April Snow Showers

This morning’s weather made us both grumpy so we decided to just take a road trip to Billings—Michael needed to go into Big Timber anyway to get a replacement hydraulic hose for the one he blew on the backhoe yesterday.  After a short walk we took off just in time to have lunch at Famous Dave’s. 

Returned some things to Target and dropped my sewing machine off at the repair shop.  Petsmart for puppy food—that little dog sure costs a lot to feed, Costco and the Backdoor Quilt Shop all before getting back on the road toward home. 

It took us a little longer in Costco than usual, we ran into Nancy and Royal—Mike graduated from high school with Royal and they live in Harlem, MT, way up north but own a home in Big Timber, too.  Nancy and I finally gave up and wandered off to do our shopping while the guys yakked! 

It is always good to roll in the driveway of home, isn’t it?

This is the scene that greeted us this morning:

 And we were treated to a sighting of this guy in the snowstorm:

The white spots in the photos are snowflakes—nothing I could do about those!

What Happened To My Day

Michael headed out bright and early to help Lonn with a project and Emmi and I took off on our walk.  We were treated to an incredible display of what I think was two sandhill cranes mating.  The noise they were making was incredible and I just stood there snapping photos.  Emmi wandered around on her own but made no move to chase the cranes.  These two were near the site where the baby sandhill was hatched last year.

Prehistoric looking creatures, aren’t they?

Then it was off to town—I sold 3 sweaters on eBay and needed to mail the sweaters to their new owners.  I also needed to go to the bank.  Jill and I made lunch plans, I loaded Emmi into the convertible and off we went.  Jill and I lunched at the Crazy Bean and enjoyed our visit. 

After lunch I decided to try and get the windshield ding we got while in Arizona patched at our local shop.  Kevin thought he could at least keep it from cracking by sealing the ding and dropped me off at Nat’s to wait while the work was done. 

While at Nat’s a horseshoe pitching buddy of his came by and I snapped these photos of Nat as he was pitching.  Two winters ago he added an addition onto his house for indoor horseshoe pitching.  It has been one of the best things he ever did for himself, it is heated, out of the wind and he is even holding sanctioned tournaments once a month.  Looking at these photos you would never know he is approaching his 88th birthday!

Stopped in the quilt shop and then Cinnabar Creek to try out their new frozen yogurt machine.  Alida, one of the owners gave me a free sample—how nice is that??  It was very tasty.

Finally about 4pm I arrived back home, deposited the little convertible in the shed down the driveway and started walking back up the hill, Mike came along and picked us up before we reached the house.

A great day!

Customer Service Lives in the Quilting World

“I finished the top for the Christmas wall hanging.  The pattern has a mistake in it so one of the borders does not turn out as it should but it is for me and I am OK with that.”    This is a quote from Saturday night’s blog.

The quilt pattern listed a website so I contacted Barb, the owner of Coach House Designs.  I asked her to please clarify the pattern.  I received this wonderful e-mail today:

“Dear Janna,  Thank you very much for your email and for buying my pattern.  You are reading the pattern correctly – I unfortunately have a couple of typos in that section which I had published on my website but the link disappeared when I updated my website last time.  This is the link to the amendments http://www.coachhousedesigns.com/winterwelcomecorrections.htm   Sorry for the confusion.  Another customer pointed out the error and I fixed the pattern but you must have got one of the originals.  I would be happy to send you one of my other patterns as compensation for the confusion.  Let me know and I will pop it in the mail to you.”
Barb

Needless to say, I will be purchasing more of Barb’s patterns and fabrics!

Quilting and Wood Hauling

Our bright sunny weather left and now we have clouds and cooler temps.  It has looked like it might rain all day but no drops so far.

We took a walk and Emmi chased bunnies.  Nat arrived about mid morning and started up the sawmill.  Michael started the chainsaw and cut into firewood some of the logs we hauled home last fall.  Firewood season lasts a long time around here, we start building fires in September/October and usually don’t stop until well into May.  Takes a lot of wood!

