Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I am typing it early because I will be up early and busy in the kitchen all day. We are having 4 other people over for a 1:30 eating time.

Menu consists of:

turkey
ham
shrimp with cocktail sauce
strawberries with cream dip
mashed potatoes
sweet potatoes
brocolli cheesy rice casserole (better that green bean casserole)
Stuffing
Fruit salad
gravy
rolls

and for dessert:
home made apple pie
Iced pumpkin cookies

and warm citrus punch for drinks.


I have made the cookies and pie tonight and will start the turkey early. Then start the fruit salad then put the ham in and do the potatoes and stuffing at the end...

hmmmm hungry already.


I am so thanks for family and friends that care, good food, a great job, a thanksgiving without having to work (for the first time in three years), a forgiving lord and cell phones to call family we are away from this holiday!

note to past self

When you offer to drive your husband to work so your brother won't have to walk to work today...make sure you avoid your sandals, find some socks and put on shoes with traction...

it's raining out today and if you wear your sandals you will slip as you get 10 feet from the car and skin your knee open...sigh...stupid klutz!

with your best interest at heart,

your future self

Close up

Close up, originally uploaded by Elisabeth Scherer!.

and here's my close up of the make up I decided on to go with my costume.

Ninja

Ninja, originally uploaded by Elisabeth Scherer!.

Here's jeremy. He had a friend that collects weapons. He brought Jeremy a sword, nunchucks, and throwing stars to complete his outfit.

Geisha

Geisha, originally uploaded by Elisabeth Scherer!.

Here is me in my halloween costume for a party our friend's threw last night. I made the whole outfit. I also made Jeremy's outfit.

Sewing project

My mom is flying in for a reunion retreat out at Port Townsend on the Olympic Peninsula. One of the things we are doing at the reunion is having a pajama contest. Who ever wins the pajama contest gets a big surprise present from Debbie Macomber. Ms. Macomber was going to come to the retreat and be a guest but her schedule is so busy that she can not make it. So she sent a present for all of us as well as a big gift basket...

The lady who is in charge of the reunion came up with the pajama contest. I am making mine. I decided I could find a really pretty pattern to make. Now here's the thing. I have never sewn a wearable outfit...I did get a nice pattern for an oriental inspired "scrubs" which I am turning into pjs. I found a nice tan brocade/sari fabric to make "silk - like" pajamas. I cut all the fabric out and took the pattern in to see if the two people at work, who I know sew well, could give me any pointers. I also went and found piping in a dark chocolate brown and two frog closures. The top is coming along well. I have the two front pieces attached to the back at the shoulder seams. I also just made the collar (the only part with interfacing) and attached the piping to the collar. I am now too tired to actually go further without fear of mistakes. I cannot wait to finish it though as I am hoping for a very nice top and pants that I could use for a dressy outfit as well.

I also made some freezer jam in the flavor of blueberry. It's sitting on the counter gelling over night...then into the fridge or freezer. I have done this with strawberries already and that was amazing.

Productivity was average today as I got most of the dishes done as well as picked up and organized the master bedroom, except I have about four medium size piles of clothes to get put away and a large pile of laundry to do. Tomorrow I will keep myself busy until it's time to go pick my mom up at the airport. Hopefully it will make the time go faster as well as I can get quite a few things done!

Tomorrow

Tomorrow my mom flies in. I am just taking a quick minute to say I am so excited to have her here...

back to cleaning the apartment and making yummy foods.

Quilting

So I finally finished my first ever quilted piece. I finished my Minnesota Wall Hanging that I started in August of 2007. All I really had to do with it was put the binding on, sandwich it, and finish off the binding. So Friday I finished it completely! I quilted around the inside and outside of the squares and around the letters. Finally I quilted around the inside white piece.

Then yesterday I decided to continue in the mode of finishing and pick up where I left off in making this beautiful table cloth for my table. I started this last November at Quilt retreat. All I had done was the center piece fused down, the handles on the vase stitched and the other pieces cut out. Yesterday I pieced everything together and began hand stitching again.

I am now about half way done with the center stitching!

weekend day one

I am gearing up to have my mom here next weekend. I'm also having a weekend at home sewing. I have fabric ready to go for my first wearable sewing project. Mom is coming for a retreat and at that retreat we are having a pajama contest for a gift basket from Debbie Macomber! I can't wait to do this project but I am very nervous on doing something wrong.

Anyway, to get me in the sewing mood I have done all the dishes, cleaned off the table, and now am ready to get all my sewing things out for the evening and tomorrow. I am in finishing project mode...so hopefully I can have some show and tell at the next block of the month meeting.

Just checking in. I will take pictures as I can to show how things are going.

Hope you all are having a great friday.

P.S. I guess today is Talk like a pirate day 2008 so - Yarr me mateys come join me - ye scally wags of sewing!

Immediate Photo

took this from my friend Neth's blog:

the rules:

take a picture of yourself right now.
don't change your clothes, don't fix your hair... just take a picture.
post that picture with NO editing.
post these instructions with your picture.

Yeah...this is me after I had been sitting outside my apartment for three hours waiting on my neighbor to return my key. Jeremy's at work tonight working on a huge project. I finally gave up and had him come home and open the door just long enough for me to squeeze in and for him to grab two soda's and leave again. Thank goodness for my i-pod. P.s. I look like I have a pained expression because I have a migraine...sigh...maybe I should go to bed.

Unwelcome guest?

I found out last night that four of my favorite quilting buddies will not be at the Quilt retreat in November when I will be there....


I think it's a subtle hint saying I should stay in Washington...well too bad guys...I have my ticket already and projects to finish...

Would any of you be up for a movie night at Tia's right after that week of quilt retreat? Kristi? Erin and SJ? Mary (I know you're out there somewhere)...

I fly out the 11th of November.

I would love to see all of you!

Dear Past Lis,

You are going to get a bug to make a brown sugar chicken stir fry tonight with all those wonderful groceries that delivered this morning...

Please, please, please use corn starch instead of baking soda...Trust me...what your food tastes like with the baking soda will make you wish the kitchen would spontaneously combust so you don't have to look at the flop of a meal you made.

Also...Your husband is amazing to take you to Arby's when you do use the baking soda. Poor guy...don't let him try the food if you forget and use baking soda.

