Wyoming Breezes

  Crayon Box  was made from the remnants in my scrap basket. Most were small balls of Simply Soft leftover from other Oddball blankets on which I've knit for the Western Region Oddball group. I used Simply Soft (Bone) as a buffer to create the "crayons."  My knitting buddy, Cheryl (no blog) added the boy-friendly border. Thanks, Cheryl The blanket will be donated the the Seattle Children's Hospital.

As I straightened my sewing room over New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, I found a lot of red, white, and blue scraps from previous Quilts of Valor. American Potpourri was created out of those scraps. American Potpourri Quilt of Valor  60 x 69 inches Update: May 26, 2012 Alycia posted this quilt on her blog today. It should be wrapped around a hero soon. Update: July 21, 2012 How exciting to see the following photo on Alycia's blog this morning. Do you recognize the quilt? Yes, that's actually American Potpourri wrapped around the soldier. The photo made me very happy. Thank you, Alycia for sharing this moment.  American Potpourri 's recipient July 2012

Shinto Shrine Bells Towada City, Japan Autumn 1979 Some, but not all, Shinto shrines have bells, and most shrines are painted red. Other shrines I visited in Japan can be seen in previous Foreign Friday posts:  here and here . from Wikipedia (click image  to enlarge)

Alycia  has challenged quilters to make and donate twelve Quilts of Valor in 2012, and I have accepted her challenge . Since I have some quilt tops that have not been machine quilted, I am going to count them in my twelve in 2012. If you don't sew, you can still help. Find a local group that makes Quilts of Valor and offer to work with them. Every quilter appreciates someone who will press seams and fabric - no sewing required. If you do sew but don't think you can make twelve quilts by yourself, then team with one or more quilters. Every quilt makes the world of difference to the soldier who receives it. Won't you accept Alycia's challenge, too, and provide quilts to our wounded warriors. Note : gMarie offered to make twelve red/white/blue blocks and send them to me. I accepted her offer. I will add fabric and turn her blocks into a Quilt of Valor top. If you wish to participate in this challenge make one or more blocks, at least 12.5 inches unfinished in red...

near Esterbrook, WY 1974 The US Postal Service was a lifeline for isolated ranches in the Laramie Peak area in the 1970s. The ranches often had unique mailboxes, but this old refrigerator was definitely the most creative. Large packages were placed in the bottom of the refrigerator; regular mail, in the freezer section. The mail left in the box was safe from the elements and from domestic and wild animals. The "mailbox" also served as a landmark and was useful in giving directions. Many of the ranches had one-room schools because it was too far to bus students to the closest towns of Laramie, Wheatland, Douglas, or Glendo. One of my good friends taught on a ranch for several years: he had two students.  Some small, isolated schools are still open in Wyoming; however, they are not as common as they were in the 70s. This article explains a situation very similar to my friend's ranch school experience - scroll down to the sub-headline, "Teaching Challenge....

Hand-crocheted shawl made by Charlotte A. The Tuesday before Christmas, my TOPS (Take Pounds Off Sensibly) group gathered for a holiday party after our weekly weigh-in. Each person brought a wrapped, white elephant gift for the gift exchange. I gasped when opening my package: inside was the pineapple shawl, pictured above, and a pair of slippers hand-crocheted by Charlotte. The shawl is the perfect length for my long arms and drapes gracefully. I have never received such a beautiful "white elephant."  Hand-crocheted slippers made by Charlotte A.

Twelve Days of Christmas Mini Quilt Mystery Temecula Quilt Company While many declare Christmas over and have taken down their decorations, it continues in my house until Epiphany. This year, I was happy to read about a Twelve Days of Christmas mini quilt mystery on several blogs, and I decided to join in the fun. Above are my 3.5 inch (unfinished) blocks for days One thru Eight. Do you notice anything about the make-up of the blocks? Each block has the number of pieces for the day it represents, i.e. the eighth day block has eight pieces. These pieces are small - the center of the seventh block is a 1 1/8 inch square, making precise cuts and an accurate seam essential for uniform block size. Christmas is not over yet, so it's not too late to join in the fun.

Honda Misawa, Japan Fall 1979  Once I found a reasonably-priced used car and obtained license and insurance, I was able to move out of billeting and into my off-base house . Notice the outside mirrors mounted on the front fenders. I never could figure out why they were located there instead of near the windows. It was tricky to adjust them. I can't tell you how many times I went to the left side front door to get in only to remember the steering wheel was on the right. Even though the car had an automatic transmission, shifting was tricky because I am right-handed. The accelerator was located on the right, which made it easier to adapt. I had to constantly remind myself that as the driver, I needed to be sitting on the inside of the road. I avoided passing other cars: it was just too difficult to force myself to look right to check for on-coming vehicles. It was a good car and served me well for two years although it was sometimes temperamental when moisture got under ...

