What is it?

My day started out rough with headache, sick stomach, and feeling achy.   Still not doing so well, but thought I'd write a little, instead of going back to bed, since I've already spent several hours in bed. I need to sit up for a while.

I accomplished my last goal for 2015 at 5:40 a.m on December 31st.

I have set one goal so far for this year and have started on it.  I am going to read my Bible all the way through again this year but using a different format and taking more time with it, answering the following questions as I go through the passages.  I got these questions from the Bible study notes in my Bible.  Feel free to use these in your personal Bible study.

1. What is the main subject?
2. Who is revealed?
1. Who is speaking?
2. Who is being spoken about?
3. Who is acting?
3. What is the key verse?
4. What is taught about Jesus Christ?
5. Does the passage reveal any sin for me to confess or forsake?
6. Does the passage reveal a command for me to obey?
7. Is there a promise I can claim?
8. Is there any instructions for me to follow?

I may not be able to put an answer in for each question on every passage I read, but it is a good guideline for me to follow.


Okay, let me share with you a couple of things I have received in the past month.

At the last quilt guild meeting (the Logan County PieceMakers quilt guild Christmas party) I recieved blocks from all the members that were present as a thank you for being president for the past two years.  This was a true blessing to me and I have to say the group is a great bunch of people to be involved with.  I am going to take the blocks back with me to this month's meeting and ask everyone to make sure their blocks are signed and dated for me.

One day my husband gave me this.   "What is it?"

How cool is that?











The pen writes good, it is ergonomic so that my hand doesn't cramp when doing a lot of writing and the refills are stick pen cartridges.  I think it is just pretty cool.

This weekend I had planned on doing a winter wall hanging of swirling snow for my cubicle.  Yesterday I did a water color of it first to see if that is really what I wanted to do and decided I wanted something more substantial for the wall hanging.  So I decided to do a landscape winter scene.  I hope to have something so show of it soon.

Have you started a new project this year?

Sonia

As promised...

Hi, Christmas is over and it's back to normal  again.  I hope you enjoyed your time with family and friends for Christmas.  I know I did.

Rain, Rain, Go away...

My son went back home today, he had to drive in the rain most of the way but made it safely. I miss him already.

On Christmas eve, my work day ended at 2:00 p.m.  When I got home, I could hear music as I walked closer to the house. What a surprise to see my husband and my two kids playing music.  It's been a while since all three have played music together.

As promised, here are the two fleece blankets I made for Christmas.

This blanket was made with 1 yard of the theme fabric and the solid gray back. The gray was textured like fur.  I added a 6.5" border in black.  This made the blanket to be 48" x 60".

This blanket was made using 2.5 yards of the brown plaid and tan.  I used my Serger and bound it with coordinating thread.   It is 60" x 72".




I've been thinking about goals to set for 2016.  I'm still working on goals for this year and am

confident I will get the last one completed on time (12/31/15).   I must admit this last goal is probably the only goal that I have steadily stayed on pace with.  The other goals I accomplished were often times finished at the last minute, but finished none the less.  I hope to pace myself better next year.

Did you set goals for this year?

How did you do?

Will you set goals for next year?


Sonia

Banana Pudding Cake

Today was my husband's birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABE!

I hit the floor running this morning.  I had a cake to bake, to use for his birthday.  So one of the first things I did as the sun was just rising, was whip up a white cake batter and put it in the oven.  It sure smelled good as I was reading my Bible.  Time with God and cake cooking is a good combination.  :)

I'm calling it the Banana Pudding Cake.  Here's what I did.

Baked a white cake, let cool, then sliced it in half horizontally and then in smaller sections.

Placed cake sections in bottom of big bowl and layered with sliced bananas.

Then put a layer of vanilla pudding over the cake/banana layer.

Continued layering cake, bananas, and pudding until the bowl was filled.

Put it in the refrigerator for a few hours to let it set and all the flavors meld together.  Then enjoyed!

I've been wanting to use up some supplies I have had in stock for a while.  So earlier in the week I got to thinking about some of the Styrofoam ball and cone shapes I have in a tote. Then I rediscovered some yo-yo's I had made, in past years, out of pastel colored fabrics.  I had buttons I could use and straight pins of different colors.

A pastel ornament emerged.  I will probably use it on my small Christmas tree that will be in my sewing room.

I had another pleasant surprise at work this past week.  A friend from another team on my floor gave me this cute board to use in my cubicle.

Hugs,
Sonia

Just catching up...

Hi, just thought I'd catch up on my past week.

I wasn't hunting for it but I caught a head cold... been fighting it but it's a tough one fighting back.

A friend of mine gave me this at work last week.  She didn't realize it but it came to me at the right time.  It was a pleasant surprise.

You know how I like the beauty of God's creation... I got some pretty sky shots on Friday.

I was able to work on a few of my projects too.

I have done a small scrapbook (3"X 5") about the seasons in the past but this is my first big scrapbook. It will be a Christmas gift.

