Another Waypoint

Good morning, my friends. Before I go on, I need to mention that today is Tortoiseshell Cat Appreciation Day.

Please feel free to honor Sadie in any way you choose. She isn't purrticular, but she does keep score.

Moving on...our dinner with the neighbors was very enjoyable last night. We have nice neighbors, and so it was fun getting together. Now everyone is checked out on the alarm system. They have their own keys and codes for turning off the alarm. Realistically, probably nothing will happen, but it's good to be prepared. And count last night's dinner as just another waypoint on our journey to Alaska. 

We once left the kitties home while we went on a short camping trip. The alarm sensors are supposed to be "pet proof," but I believe they miscalculated when it comes to cats. Cats can get up high and within the zone where motion is detected. It's only a guess, but we believe the kitties set off the alarm on that journey. One of our neighbors texted us to let us know a sheriff was at the door and our alarm was sounding. We were able to get it settled even from a distance, but it's way better to be prepared.

So it was another busy day in the kitchen yesterday. The morning was spent making and baking a Rhubarb Upside-Down Cake. Yum.

I've given you the link, but you'll need a subscription to America's Test Kitchens to open it. If you want the recipe, you can email me, and I'll be happy to send it along. It was lunch time by then, and I was still in my pajamas. The rest of the dinner could wait until later in the day, and so I made myself civilized and then spent some time in the sewing room.

Surprisingly, I was able to finish the newest Kitten in a Teacup block in a single afternoon. Having made both versions of the block twice now, I'm having fewer problems with errors. Any errors from yesterday were mainly from being in too much of a hurry. First, I made the face. This block was made to look like Smitty, and so I gave it green eyes and a pink nose.

Next, I added the paws (white socks for Smitty) and a striped tail. There was only 3-1/2 inches to work with in that piece, and so it was a little tricky adding in the stripes. 

And then I just needed to add the rest of the cup, and it was finished.

Here are the four blocks I have for this quilt so far.

So, I've spent the past two days on my feet most of the time, and I was exhausted by the time I went to bed last night. Possibly I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow. I'm feeling better this morning, but still kind of worn out. I don't feel this way when I make a dinner for our family, and so I can only think it was the added stress of neighbors coming to visit that had me so exhausted. Either way, I'm giving myself a day off today. I'll do nothing but sew and sleep. Sounds perfect, no? 

For today's effort, I want to sandwich and quilt the Blue Blazes quilt. It's only about 16 inches square, and so it's possible I could quilt and bind it in a single day. 

It'll all depend on how much energy I have. The focus today will be on resting and refueling. If you've enjoyed this post, you can thank Smitty for his careful editing. A more purrfect editor doesn't exis....

Oh. Well, apparently blog editing is terribly boring. So, if there are typos, you can thank him too. 

As for me, I'm going to do some slow-stitching. And if I feel like it, I might take a morning nap. It's going to be an NBS day, but it's also a "Me" day. I'm going to do whatever Me wants to do. It's important to be cooperative.