Pokey Peas Challenge October 2021

Thanks for the THANKSGIVING greetings, Linda , nylene and joyfulnana . Dgs's competition was yesterday. I drove up Friday evening, stayed with them, watched the competition in the morning, had lunch at Moxie's with them--the most WONDERFUL staff who cooked foods specifically for my and my dd's food sensitivities, chatted with us, and even gave dgs a tour of the kitchen! I drove home last night. Today I am baking pumpkin pies and getting organized for tomorrow's turkey dinner. Dd & family will drive down later today and we will have the feast tomorrow.

I am incredibly thankful for all of the Peas, and especially for the Pokeys. Such a wonderful group of friends!  Hoping I can join one of gramma's on line crops soon.  Fingers crossed for next weekend...

joyfulnana , it sounds like your evening with ds & dgf was a scrapbooker's DREAM! So wonderful when people appreciate the loving care that goes into each page. Hoping you not only scrap the "missing" stories, but also yesterday!

So good to hear about all your art adventures, kellyr21 . Hoping to see some of your journal pages and cards you are creating this month.

kitbop , your freezer sounds like mine! I defrosted the big chest freezer a few months ago, and I don't want to even admit the years on some of those packages. I, too, freeze the pumpkin, once it is cooked and drained and pureed. Last year we had no pumpkins to speak of, so I used only frozen stuff to bake my pies and the pumpkin loaves I usually bake for Christmas. This year I hope to use fresh for all of it, and still have more to freeze for a later date. There are also a couple of big ones to send back with dgs to carve into jack o lanterns.

And Linda , I also freeze the tomatoes once they have been cooked. I just use the same recipe my dmil used for the tomatoes she sealed into jars, but once they are cooked, I put them into containers and once cool they go into the freezer. But I prefer to make lots of lasagna with freshly cooked tomatoes, and then freeze THAT. A lot less mess and bother over the winter.

Okay, off to dig out my pie recipe and get started in the kitchen...

grammadee it sounds like you had a wonderful time over the weekend! I will definitely be scrapping the other night. I even got pictures this time lol.

Linda your day with DS sounds pretty wonderful too! What a great day of hanging out. Those are the best. Game day traffic is the WORST.

I haven't done any scrapping lately. I will only maybe have some time on Saturday. Rudy and I will be having a sleep over Friday night and then Sunday afternoon we have our lunch date. I had no idea how much he looks forward to those until we had to miss one. I probably need to get some pics and scrap that This month is going too fast for my liking. Yesterday had tinges of busy season Monday. I hope it's because Thanksgiving is coming, and not because we are headed back to an early season. I might go crazy if that's the case lol.

Cody and I started Squid Game Sunday. OMG that is INTENSE! Abby sensed I was scared and cuddled up to me to make sure I was ok. It was so sweet. Boy the Chiefs are sure looking like normal humans this year. They feel like the Chiefs I've always known lol. Hopefully they turn this skid around.

I'm off to get ready for work, I hope you all have a great day!

Hello to all the pokeys!

joyfulnana - My DD explained the premise of Squidgame - easy decision not to watch for me I just watched the first season of "only murders in the building" on Disney+. Didn't expect to like it - had to force myself to watch the 2nd episode - and then loved it! Will be eagerly waiting for season 2.

Linda - that sounds like a wonderfully productive and fun trip! LOL about the Jaguars - even non football involved me knows about them

grammadee - I have almost stopped making pies. It's so much hassle, and dirty bowls, and I can actually buy them cheaper than they cost to make at home. Kinda sad, because I make a mean pie! Not making pies anymore is why I have so much pumpkin still in my freezer. OTOH, I made a killer pumpkin loaf this weekend.
Sounds like a good trip to the city for you. I wonder if Moxie's is in the US too? It's in every city in Canada I think

A huge shout out to justjac for the stamped images she sent me! I'm going to scan them in so I can print them again if I need them...which I will... My DH and kids were so pleasantly shocked when they saw them! OTOH, where is Shepherd Book? I'm crushed that he's not represented!

