Monday, February 29, 2016

An eagle day for sure!!!!

We decided to go to the Heron Viewing Station north of Danville, Illinois...due to a stop we made, we didn't get there till around 2:00 in the afternoon.  And one of the first things we spotted were two eagles.  By the time I ran back to the car to get my DSLR, there were 3!  But I had missed seeing two of them fighting...


 If you will right click on this photo, and then click to view in a new tab or a new window, it should give you a version big enough till you can clearly see that this is THREE bald eagles.  It is the only shot I got of the three of them.


I did manage to capture two of the adults a few times..


Here again you have the option of right clicking on these to view in another tab or new window...a bigger version will appear if you do it that way I think.

Besides the 3 adult Bald Eagles, there were two juvenile, plus two or three hawks!

Sunday, February 28, 2016

The day is done...


We just spent two hours mesmerized by the movie The Children of Huang Shi.

It is about an English journalist that saved a group of orphans during the Japanese Occupation of China.  It is so well done in my opinion.  During the closing credits 3 or 4 of those children talk about him.  It is one of the best movies I have seen in a long time.

If you want to see it, right now it is on YouTube in full length and you can see it here,.  I also posted it at the bottom of this post.  It is two hours long, no interruptions.  At least right now.  So many times I post something like this and before I know it I check it and it is no longer available.

If you choose to watch it, let me know what you think of it.

Friday, February 26, 2016

Remembering EG today


I just cannot do a regular post here since hearing of the accident that killed EG, or Tina Forrester, East Gwillimbury, Camera Girl.  She is one lady that will missed by all.  I only knew her through blogging, but I am betting she was a kind person...a thoughtful person.  My  sympathy goes out to her family and friends.

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Snowing with wild abandonment

We got up to rain, and as I was in the process of telling Roger I did not think we were going to get any snow at all, the rain changed to snow as I spoke.
It is the kind that sticks....it is the kind that makes me want to get out and tramp the woods...
It is the kind that calls to the child in all of us. 

Monday, February 22, 2016

Looking forward

As I was looking through my photos I kept seeing things I look forward to...things like being outside without sleeves of any kind.  Butterflies abd frogs

and just being able to enjoy observe nature.
Fresh vegetables sounds so good...
but one of the first things I look forward to is watching the dogwoods bloom!


Friday, February 19, 2016

The guardian...

As a few of you know I have been sick and so has Lorelei.  Her mom just sent me these pics...
Don't you just love her guard dog?  There is nothing quite so sweet as receiving photos/messages from kids and grand kids.   Specially ones that include photos.

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Almost finished....

Before I show you this, I will tell you that the pieces were all cut free-hand with the rotary cutter.  The sides and borders are not supposed to be straight, though I did not have the nerve to cut them with the curve I would have liked.
This was an experiment from start to finish.  Ricky Tims showed how to make this 'flower' on Simply Quilts a long time ago.  Most of you have probably never heard of Ricky Tims...he is a well known quilter and teacher.  To see some his work I just googled his name and clicked on images....here.
I played with quilting....I guess you could say I was doodling with my needle instead of an ink pen.
I like it better in person than in these pics...



I still have to do something to finish the edges and then it is done...

Long ago...

Long ago, when I was in school...high school....when the teachers were talking I would sit and doodle as I listened them.


 Now this one has this on one side...it is unfinished.  If it had been finished it would have been full.



This is the other side...it is finished.

I have always thought I should try quilting something similar to these....they also make me think of crazy quilts.

Monday, February 15, 2016

A little pic

How about one pic without a big smile...you can tell she is about to smile, though. 
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I am here to report that I have been nothing if not lazy for the past few days.  I have touched my sewing machine but no more than for half an hour or so each day.  Normally, once I start I don't want to quit.

Do you ever get something on your mind that distracts you from everything?  That is how I have been.  Distracted. 
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We got quite a bit of snow yesterday...when Roger shoveled the sidewalk last night he thought maybe 5 or 6 inches.  I did not go outside the first time.  That is not normal for me.

Right now I got to get moving cause we have an appointment in town today...

Thursday, February 11, 2016

Some randomness....

1.  Someone had a birthday recently...can you tell by this photo that she was happy with flowers her aunt sent her?


2.  Remember this post about the recumbent bicycle?  Well, we took the plunge about 3 weeks ago and got it.  We are pleased with it.  I guess.  Does riding it do any good if you have to take a nap afterwards???  No joke.  I get up and ride it before I do anything else.  And I am so worn out when I am done, I could go back to bed.  And I am not riding it very long at all....

3.  We were through the strip pit area the other day...there were a few hundred White-fronted geese and several swans.
4.  For some light reading material, specially if you have young kids, you might get a few chuckles from Junie B. Jones books...I had gotten Lorelei one...I don't remember the name of the first one.  But that led to Sarah getting her some, and I got her more.  And Sarah and I both enjoy them as much as Lorelei.
5.  And Nothing To Tell by Donna Gray is what I am reading just for me...the author interviewed women that grew up in Montana, women with no claim to fame.  This book is basically their words describing their life.  I am really enjoying it. 

I am linking to Tanya's Willy Nilly Friday Five...

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

New additions to the fabric family...

My daughter wants me to make shams for her....she ordered more batiks.

She wants one set out of the one above.  It is even more gorgeous in person.

Then she wants me to use the one above and the one below to make another set...
She wants one fabric on the front and another on the back.

