Forty Years and Counting!

July 12, 1975 was our wedding day. It was a "cold day in July" that year! I am so blessed to have had these past 40 years with such a wonderful man - God truly did bring us together for life.

We typically have not given each other presents for anniversaries, birthdays, etc. This year we decided to do something special for us, however. We took off for a few days and did not leave the state! We headed to several places that we have been driving past, and always said "we need to stop there sometime". Knowing us, we do not easily stop when headed to a destination, so we made local places our destinations.

First stop was Agecroft Hall, in Richmond, VA. This is a reconstructed English Tudor house that was falling down over in England. In the late 1920s it was taken apart, pieces were salvaged, and put back together here in Richmond. While the entire house was not in good shape, Agecroft Hall shows the style and workmanship of old England.

                              

The next day we went to Colonial Heights, VA, and the Keystone Tractor Museum. Wayne had seen this place from I-95 and so it was his pick! Except for being hot (no air conditioning in there), it was really a neat place. The number of tractors was overwhelming, plus cars and trucks on display. The owner has hundreds of restored tractors and trucks (he owned a trucking company). However, we did not find our International 706!

After a stop in Farmville, where our daughter went to school at Longwood College (back then! Now it is Longwood University), we stopped in Appomattox, VA. Wayne had never been there, although I had taken our kids years ago when he was at a meeting in the area. 

 Charley's riverfront restaurant, meals from our past!

Appomattox, VA

On the way home the next day, we drove up the Blue Ridge Parkway - another first! We had been on Skyline Drive a few years ago, but never the Parkway.

Our last stop was at Cyrus McCormick's Farm in Raphine, VA. It is managed by Virginia Tech and a very low key stop. There was a good walk to a wetlands area, as well as the original mill on the farm and information about McCormick and his reaper.

We both agree that our travels this year have made us realize how much we have to see in our immediate area, as well as throughout the United States. 

A Quilting Finish!!!

It is hard to realize this year is almost half over and I have only posted one time! It is not because we have been bored, however. I will try to catch up in a future post, but today is celebrating not one, but two finishes for my quilting UFO challenge from Marti at 52 Quilts.

This first was not an UFO, but it is a completed quilting project. I found this pattern online and had to make it for my mother, whose first job was working at Singer Sewing Company in St. Louis, Missouri. Singer machines have always been special to us, much in the same way as International tractors are to others in my family.

I was also fortunate to deliver it in person, since we took a spring trip back to Missouri in May.

My second finish is this spring quilt, the fourth in a set of wall hangings depicting the four seasons. I did make my deadline - before the end of spring!!

Here are the others in the series - summer, fall, winter. It only took about five years!

Summer

Fall

Winter

I know the photos are not the best, but I am so glad to have the set finished that I rushed. One day I will take photography time!

Happy New Year! or Happy 2015 anyway!

It looks like time really ended for me back in August! I am not even going to try and go over the last 4 months! The things that I do  remember include the following.

In September I had arthroscopic knee surgery.  As soon as I recovered from that it was time for the Sprick Sibling reunion and we headed to Nashville, Tennessee. From there we were in St. Louis to visit my parents for a very short trip.

November brought home remodeling - we replaced all the carpet on the upper floor, which meant three bedrooms, the hallway, and the main steps. After preparing for the promised installation day, we learned that a guaranteed 72 hour installation is not guaranteed!! The carpet had to be ordered (not told to us at the store, and not mentioned on the label on the carpet sample which said "72 hour installation guaranteed"!

Then came December and all the holiday activities. In January we went to San Diego for the American Farm Bureau's annual convention.

Here are just a few photo highlights of the end of 2014.

This was one of our activities with the Sprick siblings.









During the carpet removal, we had all items out of the bedrooms upstairs - they wound up downstairs or in the bathrooms - where ever I could put stuff!!

Our December fun included taking our grandchildren on a tour of the Christmas lights in our area. We always like to see these tractors lit up, with the first one taking the role of Rudolph!
Then we were able to go to the Tuba Christmas concert at the shopping mall. Last year it was cancelled due to bad weather. It was really a great experience, made more enjoyable since we shared it with friends who are musical! He is a past high school band director and taught us about the tuba instrument family.

