Quilt Retreat 2016 & No Water

Went to our annual quilt retreat last week. It was in Lancaster, same as last year, you can read about the facilities here: 2015 Retreat. I got the same room with a separate entrance & private porch. It worked out great as I had Nelly with me this year. She became our official retreat mascot. A little skittish at first but by the end she had settled in quite nicely & everyone really liked her. Especially because she is so quiet, she would only bark when someone new came around.

Met some new ladies, many of whom are master quilters. Way out of my league but I had a great time anyway. Food, as usual, was excellent. Got to get back on the diet & exercise routine.

I must say my quilting skills are slowly improving. Here are a couple of projects I worked on:

Lap quilt top made w/fabic I had in my stash.

Started on a baby quilt. Plan on putting borders on each square.

More stash fabric. This will be a wall hanging or table topper.

The lady who owns the B&B is so very sweet & kind. Her husband died a few years back, from complications of Alzheimer's. My friend Debbie, who organized the retreat, suggested that we each make a fidget quilt to have Mrs. Catoe give to the local nursing home. A fidget quilt is a lap quilt with many sorts of things sewed on to make it easy for a patient to fidget with. Different fabrics for texture, velcro, zippers, etc. I didn't get mine made until I got home but I finished the 'male' version this morning. Will make another one & get them in the mail to her soon.

Our water pump switch went out last night so we are without water until Greg can get a new switch installed this evening after work. Gotta run to the hardware store. Hope I get the right one!

Hope everyone has a good week.

Barn Apartment Update

Left for the country house last Friday. Storms rolling through the areas that we were headed & that we were going to be driving through. But, since we left a little bit later in the afternoon most of the really bad stuff had moved on. We hit a few patches but nothing like what I was dreading.

Upon arrival it was obvious that a LOT of rain had come down that day. Water was standing everywhere! I have never seen it just standing like that. Plus, it started raining about 9:00 that night & continued until around 10:00 the next morning. We had hoped to get the 1st mowing under our belt but the ground was just too wet. I think it was estimated that we got over 6" in a 24 hour period.

Also, we discovered that the drain field for the septic was flooded as well. Not surprising but left us with no way to flush toilets or take showers. We decided to come on back to the city since we couldn't really accomplish anything, or at least what we wanted to accomplish.

We had hoped that the contractor would be finished with the trim for the apartment but alas, they have just a couple of things left to do. Isn't that what they always say?

We still have a couple of things left to get done as well. Like - install the fridge, dishwasher & stove, kitchen faucet(s), bathroom vanity & faucets as well as a light fixture for the bathroom. All are already purchased except for the bathroom faucet & light. We have all the shelving for the pantry, just need to get some hardware to put it together. That was one of my big bargains last year. We also have to get a separate septic tank put in because the one for the house is too far away. It's always something.

This is in a metal building we had built in Dec. 2014. It is divided into 2 sections - an apartment in the front & my Greg's shop & office in the back. Took a few pics to show our progress so far:

Living area (bedroom door to the left)

Kitchen. Still have the island to install

Looking down hallway to the shop.

Tongue & groove boards w/metal ceiling in living/dinig area

Dining room

Greg's office

Another angle of office

That stuff on the wall in the office is slat board that someone gave Greg many many years ago. He knew he would find a use for it someday! All you do is put brackets in for shelving & will will hold a lot of stuff. psst .... He's also giving me one area in the office to eventually put my sewing table!

The contractors wife had thinned her amaryllis & daylilly beds & gifted me with about 75 amaryllis & 25 or so daylillies. Guess what I did Sunday?

I put about 40 or 50 in various pots on our patio & gave the rest to a neighbor & my MIL.

Avocado with small amaryllis

Below are some Begonia cuttings that my friend from SC gave me last November when we went to visit. I believe she was gifted some by a friend whose mother or grandmother brought them from Italy. The leaves are huge & they are just starting to bloom. I noticed the honey bees from our city neighbor, have been visiting the last few days.

I won't be going back to the country until the end of the month as I have my annual Quilt Retreat to attend in a couple of weeks. Spending most of my time these getting projects ready for that. And yes, Nelly will be going with me. She's a travelling dog.

Gator Feeding

Had some more painting to do at the Country House. Does it ever get finished?

