Less Talking More Eating


It's been months since I ate a cold meal.

Parents often say that they miss hot meals once they start having family dinners. Too much time spent cutting, feeding, cleaning, and cajoling and not enough time enjoying their own food. In our house we have the opposite problem. Hubby and I finish our meals before our children have even started eating and it's getting damn frustrating.

We always eat together. I dish up the same food for everyone, a little of this and a little of that. Everything must be tried, but not necessarily eaten if you don't like it. A glass of milk on the side and maybe, just maybe, a treat or some fruit after dinner. The girls, like most kids, don't like hot foods. I serve them first and we cut it all up, as necessary, as Hubby and I serve ourselves. Then we all sit down and should be able to enjoy a pleasant meal.

Should.

Meals are anything but pleasant these days. Hubby and I will chit chat while we eat, with the girls coming in every now and then to tell us to only talk one at a time or "less talking more eating!" By no means are we inhaling our food, but almost every night we'll be half done before the girls have taken a single bite - if we're lucky.

That picture up there? Our lovely bison stew (a family favourite, made this way) and some olive oil bread (courtesy of Martha Stewart). I snapped that of The Monster's meal when I was already half done mine.

Dinner tonight took 45 minutes! I'm all for leisurely meals, lingering over wine and great conversation. Or even milk and knock knock jokes. I am not, however, down with reminding my children to actually take a forkful of their food and watching them chew everything 50 times, every single bite. Every single bite. Or repeat that there that there is no singing at the table and they are the ones that need "less talking, more eating." (Oh, how my parents are laughing now.)

It isn't even a battle about whether they like it or not. It's the same regardless of what we eat, but definitely worse if it is something they are iffy about.

By the time the girls finally finished tonight and I offered up some grapefruit and vanilla bean panna cotta they, and we, were done.

What would you do when faced with this?

Merry Christmas

It seems rather obvious that most of us are gathering with family over the next few days. Whether family means the neighbours next door or the entire familia at your parent's house, there are likely to be a few familiar treat on the table.

For me that means a big Ukrainian feast, followed by Christmas Tree bun, a fantastic gourmet feast, and more hot cocoa than anyone possibly needs. Don't forget about the rogalki, the shortbread, the rum balls, and definitely the booze. (Have you ever noticed how Christmas is much more enjoyable now that you can drink in front of your parents?)

As a parent myself now I was fighting crowds and crossing fingers. There I was in Canadian Tire, not quite begging Santa to come through for me. The Monster asked for a water gun in her letter to Santa. A water gun, in December. While I waited for a very, very kind elf to check the basement of Canadian Tire for a random water gun I browsed the candy aisle. That's when I came across the Misty Mints.

These were a favourite holiday treat in my family. Only for Christmas. We hoarded our favourite colours, even though they all taste the same. They aren't even real chocolate, but are so tasty. And full of memories.

When the elf returned, miraculously, with a couple of soakers, I grabbed a few boxes of Misty Mints to share with my family. Santa will still be the popular guy with my four year old. And maybe my family peace can be negotiated with some pseudo chocolate. Merry Christmas.

What will you be sharing this week?

I'm taking some time off for the holidays. See you in the New Year!

Just Because

There are presents to wrap, a tiny bit more shopping to do, some making to happen, and some renewal of the family with Hubby now home. Instead, I'm working on a "Just Because" quilt.

I actually get quite annoyed when I'm asked what a quilt is for. I understand that people are being curious and I shouldn't get annoyed. The question, however, implies that all quilts have to serve a purpose or have a recipient in mind. It's a narrow view for those of us who feel a compulsion to create. I always answer, "It's just a quilt."

But it isn't just a quilt. There is always a reason to make. Sometimes it is simply to act in the process of making. Sometimes it is because you have an idea stuck in your head on repeat like 'All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth' (my apologies now). Sometimes there is a more guttural reason but you don't want to share it just yet.

So, even with all this stuff do to in anticipation of Christmas celebrations I'm plugging away on this particular Just Because quilt. I need to work on it and I need to have it done. Just Because.

(Go here to see the entire top and the inspiration.)

Sunday Mornings

It's time to say goodbye.

This week marks the last week of operation for the Calgary Farmers' Market at the Currie Barracks. In February they are scheduled to open in their new location. In the meantime, you can definitely visit the Kingsland Market.

