Around OakMeadows

It is cold and wet outside. Nice day to stay inside and read, quilt, and cook. 

Husband is counting days until retirement - 53 days. He will be 67 on Jan. 10, 2014 and will retire February 1. He is planning to work 2 days a week as a contract worker. I think that will work out just fine for as long as he wants to do it.  

I'm reading Empire of Liberty by Gordon S. Wood. It is the second volume in the Oxford History of the United States. It covers the period from just before the Constitutional Convention to the War of 1812. I am amazed at how interesting that period is and how the Founding Fathers were working out how to make a new nation as they went along.  For example, no one knew how the new President should be addressed. The governor of New York was addressed, His Excellency, so they figured the president should be something more impressive than that. My favorite suggestion was from John Adams who thought His High Mightiness, the President of the United States, and Protector of Their Liberties, had the right ring to it. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed and the President of the United States was, if not exactly agreed upon, allowed to become the usual form of address. The book is almost 800 pages and I'm on 102 so there's a ways to go. Hope it continues as interesting. 


Birds around OakMeadows are the usual suspects: Cardinals, Bluejays, Titmouse, Chickadees, a group of Yellow-rumped warblers, and some Meadowlarks.  We have the thistle feeders ready for the first sighting of the Goldfinches; they usually arrive just before Christmas. The Jays are cleaning out the peanuts as fast as I put it out. I have a suet seed block to hang now that it is cold enough not to melt. 

We had 5 raccoons up at the very tippy top of the big old live oak tree the other night.  Sure enough, down at the base was a coyote. There may have been several but we only saw the one. 

My minimal Christmas decorating is done. I decorate the fireplace mantel and the dining room. I gave my daughter all the Christmas tree ornaments and she uses them on her tree. Christmas presents were ordered online and should be here later this week. I used to do a Christmas letter and Christmas cards but stopped that a couple of years ago. Daughter and SIL are coming here for Christmas dinner. They are bringing a ham and I am doing the sides and dessert. 

I am working on the the last block on my quilt. Then I will bind the edges and it will be finished. I think I will give it to DH for his birthday. My next quilting project will be to re-bind the edges of my Irish Chain quilt. The quilt itself is in very good shape but the binding on the edges is worn out. After that I want to make a baby quilt and then another patchwork.  Quilting is my form of therapy. 

That's what is going on around here these days. Very pleasant days they are.