Star Quilt Company

85º with 70% humidity in Clarinda, IA at 10:15 am.  A muggy 91º predicted high for the day.

Friday our friends Mary Jo and Oliver Herzberg came down from Villisca, IA and rode with us to Hamilton, MO -- east of St. Joseph, MO -- 

 This is a huge fabric/quilter store, with some 14 different buildings around town stocking fabric of all kinds.  It is also known as Missouri Star Quilt Company.  CLICK HERE for their Website

We were told JC Penny started here, but didn't realize there is a Museum in town of the man.
Will have to make another trip for that.

The girls walked all the stores while Oliver and I tried out some soft recliner chairs in the "Man Store" which is just a lounge with some magazines, two televisions and quite a few recliners.

We ate some hamburgers there in Hamilton and the girls did some more looking in stores.  Then we drove through the countryside to Jamesport, Missouri -- a popular tourist draw in an Amish community.  Walked several downtown stores and stopped at a couple of country stores run by the Amish for a few purchases.  Then on to Maryville, MO where we ate supper at Pizza Ranch.

Made a delightful day, seeing some things we hadn't seen before.

In the background of this photo taken in our back yard, you can see the barn replica bird house sitting on a pile of wood.  That wood had been in place for 8 years and we began worrying about possibility of ants or termites being in it.

These two photos were taken as I started removing the wood.  Didn't find any moving animals or insects in it, but a lot of debris from when they had been working in it and it was breaking down pretty badly.

Have cleaned under the old wood pile and discovered there is a cement pad there (Phyllis said she knew this, but new to me).  I am moving old street bricks from the pile behind the shop

building to make a decorative wall here.  That pile of brick has been there some 8 years and always thought some use would show up.  Now will be able to mow the area around that old pile that had been too narrow for the riding mower to get through.

And this should make a good backdrop for her flower garden!

More later, Lynn