Monday

Just a short post today..Happy Columbus Day...I am hurrying around getting some laundry done and such as I'm going on a short road trip with Alan down to San Diego county to Oceanside to re key a property....and then back towards home to another house in Murrieta....I'll take the camera!
Its not PC to celebrate Columbus Day anymore, is it? kinda silly but such as our country right now....you really can't judge the past by the standards of the present...
Did you notice a theme going with the vintage postcards? most of them have a cat somewhere on them...

I made two pies yesterday and we also are continuing drying the rest of the apples..have about half a bushel left to do..we have to bag the dried apples right away or they are gone in the morning.....the guys don't seem to eat the fresh ones but sure go after the dried ones.....just a tip if you have kids that don't eat fresh fruit well....my oldest sons girlfriend loves to use the little peeler, corer we have on the counter and fix a couple for herself...she says the apple skins bother her...

A Giveaway and a Prim designer

Ahlcoopedup is having a giveaway! This darling Frosty the Snowman will be going home to the lucky winner...she will be drawing the name on Oct. 22nd so you still have time.....I just love snowmen, don't you? I've made several types of snowmen tags...here are 3..these are on my selling blog..Sweet Home Stitchery

I love patterns of all sorts..and am partial to prim, of course.....a artist you may or not be familar with is JoEllen Laurita....and the link she is disabled the photos so I can't share with you so please be sure to check out her website, BeFruitful Kreations I am a follower of hers on Facebook too.....she and her husband are snow birds and live in their RV much of the year..they have a blog about their travels at The Great Misadventures of David and JoEllen Laurita.. This is something we've been thinking about for retirement....in a few years.....

oh..almost forgot the vintage postcard for the day....

This little girl must have taken the same lessons that Harry Potter had.....looks like she's having a great time.....

We got the antenna up and can get a few more stations..the reception is great..amazing how many foreign language stations there are..especially Spanish ones...but we do get enough regular stations to make it worthwhile...two local ones, several others... and free!

When I was in the courtroom yesterday while the Judge was interviewing prospective jurors..one fellow said he was a political organizer..and asked everyone if they were voting..(.of course, that's where the county got our names..from the voter roster)...but one man spoke up and said..."you are in for a rude awakening when we do vote.."  The organizer was silent....what could he say? The inland empire is a conservative one...
I was waiting outside when another lady and I got into a conversation....she and her husband were in their early 70s....and lived in Hemet....she said last week, they received something called the American Community Survey..and that it was the most invasive thing she'd ever read...26 pages to fill out with everything from the date they bought their home, how much did they pay..how many square feet is it..how many toilets..to how much is in their bank accounts...how much money they make a month, etc....they are not filling it out....I agreed with her..what are your thoughts?

Jury Duty

a rather spooky postcard.....boo!
I spent the day at the courthouse as a prospective juror.....lots of waiting....there were probably close to 400 people there for a 3 week trial..many of us couldn't go for the full 3 weeks so were excused....hopefully they got enough people.....I've been reading the court is having a hard time finding enough jurors hence they call so many.....out of the group I was in..some 85 people..they got 12 that could do it....we watched a movie about jury service which I found interesting and I came away almost wishing I could have served but Alan needs me to work with him......they did mention that the jury salary was slated to go up closer to the federal....that may help many so its not a financial hardship.

Alan is working today putting up a HD antenna..(it looks like a B52 bomber, its so large)..we bought a smaller one but we can only get 6 stations and 4 of them are in other languages..so will try this larger one...our oldest son is helping him...hopefully we can get some local stations......I remember the one my Dad put on our roof as a kid....and him having to go up to turn the antenna to get different reception.....back in the 60s...no cable back then..

Beautiful weather today..warm and in the 70s...chilly at night in the 40s...hopefully we can get some yard work done this weekend....

The Rusty Thimble is having a giveaway of 6 primitive Candy Canes....Christmas will be here before we know it!

Vintage Pumpkin Postcard and mice!

I got up really early this morning...woke up with a start..but its kinda fun watching the sun come up...its been rainy and cool for the last three days....unusual but not unwelcomed....had my bible study and prayer time and having my coffee, checking on blogs, email and such.....
I am glad you like the faux apple pie...Oodlekoodle primitives has the most wonderful patterns and they are easy to make for the most part...the pie is a little intensive though as you make about 25 apple slices that go inside...but its well worth the effort..and smells so good..
I've also made primitive mice from Stag Line Primitives...if you haven't seen these patterns, they are wonderful

cute, huh? they are alot of fun to stage in decorating..I made an entire "Visiting Santa" scene with a larger one as Santa, and little ones in a line waiting to sit on his lap...sorry, no photo...but  if you click on the above link...Wendy Brown has many photos for inspiration....and please take a look at her Ebay shop..especially the vintage kitchen items....very cool.....the mice are made from warm and natural batting....and the pattern comes into two sizes..the smaller ones look very real...she also has patterns with costumes....

I almost forgot..I am always entering contests..never usually win but one always hopes..anyway,  I am a fan of Don Francisco Coffee on Facebook and was recently informed I was one of 10 people to win a gift basket of coffee and other goodies..I'm not sure if this is just a Californian company or nation wide but their coffee is great....I can't find it at every grocery store but our local Stater Brothers carries it...

We got our absentee voters ballots yesterday and will be filling them out soon.....please vote this election..its so important....we just have to get better people into office....my scripture reading this morning was in Isaiah 5:20-21

"Woe to those who call evil good
       and good evil,
       who put darkness for light
       and light for darkness,
       who put bitter for sweet
       and sweet for bitter.
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes
       and clever in their own sight."
pretty much describes our government right now, doesn't it?

Vintage Cat and Pumpkin, Apple Pie

Guess I'm always drawn to postcards with cats on them..have quite a few and only wish I could collect more....this one is especially nice......

