It is finally March, and I am ready for spring. The birds have been here a lot, getting their fill of seeds. It has been so cold, and they really need the extra calories. There are so many, they’ve been going through a feeder-full every two days. I need to get a couple more suet cakes done and hung up so they have the extra fat and protein. Here, a bluebird and a nuthatch grab a bite.

A goldfinch looks down from the bracket waiting his turn.

On the feeder, the rosy bird on the left is a male house finch. His mate is the brown striped one on the right, mostly hidden behind the feeder.

They all would fly off, then a bit later, more were back. The female house finch is on the left this time, and can be seen a bit better. It is easy to mistake these for a pine siskin, but those have an eye stripe that the house finch doesn’t.

When the snow was on the ground last Monday, three deer were here foraging for any bit of fodder that they could find.

Pickings were slim, but they nosed aside the snow and found something to eat.

Later, when the snow melted, they were back. I was able to sneak out to the Carolina room to get a picture, but they heard me.

I stayed still, but they kept a wary eye on me. After a little while, they moved up the mountainside.

Checking the mail this week has been fun. Packages with star blocks arrived from Janet H in Pennsylvania, Mary S in California, and Amanda R in Indiana. All contributors will be given credit on the label when the quilt is complete.

Then, a big package arrived, and I couldn’t figure out what it was until I got home. Alycia of Alycia Quilts sent a fully completed QOV that her group made! Thank you, ladies!!

Next package was a top made by Mary Ellen F in Maryland. The pattern is called “Long May She Wave” and was designed by Alycia of AlyciaQuilts! What a coincidence! Pattern available in Alycia’s Etsy Shop – Long May She Wave Pattern. I’ll pick up a backing and batting next week, and will get it quilted for the June event.

In my quest to find some pieces that would be suitable to use for displaying my items in our quilt shop at the show, I’ve been haunting the thrift stores. I’ve actually not found anything yet that will do for what I have in mind, and I’ve also been really good about not bringing home dishes. That changed this past week, as I just could not resist these French chocolate plates. I just fell in love with them on first sight, before I even picked them up to see the different designs.

Right now, my house is a mess as we had to move everything out of the dining room / library for new flooring. That meant packing up all the dishes and glassware in the china hutch plus everything on the bookshelves. Now, boxes and furniture are parked in the middle of every other room. So, it might be a while before you see a tablescape with these, but I will do one soon.

I’ve been watching a new series on Netflix called Ripple. If you were a fan of This Is Us, it is a similar kind of drama with people’s lives intersecting through random things, and the development of friendships through hardships. Well written and well acted. We’ve also been watching Homeland, a pretty good drama we missed on network. I’m enjoying Being Gordon Ramsey as well. It was fun to see that he has a MINI Cooper!! One other thing, I’ve discovered a bunch of really old shows in black and white on the Roku channel. Did you ever watch Dark Shadows as a kid? I did! They have a year’s worth of episodes starting from when Barnabas arrives at Collinwood. So fun! There’s also the original series of the Outer Limits, one that used to give me nightmares but I’d watch it anyway!

Sleep-At-Home retreat is this coming week, so I am looking forward to a fun and productive time.

***************

Happy National Quilting Month! From March 1-21, save 20% off sitewide  on all products at ElectricQuilt.com with code QUILTING. Subscriptions and classes excluded.

Fat Quarter Shop’s newest March specials include 20% off the Basic of the Month Bella Solids by Moda, 30% Off the Notions of the Month Sewline products, and book of the month Summer Moon. Take 30% off featured Patterns of the Month from Zen Chic Patterns. Then, check out Today’s Flash Sale and see the Precuts of the Week.

Milk Street has new items on Sale in their store, including a couple of my favorite cookbooks.

Check out what’s new at Sulky.com.