I loaded a quilt onto the longarm today and got a slow start.  I am trying out a new thread company, Metro—I love the colors, the price and the sheen the thread has but the variegated I tried today kept breaking.  Played with the tension for a while, maybe I have it working, we will see.  If it keeps breaking I will go back to my tried and true Superior thread.  It is frustrating to continually break thread—makes me grumpy!

Emmi again spent most of her day outside—if the weather is nice she loves to be outside exploring.  Sure wish I could get her to stop snacking on horse apples!  Ellie—she still loves her ducks!

Nat came for lunch again and I did burgers on the grill with all sorts of vegetables.  I sautéed some mushrooms with butter and garlic to serve over the burgers.  At the end of the meal Nat asked me what those things were and when I asked him if he liked them or not he declined to answer.  My guess is he isn’t fond of mushrooms!

Life is good.

Michael Is Sad

About a year ago Michael had started talking about selling the Honda Shadow motorcycle we have.  We talked about the dangers of riding a bike—people dangers and deer dangers.  He talked about the fact that his reflexes are not what they used to be.  He started looking for a convertible with the intent to sell the bike when and if he found a car.  Well, as you know we did find the cutest little convertible last fall and took it to Arizona with us this winter.  I put the bike on Craigslist two days ago and a lady came and bought it today.  So, Michael is sad—I gave him that bike as a Christmas gift a few years ago and he says it was the best Christmas present he ever got.  Comfortable with the decision to sell but still sad.

When I married Michael he owned a small New Holland skid steer and has owned it for close to 30 years.  I learned to operate the thing (you had to get out and turn the drive shaft with a wrench so the starter would engage) and we used it extensively until we bought the John Deere skid steer a few years ago.  The smaller one had stopped running and Mike had removed its engine.  Well, this spring’s project is to get it running and sell the New Holland skid steer.  Mike got the newer engine in a few days ago, it runs and now he is removing all its external parts in preparation for painting it bright yellow!  The things this man I am married to can do!!!   

 

The project!

Nat came up for lunch and to use his sawmill.  I made beef stew and homemade bread.  And, I made Nat some oatmeal/chocolate chip/pecan cookies—his most favorite cookie which he hasn’t had since I left just after Christmas! 

After lunch and after helping Mike get the bike ready for that lady to come and see I finished the top for the Christmas wall hanging.  The pattern has a mistake in it so one of the borders does not turn out as it should but it is for me and I am OK with that.  When I get it longarmed I will post some photos. 

The party last night for Laci at Lonn and LoraLee’s was fun.  It was good to see neighbors and friends we haven’t seen all winter and it was fun to watch Laci and her friends entertain themselves! 

A comment was left by Ladybug regarding the insert in last night’s blog about illegal immigration.  She states that if having been born in Mexico she would be trying her best to get out of Mexico.  Yes, many, many Mexicans want to come to the US, my point is that it should be done legally and all the perks of living in the US should be given to those who are citizens of the US.  We have traveled extensively in Mexico.  We are not allowed to enter Mexico without the appropriate paperwork, we are not allowed to work in their country without meeting requirements and sometimes not allowed to work at all, we must pay taxes on property we bring into Mexico such as furnishings for a home we might have there.  The US was settled by immigrants and I am not saying there should not be immigrants, I just want it to be legal.  Some states such as Arizona and California are financially strapped from providing services to illegal immigrants.  Our tax dollars are going to support these illegal people in our country.  No other country in the world allows US citizens to enter illegally and why should we?

Got out all the garden stuff today and planted a bunch of seeds in trays so the seeds will germinate hopefully and I will have bigger plants to put in the garden when the weather warms up.  Nancy, the trays are nice and warm thanks to your heating pads. 

The sheet of paper on the wall is my road map telling me where what kind of seeds are planted where in the tray so I don’t end up thinking I am growing pumpkins and come up with cucumbers!

It was a beautiful day today, sunny and warmer plus no wind.  Emmi was outside most of the day and I only caught her snacking on horse apples once!

