Mountain Musings

How to Clean Your House in Just 30 Minutes

If you're a regular reader of Mountain Musings, then you know I love day trips, visiting with friends, quilting, gardening, and many other fun adventures. But cleaning the house? Uhh...I have to confess...not so much.

Today the phone rang just past noon, and I noticed a long distance number displayed. My long ago Williamsburg friend, Christine, was calling. Ohh, how fun! Basically, we keep in touch by exchanging Christmas cards each year.

As it turns out, she was visiting a college in the area with her daughter and wondered if they could drop by before heading back home. Sure! Of course!

Ever seen three women in tornado mode whizzing through the house cleaning everything in sight in just 30 minutes? Oh my! What a wild ride! But we made it before the doorbell rang!

We had a wonderful visit catching up with Christine and her daughter. Can you tell she's a fun friend?

So...all it takes to clean your house in 30 minutes?

A simple phone call works wonders! :)

~Deb

Sunday Wisdom

~ Deb

For the Love of Pepper

Last fall when I drove down to visit my sister in South Carolina, we went out to eat at Fatz Cafe...great restaurant with delicious food...and only 5 minutes from her house!

As we were sitting there during the meal, Bet's friend, Sonia, remarked on the pungent, spicy, and great taste of the milled pepper. I'm a real black pepper lover and also noticed how the Fatz pepper added to the taste of our food.

After we returned home to Virginia, I kept wondering how I could find some of that same pepper. Having no idea of the brand, I googled Fatz Cafe to see if there was any mention on their website. No, nothing.

I admit...this was a little out of the ordinary, but I contacted the manager and not only raved over our meal and the delicious pepper but also asked how I could locate some of the same pepper the Fatz Cafe chain uses.

The manager returned my email and simply said that the chain used Monarch brand and that it was his personal favorite. At least now I had a name to google. But after searching, still no Monarch peppercorns.

Yes, I wrote back again and explained the predicament. The next email from the manager said he would Fed-Ex some Monarch peppercorns to me to enjoy as a Christmas present from Fatz to our family.

What great customer service! I love it! (Or else he just wanted to get rid of this crazy woman!)

The above container of black pepper arrived just as promised a couple of days before Christmas. Thank you, Fatz Cafe!

Now I just need to purchase a pepper mill. Any suggestions?

~Deb

Good Fortune Notebook

Speaking of beautiful quilting fabrics...my favorite fabric designer is Kate Spain, and one of her newest lines of fabrics is Good Fortune, seen here at Fat Quarter Shop.

Yesterday the mailman surprised me with a package sent all the way from Michigan from Stephanie, also known as Mama Pea of Peas in a Pod blog.

Stephanie and I have struck up a blogging friendship over the past months (we're both wanna-be UFO-ers), and she made this beautiful notebook and sent it to me:

I LOVE it! And I especially love the panel of words she sewed to the front of the notebook. I'll definitely use it for lots of lists and things I should remember and don't, plus it's made from beautiful Good Fortune fabric!!

Here's a photo showing both the back and front:

I love how blogging makes the world seem smaller! Thank you so much, Stephanie!

~Deb

Back to Back Quilting Fun!

Yesterday we drove over the river and through the woods to our friends' house to teach a quilting class...and a yogurt making class!

While Hannah was in the kitchen teaching two families how she makes yogurt, Sarah and I were setting up the sewing machines, arranging a pile of scraps from which the girls could choose to make blocks, and unbagging various quilts we brought for a show-and-tell to start the session.

Sarah began by showing her sampler quilt she made a few years ago from a Leisure Arts Learning to Quilt book. She wanted to show the girls the many different blocks that are possibilities:

Sarah decided to pick the rail fence block to teach the class since the project was an easy one for a beginner. Here's Hannah below holding up an example of a small rail fence quilt she made using the Alex Anderson Start Quilting book:

Each of us girls brought our mats, 6"x24" rulers, and rotary cutters--three basic necessities for a quilter to learn how to use. Sarah demonstrated the technique, and everyone started cutting the scrap fabric they had selected to make their own rail fence block.

