THE NICHE OF A QUILTER, READER, PET LOVER, AND GARDNER

Tuesday, March 23, 2010

Woohoo! Finished Dick and Jane Quilt


I am so glad to be done with this little quilt. I am so looking forward to starting on another quilting project. I have plenty to choose from that's for sure. I'm very happy with how it turned out especially the quilting. I quilted circles all around the blue polka dot border and it turned out pretty good. I always sew the binding on the right side and then turn it over to the backing side and hand sew it. I never catch the right side fabric and it always looks very neat with stitches that are almost invisible. When I started this quilt I thought it would be a girl quilt but nah it definitely looks like a boy quilt. I still need to wash it to remove the markings and hopefully they will all come out. I can honestly say I didn't like quilting circles. I actually hated it but it was well worth the trouble because they look really cool. I would definitely make another quilt like this but in a cowgirl theme. I know a 7 year old girl who loves everything western. I guess I just chose my next project.

Monday, March 15, 2010

My Handsome Boy Cotton

 
 My 8 month old kitten, Cotton, keeps following me around all day, and every time I'm at the computer he gets on the guest bed and waits for me. He was being silly and  purring like crazy when I decided to take some pictures of him. He has the biggest personality and he is just so lovable. In the eight months that I've had him I have come to love him so much. I fell in love with him on day one and the cat honeymoon is still going strong. LOL! I hadn't had a cat in over 12 years.Not since  my beloved female cat Sonia, died. I'm trying not to let him in my sewing room because of all the cat hair but I think eventually he'll get his way. He is just such a good cat. I give him a bath and cut his nails and brush him with no problem. I didn't think I would love another cat again.Is till love my Chi, Minnie and she will be my #1 pet but she really doesn't like to be hugged and she doesn't follow me like Cotton. My husband says it's because Minnie is my boss and I'm Cotton's mama and that makes a big difference.

Saturday, March 13, 2010

THREE GREAT BUYS


Friday was a very good day for me. The first thing I did was go to church which I hadn't done in a long time.  I felt really so much better after wards I felt almost lighter. Maybe I came out of church with a clean slate. HEHEHE. I then went to my LQS just to kill time  and went into the back room of the store where they have all there discounts and discontinued items. I started going through a basket with lot's of sewing machine feet and to my shock I found a lot of feet for my Brother PQ1500 which I use for quilting. I was able to buy $100 worth of feet for $40. The thing about my machine is that I bought in on line two years ago for $400  and you know those machines are $1200. Well the only feet the machine had when I got it was the regular and 1/4 inch feet which was ok with me because the machine was really still brand new and sews perfect.
I couldn't believe my luck.  I then went over to JOAnn's fabric store and saw all the quilt books at %40 off. I couldn't pass up that deal so I got  the books in the picture.  I then got a %40 off coupon on line for the Angelology book I've been waiting for so I went to Barnes & Noble last night and got it. I should have bought a lottery ticket but I forgot. Dang it!

Saturday, March 06, 2010

Quilting Tutorial Video #4

First of all I didn't bother with punctuation so all you teachers brace yourselves.
I have finally finished quilting the Dick and Jane baby quilt and I am so relieved. I am not totally finished though because I am hand sewing the binding once I am sewing on the binding I know it's only a matter of hours before it's totally finished. I just added a 4th video telling you about how I quilted it and about how I add my binding. It's on the left side of my blog under Esteemarlu's Quilting. I hope you will understand and if you don't please don't hesitate to tell me or ask me anything. I have never taken so long in finishing a baby quilt and if it hadn't been for all the sciatica pain I would've finished up that baby  in no time but sometimes life throws you surprises you don't expect while you're in the middle of a project.  In my case it was that darn pain :( I climbed two flights of stairs and that did it. I was in agony for pain for months. When I'm done with the binding I will post a picture. I will be organizing my sewing room  because it has gotten cluttered again and things need rearranging so I can be calm when I'm working on something. When I start on another project I will remove the Dick and Jane quilt video's and post new video of the new project
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Friday, February 26, 2010

Looking Forward To Summer


This summer I really have something to look forward to. That cutie in the picture will be visiting me for a whole month if all goes according to plan. She is 6 years old and the youngest of three. She has 16 and 13 year old brothers whom she can't wait to get away from. I have no daughters nor granddaughters so we are going to have a lot of fun. I tell her about the small sewing machine I have and all the art and baking supplies she can use so she can't wait to come visit me. She will call me on the phone and tell me to go get her NOW. She is my cousin's granddaughter and I babysat her mom for many years when she was small. Her mom thinks she's getting too tom boyish and rough.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Met Up With Old Friend


