Finally Sunshine...

After a week of dreary, cold, cloudy and rainy weather - including for the funeral yesterday - the sun is finally shining. Of course, the sky is streaked with the persistent airplane trails, so it's already beginning to cloud over again as I type this. Seems every time I see this crisscrossing in the sky, the clouds appear and the sun disappears. It's quite frustrating for those of us who are sun-worshippers.

 
Karen's funeral service was beautiful yesterday as all her family and friends paid their respects. It was a fitting goodbye for a woman who was so kind, generous and genuinely lovely. 

I''m going to enjoy this day off. I plan to make my monthly artist trading cards today so they can mail off tomorrow. There's also more than a little laundry calling to me, so there's that, too.

I hope you have sunshine skies and warmth where you live today. I'm sending all my love and gratitude to each of you for your friendship. Whether or not we've ever met in person, I look forward to your messages and hope you continue to enjoy the thoughts I put out into the world every day. It's important to me that I tell you that out loud. You're very special to me. Thank you.

In Memoriam...

Karen C.  1955-2025

Today, my former classmate and friend, Karen will be laid to rest. She lost her husband a number of years ago, welcomed a granddaughter named for him, and celebrated her seventieth birthday in January. The day after Mother's Day, she lost her battle with cancer.

She was one of the hard working members of our high school fiftieth reunion committee, and until she became too ill, would always join us for our monthly dinner gatherings. The last time I saw her and spoke with her was at her birthday party. She was frail then, but put on a brave face for everyone who came to celebrate.  

Karen leaves behind four children and their spouses; three grandchildren; her siblings and their spouses. Her legacy will live on through them.

I'll be attending her visitation and funeral this morning along with so many others who will miss her smile, her kindness, her generosity, and her gentle spirit. She's reunited with her dear husband and is now whole and healthy again. Rest well, dear friend. I'll miss you.

Training Day...

Nicki Franklin's French General Hearts

I got home from work last night, ate dinner and soon thereafter went to bed. The great news is that the compression sleeves I ordered for my legs arrived in the mail yesterday, so I'll be wearing them to work today.

More good news is that I'm training a new cashier today! Hoping she's a banger and that all the cashiers get some relief from the hours we've all had to pick up. 

These hearts were done by Nicki Franklin and I absolutely love them. You may or may not know I'm a huge French General fan, and have lots of FG lines on my shelves. You'll be seeing something like these from me as soon as I finish my bluebirds and have some time to myself.

I'm going to leave a little earlier today for work. I want to set a great example, you know? See you tomorrow.

Slow Dancing...

Wonky wing feathers in progress

Jury's still out on this so far. My intent was to show both edges of each feather (with the rib shown) as they appeared in the photo from which I adapted this embroidery. I'm starting to think that perhaps I'm trying to be too literal and it's actually taking away from what I'm going for.

This was the first photo I shared when I planned my bluebird piece

Sooooo, I'm probably going to take out the gray stitching again. I plan to start at the wing tips this time and work my way down. Each feather should overlap, but in looking at an actual wing, the overlap should be to the top side of the wing, not underneath. I can accomplish that look as long as I start at the wing tip and work my way down. See the photos of the open wings for a visual explanation. Remember, you can click on an image to enlarge it.

Once I have the flight feathers done, I'll go back and stitch more of the little pin feathers (where the different grays appear on the top of the wing) and perhaps even make them a little fuzzy as they are on an actual bluebird. But, first things first.

I kind of knew this part of the piece was going to be a challenge, but I didn't expect that I'd be stitching and frogging about six times to get what I want. Even so, if it's not right I know the finished product would bug me. Instead, I'll stitch and frog until I'm completely happy with the look.

Not today, though. This is my last week of three full days, plus a dear friend passed away the Monday after Mother's Day and her funeral is Wednesday so family and friends can say goodbye. She was one of the ladies on the 50th class reunion planning committee. She was a beautiful soul, and she'll be dearly missed by all those who knew and loved her...including me. I'll be working today, tomorrow and Friday from 9:30 - 4:30 (approximately) and the funeral will be Wednesday morning. The rest of the week is my own, so I'm going to do my best to focus on this piece.

I'll be sitting at the hoop and removing all those grey stitches first, and then I'll begin stitching as I have time this week. Perhaps by this time next week, at least one wing will be finished. I'm certainly going to try for that.

