What's New?

I'm sure that you've given up on any future posts from here; and yet, I keep popping back up! In the last post I spoke about the baby bluebirds fledging and, as of this morning, we have more hatchlings in a new nest; here we go, all over again! Sorry, it's been awhile. Since I was here last we've made yet another trip to New England and spent precious time with my parents. Thanks be to God, they're doing well. 

Our family is celebrating birthdays this month. Mason's is today and our daughter's later this week. Those of you who've been reading here through the years may remember when our oldest grandchild first made an appearance... 16 years ago! He is every bit as sweet today as he was back in 2008. I'm unsure how this happened, certainly I don't feel any older myself. The Birthday Bear felt ornament, pictured above, was made to commemorate the occasion of our daughter's birthday. Inspired by Ramona who blogs at Doodlebugs and Rosebuds, I decided to try my hand at some of these. They come packaged as kits and... yes... I've discovered another rabbit hole! If any of you care to follow me down there I have discovered all sorts of goodies at Merry Stockings. The kits arrive complete with every little thing that you will need and easy to follow instructions. You're welcome. 😉 

What's new with you?

And sew, here we are again, playing catch-up. Thank you for your patience.

I'm back and it's all good. 

Life is Good! 

Fledging Day

Monday was the day; it was time to fly! Not only the Bluebirds but also the baby birds who'd been raised in the nest perched atop the flood light under the eaves! Mr. Goodneedle kept asking me if the babies had left their nests yet and I told him I wasn't quite sure. Monday left little doubt that the time was at hand. I stepped outside to be greeted with loud bird calls and constant "fly overs" (close to my head); I was being warned that things were happening. Augie and I watched, for approximately thirty minutes, (from the safety of the side porch) as those babies were beckoned out of the nest and, one by one, played peek-a-boo before testing out their wings and taking that first, BIG, step. Within moments they were in the air. It was a privilege to behold. Quiet returned and I stepped outside once again to reposition the sprinkler in my perennial garden. This time I had only been back inside for a few minutes when there was the loudest crack followed by a thundering crash! It took a moment to realize what had happened, I looked out the door, the one that I had just used, to now see nothing now but limbs and leaves; a tree had fallen across the garden and onto our roof! Seriously, where I had been standing only a short time before! I'm still suffering from post-TREE-matic stress over this occurrence.  I suppose this tree thought it was time to fly too! 

This shot was taken after we'd cleaned up the limbs and branches; you can see the dents in the gutter above the side porch where the impact occurred. There was no wind or rain whatsoever, it was a fluke happening on a still and hot, dry day. 

After it had been sawed up and moved. Take note of the stump where it broke off about three feet above the ground. The trunk itself was undeniably dead but, because of the green at the top, and until it fell, that fact had escaped our notice entirely. 

    All thanks and praise to HIM who sees 

all and protects each of us (even those baby birds) from harm. 

Life is Good!

Here to There and Back Again

We've been on a road trip to the Lakes Region of NH. Spent time with Mom and Dad for both Father's Day and my mother's birthday this past Tuesday. This photo is from five years ago. There have been a lot of changes since 2019. Mom can't physically navigate much anymore, she's a good deal weaker than I've ever seen; it's so hard to watch this happen. But, on the bright side, at 91 and 96 they're doing quite well, all things considered. Just two months ago when she was hospitalized, Mom's doctor never expected for her to be at home again. We're rejoicing in the fact that today she is, sleeping in her own bed and spending her days in her favorite recliner alongside Dad; there's much to be thankful for. 

We took Mom out to an ice cream stand for a cone on her birthday, take a look at the cones available to choose from. 😉 We also ate lobster, Mom's favorite; what a special treat! I had lobster rolls two days in a row. It was my duty you understand "when in Rome...".

Arriving home on Thursday other special treats were waiting. 

The garden Phlox and Echinacea are in bloom. 

The Brazilian Verbena is attracting Zebra Swallowtails and Goldfinch in flocks!

I potted up a dish garden for Mom's birthday, found a wide variety of small houseplants at a local nursery before we left. I believe that Mom will enjoy this, they have great big windows that let in loads of light in their family room and kitchen area where this should thrive.

A friend from church shared this. She had gone to prepare the altar for Sunday service and sat down in one of the pews to pray after she'd finished. She looked up to see this reflected on the carpet. Wow.

😊

Smile- God is watching!

Life is Good!

