Burrito Pillow Case

Not your typical burrito!

Purple & Green pillow case!

Every now and then I go through my Pinterest list and try something new.  I have recently taken up the hobby of sewing and my Pinterest additions have certainly reflected the new hobby.  My mother in law as an early Christmas present gifted me a lovely sewing machine that has more stitches then I know what to do with. (I am pretty excited to try everything.)  To break in the new machine, I decided I would attempt to make French Cuffed Pillow Case and cross something off of my Pinterest list.

I pulled the pattern for the pillow cases from https://www.makeit-loveit.com and then cross referenced it with a lovely blog on the same thing https://blog.treasurie.com . (I have found it prudent to cross reference before adventures, it prevents obvious missteps.) Both of the sites referenced a burrito method for making the pillowcases. Reading through the steps, I have to admit I was a little intimidated. Most patterns require you to do something inside out and backwards. Making a burrito is something that I do for breakfast or occasionally dinner, but never in sewing. 

Pillow Case folded in half. Success!

Love the new machine!

First, I would like to say that the sewing machine is a champ. Something that I would normally be re threading the needle for possibly a dozen times, was smooth sailing. Second... Who wants pillow cases?  I might be a burrito convert. All my quilts might end up with a matching pillow case, since this was probably one of the easiest patterns I have ever done, and it looked good.  I am excited to make more pillow cases and possibly fancy them up with a couple of awesome stitches the new sewing machine can do. 

Putting Fun in Funeral

Have you ever done something or seen something that makes you wonder if your whole life is just some part of a zany comedy show for space aliens? A couple Saturdays I had one of those moments.

My husband and I were on our annual anniversary trip, and the theater near us was doing a special feature of Night of the Living Dead. (The original, not the remake.) With it being a classic horror movie that is sometimes consdired the beginning of genre, we purchased tickets.  It is always a fun time to see classic movies on the big screen.   One of the perks of seeing a classic movie, is that sometimes they will bring in vendors for the event.

Now, you might be wondering what sort of vendor would be at Night of the Living Dead.  There were two vendors for the small viewing and they certainly were a highlight of the experience. If it wasn’t for Curiosities 212 and Laura Flook, it would have been a long annoying wait for the movie.

 There is nothing like sitting around waiting for the movie to start and texting my brother about purchasing a rib bone for him for Christmas. (Of course he didn’t believe me, but then I sent a picture and for some reason I am considered strange.)   Curiosities 212 had a variety of funeral paraphernalia that could leave some people scratching their head. It amused me to image my brother opening his Christmas Stocking and pulling out a rib. Part of me wants to know where the bones came from and the other part of me doesn’t want to know ever where the bones came from.

Laura Flook was a perfect counterbalance to Curiousites 212. She was promoting her semi- autobiographical comic book that talked about her time as an undertaker. It was clear to me that she was uncomfortable with the living, or perhaps it was all the drunk people stumbling around, since Oktoberfest was finishing up nearby.  Either way she did her best, and her table was full of a variety of merchandise and at the end of the movie she handed out toe tags as her business card and let us know they make good book marks.  (Which is true, since I currently am using it as a book mark. Also, check out her stuff at www.lauraflook.com  because drunk people shouldn’t be allowed in theaters and also she supports a wonderful cause.)

The whole experience was bizarre, but in a wonderful weird way.

Lost River Caverns

It is well known that I love to do cave tours.  I have been to Luray Caverns, Skyline Caverns, Penn's Cavern, Indian Echo Caverns and Crystal Caves. I am please to announce that I can now add another cavern to the list.  Lost River Caverns just outside of Allentown, Pa  is a unique cave experience. They not only offer a cave tours, but they have so much more to offer in their premise, such as a Nature Trail, Lapidary Supplies along with a Mineral & Jewelry shop mixed in with the gift shop. The opportunity for photography is great inside and outside of the main attraction.

I love cave tours.  The one thing that seems to be a theme with any cave tour that I have had the pleasure of attending, is the number of weddings that seem to happen in a cave.  Personally, I think it is a great idea.  It limits the number of people that can attend and is a testament to how things can evolve over time, which is one of the facets of being marriage. On the other hand, I am sure that some people would be appalled at being married in a hole in the ground.

Lost River Caverns tour is a little over a  half an hour long, and the tour guide we had, Andrew was the right amount of knowledgable and sarcastic to make the tour interesting.  The number of screaming kids, I could have done without, but when you take a tour on a rainy holiday, screaming children are probably unavoidable.

