Wandering Camera

Over at Whims and Fancies - there is a hosting called Wandering Camera .. I loved this last year when Soma hosted it - and thought - I will join in again.... using.... My Cell Phone!!

and so.... here is my version of June's Wandering Camera...hope you have a cup of coffee

Or if you are me... a glass of ICE WATER!!!


This is from my deck - watching storms move our way. I love the Panoramic feature of my phone!

On some of our many trips to Denver

This hay bale gets decorated every so often

Cookie Monster is my favorite!

Down in Denver on the Metro State University Campus

they re purposed some old buildings 

I thought this one was cool

Out in my pasture

This Fence brace really isn't needed anymore

but I like the way it looks so I won't let them take it down

Someday! I am going to take my quilts there on days like this

This was watching a storm come over my house

It was freaky

Oh Look - my crooked house

So there is something to remember about taking a Panoramic photo

Don't shake!! go slow and quit moving funny

But you get the gist!

Three of my buddies

I fondly call them my Chocolates

They don't get it

We were coming home from a trip and just got so lucky

to catch this. I loved the look of the sun setting and the clouds with the train

And you know - 

My Fire

Just cuz - this is a cell phone photo!!!

At a roping

We roped and watched this storm come in

The last roper went just as it started to rain

Perfect timing right?

I was asked to take photos of a family

and they took me to their ranch

I really didn't want to leave

and I do want to go back!

Well I wandered a few more spots but these were the most interesting

Quilt of Valor Inspiration

Happy Late Morning!!
It was so cool this morning we got up and went riding - and then I remembered.... It was Wednesday!! I need my Quilts of Valor!!!

So here you go:
(I'm eating my cereal too - so if you see me spill.... blame it on the dog ok??)


so this first one - the blocks in the center were a part of a block drive and were sorta the leftovers.... the pinwheels were made by the wife of a WWII veteran - and Charlene in our sew group put them together - I love how it turned out!!

This one - is two pics - the front and the back. Kim B made it - totally - pieced it, quilted it and!! Bound it!!

This is a nother one that Kim  did - I think she needs to take more strings from our string bin tho and make another!! I love these type of quilts!

This one Kathy and Connie made

Its really beautiful!

and the back! 

and andother by the Dynamic Duo!!

Connie and Kathy did this one too

Hope you all have a great day!! Get a little quilting in... have some fun.  Me.... I've had fun already - so the day is good!!

Quilts of Valor - Being Awarded!

You all love to make these Awesome Quilts of Valor - and so do I! But the best part is getting to see them awarded.... and hearing how awesome it is!!


So -
Here are some photos of some recent awards

The guy in the White Shirt Doing the Awarding of these two Quilts of Valor is a VietNam Vet -
We awarded his quilt a few years ago - and he joined our team - its awesome!!

Don't the smiles just sorta say it all?

I was telling the story about Quilts of Valor - and told the Story of this quilt, all the while with another VietNam Veteran looking on... When I got to the point that said we made this quilt for him

 and I called his name - he was a tad shocked - it was way cool!!

Here is us - getting all ready for our Sew day - well some are overachievers and were already started!!! WE had a good group 25 quilters that day!!

Go Forth and Quilt!!!

Fire Burns, Fences and Fun

A follow up to my fire on the prairie post.....

So the thing about fire.... its way unpredictable...
Check out how it burned to this fence line.... but then stopped

but if you notice in the top right - it burned again 

And my Pano... i just thought it was so strange

A few posts looked like this - on our fences - I think we had 4 to replace - so not that bad!!!!

Then you know -

Black and white

Just because

A look over the pasture

maybe you can see the erratic burn pattern

but its all good - killed some sage brush

the grass will ( fingers crossed) be green when it comes back

Another sort of pano shot - just cuz

Where they firefighters had to cut through fences - they left these little orange flags. I did not know they did that - and was pretty glad they did - so easy to figure out what had to be fixed first!

You had to dig out the old posts - and wierdly some of them had continued burning under the ground

We teased that it was like grown ups making sand castles!!

and then! We were done!  oh well we had to replace a gate too -

but that wasn't as much fun

Then we got to go play

My girl

and My Girls Momma

we rode and rechecked things that are easier on horse than on truck ( or in truck? or truckback?)

Anyways it was a great way to end the day - relaxing and knowing everything was fenced back where it should be ;-)

Fire and a somewhat sleepless night

Wednesday Evening started Out pretty normal  - we did our chores, we rode a little bit, we talked about what we were going to watch in the evening .. you know summer - you get to stay up later. ( why I have no idea - someone still makes us get up really early - but the idea is there)

We sat down to eat about 8:30 and heard fire trucks go by. Not uncommon - there are some pretty bad accidents out here. and the we started seeing more lightning - and hearing the booms.

About 30 minutes later more fire trucks.   Hmmm - this may be more truck than our department has, and then we noticed they were trying to get on the ranch one section to the east of us.