One week ago I had the great pleasure of meeting up with a high school friend who I hadn't seen in over 30 years. My friend Elma is a teacher who's class came to Space Center Houston on a field trip. She asked if I could go meet her and of course I said yes. We spent five hours together catching up and seeing the exhibits at the center. Elma hasn't changed much in more than 30 years. She is still very slim and very pretty as you can see in the picture. It was through FB that we reconnected and we both were trying to figure out how we managed to lose touch for so long. I moved away and she got married and moved several times and I guess that's when it happened. We use to have so much fun when we were in high school. We were in a journalism class together and she use to be the photographer and we use to develop the pictures and gossip forever in the dark room. We had so much fun during our senior year.  We've decided to make plans and go on a trip together so we can have fun again. This time without 140 students.
I never did fine my camera and I'm still bummed about that. I can't decide on whether to buy another SLR camera like the one I lost or a small digital camera. I welcome any suggestions. I want a camera with a 14 or 18x zoom or better but I don't want to pay an arm or a leg either. 


 

Quilting wise I'm on a roll and am now quilting the borders or the baby quilt. I feel like I've been quilting on that thing for years. Today, I took a trip to my LQS and bought a very cute pattern of a very small purse with three little dolls inside. They're called Pocket Babies. I'm making it and putting it in my Grandmother's trunk. Hopefully I will have a grand baby some day. I also got a  scissor and tape measure dangle to put on my scissors. Why I got that I have no idea it just seemed cute at the time.

Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Great Holidays Now Back To Normal

Having all of my family together was the best thing I could have ever hoped for. A lot of great times and a lot of great food. Hubby and I spent a lot of time with our three sons and got to see lot's of movies and went to a lot of restaurants. I am enjoying the e reader I got for Christmas and can't get over how many books it can hold. Too cool!
I finally got my new washer and dryer and love them both. Doing laundry is actually a chore I look forward to now. Who would've thought LOL. 


I made some very traditional Mexican American foods which are Tamales and Munuelos. Tamales are usually done for Christmas and Munuelos are a very light ,thin, crispy, round dessert that is topped with cinnamon and sugar and it's usually eaten with some hot chocolate for New Years. I have to say they came out really good this year. I would post a picture of the Tamales but I lost the camera I took the pictures with. Losing my camera is driving me insane since I don't lose things and if I do I always find them within a day or two. I will now get back to my quilting and finish the small quilt that I didn't get to finish, and to finish reading Cathedral Of The Sea in my ereader. I can't put it down it's such a good book.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

My Great Niece Emma

 

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My sister sent me this picture of Emma, her first grandbaby, she isn’t even a month old and she’s already laughing. I think she’s so cute and I’m so glad to be a great aunt. I only wish I lived closer to my nephew and his wife. They live in Indiana and I live in TX :(  

   I’m the one who bought her first doll. I’m so proud of that.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Now I'm Freaking P O

Are you ready for this? Remember I said I was suppose to get the washer and dryer yesterday well the delivery guys were here and I was so excited. I already had a load of clothes to wash. Well when the guy opened up the box of the dryer we noticed a big ugly dent in the back of it. I couldn't believe it and I was ready to spit nails. I immediately got on the phone with Home Depot and told them. Hell, they couldn't believe what had happened either so now we have another delivery set up for Wednesday. I should get a free microwave or something for all this hassle. Maybe our old washer and dryer are doing some kind of something to stay home. HA! When I told my son what had happened all he could say was"'Call me back I'm not hearing you correctly." Hubby said "Hell at this point I'll take whatever color they have orange, green or purple." Cotton and Oreo are doing great after being neutered. There really are no stitches on the cut the vet made. The cut is about 1/2 inch and they are playing around like nothing happened and eating like crazy. Cotton was acting a little weird when I brought him home though. He kept putting his paw in the water bowl. Hubby thought he was high on the meds they gave him. It's so good to have my little boys back home.

