Weekend Fun

I still think of it as "the weekend" even tho it makes no never-mind to me now! LOL!
I've been keeping occupied, if not real busy, with some of the long put off chores on my list. One entire day went to emptying the pantry, scrubbing it down and painting the floor then restocking it after careful editing. MICE had moved in, and they promptly got moved out as soon as we knew about it, but they left a few things behind. A few stinky things. 'Nuff said. Here's a Pretty to make you quit thinking of mice in the pantry:

Say -- "oooo, aaahhhhh.."

This spectacular flower is called the Passion Flower after the Passion of Christ, because the stamens look like crucifixes. My big vine is about to explode with them and I can just sit and be awed by them for long stretches. Most of my week has been spent outside, installing drip irrigation all over my yard and planting and weeding and all the rest. On of my former patients told me about planting tomatoes upside down in hanging buckets so I thought I'd try it - if nothing else it sure gets conversation going!

Oldest DGS age 16 -- "Hey gramma - how come your tomatoes are upside down?"
"To see if they'll grow all the way to the ground" (they're about 6 feet up)
"Then why not just plant them in the ground to start with?"
Boys are too logical.
My 4 year old granddaughter came home from a camping trip with a tic behind her ear, and her Mama bravely twisted it out but the head stayed put, as these things will. So off to the doctor with the offending bug in a baggie, and everything is fine. Madeline carried her bug-baggie around for the rest of the day, and late in the evening her Mama heard her talking to it - taunting it really -- "You thought you were gonna drink all my blood but my Mama tore your head off and now you're kinda dead, ARENT' CHA?" My daughter relates that she nearly had her first bathroom accident in 34 years over that one, and so did I. Oh man, that kid is hysterical!
Not too much sewing going yet -- trying valiantly to get the sashing rows of the Civil War fabric, but unhappily the bias edges of all those little triangles have done what bias edges do and grooown some. Some of those blocks are a good 1/2 inch bigger than they should be and forcing them to fit the sashing is frustrating. Oh well -- it's only for me and "it will quilt out", right?

In other sewing, I have a mountain of cotton scrubs that I won't be wearing anymore but no way can I chuck them so I picked out a few to re-work. Cut off the sleeves, gather up the shoulders and take in the sides and suddenly I have a bunch of cool summer shirts. With pockets! The best thing about scrub tops is the pockets - mine always had strange things in them - paperclips, blood tubes, syringes, pens; lots of pens - notes, vials of meds -- who knows? Another top is on the block now possibly to become an apron. I'll show you that one if it comes out OK. Right now however, there's some cookies about to come out of the oven and suddenly a bunch of guys hanging around the family room. Think there's any connection?