Great Eva Pictures

Eva sent me these pictures this past week.  I don't think that all of you received them so I thought maybe you would like to see them.  She was working on a new 'character' Vacation Bible School.  I am not sure if these characters were meant to entertain the children or not but they sure entertained me. 

 SO....  Where did she get these clothes and the hair???

 It looks like she is having as much fun as the kids. 

 If you are going to San Fransisco, Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair. 

 Now I'm not too sure abut this dress.  It is a little strange.

Sorry, I tried to make this picture go the other way but I included it anyway.  I actually kind of like this dress. 

Hope you were entertained by 'Groovy Gram' as she calls herself. 

Brittany is back home

Last night we went over to the cottage for dinner and a chance to see Brittany.  She came home from her Uganda adventure this past weekend.  It was fun to catch up with her and have time together with the family.  She had an interesting time on her medical trip to Uganda.  She was full of lots of stories and fun pictures.  She did manage to see some wildlife and enjoy the countryside a little too.  She is VERY glad to be back in the United States  with her family and John.

 Mom and Dad are glad to have her back home too.  It was a nice dinner together. 

David??? We aren't so sure that he was glad to see her (Just kidding)  Brittany and John cooked tacos for us and I took along homemade ice cream.  It was a nice evening. 

messy painting and messy words

Painting is the task for the two of us here.  I am painting the bedroom furniture.  I made a new quilt and the furniture needs to match the quilt.  SO, Eva and Jessica both said that I needed to paint it black.  I started the project on Sunday.  It is Tuesday and I only have one more piece to paint the first coat.  So far I have painted one large dresser, one small dresser, a chest, 2 bedside tables.  All of the pieces except the chest have drawers so that is a lot of work too.  Of course the chest has a lid that needs to be painted.  I don't know how many swear words I have shouted as I work on this project.  I still have the headboard to do.  Bud is disconnecting it from the bed tonight so I can do that tomorrow.  I ran out of room on the porch to put everything so some of the drawers had to be moved to the basement.  I sent out a cussing text to Eva and Jessica today.  I am TOTALLY blaming them for this project.  I hope that the results will be worth it. 

 You may not be able to tell it from this picture but I am a VERY messy painter.  The people at the paint store said that even though this is an oil base paint, it is suppose to be 'soap and water clean up' so I didn't wear gloves when I started on Sunday.  I ended up with black paint almost everywhere but definitely on my hands.  WELL,  I finally got most of it off after using an industrial brush and mineral spirits.  I wore gloves the next day.  I have concluded that I won't be painting the inside of the furniture. It is already painted white and no one will see it.  I told myself that I don't need to paint the insides of the drawers black either since no one will see it and I have convinced myself that it would be hard to see things inside black drawers.  Doesn't that sound like a rational idea to you too.  AND Eva told me that I still have to paint another coat.  Whose idea was it to paint the furniture anyway.  At least I am saving some money. 

Bud has been painting the garage.  He painted another wall this past week.  Notice that he is painting in a WHITE shirt and there isn't any paint on him, his clothes, his hands, his hair, his shoes or anything.  I swear that he could paint in his suit and come in clean.  We don't ever paint together. 

I started this project because my sewing machine was in the shop for what was going to be a week.  Well, they called on Monday and told me that it was ready so I got it back home sooner than planned.  It is a good thing that I started the painting project or I would just go back to sewing.  I enjoy that activity. 

I hope you have found a fun project that you can work on or maybe even a project that NEEDS to be done.  I prefer the fun projects.

LOST

I am feeling lost this weekend.  Yesterday I had to take my sewing machine into have it repaired/tuned up.  I always miss having it in the house even if I don't use it.  I often sew about 2 hours a day at least and that is a big hole in my life when it isn't around.  I should have taken it in when I was out of town but just didn't do it so now I will pay the price.  It isn't as if I can't find something else to do, but it is my 'fall back' activity.  I did go out yesterday and buy some paint.  I am going to paint my bedroom furniture to go with my quilt. I have been putting off this activity because it really isn't that fun for me.  I will start it on Monday, when I have a whole day to work.  I have 2 dressers, 2 bedside tables, a large chest with a lid, and a headboard to paint.  I am painting them black per Eva's suggestion.  Both she and Jessica thought that would be the best color.  I will then look for some good knobs to make it look nice. 

My computer has also been on the fritz lately.  It will go into the shop on Monday.  We are having difficulty with our Internet connection and think it is the modem but want to give it a 'tune up' also before contacting the cable company again.  I spent about an hour on the phone with someone from India the other day, trying to diagnose the problem.  That is kind of like trying to perform your own surgery with a doctor from India and doing it over the phone.  "Now just a minute, let me put down the phone while I make that incision.  Where exactly would you like me to make that incision in my stomach"  I am not much help to the tech person in India. 

I hope your problems are more simple than mine.  Wish me good luck painting.  I will post a picture when I get it done.  Enjoy the heat or try to stay cool.

Quilting to stay cool.

