tate farms . . .

As much as I'd love to be retired, if I do need to keep working, the place for which I work does us well. Our annual meeting was on Tuesday.  It takes a lot of time prep work, and then it's a long afternoon of meeting, but then we have the next two glorious days *FREE* which makes for a five-day weekend!  I put Wednesday, the first day, to good use!

One of the things I feel like I must do in order for my birthday month — and autumn in general — to feel complete, is visit Tate Farms!  I love to go with/take the grands, but truth be told, if no one could go with me, I'd go alone!  It really is one of my very favorite places. But this year, the local grandgirls were happy to go with me (which gave mama a bit of a break)!

It really was a lovely, glorious day.  First things first, we took the group photo in the pumpkins!

I got one of the girls, and also was gifted a shot with the girls, thanks to another visitor!

I knew where we'd go once we got inside the farm . . .

I think you'll be able to understand, after seeing this photo, why Edith refers to this as the "corn pool"!!  LOL!  They were having swimming races in the corn!  

From there we spotted the corn train.  It really was a lovely day ... look at that sky!

We headed that way via several additional photo opportunities and activities.

Not pictured are the bouncy thing, the petting zoo, and the bicycle track (which I did so Edith could ride on the back) (you didn't want pictures of that anyway, trust me)!  

The girls did have fun on the train (check out Ellie with her hands in the air, like she just don't care!), but Edith spotted the 'rainbow slide' on the ride, so we headed there next.

It's a big, tall slide!  But she insisted she wanted to go, so the three girls went up, and I waited at the bottom with the camera.  The two big girls thought it was amazing!  Edith, not so much. Heh. Her face says it all!!

After we'd seen and done all the things, we headed to find refreshments!  We ended up getting a famous pumpkin slushy ... (yummy!!) and glazed pecans.  Then we put all wristbands in for a show of Tate Farms solidarity . . . 

All for one, and one for all!

Yep ... check that one off my bucket list!  The only thing I'm sorry about?  I didn't get a pumpkin!  

Dang it, Bobby.  Hmmmm, maybe I'll need to make a second trip . . . 

:)

bringing home baby . . .

You know the old saying, when the cat's away, the mice will play, right?? That's exactly what happens when Neesey's left in charge for a couple of days!  Picnic dinners in front of the big screen . . .

Jumping-on-the-bed parties . . . 

And makeovers!

Ahem.  Extreme makeovers, as the case may be.  <grin>

Let's just say it took us a little while to remove evidence of that particular makeover.

And while we were killing it in the fun department, look what mom was doing!

May I introduce Ezra Paul?!?  Isn't he the sweetest? At 5 lbs, 10 oz, and 18 in, he's tiny!  And by the way, doesn't his mama look good??

He's so tiny, even his little newborn cap is a tad big!

But gosh, so very precious!

Each sister got a turn to hold him . . .

It was love at first sight for every one of his big sisters!

And then Neesey got a turn . . .

Isn't that just the best? ♥

:)

wrapping it up . . .

The month, that is . . . wrapping up August!  It was a good week.  The Merkel girls went back to school this week!

I love Edith's face in this one . . .

They won't be able to call it the 'School for Girls' in a couple of years!  

Thursday I left work for a moment and skipped next door to Barb's Sewing.  Social media really does work for advertising.  They had posted some cute new fabrics on the Instagram, and don't you know I came back with yardage from several of those they advertised and some from those they didn't!

But check out those Halloween prints!  Aren't they darling??  Those two and the three on the bottom, right, were advertised.  It obviously, in my case, pays off. ;)

Friday we hit the lake.  Again, the forecast held rain, but it's so hit or miss in the summer, we hate to scrap a whole day because of it.

This time we did run into a little shower.  You know, just enough to make everything wet and have it feel more humid and stickier!  LOL!

But afternoon storms often bring . . .

Rainbows!  First we could only see half of it.  But then the clouds shifted and we got to see the whole glorious thing!

I mean — there's no other word for it — just glorious!!  Plus the stormy clouds heading out made for a most fantastic sunset:

I can't ever get enough of that sight, even though it's bittersweet (because it means we're headed back to the marina).  Todd and I talk about getting a houseboat some day.  Not sure what I'd do with my fabric stash, but otherwise, I can imagine it!

Saturday was a stitch-in with my stitcher's group.  We had a good turn out.  

I brought my machine (I brought it to retreat and to a stitch-in ... the gals thought the world was ending) and worked on the top-stitching of Ezra's pillow sham.

Today is our last day of service at Essential Church.  We've been there for a while; nearly three years.  I will miss worshiping and serving with this group.  We will take a furlough through the end of the year.  With Ezra on the way and both Todd's dad and my folks struggling health-wise, we need to have a little more flexibility.  It's all in God's perfect timing!

:)

because it wasn't enough . . .

You know how creating begets creating? That's often how retreat is for me. I spend four or five days immersed in the craft, and when I come home, I just want to do MORE. So I got home, August was knocking on the door (and it's here now!) and I decide it's time to take out the patriotic decor of the RV and move to a more summery theme.  For me, that's sunflowers.  And I'd seen this really darling sunflower pillow done in wools.

So I did it.  And decorated around it.  Haha!  

Really, sunflowers are a thing for me . . . I didn't realize how much so until I took stock of how many sunflower themed pieces I'd created!  :)

Then on Saturday, I took a Boho Bag class.  It was a ton of fun ... and the class was filled with a lot of the gals I'd been on retreat with ... just seven days ago!

This was the second time I've taken a class at Sweet Home Quilting.  They've got great space. The instructor was teaching her own pattern, so that's always a plus!  It's a very out of the box project, so I struggled with it a little . . .

Front.

Back.

I have a better idea of the general idea of it now.  Free motion quilting is hard for me, so that didn't help! But it's a cute bag, and fun to make!

I also got the baby quilt quilted, so you know what that means . . .

Say what you want ... but that is the easiest way to keep control of that roll of binding!

The end is in sight!

And just because you need a little splash of Edith in your life . . . 

Of the four group pictures Joc took of me and the girls, one garnered a decent smile.  The rest? What can I say?  She's the youngest.  For now.  

:)

april showers . . .

Bring May flowers . . .

My newest addition to my teacup collection.  Rather appropriate for May, don't you think?  I saw it in a spread in the current issue of TeaTime Magazine.  They kill me.  LOL!  :)

Our rhododendrons and our water lilies are both blooming out!

 

I love all the color this season brings with it!

This last weekend was a weekend of tiny dancers.  The girls had their spring ballet recital; it was Edith's first!  They all did a marvelous job and it was a weekend well spent!

Aren't they darling?  They're signed up for next year!  Prima ballerinas!

:)