I had crown mold, door frames, baseboards & quarter rounds to paint before they started installing. I also had to get the last coat on in the bedroom. I painted all day on Friday & finished most of it by Sunday.

The carpenters showed up Monday & got to work on the trim in the kitchen & the window sills.

One of the carpenters noticed a 'nice sized' gator in the pond. My Dad just happened to be at his place so I called him to see if he could shoot it. Of course, by the time he got into position the gator went under. My Dad stayed out for about an hour & shot a couple of times but missed. He said that his gun needed to be sighted in or that his aim was really bad. He said that after the 3rd shot, the gator stuck his tongue out at him, & he knew it was time for him to quit.

The carpenter who spotted the gator asked if it would be alright if he tried to trap it. He said & I quote "It's kind of like a hobby of mine". OK. He said he would skin it, save the skin & eat the meat. I said sure, why not? He set out 2 hooks. One off the dock & the other at the shallow end. I left on Wednesday & the gator had gotten the bait a couple of times but didn't 'hook' itself. The guy said he would keep trying.

I talked to my Dad this morning & he said that as far as he knew, the guy hadn't had any luck. I told my Dad that it sounds like he's just feeding the gator & that the gator has probably told his cousins & they are just coming by for a quick meal. If he hasn't caught it by this weekend I will ask him not to set any more traps.

Shallow end after bait was taken. Broke the rod.

2nd baiting. Hook, line & rod were taken the 1st time.

Here are a couple pics of my pathetic garden, Nelly having fun & other weeds:

1 Peach tree blooming. The other only had a couple blooms.

Weeds have once again taken over. The branch looks so close but it's actually about 60 or 70 yards away!

Not sure what this is?

Bitter Weed everywhere!

Nelly running & playing

Sigh

Nelly hiding in the weeds

More weeds but these are kind of pretty.

We're headed back up there this weekend & I'll get some pics of the inside of the barn apartment to post next week.

Misc Country Post

I spent the last week of February at the Country House. Or, more appropriately, the barn apartment. This thing is going to wear me out. In January, I primed all walls & painted the bead board that was going up in the kitchen ceiling before the cabinets were to be installed. Next was to get the whole thing painted before the trim & flooring goes in. The living area has a 16 foot peak! Plus all the 9 & 12 foot walls. The sheet rock guys offered to leave their scaffolding but it was much to rickity(sp?) for my sense of balance. So I decided to stick w/my trusty painters ladder for the 9 foot walls (hallway, bedroom, bathroom, etc.). After Greg cut in the ceilings & corners I used an extension pole for the bigger & higher walls.

I have always used either BMoore or SWilliams paint & have always been pleased. But ... this time I had a gift card from one of the big box stores from Christmas & decided to buy from them. It's been almost 10 years since I did a major paint job & the girl at the store talked me into buying the top of the line - VSpar. It was guaranteed to cover in one coat, even unprimed walls! I thought, wow, paint has come a long way. So, I spent the extra $10 per can & bought 4 of them. Well ... they lied. Streaks, roller lines, etc. I did a 2nd coat & even that wasn't enough! I may not be a professional but I know how to paint. This will be my 3rd house that I've painted, 4th if you count our remodel in the city. I know to feather the brush strokes on the ceiling & corner cut ins. And, to let the roller do the work by not pressing down to hard. It just wasn't working for me.

I eventually broke down & went to the SWilliams store. They matched the color & recommended a different roller & that 3rd coat did the trick. It was nice to have someone who knows paint help me, unlike the big box store where it was a 20 something person that I never should have listened to in the first place. Live & learn. I still have the bedroom & bathroom left but feel much better with the better paint.

Here's a pic of the almost finished kitchen:

Almost done. But I made a mistake in measuring. I only measured one side & didn't take into account the wrapped steel beam on the other side. It was 4" too short & one of the cabinets is drawers so the installer couldn't cut it down to make it fit. I had to order 2 more cabinets & couldn't return the others because they were obviously already assembled. Oh well, the 2 extra cabinets will go into the pantry.

It also rained over 3" one night & our dock was under water for 2 days. It was just so much rain at one time that the pond was very slow to drain.

The birds are migrating. The geese are back.