We moved to Calgary seven and a half years ago. As we struggled with the adjustment to a new city while obligations kept us going back to Edmonton the Calgary Farmers' Market opened. We'd been so used to buying all our groceries at the Old Strathcona Market at home. We had our Saturday routine of quiet morning, the market, brunch, a dog walk, and some lazy time. It was awesome.

In Calgary, however, we really struggled to establish any sort of weekend routine aside from ordering pizza on Friday, drinking too much beer, and watching a hell of a lot of home improvement TV. We tried the Crossroads Market. It's good, but it never felt like the right fit for us. It was winter, so the outside market at Hillhurst Sunnyside wasn't an option (but traffic makes it difficult as it is).

Then the Calgary Farmers' Market opened. I'm pretty sure we went there on one of the first weekends. It was close, we met some great folks, and the food was great. We've been going pretty much every weekend since.

At first we were in and out, food in hand, rather quickly. Say hello to our favourite vendors, buy some groceries, and back home for more home improvement TV. Then we had kids. One of my first outings after a C-section was to the market. Even with The Monster as a baby we went and now lingered. Once the bouncy castle was a non-lethal option for her we stayed, played, ate, and then shopped. Coffee and tea in hand, of course.

In time, we've not only got to know the producers we buy from and their staff, but the food vendors who sell us our lunch, the balloon man, market staff, and an infinite number of other market goers. Vendors and staff ask about my knees and exclaim over the growth of the girls. When Smilosaurus/Death Wish decides to wander off people know who she is and stop her. This place is our Sunday morning home.

Just today we sat with our odd combination of waffles, pakoras, blintz, chai, and coffee, chatting with our table mates. (I'm not sure we've ever sat by ourselves for lunch.) The couple we sat with looked like they could have been models for Mr. and Mrs. Claus. We spent 45 minutes eating and chatting about organic farming and the history of large agriculture, in between cutting waffles and cuddles. Last week we chatted with two other folks about gifted and geeky kids. It didn't matter who or what, we've always had a friendly time there.

There are so many market options in the city now, fantastic options. Each one will have their benefits and downsides. Like us, those factors will change for you depending on your life circumstances. If it wasn't for our CSA membership we never would have ventured to Hillhurst-Sunnyside, for example, because the traffic is brutal from our end of town. But it is a great market. We haven't been to them all and I'm certainly willing to check them out. You should too.
I'll admit, I'm a bit worried that the new location will be too slick, too mall like. I'm more than willing to give it a good Sunday morning chance. Many of our favourite vendors will be there and I don't want to lose their food or our relationship. The girls are going to be without a bouncy castle for months, I hope they survive!

(As for dinner tonight, do wings and a beer count? Hubby and I had hot parent date of Christmas shopping with the girls after our trip to the market. We celebrated starting and finishing in a matter of hours with a trip to the bar.)


Gingerbread Cake

This is the cake that very nearly saved my life. Not changed my life, saved my life.

I have a very bad habit of waking in the middle of the night and snacking. I totally blame the tiny bladder I was blessed with, it wakes me and I'm left with nothing to do but snack before I try and get back to sleep. One April morning I awoke and tried to talk myself out of the extra ten steps to the kitchen for a piece of leftover gingerbread cake. I have no will power when fully awake, let alone at 3 am.

There I found myself, a piece of cake in hand and staring out the window when I noticed an orange glow. It took a few seconds to register that the glow wasn't actually supposed to be there. And a few seconds longer to realize that the glow meant fire.

Hubby's car was parked behind our garage on a parking pad. The car was the 1975 Triumph TR6 he bought a decade before. For years it had been in need to repair. In our garage sat the engine and an extra transmission. We'd moved 6 months earlier and he borrowed a flat bed to transport it all 3 hours down the highway. He knew exactly what he was going to do to the fix that car.

Having it lit on fire wasn't part of the plan.

In that eventual moment when I realized the car was on fire I screamed for him. He came running out, yelling at me to pick up the phone and call 911, then raced outside to grab the fire extinguisher from our daily driver in the garage. The garage two feet away from the burning car. I'm freaking out while the 911 operator is quite calmly and kindly reminding me that cars blow up and perhaps we should not be standing in front of the windows, let alone trying to put it out ourselves. That's when Hubby reminds me that there is no engine in the car and the gas tank would be empty. I'm obviously not very smart when faced with fire.

