Thoughts on Many Things

 Four years ago this country was facing an unprecedented, tumultuous time that now, looking back, has placed us in a precarious position; not only for this country but for the world. Today, with a great deal of HOPE, we look for a positive turnaround. May God bless and provide us all the strength and humility to go forward. Four years ago too, I came across a blog post from Joan Bardee, dearpaperlicious, that perfectly illustrated the state of affairs at the time. I am almost certain that she, along with many, many Americans, feels a sense of relief now.

By the way, Joan is a stamper and extraordinary blogger; she writes with humor and sensitivity about ordinary things that happen to ordinary people . . . least of all, creative cardmaking.

Speaking of cardmaking, since the first of the year I've played with my stash of paper, ink, and stamps and made five birthday cards and numerous cards just because. My Stampin'Up! enabler/demonstrator has certainly been helpful in providing ideas and more supplies! Haha! I've joined an online group, Stamp Happy Academy which is strictly Stampin'Up! and am having fun with at least one of the challenges. That was a color challenge - to create a card using the SU colors blackberry bliss, bumblebee, and misty morning. I pulled out some stamps from 2014 (I have a ridiculous collection!) and made the first two cards. Then, I just couldn't stop myself and made a couple more cards using brand new stamp sets.

I could've gone on and made a few more with this color combination but, like all things I do, I got side-tracked by other pretty paper . . . 

This is one of two birthday cards I made for my two older sisters whose birthdays are this month. The design is CASE'd from a SU stamper/blogger that I followed a few years ago (she no longer has a presence online unfortunately). 

This card was made for our three-year-old great granddaughter, I just happened to have this cute cupcake wrapping paper to wrap up the little cupcake necklace we gave to her. 

Here she is wearing it! I'm not sure what to make of the pink in her hair but I do know that she's a cutie!

This card was made for our eight-year-old great grandson and accompanied a special request quilt.

Back in November, our granddaughter texted a photo to me of an "idea" for Easton's quilt. It was a black and red "U" representing the University of Utah. I was very pleased to know that he is a U of U fan as I am too (being an alumni). My interpretation turned out rather bold (a little out of my usual choice of fabrics) but Easton likes it very much - "Mom and I think this is the best of all the blankets [you've made for our family]." Well, if that isn't a vote of confidence, I don't know what is! :)

Now this card was really fun to make as it was for our newest great grandchild, Olivia Mae, born December 29, 2020! Her birthday was a surprise as she wasn't due until January 17, 2021 but oh! What a wonderful way to finish out the year!

Precious little baby girl, our third great granddaughter. (Olivia's aunt, our sweet granddaughter McKenna, made the knitted blanket she is laying on. How very special!)

We have not met her in person yet and will probably not have that opportunity until after we both have received our second COVID-19 vaccination. We must be careful! Our granddaughter posted a photo of Miss Livy Mae on her due date, already two plus weeks old!

Still a little tipsy but wide awake!

The sweetest picture of all is this one of Livy Mae and her big brother Dawson.

Since my November 23rd post in which I mentioned that my husband was going to build his shop in the south end of the big barn, it has been done and he's been out puttering there almost every day! 

Here he is putting some of the finishing touches on cabinets and shelves, December 14th. Just today he came in and told me that he needs a bigger shop! He is currently working on his 1948 Ford 8N tractor - restoring it to working condition - and he's also repainting the tack room door to one of the horse trailers. Those two things take up a great deal of space, besides the fact that he has two workbenches, two welding setups (a TIG welder and a gas welder kit), three shelf units with power tools and batteries, electrical paraphernalia, and painting supplies, and two shop cabinets on wheels. One area holds three sizes of ladders and a floor jack (and other automotive equipment). Fact is, he was astonished that he has so much - before organizing all of it in one place things were strewn in the house garage, the garden shed, the tack room, and the All-Tech Inc. shop (down the street). Of course, there was lots of things that were not useful but kept just because which ended up going to the landfill. 

