We were pulling for the horses from Iowa who were running in the Kentucky Derby – one of them placed third. I had such high hopes for working outside today but it was been dreary and rainy.
A reader asked me last week what quilt was on my table. It’s called Hiding In Plain Sight from Beyond The Battlefield.


You know those maple helicopters that I complain about every year when they fall among the rocks and take hold? Look at this whole ball of them – think how many little seedlings this would create!

We have 6 maple trees in our front yard! We didn’t realize what we were doing, did we? Sad.
Here’s something else that’s sad – Fluffybun has disappeared, wandered off, run away, gone back to Kathy’s? I have looked everywhere and I just hope she makes her way back to Kathy’s which is about 4 miles from here. She’s been here for several months and has been in and out many times so I am shocked that she left.
It’s that time of year again – Farmer Tim is in the field! Look at the dust – we need rain badly.

Remember what tractors used to look like? Not anymore – they don’t even have wheels. They run on tracks instead of tires.

And this is why I haven’t taken the covers off my porch yet.
Just finished this WWII novel and thought it was very good!

Only one dog and one quilt to show you today.


My exchange group made Hiding in Plain Sight (or HIPS as we called it) a couple of years ago – turned out great! Really hope Fluffybun shows up – I hate to think of her out there on her own.
I read “The Winemaker’s Wife” a year or so ago – good book! I like novels set in that era.
Love the ‘Hiding in Plain Sight’ quilt, I think I’ll add it to my ‘wanna sew’ list… 🙂
I like the quilt! I have a couple fun prints that I’m not sure I wanted to cut up. This is going to be perfect. Hugs,
I love your table quilt! We have two maples by the shop so they don’t bother at the house, oh fluffybun, where did you go!? Sure hope you are safe!
Jay mowed for the first time yesterday. He says it looks good from far and far from good, haha
We didn’t have a rainy day. Jay finished planting beans! We are not BIG farmers…just comfortable with what we have! We celebrated with steaks on the smoker, fresh asparagus and a baked potato.
Oh! We have a couple potatoes up in the garden!! They didn’t rot!
Have a good Sunday!
A bit of rain here as well. Pretty full moon early this morning. Stepped out on the front porch to find a scattering of long brown grasses, mud 2′ x 2′. The wind has never been that bad. Checked the camera images to see a pair of robins swooping in several times starting at 6:13 am and spotted a few grasses over the front door line of bricks. Swept it away only to have them start up again. Swept again. They have not yet returned. Just last Saturday a Coopers Hawk took hold of a Flicker in the neighbor’s driveway and we were able to watch it a bit from the backyard deck. Red feathers everywhere. Whenever a Cooper Hawk flies around all the magpies, crows, black birds (I don’t know if they are blackbirds), starlings go crazy making all sorts of a ruckus more than I have ever heard before.
Li – oh, I hate that the hawk got a flicker, one of my favorite birds! I had a small sparrow hawk in a tree right above my head for cryin out loud! He isn’t big enough to get a chicken but dives for the sparrows.
Robins rebuilt but when I went out to sweep a magpie flew out.
Correction. It was not a magpie. I misunderstood the witness. Video shows stripes on the tail of a Cooper Hawk. Much smaller than the magpies around here and very very fast, low flying.
I just read The Extraordinary Life of Sam He’ll and thought it was good. Did bring back some memories from school days on how mean kids can be to each other.
We have locust seeds over the deck, what a mess.
Loving the spring 💐 flowers.
No rain in DM today, but 1 1/2″ yesterday. We too need the rain.
Went to Bomgaars this morning and bought tomatoes and petunias, then hubby came home and planted everything. I don’t dare touch anything in the garden – he calls me Morticia!!
You have helicopters, we have acorns. Millions of acorns, some small, some larger. Can’t even walk barefoot in my yard!
I have found that I like almost every Kristin Harmel writes. I just finished The Life She was Given by Ellen Marie Wiseman. So sad, and just when I think I have it figured out, the ending changed. But a Very good read.
Finishing up a bunch of baby quilts for Agape Pregnancy center here in DM. About 30 when all is said and done. They will make some babies happy!
Enjoy the rain, We doneed it and farmer Tim will appreciate it.
Diana – I have read The Life She Was Given and liked it, too. Wow! 30 baby quilts????
I will put that book on my list..so many books, so little time. I just finished The Rose Code by Kate Quinn..another war novel and the part women played as code breakers
I really like the colors you choose for Hidden in Plain Sight. I’ll have to get your book out and get busy. You might like Karen White’s The Last Night in London. It takes place during the London Blitz. Her Tradd Street series is very good also. We had some rain this morning, and the sun came out this afternoon. Have a good day tomorrow.
The dog looks like my grandpuppy! The quilt middle looks like the material I made my daughter a mask since she likes coffee and tea. Haven’t gotten any garden planted here in Ohio.
I also read The Winemaker’s Wife and loved it! I also read another of her books and enjoyed it as well. Keeping good thoughts for Fluffy in’s safety🤗
So sorry to hear Fluffybun is missing. She is so pretty. Do you think she would go that far? I know they can and some have. Hoping she is ok.
I have Beyond the Battlefield, too. Sooo many quilts to make! It was 75* here today. Whew!
We are going to a birthday party for our friend’s Bishon, Henry. He is 2. Her Dad died last year and she now lives with her mom who hasn’t done much in the past year so she is excited to celebrate. I will send a picture😀
Hi Mary, hope fluffybum is back safely(fingers crossed). Love your quilt, things are moving slow here, have a nasty , hacking cough and little energy, trouble is l haven’t lost my appetite! Catching up on Netflix and very little else at present, take care everyone, best wishes from Sandy
