STOLEN ONE BUCKET LIST!!!

My bucket list was stolen!

It appears my bucket list was switched with someone else's. This other crazy person seems to have had doing a half marathon on her list. She must be someone much younger than I am. She has to be in much better physical condition than I am. She must have very different priorities than I do. Seriously, who has running on their list? Who could undervalue their knees like that? She deffinately didnt have "learning how to crochet a granny square on her list" like I did. I bet she eats tofu hotdogs and drinks green smoothies. She is probably not addicted to candy... like I might be.....if I was inclined to like that sort of thing.

Upon further thinking maybe she decided to do this race for a really good reason. Maybe it was in memory of a friend who died young of a terrible disease. Maybe that moved her off the comfy sofa watching Downton Abbey into the gym. Maybe she was eager to connect with a family she loved. What if she had lots of special memories of this family. Memories of lots of sisters of which she had none in her family. A family that always included her in their travels and life stuff while she was growing up. Maybe there was even one really special sister that became her friend during those horrible high school years. What if that sister became her roommate in college and the maid of honor at her wedding? What if one married and raised her family of three daughters on the sunny west coast and the other lived and raised her family of three daughters in the northern forested midwest and they hadn't seen each other in years? Could any of that be reason enough to change a bucket list?

It can. It did. It's tomorrow.

 

Showering With Strangers

                          

Things really aren't as radical as they appear. Sorry if that disappoints.  And if it does, just maybe some  self evaluation might be in order.    

We arrived home from Athens-New York- Chicago on Friday night. Which means a long trip home became even longer. Thank you New York...which will never be a connection point for me again in my life, not if I can help it.  Home at last. 

Saturday we emptied the suitcases.  Forty four pounds worth.  I would have been just as happy to burn them and their contents after living, lugging and seeing the same clothes  over and over again for the last three weeks but I washed it all and then dug through the tower of mail.  

I  repacked  a bag and left at 7am on Sunday for Caroline's bridal shower in Minneapolis. And that was waiting a few hours since I had been awake since three am.  I kept saying to myself, "am I really doing this?" followed by " is driving with 3 hours of sleep  a bad idea?" I never answered myself, which is good because that may be my fast pass ticket to the special "home." 

I  realized that I don't want to miss any event that is part of the preparations and anticipation of the wedding. I  really wanted to go.  Not wanting to miss anything is definitely a running theme in my life. And probably why my house is in the condition it is in.  Well, that and the perpetual artsy crafty messy issues among other things but I digress. Somedays I miss having the kids around to blame for this type of thing. 

The pastor's wives of Bethlehem Baptist church presented Caroline with a beautiful luncheon, sharing of memories, games, recipes, a thoughtful devotional and an abundance of gifts.  It was really overwhelming for me to see these wonderful women share so much for a young bride that they don't even know.  It was apparent how much they love Michael and his family.  No one could say enough nice things about both. It was clear how precious the relationships were among the church family that was at the shower to celebrate. Several of the women who lived close to the church even offered their home kitchens for me to use for wedding food preparation. I left the shower rather overwhelmed by the tender love that was exhibited and no longer were any of these ladies strangers.  Now they were "friends."   What a lucky girl Caroline is to be welcomed into such an amazing and  loving family with such special, supportive and generous friends.  

I am sure glad I made the drive :) 

Caroline and her new sisters.

  

A little friend with Caroline's new youngest sister.

                                                                                    

The spoon doll was received with a bit of a shock.

                                        

Mom sandwich.

The Bus Family

Well, we aren't exactly the partridge family but we are practically living on the bus. This is my view from behind my my seat.

And this is the view that I see in front of me when I'm not looking out the side window.

Paul and company are pretty much the three musketeers on this trip or maybe the three stooges. This is a photo of them crossing the street in Athens after they dared Dan to climb a church fence and ring the bell. He did it. He is a retired Presbyterian minister so he seemed like the one most skilled at church fence climbing. Ray is heading from Athens to walk from France to Santiago_de_Compostela in Spain. A three week journey of many miles. Rick Steve's has a show on this pilgimage of sorts and it 's called, " the camino."

Greek guard and Paul. We couldn't get the guard to crack a smile, although we tried.

Quite the fashionable shoes and tights.

 

Turkish Rugs and Other Handcrafts

Turkish rugs!

 

What is the deal with Turkish rugs? I have always wondered what makes them different from other rugs....and why are they so expensive. Now I know.

In Ephesus we visited a "carpeteria." Sounds like cafeteria and in a way it was since we started our visit with a beautiful meal in the garden of the rug place. I think they discovered somewhere that people are much better shoppers when they have a full tummy. We had a nice lunch and the food was grilled in the outdoor oven near our tables.