Time for me to get ready for work. I'll see you again tomorrow. Bluebird update then. Toodles!

Sunday Scripture...

Psalm 63:3-4

 

Welcome Saturday...

Went to bed after dinner last night and slept all night. The long week wore me out. We'll be doing it again next week, but it's the weekend now, Baby! Time to spend with Handsome and the girls. I'm going to get lots of rest.

Have a great weekend. 

Big Storm...

This is what our apple tree looked like yesterday morning. This is an old tree, and Handsome (who used to tend his own apple orchard before he met me) said it's never been properly trimmed so that it would produce optimal harvests. He also said, it's too pretty as it stands now to do more than trim away the dead branches. There's one on the left side of the tree here, but the hummingbirds love to fly over and land on those branches. Now that our overhead power lines are underground (another favorite perch for them), we'll be leaving that branch for the time being. 

To the right of the apple tree is a beautiful, big lilac bush. There was always a lovely stone circle with some large boulders to mark its placement, however it's overgrown with black raspberries these days. They were volunteers planted by the birds. 

My dilemma with removing them is that I harvest the berries for preserves each fall, and they're quite tasty. Do I remove the prickly berry bushes to clean up the lilac bed, or leave them for preserves? I haven't decided yet.

When I photographed the apple tree yesterday morning, the blossoms were slowly falling like snowflakes onto the grass. It was really quite lovely.

Last night, though, we had a whopper of a storm roll through. There were high winds and heavy rains. Our state weather service was reporting tornadoes all around us, so it was a pretty violent event. The storm passed before dark, so I looked out to check on the status of the bird feeders I absentmindedly neglected to bring in. All feeders were still in place, but half of the apple tree's blossoms had blown away with the wind. 

The tree is still standing and still beautiful, so for that I'm very grateful. All our other trees - especially the grand old maple in the front yard - are also still standing. Our farmhouse kept us safe and dry as it had for many generations before she became ours. So, all in all, we did well. We count our blessings, and wake up to another beautiful day at Hickory Hill farmhouse. 

I hope all my local blog friends fared equally well, and that you're all safe from harm. I also hope everyone in the storm's path in Wisconsin or Michigan are okay, too. 

My last day of work this week is today. Then I'll have the weekend off. One more week of three six hour days and then back to normal. I can't wait! Gotta run. Happy Friday!!!

Rex The River Otter...

Knowing this is my newest spoolie, I'm sure many of you were thinking I'd name this little guy "Steve" after the famous comic otter featured in many of my Saturday Silliness posts. But I was specifically asked by Handsome not to. (If you know, you know.) I honored his request and named my latest spool animal, "Rex the River Otter" instead.

I'd love to have a small snail, stone, or a wee crab in his paws, but until I find or create such a think, I'm going to leave him as is. No necktie. No vest or jacket. Just Rex au naturel.

What do you think? Does he look like an otter to you? He's a wee bit larger than my other spoolies, but not enough to require a larger spool. Feedback appreciated. 

I have another blissful day off today. Time for a bit of homekeeping, and then I'm going to work a bit more on my bluebirds. A little zen stitching before I go back to work tomorrow. aaaaahhhhhh

Spring In Wisconsin...

Spring has finally arrive at the farmhouse. All the trees and bushes have begun greening up, and the flowers are opening again. The most wonderful gift here is to see our old apple tree bloom and bless us with her fragrant, showy flowers each year. This year is no exception.

I was working on my spoolie last night, but am completely unhappy with the head shape for this animal, so I'm going to start over today. After two days of standing on my feet at work, all I want to do is give these old knees a rest. A little needle dancing (where I can just sit) is just what I need.

My plan is to rework and complete my spoolie today, and then I have this month's Artist Trading Cards to do. This month's theme is flowers, so I'm looking forward to creating something pretty and floral. 

I'll share whatever I complete today with you tomorrow. I'll also be able to do a little housekeeping around here tomorrow, too, after my "day of rest". As for today, I shall play.

Thinking About My Next Spoolie...

I'd planned to show you a finished spoolie today, but truthfully I ran out of gas when I got home. I brought dinner with me, so I changed out of my work duds while Handsome set up our dinner plates. I made salads to go with the rest of our meal, we ate, cleared dishes and I fell asleep in my chair before I could even begin my project. 