Because we house all the family's horses on our property, Diamond A Ranch, the tack room is well-used. Clare decided that it was time to get it organized and not only did he clean and rearrange, but he built a blanket rack. 

These two photos just show the south side of the tack room after cleanup; the opposite side has cupboards and counter space, a refrigerator, and more saddle stands. Now the trick is to keep it neat out there . . . with multiple users that may be a challenge!

In other news . . . early in December I bought a gingerbread house kit anticipating a day-long visit from my granddaughter over the holiday. 

Well, the kit sat on the kitchen counter unmade all the way through the holidays and beyond until this Tuesday, the 19th. Our granddaughter flew up from her home in Texas to meet her new niece, Livy Mae, and the day before she was to return she dropped by her old grandparents' home. She not only came to visit but she spent about five hours with us and during that time she and I built the gingerbread house! What a good girl she is to humor her old granny! Haha!

By the way, this is the granddaughter who works for the Lubbock Economic Development Alliance and today was promoted to Media Relations and Communications Manager. Bravo!

On the sewing front - other than making the quilt for great grandson Easton, I've been rather neglectful. Part of the problem is that I've been trying to work around severe arthritis pain in the hands and back/hips (I guess it's arthritis!). I had an x-ray and MRI done last Wednesday and will be meeting with my pain and spine doc this coming Monday to go over the results. In the meantime, I rub Voltaren gel on my hands and pop pain meds a couple times a day. When I sit at the sewing machine for any length of time, the pain becomes unbearable and I have found that stretching out on the bed is the only easing I can get. Blah, blah, blah! The flannel quilt I started working on back in November 2020 (with the intention to finish it by Christmas) is idling; I've got one column of HSTs sewn together and now my goal is to have it done by February 18th, my husband's birthday! Hah! Better get busy!

After a very dry two months (not a drop of precipitation during the last part of December and so far this January), it is supposed to snow today and tomorrow and a few days next week. So far, the skies are cloudy but the sun is shining bright. Doing a snow dance . . . 

I leave you with this gorgeous sunrise January 12th. 

Ta for now, Hazel😘

        

Festive Feelings

 It's beginning to look like Christmas . . . 

I'm curious about what that means exactly; is it the lights, the decorations, the UPS, FedEx, USPS, and Amazon trucks speeding around? Whatever it is, I'm feeling a little bit of festive especially since I finished writing in and addressing Christmas cards to our friends and family and dropped them at the Post Office.

It was fun to make these cards once I got my mojo! I even decorated the envelopes. Fortunately, I had gotten some inspiration (and materials) from my lovely Stampin'Up! demonstrator. The only downside to getting over 20 cards out was that my writing got progressively worse because of arthritis pain in my hands; ah, well! Old age manifests in odd and sometimes inconvenient ways! Speaking of old age, my 71st birthday was December 7th, and although I'm not wild about heading into my 70's, my day was happily passed with greetings from friends and family . . . all the love reminds me that life is something to treasure. 

I've not done much on the sewing/quilting projects the last few weeks which needs to be remedied. There was the interruption of shopping for and wrapping gifts, decorating the tree, making cards, and just generally being lazy! Thing is, I've found that I can manage doing one, maybe two, tasks (besides getting meals on the table and doing the laundry) in a day and then I'm done and have to sit and, well, read or knit or stare into space . . . !! 

We purchased Emergency Roadside kits to give to kids and grandkids and I wrapped all of those (ten) and shipped three off to faraway grandkids (Texas and Arizona). I am pretty pleased with the little tags I made for each of them:

I made two of the top tags for two of our single grandsons, seven of the middle tags for married couples, and the bottom tag for our cowboy grandson who has a truck (couldn't fit a horse trailer on!) and two dogs.

I have such a huge assortment of stamps and colored pencils which I was able to put to good use on these. I still have three gift tags to make for three of our great grandchildren's gifts. Really, I should think about making stuff like this in January or at least earlier than a day before gifts have to be distributed! Maybe next year . . . haha!

