Visiting Veda

I recently spent a week visiting my friend, Veda, and her family of 6 kids... 2 boys (both are in the military and weren't home) and 4 girls.

She lives on 30 acres and has all sorts of animals to keep her and her family busy. They have horses, sheep, rabbits, chickens, dogs and lots of cats. It seems like that should be enough to keep them all busy, but no... they also home school and always have lots of other projects going on.

Veda's beautiful home in the forest.

Feeding the cats...

and the chickens.

Whenever I go there, we try to get in a quilting project, which all of the girls enjoy.. or have enjoyed. This year though, there was another project going on. Sara is having an authentic Civil War Era Ball to celebrate her 16th birthday. So, this years project was making ball gowns (think Gone With the Wind) which I thoroughly enjoyed.

Veda and I did a quilting project early in the week, but then worked the rest of the week to get the gowns finished. Sara's passion is historical clothing and had already made the younger girls, Ana and Noami's, dresses.

Noami and Ana in their dresses.

Alyssa was in the process of making her corset, so I made her hoop skirt and started the bodice of her dress.

Alyssa in her hoop skirt and the trial version of her bodice.

Veda was making her own dress and had it almost finished. She completed it while I was there but I never got a picture of it.

Sara working on the trim of her bertha.

Sara was working on her bertha (that was a new word for me). A bertha is the wrap that goes around the shoulders over the top of the bodice. I think she was designing it as she went and it is going to be very beautiful with her dress. The ball will be December 7th and they still have lots of work to do for it, but I'm sure it will turn out wonderfully.

Alyssa with Lovie, the dog.

The girls had to practice their dance steps. They were very good and had so much fun learning and practicing.

Noami and Ana practicing

Sara and Noami practicing

Alyssa and Noami practicing....


but it soon was reduced to this. They are sisters, afterall.
(I hope this doesn't happen at the ball.)

Veda and me

Veda and I always have a good time when we're together and sometimes stay up half the night talking. She came to St. Louis to pick me up from the airport this year (3 hour drive one way for her). So we had lots of extra talking time this year, which I think we both needed.