Sincerely,
Your disappointed Future Self

How to spend a geeky weekend in Seattle

This last weekend (friday through Sunday) I went to my first convention. A gaming convention called Penny Arcade Expo. It was held at Washington State Convention and Trade Center (four stories of craziness as I like to say). Friday afternoon Jeremy, two of our friends, and I headed down town to find parking and explore the world of video games, PC games, and board games. It was a big Geek convention and I am proud to say that!

All in all the weekend was very entertaining and enlightening. I went to two panel discussions. Number one was the History of Harmonex (the guys that made Rockband) and number to was "Is casual killing core gaming?" Now many of you who read do not game as much as my dear husband does so I will explain both panels.

The first was a walk through of how this tiny company Harmonex grew from some gentlemen from MIT who wanted to make music more interactive with the general public....all the way up to Rockband and the craziness of popularity that this game has developed.

The second was a discussion about gaming companies gear more of their games towards the "casual" gamer (one who likes to play easier games that you can put down after a half hour if need be and not have to invest so much time into...). On that panel was a gentleman that
I used to watch on tv...on Star Trek: the Next Generation.... Mr. Wil Wheaton.


He is so intelligent and a wonderful speaker as well as a HUGE GEEK - just like the rest of us 70,000 people that attended. I have since become an avid reader of his blogging.

Wil's blog

He is insightful and still very funny when poking fun at geeks and himself.

So that was three days of non-stop lights, games, walking, hard to find food, waiting in lines, and happiness. (Something like one day at the MN State Fair)...

Now it is Tuesday and I can tell you nothing remotely laborious happened on Monday...I don't even know what really happened that day but lots of watching Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe, napping, and more napping.

I made an attempt at my first batch of freezer jam of the strawberry variety tonight. Check out my food blog tomorrow for the recipe and pictures...then I proceeded to find the only ounce of productivity I have felt at home in two weeks.

That means I cleaned out the fridge (scary), unloaded then reloaded the dishwasher with some dishes that had been sitting for too long, then bagged up threw bags of garbage, two bags of glass and bottles, and had Jeremy help haul them to the garbage...in the meantime cleaning off most of the table and counters. I feel very productive and tired too. This week, because I had four days off, I am working four ten hour shifts...I feel like I am living at the job this week...but it's ok because I am finally out of training and working on my own with the assistance of a mentor for the next two weeks. I enjoy the problem solving aspect of my job and helping consumer's feel so much better about our company (knowing that we rock as a company and how we treat the consumer).

so that is a random post for you...covering a few days...

P.s. My mom is coming to visit in 24 days (but who's counting!)

P.p.s... Jeremy and I found Waldo!

where in the world is Lis?

Well...I'm still in Bellevue, and I am still alive. Training is almost done with it's three weeks and I am currently busy on many artistic endeavors. First I am working on a couple art commissions that will be posted when I am done with them.

On top of that, for the first time in at least 5 years I have had the urge to write. My brain is currently swirling with the ideas and Google Documents is my new friend as I sit at home at night typing things I have written on paper at work on breaks and also because I can open it from work and type in between calls.

The story is just forming and of course the almost nightly purge of ideas is opening ideas for other stories I would like to tell - fiction and non-fiction alike. So if I seem spacey and don't post it's because I am so wrapped in fleshing out characters and making sure ideas get set.

The best thing about tonight...rain. I love love love love the sound of rain falling and have been in my bedroom for the last 3 hours just typing on the computer with one ear listening to the downpour and one year stuck with my new 160 G I-pod that I got yesterday. This is isn't even close to halfway full and I am so excited about that.

silly technology. That's all I've got for now...oooh and I cut my hair again...I like it alot...I can't wear it in a ponytail at work anymore while on the phones...so it's pretty short for me...chin length and shorter....

another weekend post late

I did have new about my job that I didn't share.

I am being trained up to work on harder things at work. I've only been there 2 1/2 months and I am in 3 weeks of training starting today for Admin. Work. I will be working on more complex problems that I was not doing before. It's exciting to take this step as there are only 9 of us in the class. 4 of us trained together and the others having been on the job since March or before...

I feel very happy to know that people think I am doing a great job. I have been told it is a very significant step towards being hired on through the company and not being a temp. anymore. So three weeks of training means I have weekends off starting last weekend.

It was good news as I think I would have been scheduled for 3 10 hour shifts in a row. Sunday I slept in to the ripe old hour of 9 (sigh to early mornings making me wake) and then did some more sewing and relaxing.

Saturday before the theater show I made another purse. This one is my "evening" bag and it matched so well with the theater we went to.

Here is the outside all ready to put the handles and zipper on and sew it together.

Here is the inside lining that I wanted the handles made out of, but got too little of fabric.

Here is after I have attached the handles.


And here is my finished bag. I love the zipper color the most. It's a nice size bag. A bit taller and squatter than the one I made for my neighbor.

I also started working on my Minnesota Wall-hanging again. I have attached the binding and sandwiched it together with the backing and lining, now I just need to stitch in the ditch, and fold the binding over and sew! I have been drawing too, got a couple new books. I plowed through one really fast and will do a book review tomorrow following a format my friend uses on her site. Check back again! Off to relax.

A Chorus Line

Saturday night, Jeremy and I were invited to join a co-worker of mine at The Paramount Theater in downtown Seattle for a musical. I've never see A Chorus Line and said "sure" right away. Well once we finally got there (Highway 405 was closed so there was mega traffic) with 10 minutes to spare, She handed us our tickets and we ushered our way down to the seats...She gave us 5th row seats!!!!! holy cow was I surprised.

So we pulled out our programs and I took to what I always did before a show. Read the Actor's Biographies to see if I had seen them in anything before. The first name on the list was the actor Clyde Alves. I did a double take and then grinned very broadly. I knew him! My senior year of high school at the Arts High school the dance department was visited by a touring company of the musical Fame. They had a master class with two of the male dancers and I joined in on the class. One of the dancers was Clyde Alves!!! I remember many of us girls having a huge crush on him. He was very nice. So there he was. One of the actors in the show. It made the night even better. The show itself was way different than I imagined it to be. I often was laughing and clapping and mouth open and funny things sung. Half way through the show I realized that one of the other actors looked very familiar too... So I looked her up in the program in the lights provided by the stage...She was Nicki Snelson - who has just recently been seen on Broadway in one of my current favorite Musicals (don't laugh...and Jer Yes I like the musical - I don't care what you think) Legally Blonde the Musical as Brooke Windom.

