Hot and windy – the bean dust really blew!
I wanted to hang this owl on my fence to deter predators and leave it to Rick to figure out a way to do it.
And thanks to the reader who sent me to Dollar Tree for spray starch!
Reader photos
Carol – you’ll like this one.
And I saw this online today:
After watching how some people wore their masks during Covid I understand why contraception fails.
Love Rick’s way of putting the owl in a Menards bucket! We’ve found so many uses for those two- and three gallon buckets.
My favorite way to use them instead of gift bags. Menards is a friend’s favorite store, so we filled the bucket with small things and a Menards gift card for a milestone birthday. She was thrilled! Buckets are so much more useful than gift bags!
Mary – I use buckets several times a day – actually my favorites for my chickens are ice cream buckets – they’re shorter and chickens want to bend over to drink and then tip their heads back to swallow. But we don’t eat that much ice cream so when the buckets break, I’m always asking my friends if they buy ice cream.
Did you know that you need to move the owl every few days? We were told that if you use one of those owls, and if they don’t move, the predators just get used to it.
The owl guarding the chickens seems like a good idea.
The quilts and fall decor pictures are beautiful; thanks for posting, Mary.
It was a great fall day here. We each had an appointment in a neighboring town, so we ran errands and grabbed lunch in between. I like having those appointments behind us.
Take Care, 🥰
Mary, your last comment about Covid masks and contraception was a “hoot” ! I’m enjoying all the beautiful fall pictures readers are sending. Nancy, is your
quilt pattern from Crabapple Hill? So interesting.
Pat in MI – a friend sent it to me – I thought it was a hoot, too!
We are in upstate SC. We have had no power here since last Thursday and no updates as to when it will be back on. Cell service spotty and charging phones in car. We have 14 huge pines, oaks and hickory’s down that we know of but the back half of our property is inaccessible. All of our pasture fences are damaged and down. We lost our chicken house and fenced lot. Thankful no chickens at the time. There are trees down on our storage buildings. My husband had to sell (give away) his three generations of goats because we had no way to keep them. If it wasn’t so heartbreaking it would have comical. The person that got the goats drove from over an hour away and put them in a smaller SUV-one in the front seat and two in the back! So grateful no trees damaged our house! Western NC where we moved from is totally devastated! Small towns and roads flooded and washed away!
So very hard to really imagine all the devastation from here in the midwest. There was a lot of damage a few years ago during a derecho here but we only lost power for 3 days. So sad for your family to have to give up the goats, so heartbreaking having them for that long. We are all thinking of you and hoping some kind of assistance comes your way soon. Pat Williams
debbie, i’m so sorry your dh had to give up his goats. i know it must have been hard. it seems like life is going to be hard for so many of you for quite a while to come. you are all in my prayers for strength. patti in florida
I don’t live in an area that is prone to the catastrophic natural disasters that some parts of the country deal with so I don’t have personal experience with the governments response to these events. With the forecasting we have now there is some notice that something is on the way. I don’t understand why the parts of the government – including the military resources -tasked with dealing with these events do not have aid moving towards the areas before the storm hits. I also think instead of the politicians showing up for their photo shoot at these disasters they should stay home and the money spent on entertainment, transportation, and security for their entourage should be given to the local organizations actually helping with the clean up and recovery. Rant over..
What a wonderful way to start my day. Thanks to all for send things to Mary’s blog about nothing and everything.
I drilled holes in the owls ears, strung thin rope, and hung him in the tree. 3 days later, Loretta discovered it and went crazy barking. Three days, what a guard dog she is!!
I am still chuckling about your ‘mask joke’! Too funny!
I’m happy the wind is in the northwest today! The dust from the gravel road will blow the other way!! Yesterday about 1:30 p.m. it was so dusty you could not see the sun!
Well, stay safe in the farms and on the roads with all the farmers moving around.
I love your blog Mary! Laughs from Brenda on birth control pills and intended use comment show how much we can share and bring enlightenment to other readers. Going to a lawyer to begin paperwork for protecting our assets was something we put off but this week we did it after calling 6 weeks ago for an appointment. We learned so much so Patti’s conversation with her daughter is necessary even if it’s uncomfortable. There are ways to ensure home changes and finances for the future if done soon enough and filed correctly so I’m grateful our lawyer explained scenarios.
And the fall pictures! Love them all with decorating and quilt ideas. I have Nancy’s witches pattern and fabrics all in a tote to do someday as I love that process of coloring the images, embroidering and building a quilt around them. It is a beautiful piece. Hope she got her long arm for her birthday!!
I enjoy scrap quilts so now I have some new ideas for charity quilts. Thank you everyone!
SW Ohio had a beautiful almost cloudless day. The temperature didn’t hit 70. I would pencil in yesterday’s weather every day-perfect.
Finally got my car back after waiting a month following a deer hit on I-71. Our car repair shop was so busy. Thankful it was a small buck as Ohio deer are generally the size of small steers.
Still prepping for a 5 day retreat in a few weeks. I think I am about ready🤷🏼♀️
Need to run longarm since story weather seems to be behind us for a few days.
