Quilt Retreat - Day Three

Mother Nature is playing with us! We've not had the best spring, as there were lots of cooler days with loads of wind and rain. It's been nasty at times. However, the last two days have been PERFECT. The temperature was warm enough to walk outside in a T-shirt, no wind or very little, no rain -- it's been perfect. So much so that it's been a challenge to stay inside at the quilting retreat. And I'm OK with that. 

Right after breakfast, I decided to go for a walk, and it's always better to have a destination, so I picked the next nearest geocache as my destination. That was 4.1 KM from the house. I know!!! So I was off to do that, and it was a glorious morning. A tad on the nippy side, but I had my vest with me, so I was in good shape. 

The geocache took me to a very old cemetery, and I found the geocache just on the outskirts. The ground of the graveyard was VERY spongy with moss, so that felt a bit weird! 

The geocache of the morning

I spotted a few things along the way. The traffic wasn't heavy on the road, and most drivers were respectful. I see an election coming up as these signs had sprouted up on several lawns. I find it terrible that people vote because of the signs -- OH -- this person is the most visible, so I'll vote for that person! And such a waste of resources, BUT those signs make excellent bottoms for your tote bags. The corrugated plastic is very sturdy. So if you spot any on your lawn 48 hours after the voting closes, they are yours. 

Election signs

And I spotted a FREE Library, so I stopped in to peek. I don't have any books with me that I could drop off, so I just looked, but I love free libraries, and this one is big and has its own Facebook page and other social media! I'll try to post the link later -- the internet is intermittent this morning. I see from the Facebook page that the library has been open for ONE year. 

Free library

The inside of it was immaculate and neat and exceptionally well organized! Next time I'm up, I'll bring a book or two and drop them off. 

Well organized inside

Once I arrived back at the house, Susan and I decided to take a trip to Huntsville. We had decided to do an Adventure Lab, which is part of geocaching. Instead of hunting for boxes, we just need to find certain signs and answer questions. It's usually very informative and often takes you to historical plaques in the area. We parked the car downtown and walked to the first one very close by. 

Then we had to walk to the historical train that we took a ride on last year when we were here. The train was in the garage when we walked by and got the correct information. Then it was up a STEEP hill to get the next clue. The view from the top was stunning, and I seem to have the incorrect setting on my phone, so I don't have a picture of that view that I can share with you. 

But as we walked beside the lake, we spotted this. Four trees in total have been removed by a beaver.  

The beaver has been busy

The beaver reminded me of a quilter, as he wasn't content with those four small trees. Nope -- he's going big this time. I must remember the next time we are here to check that out. 

Go big or go home!

There are locks on the river that allow boaters to get from one lake to another, and I posted pictures of that on our last retreat. We had to stop and get an answer to an Adventure Lab question. Then we decided to get back to the house to have lunch. 

And YES -- we did a bit of sewing. Then because of the weather and wanting to get lotto tickets for the big draw last night, we decided to get the final answer on the Adventure Lab. This took us to another cemetery and this very old church. 

Madill Church

How is this for a headstone? Very handy for those that want to come and visit. I know it is done for efficiency, but I do not wish to visit my family plot (if I had one) and see my name on the gravestone with my birthday and a missing date for my death! Nope --- not going to happen! 

A bench as a headstone

With everyone living all over the place, what is the purpose of a final resting place? Once my parents and brother and his wife are gone, there are zero reasons for me to go home except to visit their graves. It's just something I think of from time to time. Will anyone come back to see my final resting place? That's why having someplace significant to rest is more important than the actual spot. I'm still contemplating that one, and YES -- I know there are laws about where your ashes can be scattered!

Susan and I took the scenic route home, and OH MY GOSH  --- I keep forgetting that the original retreat house we used to come to years ago is very close by. It's on the other side of the highway!!!  And not that we are pointing any fingers, but let's say that half of our group didn't even turn their sewing machines on yesterday! Yep -- they were off geocaching or whatever they decided to do. 

Since this is everyone's vacation and it's totally up to them how they spend their time -- I don't care! Lots more room for us in the sewing room and quiet - much quieter! To be fair, I think ONE of the three did a bit of sewing late in the afternoon. 

After we got back to the house, some of us sat on the deck and had a drink. That was the BEST beer ever. Good friends, good conversation, a Corona, and PERFECT weather in a beautiful setting. It doesn't get any better than that. 

In total, I walked almost 15 KMs. But that's OK, as I'm enjoying my time away, and that's all that counts. 

Now I did get a bit of sewing done. I decided to put the sweatshirt away. And all I can say is thank goodness I sew in the basement at home. Because once this nice weather starts, I'm not good with being inside, and if I can't see out, that's a good thing! 

I pulled out this flannel quilt, which I found in the same project box as the sweatshirt. I started it many years ago. 

Under the Stars pattern

I have one top done, except the borders are missing, and I'm not sure I have enough fabric in the bag, so I may have to look at home or put that on the shopping list. It's not a very big quilt, but it's super cute. Just checked -- it's 49" by 62", so it's a decent size but shy of my generous lap size of 60" by 72". 

One top is done except for borders 

I don't know what was wrong with me when I started out in the quilting world. Why make ONE when you can make more?

Yep -- there was a pile of flannel squares already cut and some half-square triangles already made. 

Plenty to make a second quilt

Hmmm  --- can you tell me why I did that? And I did it on numerous occasions. So I made a bunch of half-square triangles and trimmed them all. Now I'm starting to sew the second quilt together. 

The second quilt

I'm not going to do the applique on the second one, so I'll sew the stars and squares together and hopefully use most of the fabric that is already cut. And if I ever do this again, well --- I know I won't. Who wants to make multiples of the same quilt? Now -- I know people have reasons for doing that, but in my case, I'm just making them for the sake of making them, so there is zero need to make multiples. Since this one won't have applique, I guess it's technically NOT the same quilt!

Here's a good reason I love comments on the blog and why spending time with friends is so important. Thanks to Sharon, I've found the Volkssport Association. It's a HUGE walking group, and they host events around Canada, the US, and other countries. I won't have time to participate in their big Canadian event this year, but I might have to look at it next year. How fun is that to meet up with other confirmed crazies who love to walk. Thanks so much for the information, Sharon!!!

On that note, I'm out of here. I'm going to walk this morning, but I won't go for as long a walk as yesterday. And I have an errand to do this afternoon, so I'm not sure how much sewing will get done today! But that's OK. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!