She's amazing because during that musical she sings a very difficult song while jump roping and dancing a complex routine.

After the show Jeremy and I plus my co-worker, her mother, her brother, and her brother's friend all drove to a Starbucks for coffee and chatting. It was such a great evening. We ended up getting back home at about midnight. I can't wait until I get to see something else again.

Quilt block of the month group prep

I worked on my Quilt Block of the Month block for my meeting tomorrow. This was the first time I would try using bias strips to make vines on the blocks. It was soooooooooooooo hard. I found I struggle many times with this and probably said a few choice words that my husband couldn't hear (because he was so involved in his Geometry Wars 2). I finally got the bottom sewn down and now I have just the applique stitching to finish. I love the heart and the checkerboard section. Next month I believe is all applique! I can do that well! What do you all think?


I really like the red color. It's so cheery. More after the meeting!

A Birthday Present

My next door neighbor's daughter is turning 18 tomorrow. So I thought I would surprise her with a home made purse. My mom sent me the pattern for a purse she made me for my birthday this year so I thought I would try it today. It's fairly simple. It calls for 24 5 inch charms from a charm pack, 1 18 inch zipper, 2 fat 1/4ths (one for the handles, and one for the lining), and 18 x 20 inch section of light weight batting.

It was an easy pattern to follow and the result is quiet nice looking. What do you think?This is the short view.

This is the long view.

She will get the present tomorrow at her birthday dinner. I'll discuss more tomorrow with pictures of what we had to eat and the birthday girl with her new bag.

Dear I-know-it-all Consumer

Thanks so much for calling me today. I'm sorry to hear that your system will not power on. Let's walk through some troubleshooting steps today to see if I can help you get your system working without having it in for a repair.

What's that you say - you've done all the troubleshooting? What things have you done? You say everything? What does everything include? Oh everything from the website. Well I am glad you found our site usefull, however I don't have the site in front of me. Could you please humor me and tell me the things you've done.

Ahh you tried the AC Adaptor reset, good. Did you unplug it from both the system and the wall? You did - Great...how long did you let it set? Oh 30 seconds. Well lets try that reset again but let's keep it out for at least 90 second.

Hold on one moment ma'am...I understand your husband is the president of a hotel and knows how to do these things...but to correctly reset the AC Adaptor it needs to be unplugged from the wall and system for at the minimum of 90 seconds.

Thanks for your suggestion that that information should be listed on our website. Like I mentioned before, I don't have the site in front of me but I will pass that suggestion on. It's nice to know you care about our call volume.

Let's set up that repair,

Your friend Consumer Service Representative.

P.s. I checked the website and it indeed does say all of those things. Maybe there was a fluke accident where that particular snippet was invisible on your screen. Try again and please let me know!

Night at the Opera

So last Thursday Jeremy and I took my friends Kara and Ivan to see my sister's good friend Margaret in the Seattle Opera Aida. I've never been to an opera but I was so excited to see Ms. M perform because she is amazing. The show is set in Egypt and when the curtain rose it was a beautifully decorated scene. The pyramids were in the background and the set pieces had different Hieroglyphics on them.

Margaret did not disappoint and my first experience with the opera was good. I liked that it was in Italian and the captions were above the Proscenium arch. I felt like I was watching a silent movie in a way. I would glance up and quickly read the words then glance down to the stage and watch as they sung in words I didn't understand.

Afterward we asked an usher where we could wait to see if we could talk to Margaret. Well we trooped outside in the rain down to the Stage door and under the cover of a overhead walk way we waited. Eventually I stuck my head inside the door and asked security if we could possibly get in touch with her. He mentioned he had to do a walk through so he walked myself and Kara around but didn't find Ms. M. One of the cast members as well as the security guard mention a place the cast goes to unwind just around the corner. So we jumped over there for a few minutes and sure enough There was the divine Ms. Margaret with a few of the cast. I was just happy to tell her we made it and that we enjoyed it. I also got a quick picture with her.

I can't wait to see my next opera!

off to see Aida

I am just about to leave to go see Ms. Margaret Jane Wray at the Seattle Opera in Aida...It should be a wonderful evening...I'll have more to report tomorrow!!!!

Trip to Minnesota

We are coming home for a visit. I booked the tickets today! We will be flying in on Wednesday, October 29th. Jeremy is only staying one week and will be flying out November 4. I, however, will be staying another week to go to Quilt Retreat with my mom and sisters! So ladies from quilt retreat get ready!!!!!

I am so excited that the trip is planned. We are going try to see both sides of our families so we can get our "early" holiday in...I will have to be here for the holiday busy season of the call center, but that's why I am taking 2 weeks.

It's really not too far away so that's amazing as we have been here 8 months already. More plans to follow as it gets closer!

Dear Nongaming Consumer

I am sorry that you find all the games for our system to be too difficult and too hard to play. Yes our system is meant for the casual gamer as well as hardcore gamers. My 4 year old nephew as well as my husband's grandmother all have played games without difficulty. The games you are playing: (Metal Gear Solid, House of the Dead 2 & 3, etc.) are not what I would call casual gamer games.

No there is no company or gaming world conspiracy to make more money by producing extremely difficult games.

I empathize that you like to play the shootem up games but maybe you should start with something else until you can build your gaming skills up some...

Yours sincerely,

Your friendly Consumer Service Representative

Dear Irate Uninteligable Consumer,

I am so happy you decided to call today to talk to me about your problems, however when you want to have a conversation with someone on the phone the typical way for the conversation to go is like this:

First, I say something, and you listen
Second, you say something in response and I listen... and so on and so forth until we either reach an impasse or I solve your problem.

It's really not a hard concept to understand. I do empathize the part the you ordered was the wrong one and the one you wanted to order is no longer shipped out, but when I had to put you on hold because you interrupted me so many times in a row I couldn't get out 2 words in a row - my sympathy tends to start to wax.

When I came back on the line and offer the refund once again and you refused and interrupted me again, there wasn't much more I could do but end our "conversation."

Sincerely yours,
disgruntled Consumer Service Rep.

P.s. Spending another 30 minutes ranting to my supervisor about products our company doesn't make just wastes time. Stop making credit card purchases...

2 years later

2 years ago I was about to marry my best friend. As I look back in the past two years we have had adventures and excitement and through it all I would gladly say I am so in love with my husband. He is my best friend, closest companion, and source of much laughter.


