Nap time .... shhhhh

Most kids have a favorite toy and/or blanket that they HAVE to sleep with. Not Carmen, she has to have ALL of her toys!

Sprinkler

Carmen played in the sprinkler for a few minutes but the heat was unbearable. Now she's in her favorite spot - parked in front of the tv watching Dora and eating a PB&J with the crusts cut off. Oh how I wish I was a kid again.
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A walk down the street

Its hot so we stopped at every park bench to enjoy the shade for a few minutes.
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Red White & Blue Table Topper Quilt

Carmen is modeling my newest project. I finished this just in time to enjoy it for the 4th of July. Made up of 3" squares (yes, alot of work) and then stipled in a meandering pattern.

Now please help name this quilt!

BBQ pulled pork samiches

Instead of smoked ribs on the bbq I decided to use the secret rub that Jenny mailed me (thanks woman) on baked ribs. They turned out sooooo good and were super easy and very inexpensive to make.

I purchased a pkg of boneless pork ribs from Walmart - they were even in the sale bin! I popped them in a large ziplock bag along with the dry rub and shook them up (just like shake and bake). Then I put them in my cast iron pot (its new and I love it) and baked them in the oven for about 6 to 7 hrs at 200'. Don't add anything else to the pot - water, broth, etc. The ribs will be plenty juicy from the fat.

Poke them with a fork to make sure they are nice and done. Remove them from the pot and natural juices and shred the meat with 2 forks. This is when you can add your own bbq sauce if you like.

Down here in the south we like to eat our pulled pork samiches with cole slaw on top, not on the side. YUMM - O!

Girl in a box

Carmen loves boxes. More than she loves the toys that come in the boxes. Today I am trying to get a little spring cleaning done in my sewing room. Carmen thought she would help out.

Season In The Pines Quilt

I purchased this quilt kit that my Mom picked out on her birthday 6 years ago and promised to assemble the quilt top. The gorgeous fabrics are from the "Burst Of Autumn" collection by Holly Taylor for MODA. The quilt pattern is titled "Season In The Pines". No, the quilt didn't take me 6 years to make, but I have been working on it a little here and a little there. I really wanted to finish the quilt this year for her birthday (which was in May) and once again, I missed the deadline. Luckily for me (and her) the quilt is finished! She will receive a late birthday gift next week when she arrives. She has NO idea that its done. For all she knows its still boxed up somewhere in piles and piles of quilt fabrics and unfinished project totes. I had it quilted with a pinecone pantograph (see pics up close). It turned out fabulous! Woohooo!

Happy Memorial Day

I don't want to copy from Jenny's blog, but I did want to show off the ribs we are doing today. Beef short ribs done with Andy's famous dry rub. This is a trial run smoking them on Mesquite wood chips on the BBQ. Also making cole slaw (bagged shredded cabbage) with cole slaw dressing from a jar (Marzetti). Quick and easy.

The key to smoking ribs is to cook them slow and low. Tried keeping the BBQ temp below 200'. I've even heard keeping the heat down to as low as 130', but good golly, we would still be waiting for them to get done! Soooooo goooooood.

The ribs cooked for almost 4 hrs. The last hour is when we put a dab of BBQ sauce on them. YUM

Nature Walk at Peterson Lake

Last weekend we went on a nature walk. The trail was a wooden plank walk so to keep people off the ground - very muddy and swampy, not to mention the snakes, bugs and critters. It was a lovely evening and the entire walk was a little over a mile. Definitely a do-over. Here are just a few pics that I took along the way.

Smile, its Friday

Happy Friday everyone!

Rain, rain, go away

A child can only stay cooped up in the house for so long when its raining outside. I say lets put her rain jacket and boots on and let her enjoy it.

Star Spangled Banner Quilt

For those of you who have been following the progress of my Patriotic Quilt, wait no longer... voila...its finished! I used a variety of red, white and blue prints to make the 2 prominent blocks for the top (Hourglass and 9-Patch). I then used a Japanese-inspired floral print for the borders and backing. For the binding I used up leftover scraps. Quilt was then quilted in a star pattern called "Star Sparkles." Turned out super cute. Stay tuned for my free tutorial.

Delayed Easter post

The Easter Bunny left a basket for Carmen at the front door. Inside was the DVD movie Bolt, an Easter board book, a frog-shaped bottle of bubbles, some Dora & Spongebob stickers (her favorite characters) and a fluffy yellow duck.

We then moved to the backyard for the Egg Hunt. She had a blast. The Easter Bunny somehow managed to lay eggs in the trees. Not sure how that happened.