Peanuts to Flowers

     “Sometimes I lie awake at night, and ask, 'Where have I gone wrong?' Then a voice says to
me, 'This is going to take more than one night.'”
~Charles M Schult

Last night was one of those nights.  It wasn't so much of 'where have I gone wrong' - it was more of 'what should I do'.  And, believe it or not, the answer finally came to me.  It was also one of those nights where thoughts of an upcoming family meeting kept creeping in, just enough to disturb a restful sleep.  Not good thoughts, not bad thoughts either.  Just busy thoughts.  I think today is going to be a looooooong day.

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PHOTO OF THE DAY

My jar of peanuts - roasted & unsalted

This is where I keep my peanuts.  Every morning I pull out a couple of handfuls to feed to the scrub jays that visit our yard.  The peanut, or groundnut (Arachis hypogaea), is a species in the legume or "bean" family. The cultivated peanut was probably first domesticated in the valleys of Peru.  Peanuts are known by many other local names such as earthnuts, ground nuts, goober peas, monkey nuts, pygmy nuts and pig nuts.  Archaeologists have dated the oldest specimens to about 7,600 years old.  China leads in production of peanuts having a share of about 41.5% of overall world production, followed by India (18.2%) and the United States of America (6.8%).  Peanuts have a variety of industrial end uses. Paint, varnish, lubricating oil, leather dressings, furniture polish, insecticides, and nitroglycerin are made from peanut oil. 

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DECISION MADE

Last night while laying in bed (aka not sleeping) I finally made a decision about the quilting for my DD#2 quilt.  I will quilt it.  And, surprise, surprise, I actually worked on it for about an hour yesterday morning.  It will be a slow process.  I had forgotten what it was like to try and move around a twin size quilt for quilting on my mid-arm machine (Janome MC11000).  I am just doing some straight stitching with most of it being 1/4" away from the seams but I think that is what this quilt calls for.  And since I don't free motion quilt, I don't have many other available options.  I think in the future, when I make another large quilt, I will definitely have a long arm quilter do the work for me.

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BUTTER CHURN QUILT PROGRESS

Yesterday morning I did make the border for my Butter Churn quilt.

Another quilt top completed!  This one measures approximately 24 1/2" square.  I think it will work well on my coffee table as a table topper.  I'm not going to put it into a sandwich until I have finished the BC quilt.

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ONE FLOWER WEDNESDAY

I accomplished both items listed in my goal for yesterday.  The second was to make the hexie flower for One Flower Wednesday......

The fussy cut center of this hexie made me think of my grandsons and their bath toys.  The outer petals had to be blue to symbolize the water.

This is a hexie flower I received from my November swap partner in The Inchy Hexagon Flower Swap.  Kristin had life get in the way and apologized for sending off this wonderful flower late.  She selected red, white, and blue as I requested.  I think it is a beautiful flower and am happy to have received it.  Thank you, Kristin!

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TODAY'S GOAL
 
Today I plan on making the latest Layer Cake SAL block.  This is block six in the series being brought to you by Moose on the Porch Quilts.  The designer this time is Toby Lischko.  I'm afraid it isn't one of my favorite blocks but hopefully I will like it better after it is made.

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GIVEAWAYS

Quilt Dad is having a Pat Bravo & Art Gallery Fabrics giveaway.  You could win a Nouvelle quilt pattern and a Chic throw pattern, and a fat quarter bundle of Art Gallery fabrics to get started or a Nouvelle quilt pattern and a Chic throw pattern, plus one of Pat's signature scrap bags full of Art Gallery fabrics.  John is leaving this giveaway open until Tuesday, January 18th.

Today is the last day to enter for the Quilter's Cookbook Giveaway!  You must enter HERE before 8:00 PM PST Tonight.  Nobody can have too many cookbooks.  And these cookbooks are made up of recipes from quilters just like you and me.  In fact, I have a recipe in the 2010 book.  (Do not enter a comment here for the cookbooks as it will not be included.  You must click on the link and follow the directions on that posting)

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FINAL THOUGHT

Last night we had dinner at my Mother's.  This is a good thing and a bad thing.  Good because my Uncle was visiting from Washington on his way through to Arizona.  Bad because my mother and sister both drive me a little batty (but that's another story you really don't want to know).  Another good thing about it was I didn't have to cook dinner - woohoo!  My Uncle is my mother's youngest living brother and is actually closer in age to me than he is to my mother.  There is 18 years difference between them and only 9 years difference between my Uncle and me.  He is a retired Lutheran minister - one of the typical wild child gone good stories.  He is a hoot and I love him dearly.  We had a wonderful visit.  Now, if I could have only sent my Mother and sister out for the night - lol!

The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together.
~Erma Bombeck

It's Wednesday - will your be wacky, weird or wonderful?