Looking Up

We're in!  We finally got to spend the night in our new cabin last weekend.  The beds were not delivered until after ten o'clock on Friday night, but they sure felt great!

Although we have had a garage apartment on the same lot for six or seven years, we never realized that we would be able to observe sunsets from our new deck.  The colors are even reflected in the pond below the house.

Our son Dave, his wife Emily, and their baby Charlie came up to help us move in.  It was so nice to have a proper bedroom for them, and lots of room for Charlie to run around.

In fact, she is a Mountain Girl now!  She has been on Gator rides,

run through  the Christmas tree farm,

and played with Aunt Katy's baby goats and chicks, and a whole mess of Hall cousins.

And I think I may have another budding artist in the family.  I got out my box of 64-color Crayolas, and I swear she said, "Oh, Wow!"  She carefully took out one or two crayons at a time and then put them back IN the box without breaking them.  That's my girl!

Back at home in Raleigh, the dogwoods decided to start blooming while we were gone.  Now if only the weather would warm up a bit, we could go outside and enjoy the North Carolina springtime.

Here are two of my pieces featuring dogwoods.  Carolina Woodland Spring is a trapunto quilt with additional painting and beading.  I used real dogwood blossoms for the patterns.

Carolina Woodland Spring, by Jeanne Turner McBrayer

And here is my watercolor painting of the dam over the creek at our mountain place.  

Creek at Dogwood Time, by Jeanne Turner McBrayer

And for those who read my previous post about my dog needing more surgery...she did just fine.  What a trooper!  We have a very good dog.  Getting expensive, but what a sweetheart!

Dogwood and Azalea Time

It's still March, but our Southern Spring is in full bloom.  There is just nothing prettier than the combination of dogwood and azalea...especially when combined with graceful architecture such as in historic Wake Forest, North Carolina.  What a difference a day makes...beautiful sunshine and blue skies.

The campus of Southeastern Baptist Seminary is looking lovely.

It used to be Wake Forest College, back in the day when Arnold Palmer played golf for the Demon Deacons.

If you are not into pastel shades, azaleas also come in brilliant reds.

This lush green lawn with the dogwood trees and azaleas makes me think of the landscaping at The Masters golf tournament in North Augusta, South Carolina.  That is coming up on April 5.

My own personal back yard is looking inviting.  But, I've got things to do!

New Sunset Quilt and Mothers' Day Weekend

Unto These Hills 9" x 10" 2009

It appears I am on a roll creating art quilts with sunset views. Here is a little one that I made for my sister Katy, whose birthday was on Friday, May 8.

One of our favorite things to do is ride to the top of the mountain and view the sunset from the Christmas tree farms. The trees are just shapes cut freehand from green cotton fabric and pieces from a shiny, gauzy green wine bottle wrapper.

Below the mountains, I added a little shine with Angelina fibers.

The sky is the crowning glory. I started with a hand-dyed orange fabric that I needle-punched to a piece of batting. Then I kept building up color with sheer organzas and silk tops until I achieved the effect I desired.

This one has some scripture that I hand-lettered on a piece of sheer fabric and stitched on with silver thread and pink floss. It is from Psalm 121, Verse 1: I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.

The back is also a hand-dyed orange. I used monofilament thread in the bobbin for all areas except the trees, and you can see the trees outlined on the back.

We celebrated Katy's birthday in the mountains for a wonderful family weekend. Her daughter Melinda was there with new baby Ragen, who slept all night after enjoying the fresh mountain air.

We went to West Jefferson Saturday morning to pick up our groceries. Welch's Produce Stand has re-opened for the season, and we stopped for fresh strawberries, tomatoes, and homemade sourdough bread. Don't the hanging baskets look inviting? When we got home, we all sat by the creek and watched Ricky and Mary's grandkids playing in the creek below our cabin. They braved the cold water for quite awhile, enjoying the slide they brought down to the creek to play with.
Ashe County is several weeks behind the Raleigh area as seasons go, due to the higher elevation. The dogwood was blooming along the creek and all over the mountain.



Also, the wild azalea, wild irises,

fiddle-head ferns, and lots of other flowers were springing up. I went hunting for the elusive lady's slipper orchid, and found quite a few in the natural areas along our driveway.


Also, the lovely wildflower trillium was in bloom.

On Sunday, Charlie fixed me a beautiful breakfast since it was Mother's Day. We dined alfresco.

While we ate, Mama and Papa Bluebird were busy flying in and out of the birdhouse to feed the new family.

Did you notice the roses on the picnic table? They were a wonderful surprise from my son Bryson for Mother's Day.

Minutes after I took this picture, Charlie opened the front and back windows to allow a nice breeze. He propped the stained glass on the window sill. A big breeze came along and picked it up and crashed it to the floor. Now there is a hole in the shiny green area at the bottom, and quite a few cracks in the glass. :(

We did a little gardening after breakfast. I asked for some of the fertile black soil that my brother-in-law heaped along a spring head when he was digging it out with the backhoe. Good old Charlie brought me two Gator-loads to add to my little flower bed behind the back steps and under the bird feeder.

Our old doggy, Maggy, is still enjoying the mountains, although she has gotten very stiff and the back legs just don't have much power any more. She still did not want to be left behind on any trips.

We hated to leave, but are going back next weekend, when all our kids and grandkids will join us. When we got back to Raleigh, we went right to Dave and Emily's house to enjoy a delightful Mothers' Day dinner.

I have a very good life, and am a very happy mother.