Phoster Photos

No, that's not a typo, just me having a little fun with this post. I'm needing an excuse to post some photos of Savannah for her Houston foster mom who checks here regularly for a look at this special Westie. So here goes....

 

Months ago Savannah discovered a lizard on this crepe myrtle tree, so every day she goes back there to see if it's still there. (It's not.)

 

Lately there have been scores of baby lizards running around in the bushes. Savannah destroyed my herb garden last month over a baby lizard. Now she is focused on the jasmine behind the pool. This has become her favorite spot.

 

The patience of this little dog is legendary. She will sit like this for.ev.er! As far as I know she hasn't actually caught a baby lizard! But the fun is definitely in the chase.

 

A little "tap, tap" on the window will disturb her attention just long enough to catch a photo - if I'm fast! Because she spends so much time in the bushes, and since we have had five inches of rain in the last week, this wee white dog was starting to smell like mildew today. So we have had a bath this afternoon and she is sleeping that off.

 

So here's your update, Paula. Our girl is happily settled in after a year and a half. Thank you for the privilege of adopting her.

Special Birthday Party

Today is Adrian's Fifth Birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADRIAN!!

Trends come and go so quickly these days. Nickelodeon and PBS Kids make sure that little people have plenty to do with their imaginations. At the moment, the Moza kids are into Team Umizoomi! At any given time you might hear the sounds of Bot, Geo and Milli buzzing around the house. So, for Adrian's party he had six of his church friends and neighbors over for playtime and a snack for lunch. His Mommy put together all kinds of Umizoomi crafts for the kids. I would say they all had an Umizoomi good time!

This evening Adrian will share his special day with extended family for supper. I'll post more pictures with Uncle Furfy, Mimi & Da, Auntie Jo, and Ludee & Papa.

Determination

A few days ago Savannah was in the backyard on critter patrol and apparently spotted a lizard or cicada in the photinia bush. Ever since then she makes a bee line to that bush whenever she goes outside and proceeds to sit and stare into the bush, hoping to catch another glimpse of her critter.

I have looked and looked in the branches of the bush... even shook the limbs to see if something might jump (or fly) out. To date I have been unable to see any living thing there. But that does not deter my dog. She has the determination inherent in her breed and the memory to go with it. Until she either finds her critter or is drawn to another area of the backyard, she will continue to take her stand underneath the photinia!

Meanwhile I was really happy to catch her smiling face in this picture. Happy hunting, Savannah!

Cute, Cute, Cute!!!

Several months ago I made a cute baby pillow to go with a quilt for my niece and decided that I would like to make some cute pillow covers for my grandboys. I even went to the fabric store and bought some material. Then I put it in a stack of other material, learned of a new baby arriving in the fall, and got sidetracked making another quilt. So this week, with little else to do, I came across that cute fabric behind my sewing machine and got myself all geared up to make the cases.

Even though one has dots and the other has stripes, these cuties are interchangeable as far as boys are concerned. Among the many items of interest in their playroom, trucks still remain high on the list.

It seems that with every pillow cover I make (without a pattern), the dimensions get a little larger! What started out as a cover for a 12 x 16 inch pillow has now evolved into a much larger case! I had a very flat, squashed down feather pillow from long ago and scrunched it into the striped case. It works perfectly, so now I need Meredith to look for another old, flat pillow for the dots.

And yes, those are pockets on the front. Who knows what three and five year old boys will put in them! That's just one more thing for Mom to check on at bedtime. *he he*

Some of My Favorite Photos

I thought I would post some of my favorite photos from our trip. I spent two full weeks going through two or three thousand photos of Bill's, Graham's and mine to put in a photobook. With that finally behind me, I'm just not up to doing another "photolog" here on the blog. But I would like to share some of my most favorite memories. So here they are, in no specific order.

This was taken on a Monday morning after leaving a very rainy Lyon and heading down the Rhone to a small town called Tournon. So much of the landscape in this area is related to wine. We could be looking at grapes from Beaujolais or possibly Burgundy. I really don't remember all the facts from the many lectures we heard on wine production. I know that the hills were alive with vineyards and each plot appeared to be planted in perpendicular directions. What we could see, but was hard to capture on camera, were the hundreds of sections of grapevines and all were claimed proudly by displaying huge billboards with names of vintners. We watched them for miles. It was intoxicating.

I loved being able to go back to Giverny and seeing Monet's gardens again. Late June is a fabulous time to see all the flowers in full bloom. We arrived so early in the morning that the maintenance people were still cleaning up the pond, so I was unable to get a good wide shot this time. However, the water lilies were in much greater splendor than before and I was able to capture them in several photos. This one brings out some of the color along the bank of the pond. Going the second time, I didn't experience the original "ooh, aah!" moments as I knew what to expect. But I could never be disappointed in the vast array of color and variety of flowers that are found there. Cameras were clicking all over the place!

