A Sheltie for the White House?

So what kind of puppy will the Obama family choose? I keep thinking about it and wondering what breed the new puppy will be. Other presidents and their families have chosen the following:

George W. Bush: Miss Beasley & Barney, Scottish Terriers.

Bill Clinton: Buddy, a Chocolate Lab.

George Bush: Millie & Ranger, Springer Spaniels.

Ronald Reagan: Lucky, a Bouvier des Flandres who was too big & was replaced by Rex, a King Charles Cavalier Spaniel.

Jimmy Carter: Grits a dog given to little Amy by her teacher & had to be returned.

Gerald Ford: Liberty, a Golden Retriever.

Richard Nixon: Vicky, a Poodle & King Timahoe, an Irish Setter.

Lyndon B. Johnson: Him & Her, two Beagles. Blanco, a white Collie & Yuki, a Mongrel Dog.

John F. Kennedy: Charlie, a Welsh Terrier & dogs: Pushinka, Shannon, Wolf, & Clipper.

Dwight d. Eisenhower: Heidi, a Weimaraner.
So what will the Obama family choose? Of course, if I were choosing, it would be a shetland sheep dog (sheltie) but that would certainly mean a lot of barking in the White House. I wonder...I wonder?

Our House of Hope!

My niece Jill and her daughter Maggie help rescue animals through Our House of Hope, a shelter in Ilinois. You can help them win a grant for their animal rescue with the Animal Rescue Site $100k Challenge.

PLEASE! Go to: http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/shelterchallenge.faces?siteId=3

In the purple box in the middle of the page enter:

Shelter name: Our House of Hope

State: IL

City: Gurnee

=>Click on search.

It will bring you to the next page to confirm you have selected the right shelter.

=> Click VOTE

To confirm your vote it will show you a picture of an animal.

Type the animals name in the “your answer” box.

=> Click Confirm Vote

THANK YOU for helping the animals at OUR HOUSE OF HOPE!

Civil War Quilting with Feedsacks!

During the civil war between the states, women rather than government provided soldiers with clothing and bedding. They made quilts for the men on the lines as well as quilts to sell. The quilts they sold provided money to buy more fabric for badly needed quilts.

But quilt fabric, mainly calico, was expensive and had become harder and harder to find. So, in addition to purchased fabric, all kinds of cloth was used for quilt tops. Men’s clothing, old blankets, carpets, drapes and linings from women's dresses were all put to use. Often, even the wardrobes of men who had died in the war were gathered and reused.

The backing for quilt tops was most often made from sturdy grain and feedsacks. Batting was nearly non-existent so old mattresses were taken apart and used for fillers but more often quilts were stuffed with newspaper. When there was no filler batting to be had, the woolen and heavier clothing making up the quilt tops had to provide the warmth needed for the men in action.Civil War Quilt Blocks:
Basic fabrics and simple block patterns were used for the soldiers’ quilts. The faster a quilt could be produced the better as time was of the essence. Sometimes a quilter would stitch words of encouragement on a quilt block to give a soldier hope and inspiration while he was at war.

Frequently soldiers were buried in their quilts and as a result very few original civil war quilts have survived. Since many of the quilts were made in a hurry and not constructed as well as they could have been, many did not survive the war. It is estimated that women created over 250,000 quilts for the soldiers during the civil war.

(I received comments from two different quilters who told me that though the quilt blocks pictured are very old, they may not be civil war era.)

Civil War Quilt Blocks Discovered!

These amazing civil war quilt blocks were discovered at a Quilt Museum in Goshen, Indiana on one of our trips to Amish country. Note the handpiecing stitches on the backside of the quilt blocks.(Although the curator of the museum had documented that these were from the civil war era, I received comments from two different quilters who told me that though the quilt blocks pictured are very old, they may not be civil war era.)

No Cash & Carry For Them!

Back in the good old days, Mom and Dad paid for everything in cold cash money. No credit for them, or as it was known in our town, "cash and carry". "Don't ever buy anything unless you can afford it," Mom and Dad used to say. "And affording it means you can and will pay cash. You've got to learn to save!"

My first job was playing the organ in our church for which I was paid a dollar a day. With those dollars a day paid monthly, it was easy to set aside some money for special things. I saved and then bought my first "straight kick-pleat" skirt and sweater to match. I saved some more and then came a brand new shiny Getzen trumpet for band class and practice. I saved even more and—best of all—came the day I had enough money to buy my own portable Smith-Corona typewriter (which by the way I still have) for Miss Swanson's typing class!

I can still hear Mom and Dad saying, "Don't buy anything unless you can afford it! Save your money! Pay cash!" And that was one of the things my parents told me to do that I actually listened to!

Happy Halloween Therapy Dogs!

These sweet family pets are also working dogs! They are therapy dogs who help heal and entertain! These wonderful therapy dogs, along with their owners, a pumpkin girl and a happy clown, visited an assisted living home to entertain the residents. Everyone had a Happy Halloween time! No wonder! Aren't these dogs and their friends just too cute?