A Cry for Help?

Sorry about the dark and weirdly blotchy quality of the photo--you all know by now that I truly suck at photography. Kind of looks like I tried to slash my wrist, though, doesn't it? Maybe when I was trying to decide which quilts I wanted to make this year and realized just how hopeless the idea that I could make all the quilts I really, really, really like is?! Nah! Just an overly enthusiastic but inaccurate grab for a hot iron the other day. It got me thinking, though, what a dangerous "sport" quilting is.

Burns. Aching muscles. Upper and lower back pain. Cuts from rotary cutter mishaps. Failing eyesight from peering at tiny applique stitches. Arthritis in the joints of the hands. Serious stuff.

I always say that exercising is dangerous. It seems that most of the people I know who get injured, do it while engaging in some form of strenuous physical exercise. That's why I don't exercise--it's just too darn dangerous.

But think about how dangerous quilting is! The last time I visited the emergency room was a few years ago when my rotary cutter flipped out of my hand and up into the air, coming back down on my finger. Yep, that hurt! And spending a Sunday night in the emergency room getting stitches was no picnic either. But you know what? The doctor didn't seem at all surprised when I explained how the accident happened, which leads me to believe it was no freak occurrence. There are probably hundreds of quilters out there getting injured every day.

I remember exchanging stories with a group of women about quilting accidents awhile back. One woman told us about the time she was in a class with another quilter whose boyfriend came in. He asked about the rotary cutters and was skeptical that they could be so sharp. In a "here, let me prove my point" testosterone-enhanced display, he ran the blade down the pant leg of his denim jeans, slicing open his leg. (Probably one reason more men don't quilt--our tools are just too dangerous!)

Despite the physical dangers involved, though, the thing that really scares me most about quilting is its addictive properties. I used to have a life. My lifestyle involved varied activities. My husband and I occasionally went out to dinner or a movie. We saw friends. We spent time with our kids. Now I quilt. Well, I go to work, and then I quilt. Most of the time, I can manage to refrain from quilting on the job, but some days, I just need that little bit of quilting on my lunch hour to get me through the work day. Hello. My name is Kim. And I'm a quilt addict.

No, I don't think so. I don't think I need a 12-step program or an intervention. I think maybe it's possible to taper off a little bit at a time without going cold turkey. I think I just need a little self-control. Maybe an occasional evening away from the sewing machine, going to a movie or reading a book.

Or maybe quilting's really not that bad after all. Most of the physical stuff can be cured--or at least improved--with a little ibuprofen. And what could be so bad about doing something you really love to do, even if you do it ALL THE TIME?! After all, I DO manage to get out at least a couple times a month for a little social interaction with other quilters. It's not like I'm a closet quilter or anything!

Do me a favor, though, okay? If you ever catch me stealing stash from other quilters to support my habit, please arrange an intervention. If I start lying about all the quilting I do, encourage me to attend a 12-step program. And if I start acting crazy, shave my head bald, and neglect my family so I can keep on quilting, call Dr. Phil.

Checking In!

Thanks again for all of your well wishes. I'm feeling much better today! Yesterday I still had a nagging headache and body aches but nothing a little ibuprofen couldn't fix--well, ibuprofen and sewing therapy anyway!

I've begun taking down some of the Christmas decorations. Or maybe I should say MY HUSBAND has begun taking down some of the Christmas decorations. He's really done a bit more than I have, spending the day yesterday watching football and taking down the large tree and packing everything away. I've done a little directing--like telling him which things around the house can be packed away. I DO like to leave a few things up for awhile--those things that fit into the Winter/Valentine's Day theme.

Speaking of the Winter/Valentine's Day theme, I've been hard at work on my heart quilt, but I think I'll surprise you with it when it's done. I might just finish the top today sometime, depending on what else comes up requiring my attention.

