Spring Wildlife

I am currently working on a Top Secret quilt project, therefore you must be content with an update about Mountainjoy today versus quilts.  The wildlife is returning!  This past week has brought us some very special visitors.  First of all, the hummingbirds are back.  I had a little ruby red-throat sit at my empty feeder the other day. I jumped up and got him some food.  I've heard several more hummingbirds in the air but have not been dive-bombed yet.
The moose were here all winter long.  It was only 2 days ago that we actually almost hit one with my car.  We headed out our driveway (which is a chute and only belongs to us).  Suddenly, there was a moose in front of us!  My husband was a bit surprised he didn't see it until I reminded we don't normally look for cross-traffic in our own driveway.  The moose viewing happened in the evening.  The next morning, we had more visitors.
It was 6 in the morning and I was looking at emails waiting for the coffee water to boil.  It scared the pants off of me when from right behind, the dog goes off barking like crazy.  I looked out the window and didn't see what all the fuss was about.  I wanted my coffee.  My husband stayed by the windows watching.  His patience was rewarded as he got to view a pack of black wolves traveling fast in a long strung-out single file line along the trail the moose followed the evening before.  How cool is that?  Such majestic creatures they are!
Yesterday morning, I saw a beautiful owl headed back to it's home to sleep the day away.  He must have had a long night to going home so late in the morning.
On the smaller creature scale, I have chipmunks and rabbits to spare!
I'm off to do top secret stuff (it's so much fun to say) and you all keep quilting and crafting!

Kitties, Quilts, & Computer Scams

Fall has set in here pretty quickly. The aspens are turning and owls are flying in the evening twilight. Hummingbirds are less frequent and we have begun lighting fires. This past week has been filled with quilt work and garden work. Next week proves to be the same. I am truly enjoying this fall and look forward to the winter. (Strange for me.)
I got up at 3:30 this morning because I didn't want to listen to the playful activities taking place in the 'torture dome'. Ah, love those kitties. I started quilting and before I would normally get up, the quilt I am working on was 1/3 done. There can be some good done in the wee hours.
Okay, I have something going on with my website that I would like my readers advice on. I've had some trouble with my email but I got it so people could finally reach me at rebeccah@mountainjoyquilts.com. For a long time, no one contacted me. My brother got a message to me so I knew it was working. Well, all of a sudden, I finally got some emails the other day. I was so excited until I saw that they were in Japanese or something. The only thing I could read was the date. They are all from the future! I've received 4 all together and have sent all to the junk box. I feel terrible about sending some of my first possible business connections to the junk box, but they look so suspicious. So, I want to know my readers opinions on this. Should I feel bad? Is my email just scrambling things? Or is it a virus/scam/evil thing? The one thing my husband wants to know is who wins the horse race in 2018?

Thanksgiving, Cranberries, and Bears, Oh my!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving shared with our friends. One of my friends likes to ask if we've seen any wildlife lately. For some reason, whenever he does, a bear or two will come strolling through the property. It never fails and Thanksgiving was no exception. A small bear came to see what smelled so good. Luckily, no damage was done. I love watching the wildlife but not enough to bait it purposely. Accidents do happen though.
Shortly after moving back to the mountains, I found an old bag of cranberrries in the freezer. Well, I thought I'd be nice to the birds. It was spring and food sources were scarce for the returning birds. So I threw the berries off the porch for the birds. The cranberries glistened like rubies on top of the snow. It was so pretty. My husband came home from work and casually asked me if I thought bears liked berries. I couldn't believe that I had not thought of that possibility. Needless to say, he picked up every single little jewel-like berry and disposed of them properly. No bears visited us that time.
This year, all the cranberries were eaten by us humans. I made up a batch of my favorite Cranberries in Port Wine. Over the years, I've learned to make these with more sugar than the original recipe. Adjust to your own taste as recipes are just springboards. Great ideas that can be completely tailored to suit your life's desires. That being said, here is how I make my Cranberries in Port Wine:
1) Wash and pick over 16 oz bag of cranberries. Put in heavy medium-size saucepan.
2) Add : 1/4 Cup Port Wine of choice
Juice of 1 Orange
1/2 Cup sugar
3) Bring to a boil. Let boil until the cranberries are soft and popped. The syrup should be
fairly thick. (The more sugar, the thicker it will be.)
4) Remove from heat and add fresh orange zest and lemon thyme if you've got it.
Let this cool and keep it in a jar in the fridge. I make them before Thanksgiving and they are really good by Christmas. Don't keep past the New Year though unless properly canned.