Kitties Getting Snipped Today

Early this morning at 6:30 hubby and I went to drop off Cotton and Oreo at pet clinic to get neutered, finally. It was cold this morning so I put a blanket over their pet taxi's and they did very little crying this time. The nurse told us they wouldn't be getting any stitches since the cut would be very very small and that hey would recover in about one week. I didn't know this since all the pets we've had fixed have been females. Our two Chi's were crying when they saw me putting the cats in their taxi's because they know that means we're going on a trip. I hope Cotton and Oreo do alright over the weekend and I hope getting them fixed will avoid any of the in door spraying I've heard about. We are also suppose to be getting our washer and dryer today. Hopefully third time we be the charm since the order was messed up the first two times. I just want a washer and dryer that works already.I'm going to have a freaking fit if they don't come today!!! J.R my son from Los Angeles is coming home in four days and I am still trying to finish up a quilt before he gets home. I haven't put up my Christmas tree nor any outside lights yet. Well at least I've decorated my blog right. After going to bed at 2am and getting up at 5:30am I'm falling asleep as I write this so I think I'll take a 30 minute nap.

Saturday, November 28, 2009

Honest Scrap Award, Thank You Gloria

Thank you Gloria for giving me this award. I am now suppose to list ten honest things about myself. Here we go. 1. I am a very honest person sometimes to honest. 2. I hate it when people smack their gum. 3. I can't fake liking someone. 4. I didn't have my first pet until I was 26 years old and have had one ever since. 5. I can't swim. 6. I love to dance when no one is watching.LOL! 7. I'll try any kind of food at least once. 8.I'm terrified of lizards but not spiders. 9.I'm a true romantic. 10. I just realized I'm pretty boring.

Cotton & Oreo

These are the latest pictures of Cotton and Oreo. I was lucky enough to have my camera ready when Oreo decided to jump on my stack of books and magazines. I thought I'd give him a cute little wing since he is a good kitty. Oreo is just getting bigger and bigger and his hair just keeps growing and so does hi tail. I bought that piece of fabric at Joanne's and he really likes it. He also likes that little doll that's suppose to be for my Chihuahuas but not since Oreo took it to his bed. Yesterday Cotton and Oreo got into a little fight over a piece of paper. They were rough housing and one of them didn't like it and before I knew it I heard hissing. It didn't last long though because Chiquita barks at them when she thinks they're fighting. They are also beginning to just jump over my Chihuahuas if they happen to be in their way when they are running around. Minnie my #1 pet just stands still as if wondering what the heck was it that jumped over her. That is so funny and I hope to one day catch it on film. Hubby is building a cat condo for the cats right now and I can't wait for him to finish it so the cats can have a warm place for naps. I'm finishing up my baby quilt now that Thanksgiving is over and I'm giving myself one week to finish it. No if's or but's this time.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Book Store Adventure

Saturday, hubby and I went to, Murder By The Book, a mystery bookstore. They only stock mystery books which can be romance, espionage, historical, vintage, antique, vampires,kids, preteen, ect... The store has dark wooden shelves as you can see, and there are skulls, ravens, guns, old reading glasses, owls on books, Shakespeare busts, antique suitcases, old typewriters, and cozy leather chairs where customers can sit. You just want to curl up in one of the comfy leather chairs and read for hours. It has a very mysterious feel to it, and they carry mystery books you won't find in a big chain bookstore. They were going to have a signing but I didn't stick around. I might go back for the Sue Grafton, Sarah Graves, Susan Wittig Albert (I've met her) and Alexander McCall Smith signings since I have some of their books. I found a great medieval/renaissance book, The Book Of Unholy Mischief. The Book of Unholy Mischief is more than terrific historical drama; its a love story, an investigation into ancient religious secrets that haunt us today, and its a story of intrigue replete with pulse-pounding chase scenes, murderous assassins, torture chambers and conniving, desperate characters. It's beautifully written, authentically detailed, and fiendishly well plotted. Listeners will want their friends to read or listen to it so they can talk about it over dinner in their favorite Italian restaurant.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Kittens Are Growing

Here are pics of me, Oreo and Cotton. I'm crazy about my kittens but Cotton is my baby. He loves to be hugged and cuddled. He lets me hug him as much as I want and he takes it all in. Oreo is more independent and can do without hugs. It's funny how one can instantly bond with a little animal and that the bond can last a life time.

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Pups In Halloween Costumes

Here are my girls on Halloween night. I wanted to take a picture of both of them together but they wouldn't sit still long enough. The little shirts say Creatures Of The Night and it glows in the dark. They looked so cute but those wigs were driving them crazy. The little shirts are like muscle shirts so they looked like little weight lifters showing off their muscles.LOL!