A few hours later, Handsome asked me how it was coming along, knowing full well I haven't even touched it. We'd been in the same room all evening so he was just teasing me.

These are the materials I've pulled together for the next spoolie. Any guesses? It's been mentioned and was added to my list. One hint: the thread on the wooden spool is meant to represent water. I know it's green. Green river water. Leave a comment to see if you can guess what it's going to be.

Another work day today. sigh Once I get through this seven hours or so, I'll have off until Friday. yay! See you tomorrow!

A New Week...

Apple Blossoms @ Hickory Hill Farm

I hope everyone had a restful weekend. I actually did much more than I originally intended, as there were multiple tasks that needed to be accomplished around the farmhouse. I did manage to get a little rest in, too.

Great news! Over the weekend, the hummingbirds have returned to the farmhouse (and I had the feeders waiting for them!), and yesterday I saw a stunning indigo bunting. The Baltimore orioles are pigging out on the grape jam in the feeder, and I put out a fresh orange for them, too.  I moved a few more hooks closer to the apple tree and filled those with goodies for the blue jays, cardinals, red wing blackbirds, cowbirds, woodpeckers, sparrows, gold and purple finches, and bluebirds. Handsome's aerial acrobats, the barn swallows are back and patrolling the yard again much to our delight. It really is a flashy feather show around here these days!

I have two more weeks (at this point) of extra hours, so I'll be at work today, tomorrow and a full day on Friday. I'll be glad when they finally hire some reliable folks to take the hours off me. I have pursuits I'd much rather be doing here. 

I have to go now, but I'll try to keep up with the home things I love so much, to make sure you have something more interesting to read than my work schedule. I'll be back tomorrow. See you then!

Sunday Scripture - Mother's Day...

Psalm 147:11 via ibelieve.com

 

Saturday Silliness...

I'm going to spend this entire weekend just doing what makes me happy. I hope you have the same plans.

To all the moms, stepmoms (like me), grandmas, and those who have angel babies (you're moms forever, too)...

Happy Mother's Day Weekend!!

Looks Like We Made It...

 Image from thatboycanteach.co.uk

It's Friday! I don't go to work until 3:00 pm today, so I'll have this morning and part of the afternoon to do a little catching up. When I'm finished with my shift tonight, I'll have off the rest of the weekend!!! 

I'm really feeling my age after this week. The trouble coworker texted my boss about a half hour before her scheduled shift last night to say she was sick. That means the kitchen had to be closed again, because our manager had already put in a thirteen hour day in the kitchen and wasn't going to to keep cooking. She still had a couple hours worth of bookwork and real manager work of her own to do. That worker not showing up cost dollars lost for the owners in (no) food sales. Even thought we're shorthanded, how this woman still has a job is completely beyond me. 

I have to remind myself that it's "Not my circus. Not my monkeys." but it's difficult knowing how the rest of us have to pick up the slack. I'll be glad when my shift is over tonight. Perhaps I can put this whole week behind me then.

One fun thing about my job - and I don't know whether or not I've shared this before - is that I'm bilingual. I speak pretty fluent Spanish, but haven't had much occasion to use it in years until I started this job. I have a regular Hispanic clientele at the station because they know I can communicate with them, so I wanted to improve.

One day I'd spent more time than I should have trying to understand a young man who didn't speak a word of English (except "hi") and who had lost his passport. In my defense, he began the conversation by saying he "didn't have his passport" - which started me down the whole wrong path. "You don't need a passport to purchase anything here." "Do you have an ID if you want to purchase beer?" among other completely unnecessary questions and answers. Finally, he typed into his cell phone translator that he "lost his passport". Ah ha! I opened the lost and found drawer in front of me to find his passport at the top of the pile. After that, he and I laughed, he made a purchase and left. 

Enter Paulina, a beautiful, young Hispanic woman who is completely bilingual. I recounted this incident with her, telling her it had happened about twenty minutes earlier. I really could have used her help. I had misunderstood one word that made all the difference. Pierda. I thought he'd said, pierna. One means "lost", and the second means "leg". We both laughed knowing that I'd been trying to sell him some of our delicious broasted chicken, instead of opening a drawer for his lost item. (Insert facepalm here.)

Paulina suggested I could increase my Spanish word power using an app called "Duolingo" on my cell phone. I immediately installed it, and as of today have been learning and becoming more fluent over the past ninety three days! 