After lunch we entered the carpeterium. There we saw women working on the rugs. The spokesperson for the event was a Turkish version of Gerorge Clooney. No kidding. I have a better picture on my camera to show the resemblence.....he said he wished he had a euro for ever time he was told that.

 

In the showroom we saw the silkworms and they demonstrated how they get the silk threads. I held a silk worm caccoon in my hand and the worm was jumping all around like a jumping bean. It is amazing and freaky. The caccoons are in a pot at hotwater where the woman would beat the water with a brush until the the threads start to come off. They are so thin and seem fragile but they are really strong. The threads are then spun together into thicker thread.

 

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The women weaving sit on small benches where they are in front of a huge loom with a picture pinned upof the design they are making. It looks like just a cross stitch pattern. Some yarn is above and some skeins sit beside them on the bench. George CLooney explained the difference between cotton, silk and wool rugs and why some cost more than others. Everyone then went into the next room and when almost everyone left one of the ladies invited me to sit beside her. I thought it was to watch her closer but she handed me a piece of pink yarn and told me to weave it.....in her charade kind of way. So I took the yarn and she was very good at correcting me with her English "no no no" when I was heading in the wrong direction like under rather than over. I then slid the knot down and like a flash she had a knife hidden in her hand when she swiftly cut the thread off. That was one knot. Now I know why these rugsthey cost so much.

In the next room we were all told to sit on the benches around the room. The room had a large open areas on the floor. An amazing show with spectacular showmanship surrounded us. Carpets came flying in (almost literally ) while a team of maroon shirted men would enroll the rugs in perfectly choreographed routines. We were then served tea and told to crawl around on the rugs and feel them. I've got some good pictures from that. Suddenly, out of nowhere came the Turkish timeshare team. They were released into our midst like hungry dogs. They all spoke english and they were relentless. The opening line was "which one would you like?" The cheapest rug was about $350.00 and that was about the size you could put your pets water dish on. Prices went up from there to around 25,000 for the replica of Abraham Lincoln's office rug.

Rugs with saffron used in the dye were even more expensive. All the prices did include shipping to your door. Two people in our group bought the small rugs. They have you sign the back of your rug after purchasing so when it finally gets to your house you don't say, " thats not my rug!"

 

Other hand crafts in Ephesus were the pottery and elaborately knitted socks and slippers from the ladies that would come into town.

 

 

Rain Rain Go Away!

 

By the end of today we had seen all seven churches mentioned in the book of Revelations.

The ancient ruins in the city off Pergama were at the top of a mountain which we reached by cable car. The view from the top and the city were outstanding. We spent a little time walking through the ruins with Majit our Turkish guide. We saw the library and temple then suddenly there was a sleeting rain storm. Wind and rain were blowing sideways. Tourists were running to the gondola base, others sought some shelter among the ruins. We all packed ourselves into the only places we could find shelter. The cable car was not able to start up again because of the bad weather so they had to call taxis from town to get us back to the bottom of the hill. We were all pretty drenched! And stayed drenched for a goog long while. I learned today that my so called "raincoat" was water resistant and not waterproof. That was unfortunate.

 

We are ending the day at a beautiful and very old sea side hotel in Assos, Turkey. The sea was raging when we arrived and it was again pouring down rain. The bus had to park up the hill and we had to walk about ten minutes down the hill to get to the hotel. The hotel is beautiful, quirky and old. It's made of stone, even the interior walls are rock. It looks like it would be a lively place in the summer but we are the only ones here now. The dock is full of small fishing boats which were all tied up tightly due to the storm. our group enjoyed a lovely dinner of grilled sea bass, vegetables, weird salads, hummus and the usual dessert soaked in a sugary liquid followed by traditional tea. Afterwards, some of us went outside to have another look around the port. When we returned the storm had knocked out the electricity and the hotel was pitch black. It was a bit scary. You could only see silhouettes of people staged around the room. Some folks decided just to go to bed but a few of us stayed up and enjoyed visiting by candlelight. The hotel said this never happens......and they never get storms like this. It has been quite the weather day!

 

 

Eventually, all good things must come to an end......

Locks of love? ......or love of locks? The sparkling adornment on the bridge looks nice but as we got closer, we could see what was catching the light.

They are all padlocks! With names on them, keys thrown into the Seine....forever locking a couples love. In 2010 all the locks were cut off....you can see how well that turned out. Go love!

Other moments:

Favorite Easter guy's outfit.

Another Paris fashion statement. The socks make the outfit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paul has found a new business. A store that only sells "balls." in Paris. The balls cover little light strands and sell for about $30.00. And this store can make a go of it? Of course he would have to change the name, perhaps, "Paul's balls?"

