Notes from the Patch

Photo Fun

 Here's a fun photo editing program some of you might like to play with

 

 

 

  

I Do

 

 

        You are cordially invited to the marriage of Amanda & Lang

 

 

                            Here comes the bride

 

As soon as Amanda caught a glimpse of Lang she started to cry

 

 

                          Her handsome groom

 

 

                                His beautiful bride

 

    

                                      The vows 

 

 

                                      The rings

 

 

                                 Sealed with a kiss

 

                      Presenting Mr & Mrs Lang Ortman 

 

 

Touches of Strawberry Patches was everywhere from the machine sewn invitations to the ring bearers pillow lovingly stitched by Annette

 

to the machine embroidered "Welcome" sign by Becky to the table cloths made by Jane

 

 

Amanda added her personal touches with hand written thank you notes tied in the trees

 

 

 

Lang and Amanda's initials were done in rose petals and greeted us as we arrived

 

 

                          Her flowers and their cake

 

 

  

Amanda has dreamed of a garden wedding with thousands of twinkle lights in the trees surrounded  by family and friends. Last night we witnessed her fairy tale wedding. All my love and best wishes for a life of happiness. I love you both!

Thought for the week - Week #6

    

      

  

    

Spa day

Tomorrow is the big day.

September 27, 2008. 

The day Amanda will become Mrs Lang Ortman.

So today is a day to relax and enjoy the company of her bridesmaids and a little pre wedding pampering.

                                           

                                                    

There is something about a manicure, pedicure and massage that makes a girl feel like a princess.

                                                        

Yes, I'll have rose petals in my bubble bath please

Amanda made monogrammed bags for each of her attendants

                                                    

         Such a thoughtful and personal gift.

Tomorrow I'll be reporting on all the wedding festivities from the red carpet wedding. I'll interview guests, show you the flowers and her gown, the reception and decorations. Gosh, just think of me as your personal Joan Rivers live from the party. 

You're just not gonna believe this

Okay, you're gonna need to sit down for this one.

I made a quilt.

Well, not really a quilt just yet, but a top.

It started with these fabulous fun, retro inspired fabrics from American Jane and Moda. Love the bright crayon box colors! How could you not? And since everything was precut I could get sewing right away.

           

The new book by favorite quilting sisters Barbara Brandeburg and Teri Christopherson has four quilts in it that have my name on them. I selected "Picnic Basket" for my first project knowing that it would be fast.

                       

It didn't hurt that the new Bernina 830 had just arrived and of course I just had to try it out. You see sewing is my job and playing with beautiful fabric and fancy sewing machines all day is what I get paid these big bucks to do. lol

 

OM Gosh, don't even get me started on this baby big boy (I could just go on and on).

 

The whole top was completed in just a few hours and with one and a half bobbins (the bobbin on the 830 is huge and I sewed all day on just one bobbin). Seriously I got a half a spool of thread on one bobbin! Just couldn't believe it. Okay, enough about the bobbin.

   

Isn't it cute? Talk about instant gratification!

Annette and I have already selected fabrics for two other quilts from this book. Can't wait to see the sisters at Quilt Market to thank them for the great book! (And for getting me off my lazy arse and getting me quilting again)!

 

BTW Better mark your calendars and pack your bags cause we're goin on another trip. Quilt Market is October 25 - 27 and you're all coming with me. I've got some fun stuff planned so you won't want to miss it! You'll meet crazy Sharon and Nancy No Blog and lots of celebrities and dignitaries. Can't wait to show you the sites!

Can somebody give me a hand?

                A little antique store humor...

                 Ooo, Ooo, Pick me, pick me

      

            and when you get me home be sure to

      

 

  

Bobby Flay throw down

                        

I was sharing recipe ideas with friend Debbie this weekend and her recipe for Bobby Flay's Chili Verde sounded like one Bill and I would love. I made my shopping list and drove to Von's  for the ingredients. Didn't go to the Von's around the corner, oh no, had to go to the "good Von's"  five miles away.

Anyway, I got home to discover that the bag boy must have forgotten to put one of my bags into my cart cause half of my purchases were AWOL. Now I'm ticked. I grab my purse and huffed off back to Von's to recover the missing bag.

I march my ticked off self up to the little flunky bag boy and ask him what he has done with my tomatillos and pork roast and he looks at me like I'm a crazy woman (good observation on his part). Then I go over to the manager and show him my receipt and ask him if he has my pork roast and tomatillos and he says, no, no one has turned anything in. (Yeah, like they are going to drive back to Vons to return a bag of free tomatillos and a pork roast). He asked me what exactly was missing from my receipt and I say I don't exactly know cause I was just sure that my bag would be here waiting for me and I hadn't taken inventory before I left home.

I gathered up the replacement tomatillos and pork roast and headed for home to make my chili verde. Upon further inspection I realized one of the two red onions I bought must have been in the bag with the tomatillos and pork roast cause one was missing, but I decided that the recipe will just have to do with only one onion. So I'm chopping and slicing and dicing and the recipe comes to the part where it says wash and seed three jalapenos... three jalapenos? Ah caramba!

Well, you can't make chili verde without jalapenos so off I go to Von's for the missing jalapenos. This time I decide I'll just go to the Von's around the corner and since I had accidentally left the original receipt on the kitchen counter I had to rebuy those.

All I can say is that it's a good thing I really love my husband cause this  whole thing has been a royal pain in the pork butt.

Anyone wanta join me for a cerveza?

 

BTW Bill says it was delicious and asked if it was hard to make. I say, "No, not once you get all the ingredients!" lol

You can call me Ray

Saturday while taking a little harbor cruise we came upon a neighbor who was fighting what looked like a really big fish. Since he had hooked it with light tackle he had to reel it in very slowly so as not to lose it. We pulled the boat over to an adjoining dock so we could watch the drama unfold. An hour later our neighbor finally coaxed this bad boy up from the bottom of the channel.

                                        Meet Ray

 

A 48 inch bat ray who was not at all happy to be visiting with the likes of us!

 

After the tragedy with Steve Irwin a few years ago we treated him with much respect - oh, you can be sure of that! And after a couple of photos and some measurements we sent him safely back to his under water home. 

Not sure who was more tired, the ray or the fisherman.

Thought for the week - Week #5

   

                   

Just feel'n thankful and love for my family and especially for my wonderful husband whom I adore. Two kids and four grandkids later I can honestly say, "I love you more today than yesterday, but not as much as tomorrow". 

Shark Attack

                                         DA DUN, DA DUN, DA DUN....

I just happened to be wearing my Shark Week shirt while walking on the beach a few weeks ago when I came upon a fisherman who had just snagged this little guy.  Couldn't  let this photo op get away so I mustered up all my courage and asked him if he wouldn't mind letting me hold him while my friend took my picture. What I wouldn't do for my blogging public!

Eeww...  Don't underestimate the creepiness factor here people cause it WAS creepy (not slimy, just warm and creepy). I'd like to tell you that he had really BIG teeth too, but I can't because he didn't. No teeth at all, that I could see, but I wasn't about to put my fingers in his mouth to check.             

                                

                            A very serendipitous moment. Wouldn't you agree?