Sewing and Decorating on this Rainy Monday!

Another rainy day and I am SO not complaining!!!

Rain is a gift anytime in Texas (usually!) but even more so in August!

We had our coffee and reading out in the den this morning - it was a little wet in the gazebo.

Right now we are on the last chapters of Deuteronomy for our Bible reading and in the 30 Great Stories we are now at The Devil and Daniel Webster written in 1941 by Stephen Vincent Benet.

Louis Dean got busy with the three projects I gave him to do and I went to the sewing room.

I had the quilt pinned together but I was a little overwhelmed at the whole project but then I just dug in and started sewing. I meant to get it to the point I knew I could finish in time for the bridal shower on Saturday but I surprised myself and finished the whole thing. It wasn't nearly as hard as I thought!

I machine stitched 'in the ditch' making a big tic tac toe to hold the backing to the front with the batting sandwiched between. Then I folded the backing up to form a border and sewed that around.

It's not perfect by any means but it is sturdy and lays flat and is mostly square! That's as much as I hoped for. I am not a real quilter but I do churn out these denim ones on a regular basis.

This one is now ready to tuck into a gift bag and add some tissue.

I am ready!

And guess what?

 My friend, Carla - who is a gifted real life quilter - invited me to a quilter's retreat!

I have never even dreamed of being invited to one of those!

She said it didn't make any difference - I could bring whatever I was working on.

Wow! I have seen Carla's posts and I know these ladies are a great bunch and have a lot of fun together so I was truly honored to be invited.

I can't go to this one - it's in October - but I told her I hope she will ask me again.

It would be an awesome thing to get to do!

So - my quilt was done and I moved on to do some more decorating.

I really needed to clean the kitchen but I ignored that thought.

Instead I decided to decorate the utility room. Laundry room.

I packed up a big tub full of 'debris' that lives in here during most of the year and set the stage with a swath of crisp orange cotton fabric I found in my stash. I believe Candie or Louise must have given it to me way back when. I am a keeper of nearly everything, you know.

Last year I decorated for fall.....and then added Halloween stuff.....and then Thanksgiving things.

Not this year! I'm throwing it all out there!!

I see this area all the time going back and forth to the den and doing laundry or getting things out of the pantry. 

I'm going to enjoy looking at it!

All the electric jack-o-lanterns are plugged into a power strip and I turn it off with one click!

Only one has a small candle and I will change that pretty soon.

I keep a stack of tins for storing and giving food things in.

A fall cloth covered them up nicely!

You know I am the Queen of Cover up!!

There's a soft place in my heart for all things fall.

Summer gifted me this basket and several personalized liners.

I filled it with snacky stuff so Louis Dean can always find something easily.

Speaking of snacking - he generally gets up in the middle of the night hungry.

I know to leave some things where he can find them without tearing the kitchen up.

Last night - or in the wee hours of this morning - he said he was sitting at the table right by the kitchen French doors eating a peach and was thoroughly entertained by a baby possum!

He said the little critter ran across the patio and up on the benches and back down and all around just as carefree as he could be. We have a possum friendly yard and I leave watermelon or cantaloupe rinds out for them. I leave the light on outside the kitchen door so I can look out and see them - not that it happens often. I will make sure to leave it on tonight and I am planning on getting up and having myself a snack!

It's been a good Monday here at the Chapmans!

Louis Dean repaired a chair, capped off a water line to the ice maker that doesn't work anyway and he repaired the stoop at the front door. I cleaned up after him and will need to buy some paint to freshen it up now that it's smeared with that Rock Hard stuff Louis Dean uses so much and it works so well.

 I close tonight's journal entry a bit earlier than usual.

  I dedicate this photo to Sandra aka The Mad Snapper!!!

I have a few sets of the battery powered fairy lights and strung them around the pumpkins under the curio cabinet in the foyer.

Goodnight to all our Friends and Family.....

Sleep well!