Yesterday was another strange day. Things were rearranged for me. Today it is back to my usual routines. I have the pillows already on the clothesline to air. I think the first load of sheets is ready to hang out. We think that the chipmunk is back outside. For the past couple days, we have been seeing two in the backyard. We have also been hearing them chatter. They sound like loud house wrens.

Autumn seems to be in the air. This morning as I walked outside, it was cool. In fact, so much so that I wished I had put on a sweatshirt. It was hard to keep my hands warm. When I left the house, it was night time dark; by the time I got to the health club, there was just the slightest hint of light in the eastern sky. We seem to be loosing time at the beginning of the day right now. Last week, there was much more light in the sky when I got to the health club.

This week, we will be going to the State Fair so I must be diligent about getting ahead with some of my chores.

It was an exciting, busy, and exhausting day. I was out with our neighbors and their children in a group of lots of families with lots of kids. We had a delicious lunch of soft tortillas and all the delicious ingredients plus lemonade and cake. My but I am growing old; by the time I got back home, I was exhausted and zonked out for the afternoon. Before zonking out, I had sense enough to pop a ham into the oven. I baked an angel food cake and will slice strawberries as soon as I post this log.

Tomorrow will be more of the same. Our church is having a picnic. We will be together to either march in the Woodbury Days parade or stand together to be the audience. I need to make something to bring to the picnic. I think it will be a chicken salad. I have some leftover chicken from the one we roasted yesterday.

On the way home from the health club this morning, it was apparent that rain would be coming our way. The sky had been clear when we left home but was clouding over when we returned home. It is now lightly misting. I have no idea how long this will last.

Yesterday there was a group of eight or so brown birds in the apple tree and on the broccoli plants. I have no idea what kind of birds they were; they were a bit larger than sparrows. When I first noticed them, they were on the stalks of the broccoli plants which are going to seed. We did not cut them back when the yellow blossoms started opening because we noticed a few honey bees on the flowers. The honey bees are having such a difficult time with hive collapse that we wanted to leave the broccoli for them if they wanted it.

From the kitchen window, the broccoli stalks were twitching erratically. I wanted to see what was doing that to them. It did not take long for the first bird to pop up on the top of the broccoli. Then the rest began to show up too. Eventually they flew into the apple tree and more joined them there. I took out the binoculars so I could more easily see them and hopefully identify them. I could see them but was not able to identify them.

As promised here are two pictures of my most recent flower pot pin cushion. Just to give you an idea of the size of the pot, it is about 1 1/2 inches in diameter at the top and about 3/4 inch high. There is nothing in the pictures to give you an indication of its scale.

It looks like another beautiful day today. Next Wednesday we plan to go to the state fair. Yes, we will bring the small camera along. But I fear that the pictures will make the fair look disappointing. It was originally an agricultural exposition but now the agricultural implements dealers and manufacturers are a very small presence. There are displays of produce including flowers and flower arrangements. It is very commercial but the merchants are not artists or craftspeople. There are interesting displays of sewing, needlecrafts, woodworking, and other hobbies.

All in all, the day has been especially nice. We did have some cloud cover but we also had some beautiful sunshine. I washed the tile floors which is nice. I finished a little flower pot pin cushion. The picture will follow tomorrow or Friday.

We picked tomatoes today and one of our sons is making fresh spaghetti sauce. I can smell it simmering on the stove.

Yesterday, my day was entirely rearranged for me. I only did a few of the things I wanted/needed to do and a lot of other things I never planned on doing. When I hung the sheets out to dry, a monarch butterfly flew through the garden and a viceroy butterfly rested on one of the sheets I had just hung on the line. The link to the viceroy butterfly explains why it is called the viceroy and how it benefits by looking so much like the monarch. Here are pictures of the two together. Scroll down a little to see the pictures of each side by side. I am fascinated by monarch butterflies because the butterflies that have never been to Mexico migrate to the same area every year and the ones that come to Minnesota each year have probably never been here. I think that the ones that arrive in Minnesota are from eggs produced by ones that have left Mexico and die before arriving in Minnesota. Unfortunately this year, the monarch population is significantly down. One of the factors is reduction of habitat.