Fire trucks come and with very little ceremony the flames are doused in just minutes. The facts all point to someone having thrown accelerant on the hood of the car and tossing a match. By the time I'd discovered the fire there wasn't much left.

The garage was also hot and had to be hosed down on one side, siding eventually replaced. If the garage had gone up we would have lost our other car, the one with a full tank of gas, and who knows what else. As sad as Hubby was at losing his car, we were thankful that that was all we lost.

We came in the house as the sun was coming up and cracked a beer, a bit charred ourselves. When I went to put the bottles away I noticed the cake. One piece of cake fallen on the counter, with a single bite taken.

Peterson Gingerbread Cake
This is the recipe of my sister-in-law's mother. Their family likes it with Bird's Custard Sauce or even cream cheese icing. I'm partial to it with some maple butter. It is moist and heady with gingerbread.

1/2 cup shortening (I use butter)
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup molasses
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1 cup hot (not boiling) water

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8'' by 8'' baking pan.
2. Cream shortening/butter. Gradually add the sugar, then the egg. Beat until light and fluffy. Add the molasses.
3. In a medium bowl whisk together the dry ingredients. Add to the batter, 1/2 cup at a time, alternating with 1/4 cup water. Beat until smooth after each addition. Pour into pan.
4. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean.
1 cup molasses

Eye Candy

These books are feast for the eyes! Full of bright and very energetic quilts, the two Material Obsession books are some great eye candy for the modern quilter.

Actually, I think these books would be fantastic transitions to modern quilting. There are a lot of elements and inspirations from typically traditional quilts. The adaptations, designs, and fabric choices make them decidedly modern. They are bright, they utilize an array of popular, designer fabric, and many of them are updates on traditional inspirations.

Both of the books are essentially books of patterns, with a brief discussion on basic techniques. No extra text in there, but loads of pictures. To me, they are books I would pick up for some new ideas. I'm not one to go out and make THAT quilt specifically, but there is definitely a lot to inspire from construction techniques, colour choices, or block design.

If you did want to make THAT quilt from either of the books, know that these aren't beginner quilts. Some of the patterns are easier, but a neophyte would probably have a hard time getting through most of them. Confident beginner willing to try? Go for it.

The book runs the gamut of techniques as well. I really liked the applique quilts and was drawn to all the angles in some others. They advocate a number of speciality rulers. If I were to make one of these quilts I would hesitate before buying some of the rulers and probably want to paper piece instead. That's probably just me, though, as I don't like a lot of one-use items around.

The photos are stunning and literally peppered on every page. Tonnes of detailed shots and a plethora of quilts draped here and there kind of shots. I did not like that you didn't get a full on quilt shot until the end of the pattern in Material Obsession. Material Obsession 2 does have small images on the first page of the pattern, but then they would face that page with a draped quilt shot. I'm not a fan of the draped quilt shot, personally.

The books' authors, Kathy Doughty and Sarah Fielke, were owners of the drool worthy store Material Obsessions in Australia. Kathy still runs the store, but Sarah is on her own now as a designer and the creative director at Sewn.

You know me, I'm not a pattern follower. I will, however, be returning to these books every now and then for a little inspiration. So many details to take in.

Kingsland Farmers' Market Opens

There's a new market in town. Well, not entirely new. Kingsland Farmer's Market opened this past summer, with a strictly outdoor show. Now, the indoor show is open.

The Kingsland Farmers' Market is a player in the not quite saturated market game in Calgary. There was a lot of controversy about the Calgary Farmers' Market this past year, controversy I have no interest in getting involved in. The Kingsland Market is a welcome response to all of it.

I say welcome because there is a host of new vendors at this market. Well, new to this regular of CFM and the Hillhurst Sunnyside Market. I am also totally biased because, with good knees, I could walk to this market.


The indoor market opened last week. The building, a not quite renovated completely former car dealership, is more spacious than expected. While only a few dozen of the vendors were open for the first day of operations, I can see that there is room for a lot of interesting sellers. As the building gets completed and the word gets out, I can see this being an attractive spot for vendors. Rumour has it that some new to Calgary vendors will be there soon.

It is also an attractive spot for shoppers. Already there is a wide variety of vendors with produce, meat, dairy, and bakery options. When the market started there was a really strong focus, on paper, for the make/bake/grow commitment. For the most part, that is there. But there are some fruit resellers there - mangoes can be found at times in the midst of Southern Alberta cucumbers. Then there are the treats - pastry, chocolate, wine, mead, cookies, and more pastry. Seriously, two great pie options here. That includes these gimmicky but very good pie pops.

