a dusting of snow

 This winter we have had several light snows. Just enough to frost everything in white.

The Puss doesn't like it though. I wonder if she thinks that I control the weather and did this  to vex her.

A bit of pink in the cloudy winter sky.

More pink in the sky beyond the Contorted Filbert.

The Filbert is at it's best right now...covered with catkins and showing it's gnarly branches.

 

The snow adds a finishing touch.

It is beauty to my eyes but I will be watching for some greenery to start pushing up through the ground showing us a change of season isn't far off.

a day trip to Madison

 Earlier this month Lonnie and I were getting tired of being at home and so we decided to go for a drive to find something different to look at.

Since I like to have a plan (but stay flexible with it), I chose Madison Indiana as a destination. It's a good distance for a day trip and Lonnie's son had just been saying how some of the sleepy little towns in southern Indiana have really been growing and developing. It would be a chance to see what he was talking about.

So, we crossed into Indiana and took State Rd 62 on up through Charlestown. It had been years since we'd been up that way and yes, it has really grown. Lots more housing developments and every single food and store franchise one could think of.

From there to Madison it was more of the scenic countryside drive that we like.

Here we are in Madison at the riverfront.  Not a good day for taking photos...cloudy and gloomy skys.

Just down river, is a coal burning power plant. That's the chimney, constantly streaming smoke.

Not so pretty to look at now but this place will be jam packed with people in July when the Madison Regatta is held.  

Looking across to the Kentucky side of  the Ohio River you can see farms and homes there along the bottom land.  Then, look up at the homes on the crest of the hill. What a spectacular view they must have.

Here on the Madison side of the river, historic old homes.  This is the Lanier Mansion. It's normally open for tours but I'm not sure right now, because of Corona virus.

Also along the river are a lot of small parks for families...playgrounds, basketball courts and so forth.

Wouldn't you know it though...not one had an unlocked restroom😖.

In the distance is the courthouse dome...

We drove all the main streets of town, looking at the old homes.  I didn't really get many pictures because I was driving.

Here is the Broadway Fountain.  Not operating in the cold weather months, of course.  

On summer evenings they have live music and concessions for a "bring your own chair" event in this area.

While driving around, we noticed a place called Red Pepperoni, always with lots of cars crammed in the lot...a trusty indicator that the food must be good.

We stopped in for a pizza and a salad.  It was good. Lonnie is pretty particular about his pizza and said he thought the cheese should be better quality...but he ate every bite!  Service was good too.

We drove along the river once more then headed for the bridge back to Kentucky to take a different route home

 We agreed we would like to come back to Madison in warm weather and walk around the historic area and visit the museum and winery..

It was just a small trip but it did us a world of good.  A nice break from our "stay-at-home-because-of-the-virus" routine.

grocery pick up

 I 've been trying the free pick up service at Kroger.  Partly to avoid COVID exposure and partly because it seems to take forever for me to get through the store.  

A lot of that is just because I take so much time looking at stuff but also...sloooow check out process, things not ringing up as marked or had been placed by the wrong shelf tag.

The self checkouts are okay if you only have a few things but the more items you have, the more likely you will run into a glitch and have to stand there forever waiting for an overworked attendant to come and push the magic buttons to straighten it out.

Some of the good things about picking up groceries - It's easy to compare brands, sizes and prices when you are selecting things online.

  

For instance, this time, I was buying three different spices. At the store I would have to look at each brand name and find them alphabetically to compare.

 Online, I quickly search "oregano", see what they offer and click the one I want.

The price is clear so there is no squatting and squinting trying to read a bar code on a tiny shelf tag.

For pick up, you only have notify them you are there (in your pre-chosen time slot) ,pop open your trunk and they'll put your order in your car. (In my case I had to get out to open the back door of the Jeep although I'm sure the attendant would have opened it if I'd asked).

They check with you to be sure you are okay with any substitutions they have had to make for out of stock items.  You can even use coupons if you have them.

At that time they charge the credit card you provided online - you don't have to take it out.

Then you're all set to drive away with your goods.

I like the paper bags. Not so easy to carry but good for other uses around the house.

Most times, all items in my order have been well chosen. I've ordered fresh fruit and veggies with no problems. I haven't bought much from the meat department other than pre-packaged ground beef and my frozen Thanksgiving turkey.

But this time, I got this... just what I figured I'd get by letting someone else pick out my groceries.

A dented can...a really dented can.  This can should have never even been on the store shelf. 

And the order picker had to have noticed how bad this is.  Is this what they would have chosen for their personal use?  Don't think so.

So, I had to spend some time on an online chat with Kroger to get my $1.25 refunded.

I'll probably continue to use the order pick up occasionally, but if I need meats or produce I'll go inside.

first finished quilt of the New Year

 In 2020 I finished only 2 smallish quilts (and quilted and bound a group quilt). I did get 4 other tops put together including this one.

Even though this one was quilted in 2020, I didn't get the binding sewn until New Years Day. So I'm going to count it as my first quilt finish of 2021.

I have been waiting for a sunny day to get some outdoor photos of the quilt. When the sun popped out  today, I hurried out the door and started snapping pictures but the sunshine was only a teaser and the clouds moved over again.

 

The main print fabric and the blue fabric are from a stack of fabric that the Sasquatch surprised me with one Christmas.  It's a heavier weight fabric so it makes a nice weighty quilt.

The print fabric was my favorite so I didn't want to cut it up small.  I originally came up with an idea that would have involved having the red strips of fabric going all different angles but after I put the first strip in, I liked it too well to take a chance on goofing it up...so did it like this instead.

I will try my original idea another time.

It's throw sized at 45" x 66".

For the back I used this blue stripe zig zag.  

I will be keeping this one for myself. I think it will be perfect for using to stay snug while sitting on the back porch on a spring or fall evening.

I did my regular meandering quilting on my domestic machine.

It's been a bright and cheery, mood lifting quilt to work on.

My next sewing task is to trim and re-hem Lonnie's two new pair of corduroys and whatever else is in the mending basket.  

Then back to quilting!

winter walk in the woods

We had a nice sunny day the Sunday after Christmas...perfect for a walk outside.  It was somewhat windy but I was ready to get out of the house for awhile and away from the kitchen with all those tempting leftover holiday goodies.

I put on a warm fleece scarf and some gloves. Of course my cat, Puss, wants to make sure she doesn't miss anything so she came along with me.

We went into the woods next door....

Not too far though. I am pretty sure it's still hunting season and I've seen what happens to the deer!

Don't want to end up like that!

Puss has some funny expressions. Carefully analyzing a scent on a stick above. Below, I believe she is channeling her ferocious wild ancestors.

As far as I know she doesn't go in the woods by herself but she really enjoys going with me...smelling everything and climbing and jumping.

I didn't do a lot of actual walking...more standing and watching her. But it was nice to feel some sun on my face and get some fresh air.

Puss didn't rustle up any little animals to chase but she did find a grasshopper.  Still alive even and trying to warm up in the sun..  He was too slow moving for Puss to bother with - no challenge there.

Back in the house to clean the widdle feets and warm up at the heat vent.

Next up - a nice nap!