One of the real highlights for Graham, Bill and me was the preponderance of Roman ruins and relics in this part of France. The Grand Circle brochure hinted at such a find, but we must have just read over those lines. Yes, we anticipated the Pont du Gard (pictured above) and even went the extra mile to take a special tour to see that structure. It was truly magnificent and the museum there was a real bonus. But we had no idea about what we would see in Avignon, and more specially in Arles. There is a 2000 year old Colosseum and Roman theater in the middle of the "old town!" We were flabbergasted! We have since learned that there are at least two other Colosseums in this part of France. Who knew?

This last photo is so typically French, it is the one I selected to make an enlargement for framing. The name of this restaurant is coincidentally the same name as the B & B where we enjoyed our home-hosted meal in Tournon. It translates "Old Mill" and must be a popular moniker for eateries that have found their way into these very old buildings.I love the colorful tables and umbrellas and the fact that diners can enjoy their meal right on the river and watch the many popular river boats like ours meander by, maybe wondering about the travelers ~ where they are from, what they think about France. This is what I'd like to do if I were magically transported to a new life in France!

As I find time I will post some more of my favorites here. I love looking back at our trip and remembering the special moments, the beautiful places, and the new friends we made.



Baby Pillows

Graham and I just picked up Bekah's baby quilt from Kingsland on Tuesday and I am so pleased with the way it turned out. I hope (and believe) that Bekah will enjoy wrapping little Sean Patrick in it on those cold Pennsylvania nights this winter. While I was waiting to get the quilt back I decided to make a cover for a little baby pillow to go with the quilt. I had one quilt square left over and it was the perfect size for an over-sized pocket on the pillow. While I placed a diaper in the pocket, it will be useful for just about anything Bekah wants to put in it.

It has a double closure in the back so that it can be easily removed and laundered.

The quilt is a crib size - a little larger than I usually make. But Pennsylvania nights are colder than the ones we have in Texas!

I came across the baby pillow pattern several months ago and have made this for new parents when I didn't have time to do a quilt. I think it's a quite unique item for the nursery. Here are some I have made and given.

This one went to my niece Tiffany for her little boy, Richard Wyman. There was also a quilt with this in the Winnie the Pooh fabric.

My nephew Rich and his wife recently welcomed their second son, Wyatt, and this Winnie the Pooh pillow fits into their nursery.

Our friend from Romania, Razvan, and his wife had their first child, a baby boy, in June. I slipped a burp cloth into the pocket!

When a quilt just can't be made in time for a baby's arrival, this sweet little pillow nicely fits the bill!

Cruise Photobook

Here is a link to my photobook on Shutterfly. Please check it out when you have some time.

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=8EcNmzhmxbMfI&cid=SFLYOCWIDGET

We're Home!

Just a quick post to say that we have returned home from France. We had a marvelous time on our small ship river cruise through Burgundy and Provence to the Cote d'Azur. I am starting the process of uploading pictures to Shutterfly to make a picture book. However, if you'd like a glance at the pictures I posted on Facebook, here is a link that will take you there.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4253646938259.180043.1198367294&type=1&l=4248a80136

 

I'll be posting pictures and commentary over the next few weeks, so come back often and travel with us on the Rhone River.

Packing for "Camp"

We are at the final countdown to our trip to France. In just six days we'll be walking the streets of Paris - again. I never imagined I'd ever be going to Paris at all, but this will be our second visit. This time Graham and I will both be feeling pretty good, thanks to the timely back injections by our Pain Management doctor. (God bless you, Dr. Ybarra!)

While my brother Bill is doing the sightseeing bus tour with the rest of our traveling group, Graham and I are choosing to take the "Batobus" river taxi and check out some of the landmarks we missed two years ago. We are determined to go inside Notre Dame and Saint Chappelle and get close enough to the Eiffel Tower to get a good picture!

All of our recent activity has centered around suitcases and Miss Savannah has figured out that something BIG is about to happen! Fortunately she really enjoys her time spent at Karen Nash's "camp" so I rest easy in regard to her care in my absence. Today she got a good summer haircut and for a few hours she will be nice and clean and WHITE!

I brought out her overnight bag and began the process of fitting in her supplies for the next two weeks. She's checking it over to make sure I have her treats there too. I may have to run to Petco and get another bag or two! Two weeks is a long time for a Westie who loves her treats!

Summer vacation/camp, here we come!