Unfortunately your photos didn’t show……
Hope Fluffybun shows up safe & sound. Such a worry. Pretty fabrics in Hiding in Plain Sight.
We have Norway & Japanese Maples spewing those winged seed’s everywhere! (both are non-native to PA & invasive) We just had a week of rain but I won’t complain because before that when hubby mowed the grass it looked like a dust storm. Kentucky Derby Third place, Angel of Empire was foaled at Blackstone Farm in Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, PA. We live in rural Pine Grove , not far from there, and just learned about Angel of Empire in recent weeks. Heard on the news that two horses had to be euthanized. So sad. The Winemakers Wife is on my list.
Ann – I’m not a horse race fan but I love horses. I actually closed my eyes during the actual race because I’m afraid they’re going to get all tangled up and they’ll all have to be euthanized. So sad for those that were lost this week.
I am with you Mary and struggle watching the horses race so I decided I can’t watch it without stressing myself. Couple of my horse friends feel the same as me so it was good to get that feeling off my mind and talk freely about it. I went to a quilt show with a friend, lunch out and relaxed with a hallmark movie. Got to 70 with blue skies so welcomed after a week of rain. Today after church I am helping pass out water bottles and cookies ( and refill a bowl of water for the dogs) for a walk along the canal to benefit food insecurity. Lots of walkers! I hadn’t made goulash in forever so I did that this morning to have a pot of that to eat with the week ahead and take some to shut ins. I hope your newest kitty returns back to your safe haven alright. The pet and quilt pictures are always my favorite so thanks for the beauties to admire.
Kathy – I’ve never really had a cat disappear like this and I am worried sick! Have checked every building on the farm. If she wandered in the fields it’s just a fact of life that a coyote probably got her. Watched A Man Called Otto last night and the cat looked like Fluffybun. I am so worried.
I agree with you on horse racing. Used to love watching but in recent years so much has come up about abuse- drugs, pushing a horse too hard, etc. Just in the past week, a total of SEVEN are dead! How horrible is that. Something is very wrong. I’ll stick to the Westminster Dog Show. Wish there was a show for rescues!
Ann in PA – I’m quite sure there is a rescue show/competition on tv but I can’t tell you the name even though I’ve watched it. Go online and search.
Funny about those helicopters. We lived in VA and my young son stuck one in a pot and it sprouted. When we moved to TX. I brought it with us. We purchased a house and his bedroom was at the back. We planted that tree where he could see it out his window. That tree grew & was so pretty. I always teased him I was going to have a little marker made that said ‘planted by Chris in the summer of his 7th year’. I never did but that was such a pretty tree and doing well when we moved 20 yrs later. I think the guy who bought the house let the trees & shrubs go to pot.
I’m in Garner..been seeing all the farmers working in the fields. Lots of dust! I went to Junkin Gal …bought some of your fabric packs.
Jean – the next time you know you’re coming to Garner, let me know – I’ll get our booth really supplied!
Ok!
I have your book and I made the Hiding in plain sight quilt.I love it! I love civil war fabric and this quilt used a lot of civil war scraps.It’s one of my favorite quilts.I hope you find your kitty soon.
I’ve got that book and many more of yours. Need to get going on dozens of quilts marked in them. We made the mistake of too many trees in our yard, we removed some at great cost!
Your format is different in today’s blog. I read and completed reading Lessons in Chemistry yesterday while filling soybeans into 5 gallon pails for the planter. We have a bucket stool that is so handy for me to use in between filling the pails. It was a bit windy but I enjoyed being able to be outside for a change. I am working on a table runner by Atkinson Designs called Monorail. Also working on Wave Pool, month one of six months project. This turned out to be a large project. I hope to be able to keep sewing even with the gardening season just ahead! Also, this will be year three monitoring bluebird houses with weekly checks at Camden State Park, we just got all the houses up last week, so I am hopeful to get a few bluebirds this year. I hope your cat Fluffybun comes back. BTW Lessons in Chemistry was a very thought-provoking story…while set in the 1950’s, still applicable today. Made me think of a comment made to me ‘if you do not know your rights, you have none.’
Cynthia – interesting quote, hmmmm.
Makes one think.
We had tornado warnings for Oskaloosa last night and nothing happened, which we are thankful no tornado, but we thought we might get some rain out of it, but not a drop. We have garden up, but it sure needs rain. All I have left is to get my tomato plants and get them in the ground. It seems other parts of Iowa get rain, but not here. It has been like this for several years. We, too, have two maple trees by our house, and they are a pain in the spring, but they are good shade for summer. They were planted by my husband and his mom before we were married, so that’s more than 55 years ago. Always enjoy your blog. It is my favorite of the ones I read. Have a restful day.
No golf ⛳️ locally for the two men since A BIG RAIN IS HEADED FROM SOUTH UP OUR WAY in Idaho.
Yesterday was a real busy tv day: King ChasIII n Camilla coronation, Warriors basketball 🏀 loss, online golf ⛳️,and new Hallmark!
Launa
Launa – yes, it was a busy tv day, wasn’t it? I enjoyed all the pomp and circumstance
We got a nice rain last night and more expected tomorrow. It’s finally getting to normal temperatures for this time of the year. We had several weeks of below average. Usually plant my garden at the end of May or beginning of June as we always seem to get frost temps at the end of May.
I too, hope that Fluffybuns finds her way back home.
Love the quilt pattern you are working on!
But both dog and quilt beguile me