First Crazy Quilt Block

Thanks to the enthusiasm and encouragement of my friend Judy at Apron Strings I completed my first crazy quilt block. It is made with cotton scraps, DMC floss and a crochet flower passed along to me some time ago. The backing is muslin. The next block will be smoother, the stitches better looking and I`ll do some machine embroidery. I learned a lot. This was very relaxing. I have more crazy quilting links in my left sidebar. So thank you Judy! Visit Judy`s blog so you can see her beautiful embellished quilt squares.

Everything is blooming here including my lilacs and rosemary. Pictures on the next post. I have many things going on. Taking on too much at one time and getting nothing accomplished. HA!

Take care and God Bless.
Cathy

Embroidered Pillowcase Giveaway and Morning Snow

To begin today`s post I want to tell you about a Pillowcase Giveaway my friend Marilyn is having on her blog Our Victorian Cottage. Marilyn expertly embroiders pillowcases and finishes them with lovely crochet embroidery. This is a fabulous giveaway. Please visit her blog and take a look. You won`t be disappointed.

We had a late night/early morning snow. It was beautiful, damp and bitterly cold. The sun melted most of the snow by late afternoon. There is a promise of warmer weather tomorrow. Total accumulation was about 1 1/2 inches.

Thank you for visiting. Homemade chile for supper tonight with fresh warm bread. Have a nice week!
Cathy

Joshua Trees and a Sewing Project

Hello everyone. It`s been a busy month. My son is recovering nicely.  Thank you for your good wishes and prayers.  $53,000 just for the spare parts on his spine. Glad he has good insurance. I`ve been working in the yard trying to keep the new weeds at bay. It is a never ending project. This year it is wild mustard again. The desert marigolds are coming up too. Not complaining because I really enjoy being outside. The Joshua trees have a good crop of buds. When the buds open and flower, black seeds are available for birds and other critters . The birds love them. The Joshua Tree is a member of the lily family. After living here twenty years I am allergic to the flowers. Oh well.

Four buds of various sizes in the center of the Joshua

A closed bud. The branch is resting on the ground.

This is a market bag I`ve nearly finished. It is made with a vintage style print upholstery fabric. The straps are pinned in place and it sure needs to be pressed! The fabric was in a box of sewing notions and fabric a neighbor passed on to me. The kindness of neighbors. I love it.

My nearly finished  market bag.

That`s about it for now. All is well. Wish gas wasn`t  $4.00/Gal. We may get snow tonight. Only a dusting. Right now the wind gusts are about 40. Temp in the high 50`s. Bless you all,

Cathy

A Day In The Desert

I chose today to finally relax. What a week! We were metal detecting for nuggets this morning. Got lots of exercise! When my arm was tired from swinging the detector I picked up a camera and took these pictures of a couple of barrel cactus. The desert is getting green already. New life.

Barrel Cactus hiding beneath a bush.  Desert plants have a symbiotic relationship with plants around them.

A cluster of  Barrels. My favorite kind. They will likely flower in less than a month.

The other side of the cluster making a total of five Barrels. More pics coming when they flower.

This was a wonderful day. Had lunch in the fresh air. About 70 with a light breeze. It was great! I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Cathy

Fresh Herbs and Eggs

Happy Thursday everyone! What`s been happening? Well....I was down to two eggs, not enough for a pound cake and out of the blue a neighbor calls telling me her chickens have been very productive and would I like a few eggs. She dropped off two dozen! Talk about timely!

The next day we visited a friend and I mentioned my fondness for fresh herbs. He gave me a small jar each of oregano, mint and bay leaves. So much better than store bought. The smell is divine.

Another neighbor grows many herbs including German Chamomile, one of many I use for medicinal purposes. Buying local I am assured of a good product.

Take care,
Cathy

That Vintage Tupperware and more.

Hello! It`s been busy, busy around the ol` homestead. Finally here is an organized picture of some of the Tupperware my neighbor gave me. My favorite pieces are a container large enough to hold a turkey or roast and the FridgeSmart vegetable crisper. Not in the photo is at least three dozen extra lids for the old white/clear Tupperware our grandmother`s and mom`s had in their kitchens. Okay, I had (have) them too! There are maybe another half dozen of the old containers still packed away. Most are bent out of round and won`t hold a good seal. I am hoping to find someone who needs extra lids. Maybe I`ll donate them to the thrift store.

