It's a...........

not a boy, nor a girl, but another bloody sinus infection!!!!  It's more or less two months to the day since I had my last sinus infection.  I am not happy.  For those of you who have medical knowledge is it common to have sinus infections like this close to one another?

Good news though the weather is miserable, cold, wet and even the threat of snow this week, so no major plans to go outside.  I do have the art gallery fundraiser on Thursday night, and unless I am on death's door I will be going!!  If you want to have a peek at what's on offer this year click on this link; it looks as though there have been some other works added.

I rather like this one, not sure what sort of bird that is.

This one also caught my eye. 

One thing for sure I will not be getting the royal family one.

I was "talking" to a fellow blogger and mentioned a "quick" project that you can pick up and work on for short periods of time, English Paper Piecing.  I gave her the link to this post and this post.  Here are more links to my work, here and here and here.  I think it is time to do some more of this.  

One thing I enjoyed doing was re-reading my old posts.  Do any of you enjoy English Paper Piecing?

Sewing, Molly and recipes....

As I said at the beginning of the week I am having a sewing week this week.  Got the two quilt blocks done that I had to do.  Got my apron made.  I used Simplicity Pattern #2691 It's fully reversible and wraps around your body.

I made this for a fundraiser/competition.  For every apron that is entered $5 is donated to a mission in Tanzania  You can win a $100 gift card for Cobwebs and Caviar, the quilting store where I am part of the block of the month club, or a free class.  I don't anticipating winning either but thought it was all in a good cause.

This is the front or the back of the apron:

This also could be the front or the back of the apron, depending on your mood?

This is a close up of the fabric, it is black and beige, sorry about the quality of the photo.

I thought I'd show you what I did with the blue English Paper Piecing, I am liking the border I put on it.  There is a lot more to be done on it.

I didn't do any sewing on Thursday, as I was busy with other things.

Now Molly had a super busy day on Thursday guarding the property from "marauding" squirrels, all from the back deck.  It kept her busy all day.  Mind you all that guarding had her worn out.  So much so she collapsed on the sofa for a well deserved rest........

That's her new thing by the way to hide her face under the pillow when she is sleeping!  Still have her on 1/2 pill per day for her allergies (the steroid one).  I have tried cutting her back to every other day, but she scratches like crazy.  I'll try cutting her back again by the end of the month, as by then she'll have been on her new food for six weeks, and the bee pollen a month.  Otherwise she is well.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Use your microwave oven to cook meals.  It doesn't heat up the house, it cooks the food faster and there are hundreds of recipes out there for microwave cooking, including my recipe for carrot soup.

Here are a couple of links for recipes that are made in the microwave:

http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/cat/109/

http://www.recipezaar.com/recipes/microwave

A bit of this a bit of that........

When I looked out through the family room windows today, our neighbour was busy with a back hoe digging out the stream on his property. He worked on it all day. If there hadn't been as much snow as there was and a nasty wind, I would have wandered down the field to see what was going on!!

(click on the photo's for more detail)

Sunday afternoon I spent most of it sewing, and finally got one of the block of the month blocks done.  It's called Balkan Puzzle  I got all the pieces cut out for the black, white and red block, so want to get that done this week.

I bought material to back my latest english paper piecing project, but am not 100% happy with my material choice.  What do you think, and what colour do you think would go well with the paper piecing?

Did you remember to put your money in your daily savings pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Check the insulation in your home. Extra insulation can easily pay for itself in one or two years, and it helps save the environment, too.

That woman will be the death of me I swear.......

As I mentioned at the end of last year, our mail lady retired after 56 years on the job, and we now have another mail lady.  Well I don't know if she is just playing with my mind of what, but she is driving me crazy this new mail lady.

I live on a rural route, with a mail box at the end of my driveway.  I was told if I put my flag up on my mailbox and put my outgoing mail in there, the mail lady will pick it up.  Never had a problem with this with Eva.  So four Fridays ago I put mail in there first thing in the morning, put my flag up, it wasn't picked up until Monday.  Never mind, it's a one off right?  Following Friday did the same thing, it wasn't picked up.  So I call in at my local post office and say, was our mail lady working today, and they say yes she was.

So I call the main post office and say, I am right in thinking that you will pick up mail in my mail box if I put the flag up, and she confirms this, so I say well this is two Friday's in a row she hasn't picked up and even on the prior Friday I had no mail, which is also unusual, as it's rare that I don't get mail every day.  Which brought me to the conclusion we don't get mail delivery on a Friday!!

