Christmas fun

I have gotten a sewing bug. I enjoyed finishing up my last quilt so much that I have been ready to charge forward with more projects. Last night I decided to work on a Christmas coffee sleeve. I use my Java one nearly every day and thought it was time to go seasonal! So I whipped this one up:

I love the red and white and cute little snowmen!


I had used some leftover charm squares from a pillow I made last year. (and have used year long- shh) And I still had some squares left. I also came across the EZ dredsen ruler that I got a while ago, and so decided that I would try it out on my charms.

As I cut and laid them out I worried that I was not going to have enough to finish the circle. But I did! with 2 squares left. Last night I sewed the points and flipped them around, and today I pressed and pieced them all together. I don't care much for pressing, but the anticipation of seeing it complete made it worth it.

I love it! It is super cute, and I can't wait to make a pillow out of it so that I have two for Christmas. The picture is on the back of the first pillow.

I can see the finish line!

I am almost finished - finally. It seems like forever ago when I started this quilt. I just have to tack the binding down. I used a pattern by Natalia at Piece N Quilt.
This is my first free-motion quilting where I am had an idea of what I was doing. I did pebbles in the white area, Charger bolts in the yellow, and footballs around the border (some look deflated, but oh well). I also wrote the recipient's name into the border. It is a bit crooked as the quilt was really pulling against me.
(sorry for the upside down photos. I'm not sure I can rotate them in blogger.)

Baby Headband

I was curious to try making some yoyo's, so this weekend with some scraps I made this. It will be a headband for a one-year old. I haven't trimmed and finished it yet since I don't have a clue how big her head is. :) It is Breakfast at Tiffany's line from Fig Tree Quilts and just looks so sweet for a little girl. The larger brown yoyo I made by rounding out a charm square. The smaller ones are an inch and a quarter (if that).  I used a tutorial I found on pinterest to make them.

Breakfast

It has been a while since I made oatmeal. I'm not a huge fan, but I do like steel cut oats. Trader Joes has a quick cook version (ready in 8 minutes) but today I am making the traditional ones that take about 40 minutes. So here it is...

Well almost... like I said, they take 40 minutes. 

I'm excited. I have another recipe I want to make, but when I looked in the cupboard, I discovered what I thought was wheat berries was in reality, barley. Not exactly the same thing. So I figured the dried fruit and pecans could go into oatmeal instead. It is cold in my home this morning since we left the windows open overnight. It worked in cooling the place off and a hot breakfast sounds great.

I wanted dried cranberries, but I was at Costco and found this "Antioxidant Blend" of dried fruit instead. It has cranberries, blueberries, cherries and plums (previously known as prunes). I hope I like it!

Ooh, they're about done... be right back.

Mmm. Look at all those toppings. They look really nice all mixed in, but I'm using my phone for photos and it doesn't take good close ups.

One last thing- why would make breakfast that takes so long? Well besides that it is good for me, I make enough for a few days. The batch I made today makes 4 servings. It reheats well with just a little added water. I also like to mix in Trader Joes spiced apples (and a little sweetener since they have none) and that is enough extra moisture that it doesn't need water. I just make up little containers that I just have to pop into the microwave.

Starting with mistakes

So much for thinking I know what I am doing. Maybe it is because I have looked at too many tutorials lately - yes that must be it. I saw this tutorial by Natalia at Piece N Quilt and thought it would be perfect for the little Chargers quilt I am making for a nephew coming into the world in the next couple weeks. 

I pre-washed my fabric (which I never do) and cut it up last weekend. I have been anxious to start piecing, but had to get another project done first. (I had purple thread that was not going to work with my white quilt squares. I made curtains from sheets. It was a very forgiving project.)

So I started out. I thought to myself, pieces of the same size go together and the larger ones on the sides. After piecing 16 sets of squares ...and pressing them... I thought I better look at the tutorial. I was thinking it was important which color went on what side... 

Here is the picture from Natalia's tutorial...

Do you see that? Squares and rectangles together! Not squares and squares. The first step and I mess up! I really don't want to rip up all those...

I have extra fabric and so I am thinking I might just cut more pieces. I was already planning on making a top and bottom border and maybe it will work into that. A stripe on the back would be fun, but I was going to use flannel so I am not so sure. 

This Apple Crate quilt from Moda Bake Shop must have been what I had in mind when I thought longer pieces went on the sides. Sheesh.

...afterthought: here are my squares.

Waiting

We decided to move from a one-bedroom apartment to a two-bedroom townhouse. We are very excited that the place is two-stories and so we will not have any neighbors above us. Unlike my last move, this one was well planned in advanced. We looked at all our possibilities and then made our choice. (Oh, we also will have our own washer and dryer. I can do small loads and wash my fabric and quilts!) We looked at this place from the start and then compared other places to it. So we've pretty much been decided on it for a while.  We put in our 30 day notice, more than 30 days in advance... maybe that's the problem.

I started packing right away. But only pieces since I still needed things. It's (finally) next Saturday that we get our key. So I still have boxes filled and boxes flat. Packing material. Random things here and there. The place is a mess. We are both feeling like moving day will never come.

Another twist - we didn't know I didn't realize the move was going to be when I was in Chicago for a work conference. So I pack all the boxes, fly away, and then my husband and his brothers move everything, and then I return - to a new home. All I will do is clean the old place and start unpacking at the new. As much as I dislike the cleaning, it won't be so bad since I didn't do all the work to move. And then I will set up the 2nd room as my sewing room. Thankfully the husband doesn't seem to mind that I have more or less just claimed that room. I can't wait. I am going nuts with my sewing machine tucked away in the corner with stacks of boxes in front of it. Until then... more packing.

Food?

I have noticed a lot of food on the blogs I watch recently. So I thought I would join in the fun. I made this soup Sunday and devoured a bowl last night. I'm thinking I should write it down in case I want to make it again.

I had a few leftover items from other meals, so they went into this soup in my effort not to be wasteful.

Jenn's Enchilada Soup
1 generous cup enchilada sauce (leftover item)
1 box chicken broth
1 can corn, drained
1 large can green chilis
14 oz crushed tomatoes (leftover item)
1 can tomatoes (I got Mexican stewed)
pinto beans covered in leftover enchilada sauce.(pinto beans were previous drained & rinsed)
1 can chili beans, un-drained (if I didn't have the pintos, I would use 2 cans of these)
Most of a roasted chicken
1 tsp cumin (taste and adjust as needed)
S&P to taste


I pulled apart the chicken meat with my hands (did you know I used to be vegetarian? Meaty fingers is kind of a big deal for me.) I left the chicken chunky and in long-ish pieces. (And do I need to even say - remove skin, as much slimy fat and any veins you run into.)  Mix all ingredients together in big pot on stove. My tomatoes were too big for my taste, so I broke them up. Heat... we didn't get to eat it until a day later. So, in that case, reheat. (I think leaving it to sit and blend favors was a great ...um... idea).
I served it with a generous drizzle of Mexican Crema (like a thin and not sour, sour cream) and pile of Queso Fresca crumbles. Then garnished with cilantro.  I served it along side a pile of Tostitos Scoops. It looked pretty.

Mmm, Soup!

I used the spoon to stir it all up and for the last two bites. Other than that, I ate it with the scoops. It was fun - like a bunch of minature bowls of soup. The occassional bite of cilantro was a fresh and tasty pop of flavor. I will use more "garnish" on my next bowl.