This morning, the day began with a very heavy thunderstorm. We were taken out of the swimming pool because of the lightening. The pool is inside the healthclub so I am not certain about the rationale but I guess the corporate management needs to protect itself. For me it was not so bad as I had only a couple more laps to swim but the people who arrived at that time eventually did not have much swimming time.

What a Day Saturday Was

Yesterday was gorgeous and today looks like more of the same. The sun is coming up and the sky has lovely color in the east.

Yesterday we treated ourselves to an estate sale. I selected this one because the list of contents in the ad indicated a Singer Featherweight sewing machine and craft items. "Craft items" is code for needlework. The sewing machine, particularly a Featherweight, indicates quilting and such was the case here but sometimes needlework accompanies quilting. There were some little treats. The commercial counted work kits left a lot to be desired but there were some past issues of Just Cross Stitch including two past issues of the ornaments issue.

If my stitching friends are interested, please contact me privately and I will tell you what I have. We can make arrangements and maybe you can soon have an addition to your collection. :-)

Roger picked up some books and CD's that interest him. The house was in a very nice, lovely neighborhood across from a beautiful park. It was quite a surprise to us to discover that during the time we spent looking over the sale, someone slashed one of our tires. Not at all nice. We struggled to loosen the lug nuts but were having a lot of trouble. A very nice man, the approximate age of our sons, stopped to help us. His wife and their child went to the sale because they had heard there were some Star Wars items and indeed there were. I saw them. We could not have gotten the tire off without his help. In response, I told our sons that if they see anyone their parents' age who need help that if they do not help, their mother will make their life infinitely unpleasant.

As bad as this sounds, it was not as bad as it could have been. First, it was only one tire so we could use the emergency tire and get home to the local shop that takes care of the car. Second, we were going to replace all four tires before winter because they were getting worn. So, we did not loose a new tire. But best of all, a very nice fellow was there to help us.

The day is looking gorgeous and the weather forecast confirms it. Tomorrow is supposed to be equally as nice.

When we bought this house 41 years ago, we thought we had a really nice unfinished basement we could finish and use. Were we ever surprised when we discovered that it leaked when it rained and when it stormed it flooded. It took us a number of years and some very serious digging to cure the water problem. We dug along the side of the foundation to the bottom of the foundation to lay in layers of sand and gravel. We laid drain tile on that and took it out to the street to drain there. Before we put in the drain tile, we planned to waterproof the outside of the foundation with a tar like substance and heavy weight polyethylene. In the bottom of the trench he dug, Roger discovered rolls of the polyethylene the builder was supposed to put on the outside of the foundation as we were then doing ourselves. Needless to say in all the previous years, the foundation had no waterproofing. No wonder water would leak into the basement. Our soil is heavy clay; when it becomes saturated, there is only one place for the water to go - - - into the basements.

Inside we dug and constructed two dry wells into which we can channel water from the drain tiles if we have a very heavy rainfall. With our little pumps, we can pump out the water that collects in the dry wells. When we were implementing this waterproofing and anti-flood program, we dug another dry well into the front yard. We dug a hole large enough to hold a 50 gallon commercial polyethylene drum. Its top is a couple feet below the soil surface and we have access to it so that if necessary we can drop in a pump to take out the water. The drain tiles take the water into the drum at its top; the water continues its journey via more drain tiles from the bottom of the drum. Fortunately for us, we have a natural slope from back to front. We also extended the drain tiles into the back.

The summers that we did this work, Roger dug holes and channels in the yard. He could stand upright in some of them and the top of his head would just barely show. In others, only his top half showed when he stood up. Immediate neighbors, people living in the area who passed by, and our friends all wondered what we were doing. Some we told that it was a foxhole.

As I describe our anti-water program, it really sounds like we have gone to extremes. I cannot tell you how many times the basement flooded before this. It has now been a number of years; we have had to pump water out of the indoor dry wells but we have not had water in the basement, not even once. But the memory of water in the basement continues to linger. We continue to thinking, "What if. . . ? " I think this is causing us to drag our feet on the finishing projects for the basement. Now we are beginning to think, "What if a chipmunk gets in after we have finished the basement?"

Today our weather is clearing. It alternates dark cloud cover with bright blue sky. Right now it is a blue sky with large puffy clouds.

