The Zoo

We had a perfect weather day here in Indiana, so we made a field trip to the zoo.  The girls had a blast, they got to spend some time with their cousins and uncle, and I got some much needed sunshine to boost my spirits. 

Quilts and Sewing

We are having another sewing lesson with Amy today.  We had a field trip last week to pick out our quilt backs, batting and quilting thread.  I learned a lot just on that trip.  I learned about the different types of batting that are available, and I learned that there are different types of thread available and that to quilt we needed "machine quilting thread." I was amazed that there were so many different types of thread and that they all had a specific purpose. 

Here are pictures of the finished quilt tops and the quilt backs.  The girls picked everything out themselves.  The picture quality isn't good because it was cloudy outside and I had an awful lamp for lighting.

Sami's quilt is very colorful.  The picture doesn't do the bright colors justice, and several colors can't be seen in the picture.  I will retake the picture later when it's not in the back of the car and I'm not in my bathrobe.     

Megan's quilt is still colorful, but is more muted.

And here is mine.

I want to make a quilt for my bed, but it's hard to figure out what to make that is dog and cat hair proof.  It seems silly to make a home-made quilt that will be covered in hair and will need to be washed constantly.  I suppose I could make one out of burlap and dye it.

Conner Prairie

We went to Conner Prairie this Wednesday.  It is an interactive history park set in the very early 1800's.  Visitors to these pioneer villages are encouraged to touch the items shown and visit with the "actors."  The girls help haul firewood, make pie, string pumpkin for preserving, pump water, water flowers, weave, pet farm animals that walked loose, learn in a one-room school house, play period games...it was total immersion.  The reinactors were completely in their rolls and did not know anything about modern times; an older man used a bull horn as a hearing aid, and a lady with a runny nose used a real handkerchief.  I wanted to take more pictures of all the buildings and people, but my camera battery went dead.

The girls want to go to a civil war reenactment with their Aunt Cindy this spring, so we may work towards that goal.  I think it would be a blast.  Dave and I were born in the wrong time period and love living off the land when we can. 

Quilts and Sewing

The sewing lessons are continuing.  Our next project will be lap-blanket sized quilts made with simple squares and a border. 

We had a field trip Thursday, and Amy took us to a quilting store in Greenwood called Back Door Quilts.  We got to see hundreds of quilting fabrics that were of excellent quality.  I didn't want to spend to much, but it made sense to spend a little extra to get fabric that wasn't going to shrink and warp as we tried to work with it. 

It was very difficult to choose our fabrics, but we all seemed to like the Batik fabrics.  Here is what we chose:

These are Megan's fabrics.  

These are Sami's fabrics.

These are my fabrics.

Even though we all seemed to gravitate towards the Batik fabrics, we all chose different colors.  As soon as I know what I'm doing, I'm going to make a much needed quilt for my bed.  The hard part will be choosing the fabrics since there are so many choices! 

Apple Works

We took a trip to the local apple orchard here called Apple Works.  They don't just grow apples.  They have a small petting zoo, a barn with a big slide and rope swings, nature trails, and a shop to buy their products.  In the fall they offer field trips to explore the orchards and pumpkin patches while explaining the apple growing processes.

We went with friends and had a really good time exploring everything.  While both my kids enjoy being outside, Sami especially enjoys it and can stay outside for hours.

  

Megan wore her witch's hat and cape. 

Sami really likes feeding the animals.  She tries to "talk" to them.

This is the barn where they can explore, go down the slide,

and swing on the rope swings.

Waiting for a friend to come out of the slide.

The straw bales were fun to climb.  Megan waited patiently

for her friends to climb up with her. 

Four friends waiting for their mothers to quit taking their picture. 

The sunflowers, while not a tall variety, were very pretty. 

Exploring.

Finally slowing things down...phew! But we're still busy?

Cutting out all the extra running has been WONDERFUL! It's been so much more relaxing and pleasant around the house. We still do the things that we love, and we still do extras, just not crazy extra.

We went on a field trip to Brown County State Park last Friday. We got to explore the Discovery Trail (which was very fun) and we got to see the Nature Center and see birds up close. We then had a picnic lunch and played at a playground.

While at the park, a nice older couple sat next to us with their children and grandchildren. They started up a conversation with me, and turns out they were retired school teachers. I don't know what they thought about our rowdy group of homeschoolers, but I think offended them and scared them away because their granddaughter started bawling when one of our parents accidentally scared her. They left right after that without so much as a good-bye. Oh well.

We went to Apple Works today, and got to tour the facilities, pick our own apples, go on a hayride, pet animals at the petting zoo, and pick our own pumpkins. How fun was that??? Even the yellow jackets enjoyed it.