Quilting and beyond . . .

I've completed five quilts over the last few weeks. I have even gone off my usual path of scrap quilt patterns to make planned quilts with actual themes. Yes, it stretched my mind set a bit but I accomplished it! It is much more tempting to work on a quilt in cool weather. Nothing worse than having a lapful of quilt to sew on when the temperature IN the house is heading for 95 and I don't EVEN want to think about the outside degrees!

Cooler weather turned my thoughts to a favorite meal, too. Chicken pot pie! I don't make it as often as I would like to have it because the bottom crust is always an uncertain event. Most of the time, it cooks pretty evenly but I have had bouts with soggy or scorched. I've solved the problem to my family's satisfaction and the crust is ALWAYS crisp yet tender. I bake the crust separately! I prepare my usual chicken pot pie filling. Just before it is ready for the table, I prepare the dough for the crust BUT I roll it out evenly and bake it in the oven. I serve bowls of the hot chicken pot pie filling with a generous portion of the broken up crust. It maintains the pot pie taste, the crust is perfect, and the family enjoys being able to add a bit more to their meal.

I'm not gloomy . . .

They call it June Gloom but it isn't making me sad or unhappy! I remember my school days and the disappointment I felt when the first few weeks of summer vacation often suffered from overcast skies and even some sprinkles. These days, I welcome the extra respite from what I know the depth of the summer months will bring - Hot, hot, and more hot! Too bad we need the sunshine to make the crops grow because I would find it quite easy to fight my gloom with more June Gloom!

When California had some unseasonably hot weather earlier in the year, I figured it was time to resort to stove top, grill, and barbecue for the summer months. I'm enjoying being able to turn on the oven and bake or prepare a roast . . . and it's the middle of June! A friend at daily Mass and I have an ongoing competition about who is praying harder for THEIR favorite weather. Since it IS the middle of June, he just smiles and says, "I can wait for the summer heat. It's all stacked in my favor, you know!" Sigh . . . he is right but I'm enjoying the pleasure of crisp mornings, surprise drizzles, and cold nights for as long as it lasts!

Cheer up quotes for the day . . .

Why do you have to be a nonconformist like everybody else?"
-- James Thurber

"One of the keys to happiness is a bad memory."
-- Rita Mae Brown

"I am free of all prejudice. I hate everyone equally."
-- W. C. Fields

"You can tell a lot about a fellow's character by his way of eating jellybeans."
-- Ronald Reagan

Something of interest . . .

Elizabeth Sanborn contacted me about an interesting format for Bible studies. I'll cut and paste her message so interested people can check it out.

Greetings,



I work for Logos Bible Software, and we’ve been working on digitizing scores of Catholic titles. I saw your blog listed in the Catholic Blog Directory and thought that you and your readers would be interested to know about our efforts.



A recent blog post, “Logos Bible Software for Catholics,” explains everything in detail, and you can see all of our Catholic offerings in our new Catholic Product Guide.



There’s even an opportunity to win a free copy of the Collegeville Catholic Reference Library, Version 2 just for helping us to spread the word. All of the details are in the blog post.



Thanks for your time!

Favorites on a Monday morning . . .

"The Internet is like alcohol in some sense. It accentuates what you would do anyway. If you want to be a loner, you can be more alone. If you want to connect, it makes it easier to connect."
-- Esther Dyson

"A family is a unit composed not only of children but of men, women, an occasional animal, and the common cold."
-- Ogden Nash

"The world is governed more by appearances than realities, so that it is fully as necessary to seem to know something as to know it."
-- Daniel Webster

"The author of the Iliad is either Homer or, if not Homer, somebody else of the same name."
-- Aldous Huxley

Pay off for raising a kid right - words to warm a mother's heart . . .

I received a note from my college-aged daughter this morning regarding the recent shooting of an abortion doctor. It was great to see she has embraced real Christian values and understands what is right and wrong. It made my day!

***********

Way to go, hidden assassin. Genius move, I'm sure that America will now appreciate our way of thinking. That guy could have had a chance to save his soul in the future. And now YOU have the sin of MURDER on your soul, and his LIFE has ended.

Seriously. This and all the guys at school laughing about beating up gay people. Jesus Christ never beat anyone up. Jesus Christ never killed anyone, not even murderers.

What is the world coming to when supporters of the pro-life movement break the law and end life?

Isn't it sad that the devil can pull tempation from the noblest of causes? That he can turn it all inside-out? Maybe the gunman thought he was doing a good thing, but he went against his own creed, probably, possibly, turning millions back to the pro-choice movement.


I can't get over it.


:( Please say a prayer for the souls of the aborted babies, but say a prayer for this abortionist's soul as well; he needs it. We should also pray for the gunman who killed him, because now his soul is in jeopardy.


Love you, Mom. Thanks for life.

~Julianna

Points to Ponder . . .

"It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society."
-- Krishnamurti

"Everywhere is walking distance if you have the time."
-- Steven Wright

"It is inaccurate to say that I hate everything. I am strongly in favor of common sense, common honesty, and common decency. This makes me forever ineligible for public office."
-- H. L. Mencken