Visitors

The feeding station was busy yesterday....there was a small flock of cowbirds that visited the first half of the day.  Thankfully, they went on their way and left some for the other birds.

They are beautiful in their own way.   But even though there was only about a dozen or maybe 15 of them, they completely monopolized the feeders and the ground underneath.
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We had snow off and on all day yesterday, but no accumulation...the ground did not even get covered.  That was sort of amazing with how hard it snowed part of the time. 

It was 12º when I got up this morn...looking for a high of 27ºF.  Not very warm in other words.  It is really brisk out there, even with the sunshine.  At least the days are starting to get longer.

I cleaned my sewing machine yesterday...I always clean out all the lint I can fairly often, and always take the throat plate off to clean out what lint is left before I start a new project.  And I oil the machine...got that done and the walking foot put on.

I actually got a little quilting done...should have got a lot more done than I did.  If nothing happens, I hope to get more done this day. 

A busy life....

These are from a little drive we took Sunday...

an Amish place....

I look at all of this and think how busy they must be.  Even though one of my blog friends, Judy has mentioned maple syrup and the fact they still have to tap their trees,  I had not even thought about that it has started around here.

That is a trailer in the background...it will eventually be replaced by a frame home. At least at the other places I have seen them, they have always gotten replaced.
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I have been busy around here, too...went to daughter's for Lorelei's birthday party this past weekend.  She had a ball...with her it is the more the merrier.  We were telling her the night before that the quicker she went to bed, the quicker the next day would come...she told us something along the lines of yes, I will go to bed now and wake up in the morning refreshed!  I have no idea where she heard that word, much less learned to use it correctly.

I got my crumb quilt top finished last week, made the backing the other day....for the life of me I cannot remember if it was before we went to Sarah's or after we came home.  Doesn't matter anyway, except it bothers me how I forget simple things like that.

Yesterday, I went down and looked through my fabrics and chose one to make the binding, and got it made, I got the backing ironed, and even got the backing, batting, and top layered, and pin-basted and Roger carried it back down to the basement and awaits the quilting.  It is going to be simple quilting...and not to heavily quilted if I can control myself.  Now if I can just get started on it...

Quilts....

Yesterday was a fairly nice day, so I took advantage of it and washed these quilts.  They were made by my mom.  She would sometimes make a top and  it be years later that she would quilt it.  Such is the case with the one with the five stars.

I was little when she made it...and no longer lived at home when she quilted it.  But I did happen to be on vacation and was there while she was quilting it.  So I go to do a little bit of the quilting.  I cannot remember how old I was when she made this other quilt...

 but there is material from a dress I had in third or fourth grade. (The yellow was not part of my dress...just the dark fabric.)

And there is fabric from some of her dresses...

I really loved this quilt from the minute she made it.  Just because of the memories associated with the fabric if nothing else.

I have always planned for our girls to have them.  I wash them every so often then put them up.  They have never really been used.  I am planning on taking the star one to Sarah this weekend.  And one of these days will be mailing the bottom one to our other daughter.