fumes. I've been cooking for a crew all week and if my fabric is beginning to talk, that's probably the first sign that I need a break. :)

The second sign? Well this morning I stumbled into the kitchen at 3:30 and starting mixing up a batch of biscuits. Gosh they looked nice as I popped them into the oven. Time ticked away and said biscuits wouldn't brown. And they were flat. Who messes up biscuits? -Raises hand- Then it hit me. I had added cornstarch instead of the called for baking powder. Seriously? Yup. Yes, I know. The cornstarch container looks nothing like the baking powder container.

                           

That's what happens when a 50 yr old has too many 3:30 am wake up calls in a row. And I've still got 2 more days this week.

I texted my friend M, who was also up at that ungodly hour slaving away over a hot stove, feeding a cowboy crew in Texas. I knew she would commiserate with my situation. She's so tired and has cooked so much that she said she even cooked in her dreams. We're a sad lot us two, but I love and miss her and we are planning an escape in the not too distant future. And what do you wanna bet we'll get together and end up talking about food!

Speedy Baby Quilt

After all these weeks...almost 2 months...it feels strange to be stitching something again.

One of my co-workers became a grandma for the first time recently and we all know that babies are to be welcomed with much celebration...and a quilt, so this was a good reason to get back behind the sewing machine.

I actually have 2 other quilts that are recently bound, but I haven't taken any pictures yet.

The Mama decorated the nursery in pinks and grays so I dug deep in my stash to come up with enough variety. My collection of pinks and grays is itty bitty and the pickings are slim, but I think this works:

 I did pick up this print from Hobby Lobby for a backing:

And I used this tutorial for Amy Smart's Vintage Star Baby Quilt  although I combined the two by using one star and the other border.

Jackie chose this sweet design that adds the perfect whimsical touch:

And I used the only pink print that I had enough of for the binding:

                              

It finished at 40"  square- I do wish it was a tad larger. Babies don't stay tiny for long, but I'll definitely be making this one again.

I rarely sit down and sew for very long at a time. Seems I'm always jumping up to tend to this or that. This time DH called and asked if I'd unsaddle his horse. He was checking on a fence project between us and the neighbors and it had started to rain. Then I got sidetracked and started whacking weeds with the grub hoe.

Let's see how much I can stitch before the next interruption and I'm not complaining - not even a little because I know how spoiled I am, not to mention thankful, and loving on the horses is always a good way to spend at least a little bit of each day.

So this little quilt came together rather quickly and it felt good to sit behind the sewing machine again after 7 weeks and another little baby girl is now officially wrapped in love and a quilt!!