The location is ideal for more that people in my neighbourhood. I predict that it will hit commuters well with the Macleod Trail location. If you commute that way how could you not stop? You have no excuse now.

Maybe it was because there were more vendors than shoppers that first morning, but I was hooked when one vendor loaned me cash when the ATM was down, another captured my runaway toddler, and one more kept the bag of groceries I forgot in her stall until I returned to claim them. I'm not saying you can't get great service at the grocery store, but in the months, as I get to know these people I hope that we can all laugh about the day my Evil Genius stole your stickers and ate all your goat cheese samples.

Always Learning

It was our Christmas party at guild the other day. We had instructions to make a stocking, according to this tutorial, then fill it with treats. Um, okay.

Except when you have to eyeball the pattern because your computer/printer connection is spazzing. Then you eyeball that pattern quite oddly and make a little elf toe that refuses to get turned right side out. At least the string piecing went well. And you just know that your mostly traditional guild will balk at the bright colours.

Well, maybe they didn't balk at it. I would say, however, that mine was certainly the brightest on the table! The rest were all gorgeous though. So much thought put into the details and some very fine work.

These stockings are a perfect example of the guild for me. There are a handful of us under 40 there. The rest of the ladies are full of more life and I love sitting and listening to their stories and advice. I've got a lot to learn and to live. It's the same when it comes to quilting. There are some incredible skills in the room - from painting to embroidery to machine quilting to handwork to design. So much to learn.

Don't knock the elf toe and don't knock the traditional guild.

I Tried

You win some, you lose some.

Today I lost the dinner battle. The girls didn't want to eat due to our own parental mistake of a late snack. We sent The Monster to her room for having a snippy attitude. (She now says "Double" instead of "Oh Man" when she's extra frustrated because that is short for "Oh Man, doubled.") Frankly, dinner wasn't all that great either.

It was supposed to be good. It was a meal that was going to make my preggo sister-in-law jealous when she logged in from the office tomorrow. Sticky, slightly spicy ribs, roasted potatoes, and coleslaw with orange and pomegranates. For dessert, gingerbread cake, her mom's recipe.

The ribs were tough. I cook them about once every few years, so that is totally my fault in assuming I knew what the hell I was doing. The sauce was great, a combo of the tomatoes and onions roasted with the ribs, tomato marmalade, molasses, sambal olek, and mustard. We would have been better off licking the sauce from the ribs than trying to, literally, pretend we were lions to get the girls to eat. Thankfully the coleslaw was tasty and I've got roasted potatoes down pat. The gingerbread cake tasted pretty good too, although, it fell.

No good pictures of our meal, no great leftovers. When I eat some gingerbread cake with my tea and a Bosc pear tomorrow morning it should be right around the time my sister-in-law arrives at work and starts her day. Know that I was thinking of you.

It's the thought that counts.

Colouring Books

This week is all about colour. Perfectly appropriate with a fresh dusting of snow outside. Although, don't fool yourself, there is a lot of colour in a winter day.

Elle asked for my favourite colour books. Colour books are not all the same. Considering colour theory transcends the medium of the maker and is fairly standard, this is somewhat surprising.

When it comes to quilt books and colour, the variations seem to come in the communication of the theory. I think this is great because people learn differently and one book may sing to you and fall flat for another reader. Okay, that may be personality, but when it comes to colour, it is probably more about how the message hits you. It isn't any fault of the writer either. It is all about what you, the reader and quilter, respond to in a book.

At the top of the list for me is Fun Quilts Quiltmaker's Color Workshop. They do provide a few short pages on colour theory, then launch into concrete examples of 15 different palettes. They aren't grouped according to analogous, complementary, split complementary, etc., like so many other books. Rather they talk about a concept, mood, or inspiration. Each palette includes a real quilt, illustrations of the colours used - including demonstrations of the proportions used - and where they fit on the colour wheel. Then they include illustrations of what happens when you change proportions or vary the colour choices. Finally, they suggest exercises or workshop ideas for the individual or group. And this is for each of the 15 palettes.