Making Sweet Pickles

Our garden is bursting with tomatoes and cucumbers! Even the hailstorm a few weeks ago could not deter these hardy plants from their destiny. Of the six tomato plants Graham put in, the Juliet is the reigning champion! The fruit from that plant look like miniature Romas and they grow in clusters, like grapes almost. Every day we fill the windowsill.

The cucumbers have been close to overwhelming too. The seed packet Graham bought is for pickling cucumbers, so these grow to only 4 - 5 inches long. They are perfect for bread and butter, or sweet, pickles. It only takes about thirty minutes after the initial ice bath (which is a leisurely three hours).

The pickling process takes the iced cucumber slices and onions into a pot of boiling vinegar, sugar and spice mixture. The sterilized jars are then filled, fastened and placed in a water bath.

Once all the jars are covered and submerged, the bath needs to boil rapidly for ten minutes.

After the jars are removed you can hear a musical popping sound as the lids are securely tightened. In the limited experience I have with canning, I find sweet pickles to be the most satisfying, both for their methodology and their flavor.

Baby Presents

Several of my family and friends are having babies this summer. And they are all having boys. The last little baby girl is now a year old and my pink stash has remained hidden away in the quilt closet.

I had plenty of time to make a quilt for my great niece in Pennsylvania. She isn't due until September. I picked a pattern that was new to me and really enjoyed learning a new skill. Putting the requested blues and greens together reminded me so much of the first quilt I made for Adrian. Meredith also selected blues and greens and his quilt turned out beautifully.

While waiting to take the top to Kingsland for finishing, I decided to make a pillow cover to match the quilt. I had one set of "geese" left and turned it into a pocket for the pillow. It will be a nice place to put an extra diaper or two.

I had a real surprise in my email last week with the announcement that our friend from Romania and his wife are expecting a baby boy in June. Yikes! That's not nearly enough time to make a quilt, so I peeked on her registry and saw some monkey themes and found some cute fabric for a pillow cover with a pocket to hold a burp cloth. We're so happy for Razvan and Anissa, and especially for Razvan's mother in Romania who has wished for this day for many years.

Once a Mom, Always a Mom

Just when you think you've outgrown the stage of "motherhood," Mother's Day rolls around and your lovely children remind you that your position will remain with you forever! What a privilege.

Reaching into my vast storehouse of wisdom (crack a smile when you read that!), I find two wonderful truths about children...

Daughters will give you grandchildren.

                   And sons will give you flowers.

This and That

I'm titling this picture "Pensive Puppy." I was heading up the stairs and saw this sweet little face watching me. Fortunately I had my camera in hand and snapped this memory. She must have been waiting to see if I was coming back up before deciding to come down herself. I love these moments.



This is our first attempt at growing carrots in the garden. These look like they're going to be delicious, probably in another month. Maybe we'll get to eat one before we leave for France. Because we started a lot of our veggies in pots, some how we managed to get a little confused in identifying what was what! So we have a little wager going as to what is growing behind the carrots. We were guessing cucumbers, but our yardman thinks it's cantaloupe. Only time will tell!

Pickles... er, rather, Cucumbers! We have a whole mess of cucumbers growing in this part of the garden. Last year I made several jars of bread and butter pickles, and I can't wait to harvest enough cukes this year to do the same.





The Juliet tomatoes are producing like rabbits! This one plant has taken over a big part of the tomato section and has dozens of tomatoes on it. We have already picked a few hands full and enjoyed them on our salad. We've also cooked a pot of green beans from the little bush bean plants - very tasty and tender beans. Looking forward to some yellow squash and zucchini soon.

Graham and I went up to Kingsland again last Wednesday to take a quilt top to the quilter. Her shop is just across the way from the Colorado River where it flows into Lake LBJ. There is a photo stop at the top of the hill where you can park your car and get out to enjoy the view. And what a view it is! We love the short drive there and, especially, having lunch at different restaurants before heading back home. There's some really good catfish in Marble Falls.

Okay, one last picture of Savannah. She so loves to be outside and she especially loves it when Graham and I are outside with her. then she can really show off her stalking and chasing skills. We keep the squirrel feeder stocked with corn and the squirrels have figured out that Savannah is more bark than bite. They still run across the fence and into the neighbor's yard when she chases, but that does not deter their frequent return.

Looks like it's going to be a good summer!



