Year of Schnibbles October

So here is Schnibbles for October. It is the Cindy Lou Who pattern. I learned an important lesson about busy prints. When you cut busy prints into smaller squares you sometimes lose the larger color. But I love it! I loved the dark green print. I have extra of this, I cannot wait to use it for another project!

I am crossing my fingers that I can win something this month!

The "parade" won't start until November 1st, but this is where you can find the rest of them!

http://pinkpincushion.blogspot.com/

http://aquiltinglife.blogspot.com/

Neptune Jewels Quilt

This is the first project that I have started with the fabulous neptune fabric. I am in love with it, and since my schnibbles is done, I can work on it.

It started with a jelly roll. I think this is the best way to buy fabric. You can get so many prints all wrapped up beautifully in a bow. The granny machine is fixed, and humming like she should. I was very excited to start working on this.

The first step was to pair up my jelly roll strips in to visually pleasing sets. The ultimate goal being have a nice assortment of color pairs. Because there are just so many of the aqua blue strips, there were some color set duplicates, but all the prints are different. After sewing them all together, and then sewing them to their background strips, and then hours of cutting again...I have 220 smaller segments.  Last night I paired the sewn segments.  Each strip set made 11 (plus a bonus) segment. The piles of 11 segments are shown here. They are now in the sets they will be sewn together, and that should be today's task! This is out of my jelly roll quilts book, and I am very excited for the finished product!

Update: This is its current state! Only 96 more blocks to assemble.

Happy Anniversary to me!

Well, its not the real one, and according to the husband this one doesn't count, but today is the anniversary of the day the husband proposed that we live happily ever after. It was was exactly one week after he graduated OCS. I am guessing he had some life epiphanies while he was there, or perhaps receiving letters every single day was just a sign that he better marry me or run far away. Thankfully he chose the marry me. I did send him letters every single day while he was there. They were not very exciting. They mostly covered topics like the Eagles, Hurricane Katrina, work, school, and the stupid people I had to talk to at work.

We didn't have the engagement ring yet (it had been ordered, but not yet arrived), and I begged him for something I could wear in the mean time. He, happily obliged, and we went down to Macy's to pursue their fine assortment of fashion jewelry.We had a fantastic celebration dinner at the Melting Pot in Viera, Florida.

I think it is important to celebrate in life as often as possible. It is so short, and we spend so much time overwhelmed with stress, and to-do lists. Take as many opportunities to stop and enjoy all of the gifts that come into your life!

Out to Sea Wallhanging

This adorable wallhanging was a gift from Willow, and Willow's creative MIL. Though I don't have much "sub" stuff around the house, I loved it, and am excited to hang it up. I just need to find some great photos to go in the openings!

Excuses Excuses

So my husband has been in port for 27 hours (as of this posting), and has not seen fit to call me yet. It has been two and a half months since I have been able to speak with him, and I am not very happy. I am taking theories as to what, besides sheer stupidity could be the root of this problem.

• Blew up the boat, and restricted to quarters? (Of course then quarters might be in pieces)
• Assigned to babysit NUBS in a local daycare center
• Someone stole his wallet, including credit card and ID, far from the boat (yes there are already charges) and he is sitting with a homeless sign somewhere on the island.....

Any other theories?

Fall TV Review

It has been a terribly long time since I started watching new shows on tv. I generally prefer to watch the old ones over and over. But there are a few shows that I have taken a fondness for, along with some ones that I have been watching for a while.....

The Good Wife - This show has Julianna Margulies playing Nurse Hathaway, and Chris Noth playing Mr. Big. Nurse Hathaway is a woman who has been dissapointed by her man, is left now with two kids and an uncertain future. Mr Big is a man who cannot seem to focus on his priorities, and pay attention to the woman he loves. Instead, he is focused on anything else. He wants to be in love, he wants to be a good partner, but it seems somehow he is always falling short. He has made many mistakes. He has hurt the woman who loves him, but can she forgive him? It will take another man to show him what his true priorites are. (Amazingly this is what made George Clooney aka Dr Ross finally admit he was in love with Carol Hathaway.

