Fall Quilt Show in Western PA

The Beaver Valley Piecemakers are having their 18th Annual Quilt Show, October 11th-13th. It will be at the Holy Family Parish in New Brighton, PA.

I have not personally been to this quilt show, but it would be a great time of the year to take a road trip. Perhaps next year.

The theme this year is Two Color Quilts. There will be food, vendors, a boutique and of course beautiful quilts to look at.

So, if you’re in the neighborhood or would like to take in the fall colors during a road trip, put this quilt show on your calendar. Here is a link to their website Beaver Valley Piecemakers.

Beans, Beans and More Beans

This year has been an amazing year for gardening. We have had a bumper crop of vegetables. The vegetables that have given us the greatest yield so far have been the green beans. We froze them, and froze them, canned them in pints, canned them in quarts, cooked them for dinner, and even gave some to co-workers. All that out of just 2 short rows of green beans!

My husband finally pulled the plants after the fourth picking. We’ve never had more the two pickings. The second picking is usually inferior to the first. Not this year! Here is a picture of one of the plants at the fourth picking.

Beautiful clean, straight beans. Amazing!

These beauties kept me up till midnight one night. After work I picked up fast-food for dinner so that I could get started on canning as soon as I got home. My canner only holds 7 quart. So I had to process them in two batches. That’s what kept me up till midnight. I had to wait for the last batch to cool so I could take them out of the canner.

This winter when the snow starts to fly and I open a can of these green beans for dinner it will all be worth it!

Good Dogs

While putting the rows together for the quilt I’m working on I snapped a few pictures of my “good dogs”. Even the puppy knows to stay off the quilt.

Here is a picture of Daisy tip-toeing around the quilt. She was about 7 months old when I took this picture. What a good puppy!

And here is the old guy, Laddie, laying beside the quilt. Good boy!

While clearing floor space to lay out the quilt, I tossed one of Daisy’s toys behind me. Here is where it landed.

Poor guy! He just laid there with that ratty toy on him. I guess he thought I put it there for a reason.

Dogs…you gotta love ’em!

Oh Happy Day!

The Hostess Ho Ho is back!

You can keep your Twinkies and your Hostess Cupcakes, I’ve been looking forward to these guys. Now I wait for the Snowballs to return… then my Hostess dreams will be complete.

Recovery Food Fit for Man and Beast

This summer I was introduced to a new recovery food…popsicles! Recovery foods are food that runners eat right after a run to begin refueling their bodies. Some other good recovery foods that I have found are bananas, grapes, sport bars, chocolate milk…yes! chocolate milk.

The best recovery food after a run on a hot and humid summer evening is a popsicle. And of course I had to share my popsicle with my four-legged running partner, Daisy.

She likes grape flavored also.

Perhaps grape is her favorite.

And make sure you re-hydrate with water.

I didn’t have a bowl so a White Castle cup worked great.

My New Venture

If you’ve wondered where I’ve been the past few weeks, I’m here to tell you about my new venture. I have a job!

Yes, I have entered the world of high-heels and lipstick. Well, actually I have entered the world of finance and most days I wear flats not high-heels…but flats don’t photograph as well as high-heels.

I’m excited about getting back into the work force, working full-time, earning a paycheck. I’m working for a local company that I’ve known for several years and well thought of in our town. It has been an adjustment, but a good adjustment.

I’m still running about 3 times a week, but I have only been in my quilting room once since I started working. I’m hoping that will change once I get used to my new schedule. I’ll keep you updated.

It’s Good to be Home

Our 2013 beach vacation is in the books.

Heading for home in the fast lane…I was doing the speed limit.

The scenery along the border of North Carolina and Virginia is breath-taking.

Vacations are wonderful, but when you have these guys (guy & girl) to come home to it’s all good.

I think they missed each other.

Laddie our 11 year old Border Collie/Aussie mix stayed at home. My nephew house-sat for us. Laddie can be trusted alone in the house. He’s earned that right.

But we boarded our 8 month old English Shepherd puppy, Daisy. Daisy requires more supervision. A co-worker of my husband owns a kennel. So, that is where Daisy vacationed. Rumor-has-it or should I say pictures texted to us, shows she may have got some extra attention at the kennel. Evidence has since been erased.

Never-the-less, she was happy to be home and Laddie was happy we were all home.

Daisy looks like she’s begging Katie to never leave again.

As I said vacations are wonderful. But being welcomed by these two…

reminds you that there’s no place like home!

Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge

One afternoon we hiked part of the trail in the Pinckney Island Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is about 1/2 mile from Hilton Head Island.

We hiked about 3 miles and it was a hot and humid day, as you can see by the sweat stain on the back of Jared’s shirt.

But it was worth it. We saw salt marshes.

Woodland areas.

Brilliant blue sky.

White Herons.

Green snakes.

Adorable armadillos.

Isn’t it adorable? I guess these little guys can be quite a nuisance, but for this Ohioan who’s never seen one before…it was adorable.

Exploring the Lagoon

Each year that we’ve gone to Hilton Head Island we’ve added a new adventure. This year we decided to explore the lagoon system that runs behind the villa where we stay.

My son, Jared and his wife Katie rented a kayak for the week. Because the villa sits on the lagoon system, Jared and Katie could dock the kayak on the bank behind the villa and store it under the deck.

I confess…the first time they got into and out of the kayak I was video taping it just in case. You don’t want to miss a possible $10,000 America’s Funniest Home video opportunity. No such luck. They were quite adept at disembarking and launching their kayak.

My husband, daughter and I rented a canoe one day and paddled along the lagoon with Jared and Katie. Here is Rachel and I suited up and ready to go. We rented from Hilton Head Outfitters.

We saw an assortment of water fowl.

And HHI’s version of “Keep Holding On”.

In May while running along the bike path in my home town I saw a similar situation of a tree holding on to the bank of the river. Here’s the link to that post…“Keep Holding On”.

The last stretch of the lagoon, as we made our way back to the outfitters, was the most beautiful.

The water was so still. It looked like glass.

The trees reflecting off the water was amazing.

Beautiful!

Biking on Hilton Head Island

Biking is a popular pastime on the island. Designated bike paths are throughout the island. Weekly bike rentals cost about $25-$35, which includes bike locks and baskets. We’ve rented from The Bike Doctor for the past 4 years. I call them and order our bikes a few days before our vacation. When we arrive at our villa the bikes are there waiting on us. And the day we leave The Bike Doctor comes and picks them up. Couldn’t be easier.

We love riding on the bike path near our villa. The scenery is beautiful.

Along the bike path you see stately homes tucked back in the trees.

Winding roads that seem to disappear in a canopy of trees.

And people walking their dogs.

This is the time I start to miss my dogs.