Feline Friday

It's snowing out.  What's a girl to do?  Just sit in the window and watch the flakes come down.
Peanut is an inside/outside cat.   When the weather is nice, it's mostly outside.

She really doesn't like snow days.  Just a little perturbed with this winter stuff.  

There are more Feline Friday posts on Sarah's blog.

Christmas Win

Many thanks to Vicky, the LA quilter and her sweet dog, Penny for picking me to win the give away for 2 charm packs of Simplicity by 3 Sisters.  I love the soft colors and am thinking I see a girly quilt.  It's always fun to get fabric in the mail.  It makes my day every single time!!!  Thanks again, Vicky!! Quilting bloggers are wonderful people.

It is snowing today.  I'm just hanging out and watching it come down.  You may have noticed that I haven't blogged as much this year.  I hate to be a complainer.  I've been struggling with joint pain.    Yesterday I had an appointment with the orthopedic doctor.  Xrays show that I am bone on bone in my knees.  I got a steroid shot in my left knee.  I slept well last night and didn't need the walker to get up and going this morning.  I know this is just a delaying treatment, but I'm thankful for it at the moment. 

I'd love to hear any knee replacement comments or advice from my followers.   I have lost some weight and been doing exercises.  I intend to keep up with that.  I guess 35 years of working on concrete floors has taken its tole.  I know being overweight hasn't helped either.  I really need to get serious about controlling my weight.  I suppose I thought I was indestructible--not really, just in denial.

I know DH misses his helper in the morning with chores.  It just hasn't been possible and I'm thankful that he understands.  My housekeeping has suffered too.  I'm hoping to get caught up the next few days. 

 

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to you all!  The fun has begun at our house.  DD 1 and friend are home for a few days.  We wrapped a few presents today and baked cut out sugar cookies.  DH joined in the frosting and decorating too.  We had a lot of fun.  Of course, we are missing DD 2 and her new husband, who were unable to make the trip home.

I bought myself a Christmas present on the Craftsy site.  They are having a BIG sale on classes.  I bought Leah Day's class.    She posted on facebook that you could get the class for $19.99 if you used her special link.   I'm such a sucker for a bargain.  I like the idea of being able to watch the videos any time and having access to them always.  I really want to work on my Free Motion skills and I hope this will motivate me to do it.

 I also purchased the knitting socks class.  I've always wanted to learn to knit socks.  I ordered yarn too.  There are some wonderful classes on their site.  I'll see how I like this way of learning.

So 2013 will have some new things for me to look forward to.  I hope you all enjoy your holidays with family and friends.

Wordless Wednesday

 

1986 

Feline Friday

IF I believed in reincarnation, I would want to come back as a well loved cat.  Our Puss has the life I want.  She has had us wrapped around her paw for 13 years.  As you can see in my previous post, the weather has gotten colder here.

As soon as the house gets a little cooler, Puss takes her nap under our bed covers.  It doesn't matter how well I make the bed she can get under the blankets.   I always have to laugh when I see that "bump" in the middle of the bed.

 

This winter I think she is starting to feel her age.  She hangs out by the heat vent more.   This vent happens to be right by the furnace and is nice and toasty.  Love this kitty!

Merry, Merry

It looks a little more like Christmas around here outside any way.  Last week-end we had 6 inches of snow and a one day blizzard.

It was pretty hard to see and the wind chill was the coldest we have had it.  Mother Nature reminded us that it is winter and we better be ready for it.   Of course, the first thing that happened -- I had to call DH and tell him I didn't have any water in the house.  That also meant the calves probably didn't have water either.

Just look at all that wonderful wet stuff--yeah, moisture for this dry, dusty country.  It was nice to get the dust settled! 

It doesn't matter if it's cold or blizzarding--the cattle have to eat.  When you live at least 30 miles from a store and 80 miles from a Large store, you learn to keep extras on hand.  Thank goodness we had an extra well switch on hand, so we could get the water running again.  DH had to scoop a foot of snow off the well cover and use a ladder to climb down in the pit.  The wind was howling and I was handing down the tools.  I'm very thankful it was such an easy fix!  There was no time for pipes to freeze up or cattle to get thirsty.  Just another day of fun on the farm.

I had a few minutes this week to whip up a new scrappy Christmas table runner.  "Whip up"  is rather a joke tho.  That first strip of fabric got ripped out twice before I finally got it right.  I wanted to quilt as I went--oops the bobbin thread needs to match my backing.  Then I realized I needed to start with two strips (right sides together) after I resewed one strip down.   This ole girl can't whip anymore it's been too long between projects.   I'm proud that I got it completed in two days.   It looks so much prettier in person--sparklier!  Plain and simple but looks very nice on the table. 

I've been trying to work on some Gypsy Girl every now and then between this and that.  I have to admit at one time I was a "quilt snob"--actually rather ashamed to admit.  Now I realize that sewing any fabric together is just good therapy and fun.  I don't need to make quilt blocks or a fancy pattern.  I just "need" to sew.   Sewing for the pure love of fabric and color is sometimes enough to soothe my soul.