I have been following Five Little Monkeys quilt shop’s first hand account of Asheville hurricane devastation. Her shop is in Asheville area. Her account is heartbreaking but she remains positive and thankful for community and outside assistance. She offers local agencies contact info who would appreciate monetary assistance.
i found the information on the five little monkeys store but not the info on the hurricane. can you give some guidance? thanks. patti in florida
Those pink and blue quilts are nice! Would love to know what pattern that is. That Halloween quilt: WOW! It’s just fabulous, Nancy. That owl trick really works; the hawks were circling my daughter’s 8 pound dog, but the owl “on guard” seems to have done the trick!
Our Wednesday was windy, too. But it was still a nice fall day. I went for a short walk, admiring the apples on a tree in a nearby church yard. The fall displays are a nice representation of color from my favorite season. And the variety of quilts is wonderful. The quilts with the bright pink or light blue highlight rectangles gave me an idea for how to use some fat quarters I have. Thanks for the idea!
liked the contraception saying. reminded me that i have a niece and 2 neohews because the pills were used only when they had sex. Saved money by not having to buy them every month…… Who knows how many children they would have had if there wasnt an inquisitive new in-law who asked questions when they heard they were thinking about sueing the pharmaceutical company for defective pills… I do not think they wore covid masks while driving their car solo.
Brenda – what a great story! Loved it!
love the fall quilts and decorations. that witch’s celebration quilt is fantastic. i love it. the chandelier quilt is lovely. i like the pink and blue with the black/white. so sweet.
good thing i got those two quilts ready for donation today (they go out on friday). i have p.t. in the a.m. early early, then the visiting nurse is coming to do my discharge report and i see the heart doc in the afternoon. it will be busy busy. friday is my angel group meeting where i will turn in four tops with backs and bindings. i will be one tired puppy.
today my daughter called me (this is something she absolutely does NOT do) and talked for a couple hours. actually asked me if she could have quilts. she has never wanted any in the past. she even said i could ask her if i needed her to come home and take care of us. she is living in new hampshire (owns a home) and is now talking about generational homes and wealth. we certainly don’t have either. i am an army brat and dh’s family immigrated and became u.s. citizens (from mexico). she sees this type of family up north. dh and i have never experienced it. told her she won’t get rich from us, but she really knew that. i think she just really wanted to know if we had wills, etc. but all in all it was a good conversation.
mary, people down here put owls on their roofs or pool enclosures to discourage predators. yes, i may live outside orlando, but we have wild boars, bears, alligators, coyotes (really rampant right now) and whatever else has lost their habitat to our constant building.
off to bed. happy quilting, patti in florida
you did not remember your pythons. I can see why you would want to forget them. You certainly do get a lot acccomplished and one can only wonder how much you accomplish when you are fully recuperated. Keep up the good work.
thanks, brenda. i’m hoping when i’m truly recuperated that i can quilt my own quilts again. patti in florida
Patti, I was going to ask you about quilting the potato chip block. Do your angels tie the quilts so do you mark a certain designation for them like every 5” or how do they finish off that quilt. I’m glad you sent this picture in of the larger potato chip block quilt as it is such a great way to use up scraps but our senior quilt group just does 6” blocks sewn together so it’s easier for them to tie. I like your quilt much better.
kathy, good question about the quilting. when we started angels, we decided each person could do whatever they chose to do. we had some who never machine quilted but liked to do hand stitching of bindings. that worked. we did decide as a group that all quilts would be quilted, not tied. we just liked that better for us. we don’t have an aversion to it but decided the quilts would stand up longer if they were quilted. some people even turned in hand quilted ones. i wouldn’t but then i taught myself to machine quilt early on in my journey as a quilter. whoever does the quilting gets to choose the design. lots of times straight line cross hatching works beautifully on a quilt. look at the straight line quilting that mary does. it’s gorgeous. lots of people do a meander. a couple of people are proud owners of computerized longarms. they are having fun playing. we just do what we feel at the time with the assumption that it should hold up to lots of industrial laundries. one lady took a batch of 10″ squares and put them together. stitched straight lines every 5″. it worked. you can also tie a quilt on the machine by using the available stitches and/or using a zig zag. hope this helps. i enjoy what i do. patti in florida
Patti – you’re the first person I’ve ever heard say what I always think – tied charity quilts are not durable! They’re so nice when presented to the recipient but all that loose fabric and batting will not hang together if used especially in rough areas where quilts are given. I don’t care how it’s quilted but you’re doing the right thing by quilting instead of tying. A tied “comforter” is not very useable. Great job.
Who ever snapped the first “Fall Decorations” photo did a great job capturing the quilt in the mirror also. Wonderful photos today.
Thanks Nartha. After I took it, I realized I had done that—happy accident—so I set it up a little better and sent it😀
Cleaver way to hang an owl! I am really liking Patti’s potato chip quilt. Makes me want to make another one in that size. What size were your rectangles Patti? Lots of great fall decor too.
hi cindy, for that quilt i used pieces that were cut 4.5 x 8.5. certainly goes fast. there was no real rhyme or reason. just scraps. but i’m sure someone will love it. thanks. patti in florida