I think I've decided that instead of making the Awakenings quilt for my brother and his wife for Christmas this year, I'll save it until next year and instead make them a picnic tote this year. The one I made my son's girlfriend turned out pretty cute, and I think my brother and his wife would enjoy it. I'm so tired of the pressure of having to get things done for Christmas that I think I'm rebelling a little bit on getting the Awakenings quilt done. Well, at least I can finish it in the next couple months and be ready with a one gift early next year! It's still on my list of things to get done soon, but I'm just not sure I can have it done by the end of the month, given the other projects on that list.

And speaking now of totes, today is my girl boss's 26th birthday, and I've made her a lunch tote with a couple napkins--I'll give it to her tomorrow. I really like this pattern--it's fun to make! It's by QuiltsIllustrated and I think it's just called Lunch Tote. I need to pick up more of the fusible interfacing when I go to the quilt shop for Thimbleberries Club this week--this is also something I plan to make as Christmas gifts next year, so I might as well get started on those too.

Our weather has cleared up a bit, although we're expecting rain on and off throughout the week. At least we won't get the high winds and pounding rain. Our garage roof still seems to be leaking, so we'll need to call the roofing people this week--and I suspect they're going to have a back log of customers, so we may need to wait awhile. As things go, though, a leak in the garage isn't too dire. There are still people here in Sacramento without power, and The Governator has declared Sacramento a disaster area. We have a lot of older trees at my office--it will be interesting to see how everything there weathered the storm when I go back to work tomorrow.

Time to head back to the Sweat Shop before the weekend gets away from me! Enjoy your day, whatever it may hold!

The BIG Storm

I guess if there's ever a good day to be sick, this was it. I woke up this morning still not feeling up to par and hearing the unmistakable sound of a storm raging outside. Calling in sick was pretty much a no-brainer, although I hate missing work when it's such a short work week to begin with. Still . . . .

Because the lights kept flickering off and on, I decided to get up, have a hot cup of coffee while I still could, and do a little sewing while watching the non-stop weather coverage on the TV. I actually thought going back to sleep for awhile was a better plan, but I figured I'd put it off for a bit so I'd have something to do later if the electricity went out.

All morning long, the winds were high and the wind gusts were even higher. On the news, they talked about big rig trucks blowing over and blocking freeways. Trees had fallen down, crashing through homes in some instances. Flights were cancelled. When I looked out into our back yard, I saw that our back fence had blown down. Today was the day for our weekly garbage pick up. Our recyclable container had fallen over, and the newspaper inside was so water-logged I could barely stand it back up. I had to hunt down our regular garbage container--it had blown across and down the street. By the time I took care of those things, I was soaking wet and happy to get back inside, dry off, and change clothes.

A limb of our neighbor's tree cracked off. The wife had come home for an early lunch and noticed it breaking, so she called her husband. By the time he got home, the branch was resting on his roof, and he came over to see if we had a chain saw. While he and I talked, we watched--and heard!--the branch crack the rest of the way. He'll have a mess to deal with, but he got up on his roof and didn't see any noticeable damage, luckily.

I discovered leaks in the roof over the garage. We aren't sure if there are actual leaks or whether the high winds just forced the water up underneath the shingles, but with rain predicted for the next several days, I guess we'll have an opportunity to find out! The roof is only about five years old, so if there are any true leaks, it's still under warranty.

All in all, though, we came through the storm pretty well, considering. Our area will have to watch for flooding--the rain got pretty heavy at times and caused some localized street flooding but I understand most of it is subsiding now.

It sure was a good day to stay home and not have to be out in the storm! I never did get that nap though--many are still without power, but we were fortunate enough not to have lost ours, so I kept sewing and watching the news. Time for bed now--I'm hoping to get a good night's rest and feel better in the a.m. Thanks for all your comments wishing me well! For those of you here in California or elsewhere in the path of this storm, I hope you were as fortunate as we were!

Voodoo, Anyone?