No promises on getting back to blogging regularly. I have good intentions, but the days go fast and I go slower every day. 

Silent Sunday

 

It was a good year

for opossums.

These are just two of the babies that have shown up this last month.  Last night there were a total of six possums (three babies and 3 adults) on the deck looking for food.  I've gotten better about making sure the pans are empty by night fall.  I'm sure there is some kind of food available to these little guys other than my expensive cat food.

The cats don't seem to mind sharing. 

I did get a blanket made for a new baby boy of a friend. 

I used flannel and the tutorial from Fresh Cut Quilts.  There is also a video on youtube called the self binding baby blanket.  It makes a quick and easy little light weight blanket.

 

Quilted Kitty

I haven't been entering contests lately.  I have so much fabric and too many UFOs.  I saw on Facebook that Quilted Kitty was having a Halloween give away of some Henry Glass fabrics, so of course I entered.  I was a lucky winner!

Look at this cute package of fabric.

 

 

 I love the little quilted kitty that is their mascot along with their many real cats, Wally, Opie, Molly  and Olivia.    I have subscribed to their newsletter for years.  They stock many different fabrics with cats on them.  I've never been lucky enough to visit their shop--I'd like to some day.

 
I received 1 yard of Delightfully Frightful by Debbie Taylor.  What a cute print!

 There were also 2 half yard cuts.  The spiders and webs are Debbie Taylor too.  The pumpkins are Frank-N-Friends by Barbara Jones.   Thank you Quilted Kitty for the fun fabrics!!!!  If you go to the link, you will see these fabrics are on sale right now.

I thought I would make a table runner for the kitchen table.   Well, it seems I can't find the bright pumpkin fabric.  I have looked high and low!  Has that ever happened to you?  I'm sure it will show up, but it has been a frustrating afternoon of looking for it.  It's got to be under something!  I thought all three pieces of fabric were together on the table.  I'm giving up for tonight!!

Here are a few of my cats.  They look a little startled to have their pictures taken.

I would love to get my hands on this pretty Siamese.  He is very timid and not one bit trusting of the one who feeds him.  We haven't had a Siamese cat on the farm for 15 years.  I'm not sure if he is a throw back from the gene pool or what.  His siblings are all black.   He is the prettiest colors.

I'll be back to show you what I finally did sew today.

Silent Sunday

Fall

It's fall and I'm not liking the cold weather.  I'm going to show you my flowers and pretend it was 80 today.

The Lamb's Ears really spread-which I hear is normal.  My one perennial, Brown eyed Susan was lovely.

 I forgot what these were, but I loved their pretty purple flowers.  I had to water a lot to keep them going.

 My hen I planted last year had a good little brood going this year. Do you know do I need to cover them for the winter?  We had a hard freeze last week, so the flowers are done for the season.

Oh, look!!  Another llama baby!!  The llamas have been in the far pasture for the summer, do we haven't seen much of them.  This little one will be just as wild as last years.  It will be fun to have them closer to home, so we can see them more often.

This is kind of a silly post.  I wanted to blog, but I don't have much for material to blog about.  I have not been sewing.  I hope some day to do that again.  I really miss it and I miss all of you. 

 

Getting Caught Up

We are getting things caught up from being gone for a week.  There is still plenty of fall work to complete tho.  We finished cutting silage and covered the pile with plastic tarp before we could leave for the wedding.  

One of DH's older sisters and her husband (both retired) spent the week at the ranch while we were gone.  They made sure everyone stayed on their side of the fence and all the water tanks were full.  Feeding Lambie Pie and all the cats were on their list of chores too.  We are so thankful for their watching over things for us--it really helped us to relax and enjoy our time away.

We rented a two bedroom condo on Pensacola Beach.  We were on the 10th floor.  The views are beautiful from the balcony.  We loved drinking coffee every morning and watching the beach action. The waves were still high from Hurricane Isaac.  There were a lot more shells and sand bars too.

Ryan's parents and family rented a four bedroom condo on the beach.  He has two sisters and a brother.  They are all married and have families already.  We went to their condo on Friday night and met them all.  It was nice to meet and visit so everyone knew each other before the wedding the next day.

Ryan's brother took the official wedding photos.  It all went so fast, but I did take a few to share with you.  The couple had made arrangements to have the ceremony at Fort Pickens, but  Isaac spoiled that plan (no refund for the permit fee either). 

 

Here is DH and the barefoot bride.

 

 

Ryan's father performed the ceremony.

 

 

We had supper at the Holiday Inn Resort.  It was lovely and the food was wonderful.  (Jen now has six nephews and one niece.)   There is beautiful DD 1 coming in the door with her friend and DH.

The couple spent a few days in St Thomas on honeymoon.  They are back to the real world and settling into everyday life.

