Wake, Eat, Sleep

I have a "carpe diem" mug and, truthfully, at six in the morning the words do not make me want to seize the day. They make me want to slap a dead poet.
~Joanne Sherman

I thought I might start your day with a chuckle.  The above quote just tickled my funny bone.  I'm an early riser.  If I stay in bed until six then I have slept in.  That is not to say that I am a morning person.  My DH learned long ago that you do not ask me how I slept until well after I have eaten breakfast and had my cup of coffee because my answer will be "I don't know" (and I really don't care!!).  Now with that said, I can get quite a lot accomplished in the hours before breakfast - as long as I am left totally alone (well, except for my little furry companions).  I generally spend about 2 hours on the computer before heading into the kitchen to eat and get my caffeine fix.  If I get up too late the rest of the day is a total mess for me because I feel like I'm starting the day out behind.

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PHOTO OF THE DAY

Pigeon Point, CA a couple of springs ago

Here I go digging into our photo archive again.  We were up on the northern coast of California when we came across this wonderful field of bright yellow wild flowers with the view of the lighthouse at Pigeon Point in the background.  Pigeon Point Lighthouse was built in 1871 to guide ships on the Pacific coast of California.   It is the the tallest lighthouse on the West Coast. It is still an active Coast Guard aid to navigation.  Pigeon Point Lighthouse took its name from the ship, Carrier Pigeon, that wrecked there in 1853.

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Block Lotto has started a new round of blocks for December.  This month we are making pairs of trees.  This is a free form tree with the only requirements being to use black or black on black fabric in conjunction with jewel tones fabrics.

This was the first pair of tree blocks that I made.  They are 6.5" square. 

This is the second pair.  A little narrower tree. 

I have set aside another jewel tone to make one more set of trees.  While searching through my stash I discovered that I have very little black or black on black fabric.  Guess I will have to keep my eyes open for some sales.

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I am also a member of Christmas Quilting Block Swaps Australia.  This month my swap partner, Cathy, requested a log cabin block in traditional Christmas colors with a red center square.

This was a fun block to make.  And can you believe it was the first ever Log Cabin block that I have ever made?  I have always been meaning to give them a try - I even have two great books with log cabin quilt patterns.  Some of the pieces I had to cut more than once as my brain had trouble with measurements on the day I made this.  I hope Cathy likes the block.  She and I swapped blocks a couple of months ago in another swap.  Check out Cathy's blog, Cathy's Sewing Room.

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I am sharing with you one of our family's traditional holiday breakfast dishes.  This recipe has been made every Christmas and Thanksgiving morning since my girls were little.  It was handed down to me by my great-aunt Minnie, a wonderful cook and a woman who would scrub her floors by hand, standing up and bending over at the waist.  She was a truly amazing 5 foot dynamo!!!

Breakfast Monkey Bread

Ingredients

3 cans of refrigerator biscuits

1/2 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

Directions:

1.  Grease or butter a bundt pan.  Combine white sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl.  Cut biscuits into fourths and roll each piece in sugar and cinnamon mixture.  Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over the top of the rolls.

2.  Melt butter in a sauce pan.  Then add the brown sugar and bring to a rolling boil.

3.  Pour boiling mixture over the biscuits.  Bake at 375 degrees F for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown.

Personal Notes:

1.  I only open one can of biscuits at a time.  I find that if you open more than one can, the dough starts to expand and makes it hard to separate the biscuits.

2.  Don't boil the brown sugar and butter too long as it will burn.

3.  Invert the bundt pan onto a serving dish immediately upon removal from the oven.  Hold it just over the Monkey Bread for a few seconds to allow any excess caramelized sugar to fall onto the bread.

4.  Reheats well in the microwave.

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GIVEAWAYS

I don't have any new giveaways to give you today as I've really been away from the computer since yesterday morning.  I've been off visiting a very magical place (more on that on Monday!)

Today, I'm giving you another chance to enter my Big Giveaway!  Do you remember reading about my two new blogs?  Let's Bee Together and Block Swap Adventure?  Well, I have had a few people back out of both of the Bee groups for one reason or another.  So I'm trying to get the word out there in blogland about the Bee.  No, you don't have to join to have another entry in the drawing.  Just blog about the Bee.  It would help if you would include a picture of the button (or the button itself) and a link to the website.  You must go back to the Big Giveaway page and enter a comment that you have posted about my Bee and leave me link so that I can check and then you will be entered for another chance in the drawing.  And, if you include some info in the posting about the Block Swap Adventure and leave a separate comment with a link back to your blog, you will get an additional entry.  Now that makes four chances to win when you figure in the original two opportunities!

Block Swap Adventure                                                       Let's Bee Together

I know this requires a little work, but you must admit that the Thimbleberries kit is probably worth it.  Thanks for your help!

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FINAL THOUGHT

Since I started this blog about morning I will now close with a thought on sleep, or lack there of.  Do you ever have those nights where you thought you slept well but then woke up totally exhausted?  I've been having a lot of those lately.  I think my average good night of sleep happens about every fourth or fifth night.  And, then, probably because I'm so exhausted that everything finally shuts down.  I do some of my best thinking when laying it bed.  And sometimes my thoughts just run, with no intention of stopping long enough at any one point to figure out the answer I'm looking for.  What is your remedy for a good night's sleep?  I don't have one and wish I did.  Don't suggest warm milk because that is just plain gross!

I'm not asleep... but that doesn't mean I'm awake.

~Author Unknown

Here's to Friday and to a wonderful weekend ahead!!!