Last night, I finally started reading The New Year's Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini. There's been much chat about New Year's resolutions in Blogland--some of it coming from this very same blog! Early in the book, there's a passage about New Year's resolutions that I thought I'd share parts of:

"I don't believe in making New Year's resolutions. If someone needs to change, they should change, and not wait for the New Year to do it."

"Some people don't have your self-discipline," said Sylvia, smiling. "Some people need an important occasion to herald a time for change."

The book goes on, "I'm very much in favor of New Year's resolutions, . . . . They are a sign of optimism and hope . . . . Someone who makes a New Year's resolution is declaring that they have hope, that they believe they can improve their lives, that we can change our world for the better."

I think that's how I look at New Year's resolutions--a hope that I can follow through with whatever plan I make to improve things in the coming year. I'm very good at short term goals--driven, in fact. If I plan to do something, I push myself until it's done. It's crazy sometimes! My rational self says there's a point at which it's healthy to admit you just can't achieve whatever goal you've set for yourself. Most of the time, I think the only one disappointed is you, and next year, you'll probably have totally forgotten about it anyway--at least the smaller goals. My irrational self tells me that I don't really NEED that extra hour of sleep, do I?!

Nevertheless, here I am making quilting resolutions--goals for the coming year--and suggesting you do the same. But there are ways of setting goals in a relatively sane manner. Tonight I was trying to catch up with my blog reading and I came across Mar's blog post on the subject. Go over and take a look. I like the way she's set up her goals not as a checklist of items to be accomplished this year but as a "focus" list. This makes complete sense to me. Baby steps, sort of. Goals set out in a way so as not to overwhelm a person. Goals that are flexible and can be added to or re-prioritized as needed.

I think I've been thinking vaguely along similar lines. I declared January a finish-it-up month. I have to confess, though, that I then made a point of starting this heart quilt project on December 31st so I could work on it during January in good conscience! Silly reindeer games! But I consulted with May Britt and she thought it was a good plan. And I DO really want to make this quilt. Then I want to finish my brother's quilt, catch up on the Hometown Christmas quilt, and get a couple small quilts quilted and bound in January. If possible. If sanely possible.

After January, I'm not sure, other than to KNOW that this year, I will have a little more self-restraint and put a bit more thought into new projects to ensure that I make the quilts I really LOVE and not get sidetracked onto a quick project just for the sake of making a quick project. I also have a couple of quilts that I've started that are primarily applique--I know I really want to work on those, so I will need to focus on them--those are the kinds of projects that I can so easily put off, not because I don't want to applique but because it seems like a good project for "later." I am also determined to start getting Christmas gifts made long before Christmas! Angela at Quilting in Cornfields said it well on her blog--I'm not sure which of us was more insane during the weeks leading up to the holiday: "I felt like I was missing out on the magic of the season . . . . Goal for this year is to get hand made presents started, well, like now. And if it isn't done two weeks before Christmas? It's gift cards baby!"

One of the things I missed during this holiday season was visiting with all of you, but I spent this evening catching up on my blog reading. I was sorry to see that so many of you have been sick with one thing or another, and I am completely sympathetic since I too am feeling a bit under the weather. Today I took my girl boss out for lunch for her birthday along with another secretary and her boss--who was also celebrating a birthday in a couple days. By the time we got back to the office, some sort of stomach bug hit me. I was pretty sure it was too soon to have had anything to do with the salads we ate, and by the time I got home from work, I was feeling a bit more ill.

I wondered, as I was surfing through my blog friends' posts, whether I'd come across a blog with a Voodoo doll bearing my name, with pins stuck here and there. I kind of thought that could explain this stomach bug--I figured one or two of you may be retaliating for all the Megging I've been doing these last couple days! (Vicky? Is it YOU?!) But no, if any of you DO have a Kim Voodoo doll, I guess you're not sharing it on your blog!

