Industriousness

Okay, so the table is one that I found at the Hospice thrift that I love so much. I saw it and knew I just really had to have it. Once we get back to our regular house I think it is going to look so cute in the foyer! This is the frame that I have intended to change out for each season. As you can see I'm a little late with Summer, but at least it is still technically Summer! hee hee I love the paper and the embellishments!!!! I have so many ideas for Fall, it will be fun to see what comes out!
So, last Monday when I got to work, this pot with fleurs was sitting on my desk! My lovely coworkers put it together for me since my flower beds at my house have been ripped out during construction. Hubby did manage to salvage my bulbs for me, but still. So there was a cute little card that read: Gina's idea, Sue's pot and Debbie's flowers! So they all pitched in and it turned out wonderfully! It is on a plant stand that I have in the kitchen. I love it :)

I finally, finally finished the patriotic banner that I started last year! I fastened each star to the bias tape with a button to cover the stitches, I think it turned out fun!

So this past weekend I started my first quilt, cutting out some squares. I started that on Saturday, and then Sunday I made my first ever apricot jam! I have 4 books on canning/freezing/drying things so I thought I was ready to can up the apricots that I had picked. But, aparently I am not as great at reading directions as I had originally thought! So, in the Ball book there was a picture box with a spoon with jam dripping off of it to give you and idea of what the jam should do when it has reached the gelling point. I assumed that the spoon shown was the spoon you'd used to stir the jam while it was cooking. After I finished boiling the jars and panicking to get everything jarred up quickly enough I relooked at the book and realized that the spoon should have been a different spoon that was cold. Whoops. I think I am going to have to remake my jam. Luckily, I had bought a box of pectin and in the instructions in there it said I can remake the jam and add the pectin. What a relief! I have to tell you that even though I had read up on the subject, it was a little disconcerting trying to get the apricots peeled, mixed up, cooked properly, get the jam in the jars, wipe the jars down, get them in the boiling water, record the time, then worry about the seals on the jars. Now that I know what to expect though, I think it will go smoother next time. And, I do feel kind of industrious :)

The fruits of my labor :)