Stitching Friends Forever

October Week Two
Winner of Mini Give Away
RJ's Grab Bag
Christmas Challenges

Winner of the Batty cross stitch pattern is Sandy.   Congratulations!  Hope you have alot of fun stitching it up.   Thank you all for entering.   Look forward to more give aways. 
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RJ's Grab Bag - a trip to Yellowstone 

Have you been to Yellowstone National Park?  If not, it truly is a place to put on your list of places to go.   My husband and I have been to many national parks but Yellowstone is by far our very favorite.  There is so much to see and do. Yellowstone is so diverse that it is almost like having eight parks in one.  It's truly an experience to be savored.  We like to spend a good week there to get to see all the spots of interest.  Where else can you see geysers, paint pots, hot springs, canyons, wildflowers, waterfalls, historical buildings, a huge lake and fantastic wildlife?  And to make it even better, Wyoming has the best summer weather with lovely days of sunshine, blue skies and no humidity.   I will give you the highlights of each area so you can get a feel for each section.

Lamar Valley is one of the entrance points to Yellowstone.   It is a very pretty area and if you are having a lucky day you will probably get to see some wildlife.  Bears are usually harder to spot but there are many buffalo to see.

How lucky were we to see a bear our very first day!

This was our first herd of buffalo to see.

We got even luckier...we spotted another bear!

Old Faithful is the most popular spot in Yellowstone and also the most famous.   Here there is great lodging in the Old Faithful Inn, the Snow Lodge and the Old Faithful cabins.  This area has the most places to eat and the most shopping for gifts to bring home.  But, the biggest reason everyone is there is to see the grand old dame, Old Faithful herself.   But don't miss the nearby paint pots and some pretty waterfalls.

This is Old Faithful with a rainbow forming behind her.

This is our favorite place to view Old Faithful from the balcony off the second floor of the Inn.

                              

The fireplace is three floors high in the Inn.

This is the second floor.   The whole Inn was made from logs in Yellowstone.   The story behind how it was constructed is amazing.   Don't miss the free tour of Old Faithful Inn.

Here is a nearby paint pot.   They are all different colors.

This is where the cold stream meets with the very hot springs.

                                 
The Canyon area is downright gorgeous.   There is an area that they call the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and you will see the resemblance right away.  You will really enjoy the hike down to the lower falls where you feel like you can almost touch the falls.   It's a hard hike back up but there are lots of places to stop and rest.

Part of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone

                                  

Lower Falls

                                     

Another view of the Canyon

                                     

Mammoth area is another very popular area with visitors.   Here you will get to see the hot springs that have calcified over the years.   There is a mile hike to the top of the hot springs and you get a great view of the area from the top.  The little village offers very good accommodations and dining.  It also has military housing of many years ago that now houses the park rangers.   It's a great area to walk around.   Female and baby elk are plentiful and walk among the people.

Calcified layers after many years.

                                   

Mile hike to view the hot springs.   Great view to the village below.

These elk are very used to people being nearby.

Old military housing that now house the Park Rangers.

                                               

Hayden Valley is in between the Canyons and the Lake area and this is your best chance to spot wildlife.   There are fields and fields of buffalo and at some time during the day they will single file crossing the street to the other side.  This causes what they lovingly call the "Buffalo Road Block".  You may sit there for a long time but if you are lucky enough to be at the front of the line you get quite a show.                 

 Here is a gorgeous elk.       

This was an unbelievable find...a Mama and her cubs crossing the creek.

                                      

Here they are coming out the other side.

                                       

How cute are the baby cubs?    

Love his face.

 The Buffalo Road Block begins.  

It's a Grizzly!!!

This big boy took a detour and is coming over to say hello.   

                                       

Yellowstone Lake area is by far my favorite place to stay.   It is quiet and serene and the perfect spot to lay your head at night.   It has a beautiful restored hotel, a hotel annex which is more like motel rooms and lots of cabins.   They have the best food in the park with the number one dining room and the only made to order deli plus a diner just a mile away.   There are all kinds of water sports and you can even catch your own fish and have it made to order for your dinner in the dining room that night.  But the very best part of staying at the Lake is most every night a fantastic string quartet plays in the sunroom of the hotel.   For me, a perfect day in Yellowstone is hiking or touring during the day and then relaxing to the quartet at night.   They are four school teachers who come every summer and they will play any kind of music you want.  

Lake Yellowstone is huge

     This is the restored original Lake Hotel.           

The peaceful sunroom where you can look out at the beautiful lake.   It is a huge room and this is where the string quartet performs most nights.   The other nights they have an excellent piano player.           

This is a photo of the string quartet from the Yellowstone website.  This must have been a special day performance because we have only seen them at night after dinner.

The Lake Lodge is right across the street.   It has a big front porch with rocking chairs so you can view the lake.   It also has lots of sitting areas inside and is a great place to play cards in front of two huge fireplaces.

We came home one day and a buffalo was grazing on the cabin lawn right across the street from us.

                               

Came home another day and he was standing right in our parking space in front of our cabin.   This is very unusual for them to come into the housing area.   They are massive creatures!!!

                               

Roosevelt area is more of a primitive area for lodging.   It only has cabins that are very rustic and you must share your bathroom.    This is more for the young people who want an inexpensive place to stay.   It's worth a ride out there though because they have a western theme and their dining hall makes barbecue and steaks for a nice change of pace.  Wildflowers are plentiful in this area too which is a very pretty sight. 

The wildflowers are so pretty up in the Roosevelt area

Closeup of the wildflowers

This adorable cub was enjoying the wildflowers too.   We drove by and saw him on the side of the street.

And the last area in Yellowstone is called Grant.   There is some lodging and a dining room but that's about it.   It does not have much wildlife (sometimes elk) or any other attraction.

This elk is enjoying an afternoon snack.

I hope you have enjoyed the tour of Yellowstone and that you will consider a trip there.    It's an awesome place that I think you and your family will enjoy very much.  Happy trails!!!                                                                        
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Christmas Challenges

RJ's Santa challenge

I chose Santas Revisited by Prairie Schooler.   I really love the sunflowers and birds in this stitch.   I used all over dyed threads that I chose instead of the called for colors.   These Santas are really alot of fun to stitch.   I'm getting closer to having enough to fill up my dough bowl.

            Closeup of Santa with sunflowers and birds              

Santas Revisited
by Prairie Schooler
35 ct. Weeks cocoa linen
over dyed threads that I chose

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Mary's Ornament Challenge

I chose LHN's Pine Tree Inn for my Christmas Challenge this month as I wanted a quick stitch.  I made a small change to the original pattern which I really like.   Instead of a fence on both sides of the house, I stitched a tree on both sides and substituted a small heart button instead of stitching the heart.

Pine Tree Inn with added trees and heart button

Pine Tree Inn
by Little House Needleworks
28 ct. Zweigert Cashel raw linen
called for threads

Hope you are all enjoying a lovely fall.   It is such a beautiful time of the year. Thank you so much for coming by for a visit.   We always appreciate hearing from our stitching friends.   Next week we will be doing our "old ornaments made new".   RJ and Mary



            Autumn colors remind us we are all one dancing in the wind
                                           Lorin Morgan- Richards