Mini-Reunion and Walk in the Woods

Welcome Autumn! The cooler temperatures have hit us and it is absolutely delightful. The days are clear (no fires anywhere!) and warm, the colors vibrant, and evenings and morning are cool and crisp. The furnace even kicked on last night - and we have it set at 66 degrees.  Life is good!

This is just a miscellaneous post (no quilting), but it’s all good stuff that I want to share. If you’re here just for the sewing and quilting, there’s nothing about that. Except that friends
Marilyn and OD, who are visiting from Kenya, loved the Baby Safari quilt I made for their son S (see earlier post this month).

Last night Bruce and I went out to dinner with Marilyn and OD and their son, plus my son Ryan, DDIL Kim and DGD Lauren. We had a great time! The baby is so jovial and was just the happiest little man. And my, he’s grown in the 2 months since we’ve seen him!  Bruce had already met Marilyn last summer and was looking forward to meeting OD. They enjoyed each other and sat by one another in the restaurant, talking about food, beer, animals and more. We all just gabbed and gabbed, catching up.... It was so good to see them again!

L-R: Lauren, Marilyn, Kim, Cathy, Baby S and OD

After dinner, we went to Kim and Ryan’s house, where the baby could play and crawl around (and maybe some grandma person did too).

And here is OD (“King Dangerous”) in his favorite chair of Kim’s. He remembered it from their visit last year. Anyway, he’s holding the walking stick that Kim bought for herself while we were in Kenya this summer. OD’s mom did the beading on it. So, I snapped a picture of him holding it so that he could show his mom, whom we all adore, to let her know that the walking stick with her beautiful beaded handwork was safe and loved!

And the irony of Kim having a walking stick is delightful; she’s a physical therapist. But still, if she ever needs a cane or walking stick ...







We ate apple pie, laughed, took pictures and talked until we all regrettably decided we’d better get home and to bed. We have tentatively planned another family trip to Kenya when Lauren graduates from high school in 3.5 years.

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Today I’ve started a bit of autumn decorating. Here is my favorite vignette: I was able to find a new raven this year to replace the old one that had lost its beak, and will NEVERMORE sit atop the Poe book ......  (get it?)  Oh, BTW, “karibu" - with the emphasis on the last syllable - means “Welcome” in Maasai.

We also replaced our porch light, house numbers, mailbox and doorbell. The old ones were original to the house, built in 1963. The light is motion-sensor and doorbell is lighted. I’m tickled that even small things like this can update a look and generate so much enjoyment.

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Often on Wednesdays, Cousin Kim comes by for a visit. We go walking, out to lunch, and then sew for a couple hours. These pictures were taken about 2-3 weeks ago when we went walking at Wheeler Farm, a county-owned park/historical homestead a block away. I’ve talked about Wheeler Farm many times over the past, and worked there after I retired from my career. For one summer I was a Summer Camp Counselor (the Arts & Crafts Counselor), then was the bookkeeper for the farm for 4 years. Check out the Wheeler Farm label for more Wheeler Farm posts.

But here are the pictures from our walk this month. So many changes, and all for the better! They’ve added a native meadow and native woodland, botanical walk, teaching gardens, beehives and so much more.

 

Cousin Kim

Beehives

And of course, we visited the animals...

I think this horse was getting a vet check.

The ponds and creek were lovely, as always.

Below is the Ice House near the north pond. It’s where we used to hold Summer Camp. I would get there early in the morning to open up and sweep the floors. Often I stood out on that back porch, looking out on the grounds, the ponds and the wild geese and ducks, trying to imagine I was back in time.

Yep, Autumn is definitely on its way!