birthday pancakes

I am still plugging away on my most recent hexie project.  English paper piecing is something I enjoy doing, although it can seem tedious at times.  I used to do counted cross stitch and that was the same deal.  It was neat and orderly, every stitch in just the right spot to make the picture complete.

I am on the downhill run with this project, I've decided what I'm going to do to call it finished.  After I complete the green and gray florets at the bottom of this picture, I'm adding one row of hexagons around the entire piece.  I think they need to be primarily dark shades of purple/pink/green and some gray to balance out the dark in the center.  Then I might applique this onto a square background, I think it would be about the right size for the center of my dining table.

When I was on retreat a week ago, one of the things I did was to take a guided driving tour around the Amish communities near Augusta.  One place we stopped was at an Amish General Store and I picked up these little hats for the little boys.

That was such an interesting opportunity to learn a lot more about the culture and society of the Amish.  Such different lives!  As an example, the little store had shelves loaded with all of the kitchenware and hardware and naturopathic remedies and clothing they would ordinarily use.  But there are no electric lights, so the windows give the only light.  But you can buy all the parts needed for your gas-powered lights there!  Very nice people, we had a good conversation with the shop lady, she patiently answered our questions.  She is also a midwife, so she shared some interesting information about that role.  They really value their privacy and separation from the "English" world.  But they are friendly, waving to us from their buggies and finding ways to co-exist.  In close proximity there is a large mining area for the silica sand used in fracking for oil.  It has become a big problem for the Amish community because they have lost land in the deal, and the underground blasting shakes their buildings, and they had been led to believe that this new industry would not effect them.  I don't see much hope for them stopping big investors and big business.

Meanwhile, back at home, I enjoy this visit with my 2 grandsons.  Ian turned 4 on Friday, and it was just the 2 of us for breakfast so I made him a stack of birthday pancakes with a candle on top!  In a couple weeks, little Jack turns 2.  This picture of hugs is so special.  They aren't always that enamored with each other, believe me!