The beginning of the year saw us moving away from everyone we knew to start a new life in a new city. Things are wonderful and I find myself happier than I've been in a long time. Jeremy and I have been dating for 6 years come this Friday and the time seems to melt away and seem not so long as I look back.



Our wedding was very laid back and fun. The food was good, music was great, and time with friends and family was precious.

What's new from the Pacific Norwest

I know it's been a while but I do have some reasons for not posting.

My biggest news is that I am no longer teaching kids to draw and paint...

I am now working as a Consumer Service Representative at the same place as my wonderful husband. I am just about to start my second week taking calls.

I like my new job so far. I like helping people make things work so they are happy when the call ends. I like the problem solving parts of the job, and basically talking on the phone to people and educating them about how to set things up...

My desk is just across the walkway from Jeremy's (aside from the cubical walls that separate us).

I hope this will be something I continue to enjoy...because if not...I don't know what I am going to do for a living.

Anyway, So I am quilting, crocheting, drawing, and baking still...it all comes in phases that last days, weeks, and months... I will post things soon...however there is something I just finished that I want to be a surprise to the person who is getting it...She reads this blog (or did before I took a hiatus) and so it will be a bit before I can post.

I have been working on my quilt block of the month...I just have the hand work left on my second block...

Check back for more updates coming soon...and don't forget about my food blog Kitchen Stories Etc

finally an update...

I just popped on to say I know I haven't posted in a month but:



IT'S MY BIRTHDAY

and I can post when I want to!


I am going away for the weekend but will post when I get back with updates in my life *there are a few new things going on* and a review of a concert I went to last night! We're spending my birthday with my high school best friend, her daughter, and her husband at a beach cottage in Oregon...I'm so pumped!


Oh and Happy birthday to my brother Dan who's birthday is also today!

Quilt block of the month group

Well today I woke up and relaxed around the house a bit but at 1015 or so I headed over to one of the local fabric shops to see what their Quilt Block of the Month group was like. Today was the last day of the previous years blocks...I watched, I'm one of the youngest girls there but that doesn't matter (means I can learn from other people). Well I did bring my Bargello quilt with to show, and they did have a show and tell time, and the ladies all seemed to really like my work. They all seemed shocked that I have only been quilting for two years. So I decided to sign up for next years Monthly group. It's a value of $150 of fabric and pattern for merely $50. All I had to do was agree to finish my block before the next meeting to get the next month's free. The pattern we are using can be found at:

Lizzie B Cre8ive Designs

If you click on the quilts link on the left it will load a page with images of quilts. The one We are going to do is called Peace, Love and Appliqué. (It should be in the top row farthest on the right).

I'm excited to learn more about appliqué and piecing which the head of the group says there is quite a bit of.

So that was fun, then I came home to veg and think about what I want to work on, on my day off tomorrow. I worked my favorite class today at the studio, with my favorite student, but aside from the kids I had a rough day with frustration at some of the nuances of how the studio is being run. But there isn't much I can do about it, and there isn't much I can do about my emotions except try to keep them in check.

Now I am home, have eaten (good old mac and cheese) am currently watching Jeopardy then Survivor, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and probably Without a Trace.

I love thursday tv...

Project in the works

My boss is adopting a little 18 month old girl from China and she just got the letter of acceptance from the Chinese government and so they are planning to go get the little girl very soon. As a welcoming present and "baby shower" type present, I am making a new quilt for the little girl. I am going to try my hand at a Sunbonnet Sue quilt, in red, whites, and blues. I found the best backing fabric for it too. It's parts of the constitution. My boss's husband is a lawyer, so I thought he might appreciate it.

So that's my goal for my next full day off (Friday). I am going to work hard on these so I can finish it before she comes back from China. I think I have until the first week in June or so.

So that is a major project to finish soon.

Other than that it's been mainly working many hours this week because we are having Spring Break Camp. This means we have quite a few more students coming in for half or full days of doing art and crafts. I worked the morning on Monday and Tuesday and today I worked 1pm to 6 pm. Tomorrow I finally go back to my semi-regular schedule.

If you check out my newly updated Food Experiments blog:

http://kitchenstoriesetc.blogspot.com

It talks about what I cooked tonight for dinner and what I made on the side. I am trying to be more habitual about updating at least that blog to chronicle my adventures in the kitchen. I generally put up the recipes I find or use from my stash so you can make it too, and then I say what I did differently then the recipe because with me I am always tweaking things, then I say what I would like to do differently next time I make it.

Mini Quilt Retreat in Sequim, WA

Friday I packed up my quilting supplies and headed up north to stay at my Mom's Aunt's house in Sequim, Wa. What's great about Sequim is that it's called "the blue hole" by pilots because it's generally sunny there if it's raining in Seattle. To get to Sequim (pronounced Scwim), I drove up to Edmonds, Washington and caught the Edmonds-Kingston Ferry across the water to the Olympic Peninsula. It's so much fun. You drive your car up onto the ferry, park and lock it. Then you head up to the passenger deck and they have a little cafeteria you can by food and snacks at. I just love to get some form of snack and watch as we move across the water. It took about 35 minutes to get across then you drive your car off and head out on the highway. Total Sequim is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours away from Bellevue. But once there I was so happy because My Great Aunt Guadalupe (Lu for short) and her husband live in the woods and have a house that is like going to a retreat with lots of wild animals (mainly birds) that feed in the front yard and a whole room dedicated to quilting with skylights, a separate bathroom/shower, and a small kitchen area for washing up and coffee.

I worked hard on my Bargello Quilt and came up with this:



Then I put the binding on my nine patch quilt and mitered the corners:


This is my Great Aunt Lu and I in her Quilting room:


A picture of one of the Edmonds-Kingston Ferries going across the water:


It was so much fun. Aunt Lu is an amazing cook and we just relaxed, ate good food, quilted, watched Jeopardy and listened to good music. Lu's husband Jerry is amazing too. He is taking classes at the Senior Citizen Center on how to edit pictures in Photoshop! He can run a computer well for someone from his generation. I can't wait to go back up there and stay for more than two days. I had to come back and catch a very early ferry because I had to teach a birthday party at The Studio. Bonus I got cake and a Starbucks Gift Card as a tip! Yum!

