Week 32 - A Visitor

I haven't seen my youngest brother since 2012 and Mom hasn't seen him since 2016 when she moved from Arizona to live with us.  He was able to fly out here for a few days to see mom and us this past week.  We picked him up at the airport on Tuesday afternoon and the days flew past till we had to take him back to the airport yesterday so he could go home.  He and Mom spent all day, each day, just talking and catching up, then I got to spend time with him once I got home from work, and in the evenings, he and John talked Guy Stuff...Bill, my brother, seemed to enjoy his time here on the farm, helping John feed the cows and the chickens and unloading 1000 pounds of grain into the barn. The weather cooperated, only getting really hot the last full day he was here.  The humidity also stayed low.  

I remembered to get a couple of pictures...

It was wonderful getting to spend time with Bill after all this time.  I'm hoping it won't be too long before he comes back. He will be retiring from the police force this coming February so he and his wife might be taking some road trips after that.   And maybe our other brother might come visit....mom sure has missed them.  

We tried a new restaurant while Bill was here.  Wildseed is a newer establishment about 20 miles from here.  It's clean, welcoming, and the food was so tasty.  It's a mixture of American with a bit of Indian/Thai flair.  Really good food.  And the desserts were To Die For!  We had tried to go there for our anniversary and they had changed their Sunday hours without changing them on the website so they were closed when we got there.  I'd made a comment on their Facebook page about our disappointment and the owner replied with her apologies and asked us to let her know if we visited again and she would help us celebrate with free desserts.  And what absolutely wonderful desserts they were.  John had strawberry shortcake, mom had a chocolate lava cake, Bill had cheesecake with fresh strawberries and I had carrot cake with a really rich cream cheese frosting.  There was not a single dessert that disappointed!  

Thanks for stopping by.  

Week 30 & 31 - Time Gets Away From us All

Again, time got away....sometimes it's my own fault, sometimes, I can't take full responsibility.  This time - well, I don't know who's responsible for the blog not getting done last week....let's leave it at that, ok?

This past week has gone by in a blur.  Mom mentioned she'd never had a facial so I took us both over to the local beauty school and we had facials on Tuesday.  Mom is totally sold on that particular beauty regimen and I see more appointments with the esthitician in our future.  While there, we made appointments for pedicures in early August....top to bottom, we are gettin' our pretty on!

Today is overcast and we are hoping for some decent rain, any rain!  It's been so dry here and the fields are getting brown...not appetizing to the cows, for sure.  John is doing some supplemental graining right now....and we need to arrange for winter hay soon, before the prices go up because of the lack of rain this year.

From left to right you have Murphy, Maurice, Belle, and Rosie...they all wait at the trough for John every night.

Back in late May, John decided to get some more egg-laying chickens...mom and I picked up 14 newborn chicks and brought them home...they have finally gotten big enough that John is allowing them out of the brooder in the barn so they can roam during the day....It took them a bit over a week to make it out of the barn but they are now spending longer periods of each day, roaming around the area between the barn and the house, eating bugs and other things in the grass.  

Two of the newest ones were eaten by slithery creatures several weeks ago so there are only 12 chickens now...along with the Two Old Girls from the original group.  John thinks one of the new ones is a rooster so we might end up with some fertilized eggs as well!   There are 5 Black Australorps, 4 Austa Whites, and 3 Barred Rocks...and the Two Old Girls are Brown Leghorns....all of them produce white-shelled eggs....one of these days, I might convince him to get some Easter Egg layers, as well....those eggs have a green, or blue, or yellow hue to the shell.

My youngest brother is coming to visit this Tuesday....he is mainly coming to see mom, but he will get me as well!  I was thinking the other day and I don't think in 45 years of marriage, my brother had ever been to my home.  He spent 20 years in the Air Force and was all over the world, and we were in San Diego area for 25 of our 30 years in the Navy....and never did we live close enough to visit each other during that time.  So this is a momentous occasion.  It sure will be good to see him....

The clouds are gathering so it's probably time to end this and shut down the computer....thanks for staying loyal. Until next time.

Week 29 - Where is my Quilting Mojo?

There are times when an avid crafter loses their mojo - knitting, crocheting, painting, papercrafting, or even quilting.  I lost my quilting mojo a couple of years ago and have struggled to get it back.  I think a lot of it has to do with a Big Project I committed to do a couple of years ago.  I was so enthusiastic to start it and jumped right in with both feet - then the doubts rushed in and things came to a screeching, mind-numbing stop!  I've allowed Da Big Thing to dominate my brain with guilt and even a bit of dread.  I hated the way it was coming together in the beginning  and not only stopped, but ripped it all out and put it in Time Out.   I talked to a friend and got some pointers....had a small idea of a plan and let it stew for a while.  A couple of weeks ago, I started laying it all out according to that small idea.  It fell totally into place like a charm!  I spent yesterday sewing most of the parts together and have a bit more to do to get it all evened out before I put the borders on and then send it to the quilter.  I'm not going to show it to you until it's totally done and I've at least sent a picture to the owner...but it's going to be magnificent!  And I think on top of that euphoria, my quilting mojo might be coming back!

