There's No Place Like Home

After clicking my heels together three times, 

I arrived in the Land of Ahh's.

I will be visiting family

And friends

Back to regular blogging when I return.

Finished for Friday - Some Christmas Stuff

Why is it no matter how early I start preparing for Christmas, the closer it gets the more I have to do?

Boogie made a visit last weekend. He and Papa went to get the Christmas tree and he helped decorate it.

We made and ate Rice Krispie Treats.


Then came Monday and a flare up of my lower back. The back is much better today thanks to nsaids, ice and heat.

Despite the back, I did complete the tree decorating Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday was spent decorating and cleaning the rest of the house.

I also got three packages put together and mailed this week. One was a new iPhone for the youngest daughter. Her Christmas present early. A package filled with ornaments went to daughter #3. She wanted all the ornaments she had made and collected over the years. The third package went to my girlfriends back home. They will be having our Christmas gathering on Sunday.

I have been a busy Bea in my studio these last months. These are not things I have finished this week, but I wanted to share them. I will not be letting any secrets out as none of these gifts will be going to friends and family that read my blog.

This is a quilted thread catcher. A pin cushion filled with sand rests on the table and holds the little basket. I made two of these; one for my mom and one for Hub's mom.

I made a handbag for one of my girlfriend's who celebrates a December birthday. I was so pleased with the way this turned out. Hope she likes it.

Below is one of the reusable shopping bags I made from fabric in my stash. The blue print was four yards I found at a flea market and paid $2. The red polka dot used for the pocket and lining was a damaged piece I found in a remnant basket.
Next is one of the crayon keepers I made for the grandsons. These were fun and fast to put together. Here it is all rolled up.

This is the back.

And the inside.

*You can click on the pictures to enlarge them.

What's next? This weekend I need to wrap, wrap, wrap! Monday morning I want to be at the post office with huge boxes going to the grandson and kids in Milwaukee, the parents and kids in Kansas and the MIL in St. Louis. Last year everything had to be sent priority mail. Ouch! I am hoping to save some money this year by getting things shipped earlier.

My little Singer will be humming again this weekend as I have two more handbags to construct. Then next week I can get the last of my gifts for Hubs and start the cookie baking.

Are you beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel? Join threeundertwo and tell us what you have accomplished this week.

Sunday with Friends

Remember my big surprise? My friends surprised me with a visit in honor of my fiftieth birthday. It was so nice of them.

All too soon, the party came to an end. But not the visit! They have never been to our house and were so excited to see our old place. Unfortunately, by the time we got back to our house it was late and everyone was tired.

After a good night's sleep, Sunday morning was spent sitting on the back porch drinking coffee, watching the birds and squirrels and just catching up with each other. We also took a tour of the "grounds". Here is my friend Marilyn standing under the pin oak in our back yard. She was amazed at how big it is. Our house was built in the 1890s and I'm sure this tree was standing long before that.

The guys took some time to talk about the replacement of the front porch. I noticed no one grabbed a hammer or a paint scraper.

We all finally got motivated and decided to head to Raleigh. But first we had to stop at a convenience store along US 1. We had to stop because it was the "Sheetz". You can see the sign in the background as we drove away.
Once in Raleigh, we hit the flea market held at the state fair grounds every weekend. There was a Mustang car show going on there as well. We walked around ohhing and ahhing at all the cool cars, new and old for a while, then headed to the flea market to see what treasures we could find. Being that it was a holiday weekend and raining, there were not very many vendors outside. But we enjoyed looking at what was there and purchased a few goodies. Here we are leaving the flea market. The building in the background is full of small retail vendors.
While at the flea market, we purchased some yummy produce and fresh shrimp for our dining pleasure that evening. After a stop at our local Food Lion for some potatoes, steaks, more beer and wine, we got to cooking. Here's Phil getting ready to do a digital exam, er...I mean, prepare the fresh jalapenos for our appetizer.

Jalapeno poppers - fresh peppers with the seeds removed then stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped with a slice of bacon. Throw on the grill long enough to get cook the bacon and heat the peppers. Yummy! And with the seeds removed, they are not all that hot. Some of them were even sweet. Here's a picture of the poppers and the potatos on the grill.
We also had fresh Silver Queen corn on the cob purchased from the flea market. It is the sweetest corn you will ever eat! Here's Mar and Phil preparing the corn to go in the oven. Good thing my kitchen is large as we all had a hand in fixing our dinner that night.
Rod and I are at the sink cleaning and deveining the fresh shrimp we got at the flea market. I have to say, something was fishy! EWW!
After the potatoes were done, the steaks, shrimp and pineapple skewers grilled to perfection, it was time to eat. And eat and eat.
There is nothing better than having good food, good wine and good friends around your dining room table.

*Clicking on the pictures will enlarge them.

A BIG Surprise for the Big 50!

Hubs and I had planned on going to see our North Carolina daughter and her family for the July 4th holiday. Typical summer holiday stuff - barbecue, beer, homemade ice cream and a great view of a fireworks display from the back deck with family and friends. Well, that was my plan. Hubs and daughter had another plan.

You see, this week I will celebrate my fiftieth birthday. Hubs, NC daughter and my Kansas friends decided to give me an early birthday surprise.

To see a video of the moment, click here.

For those of you who know me, I'm sure you have NEVER seen me speechless. For those of you who do not know me, get a good look as I may never be speechless again.

All the people that are giving me hugs in the video are my Kansas friends who flew out to stay with us for a few days. All a big secret that everyone but ME was in on. I can honestly say I had not the slightest clue. Everyone did a good job hiding and fibbing to me to keep it hush hush.

Our Fourth of July included barbecue from Smithfield's...


Followed by homemade ice cream (that I made!) along with this wonderful birthday cake made by NC daughter. She did a great job...

There was beer and mojitos on the deck with family and friends...

The only fireworks we saw were the ones that our grandson, Boogie, and I "popped" on the deck. To the two of us, they were bigger than bombs bursting in air...


And there were presents! For me!

It was a great surprise. Even though my friends came home with us that night, it was still a little unreal. But I enjoyed their visit tremendously. More of our adventures and my milestone birthday in later posts this week.