Cooking Fingers

Monday (1/9) was another freezing cold day…Michael wanted to take Cookie for a walk in the morning….but we both decided he’d get frost bite, so he decided to wait for a bit.  Our furry babies were basking in the sun while he ate breakfast:

I kind of putzed around in the morning (oh…I forgot…this is for you Leila) I spent time in the morning researching different quilting patterns to decide what I want to start next!!!  I just finished the snowball type quilt top and I always have a lull before I feel like starting something new.  I had 2 projects that I wanted to complete in January….a sew-it-together bag for me and a sample block for the labyrinth quilt, but I just can’t seem to get motivated.  I left for Cooking Fingers around 10 AM.  I was home by 12:30 after a wonderful lunch provided by the proprietor of our local olive oil/balsamic vinegar store:

I first went to a store like that with my friend Ginny…there was one in her hometown of Abingdon VA.  I brought home flavored oils and vinegar and used them up…so it is really nice that a new store is now close by.  We had a fruit salad dressed with citrus oils and white balsamic vinegar:  

Followed by butternut squash/cranberries dressed with maple balsamic vinegar and cinnamon-pear vinegar (yum!!!), and roasted chicken with veggies, tossed with Tuscan Herb Olive oil:  

Everything was yummy, including the chocolate fudge type dessert, full of healthy seeds:  

When I came home, Michael was busily working on his craft project….with his faithful companion:  

I headed downstairs…As I said I’m still kind of at loose ends because I don’t want to do the 2 sewing tasks I had set for myself for January….so I finished up my third embroidery instead :~):  

Diane stopped by to pick up her red/white quilt and she seemed VERY pleased with the heart motif…so that made me happy.  And then Pat stopped by to bind off her hat and sew it up and we had a nice long talk.  Michael and I had crab stuffed flounder, baked potatoes and green beans for dinner….it was heaven…I think I could eat that same thing for days on end!  I hit my studio for another hour, but just managed to set up a new embroidery before coming upstairs to finish the body of my sweater (YAY!) while we watched TV.