I understand how having people to converse with helps, as in high school two of my dad's friends spoke Spanish with me all the time - a Mexican tailor and a Catholic priest, both SCUBA diving friends. Dad was an instructor in his spare time, so he had a wide array of students and diving buddies who would come to the house to have their air cylinders filled. I learned Mexican Spanish from the tailor, and the priest spoke to me in Portuguese and Castillian (high) Spain-Spanish (even conversing with me by telephone when he spent time as a missionary in Paraguay). 

Paulina came into the station yesterday and asked how I was doing with the app, so I showed her my score. The best part was when she asked me if I have a person to regularly converse with in Spanish, I replied that I only converse with the customers, and there are a couple who are bilingual who like tutoring me when they're in the store. She said she'd be happy to stop in from time to time to have some conversation sessions. I immediately accepted her offer and look forward to her next visit.

I will say that when I learned Spanish over - ahem - five decades ago, I was fluent in conversation, writing and reading. I read college level textbooks in Spanish, watched movies without subtitles, and even dreamed in the language. Since I've been studying again, I'm again dreaming in Spanish, practicing writing and reading more. I even pulled out my old textbooks for more practice. The funny part is that, more than once, I've sat down to my computer to write a blog post and have to remind myself to write it in English. Funny, eh?

So, there was a silver lining in this week's clouds after all. I must remind myself to concentrate on such bright spots, and cast away the gloomy bits. I'll be much happier at the end of the day. A good lesson, wouldn't you agree? 

Finally, do you like that I managed to get two song titles into this post? hee hee I'm rather chuffed about that. Have a great weekend, friends. I'll see you again tomorrow. Right now, it's time for me to fly. (Squeeee. I got in one more!)

¡Hasta la próxima! (Until next time!)

Rhubarb Season!...

Yesterday was just what the doctor ordered. In addition to spending quality time with Handsome and the critters and a little "solar therapy", I took advantage of the rhubarb growing in the yard next to the Compass Barn. I brought in enough stems for eight cups of cut rhubarb to make tarts and pies.

I was experimenting with butter in my pie crust for the first batch, creating a lovely, chewy crust for the rhubarb custard tarts, and a mini pie (for Andy who was helping Handsome today). Then I made a shortening crust for the deep dish rhubarb custard pie I made for us.

There were enough tarts that Handsome and I were able to taste them, while still having enough left to gift to my friend, Ann who helped me in the kitchen at work on Tuesday, as well as some for my boss, who can use a little TLC these days. She also loves my homemade Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie clone mix, so I made a batch of cookies for her, too.

I didn't stitch much on the bluebirds, so I'll save that update for another day after I've completed at least one wing. Then you'll have a real sense of how it's going to look. I actually can't wait to start on the fence rail as I have some really fun stitching planned for that! 

I work today and then I'm off until 3 tomorrow. After that, I'll have the entire weekend to relax, stitch, and spend more time with my guy. I'm looking forward to that. See you tomorrow.

I Really Do...

I love my customers and most of my co-workers. I have no patience for lazy employees, and as a former employer, it frustrates the heck out of me. 

So much happened after my scheduled shift last night. Before I could leave, I ended up clocking back in and working another hour and a half to cover for someone who walked off her job in the kitchen. With the help of a trusted, regular customer, we filled a large food order that the employee abandoned. 

Understand, I'm not trained in our kitchen, but I can cook, and I've been there long enough to know how we do it, and where the supplies are. We washed our hands and got down to business. By the time our boss got back to work, we had the order compiled and ready to go out. Mission accomplished. Note: My boss had already left at the time of this incident.

That's the extent of my venting, because really, I try to always be upbeat here. Suffice it to say that after six fulfilling hours with people (customers and my boss) I really enjoy, that last hour and a half was taxing on this old bird. I arrived home happy with what we'd accomplished, but frustrated over why we had to. I couldn't even contemplate what I'd write for today.

This morning I woke up to find out that because we're short-staffed, this person will still be employed with us. Seriously, that had me in tears. For all of us who've worked our entire lives and are responsible human beings, I'm sure you understand. I'm equally confident all of us who have been picking up hours to cover for the slackers are on the same page, too.