I found the history of the cave unique. The Lost River was interesting to hear about, and in my mind I imagine a cavern filled full of ping pong balls.  It would be interesting if they were able to do a new exploration to find out where the river goes. There was a slight mention with a rivalry with another local cavern, which I would have loved to hear more about. (Crystal Caves in case you were wondering.) Having been on both tours and knowing they are relatively close to each other, I can see how they could be rivals.  It is still a fun experience and something that I would recommend those that love cave tours to check out.

Favorite Holiday?

As the last week of September drew to a close, and the writing challenge  dwindled down to that last few hours, I had to admit that I was stumped. The last prompt of the week was to talk about "Your favorite holiday and why." That sounds like it should be easy cheesy breezy, but that is not the case.  There are 55 holidays recognized by Hallmark, and 11 of them are federal holidays.  That is not counting such esteemed national holidays, such as National Taco Day (October 4th) or National Coffee Day (September 29th) and Love Your Pet Day ( February 20th).  With so many holidays out there it is hard to pick just one and name it my favorite and a long explanation why.  

Here are my top twenty little known holidays that make me smile:

1. National Step in a Puddle & Splash Your Friends Day (January 11th)
2. National Kazoo Day (January 28th)
3. National Tell a Fairy Tale Day (February 26th)
4. National Open an Umbrella Indoors Day ( March 13th)
5. National Quilting Day (3rd Saturday in March) 
6. National Grilled Cheese Sandwich Day (April 12th)
7. National Free Comic Book Day (1st Saturday in May)
8. National Dinosaur Day (May 15)
9. National Wine Day ( May 25th)
10. National Best Friends Day (June 8th)
11. National Cheer Up the Lonely Day (July 11th)
12. National Eat Your Jello Day (July 12th)
13. National Sneak Some Zucchini Onto Your Neighbors Porch Day (August 8th)
14. National Video Games Day (September 12th)
15. National Ghost Hunting Day (Last Saturday in September)
16. National Moldy Cheese Day (October 9th)
17. National Cat Day (October 20th)
18. National Nachos Day (November 6th)
19. International Ninja Day (December 5th)
20. National Cat Herders Day (December 15th)

For more wonderful holidays, check out https://nationaldaycalendar.com/ for more holidays than Hallmark has cards for.  Good luck trying to pick a favorite holiday.  As for which is my actual true favorite holiday, I don't have one. I enjoy any day that makes me smile. 

Nightmares Inducing Children's Movies

On occasion my friend, Erica and I will get together, catch up on what is happening with the families and watch a movie.  Last night we watched one of those movies that was a throw back to our childhood and you didn't realize how terrifying it is, until you watch it. The movies spurred conversation about other children's movies that have terrifying elements in it.  (And thus a list was born.)

Below is my list of 10 children's movies that are terrifying and wonderful.

1. Return to OZ
1. You can't tell me that the Wheelers aren't nightmare fuel. Or the head exchange. I don't think I had ever been so thankful for chickens, than in that movie. 
2. Alice in Wonderland (1985)
1. All monsters were the Jabberwocky in my youth. It was a manifestation of fear and could get you at any time. 
3. Willow
1. Bavmorta. She was creepy, but then again she was supposed to be.  Weird side note, the Actress that played Bavmorta was also in Return to Oz. 
4. Legend
1. Tim Curry when I was a child, because I thought that was what the devil really did look like.  I watched this not too long ago, and the thing that creeped me out the most as an adult is Tom Cruises smile. 
5. Secret of Nimh
1. Animal experimentation and extermination.  Rats and owls.  Loved the movie, and it always hits me as and awesome adventure, but the fear for the characters was real every time. 
6. Labyrinth
1. Goblin King.  This is a much loved classic for many people.  I missed it as a child and just found it creepy as an adult.  Babies. Goblins and a whole lot of puppets. 
7. Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory
1. Theres now earthly way of knowing... which direction we are going...
8. The Peanut Butter Solution
1. I don't even know where to start on this on. The amount of weirdness and why is peanut butter the solution. The hair and the paintings were surreal. 
9. Raggedy Ann & Andy: A Musical Adventure
1. I love this movie, but when they are in the candy pit, it is a little psychedelic and trippy.
10. The Adventures of Young Sherlock Holmes
1. Ritualistic sacrifice- Need I say more?  This is a family adventure that is actually pretty tame, but probably geared for a little older audience than I was, when I saw it the first time.  I loved it, but ritualistic sacrifice still gives me the creeps. 

What movies did you watch when you were a kid, that looking back now makes you scratch you head and wonder?