 

We attended my niece Erin's wedding this last Saturday 9/22.  It was a beautiful wedding of fall colors.  She and her groom rode away from the church on his motorcycle.  It was a fun day with family.

 

Thank you for all your good wishes and comments on the last post.  We are stacking and hauling hay bales for winter feed.  It is sooooo very, very dry.  We have to be very careful as the fire danger is so high now.  The ground is hard as a rock and the dust flies everywhere we drive.  We will be moving the cattle home from the north soon and letting them graze the fall pasture and corn stubble.  We will need to do some sorting and culling.  Feed is going to be at a premium this winter. 

 

 

 

 

Beach Wedding

 

 

It was a beautiful wedding.  We had a fun week of activities and preparations.  I'll share more later.

 

 

Sunbathing

Time For Silaging

We hauled bales to construct the "bunker" for the silage pile.

I drove the tractor with the mover. 

This is the bunker--just waiting for chopped up corn stalks (silage).

There will be no corn to combine this year.  The lack of rain has really done a number on the corn crop.  All the corn will be chopped for silage and fed to our cows this winter. 

The crew will start tomorrow!  It is suppose to be a HOT, dry week.  I hope we get done with a minimum of break downs.  They have already spent 3 days working on the cutter.  Hurricane Isaac should be history by the middle of the week and then we'll see what weather comes to Florida for the beach wedding.
 

Fun Visit

My sisters and I went to Arkansas to visit my namesake Aunt Janette.  We had a wonderful time and a safe trip.   Aunt Janette will be 96 in September.  Doesn't she look great!  We had so much fun visiting, looking at old pictures and playing Dominoes. 

This is a picture of my Uncle John.  We had a family picnic in the park for his 99th birthday party.  He is shown here with his great grand children.  He was recently inducted into the South Dakota Bowling Hall of Fame.  He also participates in the Senior Olympic games on the state and national levels.

I've gotten to spend a lot of time with my family lately.  My cousin, Peg, SIL Sue and I  hosted a shower for my niece, Erin who will be getting married in September.  It was such a fun evening with lovely gifts and lots of advice for the new bride. 

 

No sewing this month either.  :(   We have been busy mowing, raking and baling every available spear of grass.   Lots to do before we can go to Florida for the DD 2's wedding festivities.

 

Wasn't this suppose to be a quilting blog?

Sister Trip!!

These three wild and crazy sisters are off on a road trip!!  I'll be back next week and tell you all about it.

Raking and Raining

It rained .15 this morning early.  It wasn't much, but better than NOTHING.   We will take every drop that God provides and not complain---I promise not to complain.  Please just send us some more--you know us humans -   never satisfied!  Seriously there is another 30% chance for tonight--bring it on, Lord!!    It's 91 F this afternoon and the guys are finishing up combining our Spring Wheat.

DH and I have been making some hay too.  I'm the raker.  (Please excuse the dirty tractor windows--yes, that is bird  poo.)

The rake takes two rows of hay and throws them together in one big row for the baler to pick up.   I was kind of nervous, because this was the "new to us" rake and we hadn't tried it yet.  It worked very well! 

Actually I'm ahead of DH and I'll eventually lap him.

 See I'm catching up to him.

He has to stop when the baler is full of hay, wait for it to wrap it with twine and pop it out.  I just keep going around and around--no stops.  I just have to watch for rocks and badger holes and not put the row of hay over them--especially rocks.  Rocks do very bad things to the inner workings of a baler.  It's very comfortable in the tractor--AC of course.  I use the time to pray for rain and people on my prayer list.  So it is time well spent!

I've told you before that sometimes when I haven't gotten to sew for a while I have a hard time not buying quilt supplies.  It's like a "fix" I need.  I've been really good this year and haven't been buying anything.  I lost control recently!  Today's Quilting sent me an email and tempted me with their sale.
I highly recommend this quilt shop.  They ship very, very quickly too.

I have such a weakness for Me & My Sister designs.  The Good Morning charm packs were calling my name.

There were some books on sale too.  This one is by Gathering Friends.  I love their books.  This book has 11 table runners and 2 table toppers.  They are all very quick and easy to make.  They are also easy to make smaller or larger..  I like making table toppers for gifts and I like making different ones.

I'm a Nancy Halverson fan.  I have almost all of her books.  I like this book, because parts of the quilt can be used for table runners or wall hangings too.  And I'm just a sucker for Nancy Halverson designs--what can I say? 

My last splurge was some Froggin by Sue Zipkin for Clothworks.  This is just the cutest fabric.  It will make a nice baby or child's quilt. 

Can you resist a frog face like that?

The green print has such cute fish, snails and turtles on it too.

It's true I didn't need this fabric, but it filled a need inside of me.  My creative need is hungry.  I really need to find time to feed it---SOON!   lol  Thank you for letting me share my new stuff with you!!