Where have I been???

My son asked me the other day, "Mom did you give up blogging for Lent?"

I thought, wow is it Lent already?  I've been so busy with just stuff, the time has been flying by.

I finished hand quilting one quilt last week and immediately put another one in the  frame. It is such a fun quilt to do that I told the blacksmith, "I may not clean the house or cook until I get it out of the frame". 

Between quilting, taking care of the grand kids, super bowl party, canning soup, sewing machine shopping, and a road trip, life has been busy. Oh yes, throw my birthday in there too!

This past Saturday  my blacksmith was teaching Erin (and several others) some basic blacksmithing techniques, in Fulton, MO. 

There were some that got a little too close to their work too! Guess I could say Ken had a hot butt!

It's always fun for me to watch a tag team. Here Ken and Bernie work on a hammer eye punch. 

I left the ladies in the house at the hammer in, and took off for an antique shop in downtown Fulton, Cornerstone Antiques. I had a date with a featherweight machine. 

I have been looking for a vintage Singer featherweight machine for over a year now. I found one on Etsy Friday and called about it. 

I didn't leave the store without it! She gave me a deal I couldn't pass up. The original case even had the original bill of sale. It was sold in 1949 for $145.00. That is after Mrs Snyder traded in a Franklin machine. She made a down payment of $29.00 plus $2.90 tax. 

The machine is almost perfect. It needs a new cord and a repair on the light. Nothing the blacksmith can't handle. 

I am so excited!

We then took a road trip to northern Missouri to pic up this gal!

Our friend Phil restored this 1931 hand crank Singer 99 machine for me. Even the case is restored. It's beautiful!  

We spent the night with our friends, Phil and Margie. Sunday morning after a great breakfast of Margie's farm fresh eggs, bacon, and homemade sour dough bread made into skillet toast, we headed off for their church, Hamilton First Baptist Church. 

Margie, Phil, the blacksmith, and I have so much in common, in that some of us were Baptist and some of us were Catholic a long time ago. 

Phil told me this would not be like my former my southern Baptist church. The congregation welcomed us with open arms. Then the music started. There was one gentlemen playing the guitar, two women, a teenager and one bass vocalist singing. The music was not any of the hymns I had ever heard. About the third song Margie leaned over and said something about "Oh brother where are thou".   Now you probably know, that movie is about the most favorite movie of the blacksmith and I. We have it on CD, VCR,  and several copies of both of the music CD's.

And this is the song they sang next . . . . Angel Band

If it weren't so far, I'd drive there every week for church.

Good friends, good times, good fellowship, and good food. Thank you Phil and Margie!

Life is Good!