Yes, amazingly these two actors are both playing roles that they have played before. But now they are playing in the same CBS hour. Though my sarcasm may confuse you. I like the show. I love looking at Mr. Big, but like SatC, I just cannot figure out why he is so gosh darn stupid. Julianna Margulies plays his wife, whom he cheated on and embarrased. She is now trying to reclaim her life, and regain some dignity and purpose. She plays a junior attorney, and she is always the one to save the day. They are setting up another lawyer as a possible love triangle. Will she succumb?

Hank - I like Kelsey Grammer. I haven't decided yet if I like him in this role. He seems a little too "pretty." It seems his character needs a little more depth. Perhaps I just need to give him a few more episodes. I don't like the wife, and the kids are kind of annoying.

Heroes - I started watching this one with the husband last year. We watched season 1 and season 2 in about two weeks, and then caught up to watch most of season 3 on time. I didn't really like the turn that season 3 took, but I am back this year, and I haven't quite figured out what is going on with all the circus people. I am very confused with Sylar and Nathan. I want them to bring back Elle. I know she is dead, but now they found a healer. Do you think they will dig her up and try to get Jeremy to work his voodoo?

Project Runway - Not much to say here. Everyone loves project runway. They are packing in the celebrities this year though. Somehow I don't remember this many in previous seasons, and I don't seem quite as in tune with the characters.


Ones I am ashamed to admit.....

Duggars....they better stop trying to count soon - How can you not watch a family that has more birthdays to celebrate in a year than your child's kindergarten class? The question I truly want answered is how they celebrate birthdays? With 20 of them, they are celebrating birthdays at every other week. And if Josh and Anna keep procreating......I am very much in awe of this family, and their ability to manage their family and finances without going insane. They are self-sufficient, and don't pander to their audiences.

The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders 2009 -  I didn't have to admit to this. But it is so funny watch these girls. Last season, or the year before a girl showed up to practice late and without makeup on. I am still dumbfounded why she decided to go at all. She should have known that would be her last day. Obviously the purpose of this show is to document the tryout and training camp process. It was very amusing some of the girls who showed up for auditions. Kelly Jo said it, and I agree....these girls showed up, and some of them couldn't fit in the uniform if they were half their size. Why do they go? They have narrowed it down to 40 or so for training camp. Now starts a soundtrack of the endless playing of about five dance songs. Its a good thing this show is only on once a week. And for goodness sake, is it really that hard to memorize a couple Dallas Cowboys football stats?

Are there any good shows that I am missing? Tell me what your new favorite is!

Its an Anniversary....

...for my husband and his mistress, the United States Navy! Congrats LT! So, this is more or less a formality. Every Ensign makes it to JG, two years after commissioning. Every JG makes it to LT, four years after commisioning (after two years as a JG).  I think that at some point, making LT required some sort of selection process.  I am not sure when exactly that ended. The next promotion to LCDR is not an automatic promotion. I don't think that he is going to be in the navy long enough to concerned about this promotion, but no one knows what the future holds!

Yes, I know that this is not a picture of the husband, but they are the only sexy Navy Lieutenants that I can oogle over at the moment. The husband has been adequately supplied with a new poopie suit with appropriate collar devices. He will have to update the others on his own. But the new coveralls were previously sent to the boat with another sailor who met up with the boat.

Navy Ball, sans the Navy Boy

This is the hair. I loved what Sonia did. I t is getting longer, and I didn't want to cut too much off. Also we are experimenting with the bangs. I had to take the dog for a walk after the hair, and before the "prom," hence the track suit.

Willow was my lovely date. We had a fantastic time, and its definately sad that the boys couldn't be there with us, but you've got to "make lemonade." Thanks Willow for suggesting that we go!

My accessories for the evening included my fabulous hat/headband, along with my little fur cape, and fantastic gigantic ring (not shown). Robin in the blue dress was my stylist yesterday. Without her, I would have come in the dress that won the "eenie meenie, miney, moe" debate, and I definately would not have had the hat.

