Spring is in the air ...

I can see daffodils just starting to open down by the shed this a.m.!  Yeah!
 

So, what have I been up to?  Sewin' & hookin'!!!  Seems like I've been sewing quilt pieces together one day and hooking on my latest rug the next.  And then the next day running around.  Just the things I like to do.  That's what I like about retirement.  We've thrown in there a few trips to the dr. for Wendell though, so it's always 'exciting' (read stressful).  But I'm enjoying each day as it comes.  Today I'm going to try to check out my work room and see if I have any more of this brown wool I need for the background of this rug ... hmmmm.  I think I need to worry!  LOL!  But Margo will come to the rescue (I hope)!



Looking through my saved pictures, here's what I've been seeing lately ...

I know this is a strange looking picture to be sharing, but I saw this at Nancy's Antique Mall in Terre Haute. Have you ever seen a stove with what my Mom called a 'deep well'?  Well, here's one!  We had a kitchen range with a deep well when I was a child.  It was sort of like a crock pot built into your stove.  It's at the back left corner in this picture.  Just wanted to share with you ... Mom used hers a lot and this really took me back.

Oscar thinks he lives here.  Here he is sunning himself outside our bedroom door.  Nice surprise to wake up to!  (I used to call him Stinky, but he's growing on me.)

We took a drive through Parke County couple Sundays ago, and came across this interesting place.  He had all sorts of old farm equipment and Wendell was especially interested in that.  I liked this "weather station".  (It was windy the day we were there! LOL!)

Of course, we saw bridges and more bridges.  Here's the exterior and interior (double arch) of the West Union covered bridge.  Wendell's checking out the creek below for fish ...

Made some more of these pretzel-Rolo-pecan candies again and will be sharing with the hookers next week -- not these (they're gone) but more of the same! YUM! (They're addictive!)

I went to the quilt show in Bloomington last week and before I went, met Teresa B. for lunch at Trojan Horse.  It was such a good time but flew by too quickly.  We talked and talked and also managed to enjoy dessert, going away feeling stuffed.  Teresa probably had trouble staying awake back at work, but the walk back to the convention center in the drizzle woke me up and got me ready to be amazed at the beautiful quilts.  I'll share pictures of them soon.  So many ideas.  Bought some fabric (which I definitely needed [not]) and happened to run into two friends and talked some more.  It was just a very good day.  I hope you've been enjoying some good ones lately, too.  God is good.

Super day ...

Today's Super Bowl Sunday.  Was going to go to the Stitching Post's annual SSS Sale but not feeling 100%.  In fact, right not W. is at church and I'm here feeling sorry for myself.  Just got a cold but didn't want to spread it around.  Knowing my luck, I'm probably missing something special at church today ... And it's really pretty nice here today.  Sunny and warm for February 7th.  Maybe I'll go out and walk down the driveway today to get my blood stirred up! LOL!

Looking back over the past couple weeks thought I'd share quickly, in pictures, what's been going on in my life.

Just want to begin by saying that this winter, for the first time to our knowledge, we've had both flickers and pileated woodpeckers at our suet feeder.  Wow!  They are both awesome.  That pileated, when he comes in, is huge looking.  I can see why he's number one in the pecking order!  I'D get out of the way, too!

When I was at the quilting retreat in Montgomery, I had a haystack for the first time.  YUMMY!  Yes, I know ... the recipe's been around forever but I hadn't had one before.  Sooooo I made some myself.  Wendell loves them!  As you can see by the close-up, I sprinkled just a touch of sea salt on these and made them with dark chocolate.  They lasted a long time because we doled them out at the rate of one each per day! LOL!!!!  (don't worry ... kept them in the frig)  Another treat I tried there (not pictured here though) was a deal where you start with a small pretzel, melt a Rolo candy on top, then push a half pecan into that.  Cool and EAT!  Wow.  These are good, too.  I made them right away when I got home and they went quickly!  Will have to make some and take to hooking ...

Last week we finally made it to the Farmhouse Café outside Beanblossom, Indiana for lunch.  Lunch was pretty good but mostly we enjoyed the walk outside, through their gardening area and antique barn.  We enjoyed the company of four cats who seem to each have their own territory here.  I especially loved the black cat who was in the barn, on a table grooming himself in the sun.  Very friendly!  I got lots of pets and pats in that day!  Here's some pictures I took there.  If you haven't been, you should go.  But go when it's just a bit warmer.  We would have loved staying outside longer but although it was sunny, it was nippy!

The potting cabin/shed ...

Our new friend in front of a wonderful display of yard signs ...

Inside the potting shed (need some angel wings?) ...

This is the café itself ...

The walkway to the barn ...

Couple weekends ago we went to the C Bar C Event Center on the north side of Cloverdale, Indiana.  Wow!  It's big.  They were having a National Riding Horse Association event that weekend and actually we just wanted to see what the center was like.  It took us some time just to walk around the show ring.  Weekend before this they had had pulling tractors and trucks here.  The outer area is cement floored with the center being dirt.  There was room enough in the center for two warm up rings and one show ring.  In the class pictured here, there were 19 horses showing at the same time and there was room to spare.  We really like watching any kind of horse, so to us it was a great way to spend an afternoon.  Wendell always finds someone to talk to and this was no different, with a couple women explaining to him all that was going on.  Now let me tell you, this is an expensive hobby!  The fees per horse were well over $500.  Per horse!  And lots of exhibitors had rows of stalls rented!  In addition to all of the horses penned inside, more were outside.  So glad we went.

 

Want to close with this photo of those signs I liked so much ...  Have a good week!

My fav:  "The most wasted of all days is one without laughter."