I think the way the book is written can appeal to many different types of quilters and learning styles. It is incredibly detailed in discussion and in visual illustrations. It isn't a book you are going to pull out to see if this green goes with that purple on the colour wheel. It is, however, a great book for pushing you to examine your colour use and to encourage you to play with fabric and colour before you even bring out a needle and thread.

Another great book to push you through some challenges is Color and Composition for the Creative Quilter by Katie Pasquini Masopust and Brett Barker. This one isn't just about colour, they also cover layout, balance, and composition. Moving the reader through a whole bunch of exercises, they really encourage the personal adaptation of the concepts. It does follow the typical colour theory discussions, but with discussions on composition it is set apart from other books.

This book is also full, really full, of examples. Student work, quilts, photos, and drawings. even if you didn't do a single exercise, it too is also a good reference book. It is also full of tips and detailed explanations/inspirations for expanding your concepts of colour and composition.

Another book that takes the lesson approach is Color for the Terrified Quilter by Ionne McCauley and Sharon Pederson. This book is full of photos, illustrations, and basic lessons to get you playing with colour. There are examples and 11 quilt projects also included. Keep in mind that the projects are all pieced and would likely be considered traditional quilts by many. But they are quite striking in their simplicity and easily adapted to your own fabric sensibility and design preferences.

There is a big difference between this book and the Pasquini Masopust/Barker book. McCauley and Pederson's book is probably going to feel more familiar to the average quilter. That is, the ones who are happy making lots of quilts, complex and simple, modern and traditional. The Pasquini Masopust/Barker book is probably going to appeal to the art school grad or art quilter. They are both doing very similar things, but the layout, visuals, and communication provide a different tone to the books. I don't think one is necessarily better than the other in the material content of the book. Grab them both from the library and see what I mean.

Finally, there is always Joen Wolfrom. I used to steal her Color Play book from a quilting friend until I felt pretty confident in my understanding of colour. Visual Coloring is great for people who don't want to worry about colour theory though. Take a picture, an image, some graphics and pull the colours from that. Nature or the designers are both pretty good at making sure what is there works together.

Wolfrom features heaps of examples and a few patterns to illustrate her point. In all honesty, though, the discussion on what she means by visual coloring is short. What else could she say, though?

So, which is the right book for you? That's hard to say. I do think many beginners, and even us experienced folks would benefit from a good resource book. I own the first two books and do pull them out regularly. I fully admit that there is still a lot to learn.

A modern quilter who is ready to take steps into design and moving beyond single fabric line quilts would probably like Quiltmaker's Color Workshop the best. The quilts themselves are probably more appealing to a modern quilter.

Don't, however, discount a book just because the quilts in it aren't your style. Take cues from the presentations, lessons, and whether you actually learn something from the book. Colour books aren't necessarily meant for inspiration. Think of them as textbooks or reference materials.

Have I missed a favourite of yours? Have I thoroughly confused you with my insistence on using the letter U in colour?

Caught in the Act

Have you ever considered boycotting the entire notion of Christmas baking? Frankly, I'm sure most of us have at one time or another. We're so busy during December and stopping to bake a couple of dozen cookies for a swap, a party, or simply to steal from the freezer for the rest of the month is the last thing we want to do.

Then we see the covers of the magazines and every single one is a Christmas tree arrangement of glittery cookies tempting us back into the grocery store for butter and sugar. Our kids/partners beg for a batch of shortbread or some esoteric treat their mom used to make. Or the guilt hits.

Every year I swear I'm not going to do it. Maybe a batch of Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread or Peppermint Bark. But THAT'S IT.

And every year I bake 3 or 4 more kinds of cookies. Then I pretty much eat them all myself. What a Ninny.

So this year I vowed I wouldn't do it. I swore to my husband and my jiggly tummy that I wouldn't even buy the butter.

Then The Monster started prepping for the concert at school. It was all about The Gingerbread Man. In fact, a reenactment of the story. She's been walking around reciting the damn thing non stop. Then she asked to bake. I suggested gingerbread men. This brought on tears, full can't catch your breath sobs out of fear that our gingerbread men would run away after we baked them. We settled on gingerbread penguins and moose. Thank goodness there are no stories about runaway moose. At least none with catchy songs attached.

I pulled out the icing sugar, sprinkles, and ridiculously fake food colourings. It was craft time/kitchen time/treat time as far as the girls were concerned. It was a messy way to kill an hour. That's how I approached it at first. Still a Ninny.