Speaking of next year, there is hope on the horizon for a little more stability here in the US of A. And, the prospect of vaccinating the population for COVID-19 is heartening too. We have personally weathered the pandemic storm so far without any ill effects but are saddened by the deaths of a few friends and of course all of the thousands of people who have died leaving families grieving their loss. Our prayer is that 2021 will be kinder and that everyone will cherish each other and live each day to the fullest.

Ordinary days still here on Vine and looking forward to many more. Happy Christmas and blessings in the new year!

Hazel

Small Preparations

 With November coming to a swift close, I've been slowly working on preparations for the Christmas season but also looking forward to a new year that will, hopefully, be a little less chaotic than 2020 has been. In my 70's now, I am much more aware of the need to "make every moment count." I cannot imagine what it is like for my 97-year-old father navigating all the mess especially these last few years have been in. At any rate, I have most certainly had a blessed life. I'm waxing a bit nostalgic as this last weekend I heard from my childhood friend that her mom (my second mom) is receiving care from Hospice in a care facility. This news not only makes my heart cave in but also reminds me of the goodness I have been surrounded by all my life. Thanks be to God! 

This morning I finished binding the third pocket "mug rug" I made for a pre-Christmas gift for our great-grandchildren. Each family can add a cookie and glass of milk or cup of cocoa for Santa on Christmas Eve. Last year I made a little home decor piece for each of the five married grandchildren (see below). I like the idea of mug rugs for gifts as they are cute and fairly quick to put together. I have thought about making table toppers/runners as gifts too but if I do that for this year's gifting, I'd better get on the ball!

I did some easy embroidery on the pocket part of the rug where a cookie (or maybe a wish list) can be inserted. For the top rug I used the Holly and Ivy block from Lori Holt's Vintage Christmas book and for the other two (and the pocket idea) I used The Crafty Quilter's pattern, Christmas Pocket Mug Rug.

Here are two of the five decor pieces I made for the grandchildren last year. I adapted an idea I saw on Pinterest here using my Silhouette and vinyl. 

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As I mentioned in the November 11th post, I have my two sewing machines set up to start a quilt and finish a quilt. . . I started making the half-square triangles (HSTs) for the flannel quilt and will begin sewing them into 11 rows of 23. 

Boy, am I glad to have the Triangle Square Up Ruler!

This last week the weather has been cool but not uncomfortably so and Clare was able to move all of the hay that was stored in the south bay of the big barn, to the new barn.

His plan is to convert the south bay of the big barn into a workshop outfitted with workbenches and shelves so he can be inside during the cold months and work on restoring his 1949 Ford tractor and any other manly projects he has. He's ordered some pendant shop lights and has both a propane and electric heater that he can use on the coldest days. He says, "It'll be every bit as well-appointed as your sewing room!" (which is pretty darn nice). 

It's a drizzly day out today and I've put a pot of clam chowder on for a warm-up-our-tummies afternoon meal. Speaking of meals, Clare and I will be enjoying a mini Thanksgiving dinner this coming Thursday; Herbed turkey breast, acorn squash, mashed red potatoes and gravy, and an apple-cranberry salad. Of course, I will also be preparing a pumpkin pie!

God's blessings,

Hazel

Honoring those who served. Veteran's Day - USA

 The last seven months have been particularly stressful what with the pandemic waxing and waning and a truly unprecedented battle for the White House; however, the election is over and for all intents and purposes the US is breathing a little easier. We know that there will be much hard work ahead to re-establish the things that the USA has always stood for . . . things that have been eroded over the last four years. I, for one, am hopefully optimistic that civility and kindness will once again prevail. 