So today, I've chosen to take the high road and just pull up my big girl panties. This is my day off and the rest of it will be spent doing things I love and being present with my husband. I'm going to be baking for a while...cinnamon rolls for that dear customer who helped me last night, and then rhubarb custard tarts for our dessert this evening. I am definitely going to work on my bluebirds for a bit. 

I work again tomorrow, so I'll definitely write a happy post for you! Thanks for indulging me today. Time for some fun now.

Just A Quick Post Today...

This was so sweet, I just had to share it. Isn't this sweet? There's a beautiful puffin pattern in the Enchanted Embroidery Book I recently purchased, and now I think I may have to add it to my To Do list!

I'm off to work for Day Two for this week. So far, so good! I helped Handsome give our yard it's first mowing of the year after work yesterday. Then we had a nice dinner, and I didn't do much else until bedtime. I promise I'll reply to your comments to yesterday and today's posts when I get home from work this afternoon. Gotta run! I don't want to be late.

Rethinking and Reworking...

Well, I'm finally progressing on my bluebird wings! I've stitched and removed the stitching at least six times, but I'm finally happy with what I'm creating so I can move forward.

Then there's good news and not-so-good news. I managed to completely remove the ink mark from the fabric, so you'll notice that's gone.

When I'm stitching, I prefer to use a waste knot method. As you can see from this photograph, near the right edge of the image there's a knot with a tail. That's the waste knot. I stitch the knot from the front and then move to my stitching area, leave to little stab stitches where I know they'll end up covered, and then I'll eventually cut away the tail.

Well, I had three waste knots sitting together on top of the fabric after I'd stitched these feathers. When I went to remove them (by slightly lifting the knots off the fabric), I nicked a bit of fabric, leaving a tiny - but noticable - hole. It was unfortunate, however, not earth shattering. I pulled a thread from the ground fabric near the bottom edge, threaded my fine milliner's needle and rewove the thread over the hole until it's barely noticable. I know where it is, but unless I point it out, you may not be able to find it. (It won't be covered by the wing.)

So, I'll work on this as I'm able this week. I work today, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday evening. One employee less at the station, so we're all taking up the slack. I'm doing my part, too. I intend to stitch on my off days, now that I'm content with the feathers.

Time for me to grab my go cup and head out the door. I hope you have an exceptional week. I'm looking forward to doing my tasks so I can get back home to play. After all, isn't that the whole purpose of having a job? (Actually,  the quote I heard years ago is "You go to work to make money so you can do the things you love to do". Close enough.) See you tomorrow.

Sunday Scripture...

John 6:28-29

 

Early To Bed...

...means I missed posting late last night. I am planning a weekend of massive self-care so I'm ready for the upcoming week. 

Due to a(nother!) change in personnel, we're short-handed again. I volunteered for a Monday shift, which means I'll be working six hours on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, with an additional three on Friday. As I know what to expect for me to be pulling my weight, I'm going to be stitching, napping, resting my legs, and spending time with Handsome. 

I didn't drive to Portage this morning, letting the ladies know before I fell asleep last night. I know I'll miss playing with them today, but they were great when I let them know I planned to stay home and "veg".

Gosh, it's after noon and I'm still in my jammies! I guess I'll change into "real" clothes first, and then get busy doing absolutely nothing. I'm so very sorry this was late today, but I know you understand. See you later!

A Little Stitching...

I do have a little progress with my bluebird project to share with you today. I actually removed more of yesterday's stitching than I kept, but this is my bird in flight so far.

Imagine my dismay when I moved the floss bobbins to see this little, itty, bitty, pen mark on my fabric. grrrrrr I'll try removing it today, but if it won't come out without leaving a big stain, I'll stitch a bug over the ink. Even though I have a fix for it, I'm still not happy that it's there. Especially since I don't know how it magically appeared. When I'm not working on it, I always keep the hoop and embroidery covered to keep it clean. Oh, well. Water under the bridge. I'll deal with it once I know whether or not it can be safely removed.

I work today, so there'll be no needlework activity. Tomorrow is Craft Day. Whether or not I'll attend will be decided either late tonight or early tomorrow morning. Right this minute, I'm thinking I'll not be going, but we'll see how my work day goes. It's only two weeks yesterday that I had surgery, so I still get tired easily.

Either way, I'll have a new blog post for you in the morning. See you then!

I Couldn't Help Myself...

