A Beachy Day

Yesterday morning my good friend PAT came over for tea and to pick up a swap block we are working on....it was great to do a lot of "quilt talk" and have some fun.

In the afternoon, hubby and I took a little ride to the beach at Cape Henlopen State Park. While we were there, had some fun watching the horseshoe crabs. A group of first graders were there, and being a former teacher, I just couldn't resist watching them learn about the horseshoe crabs and ocean life!

To learn more about the horseshoe crabs check out these websites

www.beach-net.com/horseshoe/Bayhorsecrab.html or www.ocean.udel.edu/horseshoecrab

getting back to Normal, maybe

The last couple of weeks have been hectic but now we are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. The water problem I posted about last is almost under control. The flooring is down and the contractor is here today to put the molding around the walls and begin the painting. Things should be done by the weekend.

I have also been trying to get some quilting in. I am participating in a year-long swap among 12 quilters. Each person is assigned a month and creates a block representing that month based upon a cottage block pattern. I had to have my 12 blocks done by June 1. They are done and are ready to mail...I'm not going to post a picture today because I want the others to be surprised when their blocks arrive...but I will post a picture soon. The pictures I am posting now are of a quilt that I made a couple of years ago but I didn't like how the binding looked so last week I took the binding off and rebound the quilt. The quilt is hand pieced and hand quilted. The binding looks much better now...

I also found some time on Saturday to go to a couple of yard sales in neighboring developments. Among my treasures are this teapot and tea cup. The teapot was hand made and the seller told me it belonged to her mother. The teacup was made in Germany. It isn't like the vintage cups I usually buy but I loved the colors.

I do have some sad news to report. On March 5 I posted about my friend who was dealing with cancer. I really appreciated all the prayers and thoughts of fellow bloggers. Karen passed away surrounded by her family on May 23. She will be missed by those who knew her.

A happy Mother's Day

A happy Mother's Day to all. It is a beautiful day here and I am so enjoying it. The weather is beautiful...warm but with a slight breeze. The birds are visiting the feeders and it is so relaxing to sit on the patio...which is slowly getting done.

When I go inside I can look at the Mother's Day tulips surrounded by pictures of my family.

And finally I finished Attic Treasures III - a wallhanging made from vintage fabric and buttons taken from our "family homestead' and that I made for my brother. It just needs to be pressed and made ready for giving.

Is it May or March?

The old saying is that March "in like a lion, out like a lamb" Hope May is the same way. We have had rain, rain, and more rain. Then there is the kitchen floor....

Last week we were very busy so we weren't home very much. Sunday night, hubby and I walked across the dining room floor and found it was buckled...then he opened the furnace closet...water all over the floor. We searched and searched for a source of the water...could it be coming from the roof? NO...the water heater NO...vents NO..cleaned it up and frustrated finally went to bed exhausted. Couldn't sleep so early in the morning I checked the closet again...water! I got a sickening feeling and checked the closet in the living room that backs up to the dining room...the carpet was soaked so I had to pull everything out of the closet floor...grandkids toy basket, box of "yard sale" stuff, etc. We cleaned up again and I left my hubby to deal with it while I went to the guild meeting since there was nothing else I could do about the water...when I returned he had good news and bad news....he found the source of the water. The ice maker in the fridge had been leaking, evidently for a while. When he pulled the fridge out, a big puddle was under it. We never saw any water on the kitchen floor ...it must have been soaking through the seams of the hardwood flooring....a call to the insurance company and a short time later we had workers at the house with fans, dehumidifiers, and mold prevention spray. They had to rip up parts of the dining room and kitchen floors...it was amazing water was puddled under the floorboards. They determined that the whole floor will need to be replaced which is quite a job since the same floor runs throught the kitchen, dining room, hallway, and entryway. Needless to say, we are going to buy a new fridge! The insurance company will pick up the tab for the new floor, wall repair, and painting except for our deductible and we will live with a mess for a couple of weeks. Here is a before picture of part of the mess...will keep you posted.

quiet night

I am having a lovely quiet night while hubby is out doing his theater thing...



I am reading a book sent by a friend about the history of quilting. It was published by the University of Nebraska where they have an International Quilt Study Center and Museum... It is called American Quilts in the Modern Age 1870-1940...I love traditional quilts and the history of quilts. My friend's hubby is a librarian and when he saw this book he knew it would be just up my alley...It has wonderful pictures of quilts and stories behind many of them including a lot of information on dating quilts and fabric. My friend and I laughed because I was once told that a course I proposed about quilting wasn't "academic enough" to be included in a series of seminar courses... the old boy's club thought quilting was just a little woman's past-time that didn't take much thinking!!!! ( I even told them that there are graduate programs in fiber arts that focus on quilting...but no luck!) Their loss