March has been an "up and down" month, with lots of cold weather, some snow, very little rain, hints of Spring, and some days of mild temperatures. The snow melted slowly over the weeks, and now the lawns are visible, and need raking. One clump of daffodils near the house, protected under a shrub, has grown to show the beginning of buds. The ice on the pond has recently melted and the Red Wing blackbirds came back on March 7, when it was still bitter cold, and the pond was still frozen. Lately the robins have shown up and have been hopping around the grass, in large numbers. The redwing blackbirds can be heard singing from the tree tops. We have stopped feeding the birds because the bears are probably out of hibernation, and we don't want to attract them with food.
Barre has been checking on his seedling evergreen trees, to see how they survived the winter. Most of them did, thanks to a long period of good snow cover. The water lilies in the greenhouse are beginning to grow again and are under his daily watch. He is also busy with writing projects. I have filled my time with quilt guild meetings, and some sewing for our guild charity, as well as a quilt top. The days pass quickly, it seems, and I also have been on three "road trips" with friends (who quilt)-- our destination quilt shops, a quilt show, and always lunch afterwards.
We finished the UNH home hockey season on a downer--with our team losing the last two games to BC. Thus we could not win the championship of Hockey East. They have proceeded to the NCAA playoffs, and tomorrow will play a very strong team from Grand Forks, ND. We are going to watch that game on TV, and hope they win without us present at the rink in NH. We hope they survive the first round of competition.
Our latest news from Texas is learning that Noel has just started taking hockey lessons in a class of 5 year olds. She is the only girl in the group and had her first lesson this past week. All the equipment was provided by the pro hockey team, The Dallas Stars, and some players were at the rink to help the beginners learn how to put on all the equipment. There are about 10 children in the class. It will be interesting to learn about her progress. It would be fun to see her at the rink.
The calendar says "spring" and we are beginning to believe it. We got spoiled with three weeks of summer in Australia!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Home to the hills
All of our plane connections were on time, and we arrived in Albany at 11:30pm Friday. Harold was there to greet us and hand me the jacket I had left in his car three weeks previously. I needed it. It was cold, after summer in Sydney. It also, seemed strange to see snow on the ground.
Neither of us got much sleep on the trip home, but when we hit the sack a little after one o'clock, it was lights out until mid-morning. We managed to get a move on, and after lunch we left for New Hampshire and the last home UNH hockey game of the season! It was a nice sunny day for a drive, and we could admire the snow, and mountains on the way to Durham. UNH won the game and we happily went to the Fralicks home for an overnight and wonderful breakfast in the morning. When we left them late in the morning we expected to have some snow greet us on the way home, but such was not the case. Mike kept the snowfall records for Barre while we were away, and he will no doubt have more days of snow to record in the month of March.
Neither of us got much sleep on the trip home, but when we hit the sack a little after one o'clock, it was lights out until mid-morning. We managed to get a move on, and after lunch we left for New Hampshire and the last home UNH hockey game of the season! It was a nice sunny day for a drive, and we could admire the snow, and mountains on the way to Durham. UNH won the game and we happily went to the Fralicks home for an overnight and wonderful breakfast in the morning. When we left them late in the morning we expected to have some snow greet us on the way home, but such was not the case. Mike kept the snowfall records for Barre while we were away, and he will no doubt have more days of snow to record in the month of March.
Friday the 27th
Today we leave Betty and Surrey, and fly through so many time zones. We leave Sydney at 3:15pm on the 27th, and arrive in Albany at 11:30pm on the 27th. We had the suitcases packed and ready in the morning, and left for the airport, Betty our driver, around noon.
Betty surprised me by taking me to visit a fabric shop nearby in Loftus, a place I had visited with her on another visit. It was fun to see such a variety of fabric, notions, patterns, etc. for knitting, croching, and other hobbies besides quilting. We admired all the available and colorful fabrics, but left only with a few "souvenir" fat quarters, which Betty later gave to me for my "birthday".
