A Zach-y quilt

I don't think I've mentioned in previous posts that I'm a quilter. Unlike the Amish who put mistakes in their quilts on purpose (because only God can make something perfect) mine have natural flaws. And plenty of them. That's what makes them unique! Although I haven't done much quilting in the past couple of years, I recently made a baby quilt for my nephew, Zach. Yes, I bought the stuff last spring before he was born. Yes, I looked at it all summer. Then something clicked in November and I got busy and completed it the other day. Just in time for his 7-month birthday today. Yay!

First I laid the blocks out on the dining room table until I was pleased with the lineup:

After that I sewed each row together and then sewed rows to rows. I decided to tie this quilt together with blue cotton instead of quilting it with the machine. I sewed the binding on between 10 and 11 o'clock one night. Not a good idea. I ended up taking out a big part of one side and re-doing it. Twice. But I finally got it right and was able to do the hand-stitch finishing work in one sitting. This is what the finished product looks like:

The final flourish:


Now I just need to finish those two quilts I started over three years ago...

They have four kids, too

My friend, Kathleen, has been pictured on my blog multiple times. But she's always been with the girls and I just wanted everyone to know that she does have a husband and occasionally they go places together! Kathleen and Dave attended Laurie's party this past Saturday and I finally got a picture of them together (before he left to go watch the KU-Missouri game):

Laurie's 40th birthday party

Saturday evening I attended the 40th birthday party of my college friend, Laurie. The party was at Eberly Farm and the sign out front proclaimed the reason for all the cars.

After a horse-drawn (courtesy of Belgian horses Lance and Andy) ride around the grounds under a full moon, guests were served a buffet supper, access to an all-you-can-drink keg and soda fountain and a piece of crap cake made by some of Laurie's sisters and nieces. Don't know what crap cake looks like? Well, it's a chocolate culinary delight which they even served with a litter box pooper scooper, which I (perhaps wrongly) assumed was clean!















Here's the birthday girl in all her glory:

Laurie hired The Dance Man (Ronnie Choy) to spin tunes throughout the evening. But the dancing didn't begin in earnest until after her siblings had sung a few tunes of their own to celebrate the occasion. She's the youngest of 10 and it's a family tradition to do this at their birthday parties. Only her sister, Joy, was absent for the serenade:

When the tunes started spinning it was rare for the dance floor to NOT be packed. We did everything from the Chicken Dance on up. (Or is it down?) The most enthusiastic dancers on the floor were probably the youngest ones. Vincent and Joseph were tireless and danced with their aunt Susan, Laurie, or whoever else was around! And our friend, Joyce, (in the foreground on the ground) schooled everyone in proper "Crocodile Rock" etiquette. Yes, she did that dance at her wedding in her wedding dress.





It was so much fun and the time went by so quickly. Before we knew it, it was 11 o'clock and poor Libby was ready for the music to stop so she could go home.


Thanks for the party, Laurie. And for future reference, don't forget who didn't bring you cheesy 40th birthday gifts.

Un-Black Friday

My Black Friday activity was working. It's really not a bad day to be at work since most of the crazies are at retail outlets. I can do without big crowds on most days and the day after Thanksgiving is no exception. After a quiet day at work, I met my friend Jennifer and her aunt and cousin from Bismarck, ND, at Caffe Moderne for a delicious panini and gelato.

Here's a snap of Jennifer, Maggie and Carol feeling good after gelato:


The four of us then made our way over to Cabaret Oldtown where we laughed our butts off at "A Cabaret Christmas." My review ? Awesome! We laughed so hard. The skit about the nerd couple introducing their families to each other at Christmas was my favorite. Actor Kyle Vespestad's very tight green pants (which was where he kept the engagement ring, of course) and the antics of "Opossum" (Casey Ross) in that skit alone were worth the price of admission. We had a fabulous girls' night out. Y'all come on back to Kansas sometime and we'll laugh some more!

Thanksgiving

Wednesday afternoon I took off from work and headed to the north and west and went to my Mom and Dad's house south of Ellinwood for the annual Thanksgiving feast. I got there early enough to spend some time with Zach just after he'd gotten up from his afternoon nap. My Mom watches him a day or two a week and Wednesday was one of those days. After Zach went home, I made my famous (in family circles anyway) pumpkin crunch dessert and helped my Mom with a few other things. Thanksgiving morning my niece Victoria helped us vacuum floors and get the table ready. I made a spicy macaroni & cheese dish and my Mom put together the last-minute green bean casserole, sweet potatoes and the cornbread dressing. She also makes the BEST turkey gravy on the planet, at least I think so. Present at our feast were Dad, Mom, brother Mark, Terri and Zach, brother John and his girls Jessica and Victoria, uncle Ed and cousin Jason, Heather and their daughter Madisyn. Later in the day my sister Teresa, brother-in-law Kenny, nephew Christopher, niece Katie, Katie's boyfriend Frank and our family friend Doris joined us for supper.

