Wednesday, March 26, 2014

A Quick Half Inch of Snow!

When the curtains were opened this morning, it revealed that the quick half inch of snow, predicted by our weatherman, had grown into three or four inches that coated all the wires and tree branches in sight.  Because it was so beautiful, I almost didn't mourn for spring.  But alas, where are you spring?


The snow plow came rumbling down the road and then I knew it was going to be a quilting day in the basement again.

Yesterday, I attempted to organize my material and was making some progress when I got sidetracked, imagine that, by two UFOs that also contain snow.

1st Snow Project:

The first UFO was a scrappy "enders and leaders" quilt set off by "Kona Snow" material.  Most quilters are familiar with Kona solids, but in case you are not, the nice thing about them is that if you use up a Kona Solid and have to buy more, it should match up with color dyes.  This holds true for all colors, not just white or "snow."
This enders and leaders project will be a baby quilt when finished.  It's made with a lot of leftover I-Spy material.

2nd Snow Project

The Second UFO/snow project is my flannel snowman quilt that was pieced at the cabin in November.  It was patiently waiting for me to add the binding.  So yesterday, I did just that and am in the process of turning it, and therefore, finishing it.
Is it superstitious to imagine that as soon as this "snowman" quilt is finished, spring will arrive?

Poems help me to keep things in perspective, so here is part of a poem about a late spring.  You can find the rest of the poem on the Poetry Foundation Page.

"The Late Wisconsin Spring" by John Koethe

Snow melts into the earth and a gentle breeze   
Loosens the damp gum wrappers, the stale leaves   
Left over from autumn, and the dead brown grass.   
The sky shakes itself out. And the invisible birds   
Winter put away somewhere return, the air relaxes,   
People start to circulate again in twos and threes.   
The dominant feelings are the blue sky, and the year.   
—Memories of other seasons and the billowing wind;   
The light gradually altering from difficult to clear
As a page melts and a photograph develops in the backyard.  . . . 

Friday, March 21, 2014

Fort Myers Beach - Missing the Sunshine!

I'm really missing the sun today especially since we had a mini-March snowstorm right when I was driving my niece to the Cleveland Airport.  Yikes.  We made it just fine though.

I am so tired of cold days, dirty old snow and wet leaves!  Where are you spring?


It seems a good time to write about our trip to Fort Myers Beach last Saturday and look back at the pictures.  It's hard to believe that it was only a week ago when I was wearing shorts and a bathing suit.  Now I am wearing a sweatshirt jacket and two pairs of socks to keep my feet warm.

Oh, but the memories will keep me warm . . .
I'll pretend I'm peeking out from under the umbrella at the sea.  .








After the beach, we had a great time at Nervous Nellies.  The entertainer, Scott, The Island Doctor, is a friend of Jan's and we had front row seats to watch him play guitar and sing.  It was great!  You can check out his Facebook page (The Island Doctor) for more information about his music schedule.  He does play in Ohio during the summer months.  

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Lake Okeechobee - Cruisin' Down the River

Barbie and I visited Cape Coral, Florida last week for a short, too short, vacation.  The weather was terrific - 80's every day!  Our first little jaunt in Florida was a river cruise up towards Lake Okeechobee.  It took me awhile to wrap my tongue around that name.

The pictures tell the story well, but for a little background, you have to know that we stayed with my dear friend Jan who was so kind and hospitable.  She chauffeured us all over the place and shared her home and time with us.  I do want to thank Jan for an unforgettable week of new adventures. I'll be blogging about them in the next couple of days.
Jan

Our gracious hostess and good friend, Jan!

Fort Myers is the City of Royal Palms.  I'm not sure this is a Royal Palm, but it is lovely!

Waiting to board the ship river boat



Heading out to sea the river.

We were cruising over towards Lake Okeechobee from Fort Myers.


Looking over the back railing, I discovered we were on a paddle wheel boat.  Sweet!

Barbie was loving the sunshine!

Information about our destination.

You know who these two tourists are!

So relaxing on the river!

The Lock - no bagels



Draw bridges are always fun to see.

River boat trip is over
What you don't see are photos of us eating a huge buffet and enjoying the disc jockey music.  We all got up and danced and had a wonderful day!  I was too busy eating and dancing to take pictures.  

Monday, March 17, 2014

Quilt Lover's Hangout

Guess where we are? I think we are not in Kansas anymore.




We were hanging out at the Quilt Lovers Hangout in Fort Myers Florida.  I will write more later.
Happy St. Patrick's Day.


Monday, March 10, 2014

Sewy Zoe

What a fun weekend sewing with my nine year old granddaughter, Zoe.  She and I collaborated on a bag for her mom's birthday.  Zoe picked out the material and actually did most of the sewing on the bag; she helped me measure and stitched the quilting design.  She also sewed the side seams and the lining together.  Then she got to do the magic "pull the bag through the lining" part.  We had a productive day!



After the bag was finished, Zoe started to dillydally around with the scraps in Grandma's sewing room. I'm pretty sure she learned the art of dillydallying from visiting Mrs. Dillydally's Blog.

Zoe made a cloth bracelet, necklace and headband!  Very fun and creative!
  Happy Birthday, Mom!

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Downtown Kent - Scribbles Coffee Co.

It was warm enough Saturday, 45 degrees, to walk around Kent without freezing and enjoy the sights, especially this mural located in the side alley by Woodsy's Music Shop depicting the old Pufferbelly Train Station.  


Scribbles Coffee Co.


We enjoyed spending some time at Scribbles Coffee Co. on North Water Street in Kent!  It's an interesting place for sure!
As you can see, Scribbles has paper on all the tables so you can draw, scribble or write with crayons to fuel your creativity.  It is also jam packed with books and unique decorations.


I may might have to buy this squirrel shirt. 

One unusual decoration at Scribbles was this hanging light.  Look closely and you will discover another use for coffee filters. 
Along with the relaxed atmosphere, you will find great coffee and other speciality drinks at Scribbles.  It's a fun place to visit and enjoy a cup of coffee.