Still Here (Sutherlin, OR)

December was spent in lockdown so we did not get out much except to grocery shop and to get take-out once in a while.  (I'm happy to say that two weeks ago they lowered the risk level and we can now dine-in.)  

  

We enjoyed an untraditional dinner of vegetarian tacos for our Christmas dinner.  We liked it so much that we decided to start doing this more in the future.  I rarely cook dinner anymore, so the tacos did feel special. 😊 Otherwise, Christmas came and went quietly for just the two of us. 

Even the cats were rather blasé about all the decorations on the dashboard.  Okay, one reindeer did mysteriously end up on the floor a couple of times, but no one would confess.  Maybe my old Elf found out about Elf-on-the-shelf and wanted to do more than sit in a Santa mug.

Don't look at me, human.  It wasn't me.

We walk every morning if it isn't raining hard.  When it isn't raining, we usually have fog.  I enjoy watching the low lying clouds move across the surrounding hills.  Everything is looking so green including our roads!

Dusty is a little bummed out due to all the rainy days.  It rained all day when I took this photo.  Sometimes we have to open the door several times within an hour just to show him that it hasn't stopped.

Max, in the meantime, has a new routine.  He decided that I needed a little conversation every morning while I dry my hair and brush my teeth.  I'm not sure what he is telling me, but it does sound important.

Are you listening to me?

We bought Max a 4-watt heated bed last month.  His arthritis is getting worse and he is always looking for a warm place to sleep.  He is not a very trusting cat and refused to get in it for several days.  I rubbed my hands, clothes, and cat toys on the bed to get rid of the new smell.  I put his favorite mouse in the middle of it and he kept taking it out.  Just when we thought we were not going to convince him...

...he crawled in and has been sleeping in it ever since.

We ordered this bed from Chewy.com.  The bed is a K&H Pets products.

On The Cutting Board

I'm trying to finish this last addition to my southwestern quilt.  For some reason, quilting on such a long piece has been hard for me to enjoy.  Note to self: split it into two parts next time...if there is a next time. 

I decided this was the year to clear out the clutter in my storage areas by finishing quite a few of my unfinished projects.  I have way too many quilt blocks sitting around waiting to assembled and quilted.

I started with the Llama block since I had not hidden it in a drawer yet.  I kept it out just to remind me that I needed to finish this one.  I plan to finish a few tops before I set up the table for sandwiching the three layers to quilt.  

While hunting for border fabric, I found our overhead cabinets were growing mold!  Yuk.  After looking around, we found several areas growing mold, so all quilting came to a stop while Dan and I cleaned out the mold and setup the dehumidifier to dry out the air.

Then I noticed the bags of scraps sitting on the bed.   I was faced with the reality that I have become a scrap hoarder, so I added scrappy quilts to my list.  I want to empty all of my scrap bags.  I had started one wonky log cabin quilt and never finished it.  I have 15 more blocks to make.  That should put a dent into my collection, right? 😬

Before I put all the bags back with a promise they would not stay there long, I pulled out the largest pieces to make 5-inch squares for a Disappearing 4-square quilt.  I did a test run on the instruction and I love the finished block!  

Well, there's one block and a couple of less scraps in my bag.  

Only 58 more scrappy squares to cut and 29 more blocks to make.
Happy Quilting!