The Dairy Barn in Athens, OH and a Trip to Visit Grandparents

We just returned from a whirlwind trip to see Grandma and Grandpa in Ohio. Their summer home is on Atwood Lake.

On the way, we took a 3 hour detour to visit The Dairy Barn in Athens, Ohio. For those who don't know, The Dairy Barn is home to Quilt National, which is a biennial juried exhibition of art quilts. For art quilters, this is IT.

A Kaleidoscope of Beads: Bead International 06, a juried exhibition, was at The Dairy Barn. It was incredible. I admire the skill and patience of artists who work in this medium. The detail of these works is amazing. In the other half of The Dairy Barn was an exhibit of baskets from the National Basketry Association. The girls enjoyed both exhibits and took a moment to string some beads at a corner table set up for children.

Then off to Atwood Lake.

Sarah and Sophia had no problem digging in the worm farm for earth worms and red crawlers.

Sarah was excited, but a little disappointed when Sophia caught the first fish - this small blue gill.

Don't worry Sarah, this catfish you caught was as big as your sister!

We decided to throw it back, even though Sarah gleefully exclaimed: "Let's eat it!"

There was lots of swimming in the pond, even though it was cold. Rick and Sandra have a little sailboat that belongs to Sandra's mom who is 92 years old. They brought it from Indiana, Pennsylvania, refinished it and set it out on the pond.

The girls took turns driving the pontoon boat on Atwood Lake.

We anchored off a sand beach, swam in the lake and visited the lighthouse.

On the last day Grandpa let the girls drive the tractor. What a sight and what a thrill.

It was a 14 hour drive home. Joel had to work so I did all the driving while he slept. By the 10th hour my entire right side was pins and needles. I'm still recovering...ah but the good times and happy memories the girls had was worth every moment.

And now back to the studio before I get kicked off the Artful Quilters ring for not writing about art!