I have some great pictures of the girls cutting and sewing and having fun, and I wish I could show them to you--I did think of a way to post the completed blocks without putting faces on the internet. Here are the four rail fence blocks the class of six beginning quilters finished. I think they did an excellent job!

And did I mention back-to-back fun? This morning Sarah and I attended our last Patchwork Plus class for this Saturday Sampler session.

Our class started out with a Show-and-Tell also. Here's one of the class participants, along with our teacher "QuiltinGal" Barbara, showing her last year's Saturday Sampler quilt all finished:

I have all these same 12 blocks finished...they just need to be made into a quilt--and, of course, that beautiful center medallion, the extra corners, and all the applique need to be done!

And today I saw the new fabrics (Alex Anderson's latest release Leila Rose by P&B) already displayed for the next sampler class beginning in March, and they are calling my name! Should I or shouldn't I?

Here's our teacher, Barbara, demonstrating how to set in some of the blocks as we work towards completing the quilt top:

And finally, Barbara reviewed how to attach a binding on a small sample:

I learned something in class today about cutting bias binding on quilts larger than a wall hanging...I've always cut my binding from selvage to selvage and never on the bias no matter what size of quilt it is. No one ever told me I should do it differently! Maybe that's just something everyone already knows.

I'm glad I learned this technique of cutting on the bias to make bindings, and I'll have to practice on these Saturday Sampler quilts!

We've had two fun days of quilting! I hope you enjoyed going along with us!

~Deb

A Simple Woman's Daybook

For today: Thursday, January 12

Outside my window...the heavy rain from last night is over, and the sky is a mixture of sun and clouds with an expected high in the 50s.

I am thinking...about Granny. My sister called 9-1-1 this morning, and Granny was rushed to the hospital's heart center in downtown Greenville with some atrial fibrillation problems. Hopefully, she'll be released today. It's hard being long-distance and not able to help.

I am thankful...that Tom's colonoscopy procedure yesterday went well. He's back at work today and feeling fine. I think this week has had its quota of medical drama!

In the kitchen...today is bread baking day! The smells wafting upstairs are wonderful! I wish I could send Granny a freshly-baked, buttered, hot-from-the-oven roll for her lunch!

I am wearing...navy turtleneck, navy skirt, and navy crocs.

I am creating...my Saturday Sampler block for the quilt class on Saturday.

I am going...to Patchwork Plus this weekend for our last class for this pattern. New fabrics will be introduced for the next 12-month class...still deciding whether I should sign up or not.

I am wondering...what my little grandson Ethan is doing today in faraway Michigan. He called and "talked" to Hannah this week and told her Happy Birthday over and over and over! Sooo cute!

I am reading...a friendship card I received in the mail with a wonderful Mango Peach tea bag inside. A friend sent a card to me and also to each of the girls telling us that January is National Hot Tea Month. I never knew! Thank you, Kendra!

I am hoping...I'll continue to be diligent to write in the One Line A Day (five-year memory book) my sister gave me for Christmas. So far I've not missed a day.

I am looking forward to...tomorrow's quilting class with friends.

I am learning...that it's a lot of work to organize all my fabric, projects, and supplies so it will be easy to know which project to work on next.

Around the house...Hannah just left to take some bread over to her bartering partner in exchange for fresh farm eggs.

A favorite quote for today..."Never mind if you think you are unable to take another step, for either He will strengthen you to make you able, or He will call a sudden halt, and you will not have to take it at all." ~ Frances Ridley Havergal

One of my favorite things...sitting down to supper with the family.

A few plans for the rest of the week: taking time out to get some photos burned to disks and mailed out.

A peek into my week...

See more Simple Woman's Daybook entries here.

~Deb

Cut the Scraps!

Have you noticed over on the sidebar under Books We're Reading that I'm reading a fun new sewing book--Cut the Scraps!?

My son, Jonathan, picked it out for me for Christmas from Patchwork Plus, our local quilting shop. I'm loving it, and I'd never even heard of it before! How did he know to buy the perfect book?

The first chapter is titled Fixing the Scrap Problem...hmm, I might be bogged down there for awhile!

Jodi over on Pleasant Home blog also just recommended Cut the Scraps! and started a Sew Scraps-Along to help sewers deal with their scraps.

