Flowers From Lauren

WOW!  I got flowers from my wonderful daughter...just because!!!! What a sweetheart! And aren't they lovely?  Maybe she was celebrating the summer solstice? Whatever the reason..I love it!

Uncle David was here also  on Wednesday evening.  He had an appointment at the U of I for a heart biopsy.  His last one was 3 months ago! Hope this one continues with the good news.  No rejection is good news!

We went to dinner last evening to Red's in North Liberty. Mighty tasty! Afterwards, Lauren went a little crazy with my camera.  Here are some of the goofy pictures...

Cooper with his tongue peeking out...

How'd she do that?!

Bob..looking confused....

Me, wishing she wouldn't take the picture.

HEY!!!

David's One-Year Milestone!

David received a new heart ONE YEAR AGO on June 14! What a journey it has been for him and Marcia! He has done exceptionally well for which we are all so thankful.

In celebration and to express their 'heartfelt' thanks to Divas (you know who you are), Doctors and dedicated friends and family David and Marcia had dinner at Biaggi's in Des Moines.   It was delightful and delicious!

Above, David and Marcia pose in front of the fantastic cake that was made for the event. What a sweet couple!

Below, is the medical team from Uof I who were able to make it (plus little Rosie!), daughter Lauren enjoying the evening , and "Diva" Diane and her husband Kent, with Lauren.

We look forward to many more years of celebration with David!!!

New Kitchen Gadget!!

Got a new kitchen gadget!  Friends Jackie and Jeannie picked up this 3-pop maker at Williams-Sonoma for me last weekend.  First, you have to put the base in the freezer for 24 hours, then you're ready to go.  There were several recipes in the Hy-Vee Seasons magazine, so I sort of tried one of them.  I say 'sort of' because I never really have all the ingredients and have to wing it.

As usual, there is a learning curve...My first ones were pretty weird looking because my mixture was pretty thick and it was hard to pour a thin enough stream into the pop maker. Plus it sort of spilled all over and instantly froze!  My advice: stick with simple thin juice mixture to start with. But do try different recipes!  I found one for a watermelon pop that sounds divine at yumkid.com! I'll be trying it this weekend!

I should mention that this little freezer thingy stays COLD for quite a while, so you can crank out 2-3 rounds,if you have a lot of mix.  It sets in about 5-7 minutes the first round. By the third, it will take a little longer.  Its a great treat on a summer day!

Fun With My Embroidery Machine!

Well, here's what I did this weekend.  I found a fun website Five Star Fonts while on Facebook.  They had some very cute projects that were done completely in the hoop...including zippers!!  The top project, in the picture, is a zippered bag for my kindle (with a pocket). The bottom one, with the key, has a little pocket in the back that holds a driver's license and credit card. And the bottom right is a zippered glasses case with a pocket. I just used fabric from my stash.  It always takes longer the first time, but it went very smoothly.  The directions were great with pictures every step of the way.

It all started when I 'liked' Five Star Fonts on Facebook.  When you do that, you can get a free 'in the hoop' design.  So I made that one first, and then I had to do more.  I guess I'm an embroidery 'junkie'. Here is the free design I did. The lighting is too bright and it is hard to see there is a zipper going down the center.

  Fun way to spend a hot Sunday afternoon!!

Lunch Time

I was grilling some hot dogs yesterday and looked over the rail and saw the baby wrens squawking for their lunch!  Finally, the parent appeared with a tasty morsel.  There are 3 little beaks to feed so the parents were pretty busy.

Sock Club Yarn Arrived!

My Rockin' Sock Club yarn arrived today! WOO HOO! it a very lovely fingering weight in shades of navy, grey, sea foam green, and lilac.  There are two patterns and a little bit about the process of dying, naming and testing the yarn.

I haven't knit April's yarn, yet.  But I'm frequently behind in all my knitting projects.  A bad case of  my brain thinking it can accomplish WAAAY more than my little knitting fingers can....I hope my daughter takes up knitting in earnest someday.  She will undoubtedly have to deal with some of this yarn..someday.

A Sunday in June

This is the view of our back yard from the upper patio.  The hostas are looking very fine these days thanks to Bob and his green thumb.  We brought most of them from our old house when we moved here.  If the rabbits and deer don't eat them they look amazing!

It was a nice Sunday.  The weather was perfect! This weekend was the IowaArt Fest in Iowa City.  Bob and I went yesterday.  We picked up a pottery piece for Lauren and went back today to get another (didn't have enough cash yesterday).  

I made ice cream with the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker.  How easy is this?  I keep the container in the freezer so that when I mix up the recipe, its always ready to start mixing and freezing.  This time I made Cinnamon frozen yogurt with chopped up Heath bars...Oh My! Got the recipe from the Penzy's Spice catalog that comes in the mail.  Pretty tasty.  

I also made grilled pizza from the catalog.  Look on the recipe page for the recipe.  Everyone seemed to enjoy it!