Middletown Bible Conference

Graham and I selected the Middletown Bible Conference to attend this year. There were several reasons for our choice. First, we had never been to the state of Connecticut and thought it would be good to see a different part of the country for a change. And more importantly, Graham's mentor from seminary, Dr. Robert Lightner, was one of the three key speakers. When Graham was taking extension courses from DTS we would regularly drive Dr. Lightner from the airport to his hotel and to the classroom and back. We were able to spend many hours with this fine man, in addition to the many classes Graham took from his tutelage. It's been many years since those days and we have seen him only one other time, also at a Bible conference and longed to hear from him again.

Middletown, CT is about 20 miles south of Hartford, the capital of Connecticut. We flew into the airport just north of Hartford, rented a car, and then drove down to Middletown. Being Texans, we fully expected to be on the road for hours, but found, quite surprisingly, that it was only a thirty minute drive to our destination. And this lovely New England town proved very easy to move around in. That's not to say we didn't make several wrong turns! But it proved to be pretty easy.

Dr. Lightner opened the conference on Monday night and we were privileged to hear five of his six sessions. He spoke on worship, sanctification, what Jesus said about the Old Testament, the many facets (contextually) of the Kingdom, and the cruciality of the cross in relation to salvation. His topics were familiar and his content was comforting. If you have read any of his books you would feel right at home with his preaching. He was definitely the highlight of the week for us.

I promised Graham I would get a picture of him with Dr. Lightner, who quipped that he never smiled when having his picture taken. Determined to prove him wrong, I snapped an instant of hilarity going on between the two of them - don't ask me who said what! This is a loving, lasting memory we will have of a man dear and near to our hearts.

BUT WAIT!  THERE'S MORE!!

One of the other speakers was a gentleman from Friends of Israel ministry named Bruce Scott. He shared that he is of Scottish/Irish descent, but his wife is Jewish (a believer in Christ), and that is how he became immersed in the ministry to the Jews. He has a deep and sincere love for Israel and shared, in the four sessions we heard, sound, biblical messages concerning Israel and the current political scene. He not only shared dozens and dozens of Bible verses, but reams of documented information that, were we not Christians and aware of God's workings in the end times, would surely scare the casual reader. Though disconcerting at times, I came away more sure than ever that God is in control of world events but we are still exhorted to pray for His mercy on our nation.

The third speaker was the pastor of the church, George Parsons. Graham and I were both taken aback by his voice and mannerisms at first, for he reminded us strongly of a man we met on our trip to Ireland! We looked at one another and in unison said, "Jimmy!" Once we got over that and began to listen more closely, we were impressed with the passion, as well as his grasp of the Scriptures, as he wove his way through each message. We're looking forward to getting the recorded messages so we can listen to his sessions again.

Our overall impression of the church and the conference is that this is a congregation of loving, living saints who, more than anything, want to live out the Word of God in their lives. We were treated to wonderful music - much of it a capella - from both individuals and ensemble and really delicious, home-cooked meals between sessions.  We stayed in a lovely hotel in downtown Middletown and became familiar with some of the historical sites and statues on our route to and from the church. This is what I envision a New England small town to be. We did have one opportunity to relax in the dining room and preserved that memory from my delayed timer on my camera!

The only downside to the week was the amount of flying time it took to get there and back home. Juggling plane connections with determination, I just couldn't get there and back without wasting two whole days. We missed a little but definitely came home with a full heart.

BUT WAIT!! WHERE WAS SAVANNAH??

Glad you asked. Savannah went to camp for the week at Camp Nash! I knew she would enjoy herself, being the little social canine that she is. And Karen was sweet to send me some pictures of her activities, which included an introduction to a guinea pig! For a brief time Karen said she would sit and stare at Mr. Guinea. Apparently he just wasn't enough fun and she soon lost interest and set her sights on the dogs. All in all, it was a very good week.

It Must Be Lizard Season!

Now that the weather has warmed up, the lizards are spending more time out in the sun and Savannah has discovered one more activity to keep her busy. I should say "re-discovered" because this was one of her favorite occupations last summer.

When I saw her at the base of this tree I looked all over for the lizard but couldn't find it. I figured it had jumped to another tree for a getaway, but Savannah persistently stayed her ground. And sure enough, a little green face peeked out from some leaves!

Does this face not tell you, "I told you so!"

The Cutest Thing

Isn't this the cutest thing?

A couple weeks ago Meredith came over and asked if she could have some of my scraps from my quilt stash. She wanted to make a new wreath to go on her front door. So I gave her a big box of scraps and sent her on her way. She proceeded to make the cutest rag wreath for her door and, even though it was from a myriad of scraps, she was able to make all the colors and patterns coordinate.

That got my creative juices going, so I discovered on Ebay a pre-cut from the Happy Camper line that I am using for my quilt. It's called a Honey Bun and consists of 42 strips of 1 1/2 inch pieces of coordinating fabric. I bought that and then found a small grape vine wreath at Hobby Lobby and sat down one evening and tied some strips to my wreath. And happiness happened!

