Week 15 & 16

 The weeks just fly by, don't they?  I'm surprised I don't get whiplash from one week to the next.  We've had such a crazy few days of weather here.  Sunshine and lovely spring temperatures one day, rain, wind, hail and loss of electricity and satelitte TV the next, and the following day we have sunshine, breezes, and unusually cold temps.  I suppose one might say it's about par for spring in the Ozarks....If you don't like the weather, just wait 15 minutes and it will surely change.

Our little calf is a female. 

We call her Onyx.  That's her mamma behind her - Babette.  Onyx is 2 weeks old today.  Belle (Babette's mother) had her calf about 6 months ago - we call that calf Cinder. She is also a female.  So we currently have 4 female cows here.  

Onyx is a very energetic calf...she is curious and quite active in the field.  She nurses well and I've seen her already munching small amounts of hay - maybe she is just mimicing her momma.  I've often watched her romp in the field, following the chickens, wondering if they want to play.  Her tail goes so fast, she looks like she is winding it up!

Am currently all caught up with the British Isles Adventure Stitch-Along from Caterpillar Cross Stitch.  We've completed the southeast of England and I think we may move over to Ireland next time.  I loved doing Stonehenge and the London bus...There are 3 more 'clues' coming out on the 26th of April, May and June to compete it.  It's fun and fast stitching.  

I went out to help John put hay in the field for the cows the other day...he uses the tractor to haul the huge round bale into the field...it's easier for him if I go out and open and close the gate so he doesn't have to get on and off the tractor.  While I was waiting for him to finish putting 'scratch' out for the chickens, I caught this....all he has to do is walk out to the compost pile and those chickens literally RUN to him - they know he has treats for them.  My very own Chicken Whisperer!  

Thanks so much for stopping by. 

 Well, folks, the population of Pieceful Harbor has grown.  Babette gave birth to a calf yesterday morning.  We don't know the gender yet....don't want to spook mama by grabbing the baby and tipping it over to find out.  So, the next best thing is to wait and see it pee...easy enough to tell which gender it is then.

Baby is agile and running around like crazy.  Mama is keeping a close eye on the calf, not letting it get too far away from her.  Nursing is going fine and that little 50 pound bundle is adorable! Once we determine the sex, I'll let you all know.  

Spring has established itself here in the Ozarks....temps are ranging from mid-50's to low 70's during the day and the winds are crazy!  We've been lucky to NOT have any tornadic activity in this area, unlike a bit further south of us in Arkansas.  Fingers crossed it stays that way.

Have spent the last couple of days stitching on the British Isles Adventure Mystery Stitch-Along...The third clue came out on Friday. 

All of those little motifs represent the area of the UK where they are stitched.  This clue concentrates on the southern-most part of England...once I get that part done, you will see Land's End on the far left and the London Eye on the far right.  Then it's on to Ireland, northern England and Scotland.  There are 3 more clues left - one each 1st of the month. So by June, I should have this one complete.  Stay tuned!

John and I booked our tickets to go to Utah for our granddaughter's High School graduation in early June.  We are so excited to see the whole family and help celebrate Charlotte not only graduating but turning 18 later in the month.  

Thanks for stopping by!

Week 12 & 13

I guess it doesn't really matter what I decide to do, the Universe is totally in charge anyway!  It seems I only remember to post about every two weeks....I suppose that's better than not posting at all. Sorry!

Lots of stitching happening these days.  I've committed to 3 SALs (stitch alongs) and one of them is complete. 

This is the Starwoman mystery SAL from Barbara Ana Designs.  It was inspired by the David Bowie song, Starwoman.  I love love love Barbara Ana designs...this one was a quick one to stitch as it only had 3 parts and they were about 2 weeks apart...plenty of time to get each clue done before the next one came out.

The next one is the Dr. Who mystery SAL.  Again, I don't know what the finished product will look like but, honestly, who doesn't like almost anything Dr. Who?  I had pulled all the threads on the list, and mostly decided on the fabric to use before the first clue came out on March 1st. There will be a total of 9 clues, each coming out on the 1st of the month.  Well, when the first clue was revealed, I hated the fabric I'd chosen and decided to get some from a lady who had designed a fabric specifically for the SAL.  I quickly ordered it but it took almost 2 weeks to get to me...once it arrived, I started working on the first clue and hope to finish it today, just in time for clue 2 to come out this next Saturday....whew! 

Here is Clue 1:

Yep, that's a huge TARDIS - Dr. Who's spaceship...I have almost the entire thing stitched (more done since this picture was taken yesterday).