Another quilt finish - yes!!

It is the end of August and I have completed another UFO challenge for 52 Quilts. I have had these preprinted Advent calendar panels for at least 5 years. A few years ago I made several of the cookie bowl calendar for our granddaughter, Emma. Eli was not born at that time! Savannah and Hannah also got calendars for their families.

I did not even know about the green and red panel (and I made two of them) until I was preparing my UFOs last January! Now I have gifts to spare when the need comes up!

Happy Birthday, St. Louis!

Recently St. Louis, Missouri has been in the news throughout the country. It is not the most positive situation there, so I want to showcase a happier view of my birth city. (There are MANY photos.)

We went back to visit family and to go to a tractor pull at the Washington Town and Country Fair. Wayne had been on the fair board for many years before we moved to Virginia, so it  was nostalgic to visit together. (When we were there I was a "fair widow" as my brother-in-law said. We did not see Dad from days before the fair until the day after the fair ended.) His view of the fair was very different than the view that the kids and I have.

Well, this is also the 250th anniversary of the founding of St. Louis and there are 251 birthday cakes placed throughout the metropolitan area. I was hoping to see ten of the cakes, but only got to eight so far. (Maybe we should plan a trip in the fall to find more!)

Outside Maritz, Inc., where Mom worked many years ago, Fenton, MO

Outside the Franklin County courthouse, Union, MO

 World Bird Sanctuary, Valley Park, MO

Lone Elk Park, Valley Park, MO

Endangered Wolf Center, Eureka, MO

Kirkwood Train (Amtrack) Station, Kirkwood, MO

Magic House, Kirkwood, MO

Washington Historical Society, Washington, MO

Now that we are back home, for a little bit, it is time to get back to quilting, reading, my new Cricut Explore, and writing up my picture of the day album. I am only 6 weeks behind in that!! Photos are printed, but the journaling cards are all empty.

July quilting

With all the traveling we did in July, I did not spend much time at the sewing machine. One advancement I made was in machine quilting. For the first time I am finishing a quilt with machine quilting instead of hand quilting! I will show the picture when I finish the border which IS being hand quilted. 

     I plan to have it done for my August UFO entry, since I made the quilt top many years ago. I realized that if it was going to be done this year, I needed to start learning how to machine quilt. I am not really satisfied with how it turned out, but it was a good top to practice on. I hope the next top will be easier to work on - and I remember what I learned on this one.

This small quilt was made for the grandson of my college roommate. It is my "go to" pattern now when I need something completed quickly - like before the one year old boy turns ten!! I think I counted 12 made so far.

It is another "quilt as you go" by Debbie Mumm, from her book - Debbie Mumm's Project Kids, c1999, revised 2001. ISBN:  0-9707811-4-8  I checked and there are copies available on Amazon from $0.01 and up!! 

I was able to send this one to 52 Quilts and the monthly UFO projects, although technically it was not a UFO. 

I need to write one more post to share my newest toy and another reason I am behind on my quilting. I also got the new Cricut Explore machine this month. I had it sitting in the box for three days before I had enough time to even take it out!!!

July was a short month, but so long!

July has been the month of travel. Wayne retired officially on June 27th and the "computer left the building"! Since then we have been through Maryland, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, New Jersey, and New York in two separate trips.

We went to Ohio for the wedding of our niece, stopping by Paul's house on the way up and the way back. They were married on July 12, which was also our 39th wedding anniversary.

It was a quick weekend, but we did get to see all my siblings and parents there. Plus our grandchildren and three of our childen  (and spouse) were there. Our other son was in New Jersey at the wedding of his wife's sister the same weekend.

 We visited the James A. Garfield house in Mentor, Ohio where this amazing library was built by his wife after his assassination. The waterfall is in the middle of town in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

After a week at home we headed to New York City by way of Pennsylvania (staying with Joel and Katie) to help move Wayne's brother and his wife from Brooklyn to the new place in New Jersey. This is the view from their new apartment by day and night. I do not always appreciate city life, but this view is absolutely amazing!!