I have a few days off work - we had planned a trip to BIL/SIL, but they cancelled But, there is lots to do here, including crafting! I have THREE things coming in the mail: my next Crop and Create box will be here this week, and this time I am #teampeak! I put in an order to my LSS that will be ready quickly for pick up. And I have a couple of things coming from China (ahem) that will add to my Christmas Card designing.

Happy Pumpkin Season everyone!

Good Morning!

No crafting going on here lately, too many nights watching TV I think lol. Plenty of shopping though. I'm waiting on three packages now. I have to get out tonight and get all the Rudy groceries. It's been slightly busier this week at work which is making me a little anxious. I hope it's just the last push of people winterizing or planning a Thanksgiving trip and nothing else lol.

kitbop I've heard lots of good reviews about Only Murders, there are so many shows I want to see but which do I want more, crafting or vegging? lol. Apparently vegging lol. I'm sorry your plans were changed but it sounds like there is still an upside to it.

nylene those boys are the best aren't they?

justjac I sure haven't missed having a cold either and the one I had a few months ago was the worst! I hope it skips you.

kellyr21 take care of yourself!

I hope everyone has a great day!

Happy Thursday! Hope you all are doing well today. I have been wiped out all week and really letting myself rest and recover. A couple of weeks ago, I did finish my new art and it was accepted into the art show!!! This show will be a one night event for the city's orchestra's opening night. Whew! So overwhelmed that my art is having all these opportunities. I will keep you posted on this.

Also, the closing night at the gallery I am currently in is tomorrow. It will be bittersweet to see it end. Some of our family was able to come to the gallery last weekend. So, I was glad they were able to witness this with me. AND I am submitting to another show and the application is due tomorrow. I am using art I already have and fingers crossed for that one, too.::

It's been so much going on and I am so grateful to God for these opportunities to inspires others my messages of self-care. This week, I got a lot of practice at this, too. LOL! So movies days, no cooking, and a little retail therapy.


I did take time to look at all the Cardtober sketches. They look good! justjac your cards with the landscapes were pretty. Nice work!

joyfulnana - What tv shows are you watching? I hope your job slows down so you can play with your new supplies, soon.

nylene - Yes, my virtual art classes are with a group I found on MeetUp. It is every Thursday and it is a sketch and drawing class. It has been a good class and I am learning a lot. The M's classes I take are virtual, too. They have a great variety on all types of crafts. They are free and recorded so if you miss it you can see it on their YouTube channel. Link Here

Wow! MARIBETHR, you certainly get alot of pages and cards done on you camping trips! Do you take your electronic cutter with you? Or do you precut ahead of time? I never seem to accomplish anything while camping except general camp chores.

Glad you had time with family, justjac. I enjoyed seeing your Thanksgiving pages you posted in the Gallery. Hope that cold that came home with Dean is fading away and not affecting you.

And I am glad you are enjoying CARDtober, nylene. And that justjac and gramma and others have been posting such cool challenges. I have not done alot of crafting so far this month. Hoping to do some Christmas cards this coming Monday. Dh's appointments are Monday and Tuesday, so I am planning to make cards in the hotel room Monday when I will have the most time. I have done some diecutting in advance, and am slowly getting a kit together with papers and inks and tools and stamps and glue...

Doesn't look like I will get any pages put together before the crop NEXT weekend. Once I get home from the city, I will have to get packed up for that. Hoping that will let me earn my keep on joyfulnana's team...

In other crafting news, I just heard that the local gift store has received my package from Purolator, so my SCT kits have arrived. Thirteen pounds of crafty fun in that box! Trying to decide if I can leave them there until my next trip to town, maybe next Wednesday, or make an excuse to head into town this afternoon before closing... (They are not open tomorrow). Not supposed to peek for a couple of weeks, but... I have no patience. kitbop, have you checked yours out yet?

