Barn Quilt #9

On the way home from bell practice I saw five more quilts on Main Street! I thought I had found most of the ones in the downtown business area. This is turning out to be a bigger project than I thought it would be.

Bright Hopes on the SARA House in town is on the side porch of a large house. You can see a picture of it by clicking on the link.

From the SARA website: "OUR MISSION:

SARA, Inc. is dedicated to the empowerment of sexual assault victims through direct client services; community education that impacts deep-seated beliefs and behaviors; and the development of a coordinated community response to the crime of sexual assault.

S.A.R.A., Inc. is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) program that provides crisis response, referral, support groups and on-going support to victims of sexual violence and their non-offending family members."

Vintage Easter Bunny and Eggs

I'm joining in on some Easter fun with Joan at Anything Goes Here.

This dapper fellow was in my Grandmother's house when we moved there back around 1959. He didn't make an appearance until quite a few years later, though. Mr. Rabbit was hiding on a shelf way back in a closet so we never did discover his heritage or age. Mr. R. comes out briefly for the Easter Parade so his clothes won't fade even more. His hat is stiff felt, while his other clothes are plain felt except for the ruffles on his shirt!
My goose egg treasures were made by Dad's cousin. Little Miss Muffet is a small ceramic figurine with that pesky spider beside her!
A pink velvet ribbon, gold braid trim, and lace covered with tiny seed and bugle beads makes an intricate design on the back of the egg.
Here is another in pale peach with a colorful topper of rhinestone flowers.
The shellac all ran down to the bottom! The bottom on the outside is decorated, too. Just imagine the patience it took to create these.
One in lavender beads with a clear rhinestone top. I have several others that this talented woman made, as well as some needlepoint pieces. I was the lucky grandchild, as my brother didn't want any of these jewels.
Thanks Joan for hosting this event. Friends be sure to visit the other blogs for more Easter goodies!

Barn Quilt #8

This is Windmill on Highway 34 going into Fort Morgan, if you are going east. I had to wait until a Sunday morning after church to get this picture without the shadow of the grain auger.
When I first found this block, it was late afternoon so the shadow was annoying. I usually go into town on my county road and hadn't starting taking my own pictures of the barn quilt blocks.
The sign out by the road is the logo for Purina--not a red and white nine patch! Jen-this is for you. I laughed at yours with your friend. Now it's your turn. ☺
More snow for tomorrow. Next week--back to school. Nice weather THEN. ♥♫

Olivia Grace

Welcome to the world, sweet Miss Olivia Grace. She is my niece's baby. So that makes me a great auntie. ♫ ♫ This makes my ♥ very happy!
She was born last week, and was only four days old when I held her and fell in love.
Sarah is snuggling her close as Miss Olivia likes to be wrapped up. Maybe it's because she was about 2-3 weeks early.
Here she is hiding those tiny hands that have such delicate fingers. I could hardly get her to open them so I could inspect each little fingernail! Babies are such an affirmation of God's miracles and love! ♥♪

Munching Mule Deer

Sunday morning we went exploring west of Denver. We weren't zipping along but didn't have space to pull over on the highway. So...
Sarah kindly turned around so we could go back to take pictures of the mule deer that were right by the road.
This little one was off by itself hiding behind a bush and wasn't moving. Sarah was concerned that it would be separated from the others as they turned to walk off. Love those ears!
Walking back to the car I saw that the herd hadn't gone far--just around the back of the building and up the hillside to munch on some more grass.
A nice day with beautiful blue Colorado skies and a drive on Lariat Loop the scenic bypass that was just long enough so we could have lunch before stopping at Colorado Mills . (Click on the underlined phrases for two sites).

Thanks Dolly for our mini vacation!

Time for Tea

Today was the first day of our spring break accompanied by the snow and wind, of course. So with no where I wanted to go in a storm, I was able to have several cups of tea while I relaxed and rested after a long week at school.

This mug is my very favorite one that I brought back from London. It was at the end of our trip when I just had to visit the gift shop in the hotel and found this. Into the bag it went and onto the plane, most likely in the space under my seat, with a few other things.
Conferences made two very long days and state assessments for the students with me doing the oral, extended time sessions. After two weeks of morning and afternoon tests, everyone involved was exhausted!

Just thinking about the whole week, I think I need some more tea! A new flavor I enjoy late in the day is Bigelow Pomegranate Pizzazz.


