Is it 2012 yet?

Holy cow.....what a year this has turned out to be....but I will be calling it the year of many travels and a very empty wallet. MY BAD!!!
4 trips to Ogden, three driving and one flying, two trips to Anacortes and three quilt retreats. I had a very busy year. The empty wallet part, oh gosh, where do I even begin...guess I won't but 2012 will be spent very close to home with a padlock on my wallet and checking account. I would not trade it for anything. I look back at the 5 years I have been in retirement and figure I haven't done all that bad. I have been able to go where I want to go, do what I want to do and I have kept very busy.
I have a true inner feeling about just sitting doing nothing. I am not a huge TV fan. I do ejoy a few programs and do watch it if the weather is crumby but as far as being glued to it like many are...no way. At some point in my much older life I will need the TV to entertain me while I eat strained peas and jello. Until then plan to keep doing what I do most,traveling and enjoying life to the fullest.
That reminds me I signed up for Social Security this week. To some it means life is coming closer to the end... to me, I figure what the heck, a few more dollars to blow doing things I love.
Speaking of things I love, I have a brand spanking new granddaughter. Hadley LeeAnn arrived on October 26th at 8:22p.m. in Ogden Utah....My son Scott and beautiful daughter-in-law, Jaclyn had a lot to do with it. Hadley is beautiful and perfect in every way. I was fortunate enough to be able to get to Ogden and hold her before she was 24 hours old. You see, she was just a tad early and was suppose to arrive on 11-11-11. So on October 25th I was sitting in my dining room putting the final touches on a much-loved baby quilt when I got the call that Jaclyn was in labor. I don't have the best eyesight right now so driving 7 hours at that exact moment was impossible. But by 7am the very next morning I was on the road again and by 3:30pm I was walking into the hospital. I was overwhelmed with a joy I cannot express! That cute sweet innocent face all bundled in a teeny tiny little bundle of sweet smelling bliss!

I was so fortunate to spend the next few days just watching her. I can say now it is so hard being so far away.
So here is what I was working on the day I got the call. The pattern is called "Love Me Tender".

I still have to add the label and I have a big plan for what I want it to look like.
So coming home from Ogden in the "boyfriend" I was a tad worried. I could see snow in the mountains ahead of me and driving a VW over a snowy mountain pass was worrisome. Lost Trail was snow covered and the curves slippery. I did make it home okay. But thoughts of the next few months of snow and ice made my nights sleepless with worry. The new VW was cool...making me feel special and "one of a kind" but after several trips to Zoo town the special was sort of wearing off and it was becoming more of like I was walking around with a huge ugly zit on my nose. I was getting tired of feeling like I had no privacy and everyone was staring. I was getting tired of answering questions and then when the rattle I had just had repaired came back it hit me.....No dealer..no one to fix my problems the bug had to go. Sorry Boyfriend you have too much baggage.
to be continued........

The Rest of the Story...

Last night I left you hanging.....I was getting tired, it was late, and I had some serious TV to watch..
So I was on the scene of buying the car....the salesman had held this VW for over an hour and while I was looking it over, car after car pulled into the dealership all to see the new model of Beetle.. I wanted to drive it so off we went..me in the drivers seat with Scott as co-pilot, Jaclyn and the salesmen sitting comfortably in the back seat...on our return I knew I had to own this fun car...there were three different people waiting to see if I said yes. So papers were signed and I left with the plan of picking up the new wheels the next day. But the salesman left me with a thought...he would not give me the keys until the car had a decent name. All night I stewed over the right thing to call my car. It finally hit me...I refer to my Bernia sewing machine as Bernard, My horse, Barney and now my car are all my "boyfriends". I can run away for the weekend with any of them and also say my boyfriend is safely locked in the garage with out reservation.
The next day I came to drive away in my new toy. It was sitting adorned with balloons and a huge red bow in front of the dealer complete with this note:
To Julie:
I will always be there for you, as long as you luv me.
Thanks for buying me.
Signed,
The Boyfriend

I also got to meet one of the big dogs from the corporate office of VW, Dave Warhall...he told me I have a very special car. It is one of 600 Launch Editions...and is the 1st one sold west of the Mississippi. Most dealerships are keeping thiers to use as Demos....I have the very 1st one in Montana. I get looks everywhere I go. People drive by and give me the thumbs up signs and stares. I get compliments in parking lots and they want to know how I got it. I feel truly special. I did give up so much luxury when I sold my Tribeca...no power seats...no Sirius radio...no leather....no climate contol..no compass ( I am so challenged directionally). No 4 doors... but I have a sports car-like feel to my driving with the Turbo and a sleek looking small car that actually fits straight in the garage. I love it!
So I get home from Ogden driving the new wheels. I had yet another 2 days to unpack, repack and get ready 3rd leg of September. This time I was just a passenger riding in our 86 Ford truck to Washington. Craig was taking Salty back to EQ Marine in Coronet Bay for winter storage and placing it on a new trailer with rollers. It is more secure now for the long hauls we will be making twice a year. Spring will be to pick Salty up, and Fall we will return to store it for winter. That means twice a year we get to play in and around the San Juan Islands just south of Vancouver BC, Canada. It is a beautiful area, cute quaint towns, green landscapes, friendly folks and relaxation bobbing around on clean salt water. We have seen wildlife galore, so different than our usual sights of our area. We spend time chatting with others at the Cap Sante Marina in Anacortes...What a neat place...

