Tuesday, March 29, 2016

At the end of day....

I am not sure who is tireder...L. or us.    We stopped in the G&M Variety store in Rockville...then went on to Mansfield.  No luck fishing, but we were just fishing with lures.   We finally got our chairs out and sat on the sand bar while she looked for rocks she liked.

Tomorrow she wants to go somewhere where we can fish with worms and bobbers.  But I had been thinking about taking her to the heron viewing place up by Danville, Illinois. I guess a lot will depend on if it stays clear long enough...rain is supposed to be moving in tomorrow sometime.

Saturday, March 26, 2016

Happy Easter!

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter!


 Artwork by Lorelei...she did this yesterday.  I had her cut a couple daffodils and this vase was the only thing I had handy.  So we put them in it, even though it was  too big.  We still enjoyed it.

Thursday, March 24, 2016

Random bits


1.  What a difference just a few days can make...a week ago I had just a couple blooms, and now they are all in bloom.


2.  My lilac is starting to get buds.  I hope it don't get too cold tonight.


3.  This is a project Roger has had started for too long to mention.  So much other stuff has delayed the completion.


4.  Can someone tell me what this is.  It was a small bush.  I feel like I should know what it is but if I do I cannot think of it.  But betting it will be one of those moments where I feel real stupid.  I haven't had time to try to look it up.


5.  We saw 7 or 8 turkeys yesterday...always fun to see.


Lorelei is visiting so I may be slow visiting.

Edited to add:  I think the flowering bush/shrub is a Star Magnolia.










Saturday, March 19, 2016

A bit of this and that...

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This blog post may jump around a bit...but will start out with this shot of how far along my lilac is!  Even though I have looked out at it and noticed it was budding out, it surprised me that it is actually this far along.
It is this late in the spring, and I have still not cleaned off my flower bed...it is the same bed that Mabel lived in all summer.
This is Mabel.  I don't think I told you that this was her name...she is Charlotte's cousin.  Instead of staying on the farm she ran off with a traveling salesman and moved to the city.  At least that is part of the tale that I told Lorelei.

Anyway, somewhere I read that the spiders might survive the winter if it was mild, so I have hesitated to clean off the mess.  But I doubt she survive, but I sure hope some of her offspring are out there this year.
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Around front I do have a very few hyacinths that have bloomed...
The clouds were awesome the same day I took the other pictures.  Notice the Turkey Vulture in the upper right corner.  They are always around...at least some of every day.
Just have to show this pic of the house sparrow...it was in a tree across the road.  I am still amazed that my little Canon SX 700 HS will take a picture even half this good...handheld.  I have issues with it sometimes, but still, I have got a lot of bang for the buck in this little camera.

That is all from my corner...Lorelei is sitting here with me




Sunday, March 13, 2016

A bit of randomness...


1.  I started a couple Pineapple quilt blocks...I wish I could just do totally scrappy and every fabric be a different  fabric.  But for now these will do.


 2.  This is my first shot of a robin this year...I never take very many pics of them and I don't know why.  I hope to change that this summer.


3.  When I was in high school, I liked to try to sketch stuff.  I never was very good.  But it was still fun.  Due to Genie's influence, I have been making the attempt again.  Oh, I don't spend much time on it...I seem to do better if I just sit down and devote a few minutes to it.  I used the pic here to sketch it from.



4. We are watching the second episode of Little Big Shots...this little girl became famous on this video and she was on tonight's show.  This is my new favorite show.   Steve Harvey is wonderful with the children.


5.  Spring is creeping in...just a bit at a time.



Thursday, March 10, 2016

It's been a Pelican kind of day...

Today we went down to Goose Pond...it was a rainy, foggy day...but managed to get some photos of Pelicans and Whooping Cranes!  First I will show you this little video.  My little camera is very hard to hold steady when zoomed in.

Be sure and watch to the end...I think it is only about 35 seconds long.  Again, I apologize for the quality.

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 Along with the Pelicans, we saw 3 Whooping Cranes!
They were spread out, so not such a great pic, but wanted to show that there were three.


It was wonderful to get to see them, even if it was misting rain the entire time.  My little camera seems to be okay...but it sure got sprinkled on.

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

Anybody else watch Little Big Shots...



Is anyone else watching Little Big Shots with Steve Harvey?  If not, you should be.  These kids are amazing.

Monday, March 7, 2016

A stitched card...

I had a friend have a birthday last month...and I made this for her.  Due to other things going on, I didn't make it till the last minute, and wish I had had more time to spend on it.
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Do you remember when Sundays were days of rest.  I had been thinking about that, then I saw a post over here talking about Sundays....so thought I would do my own version.

When I was growing up, Sundays were days when you just did the very basics...fixing meals and washing dishes.  Doing barn chores, if you had animals/lived on a farm.  I sometimes think it would be nice to go back to times like that. 

I know throwing a load of clothes in the washer is not like washing on a wringer washer where you have to be there and be involved in the process.  And riding a lawn mower is not the same as pushing one.  But still, a person is not relaxing.

Today I have did absolutely nothing, other than fix a bite to eat.  And I felt so guilty.  I finally did do a couple little jobs late in the evening.  But why do I feel such guilt?  Do you feel guilty when you don't stay busy when you are at home.