Schnibbles Nine Patches

I think the greatest part of the schnibbles project is that I am forced to learn new techniques, and expand my knowledge. Last month the project included "flying geese." I have no doubt that I would have put off learning this technique for many moons, if I was not forced by my desire to complete the project. This month's schnibbles lesson is planning and fabric layout. Last month, I did have to plan in order to get the right blocks in the right places, but the plan was mostly based on colors, and the block layout was the same in each of the nine segments.

This month, every single two inch block needs to go in a specific place in order for the greater design to be seen when finally complete. It takes alot of patience, and again most of the projects I have selected up to this point were projects that did not require such careful planning. Next for this schnib are the snow ball blocks that go amongst the nine patches pictured here. Another new type of piecing. Yay! I am about half done with this top. Last month I didn't even have all my pieces by this date! (No thanks to the quilte shoppe....) It shouldn't take much longer at all to finish it up in the next couple days. I will be done well in advance of my deadline.

A special thanks to Lanette, over at Crafting in Tataville, for letting me ask her questions about this month's projcet. I loved her border planning in the last project, and I hope she doesn't mind if I steal her idea...

Artisan Bread in 5?

So this is my bread in 5 minutes per day. Actually, this bread took about 5 hours. In theory, the bread I make tomorrow should only take five minutes. The makings for three additional loaves are in the fridge. The five minutes counts the active time that is required on "baking day."  Prep day is the day that you mix the ingredients, and do the initial rise. No kneading is required. The bread is pretty good for being homemade. In hind sight, I should have used white flour. I only had whole wheat flour. After further research into the book, while it does not discourage the use of wheat flour in the recipe, it does recommend a less than 100% wheat flour mix.

I was unsure if the bread would turn out, so I figured that if I am bringing yummy snacks to K's for Sex and the City....I should bring something that I KNOW tastes good. Spinach dip it is! Spinach dip is a wonderful wonderful thing. It is not good for my attempts for a svelt little figure, but I am still going to eat it.

Sleep Talking

The husband's email yesterday was very cute. He told me that the ENG reminded him of me (scary)? So, as I continued through the email, I was waiting for the punchline, just as you are now. On board, the husband is in a stateroom with the ENG (Engineer on the boat) and the CHOP (Supply Officer on the boat), and as it turns out Eng also talks in his sleep at night.  He also made it very clear, that much prefers to listen to my sleepy mumblings than those of the ENG. I think its cute.

The nights I talk in mysleep, are the nights when I am totally wiped out and exhausted. I have been having alot of those lately, but there is no one to tell me what secrets I might be revealing. I was discussing with a girlfriend, what sleep conditions might disqualify you from submarine service. Sleep walking could be a hazard on a submarine?

Green Fairy Quilts Giveaway

Super cute fall table runner  tutorial over at Green Fairy Quilts. (Click the title bar). I prefer fall things as opposed to Halloween things. They have a much longer shelf life every year!

Weekend of Fun!

So, yesterday was the real cirucs day (as opposed to the circus inspection from Wednesday). We had a fantastic time. I highly recommend it. It  is a fantastic show for children and adult alike. It is amazing to go with kids and watch their reactions! Kate was so funny, after each act she asked when the Tigers were coming out.

Today was a demonstration with Tyler Florence. Kristen and I only decided to go on Friday, we were discussing Tyler and his wonderful recipes and in the "What to do this Weekend" newsletter from MWR it mentioned that Tyler Florence owuld be at Foxwoods. We bought the cheap ($25) tickets, and selected our rafter seats, but we knew it was going to be fun!

We showed up today and were standing in the Will Call line, and and a very nice woman came up to us and asked us if we have tickets. We said yes, and I don't quiet remember how the conversation continued, but she had VIP TICKETS that she wanted to give us! We said thanks, and continued through the line to get the tickets we had purchased. I was a bit skeptical. We took the VIP tickets to the door, and they showed us to our wonderful VIP seats, close enough to smell the food. It was amazing.

Tyler Florence has a great stage presence. He was so funny, and was making fun of his audience at various points in the show. I have a whole new perspective now, when watching his show on the food network!

Tonight is Ladies' night at Carraba's with some of the other fantastic San Juan women. After the demonstration earlier, I am famished, and I cannot wait for dinner!

His favorite spot...