An oriole and hummingbird continue to visit the jelly feeder and garden. The oriole is funny. The feeder is hung from a tall shepherd's crook flower pot hanger. The oriole lands on the highest part of the pot hanger and then walks down the vertical rod to the top of the cover over the feeder. Then it walks down the spokes that hold the cover up.

We currently have a chipmunk hiding out in the basement. The cats alternately hunt it down and sleep upstairs on the bed. We would really like to get it out of the house before it does any damage.

I have been looking through a new catalogue from Ikea that came today. I am thinking about things for the basement but it is quite premature. I think I will just consider myself lucky if we ever finish the bathroom down stairs.

Yesterday afternoon we had some severe weather. There were several small tornadoes, one of which touched ground just a little south of our home. The storms did some property damage but there were no human injuries or deaths. On and off all day until now, we have had rain, sometimes very heavy. The sky looks lighter now but it does not look like it is clearing.

This morning and afternoon, I discovered that a humming bird is visiting the jelly feeder for the orioles. That seems fair because orioles have a reputation for feeding at hummingbird feeders. The hummingbird has also been checking out my garden but I think it does not look very promising and that is why the hummingbird is going for the jelly feeder. In between feedings, it sits on my clothes line. At one point, it chased away another bird that was much larger. I have heard that hummingbirds can be a bit feisty. If so, this one certainly is. They are also supposed to have an affinity for people.

Roger is downstairs working so he can finish the extra bathroom. It would be very nice to have one downstairs especially when I am working with the laundry or when I need to use a bathroom and the two upstairs are in use. Roger says there are some things he has to do before and one of them is tracing the water pipes. I have a feeling things are going to get much worse downstairs before they ever improve.

As sunny as yesterday was, today is as equally unsunny. The rain came in during the night and it has been raining on and off all day. We need the rain as much as we need the sun so I do not complain.

We are making plans to see the Minnesota State Fair. I think that for a lot of people the attraction is a lot of food. I do want to see some of the stitchery and sewing entries. I also like to go to the barns to see the cattle, sheep, and horses. I hope that when we go, the big work horses will be there. The rabbits and poultry are in the same building each for six of the twelve days. Generally the poultry is out when we go. I suppose it will be this year too but I hope the rabbits will be out. I do not know how we do it but we generally miss the rabbits.

This morning I swam especially hard, not for a long time just the usual and just very vigorously. I felt it this afternoon and could not have stayed awake if my life depended upon it.

The day today is perfect. The temperature is not too hot. It is not too humid. The sky is a clear, bright blue. It is the perfect afternoon to spend on the patio in the shade with a glass of lemonade or iced tea. It is the kind of day you feel fortunate to experience.

Maybe the hummingbirds are coming to our garden just not to our feeder for them. I watched a tiny hummingbird perch on the fence that surrounds our vegetable garden. It visited the tomato blossoms. I think that next year I should concentrate on adding perennials that hummingbirds like.

When I was growing up in the city here, the only wildlife I saw were sparrows, pigeons, robins, grackles, starlings, squirrels, and the occasional chipmunk. Since I was a child, I think that collectively we have become smarter about the importance of preserving wetlands and other natural habitats. To be honest about it though, when I was growing up the land where we are currently living was a meadow. There was little more here than a few farms. This was way out in the country. It was not too long ago that the meadow behind our home would have been filled in and built up with homes or roadways or at the very least mowed and groomed to be a lawn. What we call the swamp that is to the south of where we live would have been drained and built up. Because we do make these attempts at preservation as small as they are, we are encouraging this more diverse wildlife that we are enjoying. At the same time as our urban development moves out and we build up the area, we are squeezing the wildlife. We reduce their natural habitat and we tend to forget that the wildlife was here before we were. They have no place to go so they frequently get into trouble because for a lot of people they are unwelcome.

So far I have not been able to find the picture of the buck but will continue searching.

Wildlife in the Garden

No, I do not take our garden wildlife for granted. Every time I see a colorful bird or cute little animal, I love to watch it. My whole family is fascinated by them. Until this summer, we had seen only the occasional oriole. They did not visit our garden until I set out a jelly feeder for orioles. Even then, it looked like it was not going to be successful because it took so long for them to discover it.

Last year was the first time we were able to attract hummingbirds with a feeder. I mistakenly thought that we would do as well this year but that was not to be.