Moving On…

Daily happenings around here: The Confetti Chain has moved off the design wall to be replaced with the Barn Stars. The National Park Panel has been quilted and awaits binding.

  

I’m pleased with the Classic Weave panto for this one. It has the softest chocolate brown flannel on the back.

I’ve been working on cross stitch in the evenings and am making some progress, albeit slow, on the Strawberry Sampler. 

Since I showed you how grown Mason has become I’ll do the same, here, with Gregory; here he is with his family’s new Bassett puppy, Molly.  

She’ll be soon grown too!

 And so it goes…one day at a time…

Life is Good!

 

The Confetti Chain and Other Warm Weather Happenings

This is what I'm calling "Confetti Chain",  as it stands right now, 24 blocks. I hope to add the same number more; making it a generous 60" X 80" quilt. Eventually.

Here's the basic block unit laid out. Each block has forty three pieces! I can't remember where I ever saw this and I can't find a source. My version uses lights and darks out of the 1.5" scrap bin for the 4-patches. The background is all different low volume prints (one of my fondest weaknesses) cut into the following: 7 - 2.5" squares, 2- 2.5" X 4.5" rectangles and 2- 2.5" X 6.5" rectangles. That's it. I keep these going by the machine all the time and stitch them up leader-ender style as I am assembling other things. I needed to get this together so that I could fold it up and get it off the design wall for now to start auditioning different projects that are also in the works.  

The birds are out in force! We've got five baby bluebird hatchlings in the birdhouse and various birds nesting everywhere around us! It might be hard to tell in the photo but this determined Mama decided to build her nest and start her family directly on top of a flood light under our eaves! We have to be careful not to turn that light on accidentally when we go outside after dark; talk about a rude awakening!

And this... totally unrelated to anything else in this post. Those of you who've followed this blog for a long time will remember when Mason, our oldest grandson, was born. He's now almost driving age and serving as a Jr. Swim Coach for his neighborhood pool this summer. Our daughter sent me this picture yesterday. Here is Mason holding one of the youngest swimmers that he coaches; at a meet last evening. Could this moment be any sweeter? I don't think so, at least not for this Nana. 

Don't forget- today, June 13th, 

is the day; make it count!

Life is Good! 

And That Wheel Keeps On Turning...

I don't know how many of you are "Wheel Watchers" and tuned in last Friday to hear Pat Sajak's final farewell to the game that he had hosted for 41 years! Yes; forty one years, 8,000 episodes, a HUGE feat! Beside that fact, I'd like to bring attention to his words of departure: he noted that Wheel of Fortune was "a safe place for family fun, no social issues, no politics, nothing embarrassing... just a game. A place where families came together with friends, neighbors and entire generations."  He ended by "thanking you for allowing me into your living rooms and into your lives." What a class act! I couldn't help but relate to this mindset. Since 2006, 18 years, I've kept this blog for exactly those same reasons. Simply a diversion. A place where anyone could stop by, see some pretty pictures and join in a discussion about quilting, needlework, family or faith life with no judgement. A safe place. 

I'm not retiring. I'm going to keep cranking them on out... blocks of the month, scrap quilts, UFO's cross stitch, pets, families, grandchildren, gardening, life in general; you name it. We all have lots in common and I love hearing from you!

...and SEW it goes! Eighteen years is far from forty one but we've had a good, long run together. Let's keep it going!

As for me, I'm very comfortable right here. I hope to see you again soon.

This wheel keeps on turning; thanks for taking the time to stop by. 

Life is Good!

Wonderful World of Color*

It's a beautiful time of year right now, there's color everywhere. . .

and the quilt blocks under the needle in the sewing room are no exception! I'm still plugging away on the Barn Star Sampler, playing catch up for time missed.

I'm back at it again today, stitching blocks. It's hard, though, when I'm distracted by the wonderful world of color that surrounds me just outside the door. What distracts you?

As for Augie, he's enjoying the warmer days and time spent out on the porch.

We won't get into what distracts him: a leaf blowing by, a reflection in the window, 

a dog barking on television, a fly buzzing by, a stick on the ground... the list goes on! 😄

Life is Good!

*Being of a certain age, this phrase conjures up images of Tinkerbell 

flying over Cinderella's Castle and turning the black and white images

to technicolor on the Sunday evening broadcasts of Walt Disney's TV show.

I recall being ten years old or so and allowed to watch it at a friend's

 home down the street; she had a color TV! Such a sweet memory.