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Winter temps are here again...it was 9ºF here this morn at 8:30ish.  We had to run to Walmart for a prescription and it was just 11 degrees an hour or two later.  A couple hours later, the thermometer on the Rav4 said it was 18º...the wind cut right through a person.

I wanted to get back to sewing, but didn't...maybe I will get in some time tomorrow.   I had time this afternoon, but was rather on the lazy side.  


Into the white...

We had appointments about an hour north of us today...this is the sort of day it was.  I had thought about cancelling, but got to thinking about if it was a normal day we would be apt to be out taking photos.  Only usually we go on back roads.  But the way north is never very busy so on we went.
Part of the time it was not blowing and snowing so terrible bad...
and a lot of the time it was like this...





Monday, February 8, 2016

A few stitches...

You can click here to see the whole thing...I have had this little piece and its twin made for several years and never done anything with them.  So, since they are made of batiks and daughters quilt top is made of batiks, I thought I would play with quilting on it to see if there seemed to be any special problems.    So far, only operator errors have emerged.

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We have a skim of snow and it is cold out there!   I don't look forward to tomorrow...we have to head out of town in the morn, then come home and go to Terre Haute.  But Terre Haute is for fun...

Saturday, February 6, 2016

A 4 Eagle day!

We headed to Terre Haute this morn...the first eagle we saw I did not get a pic of...as we were on the highway and I did not see him till too late.  He was sitting in a tree watching the river.  When the river is crossed, it is not far till you are in Terre Haute.  We had only gone 3 or 4 blocks when I spotted this one flying...soon as we came to a parking lot that he could pull into Roger pulled in.
these are not very good...I was busy trying to capture this one and Roger says hey, there's another one...
And there was this one.  Both juveniles, and I think definitely a year or more apart in age.  The first one's head had quite a bit of white....

So, we went on and did our bit of shopping, and drove around some parts of Terre Haute I had never been in.  When we headed home we went a different route...I almost told Roger to go back to the way we came but then thought no, we have seen eagles this way, too.  And before we got out of North Terre Haute, I spotted the one below.
Nothing better than seeing eagles!

Friday, February 5, 2016

A bit of Randomness

1.  Lorelei was here last weekend and called for me to come look...she was watching this fellow across the street.  This is not a good pic...it was not still a second.  Peck, peck, peck!

2.  We saw this calf last week...I couldn't resist snapping a couple even though I was having a real hard time seeing the viewing screen of my point & shoot camera.
3.  This is the type of weather we were having two years ago today.  I am beginning to think we might not get any of this this year.  But a little snow is predicted for Monday and Tuesday...

4:  For a little laughter:


 5.  Just in case you missed it, I finished the Lotus quilt top yesterday....you can see it here.

I am linking to Willy Nilly Friday 5

Thursday, February 4, 2016

The Lotus quilt top is together!

This is on a queen sized bed---it is for a King size.  I am so glad to have it together at long last.  Now to figure what will do as a backing and batting.  At first Daughter wanted to just use flannel for the backing.  I knew I could handle that.  But then she decided she wanted a thing batting, and either a batik or just plain cotton fabric for the backing.

I have no idea how I will get this done.   The thing is I really would like to be able to do the quilting myself...I just like to do my projects from start to finish.  But the size of this one may force other options.  We shall see.




Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Tier poles

This is the tier poles in what was our old barn...the barn my brothers built.  When they were still in high school.  I really don't know how they did it.  I think my dad directed them, but he had muscular dystrophy and was unable to help much by that time.  Any ladder we had would have been homemade...and very basic tools.  Not even sure if they had anything other than a handsaw. 

This barn held tobacco on this side of it.  the middle had a loft, and tobacco was hung above the loft in the middle of the barn.  The other side had a loft, too.  Hay was stacked over there....again by my brothers.  Below the loft on that side were stalls for the animals. With one end having a sort of tack room...some corn was kept in there, some feed for old Bob, and his harness hung in there.  We had to have a latch that opened from the inside, because he was smart enough to get one on the outside open.

I don't know how tobacco is hung in barns in other areas, but around our area, it was total physical work... there would be one person standing on the wagon reaching the tobacco to the first person standing on the bottom tier poles...he would reach it to the third person who stood on the second row of tier poles and he would hang it up on the 3rd row of poles.  (Notice the 3rd row is up where the roof meets the side of the barn.)  BTW, he could not just stand on one pole and hang tobacco..he had to spraddle two poles till once he got the tobacco hung, he could make sure there were spaces between the stalks on the stick of tobaco, plus make sure there was space between it and the one hung before.  And the same goes for the second row of tier poles. 

The tobacco had to have space for air to move around for it dry and cure.  Otherwise it would get moldy and rot.  When grading season came, it all had to be taken down, but by then it was just a fraction of the weight...I could even walk on one pole, hold on to the pole above with one hand and get tobacco with the other...but the only time mom would have let me do it is if it were just the two of us.
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I spent hours and hours in this barn as a kid...my niece and I played up there hours on end, read books, carried mud from the creek and made stuff with it...we had swings, and also played on those tier poles.  We thought no more of walking across that second row of tier poles than walking on the ground...we would go over to the side and hold on to the cracks and walk along that 2  x 6 all along the barn.  Other girls had playhouses....we had a barn!

I often wonder if mom knew all we did...I think she must have.  I know she seen us do some of it...now I couldn't even walk across the first tier pole.  Heights really bother me now...another thing I never in my life expected to happen.  But I do enjoy remembering things we did.