The chipmunks seem to be living in our conduits for electrical wiring and garden hose in the front of the house. In the back, they seem to be living in the garden shed. They seem to like to run through some guttering that we took down. We thoroughly enjoy watching them. We did not like it, though when then got into the house in June. We seem to have solved that problem.

We have been so successful with the orioles that we think we want to use feeders to attract other specific birds. We have had rabbits in the yard during the winter. They ate the uncooked plant material we put out for compost. Unfortunately, we dug the pit way too close to the raspberry canes which they also ate. We are going to move the winter collection pit as far away from the garden and raspberries as we can.

We know that raccoons come to eat in the garden but we have never seen them and do not anticipate ever seeing them. They come during the night and we would have to set out food for them in the early evening to see them. We have no intention of doing that because they will become pests.

Deer come through too, primarily during the night. We have seen some, usually during the early morning. There is evidence they have visited us when they eat things in the garden. They happen to like apples so we would like to encourage them to come about this time of the year. The trees naturally thin their crop about now. Some of the apples drop; it can be very messy to pick them up but when the deer come, they will eat the fallen apples.

This morning on the way home from the healthclub, I saw a rabbit and let Roger and our son know. Roger said that a rabbit was so common that I should only announce it when I see a deer. We passed a place that has always looked like the perfect place to see a deer but I have yet to see one there. Except today. I first saw one deer and then looked a little closer and saw at least two more. I was very please to announce the sighting of three deer.

There are supposed to be a couple ten or twelve point bucks in the area. Ben has seen them but I had not until November a couple years ago. One Sunday we came home from church to see one standing in the back yard. We were able to take a picture of it. Perhaps I could find it for you.

The simple fact is that it never feels commonplace to see the wildlife in our garden. It is always a thrill

It rained in the evening and during the night. I must have been completely exhausted because I did not hear it at all. It thundered and there was supposed to have been spectacular lightening. The rain was so heavy that it lashed against the windows and house. I missed it all. I think the unfortunate thing about this is that the rain was too heavy to sink into the ground; I fear that much of it ran off. The deeper levels of the soil are very dry.

As far to the west of the Twin Cities as we are to the east, there is a major professional golf tournament this weekend. Tiger Woods is playing and is in fact in the lead. I wonder if that side had as much rain as we did and whether or not it is affecting the golf course.

We had a beautiful sunrise but the day has become increasingly cloudy and increasingly humid. Sometime during the night tonight, we are supposed to have rain. The birds continue to visit the feeder; I continue to refresh their supply of jelly. I have had little opportunity to use the computer today and kept hoping I could come up with something interesting to write. Alas, I may have computer time right now but there is nothing interesting to write.

I just put a beef roast in the oven for dinner tonight. There will be enough left that we can make roast beef sandwiches for dinner tomorrow night. It should be an easy dinner to prepare after we have been out all afternoon.

What a Letdown

After all the bird pictures yesterday, today is decidedly a letdown. I have nothing at all to show you or to tell you about.

Sunday we are going to see the matinee performance of Yulong by Circus Juventas. This is an youth circus performing arts school. It without animals and clowns and is similar to Cirque du Soleil. It would not surprise me if some graduates of the program actually do go to Circue du Soleil. In any case, this is probably as close as we will ever get to seeing Cirque do Soleil as the tickets seem quite expensive.

Got the Pictures

Were we ever fortunate yesterday. The five orioles came to the feeder at one time. We were not able to get a picture of all five but we did get four of them in one. The quality of the pictures leaves something to be desired. First I discovered that we could not get decent pictures from the porch. All the windows have screens; now why did I forget about that? These pictures are taken from the kitchen window. We did clean the glass inside the house and outside the house but obviously could not clean the glass inside the the window which is double pane. Also you have to keep in mind that we are using a hand held camera with a telephoto lens; it seemed a little difficult to put up the tripod in the kitchen sink.

After dinner last night, I discovered that the jelly feeder was empty. As I returned to the feeder with the jelly, one of the orioles was sitting on the hummingbird feeder watching me. We timed it; three minutes after I left the feeder, two orioles came to eat.

We have scrutinized the birds and compared them to pictures in bird identification books. We think that the five are juveniles that are now out on their own.

