Why I want a "Brewer" dog

I came here to Helena on Monday, thinking it would be the same as all my other visits. But it isn't. You see, our last trip to this wonderful abode, we discovered, some brats had tried to use our hot tub, and although not much damage was done, there was much damage to my feeling of security.
This is the first time, ever, I have been in this house, and felt like I am vulnerable. At night, and even during the day, I have this constant feeling that people know I am alone. And every noise I hear, is electrified in my head, and sounds like a recorder of my worst nightmares, coming in to haunt me.
Last night, I would fall asleep, to wake up in a panic, thinking everyone knew where our secret keys are hidden, and every criminal in the area were using them to break in and attack me. Well, I only remembered where one secret key was at the moment, and it was in the house with me. The problem is, I know I stuck a second, and maybe a third out on the property (if you were locked out of your house in 12 degree weather, with no neighbors home, no cell phone, and had to wait almost three hours for someone to come home, you would hide keys too), but I don't have a clue where I put them, that was three years ago. Now though, I figure, every crook in the world could find them and I am not a crook, so I don't even know where to look for the keys that I myself, hid. I can't ever find my own car keys, let alone a hidden key.
So today, I had extra keys made (don't ask, it made sense to me), and took the real 'hidden' key, and it's hider, in the house, so that tonight, I could try and sleep. With all 4 keys, except for the missing, hidden keys, in the house with me.
Well, it is almost 11 pm, and I am worried about those other keys, so I will go out and look for them. But damn, I wish I had a "Brewer" dog with me, then I know nobody in the world, God included, could sneak up on me. You must know and love Brewer to know why I say that. But it is true, nobody would get past "The Brewer," so if I had him, or a dog with as wonderful a bark as he has, I would sleep quite well tonight. No matter how many keys I had lost outside.

PROLIFIC PLANT

Meet Tokyo, one of our African Violet plants, and a very prolific one indeed. I counted 8 flowers and 11 flower buds that have not opened yet. We love our African Violets and enjoy watching these plants birth their beautiful flowers over a period of several weeks. Sometimes the plant will look as if it is exhausted when all the buds have opened, and some of the flowers have started to wilt. Can't say I blame them. After providing us with so much beauty and energy they deserve a rest. JIR

Quilts, quilts and more quilts

Now that I have a local quilts for heroes program started, we are starting to get donations of blocks, fabric and quilt tops. It takes some time to get all this put together and then quilted, binding put on, labels and pillowcases made, but we have our first batch finished. I am not really doing this with QOV anymore, it is just my own thing with the local ladies, and we do it in conjunction with the Wyoming Quilt Guild, where all our quilts go to the Sheridan VA for injured (physical or otherwise) OEF/OIF vets.

Since our newspapers have forgotten we are a nation at war and therefore we know very little about either war, (how the heck can you ignore that????), I will explain OEF/OIF - Operation Enduring Freedom is the name of the war in Afghanistan, and Operation Iraqi Freedom is the name of the war in Iraq. I write this because I recently wrote another letter to the editor of our local paper, and they called to make a few clarifications, one being they didn't know what OEF/OIF stood for!!!

No matter. I will be making these quilts as long as I need to, and here are a few. The green blocks Line Kerr donated to me and I put them together for this quilt, showing a closeup of the pattern I quilted on each block. The other two we made as a group in our Sheridan Quilts for Heroes group.

Spring is almost here in Sheridan. Mother Nature just wanted to remind us that she is in charge, and in a few hours we had 3 - 4 inches of snow, which by the afternoon all traces of any snow had disappeared with a sunny 40 degree day!

The last week end in March, I had the pleasure of being invited to a quilt retreat 'up the mountain' - a Sheridanism- or at the top of the closest Big Horn Mountain, at Bear Lodge Resort. It is a 'lodge' like you would expect a western lodge to be. And I don't mean it has been fixed to please wealthy people from out of state. The rooms are very simple, no extra's like telephones or blow dryers, but with enough beds to sleep five in most rooms. They have a restaurant and a very busy bar (I didn't think you could drink that early in the morning). Although we did sew most of the time, we also had a little fun on Saturday night. You know what they say about what happens at Vegas stays at Vegas? Same holds true for the Bear Lodge Resort.
Here are some views of the snow (they had 12 inches the day before we arrived, more while we were there, and plenty on the ground before that). The bottom is of me and my two bunk mates and friends here in Sheridan, Kandy and Pam.

On a recent trip to Helena, Jorge and I experienced three seasons in a few days, we had snow, rain, cool sunny weather and just plain old cold. On one nice day we took a hike up Mt. Helena, and it was beautiful to say the least.
Upon our arrival we discovered someone had 'visited' our hot tub, to discover it was set too cold to use. They did shut the breaker off, and leave the top open, luckily no damage was done, but Jorge was determined to keep anyone who had further ideas out, and he 'locked' the top closed. He stands proudly showing off his work.

Small Quilt Projects

Here are a two new wall hangings I made recently. The purple piece was a gift for Awi's birthday, a bit late, but it did get there none the less. I had to miss the class when I flew to NY, but with a worker in the store I was able to figure out the pattern. It is simple to do once you make one, but that first one can be a stinker!