With a Kiss For Luck We Were On Our Way!

Thirty eight years ago  DH and I started on our journey together.   Our friends sang the  traditional mid 70's wedding songs The Carpenters  "We've Only Just Begun,"   and " Where There is Love-The Wedding Song."   As in all marriages we have had our joys:   the birth of three sons, two wonderful daughters-in-love, and now soon to be six precious grandchildren.  We were heartbroken when our oldest son was killed when he was four years old in an accident on our farm.  Most of the time we have remained friends.. There are times I didn't like him very much--but never stopped loving him!

A couple of month ago Tatum looked up and noticed our wedding picture.  She looked for a moment and the said, as only a 2 1/2 year old could, "Grandma, you're a princess!"  Weren't we all princesses on our wedding day!

Tonight is the Friday Night Sew-In!  I have a couple of MUF (Masterpiece Under Fermentation) that I would like to finish.

Does anyone have a book or source to learn how to do paper piecing?  Now that I have started on my way of conquering my fear of applique,  I would like learn how to quilt with paper piecing.

 I Corinthians 13:13  And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

I'm confused?

I thought when school was out I was supposed to find "me" time!

Last week Monday and Tuesday DIL-1 didn't have day care. So the first day of summer vacation DH wanted us to ride with him to look at machinery on a farm auction. (Just what I was anxious to do on my first day of summer vacation.)  We stopped at McDonald's  on the way back.  You can tell where I rate.  The opposite side of the table with DH making faces at me!
The rest of the week:
*attended an RTI  (Response To Invention) meeting at school
*watched Tatum and Jessica 4 hours on Wednesday afternoon
*picked up 5- 5 qt buckets of strawberries to make jelly and freeze--and of course eat.

*-Ran errands with DH.
*  Conner, Tatum, and Jessica were here while DS-2 and DIL-2  attended a young couples marriage seminar at their church. 
*Attended the Dairy Breakfast at the fairgrounds
*Went to a baby shower on Saturday afternoon--no quilt for this one.. My friend is a quilter and this is her first grandbaby.

However!  Sunday afternoon DH was spreading fertilizer so I did add the stars to my block!  I still have to do the hand sewing of the binding.  I really did the applique WooHoo!

While looking for a certain pattern I found a zip lock bag with these inside. I have no idea what they were for or when I cut or sewed them.  Oh MY!  I must have been losing it!

Oh-- I did try something new.  Some of you are so creative...You can take an old chair, set a flower pot on it and it looks great...For me I would set a flower pot on an old chair and it looks like a flower pot on an old chair..  see!






So---- I took spray paint to my old chair...
What do you think??

I'm trying...

Enjoy your beautiful day. 
This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. Psalms 118:24

Another first from my kitchen window!

When I was washing dishes on Wednesday night, I could see something moving on the shoulder of the road.  It was moving in and out of the weeds.  Of course I had to investigate.  I found a snapping turtle.  It is so ugly!    I have no desire to try Turtle Stew!                                    

No matter who it was--Jordie would fetch sticks  or Frisbee's as long as someone would keep throwing them.

Take a look at this AWESOME quilt!

 Look at this awesome quilt sewn by Helen Stubbings at Hugs from Helen!  Look at the detail of the handwork.  Awesome!

She is actually giving away the pattern.  Isn't it beautiful!  Visit her blog to take a look.

I know some of my blogging friends would love to sew this.  Several of you are very talented at quilting and embroidering. (Janet, Sharon, Linda, Maria, Renee). and others.

I thought I would let you know so you could enter for a chance at the pattern.  Good Luck..  She asks you to leave a quote or quip about home...

 It didn't scan very well, but when DS-1 was a freshman in college he gave me this plaque for Christmas.  It reads, "Home is really spelled MOM."  Love that guy!

Stars or No Stars

I'm working on another 12 1/2" block.  What do you think?  Stars or no stars?  Stars of a different fabric / different color?  Felted wool was suggested but I don't know where to find any locally.

Thank you!

Visiting My Flowers

While working outside this afternoon I saw this interesting "creature" fluttering around a planter.

 I was able to snap a few pictures while it sucked from the blossoms.

Between goggling striped hummingbird and facebook friends, I learned it is called a White-Lined Sphinx Hummingbird Moth.  It was the first time I have ever seen one.  Several of my facebook friends have them around their flowers this year also.