Thought the next 2 pics were kind of neat

Here's a shot above the little barn of a bare tree

And, the same trees 2 minutes later, full of black birds. There are literally 1000's of them in all the trees along the fence line. It's something to watch when they all land & then ascend. It's like they are orchestrated.

Also, the Purple Martins are back. This will be the 8th or 9th year they have returned. These are just scouts & housekeepers getting ready for the rest that will come to live for a few months while they have their babies. This pic was taken around 7:00a. It is the stillest they will be all day.

Finally, I'll leave you with a shot of the now spoiled Nelly,sitting on the couch w/Greg.

I'll be back up there next week for some appliance deliveries & to paint trim & finish the bedroom before flooring is put down. 

I'll be glad when I can start moving stuff from the city that I've been accumulating from various Estate Sales over the past year or so. You can barely open the front door in our foyer!

Oh Nelly

I spent most of the end of January at the Country House. We are having some work done on the barn apartment so I needed to be there while the sheet rock, gas guy, carpenter, etc. came & went.

The 2nd weekend I was there  I was sitting on the back porch around dusk on Sunday (1/24). I happened to look up & saw what I thought was a cat walking near the gas tank by the barn. I would love to have a cat up there to help with any mice problems so I ran inside & grabbed a small baggy of cat food that I keep on hand & went back out & called to it.

It was almost dark by this time & when the poor thing came up to me it wasn't a cat at all but a small Chihuahua. She was skin & bones & could barely use her back legs. Plus, it looked like she had had puppies recently.

She looked at the food & then back at me & whined a bit. She finally ate the food & just sat at my feet. I picked her up because she was shivering. I brought her in on the porch & tucked her under my jacket at my side. She was having a really hard time breathing & I thought that she might be on her way over the rainbow bridge. Since it was going down in the 20s that night I couldn't let her stay out so I put newspaper down in the bathroom & brought her in for the night. The next morning she ate a little more but it was obvious that she just wanted to be held & loved. It also became obvious that she wasn't house broken, oh joy.

Don't know if she ran away or was dumped. This will be the 5th dog that has shown up at the house (a lab, 2 lab mix puppies & a border collie mix). We found good owners for all of them.

I bought her some food & since it was warmer the next few day/nights I got some rugs, towels & a box & made her a bed on the carport. The sheet rock guys finished on Tuesday & I needed to get started priming the walls. The barn is right by the house & faces the carport so I was back & forth all day for the next few days & she got a little stronger each day. I posted her pic on FB but no one came forth. By the end of the week she was still skinny but much more lively & of course I had named her by then. Nelly as in nervous. Greg came in on Friday night & she barked at him like she owned the place.

We agreed that it would be best if she could find a new home. I have a cousin in-law that works for animal control & she offered to take her to work w/her. She came by on Monday morning to pick her up. Nelly was shocked when I handed her off & I surprised myself by tearing up a bit. As I continued with my painting I found that I was missing her more & more as the day went on. While talking with Greg that night I told him I felt bad that I had helped her get better just to give her away. And, I missed having her around. After we hung up I started tearing up again. Unexpectedly, Greg texted me a little while later to tell me to go get her, that we would make it work somehow.

So, long story short I went to get her the next morning & we are now the proud owners of a yipper dog as we have always called that breed. She is the sweetest thing & smart as well. The Vet wants her to gain a pound or two & then she will be spayed at the end of the month. I am in the process of crate training her. She hasn't had an accident in the house since Saturday morning. We've never had an inside dog or a dog this small before & the responsibility is quite different.

Wish me luck in getting her house trained.

Does Raw Milk Make a Difference?

I think it does. One of the guys that works for my husband has started keeping chickens & has been gifting us with a lot of eggs. Even with husband giving to In-Laws & neighbors, I found that I still had a surplus.

I had some smoked ham left over from the holidays as well, so I decided to make some quiche for dinner & to go ahead & make some for the freezer.

I made up a batch of pie crust a couple of days before I made the quiche(s). I used the recipe from the Chickens in the Road Fool Proof Pie Crust which makes 5 single crusts. I like this crust for savory pies.  Note: Still looking for a good recipe made with butter that I can use for sweet pies.

