The highlight edition.

The animals...

Mama Grizzly Bear and her 3 cubs taking a stroll outside our motel room window. She walked right under our window. So close I could have touched her! The cubs took a tour of a crawl space under the building for a while. The rangers had it all under control and made sure people were in their rooms or getting to a building until she moved on her way. After they left, the crawl space openings were covered up with boards. 

A bull moose eating at Fishcap Lake. Two female cows were there, too. 

A mountain goat at Hidden lake. 

Going abroad...

I have never left the country before, so it was a thrill to visit Canada. We spent the day at Waterton. 

The beauty...

Hidden lake

Mountain meadow in full bloom near Iceberg Lake. 

Iceberg Lake. My favorite hike! When we came over the rise and saw the beautiful blue lake with the ice floating in it, the beauty took my breath away and I cried...

We attempted to hike up (and I mean up! 1800 foot elevation gain) to Grinnell Glacier. We were so close! We estimate about a mile or mile and a half away, but the trail changed into a cliff edge walk. I made the mistake of looking down and that was it for me. I have no regrets. I know if I had gone on I would have been in terror the whole time. Mistakes happen in that state of mind. 

Grinnell Lake

 Beautiful trails...

 And lots of waterfalls! This one is Running Eagle Falls in Two Medicines. In the spring it falls over the rocks. In the summer, it runs under the shelf and looks like it is coming out a hole, as it is now. 

We laughed when we realized my purple shoes matched the purple rocks in the mountains...

Tomorrow, my granddaughter Brooklyn arrives to spend a few days with us! Sewing is on the itinerary! 😁

The highlight edition.

The animals...

Mama Grizzly Bear and her 3 cubs taking a stroll outside our motel room window. She walked right under our window. So close I could have touched her! The cubs took a tour of a crawl space under the building for a while. The rangers had it all under control and made sure people were in their rooms or getting to a building until she moved on her way. After they left, the crawl space openings were covered up with boards. 

A bull moose eating at Fishcap Lake. Two female cows were there, too. 

A mountain goat at Hidden lake. 

Going abroad...

I have never left the country before, so it was a thrill to visit Canada. We spent the day at Waterton. 

The beauty...

Hidden lake

Mountain meadow in full bloom near Iceberg Lake. 

Iceberg Lake. My favorite hike! When we came over the rise and saw the beautiful blue lake with the ice floating in it, the beauty took my breath away and I cried...

We attempted to hike up (and I mean up! 1800 foot elevation gain) to Grinnell Glacier. We were so close! We estimate about a mile or mile and a half away, but the trail changed into a cliff edge walk. I made the mistake of looking down and that was it for me. I have no regrets. I know if I had gone on I would have been in terror the whole time. Mistakes happen in that state of mind. 

Grinnell Lake

 Beautiful trails...

 And lots of waterfalls! This one is Running Eagle Falls in Two Medicines. In the spring it falls over the rocks. In the summer, it runs under the shelf and looks like it is coming out a hole, as it is now. 

We laughed when we realized my purple shoes matched the purple rocks in the mountains...

Tomorrow, my granddaughter Brooklyn arrives to spend a few days with us! Sewing is on the itinerary! 😁

Yes, I am still here! 

There hasn't been any sewing happening since I posted last, and it will be weeks before I will be able to get into my sewing room again, but all is well! 

We have been very busy with the never-ending job of home maintenance...

replacing deck boards

painting the soffit

camping...

and travels.

Orange Beach

Very soon we are heading to Glacier National Park!!

At the beginning of this year, Russ and I changed how we were eating, partially to prepare for hiking at Glacier, as well as for our overall general health. I am proud to say that I have lost over 40 pounds and my husband has lost almost 50 so far!! We feel fantastic! 

Later this summer, my granddaughter, Brooklyn, will be visiting for a few days. I hope to do some sewing projects with her while she is here. That will be fun! 

Until next time!! 

Yes, I am still here! 

There hasn't been any sewing happening since I posted last, and it will be weeks before I will be able to get into my sewing room again, but all is well! 

We have been very busy with the never-ending job of home maintenance...

replacing deck boards

painting the soffit

camping...

and travels.

Orange Beach

Very soon we are heading to Glacier National Park!!

At the beginning of this year, Russ and I changed how we were eating, partially to prepare for hiking at Glacier, as well as for our overall general health. I am proud to say that I have lost over 40 pounds and my husband has lost almost 50 so far!! We feel fantastic! 

Later this summer, my granddaughter, Brooklyn, will be visiting for a few days. I hope to do some sewing projects with her while she is here. That will be fun! 

Until next time!! 

Remember the closet full of tops that needed to be finished? Well, I took some time last week to get the batting and binding ready and I got many of them basted so they would be ready to be quilted when the mood struck. I underestimated how long it took to quilt the baby quilts and in just a couple of days, I had 5 of them all finished! The rainy weather contributed to the many hours I got to spend in my sewing room. We need a break!! 

