Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement A Surprising Traffic Cone As the traffic sped past the traffic cone separating the lanes going East from the lanes going West, I wondered how many people noticed the flower arrangement that decorated the top of it. I gave it a second glance. Could that really be flowers there?

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Doggy in Church The large poodle lay contentedly on the church floor in front of his family. The young boy wiggled a bit in his seat, and the dog got up and came to him. After the boy scratched him behind the ears, mama pulled the upper part of

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Heroines Published in 1850, the book is old. It’s binding looks like a heavy string. Its contents are fascinating. It contains stories of real women who played heroic roles during our Revolutionary War to win independence from Britain. Besides the more famous women, the stories are about everyday women

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Those Who Went before Us Our visit to a Naval Museum set our thinking going. So many people who lived in the United States of America from its earliest beginning to the present day have served our country well to get it established and later to enable it to

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement To Do Lists Ah, the tyranny of a To Do List. They are helpful to keep us organized, prevent forgetfulness, and accomplish things we want/need done, but they still can create a lot of pressure on us. At times, they can make us feel we can’t possibly get everything

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Hope Springs Eternal, Even Now This is part of a phrase in the Essay of Man by Alexander Pope. The complete phrase is, “Hope springs eternal in the human breast.” At the beginning of the new year, people want to feel hopeful. They hope a new year will bring

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Friends Laughter rang around the table. The warmth of conversation had nothing to do with the sandwiches and Christmas cookies, but food offered a good excuse to get together. Friendships that endure over years and years through thick and thin bring a special joy. Friends know what ties unite

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Christmas Joy Christmas Eve excitement in the girl’s bedroom made it hard for Louisa to get her four younger sisters in bed. Louisa hung the last of her sisters well-darned stockings on the two double bedsteads where the five of them slept. Because the stockings covered their legs from

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Horse and Buggy Jingling sleigh bells and the clip, clop of horse hooves can transfer our thoughts to past history where such an experience was commonplace. Horse drawn rides are easier to find at Christmas time and are a lot of fun. Kids love the experience and adults reminisce

Mary’s Monday Musings to Quilt Encouragement Christmas Gatherings “You didn’t know what we did during World War 11…” The two brothers burst into laughter, interrupting their story until they could catch their breath and talk over their mirth. In the middle of Christmas dinner the family stopped, forks held mid-air, waiting for them to collect