It was so good and even better when we added vanilla ice cream to it.
Any time I bake Elizabeth likes to get out her Suzy Homemaker easy bake oven.
We found the oven at an antique store and it works wonderfully.
I love how miniature Elizabeth's baked goods are.
Every time I tried to assemble a block it would come out wrong and I would trash it.
I was always searching quilting books at the local library trying to figure out what I was doing wrong.
Even web pages dedicated to crazy quilts wasn't helping me understand.
Then one day I discovered a crazy quilt tutorial.
Seeing the process with step by step photos really helped me understand where I had been going wrong.
I love how my blocks are turning out!
Step two was basting two pieces of batting together and fitting it to my backing fabric. I also secured the corners to the floor with tape.
Step three was to position my quilt top and begin smoothing it out.
Step four was to start the pinning. I like to begin at one end and work my way down smoothing along the way.
The final step is to trim the excess fabric and batting, leaving about 2" too much all around.
I normally use my bed to sandwich a quilt. Using the floor had some pretty good benefits but it was very hard on my legs and back. I am not sure if I want to use the floor again, I'll decide after my aches and pains go away!
The second quilting project is going to be an over sized lap quilt because there isn’t enough blocks to make it twin size. I will be using muslin strips in between the blocks and a vintage reproduction fabric for the outside border.
The final quilting project will be adding a new border to an existing quilt top in order to have a fresh edge. I am planning on adding a narrow strip in green and a wider final strip in a vintage reproduction fabric.
This will be the first time I have ever worked with vintage blocks and I am looking forward to seeing how the quilt tops turn out.
While in Garland I went into the local Bernina store and found this one for $20 cheaper than my local store.
He quickly ran to the house to get me and the kids.
At first Pat thought the combs were empty but after looking closer I noticed dark spots in the middle. Pat and Jonathan ran back to the house to get a ladder and knife so we could cut down the honeycombs.
The centers were full of honey.
When we got the honeycombs back to the house we began inspecting them.
The pockets were full of honey and pollen.
We began slicing them to get the honey to drip out.
The thicker part was easier to handle and cut.
I loved how the honey just oozed out.
We put the sliced pieces into a juice colander/strainer that was placed over a glass jar. Watching the honey drip was very exciting. I was expecting the honey to be thick like what we buy at the store but instead it was very runny.
While the honey was draining Pat and I went back to look at the bees in their new home.
I have never seen a swarm of bees before.
After draining the honey we began sucking on some of the wax. The flavor was fantastic, rich and very sweet.
This is how the wax looked after all the honey was drained.
Next we poured the honey from the larger glass jar into a vintage canning jar.
We ended up with about a pint of pure raw honey.
Today we are making fresh ground whole wheat bread to go with our treasured pure golden honey.
The bags still need unpacking, the snack foods need putting away and I need to start laundry but I think a nap is in order first.
It sure feels good to be home!