This is What I'm Working On...

I began working on the Birds in the Air quilt about a month ago. After a couple practice trials with the "birds", and getting my Happy Camper material from Ebay sellers, I spent nearly a week cutting, and cutting, and more cutting! Whew! It gave me huge appreciation for the pre-cuts that I've been working with lately, and a longing to get back to them. I had about a dozen different fabrics to work with, all from the Happy Camper line from Moda. Besides coordinating colors and patterns, this fabric is so "folksy" and reminds me of the quilt that Graham's grandmother gave me. So this quilt, in a way, is an acknowledgment of her place in Graham's life. 

After all the "birds" were made, the next task was placement. I tried to mix them up so that no two of the same were touching, and also keeping the colors spread out on the quilt. Once that was done, the next step involved sewing the diagonal rows. This was quite different from the usual horizontal/vertical placement. And I tend to lose my place as I move from the bedroom down the hall to the sewing room! I got a lot of exercise in the process.

Now the birds are all sewn into place and the top has been trimmed and blocked. I have begun the process of adding borders. The first one is done and I have at least two to go. This is the part where I decide just how big the quilt is going to be. I'm taking my time since both my quilter and I will be out of town the last week in April. I'm seeing a trip to Kingsland in early May!

Once this one is done I'll turn my attention to another baby quilt. I should know in May whether it's to be "pink" or "blue"! I peeked in a box at my grandmother's quilt the other day and was surprised to see that it's a Dresden pattern. Now I'm anxious to learn how to master that one! Oh goodie!

Surprise Swimmer!

Recently Savannah has discovered a nest of possums living on the other side of our fence.

Every evening she goes right to the fence and listens for the sounds of the possums waking up. One evening, when I heard her barking at the fence, I went out to see a little face peering over the top of the fence. At first I thought it was a rat, but soon realized it was a little baby possum.

(Sorry for the blurry pic; the camera doesn't focus in the dark.)

Apparently the babies are now big enough to go out foraging for food at night. Because this morning, Graham went out to water the plants and found this little guy hanging on to the polaris hose for dear life. There's no telling how long he had been there.

Thank goodness Savannah didn't notice him when she went out earlier. I shudder to think what she would have done to retrieve it. After taking the picture, Graham rescued the little fella with the leaf rake and dropped him back over the fence where his momma was waiting for him!

As Ma Ingalls always said, "All's well that ends well!"

Bath Day

I really don't think it was the bath that wore her out!

Because after the bath we went walking and barked at two doggies and lots of people doing yardwork.

Then we spent an hour or two in the back yard keeping squirrels and other varmints out of the yard.

It's just really hard work being a Westie.

Bluebonnet Time in Fredericksburg

This is what my heart has been longing to embrace, this gorgeous field of bluebonnets. We almost missed it as we were barreling down the highway toward Fredericksburg this morning. Instead of stopping and turning around, we decided to stop on our way home. Which is just what we did.

But I digress...

Our primary destination was the Wildseed Farm, just outside of Fredericksburg. Evidently we hit it on the perfect day, because everything was in glorious bloom today. Before we could even go inside the nursery we had to circle the parking lot and enjoy the "random acts of beauty" that are scattered hither and yon.

Okay, these are all out of order so I'll try to guide you through the area. There are rows and literal fields of flowers at this Farm. Within the fenced area are rows of poppies, verbena, bluebonnets and numerous other plants I can't identify. On the other side of the path is a small field of larkspur.

This field of Red Corn Poppies fronts the highway. It consists of several acres of brilliant red, looking like the "Red" sea as the wind ruffles through it. Absolutely divine.

There are several "islands" throughout the paths that are planted with roses. We fell in love with this coral color and, in fact, purchased one for my rose garden on our way out.

This is a field of pink, white and red poppies at the back side of the parking lot.

And here is one of those random spots of flowers in the parking area. I can almost imagine someone just tossing seed hither and yon.

More poppies. I felt like a kid in a candy store. Just couldn't take enough pictures, but would rather have all of them in my own yard!

The landscapers use a lot of wood and rock to set the scenes for the flowers. This cedar-type fence surrounds all the beds and marks the walking paths.

OK, just one more. This bench is made from two hollowed out rocks (more like boulders!) and a stone ledge set between them. Then the hollows in the rocks are filled with bluebonnets. And it makes the loveliest sitting area, especially with all the other bonnets around it.

Well, that's enough for this blog. I posted 30 of the 160 photos we took today on Facebook. Feel free to look at them there.