The pandemic has most certainly changed our lives and made us much more aware of our fragility. At the same time, we've also experienced resilience and our innate ability to adjust. For me and my husband, the 'stay home/stay safe' agenda has provided an opportunity to get at many projects around the ranch that under normal circumstances would have continued to languish. Of course, many of the outdoor projects have been managed by my handy husband . . . his talents and skills never cease to amaze me. In the past 10 months he has:

• Replaced the seats, front and back, in our 1965 Mustang.
• Plowed and prepared the back six acres for grass and alfalfa seeding.
• Braced the back pasture fence with hog wire panels (to lessen the accumulation of trash that blows in from the south).
• Seeded the back six.
• Made and used an attachment to the skid steer to sift dirt for topsoil.
• Built a paved area in the back flower bed for pot plants.
• Installed metal lawn edging around the entire back garden.
• Purchased and used a mower, hay rake, and baler for three cuts of alfalfa/hay from our pasture.
• Installed a sprinkler system and new lawn for our neighbor.
• Rebuilt our neighbor's barn.
• Rebuilt fence along the entire east side of the property.
• Repaired two excavator's tracks.
• Planted twelve 10-gallon trees - Eight along the south side of the arena, two in the front yard, and two in the back yard.
• Built protective cages around the eight trees by the arena - protection from deer and horses.
• Put up a shelter for the livestock in the steer pen.

Those are just a few of the tasks and projects he has undertaken. It is no wonder that some of our grandsons say that Grandpa's middle name is WORK!

The most significant project, by far, was the rebuilding of our neighbor's barn. For the last ten years that we've lived here on Vine, Annette has allowed us to make use of the back of her property's pasture and barn for our horses and hay storage. It only seemed right that the barn, pretty rickety to begin with, should be at least shored up and made safer and more useable. Clare, being the perfectionist that he is, used only the four original corner posts and some of the timbers to completely rebuild the barn which now bears no resemblance to the old one.

All new.

As for my finishes (and starts) the last ten months, staying home has allowed time for completion of many quilts, table toppers, Bloem baskets, masks, cards, gardening, and good books. I must admit that for much of the time I've had to deal with constant pain which certainly slows down the pursuit of many outdoor projects and activities. However, I've learned to ignore or at least put up with pain and keep pressing on. Although it was slow-going, I did manage to plant in the Spring, weed during the Summer, and clear out the garden in the Autumn. Gardening gives me much pleasure and it has been a delight to see all the beautiful blooms, etc. over the Summer. I didn't get the Spring-blooming bulbs planted that I wanted to but I did divide and transplant the overgrown bed of iris. We had a really cold snap October 24th that made many of the shrubs and trees leaves turn brown instead of the gradual Jack Frost colors. It warmed up some the last week in October but as of this last Sunday, temperatures have hovered near freezing during the days. . . no more digging in the dirt this year!

Inventorying my sewing projects for 2020 (thus far) reveals: Seven table toppers, four mug rugs, six Bloem baskets, one Kitchenaid mixer cover (quilted), one soft toy, fourteen cotton face masks, six of 12 blocks for the Block-of-the-Month challenge of our quilt group, eight full-size (twin, throw, and queen) quilts, three wall quilts, and one top. Both my Viking and Brother sewing machines are set up to finish one quilt and work on a new flannel quilt (pattern and fabric that I've had since October 2018, I'm embarrassed to say!). Since March, I've not attended any of the meetings of the Tooele County Quilters because firstly, March through May's meetings were canceled, and secondly, being part of that 'at risk' group for COVID-19, I've been very hesitant about being in any gathering of more than ten people. However, it's been good to keep in touch via social media and I do okay sewing on my own (although talking to myself is getting old! Haha!) The one quilt I am most proud of was the Meadowland Quilt (pattern by Meghan Buchanan of Then Came June). 

Everything about this quilt was fun - the pattern, the fabric I chose, the construction, and the fact that I made it for my lifelong girlfriend who loves it.

I have gone on a card-making spree a few times in the last year too and renewed my enjoyment of playing with paper and ink. Of course, my Stampin'Up! demonstrator, Wendy Knowles, has been a wonderful enabler! Haha! 

These are just three of my favorite cards - two autumn-themed greetings and a birthday card for my dad who turned 97 October 11th. I've been watching YouTube videos from various card makers and experimenting with new-to-me techniques and different designs. 