You can read all about the month long Scraps-Along here and get involved in all the scrap projects each week! Or at least follow along and bookmark some of the projects to do later.

Here's a great post Jodi wrote on Organizing your Scraps.

Later this week Sarah's teaching quilting to a group of friends, and we're gathering up some scraps to practice making quilt blocks. Jodi linked to Freda's picnic scrap quilt, and I will, too. It looks like a simple block for beginners and great for using scraps.

~Deb

How to Build a Cold Frame

A cold frame is a tried-and-true historical gardening device which allows a gardener to extend the vegetable growing season by providing what is termed a "microclimate."  This microclimate is created by the cold frame's greenhouse effect; it captures the sun, heats the plants inside and insulates it from wind.  Here's how I built a cold frame:

First, I built the basic box frame.  The dimensions were dictated by the size of the glass window I had purchased, in this case an 18 1/16" x 32 3/16" basement storm window.  But, I had to take into account that the glass will be at angle, preferably in the 30-45 degree range.  Due to my window size, I had mine at about 23 degrees, because at 30 or 45 degrees, the frame would be prohibitively narrow.  The final dimensions were 16 9/16" x 32 3/16".  I used 1 1/4" wood screws at the corner joints, which made a much sturdier frame than the nails I used in my first attempt.

UFO Progress Report ~ Week 1

Today's the first Friday in January and time for the first UFO progress report for all the Little Green Quilters, but I haven't worked on any UFOs this week. I've been cleaning up from Christmas and putting stuff away and getting ready for a crafty winter.

But...I have been thinking about what I'll work on first. The postage stamp quilt is new on the 2012 list. I started it last year during the quilt along, and it became a UFO when it was folded up and left alone (oh, no!) for several months. Here's the front:

And here's the back:

The quilt has been sandwiched and pinned and is ready for quilting...probably the least amount of work involved on any UFO on the list, which is why I picked it. From the looks of all the folds and wrinkles, I may have to redo the pinning after it's ironed--again. We'll see.

I think I've said this before...having a UFO list can be very embarrassing! No, I'm not done with it after all this time, but I'll be soon...thanks to Susan for starting the UFO Challenge again!

~Deb

A New Year for New Adventures

Today...we're trying to get back into the routine of normal living after Christmas, birthday, and New Year's Eve activities. Tom returned to work this morning after taking off vacation days since mid-December. Ohhh, I was getting quite used to having him around all the time; I'll love it when he retires!

To wrap up 2011 before the new year's blogging begins...I wanted to share about our annual family Christmas program that the kids always produce for the rest of the family on Christmas Eve. Here's a picture of the girls playing flutes for one of the carols. Tom and Jonathan also played guitar and banjo as part of the musical evening filled with scripture.

We also went out caroling on two different evenings this year...once to a neighborhood we weren't familiar with and once to our neighbors. We left each house with peppermint popcorn the girls made and a gospel tract, and we have been praying that the Lord will use the scriptures presented to change lives.

Last week we packed Granny up to head off with my sister to South Carolina for the winter, and we're missing her already! She took plenty of basket-making supplies with her to keep busy while she's gone.

Here's a picture of my beautiful Mustard Basket Granny made me for Christmas. I love it!

New Year's Eve was very enjoyable...we invited friends over and decorated with snowman plates, snowflake napkin rings, and a new item this year...snowman placemats and table runners (a gift Sarah made me for Christmas). Here's a picture of the table runner. A decorated tree centerpiece goes in the middle there, but it's removed so you can see the snowman heads turning every which way (I love them!):

Here's the dining room table set and waiting for company to arrive. The square snowman plate in the foreground right is a new one this year from my sister:

And here's the nook table set in the kitchen area:

Our menu was as follows: *Chicken in a Biscuit, Stuffed Baked Potatoes, Tossed Salad, homemade Strawberry Yogurt, and frozen Peanut Butter Pie for dessert.

I've probably mentioned Chicken in a Biscuit many times on the blog, but I'm not sure I've ever posted the recipe. I took pictures this time because usually everyone asks me: "How do you get the chicken inside those little biscuits?"

*Recipe on next page

~Deb