Seasonal Beauties, Breakthroughs, Birds and Wonders

Here in Canada we have four distinct seasons and there are things to love about each.  And also things to complain about like last year when winter felt like it stretched into May. Yesterday walking, I noticed how fresh the air smelled and how crisp the landscape looked. It was so invigorating and I realized I'd forgotten that feature of winter.

From Phyllis Harris Designs

Meanwhile the days are shortening. I took this at 4:30 recently just as total darkness fell in the front yard. Happy the ivy seems to find enough light there.

 It seems the long shadows of morning are just disappearing when the long shadows of afternoon begin.  The sun in between is just topping the trees but is a welcome warmth on my back.

Carl Sagan said Somewhere something incredible is waiting to be known.  I wonder what year he said that. Medicine always comes to my mind because we've made such discoveries and treatments that are incredible.  And more every day. I felt heartened to read this article because losing my mind is a fear of mine! Millions of us are and will continue to do so but researchers do seem to be whittling away at the causes and treatments.  Baby steps it seems.
10 Alzheimer's Breakthroughs You Should Know About
Our wonders are much more down to earth here at the wooden house. Like what made these tracks in the garage. Whatever it was shook my mouse trap and dug in a bag of dirt making a right mess with it. We're guessing the resident raccoon.

I did feel a bit of wonder when we spied not one, which would be a treat, but two pileated woodpeckers playing in tandem around the trunk of a tree in the deciduous forest.  Wish I had a recording of the sounds they were making as they were vocalizing the whole time.
 I had to run back to the house for the camera and luckily, they were still there moving from tree to tree. I had to be very quiet as they alarm easily. Chilled to the bone but happy, I watched them for ages till they moved out of sight.
I do glimpse one from time to time and always suspected there was more than one. I'm thinking this is a mated pair.  Here is where my old camera would have done a better job on distance.

I enjoy a look around the bigger library in the next town and found these three books that I've been really reading instead of just glancing through.

All three have proven to be useful and inspiring and I've noted a number of things from each. In particular, I liked how Ann Myhre in her book, Quilts Inspired, works through two large projects including the one on the cover, Nordic Log Cabin. I read that section with my own Autumn Patchwork project in mind. I believe when she says differing blocks, methods and patterns can work together in a fun way. And to shut out the quilt police while welcoming individual creativity in the process. As I sew each of my large sections together, I hope I am achieving that too. Meanwhile my pile of flying geese for the border is growing.

Have you ever heard of this?  A poverty patch? Lori in this post at wonderful Humble Quilts about vintage quilts shows how the tiniest little patch was used to make a diamond big enough.  I have never heard it called that though I have done something similar a couple of times.
                                
Something fun that made me smile- for Jenny at Romany Quilting who spends many a happy hour caravan touring. I think her cat, Gemma, would love it! This is Ana Rosa's Pattern On the Road House from Ravelry.  The ingenuity of stitchers is always a wonder!

This is the time of year I think of home and what my mother would be cooking...boiled raisin cakes, baked custards and partridgeberry pies.  Always a warm house, a happy smile and good smells greeting us when we came in the door from a day at school.  So blessed.
I hope you have such lovely memories to buoy you up and carry you through too.
Happily joining Not Afraid of Color, Paying Ready Attention, It's A Small Town Life, Bijou Boutique, For the Love of Geese, Viewing Nature With Eileen, Camera Critters, The Jesh Studio and The Needle and Thread Network.