Friday, March 4, 2016

Not much to report...


We have a visitor this weekend!


I have been making more crumb blocks in spare moments...I will sew a line or two or three in the odd moments o the day.  If I am cooking, I will sew a few lines, then go stir or turn or do whatever needs to be done.  Then sometimes I actually get to sit and hour or two.


I have made 14 of these 9½ inch blocks over the past few days.  I have 3o more down in the basement.  I don't want to make a quilt of them till I have time to actually quilt it.

Daughter ordered fabric for the backing of the Lotus quilt and I ordered batting....just today.  She took a bit of time to choose the backing.

A friend of mine asked me how many quilts I am working on...and I am not quite sure how to answer.  I have enough of these crumb blocks for a quilt top I think--at least for a twin quilt.

And I have enough of the Falling Charms for a twin quilt, also.  But mostly I am just waiting on everything to get here to finish the Lotus quilt.

Thursday, March 3, 2016

Random bits....

Friday is near and time for some randomness...
1.  The other day, I posted some pics of 'art' that I used to do  in high school...I thought it was all I had that I had done.  But then found this.  I do have a couple other sketches that one BFF did...I have kept them all these years.  Does anyone else keep things like this?   I wish I had kept more.

2.  I miss Jay Leno and Terry Bradshaw.  I searched on Youtube trying to find a good example, but cannot find one that I like.  So instead I am showing you this one.

3.  One day back when I was sick, I had one blog open all day long...I am not going to say whose blog it was, though she knows and can tell if she wants in the comments.  But I will say that I put 'Bob' in the search box.   I  read bits and pieces off and on all day.  Every time I got on, I read a two or three posts.  Or more. The reason is there are some really funny moments...they remind me so much of Roger and me.

4.  A few days ago, a blog buddy sent me pics of her mess.  I didn't ever think I would do this, but I sent her a picture of mine--my dining room.  And it was a mess cause I had been sewing.  She wrote back and told me mine was “organized distribution of odds and ends.”  I got so tickled with that comment.  I don't know if she got the quote from somewhere or if she made it up...I assumed she made it up...but it so fit and so made me laugh, and I smile any time I think of it.  Again, not saying who, but if she reads this, she can lay claim to it if she wants.

5.  I am reading Plain Secrets:  An Outsider Among the Amish.  It promises to be good. The author, Joe Mackall, has lived surrounded by the Amish for 16 years. 

Linking to Willy Nilly Friday 5...

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Yesterday...what a day it was!

I should have did this post yesterday, but simply too weary to get it together.  We headed to one place, but on the way decided to find the Skinner Farm Museum & Village.
I just recently ran across it while looking at a list of round barns and where they are located.

So we find it...and we can see no place that is used as an entrance.  There were a couple places that we could pull over out front and I could take some pics.


The house set way back off the road...and we really seen no road to it.  We decided to head on to our original destination which was the place we saw the eagles in yesterday's post.  As we were driving past where we could see back by the house, there was someone walking up to the house and kind of looking out at us...and they were carrying something which I assumed was an animal.  I waved and they waved...

On down the way, there was a public road on the west side of the farm...so we decided to turn down it to see if there was  an entrance there.  No such luck, but I took a few more pics and we drove on down the way, turned around and came back.  And there was 'the person' out at the mailbox.

We stopped and talked to him, for it was the owner.  And he was carrying a big old white/gray spotted cat.  He said  he would give us a tour sometime if we wanted...so we asked how about now.  And he said come on...so we pulled in and got out. 

First let me describe Norman...he was a little guy....he might have been an inch or two over 5 ft. tall...NOT at all overweight...just regular size.  He had on a ball cap with three or four pins/badges? on it, but for the life of me I don't know why I didn't see what they said.  And he walked just a little bit stooped over..  He wore glasses on the end of his nose, and with him walking a bit stooped his head was bent forward too...and he looked up at you over those glasses.

Right away we learned that he had moved most of the buildings there.  See that 2-story brick house in the background....it had belonged to his family and he moved it to this spot from 3 or 4 miles down the road.  All the other buildings he had moved from other places...

This little covered bridge bridge was moved from at least 30 miles away...

He first took us in this other building...and it was full of old cars and trucks.  Two close together to even walk around them...let alone get decent pics.  Stuff was hanging from the rafters, something sitting in every square inch.  He even had the first car he had ever owned.  Then he took us in the Blacksmith's Shop...it had been moved to the property. 


Next, he took us in a building that was full to the brim of old tractors...he has 50 of them....there were old threshing machines...I am here to tell you our heads were spinning by the time we left there.  Neither Roger nor I can remember what was what.  He knew so much, and we were both wondering how in the world he he was able to move everything there.  He had been collecting all his life. 

There is so much more...some I didn't get photos of.  He had some old printing presses, old stoves that were the last made in a nearby town.  He had a Conestoga wagon, but where it was at there was no way I could get a picture.  He had got it in Kentucky...there was something else he had driven to Pennsylvania to get but I cannot remember what.

I can't wait now to go back there again in weather when it is dry...and not muddy.