The Getaway Continued

The second day found us in Waynesville, OH.

OF COURSE we stopped at the Fabric Shack.

I may have added to my fabric stash.

 We also visited many antique shops.  

In one of the shops we met Miss Emmie.  

She followed me all around even after I pet her.  The owner told me that was rare.  

I informed him that I really am the Crazy Cat Lady, LOL.

My favorite find was this gorgeous peacock tiffany lamp.  Too much money but beautiful!

We left here and stopped back in the small town of Yellow Springs to walk around the shops.

On the way out of town we stopped at Young's Dairy for some ice cream.  

I got the single (on the right)

He got the double.

His was only $1 more than mine.

I should have gotten a double!

The last stop before home was the Ohio Caverns, in West Liberty, Ohio.

OMGosh were these caverns amazing!  This shows how wet it was in the caverns.

  You are able to see the water dripping into a pool in this photo.

This stalactite was HUGE, they called it the king.

Proof we were there.

So.  Many.  Spectacular formations!

This one reminded me of finger bones touching.

The brown that looks like corrugated cardboard is formed by iron oxide. 

These "bunches" reminded me of carrots!  

This cavern is the only one in the world that has the iron oxide and calcite formations together.

This one looked like a water pump and was about 4" tall.

See those 2 that are almost touching (second from the left)?  

They said it would take somewhere between 35-50 years for them to completely touch!

You were not allowed to touch anything.

Additionally, the paths were wide enough that I didn't feel claustrophobic.

I will show you the fabrics I bought tomorrow.

~XOP~

Finishing Up Vacation

One more fabric shop I visited (twice) was the Cotton Patch in University Park, Florida. 

 It is the closest to my in-laws and a really nice shop. 

I bought a few things from them too.

Best part of the visits here are the Bassett Hounds.  

This is Stanley.  

So adorable!

After we left Florida we drove the long drive back to Michigan.  

We stopped at a quilt shop called the Birdhouse Quilt shop, in Byron Georgia.  

It was a HUGE warehouse type shop and had some good things too.

The next stop was in Ohio at Jungle Jims International Market.  

I can not even begin to describe this place.

Check out their website here.

Then to the Fabric Shack, in Waynesville Ohio.

I LOVE this place!

I forgot to take a picture of the shop but have done so previously.

I bought some really nice things here.

So next up will be photos of my purchases.

Does anyone want to see what I bought?

Stop back tomorrow for that update!

~XOP~

Vacation Continues

We decided one day to go and check out the new modern quilt shop in Sarasota. 

 It is called the Modern Sewist.  

As you can see this is a beautiful shop!  They has so many of the beautiful fabrics I only see online.

Before the Big Cat Rescue Sanctuary we stopped for lunch at Stottlemeyers.

OMGosh, the BEST BBQ nacho plate EVER!

We went to the Big Cat Rescue in Sarasota this trip.  We have not gone there before. 

 It was pretty interesting.  All the cats are rescue animals and so are all the other animals there.  

These cats eat between 20-50 pounds of meat per day!!!  

They sure are beautiful animals though. 

 Sad to see them in cages, but they make great ambassador animals.

They would otherwise have had to be euthanized, which is even sadder.

The white tiger is called Barry White!  LOL

This Liger (Lion Tiger cross) was called Mia.

She was gorgeous!

They has some Serval cats too.  They are a smaller cat (think Labrador size)

They were so cute!

The last day we were there we went for a ride on my BIL's boat.

Here you see my BIL, hubby and his father.

My BIL and SIL live on Bird Key so we left from their place.

 Out in Sarasota bay just a short way from the bridge we saw a Manatee and her baby.  

There was a single Manatee too but I didn't get a photo of that one.  

It's difficult to get good photos with a cell phone too.

Leonardo DeCaprio is building a home here too and we went past it.

It reminded me of an office building.

We went down the canal to the left of the house and some dolphins followed us.

View from my BIL/SIL house.

Don't you just love the pool??

We had a beautiful sunset and thank them for hosting us!

It is always fun to get together.

 I leave you with a video of the dolphins in the bay.

 A few more quilt shops to share and also the spoils.

I think that needs to hold off for another post though.

~XOP~

I Think I Left Off With Vacation

When you stop blogging regularly it seems like it takes time to get back in the swing. 

I was out on vacation then got a nasty cold so that's why I have been MIA. 

 I have been posting in Instagram though as it is much faster and I don't need my computer to do it.

We stopped at 2 quilt shops on the way to NC.  The first one was in Nelsonville, OH.  

The Nelsonville Quilt Company

What a cool little town!  Very nice quilt shop too.

I thought this train was so colorful!

The second shop, The Fabric Shop, was in Pomeroy, OH.  

This shop used to be a general store and had crazy ladders they used to access the high shelves. 

 I made my husband model one of them, LOL.

We went to NC to visit our daughter and to be part of the celebration of my daughter's soon to be nana-in-law's 80 birthday. 

 It was nice to get to spend some time with her and with her future in-laws.

Me and my daughter.

Me with her future MIL.

On our way to Florida we had an unexpected stop to meet a long time Instagram friend of mine. 

 We met up for lunch and it was so nice to *finally* be able to meet her in person! 

 Please excuse my appearance.  I throw my hair into a ponytail when we travel.

  Makes me look bald, HAHA. Jenny sure looks cute though!

Then it was on to Florida!  We stay with my in-laws in Sarasota.  

They have a pool right across from their house too.

One of the days we went to Mote Marine Aquarium.  

It is not only an aquarium, but a research facility and rescue center.  

I think one of my favorite parts is petting the ray tank.

I was impressed by the Megaladon too.  Made hubby stand by it for size.

Then we stood by just it's teeth!  

YIKES!!!

I'm going to leave this here as this post is pretty photo heavy already.

I will post more tomorrow.

Including some more quilt shops!

~XOP~