My Reading Challenge on Goodreads I set at 30 books for 2020, and as of yesterday, I've actually read 43! I love to read and although most all of the books read this year have been on the computer (Kindle), I've got to say that almost every one has been enjoyable. The local library has been closed most of the last seven months, so getting physical books has been out of the question. I have bought a few hard/paperbacks to enjoy that real turning of the pages feeling!

Another very happy thing has come about as a result of  'pandemic isolation;' and that is, more frequent communication with faraway grandchildren, particularly, our granddaughter in Lubbock, Texas. In April she and I signed up for Jennifer Jangles' 30-Day Sampler Embroidery on-line class, received our kits at our respective locations by the end of the month and began stitching day by day the whole month of May. It was great fun to share notes on our progress and it inspired us both to do more stitching. Since then, it's been delightful to exchange cards and texts about what we're doing and what we're thinking about. McKenna is a smart, thoughtful young woman who has found her path in life, both in her marriage to a very fine fellow and in her career as a marketing and communication specialist for Lubbock Economic Development Alliance. Love her so very much. 

That is not to say that our other grandchildren and great-grandchildren have been any less of a delight and joy in our lives. Even though we don't get to see them often enough, we still get updates via texts, phone calls, or social media that brighten our days. Our third oldest grandchild, granddaughter Brittany, will be having our 7th great grandchild in January 2021 and we couldn't be happier, especially since this will be our third great grand girl! There is a special quilt in the making for the new little one . . . just sayin'! 

It has begun to snow again and I feel a nap coming on. Besides, the two dogs on their beds are looking comfy in their sleepy posture. 

Ta for now,

Hazel

Forward Looking

Close to a month and a half in with social distancing and stay safe, stay home and starting to feel the effects . . . Like, I have a few vanities. Namely, having my nails done at a salon, having my eyelashes enhanced at a salon, and getting my hair cut every six weeks. My nails are chipped and either grown too long or cut off wonky by me; I'm going to have to resort to mascara to indicate I have lashes, and I may have to take scissors to my hair or shave my head! My 96-year-old dad was complaining to me the other day that he's beginning to look like Bernie Sanders having not had a haircut for a couple months and no one willing to do it (or able, for that matter as California, where he lives, has even shut grocery stores to the public). We'll all be rather shaggy and raggy once we "get back to normal!"

Anyhoo, the weather has been fine here and the weeds are coming up gangbusters. But just this morning we finished weeding the front yard and my old man mowed the grass. Late last summer we had finished the landscaping in front and find that we lost only a few of the plantings over the winter. Our friendly deer rubbed all the bark off of the western redbud tree and the rose of Sharon which did neither one any good, and two of the grasses winter killed. Not too bad considering that it was blazing hot when we put in most of the plants. I've trimmed up the spirea and rose bushes and cleaned up around all of the other plantings so that now it is looking very spruce; some of the flowering bushes even have buds and will be really pretty in a week or so.

Since my last post here I've made seven more face masks for family members and depleted my stash of elastic. If I make any more I'll have to make them with ties as elastic is non-existent in the stores. I've done some card making; four Easter cards sent out and one birthday card for a grandson-in-law.

The landscape version of this one I posted on Instagram for an Easter message.

I had fun coloring this lilies stamp.

Really pretty in this pink color.

I finished up an April table topper (posted on Instagram) and just need to quilt and bind one I made for May. So far I've been able to use fabrics in my stash for these projects but for some reason the scraps bin is overflowing! If I get a couple WIP's done, I'll tackle the scraps and first get them sorted by color and then MAKE something. 

Detail of the April Showers table topper. Fun little appliqued umbrellas.

Not much else going on around here. We are eating better than we have (no fast food and restaurant dining) and have been able to watch some movies courtesy of Amazon Prime and Acorn TV (which we subscribe to). Big event out on the ranch - had the arena "groomed" so that now there are less rocks to injure our ponies. 

The groomer entering the Diamond A Arena.

First pass around the outside. Note the arena banner. . . grandson Ty is sponsored by this horse supplement company who donated a couple banners. Our arena looks professional now!

