It's All About Louie

Hmmm. Why did Allen have to close the door to our bedroom? Does it have anything to do with sweet Louie?
Oh, the door is closed to keep the little angel out of the bathroom. Chew in the mouth isn't enough entertainment, he has to drape the paper too!
Louie thinks everything is about Louie. He can't see how his nap on my lap might interfere with sewing. I guess he's right. If I can figure out how to sew with him draped across my legs, how is he interfering at all?
What's that, Louie? Oh, you want Jean to hold your chew for you? Of course, how could I forget that we exist to take care of your puppy needs.
In spite of all of the attention Louie garners, I finished this quilt. It's called "Stacked Blocks" because of the square on square appliqués. I have the fabric ready to go for the next quilt. Yes, Louie, you'll have to let me work some.

Louie, it's your day!

Check out the Pug-a-Day site. Louie's big day is today!
http://www.pugaday.com/?entry=widget

Pressing Matters

This week in class, my students read a Robert Frost poem that made me think of my mother.

"A Time to Talk"

WHEN a friend calls to me from the road
And slows his horse to a meaning walk,
I don’t stand still and look around
On all the hills I haven’t hoed,
And shout from where I am, What is it?
No, not as there is a time to talk.
I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground,
Blade-end up and five feet tall,
And plod: I go up to the stone wall
For a friendly visit.

I guess it's not that obvious why this would make me think of Mom. Mom had to iron all of our clothes, not just Dad's dress shirts that he wore six days a week, but everything down to his handkerchiefs. She'd iron my brother's and my play clothes and dress clothes, and then her own. She'd start with a laundry basket full of the whole week's clothes and sprinkle everything with water, and then she'd lay a towel over the top to keep them damp. The next morning, she'd start. I can picture her most clearly on a steamy, St. Louis summer day with the window open and the black oscillating fan set up to sweep past her every few seconds. She'd listen to KMOX talk radio or hum along when familiar songs were played. I can picture the finished piles neatly stacked and folded and the hanging clothes draped around the room. However, when the neighbor-lady Rose would venture out to her garden, Mom would unplug the iron and head out the back door to stand at the fence and talk for a while. I was not welcome in these conversations as they were "adult only" chats, so I was shooed away to play. After a while, she would head back in and get back to it. No one helped. Ever. Not my dad, surely, and not me, not even when I was in high school.

Ironing Out the Wrinkles:
My have times changed. I iron what I need when I need it. I rarely iron even when I need to pack for a trip because there is always an iron at the other end. I only iron my own things - Allen irons for himself, and Shannon and Meghan learned to fend for themselves early on. I know they iron only when necessary, and my sons-in-law apparently iron their own shirts too. (Way to go, Justin and Nathan.) Obviously, now days we have air-conditioning, and we have a wonderful, new Rowenta steam iron that makes the whole process easier. Plus, most of our clothes is either permanent press or it gets tumbled in the drier. Actually, I even enjoy ironing (or rather pressing) when it comes to my quilt work, and to make life even easier, I have not one but two irons -- one in the laundry room and one in my sewing room. I love the portable board Allen built for me. Best of all, I have a great little pug helper in Louie!

What a Great Week!

Saturday was a good day for Louie. He had a half-dozen walks down the street to meet and greet the other dogs on the block and sniff to his heart's content. He really behaved well when we took him to get his nails clipped. The groomers praised him for being such a good pug -- they said that most pugs are very unhappy and hard to handle, but not Louie.
Let's not talk about the weight. Really, he has lost some weight. We are careful to measure his Science Diet food, and he only has healthy treats.
New toy! Louie loves his leopard - lots of laughs , loads of fun.
We have had such a wonderful week. On our way home from seeing Taplin and Bridger, Meghan and Justin, we stopped in Clanton at the Brown's Pottery shop. Jane Brown was working, but she stopped and talked to us about her pottery and even showed us her studio. She had some ugly face mugs that she has made from Miller clay, clay from Alabama that she says is very difficult to work with. Those mugs weren't for sale, but we picked up these three pieces (this clay is from Texas).
When we left on Tuesday, the buds on the Christmas cactus hadn't opened, and I wasn't even sure they would. By time we got back Thursday evening, it was in full bloom. I wish I knew what caused it to bloom after years of nothing so that I could do whatever it takes again.
New toy for Louie, new pottery, a new desk for Allen, and best of all, a new grandson and time with Bridger. What a great week! Be sure to click on Flickr to see all of our new pictures.

Welcome to the world!