Here in Northern California, we have a nasty storm moving in. I keep hearing the wind gusting outside, and the rain should start back up sometime tonight. I guess if I'm going to be sick, this might be as good a time as any for it. As long as I can quilt, anyway. Yeah, I don't really mind TOO much if I have to stay home in a HUGE storm and quilt--at least the Sweat Shop is only the width of a hallway away from the bathroom. But do me a favor, would ya? Could you pull those pins out of the Kim Voodoo Doll before the weekend gets here? I'd really appreciate it!

It's a Small Quilting World!

So I walked into Bearpaws & Hollyhocks tonight for the Jo's Little Women Club meeting, and the owner, Lindy, said, "Kim! What do you have on your blog?" Uh, a bunch of tamales. Why? No, I didn't really say that. I knew right away that she was asking because she had heard from a few of you who were interested in the Christmas List quilt.

Now, you have to understand that Lindy's not much into computers and has probably never read my blog. In fact, I think that the only reason she knows what a blog is is because she went to a seminar thingy at Moda U and they talked about blogs.

Anyway, it turns out that at least two of you have contacted Lindy's shop and ordered the patterns for this quilt, and Lindy was amazed that "people from all over the country" were calling. "Just THIS country?," I asked. "Because people from all over the WORLD read my blog, Lindy." She just kind of looked at me over the tops of her glasses. I'm not sure she believed me.

Lindy has known--or known of--Donna Yackey, the designer of the Christmas List pattern, for a bit now. I remember several months back, Lindy was tickled to death because Donna had made her a quilt for the shop of a bear and hollyhocks, and it's been hanging on the wall behind Lindy's desk and the cutting table ever since. Tonight I noticed Lindy has a couple of Donna's patterns for sale on her pattern wall--the bear and hollyhocks quilt and another really cute Spring quilt with bunnies hopping all over it. Tempting. That one may have to come home with me one of these days! And Lindy talked to Donna sometime in the last day or so--I guess Donna had heard that someone out in Blogland had written about the Christmas List quilt, and from what Lindy said, Donna was pleased. (Donna, in case you're reading this--I just LOVE that quilt! It's just the cutest thing!) Isn't it amazing how so many of us connect through the power of blogging? I think it's just terrific!

And if any more of you are interested in the Christmas List patterns, call or email Lindy and the shop--they'll be happy to assist you. Or, if you're interested in any of Donna's other patterns, you can call or write Donna at the number and/or address listed in the comments HERE.

Oh, to change the subject slightly, just in case anyone is still looking for this Gingerbread Lane pattern, you can probably get that from Lindy too--she still has a few patterns hanging on the pattern wall. This is one I've put in my "Christmas bucket" to be considered for making this year because I think it would be reasonably simple but awfully cute!

By the way, just in case you're wondering, I asked Lindy if I get a kickback for any orders you gals place. She just laughed. That happens to me a lot. People just laugh. Sheesh!

Back to Reality

The holidays are over and it's time to go back to work and get on with life. Part of me is relieved to be done with the deadlines and the pressure they can bring, while part of me wishes the holidays could go on a little longer!

This next weekend, I'll probably take down much of the Christmas decorations and get them packed away for next year, but I'll leave a few "winter" things up around the house for now, and I'll leave many of my red and white things out in the kitchen. I love the tradition that several people have of bringing out their snowmen after Christmas--I may leave a few of mine out. Mostly, though, I'll start to get ready for Valentine's Day.

I guess you can tell I'm a sucker for holidays of any kind. Yes, I really do decorate for Valentine's Day. In fact, I leave the smallish tree up in the kitchen--I take off the Christmas ornaments and add hearts and things in their place.

A couple of you were curious/anxious/downright demanding about what those pink and red squares were going to be--the ones I gave you a peek at between all those tamales. Those are now blocks--

I have some alternate blocks to make and I'll need to do some applique in the border, but I'm hoping this won't take too long to make because I'd like to put it up on my kitchen wall in place of the It's a Wrap quilt.

I have so many ideas and things to do floating around in my head, that I'd love to have a couple more days off to work on them, but back to work I must go to support my quilting habit. Thanks for stopping in to visit!