So now here we are in the middle of October....we left for Washington in summer clothes and came home to cool crisp Fall air and brilliant colors. I really want to know
What Happened to Summer?

So What Happened to September?

When I last posted it was mid August....now it's mid October and for the life of me I don't know where September went....although I do know some part of it was very sad...
So we finished haying, I had a garage sale and then Craig and I went camping a couple of times...We really toyed with the idea of taking the horses on an actual pack-it-in trip but the weather was so darned hot we decided to just use the RV instead...good idea...we had some good day rides instead of all the work it takes to camp.
I would like to direct you at this time to the other blog we have..http://tessa-itsadogslife.blogspot.com/. Many fun stories of our adventures as seen through the eyes of our beloved Tess..Here you will find photos and never ending escapades of the pooches..
So the sad part of September was the loss of Kate...

Many of you know I have had donkeys for all of my married life. I sort of fell in love with the gentle souls when Craig and I married in 1985. He had one small older grey "Jesus-sized" donkey that I adored. One thing led to another and I either owned or raised 22 of these wonderful beings over the course of the last 26 years...Kate was the last one. She was 25 years old and on 9-10-11 we had to have her humanely euthanized. It was an unexpected loss and the end of a hobby I will never regret having. So carts, buggys,and harness have all been sold and I am truly hoping the new owners will enjoy the items as much as I did over the years...It was a sad time..
Mid September found me in route to my favorite pasttime...quilt retreats...Joining up with 11 of my good friends we spend 4 days lounging in our pjs' with our sewing machines...Ghost Rails Inn, a B&B in Alberton Montana, takes excellent care of us, complete with cute rooms adorned with homemade quilts and fluffy white towels and meals served family style. For those who may follow the blog this year's theme was the Bitterroot Bunch Tacky Party and Quilt Expo. Everyone was a terrific sport and came dressed to dinner on Sunday night in their tackiest attire....and me without my camera too...
So home from the quilt retreat and I have two days to get myself organized for a trip to Ogden. This time to attend and help decorate for the baby shower for our kids. Yes time is flying by and it was so much fun....A couples BBQ was planned and the theme was.."We're adding another pumpkin to the Patch"...Fall colors adorned the yard and food was prepared....oh my, way too much food. 35 of Jaclyn and Scott's friends attended and the party was a brilliant success. Ham, all sorts of salads, chips, dips and cake and homemade ice cream. Baby gifts overflowed the table and I can't say just how many cute and girly things were recieved.. Fantastic! The name was chosen for the new baby as well so soon we will actually be able to welcome, Hadley Wold to our family ( BTW the middle name is yet to be divulged but I am not going to be the one to bug the kids...all in good time!)
So just how much trouble do I get into when I am traveling?. Too much....about 7 months ago I was watching TV..Oprah had on her "favorite things" show and awarded 300 of her audience a new 2012 Volkswagen Beetle....They only showed the outline but I was so intrigued...you see, way back when I went to high school I drove a red 1964 VW bug...it was my dream. In 1971 I purchased yet another VW this one was orange ( named it the Great Pumpkin after the comic strip) and in 2003 I owned my 3rd...a silver one with every bell and whistle they made... okay so on with my story.
I started checking the Internet to find out about the new ones and when they would be available...not much info out there. Calls were made to Montana dealers..not one called me back...so one day in a conversation with Scott I grumbled about not being able to get any info on this new and improved VW due to be released, who knew when. He said the local dealer was just outside the base entrance and he would stop in and ask... Cutrubus VW told him they would let him know when they would arrive and I forgot all about it...well almost...I still checked the web..looked at photos when they did come out, dreamed of maybe looking at one in the spring of 2012 on one of my trips to Ogden. Then September 22 on my way to the baby shower I get a phone call from Scott...."Mom, when can you get here? For heavens sake, Scott, I am someplace outside of Salmon Idaho, taking a new route and you are asking me when I will arrive? Why? Well Cutrubus VW just called and they just got in the new 2012 Turbo...your name was 1st on the list so they are holding it for you to look at. Can you get here by 5:30?" I pulled in their driveway at 5:55pm. We made it to the dealer at 6:45pm the saleman met us, took one look at my Tribeca and said let's talk...the rest is history.... I will finish this story in my next post and continue with where we ended AFTER my return from Ogden...I am just getting started on the VW story. But for now I have to get some dinner going...maybe tomorrow.....to be continued.....