Just because it is so cute, I included a picture of one of the chipmunks. We had the telephoto lens on the camera and tried to get a picture of it.

Yesterday morning while I was out, our son says he saw five orioles at the jelly feeder and hummingbird feeder. All the time I thought I was seeing one male oriole coming and going but maybe I was seeing two. Ben says that there were at least two males in the yard.

They are still a little too shy for me to take the camera outside to try to take their pictures. After I wash the floors this morning, I am going to clean the porch windows and windows by the front door. I am going to try to take pictures of the birds from the porch through clean windows.

I am a little concerned that they might have gone to someone else's feeders. Although Ben saw a lot of them in the morning yesterday, it seemed to me like there were not as many visits during the afternoon. I hope I have not missed the opportunity to take pictures of them.

Because our home backs onto a city park, we have always enjoyed a variety of birds but until last year, I did not realize that we could attract specific birds. Last year, we enjoyed visiting humming birds all summer long. This year, the humming birds do not seem to be interested. A few have flown through the yard but none have stopped at the feeder.

Last year a friend told me about attracting orioles with a jelly feeder. I gave it a try but until this past week, I thought we would not be successful.

I like the cardinals that we see in the area. They are bright red. I am happy to see the orioles coming to the feeder now. The less bright females are primarily interested in it but a bright male has come. I like orioles because they are so distinctive. I am going to see if I can attract indigo buntings. I have seen one during one summer years ago. They are a very bright blue and very distinctive.

There are so many birds that I feel especially fortunate.

In the late afternoon yesterday I noticed that the cups in the jelly feeder were almost empty. I intended to wait until after dinner to refill them but decided to do it before dinner. While I washed out the cups and filled them, the orioles sat on the humming bird feeder and the top of their feeder. When I came out with the fresh jelly, they flew into the apple tree. They were watching me because as soon as I went into the house, they came out to examine the jelly. We knew they had been waiting for it.

The orioles and brown birds continue to come to the feeder. I think I ought to clean the porch windows. I doubt that the birds would stay around if I went outside to take their pictures but they might not notice if I take their pictures from inside the porch. I cannot remember if I told you that one of the orioles tried to feed from the hummingbird feeder.

This morning I put the pillows out to air but just now brought them back inside. It is raining a little. It felt extremely humid this morning when I went out to walk. If the temperature goes up during the day which it probably will, we will have a 3-H day, hot, humid, and hazy. It will be perfect growing weather for corn and tomatoes.

The weather has been a little wild. Friday night/Saturday morning we had severe thunderstorms. The lightening hit quite a few buildings and homes. Fortunately our community did not have any fires started by lightening. Ben did go out a little after midnight and did not return until about 5:00 a.m. yesterday morning. The fire department was primarily resetting fire alarms that had been set off by the electrical surges when a transformer was shorted.

During the day yesterday, the humidity shot up. There was so much moisture in the air that we felt subtropical. The temperature was not that high but the humidity sure was. We turned on the air conditioner primarily to take the humidity out of the house. I had not been outside between late morning and mid afternoon and was surprised by how humid it was. In the evening a complex of severe weather came through; it also brought rotating wind which means there is a potential for tornadoes if it touches the ground. Even where it did not become a tornado, wind blew down trees and caused other damage.

During the afternoon, the female oriole/s came to the jelly feeder and a hummingbird flew through the yard. I cleaned both feeders, replaced the jelly, and made fresh syrup. The feeders looked extremely fresh and bright. Later a male oriole came to the feeder. There was a big variety of birds visiting too.

We are speculating that the orioles had some favorite food source growing somewhere. It is no longer producing food so they are looking for feeders.

Things are looking a lot better in this household. It was fortunate that we were able to make an appointment for our son with a doctor yesterday. As it turns out, he has a problem in his inner ear that is causing him severe vertigo. He has medications to relieve the symptoms. The problem should go away. He is better this morning and may be able to go to work today. This is quite a relief for all of us.

Now on to the big news. Yesterday a female oriole came to the jelly feeder twice; or at least I thought it was the same oriole coming twice. This morning I saw two female orioles and the brown bird on the feeder at the same time. I am just planning to watch them for a while if they continue to come to the feeder. I hope that they become accustomed to our presence so I can take pictures of them.

