Autumn Musings

October is the month that truly begins to feel like autumn to me. Despite the fact that there hasn't been any significant rain since September 22, the mountains have turned from yellow green to yellow to orange and on to deep red and brown and there is a snap in the morning and evening air that leaves icy dew on the grass. Although autumn is a time of melancholy for the bright spring and summer, it is my favorite for the rich, earthy beauty it brings. As a portend of winter, it is not a favorite!

Last Saturday we received the news that our fourth great grandchild will be a boy; our granddaughter and grandson-in-law had a little get-together they called a "gender reveal" party and the blue balloons and confetti made an appearance! This baby, due in March 2017, will be our son and daughter-in-law's first grandchild and of course they are insisting that they are too young to be grandparents! As great grandparents, we are over the moon! Four greats - three boys and one girl.

When our granddaughter announced that she and her husband were expecting a baby back in August, I couldn't resist picking up some nursery fabric at Joann's which sat for a month until last Thursday when I broke it out and whipped up a crib quilt. Here is the happy result:

Fun forest animals print

This is the very first time I've broken out the even feed foot and quilting table for my Viking Platinum 750 sewing machine and what fun I had! I wonder why I hadn't quilted like this sooner as I've had this particular machine since 2004 complete with the Quilt Kit. Ah well, it will get some use now as I already have another top just about done for quilting.

Lucky for me, I guess, that the blanket is a hit with the new parents; I didn't know, of course, that the little one would be a boy! In fact, we both were convinced that we'd be having a great grand GIRL!

Yesterday, the 11th, was my dad's 93rd birthday and because we haven't seen him since October 2014 for his 91st birthday, we thought we'd take the opportunity to check in on him. So, in a couple days we will load ourselves into the motor home and trek across the Nevada desert on Interstate 80 to his humble "Northern King" on You Bet Road. We have also decided to go to Yosemite National Park and take in the beauty that is there especially at this time of the year. This will make our fourth road trip for 2016 and, to be honest, we are having the time of our lives . . . you know, living the dream! :)
Here is how Dad looked two years ago. The owner of the Apple Alley Cafe had a breakfast celebration for him and I snapped this photo then. I suspect that he hasn't changed all that much as he's still out splitting wood, tending his four acres, and driving into town. Can't wait to spend a couple days with the old bird!

There are a whole lot of photos and stories that need to be told here about the last leg of our Wyoming adventure and then the six-day journey we took to Odessa, Texas and back in September. Many of the photos have been posted on my Instagram feed but there are stories that need to be documented. I will save those for another day. 

Ta for now!