Here's Zach in his special Thanksgiving bib:

Can you see the two teeth on the bottom? He's drooling and working on more, probably as I type this. He loves mashed potatoes and gravy (and his Aunt Chris!):

I took this next picture of him when he first came in the door. My camera was a little foggy from being in the car overnight and then coming in to the warm house. But I like the effect. And the stocking cap.

Here Mark gets his blood pressure checked by Katie who was on call as part of her EMT class:

She pronounced everyone healthy enough to eat dinner! Everything was delicious and we had a good time. We even played a game of cards in the afternoon, which Teresa won (she says she NEVER wins at cards).

My heart goes out to Christopher who had to have his cat Neeko put to sleep Thanksgiving morning. Neeko was the coolest cat I have ever known. I was once at Christopher's apartment in Oklahoma City and played a very entertaining game of fetch with this cat. The best thing about playing fetch with a cat as opposed to a dog: no drool. You will be missed, baby Neeko!

Refund, anyone?

OK, I'll admit it, I've been watching the current season of The Bachelor on ABC that just ended last night. I'll admit another thing...I'm a big sap. I love a good love story and a happy ending. Never mind that the couples on these shows usually break up after the "real world" hits them. There was a Wichita native (Jenni) on this season and she actually made it to the final two. I was excited to watch last night's finale because I thought it could go either way. Sometimes I got the impression he'd pick Jenni and other times DeAnna. So I watched along with millions of others. He picked out a ring which seemed easy enough. Seemed pretty decisive about that. Then it was time for the final rose ceremony. And as far as the girl, he picked...neither one.

Huh? I feel cheated and I want my money back. He's cute, but give me a break.

Sunday wedding

This afternoon I got all dressed up (for a Sunday afternoon) and went to witness the marriage vows of Sarah and Aaron. I work with Sarah and was happy to be included on their big day. Here's the happy couple:


That's the judge who officiated on the right side of the picture, just in case you were wondering. After the short ceremony, there was a feast of Mexican food including enchiladas, tamales, homemade guacamole (thanks Vonnie) and wedding cake (my favorite). Congrats to Aaron and Sarah. I wish you many decades of wedded bliss!

And for those of you keeping track. Yes, that's Mexican food three nights in a row.

Elvis lives!

Saturday night a couple of friends from college had a 40th birthday party at their house. Darren turned 40 in October in Terri will be 40 at the end of December. So they split the difference and threw themselves a Mexican fiesta in November, complete with a margarita machine. One of the highlights of the evening was a visit from Elvis who serenaded Terri with about four songs. The first was "C.C. Rider" which always makes me laugh. My cousin Scott used to put the Elvis album on back when we were kids and do a hip-gyrating dance to that song. Yes, it made me laugh even back then.

He also did "Fools Rush In" one of my favorite Elvis tunes. Darren gets in on the action:

A couple more friends from college, Kathleen and Joyce:

Next week there will be yet another 40th birthday party, this one at Eberly Farm with a live DJ. Gosh, my friends are getting old!

Flaming Cazuelas

Friday evening my friend Jennifer and Bella, her two-year-old, picked me up and we went to Felipe's restaurant. Taking Bella wasn't our first choice since we were doing "research" of their Flaming Cazuela drink, but Steve was still working and couldn't take over Bella duties. Jennifer wants to have a Flaming Cazuela party and she needed to try the drink again before attempting to make them on her own. I had never had one and decided it was something I should do to support my friend. They are a mix of tequila, vodka, rum and citrus fruit juices. Each cazuela comes in its own special drinking bowl and has a flaming fruit rind floating on top. Did I mention each one is 50 oz. of heaven? This is Jenn taking her inaugural drink of the one we shared Friday night (since we had Bella, we didn't think it was a good idea for us each to have our own):

You can barely see the flame on the fruit rind that's floating on top of the drink. I wasn't very quick with my camera. But I was quick to grab my straw and start drinking.

Crazy good. I can't wait for Jennifer's FC party!

The cowboy and the frog

I finally got some Halloween pics of my nephew and great nephew. How adorable are the cowboy (Caden) and the frog (Zach)? I have to give a shout out to my niece, Katie, who sent me these the other day. I won't get to see Caden over Thanksgiving, but I'm looking forward to some quality Zach time. I haven't seen him for over a month and he's changed a lot, I'm told. He's got two teeth, so he's been really busy!

