Day 5- was hotter than Phx!

Yes, you read that right. 

WI was hotter than Phx on June 7th "and Arizona's on fire!" as a friend said. 

(so far over 453,000 acres have burned and 100% un-contained as of this posting)
So heartbreaking.

Well, not only was it HOT in WI but horribly humid. 

And very few homes have air conditioners or ceiling fans around these parts.

But did that deter my sister & I? Not in the least. So we began our day by walking Lacy.

And then we went shopping & thrifting.
Found some galvanized goodness that I can't wait to show you. 

Check out the creative ways they use galvanized junk at Down to Earth Garden Center.

When we got back to Ginny's home,
we created a vintage scene on the property in back of their home.

Her husband Dave moved his '57 Trotwood travel trailer close to the pines.

And then Ginny brought out her vintage Hiawatha bike

and well... I couldn't resist a photo op.

Because, well... we all happen to be made in the 50's!  

The outhouse in the far left is original to the farm.

My Dad gave my sister this rusted roll of barbed wire for her to hang on her garden gate.

Check out the green vintage sprinkler in the raised bed.

My sister also took an old work boot of my Dad's and filled it with succulents.

My Dad loved landscaping his property on the farm and would have gotten a kick out of this.

Stay tuned for Day 6- and see what a farm-fresh breakfast looks like.

And tonight we're relaxing at a Best Western in Grants, NM, arriving back in Phx tomorrow. 

Thanks for following along on our trip to Wisconsin! 

Day 5- Sewing Sisters

The Sewing Sisters are back!

I spent two days in Eau Claire with my sister Ginny and we had the best time!

And what did we have planned? Anything we want!

I usually spend the first couple hours oohing 'n aahing over all her latest projects.

And yes, these are just a few of her creations.

And once I'm on inspiration overload, we begin working on a project together.

But this years project did not require a sewing machine. It required Altoid tins.

First Ginny showed me how to make these darling rosette pin cushions.

She has bins full of felted sweaters for me to choose from. 

Ginny made these beauties...

... and I made this one! Is it not the cutest!

You can fill the tins with sewing notions ~ or give as a gift with a gift card inside ~

 to their favorite craft store... maybe Hobby Lobby, JoAnns or Michaels.

Wouldn't that make the coolest gift ever!

For those of you curious about our other Sewing Sister projects ~

• thread catchers
• tote bags & snowmen
• another  tote bag
• pillowcases

I'm linking up with Cindy's SHOW AND TELL FRIDAY.

Day 4- Amish images

My Mom always gets her eggs at Henry & Sadie Miller's farm.
We're talkin' the biggest, most beautiful brown eggs ever.

So Monday morning we stopped by for eggs on the way to Pigeon Falls.
While my Mom was buying the eggs,
I got back in the car so I could take these precious images of Sadie's darling children.
I was thrilled they turned out, in spite of having to shoot through the windows.

I am well aware that the Amish do not like their pictures taken...

so I tried not to let them see me snap away...

and I chose to post only those images that didn't show their faces...

out of respect for their beliefs.

Well, you can imagine my shock and awe when three little boys 

came walking out of the barn, single file, carrying plucked chickens in each hand.

I could hardly believe what I was witnessing!

Hey, I'm a farmer's daughter and I've never seen freshly plucked chickens. Ever.

As my Mom and I pulled out of the driveway and left behind a simpler life,

we saw the children's hard-working Daddy working the land.

And I realized that the simple life I long for often comes at a high cost...

but maybe, just maybe there's a happy medium between the two extremes.

I am hereby in pursuit of such a balance.

Day 3- Sunday on the Farm

Hey everyone! I'm sorta on a roll, so I thought I'd give you Day 3.

Sunday morning my Mom & I went to church at the Lutheran Church 

that my family faithfully attended every single Sunday.

And yes, I was one of those that never missed church and Sunday School.

In fact, eight years in a row... that's eight bars hanging from my perfect attendance pin.

After church I made Swedish meatballs (from Pigeon Falls Meat Service), 

mashed potatoes & gravy and lefse.

Tyler took this picture on his iPhone... and you can be sure he went back for more.

Randy & I with our sons Tyler and Shawn... and my Mom.

We sure wish Miranda and Nicole and emolyn and elsie were here!

Once the dishes were washed... side note, my Mom has never had a dishwasher,

and I was 40 years old before I had my first dishwasher.

