Pin It Weekly #159

With the summer heat that we're getting here in Louisiana, there's only one place to be--inside with the air conditioning on full blast. Even then it's possible that you won't be completely comfortable: with temperatures at almost 100 and an heat index of  110, it's difficult to cool down homes and buildings, especially when there are many people inside.

I've been looking for ways to help Richard and the kids keep cool. They insist on going outside--sometimes to work, but also to play--and have found that there are a few really good ideas on Pinterest. Here are a few of the better ones and my take on how to make them even more helpful.

Provide lots of water, including water flavored with tea, lemons, cucumber, melon, and so on. I make sure to keep their favorites ice cold and to have extras in the afternoon. 

These stacked kiddie pools show a smart way to keep drinks from water to beer cold during a family get together. Tubs or buckets make a great base for the pools.  

Keep the ice clean by putting a small pan with a handle in the ice so that people don't have to grab ice with their hands. Use tongs  to grab the bottles and cans. Children love to eat ice, which provides fluids, but you want the ice to be clean. Of course, sodas and beer are not as good as water, so I keep much more water available. 

Another way to use your ice pools is to cool watermelon and other summer fruit: cantaloupe, cucumber, citrus, apples, etc. Wipe the fruit with a clean, wet cloth, and place in the pool then cover with ice. I sometimes cut the fruit into large chunks and put in a zipper bag before chilling so there's no work when we're ready to snack. 

We love fruit salad, salsas, and drinks made with the fruit. My family members are all big enough to handle seeds, but you can definitely remove the seed as you go.

I like the idea of chilling insect spray...add sunblock to the bucket and applying either will help cool off the kiddos. 

Don't forget your pets, including bunnies, chickens and so on. They need lots of fresh water to drink and cool water to walk or roll in when they get too hot. I add 1-2 ice cubes to our puppies' water. They like to lick the ice when they drink. Add a fan to pet coops and pens to provide a breeze that will keep them cooler.

And finally, if you have access to a shade tree, use it! Tree shade is generally cooler than shade from buildings. Of course, use what you have. Put games, tables, and drinks in the shade to encourage children to stay where it's cool. 

After 25 years in this home, we can finally walk outdoors and find shade right away. That shade helps to cool our home, but we have taken other steps to help keep our cooling bills down. We've added a vent in the attic to pull some of the heat out. We try to avoid using the stove top and oven, especially during the day. 

We turn off all electrical appliances that are not in use, keep the doors and windows closed, and turn off lights. Every small step helps. With Louisiana temperatures in the high 90's for about two months, we must do everything we can to lower our bills and keep cool.

How do you keep cool when the weather tops 100?

Pin It Weekly #138

It's cold here.  Well, not this cold.  Cold enough, though. Wet, miserable cold.  Gusty, windy, chill-to-the-bone cold. 

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We don't have ice and snow.  We don't get much snow, but ice comes along pretty often. I mean, not like this. Thick ice...that's not much of a problem. If we want to skate, we have to pay an ice rink. 

So the scenes from On This Winter Day by Nancy Prince and Linda French, which won “Best of Show” at the 2014 International Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas, are not at all familiar to Louisianans. 



We mostly just complain about the cold, look at beautiful art of cold, and cuddle under quilts when we think it's cold. 

I can't imagine that anyone cuddles under this beauty! If you'd like more information about the quilt, visit Bernina's We All Sew website. The quilt was made on a Bernina 830, so the site showcased it on the 20th. The quilt makers explain quite a bit about their amazing quilt and how they achieved the details. A must read!

Sunday Quilt Inspiration: S N O W

I know it's wishful thinking, but there's a small chance of ice and snow waaay down here in the deep south.  That would, of course, mean no school because we have no way to get children to school on such days.  Buses are much too dangerous, especially on bridges since our drivers are not trained nor are our buses equipped.  Most of them do not even have heaters.  


With this on my mind, I thought it would be fun to have some ice and snow somewhere, so why not in a post?  

Now don't fall for the pictures.  What we call a snow day is really just a dusting of the white stuff.  Sometimes it melts as soon as it touches the ground.  If the temperatures get into the high 20's it will stay for a while, but even that is only a half day.  More often we have what we call an ice storm.  That's really just rain or sleet that freezes.  If the sun comes out, everything melts even if the temps are low.  The worst ice storm that I remember lasted about four or five days.  I can't imagine ice or snow for longer than a week.  

I did spend a week in Canada once and there was snow hip deep.  It was during our Easter break; several teachers took some of the French students to Quebec where our French teacher originated. 

The teens had never seen snow, so I took them to a park on the first night and let them play and run around while the other adults showered.  We had great fun trying to walk in the snow--and losing then finding our shoes. After these two memories, I'm tapped for extended ice and snow.

If we get snow and ice at all, it will be interesting, but it won't last long and chances are that we will have only a day off from school. But I'll take that, and I have no doubt that the kids will also.  If we do, I'm going to enjoy the day in my studio.  Hopefully, we'll have electricity and I'll get to sew!