Domestic duties, and bargellos

Today I woke up when Jeremy left for work and started out bright and early by making what I am now dubbing Cheesy Chicken Enchilada Soup. I put all the ingredients in the slow-cooker and turned it on low. I then started laying out the strips from a jellyroll packet for a Bargello quilt. Basics of this quilt are to sew strips together then cut those sewn strips 90 degrees across the sewn so you have new strips of squares with each part of the original strips on them. The beautiful part of a bargello quilt is how you then line up the strips by rotating them so the one original strips are offset creating a pattern.

I know it's hard to imagine, just go google Bargello quilt images and see what comes up. I think they are part of what makes it a wonderful quilt is how just moving the pieces can make something turn into artwork. That's what I love about quilting, how it can be so artful.

So I am almost done sewing the first round of strips. Then comes the cutting. I will post a picture tomorrow of my progress.

I also did all the laundry in the apartment, that was fun! Clean clothes smells so good!

Sunday Birthday Sunday

Well today I set my alarm for 930 am to get up and get the dishes done and time to relax before I had to be at work for a little girl's birthday party at the Art Studio. I got 95 % of them done and even got to watch some repeats of America's Next Top Model before I left. The party was good, 12 little kids learning to draw and then getting hyped on cake then sending them home. It's an easy and fun way to make a day's worth of work. When I got home I found my husband had definitely been working on cleaning up! He moved all the controllers for video games into a drawer I had emptied, he had taken out the garbage, and condensed more boxes so we have more room in the living room. The rest of the night was spent watching tv, munch on the home-made salsa that Jer's dad sent in the mail for us, and relaxing.

I finished my Nine Patch Quilt top last night:


I also got my hair cut yesterday!
And colored...what do you think? I like it

I am trying to start working on my next quilting project, a bargello strip quilt. It's tough but I am excited to start it. I will post pictures once I have some. Well I am off to the table to try to organize my strips.

Missing Quilt ladies

So this weekend was the Wisconsin Quilt Retreat that I didn't get to make it to. My sister Tia was kind enough to pass around her cell phone for me to say hi to the regular ladies. I did have two days off so I pulled my machine out today and started working anyway. Made me feel like I was almost there, except the interruptions of a husband, life, and having to make food.

I am planning on going to the next retreat in November. Miss you ladies!

So I set myself up a work area:

Today I finished making my Nine - Patch blocks that I bought during the last quilt retreat...tomorrow I will square them up then start sewing them together:

The Underground City of Seattle

Today we did our first tourist-like thing with Jake and Elisa. We decided to go downtown Seattle and take the Underground City Tour. It's really a neat tour. You see Seattle was originally much lower in sea level when it first was built. It remained that way until June 6th, 1889. That is the date of the Great Seattle Fire. After the fire the town was rebuilt and then regraded to be higher and the remains underneath were left. This is the touring area. We toured three different parts of the underground city and learned many things about the pioneers of the city.

It was one of the best tours I have ever been on. Here are some pictures highlighting it:

Sky Lightings lighting the underground. They are purple from the Magnesium in the glass.

Jeremy was bad so we put him behind bars in the underground vault of an old bank.

bath tub in the underground, old and neat looking

parts of an old Otis Elevator left in the underground

We ended the day by stopping by the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for some caramel apples, but saved them until after we had our full dinner of Quizno's sandwiches and soups.

Small Worlds

Well the week has gone by and I have successfully made our apartment visitable. I worked my behind off yesterday and today getting ready for Jeremy's brother and girlfriend. Then at about 3pm I hopped in the car and drove to the Seattle airport and found my way no problem. I walked to baggage claim to wait for them to arrive and as I watched people get off the escalator I did a double take...I saw four people from Winona State that I went to college with walking towards the very baggage claim I was standing next to. My mouth dropped open and I walked towards them and said hello. They were just as surprised as I was. I haven't seen them in three years. It turns out they are here for a conference for the boys to attend and their now wives got to come along. I told them about moving out here and Jeremy's new job and then I had to run to find Jer's brother. I did leave them my number in case they wanted to have dinner or something. It also turns out they are staying in Redmond tonight (the town next to Bellevue, and basically a stone's throw away from my apartment).

So on a last note, we took Jake and Elisa to Ooba's Mexican restaurant/grill. We also took neighbors Sue and her son Ricky. We all had a blast. I had a Fresh Mahi Mahi burito, Jer had a Baja style Burrito with Cod.

It was a great night, and I am looking forward to the rest of the week. Now off to bed in my clean apartment. Don't worry I am going to take pictures so you all can see our place now that it's clean and 95% unpacked.

Week ahead

Well this week is going to be filled with lots of cleaning out and organizing and preparing for house guests. Jeremy's brother and his girlfriend arrive on Friday to spend 10 days here. I am excited to see family and friends and explore the area with them when I am off work. I have many things to do to make this apartment guest ready, anybody want to spend some time helping? My work hours are quite a bit less this week and I have all day on Thursday to finish last minute things. I am hoping to get the rest of the junk sorted in the spare room so they have places to hang clothes and sleep and relax if they want to have some quiet time. I am also needing to get our room cleaned up to hold any overflow of stuff that needs to be hidden away or out of the way. I also need to organize the kitchen better, deep clean it, and make the dining room table cleared so we can enjoy dinner on it.

I think I might make some special chocolates to wrap and put on the beds for them too. hmmm I am getting excited! I will update more as I go.

On other news I have been to the Bellevue Public Library this last week and picked up a book on Wildlife Drawings. I have now drawn a Lynx, Mountain Lion, and tonight I drew a Desert Bighorn Sheep.

The Lynx

Mountain Lion

Desert Bighorn Sheep

Book Review

I finished Persuasion by Jane Austen last night. I found that the words are definitely hard to follow and that I am glad I watched the PBS version on tv before reading the book. I might have been discouraged from reading it if I had not. I like the heroine, Anne. I love her steadfast character and she just stands out compared to all of her eccentric family members. Captain Wentworth is a dashing man just like Mr. Darcy. I do believe it is a wonderful book to read and if you stuck with the older language you will see the wonderful story Miss Austen created.

4 stars out of 5 (darn language).

Next up is Northanger Abbey, my favorite next to Pride and Prejudice.

Friday Night Fun

Last night we had our Minnesota Gang outing again. We all decided to meet at Applebee's and have dinner. Later plans included three of us going to downtown Seattle for a CD Release concert for a band that's drummer works with Jeremy. The band was The Preons and they were playing at the Jules Mae Saloon and Eatery. This Bar was founded in 1888. It's a very old bar that as I researched it was a local spot for factory workers and laborers. So the bar-goers were of ages ranging from 21 to 80.

