Thursday, February 27, 2020

Really Random Thursday, 2/27/20

The weather has been so nice here. Last week it was way too nice to stay indoors. So Gabe, Ella and I cleaned up the outdoor furniture, had our snacks on the porch of Periwinkle Cottage, and did a little spring cleaning.

Ella tested all the bubble makers.
Gabe organized all the balls that were stored in the shed.
They each found a photo op that matched what they were wearing.

Then they grabbed some rocks and did some painting.

Gabe painted a rock for each month of the year. Although for some reason I can't find the heart for February.
He also painted one for me that says "you rock." Ha!

After all the years as a medical transcriber for an orthopedic surgeon, this made me chuckle.
Levi had his last basketball game on Friday.
I found a typo on this fabric.
Our good friends were on the Ellen Show last Friday. Terron is a sixth grade teacher, and has been confronting his fears as a way of helping his students confront theirs. If you watch Ellen with any regularity, you know that she loves to scare guests by having someone jump out of the box next to them. She found out Terron is afraid of clowns. I've read that Terron's reaction is one of her all-time favorites.
Terron and Kristina are an amazing couple and it was such fun watching them on the Ellen Show!

Truth...
That's it for this week.

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Really Random Thursday, 2/20/20

My favorite rose in the entire world: double delight

A couple of you were interested in Bill's rose formula which I mentioned last week. But some commenters were "no-reply commenters" and therefore I couldn't respond via email. So here it is (hope you are here again this week).

1 to 2 cups gypsite, depending on soil density
1 cup ironite
1/4 to 1/2 cup epsom salts, depending on size of the bush
2 cups (at least) of alfalfa pellets
1 cup all-purpose fertilizer

We have become friends with an ICU doctor who actually lives in New Orleans but frequently travels to our area to work at a hospital in the nearby town of Hanford. He is usually here for about 10 days. We started getting a text from him periodically that was nothing more than that cute dog emoji. I finally asked what it meant, and he said it was shorthand for letting people know when he is in town. Then he sent me the whole list. I thought it was so cool so I asked if I could share it. In case you are wondering about the ice cream cone assigned to Hanford, it is home to Superior Dairy where you get absolutely ginormous bowls and cones of ice cream, so it was the perfect choice.
 


I just got the fleur de lis emoji yesterday afternoon, so I'm pretty sure he is back in New Orleans. Hope we get to see him next time he's in town.

Mark and I celebrated Valentine's Day as we do every year at Big Mama's. 
There is no indoor seating, and amazingly, even though it is the middle of February, it was quite pleasant eating outdoors last week. Mark always brings along our little candle so we can dine by candlelight.
 Total bill for two big cheeseburgers, fries and shared diet coke: $13.79.
 I love this tradition!
I bought some more bargello kits for the grandkids. Charlotte already finished hers. Isn't it the cutest?
The other day a survey showed up in my FB feed, sponsored by Adobe, claiming to tell you what kind of "creative" you are. This intrigued me, so I answered the simple questions. I'm printing the results here for future reference, as I print out my blog posts in book form at the end of the year, but don't feel like you need to read through the whole thing--I'll share highlights. It was remarkably accurate. Mark took it as well. He turned out to be an Adventurer--which described him with a great deal of accuracy as well.



Basically, I am a "maker." 
Creative Strength: Focus and dedication, ability to achieve mastery
Untapped Potential: Taking creative risks, finding joy and play in the process
Ideal Collaborator: The Visionary

"...The MAKER is almost always busy solving problems, making headway on personally meaningful goals, and completing projects...A quiet type, you enjoy collaboration but generally prefer to work alone so you can focus on your own creative process...your biggest challenge? to connect more deeply with your intuition and emotions in order to bring forth ever more authentic and original work." 

I was kind of surprised at how accurate it was. I DO prefer to work alone, and I'm often afraid to think "outside the box." Which is why improv quilting is so difficult for me! 

If you are interested in the test, you can find it at mycreativetype.com.  If you take it for yourself, I'd love to know your results.

Levi was playing with my phone the other night. I didn't think too much about it--he frequently plays games on it. The next morning I heard the little "ping," signaling a message from Messenger. It said "thank you." I opened it up and this is what I saw.
Little stinker--he had written the message while he had my phone, and then thanked ME for writing it. 

I found these napkins while organizing the pantry.
Aaron is in Jamaica, doing a medical mission trip as an optometrist. He sent me this picture the other night--he took his knitting along. :) I love that he is carrying on the handwork tradition started by my grandparents, passed down to my father, to me, and of course the grandkids. It makes me wonder if my great grandparents were also creatives.
I'll close with this.


Thursday, February 13, 2020

Really Random Thursday, 2/13/20

If you have been following Really Random for any length of time, you will quickly realize that I love spending time with my grandkids. The other day, I had Ruby and Amelia after school as well. We went to the local cupcake shop. While they were excited at the prospect of choosing their cupcakes, when it came right down to it, three of the four opted for ice cream. Ruby was the only one who chose a cupcake--Red Velvet--very good choice. And why not try for the unicorn look with your cones?
On Saturday night, I attended another craft night fundraiser, this time for Central Valley Justice Coalition. I made the same project as the first time, but chose a different design. Christa gave a little presentation on CVJC and the work they are doing. She is an amazing education coordinator and we are very proud of the work she does.
I sat at a table of five, and we had such a good time. Jane and her friend, Pamela, working on their project.
Rhonda and Shawna. Rhonda was a little stressed by this project, leading to her facial expression. We told her the goal was fun, not perfection. Not sure whether she believed us or not. :)

The kids were out of school on Monday so we started the morning by going to Fantasy Donuts. There are way too many choices. And if there is one thing that is hard for me to resist, it's a good donut.



Charlotte chose some kind of maple donut. I think it might have had cream filling.
Gabe chose a jelly-filled heart-shaped glazed.
Ella loves her chocolate and sprinkles.
Levi chose the same as Charlotte, and I had a classic maple bar.
That gave Levi enough energy to help Gramps with the roses. Our good friend is a master gardener and swears by a certain rose formula each year. It includes alfalfa pellets, epsom salts, fertilizer, and a couple of other things. Let me know if you are interested and I'll send you the recipe. We have had good luck with it; it feeds the roses and keeps the aphids away.
Meanwhile, Charlotte did some homework, and Gabe and Ella watched a movie. The progression of movie watching:

Start with a quilt and a pillow.
Add some stuffed animals.
Add another quilt. Tell Grandma to stop.taking.pictures. Alas, I can't help it--they are so cute. :)
Mark bought this bouquet of stock the other day. They are the most fragrant flowers we have ever had--you can smell them throughout the house. And they are SO pretty.
True enough.
But I won't be filling my glass with this--$29.99 a bottle!
Even though there is this...

Happy weekend!