I love the Mack-Noodle. He is my baby. I am always amused when I will be looking for him in the house, and he is nicely tucked away in his kennel. I recently had a great friend who stepped in to feed him while I was off having circus fun, and she also searched the downstairs, while he patiently waited for dinner...in his kennel.

I don't often close him in the kennel. He goes there on his own, but is always very careful to make there is some part that will prevent the door from closing. In this case it is an ear.

Does your pet have a favorite spot to lay around the house?

Genealogical Discoveries - Ferrall/Farrell Family.....

Ancestry.com has added this wonderful feature to show you when another researcher has "bookmarked" a document that has already been bookmarked by me. This is a nifty little tool, because it means that the researcher selecting this document, is probably researching my ancestor for some reason. The most likely reason is they are also a descendant of some sort.

Last week I discovered the name of my great great great grandfather James, along with his wife Alice Boyle, my ggg grandmother. I made this discovery after discovering a family tree belonging to the descendant of his sister (also named Alice). It is definately like assembling a puzzle to figure out all the pieces, but each discovery leads to many more questions. A genealogist will never be bored, often stumped, but never bored.

Here are a few of my puzzle pieces that have led to my asssumptions...

1. The image below is a shot of the 1900 census. Mr and Mrs. Woodcock are living next to Mr. and Mrs. Farrell. I know, because the Farrell children listed are my grandfather's aunts and uncles, that these Farrell's are mine (whether they be FERRALL or FARRELL). My new ancestry buddy, knows that the WOODCOCK family are her ancestors. She also has the obit of a another brother of John and Alice, listing Mrs. William Woodcock as a survivor

2. FARRELL, Joseph - He is survived by his widow, Catherine DONNELLY FARRELL, and two daughters, Catherine and Mrs. Alice GIBBONS; three sisters, Mrs. Mary POTTS, Mrs. William WOODCOCK and Mrs. Ann GALLAGHER, and three grandchildrem.

My ancestor, John, passed before Joseph and therefore not listed as survivor. This obit was provided by my new distant cousin for Joseph. He died July 1, 1929. He must have been born after 1860, as he is not included on the census record below. I just need to hunt down the 1870 census record for this family.

Additionally, back in the day our ancestors were much more predictable when coming up with names for their children. There was a formula. Joseph named one daughter after his mother (Alice) and another daughter after his wife (Catherine, possibly named after her mother, at by default a grandmother).

3. This image below is a snapshot of the 1860 census, listing my ancestor John, a matching Mary (listed above as Mary Potts), a matching Ann (listed as Ann Gallagher), and Alice (listed above as Mrs. William Woodcock. Most likely Mary's husband and Ann's husband had passed, hence them being listed with their first names, and Alice's husband still living.

Its very exciting to make these discoveries. It is fun sharing with family members, and its fun to find out more about my heritage. Sometimes I have to make educated guesses, but if you can put the pieces together, you have alot to work with. I still have to hunt down more information about Margaret, John's wife, but I will have to save that for another day!

Circus Inspection

The Husband has a friend from home who decided many years ago to lend his expertise to Ringling Bros/Barnum & Bailey. This allows me the fun opportunity to go and have circus fun before everyone else. Its amazing to see all the different animals. There are so many horrible PETA claims about the circus, but I have to say, outside of your local zoo, I have never met a more animal loving bunch of people. These animals are loved and cared for, and have such wonderful personalities.

The elephant was playing with the tire here. It was too funny to watch her throwing it around. She was having all sorts of fun! Here is me standing under the banner. I look tiny, but the banner is huge! It needs to be big so the elephants can go under...

Cannoli Day

Tuesday was "Learn to make Cannoli day." The husband absolutely loves Cannoli's. We received Cannoli forms as a wedding gift, and for the last three years those forms have been sitting in the "gadget drawer" taking up space, but I finally got to use them.

I found the recipe through Foodgawker. The original recipe is found Here. Anytime you are looking for a recipe, Foodgawker is a wonderful place to start. Its fun to cook/bake, but it is even more fun when there are so many beautiful pictures to help.

The lovely Carrie, took on the challenge with me. We borrowed the fryer from the lovely Kristen. We figured it out, worked out the fryer kinks and they are absolutely beautiful.  I will for sure make them again for the husband at some point when the husband returns home.