Here's a picture of the cowboy family (Andrew, Caden, Rachel and Copper):

This has to be one of my absolute favorite shots of the Froggy:

I love how it looks like he's standing there all by himself (sorta). Thanks to Uncle Kenny (my brother-in-law) for positioning him for this shot. I wish I could have been there to see them in person, but at least there are some pictures to mark the occasion.

Mom visit

My Mom's been at my house since Wednesday. It's her monthly visit for her china painting club meetings. We took advantage of her senior citizen discount at Kohl's on Wednesday after she got to town -- some Christmas surprises were purchased. Before Kohl's Mom had her first Texas Roadhouse experience where she declared that our waitress was the best dancer.

We also went to look at an RV that my sister, Jenny, is thinking of renting for their family vacation next summer for a two-week trip up into Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, North Dakota and Canada. I've been asked to go on this vacation. Since there are only six states I haven't been to and they are going to four of them, it's a very appealing offer. Traveling in an RV or minivan with three teenagers for two weeks...not so appealing. It all depends on when we start working in earnest to install the new advertising system we're getting at work next year. Here's a picture of the RV we looked at:

It was nice inside and I think it would be so much more comfortable than a minivan for three teenagers and three adults plus luggage. I'll keep you posted on whether I go on this trip or not. It would be an interesting couple of weeks, to say the least...lots of blog fodder if nothing else! But after looking at the RV, it seems a little more exciting than it did at first. It could be the chance of a lifetime trip for all of us. We'll see.

El Gaucho evening

Janette, Laurie, Kathleen, Carolyn and me at El Gaucho Steakhouse

Sunday evening I met the Newman college gang at El Gaucho Steakhouse for an evening of good food, good drink and even better conversation. We welcomed newcomer (and K-State alum) Carolyn and she passed all initiation rites. We started with a pitcher of sangria which was an excellent choice. There was no serenade by our waiter this time, but we had fun anyway. Nothing really earth-shattering to report because what happens on our Sunday nights stays there.

I had the fried steak entree smothered in ham, mozzarella and some sort of red sauce. It was good, but I thought there was too much red sauce and it overpowered the dish. My favorite thing (besides the sangria) was the to-die-for bread we were served. It comes with a couple of things to spread on it, including a tomato, onion and olive oil concoction that was quite tasty and very soft butter with parsley. But I LOVED the parsley spread (from what I remember it had parsley, garlic and olive oil at least) that accompanied it. It was probably my favorite part of the meal.

Ladies, as always, it was a pleasure to be in your company.

The leaves are a-fallin'

Well, it must officially be fall. The leaves have been coming off the trees pretty briskly for a couple of days. My back yard has a blanket of leaves. Though I'm dreading the annual leaf pick-up activity, it is quite beautiful. Especially on my street. I live on a street with a median and in the median is a row of what I believe are Chinese pistache trees. This time of year those trees are the epitome of fall color. Here are a few shots I've taken over the last two weeks. This first one is of the trees in front of my house.

Looking west down the street from the end of my driveway:Taken yesterday morning looking east down the street:
Those trees are one of the best things about living on this street, which is quite busy. Looking out at them makes it all seem worthwhile.

Apostrophe etiquette

If you've been reading my blog religiously (and, really, who wouldn't), you know that I have a pet peeve about punctuation and grammar. I am, by no means, an expert. But, seriously, things have gotten very out of hand in this world.

Yesterday, my friend Denise devoted her column in the Wichitalk section of our newspaper (the one she and I both work for) to the blogs of some others who post pictures of apostrophe horrors among other things. See, it's not just me!

Check a couple of them out for yourselves:
http://apostrophism.com
http://www.apostropheabuse.com/

Dinner date with Caden

Saturday afternoon about five o'clock I got a call from my oldest nephew, Andrew. He said that he and his wife, Rachel, were in town for a visit with her aunt and uncle. Did I want to meet them for dinner at Granite City? Heck yes! I quickly changed clothes and flew across town to meet them. Caden, their son and my great-nephew in case you've been sleeping through previous posts, was awake when I got to the table. Rachel handed him over and we had some quality giggle time before he got too sleepy. I can't help but laugh when babies or toddlers laugh. Their laughter comes from deep inside and they aren't too self-conscious to just let it rip. It's one of the best sounds ever (right up there with a steady rain falling on the ground and birds chirping in the trees). Caden squealed and giggled with me and at me before he drifted off to sleep. I marveled with Rachel and Andrew about how amazing it is that even at 3 months old, he already has mannerisms and idiosyncracies that mirror theirs. I was so caught up in his giggling that I forgot to snap any pictures. And by the time I thought of it he was awake again and ready to eat his dinner. So, here's a file photo of him to refresh your memories:

That's his Daddy holding him in this picture taken a little over a month ago. Let's have a date again soon, OK?

