CATCHING UP AND READY FOR ROCKPORT!!

 Posting today to catch up on a few things and to let you know we will be in Rockport for the art show (that is, if the weather stays ok and Beryl doesn't come for a visit.

We have recently both survived Covid (not a bad case for either of us) and a few other health issues, graduated the eldest grandson from high school ( in Virginia), felled many, many trees on our property that died from either a canker disease and/or Oak Wilt AND put in a water catchment system to combat the lack of water here in the Texas Hill Country!

This is just one of the many trees we had to take down. This one died quickly from that Canker disease. VERY SAD!!!

We are only 52% full at this point, but fingers crossed we can get enough rain to fill it!

So...... hopefully we will be at the Rockport Art Fest - July 6 and 7!!! 

We have been busy making bells and sails for our customers. We will be in our normal booth space along the fence line near the museum.  We hope to see you there but if weather or other circumstances prohibit you/us from getting there, just go to the website to order.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS IN 2023

 
Merry Christmas from the Little House.

We hope this newsletter finds everyone doing well and getting ready for a peaceful holiday season. 

Your bellmakers have survived the awful heat and drought of the summer.  Finally, we have cooler weather and some rain - not enough though.  We will be working to put in a water catchment system this winter.  Water is becoming scarce up here in the hill country. 

We did some traveling this year - went north and east in our RV in the early summer. Went as far north and NY and Maine. Actually, we crossed the border into Canada when we went to Niagara Falls.  This is the harbor in Friendship, Maine where one of our friends are lucky enough to live. 

In October, we volunteered again at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta.  Lots of fun but also lots of hard work!  

                My favorite balloon!! It actually has a horn just like a real VW bus!

We have added pottery making to our things to spend money on .... HA! We now have a wheel, a kiln and lots of clay.  We hope to include a little keepsake for customers in their bell boxes this year. 

Now we are back in the shop and ready for Christmas orders. The first box with the outer red tape just went out yesterday. 

We wish you all only the best. Have fun, be responsible, vote and take care you yourselves. 

ROCKPORT AGAIN !!!

 I just heard a rumor that it is at least five degrees cooler at the coast right now than it is in San Antonio.  So Rockport, here we come!

Here is the link so you can look for the dates, times and ticket prices.  Wear cool clothes, sunblock and a hat and come see us. 

https://www.rockportartcenter.com/artfest

SPRING 2023

Windsongs has had a good spring.  The weather has been pretty good.  We've had enough rain that Judy's veggie garden looks great.  We put in a new "hugelkultur" bed. So far, we harvested tomatoes, zucchini and squash!! The new bed has potato and bean plants PLUS two pineapple plants started from pineapple tops saved from store bought pineapples over a year ago. 

These are zucchini and squash plants in the old hugelkultur bed.

                                                                                                 Tomato plants all in pots.

                                                                         

The King William Art Festival turned out to be a good show despite a HUGE rainstorm on Friday night and an increase in the admission fee.  People still came to the show, stopped by the booth to visit or buy a bell.

We roped in our Boerne grandson, Julien, to help us set up on Friday night. We rewarded him with a trip to the Alamo Cafe on the way home!

The parade was a hit, as usual. This is just one picture of the tons that I took.

So Judy took a pottery class this year which then prompted us to buy a wheel and a kiln.  While throwing pots on the wheel hasn't been as easy as Judy thought it might be, both Philip and Judy created some ceramic Texas stars. These were given out to anyone who bought a bell at the King William show. Just a way of saying thank you to our customers. 

FALL UPDATE!!

Well, we had a busy summer and fall.  

We (and the rest of our neighbors) ran out of water this summer. No rain, too many people and too many wells and tanks being constructed.  We had to drill deeper and put in some new pipe.  We have added some more collection barrels to the property but probably need to add some serious collection equipment for the future. 

It looks nice and tidy now.  It was a royal mess while the big trucks were here for three days! But that wonderful cool hill country water is flowing freely now. 

We took a trip to Cozumel in August. Didn't scuba dive but we did snorkel with the whale sharks.  These creatures are unbelievably huge when you are next to them in the water!!

Finally, our really big trip was the 9 days we spent at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta in October.  We have always wanted to go. This year we volunteered in exchange for free camping.  It was great even though it rained frequently and some events were cancelled.  On the two days prior to the start of the Fiesta, we worked on constructing the arches that covered the entrance gates. That was very hard work. OSHA would have been dismayed at us being on scaffolds and ladders with no safety equipment, training, etc! 

In return for our volunteer work, we were able to camp for free.  It was camping in a parking lot with no facilities.  We we parked extremely close to where the fireworks were located.  They were stupendous!

I can't say enough about the balloons and the many nice people we met.  The balloon pilots and their crews were friendly and loved to talk about their balloons.  These are just a few of the millions of pictures we both took!

                    This one actually had a cute little VW horn that honked just like the real VW buses.  

                                 Until you stand under these, you have no idea how really big they are.  

Now, back to real life.....

  We participated in the Huffines Art show in Arlington in October.  Then we took a quick trip up to VA to see the youngest daughter and her family.  Thanksgiving was held here at home with our oldest and her family.  Now... we are busy getting ready for Christmas orders!!

 HERE WE COME!!!!!!!

 ROCKPORT ART FESTIVAL 

This is the 2022 Art Show Poster 

The show is July 2 &3 (right around the corner). We are busy making bells and loading up the truck. It looks like the weather may be wet and not as hot as hell.  But then, this is Texas, so who knows what Mother Nature will bring. 

We will be in our usual spot, so be sure to stop by. If you need a large bell (5 or 6 dot), call or email Philip and let him know.  Although we will bring several of each anyway, if we know you want one, we will set it aside for you. 

Here's the link for you to find information about hours, parking, ticket prices.

https://www.rockportartcenter.com/artfest