Day with Jenny

Jenny is my cousin-niece.  My aunt and uncles and I are in the same age group and my Nana pretty much raised us all.  One of my uncles is even younger than me!  Jenny is the youngest of our kids and used to come over to play with my granddaughter and do Christmas crafts with us.

So Jenny is in her first year of college.  She is taking a craft class in college and had to make a project so she chose making a quilt with Auntie Mickie!  We chose a medallion style quilt because it was easier for her.  This is a girl who admitted yesterday, "I've never ironed before."  She also never had even seen a person sewing on a machine while growing up.  It's a shame for this generation.  It was a comforting sound to grow up with...those of you who grew up with that kind of music know it too.

So she sewed for the first time, and ironed first time, and we birthed this and quilted it:

She took home a ton of buttons and embellishments and is going to sew them on the piece.  I am looking forward to seeing what she does.  It seemed like she wasn't going overboard with the embellishments (always a good thing).
She was a natural, by the way, and I told her that.  She also fell in love with my stash (always a good sign). If she put her mind to it, she definately could become a quilter!

Going, Going, Gone!

The old maple tree in front of our house had been slowly dying and it leans towards our house.  Yesterday was tree removal day.  30 minutes, 8 men and 2 cuts of a chain saw removed it.  Here are some photos:

My stepson says the house looks weird now but it would have looked weirder if it had fallen on our house.  I'm going to think about how to change the front beds for a while but for now, I'm going to enjoy full sun out there! 

Hope your day is sunny and bright!

Spring!

It makes me sick.  It's slow in coming this year but despite all the problems that occur with the springtime, this season makes me happy.  I love being outside, despite the allergies and asthma.  I love playing with the dogs outside and most of all, I love watching things grow!

allergies, attics and organization...

Beth and I are tweaking our Civil War program these days.  The pollen outside has awakened my asthma; so although I would rather be cleaning out the garden, I am focusing on the attic.

The challenge in a tiny house is deciding what to keep and what not.  I've already given away a number of quilts to friends who work in the quilt world.  Once in a while I regret that choice but I just don't have the storage space for all the ones I would like to keep.  Maybe my friend Linda (with a bigger house and lots of antiques) will keep a few more for me but I don't want to be a slave to my belongings.  No worries about me ever being a hoarder; I've always been happier with less.

I'm also picking out quilts and starting to pack for our Civil War Program on May 3.  

Although we are exhausted, it's been a wonderful year full of learning amazing things.  We have a full schedule in the next months but I should be able to post more...

In the meantime, have a wonderful day!

Happy Easter

Have a safe and happy Holiday! 

The four letter word: SNOW

On Monday it was in the 80s and so warm in my house, the a/c turned on for a while.  Today it is in the 20s with the windchills in the teens.  Last night we had the dreaded white stuff.  It's a pretty late time of the spring for snow:

Y

Go Seamus!

Seamus and I go to the park to play ball.  It's a great exercise for him and since the road is closed (due to bridge construction) it tends to be quiet.  Last week we had forgotten it might be recess time for the elementary school.  I thought the kids across the street were headed to the playground next door, and as they waited, they started to applaud Seamus every time he caught the ball....

The teachers brought the kids across the street and said it was okay to bring Seamus (the therapy dog) over to say hi.  After a series of pets for Seamus and an assurance that they didn't want to play in the muddy field we were in, we went back to ball.  The kids and teachers continued to watch, and then the kids started to do sports cheers for Seamus ("Doggy, doggy he's our man...").   I swear Seamus loved all the attention and the kids had me giggling too! 

Hope your day is full of that kind of joy!  Gooooooo Seamus!

Spring has sprung!

IT'S TRUE!  Spring has finally arrived in eastern Pennsylvania!  The first daffodil is blooming in my garden and the boy-dogs are enjoying games of ball again.  It's time to frolic in the mild weather!  Beth and I are still busy tweaking our Civil War program and we are looking forward to just doing some fun sewing this summer.  For now, I'll just post some photos that seem to reflect our happy mood these days!  Have a great day!

Saturday Morning Carnage

Every morning after breakfast, the boys begin to romp around the house and play fight for about 20 minutes straight.  It always goes badly for someone...or should I say something, like what had once been a pink lamby:

I guess boys will be boys!  Have a great Saturday!