I know you've all heard me talk about the annual Row by Row Experience.  It's going on again this summer.  The theme is Sew Musical.  I had decided that rather than obssess about all the rows, this year I would make a specific plan and stick to it.  I did that - up to a point.  First, I decided to make a guitar quilt. I chose a bunch of blocks from several different states that featured guitars.  Some of them I wanted the kits, and some of them I could use my own stash fabrics but needed the pattern.  So, as usual, I enlisted the help of the numerous family and friends.  It's one of the perks of being a military family - you make tons of friends and they eventually settle all over the country and even in some foreign countries.  I'm feelin' pretty good about this and THEN someone mentions that several of the shops throughout the U.S. have focused on the Beatles for their rows and I did some research and now I'm looking to make a Beatles quilt as well as the guitar one.  I''ve gotten a couple of the Beatles rows so far and hope to pick up 3 more....will see if I manage to get them.  

In the meantime, I was talking to my former teaching partner, Jan, who is on an extended road trip with her husband thru Alaska.  They will be gone about 4 months, just driving and camping all over that wonderful state.  She's been 'infected' by the Row by Row phenomenon and is making Bill stop at all the quilt shops whenever they come to a town that has one.  She's been picking up patterns and kits and sending them to me - my Alaska quilt (and hers as well) is going to be amazing!  2 years ago, Jan picked up a row kit for me from one of the shops in El Cajon and it's been marinating in a bin for that long....I got a hankering to make it up and it's done.  Makes me a bit homesick for San Diego.

The Coronado Bay Bridge from the Coronado side, looking at downtown San Diego....If I didn't have to work still, I'd be on a trip to San Diego this fall....retirement can't come too soon for me.  And, No, I don't know when that will be.

Seems like an appropriate goal!

Thanks for stopping by.  

Week 28 - It's been a Fair Week!

This past week was our annual Webster County Fair.  I usually enter something in the fair each year, be it knitted or quilted.  For the past few years, it's been socks - mostly socks that I've knit in accordance with Sock Madness (two birds with one set of knitting needles!).  This year was no different.  I entered the brioche socks I knitted for Round 2, Checkbox Socks.  I made them fraternal - that means since they were 2 colors, I made one with the green dominant and one with the teal dominant.  Evidently the judges liked them cause - well look!

Yep, that's a first place ribbon there.  And what you don't see is my big honkin' check for $3.00 as my winning prize!  Not sure where I'll be spending it but no matter how much the check is, it's still special!

Mom and I went into town with John early this morning. We all had breakfast at a lovely little restaurant John found a few years ago called Cedars.  It's just basic food, nothing special, but we sure do like it.  The staff is wonderful - and there are plenty of them!  So one doesn't wait forever to either place our order or receive it.  

Then we all went to Sam's and Lowe's with John so he could do some shopping for hardware and plumbing stuff to do chicken butchering next weekend.  Mom and I sat in the truck - at Lowe's it was almost an hour.  No worries, we took knitting with us and with the windows open and the beautiful breeze, we had a lovely time.  

While waiting for John, I talked with my friend Carole from Rhode Island.  She spends each summer at her cottage on Little Diamond Island in Maine and that's where I caught her.  She's one of my all time favorite quilting idols. I love that lady - she smart, and creative, and bawdy.  I want to be just like her when I'm almost 81 years old. Not that I'd ever be able to be bawdy - I think one must develop that during one's early years and I"m far too old to create a bawdy self.  But I can dream. And I always feel so special when I'm around her. The only thing about talking with her today is that I now miss Little Diamond Island even more...sure could use some island time. Sigh.

Thanks for stopping by. Until next time.

Week 27 - Hot & Humid

It seems all I talk about is the weather these days.  It's hot and humid here in the Ozarks.  Given that it's July, one would expect it to be hot and humid in the Ozarks!  So we are on track for typical weather.  

The insurance inspector came Tuesday afternoon to take a look at the damage to the truck from the deer. He took 38 photos (why in the world would he need pictures of the inside upholstery when the deer hit the front grill and bumper, I'll not even try to figure out!).  Once he left I went in to finish some things I'd started....computer email thing went Ding!  I took a look and it was a notice from the insurance company that they had completed their estimate (attached to the email) and had deposited the amount of the estimate, less our deductible, into our checking account...we were good to go!  I mean, come ON guys, that was way too fast...I think I got whiplash from how fast that went!  Literally less than an hour.  John took the truck into the shop that will fix it and they've ordered the parts...we are leaving it at the shop on the 15th and they will start work on it bright and early on the 16th - with us picking it up on the 17th, bright and shiny like new! This was way, too easy.

