Sylvia's Sampler & Spencer

We have been camping and then of course it takes time to unload, do laundry, clean up the trailer...(it rained and with 3 dogs--well, need I explain?) Above are 9 squares from the 2nd row of the sampler. #8 appeared way too complicated for me at the time, however I did finally get it done and will post with row 3. I love, love, love, these cute little squares which will eventually be a full-blown quilt. And speaking of a quilt to snuggle under, look at little Spencer. It rained, thundered and even snowed a little Sunday night and since Hildy the skinny bitch is afraid of the thunder, she jumped on our bed and shook all night long. Roger, our little white boy also spent the night on the bed with us and poor Spencer was just out of luck. He slept in his bed, but as soon as our bed was empty, see where he went to snuggle.(It definitely was a "two dog night".)
Yes we are crazy..3 dogs and camping with them, but they are our babies and are such a comfort to us.

"Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about." ~ Regina Brett

Fun in the sun (and shade)

I was careful not to get any faces in this picture....poor photography on my part but great for this blog as I really do not like to put recognizable people here. Shaded by the new roof on this old barn, the four of us gals were able to work on a craft project quite comfortably. As the stream behind us gurgled along and the dogs played and slept, we covered PVC with rocks using regular construction adhesive. Funnels completed the projects as make-do roofs and a finished project will be posted at a later date. We spend 4 glorious days here at Elk Mtn and our hostess graciously cooked for us and for the 2nd year in a row, we all recharged our batteries. The weather was wonderful and the hummers and other critters graced us with their presence. However, a short time earlier a bear had made his appearance and with the help of 25 lbs of doughnuts each night, and over a period of a few days, was successfully trapped and relocated. We also were asked to paint the likeness of an Emu for the parents of our hostess who had raised these birds for several years. We felt that we did an OK job and we all have painted projects together so we didn't "bicker" too much!!
Oops! Girls! Got your picture here! We had such a grand time here these days and look forward to another retreat next year. We laughed, bickered, shared good times and great food, ate way too much and were a little rowdy probably. I love you all!

"Well behaved women rarely make history." ~ Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

Summer fun!

As promised...a picture of the birdbath totem, made entirely of found or free items. Total cost=$2.00. On the bottom, a yellow large plate, then a canister turned upside down minus the lid, a large candle holder purchased for $1.00, then a shade for a candle (free) and a green bowl which I shopped for in my cupboard. It stands about three ft. tall and appears dwarfed in the picture, but the aspen trunks are pretty large.

Yesterday, we took a road trip through the Fox Park, Chimney Park, Pelton Creek area and came back through Riverside and the Snowy Range. We found two geocaches, had a picnic lunch, saw some beautiful country and on the way home, spotted this moose lazily grazing on the willows.
Because we had such a late spring and there was so much snow up there, the wild flowers were still very much in bloom and were very showy for as late as it is.

We are busy still trying to get the outside work done while the weather is good and have been painting fence, planting trees, getting ready to build a brick walkway...so much to do!

Back at the keyboard

As promised last post (and I have been away from the computer as we had our son here for about 10 days), see the old wooden furniture dolly? I got it for a buck at a yard sale and it just screams garden art! The Mr. repaired one of the handles as it had been "fixed" with duct tape. I plan to put the little round galvanized pail on it with flowers next spring.
This is the "privacy" fence which our son and the Mr. built for the lower patio. Yes it has a gate although as you can see, it doesn't go completely to the wall, but old people like us cannot bend over always enough to duck under the tree. DON'T FENCE ME IN! In addition to this project, I now have a solar clothes dryer, otherwise know as a clothesline, a raised garden area, and a repaired back fence. They also put insulation which was being stored in large rolls in the basement, in the garage attic area. The week was also Cheyenne Frontier Days and even though we got a lot of work done we managed to go to a parade, the PBR, a night concert and the State Museum. We had friends from Tuscon visit and all in all it was a wonderful two weeks. So, I am back at the computer!!!