We were so glad that we had a vacation with Betty and Surrey, (in summer) and were just " at home" enjoying the days with them, and the rest of the family. No hustle or bustle as a tourist. It was a very relaxing time for chat, laughter, sewing, TV programs, ( including cricket), the water lily project, and just being together as friends. They are very special people in our lives.
Betty surprised me by taking me to visit a fabric shop nearby in Loftus, a place I had visited with her on another visit. It was fun to see such a variety of fabric, notions, patterns, etc. for knitting, croching, and other hobbies besides quilting. We admired all the available and colorful fabrics, but left only with a few "souvenir" fat quarters, which Betty later gave to me for my "birthday".
We were so glad that we had a vacation with Betty and Surrey, (in summer) and were just " at home" enjoying the days with them, and the rest of the family. No hustle or bustle as a tourist. It was a very relaxing time for chat, laughter, sewing, TV programs, ( including cricket), the water lily project, and just being together as friends. They are very special people in our lives.
Thursday notes
Early in the morning we again joined Betty and Surrey for a morning at the Botanic Garden with Surrey. This morning, Thursday, we arrived just in time to see the Queen Mary 2 being docked in the harbor across the street from the Botanic Garden. We luckily had our camera with us and walked closer to the harbor for some pictures. There were many people on deck waiting for the opportunity to leave the ship for a day in Sydney. We could see them taking pictures of the harbor, and the Garden. This ship was so large it could not dock at Circular Quay, as the Queen Victoria had. It made the size of the military ships look like small toys. We were told there were over 3000 passengers and employees on the ship.
After we arrived home and finished lunch Betty and I took the three finished Rainbow Connection quilts and went to the post office to mail them to Victoria. They will be given to the Red Cross who will pass them on to victims of the bush fires. 2500 homes were destroyed, and many people left homeless. When the 4th quilt is finished (soon), it will also be sent to the Red Cross.
Betty and I spent the rest of the afternoon upstairs gabbing, while Betty was sewing her next project--a lovely quilt for her friend's baby. Each block has a picture that relates to a children's nursery rhyme, which Betty photographed on special paper. Lots of colorful fabric pieces added to each block make this a very interesting quilt.
After we arrived home and finished lunch Betty and I took the three finished Rainbow Connection quilts and went to the post office to mail them to Victoria. They will be given to the Red Cross who will pass them on to victims of the bush fires. 2500 homes were destroyed, and many people left homeless. When the 4th quilt is finished (soon), it will also be sent to the Red Cross.
Betty and I spent the rest of the afternoon upstairs gabbing, while Betty was sewing her next project--a lovely quilt for her friend's baby. Each block has a picture that relates to a children's nursery rhyme, which Betty photographed on special paper. Lots of colorful fabric pieces added to each block make this a very interesting quilt.
Wednesday, Feb. 25
The days are dwindling down to our departure for home. This morning I decided it was time to finish my contribution to the latest Rainbow Connection project. I spent the morning "stitching in the ditch" on the borders of the 12 quilt blocks. Betty will do likewise on the star that is central to each block. The binding is the last job for completion, but I will be leaving before that is ready to be hemmed. After finishing with the quilt, I sewed four small blocks using Betty's fabric scraps. They will be made into a 12 inch square, which I am taking home for a souvenir of Betty's variety of fabrics. I will be sending her four blocks of the same size made of my scrap fabrics, and eventually, a quilt will be made with a variety of blocks from other quilters in the group.
Later in the afternoon, Ellen and her family visited. The boys started playing with various toys, went out to feed the chooks with Rod, and occupied themselves, with a little help from the adults. Before Betty arrived home from work, we had decided to have the family stay for "take out" supper. We chose Thai food, and had a good time tasting a variety of dishes, and enjoying more time with everyone.
Later in the afternoon, Ellen and her family visited. The boys started playing with various toys, went out to feed the chooks with Rod, and occupied themselves, with a little help from the adults. Before Betty arrived home from work, we had decided to have the family stay for "take out" supper. We chose Thai food, and had a good time tasting a variety of dishes, and enjoying more time with everyone.
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