Yesterday, I made an impossible apple pie.....impossible pies are so easy and so good...my paternal grandmother used two main ingredients and raised 5 children during the Depression..she used Bisquick and Velveeta cheese...I'm not a big velveeta fan but do like Bisquick...hence I've got alot of impossible pie recipes..and they are sure good when you don't have the time or inclination to roll out pie dough.....

IMPOSSIBLE APPLE PIE
3 cups sliced peeled all-purpose apples (3 large)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup Bisquick
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk 
1 tablespoon margarine, butter or spread,* softened
2 eggs
Streusel (see recipe below)
Heat oven to 325°. Grease 9-inch pie plate. Stir together apples, cinnamon and nutmeg; turn into pie plate. Stir remaining ingredients except Streusel until blended. Pour into pie plate. Sprinkle with Streusel.  Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes. Cover and refrigerate any remaining pie.
Streusel
1/2 cup Bisquick
1/4 cup chopped nuts
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons firm margarine, butter or spread
Stir together all ingredients until crumbly

half the pie is gone already and the rest will be gone today...and isn't that what its all about?  


I've also made faux apple pies......got the pattern from Oodlekadoodle Primitives

Cats

You've probably seen our black cat, Smoky...he is quite the character...

he is the master of secretive hiding..and will hide for hours, while his owners frantically look for him....we find him in the oddest of places..still haven't found all his hiding places....he also has figured out how to open doors if there is the slightest crack to get his paw around...and knows if he had thumbs, he could use the knob as he's always trying the door knob....if he wants something, he lets you know by scratching a nearby door or cabinet just enough to make noise...he will do this until he gets your attention and then lead you to where the need is..either more food or water or a cleaner litter box...I do clean the box every day.(with 4 cats, you really have to.)....but its never clean enough for Smoky....
He is not a good mouse hunter....the female cats, Bandit and Tuppence do most of that hunting. Heaven  help any mice that happen to wander into our house....his preference is bugs...any bug will do...He and our other male cat, Tommy will sit for hours at the front screen door, waiting to pounce on anything that dares creep under the threshold.


One day a cat dies of natural causes and goes to Heaven. There he meets the Lord himself. The Lord says to the cat, "You lived a good life and if there is any way I can make your stay in Heaven more comfortable, please let Me know."

The cat thinks for a moment and says, "Lord, all my life I have lived with a poor family and had to sleep on a hard wooden floor." The Lord stops the cat and says, "Say no more," and a wonderful fluffy pillow appears.

A few days later six mice are killed in a tragic farming accident and go to Heaven. Again the Lord is there to greet them with the same offer. The mice answer, "All of our lives we have been chased. We have had to run from cats, dogs, and even women with brooms. Running, running, running; we're tired of running. Do you think we could have roller skates so we don't have to run anymore?" The Lord says, "Say no more," and fits each mouse with beautiful new roller skates.

About a week later the Lord stops by to see the cat and finds him in a deep sleep on the pillow. The Lord gently wakes the cat and asks him, "How are things since you arrived?"

The cat stretches and yawns and replies, "It is wonderful here. Better than I could have ever expected. And those Meals on Wheels you've been sending by are theeeeeeee best!!!"

Purrsonally Speaking

In this world of hustle-bustle
You may have your this and that;
But there's nothing quite so pleasing
As the purring of a cat.
~ Marcy Stewart Froemke ~

We spent quite a time today and got an entire bushel of apples made into applesauce..a little bit of work but it sure makes the house smell wonderful and tastes so good..didn't add anything to it either, neither sweetener nor cinnamon ..we haven't canned it yet..the apples we got were seconds..perfect for sauce but a little tedious to peel for pies and such...they were about the size of a tennis ball....

Right now, Alan and the boys are working on the locksmith van, getting it ready to go into action soon...it had broken down during the fire time and just been sitting but they are slowly getting it back into running shape. Alan got new tires on it last week and now are working on the brakes....nice to have young men to help him. He really couldn't do it on his own as he's still watching over his finger healing.The boys are such a blessing!

Our youngest also mowed the front yard and edged it so it looks nice again......after the rain we had last week, it needed to be mowed..he also moved our next door neighbors front yard as they are on vacation...good kid, huh?
Last night we had fish and chips....have you eaten the new sweet potato french fries that are popular now? We got them at Costco..they are simply wonderful....I did a google search and you can make these at home too...it was so much easier just getting them already to go......I put a link in so you can see Paula Deen's recipe...

Alan likes these better than regular fries.....you do have to eat them right away..just like potato fries, they are rather bleak when cold.....

Happy Oct. 2nd

It rained again yesterday afternoon and the wind blew so hard! I had clothes on the line and ran out to rescue them or they'd be in another neighbors yard or out in the road somewhere.....Trees whipping side to side..leaves flying...feels like fall for sure....our front porch is covered with leaves...its much cooler also....I've wanted to get some mums for the front and pumpkins but so far haven't found any that I liked well enough...slim pickens so far..probably just our area.....its early days.....and with the weather going from hot to cool, fresh pumpkins wouldn't last outside....

thought I'd post this cute video of the Ross sisters from the late 1940s..those girls were sure amazing! Have a great weekend!

Giveaway Winner

I searched all over for an appropriate way to announce the winner of the giveaway...this newspaper generator is great! Congratulations, Denise! Her blog and creations are wonderful!
Thanks to everyone who signed up..I will have another giveaway at the first of November with some redwork stitchery..perhaps a set of redwork towels.....?
I've been working on my selling blog, have renamed it "Sweet Home Stitchery" and in a few weeks will have it open...the next giveaway will be celebrating the opening....

Here is the official start of the vintage Halloween postcards..hope you enjoy them as much as I do...they are really little works of art..