Texas Friends

The winner of the Zen Chic pattern giveaway (previous blog post) was Carla, my friend in Kansas City who once blogged at Lollyquiltz. Yay, Carla!

I was surprised to receive only 17 entries/comments. Everyone wants to win fabric, I think! Thank you to those who commented who gave great book and TV program suggestions to keep me entertained.

Recently we drove to/from Texas to visit friends - Patty and Greg. Dan and Greg went to high school together in Iowa, and as couples we hung out... in 1971-1972. Dan and I were in their wedding 45 years ago.

We arranged to arrive so I could attend the September 15 Lifeway/Beth Moore simulcast event at Patty's church. She also invited another friend, Debbie, to the simulcast. Debbie is also a former Iowan who was a bridesmaid in Patty's wedding! I hadn't seen her since! So, us together at the simulcast was a good occasion to put together a 45 year-old reenactment of a wedding photo. I think you'll agree... we've all changed a little bit. :-)

Gen (Genevieve) is Patty and Greg's new dog, a rescued border collie/black lab mix who's 18 months old. Gen loved Hogan, and nearly wouldn't leave him alone! Here, Hogan was sleeping, but Gen still had to be near - nose to nose.

When we were outdoors by the pool, so were Gen and Hogan.

Quite a few deer visit their property fairly regularly. Patty gives them corn, and sometimes kitchen scraps. They love watermelon rinds.

As members of the Pedernales Cellars wine club in Stonewall, Dan arranged for us to pick up the latest shipment. We took advantage of the winery visit to enjoy free glasses of wine while sitting outdoors and appreciating a lovely view of Texas Hill Country.

For dinner we found The Pig Pen, a barbecue truck in Albert. We ate at picnic tables under this stunning live oak tree. 

At The Pig Pen, Dan dug into the largest hamburger he's ever eaten!

We also made day trips to Comfort and Bandera for window shopping. In Bandera, we found a quilt shop with very traditionally-styled fabrics and panels. We also ate at this restaurant where, if you wish, you can eat at the bar while astride a saddle.

On our last evening, we ate at La Hacienda restaurant. I do love Tex-Mex.

Now I miss being with our friends! We get along well, even if Greg beats all of us at Mexican Train dominoes. Every time.

On the long car ride to and from Texas, I did a little knitting and a little English paper piecing. I actually knitted four dish clothes, but left two of them with Patty. Hers were variegated dark blue.

With only three more star units to English paper piece on my LindaNova quilt, I'll soon find myself unable to travel with this project, as all 20 stars need to be added to the outside edges of the medallion that's growing large. It will be a bit too cumbersome to work on in a car. 

I'm back to quilting now, doing some walking foot quilting on my Spin Art quilt. I hope to have something to share soon. Linda