The messier it got, however, the happier we all were. Grandma was visiting and happily iced the requested purple and pink penguins. We eventually laughed at the number of sprinkles underfoot, joking that one of us was going to wipe out like it was a pile of ball bearings and we were in a cartoon. My counters are stained and my kids ate more icing than cookies. There wasn't a single tantrum, by them or me.

No longer is Christmas baking about a pile of cookies in the freezer for the guests that might pop by. It isn't even about treats to share with the neighbours over tea. It is about process, the act of making. Baking and decorating cookies with the girls is like Jackson Pollack at a canvas.

Who cares that the cookies will likely not be eaten for lack of enough icing or the wrong sprinkles? They'll make me a little more Santa like, in spirit and with my jiggle.

For the record. We used this recipe from Julie for the cookies. The only change I made is that we cooked them for 10-11 minutes so they would be a bit softer.

Valuable Finish


Values Quilt
66'' Square

Finally, a finish. Well, almost. I haven't come up with a name for this one yet.

This one is a long time coming. It feels like it, at least. I started this one back in April. I'm usually much faster than this. Oh well. I fully claim life as getting in the way. It happens. And I'm okay with that. Lately, however, I've been craving finishes. I've got a few more going on, I'll keep you posted on those.
Once I got it basted it only took me a week to finish it. Really it took only one full day to quilt it. The one day Hubby gave me and I took it. Another evening and I had the binding on it. We went away for the weekend two weeks ago and I stitched away happily in the evenings at my MIL's.

The quilting is pretty darn simple. I can see why so many stick with simple straight lines. It's mindless, sure, but it gets things done quickly. For the one square section I went with these freehand and rather primitive hearts. The Monster is very big into drawing hearts these days, so that's where these came from.

The binding is this blue green. I found the quilt to be quite pink/red. Lots of warm tones. So I bound it in blue. The quilting is actually in two different blues as well. I think it balances things out a little bit better. What do you think?

Someone else has already taken to it quite quickly.

Class

I promise you that I cooked. Aside from our regular Sunday jaunt to the market, I actually cooked nearly all day. Unfortunately, I can't share it with you.

Everything I made today was for one article or another. None of which are due to come out until the New Year at the earliest. That means I can only tell you that I made apple kugel, butterscotch pudding, blackeyed peas, cardamom cookies, potstickers, and something called sabzi polo. I can't share a recipe or a photo. I'm sorry. If it helps, we ate this very eclectic meal for dinner and we are very, very full.

This is one of the advantages and disadvantages of the food writing gig. Sure, dinner gets made out of your work. That means your groceries are, in part, paid for. But after a day of cooking you are left with this really odd meal that you are too full to eat anyway.

Full confession: I totally sat and read a book with a beer in my hand when the light went and my mother-in-law arrived for a visit. Thanks, Susan, for playing hide and seek with the dinosaurs while I did nothing.

Don't get me wrong. I am not complaining about this new life I've chosen. I am getting more writing gigs. Being on my own with Hubby away as much as he's been is much more manageable now... sort of. And, no offense to my old colleagues, I don't miss the desk job at all. If anything, the hard part is giving everything the attention it needs. That includes the girls.

Truly, though, is there a mother in the world who thinks she spends enough time with her kids? Okay, quality time actually paying attention to them and doing nurturing activities?

If you are one of those mothers then I'm probably not the writer for you. Smilosaurus is losing her voice with a never ending cold and the realization that she might not be able to talk tomorrow made me very happy. Ridiculously happy.

So the kids watch a bit too much PBS Kids when I have a deadline. I'm not losing sleep over it. I feed them, and I feed them well. Tonight was a perfect example of that. Of course, with all that food I made all they wanted to eat was the spinach salad I served on the side.

Then Hubby still needed a snack. "There is nothing that goes better with kubasa than beer." We are a classy bunch.

Personality


Let's talk books.

I've reviewed a few books here and plan to review a lot more in the coming months. Before I go any further I wanted to bring up a conversation here.

There was a comment on last week's post by Weeks Ringle, one of the authors of The Modern Quilt Workshop, among others. Her comment led to a series of emails between she and I about the writing in quilt books.

I'm a fan of good writing. Just like I'm a fan of a cup of strong tea, colour, and the Edmonton Oilers. I also enjoy entertaining writing, or a piece that challenges or motivates me. While I've only read a couple dozen or so quilt books in my time I can say that it isn't always the writing that attracts me to the book.

