The Quilt Catastrophe

Did you ever experience something so unbelievable that you couldn't believe it really happened? Today I experienced something that belonged in a novel or movie but not REAL life. It pains me to write about it, but I am in need of some kind of catharsis, so here it goes...

My father's very good friend made a special quilt for him. Technically it was a quilt, but more accurately a wonderful piece of art containing fabric, embroidery, beads, ornamental pins, etc. The design was an original, collaborated on by her and my father. It involved circular and linear shapes and beautiful dragonflies. This was not something you would ever put on a bed, but something you must hang on a wall in a prominent place to marvel at.
Anyway, in order to hang it, my father asked me to make a rod pocket for it. Having adequate sewing skill, I was happy to do it. So he left it here with me. First Mistake.
I already had a project underway-- a bridesmaid's dress for my daughter-- so I kept the quilt folded up and sitting next to my desk on a stool. Second Mistake.
This afternoon, I thought I'd better get started on the rod pocket, but when I looked for the quilt it was gone. With four kids and a husband in the house I was not at first alarmed but questioned everyone as to the quilt's whereabouts. You know the line, "I won't be angry with you, just tell me where you put it." No one seemed to know where it was. I looked EVERYWHERE. Thinking someone put it away with our blankets, I ransacked linen closets, checked beds, doll cribs, anywhere it could have been misplaced... nothing.
Then a horrible thought occurred to me. I went to my 14 year-old son and asked, "Honey, when you emptied all the trash cans this morning, did you do the one beside my desk?... You did? Well, did you see a big folded up blanket looking thing?"
He answered, "You mean that old carpet? Yeah, I think I threw it away."
I stammered, "B-B-But was it IN the trash can?!"
"Well, the trash can was tipped over, and the carpet was laying on top, so I thought you wanted to throw it away."
"My darling boy, what day of the week is it?"
"It's Thursday-- trash pick-up day."
I felt the blood retreat from my brain as I whispered OMG.
My son and I ran to the curb. The cans were empty. The quilt was on the way to the dump. The beautiful- one-of-a-kind- irreplaceable -work -of- art- quilt that meant a lot to my father.
I cried inconsolably for an hour.
I forgave my son.
My father forgave us both.
Unbelievable.

Shearing, Nala

Well, here we go again. It's been like a month since I've blogged. I know I need to do better. We've had some deletions and additions to our farm this month. We have one squirrel left, Twinkie, who I'm having a hard time letting go. Yeah, he's probably ready, but I'm not.
After losing ANOTHER small flock of chickens, we found a new home for our dog, Flomar, and got a more farm-friendly breed. Her name is Nala, and so far she is wonderful.
Cami was out walking in the pasture when she came upon a little kitten. We have no idea where it came from, but of course I let her keep it. We call it Chloe.
We have acquired three dairy bull calves which we bottle feed twice a day. Also a young milk goat we got at an auction. She is a SPECIAL goat. She cannot be kept in any pen or enclosure, so we lock her in the garage at night and sweep the goat berries out every morning. During the day she hangs around the house and takes naps on the back porch like a dog. She plays with the little girls when they come outside and makes such a fuss if we tie her up. We plan to breed her in the fall and milk her in the spring.
We sheared our two llamas, which we were dreading to do, but it was not so bad this year. We discovered our 14 year-old son is a llama charmer. He single-handedly took care of our large breeding male.

May 2009

No way! I can't believe it's been so long since I last blogged! Well, we had a lot going on last month, so here are some highlights:
--We graduated our first child from our Homeschool! She is planning to attend Covenant College in the fall-- right after she fulfills her duties as bridesmaid to her best friend who is getting married at the end of August!
--I had my 40th birthday. When asked what I wanted for my birthday, I only had two answers-- a milk goat, and squirrel babies.
--I got new squirrel babies! No lie! I had given my name to the local vet clinic in case anyone found some orphans, and voila! I now have a pair of cute baby boys about 7-8 weeks old. They were just barely opening their eyes when they came to me, so they are not as tame as Chippy was. I will probably release them back to the wild at 12 weeks old.
--Our huge old barn was damaged recently in some wind storms, so with the insurance money we received, we are putting on a new roof and patching holes and loft boards. We have about 100 square bales of hay in the loft, so I hope it doesn't rain much. Speaking of rain, we have had record rainfall this spring. The farmers are way behind.
--Our oldest is having all her wisdom teeth taken out by an oral surgeon on Monday. Our son, 14, is scheduled to have braces put on this summer, and I'm wondering how all this and college is going to be paid for. But God is the most excellent provider, and I'm not worrying.
--We put up the pop-up pool today. Now it finally feels like summer :)

The real reason guns are popular in the South

Today was an eventful day. Flomar discovered a four-foot long copperhead snake sunning itself on the blacktop of our driveway. She barked and alerted us before someone came upon it and got hurt. I'm so thankful for that dog! I'm also thankful that we are a gun-owning family, and that my 14 year-old son can shoot just as well as his father, who happened to not be home at the time. (Sorry, no picture, I was too freaked-out to think of it at the time.)

birds, blooms, skinks, and dogs chewing gum

Our dog, Flomar, found a piece of freshly discarded gum on the ground today and proceeded to chew it. I watched her chew and chew and chew-- she didn't eat it, just kept chewing it. She may still be chewing it now. I've never seen a dog do that before. Flomar caught a skink today also, and I got it away from her before she killed it. The tail was off, but the little girls made a nest for it in a small bucket and are planning to rehabilitate it.

The black locust trees are blooming and exuding an intoxicating scent. Our little road is lined with them.

Remember those cute little chicks? Here's one with Grandpa's dog. (He's a special dog, as you can see.)

And here are the chicks now, about half grown. We have three reds, two whites, and two barred rocks. We lost a few to a fox, so we have been making improvements to the portable cage.

llama wool

Shearing time is fast approaching and I still have the last two years' worth of wool sitting here unsold. If you know anyone who spins, felts, or crafts with wool please direct them to this post. I have about 8 pounds of raw llama wool in gray, black, and white and I will sell it cheap!

Car Accident

An older man passed out while driving around the curve in the main road in front of our house. His truck went into the ditch and hit a tree head-on, which probably saved his life and that of his wife, as there was a fairly steep ditch they could have rolled into. We called an ambulance for them, and helped a little. They weren't hurt seriously as far as we could tell. Anyway, it made quite a commotion on our little drive.