Last fall, I got a request from my daughter to make a special gift for her longtime friend.  I told her I would give it a try, but it was nothing I had ever made before.  Then I found out that another of her friends would like the same thing!  This is a pretty odd thing to start with and then a request for 2 was kind of bizarre!  I needed to figure out how to make a little tiny santa hat.  Also, I didn't really know how it would be worn on the animal!  I started looking at some directions to knit a hat for a preemie and worked from there.  I found the red yarn in a box at home, and then I saw that curly white yarn, too, so I decided to give that a try.  This is what happened:

 Bearded Dragon lizards celebrated Christmas in style!  Isn't he/she cute?  And now I'm out of the lizard hat business!  There really are people who do this so you can buy a variety of lizard hats on Etsy, but I guarantee you that they won't be made with the lizard love that went into these hats!

It's always interesting to get a new challenge!

We left behind the winter weather and headed straight for the Texas Gulf Coast!  The trip went smoothly, and we had time to visit Mom for Christmas, too.  We did get to her place (in IA) a day late due to snow and wind that made a lot of roads hazardous to travel with a trailer in tow.  But we enjoyed the time spent there, plus visiting with my brother and sister-in-law.  

We arrived at Mustang Island State Park on the first day of 2023, and appreciated the moderate temps and sunshine.  The beach was wide and packed well so driving, walking and biking were all possible on the sand.  Each day we were on the beach brought new debris and surprises.  The jellyfish that washed up on the sand with high tide were everywhere!  Not much for shells in this area, they are pretty broken down by the time they land on shore.  It was typically windy and noisy with the sound of the waves, and sometimes hazy for the morning.

The campground there was no frills, just a parking lot with lines painted for designated spots.  There was water and electric at each site, and a picnic table with shelter overhead.  There are few, if any, trees for shade.  A short walk (maybe ¼ mi.) across the sand dunes brought you to the waterfront.  So if you are going to this park for a scenic campsite, you will be disappointed.  Camping on the beach is allowed, but that was mostly vans, tents and truck campers.  We would not risk pulling the trailer down there and getting stuck in the loose sand area!

We moved on to another state park, Goose Island, just north of Rockport, also on the coastline.  In this park, there are a group of campsites on the waterfront and another group in the wooded area.  Both locations have pros and cons, and we chose the wooded area just because we didn't think it would be a good idea to spend 10 days in the salt spray on the trailer and truck.  There is a long pier to explore and feel like you are floating out there on a boat!  There's a public landing, also, which is well-used by local boaters and fishing people.  The boat of choice seems to be the type of airboat that we rode in Florida last winter.  However, these are equipped with different seating for fishing.  And those things are really noisy!  Our campsite was about a mile's walk from the landing, and about 5:30 every morning we could hear the roar of those boats if our windows were open!  The trees are primarily oaks with widespread low branches, perfect for climbing.  We did not attempt the climbing!

On one of our walks, we encountered this little group of leaf cutter ants crossing the sidewalk.  There were moving snippets from a grassy area to their home, and they seemed to work around the clock every day.  Such fortitude!

Summer has been a whirlwind most of the time, but the past 2 weeks have allowed for a little downtime.  So I've been weeding flower beds, spiffing up the trailer and sewing!  Some quilting I've been working on:

A little explanation might help!  Starting top left, that's a quilt started maybe 35 years ago! It happened because my mom brought back from Africa that black and gold fabric, it was big enough for a backing, so I then had to make a top!  I used a pattern called Fabric Frolic from the book Quick and Easy Scrap Quilts from Leisure Arts.  I gathered fabrics that looked like they could resemble something that one might find in a different part of the world, maybe Africa?  I got it quilted, but that's a different story.  It took a long time to do that because my longarm machine malfunctioned, and required more help than I could give it.  I ended up taking it to Springfield, MO, to the A-1 headquarters to be serviced by a pro!  And that worked!

In the top center are some sample blocks I sewed after watching a youtube video by Revelation Quilts and testing out the process.  I have cut fabric for more blocks now because I like the look.  Not sure what it will become. 