So on Thursday, I have outgoing mail.  Figure I should be safe as it's Thursday and I generally get mail delivery on a Thursday.  So put my mail in the box at 8am, well before she delivers, put my flag up and think that will be good!!

Go later on to pick my mail up, as my flag is up, and she has delivered mail BUT has left my outgoing mail????  So now what??

I get on the phone to the supervisor at the head office and say listen help me out here, as I am mighty confused.  The outcome, is my mail WILL be picked up on Friday regardless and she has no idea why I haven't had any mail delivery on a Friday for the last month.

Now I was talking to Eva about all of this and she was saying, our house and my neighbours house north of us, is slightly out of the way, so it's easier to miss us, than go out of the way.  As I told the supervisor, I am used to getting mail more or less every day.  Now I am down to four days a week, I am not impressed.  Have to say neither was she........

This poor mail lady must hate me, but when I am told I can do something and what I am doing is correct then it's not my fault.  Also I do keep the mail box area ploughed out, so she can't even use that as an excuse, that she can't get too it for the snow.

You can see a photo of our mail box here

I got little to nothing done on Thursday, thanks to Swagbucks........it was their 2nd birthday and there was promise of big bucks all day, but you had to stay close to the computer all day.  I did get the first coat of varnish on one side of the closet doors.  Then I did some more paper piecing and some other bits and bobs.  I suppose with it snowing all day it was an excuse to rest up!!

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Box today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Join the Daily Saving Club, more info here!!

Another column and more English Paper Piecing....

Another week, therefore another column from me for the Eden Valley Messenger  I would love it if you had an extra minute to pop by and have a read and leave a comment.  If you know of anyone else who may be interested forward it onto them as well please?  A couple of other bloggers were kind enough to mention me and my column on their blogs this past week, Expat Mum and Smitten By Britain, so a big thank you to them for that!!  If you have another couple of minutes to spare, pop over to their blogs and say hello, they would love that.

I just finished this table runner, it's around 25 inches by 12 inches.  It's dusty pink, brown and cream.  All the hexagons are hand sewn and hand sewn on the table runner.

This is the back of the table runner.

Below is the material for my next project.  As with the table runner, I have no idea what I am going to make yet.  I will figure it out as I go along.

It was a quiet day around the acreage on Monday.  As predicted it started to snow around lunch time, so much for the Spring like weather on the weekend, back to Winter weather again.

I am not at this point yet.....but could be there shortly!!

The Diary of a Snow Shoveler

December 8


6:00 PM. It started to snow. The first snow of the season and the wife and I took our cocktails and sat for hours by the window watching the huge soft flakes drift down from heaven. It looked like a Grandma Moses Print. So romantic we felt like newlyweds again. I love snow!



December 9


We woke to a beautiful blanket of crystal white snow covering every inch of the landscape. What a fantastic sight! Can there be a more lovely place in the Whole World? Moving here was the best idea I've ever had. Shoveled for the first time in years and felt like a boy again. I did both our driveway and the sidewalks. This afternoon the snowplow came along and covered up the sidewalks and closed in the driveway, so I got to shovel again. What a perfect life.



December 12


The sun has melted all our lovely snow. Such a disappointment. My neighbor tells me not to worry, we'll definitely have a white Christmas. No snow on Christmas would be awful! Bob says we'll have so much snow by the end of winter, that I'll never want to see snow again. I don't think that's possible. Bob is such a nice man, I'm glad he's our neighbor.



December 14


Snow lovely snow! 8" last night. The temperature dropped to -20. The cold makes everything sparkle so. The wind took my breath away, but I warmed up by shoveling the driveway and sidewalks. This is the life!



The snowplow came back this afternoon and buried everything again. I didn't realize I would have to do quite this much shoveling, but I'll certainly get back in shape this way.



December 15


20 inches forecast. Sold my van and bought a 4x4 Blazer. Bought snow tires for the wife's car and 2 extra shovels. Stocked the freezer.



The wife wants a wood stove in case the electricity goes out. I think that's silly. We aren't in Alaska, after all.



December 16


Ice storm this morning. Fell on my butt on the ice in the driveway putting down salt. Hurt like heck. The wife laughed for one hour, which I think was very cruel.



December 17


Still way below freezing. Roads are too icy to go anywhere.



