Wednesday, June 30, 2021

A Week?

My goodness, I can’t believe it’s been a week since I posted last! The time is flying by and there aren’t enough minutes in the day to get everything done. Dennis is working all day in his home office and then spends the evenings trying to make sense of his garage and any other odd jobs that need done. Last night he replaced the ceiling fan in my craft area that didn’t work, with just a ceiling light. I like it much better, as it doesn’t cast shadows like the fan blades did.

How are you all coping with this heat? I looked online and at 8:00 last night it was still 104°F in Spokane. We are in the 80s and 90s here, but the humidity is so high it’s hard to be outside and still breathe. I did get up early this morning and go to the cemetery to put flowers on my Mom and Dad’s, Dennis’s Dad and little sisters, and all four of his grandparents graves. They are all buried very close together. I decided not to put them on for Memorial Day  because the cemetery takes everything off and throws it away a week later. If you wait a few weeks, they leave them on most of the summer. I was trying to wait for a cooler day, but that probably won’t be until mid winter when it’s 30 below zero!πŸ˜‚

Tomorrow morning early I have to have Mom at the cardiologist for a nuclear stress test. They are supposed to be doing the chemical one so she doesn’t have to actually walk the treadmill. The hardest thing is for her to remember not to have caffeine. When I called her this morning to remind her no caffeine today, she had already had a cup of coffee! Grrrrr! Mandy told me to put a Post-it note on her coffee pot to remind her, which I did, but she took it right back off saying she was a big girl and could remember that. Well obviously she didn’t. Life has sure took an interesting turn since we moved back here.

I have gotten some projects finished to show you. Neither of these baby blankets have been washed and blocked yet so they are a little bit wrinkly.

I really like this one. I just finished it early this morning. The solid squares are supposed to be half squares just like the ones at the bottom of the heart but I tried both and I preferred them solid. This was really a fun blanket to make.  My Fourth of July toes are peeking out at the bottom. For the first time in my life I used sparkle nail polish! 

I finished this one about a week ago and I don’t remember if I showed it to you. Just another mitered square baby blanket. So simple to make and yet I think it makes an impact. I was trying to use up all of my scraps of purple baby yarn and I succeeded.
I don’t remember if I’ve ever shown you this rug that I crocheted from sheets. I made it over 20 years ago and it was right inside our garage door at our old house. Believe me, this rug got a lot of traffic and was pretty dirty a lot of the time. Old sheets wash so well and it still looks pretty good after all of these years.

I finished putting the border on one of my nine patch cozy memory squares.

And then I got to use some of the fantastic yarn that Debbie sent me and I made another one this week. Last night I started the border. This is what I will take to mom’s test tomorrow because it doesn’t have very many moving parts for me to lose. 😏 The border will help all of the wrinkliness straighten out like the one above.

Last Saturday we girls all went and had our nails done again. That’s my sister on the right laughing at something Piper said. And of course my two girls. Piper got both her toenails and fingernails done, the rest of us just did our toenails. My niece Chaela  is sitting next to me and isn’t in the picture. These Saturday mornings are so much fun and I’m truly enjoying being able to see my sister more. Dennis and I are having dinner with her tonight.

Goodness, although he’s got a bit of a smile on his face, he’s looking pretty serious here. Piper gave him the shirt for Father’s Day. I can’t tell you the last time I saw this man in a T-shirt. He always, always wears button down shirts. Only for a grandchild would he wear a T-shirt. This picture is over in mom’s kitchen and that’s her with her back to us. Dennis had just picked up some Little Caesars pizza after a hard day of working around the house last Saturday.
I thought I would show you what is hanging in the guestroom, also known as Piper‘s bedroom. I cross stitched this picture about 30 years ago. It has 26 different greens in it! I will never forget that fact. I thought it would drive me mad before I finished. I do wish I had framed it with a different color and not with the pink that the framing store recommended.

Mandy drew this picture in the ninth grade. Sorry about the angle but because of the placement of the bed I couldn’t get closer for the picture.

She also drew this one the same year. I really think she should have pursued art as a hobby. I think these are beautiful. Grandma has a watercolor painting that she also did the same here hanging in her living room.

I hope you are all staying safe and cool if you are being impacted by the heat dome here in the states. For those of you in winter time, I hope you’re staying warm and happy. I’m finding myself homesick for Spokane quite often these days, although I’m really enjoying time with family and friends here. We are reconnecting with some of the people at Church and Dennis is planning to attend the men’s Bible study tomorrow night for the first time.

Take care of yourselves and I’ll be back again soon. I’ll try to not let it be a week again but who knows? My life is not my own these days and that’s okay, life is always full of changes and you just adapt.

Blessings and hugs,
Betsy


18 comments:

  1. Fun to see your projects! You are adapting to your new busy life!!

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  2. The heart blanket is adorable! I’m glad you’re able to see your sister and family more.

