A Lazy Boy Family

We are a Lazy Boy family. OH MY GOD...that is a huge understatement.

An orange plaid Lazy Boy was the VERY FIRST piece of new furniture I ever bought. I rocked both of my babies to sleep in that chair, and it had the place of honor in every home we ever lived in...

At some point, I got rid of the sofa in our living room so I could make room for FOUR Lazy Boy chairs...lol...

Right now, my #1 Lazy Boy chair is this green leather version...

I bought it at a thrift store...

For $30...??!!

This is Elliott, outside his house, enjoying his NEW Lazy Boy before moving it inside...

This was one of my favorite Lazy Boys -- I loved it so much, I had it reupholstered.

The back of a Lazy Boy lifts off in a very simple way.  That makes them EASY to move -- I can fit one in my car!!

I paid $20 for this pink velvet Lazy Boy.  But, my boys told me I absolutely COULD NOT PUT A PINK CHAIR IN THE LIVING ROOM...

Then, I had this genius idea...By taking the back of one chair, and the seat of another -- I created this "Franken-boy" chair. What do you think??

Yeah...I know....the boys were not fooled. Its still pink....

Because I usually buy my Lazy Boys at thrift stores -- and I find them ALL THE TIME...we occasionally must get rid of one. 

But by the time WE are done with a Lazy Boy -- it's 40+ years old and nobody else would want it.  So -- what can you do??  It is listing to one side, and the springs have come undone...

Yep.  Time to have a fire...light it up, boys...

Really.  A worn out Lazy Boy deserves the same respect as an American Flag.  Or an American Indian...

Winter Laundry

You know how I feel about line-dried sheets. Getting into my fresh bed every Monday night, is one of the highlights of my week. The sheets smell so good, they feel so good...it's a wonderful moment that involves all my senses. We spend 30% of our lives IN BED -- so making that bed special is one of the best, most simple ways to show somebody you love them.

But, if you live in Iowa -- the winter does NOT make this an easy task...

Although, sheets WILL dry if you hang them outside -- it takes much longer -- and it's more of a Freeze-dried process...

When Mary was here, we both bought a pair of pillowcases that looked great. Beautiful embroidery on both sets. But -- DRATS -- when we opened them up -- they had that man-stained yellow. Ugh. You saw how hard Mary worked to get hers white...and I was encouraged by her efforts...

So, I soaked my pillowcases.  Then washed them.  Several times.  Then used the super-duper secret soak...but the yellow stain was still faintly visible...

So, I tried the lay-them-directly-on-the-snow trick. 

The theory here has something to do with the interaction of the SUN and the SNOW...how the combination creates a natural bleaching. I had great luck with this in the past, with a set of damask pillowcases that were brown from poor storage...I wonder about this yellow stain?? Hey -- WORTH A TRY, EH?? 

I washed the pillowcases again (probably the 6th time)...and laid them on the snow....VERY, VERY wet...

Because it was ten degrees BELOW zero -- they freeze dried almost immediately...

I could stand them up like a deck of cards...

Robert and Velma's wedding photo

.I have a penchant for old photographs. A couple of months ago, Bert and I were at an estate sale and while she perused the huge vintage toy collection, I spent some time sitting at the dining room table, looking at hundreds of very old black and white photographs.  Some were formal photographer studio photos -- and were very old, maybe from the turn of the century.  But it was  HUGE pile of pictures -- with hundreds of  casual snapshots from the 50's.

It always seems sad to me that these precious pictures got away from the family.

I always wonder about the story the picture is telling...

Who these people were, what they are doing...

This picture is from the German American Museum in Davenport

I love a picture with women wearing aprons..

On that particular Saturday, the photos were selling for $1 each. After an hour of looking, I picked out about ten photographs. Some were casual family shots -- there was one picture with the large family eating a big meal set up on a long table outside. I remember eating a meal like that in the side yard of Grandma Little's house.

Bert was still engrossed with the estate sale, so I went out to sit in the car to wait for her.  As I was looking at the assortment of photographs.  One of the pictures was a black and white formal wedding photo of a young couple.  The gro m looked very stern.  The bride's dress was short, with diamond shapes around the hem.  There was some faint pencil writing in the corner.  The words said, "Robert and Velma Tank, 1928." 

Here's where the Ritaluck comes into play.  Remember my friend and neighbor,  Lorna Sawyer?  Well -- her maiden name was Tank.  I picked up my phone, and called Lorna.   

I asked, "What were your Mom and Dad's first names?"

Lorna said, ""Robert and Velma."

When were they married??  Yep.  1928....

T-Shirt Rescue, The REST of the story...

We all know you could start shopping right now, and with unlimited time and money -- NEVER find another t-shirt that was the same shade of blue.  And these shirts need to be fixed in the next two hours...

Carrie took them out of the bag to wash them...and realized Dylan's shirt was way too small for him. AND Steve's shirt was also too small...

It JUST SO HAPPENS I have a gorgeous Hawaiian shirt (made in Hawaii, real silk) -- in my stash...OMG...it's all different shade of blue!!

Here's the story on Hawaiian shirts. This winter -- Ross and I started watching Hawaii Five-O. We are hooked. It's our new guilty pleasure. They were showing the older shows on TNT, and I would tape them. However, those shows brought up some questions -- so I got Season One from the Library.

SUCH A GREAT SHOW. We're watching Season Two now.  And we watch it the same way we caught up on Downton Abby. One show every night, right before we go to bed. (or maybe two or three episodes)...

Obviously, the STAR of that show is the State of Hawaii. The scenery is gorgeous. So THAT's why I started buying Hawaiian shirts. And, I swear to you -- JUST THAT DAY -- this shirt turned up in my car. $2 at the local DAV thrift store...