Welcome to Tamale World!

Tamales--Day 2

Do you have your filling ready? I think Sharon's anxiously waiting to see what happens next! So here goes!

INGREDIENTS:

Masa--this is a fine cornmeal. Regular cornmeal won't do. The consistency of masa is similar to flour. This is the stuff I couldn't find at my regular grocery store, but I tried another and found it there.

Chicken broth or stock--One can should do.

Shortening

Baking powder

Salt

Corn husks--You'll need one bag, but you might want to get two just in case you run out. Soak these in warm water for at least two hours to overnight so they're soft and pliable.

This recipe is actually two batches of dough, which should be just about enough if you've made a single recipe of filling. If you don't quite have enough, halve the following ingredients and make up a second batch.

1. Beat 1-1/2 cups of shortening until fluffy.

2. In a separate bowl, mix 4 cups of masa with 2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1 teaspoon of salt. To that, add 4 cups of liquid made up of 1 can of chicken broth and warm/hot water to equal the 4 cups. Mix liquid into dry ingredients. (If you don't have chicken broth, simply use water.)

3. Add dough to shortening and beat until blended.

GETTING READY

Here are some additional things you may need:

Traditionally, tamales have a single black olive placed carefully into the center. I don't usually have the patience, so I just dump a can of black olives into my filling and mix them in. I also like to dice up pepper jack cheese and add that to the filling. I swear there's not much better than a gooey, melting nugget of cheese in a hot tamale! You will also need some twine to tie the ends of your tamales. I know that a lot of people just fold their tamales, but I think I'd need super glue to hold them closed--it just doesn't seem to work for me. For this reason, I prefer the rolled type with tied ends. Cut your string--which should be a fairly thick cotton string--between 6 and 8 inches long.

Here's how I usually set things up. Filling on one side, a plate to hold the rolled tamales, string close by, a pot of corn husks, and the bowl of masa dough. I also like to use a thick bath towel to work on because it absorbs the water from the corn husks and gives me something to wipe my fingers on when needed. And that reminds me--you're probably going to get messy. Wear old clothes.

You will also need to steam the tamales once you've rolled them, so you'll need something to steam them in. I use this large turkey roaster with a roasting rack. I place an inch or two of water in the bottom, and the rack holds the tamales out of the water. I can usually cook seven tamales at a time.

THE TAMALE ROLLING PROCESS

Lay out two to three corn husks, overlapping one another. I like to use one of the larger husks as a base and then one or two (or three) smaller husks to the right of the larger husk and overlapping.

Spread a thin layer of masa dough over the husks, leaving about an inch clear at the top and bottom. The trick here is to estimate how wide to spread the masa, because you'll need to spread it wide enough to wrap around the filling but not across the entire surface of the corn husks. Try one or two to get an idea of how large an area you should cover with the masa. Note that you don't have to perfectly cover every little crack, but do the best you can to spread it evenly as the masa will hold the filling in.

Place filling down the center of the masa dough, not quite reaching the top and bottom of the dough--you want the dough to seal at the ends, not squirt filling out.

Roll the corn husks over the top of the tamale. If you've used a large husk, it should nearly wrap around the entire tamale. Slip a piece of string under one end and tie tightly closed while pinching and adjusting the husks to ensure they don't gap open. Turn the tamale and do the same on the other end.

Repeat. A bunch of times. It will get easier as you become familiar with working with the masa and the corn husks and the rolling technique.

Layer the tamales in a steamer so that air/steam can circulate between them; cover and steam for 45 minutes. Do not despair if one or two in the first batch are not pretty. Sometimes during cooking--until you get the whole rolling process down--they can fall apart a bit. This can be fixed. Simply EAT the ones that aren't quite as nice looking.

Now you'll probably have a mess to clean up, but it's well worth it!

