Flowers From My Sweetie

Happy Monday!

Moving of the Koi - Spring Edition

Today was the annual "moving of the Koi" on Belle Isle. The Belle Isle Aquarium, designed by Albert Kahn and opened in 1904, was the oldest continually-operated public aquarium in North America (until Detroit budget cuts forced it to close its doors in 2005).

Pond outside the Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory

Since then, the aquarium has been maintained by a group of extremely loyal volunteers. One of their responsibilities are the large koi ("Mo", the oldest, is reported to be near 80-years old). These amazing creatures reside in the outdoor pond in summer (attached to the Scripps Whitcomb conservatory) and in the basement in winter (the basement doubled as a speakeasy during Prohibition). Twice a year, dozens of volunteers move the koi from one location to another.

Members of my family volunteer yearly

My family has volunteered for each move over the last few years. This year, I met my sister (Lorna), brother-in-law (Corey), brother (Jeremy), sister-in-law (Robyn), and nephew (Andrew) on the Isle for the move. We were joined by Andrew's Cub Scout pack, Robyn's church, and my geocaching friends to help out!

Geocachers for the cause!

In essence, it's a large bucket brigade scooping up the fishies and sloshing their way to the pond.

Objects in the bucket are bigger than they appear!

My first catch of the day!

Getting acclimated

In the next weeks, volunteers will bring out the water plants.

Settling in fine!

Afterwards, we celebrated our hard labors with hot dogs, chips and Town Club Root Beer & red pop - yummy! Then we wondered into the flower room of the attached Conservatory.

Everything was in full bloom and gorgeous!

I had a hard time picking out only a few pictures for this post.

Happy Spring!

Elisa

What does...

....koi, root beer and flowers have in common?

A Winter Wallhanging...

... Just in time for May Day!

It's Basting Time!

Another stage completed in this latest memory quilt.

Tool Tip: O'Keeffe's Working Hands

Had to share! This time of year my hands dry out and crack. The more I quilt, the worse it gets. I've used many things in the past including Bag Balm and Udder cream. I now have a new favorite.

My Sweetie bought me this from the local hardware store for a few bucks. You need VERY LITTLE. It goes on smoothly, dries quickly, does not smell and instantly softens. I love the feel of it.

Another Memory Quilt Top Done

I know this blog has been neglected of late. Mostly because of so many recent life changes. Lately, however, it's because I've been finishing projects!

Here's another glimpse of my latest "memory" quilt. More to come!

Sorry, Lauri

I'm trying to get a good picture for you, but it's been so overcast this week. Here's a portion for now....

The Batting is Here!

Woot! Given a choice, I prefer to shop at a local quilt shop. However, with the Michigan economy, we've lost 3 nearby shops. So I had to mail order my batting and wait... (fingers thrumming...)

Why this batting? This is an excellent batting for memory quilts. Thick enough for the bulky seams to sink into, but light enough so it doesn't add oppressive weight to the final product. It scrunches down enough to fit under my needle, and it drapes wonderfully over your lap when done. It doesn't require tight quilting, and this batting machine quilts like butter!

I have some stuff to share this week.

Happy Saturday!

Journal Quilt

Making progress today!

He Has Smarticles

My boyfriend is a sweetie, and he likes to cook. Being the lone cook for the last decade, I've missed some pretty neat tricks.

When I brown beef or cook bacon, etc, I've been buying those little foil pans to collect the drippings (I don't use coffee cans anymore because I don't drink coffee, metal cans are hard to find, and the can tends to mold quickly).

We cooked Sloppy Joe's the other night, and Steve lined a ceramic bowl with tin foil. Huh. Why didn't I think of that? After the grease hardened, he wadded it up and threw it out.

He has Smarticles.

Belle Isle Event

Saturday was the big geocaching event on Belle Isle! What a gorgeous day! Sunny, blue (59-degrees) and surrounded by several hundred of my closest friends!

Had an amazing time with my family (Team Free Range Lobsters) plus some honorary Lobsters (Mibbs, Dave and Diego - hi!)

In the end, I found 32 Geocaches (including a webcam cache), surpassed my 2500th find, ate 2 hot dogs, and wore out a pair of feet!

Can't wait for next year!

I will try to post more Belle Isle pics later.

Take care!