Challenge, quote, garage sale

"Life is what happens while your making other plans"

I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted on my blog!  Just as I can't belive how fast this summer flew by. 

The Diva's challenge this week is to use only two patterns:  Knights bridge and Tipple.  Knights bridge has always been one of my favoriate tangle patterns, and I use it in the majority of my zentangle designs.  Here's three tiles I did for this weeks challenge:

A couple of weeks ago, I had a big, successful garage.  I'd put off doing a yard sale for years, usually just donating "stuff" or stacking it in my garage, shed or basement.  Finally the stacks of stuff became overwhelming.  After the sale, leftovers were donated however I must admit that my "packrat's disease" is still showing symptoms as I still have lots of "stuff".  The next few weeks are going to be devoted to organizing.  Wish me luck!

Cat quilted wallhanging, quote

 "Time spent with cats is never wasted."  ~May Sarton

Recently, my friend Jan gave me a new sign (in the photo above) saying that "cats are like potato chips, you can'd have just one.   Her gift inspired me to search out some fabrics from my stash with cats and kittens, which turned into this new quilted wall-hanging.  The little cat statue on the shelf came from the Goodwill store.

Here's our cats; Tommy is the red tabby and Roxy is the tortise tabby.  They add such delight to our home!

Happy 4th, zentangle, quote

 And I'm proud to be an American,
where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
 who gave that right to me.
~Lee Greenwood

Happy 4th everyone!

Quote, Memory

"The angels are always near to those who are grieving, to whisper to them that their loved ones are safe in the hand of God." ~Quoted in The Angels' Little Instruction Book by Eileen Elias Freeman, 1994

In memory of Todd Satterfield, my best friend's son.  May he rest in peace.

Memorial Day celebration, quote, quilts

And I'm proud to be an American,
where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me.
~Lee Greenwood


Memorial Day is a very special day for me.  From childhood to the present, I love the roar of the race cars at the Indy 500.   The pre-race ceremonies always include the celebration of freedom due to the honor and bravery by our service men and women.   And the race itself is an Indiana tradition.  Whether I attend in person, listen on the radio or watch the race on TV, I always get goosebumps of enjoyment throughout the day. 

This year I completed a couple of quilted wall-hangings which I display in our home during the month of May.

I wish you and yours a wonderful Memorial Day celebration and hope you will join me in celebrating
the freedom we enjoy as Americans because of the sacrifices by our service men and women.

Quote, Amy's graduation, Purdue quilt

I hope your dreams take you to the corners of your smiles, to the highest of your hopes, to the windows of your opportunities, and to the most special places your heart has ever known.  ~Author Unknown

 

 

May 11th we were honored to celebrate our granddaughter Amy's graduation from Purdue University.

 

We are so proud of her and excited knowing that she will definately make a difference in this world.

Congratulations Amy!

Challenge 118- Kuke, quote, sharing tangles

Art is when you hear a knocking from your soul — and you answer. ~Terri Guillemets


 The Diva''s challenge this week is to try a new tangle pattern called Kuke by Katy Abbott.
Here's mine:

 
 

Challenge 115, Quote

We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.  ~Native American Indian proverb

The Diva's challenge this week was to express your feelings about Earth Day/Mother Nature.


Today is such a lovely Spring day after many days of winter returning and lots of rain which is causing flooding all over Indiana and the midwest. 

Quote, Diva Challenge zentangle

Challenge 109   The Diva challenge this week is titled Zenquest.   Here's my take on  the challenge.

 

 

 

Here's my quote for the day:  After spending a couple of weeks with a nasty virus and lots of time in bed recovering, I can attest to this quote!

 

 

Fabric post cards, Self-care

Just created these fabric post cards.   Simply secure the fabric to a stabilizer, then quilt or add beads, etc.  Add a 4x6 blank index card on the back,  fold 1" fabric strip around edge and secure with stitching.  You're finished.  Quick and easy and fun.