Success

Friday's flurry of handyman activity paid off. I have a toilet in my half-bath that doesn't wobble (very important) and the bathtub plumbing is now leak-free. Hooray!

After the plumbing issues were resolved (mid-afternoon), Handy Jeff moved on to a lunch break and buying electrical supplies at my local Sutherlands store (which he hates, by the way). He had to get up in my attic amid all the insulation (I'm just glad I didn't have to do it) and run new wiring for the ceiling fan (I opted to have a double switch -- one for the fan and one for the light) and he had to run all new wiring for the exhaust fan in the bathroom. He finished up around 10:30 Friday evening. That's 11.25 hours of billable time. Holy cow!

After my Mom found out how much it cost, she asked me, "Do you think you could offer him sex next time instead of paying him money?" I'M NOT EVEN KIDDING. Good question, Mom. I'll check into it for the future. As my friend, Lori, commented in the earlier post about this, it would be good to find out just how "handy" he can be! At least he knows the way to my bedroom already...

Home on a Friday

Why am I at home on a Friday? Well, this is why:
The toilet in my half bath tried to escape today. No, not really. I hired a guy named Jeff (I call him Handy Jeff) to come and work on a couple of plumbing issues, install an exhaust fan in my full bath and a ceiling fan in my bedroom. So far he's pulled the toilet, shut off the water and left for an hour to go get "supplies", which I suspect is code for lunch. During said hour I really had to pee and I haven't admitted to him yet that I went ahead and did my business, just couldn't flush it. Maybe I'll let him find out by accident. No, I won't. I'm really nicer than that. Actually, he did come back just a few minutes ago with a bag of stuff that looks very plumby (I know, not a real word). Jeff is really a very nice guy otherwise I wouldn't give him access to my home. His background check was clean. Just kidding! I'll keep you posted on the progress of things, because I know you're dying to know.

Halloween story

Wednesday evening I went over to my friend Laurie's house for pizza and Halloween festivities. Her neighborhood is much more overrun with kiddies than mine is and, therefore, much more exciting. Some other friends with kids came over, too. We ate pizza and the kids could barely contain their excitement before trick-or-treating.

Joseph and Vincent in their cowboy finery:
Mom Nancy and Libby, the ladybug:While they went out trick-or-treating, I stayed behind and handed out candy. The next day at work most of my co-workers said they didn't get many kids. That's because they were all in Laurie's neighborhood. Altogether, she went through two big bowls of candy and the kids probably would have kept coming if she'd had more.

This year I was a bit of a scrooge and bought pencils and noisemakers for the kids I know. I shunned the candy because if I buy it, I just eat it. And my chins don't need any more girth. Pepe was kind enough to point out that he would have egged my house if I had given him a pencil when he was a kid. I ignored him.

Now, here's the real Halloween story:
I got home from the festivities about 8:15 and was settled down in my recliner watching some television when my doorbell rang. I thought it might be my neighbors and their two kids (ages 10 and 8, I think) because they usually come over each year. My light wasn't on and I figured it was someone I knew. Silly me. I looked out first, saw movement, flipped on the light and then opened the door. There stood a 13-year-old (I'm guessing) alone on my porch. I'd never seen him before in my life. He was dressed up, I'll give him that. He said "Trick or treat" and I looked at him blankly. Did I mention that MY LIGHT HAD BEEN OFF. To the left I saw that there was some candy in a cellophane bag on the ledge by my door. I picked it up, looked at it and asked him, "Was this there already when you rang the bell?" He said it was. I saw that the card was made and signed by my neighbors (she does scrapbooking) and that I'd been "Boo'd". I looked at the kid, said I didn't have any candy (which I clearly DID because I was holding the bag in my hand) and that my light was out for that reason. I said, "Sorry" and closed the door. Then I waited a beat and turned out the light. Cruel? Perhaps. But I honestly had no other candy in my house and I wasn't going to re-gift immediately the candy my neighbors had left for me. What kind of neighbor would I be if I didn't at least eat a few pieces of the candy they gave me? And really, there's only about five pieces in there anyway. The whole rule about the porch lights is ignored by so many people these days and I felt it important to teach a lesson, I guess.

But I checked the front of the house to see if I'd been egged before leaving for work Thursday morning. Luckily, there was no sign of yolk.