the sky is pink

I love skirts. But that's not new news. (I think I need to count the skirts in my closet again. It's been awhile. Thanks for the reminder, Jessi .) I have been thinking a lot about knit skirts lately. I see them often on other people, but with my long legs, it's always difficult finding anything to fit the lower half of my body that is long enough. That goes for pants and skirts. No one really wants to see any one's butt hanging out of a skirt. I just wish more people realized that. I ran into the fabric store to buy a zipper for a dress I want to sew and came out with some knit fabric. It was seriously on sale. Like $3.49-3.99 a yard. I thought it was the perfect price to experiment. I used my serger, ballpoint needles and not really any pattern. It's a basic A-line skirt with a waistband. (No, I'm not pregnant. I am trying to awkwardly take the photo myself.) And, had my serger not been acting up again, it would have taken only minutes for each one. But if

Yes. I still sew. I hadn't sewn in awhile because my serger and I had a falling out. I said some things I shouldn't have and she wasn't very happy with me. I decided it was best that we both part our ways and take a breather from each other. And it was the right thing to do because now we're friends again. Last Saturday we were invited to my aunt and uncle's 50th wedding anniversary party. It was a casual afternoon luncheon at a local Irish Pub/Restaurant. (My cousin's wife is the manager there.) Just the night before I decided I should wear a new skirt. I guess it's hard to see, but it's made from a vintage sheet . The skirt is a basic A-line with a tie waistband and zipper. I think I did a rolled-hem along the bottom. (I can't remember.) I wore it Saturday to the luncheon, Sunday to church, and Monday for a town meeting.

So a friend stopped by yesterday while I was making a batch of strawberry-rhubarb jam . I was trying to convince her how fun and easy it is to can your own fruits, veggies and jam. I know I was a little distracted while I was working, because I was trying to carry on an adult conversation at the same time. So, when I noticed some random rhubarb floating around the water bath just seconds after dunking the jars, I wasn't worried. I assumed I was too distracted to remember to put a ring on one of the jars. When I pulled the jars out of the water, they all looked fine ... from the top. I dunked the jars again and I saw more rhubarb floating about. I pulled the jars back out and discovered that one of the jars had broken. It was a clean break. Well, clean as is no miscellaneous shards of glass to contend with. Not clean as in a whole pint of strawberry-rhubarb jam floating around a pot of boiling water ... I'm not sure if I convinced her how fun and easy canning is. I did tell h

So yesterday I decided to make a strawberry-rhubarb pie. (I actually went to the produce market and bought more rhubarb . I tell you, my obsession runs deep .) Anyway, all was well and fine while I was baking the pie. With only ten minutes left of baking, I removed the foil from the edges of the crust. I came back in a few minutes later and removed the pie from the oven. It had bubbled over in the oven. I was annoyed about the mess, because in May the same thing had happened right after I had cleaned the oven and I really loathe dirty ovens. (And microwaves! Don't get me started on that one.) I had a "rustic raspberry pie/tart" in the oven on a small baking sheet, but it needed a little more time, so I turned on the timer and walked away. When I came back in, the inside of my oven was on fire. At first the flame was small, like a candle. Then it grew to about 10-12." Smoke was billowing out of the oven. I was freaked out a bit and freaked the little ones out a bit

Last week was a regular old jam-week at our house. We've been finding great deals on fruit, either very inexpensive or free. We started with apricot jam. Apricots at the produce market were 99 cents a pound. I bought a bag and made jam. It was such a hit at the house, I bought another bag and made a second batch. (When I made the second batch, I invited two of my nieces over to help/watch the process. One niece is working on her Knowledge Value Project for church. Last fall I taught her how to draft an A-line skirt pattern and sew it. And last winter I taught her how to make soap w hen I was making it for Christmas .) And then we made raspberry jam with all the raspberries we picked for free . The kids loved doing a toast/bread sampler testing both varieties at the same time. Then, while at the store, I noticed bing cherries were $1.99/pound, which is really cheap for bing cherries. So I picked up two big bags. Joe loves cherries and we can only afford to buy them when they a

I thought I'd catch a break with summer after a long school year, but that is not the case. Last week I attended the MML Convention at the beach. This is the only proof I have that I actually touched the sand this year. Last year I only touched the sand that the children dragged back in to the hotel room from the beach. This year I went to the beach. Albeit at 7 p.m. A photographer goes around and takes photos of every thing and everyone. I really don't like my picture taken, so I'm always a little freaked out when the flash goes off and I notice it is flashing in my vicinity. I always sit in the front of the class. These classes can go on for two hours and sometimes the subject matter is a little, uh ... sleep-inducing. This class was actually very informative: Ethics. I ended up taking six classes total. Two a day while we were there. I am a fellow in the Academy for Excellence in Local Governance through the University of Maryland and I only need a few more classes