Also, I just found this on Pinterest and thought I'd share it with you:

Zentangle challenge #100, quote

"Lying in bed would be an altogether perfect and supreme experience if only one had a colored pencil long enough to draw on the ceiling." ~G.K. Chesterton


I always look forward to Mondays (I know it's Tuesday already), because "The Diva" issues a new zentangle challenge on her blog.  This weeks challenge is special because it is her "100th" week.   Here's my challenge for this week:

Christmas is only a week away and I still have some small wall-hangings that I need to quilt for my family.  But at least my back pain is relieved.  The shots in my back have finally taken away the pain.
I hope I never have to go through pain like that again.  Thanks to all who expressed concern.

Quote, Diva challenge zentangle, recipe, less pain

    I've been thinking about my blog lately and have decided that I will be sharing more of my happenings and thoughts than I've done up to now. 

Today it's about 60 degrees here in Indiana with a little wind and a lot of sun.  While I was out shopping I saw several convertible cars with the tops down.  I don't even have a sun roof on my car, but I did open the window. 

My back is feeling better after the shots on Thursday - hopefully when I go Thursday for another shot, it will relieve all the pain so that I won't have to have surgery.


Today's challenge is #98 by The Diva.  She challenged us to use the tangle pattern called "keenes" by
Donna Hornsby.  I like the pattern and in my mind I always think of the song, "Teeney Weeney Yellow Poka Dot Bikini" whenever I use that tangle in one of my zentangles.  Anyway, since the pattern is a round shape and I'm in the Christmas mood already, here's mine:

 

 

Since I am feeling better, I even decided to bake.  I looked through the pantry and for some reason, I had 4 cans of pumpkin.  Why?  Who knows but since they were so many cans, I chose to make pumpkin bread.  I searched through my file for a new pumpkin bread recipe because I haven't really liked the recipe I've been using. When I say my file, it's actually a big box with recipes from magazines, friends, family, etc. that I just knew I'd get organized.   Eureka!  There was a hand-written pumpkin bread recipe (in my hand-writing on a scrap of paper so who knows where I got this recipe.).    The results using this recipe is the best pumpkin bread I've ever made.  It's spicy, but not too spicy and very moist:

 

Pumpkin Bread

 

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

 

1 cup liquid oil (corn oil is what I used)

4 eggs

15 oz. (appr. 2 cups) pumpkin (I used Libbys pumkin)

2 1/2 cups sugar.

2/3 cup pumpkin ale beer (or water if you prefer)

 

Mix the above ingredients. 

 

Mix together :

 

3 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. nutmeg

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

 

Add the dry ingredients to the first mixture and mix well. 

Add apprx. 1 cup chopped pecans, and mix well.

 

Pour into two greased lg. loaf pans filling each 2/3 full.

 

Bake for 70 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

 

 

I forgot to mention, that since you use only 2/3 cup of pumpkin ale, drinking the rest of the bottle while mixing the dough could be a good thing (if you like beer  - I don't, so I'm saving the rest of the bottle for my hubby after he gets home from work).

 

 

 

Well, since the bread turned out so well, I've decided to make some chex-mix.

It's in the oven now.  I don't know if being in so much pain is the reason I've been so hungry this past week or what, but I've eaten every package of chips, etc. in the house. Honestly it's like I have a tape-worm.    Thus, the reason I'm making the chex mix. 

 

Hopefully tomorrow, I will feel even better and I will get out the Christmas decorations.  That will add to my festive mood even more. 

 

 

Quotes, zentangle and some pain relief.

Two quotes today and a new zentangle. 

Thursday I had my first injections into my back.  The Dr. said it would take a couple of days before I would know if the injections are going to relieve my back pain.  This morning, I woke up with a lot less pain than I've been experiencing.   Halaluja!   I'm still in pain, but at least it's more bearable.

Thank you to all of you who have included me in your prayers and expressed kindness while I was suffering with the horrific pain. 

Thanksgiving blessings, quote, zentangle

"Be thankful for what you have; you'll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don't have, you will never, ever have enough."
Oprah Winfrey

Yesterday was a good day - our Family shared a wonderful dinner prepared by my brother.  It was nice to catch up with the activities of our neices and nephew and our grandchildren.  And the persimmon pudding was delightful!


