For The Birds (Key West, FL)

I can't believe we have been here almost a month.  All ready?  How time flies when I am enjoying the views!

We have also been dealing with quite a few thunder storms recently.  They tend to sneak up on us when we are least expecting them.  

I never get tired of the sunsets

As the sun is going down on another gorgeous sunny day, the clouds are gathering for another surprise visit.  We almost lost our large awning one night.  I had already fallen asleep when a big gust of wind rocked our motorhome.  By the time I had jumped out of bed, Dan was already outside wrestling with the awning that was acting like a sail and trying very hard to blow it over the motorhome's roof.

lots of puddles to navigate around during our walks

We finally managed to roll up and lock the awning in place, but not before the canvas hinge that holds the awning to the roof had ripped.  Dan is planning to replace the canvas hinge by himself.  We were lucky compared to several other campers.  Many of the awnings and the upright arms were ripped off the rigs during that short storm.

This past week, we were glued to the news watching T.S. Erika while wondering if the base commander would make a mandatory evacuation of the campground.  News came on Saturday morning that we would not have to move.  We just had to tie down or store all loose items.  Erika broke up over Cuba and moved further north.  We received a couple of hours of heavy rain and wind.  Not too bad compared to that one stormy night.  One good thing came out of this storm - this is the cleanest the campground has looked since we got here.  No cluttered sites!

We found out that during the summer, there are some tourist attractions that give free or discounted entrances to active duty and military retirees plus dependents.  We took advantage of the free offers and have been visiting quite a few attractions.

Below is some photos of the Audubon House.  Actually this house belonged to the Greiger family not to John Audubon. 

Audubon House

 Captain John Greiger was a maritime pilot and a wrecker. Salvage wreckers were a common practice among the locals making Key West a very prosperous town until the government intervened and put an end to the salvaging.

Touring through Greiger's home gave a view of what life was like in the late 1800s.  The house is filled with beautiful antiques and period furniture.  I, of course, was more interested in the quilts.  I wish I had taken a photo of the quilts' design description and original owners.  I should know better!  My memory is not that good!

I often wonder how the ladies and gentlemen could stand to wear the layers of clothes during the hot days of summer.  This dress looks like it is made of a loose woven linen, so at least, a little cooler to wear.  The little parasol doesn't look like it would protect a lady from the hot sun very well, does it?

I had mentioned that John Audubon did not live here.  He did visit for six weeks in 1832 with the Greiger family in their old homestead on the same property.  He wrote about his visit with the Greigers and Key West while studying the local wild life.  The house he visited was destroyed during a hurricane in 1846.  Throughout the 'new' house, we were able to view many of Audubon's prints.  The meticulous detail of each bird is amazing.  I have seen some of Audubon's work in books, but they don't come even close to the amount of detail put into each of the large prints.

I love the layout of the house.  The stairs and a very wide hall/entrance way were open to double door rooms.  At the front and back of the centered hallways are large doors to catch the breezes keeping the house cool.  The outside doors opened to deep set verandas giving the house more shady areas to enjoy.

The rocking chairs on the veranda were very inviting.  Come sit.  Rock away the day while watching the people pass by on the street or enjoy the quiet beauty of the garden.

On The Cutting Board
A customer asked if I was going to make more Acorn mug rugs soon because she was interested in ordering four of them.  I told her I would make six and she can pick out the four she wanted before I listed them.  I mailed out her order today, so I will list the last two on Etsy soon.

I will also be listing eight new Happy Campers!  I'm so happy to get so many done at one time.  I'm in the middle of finishing up five mini wall hangings.  I'll post some photos in my next blog.  I know...you are wondering - gee, when will that be???  Yea, I'll try to post a little quicker next time.  I certainly have enough photos of the area to fill a few posts.

One more photo of a great sunset.  This time with thunder clouds in the distance.  They did not come this way.  Most of our storms seem to come from the north or east.  For now, anyway.  

Well, I better get back to the mini wall hangings....

Happy Quilting!