OK,OK, I did say in my last post that we should be glad for the nice warm weather.  However, it has been a bit warm here lately.  The AC has been running all the time and I have been inside enjoying it. 

This is often a warm week in Michigan, I know this because it is the week of the Ann Arbor Art Fair and I am usually fighting the crowds and the heat in Ann Arbor.  My art fair partner and friend, Kathy just recently retired and is on her own adventure with her husband.  You can check her blog as I have listed it as blogs I follow.  I decided not to go this year even though I briefly thought of finding someone else to go with me.  I am working on not buying 'things' and I surely have enough rings and 'things' to last a lifetime.  I had Paris and that was my expenditure for the year.  A memory that I will hold dear for the rest of my life. 

 I just finished this quilt for a wedding gift.  I REALLY like this pattern and the color combinations.  It was a very easy quilt pattern and a great way to use a lot of different colors.  Most of the fabrics I just picked up as I was out to different stores, without this pattern in mind.  When I saw this pattern I knew that it would look great with these fabrics.  I like how the black in the middle of each piece really sets off the blocks.  I have toyed with the idea of trying it again with white in the middle or maybe a different color but I am very happy with this gift.  I continue to work on the scrappy one that I showed a few posts back.  It is looking quite good and it keeps me from the fabric stores and spending money on fabrics that I don't need since I don't have a project in mind just yet. 

I have also been reading quite a bit lately.  I just started a good book and just finished a pretty average  book.  When I started the good book, I remembered why I like to read good literature.  The book I like so far is 'Remarkable Creatures' by Tracy Chevalier.  She also wrote 'Girl with the Pearl Earring' which I really liked. 

So good reading to all of you, I hope you have a project that allows you to keep cool or inside and enjoy the summer. 

Weekend activities

This past weekend was a busy weekend for Harley owners.  It was the weekend of the charity Father Fred ride.  Bud went on the Saturday afternoon 'Poker Run with the guys in this picture.  They had a good time and put about 200 miles on their bikes.  I met the crew downtown in the evening and we all went out to dinner.  Then on Sunday they did the Father Fred ride out on the Peninsula.  This was a shorter ride but everyone went at the same time.  They left the dealership south of town and then rode through town and out to the end of Old Mission Peninsula and back.  They went by our subdivision about 12:30 and I could hear the roar of the bikes from the house.  After that ride I met the group for brunch.  The women in this picture went with their partners.  I have not yet rode on the bike and remain a bystander. It is nice that they let me come and enjoy the after events with them.  Bud had a great time even though the weather was very hot for the ride yesterday. 

When he came home he switched into his painting clothes and began working on the garage.  We picked out a color that we seem to like and he wanted to paint around the doors to see if it was a good match.  We both like it.  It is a bit darker as you can see.  It is hard to believe that we may have nailed the color on the first try.  He bought a small amount of the paint just to try it out. 

I stayed in out of the heat yesterday, working on my scrappy quilt.  I also attended the memorial service of a friend who lost a battle with leukemia a couple of weeks ago.  She was a teacher and a friend that taught next door to me for many years.  I learned a great deal about how to be a teacher from her.  She was just 69 so way to young.  As with all such times, I did reconnect with several people that I haven't been in touch with for a long time.  I sat around the table with my former principal and his wife and another man that I began teaching with.  We had some good talks about the state of our educational system and of course 'the good old days' . 

I hope you had a good weekend and managed to stay out of the heat wave that has 'gripped' the midsection of the U.S.  Where would be be without the 'hype' of the newsmakers.  We just call that summer here and enjoy it while it last because it will be gone soon and we will be complaining about the cold and snow soon. 

Pre-Harry Potter Party

Yesterday I received a call from Sue requesting help with Charlotte's Pre-Potter Party.  She and a friend had decided to have a party before going to the midnight showing of the latest movie.  I was 'so not in the loop' and didn't even know that the last movie was coming out at midnight but consented to be a helper for this party.  I arrived about 6:30 and helped prepare the food for this little get together. 

 Since I am clueless on all things Harry Potter I also didn't know about this drink they prepared.  It was called 'Butter Beer'  the recipe includes ice cream, cream soda, and butterscotch syrup.  It looked and sounded interesting but I didn't indulge.  They had fun with their drinks.

 The boys stayed quietly inside, eating the leftovers.  (I made Jack wait until all the guests had eaten before he plunged into the hot dogs and burgers.)

After dinner they had a bonfire out on the beach.  A good crowd of teenagers.  They looked like they were having a good time.  The only thing us adults had to do was supervise and provide them with food.  It was a fun evening.  They left for the mall to 'hang out' for a couple of hours before the movie.  I am sure that included waiting in line.  We did not have to pick them up at 2:30 when the movie was over.  That was the one question that Bud asked when he found out that I had volunteered us for kitchen duty. 

I am not a Harry Potter fan but I am sure that some of you are.  If you watched the last movie, I hope that you had a good time.  I am too old for midnight movies even if it is something I do want to watch.  I don't even go to the 10:00 show anymore.