Fall – Asbery's Echoes

Working on the Weekend

We had a nice quiet Thanksgiving. We spent the day at Dad and Mom’s along with Eric, Jeremy and Abby, and the grandkids. We had a delicious lunch of turkey and dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberry sauce, green bean casserole, veggie tray and Pam Cake. Pam Cake is made by a local lady and is so delicious. She made over 100 cakes as a fund raiser to make money to buy a piano for her church! There were a lot of Pam Cakes eaten over the weekend I’m sure! We spent the afternoon playing games and enjoying each others company. And I didn’t take one picture the whole day.

The rest of the weekend was spent cutting down trees and splitting logs at Dad and Mom’s. From morning until dark. I always dread the thought of doing this but once we get out there and get started I really do enjoy it. Being outside in the fresh air, the physical exertion. Just being able to see the finished product after a day of hard work is so satisfying. Now Dad has enough wood chopped and stacked to get him through the winter in his shop and so does Joe along with wood for next year’s campfires. I think we enjoy the campfires more because of the hard work that’s put into it rather than just buying some that’s already cut and split. And now the timber is looking a little bit better too, which makes Dad feel better.

Blessed Assurance, Beth Twist, Heartstring Samplery

In the evenings when we settled in I worked on this piece. I love this hymn and the song would go through my head as I was stitching! Beth Twist of Heartstring Samplery has introduced a new piece each month of this year based on a church hymn and this is November’s piece. I haven’t had time to stitch every design yet but when this one came out I knew it was one that I would have to stitch right away. I got up early in the mornings to stitch and worked on it every night. I watched the Prime series Victoria while stitching in the mornings before anyone else got up. I’m really enjoying watching that. I can’t imagine what her life must really have been like. I’m sure she never had to split her own logs for the fire but maybe she missed out on something there!

Busy Times

Drew decided out of the blue that he wanted a pet in the house. I thought we were finally past that and even though I sometimes missed having a four legged critter around, the work entailed kept me from not missing it too much! Then all of a sudden Drew started asking again. His choices, a hamster, a fish or a kitten. I said no to a fish. Cleaning out a fish tank is not my idea of fun! A hamster only lives for a very short time. And we had this beautiful little kitten living outside already. Plus, mice control! So, we now have Milkweed inside. Millie for short. Milkweed is one of five that we brought home from my folks’ to raise as their momma disappeared. We bottle fed them all. One didn’t make it, two disappeared and unfortunately Drew ran over one with the Mule. A hard lesson for him but he pays a lot more attention now when he’s driving something. So now I’m busy with a kitten in the house. Oh the messes she makes. Especially when I forget to put my threads away for the night.

Peace Be To This House – designed to be a Christmas ornament but I love it so much I plan to frame it. It’s teeny tiny – stitched on 40 ct and so very sweet.

A sampler I stitched years ago and decided to finally frame. Simple Joys, Simple Life.

Sweet little freebies from Pinker n Punkin Quilting. Perfect for ornaments for the kids. Now to decide on how to finish them.

Which leads to stitching! I’m always busy stitching! I’ve framed a few that I dug out of my finished pile to enjoy and I’ve stitched some new things. I am caught up on orders which is a great feeling. Now to work on the kids’ ornaments for last year and this year. And maybe get a jump on next year’s too!

Making gifts for birthdays and Christmas is keeping me busy too. I made two sets of these Advent Christmas ornaments. One for the grandkids and one for Drew. We’re all ready for December 1st!

I’ve cleaned out my bedroom closet and have a pile of clothes that no longer fit. Now to decide whether to keep them or give them away. I don’t plan to gain weight again but I’m still a little leary of getting rid of them all. And Drew and I cleaned and organized the bathroom cupboards. I have this goal of getting each room picked up and organized. Unfortunately neat and tidy is extremely hard for me! But I’m working on it!

This past weekend we had beautiful weather and decided to take advantage of it and spend time at my folks’ cutting down trees and splitting wood. For some reason I always dread the thought of this but once we get started, it’s work that I really enjoy. Their timbers were destroyed after the storm that went through earlier this year and Dad has been wanting to get some of the downed trees taken care of so that’s what we worked on. Some of the trees were already down, some needed to come down. Joe did most of the downing and cutting while I used the splitter to split the logs and Mom, Dad and Drew stacked the logs on the trailer. We were all tired by the time we were finished last night, and cold too as the wind had picked up and the temperature dropped, but it was such a great feeling to have gotten so much accomplished! And boy did I sleep good!

Drew and Rambler took a nap while waiting for the work to get started!

The garden is cleaned off and put to rest for the winter. The chickens have been cleaned out and bedded down for cold weather. The flowers are all sleeping. I love this time of year. I love all the seasons and am thankful I live where we get to enjoy each one. But I love this season the best. I enjoy the darker days and the time we are able to spend slowing down. A time for lamps and soft light and blankets to cuddle up in. I look forward to the holidays but even more, I look forward to that time after the holidays. It’s almost like we’re being given permission to settle in for a time. To be calm and quiet. To reflect on what has passed and to get ready for the what is to come. It’s my favorite time of the year.