Tamales freeze well. I usually put 4 to 6 in a Ziploc bag and stick them in the freezer, to be pulled out on those days when I'd rather quilt than cook. To reheat, you can put them in the microwave or re-steam them. The tamales I make are pretty big and usually one or two is enough for each person, depending on appetite and side dishes. I started off with two 5-pound pork roasts and ended up with about 40 tamales. Yum!

We Interrupt This Cooking Show to Bring You . . .

A little quilting content! I know there are quite a few of you who have no intention of making tamales, so I thought I'd talk a little about quilting stuff. Frankly, I like Kairle's tamale recipe. She has a little boy who comes to her door every couple of weeks selling his mom's homemade tamales. Yep, that's the fastest, easiest recipe I've heard! I don't have the right ingredients though--no little boy whose mom makes great tamales! Bummer!

I have my first batch of tamales steaming, so I thought I'd take a minute or two to chat. First of all, "Scrappy" left a comment on my Christmas List Quilt post with info on contacting the pattern designer. If any of you want to make this quilt, in addition to the other resources I gave you, there's another--just look in the comments section of that post. And I finally got a photo of the quilt hanging at the quilt shop, so I don't need to rip off Sharon's anymore! I swear she was threatening me with copyright infringment litigation or something!

Eileen was clammoring early this morning for photos, so here's a photo of the blocks for my brother's quilt up on my design wall--they aren't sewn together yet, but the blocks are made.

And here's a photo of the project I'm working on now--just a bit to tantalize you with!

Finally, here's a photo of Spike--obviously quite busy while I'm hard at work making tamales! I bet she'll be right at my feet, though, once the tamales are done! I think she likes my new soft red robe!

Tamales--Day 1

Are you ready to make some tamales?

When I was a little girl, my dad worked as a liquor store clerk. As I grew older, sometimes I would go to work with him for awhile, and I found he had a steady stream of "friends" who came and went all day long. The job seemed more social than anything else, and my dad's customers loved chatting with him.

The liquor store was in a part of town that was fairly heavily Hispanic, and every year around Christmas, my dad's customers would bring him tamales--part of the traditional Mexican Christmas meal. He'd come home bearing brown paper bags of tamales--sometimes only two or three in a bag, and sometimes a half dozen. Around New Years, we'd have a tamale feast. There were all types of tamales made by several different people, but they were all good! I looked forward to tamales every year.

At some point, of course, I moved out of my parents' house, and within a few years, my dad retired, and there were no more tamales for us during the holiday season. Quite a few years ago, my crazy friend Lisa and I were talking about tamales, and we decided to try making some. It was a lot of fun, and the tamales were wonderful--better than I even remembered from childhood! It's been my tradition to make tamales around New Years ever since.

Before getting started making our tamales, I should tell you that tamale filling isn't an exact science. You'll need to experiment with different seasonings and spices until you get the filling you want. What I'll give you here are some general guidelines to start with; after that, your tamales will be YOURS, created by you!

I've used all kinds of meat for tamales and my favorite is pork. The "recipe" I'll give you here is for pork, but at the end, I'll tell you how to adjust the recipe to use beef or chicken/turkey instead. Let's get started!

THE INGREDIENTS

For pork tamales, you'll need:

Pork, of course! Last year I used one pork roast and ended up with about 25 tamales. This year, I want to make more, so I bought two pork roasts. The specific cut isn't important--if you can find pork roast on sale, all the better! The measurements I'll give you are for one pork roast, approximately 5 pounds in weight with a bone--for boneless pork, you'll probably want one around 4 pounds.

Green chile enchilada sauce--a large can, or two to three smaller cans.

Chicken broth--again, a large can or two smaller cans. (You'll have a bit leftover from the filling but while you're buying broth, get an extra can or two to use for the masa dough later.)

Green chiles--two small cans of chopped green chiles.

Jalapeno peppers, diced--one small can, if you like spicy. These can be left out if you prefer less spice.

You'll also need flour (a few tablespoons), salt, pepper, crushed or chopped garlic, oregano, cumin, cayenne pepper and/or crushed red pepper if you like it spicy, and vegetable or other cooking oil.

