The "Quilt" post

Before I sign off for a week and a half (no blogging while on vacation for me), I have to dedicate a quick post to my quilt. Almost a year in making, after lots of avoiding and feeling intimidated, this baby is complete, down to the very last stitch... And, amazingly, I want to make MORE. Yes, I always feel burned out after completing a time consuming project and feel like I don't want to work on another similar project for a long time. But somehow, it's different with quilt making. Once I got on the roll, there was no stopping me, the more I worked, the more fun it was, until it got to the point that I could hardly keep myself from squealing with joy while hand stitching the binding. Oh, and what a wonderful therapy it was...

Now this baby is resting on the couch, and it's making the whole room more cheerful and happy, despite of all the mess that's not going anywhere :)

yes, very orange. and so very me.






seeing its' first 'action' after the fireworks

My 'freedom day'

Ah, what a good day it was, so many highlights and happy moments. My friend Annie called it 'freedom day'. So true, so true...

:: did some quilting on my quilt, I think it will be done by the time Maya and Elijah get back from visiting grandparents ::

:: spent my afternoon with some cool and adorable people, Annie and her 'crew' ::

:: little Miles has the most incredible hair, and a chin to match ::

and somewhere in between all that we managed to try a delicious recipe from one of Annie's magazines (remind me the name of it?). It was so good that I made it again once I came home. I'll try to post recipe to the best of my abilities, but I didn't look at the measurements in the magazine, just eyeballed everything, as usual :)

Garam Masala Potatoes

rice (2 c, uncooked)

gold yukon or white potatoes (5 medium sized, cubed into 1" pieces)
oil (canola or extra virgin coconut, just enough for frying)
onion (1 medium or large, chopped)
garlic (3-5 medium or large cloves)
freshly grated ginger (1"-2" piece)
ground coriander (2-3t)
ground cumin (1t)
ground turmeric (1t)
garam masala (2-3t)
baby spinach (lots)
coconut milk (1 can)
water (1/4c)
salt (to taste)

limes
cilantro

Cook rice the way you usually do it.

Boil cubed potatoes for 7-10 minutes. Meanwhile, cook onions until golden brown, add garlic (chopped or minced), ginger and spices. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Add coconut milk, water, salt and drained potatoes. Toss well, cook covered for 5-7 minutes. Add spinach, cover for 2 minutes, then stir and add more spinach if needed (cook covered for another minute or so).

Serve with rice, garnish with chopped cilantro and sprinkle fresh lime juice on top. Feel free to have seconds.

back pain or not...

Right now I really feel like I'm in need of some therapeutic sewing (not for my back, obviously, that's a whole other story). So yes, I got out THAT quilt that was never finished in spite of my whole two attempts to work on it over the last year. I've made more progress than ever before. The quilt top is almost done, batting drying outside. Could it be real? A quilt done by the end of the week?

And I truly don't care if those blocks don't match. Here are my reasons:

* yes, I'm sewing with back pain
* it's my first quilt, which will most likely end up being a picnic blanket, or something in that nature.
* who's going to look closely? I mean, how often do we get visitors or people to have a picnic with?
* I'm not patient enough for re-doing it, I just want it DONE.
* I care about colors and prints more and I care about intricate pattern or perfect stitching.
* as long as it's DONE and usable, I'll be happy as a clam.