Welcome to the world, Taplin Moore Everette! Born April 22, 2008 at 12:24 P.M., Taplin weighed in at 8 lb. 13 oz. and was 21 inches long. He has a head of dark brown hair, and he is just an angel. Meghan went to the doctor Monday where they discussed inducing for April 23, but Monday evening and through the night, she had contractions. They called Justin's mom to come stay with Bridger, and then at about 4:30 A.M. they called us to let us know they were on the way to the hospital. We got ourselves together and on the road, and we got there when Meghan was in delivery. We had about about a half hour to spare. This picture was taken when he was less than an hour old.
They swaddle the babies tighlty, but Meghan unwrapped him for a few minutes. Check out those splayed out toes. Precious.
This is Justin and Meghan and new son Taplin just minutes after he was born. We are so lucky to be a part of this most exciting time!
Meghan let me hold him right away for a bit. Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful.
The next day, Bridger wore his big brother shirt and got a good look. Bridger spent most of Wednesday with us and let Taplin and Justin and Meghan get acquainted. We stayed until Thursday morning, and we have lots of pictures to share. We left about 11 this morning and took our time driving home -- and picking up the not-so-perfect Louie. Sorry, Shannon and Nathan. He wasn't the best house guest, was he? Many more pictures to follow tomorrow.

Waiting for Taplin's Birthday

Louie is such a people pug. He wants to be with his people every minute, that is as long as he is getting attention. He wants to be petted, talked to, played with, walked, admired, and adored all of the time. If he has a rawhide, he wants someone to hold it or at least have his paws (and slobber) on people hands. He is a hands-on pup. If you don't pay attention, then you get repaid with scratching and licking on couch pillows - or his favorite - stealing something and playing hard to get. He will enjoy staying with Shannon and Nathan and bugging them for attention while we go to Mobile.
Mr. Frog toy is not doing too well any more. Louie will have to pack different toys for his trip.
Meanwhile, Louie's people, aka Allen and Jean, are waiting for The Phone Call summoning us to Mobile for Taplin's big arrival. Meghan called us yesterday after a morning of labor pains, but they had subsided. No hospital trip yesterday. We're all ready to hit the road. Tomorrow is his actual due date, and Wednesday is the date set for inducing if he doesn't decide to appear before then.
This is the Christmas cactus in our bathroom. We've had it for years, but the only time I've seen it in bloom was when I bought it and brought it home. Yes, I know it is April, but it has suddenly decided to set buds. I imagine that it will most likely bloom the minute that we leave for a few days. It's going to be warm and sunny this week, so if that is what will open the flowers, it should happen in a day or two. I hope the blooms last so that we can see them.
A couple of years ago I was working on a counted cross stitch project while we were in Colorado. I discovered that I enjoyed traveling and being away from home much more if I have a handwork project to occupy down-time. Yesterday, I rooted through my stash and came up with an idea for a portable appliqué project using these red and black fabrics. If I have time before The Phone Call, I am going to cut some pieces, buy some black solid for the background, mark a grid, and try out my idea. I have several projects that I'm itching to get to, but they all require being home and in my sewing room. While Louie doesn't mind my hands being occupied sewing as long as he can sit close, he won't be going along to Mobile this time.

Almost

Louie is no doubt the goofiest dog we have owned. He can jump up on the couch by himself (which we discourage), but if we are sitting there, we don't mind if he joins us. However, then he insists on being invited and picked up rather than jumping up unassisted. After he is settled, he wants to have a human hand hold his rawhide for him while he chews. He's almost too funny, and it's hard to stay upset with his puppy puggish misbehavior.

How cute is Louie when he is almost asleep next to Allen in bed?


I'm almost finished with the batik quilt I started appliquéing in Denver over spring break. The border fabrics are from the Great American Quilt store, and I think they are good colors to hold the patches together. I almost finished ironing the backing, but I ran out of spray starch. I already made one trip to the store to purchase the batting and thread, so I will have to wait until tomorrow. I don't know how I'll quilt it yet though. My free motion quilting is questionable, but I suppose I will have to give it a go.

It's spring according to the calendar, and last week with temperatures in the upper seventies, I got lured into thinking it was time to plant. We are going to get down to freezing tonight -- almost, that is. I imagine next to the house, these plants will be alright.

Allen spent a good bit of Saturday afternoon washing the pollen off of the porch. We (meaning Allen) will probably have to wash it (and paint it too) after the next dusting of the yellow junk. The deck hasn't been touched yet, but the first order of business there is replace the grill. I am enjoying spring with all of the azaleas and dogwoods blooming. It's almost time for dinner on the deck, reading books on the swing, and groaning about the heat.

I planted almost all of the porch turtles with greens, but I have a few more to fill. The two bigger planters in this picture are new this spring.

See the new clock above the mantle? I just love it. It is almost exactly like the one in the hall that Allen got me for Christmas several years ago. I thought we were almost finished spending money on furniture at Southern Reproductions. We don't have many spots for new furniture, but last week we managed to put a new cabinet on hold for a new flat screen (not that we have one yet) for our bedroom, and this week we ordered a desk for Allen. He is almost finished with his bimonthly trips to Denver, and then he will need a place to work at home since I kicked him off the kitchen table.