And the final SAL I've committed to is the British Isles Adventure SAL by Caterpillar Cross Stitch.  It started back on January 26th and each clue will come out on the 26th of the month for a total of 6 months.  Yesterday we got Clue 3....I must say, I am really enjoying this one.  There are small motifs stitched and they pertain to the various districts in the UK....I suspect we will stitch an outline of the UK sometime toward the end of the SAL to tie them all together.  So far, we've done Edinburgh Castle, a kilt, Buckingham Castle, a rugby ball, a soccer ball, the Welch flag, and several other symbols of Britain.  Yesterday, we got Lands End in Cornwall, Stonehenge, the London Eye and several other motifs.  Some folks are adding symbols of their hometowns or memories of summer vacations - a Yellow Submarine for Liverpool, the White Cliffs of Dover, perhaps something down in the Portsmouth area to denote the military presence during WW2...I might add some of those myself, if I can figure out how to chart them.  We'll see. No pictures so far...will try to get a snap before I put it up after stitching this next clue.  Stay tuned.

Winter had finally (I'm whispering so as not to disturb the eves!) left our area and we are seeing some warmer temperatures, as befitting Spring.  We've had some rain (more than a little) and the fields are beginnng to green up...the drive into town is so pretty with the green fields and spring flowers blooming along the road.  

Here is a view of our front steps...the bulbs John planted last year are coming up.  

Living in the country has its own rewards...chickens roaming the front yard and into the neighbor's property...clucking away...it's a sound I never heard growing up (being a town girl) but our chickens sure do make a racket - or the make music, depending on your point of view. 

Thanks for stopping by. 

 

Week 10 & 11

I always heard the saying "Time flies" when growing up, but never made too much of it.  But I can honestly say that I now understand EXACTLY what that means.  2 weeks have flown past since my last blog posting and it feels like no time at all.  

We've weathered (see that pun?) snow and sun and rain and wind over the last 2 weeks..frankly, even though winter is indeed my least favorite season, I am really ready for it to be over...REALLY! Spring is supposed to be ushered in a week from today...I have just enough time to make up a welcome banner and get some balloons - I am ready for Spring! 

We have a new roof.  And just in time too...it rained for 2 days starting the day after they put in the last nail.  A fine job they did!  No leaks and pretty too.

Anyone need fresh eggs?  They are selling at the stores for around $5.00 a dozen.  Our 38 chickens are laying quite nicely after taking off during part of the winter and only gave us 1 or 2 eggs a day for over 2 months. Now we are getting about 2 1/2 dozen a day!  I've got 30 dozen in the fridge in the garage....anyone?

Yep! That's me! 

Our neighbor got a drone for Christmas a year ago. He took this picture of our property last spring. This is only the cleared portion - the trees in the background go all around to the right and come forward to the road you see in the foreground.  We have 10 acres.  There are 2 dark spots to the right of the barn and to the left of the big tree in the field - those are cows, napping.  There....now you've seen our house! 

It's overcast and chilly today - a good day to stay inside and sew or embroider or cross stitch...thank goodness for hobbies!

Well, that all for this time. I am just checking in with you all. Be safe, be warm. Thanks for stopping by. 

Week 9

 Roofers came on Monday right at 7:30 in the morning...banging began immediately!  Our poor dogs had a frantic 2 days till the roof was complete.  They worked all day long on Monday and left just before sundown, returning at 7:00 the next morning and began to bang and pound again.  By 4:00 on Tuesday, they had completed our brand new roof and it is gorgeous!

Green roof again...just in time to greet the rainstorm on Wednesday morning!  

On Thursday, my best friend, Fran, and I had tickets to see Hamilton on stage in Springfield.  What a treat!  The play is very fast-paced, totally sung in the hiphop style....I had been listening to the soundtrack for a week so I was familiar with the story and the music - thank goodness!  I highly recommend seeing it if you get a chance.  Lin Manual Miranda wrote the story, lyrics and music after reading the book titled Alexander Hamilton  by Ron Chernow.  That book is the difinitive biography of Hamilton.  I bought the book and will begin reading the 810 pages soon.  Most of the history we learned in school only touched on Hamilton and his contribution to the founding of the United States and the Revolutionary War...the play opened up a whole slew of history that I had never heard.  I talked to my son who was a Political Science major in college with a minor in history and he, too, loved the play and highly recommends the book as well.  Will report in once I've slogged thru the Chernow book.

The weather patterns around here have been, well, unpredictable at the least.  We had sun for 2 days, then rain, then a cold and windy day on Thursday, then warmer on Friday and Saturday and today is overcast with rain, wind, and possibly tornadoes later tonight....as I said, unpredictable! I am soooooo looking forward to spring!