Yesterday I basted guidelines on the fabric that I should have used. Later today I think I will try washing the fabric that I first used. In a couple hours, I have an appointment to meet with a needlework designer who is here in Woodbury visiting with her sister. Yesterday it was fun to hear her voice on the telephone for the first time. She will be giving me one of her unpublished designs to stitch which is very exciting to me. This design goes with one of her designs that was published in Just Cross Stitch magazine. Once this design is published, I should be able to show you what I stitched.

Yesterday the rain was gentle and very good for us. During the night we had some severe thunderstorms; it would have been better if the rain had been more gentle but it was rain. This morning, the sky still looks dark and like it may rain more.

Things are settling out a little bit. I successfully picked out the stitching; it left traces. I used masking tape to remove it if it was actual fibers. That took out a lot. It is hard to say what now remains. Is it just the fact that the spaces between the fabric threads are enlarged or are there also traces of excess dye and thread fibers? The next step is to gently wash the fabric. I am not certain if the dye is fast as it is a custom dye job.

Our son is no better this morning. I called the clinic and explained the situation. I was informed that yesterday he was not seen by a doctor but by a nurse practitioner. I personally think this one was performing functions beyond her training and knowledge. It has been arranged for my son to see a doctor this morning. I do so hope that this will give us some answers.

Yesterday the most interesting brown bird came to our jelly feeder. I have no idea what kind of bird it is just that I know it is not a sparrow. Maybe it is a thrush. It ate the jelly; I could see little jewel like purple bits in its beak. There have been no orioles so this is something to watch.

This morning, it is raining. One of the largest and best art fairs in the area begins today. It is unfortunate for it that there is rain. Honestly, we need the rain so desperately that I am having a difficult time feeling sorry.

It is such a bizarre day today. Nothing is going as planned. I am posting this picture because it is very calming to me. Pictured are liatris in front of broad leaf sea lavender. There is a phlox in the far right.

Last night I started a cross stitch design on the wrong fabric. I will have to take the stitches out; fortunately there are not many. The bad news is that it is black thread on very light fabric. I started in the center so I have probably ruined the fabric.

One of our sons is quite ill and has been so for more than 24 hours. I am not very confident of the doctor's diagnosis. If he does not improve, I will probably take him to the emergency room.

I am rambling and whining so it is more than time for me to stop

Chipmunks and Chips

We were just watching the chipmunks. They are quite busy this morning. When we laid the front walk and had the new driveway poured, we made two underground conduits with PVC piping. One goes from the water faucet on the outside of the house to the opposite side of the garage by going under the driveway. It is so we can bring the garden hose to the other side of the driveway without laying it across the driveway where we might drive over it. We would drive over it because it seems like such a nuisance to pull it out of the way so we can drive the car into the garage. The second conduit goes out to the end of the front walk just in case we ever put in an outside light; it will take the electrical service out to the light.

The chipmunks have discovered the pipes and like to run in and out of them. We are fairly certain they have a nest in them. They must think about how fortunate they are to have such wonderful tunnels that they do not have to constantly maintain. To this point, they have not created any problems so we leave them. We are careful now to not leave the large garage door open. That is how we think they got into the house during June.

This morning they chased each other back and forth and through the garden, up and down the retaining wall, and in and out of the pipes. At first we could see only one of them and watched it as it explored the wood chip mulch I put in the garden yesterday. Then a robin swooped down; it appeared to be chasing a second chipmunk. After the bird left, the chipmunks looked like they were having a good time chasing each other.

Over the past weekend we had a storm with some extremely high winds. We were not aware of it until yesterday but the wind must have blown down part of a large maple tree in the park behind our house. To tell the truth, the view outside the kitchen window did look a little more open but we never put it all together.

The city workers came yesterday to clean up the tree. Roger and Ben asked for the wood which they were only too happy to let us have. They were just going to run it through the mulcher. We could easily have wood for our ceramic oven during the winter. Roger and Ben used Ben's chain saws to cut it into useable lengths.

When they were done, I raked up the chips and used them to much the garden in the front of the house. Yesterday we were extremely industrious.

Now Isn't That Strange?

