We have a new record! Unfortunately it's just 2 weeks in a row.

 But it IS two weeks in a row!!!  Pretty sad!  And I wouldn't be writing now if our plans hadn't fallen thru.  It's the Birthday Weekend! My DGD is 16 years old!!! and my DH is 70 - caught up with me again! (It's a long 5 weeks with bad, bad jokes!)

We were all ready to head up to Portland for a big celebration and then ... my DD failed a test!  Yep, she and DGS have Covid.  They are both fully vaccinated and boosted.  But it still is not a fun thing to have.  Wishing everyone a speedy recovery.

So here we are, a cool misty day on the coast - luckily, on my DH's birthday, there is football to watch!!  I feign an interest, but he sees thru me -  but it gives me time to piddle around and pretend to get things done while at the BD boy's beck and call.

Last night was his birthday dinner - he requested ham and Au gratin potatoes. AND a Marionberry pie.  Grocery store didn't have our favorite ham - Cook's Family Foods (Lincoln NE) at least not in the smaller size we needed.  But I'd already gotten the ice cream ... so I dropped the groceries "so far" off for Rick to put away. And went searching for ham at another store.

I should have know it was going to be that kind of day ... all week we have been swarming with workmen trying to finish the outside paint job they started in April!! Stairs and doors were out of commission.  Men hanging upside down painting the eaves.  AND Rick went into town for a pop, and I could NOT get the Marionberry pie filling jar open.  Looked around and no one to be found!'  I googled it - 6 ways to open a jar.  5 of them did not work.  The 6th one involved a knife wedged under the lid.  I didn't try that - I have a bad record with using knives in an unauthorized way - with stitches to prove it!  So I made my Canned in Water cherry pie for his birthday.  

I explained my sad, sad story when DH got home.  He looked at the jar, 'is this it?' and in a split second, half a turn, it was open.  (I didn't even say I'd loosened it for him!)  Luckily, cherry pie is one of my best pies!!  but now the jar is loosened and I need to buy another Pillsbury pie crust (don't judge) and get it made.  The cherry pie is almost gone! It's a birthday weekend and I'm going to share the recipe!!

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Canned Cherry Pie

Make pie crust (I use Pillsbury refrigerated crust!)

•  ¾ c sugar                                            
• 3 T flour
• 2 cans drained canned cherries in water (4 cups)
• 2 T butter

 Preheat oven to 450. Combine sugar & flour in a small bowl and stir well.  Add drained cherries and toss.  Pile cherries into dough-lined pie pan.  Dot with butter.  Put on top crust.  Bake 10 minutes. Then reduce heat to 350 and continue to bake about 45 minutes more until crust is browned.

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At least 30 years later I'm still making it!  A neighbor in Princeton Jct oh-so-many years ago gave me her recipe.  She made her own dough (!)  But she knew I didn't.  They stopped by one evening to return something and we invited them in for some pie.  Her husband praised my pie and said he was surprised that she gave me her pie crust recipe ... my husband knew enough not to correct him, But, Oh, dear - I think her husband slept on the couch that night!  Don't know when she ever made her homemade crust again!

I'm back in the quilting mood this week.  Yes, my Eversewn still has the pedicure separator holding the cord at the right angle.  We have an appt with the Sewing Machine Dr in Medford in 2 weeks.  They are getting the part and I've got a date to haul it over.  Fingers crossed that they can fix it that day - before I come home.  We have separation anxiety without our machines, right??

Meanwhile, I'm not moving it at all, and wearing my lucky socks when operating it.  I managed to get somethings finished!  I love making progress.  Such as it is!

Sorry, this photo is sideways - the black borders are top and bottom.  This is from the Instagram sew along - #scrapsnap.  It was offered in 2020 but I didn't see it!  I saw it this year and started cutting and sewing the first day I found it.  I love the color block methods - this lay-out combines 2 different color combos for each block. yellow/orange; red/pink; blue/purple and green/teal. It really makes those blocks glow.

Many years ago this Improv Bird was offered as a free block on the web.  And now Jenny Doan tells you how.  Birds with attitude!  Just the legs are improv, you decide if they are standing still or running!  I made my Finishing School quilters make a block or two at our retreat for charity baby quilts.  I've spread the pattern around, and some people don't care for them!!!  I know, hard to believe, right?  I love them.  

I cut fabrics and background and striped legs for one of my 'very' small groups and we all went to town making wall quilts.  I had leftover 'legs' and incorporated it into a border.  It went into time-out for a while - it was wider than it was long and that just looks off-kilter to me.  But I found 3 more birds - put in a new top row. (harder than you think!  It's uneven up there!) And still had enough border to go all the way around.  Hoo Rah!  It's only a top - but it's calling to me!  Once my machine is fixed, I can see me pin basting this and finishing it yet this year!  Oh dear ... don't hold it against me if not!  I'm an incurable pie in the sky kind of girl!!

And here is Peek-a-boo! clipped ready to be bound.  The original pattern is by Missouri Star Quilts.  The squares are 5" and make a twin size quilt.  P made the quilt for a grandkid.  We thought it would look really cute as a small wall hanging.  P cut 2.5" squares but I cut 2" squares.  Last April we made them at the spring retreat.  They looked like 2 brothers and I had the youngest one!!  The 'bling' around the outside is the binding clips. 

 I love these clips - a Christmas present from a quilting friend - they hold the binding in place tightly and if it's clipped overnight, the binding stays in place as you remove the clips one at a time.  No pulling and holding it in odd hand movements (Hello 70!) and arthritis!

Enjoy the Canned Cherry Pie recipe and who knows - I might be back again next weekend!