And I actually had to ask my husband how to load it.

Anyway, after dishes, I walked to the cabin where the guys are staying.

Over a mile - up hill - through several cut hay fields - and very, VERY humid!

My brother Ron & his wife Debbie had the log cabin built by the Amish.

It took them over a year to build and then they loaded it up on a flatbed semi
and set it up on site.

Randy & I always stay at the cabin, but this year I stayed at my Mom's next to the farm,

while the guys stayed here.

And this is what they do ~ they sit on the porch and shoot pop cans, 

that they've placed on fences in a field across the meadow.

And wow, what a gorgeous view!

You can actually see the top of the blue Harvestor silo way off in the distance.
So be sure to click to enlarge and see for yourself.

Day 2- Dairy Breakfast

Saturday morning we attended the Jackson County Dairy Breakfast near Osseo, Wisconsin. 

So fun reuniting with old friends...

... and witnessing pancake perfection...

... and then eating the best pancakes and sausages ever!

And so much fun spending the day with my sister Ginny!

Shawn, Randy & Tyler left shortly after they ate...

they drove to Madison to spend the day with my brother Gary & his son Erik.

They toured UW-Madison, the State Capitol and attended a Burger/Brew Festival.

Randy won a pound of butter when he spun the wheel... and I won a pound of salami cheese!

Ginny & I had so much fun visiting with my friend Naomi at the Dairy Breakfast ~ 

that we went home with her to visit some more and tour her beautiful home.

Mary was a childhood friend of ours... whose farm backed up to ours.

Mary & her husband live in this gorgeous home in Whitehall that was built in 1905. 

So fun spending the afternoon reminiscing about the good-old days.

Sorry that my posts are few and far between... but internet access is hit or miss around here.

But I will keep posting when I can.

Thanks so much for tagging along on my travels throughout Wisconsin!

Day 1- on the Farm

We're here!

The guys catching up with my brother Ron.

Dinner at the Norske Nook in Osseo.

I'm having the best time with my Mom. Gotta have our Friday Fish @ the Nook!

Boy will be boys ~ and I love 'em to pieces!

Wisconsin bound

Tomorrow we cross the Mississippi River into Wisconsin! We've had a great trip so far.

We left Phx Tuesday morning (31st) and spent the day driving through the Painted Desert, Four Corners and on into Colorado. Randy went online and found the most beautiful campground in Pagosa Springs. We love Pagosa Springs and we love camping in our van. So it was a win-win. And no, we did not take our Cozy Cottage on Wheels. With gas prices the way they are... and the miles we were planning to cover... just not economical.

Our camp site was a few yards from this raging river. It was so loud that I didn't even need a white noise. Of course that meant we had to open the back vents so we'd hear it even louder. 

Well, long story short, it got down into the mid 30's. In fact, my nasal spray was mere inches from the open window... and was a frozen slushee in the morning. Let me tell you, we were COLD, but stayed pretty warm under the covers. Thank God I threw in an extra blanket at the last minute.

Wednesday morning we experienced Wolf Creek Pass. Oh my gosh. So beautiful. So majestic. And seriously, snow and run-off everywhere! Waterfalls, creeks and rivers were flowing like crazy.

Remember, they recently got snow, so the mountain tops were covered and the run-off made for swollen creeks and rivers. I was snapping away the whole time, hoping to somehow capture the grandeur of the Pass. But I'm thinking you just had to be there.

By afternoon we were blessed with cloud-cover throughout the rest of Colorado. But as we traveled into Nebraska we could see a storm building in the distance. We eventually found a local radio station that was reporting tornado warnings, golf-ball size hail and 60 mph winds. Before Joplin, I would have been so excited, anticipating weather! Phx doesn't get weather. But now I'm good with bland weather.

So once the rain started blinding our visibility and the reports got worse, we knew we needed to ride it out at a McDonalds. Hey, when you're preoccupied with tornado destruction, a little wifi distraction is a welcome relief. 

Once the storm moved north and the warnings were lifted, we made our way towards Omaha. Ok, so the night before we froze and now the temps were much higher, and the humidity unbearable. We were pretty miserable, till it cooled off in the night and then a fierce wind storm rolled in. We were at a rest area and the parked semis provided that much needed white noise to drown out the crazy winds.

Did I tell you that I'm ok with bland weather?