WIPs

1. Super Secret Project
2. Cowboy donation quilt (flimsy, backing and binding made)
3. Seashells donation quilt (flimsy, backing and binding made)
4. Moth donation quilt (flimsy, backing and binding made)
5. Watermelon Slice table topper (flimsy, backing and binding made)
6. Halloween stitchery wall hanging (only half a block left to embroider)
7. Dance! challenge quilt
8. Iris Garden (long term)
9. Hugs and Kisses (really long term)

I've been busy sewing, can you tell? The photo is of the Seashell donation quilt. This fabric has been in the stash since the late 1980s. *cough, cough* It was time to use it and the coordinating fabrics up. Thanks to Mary and her Quick Strippie quilt pattern, this worked up in no time.

The Cowboy quilt and the Moth quilt are both made with preprinted blocks. Once again a quick and easy quilt.

Eating well

Photo from Eatingwell.com

Cooking-wise, I've been in a rut. Same old, same old. There also seems to be the perennial quest to shed a few pounds. So when I combined the two want/needs I came up with EatingWell.com.

This recipe is Black Bean Quesadillas and is excellent!  Excellent, I say! The fresh whole wheat flour tortillas from Tortilleria La Autentica on the corner were the right touch. All the other ingredients were in the pantry. The quesadillas were easy to prepare and cook and just right for a hot summer's evening.

Check out the web site. It includes meal plans, calorie counts, serving suggestions and lots, lots more. I am having fun exploring it.

Tonight's menu? Turkey Burgers with Mango Chutney. And yes, I am serving them with grilled baby potatoes and a frosty glass of cold beer. Dinner for two at seven.

Here Kitty Kitty

Rob Roy Reservoir
A high mountain lake fed by snow run off = COLD water.

Over the holiday weekend, CarGuy and I (along with 6 of our closest friends) went camping. We went into the Medicine Bow National Forest and camped at an altitude of over 9,000 feet. One doesn't move very fast at that altitude because it is hard to get your breath. We circled our 'wagons' like the wagon trains used to do with the fire pit in the center. The mosquitoes in this forest are epic! Remembering last year's trip, we brought enough bug repellent for everyone to have their own can.  The woods were beautiful, days were temperate & nights were chilly. It rained off and on Friday and we woke up Saturday morning to find some mountain lion tracks in the damp earth in our camp. Here kitty, kitty.

No cell service available!

One of our friends decided to see if he could get any kind of cell service. Nope, nada, nil. So all cell phones were turned off and we enjoyed being disconnected and off the grid.

Knitting is a perfect camping project. This year a skein of black fingering yarn accompanied me and it is becoming a shawlette/scarf. It has a lingering aroma of woodsmoke about it so it might be named Medicine Bow in honor of the trip.

Once home, I started piecing the backing for a donation quilt while the washer and dryer worked away in the background. The backing, binding, top and batting are now in a nice neat stack awaiting sandwiching,  basting and ultimately quilting.

I hope you had as an enjoyable weekend as I did.