Enjoying the Outdoors

It was a cool crisp morning. The clouds were beautiful and the sun was shining. It was a beautiful day to enjoy the park.

We’ve had such beautiful weather the past few days. Beautiful fall days mean getting outside and soaking in the sunshine as much as we can before it turns cold for good.

Last week Drew and I decided to visit Yenruogis to hunt for rocks. He’s studying geology in science and we wanted to have rocks on hand to study. Spur of the moment we decided to give a shout out to the homeschool group we get together with once in awhile and see if they wanted to join us. We met Thursday morning, the kids wandered all over the park and then we ate a picnic lunch. It was actually pretty cold that day but when the sun popped out it was nice and the scenery was beautiful!

Yenruogis is a small park just outside of our little town and we always seem to forget it is there. The lake was originally a quarry. There is primitive camping and lots of places for picnics. You can walk all the way around the lake, which the kids did. We really need to take advantage of this great place more than we do and we plan to. It’s also a great place to go sledding in the winter.

Lake Darling – the kids love walking over this bridge!

Then Abby asked if we would want to meet at Lake Darling on Saturday to walk the trails. So we got up early, packed our lunch and met her and the grandkids at our favorite camping spot. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm. The kids played for awhile at the playground, we ate our picnic lunch and then walked the trails. It was nice to enjoy each other’s company and to get outside in the fresh air.

I wonder what these two are talking about?

Stitchy News

I have been busy stitching orders and am having a difficult time keeping up. So busy in fact that I’ve had to start saying no. It’s hard for me to say no but I realize that I just have to. It’s not fair to a customer to have to wait for weeks and weeks for something they’ve purchased and it causes way too much stress on my end. I promised Joe when I started selling my cupboard keeps that if it started to interfere with family life then I would stop. Well, it had gotton to that point where I felt I should be stitching all the time to get orders done. That alone interferes with family time because if I have to be stitching all the time I can’t be involved in other things. It also interferes in that if I’m constantly worrying about not getting my stitching done then I’m not able to enjoy other things. So, I’ve started to say no. I still have a ways to go in doing that but I’ve gotten much better! So, I’m still stitching lots of orders, but I’ve also put a limit to how many orders I will take, and I’ve started to say no. I’m so very flattered that so many people out there want something that I have made to display in their homes. It’s an amazing feeling. I can only hope that some of my humble little stitches bring joy to others. I can’t imagine not picking up a needle and thread on an almost daily basis and to know that I’m making something that others actually want and enjoy just makes the process even sweeter!

An October Sunday

I planned an impromptu get together last Sunday. Drew had been begging to go on a Mule ride and I was thinking a wiener roast would be fun so I convinced Joe that we should drive the Mule to Dad and Mom’s and have a wiener roast in the timber.

Uncle Drew and Bayah relaxing in the back of the Mule.

The day was beautiful with warm temps and sunny skies. I contacted Abby to see if they would like to join us and let Dad and Mom know we were going to be using their timber. They had originally planned to be gone but decided to change their plans and join us.

It ended up being such a fun time. We ate hot dogs and chips and pumpkin bars. Some played corn hole, some sat and enjoyed the afternoon. Drew gave Bayah rides on the Mule and the kids had fun climing the bluff and exploring the timber. Then we had s’mores before heading home.

Joe and Jeremy are accomplished at roasting hot dogs!

If corn hole is being played, Braxton will be playing!

The kids love to climb the sandstone bluff

We had spent the weekend getting things done around the house and finishing up the chicken coop. Joe knew he had to be gone this week for work so was focused on that. I just wanted us to have a few hours of relaxation time, being with family and enjoying the beautiful fall weather. It was nice to just spend a few hours enjoying each others company and enjoying the beautiful fall day.

Houseal Family Get Together

Dad and Mom on the right, us, Jeremy and Abby on the left. Uncle Jerry was down a couple of spots and Skip and Brandi were a little ways up the hill.

Another Houseal Family Get Together is in the books. We had the most beautiful fall weather this year and camping at Lake Darling is always a great experience. We camped Thursday through Sunday together with Dad and Mom, Jeremy and Abby, Skip and Brandi, and Uncle Jerry. Then on Saturday everybody else came for the day. I took lots and lots of pictures and still didn’t get pictures of everyone. And we didn’t get a group picture this year. Oh well, hopefully next year we’ll remember. I love that we try to do this every year!

I found a rock at our campsite! Thanks Brandi!

Joe and Uncle Jerry heading out on a trail. I drove them to the other side of the lake and dropped them off. I’m hoping to walk this trail yet this year.

We walked at least one trail each day and the kids brought their scooters along.

I wonder what Bayah and Great Grandma are discussing?

Brandi brought her paint supplies and rocks along and lots of rocks were painted and hid around the park. So much fun!

There was lots of corn hole played. Uncle Jerry and Jeremy won the tournament on Saturday!

Grandpa and Bayah may or may not have hid under the table to eat candy before we ate lunch!