I hung the floral shirt between the two blue t-shirts and looked at it for awhile. I could make floral sleeves for both t-shirts, and add two inch side panels...maybe take the collar, too...

The whole idea of it was giving me a big thrill. When I decided to dig a little deeper, just in case I actually DID have a matching blue shirt...

I found one.

Bummer...

Because, I know Dylan and Steve. And they are not flowered shirt kind of guys...

This is the new sleeve. Which, trust me, is a VERY good match...

I serged a new panel into both sides of each shirt --

Wearing it, nobody would notice the extra seams...

Really -- the match was THAT GOOD...and the panel went all the way through the sleeve seam...

In order to do BOTH shirts, I needed four panels. Unfortunately, my blue shirt was printed on both the front and the back...NO PROBLEM. I simply USED THE WRONG SIDE as the right side. Sure, there is some city logo printing on the INSIDE of Steve's shirt...but I'm sure he can resist wearing it inside out...

HEY -- after all these years, and EVERYTHING Carrie has done for me -- restyling a couple of t-shirts was SUCH A PLEASURE...!! I am so happy she decided to call me...

Carrie brought me a mug from Hawaii, which I will always treasure.  It says "Aloha".  In Hawaiian, that means, "Hello", "Good-bye", and "This is a stick-up"....

Make A Wish T-Shirts

My week starts when Carrie comes on MONDAY. I tell people she has been cleaning my house since she was 14 years old. EVERYBODY here loves Carrie Day.

Warren loves when Carrie comes...

Carrie is such a GREAT MOM. And she makes the MOST EXTRAORDINARY Halloween costumes. Elizabeth and Dylan as a cupcake and a Coke machine

Last year, Dylan had cancer. He was 10 years old. It was horrific. Surgeries, chemo, trips to Iowa City. Carrie's Mom (my cousin Kim) would come to my house and try to BE CARRIE...but, even with the two of us working at our max -- the house NEVER looked as good as when Carrie cleaned it...

I painted a duffel bag for Dylan to us for his constant trips back and forth to the hospital...

THE REALLY, REALLY GOOD NEWS is that Dylan is cured. The whole family is doing great, and life is pretty much back to normal. (whatever that is, eh?)

AND -- the Make A Wish Foundation is sending Dylan's family to Hawaii so they can go whale watching!! Last Saturday, Carrie is running around like a chicken with her head cut off -- trying to get everything ready for their Sunday departure -- when she realizes the t-shirts for both Dylan and his dad, Steve -- DON'T FIT.

OH NO...

They're supposed to wear the t-shirts when they travel, so the Make A Wish people can easily find them, and get them where they're supposed to go...WHAT TO DO? WHO YOU GONNA CALL??

IF SHE ONLY KNEW SOMEBODY WHO CONSIDERED HERSELF THE QUEEN OF RECYCLED T-SHIRTS...!!!!

Ladie's Who Lunch

Today the temperature is supposed to get ABOVE 50 DEGREES. Halleluiah and it's about time!! But last week, we had yet another snow storm blow through here and it almost ruined my lunch!!

When I had my store, Rita's Sew Fun (this blog is named in it's honor) -- the woman who taught the monthly sewing club was Judy. SHE IS AN AMAZING seamstress, quilter, crafter, artist -- you think up the word -- she is good at it.

She missed out on Mary Mulari's visit this year -- so my sister Ronda went with me (to deliver some Mary gifts)...

Yes, I suck at selfies. Me, Judy and Ronda...

OF COURSE she embroidered all the snowman towel/napkins

We also made her cook lunch -- chili...

and homemade cornbread biscuits...

The table looked great. Judy set a place for Phyllis, but she was babysitting that day (we Grandmas schedule our lives around the babysitting, eh?)

Judy does it all -- long arm quilting....embroidery, garments,

Wearable art, and, of course -- QUILTS...in this case, combining her love of machine embroidery AND quilting...

The three of us had a wonderful afternoon. We talked about the good old days -- then shared stories about our lives, our children, our grandchildren. You know the visit I'm talking about...we talked, we laughed, we cried.

For my money, there are few things better than spending time with women friends you have a history with.

Priceless...

TMBC

The best thing about the TMBC is that the four of us get together, at the same place, at the same time, E.V.E.R.Y...D.A.M.N...T.U.E.S.D.A.Y....

Except for last week. Let me paint you a picture.

We'd had yet another blizzard. It was ten degrees BELOW zero and the roads were completely ice-covered. Most schools in the county had been cancelled.

One of the clubbers was out of town...and a second one was sick. So, obviously, breakfast is off - right?? I can miss one week...

John had been sick for five days. That morning, he woke me up at 5:30 AM to tell me he hadn't been able to sleep because he'd been coughing all night. From my own blissful, contented sleep, I said, "uh-huh"...

Then, John said, "You got up at 3:00 (to use the bathroom). Did you even notice I wasn't in bed?"

(Now wide awake, wondering what the right answer is...)

I said, "I heard snoring coming from the living room...so I said to myself, I wonder if John is in Chicago?"

He didn't think that was funny. So, I had no choice but to get out of bed. Ugh. It's not even 6:00 AM...

I couldn't see out the living room window...everything was encased in a thick ice. I mean -- it would be foolish for me to drive 20 miles on dangerous roads just to hook up with the one remaining clubber. And it will take at least an hour to warm up my car and chip off the one-inch of ice encasement....

I guess we can miss a week...

OR -- I COULD GET OFF MY FAT ASS AND START CHIPPING...........

So, I called Lin and said, "hey -- wanna do lunch??"