What's Up Buttercup

 Happy September!  I'm just back from a little trip to my husband's family farm.

I brought my recently finished Vedderstone Ranch quilt.  Here are some details.

I machine quilted it AND added big stitch details.  I know! what a rule breaker.  Here it is chilling on the swing. 

The quilt and I had a happy photo shoot from different spots on the farm.

The corn was like 8 feet high!   I also climbed the windmill, which does spin, but just for  fun.

It is such a pretty farm and we're so blessed to have a place to gather and visit.  Here is a prairie that my father in law planted for  my step mother in law.  It is filled with grasses and flowers, but I didn't get a great photo of it.

Here is the sign where our land ends at our rural road that gets us into town.  It is a one light town.  The land was settled in 1833 but The Vedders have only had it since the 1970s.

This is about as fancy as things get here.....box brownies with strawberries.

Here are some other pretty shots from around the farm.  The gator and walking path through the woods behind the houses.

The soybean field in the early morning with a layer of mist.  I love the wide open sky!

Sunset

The setting sun hitting the "grandkids" house which was built when we had our two children and my BIL an SIL had two children.

A view from the porch swing on the Main House (original log home built first).

I had planned to share other photos, but I'll wait for the next post - this one is long enough.

I could not resist joining the antique quilt star stitch along hosted by Taryn over at Repro Quilt Lover. 

Here are my first two blocks.

Check out the hashtag #scrappystarstitchalong to see everyone who is making stars.

I hope you are all happy and doing well.

xo

Down on the Farm

The Danish Family was finally able to have a long awaited reunion!

This is our  silly shot.  Much more fun than the posed shot.  We had about 25 rotating family members.  These are the descendants of my husband's mother and her brother and sister.

We are blessed to have a family farm near Sheridan, Illinois.   The main reunion was Friday - Monday.

Rich's parents bought it 50 years ago and it has grown, and grown and grown, just like the family. Here is me and by boy, andrew.  Rich is in the background playing with a neighbor dog that kept following us.

We do all our own cooking - including making almost 400 Danish Pancakes; Ableskiver.  Here is a website to learn more about them.

We also had 20 lbs of sausage on hand.

We eat under a big rented tent and have a such a great time chatting and visiting.

Rich and I made 32 ears of roasted corn.  I cut it all off the cob and added lots of butter and s&p.  

here is my son and nephew on a building inspection.

and the water equipment testing....  yep, it's all good.

A group of us trekked into town to pay our respects to our Beloved and Departed Patriarch and Matriarch who would be so happy to see we are keeping the tradition going.  I don't know who took the "official" photo ha ha.

In Quilting News:

Our co-op farmer and caretaker of our farm, David, brought me this incredible quilt to see.  He wanted basic information. 

It is in excellent condition.  I did a little fabric research and put its age at 1860-1890.   I love the shirtings, double pinks and look - one of the greens in my Chrome Sweet Chrome.  

wonderful browns.

I'm really glad I met this quilt !  I may even organize a sew along or pattern.

I'm also crocheting a blanket for our bed for the upcoming winter.

The pattern is a solid granny square.  I learned it on Youtube here.

I visited the Frida Kahlo exhibit while in the area, but I'll share that next time!

Happy Fall -Take Care. 

xo

Dog Day Afternoon

Sorry, quilters, this one is all about my puppy; coco.

On the spur of the moment, we decided to visit the family farm in Illinois for the 3-day weekend of the Fourth of July.  Quite a radical decision, since it's 850 miles away and takes 14 hours by car.

Three us drove and Two of us flew.

My FIL was an "Ad Man" in Chicago and purchased Illinois farm land about 35 years ago.  It really has become his legacy. We are so grateful to have Pioneer Farm in our lives.   Here are the living areas, which were built over many years.

Pioneer Farm -Main House

Loft House

Annex (garage with apartment)

It is a dog's heaven~  no leash, a pool, and lots of room to roam.

Here is coco's visit:

She learned to swim in the deep end

She learned to float

She learned to wait for us on walks

She inspected the tractor

She wandered through my MIL's prairie

She inspected the corn fields

She did an in-depth inspection of the flooded areas of the soy beans

She helped do the dishes

She enjoyed a bone in the front yard

She contemplated life on the front porch

 Then she slept all the way home

I wonder if she thinks it was all a dream.

Good girl coco!