I started my day hand mixing a double batch of farmhouse bread, and during it's first and second rise, I packaged my homemade brownie, cookie and corn muffin mixes. I was feeling quite accomplished already, and then I decided to make cinnamon rolls.

I made a double batch of rolls, and believe me, they're not all staying here! I'm going to surprise my overworked boss, Kim with some this afternoon adding a few extras for people I know will be at work when I drop by. (I don't work again until tomorrow.) I'm also taking some to Andy and Shelly when I drop off their bread, too.

The nicest part is that when I bake bread, I also make hamburger buns (believe me, they're not as big as they look in the photo!), and when the kitchen is finally closed after a full day, I can make a simple meal for Handsome and me using those rolls. Last night it was homemade hamburgers and American fries. 

All in all, it was a very productive and satisfying day. Even so, I never got to sit down to work on my bluebirds, so that's my plan for today. Sit and stitch. Period. Well, except that I'll take a break early afternoon to deliver cinnamon rolls to my favorite boss. I'll need to stretch my legs by then anyway. 

Happy May Day!!

 

On My List...

I made it!! Two full days in a row at work, I can still walk (well, kind of), and I'm still upright! Unfortunately, it also means I didn't get to do a single creative thing at home yesterday either. 

I'm sharing a photo of dog-themed fabrics today because I need to remind myself of a project I'll tackle and complete in May. Over forty years ago, I made a "retriever quilt" for Handsome...Have I written about this before? I can't remember, so forgive me if I (again) repeat myself. Anyway, that quilt, although still in one piece, has seen better days. 

I made it early in our relationship, and I'd never made a real quilt before then, even though I'd done a lot of sewing. It was a panel of repeating hunting dog heads that could be purchased by the yard. As Handsome is a tall guy, I purchased enough to make an adequately long lap quilt. All these years, anyone who covers up with it was guaranteed to fall fast asleep. It's actually a joke around our house. Happens every time!

Handsome has asked me to make a new quilt for him, but not a "fancy" quilted one. He wants it to have high loft fiberfill like the first one. (sigh), with light outline quilting. As I was unable to find any panels like the first one - I don't mean the same design, but something in a repeating block format - I'm going to have to do some piecing, but in keeping with the original, I'll only do outline quilting once I complete the top, so it's puffy like the first one.

So, here's my plan: First I'm going to finish the bluebirds, and then I'll tackle this quilt project. In between, in the evenings, I'll make more spoolies and work on patterns for spoolie kits. I'll work a couple days a week along with that. 

Oh, Judy asked in the comments where I worked, so I'll answer that here. I work at a local BP Station close to home. It's a gas station/restaurant/convenience store. I don't work in the kitchen, staying out front on the cash register and taking food orders. I prefer interacting with customers to slinging burgers, etc. We actually have really great food, and on Friday evenings, I answer the phone for a few hours taking orders for a Midwest tradition - Friday fish fry (and other food, too). I'm to the point where I recognize callers' voices, and know what their orders will be. It's quite nice, actually.

Today, I'll start by baking bread, but will be sitting at my embroidery hoop this afternoon to return to my bluebird project. I'll be back tomorrow - May 1st!!! Have a great day!

Just One More...

My two eldest nieces.

Just one more post about the weekend, that is. It really was wonderful to be able to spend the better portion of two days with my nieces (two of whom are also my Goddaughters). There was so much silliness, happiness, and a few tears, too. 

These two ladies are the daughters of the sister I lost in 2023. It's impossible to spend time together with them and not reminisce about happier times with their mom. In doing so, we keep her memory alive, so I wholeheartedly encourage it.

Goddaughter #1 and #2 - Jen and "Jorj"

We went to the roller rink on Saturday and everyone laced up skates with the obvious except of yours truly. I did take a few short videos to share with the kids, but I wasn't going to put my body at risk. Sister, Jan has always been a great skater, so she brought her own roller skates and hit the rink. She looked great, too!

Aunties with two of Jen's three kids.

Naturally, we took lots of photos, but I've only chosen the ones that are representative of the family members who hung out together for a bit. Although the group gathering continued through Sunday, I let the kids all visit while I stayed home. I knew I'd be working yesterday, today and Friday, so I opted to stay put and get some rest. 

We're all looking forward to doing this again very soon. In the meantime, I'm going to focus on creating a dedicated guest room at the farmhouse for the next time they're in the area!