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Reading These Books

I am in the last chapter of Perfidia and I have to say it's one of those can't put down books. Although it's a book about a mother and daughter and how the daughter puts up with so much abuse from the mom with out telling anybody I have still enjoyed the book. I would love a sequel to the book. I found this book at Half Price Books for $1.00 so I really scored when I bought it. I have been looking for a spooky book to read starting the Monday of Halloween week which is something I've been doing for a number of years now. I had been searching Stephen King, Koontz, and other author's books but I'm such a chicken when it comes to horror books that I would grab a book and then just put it back until last night when I was at Barnes&Noble and I found THE BOOK OF LOST THINGS. Has anybody read that book? I have also been finishing up my quilting and working really fast to finish before Christmas since that's when I'm having company and the quilt is in the guest room. Luckily the kittens haven't made an attempt to jump on the quilt yet.LOL.

Tuesday, September 01, 2009

KITTENS, OUCH!

I had no idea that being mom to kittens was so much work. I'm feeding them every 4 hours and then I let them play for an hour in a dog corral because I still think they are to small to let them play around with my dogs. Chiquita goes round and round outside the corral while the kittens run around inside. It's really very funny. Oreo likes climbing to the top of the scratching post to sit and Chiquita just stares at him not taking her eyes off him as if she is afraid he will get hurt if he jumps. She will look my way and then back at the kitten. Another thing that makes Chiquita nervous is when the kittens play rough with each other. She gets a nervous look in her eyes,starts shaking and then barks at them, which I think is her way of telling them to stop. I really had no idea my chihuahua would take such a liking to kittens. The thing that is not so funny is that I already have what looks like 100 scratches on my arms and legs from the razor sharp nails on those kittens. Yesterday morning they were really hungry when I took them out of their kennel and when I was putting their milk into their bowl Oreo actually jumped on my calf and then I felt his nail dig into my flesh and when I turned to look I saw him hanging on by just that one nail. OMG, it hurt so bad I screamed and and I think that scared him even more because he then tried to hang on to my arm and hand. I am covered in scratches, anyone who sees me will think I cut myself. Oh, and then this morning I was kneeling on the floor feeding Oreo when I felt Cotton climbing up my back, so I'm there on the floor trying to feed one kitten while trying to get one off my back all the while feeling his nails. I was actually laughing just imagining what I must have looked like.LOL! There hasn't been a dull moment in my house since those little kittens arrived.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Raising Tiny Kittens

The reason I haven't blogged lately is that I'm raising kittens. My son who works at a Home Depot found these two babies in a pot in the garden department. He had noticed the mama once in a while but the kittens really couldn't move around. Being the caring softy my son brought them home before another employee called the SPCA. I have no idea how old they are maybe 4 weeks and I have no idea if they are boys or girls but I am in love with them. I'm feeding them milk replacement and have them in a box but take them out to play after every feeding. Soon after that they have no trouble going to sleep. One of my chihuahuas is acting like a mommy. She runs to the box every time she hears them cry, and then comes to get me wherever I am. It's so funny to watch. The first twenty four hours that the kittens were home, my Chi didn't sleep a wink because she sat by the box the whole night and didn't let me sleep because she kept wanting me to go to them every 5 to 10 minutes. My other Chi couldn't care less she just stays away from them.I'm feeding them every 4 hours and watch them while they play. I forgot how much time animals babies require. I'm loving it though. Anyway, their names are Oreo and Cotton.

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

How Cute Is This

When I went to Barnes & Noble this past weekend I went into the kids section to find some books for my niece’s daughterbakeset2. It was actually the first time that I went into that section. I had a great time seeing all the books that are available to kids now. I saw this little bake set and just couldn’t pass it up. The muffin pan is pretty small and just so cute. It’s got lot’s of cup cake papers and frosting tips and recipes. I was lucky to be there when I was because this bake set was the last one left, so I guess I was meant to buy it. HA!

Another thing I found was a chef set, which I’m pretty sure goes with the bake set. It’s unbelievably cute, especially the chef’s hat. It’s got a small wooden spoon and rolling pin. I think I’m saving this for my first granddaughter. Anytime I find something cute I’ll buy it and put it in a special box. Am I crazy or what ?! If any of you do any baking and have little granddaughters you might think of going to Barnes & Noble and buying either one of these sets. They also make a perfect cupcake party gift.

My hubby and son have been working on an old El Camino and hubby asked if I wanted to go to Hancock’s to look for some Nufoam (sp?) for the car seats. I was actually shocked to hear my hubby say he wanted to go to Hancock. I didn’t hesitate to say yes since I do like Hancock and I hadn’t gone to that store in a long, long time. The first thing I saw when we walked in was this little sewing machine by Janome. It weighs 5 pounds and is of good quality. I paid $50 bucks for it. It’s perfect for little hands. The only thing it doesn’t have is a handle, which it could use. Not that it’s heavy or anything, but you get a more secure hold on it with a handle. The book next to it is a medium size paper back book and the machine isn’t much bigger. Way cute!