The Diva's challenge this week is to create a zentangle without starting with a "string".  The idea being to challenge yourself to design freely.   As I've progressed in the art of tangling, I've found that I really like starting without the basic string.  Especially if I want to try a new tangle pattern.  Starting with a pattern, then adding other patterns as I go seems to bring out more free motion style tangling.
More curves, etc.  Here's the zentangle tile I did for the challenge:

Thanksgiving tradition, quote, zentangle

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. For several years now, our family has celebrated Thanksgiving on the Sunday after the traditional Thanksgiving.  We found as our children grew up, married and had children that it was so difficult for them to divide their time between their "inlaws".  Thus our Thanksgiving celebration moved which has worked out beautifully because we get to celebrate with more of our family members and they come to the table "hungry" rather than stuffed with food from all the other dinners on the same day.   My hubby and I are just ready to get into the car - bringing with us the persimmon pudding that I make each year.  Persimmon Pudding is one of our traditions and I enjoy making it from my Mother's recipe. 

So from me to you - Happy Thanksgiving Day (again).

Diva Challenge #96, quote, life

Live out of your imagination, not your history.
Stephen Covey

The Diva's challenge this week is to use the tangle pattern "zinger".    You will find the zinger pattern in my zentangle tile below - it's the stems with the coil-like ends.

This is the first time I've posted in a couple of weeks due to the pain I'm experiencing because of a pinched nerve in my spine.  After several more Dr visits and pain relieving prescriptions which did not take away the pain, I had an MRI done.  I have several bulging disks and am now awaiting an appointment with a neurologist.  Like most Mom's who have given birth, I can withstand pain fairly well.  But when the pain does not decrease and continues on for weeks - well it certainly has made me tired and weary.

In order to put the pain in the back of my mind, I've been making another quilt.  So off I go now to get that sewing machine humming again.

Quote, Life with pain and a zentangle.

About 10 days ago, I was raking leaves, moving furniture and
doing other tasks that I had been putting off.  The next day, I woke with a pinched nerve and the pain was terrible from my back down to my ankle.  After a couple of days, I figured out the the pain wasn't just going to go away, so I called the chiropractor.  It didn't help at all.  After a couple more days
of terrible pain, my hubby suggested that we go to "Urgent Care".   Sure enough, he said it was a pinched nerve - gave me prescriptions for a steroid pack, pain pills and anti-inflammation pills. 
 After a couple more days, I decided to try acupuncture and found a chiropractor who does both acupuncture and chiropractic treatments.   

So after about a week of constant, terrible pain and several more treatments and daily doses of pills, the pain is still there, but starting to subside. 

The reason I'm writing about this is to enhance the daily quote I posted above.  The constant pain has led me to wanting to eat anything "crunchy".  Somehow my body is seeking relief through eating!  Which is entirely the wrong thing to do for various and obvious reasons.  The only good thing about this situation is that I go to the sewing machine and start making blocks for a quilt.  My concentration on making 1/4" seams does keep me from thinking about the pain.


.  Hopefully, the pain will subside soon and I will be posting more often.

Prayer for Peace, quote, zentangle

Dear God, Please send to me the spirit of Your peace. Then send, dear Lord, the spirit of peace from me to all the world. Amen.
Marianne Williamson

Sept. 21st is International Peace Day.  The Diva's challenge this week is to create a Pinwheel for Peace.
She has further detail on her website - please check it out by clicking on the Diva's icon here on my blog.
As we strive for world peace, the entries this week are very touching.

Zendala Dare #21, quote

Today is Labor Day, the last hurrah of the summer.  We are so lucky to have the freedoms we have here in America.  Take time to reflect on your blessings.

This is my zendala for this weeks challenge:

zentangles, quote

The essence of all art is to have pleasure in giving pleasure.
Dale Carnegie

Hopefully my zentangles will bring pleasure to prospective purchasers soon..  Beginning Sept. 8th, my art along with art from fellow members of our local FibR group will be on display and for sale a local art store in downtown Lafayette, In.   The store is called "Something Special".   I've been busy for several weeks now, drawing and framing my pictures.  Here's a sample of some: