All Heart

Yesterday's errands took longer than expected. I was on the hunt for wild rice and a few other things I couldn't get at my regular grocery store. I had to go to three different stores to find wild rice, but I was successful in my quest. It was around 1:30 before I was able to make it into the sewing room yesterday afternoon.

First, I sewed all nine blocks for Heart & Home together.

Next, I needed a red stop border. Who hates sewing borders as much as I do? So much pinning...such long seams! Frankly, I'm surprised I lived to tell about it.

If it weren't for my little cat, I'm sure that border alone would have killed me.

But I'm not finished with borders. Oh no. The final border for this quilt had to be constructed from the remaining nine-patches. Now I have them laid out with the quilt ready to be sewn on today.

Here's how they'll look without a cat.

So that's all I need to do today in the sewing room. I've been sewing for many days, and I think I'll take a break after that.

There's one small housekeeping chore to do today, but then I'm doing some cooking. We're having our Thanksgiving feast at Erik and Mae's house this year, and I'm pretty happy about that. It's the most stress-free Thanksgiving in years here at the Three Cats Ranch. My contribution will be the sweet potatoes. Our family favorite is Sweet Potato Crunch. It's a Cooking Light recipe, and so it's relatively low in calories and fat.

I can't make this without thinking of my dear departed brother. He was one of those folks who hated all vegetables, no matter the kind or color. My parents made a deal with him when he was younger (and before I was born). He could choose two vegetables he never had to eat, but he promised to eat all the rest without a fight. He chose corn and sweet potatoes. (What?) Yeah, don't ask me...I wasn't there. So fast forward to his only visit to our home in Oregon, and I made the Sweet Potato Crunch with his permission since I was sure he would like it. He did! My sister-in-law was thrilled to find a sweet potato recipe he would eat, and so when I say it's a family favorite...I mean even the sweet potato haters in the family liked it.

My other contribution is Cranberry Cherry Marmalade. This is another one I've been making for a long time. It appeared in our local paper many years ago. I love the addition of dried cherries. They give a nice texture and flavor. And I love that both of these recipes can be prepared ahead. It makes cooking on the day of the feast easier, but it also makes for easy take-along dishes.

Also, I'm baking two loaves of bread today...just to spoil my kiddos...and there's enough starter for a loaf for us.

So that's it. I'll blog tomorrow...just a short post because I'll have to show off my finish, right? But if you're not reading tomorrow, then Happy Thanksgiving, everybody! There is much to be thankful for here at the Three Cats Ranch. I hope your year has been a good one too.