Thanks for stopping by! Seeya next week. 

Wow, 8 weeks into 2023 already.  The older I get, the faster time goes by.  

Spent most of last week working on a 'super secret' project that MUST be done by early June...I finished my part and now need to take it to a finisher....Will show a picture once the recipient has received it.  I'm really proud of it, to be sure!

We are having a new roof put on here at Pieceful Harbor.  The original roof was placed just about 20 years ago and, in spite of the advertisements of the tiles being a 30-year warrantee, most tiles only last about 20 years, especially here in the midwest, where we get really hard winds and rains and snow and ice.  So it was time.  The materials were delivered on Friday...

They had a nifty devise to load everything up onto the roof.

Ready to begin bright and early on Monday morning.

The 3 man crew arrived at 7:30 and jumped in right away.  I knew they were coming but was still abed - but not for long...they started banging and scraping and making a racket immediately.  Funny thing, they were so rhythmic in ripping the original tiles off the roof, I actually fell asleep for a short time!  

It's hard to believe they expect to have this finished by tomorrow afternoon at the latest - we are expecting rain on Wednesday.  

Every job needs a supervisor and I had one all last week in the studio... The Skipper is very diligent when making sure I'm on track with my projects!

He looks like he has his arms crossed and is concentrating very hard on my workmanship!

My best friend and I have tickets to see Hamilton this week -  I have wanted to see it since it made such a splash on Broadway several years ago.  It finally made its way to this area of the country and I got tickets for Fran and me to celebrate our January birthdays. 

Thanks for stopping by...see you next week. 

 

Week 6 & 7 - I see a pattern starting - sigh!

Another Sunday breezed past me and I didn't post....I will NOT let this get me down...it's still the beginning of the year and I can get back on track...I really can!

Mom and I took a little drive last Monday and dropped off 4 quilts and a table square for the quilter to quilt.  Oliver only does edge-to-edge quilting - no custom work - but he does a lovely job of it and that will be 4 quilts done!  The table square was pieced way back in the 1990's, toward the end of the millenium...I wasn't sure how to put the 4 blocks together and finally decided to just make them a big ol' 4-patch.  It measures out at about 24" square and will be a sweet table topper when done.  It's the same tree, done for each of the 4 seasons.  

Our chickens are laying like crazy now - at the end of autumn, they had slowed down to almost nothing. John was getting maybe up to 3 eggs a day from 38 layers.  Now he's getting about 2 dozen a day from those same 38 layers.  We are selling them as fast as we can and still we have over 20 dozen in the fridge in the garage.   We sell them for $2.50 per dozen if you bring us the cartons back, or $3.00 a dozen if you keep the cartons.  Considering that eggs are selling at the grocery store for anywhere from $4.00 to $7.00 a dozen, this is a real bargain!  I always feel as though I need an armed guard with me when I go to deliver eggs to customers!

Helped John take hay out to the cows this afternoon.  Normally, you'd say that was nothing to write about.  And normally I'd say that was correct.  But I am not a normal person - I really dislike being outside (John says he can tell if I've been sitting out on the porch too long, I evidently begin to twitch or give off an odor or shoot sparks or something.  To clarify, I get really bad headaches out in the sun - really quickly - and so I don't go outside very often or for too long. ) So when I agree to go out to the corral, and open and close the gates and wait for him to drive the tractor to the hay ring with hay and then come back out of the corral and then close the gates again, that is a big thing around here. It's a small think for some but is considered an Event at our house!

John and I were supposed to have eye appointments today. We got there and they began their initial exams and one of the ladies came out, really apologetic, and said they had no doctor till later this afternoon and even then they had appointments scheduled and we needed to reschedule our own appointments.  So that's what we did...John on one day and me on a completely different day.  At least I got to go for a ride with my favorite guy! 

I signed up for a mystery Stitch-Along that started February 1st...there are only 3 'clues' and it will stitch out to about 5x7 when done.  The designer is a lovely one named Barbara Ana - she is from Spain or Portugal, I forget which country.  I love almost everything she designs.  This one is inspired by David Bowie's song Starwoman.  It is ony 3 clues and the 2nd one comes out on the 16th of February...and the final one about 2 weeks later.  Here is my progress so far - Clue 1 is done.

I signed up for another mystery SAL that starts on March 1st and goes for 9 months.  Each clue will come out on the first of each month. This one is inspired by Dr. Who.  No idea what it will look like till it's done...will keep you in the loop.

Thanks for stopping by.  Hope to see you next week.