Not only the most awesome mullet. But a dred mullet. To his waist. Awesome.

And from where he was standing and we were eating dinner, it was as if we were all dining together.

Sights so breathtaking Paul was inspired to get out his camera!

Easter! And the first time I have ever seen the front of Notre Dame when not under scaffolding!

We spent Easter afternoon at my favorite museum along with most people from France.

A free Motzart concert at cathedral in St. Germain......another crepe, another chocolate, and another euro.....

And that was the end of two wonderful days.

Paul wants everyone who makes fun of him for pintrest to know that he found this bridge on there last week.

Good thing he is a pintrerster or we may have missed it!

 

Happy Birthday Sweet Caroline!

 

Today is my sweet Caroline's birthday. I am sad that I won't get to share it with her. The years when the kids were little we would be on spring break during her birthday week and we would always be able to celebrate with our family and friends. Most years when she was little we would go to Colorado. When spring skiing adult lift tickets were 10$ each. It was awesome. We would pick the kids up from school and drive through the night until one of the kids threw up. That was our que to stop. It was a lovely tradition.

In fact every year when C was really little we went skiing. It was the only place we went. I fully realized this one year when someone asked her " when will you turn four" and she answered them, " at Breckenridge." She didn't think she could have a birthday anywhere else. Because she never had.

So today we will all celebrate her .....but not gathered around the same table singing happy birthday. That would be my first choice. Happy birthday sweet daughter of mine! I love you to the moon! We are so thankful for you and the joy you have brought into our lives! We hope you have a wonderful day!

 

 

Stepping out of the comfort zone.

Almost two years old and on the go!

In such a hurry, running everywhere. So much to see and so much to discover.

I am older than two. Way older. Exponentially older.

I don't hurry anywhere anymore. Unless, maybe to get to the bathroom.

I have come to the conclussion, like Marvin K. Mooney that "the time has come, the time is now."

And just like Marvin, I need to go now. I am not getting any younger. The world is not getting any calmer.

It's time to go.

In two days we leave our comfortable northwoods cabin and step out on an adventure.

And that is why I am breathing life into this old blog site which existed mostly to comment.

For friends and family that want to see what we see.

Let's see how it goes.

 

Coming to the Quilt Party

I read on a friends blog about the online quilt show and  took a look. I have been enjoying  the Park City Girl Quilt Festival so much. I knew I needed to join the party!  With my last blog attempt almost a year ago, this has been quite the nudge.  

I try to make a quilt every year during our long, cold winter season.  Gathering up all the colorful fabric to surround me during the long gray days  helps to brighten my spirits. It beats sitting under one of those "happy" lights.  

I always have someone in mind to gift the finished product to when I begin.  These are my  quilts from the last two winters.  I missed stitching this winter....as I found myself out of town supporting a friend who had the stitches on her life quilt unravelling.  

This quilt is called, "Fandango" and it was a kit purchased at our local (and now, sadly gone) quilt shop. If you look closely, the fabrics are plaids and stripes. If it was left up to me, I would never have bought any one of these fabrics.  We all thought they looked like some old guys shirts. Well, did I learn something.  The  fabrics were beautiful all put together, as you can see. 

This was made for my friends daughter's high school graduation and finished for her college graduation!  Inspiration was gathered from a trip to Seville, Spain where we (us moms) took flamenco dancing lessons for a week to celebrate a milestone birthday.  Our husbands spent the time being less inspired at the dance but became experts on some fine cuisine and authentic churros.  I just loved the vibrant colors as you can see from the department store photo of the dresses.

 I gave it to her at her graduation camp out.  Memorial Day weekend on Lake Superior.  It was so cold we all had on long underwear, down vests, down coats, hats and when we sat around we wore our sleeping bags.  Was this fun?  Oh yes!  And the quilt was put to good use right away!

The off  square quilt is from Karla Alexander's book, "Stack a New Deck."  It is called "Bent out of Square."  I soon discovered that making something  to look that random took more work than I imagined.  My daughter picked out 23 different kinds of batik fabric (and she is not a decision maker) for the top. 

 This quilt was for my first grandchild.  We did not know if it would be a boy or girl so we couldn't lean towards any shades of pink or blue. (I begged her to find out...the info was available to them...but they refused because they wanted  it to be a surprise. Who does this now days?)  I was able to have it ready for her baby shower on mothers day weekend.

Thanks for coming to my part of the party! Since my current posting history is on an annual basis, I am not to techno savy (and I do wish to get better at that)...but for now I just jumped in there to join my fellow quilters :)

http://parkcitygirl.blogspot.com/2009/04/quilt-festival-spring-2009.html