The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

That kind of describes some events in my life lately.

I'll start with the ugly.

The school playground is directly behind the school, as in right out the door. Local students hang out there after school and on the weekends. Last week there were a few older kids - 5th grade - hanging out one evening. One of the teachers was still there and heard something that didn't seem right to her. She investigated and discovered that they were throwing rocks at the door and ended up breaking the glass. 

The students denied they were throwing the rocks at the door. They said they were throwing them at each other.

What this picture doesn't show is that just to the upper left is a security camera. The camera caught the girls throwing the rocks, but not the glass actually shattering since it is inset into the building.

These same students like to wrap the swing chains up around the top support making the swings very high off the ground. This is unsafe for our students who try to climb on the swings. We also find all kinds of things on the playground that testify to what these kids are doing after hours. I'm sure you can image.

Next, the bad. I have said it before, but seriously, I don't know why my flowers even bother to bloom. 

With the wind we have around here they don't last long. We had a few beautiful days, but it is suppose to be really windy several days this weekend. My daffodils are already flattened.

Now, the good. There is a tree service going through town taking care of trees that are diseased or needing a trim. They worked this week on some trees at the park that borders our play area. 

These students lined up - ON THEIR OWN - on the edge of the rocked area and watched. The workers waved at and talked to our students. 

And finally, I have all 50 stars finished for the flag afghan.

Now to get them sewn on.

In Threes

My Mother-In-Law always said that bad things happened in threes. I used to kind of brush it off, but then she would say Mrs. So&So at the nursing home died, just wait, two more will pass. And, usually she was right! Now I seem to notice that more often in my own life. 

1) Last weekend Husband decided to unplug the Christmas laser light and then the rope lights on the ramp railing quit working. 

Rope lights during the day.

Rope lights at night.

I thought he probably just bumped the timer plug in the outlet, but when he investigated he discovered that the plug was no working. Weird, but things do wear out.

2) Then, also last weekend I decided to make a cup of tea with the Keurig my son rescued from the dumpster when he moved back from ISVI a few years ago. The student that owned didn't have room for it in the car so they were going to throw it away. 

Son thought I would like it. I did; it came in handy for heating up a cup or two of water for tea. But, last weekend it made a loud pop and there was a bright flash. I knew it was gone. I unplugged it, drained it and put it into the garage. Ooookkaaay. That's two.

3) Then yesterday I was vacuuming an noticed that the vacuum was not picking up anything. And, then it quit. It had quit running one other time. I decided that maybe the foam filter just needed cleaned, so I rinsed it and waited for it dry. 

Today, nothing. Okay, now we have three things that have quit working. I hope that's it. But, see what I mean? Group of three.

I am most sad about the vacuum. We never seem to be able to find one that works for more than a few years. I miss the ramp lights and had wanted them because it made it easier to find the ramp in the dark. That was when Son was still at home and came home late when out with friends. He's no longer living at home, but it makes it easier for me to find the driveway at night! The Keurig is no big deal. I have a microwave that works just fine to heat up a cup of water. I also have a smaller single serve coffee maker at work that will come home this summer.

Meanwhile, I have decided I need to finish up some things before starting anything else. I picked up the Flag Afghan I started a while (a long while) back. 

I started the LAST stripe! Next will be 50 stars to crochet and sew on. 

It's Been a Little Bit Since I Last Posted....

... Why? Because I am exhausted!

Seriously, this time of the school year, especially with young students, is very tiring. We have had Spring Break, a time change, different routines, warmer weather, cabin fever - many reasons for the kids to start feeling restless. We have been going outside for PE and recess as much as possible so they can burn off that excess energy, but still, so much energy! I am looking forward to SUMMER!

Today is a lovely day. It started out very foggy, but the sun is shining and the fog is lifting. At 9:00 it was not even 60 degrees, but felt warmer. I decided to take a little tour around my yard. I was quite comfortable in my short sleeved T-shirt, no jacket. Lovely. A lot of green sprouting up from the earth.

It seems like things are shooting up several inches daily!

I see leaf and flower buds everywhere.
And, then I saw this...

There are three of this pods/sacs on a young 
maple tree in my back yard. I admit I had a moment of panic thinking they could be something harmful to the tree. Then I did a search on the internet and discovered they are Praying Mantis egg sacs. OK. That's a good thing. I had cut one of the twigs with a sac on it and brought it in the house while I did research. After reading how beneficial Praying Mantis are I have placed it on another tree in a different spot in my yard. Hopefully, all those babies hatch out soon and eat up all the bad bugs in my yard.

Last weekend my quilty friends and I took a little trip to the 

Salt Creek Patchmakers Annual Quilt Show in Clinton, Illinois. While, it was a small show consisting of quilts made by their members, it was lovely. The members and vendors were friendly, there was a bed-turning, a lunch cafe serving soups, sandwiches and a dessert buffet, and some lovely and inspiring quilts. It was well organized and a nice display of quilts.

I love this Pickle Dish made with bright colors and a black background.

Pickle Dish (a Judy Niemeyer pattern) made by Emmy Moore, quilted by Christi Pallo & Jackie Engle

I have been wanting to make a Disappearing Hourglass (Missouri Star) quilt. 

Disappearing Hourglass made by Cindy Reynolds, quilted by Kathy Merrick. 

I love this fabric collection, Bonnie & Camille by Moda .

I loved the colors used in this one.

Bluebird BOM by Cathey Bush, quilted by Kathy Merrick.

Bright and cheerful.
Kathy Merrick must be a busy girl. I noticed when reading the program that she quilted quite a few of the quilts on display.

On a final note, this geranium...

I can't believe it is still blooming! There are 3 more buds on this cluster yet to open and another bud cluster is forming.