It was time to post the winner for the final Bag Lady stitch-along in my last post, and I completely forgot. So, without further delay, Mr. Random has spoken and called the last month's winner for:
#2--Sharon!
Congratulations, Sharon! I have your address, and I'll be putting your needle threader in the mail within the next couple of days. Thanks to all who stitched along over the past year. It was fun.
We've reached Crystal River, Florida, now and we're having the most wonderful (and busy) visit with my email pen pal friend of many years, Karin. Backing up just a tad to yesterday, we left Little Manatee River State Park yesterday morning. When I brought in the slides on the RV, huge chunks of ice broke off and fell to the ground. They're a little incongruent with the palm fronds there, but that's the current state of Florida.
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It gets a little warmer with each passing day, although we're told it will be colder as we head a little farther north for our next stop. One of my Facebook friends asked me if I could sense the price of oranges and orange juice rising in this cold weather. Actually, we've only passed one small orange grove in all our time in Florida. It makes me wonder how many oranges are actually being grown in Florida these days. Here's the one grove we passed. I had to work fast to avoid missing the shot...that's how small the grove was.
As we turned the last corner on our way to Karin's house yesterday, we came upon a pair of Sandhill Cranes walking down the street as if they owned the place...which, I guess, they do. These are the first we've seen. What magnificent birds!
Later on, we saw the same pair at Karin's backyard feeder.
Karin, for her part gave us the most wonderful gifts. She's an expert machine embroiderer. Look at these pretties. This tee towel design is perfect in both stitching and sentiment.
I confessed to Karin I'd only done just a little bit of machine embroidery, and I can promise that nothing I did looked as good as this. Also, this roll of TP...in case you've had a crappy day. Very cute.
She explained that she's done these TP rolls as gift exchanges and she tucks lottery cards into the roll. What a great idea and a perfect way to showcase her skill with machine embroidery. Also, she treated us to the most delicious ziti with sausage dinner. Her husband, Dick, grilled the sausage, and then she added it to the pasta, layered with cheese and sauce for a great dinner. Also, a beautiful and colorful green salad. We haven't been eating a lot of vegetables on our trip...especially lettuce...because it doesn't keep well in our RV refrigerator. A beautiful green salad was a welcome treat. Oh yes...and pumpkin pie...swoon! Thank you, Karin.
The only other thing that was accomplished yesterday was to finish off the second block for Heart and Home quilt.
Next up, I'll be working on the next block for the Sundress quilt, but that will probably have to wait a couple of days. We're busy seeing the sights and keeping a weather eye out for manatees. More in my next post.
15 comments:
Thank you sweetie. Very pretty gifts received - what home (of any kind) isn't complete without the decorative TP.
It looks like you had a fun visit. Those sandhills are some of my favorite birds; I like the chatter they make. We've made a few birding trips to see the large flocks in Nebraska as they are migrating. Have fun on your outings!
Embroidered TP? Now I really have seen everything! How fun! Hope you have a great visit and get to see some cool stuff.
Sounds like a fun trip you are having! Stay warm! I saw some pictures of snow in Florida the other day. We have lots of snow here in Ontario, Canada. Cute bee hive block!
Love the embroidered piece you finished for Heart and Home quilt, and those gifts are lovely. Sorry your visit to Florida came with our cold snap, Crystal River is a lovely area my sister resides there. There are quite a few large orange groves in the central part of the state, though we grow them here in FL. most of the oranges in the supermarkets are from California, which I always found a bit odd.
Love the Home Sweet Home block... the red heart is perfect!
And those gifts you received were so special!
Beautiful photo of the Sandhill crane--and how delightful to met up with friends and to have a great time--enjoy, di
beautiful birds! thanks for sharing. Just as Deb mentioned that most of the oranges come from California, Grant County Washington state produces more potatoes than any where in Idaho. Hmmmm. Sounds like a great visit in person with friends!
The Sandhill Cranes are fabulous ! I like the red top knot!Enjoy your visit with your friend and remember we will be here when you get back!
The Sand Hill Crane is a very cool looking bird, just cruisin' along the byway.
Nice gifties from Karin and the block looks fab. Enjoy your visit!!
That TP is cute and I love the tea towel. That bird is very majestic and beautiful. The block that you finished is so pretty. Your embroidery is very pretty.
Fun and useful gifts. I haven't seen the TP like that for quite a long time. The crane really is a beautiful bird. Wonder what kind of food does she put in the feeder to attract them. Thanks for sharing your trip experiences with us.
We often see sandhill cranes in rural areas in the summer and early fall here in MI. What I want to know is how she managed to machines embroidery on a roll of TP? There used to be a lot more orange and other citrus groves in Florida, but developers bought up the groves and tore out the vegetation to build like condos, apartments, etc.
The sandhill crane is very majestic. I love your heart and home block and I really want to do the sundress quilt but I must finish up the bag ladies first.
I know Florida produces oranges but as a young child (I’m getting quite old, I guess) I remember California being THE orange producing state. There was a cheer for school sports that started California organges, Texas cactus.... and I learned that in New Jersey. I live in California now and you find oranges in many places from the San Joaquin Valley, south and to the coast. Most of the crops I’ve seen are on the eastern side of the valley. But, as many things go, other crops come in vogue. It was cotton, then potatoes, grapes, carrots and I think the current obsession is nuts. The coastal areas are still salad type of products. But like Florida many high producing crop lands are being paved over with buildings for work and homes. The Silicon Valley used to be known as the "Valley of Hearts Delight". Between the weather being so moderate and the high production of fruits (apricots, plumes cherries and other stone fruit) canneries were part of the industrial landscape. We now have Google, Apple etc as our major employers. Time marches on and new ideas, people and obsessions change our landscape.
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