Then, the small afghan I've been working on is finally finished.  Here is a picture of it drying. It measures about 36" x 36".   The blocks are all inspired by Bible verses.  I have shared more about the blocks on the Crochet tab at the top of the page.

I guess that catches me up for now.  Don't forget to check out the Crochet, etc. tab at the top of the page.

Hugs,
Sonia

A little old, a little new

As of 4:00 p.m. on May 15, I've been on vacation.  Some of you know how much that means to me, but for those who don't... it means, no stress, no tension, no dread, just relaxation, contentment, spending time with my husband and daughter, quilting, crafting, reading, napping, flea marketing, etc.

So, as of 4:00 p.m. Friday it began.  I stopped by a little antique shop in the town I work in.  It had a realtor's sale sign on the property.   It is for sale and they were having a sale and will continue to until all the items are gone.  From what I gather it is something like "the owner bit off more than they can chew" kind of thing.  I found a couple of things to bring home.  Then on Saturday, we went flea marketing as a family.  Where I also found more things to bring home.  :)

Here are some of the treasures I found.

A vintage pie cutter/crimper.  I will use it as decoration in my kitchen.

A cute little flower basket pin.  I will use it on a handbag or tote bag.

I also found a set of crochet pattern books and a book of inspiration.

There were  a couple of things I thought were cool, but did not bring them home with me.



The first thing is a vintage garlic/fruit press. then there was this cool iron, from when they started adding steam capability.


Some of the things I've been wanting to do got done. There were some items of mine that I wanted to re-purpose.

The first thing is the pretty bottle I have had or some time.   It had some flowers in it that my children have made over the years.  I moved to flowers to a vase with dried flowers, cleaned the bottle, bought some cork stoppers, then filled the bottle with oil.  So now it is still beautiful but also useful.

Then, I had a vase, full of glass stones and lights.  It's an idea I had a few months ago, but after using it a time or two for a light. I decided I needed to change it.  It got too hot when lit.  I finally came up with this arrangement.  I'm very happy with it.

I also re-purposed this big canning jar.  It is a 2 quart jar.  It was a decorative item with pickled veggies.  It was old and time to redo.  So all the contents were emptied out, the jar cleaned, the lid covered with decorative duck tape and then it was fill with ribbon.

This morning I was looking out my front window and saw this little beauty on the street and snuck out and took this pic.



Then I had a surprise.  A package arrived.



 I won a drawing I had entered a few weeks ago with Paper Pumpkin.  There were ink pads, stamps and all the paper goods to make envelopes, cards, tags, and bows.  I'm sure it will be put to good use soon.  :)

We'll be making a road trip tomorrow and I plan to do a little crocheting on the way, so hopefully I will have something to show when we get back.

Hugs,
Sonia

Love is in the air...

As the Valentine weekend began, at work yesterday there were several treats to start it off.

When I got home last night, I had a surprise.  I won the drawing from the giveaway give by Rhodes Creations.

* Potpourri and Hot Maple Tody potpourri liquid
* All Natural Furniture Spray - Lemon scent
* Microfiber Cloth
* Pretty handmade ornament
* Rustic star ornament
* Help from Above - a collection of Bible verses
* All Natural Dusting Powder
* Bath Melts
* Vanilla Latte Sugar Body Scrub
* Aller Herb Tea
* Mixed Herbal Blend Honey
* Mint Lip Balm
* Massage oil

It was a nice surprise for the day.  :)
Check out Laura's website at www.laurarhodes.blogspot.com

In celebration of today, I had told David I would cook.  He had requested chicken fried steak with all the fixings.  :)

I've never cooked chicken fried steak, so I looked for a recipe but didn't find one that suited me.  So I picked a recipe out to follow and then changed it up for our Valentine meal.

I'm happy to say it turned out good.

Here's how I made it.

• 4 pork cube steaks, salted and peppered on both sides
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 egg
• dash or two of cayenne pepper
• 2 clove garlic, minced
• 2-3 cups vegetable shortening for frying

Put 2 cups of flour in a shallow bowl.  Stir together the baking powder, baking soda, black pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper in a separate bowl - add the egg, garlic and buttermilk and mix well (this is your batter).  Dredge each steak first in the flour, then the batter, and in the flour again.  Be sure to pat the flour on the steaks so that they are covered completely with dry flour.

Heat vegetable shortening in a deep fryer or a deep cast iron skillet to 325° F.  Fry each steak until evenly brown on both sides, about 3-5 minutes per side.  Place the fried steaks on a plate lined with paper towel to drain while you cook the rest of the steaks.

These are tender and easily cut with a fork, and are yummy.

In a blog or two back, I mentioned getting a darning/free motion foot for my sewing machine.  I've practiced some, then decided to dive in  and give it a shot.  I have updated the Quilts, Etc. tab with how it went.  Check it out.  :)  Lessons learned for sure.

I trust you had an enjoyable Valentine's day.

Until next time,
Hugs,
Sonia