Electricity was off for 5 hours. I had to pile the blankets on to stay warm. Nothing to do but stare at the wife and try not to irritate her. Guess I should've bought a wood stove, but won't admit it to her. God I hate it when she's right. I can't believe I'm freezing to death in my own living room.



December 20


Electricity's back on, but had another 14" of the damn stuff last night. More shoveling. Took all day. Darn snowplow came by twice.



Tried to find a neighbor kid to shovel, but they said they're too busy playing hockey. I think they're lying. Called the only hardware store around to see about buying a snow blower and they're out. Might have another shipment in March. I think they're lying. Bob says I have to shovel or the city will have it done and bill me. I think he's lying.


December 22


Bob was right about a white Christmas because 13 more inches of the white crap fell today, and it's so cold it probably won't melt till August. Took me 45 minutes to get all dressed up to go out to shovel and then I had to poop. By the time I got undressed, pooped and dressed again, I was too tired to shovel. Tried to hire Bob who has a plow on his truck for the rest of the winter; but he says he's too busy. I think the jerk is lying.



December 23


Only 2" of snow today. And it warmed up to 0. The wife wanted me to decorate the front of the house this morning. What is she nuts!!! Why didn't she tell me to do that a month ago? She says she did but I think she's lying.



December 24


6". Snow packed so hard by snowplow, I broke the shovel. Thought I was having a heart attack. If I ever catch the man who drives that snowplow I'll drag him through the snow by his nose and beat him to death with my broken shovel. I know he hides around the corner and waits for me to finish shoveling and then he comes down the street at 100 miles an hour and throws snow all over where I've just been!



Tonight the wife wanted me to sing Christmas carols with her and open our presents, but I was too busy watching for the snowplow.



December 25


Merry -bleeping- Christmas! 20 more inches of the slop tonight. Snowed in. The idea of shoveling makes my blood boil. I hate the snow! Then the snowplow driver came by asking for a donation and I hit him over the head with my shovel. The wife says I have a bad attitude. I think she's a fricking idiot. If I have to watch "It's A Wonderful Life" one more time, I'm going to stuff her into the microwave.



December 26


Still snowed in. Why the heck did I ever move here? It was all HER idea. She's really getting on my nerves.



December 27


Temperature dropped to -30 and the pipes froze, plumber came after 14 hours of waiting for him, he only charged me $1400 to replace all my pipes.

December 28


Warmed up to above -20. Still snowed in. THE WITCH is driving me crazy!!!



December 29


10 more inches. Bob says I have to shovel the roof or it could cave in. That's the silliest thing I ever heard. How dumb does he think I am?

December 30


Roof caved in. I beat up the snow plow driver he is now suing me for a million dollars not only the beating I gave him but also for trying to shove the broken snow shovel up where the sun don't shine. The wife went home to her mother. 9" predicted.



December 31


I set fire to what's left of the house. No more shoveling.


January 8


Feel so good. I just love those little white pills they keep giving me. Why am I tied to the bed?

Oh the joys of Winter!!

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?
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Today's Money Saving Tip:

Is less better? Perhaps it was due to the booming economy, perhaps "keeping up with the Joneses", maybe its ego, but for many of us, we often seem to insist on the biggest and the best, no matter what the cost. When a $15,000 new car may be more than acceptable, we stretch the seams of our budget to afford a $25,000 vehicle. We buy $25 shirts with $35 designer labels attached. We opt for the $100 dinner at the trendy restaurant when a $20 meal would have been just as delicious. Think about where you are spending the family money--and how--to see if there couldn't be savings found with minor changes in habits.

English Paper Piecing and another birthday!!......

Want to wish my mam a Happy Birthday for today...........hope she has a great day.

I was busy finishing of my table topper on Monday.  All the hexagons are hand sewn together, then appliqued on top of the material. I machine quilted it to finish it off. (click on the photos for a larger photo)

This is the front:

This is the back:

Close up of the back:

I was thinking I may sell this in the summer for around $50 to $60, what do you think?

I also finished a small tablemat, it's approx. 8 inches accross.  I hoped to get maybe $10 for this.  This is all hand sewn and has a heavy duty interfacing between the fabric layers........

The front:

The back:

I also took a couple of cuttings from the Fensham Lemon Geranium, again to hopefully sell in the summer.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Money Saving Tip:

Looking for a sewing or quilting pattern?  Check the internet there are a lot of free patterns online; or go to the library and check out a book on sewing or quilting.  Same with knitting patterns look online.

Know someone who quilts, knits or sews, see if they will swap patterns with you!