The final pile of rocks gleaned from the arena. Amazing how they seem to bubble up; makes for rough going for the horses. Now, we'll hopefully see less stone bruising.

Grandson Ty and his dad drove down to Stephenville Texas this last weekend to retrieve the horse trailer that Ty had to leave behind when he came home last month. Not only did they bring the trailer back but also a new horse - Lucky is his name and a dandy pony he is!

Lucky in his new home (Zip is the palomino lump behind him).

One last photo of my favorite farmer out on the back seven putting up fence to keep the trash from blowing into the pasture. The grass hay and alfalfa is coming up nice and thick. 

There is still quite a bit of snowpack on the Oquirrhs.

Be well.

God's peace,

Hazel

Week I-Can't-Remember-How-Many (or, An Update)

Hi, hi! Still keeping ourselves in check here on Vine. Hard to believe that just a month ago we were pretty much oblivious to the terms "coronavirus," "shelter-in-place," etc. And, who would've thought that the world's sewists would be encouraged to make fabric masks for everyone! I want to be as vigilant as possible so I took on the mask task and so far have produced 14 of the bad boys (as my granddaughter called them! :). Just this morning I received texts, photos, and a video call from some of the great grands who had received their homemade masks in the post.

Here is our youngest great, Arabelle, showing off her pretty blue mask.

The pattern I used for the first 14 (I intend on making more), was from Sarahmaker and after the first one, I gradually figured out a streamline way of making one mask in about 30 minutes (to the designer's suggested 20 minutes). I see now that Sarahmaker also has this tutorial for a no-sew mask. These are a bit less sturdy than the sewn ones but would do in a pinch or if you needed a mask in a hurry. There are tons of tutorials popping up on the web but, aside from the one I've already used, I like this video tutorial from Jenny Doan and will probably make the others (and some backups) from her instructions. She uses just two pleats as opposed to the three (not so evenly spaced) pleats on the Sarahmaker tutorial. Fortunately, I just happened to have 1/8" elastic in my stash for the first 10 masks - especially for the little ones - but now am using 1/4" elastic which I also have in my stash.

Our second youngest
great looks like a stage coach bandit in his mask . . . my granddaughter said that he wore it all Sunday morning! Haha!

And then here is our seven-year-old great grandson with a "prop" - sanitizing spray. He definitely is a ham.



Speaking of great grands, great grandson Dawson (the bandit above) received the toy tote Bloem Basket I made and is thrilled with it and the various farm animal toys. Granddaughter Brittany said that he is all about farm animals and tractors and wants to come out here to the ranch and drive Grandpa's tractor. Well, maybe ride . . . !

There is a pig farm, a goat farm, and a horse ranch included with the toys. Love it!














Last Thursday morning I tripped on one of the dogs and a rug and landed hard on my knees. As a result my knees and lower legs, especially the right leg and foot, are swollen and sore and sporting some nasty-looking bruises. There goes wearing a fancy Easter frock . . . not that I have one! I would post a photo but it is not a pretty sight and I'm also rather embarrassed to show how clumsy I am! I did have a video chat with my doctor and he sent me to get X-rays to ensure there are no broken bones. I'm walking around okay, so that didn't seem likely and, as it turns out, the X-rays only showed lots of arthritis in both my ankles and knees. Duh! I already knew that! Nothing much to do except ice and elevate.

With my feet up, Chewy the dog finds a good spot to hang out.

This is a difficult time to not have regular worship services; however, our pastor decided to have two abbreviated services on Palm Sunday and during Holy Week and on Easter Sunday so that fewer people are in each service, thereby adhering to the "social distancing" guidelines. Our congregation is small anyhow and this new schedule is working well. It is also important to me for my spiritual well-being to be in the Lord's house at least once a week. 

Palm Sunday at First Lutheran.

A palm frond left by a member of the congregation that I tucked into my Easter door wreath. 

So, another week on Vine Street and looking forward to sunshine and the chance to get out in the yard - or what I like to call my Garden of Weedin'!

God's Peace,

Hazel