Carol's Fall Flower December Block The Quilter's Neighborhood I took some artistic license with the December block because I did not want to fuss with convex and concave pieces. If I had cut the pieces, I knew that none of them would have turned out the correct size, so I grabbed a pencil and created an adaptation. The directions called for lovely curved petals to form a chrysanthemum. My adaptation (see my pencil lines on the diagram) looks more like a star; thus, I am calling it a "Star Aster" rather than a chrysanthemum. All the blocks for the 2011 Block of the Month are finished. Now, I need to decide what to do with them. The complete set of Quilter's Neighborhood blocks. 

Larry Stearns & Grandma Rosie 1974 Whenever any of the guys wanted a haircut, Grandma Rosie brought out her trusty clippers and the wild, layered skirt and got to work. I don't know whose skirt it was, but it was used every time someone got a haircut. I think my Mom stored the skirt with the clippers. Notice Larry's trimmed locks in the lower left corner of the photo above. I don't know when my mom started cutting my brothers' and nephew's hair, but she did it for years and the pile of used clippers in the cupboard served as evidence. I don't think my brother had anyone else cut his hair until after Mom died in 1989. Terry Stearns & Grandma Rosie 1974 Note : Just to clarify, Mom didn't give buzz cuts but trimmed the hair into the style my nephews or brothers wanted.

I am seldom in the right place at the right time, but the stars aligned for me on December 17, 2011, the day to pick up the last block of the month at Sheep Camp Quilt Supply. After selecting some tone on tone yardage for my stash, I wandered to the back room where Clearance items are located. A kit for a 66 x 82 inch quilt, marked 50% off, caught my eye. I thought it was a great deal, so I picked out some coordinating yardage (also in the Clearance area) for the backing and the binding. I was pleasantly surprised when the store owner told me that Clearance kits were 75% off. Wow, an even greater deal! The two pieces of fabric on the left are the backing and the binding, and were not included in the kit. The damages:  Floral backing fabric (top left) was 60% off -- $18.92 Red binding fabric (lower left) was 55% off -- $3.94 The remaining fabric was in the quilt kit which I purchased for $16.75 Grand total for a 66 x 82 inch quilt: (not including batting) ...

Silent night, holy night. All is calm, All is bright Round yon Virgin Mother and Child Holy Infant so Tender and mild, Sleep in heavenly peace, Sleep in heavenly peace. Silent night, holy night. Shepherds quake at the sight. Glories stream from heaven afar; Heavenly hosts sing Al-le-lu-ja. Christ the Savior is born. Christ the Savior is born. Silent night, holy night. Wondrous star, lend thy light. With the angels let us sing Alleluia to our King. Christ the Savior is here, Jesus the Savior is here. Silent night, Holy night. Son of God, love's pure light Radiant beams from Thy holy face, With the dawn of redeeming grace, Jesus Lord at thy birth; Jesus Lord at thy birth.

Christmas Display Misawa AFB Misawa, Japan December 1979 Christmas Display competitions were held on base the both years I was there, and the panels shown above were exceptional. This display was simply beautiful and a work of art. Click the photo to see more detail. Merry Christmas to all of my readers. 

seen on Burma Road December 2011 Burma Road, a local farm to market road, was under construction most of the summer. A major portion of the road was relocated to remove some dangerous curves, but Burma Hill remained. I saw the sign, shown above, last Saturday. My first reaction was, "doesn't every hill block a view?" I'm not sure what danger this particular sign and its twin going the opposite direction (one for each North and South bound traffic) is pointing out to motorists. Just past this point, the road curves and the grade of the hill is significant, but this Warning sign or others around it do not indicate the curve. Burma Road will probably only have local traffic so most motorists will be familiar with the road's curve, yet this sign it more of a novelty than a warning.

Shetland Road, north of Wild Licorice where the mailbox was located.  The storms in 1986 were similar to those of 1978 ( see this post ), but the County and residents were better prepared to deal with the aftermath. After the storms in 1976, my brother purchased a rear-mounted snow blower for his tractor, and in 1986 between his labors and that of the County Road Department, Gabe's Road was kept open to the highway for the milk truck. Nancy Stearns on Shetland Road, north of the mailbox. Rosa Stearns checking the mailbox at the intersection of Shetland  and Wild Licorice roads, west of the farm. The mailbox post was broken  off by the County when they plowed, and here it is merely stuck in the snow  bank. In the Spring, my brother John welded a metal pole on the box to replace the wooden post.  Gabe's Road south of the silo. Any cattle in the fields for winter could easily step over the fence.   In 1986, I lived on the far...

Little Miss Muffet I didn't work on this blanket, but it is too cute not to share Several Oddball blankets have recently been finished. I've posted updated photos at the end of their previous posts. Citrus Burst Raspberry Delight Flowers Chocoholic

Train Barbecue designed and built by John Stearns June 1986 Regular readers may remember the post about the train barbecue  that my brother, John built. Recently I found some photos of the barbecue in use and wanted to share them. Brenda's high school graduation party June 1986 John Stearns and his train barbecue June 1986