I Finished Something!

That doesn’t happen often enough around here anymore so I thought I’d better take advantage of the moment and throw it out there for witnesses.

The applique wall-hanging I worked on for ages then kind of forgot to finish is finally done. The blue border is darker in real life. It’s another cloudy day here so the lighting is bad.

Then I also used the 3-inch blocks I made for Jo Morton’s class during the quilt festival to make a cute little doll quilt.

I’ve decided to make a whole collection of doll quilts to decorate my upstairs hallway. They make great little projects to practice new techniques.

Jumpin’ Jack Flash

Someone has flipped a switch and turned my chickens on in more ways than one. Not only have they been laying eggs like crazy, they keep cat-calling the roos as they walk past.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Woo hoo, shake those tail feathers.”  

“Do a little dance for me, baby.”

“Oh yeah, strut that stuff. Mmm hmm.”

It’s almost embarrassing.

The New Black

I’m counting the days until I can shear the girls. It is still a little early considering none of them are lambing this year so I’ll wait. But I’m getting awfully tired of looking at their filthy bodies.

Shirley here is supposed to be black. Not brown, not red. Black. Seems she enjoys spending her time in, on and around the mineral feeder (the minerals are red). It is temping to take her to the dog wash but I’m afraid her outfit might shrink and then her underwear would show.

Today I…

Did the morning chores.

Washed three loads of laundry.

Filed our taxes.

Paid the bills.

Listed more stuff on ebay.

Ate leftovers for lunch.

Washed the dishes

Worked in the garden.

Prepared a recipe from this book that Milah gave me. It is my new favorite. I plan to cook from it all week.

Last night we had roast chicken, tonight we’re having chicken and dumplings.

I visited with the animals to test my new point and shoot camera. I like it. All of the photos in this post are completely unedited.

It also shoots video. I know, I know, I really need to work on making these animals more friendly.

Getting mobbed.

After shooting the video I walked into the pasture and everyone followed. Well, everyone except Rose, somehow she got her head stuck in the gate. I can’t even begin to imagine how she did that.

If there were ever an animal that could be mistaken for my own flesh and blood it’s poor simple minded, uncoordinated Rose.

She’s fine, just a little embarrassed. Story of my life. We’re two peas in a pod me and Rose. Two peas in a pod.

Anyway, now that all of that is finished I plan to settle in and finish binding my quilt and maybe read a book. What did you do today?

Silent Sewing Sunday

I am hoping to inspire myself to a new weekly tradition around here.

Definition of Pathetic

pathetic adj 1: arousing tenderness, pity, or sorrow: PITABLE  2: marked by sorrow or melancholoy: SAD [Late Latin patheticus, from Greek pathetikos “capable of feeling, pathetic,” from paschein “to experience, suffer”]

“Momma, I’m starvin’. Can I have a cookie? I need a cookie, Momma. Please can I have a cookie? Pleeease? I’m so hungry. I need a cookie. I’ll be good if you give me a cookie. Would you give me a cookie, please? I love you Momma, can I have a cookie? I promise I won’t try to boink my brother anymore if you’ll give me a cookie. Just one cookie, please?  Pretty, pleeeasse? I’m starvin’, Momma.”
I had to explain to Bo that while his performance was award winning, his waistline begged to differ.

The Quilts

Although I forgot to take the right camera lens with me I did happen to snap a few shots of quilts while I was in Pigeon Forge. I’m posting them here to prove to my dear husband that we really did go to a quilt show and we were not just “out farting around” as he suggested.

These are unedited and in no particular order other than this first one was my favorite. I can’t even begin to grasp the amount of drugs a person must first take to decide to even start a project like this.

The amount of detail was INSANE (please click to bigify the quilting stitches.)

Another favorite.

I need to remember to try prairie points someday.

The only word for this one is Wow. Just Wow.

Good ideas for using novelty prints. I never know what to do with those.

More that caught my eye…

The photo doesn’t do this one justice, it really was incredible in person.

This was only a small sample of the quilts we saw at A Mountain Quiltfest. It was a beautiful show, not too big, not too small, just right for this Goldilocks.

She’s Crazier Than Me

That’s sayin’ somethin’, so I just had to stop and meet her. We were driving right past The Crazy Sheep Lady’s place on the way home from the quilt festival so we dropped in on her on Friday. She was busy getting ready for the big parade event but being the awesome person she is she just laughed and said “come on over.”

I was happy to finally meet Hank

and his flock of sheep. I was able to feed Renny a cookie and made fast friends with Keebler, Wooliam and Mia.

I wanted to bring home a Jacob sheep because they look so cool but brought home some yarn instead. I’ll have to settle for a Jacob hat.

I’m glad Sara was up for the “Calgon moment” we surely induced. It was like visiting an old friend even though we had never met before. I’m sorry I missed bar hopping with Ewen McTeagle the next day but maybe we can hang when I go back for the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival the end of May.

I told you she was crazier than me she took her sheep to a bar! I would never do that. *snicker* Okay, yes I would but she’s still crazier than me. Just because.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig.

Looking back on it now, I think she might have been trying to kill me.
It started innocently enough. We packed our belongings into Milah’s van and headed down the highway towards Kentucky. Our first meal was at a Cracker Barrel for some good old Southern (read that as fried) food. It didn’t stop the whole week. Fried chicken, fried apple fritters, fried potatoes, biscuits, pie and fudge all served by southern bells so syrupy sweet you felt obligated to clean your plate. We even found a dive on the way back named after my sheep where as soon as you walk in the front door you are in the kitchen where there is an aproned woman doing dishes in the sink. I gained five pounds in five days.

I first started getting suspicious when she led me down a cow path claiming there was a quilt shop there. Who runs a quilt shop out of their back porch? Folks in Kentucky, that’s who.

She must have chosen the beautiful shop to lead me into a false sense of security because after we got to Tennessee she led me up a goat path. (Three feet wide and straight up IS a goat path, not a road in my opinion.) The view was worth the nauseating ride but I’ll stick to living on the prairie thank you very much.

The next day she led me further into the mountains and tried to leave me behind once when we stopped to take pictures claiming the doors were locked by “accident”.

Visiting Cades Cove made up for it though. I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. I could do a whole post just on Cades Cove alone. I belong there.

In this cabin.

Beside this stream.

And this barn, but I digress.

Milah led me down many paths.

Where she pretended to be afraid of bears and snakes.


And other four legged creatures but I was on to her scheme to kill me by this point and didn’t let her out of my sight.

The next day our class went well and I started to think maybe I was overreacting and I wasn’t really travelling with a homicidal biddy. The quilts we were seeing were amazing.

But while enjoying the quilt show our vehicle was almost swept away by a flash flood. Coincidence? I think not.

Regardless, even though she probably was trying to kill me, we laughed so much and had so much fun I’d do it again in a heartbeat.