I'm still here!

I've had a couple friends both near and far, that have wondered if I'm okay because it's been awhile since I posted to my blog. Actually, I'm doing very well, just very busy. Lots of family stuff going on and kind of a busy time of the year. Plus, I finally took a lesson on my new sewing machine..........and then I've been reading. It all started when I read this book while I was recovering from my surgery...............

This a new version of the book and it can be ordered here but the one I read was an edition published in 1949. That's the year I was born. It intrigued me to read a book that was published the year I was born. That's a long time ago. LOL! The book is set in the 1830's in the early years of Minnesota's history. That's an even longer time ago! I was fascinated by the characters in the book, the young girl DeeDee and the other characters who were early settlers in Minnesota. I read names of people and places that were now cities or streets or public buildings or parks. I read the names of Indian Chiefs and encampments that seemed familiar but not by the names in the book. And then they kept referring to the River St. Peter's and I had the feeling they were talking about the Minnesota River. Soooooooooo........I did some checking and for all you local Minnesotan's.......Did you know that the first name for the Minnesota River was the St. Peter's or St. Pierre to the French?  I didn't know that. I discovered I didn't know a whole lot about Minnesota and I have lived here for almost 38 years, longer than my home state of Iowa where I lived for 19 years! When I finished "Early Candlelight" I decided to check out some history books on Minnesota and that, my friends, is what has kept me busy lately. At night when I should be writing a blogpost, I go to bed early so I can read!
If you are from Minnesota and want to learn a little more about our state, here's where I started..........
I wanted to know more about the Native Americans of our state so I read..........

Indian Chiefs of Southern Minnesota by Thomas Hughes (can be found here)

and The Great Sioux Uprising by Keenan (go here)

Then I read this book Barns in Minnesota and I got tears in my eyes several times as I read the story that goes along with the photos of old Minnesota barns. You'll find that book here along with other titles from the Minnesota Historical Society. Another good one in this series is on School Houses and one on Churches.
I also found a good book on old farmhouses and when I thumbed through it, I thought of the house on my Grandpa and Grandma's farm. It's long gone just like many of the homes in this book. Still, I thoroughly enjoyed the book, even though it made me sad to think of those homes once loved, were now abandoned. The book is called Death of the Dream-Farmhouses in the Heartland and can be found here.

I am midway through another book that is the journal of Frank B. Mayer an artist titled With Pen and Pencil on the Frontier in 1851: The Diary and Sketches of Frank Blackwell Mayer.  Since the diary was written in 1851, it is a bit difficult to read because the words are often spelled differently and written in the style of that time. But, it is fascinating to read his description of cities and people he encounters, and the view he sees as he comes north on the Mississippi into St. Paul. Go here for more info on the book.

I'm also reading a history of Minnesota that was originally a school text book, The Story of Minnesota's Past (go here) and next up, when I finish the Pen and Pencil book is a book titled...... The Minnesota: Forgotten River (go here). I am really enjoying this self-imposed Minnesota History course and next on the agenda is a visit to a few of the sites nearby like the Treaty*Site*History*Center . If you are interested in our Minnesota History, there's a bus trip that will visit some of the Dakota War battle sites. It is sponsored by the Scott County Historical Society in Shakopee and info can be found here.

Well, as you can see, with all the reading I've been doing, there really hasn't been much time to think about blogging. I've done a bit of sewing and continue to do some cleaning and reorganizing in my sewing room. More on that later. Ah, but there is some other news.........

We bought a grill and patio furniture! Haven't had a grill in six years! Haven't had patio furniture in a long time either! We added our deck last year and decided it was finally time to buy some furniture so we can sit out there and eat. Here's my Random Number Man cooking up steak and potatoes........I'm not a really big fan of steak but this New York Strip from our local grocery store, Wagar's was really, really tasty. I liked the potato slices best and then the fresh asparagus was pretty good, too. I see more of this in our future. :-)

Something else coming in the future is a new clothesline!! Yes, my "What's on the line?" feature will return soon. My husband, I mean Mr. Random Number Man, has bought new rope and some pulleys and is going to make a system that will allow me to adjust the height of the line so really long quilts won't drag in the dirt. This probably won't get finished for a week or so. He'll be preoccupied with Indy racing and NASCAR racing this weekend. I'm going off to Iowa to visit my mom while he and Kaiser hold down the fort here at home. :-) 

That's all for now as I am anxious to read some more Minnesota history. Back soon.

Sandi