The food is delicious.  We will be stopping after the past weeks delivery for the holiday season.  We will have enough food to cook and eat.  We will start up again after the first of the year.  Not all my Courthouse pages are different it does get hard and with 3,144 impossible.  But at least I try to change up the colors even if I use the same dies or style of embellishing.  The medalliaons on Berrien County are just googled images printed and then I colored them with Copic.  You will probably be seeing more like that, may use my Stamplistic stamps as well as they are medallions.  I am not doing Layout a Day.  I have tried that event however it is usually to specific as far as the prompts go and I make layouts just to meet the prompt, not something I am really wanting to scrapbook and save.  

Had a visit with my sister this weekend.  I have not seen her since 2015.  It was very special to see her again.  I am looking forward to getting my scrafting back on this weekend.  Hoping to bring in some more points.

Good Morning!

kellyr21 I love the message of self care through your art and I'm glad you are taking some for yourself! Good luck with your next submission!

I am watching too many shows! And then I wonder why I don't find time for crafting lol. Mostly just Squid Game right now. Then we'll finish this anime that Cody talked me into. I also watch A Million Little Things and This is Us. I get sucked into TV because Abby insists on her time when I get off work lol. Once I sit down with her, it's pretty much over lol

nylene I hope you had a wonderful lunch with Em and Alex! It is finally cooling off here. 70's during the day and 50's at night. Still not cold enough at night for me. I'm still turning on the A/C some days when the sun really comes in. There just isn't enough breeze some days. But cooler weather is here and I'm ready for it!

grammadee I hope DH gets good news from his tests. I hope you get lots done at your crop! I've been thinking about joining in on the monthly day crops with a group, but then I think why leave home? I can scrap at home all day with the peas instead lol

MARIBETHR I really do like those thumbs up and down on your Blue Apron pages and the place setting! I tried Hello Fresh again for a few weeks, but it was too much cooking lol. I'm all about quick easy meals right now lol

The weekend with Rudy was so fun. We had Sorry! tournament - best 2 out of 3. He won that lol. Had our lunch date and went to the park and to feed the ducks. It's the best time we've had in a while. I also watched Hocus Pocus for the first time with him. Cute movie!

I hope everyone is having a good week!

joyfulnana I am so jealous of your weather. I had to do the conversion on my phone. Today when I left for work it was -2C (28F) and the high is only 6C(43F). Still no snow thank goodness. I am almost ready for grammadee and my other company to arrive. Fortunately, Dean doesn't work Fridays so he is on duty washing sheets and vacuuming. One problem with packing up is that it is also Layout a Day, so I can't pack my ATG and cutter until tomorrow. I actually had my Big Shot in a bag and had to take it out to use it. I am still mostly packed, though, because I am working on cards.

nylene I am planning on getting my flu shot, too, but I think they are prioritizing seniors right now so I'll have to keep my ears open for when I can go in.

I am getting a hair cut today. Plus side is I will look good for the crop. Minus side is I will have less time to make my page and pack and clean.

Good morning Pokey Friends!

I was reading through the thread getting caught up. You all have had a lot going on! I'm sorry I've been MIA the last couple of months, I don't know what I'm always so busy doing, but it seems like I never have any time. My job has been a lot lately. I lead a large nonprofit that works with children and we've been so busy since the world blew up. It is all I can do to keep up with all of the meetings and requests from the state for us to do various things to help. There are so many families struggling to make ends meet right now. There is a housing shortage in Indy where I live driving prices up, the landlords are selling the homes that used to be rentals to the investors who are renovating all of them for the people moving into the city, leaving the poor with few places to go. We are dealing with homeless families every day now.