The 4 that I was going to put in the freezer were all made with the same ingredients. Except I only had enough 2% milk for 3 of them & used my raw 'drinking' milk for the 4th (& 5th). I baked 2 at a time & when I took the 2nd batch out here is the difference:

The one on the right is the one made with the raw milk. I'm guessing that store bought regular whole milk might have had the same result?

Each of the 'to be' frozen ones had ham, steamed chopped broccoli, onions & cheese with 4 eggs & 1 cup of milk each. 20 eggs used up!

The last one I made for our dinner I used sauteed mushrooms instead of broccoli & apparently I didn't saute out all of the moisture from the mushrooms because it was a bit watery & bland. However, I just had a slice of leftover for lunch & all the moisture was gone & it was very tasty. Lesson learned.

Cookies, Gates & Snake(s)!

Hope everyone had a great end to 2015. Can't believe this was the 3rd Christmas w/o my sweet niece Brooke. Everyone is moving forward with their lives but it will never be the same. As the saying goes - Life does indeed go on.

I've almost always made cookies to share at Christmas time. I used to take loads & loads to work to place at each coffee station or in each Department. One year we made over 1000! Since I don't work anymore I still found that I wanted to bake the week before Christmas. This was my haul this last year.

Peppermint Bark (new)

Pineapple/Coconut Cheesecake Bars (new) & Lemon Squares

Oatmeal, Sugar, Coconut Meringues & Flourless Chocolate (new)

I had success & failures this year.

Only half of the pan of My Lemon Squares baked. Weird, one end was done & the other completely not done.

It was very humid the day I made the Meringues & they had a hard time drying (usually on a 175 degree setting). I eventually just turned the oven off & left the majority in it to see if they would dry by the morning. I neglected to tell Greg that I had left them in only to come back in the kitchen a while later to him heating the oven (at 350 degrees) for our dinner. We saved most but some were waaaay brown. They are supposed to be just a very light tan.

I always try a couple of new recipes. This year was:

1. Pineapple Cheesecake Bars - good.

2. Peppermint Bark which also was good but way too thick.

3. Flourless Chocolate which turned out ok. I always give a big batch of cookies to a good friend of mine for her large family. She has a daughter with Lime disease & she's trying a gluten free diet to see if that helps w/her symptoms. I wanted her to have something to eat besides bark & meringues so I tried the Flourless chocolate. The first batch (w/o nuts) weren't even close to being done in the time frame the recipe called for so I stuck them back in for 5 more minutes (after sitting out for about 5). They were flat as a flitter but melt in your mouth light & airy. The 2nd batch (1/nuts) rose & cooked just fine but not near as light as the other ones. Hopefully I can reproduce my mistake next year.

I also decided to make homemade Cinnamon Rolls for a select few families to bake on Christmas Morning. I made the icing & gave in a mason jar for them to ice immediately after taking from the oven.

Ready to rise & bake

We celebrated with my family on Christmas Day & then headed to the Country. Note: I only have my Tablet when we are in the Country & I can read blogs & email but have trouble commenting.

We always have some project or another to do since we have the entire week between Christmas & New Years. We were originally going to work on the Garden Shed since it's been in place since Nov. 2013 & still not finished. But since the ground was fairly dry we decided to go ahead & extend our gate instead. We put the poles in the ground on the 27th & came back the next day to add the boards.

Before extensions

After extensions

*** WARNING - If you don't like pics of snakes don't scroll down past this point ***

When I walked out to the edge of the driveway, by the ditch & road to take the above pic, I noticed movement on the ground to my right. It was a small King snake that I thought was shedding it's skin. I ran to get the camera & when I came back I realized it wasn't shedding it's skin .... IT WAS EATING ANOTHER SNAKE! Hopefully a poisonous one! Hubby thought it might have been a Water Moccosin.

Didn't see the head or how much had been eaten already but the eaten snake had to have been almost as long as the King.

Close up.

About 10 minutes later - making progress.

More progress .... that tail was still moving --- ewww!

All done!

You can't tell from the above pic but the tail was sticking out the side of his/her neck & was still moving!

Slithering away ... About 3 foot long

We figured he/she had caught it in the ditch & drug it up to consume. It definitely wasn't there when we started on the gate boards. Gotta love the wildlife. Makes me remember to watch where I'm stepping at all times up there!