Too often, a quilt book is a section outlining the concepts of the book - what makes this book different from all the rest of the books out there - followed by a basics quilting section. After that it is a bunch of patterns. The vast majority of books are glorified packages of patterns.

To be clear, I don't actually see anything wrong with that. I don't own many of this type of book, but they serve a purpose and can be quite motivating. What makes a book buyable and frequently browsed - to me - will be the good writing.

If I flip through a book and the patterns are interesting or exciting to me the first thing I do is read the Introduction. Bad or boring writing usually causes me to set the book down. I'll probably take a mental note of what I liked from the patterns and file it away for later inspiration. If the writing is engaging or grabs me with a challenging concept I am far more likely to take the book.

Of course, I'm also a sucker for pretty and clean layouts.

This leads me to what Weeks Ringle and I were chatting about - what is the appropriate level of personality in a book? The visuals, aside from the quilts themselves, are a strong part of the personality of the author. Compare Simplify with Camille Roskelly with The Practical Guide to Patchwork by Elizabeth Hartman, for example. Same publisher, same book format. But visually they are very different.

The writing is also part of the personality. And making the writing personal is about more than adding a whole pile of exclamation points or silly jokes. Being able to write in a voice that sounds like you when you are talking doesn't come to everyone. More importantly, being able to do so well and still be engaging is a big challenge. Even if you can do it well, it is hard to be great at it all the time.

In a book that is outlining specific concepts or technical design information, is there a place for personality? That was the question Weeks and I were debating. Or it is better to be succinct and specific?

This, of course also leads to the inherent links between blogging and books. Are they separate? Should they be? If you blog and write a book, how much of one should make it to the other - marketing aside?

I'm going to turn it back to you now. You've read the questions above. You've probably read a million books on your own. What are your thoughts? Oh, one more question. What is your experience as a quilter and what type of books do you like to read?

Peppermint Chocolava

Christmas baking has begun. In my world nothing Christmas can come before December 1st. Even that is pushing it. Then again, we are a house that leaves the tree up until at least the second week of January (for Ukrainian Christmas). A 6 week season is a bit much.

This month I have a cookie feature and a holiday potluck article in the Holiday 2010 issue of What's Up. Included are these Peppermint Chocolava Cookies. Along with some Hazelnut, Cherry, and Cocoa Nib Shortbread and Lemon Sugar Cookies. Pick up the issue for a fun treat, along with tips for holiday baking with your kids.

Feeling Green


Can you tell what team we were cheering for?

Dinner tonight was in front of the TV. I know, not exactly a proper Sunday dinner. It was the Grey Cup, though, and that means a more than slight bending of the rules. (For my US and International readers, the Grey Cup is the big finale game of the Canadian Football League.) Dinner tonight was also at my parents' house. Seeing as they are from Saskatchewan, there was some green in the dinner.

We gathered, with the girls and my nephew running circles around us, in front of the TV. There was a pile of food. Mostly frozen puff pastry treats from President's Choice (not bad, all things considered). There was my Dad's salsa. There always has to be Dad's salsa when we get together. Then the spice continued with a giant vat of chili. A few beers too. Just a few, I was driving.

Saskatchewan lost. Seeing as I'm indifferent to football it didn't bother me. I was too busy remembering our Grey Cups as kids. Back then all available surfaces would be covered with Grey Cup tickets, a sort of lottery ticket. There would be score predictions on each one. It was my job to keep an eye on the tickets and remove those no longer eligible when a touchdown was scored. I kind of missed those tickets tonight. Instead, I kept myself busy with chatting, keeping the girls from driving my father nuts, and eating.

It's been an odd sort of weekend. I don't feel as bad as the Saskatchewan QB, but I'm not ready to put on my party hat. Instead, I want to just eat more salsa and drink more beer. I'm settled for the night, no more driving. I think that's just what I'll do.

The Modern Quilt Workshop


Even though I've quilted for over a decade, it wasn't until about four years ago that I would say I became focused and intentional with my quilting. Before that it was a creative hobby that helped me destress, but that's about it. I was on mat leave with The Monster and started to spend a lot of time online. (That girl could sleep!)

One day I very distinctly remember typing in "Modern Quilts" on a Google search. I knew what I was creating wasn't conventional, but I felt very alone among the quilters I knew. Such a simple term and it opened up a new world. I do recall that the first blog I came across was Samantha's and that led me to The Modern Quilt Workshop. Now this was more like it!