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  3. That cross stitch is amazing!!! I can imagine the patience it must have taken. Mandy's drawings are lovely. It's so nice that you framed them. I have several of my son's paintings from high school framed here and sitting on the floor. I never seem to get the house in a state where I can hang things. We are always tearing things up...lol.
    And..your baby blankets are little works of art. Lucky babies!

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  4. The heart blanket is so pretty. Dennis looks handsome in that tee shirt. Phil's wears t-shirts and buttoned down shirts. Its much cooler today thankfully. Clouds so far. Hopefully its not too warm on Sat. We go to rodeo late afternoon to get good and closer parking. Eat there as well when we can find a spot somewhere. Oregon is finally open allow some stores still require masks with no vaccine which is crazy. :-/ have a good week my friend. Glad you're close to family. I had to reschedule my pedicure as it was too hot on Monday. Its now next Monday. πŸ’œπŸŽˆπŸ‡ΊπŸ‡ΈπŸŽ‡

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  5. The baby blankets are so sweet-love the art work and the cross stitching! Nice to have a visit with you! Take care.

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  6. Betsy, of course you miss the other home and friends. I hope everyone is keeping safe in the high temps.

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  7. During our heatwave I placed a bowl with a frozen blue ice pack in front of a vertical fan and enjoyed feeling the cool air it provided for AC! It was 115 degrees in Gresham on Monday!!! But is 77 degrees this afternoon! Thanks so much for showing us more of your amazing stitching, and Mandy's lovely artwork, and I love seeing you enjoy time with your family as well, dear Betsy! Being homesick, wanting to be two places at once reminds me how blessed I am...God is so gracious and merciful allowing us to enjoy the abundant life He generously provides...His goodness everywhere!!! πŸ˜ƒπŸ’œπŸ™

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  8. Gosh, the heart blanket is just lovely! You are keeping busy. How wonderful to be able to spend time with your family. Glad you are connecting to your church again. I know what it is like when your time is not your own.

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  9. Betsy I admire you for trying to post regularly. We've had to run the a/c but we don't want to run it all the time. The monsoons seem to have arrived finally. Arizona desperately needs rain.

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  10. The heat dome has moved east and it was much cooler today ( although still close to 30C which is 86F. I did some baking anyhow. We're having our Canada Day BBQ tomorrow and I had some things I had to bake.
    The artwork by Mandy shows she has lots of talent.
    The cross stitch is lovely and I know what you mean about the pink mat and frame. I bought a lovely painting at the thrift store and the mat is pink which doesn't go anywhere in my house but I love the painting so I hung it in my little half-bath. Take care and keep cool.

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  11. The blankets are a delight, so pretty. What fun to get your nails done together and be around family again. Hope all goes well with your Mums tests. Will e mail later today.

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  12. So nice that you get to spend time with your sister now - and all the other family members too. A Saturday Girls Morning sounds perfect! I have not had my toes painted in years.,..I stopped going, but may need to do that again...just a little luxury. Your baby blankets turned out so nice Betsy. You've been busy, that's for sure. Hope your MIL's nuclear test goes ok. Stay cool!

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  13. That cross-stitch is lovely! Reminds me of a simpler time and place! I had no idea how talented Mandy is! Very nice! Love the idea of your rug... wish I could learn to crochet or knit, but I seem to have a block when it comes to those crafts. Good to see you with family.
    Blessings,
    Aimee
    PS. It’s good to be in cooler temps again so we can go outside.

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  14. Lovely cross-stitch Betsy. Thirty years old... which looks as if it were made yesterday. I disagree with you about the frame. IMO it is ideal,a nice subtle colour which contrasts nicely with the girls dress. It also does not distract from the main objective which is to display your pretty cross-stitch picture. Do love your baby blankets and most particularly the Heart squares one;very effective. Mandy certainly has talent. Does she still draw or paint? It is great to see you enjoying yourself with your family. Girls mornings are an absolute necessity now and again. Love those super sparkly toes, all ready for your Independence day. Enjoy! Amanda x

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  15. Stay cool Betsy, I am used to the humidity but you are not. It makes everything much hotter and wetter. Love that you are having such wonderful times with your family. Stay safe.

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  16. It's not that bad down here for some reason....very strange. It's 80's and not humid...even breezy but July is just starting so we'll see! You get a lot done even with all your new responsibilities. Cute picture of everyone at the nail salon.

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  17. You are so right about time flying! I just don't don't know where the days go. The baby blankets are so pretty and so is the rug made with sheets. I would love to be able to knit and crochet like you. You are so talented. Oh, and the cross stitch with the children swinging is beautiful. I love seeing your family. You all are so nice. One of these days I will get up enough nerve to have my toenails done. :) I've wanted to for a long time. Yours look really pretty. Always enjoy your posts. Mandy's drawings are very good! Looks like an artist to me.

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  18. Love your artwork and handwork. I haven't had a pedicure in years... I think it might be time to rectify that! I hope all went well with your mom's test.

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