They are nothing fancy nor are they quilted fancy, but they will keep babies warm. It feels good to get some stash off of the shelving and out of the bins made into something useful...

Until next time!! 

Remember the closet full of tops that needed to be finished? Well, I took some time last week to get the batting and binding ready and I got many of them basted so they would be ready to be quilted when the mood struck. I underestimated how long it took to quilt the baby quilts and in just a couple of days, I had 5 of them all finished! The rainy weather contributed to the many hours I got to spend in my sewing room. We need a break!! 

They are nothing fancy nor are they quilted fancy, but they will keep babies warm. It feels good to get some stash off of the shelving and out of the bins made into something useful...

Until next time!! 

Last Saturday was the first class for the Summer Moon Block of the Month. Because the shop did not make kits for this block of the month and I used what was in my stash, it was important to me to be able to give a general idea to the ladies how much fabric was needed, so the last few weeks I spent hours and hours precutting all the blocks out. It was a huge undertaking, but I am so glad I did it. 

Now I can grab a bag for the corresponding month assignment and do my favorite part, piece them. 

 Out of the 29 fats I chose, 4 did not get cut at all, but I may use those in the block framing part of the quilt, I am not sure yet, and the several half yard cuts I had gathered, I used less than a fat quarter amount. 

Here are the blocks for the first month. So cute!! The fabrics I chose are by Lella Boutique. Farmer's Daughter, Nest, and Garden Variety. 

Fool's Puzzle

Album 

Churn Dash

I am having to restrain myself from working ahead on this one! If I do, I will forget what I did and I won't be able to share any tips or help. I have other things that need to get done, as I shared last month!! I am staring at you Shimmer!

Do you have any long term projects that you are working on? 

Last Saturday was the first class for the Summer Moon Block of the Month. Because the shop did not make kits for this block of the month and I used what was in my stash, it was important to me to be able to give a general idea to the ladies how much fabric was needed, so the last few weeks I spent hours and hours precutting all the blocks out. It was a huge undertaking, but I am so glad I did it. 

Now I can grab a bag for the corresponding month assignment and do my favorite part, piece them. 

 Out of the 29 fats I chose, 4 did not get cut at all, but I may use those in the block framing part of the quilt, I am not sure yet, and the several half yard cuts I had gathered, I used less than a fat quarter amount. 

Here are the blocks for the first month. So cute!! The fabrics I chose are by Lella Boutique. Farmer's Daughter, Nest, and Garden Variety. 

Fool's Puzzle

Album 

Churn Dash

I am having to restrain myself from working ahead on this one! If I do, I will forget what I did and I won't be able to share any tips or help. I have other things that need to get done, as I shared last month!! I am staring at you Shimmer!

Do you have any long term projects that you are working on? 

 Our Easter Sunday was beautiful! Often times our Easter weekends are rainy. It was so nice to have a very warm and sunny day! We took advantage of the perfect weather and got outside to enjoy it as much as we could. We started our morning out by driving to Waldo's Rock Park to watch the sunrise. 

Russ slid into the cleft of Waldo's rock. I couldn't do it. Makes my knees go to jelly to think about being enclosed like that. Cool photo op, though!

After we walked around the pond, we went home to get ready for church. Our church, Northbrook Baptist Church, had the most beautiful Easter service I have ever been to. It was amazing...

After church, we went on a 3 3/4 mile hike at Squire Point in North Liberty, Iowa. Our trip to Glacier National Park will be here before we know it and we need to take advantage of the nice weather so we can continue to get into shape for those mountain hikes ahead. Besides hiking in the area, we also began preparing for Glacier at the beginning of the new year by changing how we eat. I mentioned it on this post in January. As of yesterday, I have lost 28 pounds and Russ has lost 31 pounds! It makes hiking much easier on my knees and hips, that's for sure! I am two pounds to my original goal, but I am thinking I may adjust my goal and lose 5 more pounds. Well, see...

Flowers I saw on our hike yesterday. 

Looking ahead to the spring and summer months, we are anxious to get our T@B out and enjoy the outdoors. We hope to take her out for the maiden voyage this weekend. 

Finally... A finish! Yay!

Love You More by Kati Cupcake.

You can find more details about this quilt in last month's post. 

I took these pictures before spring had sprung in Iowa. My gardens are in full bloom now, and mowing has begun for the season. I am so happy to see flowers and green grass! It was a long and brutal winter and I am grateful to say "see you next year!" to Old Man Winter. 

Next time I will share about the Summer Moon Block of the Month I started. Until then, may your heart be at rest. 

 Our Easter Sunday was beautiful! Often times our Easter weekends are rainy. It was so nice to have a very warm and sunny day! We took advantage of the perfect weather and got outside to enjoy it as much as we could. We started our morning out by driving to Waldo's Rock Park to watch the sunrise. 

Russ slid into the cleft of Waldo's rock. I couldn't do it. Makes my knees go to jelly to think about being enclosed like that. Cool photo op, though!

