Transportable Thursday - RV is the new adventure

To RV or not to RV, that is the question.  Well, actually the question has been answered.  After checking out a few variety this past weekend, Jeff and I have agreed on the size, the make and the model.  It is interesting that we very easily pick very similar layout so there's not much to think about.  Before we actually buy the RV of choice, we have to wait for his son's old car to be removed from the other side garage.  Jeff needs the whole length of that parking area on the side of the our house.  The RV is about 26 foot and although we have that space, currently there's an old card and Jeff's Miata occupying the space.  There's a particular RV that Jeff found that's for sale and it fits our requirement.  Only problem is that it is currently parked somewhere in Orange County, CA.  It's probably about an eight hour drive to get there from our place.  The other option is fly to the nearest airport, rent a car and if we decided to buy it, we can drive it back to San Jose.  It's a little bit more expensive.  The better option is finding one near the bay area so we don't have the cost of flight, hotel and car rental prior to purchasing.  Enough said, do you want to see what I am talking about.

Click on the link below.

RV

 

Montreal Monday - My BFF's team

It always amazes me that Spring is already here and the NHL playoff has not even begun.  This year my BFF's team the HABS are in first position in the Atlantic Division Eastern Conference.  I know that he's going to be watching all their games up to the Stanley cup.  When I showed Percy the latest cell phone charger holder, he liked the idea and I thought I could make him his own with his favorite team fabric or logo.  The problem is that fabric store here does not carry anything Canadian.  Then I had an idea, I could ask him to buy me the fabric from Canada and mail it.  Percy thought that was too much trouble for me so he opted just to have one with the HABS colors (red, white and blue).  Since he is my BFF, I needed to make something special because he is not just any BFF, he's like a brother to me.

While searching online, Jeff found a patch that I could use.  As usual Jeff orders it from his store.  He said that it might take a while because it was not Prime and it was going to be coming from some Asian country.  It has been almost two months and the other day a small envelope from Thailand was in our mail box.  That's when I remembered what we had ordered.  So here's my own creation of the Montreal Canadiens aka the HABS cell phone charger holder for my very special friend Percy.  I know he checks my blog often so I hope he will like it.  Unfortunately I won't be able to send it to him since I am waiting for my girl friends who will be coming for a visit and staying at our B&B.  So Percy, be patient and it will get there by end of next month.  In the meantime you can just admire what you see below.

Percy's very own cell phone charger holder for home and for travel.

 

Finally Friday - Yeah, I'm back

It only took 12 days to finally recover from that nasty Influenza A germs.  Is there a lesson here?  Of course.  Maybe next season I'll take that chance and get the flu shot and hope for the best.  Avoid shaking hands, hugging, etc. even though the people say they are healthy.  Aside from sanitizing and washing hands which I am already consistently doing, I'll eat more of the foods that gives some sort of protection.  Do I need to exercise more? Well, I will try to do some stretching as much boring it might be, the muscles have been so inactive that I don't want to hurt myself.  Yes, you heard me, I'll try and do some stretching exercise.  The only benefit I got from this recent bout of flu - I lost 6 lbs.  Hopefully I can keep it off.  My appetite is not back yet and I am still eating the minimum portion just to ensure I don't go low on my blood sugar.  So far so good.  Of course I have to share some of the things I have done shortly after I started feeling a little better.  Yes, I was a little busy crocheting two scarf and baked a carrot pineapple cake from scratch and even made a very yummy cream cheese frosting.  Today is Laura's first year death anniversary and we are having a little get together to celebrate and remember her life. 

A scarf for Jeff in preparation for his first winter.

A second scarf which I will donate to the first homeless I see next winter.

Carrot Pineapple Cake with cream cheese frosting.  It has been many years since I made this recipe.

 

Sickness Sunday - It was very bad

Just when you think that your health is back to normal and you start enjoying life again, then you get hit.  Somehow I just wished that there was a little warning.  I know you cannot keep avoiding crowds or gathering in case there are some people who are sick, right  Well, I decided to go with Jeff a little over a week ago to attend a luncheon for one of his coworker who got laid off.  I thought it would be nice to say hello to some of his buddies who I golf sometimes.  What I dd not know was that a few of them were just sick or maybe still is.  That evening Jeff started feeling sick and by the next day he was coughing with a little fever and some chills.  Two days later when he was starting to feel a little better I started with what I thought was just a cold also.  It has been a week and I am still not feeling good.  Jeff took me to see my doctor on the fourth day because of the headache that was excruciating and would not go away.  The doctor did all the checks and the last one was taking a swab from my nose.  Test result came back after a day - it was positive.  I have the Influenza Virus A - the bad one.  There's not much I could do but to just rest and hope for the best.  No appetite, nausea, headache, restless, coughing (one time it was so extreme that I burst a blood vessel on my right eye).  The only benefit of this is I lost at least 6 pounds, not a great way to lose, but I have to find something good on this very annoying sickness.  Question is, would it have prevented me getting it if I had the flu shot?  Maybe, depending on the strain of shot they were giving this season.  A friend of mine got the shot but still had the flu because he got the B shot but got the A flu.  If only all the good wishes and positive vibes that friends and family are sending, can cure the illness - I would be done in a couple of days.  Today is the seventh day and I am still not back to my normal self.  Each and every morning I am trying to feel like I am normal, moving a little at a time, but everything seems to tire me out.  So to all my family and friends, please try and stay healthy, do all the preventative tips and habits in order to stay away from this season's flu as I don't want any of you to suffer the way I did.  Take care and hopefully the first day of Spring brings us sunny skies and warmer temperature. Stay healthy and enjoy each day that you are feeling good.