This morning, we thought we woke up to rain. It sounded like it was raining. The weather forecast last night indicated there was a possibility. Yet, a half an hour later when we left for the healthclub, there was no sign of rain.

Here is the promised picture of the little project in SANQ. I have yet to find a second green thread; it is just a little lighter than the one I could find. I have so many newly begun projects, I think I ought to make an effort to finish some before even lining up another new one.

Back into Familiar Routines

Yesterday was so far off the norm that it was difficult for me to settle down. Early in the morning, I did upload more Vacation 2002 pictures which I labeled later in the afternoon. I hope that Christine looks at them and corrects any errors I may have made. I really did not begin to settle down until I started stitching.

We have a baptism coming up next Sunday. I stitched in the name and date and will begin finishing the banner today. In the evening I began stitching a little project just for myself. The current issue of Sampler and Antique Needlework Quarterly (SANQ) arrived Saturday. I found a little project that captivated me. With a little stash diving, I found everything I need for it including the silk fabric to finish it. I changed some of the colors to better co-ordinate with my silk fabric. Because I had the DMC floss but not silk threads, I opted to go with the DMC. The thread I use will not have the variation of the silk but I think it will still look good. This is such a cute little project and I had such perfect supplies that I can hardly wait to show it to you.

This morning I walked to the healthclub. The good news is that I walked. The bad news is that the sky was just beginning to show pink as I arrived at the healthclub. I am fully ready to go off daylight saving time. What the sky looked like when I finished walking today is what it would have looked like when I started walking if we were not on daylight saving time. Again this morning, a little bat flew over my head as I walked. I really hope it was eating mosquitoes and other biting insects and bugs.

It has taken a while to make the entry for today. First thing this morning I made a pasta salad to take to a potluck lunch at church. After the morning services, we gathered together to eat. Following lunch we had a wild talent show. One of the older boys juggles; he has won awards in a juggling association. We have a extremely talented acrobatic dancer. We have some extremely funny members and then there was me. I read a mildly humorous essay describing the early settlement of Saint Paul.

There were more things to do when we got back home. I feel like I have not had a minute to catch my breath. At last I have been able to label the pictures I uploaded this morning. When you see Christine's daughters, please keep in mind that the pictures were taken in 2002. You can check her blog to see more up-to-date pictures.

Here is a new link to my picture gallery.

Focaccia in the Kitchen

This morning I forgot to pick up fresh rosemary; so there will be no rosemary on the focaccia. I am back to the original idea idea of onions. The dough is rising as I key this in. No, that little towel with the hearts is not touching the dough which is liberally coated with olive oil. It is on a dish- towel which may be touching the dough. My little towel was stitched for me by a very good friend who will, I hope, see this. As I was getting something to cover the dough, I spotted the towel and thought it would make a nice picture.

The focaccia is out of the oven and the pictures tell the story. I did opt for the onions to which I added some dried thyme. Over that I sprinkled a little sea salt, but not Fleur de sel because it is so expensive. Sea salt has such large crystals that it makes a nice garnish.

Pepper Jelly

I got my recipe from the back of a bag of American Crystal Sugar; I cannot find my recipe. The Crystal Sugar website does not have the recipe. Oh eek, I am going to have to find one for myself.

This looks like a likely candidate for a pepper jelly recipe.

Some Ideas:
1. You could substitute apple juice for part of the vinegar depending upon your taste.
2. You could use green bell peppers and jalapenos for green jelly or red bell peppers and a hot red or yellow pepper for red jelly. You could mix the pepper colors. Use your taste to determine how much hot pepper to use.
3. I do not recommend running the peppers through a food chopper or blender. You will have a much more attractive jelly if you very, very finely dice them by hand. You are going through the trouble to make the jelly, what is a little more hand labor? ;-)
4. You do not have to strain out the pieces of pepper. They will have lost the intensity of their color but still add a little interest, both visual and taste.
5. I generally do not use food coloring but you could to heighten the color.
6. You could use dry, granular pectin. Many people prefer to use it. You might be able to omit the pectin if you cook clean apple peelings with the ingredients; slightly under ripe apples have more pectin. To test for the jell, be certain the mixture sheets off your spoon before you take it off the stove.

Christine, I privately e-mailed you the recipe for chocolate bread with my editorial comments. ;-) Did you get it?