I did take a few days off last week for fall break. We took our three kids to Universal Studios in Florida. It was probably the last trip we will have with just the five of us. Our girls (Mallory and Olivia) are 23 and 27, both of them are dating nice boys that have been around for several months. I think Mallory will probably end up engaged in the next little bit. Her boyfriend, Colin, is pretty much a clone of her Daddy...which makes me laugh. They are so much alike in personality and interests, she couldn't have found someone more like her Dad if she tried...lol. We just met Olivia's beau last week, but they've been dating for a few months. She met his family last night. She definitely seems smitten too, which is very unusual for her. Thankfully our youngest, Griffin, is still a senior in high school, so I still have one at home. Mallory moved out last month with her best friend, but they are living in a carriage house that is pretty much across the street from us, so she is nearby.

I haven't done any scrapping in almost two months, but I'm going to a weekend crop at the end of the month, so that will be nice. I have a ton of new photos to play with, which always inspires me.

Nylene - I hope you had a good visit with Alex and Em! It's awesome that you were able to crank out your Christmas cards while you were stuck at the hotel, you are really ahead of the game. Take care of yourself sweet lady!

Maribeth - I wish my husband did the cooking...except that he stinks at it, but it might help with my diet efforts if he cooked. I do get tired of feeling like I fix the same things. I think I tend to mix it up a bit seasonally, so it's kind of nice to be going into soup, chowder and casserole season. The ratings on your Blue Apron pages are fun, that's such a good way to remember if you liked it.

Grammadee - I hope your hubby's test results are good. It's great that both of you are on it with your flu shots and boosters. I'll probably need to get a booster soon since I was vaccinated in February. We are still operating a Covid unit for kids in my kid shelter at work.

Justjac - Have fun at your crop! I don't know how you keep up with LOAD, I think I'd be doing good to keep up with a LO a month plan at this point.

Well, I need to get moving. I have a meeting in 45 minutes.

Hi everyone. I have one day off here - working the upcoming weekend. Wanted to pop in and say a real hello. I've been lacking the energy to have proper "conversations" here - you know those moments when you start a reply but then delete because it feels like a lot of work?



So true! To deal with this, DH and I try to do a dinner salad 4 nights a week - just a good salad (apples, strawberries, roasted peppers, even cooked squash on there) with protein (like grilled chicken, shrimp, cut up sausage, ham, omelette) on it. We get very bored some weeks, but then when we choose homemade pizza, or homemade macaroni and cheese with bacon in it the other nights we don't feel as bad Also, it takes the question of "what's for dinner" out of it. Our kids don't like this as much, but they are old enough to fend for themselves if they don't want salad!

grammadee - fingers crossed for functioning stents! 30 cards is a great start. 30 cards fills my whole list I've done 11 so far, but I don't normally even start until November so it's all good!

I'll be getting my flu shot next week, provided the hospital has it in stock. They ran out last week. Of course, everyone working at the hospital now is covid vaccinated, so we're all probably on board with the flu shot as well

kellyr21 - I hope you are enjoying painting, and good luck with your next submission!

nylene - wow, snow already? We're firmly in sweater weather here. It's been lovely. No frost yet. I still have carrots in the ground! Funny how Canada has a reputation for being so cold, when I enjoy weather rather like New England but with less snow and Hurricanes! I loved your Halloween cards for your grands - so much fun!

justjac - so jealous that you and grammadee can connect in person to create. I think that would be so much fun, a weekend with company. OTOH, I'm not one for crowds so the inperson crops aren't a draw for me (plus, packing up...) Which crop is this that you are doing? When you do LOAD, do you really try for 1/day, or do you have "catch up" days where you do 2-3 layouts? Sorry about your weather (OK, I've probably just cursed Ontario there).

shinyhappytina - hi! Yes, the housing market and rentals are CRAZY here too. I am very grateful we are well established because the market STARTS at $750 000 for a very small and often needing a lot of work house. It would be so nice to take a trip with our kids - we all still like doing things together even tho they are young adults - it is so hard to coordinate work/school schedules. I would love to do Disney or Universal, but the majority in the house would prefer to do a Caribbean resort. We've never done a trip outside of Canada together, but hope to do something in the Spring!

Running off to pick up DD, and get some lunch with DH.
Have a great day everyone!

Hi all - I'll try and catch up on replies soon, sorry