Free Day Friday

Good morning, my friends. It seems I needed a day off from sewing yesterday. It was such a pretty day, and I didn't want to spend the afternoon in my windowless basement sewing room. There was some time for slow-stitching in the morning. These Le Jardin blocks are small, but they take more time to stitch than expected.

After that, I decided to enjoy the sunshine, and I headed out for a walk to the top of our hill. As I walked down our driveway, I noticed a wild cherry tree in bloom. It makes small cherries. Since we have domestic cherry trees, we don't do anything with this fruit. I'm sure the birds appreciate it.

Here's a close-up of its flowers. These are in bloom everywhere right now.

As I walked along, I could hear woodpeckers and the sound of pine cones cracking open to spread their seed. This one is about the size of a golf ball.

Along the driveway we share with our neighbors, I noticed these cuties. These were planted by our former neighbor who moved to Mobile, Alabama, several years ago. It was nice of her to decorate the driveway before she left.

A little farther on, I saw a yellow version.

Reaching the public road, I took pictures of every blooming thing as I went. These are ubiquitous in this part of the world. They're tiny...about the size of a dime. My phone tells me this is "Bellis." It's a type of wild aster.

According to my phone, this next one is "Amelanchier," or what we also call "serviceberry."

This next one is wild geranium. I pull it up when it comes up in our landscape. One person's weed is another's wildflower.

This next one is Oregon Grape, which is the state flower of Oregon. Eventually, it will produce purple berries.

Oregon grape berries are edible, although bitter, I'm told. They don't have a lot of sugar. They are high in Vitamin C. I'm told the best way to utilize the Oregon grape is in jelly, which is supposed to be delicious. I've never tried it. Oregon grape is also used for various medicinal purposes, including treating skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema, as well as aiding digestion and supporting liver function. It's also used traditionally by Native American tribes for stomach problems, hemorrhages, and arthritis. 

Moving on, this is a huge English laurel hedge. It produces tiny flowers.

This next one is Scotch Broom, notoriously bad for hay fever sufferers. There's a large acreage at the top of the hill that was clear cut some years back. The original owner was planning to sell the property, but had it logged off and sold the timber prior to sale. The Scotch Broom has taken over the field. It's pretty when it blooms in abundance, but not good for people with allergies.

I walked on the opposite side of the road as I made my way back. Areas were shadier there, and I caught this cluster of trilliums.

Here's another one over here.

Back home, I tried again for a shot of the tiny red flowers on our Japanese maple mentioned in yesterday's post. The bees love these. They're no bigger than the head of a glass pin.

Also, I noticed the first flowers appearing on our plum tree. It bloomed at a bad time last year, and we didn't get a single plum from it. It's the first time it failed to produce any fruit in the many years since we planted it. I use these plums in all kinds of recipes. The plums aren't usually ready until after Labor Day, and so I'm hopeful we'll get a good harvest this year.

Okay, and so the only time I spent in the sewing room yesterday was devoted to digging through my stash and pulling fabrics I can use to sew the "Kitchen Herbs" blocks into a finished quilt top. This will be my focus today.

And, this being Sewturday, I'm devoting my day to sewing. Although we were promised good weather through the weekend, it rained this morning. We're told the rest of the day will be better, but we're expecting more rain tomorrow. 

Oh yes, and I almost forgot. I shared this image on Facebook yesterday.

As I told my Facebook friends, I broke down and bought a tripod for my iPhone. I wanted it for our upcoming trip to Alaska. I've always resisted the selfie stick, and I hate the way selfies turn out when they're held at arm's length. This thing is a two-in-one tripod/selfie stick with a remote shutter. It connects via Bluetooth, and I'm often so frustrated trying to pair things with Bluetooth that I've been tempted to slit my own throat a time or two. So, my new tripod/selfie stick came yesterday. I took it out of the box, paired it up, and took this shot. Magic. Amazing. This is me being happy it didn't drive me to drinking.

That's all I have for you today. Tomorrow, I'm hoping I'll have a finished quilt top to show you.

We're not protesting today. We're low on energy. If you're heading for a protest this morning, please be safe. I like this advice:

Be careful out there, my friends. Let's meet back here tomorrow.