An Afternoon Spent at Washington on The Brazos

Recently, the blond headed daughter (bhd) said, "let's take a picnic and go on a road trip!"

Well, not a long road trip--please--no, let's just drive about 1.5 hours from the house to one of the 

most historic places in Texas History--Washington On The Brazos.  It is said to be the

birth place of Texas Independence.  Oh, okay, let's go, but let's not take a picnic--it's just too darn hot!

We'll find that airport diner in Brenham for lunch--all agreed and we're off!

I'm glad we took the ranch walking tour--where I found some textile treasures.

like this overshot woven upholstered chair.

sad though, as it has faced the sun way too long and has faded--

this would definitely happen without window dressings in 1800's

The bed covering was a fancy applique

and in the other bedroom, this lovely pieced plaid quilt adorned the bed

In the dining area, we found a floor cloth-- used in the place of carpets or rugs

We ventured to the museum, which was across the road from the farm house and

upstairs I found more wonderful textiles--like this Grandmother's flower garden quilt

A super great applique quilt--with star borders

Look--a lazy kate!  I never could find the reasonings behind calling it lazy kate!  

The Lone Star Quilt!  One of my favorite patterns and very difficult to piece in the 1800's

and a remarkable piece of overshot pattern with weaving shuttle and quills (bobbins)

a variation on the Lone Star Quilt

Hand quilting in circles

At the foot of the bed--wouldn't you like to cover yourself with this delight?

hand quilting!

another example of overshot coverlet

Here you can see how the strips were seamed to make a full size coverlet.

Okay, even though it was a hot day, it was an enjoyable day visiting Texas History again.

Quilters Exchange!

The other day we exchanged 5" squares of fabric.  We'll blame Sandy!  She brought her quilt that she made from 5" floral fabric and the idea of fabric exchange popped into our heads.  It was not my first fabric exchange or will it be my last as exchanges are always fun!

This is the quilt that Sandy made from Susie's Scraps, only Sandy add some extra borders to make a

bigger quilt

Don't you just love Judy's pumpkins!  Anyway, here is another photo of Sandy's

finished quilt

You can see that the 5" floral prints make for a nice size block.

We each received a good selection of Texas wildflowers and Western theme fabrics.

There were 9 of us in the exchange--we each cut 14 different fabrics (total 124) for each person.

Now, we're off to make this quilt!

Maybe, you'll join in with us.

Work in Progress--WIP

Whenever we travel I make sure to take plenty of projects with me--you just never know when

you'll have some down time--a flight delay, long plane ride, or just plain boredom.

This past trip I took a UFO that I found in the bottom of the bin before I left.

I faintly remember when I bought this

pattern from Crabapple Hill--oh dear!  I just flipped to the website and saw another

pattern I want to do!  Anyway, I like their patterns and this one was no exception--just

let it age way too long!  And with fall approaching, it was time to get to it!

So, I traced off the pattern, gathered my supplies and packed!

Luckily, I had this box of Crayolas--I LOVE Crayolas!  Just love them!

I have several boxes, tins, special collections--and the worse thing about me--

I hate, yes, hate to use the Crayolas!!  I Want to keep those sharp points, you know!

It was time to use these though--what am I saving them for?

I have no little grandkids anymore

This collection contains, 'retired' colors (hard to believe they retire some of my favorite colors!)

plus this box of 64 colors--just what is needed for this pattern.  Then I'm looking at the pattern

and the colors--did you know there are such color names as 'goldenrod', dandelion, tumbleweed,

wisteria and macaroni & cheese!!?  I never took the colors out of the box--I just collect!

It was a surprise to me!

you're saying--why do you need colors?  Because with this pattern, you color first before

stitching--this was way too much fun!  I enjoyed fondling my colors and reading each

name on the wrapper--I think I was good with the points too.

I know--Crazy me!

Dealgan?? What??

Check out this video on how to use a Dealgan.   This is fascinating to me!  Why not--there are so many different versions of spindles and this is the most interesting one that allows you to spin and when finished slip off the ball of yarn.

What's a Dealgan? It's an 18th century Scottish spindle. A little piece of wood, really, about 5-6" long with a knob at the skinny end and a bulb at the far end, with a flat bottom and an X cut into that flat bottom. Why this shape and size, then? Portability, durability, utility. All are possible. It's one sturdy piece, so it can be dropped, tucked away, or even thrown with little chance of harm coming to it. It forces you to wind a sturdy ball similar to that wound on a nostepinne, and the conical shape means you can pop the ball off when you are done.  The Dealgan is clearly a historical spindle.

Breakfast on The Road

When we stay in a condo with a microwave, I know I can prepare a quick breakfast!

All we have on hand are eggs, cheese, some cream cheese, bagel and milk

I found a nice size bowl in the cupboard (I've also used a coffee cup)

Small amount of milk in the bowl (about tsp.), crack in an egg

We had some cheese from snacks last night, so a few crumbs on top of the egg

Beat! Beat! That egg--place in microwave for 45-60 seconds (I always

cover with paper towel).  Ta Da!  It's done!

See, a nice little omelet!

smear on some cream cheese (if you have it) place your omelet

and you have your breakfast in less than 2 minutes!!

In a coffee cup, you will have higher and fluffy omelet egg dish!!

Enjoy!

We Remember!

Every day of the year, someone celebrates an anniversary--whether it's a happy occasion like birthday, wedding, friendship, etc.  Or whether it's just a special day you mark in your life.  Every day is a day to remember.

this day is one we will never forget:  September 11, 2001--

each year, on this day, we mark the anniversary of the death of many; there will be the ringing of bells, the reading of names of those who perished, tears, hugs, good memories, sad memories--

WE WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER!

Today It's Good-bye to Vegas!

Once again we have completed a journey to adventure.  We boarded our plane this morning and headed back to the mundane and routine from whence we came--all good things come to an end!

It was a relaxing time--we walked miles each day to satisfy the Fitbit, ate some good food at marvelous restaurants to satisfy our appetite.  We used public transportation (Monorail--perfect way to get from one end of the strip to the other!) to save some time and energy.

We enjoyed special celebration at the top of the Eiffel Tower restaurant.

We use Opentable for our reservation center--

From our window table we could view the amazing 

Fountains of Bellagio while we dined! 

And we saved the best for last--our evening with

George Strait!