Heading out I looked south and could see why:

This was just up over our hill

And ps - these are all cell phone pics 

As it got darker - it got meaner looking

and we had winds of 30-45 mph

unfortunately the winds decided to turn in the direction of my house

My husband wasn;t worried 

Me - I might have been a little panicked

Here is where the panic started

This really blurry photo

those oil tank batteries

they are 1/4 mile from my house

And then I really panicked

( ok not really , but sort of)

We had a fire truck and a tinder truck come up to our house and get between the fire and our structures

My neighbor showed up with his MASSIVE tractor and 30 foot disc

ready to start a fire line

and we knew we had mowed all around our location,

and that we had removed weeds around our fence lines

and that we had about a 100 ft strip replanted with native grass that was not quite growing yet

So we really had fingers crossed that all the fire mitigation would work

but....

it did!!

That fire hit our low spots and the other fire trucks and firefighters that were on it had a chance to get ahead of it.  my firefighters ( Yep - you know me well - I had claimed them) said we see a chance to get ahead of it - and they took off that way

it had gone east of us too - so between the 15 departments and over 80 personel

by 2 am it was 100% contained

They say the whole fire burned 8000 acres 

mostly on my neighbors to the south

it looks pretty desolate

yesterday we spent making sure everything was contained

today we will fix fences for real

and praise our firefighters

 and that is why I have no quilts to show..... yep - totally my excuse this week ;)

PS -  I should mention - there are 2 other huge fires in our state right now, and another 1 that is on the wyoming/colorado border

QOV Wednesday

Good Wednesday Morning!

Got a little Quilt of Valor Inspiration for you this morning.

The first two are Tops

Charlene and Bernie 

Participated in the QOV Mystery called The Patriot

and these two are their creations!

On one of our Sew Days we used strings and made the half square blocks

I was given a set to make a quilt with 

and I had a Star Idea

So I made 4 squares for each star 

and 

Ta Da!

PS - I quilted it

It will be bound at the next sew day

This cool one came from Nancy C in Loveland CO

I really like that white background fabric!

This beauty was pieced by the Tumbleweed Quilters in Arizona

it was Quilted by Jackie W

Isn't it cool!!!

Hope you all have a chance to stitch today!!

Enjoy!!

I sewed!

I did it!! We finally had a few hours in which we had really nothing pressing to do -  or at least I didn't! I delegated and made everyone else do chores - all on the pretense of making dinner.... but hey! Whatever works!!

But first!
We basketballed!

I say we - because altho he does the real work ( the kid - white 32) I do the driving, and the preparing the cooler, and the mapping and the hard work of sitting the bench.... so I think I count too in the *we*  ( ha ha)

And then!! I to the rows sewn together on this baby!! Whoot Whoot - I put them on the ironing board so that early this morning I could iron. Last night at 98deg - it wasn;t happening!

And I got all these prepped

I have a bunch of churn dashes started ( Botton Right)

And in the half way stage

and almost finished ;-)

And then!! I started on these star blocks. Our QOV group ( thanks to Connie and Kathy) made 80 plus stars last week, and she had more cut to make - so I took a pack.  Our group is making the stars -
Connie and Kathy are assembling into the cool quilt below!

and today - I am back at the Quilting machine. My Client sent me the neatest Round Robin style quilt... and that;s my goal for today!

Linking to:
Design Wall Monday
Monday Making
Main Crush Monday
Moving it forward

Quilts of Valor from Colorado

You all - there may be a light at the end of my tunnel.... life got a little hectic there - and it may not be slowing down - But - I got to stitch some - so it's all good.....

AND ! I have some awesome quilts to share with you!!

All Three of these amazing babies were made by Judy V in Colorado!! She is a power house I tell you!!

This one: is the Mystery we did called The Patriot - the clues are still in my craftsy site

and look at that - wrapped in our love - I love these Women Veterans!!

Hope you all are enjoying summer. 
and maybe stitching a bit????

June ( ackkk) : One Monthly Goal

I was thinking in my head last week, that I really needed to sit down and decide my June One Monthly Goal - and then Bam! June was here - and I hadn't decided.  The indecision - oh my!!

I ( unlike any other quilter ha ha!)  want to do it all, and finish it all in a day - and look amazing while doing it.... but alas - I have narrowed my goal.....

I toughened up - I made a decision - and NO! I was not influenced by the fact that this project is actually on my design wall - so it would be ludicrous to remove it ( right???)

here it is:

This!  I have enough blocks for another quilt too - so since I didn't make the blocks - I am expanding my goals - Piece this top , add borders, piece the other, add borders.... MAKE A BACKING - and..... If I really want a reward - Quilt them..... I am going for it folks - keep your fingers crossed, and send me well wishes.


Did I tell you that June is one of *the* craziest months for us this year??  Seriously - I am missing those days when the kids were younger and our big goal for the day was to get chores done and play in the pool....

ah well - It;s all good....

Linking with

and to:
Design Wall Monday
Monday Making
main Crush Monday