MAKING THE FILLING

Cut your meat into large chunks, put into a large pot, and add water to cover. (Cut off large chunks of fat but don't worry about getting all of it--it will cook off or be removed later.)

Simmer the meat on the stove for several hours until the meat is tender and falling apart. Drain the liquid (reserve liquid for beef or chicken/turkey, but discard for pork) and allow the meat to cool so it can be handled.

Shred the meat and remove visible fat. Toss with about 4 tablespoons of flour and salt and pepper to taste.

In a large frying pan, heat a couple tablespoons of oil, and add meat. Cook to brown the meat a bit.

Once you have browned the meat, put it into a large pot. Add a large can of green chile sauce and about 1-1/2 cans of chicken broth. Add two cans of diced green chiles with liquid and jalapeno peppers to taste. Add seasonings and spices to taste. For these, you can start with a tablespoon or two of garlic, a tablespoon or two of oregano, a teaspoon of cumin, and a bit of cayenne and/or crushed red peppers. Because the filling will be cooked in a corn flour dough, you'll want the filling to be fairly well seasoned. Add more salt and pepper if needed.

Simmer this mixture on the stove for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring several times and tasting occasionally so you can add additional spices and/or liquid as needed. The mixture should have the consistency of a thick stew or soup.

Once the filling has simmered and the flavors are blended, refrigerate the filling until you are ready to make your tamales.

FILLING VARIATIONS

For beef filling, substitute red enchilada sauce for the green chile enchilada sauce. Use reserved beef broth from cooking the beef in place of the chicken broth. You will probably need 2 to 3 cups of broth. When I make beef tamales, I usually buy whatever beef roasts are on sale.

For chicken or turkey, you can use either red or green enchilada sauce. Use reserved cooking broth rather than canned chicken broth.

There are many other fillings you can use. A friend of mine makes tamales with cheese and green olives. The combination sounds odd, but they're pretty good! Once you've made tamales once with one of these meat fillings and are familiar with the process, experiment!

Happy New Year!

It's waaaay past midnight and 2008 has arrived in Northern California! Happy New Year to each and every one of you who stop in here to visit and see what I'm up to.

My 2008 quilting resolutions post seems to have gotten a few of us thinking about what we hope 2008 will bring, and I've enjoyed reading what some of you have planned. Although I'm still making my list--and enjoying digging through my old kits, books, and patterns in the process--I am planning to finish up a lot of things this month that I've begun previously. Many of you seem to be thinking along similar lines, and May Britt of Abyquilt has even started a challenge to motivate us to get things finished--go on over and visit her if you haven't already.

I've finished piecing the blocks for the quilt for my brother and it's up on my design wall, waiting to be sewn together--I'll get a photo of that soon to share. I have the makings for another quilt I've begun out on my table in the Sweat Shop--it's a wallhanging that I think I can finish fairly quickly, so I can get it up on the wall--it's perfect for this transitional time of the year between Christmas and Valentine's Day. I'll show you more soon. I have three small projects pinned and ready to quilt. These are all my immediate projects, although there are more I hope to get to in January.

I have tamale filling in the refrigerator, waiting for me to make tamales on New Year's Day. I will post the recipe and some photos a little bit later. I plan to break the directions into two posts--one for making the filling and one for the rest--making the dough, wrapping the tamales, and steaming them. That's pretty much how I make them too--I make the filling one day and do the rest a day or two later.

Oh, and I cleaned house on New Year's Eve day--I didn't want to start the new year off with a dirty house! One thing I HAVEN'T done, though, is take down the Christmas decorations. I just hate to take them down, but I'll work on that this coming weekend. And some things will stay up for the time being--I'll explain why in the next week or so.

I feel like I've gotten myself a bit organized now and ready to welcome in the new year. I hope you have had a wonderful New Year's Eve and that 2008 has started out well!