Top right shows another row completed for these pineapple blocks for a quilt named Lollies by Jen Kingwell for Moda.  It's slow going for that one, but I have all the fabric cut for the 36 blocks.  It might end up smaller than that! I've tried to find a link for the fabric and/or pattern, but have been unsuccessful.  Maybe you will have better luck!

​Bottom left is a small tote bag that I made because I bought that leather handle in FL and didn't want it to go to waste.  It's made by a company named Miyako.  The ends of the handle have slits that are used to thread the top points of the bag through.  I had to make up a design for the bag.  It shows the Japanese influence of bagmaking.  I've used the bag quite a bit and like it.
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Bottom row center shows the finished borders for my house quilt, not it is in the quilting queue.  It's called Village by Miss Rosie's Quilt Co. and is now a free pattern.  This has been in the works since 2019.

And bottom row right is a quilt with no name!  I saw a quilt made of these blocks at a Quilt Market and bought the template to make it.  I haven't really seen a pattern nor full directions, so I'm making it up as I go.  The template is purchased on line, the company is Foltvilag.  It comes from Hungary and that is the only place I know of to purchase it.  The does show part of the process on a youtube video, so that is helpful.  The size I am making measures ~7.5" on a side.  I keep making more of these and cutting more strips, they are fun and easy to make once you make a few.

​That's what I know for now!

3/27/22 - 3/29/22
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When we woke up about 7ish, we couldn't even get a cup of coffee cooked up because we had very little battery power available.  Not for something that heats up as fast as the coffeepot, it draws a lot of energy right off the bat and it just wasn't happening this morning.  We've looked at putting some solar panels on top, which would help us out if we were doing this camping without power at the site.  But so far, we haven't actually been "boondocking" very much so it hasn't been at the top of our priority list.  I really could have easily made pour-over coffee if we wanted it badly enough.  The stove runs on propane, so it's easy to get that going.  But we decided to just get ready to take off and pick up some coffee in Hopkinsville, which was big enough to have more than 1 coffee shop.  But on the way there, I remembered it was Sunday, and the town was pretty well shut down.  So we got some gas station coffee and sweet stuff to tide us over.  All morning we joked about the sugar in the cookies, mini donuts and orange juice we had gobbled up!  

We spent most of the day driving westward.  We crossed the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, and then found ourselves in Missouri.  We decided to see if we could stay at St. Francois State Park, not too far off our path.  It's sometimes hard to tell which campgrounds are open at this time of year.  We look at our camping apps to get as much information as possible, and from what we could see, the campground was open and the electricity was on but the water was off due to the cold.

We did find the campground after driving a roller coaster road for about 10 miles!  Lots of hills and valleys, twists and turns.  Thankfully not much traffic to dodge!  This turned out to be a nice quiet wooded campground near a small river.  We did some walking to get the joints moving again, and found the water.  We also noticed that there were some very large trees near the river, really huge trunks that were covered with dark bark near the ground but the upper branches were whitened.  They didn't have any leaves yet, so were kind of mystical looking with those branches exposed looking like bones!  We found out they are sycamore trees.

We made the final leg of the trip, about 3.5 hours, to home, sweet home on Wednesday morning.  So nice to be back in our space again!

3/24-26/22

Today (Thursday) we directed the truck further north, near Charlotte, NC.  This was the home of our daughter, son-in-law and 3 amazing grandsons for a few years, so we feel some familiarity with the area.  We have even camped at tonight's spot once before, McDowell Nature Preserve on the southwesterly corner of the suburbs.  We remembered that when we came here before, the builders of the campground did not own a level, causing almost every campsite to be on an incline in one way or maybe two ways!  Things have not changed!  But we did get situated and ready to take a drive to Belmont.  Our son-in-law's family lives there, and we had been in touch to set up this time to re-connect.  It was great to see the group again.  Now that we don't have our own kids in Charlotte we don't see each other nearly as often.  We talked, walked, ate, played with the dogs and had a good evening.  So glad we were able to do this.

Friday morning we waited a bit for traffic to subside and then started our move west.  We were passing Asheville, which could be a destination itself, but I was only interested in the quilt shop I had stopped at once before.  So we made a stop at the Asheville Cotton Co. for fabric therapy and lunch!  We were traveling on I-40, something we don't do often, and after several miles in bumper-to-bumper traffic, I remember why!  We stayed the night at Cove Lake State Park in Caryville TN.

