Cabin Weekend Ahead!

I headed up to the cabin in Virginia yesterday afternoon after my wonderful massage – BOY, did I need that one!

There are times when I think the only way to get the knots out of my neck and to lower my shoulders down from my ears is to torture myself with deep tissue massage on a MORE regular basis.

All of the plans are there, to keep scheduled and keep it regular, but life gets in the way.  Still.  I love going to see Mel, she has a wonderful touch and when she gets to your feet – it’s instant sleep!

If I am cabin bound, that means that I was able to get all of my ducks in a row before heading out to the massage – and that is a GOOD thing!

There is much to do ahead – and yes, I know it’s only Wednesday, but weekends up here START on Wednesday, and I’m all for that.

Oh, this tractor guy?  Followed him for miles of narrow 2-lane mountain roads, yellow double line all the way, winding, curvy, hilly and nowhere to pass – and nowhere for him to turn out and let me by either.

Appalachian Traffic Jam!


It’s times like this when we tell ourselves that there is no rush – it is an opportunity to not let the world whizz on by at 55 mph, just slow down and enjoy the scenery.  Roll the windows down.  Smell JUNE all around.

The temps were lovely yesterday – about 82 as I left the flats of Winston Salem and headed West toward the mountains.

By the time I got up the pass to Sparta, NC – it was close to 10 degrees cooler and PERFECT.  Summers are definitely better in the Blue Ridge!

Housekeeping Haul!

I swear that they are getting to know me by name at Costco, too.  I went to check out the Sealy Posturepedic twin mattress sets – they are on sale, but what’s this thing with mattresses that you can’t turn over and use the other side anymore? 

Am I so old school as to still think that being able to use both sides of a mattress gives you longer mattress life?

I picked up bath towels, hand towels, wash cloths and kitchen towels instead. I'll need more, but this is a start, and it seemed like a fair trade for my time.  I LOVE the kitchen towels – so super cute.  And they go right in with the kitchen colors of black/grey/white/red with a splash of yellow.

The hook boards are going to go in each bedroom for hanging sets of towels and other personal items the quilters may want to hang.  There are 6 hooks per board, and it was 2 boards for $15.00  A great price!

I dropped everything off at Quiltville Inn on my way to the cabin – and unloaded a couple of other special things that had come my way while I was in Mississippi.

Quilts in a box!  Quilts in a box!!

Thank you, Sue!

Don’t you love seeing penmanship?

It’s so personal.  I miss it.

Sue included a wonderful letter of the story behind these quilts that she is gifting to the Inn.  They were made by her grandmother, Sussie Thomas Pruitt.

Oh my goodness!  This is beautiful!

I think Sussie and I would have been best friends, trading our scraps back and forth.  Look at her colors!  This one is from the 1950s.

Beautiful pine tree quilt!

With Christmas tree farms all around, and directly across the street from the Inn, a pine tree quilt is perfect!

As she said in her letter above, the one brown fabric shattered over time – but to me that is a sign of a quilt that was well loved and used often – just what are we making quilts for if they can’t be used and loved?  It will be perfect as is, folded and displayed at the end of a bed or across the back of a chair, and I look forward to finding these a new permanent home at Quiltville Inn.

A gifted book for the Quiltville Inn Library!

Robin Wood in Knoxville, TN sent a copy of Farm Girl Vintage by Lori Holt to add to the shelves of donated books for retreaters to enjoy.  Thank you so much, Robin!

I envision the den being set up with many comfy chairs, each with lights to stitch or read by, the glow and crackle of the wood stove keeping quilters cozy as they plan new projects, or stitch on some hand work while much chatter fills the air.

At this point we are not planning on a TV – but WiFi can keep people connected if they must watch something on their phones or tablets.  The definition of the word retreat is to BACK AWAY (from the world) and I can fit more comfy chairs in that den if we don’t put a TV in there.  We didn’t have TV at Asilomar, and I rarely turn a TV on anyway.

In summer months, a peruse through the Quiltville library book shelves while enjoying some porch rocking, and tea sipping is another vision floating around in my head.

I am planning a sound system that will work with Bluetooth so folks can stitch to music if they so wish.

I didn’t stay long at the Inn, I was hungry and headed over to the cabin to enjoy an easy dinner.  I LOVE rotisserie chickens from Costco, and I’d been smelling this one for the past 1 1/2 hours in my car, all the way up.  Add a simple side salad, and I enjoyed a solo dinner out on the deck, watching for bears…..GAH!

As in – this one:

GO AWAY!

This was taken a couple of weeks ago. by trail cam.  There is a mama, and at least one cub if not two.

But this one was solo – so is this the bear that was in our yard last year?  It and it’s sibling were caught here.  Remember that?

We had an experience this week while I was in Mississippi, and The Hubster was here with Sadie.  He took her out the back door to do her morning business and she set up a barking right away….there was a bear just at the side of the chimney right off the back stoop.  A big one.  It scampered off into the woods as fast as it could.

Luckily Sadie only barked – she didn’t chase.  But we are very leary here right now.

I have found muddy bear paw prints on the side windows of my van.  Dave has muddy bear paw prints on the cover of his pick-up bed.  There are prints peeking in the back door window.

There is no food of any kind in any vehicle, not even gum.  Cars are kept locked at all times, and the garage door is kept down.

Sliding doors upstairs (deck access) are also shut and kept locked.  I heard bears can open sliding doors.  So my sewing studio door as well as all others are kept closed and locked.

I make a racket of noise whenever I have to go outside – and I will be picking up a couple of marine horns to keep around.  They don’t like noise.

I’m headed out on a walk as soon as this posts – but I’ll be driving the RZR down to the main road, as they stay off the main road.  The RZR is noisy – they will shy away from the noise as I get myself from cabin to road, and then back up to the cabin again. (And it keeps me from having to hike that heinous 11 degree drive!)

I need to tackle one of my 2019 Addicted to Scraps columns today.  And then head over to the retreat house to scrub more baseboards, etc..

One thing at a time!

Quiltville Quote of the Day!

Beautiful vintage quilt shared by Connie during our Jackson, MS workshops last week!

(Miss you girls already!)

There are precious lessons in everything, if we simply look for them and learn from them!

Have a lovely Wednesday, everyone!