Ambiance was wonderful and the concert itself was very good. The band played in the main stage in the back room. J played the drums, her brother sand lead vocals and played the guitar, there was a bass player and a keyboardist. The Keyboardist was a general term for this guy. He played the keyboard, the trumpet, sang, did some percussion, a harmonica, and a instrument that looked like a cross between a kazoo, a flute, and a small keyboard. Almost a one-man band on his own.

Jeremy and I enjoyed the evening and bought their cd. If you want to check them out look up The Preons on I-Tunes.

The craziest part of the night was looking up at the outside of the bar, and then turning my head and looking directly across the street and seeing a building just mauled and in ruins. I wished I would have brought my camera...as I always say...I am going to have to make a habit of bring it with me everywhere.

More art

So I have two more weeks of work from training to share. First is my favorite and the most recent. It is a photograph reproduction of a mama and a baby giraffe:

This is the piece I decide to display at the studio with the other instructors' work. I love the eyes of the baby giraffe.


This was a "no - step" picture which is the second type of drawings we get the kids to do when coming out our studio. What we do is have them take and find the shapes of the animals to help break a picture down to be able to draw it. I have a special fondness for penguins.

Also that day I did my first photograph reproduction of this elephant. I am not completely finished with it, but I don't mind it so it's going to probably be left this way (until I decide I need to make it more detailed).

So there is my last two weeks of training. I have been enjoying my progress and wonder at moving into still life and tones next week. after that it's on to watercolor then oil painting.

Last Friday

So the Minnesota Gang got together again Friday for food and a movie. I had a say in the restaurant tonight. I asked the guys if they want to try out the Taiwanese Restaurant next to my work and try some of the yummy food. We kept in the theme for the night and went to see Rambo the new movie out.

The food was good, this time I tried some of the Soy Flavored chicken. It was amazing. The movie was a typical shoot-em up and blow-em up movie with a couple really cool booms. Definitely not something I would have gone to see without three males making the decision.

I like that the four of us are exploring the area together. I'm not sure what we are going to see this next week...but we shall see.

Busting the Stash

Okay, so we definitely have little space in this apartment and to help with that I have decided I need to weed through and get some crochet and quilting projects done so I have more room in the closets. I have four boxes of yarn, one large tub of jeans for a jean quilt I want to make, and a tub of other fabric for projects I am working on.

My goal is to bust the yarn down to one tub and get the quilting down to less than a full tub.

So here I am...working on a baby sweater...It's almost done...I will have left over yarn and am thinking of making the hat to match. I will post pictures when I am done.

Cheer me on as I make this journey for this next year.

New adventures in dining

Today after my training session at work us two new girls and one of the program directors went next door to have lunch at Facing East Taiwanese Restaurant. Those of you who knew me growing up are probably wondering what I found to eat in a place like this. Those of you who didn't know me then should know I was really picky growing up and am growing out of it as I age and try new things.

So I'm still a little hesitant when trying new things but I jumped on the band wagon today for this place. The one girl order for all three of us as us new girls hadn't eaten there yet. She picked four different plates to try and order us all Hot Citrus Fruit Tea as well. Well the tea came out and it was amazing.

What we had to eat was the following:

1. Taiwanese Style Chow Mein with pork and shrimp in the shell
2. Spiced Pork Stew over Rice
3. Taiwanese Pork Burger
4. Lamb with BBQ sauce and greens

Plus two pots of the Hot Citrus Fruit Tea. If you want to see pictures of some of the food, I found a blog that did a report on the bloggers experience there:

Cosmopolitan Pearls Blog

Anyway I didn't actually have the Chow Mein, I did try everything else and fell in love with the spiced Pork Stew over Rice. The large of this plate is only 3.99 so I will probably be getting that alot with the tea as the months progress. It was really great food. I can't even describe the pork burger. It was so unique. It had a soft pita-like bun that kind of looked a bit like marshmallow, and the flavor of the pork and the sugar and peanuts in the burger were so delightful.

So that was exciting. I will be bringing Jeremy to there soon. Training was good, I will post about it tomorrow when I take pictures and post them.

New blog found

I was skimming through my facebook account and found out that a girl I went to Art School with has a wonderful blog that I am now unashamed to be addicted to reading. She and I took creative writing together and theater while at MCAE, She now lives in New York City and writes about food, researching the history behind dishes, experimenting with making said dishes, and little witty funnies that are so Nora!

I am looking forward to reading more and trying some of the recipes she tries.


Her blog is The Great American Cooking Project and I warn you, if you like learning about foods, you will be addicted...

Yay to finding new blogs!

Dreams

P.s. I had a dream about Quilt Retreat last night... I have been wanting to come for it so bad.

I am now taking donations towards a flight home for March's quilt retreat...


Any takers?

The skinny on my job!

Well I have one more day left of my first week of work. Tuesday I arrived to find out I would be "training" for the day. My boss walked the other new girl and I through a lesson as if we were the students. The boss chose pastels for me to do and oil painting for my new co-worker. Eventually we will learn pastel, watercolor, and oil painting teaching techniques. I ended up doing 9 pastel drawings. Here are three of the drawings:

This is my first drawing. I love the simple step-by-step drawings that each student can created the background for.



This was trying to work with grass and stone. I like how the stones look real.



This was my absolute favorite drawing I did. I was to work with the dirt and the cactus to see how to make realistic dirt. I just love this picture!

What I really enjoy about the teaching method is the ease of going from drawing/sketching to using pastels (chalk). The beginning step is to sketch the shapes from the step-by-step drawing we chose. Then we do an overall color with the chalks from largest area to smallest area. Then we blend and add lights and shadows over all the areas, then we go into adding details to make the picture amazing. Then we sign it and move on to the next drawing.

Wednesday and today I actually was teaching students already. Wednesday was rough because I had two students that were strong-willed and really wanted to see how far they could push me. I was really frustrated and left wondering if I was cut out to do this job. I'm glad I had a day off because I was trying to think of a new plan of attack. The boss and some of the veteran instructors just kept saying, "you need to put your foot down, be firm" so I know that's what I am trying to do but it seems like I get the kids who like to bulk the norm.