On Saturday we headed for Kentucky.  It's steadily getting colder, and we're asking ourselves if it might not be smarter to drive south instead of north!  A few trees are blossoming, but mostly just showing leaf buds.  A windy day, so Bob really feels that when pulling the trailer, especially with a side wind.  This looks like a farming area and horse farms, too.  The only field work we see happening is horse powered plowing, so that explains why the roads have a much wider shoulder.  The Amish families can drive their horse and buggy on the side of the main road.  Tonight we had a fun camping/parking spot at Casey Jones Distillery near Hopkinsville.  It's a Harvest Host location, so we don't pay for the spot but we do sample their product and take some home, too.  This place has been family owned and operated since prohibition times.  They have quite a few moonshine and bourbon products and we didn't feel the need to sample them all, but we did have a few tastes and then got a tour of the place.  Casey Jones invented a rectangular still (instead of round) and they still use that with some modern touches added.  Supposedly, the rectangular shape and the handles added to the sides were an advantage when the revenuers came looking for a still.  It was easier to pick up the still and place it into the back of a truck or wagon to get away with it.  Enterprising businessmen, right?!

Tonight merited an extra blanket on the bed!

3/20-23/22

OK, I'm bunching up some dates here so I can move along in the journal!  These are the days that we spent at a spot further north but still in Georgia.  It's another Corps of Engineers campground on the Strom Thurmond Reservoir.  

Our new campsite is in a pretty spot on the lakeshore, surrounded by very tall trees, mostly evergreens.  Trees that are shedding a lot of pollen right now, showing up yellow all over!  I saw a couple of people out on this paddle sailboat, I didn't even know that was a thing!

There are quite a few roads and loops around the campground, which makes for good walking and biking.  We heard there was a pond that housed an alligator at times, so we stopped to look for that.  Sure enough, that gator was on the short span of grass between the pond and the road.  He quickly stopped sunbathing, made a big splash and hightailed it across the pond!  And we never saw him again!

There are some spring flowers blooming, too, along with the pollen-shedding clusters.

We usually are not early-to-rise, we enjoy a slow start to the day with a cup of coffee.  One of these mornings, I was up just before sunrise so I got outside to photograph a sunrise for once!  It cast a very subtle glow at first, then really bright when it rose over the trees.

On the 23rd we celebrated grandson Jack's birthday!  He's 8 now and a terrific little guy.  He's the one that wanted to learn how to sew on my featherweight machine.  I'll maybe introduce him to one of the big boy machines during his next visit!  We talked and sang to him, it was a happy day!

We drove to Augusta, about 20 miles away, to visit their Art Museum.  We had a good self-guided tour, looking at the changes in style and subject matter over time.  It covered mostly art of that area from colonial times up to recent times.  This was our salute to Jack, the birthday boy and artistically inclined guy.  His other grandma, Mary, is an artist and helped him out along the way. 

Also, while driving out of August to go home, we went past the Augusta National Golf Course where the Master's Tournament will be played soon.  It didn't look like we were invited in, so we had to be satisfied to just say we were on the other side of the fence!

We used our WeBoost antenna in this location to improve our cell signal, and were able to join the regularly scheduled family zoom call without problems.  As we were setting up the antenna, we tried to film it so we could share that as a YouTube video.  It takes a lot of rehearsal to get it into something that makes sense and is logical!  Most all of my YouTube channel is just me doing the talking, but this time, I got to hold the camera and Bob did the talking!  I'll share that when it's ready.

3/19/22
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We drove about 4 miles into the Okefenokee Swamp to reach the marina and visitor center area.  The high winds of last night's storm had ripped off the canvas roof of the boat we were slated to travel in, so we helped Jenny, our guide, remove the remnants.  We were the first tour of the day.  They use flat-bottom boats for this, carrying up to 8 passengers at a time (we only had 4 on our boat, and the missing canvas roof made it easier to spot things in the trees).  The water gets very shallow in places, depending on the rain or lack thereof.

This tour was a great way to see and learn all about the swamp life.  Jenny was very knowledgable and friendly, explaining the history of the canals and logging and early settlers.  For the price of $30/person on a 90 minute tour, it was worthwhile.  I took a lot of pictures!

