We're home . . .

We got home this afternoon from the hot springs. What I thought was a cold might be more and if I am not doing lots better tomorrow, I am heading to the doctor. For two days, I have had body shaking chills and fever with endless coughing. So, I didn't get to go soaking in the pools and tried to stay away from everyone so they would not catch whatever it is. Gus became a "hospital" for a couple days. Here is a picture of Bob working on the final touches to get Gus hooked up to tow the jeep. We are planning to head out for a longer trip later in the week so I need to get well fast. There is a lot to do.

Birthday Boy . . .

The birthday boy officially celebrated his 5th birthday last night with friends and family. His mom made the cutest pirate chest cake.

This afternoon, we are heading out to Fairmont Hot Springs for a weekend of swimming and fun. My aunt is driving Mom over from Missoula and my sister is here briefly from Arizona so she will join in as well.

We are taking Gus and trying out the towing system for the little jeep.

And, I have a full blown summer cold - lots of coughing, sneezing, not sleeping - "the works" - but I am going anyway.

Only the tough survive!

Great Day!

We just had the best day with Weston. We took him with us to Billings - about 150 miles east of us here. And, darn it all to heck, I forgot to take my camera. We actually went for a doctor's appointment for Bob - all is well with that. But, most of the day was spent doing whatever Weston wanted to do as tomorrow is his 5th birthday. He was such a good little guy. We went to the zoo and it had to be 100 degrees. We shopped for his birthday at Target and got everything he wanted and then ended the day at Chuckie Cheese. That was quite an experience as we had never been there before but had been warned. We survived.

It was a very special day!

We did it!

We took down the slide cover awning from Gus and thought about repairing it, but decided it was too far gone. Se we found some good fabric available locally called Calliope - a vinyl covered awning fabric. Bob set up lots of big tables in the garage so we could measure, cut and stitch up a new awning. I wish I had taken a picture of that site - it was amazing with all of those tables and that little old sewing machine ready to do it's work. The awning is 52" by 152" and it turned out perfect. Even the color with our limited selection was okay as not much of it will show once the cover is back on. Bob got it back "up there" and it works great! Gus is 12 feet tall and it sits at the very top of Gus. The metal cover needs to be put on and then it will look like the one that is shown in the second picture. The second picture is of the first slide awning that we repaired. It was 48" by 72". We are so pleased that we did it ourselves and saved some dollars. I think we could go "into the business"

Weston and Walker were out to visit on Thursday. We had a wonderful day. In the first picture, there are "going to work" on their John Deere tractors. I love it! In the background is the old antique John Deere that we still use to plow in the winter, but it is almost covered with the hay grass that didn't get mowed from around it. In the second picture, Walker decided he wanted to ride the big tractor so Weston go on the front and Grandpa Bob had to help a bit. They had so much fun.

Now it is time for me to quit blabbing and get on with some house duties that we didn't do yesterday because we were playing like we were an awning shop.

What?

So - what happened to me?

I went to Denver, saw "The Quilt Show" taping in Boulder where my good friend, Ronda Beyer, was the featured artist and she did a great job! She showed her new rulers with her own special touches to curved crosshatching. In the afternoon, I went on south to spend the rest of the week visiting another good friend, Gail. It was a wonderful week of rest, shopping, laughter, and sewing. I got home last Saturday eve and we have been busy every day since. . . and I am not sure doing just what, but busy.

I am quilting a couple baby quilts for Gail that she will use in "Christmas At Our House" boutique sale in November. The quilting is nothing "to write home about" - quick and easy. She is very active with The Denver Assistance League and it is the time of year where there is a lot for her to do.

We have also been putting new slide awnings on Gus. There are two slides and the awnings over both have rips. When the slides are put out, an awning rolls over the top to protect the slide top from rain, leaves and other stuff. We looked at having them done and that would have been about $1000. So, Bob, being the self-sufficient good man that he is, decided we can do it ourselves. He read all about it, took down the smaller one that goes over the bedroom slide and we fixed it by turning it around, trimming off the worn part, sewing new hems and putting it back up. Easy. There was lots of extra fabric on the roller than never saw the light of day. Now the awning over the slide cover for the living/dining room slide is bigger and in worse shape so we are going to see about finding some new similar canvas for a new one before we try repair. I had to get my old White sewing machine out and oil it up. We set it up in the garage and it sewed right through that stuff. Amazing old machine. I bought it new over 35 years ago when I was a young divorced mother and needed clothes so I could teach school. It saved the day then - and again now.

And to end the day - here is a picture of my favorite flowers from this year. Every year, things come out different in these two pots, but these are my favorite combination of flowers yet. I love these colors.

Busy week here . . .

We spent a couple days just getting the car to work right after the hail damage was completed - first they missed some of the dimples so we took it back and then the XM radio had no sound so we took it back again. Both times required another full day. We then had Weston and Walker here for the better part of Wednesday and Thursday - fun time, but no new pictures I am sorry to say.

Tomorrow I am heading off to Denver for a week. First I am going to stop in Boulder, Colorado to watch the taping of "The Quilt Show" with Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims. I am beyond excited. Ronda Beyer is being taped showing her new twists and applications of curved crosshatching and she invited me as her guest - doesn't get any better than that.

Then I am heading on down to Centennial, Colorado, a suburb on the south end of Denver, to spend the rest of the week with my good friend Gail. I am not sure what we will do, but I am taking some sewing as usual. We might just sit on her deck and gab. I just realized I haven't been to Denver for over two years. That is the longest I have been away since moving to Montana 17 years ago. I am excited to get there. We might take in an exhibit or two at the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum in Golden - we usually try to do that.

So - I need to get "high behind" and get packing.

Project finished . . .

The vintage quilt that came to me in pieces is now quilted and the binding is done. It was one of those projects that I should have never started, but now that it is done, I am proud of the work I did. And - just because I can "do it" - save a quilt from the rag bag - doesn't mean I will ever do it again.

The first picture was right after I finished and I just hung it over the table rails. The second one is just the corner after the binding was completed.