An early morning walk before everyone before anyone else was up.

Dad and Joe – wonder what they were discussin?

Mom and Uncle Donnie (Mom’s baby brother)

Mom and Uncle Terry – Mom’s younger brother

Uncle Jerry. He’s not a Houseal but he’s always invited and I love that he camps with us too! He’s Dad’s brother-in-law.

Noah and Braxton (Braxton LOVED playing corn hole!)

We had morning fires and evening fires – lots of wood was burned over the weekend!

Quiet Places

We who live in quiet places have the opportunity to become acquainted with ourselves, to think our own thoughts and live our own lives in a way that is not possible for those keeping up with the crowd.

By Laura Ingalls Wilder

I’ve walked this lane so very many times and in all season. By myself, with family, and with many different dogs throughout the years, a cat or two, herding sheep, leading a horse, riding a horse . . .

We had a hectic couple of weeks again. A family camping trip (post to come), Joe was under the weather, babysitting the grandkids, helping Dad and Mom. I was starting to get overwhelmed again. Then this morning, while we were at Dad and Mom’s, I stole away for a walk down to the timber.

This little timber has been my happy place for oh so many years. Just a quick walk through the trees and I always feels so much better. Now that there is no livestock down here, the trees and grasses and wildflowers are taking over again and that makes my heart happy!

The beans are turning and look so pretty.

I love the above quote by Laura Ingalls Wilder and I’m working more and more towards living in a quiet place. I want to just be home and have my handful of acres be my quiet place where I don’t have to worry about keeping up with the crowd. And of course, I’ll head over to the timber too when I need to really unwind!

My tree – I always have to visit this majestic old cottonwood.

Stitching

We’ve been so busy lately and it’s been hard to fit in some stitching but I’ve managed! I’ve been stitching orders and stitching things to sell and once in a blue moon I stumble across a pattern I just have to stitch for myself!

When we were at the quilting/needlework store in Amana we found this cute cross stitch/beadwork kit. Two of us purchased the kit and are going to make Christmas ornaments to commemorate our camping trip. I haven’t done beadwork in a long time and it’s been fun to do a little bit of it again. I’m looking forward to finishing mine and seeing how Susie finishes hers. I’m sure they will look totally different from each other and yet both will be beautiful!

You can’t really see how the beads sparkle but they do. And they’ll really sparkle on the Christmas tree! It’s fun to have someone else stitching too as I don’t have anybody local who stitches and I’ve always thought it would be fun to stitch with friends!

Labor Day Campers

All set up for the weekend. It doesn’t always work out but these campsites were perfect so that we could set up all four campers with our doors facing each other. We had this whole area just to ourselves!

A few years ago we started camping with a group of friends over the Labor Day weekend. There are four couples in this group and we take turns picking out a campground. This year was our year to choose so we chose the Amana area. The other three couples live in the Clear Lake area and we live in southeast part of the state. Some years we have to travel a bit more, other years a campground that is more centrally located is chosen. This year was a lot closer for us but the others wanted to explore this area so it worked out great.

We all headed to the Amana Campground on Friday and set up camp, had some supper and sat around the campfire. Then on Saturday we headed to Mt. Pleasant to the Old Threshers Reunion. This is an annual event that takes place every year in Mt. Pleasant after the State Fair is over. Many people in our state will camp at the State Fair for two weeks then pull their camper straight to the Old Threshers. I have lived here my whole life and never visited so I was looking forward to this too.

It was wonderful to see all the old steam engines, tractors, vehicles, different motors, etc. and the best part was seeing all of the young people taking part. This is such a big part of our history and it would be so sad if people didn’t keep up the tradition of holding this reunion for all to see. There were so many young people joining right in with the old learning how to run all of these things and doing all the work involved. I would love to go back again and spend more time here taking it all in.

On Sunday we toured Main Amana. We walked through the shops and took it all in. The Amanas are a group of German villages established long ago. They lived in communal houses and each member of the village was assigned a job. One person may be a cook, another a farmer, a gardener and so on. They all worked together to keep the community going. Many of the old original buildings are still standing and being used as restaurants, shops and as houses. The General Store and the quilting shop were favorites among the women and the men simply tolerated the day! The restaurants are fun to eat at as they serve traditional German food family style but unfortunately Sundays are busy and we couldn’t get in without a reservation. So we checked out the Meat Shop, purchased some Amana meat and headed back to the campground with some yummy things to try. We went for a walk around the campground in the afternoon and checked out the dog show. There was an AKC Dog Obedience show going on all weekend and according to the lady when we registered, there were 3,000 dogs in the campground. It was fun to see all the different dogs and watch a small portion of one of the shows. It reminded me of the horse shows when I was young only with dogs!

We played some cards and lots and lots of bags at the campground. Spent each night sitting around the fire talking and enjoying each others company. Kelsey made us sugar cone s’more one night. Yum!

The weather was perfect, overcast and cool when we were at the Old Threshers and warm and sunny on Sunday. The evenings cooled down and the fire felt so good. It was another fun Labor Day weekend spent with good friends!

Category: Fall