So that is my challenge right now is learning how to get the kids to do what I want them to do...and have fun at the same time.

Today I had a brother and sister I was working with ages 7 and 5. The 7 year old girl was easy to work with and when I gave her an example she understood the difference between what was on her paper and my example and made the changes. The 5 year old had his own ideas of what he wanted to do. I am trying to find some balance between stimulating creativity and using our teaching method.

I have tomorrow for about 4 hours then off on Sunday and found out my schedule for the next week is working monday, tuesday, wednesday, off on thursday, working friday and saturday...

HOLY COW that's work! it ends up being 24 hours, but still I am wiped after 2.5 hours...I need some more energy...from somewhere.

So I will probably update a bit more tonight. Jeremy and I are headed out on the town for dinner and a movie with two guys that Jeremy knew from IBM in Rochester. We all live in the Bellevue/Redmond area now and are excited to hang out. We're going to Ruby's Diner and going to see Cloverfield the scary movie (I'm the only girl going so I get to see a scary movie with the boys). So more later!

Jane Austen

Well like my sister Tia, I have been watching PBS's Masterpiece Classic on the complete Jane Austen. So today I went to the closest bookstore and picked myself up 5 of the 6 books.

Persuasion
Pride and Prejudice
Emma
Sense & Sensibility
and
Northanger Abbey (my favorite)

I just need Mansfield Park with the store didn't have...I will have to keep my eye out for it. Now the hardest part, which to read first... Any one have an opinion?

Welcome to the world Quentin

Yesterday was a sad day in my home town, a friend from high school's mom lost her battle with cancer and an elderly lady from my church passed away as well.
But yesterday was also a reminder of the circle of life:

WELCOME TO THE WORLD LITTLE:

QUENTIN ANTHONY MONROE RICHARDSON

born: January 30th, 2008
time: 5:13 p.m.

6 lbs 9 oz
20 inches long

Congratulations Colleen and Colin on your 2nd baby!

Yippee!

So before I get to the reason behind the Yippee title, I wanted to talk about what I did today. So I woke up and watched my 3 episodes of The Nanny to wake me up and then packed myself into the car and drove down to the theater to do some more costuming. Well I opened the door to send Jeremy off to work and found snow covered trees, steps, and banisters. So I was hesitant to leave, due to the lack of driving in this weather here. The problem with the snow here is that it usually starts as rain, then freezes and becomes snow. So there is that layer of ice underneath. But after a few adjustments driving in the parking lot, I made it out. I had to make a couple stops (gas, and parking money) then I was out on the road towards downtown. The roads were fine but the sprinkling became snow as I made it to downtown. I found my way easier and made it to the theater by 11 a.m. No one was in the costume shop however, so I waited, and waited, and waited, and just when I thought about waiting five minutes and then leaving, the two costumers showed up. So we set to work.

Today I sewed on 5 buttons to a bodice top. Also, I learn two more hand stitching techniques. The first is a slip stitch. Which is simple and I caught on quickly while sewing some trim on a dress. The second is a back slip stitch ( I think that is what it was called) which is a combination of the previous two stitches. The costumer was using it to stitch on lace trim on a dress. So after a while the same costumer switched with me and I began seam ripping out some Velcro and zig-zag stitching from a bodice top and a removed pocket from something (maybe a skirt?) We used the pocket as a two inch strip in between the front side pieces. It was a clever trick. Then we added 5 buttons to either side and poof! a new bodice that fits the actress. I learned to fasten buttons and hooks down to use 4-ply thread (two pieces of thread through the needle and tied together) to make a more stable and stronger hold.

Lastly, I got to meet two people from the cast and crew. First and coolest was the star, Chiara, she plays Anne in the play. What's really cool is that I've seen her before. She introduces the Masterpiece Classic specials that are running right now on the complete works of Jane Austin on PBS. So that is cool, she loved trying on the clothes, even those that weren't done. The second person I met was the Technical Director Larry. He had come in to ask if anyone responded to the notice about needing stitchers, and I was there! So that was neat. Overall it was a good day. One more day with them tomorrow.

This brings me to my news! I GOT THE ART INSTRUCTOR JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will be starting training tomorrow, 9 - Noon. So I am going to be teaching kids to draw. I am so excited.

In other job related news I found another last minute ad for working on a current production. This one is an Assistant Stage Management position helping preset the stage for the show, change sets during intermission and help with costume changes. They only need me on Thursdays from January 31st through February 21th from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. It's for Seattle Public Theater. I just have to see if I can work both the Art Studio and this ASM job. It's another option for getting my name known by some people in the business...

So that's my good news. Yay!

Today's adventure

Today I took an adventure all by myself. I called a theater about an ad they placed in an online resource for volunteer stitching help for their up and coming production of Persuasion by Jane Austin. Well I wasn't sure how much experience they wanted but I'm free and could use the connections working backstage. So I called the number and the girl I talked to was like, Yes we need as much help as you can give. It turns out there are just two of them working on the costumes and they are just running out of time with the alterations they need to finish.

So today I ventured out with my trusty Google Maps print out on the seat next to me and some juice and soft foods to eat if I got hungry. Well it turns out that this theater is in downtown Seattle, specifically right around the Space needle. As I drove down there I was getting closer and closer to it, and I snapped a picture with my phone (I'll upload that later). I parked and walked to the theater and called the one girl to navigate me into the costume shop. I worked from 11 am to 4 pm. I made 5 cravats (men's scarves), put ruffles on 2 shirts, reshaped the collar on two men's shirts, and hemmed up a dress 4 inches. The one girl asked if I wanted to learn Millinery (hat making) so I am going to set a time to go her apartment and learn that from her.

I learned a few tricks and heard tips on starting out in the business from Dean the costume designer (she has 30 years experience in the business). I learn the new hemming stitch called the cross-hand stitch. I also learned that if you want to change color on your machine, instead of having to re-thread the whole thing, snip the thread close to the stool and then tie a square knot with the new thread to the old thread and then run the machine through until the thread either gets close to the needle hole or runs through it. I thought that was a very clever trick. Another thing she mentioned was if the bobbin loads from the front or the back the needle hole will be in the front, if the bobbin loads from the side, the needle hole will be on the side.

I have a long way to go for learning things, but I am getting there, and that's exciting. So I made it all the way downtown and all the way back on my own in the big city. I was pretty proud. I am going back to the costume shop on Monday and Tuesday to help where I can and gain as much information as I can.