Taking any kind of prescription just makes you more sick.  Rest is still the all in one cure but takes longer.

 

Failte Friday - Happy St. Patrick's Day

Failte is a Gaelic word that means salute, welcome or hail.  So it's somewhat fitting as we salute St. Patrick's on his special day which is today.  Some of the friends I know loves celebrating this holiday because to them it's all about drinking.  For Jeff, it's about his favorite, Bailey's Irish Cream which is his favorite creamer for his coffee.  Unfortunately they have not been making them or at least we have not found them at the store.  The last time I found three bottles was at one of those liquor store and they were on sale because it was still in the old bottle.  Now they have changed to a much slimmer type but they don't make this particular flavor (Mint Chocolate).  My MIL celebrate this holiday by making corned beef and cabbage dinner accompanied by green beer and having a shot of Bailey's for dessert. This year, we probably will stay home and celebrate it our own way.  Here's my special take on salute St. Patrick's.

Our special twig tree has now become a special monthly theme tree.  Jeff did a great job.

My nail art for this week is almost matching the two colors of the shamrock on the tree.

One of my favorite Irish blessing specially to you from me.

Munchies Monday - Sweet treats

Now that I have given up all my volunteer work in preparation for things that are changing,  I find myself with more time to bake and try new recipes.  Although I always go back to some of the favorites, it's a nice surprise for Jeff to try new sweet treats.  This weekend I made two different kind of cookies.  Almond Joy Cookie - remember, this is the 4 ingredient cookie, so easy but so yummy. The second one is an experiment because I am using a butter pecan cake mix to make the cookies.  Instead of following the instruction on the box, I used 2 eggs and 1/3 cup of oil.  I added some chopped walnuts since I ran out of pecan.  To make it interesting I put a splash of rum chatta liquor.  The result was another yummy cookie with a nice crisp outer and soft chewy in the middle.  Since I was in a baking mode, I made a French Tourtiere Pie for our dinner using a ready to use pie crust but the meat filling was from scratch.  We enjoyed the pie with a side dish of my own version of coleslaw.  

Almond Joy Cookies

Butter Pecan Cookies from a box cake mix.

A slice of the French Tourtiere and my own version of coleslaw with Jicama.

 

Springy Saturday - Spring is almost here

Is it really here or am I just imagining it?  A week ago while golfing with my x-golf course volunteer, I couldn't help but admire all the cherry blossoms from the trees surrounding the course.  There's an assortment of pinks and whites.  Surprisingly, while doing this post, I notice that one of fruit trees (Jeff calls it fruit salad as it is grafted with peach, nectarine, apricot and plum) is filled with blossoms.  Jeff was worried for a few days as we were experiencing some cold spell.  Last summer we were able to taste a couple of plum, one apricot and one peace or nectarine was picked by a bird.  Along the roads in our area, they have a lot of these cherry blossom trees that are in bloom now.  Another flowering tree are the magnolias.  These have beautiful big flowers and they are also in bloom.  Not just outside, I notice that my orchid plant that will be almost two years old have about five buds.

So with all the facts, one would think that spring is definitely around the corner.  Although technically according to the calendar, the first day of spring is March 21.  Check out my spring collections.

If you look really close you can see those white flowers on that small tree.

This one is located near the 18th hole tee box at Deep Cliff Golf Course.

My white orchid plant - see if you can count five buds.  Hopefully it will bloom by May.

 

Toxic Thursday - Spring cleaning

Whether it is friends or relatives, this type of relationship is something you should definitely try to avoid as much as you.  You are probably wondering why I am going to the dark side.  Sometimes it a result of recent events that happens indirectly or maybe a topic triggered an experience.  A long time ago one of my BFF suggested that I stay away or give myself a break from a particular friend that was draining my positive attitude.  I'm glad I followed her advice.  It's a little different from relatives but if you find that they are either consistently asking for your help or dumping on their problems, it might be best to take a break politely and let them get back to normal.  Another one that is definitely at the top of my list is seeing friends in a toxic relationship and they can't seem to get away from it.  Sometimes it is easier for other friends to say what they should do.  Most of the time, the people in the relationship tries to break it off only to find new relationship that is similar to the one they left. The difficult part as a friend or a relative is trying to help someone who does not want to listen to you suggest even though they actually ask for your advice.  We are not expert on this but life's experience gives you enough knowledge to know the difference and be able to read early signs.  Life is too short to have people around you who are full of negativity and issues.