Year of Schnibbles October Kit Arrival

My October kit arrived today. I am very excited that it is here now. I am excited to get started. Last month, I didn't get all the pieces until around the 21st of the month, so I didn't have much time to get started. You will notice that the charm packs are not present in this picture. I already had the charm packs, so they are just upstairs!

At the top of the list?

Because I have an "A" name. I am always at the top of the informal lists. I am always getting phone calls from "nowhere." People sit on their phones and dial, people let their children play with their phones and dial. I have a simple request to file me under "M." In school, when I was "Alicia F" I was closer to the top of the alphabet. At the very least I was always in the first half that got to go anywhere (recess, bathroom breaks, etc). Now that I am "Alicia M" I am no longer in the top half, but recess is not quite so important. Iam okay to be banished to back of the room and the bottom of the list.

I will admit I am slightly OCD for the weirdest things. One of them being my contact list in my cell phone. My contacts are arranged alphabetically of course (as are all cell phones), but mine are by LAST name. Yes, I put all my contacts in my phone, last name first. Its because I want everyone to appear uniformly. My old cell phone had separate entry spaces for first and last names. You could choose to enter one, the other, or both. And the phone would display the first five letters of the last name then the first name if both were entered. Because of the OCD factor, I decided I would enter first and last names for everyone. I loved this because the columns were all nice and organized. You have no idea how frustrating it was when I got my new phone (two years ago, yes I am due for another), and 1- There were not separate blocks for the last name, and 2- I would have to manually enter the contacts last name first, and because last names are all different lengths, there would no longer be nice, organized columns. I did eventually get over this dissapointment.

Interestingly (or not), the husband is speed dial #6 on my phone. There is a very practical explanation. A long time ago, he used to be the first "M" name in my list (yes, ordered by last name). So when I wanted to look him up (before he was important enough for a speed dial) I would hit the contact button, then hit #6, to bring me down to the "M" names. (If you are confused, letters M, N, O appear on the six button....continuing on...) Then I had a flight instructor with an M name that would alphabetically supercede the M name that I had grown to love. Huge problem! So this is when the husband was permanently entered into speed dial #6. I could still hit the button that I had used so frequently to hear his wonderful voice. Now to dial to my love only required the push of one button!

If only that was so easy at this moment in time. Alas, I can still dial and listen to his voicemail greeting. Which reminds me, its probably about time I checked his voicemail again.

Need a date for dinner....

So this looks yummy. Check it out here! My dinner date is still blowing bubbles. See here for the dining alone dilemma. Anybody (in CT) want to join me? The menu is below...

First Course (Choice of)
Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Creme Fraiche
Field Green Salad with Roasted Peppers, Goat Cheese and Green Apple Vinaigrette

Entree Course
Roasted Atlantic Salmon with Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Chicken Bolognese
Espresso-Glazed BBQ Pork Tenderloin with Mashed Potatoes

Dessert
Bittersweet Chocolate Terrine
Pear Ginger Crisp

Tax & Gratuity not included
For Reservations, call 860.434.1667

The Skeleton....

I don't think I like the thought of participating in sport called the skeleton. It sounds like forshadowing to a potential outcome. But one of our college buddies is doing just that. Go Aliyah! I am in awe of some of the amazing things that my friends have a accomplished. They have said, "I am going to redefine normal" and do something outstanding. Its hard to move forward in a non traditional lifestyle, and there are many obstacles along the way, but I have a great respect for their pursuits! Check out Aliyah's blog, support her skeleton team!

MEDEVAC off a submarine....

I am sure everyone is very curious what happens if someone needs to leave the submarine. Its not exactly an easy task, and I am sure it is is a very expensive process. I remember being told by our XO's wife prior to the last deployment that it is a very dangerous activity, and if we were smart we wouldn't want our husband to leave the boat this way. I understood what she was saying, and I had seen THE HUNT FOR RED OCTOBER, where they had sent one of the Baldwin brothers out to the "Dallas. This video is real, and kudos to both the submariners and coast guard crew for a safe execution of this very dangerous maneuver. I hope the evacuated crew member is safe and well soon!