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Wasn’t Expecting This!

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Ever since my son and hubby have been working on an old El Camino I have found all these car parts in my house. UPS keeps bringing boxes of different car parts. One time I opened the entry closet and I was greeted with a big long box which had door panels. The latest surprise was me walking in the house and stepping into the dining room and seeing this car seat on the table along with tools, wires and other car stuff. Hubby and son thought it very convenient to work on the car seats on the table. No oil stains anywhere thank goodness. I have warned them not to do this again or else. I know they’re excited but, come on. The thing is they don’t see anything wrong with it. I’m sure I’ll have more surprises before this El Camino is fully restored. MEN!

stressoutkitty

Thursday, July 30, 2009

The Best Apple Pie

Yesterday was my oldest son’s last day at home so I asked him if he would like for me to make him a Chicken Pot Pie or an Apple Pie, and he decided on Apple Pie. I was really cutting it short because I started the pie at 1 pm and we had to leave the house by 3:30, be at the airport by 5:30 for his 6:30 flight. I gathered my ingredients as fast as I could and hoped I wouldn’t mess up. I knew that if the pie wouldn't come out right it would be my fault and not the recipe itself because I always use the one that I got from a friend who is a baker and it’s the best ever. Here I am mixing the pie dough. I always add the same amount of water, no more, no less and it’s always perfect. You can find the recipe on the bottom of this post.

I sprinkled some flour on the table, which by the way is very old and has had lot’s of cookies dough,pie dough, and tortillas rolled out on. I love that table. Anyway, I always use a rolling pin sock other wise the dough would stick to the rolling pin and that’s not cool. I roll out the dough about one inch bigger than the pie plate. If you use this recipe I promise you’ll never have another pie dough sticking to your rolling surface again. Just add very little flour on the bottom of the dough every once in a while.I always fold the dough in half before placing it on the plate. It’s easier to get it centered that way. I just make sure there are no air bubbles on the bottom by gently pressing the dough with my fingers all over the dough once it’s on the plate. Remember, the dough for the bottom is always bigger so you can turn the sides onto the top dough.

I then place all the apple slices onto the dough making sure I get every little last drop of the juicy syrup that the apples create. I’m allergic to cinnamon so I only add nutmeg to the apple, but you can add whatever spices you like for example: cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, or whatever you prefer.

I flour the bottom of the ball of dough and roll it out just big enough to cover the top of the apple slices.Once the top dough is rolled out I fold it in half and place the center on the center of the apples.

Once the top dough is on the apples I seal the top and bottom edges together so the juices from the apples won’t seep out.I brush egg white on all the top and sides then add about two tablespoons of granulated sugar on top. I don’t like a plain pie top so that’s why I add the sugar. I place some foil paper under the pie plate when I place it in the oven to catch any juice that might accidently come out. But I don’t make vents on the top of my pies so that doesn’t happen to often. I just prefer a round top.You can make air vents so the steam can escape which will also give you a flatter top.

This is what the pie looks like once it’s done. I always let it cool for a while so the syrup and apples have a chance to settle and not run out as soon and you cut into it.

Here is the end result. This is such a good pie especially when there’s the extra ingredient of love. my son loved the pie and had a big slice before we left for the airport. I thank my baker friend every time I make a pie.

Apple Mixture

5 Golden Delicious apples peeled and sliced 1/4 thick.

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 tablespoon all purpose flour

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

1 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter cut up

granulated sugar for top

Pie dough for a two crust pie

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3 tablespoons granulated sugar (optional)

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 sticks cold unsalted butter cut up

3 tablespoons very cold shortening

1 egg yolk set egg white aside for glazing top of pie

1 tablespoon white vinegar

5 tablespoons ice water or more if your dough is very dry

Mix together flour, sugar, salt, egg yolk and vinegar. Add butter and shortening and cut into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Add water and knead into a ball just until all the mixture is incorporated. Divide into two balls in for the top and one for the bottom making sure the ball for the bottom is bigger. Roll out bigger ball of dough and lay onto the bottom of the pie plate. Add apple mix into dough covered pie plate and then roll out second ball of dough and seal edges. Brush with egg white and sprinkle with sugar.