The quilts in The Modern Quilt Workshop are creative, bold, sometimes simple, and all very refreshing from the calico world I was used to.

Now, I didn't run out and buy the book then, and even after hearing Bill Kerr speak earlier this year I didn't. That has more to do with me not being a pattern follower. When I saw it at the library the other week, however, I picked it up.

Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr put together a truly inspiring book. It is still essentially a book of patterns, but they add in a lot to encourage the quilter to make each quilt their own. They provide alternate colourways for projects. And there is a section on design essentials which would be good for someone just branching out into design.

My biggest complaint about the book is that while it is incredibly precise and the attention to detail is impeccable, the personality I saw in Bill is somewhat absent. Yes, he is a designer by nature and self admits to being precise and anal, but he is far from dry. The book is kind of dry as a read. Yes, I read these books from cover to cover. It's a small complaint and maybe no one else cares.

As far as the patterns go, one great feature is that they also share options for making the quilts in alternate sizes. This is fantastic. They aren't encouraging you to remake their quilt, they want you to make your quilt. Now that is inspirational.

No Empty Plates



The American Thanksgiving holiday is bearing down. Showing all the regular signs of excess - over eating, over drinking, and even over socializing for many. Throughout the US, Canada, and the rest of the world, however, there are many staring down at empty plates. There are parents figuring out how to make one drumstick feed many or how to explain to their kids that there is no feast like they've seen on every single TV show and commercial.

If you've been reading the last few weeks of posts you've probably sensed my growing stress and frustration with parenting while Hubby works out of town. Aside from the loneliness, being home alone means you start staring at every corner of chipped paint, drop of condensation on the ceiling, and hair ball with growing disgust. If only he was home to deal with the house stuff. If only he was home to work on the basement so the family wasn't tripping over each other and our things. If only.

The truth is, I'm totally being selfish. We live in a house we own. Okay, the bank still owns a portion of it, but we can afford to make the payments. I am working part-time as a freelancer, without the worry of having to make enough to buy groceries. I have the luxury of purchasing most of the groceries at the farmers' market from local and mostly organic suppliers, including my meat.

I have a wonderfully middle class life and I should just shut up when I start whining about when I'll have a family room in the basement.

Jennifer Perillo (she, of the chocolate chip cookie fame) invited a number of other bloggers to share an empty plate this Thanksgiving. It serves as a reminder that while we chow down, many others will not. She is also invited readers to donate to Share Our Strength, to help combat child hunger.

Here, in Calgary, I also invite you to think of donating to the Calgary Food Bank (or the food bank in your own city. Me, I'm making a donation to Made by Momma. Based in Calgary as well, it is an organization of moms helping moms in need. Something that I can truly identify with.

Please think of helping out others and paying it forward with your Thanksgiving this year.

Other bloggers giving thanks:

Calming the Waves

Sometimes when you dream you wake up and wonder WTF was that? Or you laugh because it is was just plain silly. You could be my daughter who woke up the other day after a good dream about a friend from school saying, "It was a good dream, I'm going to keep it."

The other night I had a dream that was terrifying and made me not want to go back to sleep. As scary as it was to my unconscious, it was frighteningly clear to my conscious self. There is no hidden symbolism in a dream where you are moving to higher ground in a constant effort to escape tidal waves.

When I get overwhelmed by tasks and life it is my tendency to revert to list making. It seems scary at first, to put down everything that needs to be done, but it is incredibly satisfying to cross things off the list. Even the act of making the list serves to put perspective on all that seems overwhelming.

When I couldn't sleep after the tidal wave dream I woke up and immediately starting making lists. House stuff, articles, quilts on the go, deadlines, Christmas presents, and more. Then Hubby offered to take the girls with him on an out of town errand (he's home for a week!). I decided to put all the must do items aside and tackle something that a) would make me happy to work on and b) would be quick to finish. Conveniently, I'd basted two quilts at our Modern Quilt Guild sew night on the weekend.

So I turned on the stereo, made a cup of hot cocoa, and in between loads of laundry (a good break for the shoulders) got 3/4 of my Values Quilt quilted. The snow was falling, my Cuban music blaring, and I felt myself get calmer with every stitch. There will be no tidal waves for a few days at least.