Brother Paul and Brother Tom enjoy some deep discussion after our snack time.
Last night, before I took the girls back home to sleep, the family decided to take a short walk, and I tagged along. With some help from Mama and Daddy, Tressa and Abi pushed Rian around in her cart. We went on a search to find Tressa's footprint - high on the wall outside Tracy's room. And, right around the corner, to my surprise, we found Rian's new footprint right under Abi's!
The biggest surprise of the evening came at the very beginning. I was trying to make sure I had met all of the members, and when I came to the final one, she looked at me and said, "I know you." I looked at her and said, "Yes, I know you too." I even knew her name was Mary, but I couldn't remember why. So, I just stared at her for a handful of seconds and then it hit me! She is my neighbor from down the street. In fact, many of the church folks had met her during our annual yard sales on my back lawn or when she and her boyfriend were building her new front porch. She and I just laughed and laughed when we finally realized who the other person was, and I think the rest of the members thought we were nuts. It was nice to catch up with Mary, especially since we rarely see each other anymore.
As you can see, the gathering is small and intimate, but wonderful. It's especially wonderful to someone who has so much to learn. A kind member talked to me for a long time and loaned me books and magazines on smocking. This is the gathered technique you might see on the front of girls' dresses. Tracy, Lydia, and I have been talking about learning for a few years now, and I found out we must save up for the pleating machine that is necessary. In the meantime, I learned some techniques that one can do with lined or gingham material that is just as effective and pretty.
I was also able to take a second glance at some quilt squares that a member was creating. Since then, I've done some research on redwork and discovered that women were willing to pay extra (starting back in the 1880s) to have "Turkey Red Thread" because - unlike so many others of the day - it was colorfast. Women started embroidering tea towels, seat covers and almost anything else with simple red patterns. Around the turn of the century, however, pre-printed quilt squares were sold for a penny... and redwork and quilts became intertwined as a hit! The tradition continues today, and you can read more about redwork here and here. 
This was taken in one of the few instances when the rain let up a little... then downpour again. Much of the traffic pulled over to the side of the interstate or just sat in one place in the storm because I assume they were like me and could not see anything - even with the windshield wipers on high. That's always a little scary. Traffic was lined up - both directions - for miles. It took me two hours to get home.
OK, I can't provide an "after" shot - as promised in yesterday's post, but I can provide you a "before" shot. This is the aforementioned sweet gumball party being held in my yard. Tonight, maybe - just maybe - this pile will be picked up. But, I don't know if I can muster the energy again. Last night, I worked hard and took care of the rascals in the driveway and my neighbor's yard. I was listening to some sermon tapes while doing the yard work, and I'm afraid the work was interrupted - because I was very interested in the sermons and because two kind elders from the Mormon church stopped by to ask me if I would like to complete a survey. I explained that I had completed the survey just a few months before with the elders that lived in town just before them. They didn't realize that our church group is very aware of their presence in town because our dear friend Liz used to live in the apartment right across from where they live. We had a short chat about the apartment on M street, some of the previous elders, some of the basic doctrines, Nauvoo, Carthage, Independence MO, and the PBS special that was aired last night. (I believe it concludes tonight. 4 hours in total.) The gentlemen even asked if they could help me with the sweet gumballs. It was getting dark, and I was exhausted. So, I thanked them for their offer and explained that a group of us from Little Flock hoped to have them over for dinner sometime. With that, we concluded our talk, I stopped the sermon tapes, and I looked forward to enjoying dinner and a rest inside. Thankfully, there are not many sweet gumballs scattered throughout the yard anymore, so the worst of the work is over. But, picking up this pile will still take some energy. (It looks deceivingly small in this photo.) As Tracy stated, I hope I will someday make enough money to afford the luxury of having this tree sprayed every year so this work will not have to be done. Dad has also heard that the Missouri Botanical Gardens does demonstrations on how to insert spikes into just the right places on the roots to greatly reduce sweet gum production. I need to check that out - PRONTO!
As I took the gumball pile picture this morning, I saw 3 beautiful cardinals in my yard. Specifically, on the bush that I call the "snowball bush". I believe that is its proper name. It is part of the lilac family, and its scent is fabulous! Unfortunately, the cardinals would not sit still to allow me to take a picture and flew away each time I got close. So, we'll just have to do with snowball bush bloom pictures instead.
My dogwood and Japanese maple trees really suffered after being tricked into thinking that spring was here... only to have harsh frosh kill the beautiful leaves and buds that had developed. I don't think the coral dogwood will make a comeback this year, but the Japanese maple has begun its spring processes all over again. Fighting, slowly, but surely.
I loved walking around my yard so early in the morning, but I knew I had to head to work. Thankfully, at the end of the driveway, I have these gorgeous irises to send me off with a smile each day and welcome me home each evening. I can't wait to get back home.