After we walked around the pond, we went home to get ready for church. Our church, Northbrook Baptist Church, had the most beautiful Easter service I have ever been to. It was amazing...

After church, we went on a 3 3/4 mile hike at Squire Point in North Liberty, Iowa. Our trip to Glacier National Park will be here before we know it and we need to take advantage of the nice weather so we can continue to get into shape for those mountain hikes ahead. Besides hiking in the area, we also began preparing for Glacier at the beginning of the new year by changing how we eat. I mentioned it on this post in January. As of yesterday, I have lost 28 pounds and Russ has lost 31 pounds! It makes hiking much easier on my knees and hips, that's for sure! I am two pounds to my original goal, but I am thinking I may adjust my goal and lose 5 more pounds. Well, see...

Flowers I saw on our hike yesterday. 

Looking ahead to the spring and summer months, we are anxious to get our T@B out and enjoy the outdoors. We hope to take her out for the maiden voyage this weekend. 

Finally... A finish! Yay!

Love You More by Kati Cupcake.

You can find more details about this quilt in last month's post. 

I took these pictures before spring had sprung in Iowa. My gardens are in full bloom now, and mowing has begun for the season. I am so happy to see flowers and green grass! It was a long and brutal winter and I am grateful to say "see you next year!" to Old Man Winter. 

Next time I will share about the Summer Moon Block of the Month I started. Until then, may your heart be at rest. 

Russ and I are starting a new adventure! We are saying goodbye to our motorcycle and hello to camping! We are a few years out from retirement so this will be a weekend and short vacations camping. Next summer we plan to spend 3 weeks camping and exploring the Grand Canyon, as well the Mighty 5 Utah National Parks.  We are even talking about overlanding to Alaska in the next few years. We are very excited and having a ball getting the camper set up and ready. Half the fun is in the planning, I think. 

This is our new tiny camper! It is a nüCamp 2019 T@B 320 S (which stands for a shower!) Boondock Edge (which means higher clearance so we can go off road and camp in public land areas). Boondocking is something we very much want to do. They are made in the heart of Amish county in Ohio and they work on everything on the T@B, so you know the workmanship is stellar! 

Here you can see the bathroom door and the tiny kitchen with a refrigerator. We plan on doing most of our cooking outside, but this will be the perfect place to make a cup of coffee. 

This is the seating area as well as the place to make up the bed. The backrest in the back lays down to make up the bed and the table gets removed and slats get added. When it is made up the bed is 70" x 73". We chose to buy a memory foam topper to use to sleep on. We will be leaving the backrest in the down position and during the day we will roll up the memory foam and bedding and tuck it under the cabinets and use that as the backrest. That way we can still use the table during the day.  As we get more organized, I will share more pictures of our set up. We still don't know what we don't know, but we are learning more every day! 

I want to give a huge shout out to our dealer, Trevor at Front Range Gear! He is very knowledgeable, helpful and is willing to be available anytime if we have any questions or need help. We love to go to his shop and just hang out! Small businesses are the best!

This is a video of one that is almost like ours. Ours has a few more features, but you will get the idea. 

We are planning a fun summer ahead of camping, hiking and maybe we will get back to kayaking again, too, Lord willing!

Until next time!! 

Russ and I are starting a new adventure! We are saying goodbye to our motorcycle and hello to camping! We are a few years out from retirement so this will be a weekend and short vacations camping. Next summer we plan to spend 3 weeks camping and exploring the Grand Canyon, as well the Mighty 5 Utah National Parks.  We are even talking about overlanding to Alaska in the next few years. We are very excited and having a ball getting the camper set up and ready. Half the fun is in the planning, I think. 

This is our new tiny camper! It is a nüCamp 2019 T@B 320 S (which stands for a shower!) Boondock Edge (which means higher clearance so we can go off road and camp in public land areas). Boondocking is something we very much want to do. They are made in the heart of Amish county in Ohio and they work on everything on the T@B, so you know the workmanship is stellar! 

Here you can see the bathroom door and the tiny kitchen with a refrigerator. We plan on doing most of our cooking outside, but this will be the perfect place to make a cup of coffee. 

This is the seating area as well as the place to make up the bed. The backrest in the back lays down to make up the bed and the table gets removed and slats get added. When it is made up the bed is 70" x 73". We chose to buy a memory foam topper to use to sleep on. We will be leaving the backrest in the down position and during the day we will roll up the memory foam and bedding and tuck it under the cabinets and use that as the backrest. That way we can still use the table during the day.  As we get more organized, I will share more pictures of our set up. We still don't know what we don't know, but we are learning more every day! 

I want to give a huge shout out to our dealer, Trevor at Front Range Gear! He is very knowledgeable, helpful and is willing to be available anytime if we have any questions or need help. We love to go to his shop and just hang out! Small businesses are the best!

This is a video of one that is almost like ours. Ours has a few more features, but you will get the idea. 

We are planning a fun summer ahead of camping, hiking and maybe we will get back to kayaking again, too, Lord willing!

Until next time!!