 Last fall DIL-2's grandma was digging up one of her perennial gardens.  DH and I went out to dig up several varieties of perennials.  The problem this spring is that I didn't label them.

 For now I am waiting for them to bloom to know what is a flower and what could be weeds.

Haying TIme!

 Since we no longer have dairy cows to feed, we don't forage chop  or fill our silos  with our first crop.  This year we cut a couple of fields and round baled it  "green".  That means the hay was not dry when it was baled.  We did that so we were able to get it off the fields sooner.  We brought in a machine that wraps the bales.  The bales will ferment like haylage.  This winter  DH will feed it to the beef cows.

The round bales are hauled home from the fields on the bale wagon.  It carries 10 bales at a time.

The bales are made about 5 1/2  feet tall to be silage wrapped

DH loads them onto the machine that wraps the bale. There is a belt that moves the bales along.

Tonight they wrapped about 100  bales.  They will work at it again on Friday.

 

The only way I am going to become better at FMQ is to practice.  If you look closely you might be able to see the FMQ   stars and loops on this 10 1/2 in block.  I practiced drawing stars on a piece of paper.  Then looking at the paper I sewed on the block.  I made loops between the stars. 

I hadn't thought of drawing the stars on the square until I was finished!

   

Whew! I finished in time!

I finished the baby quilt just in time. The "Sprinkle" started at 1:30.   When I arrived home from church all I had left was to sew the binding.  Even with life happenings that interrupted my sewing.  I didn't know they had painted the baby's room blue with white polka dots!  I had planned a different pattern-but I know this one goes together quickly!

Thursday evening DS-1 came to the house asking if the cat that had been hit on the highway in front of the house had kittens.  He could hear kittens crying in one of the sheds.   DH found the four kittens.  We used medicine droppers to feed them on Thursday night and Friday morning.  A friend of mine has raised orphan kittens  so she was willing to take them.  They should start drinking out of a saucer shortly.  If DIL-2 wasn't highly allergic to cats, I think DH would not have been able to give them up. She will find homes for them when they are ready to go.

I Learned A New Term! "Baby Sprinkle Shower"

This morning I was invited to a shower for a 2nd baby.  It is going to be small with primarily family and a couple friends.  (I am blessed to be included)  While reading Sew Blessed's blog I read they had just had  a "sprinkle" for her daughter.  With the first child there was a Baby Shower. Now with the second baby they had a "sprinkle." It is even described on the web as "A Baby Sprinkle Shower."

I had intended on making a quilt for the new little guy to have ready when he is scheduled to arrive near the end of June.  So instead,  I need to get busy and try to have it ready by Sunday.   I am going to start right now.  The pattern is going to be easier than I first intended.   I will post my progress!

P.S.  Yes, the eagle was sitting in a pine tree just outside my kitchen window.  We see Bald Eagles quite often.  I  never get tired of watching the majestic way they fly.

Welcome to My School Day World

Often I refer to my classroom as "alphabet soup."  It the students have a disability with a letter they are in my classroom.  I teach in a small Northern Wisconsin School District.    We have about 650 students in our school K-12.  I teach students with disabilities in grades 3-6 with 18 students on my caseload.  I usually work with students who have  been diagnosed with SLD( Specific Learning Disability),  ADD/ ADHD (Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder),  Mild CD (Cognitive Disorder), OHI (Other Health Impaired),  and Autistic.   Before the district hired an EBD (Emotional Behavior Disorder) teacher.  I also worked with EBD students.

I promised the students Banana Splits when we finished the MAP and Star Reading and Math computerized tests.

A special girl in my classroom is a Student with Downs Syndrome.  She has increased her skills leaps and bounds this school year. She has become verbal saying  the words, "Good girl,  go go go,  back pack, crackers,  mom, baby, and bike." She learned to ride her trike this year. A full time aide is with her throughout the day.

My 6th grade reading students were doing research on Dinosaurs of the three Mesozoic periods.  I used the Smartboard to direct them to a specific website on the laptops.  From there they found the information they needed to create posters. 

The 7 sixth graders will be moving up to Jr. High in the fall.  After working closely with students for four years it is sometimes difficult to let them go.  A new group of 3rd graders will be coming over from the primary school to join us.