Lose the Junk

I have been working hard the last few weeks to complete a Clean House Challenge that I was working on in the Spring. This week I tackled just a couple of spots in my kitchen.

I have people help with dishes and sometimes that is not so wise. I forgot to take before photos but basically I have a silverware drawer then junk mix drawers. I removed everything and started over. I am not sure how I never thought of putting the small cutting boards that get used all the time in a drawer but when I reorganized everything, the thought came to me and its been GOLDEN. I  hope to create a divider thing for the silverware, we bought the wood but we haven't had time yet. My poor organize holder is 22 years old. 

I love this little cart, somehow it always feels with junk though.

I had some odds and ends so I allowed them to stay in this tiny drawer.

Now knifes have their own drawer, this was needed for sure.

This is my favorite part of the To Do list, reorganizing all these Kitchen Utensils. These little picnic baskets were perfect. I hope to put a light in the cabinet though as it gets very dark and is hard to see. More obstacles to conquer in the following months. 

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Treat Yourself

Treating myself, sometimes that is truly unheard of. I don't get out much and its tough to have time that isn't involved in an obligation, kiddos or my husband. 

The other day my friend and I went with her little boy and got Mexican Food. I hadn't been out all summer outside of doctor visits so this was really nice. It was nice to have good food and it was most definetly nice to have some conversation and friendship. What was funny is I was so hungry. I almost forgot to snag a photo.
When is the last time you treated yourself?

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Spread some Joy

One of my favorite things to do is MOPS. I love being in the nursery and having all the babies for a few hours while young moms spend time with one another doing crafts, fellowship and learning. 

It is such a rewarding program. I can remember the days of being a young mom and it was tough. It was draining and lonely at times. I like that there is a place for these moms to go a couple times a month to enjoy one another, their children and have a safe haven. Support is an amazing thing.
I really love having those babies. Its the best feeling in the world when one decides to take a nap and you get to sit and rock that baby for the duration of the meeting until its mama is ready to go home. 

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Memory Quilt for a friend quilt 2

I wrote earlier about a quilt I made for a friend whose mother had passed recently. She mentioned that her and her siblings would share the quilt I had made. There is plenty of clothing to make more quilts so I am making some smaller ones. This one is exactly like hers. I have five more to make.

Sometimes giving is the best thing you can do.

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Son's quilt for local customer

This is a second order from a customer with a beach quilt. I had to wait on this order because I didn't have enough shirts. Somehow she was short 3.

During the waiting process she decided she also wanted a quilt for another son, a queen size with items from him as well as his wife. I am currently working on that one.

When I am done this one family will have four quilts in their home from me. She has passed my information to some friends. I would love to have some more orders. We still have many medical bills coming in and are still catching up from the summer when income was nearly cut in half.

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Fathers Clothing Memory Quilt with Logos

A daughter contacted me that she wanted to turn her father's clothing into a quilt for her mother using all his work shirts. 

It contains all the logo parts of the shirts at her request.

She chose this green fabric. I use this same fabric in blue quite often. It turned out really nice. 

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Husbands Caring Memory Quilt

A daughter contacted me and she wanted to turn her dad's clothing into two quilts for her mother. Her mom didn't do much with the internet so she made all the arrangements. 

When her mom sent the clothing there had been a misunderstanding she sent Tshirts and dress type shirts but had wanted what I classify as a memory quilt with small blocks from things like sleeves, pockets, pant legs. So the daughter had to have another box of clothing sent.

It worked out okay since I had my sewing machine issues this summer. I then also got another order with all those Tshirts that were sent.

The mother loved both quilts so much she took them to work to show them off. 

There is such beauty in this fabric too just really adds to all the clothing that was selected for both quilts. 

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Jewels for Quilting Customers

This is a quilt for a customer that I had last Christmas. She is a friend of a local teacher I had worked with. She ordered a quilt but told me to put it at the very end of my list as orders came in this summer. I told her about my machine issue, extra orders that came in after hers, she wasn't worried, she kept letting me delay her order. This one required a bit more work then normal. Some of the shirts were in rough shape. There were three tanks that really had to be rearranged with pieces of blank shirt backs. 

I am super thankful for understanding people. She still asks how he is doing, prays for him etc. I have two other orders from her. I am truly grateful.

I still absolutely love this fabric. It is so pretty~

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Fathers Clothing Memory Quilts

A customer contacted me and wanted to take her father's clothing and create a memory quilt for her mother. When I contacted her to mail the quilt she let me know her mother had passed.

By that time the quilt had arrived and she decided her sister would treasure the quilt and would give it to her.

I had enough clothing left that I immediately knew what to do. I made a duplicate quilt for her to be able to keep.

She wrote today and stated, "Your sewing is one of the finest that I have ever seen. (not kidding)"
Very sweet. I don't always make quilts for free, but once in a while a story touches my heart. 

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Friend's Mother's Memory Quilt

I have a friend that I have never actually met. We became friends online. She was so supportive when my mother passed a few years ago. Recently she lost hers and I offered to make a free quilt. I admire the family so much. She sent a box of clothing, told me the color her mother loved and I did the rest.

I had bought this flannel backing to make a quilt for my own mother before she passed. I was never given that opportunity. So it has sat. Its a beautiful Debbie Mumm print. It was the perfect fit for her quilt. Very garden like. I hope and pray it provides comfort in the coming months and years. There is nothing quite like a mama.

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Gardening, Canning, Dehydrating, Quality Time

This summer our garden has been a blessing. It is the first year we didn't produce squash, which is sad but peppers and tomatoes did well. I am so thankful for a dear friend who helped pick all the produce while my husband was in the hospital, then took it to church and sold it all, well really took donations. It helped us with food when we first got home. I was out of money between gas, hotel costs etc. 

I will admit at first it was a bit overwhelming trying to keep up with all the work. Right now it really needs a good tilling and some peppers desperately need to be staked. I had to give so much away while I cared for him the first couple months, I just didn't have time to can, process or even cook with much of what we were producing. 

At this point, we still have quite a few peppers growing and okra is crazy. My husband seems to really love the pickled okra recipe we came across. The tomatoes are done. We are hoping to get out into the garden this weekend, till the land and get some new plants in.

My daughter has decided she LOVES bellpeppers. We had bought a variety of peppers. I was so thankful she gave them a try. She doesn't care for them cooked, she likes them raw and she likes just them not ranch etc. Couldn't be a better addition to her lunch or for a homework snack.

We have learned to dehydrate the chilis and red  peppers. I did learn when you grind them the dust they produce makes it hard to breathe. Lots and lots of coughing occurs. We have canned a couple batches of the okra now. Its pretty easy really.

We have made a variety of pepper jellys and candied jalapenos. I can't wait to try them. One more week.

Dehydration is probably the easiest method but I enjoy the quality time gained from the canning sessions. Its nice to just be in the kitchen together. He doesn't last terribly long though. It makes his back hurt and he becomes super stiff. 

We recently canned three days straight and that was probably too much. He had swelling start back up in his leg. I am betting we do more okra this coming weekend. He gets a pretty good crop about every 2 days. Lately he has been blanching and freezing them. Much quicker than pickling them.

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