Garden Song

I really have to hop to it this week. I'm babysitting for Calvin on Monday. It's his Mommy and Daddy's first day back to work after their parental leave and I still have a few things to do for the Garden Club's booth at Old Home Days like making a poster, signs, labels and picking up a donation from Freshwater Farms. I also have to finish up the "Garden Song" quilt for our raffle and I'm a little stymied on what to do with the last border. I'd like to make it a little longer. I found a whole bunch of hst's( half square triangles) that I can't remember making along with some pinwheels which just might solve my border problem and add a little pizzaz. I'd like to finish it off at about 50 inches, just in case the winner doesn't want to use it as a wall hanging they can use it as a porch throw.

Tonight when I was lighting the grill I startled a sleepy little grey tree frog which wasn't quite ready to wake up so I picked him up and placed him in the pot of herbs where he settled down for a nap until dinner time.

If you've never seen grey tree frogs they are quite amazing little amphibians. About two inches in length, their mottled skin blends in so well with lichen-covered tree bark that you would never spot one unless it moved or jumped, and they can jump quite high with their oversized suction cup toes. I'm always amazed where I find them resting. I once found one in a hanging flower pot that I couldn't water without using a step stool!

Though there are several species of tree frogs living in the woods around my home, my favorite is the grey tree frog. At night they "chirp" instead of "croak", sounding more like a songbird than a frog. For a long time I was puzzled by this nocturnal chirping until I learned the source of the unusual serenade.

So tonight, if your able to where you live, open your bedroom windows before you go to bed and listen to the night music playing in your own garden. I can tell you that it's not the work of fairies playing tiny musical instruments, but it is magical all the same.

Thursday Is Errand Day & FQ Day Too!

I'm just heading out to get the oil in my car changed. I can't believe that I drove down to my daughter's house last weekend (near the RI border) and forgot to put the oil fill cap back on after checking and adding oil. My daughter noticed that the front of the car has slathered with oil, so I opened up the hood and there was the cap sitting precariously on the edge of the battery! How it managed to hold on and not fall out of the engine compartment onto the road is beyond me. I drive at a pretty good clip on the highways and Rte 495 is pretty rough in spots from ongoing construction. I'm lucky there was enough left in the engine to get me there and back, of course I checked and added a half quart when I got home but it's definitely time for an oil change.

I'm also planning a stop at Pine Tree Quilt Shop. Today is the first Thursday of the month and their FQ's are usually on sale for $1.50. I may swing by the Sewing Diva's too and see what new goodies she's gotten in recently.

Tonight is our Garden Club meeting. I have to make up an agenda but the majority of the meeting will be devoted to finalizing plans for OHD on the 14th. I really need to step up my production and finish the raffle quilt that I'm making. It's a panel print by Nancy Halvorsen, entitled "Garden Song". I spotted it early last spring at the Sewing Diva's and thought it would make a great garden club raffle quilt. I need to add something to the bottom to make it longer. I do have some pinwheel blocks that I made up which I could add. What do you think?