There are locations for paddlers (canoes and kayaks) to camp overnight in the swamp on an elevated platform, something I would like to do if we get back here again.

We did a loop drive and a short hike.  On the loop, we visited a "homestead" like the people who lived here used back in the day.  Complete with outbuildings for several things, including a syrup-making shed, a smokehouse, pigpen and grape arbors.  The house wasn't open at the time we were there, but they do offer tours twice a day.

We walked the boardwalk trail to the observation tower.  It was a very scenic and safe way to walk through the swamp and see some plants and animals up close.

3/18/22

A drive day for us today.  Driving north on highway 27 leaving the hub-bub of the big amusement attractions behind.  Passing more orange groves and then the state line of Georgia.  We are staying at Okefenokee Pastimes campground, directly outside the eastern entrance to the swamp, a National Wildlife Refuge.  Very soon after we got parked and unhitched and hooked up, a strong storm came through.  We had been watching the storm clouds on the drive, betting on whether or not the storm would beat us to the campground.

I don't think we have ever been to Georgia before.  Possibly have driven through it, but not stayed here.  Now we can add it to our sticker map!

We visited with out neighbors, a couple who live and travel full-time in their rig.  Very nice folks, and they highly recommend taking a boat tour in the swamp.  After talking, I investigated the possibilities and scheduled us for a guided boat tour in the morning.  I hope this one is a go!  We spent some time walking around the campground, a privately owned establishment.  They have an area for tent sites in addition to the usual RV parking area, and working to expand in the forested area.  A lot of hard work for small business owners.  I am learning that running a campground is not a dream of mine!

I'm a happy girl today!  I found out about a quilting and sewing event in nearby Lakeland FL through a Facebook group for RV Quilters.  It has been 2 years since I have been able to go to this kind of event, so I snapped up a ticket and Bob drove me to the auditorium for the show.  I felt like a kid going to a birthday party!

This was actually not entirely a quilt show, more about textile arts in general.  There were workshops and classes, presentations and displays.  And booths for vendors to grab your attention and credit card!  I wandered around the auditorium, enjoying the time spent with women who share the same interests as I do.  

I liked some of these small quilts in an exhibit by the Modern Quilt Guild.

I poked around all of the vendor booths, looking for anything new and unique to me.  I picked up a couple small things and ordered one to be mailed to me.  I did not feel any need to buy fabric, since soon I will be back home and my stash there will look like new again!

While I was doing my thing, Bob was at a park nearby where he could walk, read and, likely nap!  It was a good day all around!  

This is our last night in the state of Florida, we are starting to head north and west towards Minnesota.  Our impressions of Florida:  very nice temperatures and mostly good humidity, so many people, so much building, excellent white sand beaches, an extreme difference between low and high income, loved the keys and Everglades, diverse nature.  And we really like Key Lime Pie!

3/16/22
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This morning we woke up to dense fog, even some occasional sprinkles.  Today was a travel day with lots of other people to share the road with!  We drove past miles of orange groves and other unidentifiable orchards.  We were driving to southwest Orlando to a KOA campground.  Quite heavy traffic (for us), probably many headed for Disney and Universal Studios.  We've never been to Universal, but doubt we'll be going on this trip.  Last time we went to Disneyworld was March 2020, just before it and everything shut down for quarantine.  We had no clue what was going to happen.  And I look at those pictures and it now looks strange that we weren't wearing masks!

This van in the traffic ahead of us gave me a laugh, even though I was behind the wheel making my way through way too many people!  Just trying to keep the truck and trailer out of contact with anyone else!  It was a relief to finally get to the park.

I had ordered a renewal of a prescription through Walgreen's to be picked up this afternoon, so I had plenty of time to take care of that.  Meanwhile, back at camp, Bob was wading through our ample laundry at the campground facility.  We had stored up quite a bit, especially during the hot, sweaty days to the south.  It is oh so nice to have clean sheets! If only they could be hung outside to dry, that would be heaven!  If I was very wealthy, I would hire someone to change my sheets every day, using only sheets dried outdoors!  I'm a woman of simple desires!  Tonight was a simple meal of chips and guacamole, followed by a walk at dusk, watching the moon rise.