Bear Creek Quilt Guild Workshop

Kathy and I had a great time yesterday at the guild workshop making these pinwheels for a runner using a 60 degree specialty ruler. This was a quick project to make and it's finished. Well, except for the quilting. Doubt I'll make another one - it was a bit tricky getting everything to fit together and lay flat. Starch and a steam iron worked it's magic and mine looks pretty good if you're on a galloping horse.














Here's my finished runner from yesterday's workshop and a picture of Bev Ramsey, our teacher. That's her husband behind her.

Another birthday gathering...

The gang was all here to celebrate my birthday last Monday night. I can't remember what Kevin was showing us but we were all captivated. Note the Christmas runner - I still need to finish undecorating from Christmas. I WILL have it done by Feb. 1st!

Jennifer & Kevin brought one of my favorite cakes (Pepperidge Farm Coconut) with Blue Bell ice cream - delicious!

Amy, Robert and the grands brought me flowers, another favorite - astromerias. The squirrel was a souvenir from Amy's mission trip. As is our tradition, Jennifer got a squirrel also. Ron & Kevin got a bag of coffee beans.

Granny Sheppard

Another not so good picture but I did catch Granny smiling. This was taken after we had been there two weeks and Granny had gotten some rest. She's lookin' good for almost 95!

Inventions

Ron's dad is known for his inventions. Here's a bird feeder he made out of a 2-litre bottle and an old tire, probably from a wheelbarrow or something like that. He gets his exercise opening and closing the back door to chase away the squirrels. If that doesn't work, he has a horn to blow. I heard that was a favorite toy of great-grandson and his namesake, Inman Huffman.

Birdwatching in NC...

Granny and I were watching birds one day last week. Those cardinals don't like to pose for their picture so this was about the best I could do from inside the house. It was too cold to sit on the steps and try for a better shot.

Yard Art

Well, not really yard art! This is the big chair in Thomasville, NC (Chair City). Happened on to it while trying to find our way back to I-85.

Back in Texas

This bird was perched on our fence when we got home on Sat. I was too far away for a good photo with my 5.0 mega pixal camera but thought it was interesting to find him there. I've never seen one this close before.

Still in North Carolina...

where it's really, really COLD! I think we're expecting a heat wave later in the week - sure hope so. I'm not too crazy about cold weather.

We've made a bit of progress but not enough for us to feel like we can leave yet. We'd like to leave by Thursday, but if we can't we'll just make another run to the laundromat and wear these same outfits another week.

Just found a voice mail from Amy - she was at DFW - safe & sound after Mission Peru. Praise God!!! Can't wait to hear all about it.

Hope to see my Texas friends real soon!

A birthday surprise....

Forgot to mention in the last note that my birthday was yesterday and I had a very nice surprise. Ron's parents and Ron met me for lunch at a local restaurant (Kosta's) for my favorite food - lasagne! We were about to leave the table when the waitresses came up with dessert for me and sang to me - totally unexpected. Our waitress had heard Ron's dad tell me to order anything I wanted since it was my birthday and she took it from there. It was their specialty - Cherry Yum Yum - a creamy cheesecake topped with cherry pie filling. Definitely Yum! Yum!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The new year finds us in different surroundings, out of our routine, and facing challenges.

We're in North Carolina where the overnight temperatures are dropping to the teens and the daily highs are in the thirties - BRRR! Praise the Lord though for a good heating system and warm coats and cars.

As for our routine, we're trying to adapt to Ron's parents' routine and help them recover from a month of illnesses. I've learned to wash dishes by hand again and even conquered Catherine's slow-to-drain sink. We're learning flexibility as we do things their way and in their time. 92 & 94 year olds don't move as fast as they used to move.

The challenges include getting them to accept help and to consider moving to something safer and more convenient. We're taking baby steps and don't expect a lot to be accomplished on this visit but we're preparing the way for future visits if health issues make a move necessary. God is so good!!! He has given us good health and the strength to carry on each day as well as the ability to leave our home and routine to help here. He's also given us wonderful children to cover the bases in Texas - thanks especially to Jennifer & Kevin for checking our mail daily and taking care of business in Texas.

If you're reading this, please excuse my rambling. These notes are like a journal for me now - I'll get back to my babbling about quilting and grandkids as soon as I can. I plan to dig out my dinosaurs (another name for ufo's according to Pat Parks) and make some lists with quilting goals for 2010.

Thanks to all of our friends and family who are praying for us, especially this week. We love you and look forward to seeing you soon.