Where have I been the last week or so? The weather was great, till today anyway, and I was doing much needed yard work, cleaning up old weeds and brush, removing old lumber and moving hubby`s tools before snake season gets here. They can hide in the smallest places. The best part was sitting in a comfy chair outside with a cup of tea when all was done. I like listening to the quiet. When you really listen the "quiet" holds bird songs, breezes blowing through the Joshua`s and a neighbor`s truck coming up the dusty road. The things I tune out are the  tour planes, helicopters and the occasional lost tourist looking for the Skywalk who somehow finds my house down a labyrinth of dirt roads, miles away from the the huge sign that declares "Skywalk Turn Here". One day there were four Japanese tourists peeking in our windows. That was a first but they were very nice.

My other pre-occupation is that my son is having spinal fusion surgery next week. After miserable pain the last few years he had to retire from his federal  firefighting job. He was a battalion chief in southern Arizona.  His L 5 vertebrae never fused to the pelvis.  The surgeon said it was spina bifida that hadn`t progressed. Apparently had I not had a good prenatal diet things could have been worse. Fire fighting is hard work and 15 years of stress on the body took a toll. This is a common surgery today and he has a great surgeon.  My fantastic daughter in law will take good care of him at home.

Chris and Catie at their mountain property

That`s all for now. Thank you for visiting.
Cathy

California Ballot Initiative To Require Labeling Of GMO`s

GMO food is everywhere now and I wanted to post this important information. What affects California will affect us all. They supply a major portion of the fruit and vegetables we buy in our supermarkets. Californians are putting forth a ballot initiative that will hopefully appear on the November 2012 ballot requiring labeling of the GMO foods in their markets. This is a link to Label GMO`s where there is more information. The FDA does not require DNA altered product to be labeled. Monsanto says that the public doesn`t have a need to know. Well, I sure as heck want to know what I`m purchasing and feeding my family. If Californian`s succeed this will likely go nationwide. I signed the petition yesterday.

Next you might want to learn about GMO corn that produces it`s own pesticide. Here is the link GMO Corm. This corn is regulated by the EPA as a pesticide. Remember Agent Orange?

As consumers we have to make a real effort to stay on top of issues concerning our food supply, among other things. It`s getting difficult to buy raw milk and some organic sellers have had a rough time with the USDA. It`s a changing world.

My New Vintage Tupperware

Hello! It`s been windy and cold and I`ve had an earache and sinus congestion the last couple of days. So I`ve been slowed down a bit. However I had a nice surprise this morning. The husband went to the neighbor`s and brought back many, many pieces of vintage Tupperware. Now that was enough to get me out of bed! The picture shows everything still in boxes. When I get it sorted and clean I will take more pictures. There is also a quilt made from knit fabrics, first one of those I`ve had. It is sturdy and nicely done. And please notice the tan and red box laying on top. It is a nearly full box of Tite Locker Wrap, as in freezer wrap, with the International Harvester logo. It looks to be about 50 years old. They call it Glassine Kraft Laminated. It`s in great shape.

Vintage Tupperware and Quilt

The fog creeping across Garnet Mountain at yesterday`s dawn.

The crest of Pearce Ferry Road as the fog glided towards Lake Mead. This is the road to the Skywalk turn-off.

Thank you for visiting. I appreciate it. Going to make homemade pizza crust and homemade sauce now.
Cathy

Crochet Irish Melody Bedspread

I started an Irish crochet bedspread this morning, finishing three hexagons. The pattern is named Irish Melody, first published by the Spool Thread Company in 1939. I`m using Knit-Cro-Sheen thread and a size 7 steel hook. 367 hexagons to go for the full size spread. I`m a huge fan of Irish crochet and I`ve had this pattern book published by Dover Publications, about 15 years. Time to get started don`t you think? I have the time now to relax and enjoy my crochet work.

Picture in the Dover book Crocheting Bedspreads

The next photos show a different type of high desert beauty in the Kingman, Arizona area. A friend purchased this property and my husband took the pics on their recent trip there.

There are small fish in the stream. I think the elevation is about 4,500 feet. Maybe higher.

When you get off the highway this is the road to the acreage.

More of the stream. I was surprised to see all the green plants this time of year.

A nice pool with more fish.

Isn`t that a beautiful sight?. I understand there are deer and javalina in the area too. I love the desert and it`s special places.

That`s about it for today. It`s warm and I`m going to start yardwork. Maybe walk first. Have a great weekend!
Cathy

More Sewing, Weather and desert life.

Today is week two of the Take A Stitch Tuesday Challenge. This week is the buttonhole stitch and variations if we so choose. You can follow the challenge at the above link.

You can read more about my sample here. About 20 degrees here last night. It should be close to 60 by noon. A small snake left a trail across one of the dirt roads yesterday. Some of them are persistent looking for a place to warm in the sun. It`s was in the 70`s last week and sometimes that prompts an excursion from the hole they retreated in to keep warm.

Hubby and I had our yearly doctor visits and we are "good to go" for another year. I like that!

Wishing you all a safe, warm, blessed week.
Cathy