A Change In Plans (Sutherlin, OR)

A lot happened since my last post.  Often when I post our travel plans I would also mention they could change.  They certainly are changing this time.  At the moment, we are settled in Sutherlin, OR at the Timber Valley Escapees SKP Park.  We got a great spot on this hill with views of more pine covered hills surrounding the park.  Nice!

Okay, now for the changes.  First of all, we have listed our 94 Bluebird BMC for sale.  It hasn't been listed for long, but it has generated a lot of interest already.  So, you are probably wondering if we are giving up on our traveling lifestyle.  Not even close!

Dan found online a very well kept ForeTravel motorhome with 2 slideouts for sale.  This motorhome will give us more elbow room, catnap space, and storage.  Dan has been spending a lot of time talking to the owners and we are in agreement to meet them in the late fall to make the transaction.  Hopefully by that time we will have sold our own motorhome.

Which means our travel plans have changed for this winter as well.  We had planned to stay here in the NW area traveling between Oregon and Washington.  Now, we will start heading south to Texas by way of California, Arizona, and New Mexico.  Yea!  I get to spend a week in Albuquerque!  I hope to see some of my old friends.  I guess I better warn them.  ;)  Just a few changes and a little stressful with trying to time things just right.

Before all this happened, I had been planning to tell you about our last stop in Silver Creek, WA and our visit to Mt. St. Helens.  Below, is a view from Paradise Thousand Trails gate.  Imagine going to work with that view every day.  

Below is a photo of the same valley off to the right of the above photo.  We are close to Mt. Rainier and to Mt. St. Helens.  You can barely see Mt. St. Helens peeking through the clouds.  I found myself wondering if someone stood in this spot on May 18, 1980.  Wondering just enough to make my hair stand up on the back of my neck.  

A very scary day when she erupted.  I was actually visiting my parents with our 3-year old daughter in Wenatchee, WA.   The ash followed the Columbia River through Washington State and Oregon.  I remember that Yakima got hit so hard with ash that daylight was blackened out and became night within minutes.  We were in Central Washington which was farther up the river, but the valley still ended up with a layer of ash covering it.  We watched from my old bedroom window on the second floor as the ash cloud followed the Columbia River into the valley.

We spent the rest of the month of May watching the news as it covered Mt. St. Helens destructive path, amazing rescues, and interviews with survivors.

Visiting Mt. St. Helens National Park brought back so many memories.  I will never forget watching Harry R. Truman saying to the reporter that he will not leave his home on Spirit Lake.  

There are a couple of photos inside Hoffstadt Bluffs of Harry Truman sitting with 4 of his 16 cats in his kitchen.  If you happen to visit Hoffstadt Bluffs, have lunch at the Fire Mountain Grill.  My veggie wrap and Dan's veggie burger were delicious and we had a great view to enjoy while eating.  They also have helicopter tours around the mountain, a gift shop, and a large collection of newspaper clippings setup outside the shop for visitors to read.  The clippings are full of stories about the 1980 eruption, and the aftermath 

On the farside of Hoffstadt Bluffs' parking lot, sits the original KOMO TV4 news car driven by Dave Crockett.

I remember watching Dave's news clip as he recorded the eruption and talked to the world as if this would be his last words.  He was one of the lucky witnesses to be rescued later.

At the last stop, there are more stories of rescues and eyewitness accounts of that day inside the Johnston Ridge Observatory.  This is the closest we could get without hiking down one of the paths.  I was quite happy to view the mountain from this point.

What looks like puffs of smoke is dirt and ash blowing around.  Although, she did erupt again in 2008, there were no worries on the day of our visit.  According to U.S. Geological Survey, she remains active, but there are no signs of impending eruption...for now.

A good thing to know since I can't even imagine the power behind the blast that took out these trees.

Just look at their stumps.  They are shredded!  It's amazing so many people actually lived through the blast.

Back at Paradise TT campgrounds, Shaun came for a long 3-day weekend visit.  We spent most of the time around the campground since Labor Day weekend was very busy.  The campground was packed.  I'm sure the national parks were even busier.  Plus, the weather was not cooperating for viewing mountains.  Lots of overcast days, but warm enough to sit outside with cats.

Although, Dusty may not look thrilled at the moment, he was quite happy with us sticking around to let him spend the time outdoors.

Come on Shaun.  Let's cross the road.
I know there are plenty of critters to hunt for in those bushes.

Okay, I will hunt here then.

On The Cutting Board
Recently, I became quite irritated with my press-n-cut board.  I liked the idea of using a smaller area without taking up all the counter space with separate cutting board and folding ironing board.  I have gone through three of these in the past six years.  I'm suppose to be able to iron on one side and cut on the other. Maybe the heat settings were too high, but if I am ironing cotton, I need to use the cotton setting.

As soon as I use it for ironing, the cutting board warps which makes it very hard to use for cutting.....and I'm back to using a separate cutting board.  If that is not bad enough, the more it warps, the harder it is to use for ironing fabric flat.  Even the smaller projects became a chore to iron on the warped surface.

Cut and Press Board

Time to do some research and I found the perfect ironing mat that rolls up for storage.  I read that some people had a problem with the edges melting.  So far, I have not had that problem.

I love the fact that I can roll it up and put it behind my chair.  It is out of sight, but within my reach when needed for the next project.  Great for traveling too.  It came folded so you can fold it to fit in a suitcase.

It is bigger than my old cut-n-press board, but I am a lot happier with the results.  I can now iron large cuts of fabrics and it makes a good working surface for applique projects.  It has a non-slip surface on the back.  It still moves around, but not as bad as my old one.

There are other mats online and I would not be surprised to hear that other quilters have been using an ironing mat all along.  The reviews for this one sounded good and was easy to find at Bed Bath and Beyond.  I have had this one for a couple of months and I am quite happy with it.

I haven't had a lot of time to work on projects recently so no new photos.  Between visits and cleaning our motorhome for potential buyers to view....well, you know that I will find time to get back to sewing soon.....because I must have my sewing time......

Happy Quilting!