If the weather clears out and the roads aren't icy tomorrow or Sunday, I want to see my brand new grand niece that was born on Tuesday. Can't wait to see this wee little sweetheart!

Barn Quilt #7

The local newspaper, The Fort Morgan Times, just had an article about the barn quilts. Of course, it was a few days after my last BQ piece. It has all the names of the blocks so I will be going back to add them to the Barn Quilts #1-6 posts.

This yellow and purple block is on Main Street at the Business Mart. The block is Crown and Star.
It is our Hallmark store where I like to get my collectible Christmas ornaments, cards, gifts, and the best homemade FUDGE. YUMMY!

Names for the others will have to wait 'til break as the rest of this week is going to be busy with Parent/Teacher conferences and rehearsal for our April bells performance the Sunday after Easter.

The extended outlook for Spring Break said our weather is going to have below average temperatures. :-( . But I can plant my pansies! They don't mind cool temps. ♥♪

Barn Quilts #5 and #6

These pictures show the lowest and highest painted quilts in Morgan County. The first is only inches from the ground.
It's in front of a hair salon.

This next one is at the TOP of the elevator in town. I wish I'd taken pictures of the tallest structure in the downtown area, but it didn't occur to me to do so. For big city people: an elevator is where farmers take their grain after harvest for storage. It can be corn, wheat, sunflowers, or other grains.
This particular elevator has recently gotten into the sunflower business. Don't you agree that it has the perfect flower for its block?!
There are others in town that I will be sharing soon because I took pictures after church on Sunday. Before I start start driving around to find the REAL BARN QUILTS I'll need to get a good map!

My "quilt" block will have to go on the garage door when I decide what I'll work on. I think it will have to have something to do with flowers, too. Until school is out for the summer I won't be wasting any energy on planning, though. ♥♪

Tweet Home Two

These sweet bird houses are in my mom's yard. We did stop in town and get her three more to paint before we brought her the groceries. I love doing things for her and always say that she has a banquet for us to enjoy after we lug in all the shopping bags. She loved cooking for Wally because he liked EVERYTHING she fixed.
Under the mugo pine there are some bunnies waiting for spring. And here is my dirty brown snow drift that may melt before April. It used to cover all this up, even to the top of my old iron wheel.
Can't wait, however, we sometimes get big blizzards in March and April. Oh well... ♥♪

Home Tweet Home

Dot always has places near where she lives and works to show me when I visit. She thought I'd like this because I'm always getting bird houses for my mom to paint and put in her yard.
I'm sure the people that hung all the houses are aware that an appreciative audience like the two of us would be taking pictures, not checking out the neighborhood for some other motive.
Bare winter branches made it easier to include as many bird houses as I could in each shot.
They were up higher than I would be able to reach on a good sturdy ladder. And I have the good sense to know I wouldn't be climbing one anyway!!
Each one looked different to me. Certainly was a gray day...
Now on my next trip to town (think 45 miles one way), I'll be looking for unpainted houses for my mom to work some magic on. Hope I have a coupon for 40% off in my email. ♥♪

Old Country Roses

About 17 years ago we went with four other Young Farmers on a tour to Great Britain and stayed with the families of the farmers that we had hosted in our homes. The men did mostly farmer stuff, but we did manage to visit some lovely shops in the places we visited.
The miniature cups and saucers were carried from Aberystwyth in Wales on the trains, small cars, taxis, the jet ride from Gatwick and home to my china cabinet. You'll recognize the Royal Albert Old Country Roses pattern even though the cups are only 1 1/2 inches tall and the saucers just under 3 inches across. The other tiny cup is behind the saucer holding it up. Now I wish I'd gotten MORE! I ♥ them!
My suitcases were full of small treasures and we made quite a sight lugging everything around Wales, Scotland, and London. These wee treasures were no bother at all! It was the large platter for my Blue Calico dishes that was more difficult to carry so it wouldn't get bumped and smashed. Of course, that was before all the regulations that are in place now for air travel.
The memory of staying in the old farm houses was an experience of a lifetime! Some homes were only 200 or 300 years old. And the china, OH MY! Each home had lovely old family pieces! I was ready to go again within the week of coming home. The next time I go, Sarah's coming and we're taking disposable clothes so there will be more room in the luggage for goodies!