Spent part of yesterday with a friend who had taken several of my sock knitting classes before she moved to Arizona.  She came back to visit and called me to see if I would take a look at 4 of her projects that she's started, and then put down and when she picked them up again, she just wasn't sure where she was....we spent a lovely 3 hours taking a quick look at her socks, marking where she was on each, and then catching up on all her doings there in AZ...I sure do miss the Valley.  Don't miss the summer heat or the traffic, but I miss most everything else about it.  She's going to pick up some of the patterns/kits for this year's Row by Row Experience for me.

The theme of this year's Row by Row Experience is Sew Musical.  I wasn't entirely thrilled with the offerings this year.  A lot of them just don't appeal to me.  Then I saw a couple of 'rows' that featured guitars....hmmm, something about that grabbed me.  I now have a plan to make a guitar quilt using rows from shops from all over the U.S.  There really are only about 12 rows so at least I won't have 100 people looking to get row kits or patterns for me this year.  My quilting mojo is slowly coming back and I don't want to be overwhelmed with patterns/kits that I know I just won't have time for.  Keeping it to a single theme will make it easier on my nerves!

This coming week we have the 4th of July holiday...it falls on Wednesday this year.  That means I have both Tuesday and Wednesday off work.  No students on Tuesday so I can spend the entire 2 days sewing and/or knitting....I think we will do a pork tenderloin for the holiday.  Not sure if on the grill or the oven of the crock pot...will decide on the day what mood I'm in.

I've got a can of peach pie filling in the pantry so I took out the frozen pie crusts and will whip up a small peach pie for the 3 of us this afternoon. John has a big pot of what I think if bean soup going in the crockpot and it smells delicious!  I love it when he makes bean soup - the best in the world.  

Sorry, no pictures this week...I've been quite lax in snapping photos with my camera....will try to do better this next week.

Happy Independence Day to all you Americans....Happy 4th of July to everyone else....it's still a day to celebrate being alive!

Thanks for stopping by. 

Week 26 - Mind the Deer, Dear!

Today we've gotten quite a nice lot of rain...we sure can use it.  The fields were starting to turn brown and John has had to start graining the cows.  With the advent of rain, the grass will begin to grown again and the cows can graze on fresh stuff.  Poor Murphy and Maurice have the added insult of having been castrated yesterday...about time!  They are both over 2 months old and should have been banded the first week...time got away from everyone.  

John used his day off on Friday to run several errands...nothing unusual there, right?  He was one his way home and a deer ran out in front of the truck!  Don't know the condition of said deer - it ran off into the woods and John couldn't see where it was...the front grill on the truck was damaged but all-in-all, the truck is driveable and John was not hurt.  The insurance inspector is coming on Tuesday to take photos so we can get an estimate and then get the truck in for repairs.  

I've got my checkup appointment tomorrow with the orthopedic surgeon.  It's been an entire year since my knee replacement surgery, can you believe it?  I'd love it if the knee would bend a bit more but the fractured bone at the ankle during rehab put paid to getting the knee to bend more cause the scar tissue prevents it.  Since I'm not a hiker, or a rock climber, or a runner, the knee doesn't need to bend all that much.  I can certainly do what I need to do with the knee the way it is now.  

Our granddaughter, C, turned 13 a week or so ago...with that, she also got a cell phone.  I've been getting texts from her and video chats....such a pleasure!  It's really fun having such a great relationship with all our grands.

For the first time in probably a year or more, I started sewing on a quilt again this morning..I'd gotten the pattern from a quilting friend back in 2003.  Had put a bunch of blocks together a long time ago but hadn't even finished it.  It's going to be a scrappy quilt, probably a lap-sized one.  Will post once it's done...

I think it's going to start raining and thundering again so I will finish this and turn off the computer.  Thanks for stopping by!

Week 25 - It's Hot, Mama!

Yep, it's hot....Our summer bypassed Spring and already it's taken hold of us.  The temps are in the low 90's and the humidity is really high as well.

I recently saw this illustration and, pardon me if it's offensive...to me, it is appropriate to our current weather.

And it tickled me when I read it!

The summer garden is doing quite nicely...John planted 6 Roma tomato plants and 6 cutting tomato plants.  The deer got 2 of the Romas but once he put out the soap, the deer have left the plants alone.  He also planted a couple of cucumbers and a couple of bell pepper plants.  The cucumbers are sprouting blossoms and mini fruit...

The cukes won't get to be giant, only small - like pickling cucumbers...we plan on preserving them if we get enough...otherwise, we plan on eating them!

With luck, the temperatures will get back to normal for this time of year in the next few days.  We are expecting rain this week - yeah! - and with that, the temps should drop a bit.  

Not a lot to tell you this week....will post more next time.  Thanks for stopping by.