A Quilter’s Nightmare

Lots of sunshine today but only 30 degrees with a cold, cold wind.  We did our walk in double time this morning trying to get in out of the cold.  Emmi stayed outside for a while but was ready to come in the next time I went out.

Started sewing trying to finish the Christmas wall hanging I started last fall—I worked on it last night at the quilter’s meeting and was determined to finish the top this morning.  But, as I was sewing along with my Pfaff sewing machine, the thread broke and I heard a noise that wasn’t normal.  OK, now the machine is totally frozen, Michael worked on it for a while but it is still not sewing correctly so I called the store where the machine was purchased.  The quickest I can get on the repair schedule is April 26!!!  Sure am glad I have a trusty Featherweight Singer! 

Last night when I came home from Big Timber the weather was terrible.  Snowing and the wind was just howling.  I think the weather conditions were some of the worst winter weather I have ever driven in.  And usually when it is storming the deer find a place to bed down out of the storm, not last night—the deer were everywhere, right along the shoulder, in the road—I crept home at about 40 miles an hour.

Are you enjoying all these cow pictures brother dear??

The following was sent to us in an email from our friends Nancy and Geoff and in light of my rant about the Qatar diplomat yesterday, I thought it was appropriate!  Whether or not the punishments are actually, totally correct who knows, but you can certainly get the gist! 

Let me see if I got this right.....

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE NORTH KOREAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET 12  YEARS HARD   LABOR.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE IRANIAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU ARE DETAINED INDEFINITELY.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE AFGHAN BORDER ILLEGALLY, YOU GET SHOT.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE SAUDI ARABIAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE  JAILED.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE CHINESE BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU MAY NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE VENEZUELAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE BRANDED A SPY AND YOUR FATE WILL BE SEALED.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE CUBAN BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU WILL BE THROWN INTO POLITICAL PRISON TO ROT.

·  - IF YOU CROSS THE U.S. BORDER ILLEGALLY YOU GET................................

1 – A Job

2 - A DRIVERS LICENSE, 
3 - SOCIAL SECURITY CARD, 
4 - WELFARE,
5 - FOOD STAMPS,
6 - CREDIT CARDS,
7 - SUBSIDIZED RENT OR A LOAN TO BUY A HOUSE,
8 - FREE EDUCATION,
9 - FREE HEALTH CARE,
10 - A LOBBYIST IN WASHINGTON,
11 - BILLIONS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF PUBLIC DOCUMENTS PRINTED IN YOUR LANGUAGE.
12 - AND THE RIGHT TO CARRY YOUR COUNTRY'S FLAG WHILE YOU PROTEST THAT YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH RESPECT.

I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE 
I HAD A FIRM  GRASP ON THE SITUATION.

We are off to Lonn and LoraLee’s tonight for a party in Laci’s honor.  Emmi is staying home alone—YIKES!

Another Day of Sunshine

Even though the wind is blowing, the sun is shining and it is warmer than yesterday.  We had a great walk today and were treated to watching neighbor Curtis and another guy moving cow/calf pairs from one pasture to another on horseback. 

For some reason sound was carrying a long way this morning very clearly and we heard cows called lots of things other than “cow” if you get my meaning!  Curtis asked us if we wanted to help but we declined!

It was time to clean the house and clean the dog this morning and by time to fix lunch I had both accomplished.  When you use a wood burning fireplace for heat it is amazing how much dirt gets brought into the house and how dusty things get.  

I couldn’t sleep this morning and was up and on the computer early.  The first news story I read was about the idiot diplomat from Qatar who sarcastically told federal air marshals he was trying to light his shoes on fire.  I fired off emails to both our Montana senators with my instructions for sending the idiot back to Qatar.  At noon today Michael read that the diplomat is leaving our country and will be posted somewhere else.  Well, finally, someone in Washington had a brain!!!  Now, if Washington could just get a brain about all the illegals in this country!!!???

OK, rant done—I am off to a quilting meeting tonight—it will be fun to see everyone after a winter away.  And, I need to go catch the dog and touch up her hairdo!