Oral Surgery

I am home from surgery and doing well. I received a phone call at about nine a.m. asking me to move my appointment from 2 p.m. to 11 a.m. due to the doctor being quite booked up. I jumped at going in early because that would mean I was recouping much faster at home. So I went in at 11 and it was quickly time for me to be in the dental chair. The dentist and I decided to go with a combo of Nitrous Oxide and Novocaine. So the assistant put me in the nose mask for the Laughing gas and I begin what I thought was steady breathing as she talk to me a bit about the post care and what I should expect. The doctor came in and asked how things were progressing but honestly I didn't feel any different. He looked at the machine regulating everything, turn the knob up on machines for flow and told me to take three really deep breaths. At the end of that I could feel a big difference. He told me I could say if it was too strong but I could also control it myself by focusing on the depth of my breath intake. He applied the Novocaine and want it to take effect. So he left for a few minutes which by that time seemed like an hour for me.

I was feeling like I had lifted out of my seat and was floating over the chair somewhere. I remember looking at the assistant who had stayed with me the whole time thinking, Man she has had to sit there and just watch to make sure I was doing alright this whole time, that would be a boring job from my perspective, then I thought maybe she is talking to me and I can't hear her for some reason. Then I kept thinking, "how can I remember what I am feeling so I can write it on my blog later today." Then I remember thinking about Pokemon...and feeling like I was spinning like a fighting Pokemon. I know my body was tingly and I was sleepy, and then she asked how I was doing and it was really loud and I said good.

The doctor came back in, I'm sure it had only been like 3-4 minutes. He asked how I was doing and I sort of replied and he said, "Yeah you look a little more spacey now" So He went in and tapped on the tooth again and I could barely feel it at all, he did add some more topical anesthetic and I was just trying very hard to concentrate on breathing because I didn't want the pain to start. Next thing I knew he said "and that's it." and I was like "really (well it was more like mumble mumble with gauze in mouth.)" and he was like "yeah." so I mumbled if the first surgery had been with you and went this well, you would have me as a patient for life." I think he understood me. So then the nose masked had oxygen in it and I was breathing that in deeply to flush out the laughing gas. Within five minutes I was up and moving out of the office and heading to the car to drive home with the gauze in my mouth where my tooth had been.

So I give this doctor an A + just for the surgery and the "bedside manner". I spent the rest of the day resting on the couch watching tv waiting for the numbness to fade because I was really hungry. I tried noodles and then laid down for a while. I know I napped around 4:30 p.m. because Jeremy woke me up when he came home. We made our way to the grocery store for some jello, pudding, and more soft foods so I can eat something. I am missing the meats that I like to eat.

Before we left we received a phone call from the doctor himself asking how I was doing. I said well and that I had eaten some food, he told me to call him if I needed anything. That was the icing on the cake for him in my good book.

So all is well I am doing mostly okay just taking some ibuprofen to help with the ache from the pulling of the tooth but that's it!

Oh and I also give laughing gas an A + for not feeling pain at all but F - for feeling crazy and can't imagine people taking this as a recreation drug.

Interview Details

So the interview for the Fine Arts Studio went very well. I arrived 10 minutes early (actually was there 15 minutes early but couldn't wait in the car any longer). The owner greeted me as I walked in and I saw four teachers, the owner, someone at a computer desk, and two or three students getting ready for their lesson. Lining the left wall was a various displays of still lifes' set up for the students to work on (an apple, an orange, a coffee cup with an apple and a lemon in front. Along the right side of the room was a line up of stations for people to work at. Some had books open to the page they were duplicating. All along the walls above either side were displays of student and teacher work.

I was there to observe how the classes work, to show my portfolio, and to ask any questions I had. The first thing we did was look at my portfolio. I finished pulling all my artwork out and picking pieces yesterday afternoon before I left. The reaction from the owner was positive. So then I was allowed to go around and watch how the class works with the teachers taking 2-3 kids and work with them as they draw.

The studio takes a beginner and walks them through step-by-step drawings really focusing on what shapes make up different objects. They work with pencil, charcoal, colored pastels/chalk, watercolor paints, and oil paints. They work through a series of doing the step-by-step drawings then on to single object still lifes' then they work on color theory and what primary and secondary colors are. Then they go back and do single still lifes' in color, and work into more than one object in the picture. From there they can continue into drawing, water color, and oil paint in the same way. They can take book images and attempt to copy the image. The teachers are there to guide by example and by helping the student look at the subject differently. So I watched a beginner drawing a cute little step-by-step bird and then take chalks and make it a colored picture. I watched two little artists one painting a shark and one painting a parrot with watercolors, I saw a little girl doing an oil painting of an apple, two girls working on some still lifes in charcoal, a teen working on drawing faces in pencil, and an adult student working on a pastel copy of a beautiful image from a book.

I was really impressed with the different levels of the students, the work that was produced, and the results of the teaching methods. I was also really inspired to work on some more pieces. I have been organizing at home so I can do some art soon. or Quilting, or crocheting.

Anyway, back to the details. The reason they are hiring is the owner is adopting a toddler and needs to step back a bit from the business. She said she hopes that the ratio of teacher to student was 1:5. So overall I think things went really well, I will know Monday if they choose me. It is part time but I get weekly training and flexibility of working mainly in the afternoon and having mornings to do things around the house.

Other than that I have been working hard on the apartment today because Jeremy's brother and his girlfriend are coming to stay the first week in March and there are many things to organize so they have a comfortable place to stay while here for the week. Deadlines help to get things in order!

Also I will be having my bottom right wisdom tooth out tomorrow at 2 pm. The doctor decided to try laughing gas on me for a better than Novicane but less expensive than general anesthesia and I will be able to drive myself home and relax after that. I hope it works so I can finally have a good experience at the dentist for once.

So that's the latest...back to work on the spare room.

Job Option

I have a job interview today at 4 pm at a fine arts Studio in Downtown Bellevue. The job is teaching children to draw and paint. It's part time, but it would be a good fit for me.

Off to work on my portfolio and resume.

An Afternoon in the Park

Yesterday my neighbor S, came over and volunteered to take pictures for me so I can have some updated head-shots for theater auditions. So we headed out to Lake Washington in Kirkland, Wa.

Here are a few of my favorites:

For more viewings go to My flickr site

Comment on your favorites on the site, I'm trying to decide which to print.