Spring is around the corner and it's time to clean up not just closets, sheds and pantry.  

 

 

Travel Tuesday - Toothbrush holder

A new sewing challenge - travel toothbrush holder.  So I said yes, I can do it.  Since I am using scrap fabrics, it was easy to do a trial run but I need a small piece of plastic material for the brush to touch in case it is not dry when you slip it in.  This is not a tutorial but just a little explanation of how I did it.  First, I made the case which is very similar to making the fabric wallet or eye glass case.  Once I have that, I made what I call the insert,  I measured the length of the toothbrush and the width of the case, to make sure it will slide easily.  Then I cut the fabric together and add the plastic piece last. I almost forgot that I glued the plastic to the fabric before sewing it, just an extra step to have the plastic stick to the fabric flat.  Here's a couple of photo so you will get the idea.  If you like new simple and easy project, this is one of those that you can finish within half an hour.  Try it.

 

Sing-a-long Sunday - Song stuck in your head

Do you have those moments when a particular song just get stuck in your head?  It could sometimes stay there for days and then you forget about it.  Then there are songs that it won't matter how long you spend time trying to remember that particular song, and it just too hard for the brain to recall.  So lately I have the Justin Timberlake song stuck in my head and our Alexa has this song on repeat.  Lucky for me, Jeff is pretty easy going with the type of songs I play, just don't play hip hop, rap and too rap.  I am actually not too bad trying to recall songs from the past even knowing the lyrics, the artist and what year the song was release.  I am sure some of you remember that game show "Name that tune".  Before my son passed away, he use to take me with him to a particular bar that has this game.  People play in groups against each other and whoever has the most points win something.  His particular team comprised of different age groups that covers almost all the decades.  I remember all the great times we've had, just hanging out with his buddies.  That is what so nice about my son, he was cool with having his mom hang out with him and his buddies.  Anyway I am sure if he was alive today, he would love some of the songs I have listed.

• Can't stop the feeling - Justin Timberlake
• All of me - John Legend
• Uptown Funk - Bruno Mars
• Happy - Pharrell Williams
• Hypnotised - Cold Play
• 7 Years - Lucas Graham
• That's what I like - Bruno Mars
• See you again - Charlie Puth

"can't stop the feeling" is from this movie.  My son would have loved this movie too.

Throwback Thursday - Deep Cliff Group

Almost two years have passed since I quit my volunteer work at the Deep Cliff golf course.  I miss playing with my friends who were volunteers as well but like me, have quit also.  One of them actually still works there as a paid employees.  So I am trying to arrange a Thursday morning golf day so we can play like old times.  Deep Cliff is a beautiful short course with 18 holes with six par 4's and the rest are par 3's.  It is a great exercise as it's very flat and no hill to worry about.  Most of the players walk the course but some seniors prefer to use the cart so they don't delay the pace of play.  They have renovated the restaurant and now they even serve their own beer.  Anyway, I am looking forward to playing with my buddies Mo, Mark and Ethan.  When we use to play every Thursday, we always have a lot of fun and stories to share.  Sometimes we stay for one beer or stop by at the local dive bar because they have free pool before 6 pm.  Hopefully we can play a few more rounds when the weather gets really warm and drier.  

This is hole # 18 and above is the pro shop and the restaurant.

Washable Wednesday - Produce bags

When someone ask if I can do some sewing items for them, I usually get excited because it might be a challenging project.  My BFF's daughter who lives in Vancouver ask me if I could make her a few reusable produce bags (five in total) and travel toothbrush holder (only 3).

She sent me the link of what exactly she was describing so I could see them.  I looked it up and decided, that's easy since I have made other type of bags before.  She was not picky with fabric so I just use some of my leftover material and started measuring what I needed.  I stopped by the fabric store to buy half a yard of the netting fabric for my insert so you could see the produce inside the bag.  Since I had a few more extra fabric, I added a couple of washable snack/sandwich bag which she can use when she returns to work next month.  As for the toothbrush holder, I would have to just be creative as I only have a photo and I have never made them before.  Since I have made a lot of different holders, I thought this too would be a breeze.  The only thing I have to remember is to do an insert made of plastic for the brush part.  I haven't started this last item so you will have to wait until next post.

The first try and it was perfect.

  

Celery bag.

Perfect for three romaine lettuce hearts.

Leftover fabric is great for making snack/sandwich bags.

Lemons, Limes or onions bag.

Maybe some vine or roma or cherry tomatoes.