Tag Archives: travel

Anacortes

Posted on August 10, 2026 | 17 comments

I have been MIA (missing in action) from Blogland since the end of May. No blog sharing and no reading of my fav blogs.

The break has been nice, but I am woefully behind on what my blog friends have been up to.

The Hubster and I took a trip at the end of May/beginning of June to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary!

We drove over to the west side of our state and stayed the night at the Anacortes Ship Harbor Inn.

I stole the following photo from their website, but I don’t think they’d mind.

If ever opportunity comes around again, the Hubster and I would stay here again. We had a small cabin, and it was a very peaceful and serene stay.

The inn is less than a 15 minute walk to the Ferry Terminal. You can see the ferry terminal from the inn and enjoy watching the ferries come and go.

Washington Park is less than a 5 minute drive away, so after we checked in, we headed over to the park to explore.

The beautiful 220 acre park sits on a peninsula at the west end of Fidalgo Island. There are viewpoints to watch marine life, but we did not see any critters of the sea on our hike. We did not know to watch, for one thing. For another, we just wanted to stretch our legs and this is a great place to do just that! If you visit, bring binoculars!

*Clicking on a photo will give you a closer look!

While hiking, we came across a 15-ton granite monument to Tonjes Hinrich Havekost (1840-1911).

Turns out that Havekost owned over 400 acres of land. The German immigrant’s last wishes were “Make my tomb a park”, thus donating the land surrounding the monument that marks his grave specifically for a park.

God bless Tonjes Havekost!

In 1911, inspired by Havekost, the ladies Anacortes Improvement Club sold lemon pies for a quarter a piece in two days during the Inter-Island fair to come up with $315.50 of $1,000 they donated to the effort of preserving the northwest point overlooking Burrows Channels.

This land would eventually become Sunset Beach, a terrific addition to Washington Park (and a great testament to what saving your pennies can do)!

I know the skies are different in these photos, but this is a single day. That is Washington for ya!

The next morning promised to be a gorgeous day and we drove the short distance to the Anacortes Friday Harbor Ferry Terminal.

Have you ever seen a prettier terminal?

We boarded the Chelan ferry and had a very scenic ride.

Mount Baker is gorgeous!

On our way to Orcas Island!

Chelan Ferry from Anacortes to Orcas Island

See the world around you!

17 Comments

Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged Anacortes, Anacortes Friday Harbor Terminal, ferry, LCsCottage, Mount Baker, Ship Harbor Inn, Sunset Beach, Tonjes Havekost, travel, Washington Park

Collector’s Pins

Posted on February 23, 2026 | 19 comments

Collectibles.

Items we collect for all sorts of reasons from sentimental to financial investment.

I collect enamel pins for their sentimental value. I love their size…such an easy souvenir to commemorate an event. I can pin it to my hat, my collar, or my bag and it doesn’t take up any space in my luggage when I am traveling.

These pins are stored on felt covered canvas and hang on one of my sewing room walls.

They remind me of my quilt guild and show days…fun times!

The following blocks are four of the blocks that I made for various raffle quilts back in the days.

Two of these blocks are on my freebies page.

A few pins are from the working days. The initial A pin is a memento from selling Avon. Did you sell Avon?

The initial M pin is for the Missionettes…a girls church group I used to be very involved with. The Daisies pin is a pin from teaching one of the girls’ clubs at church. I eventually taught all of the young girls age groups.

A beloved dog’s tag.

A couple of pins were gifted from my daughter.

Most of my collection is made up of pins from travels.

The red drop pin is a favorite. It is from the Tacoma Museum of Glass. The pin is a replica of a child’s glass blowing creation that was on display at the time that I visited. So fun!

At some point, I started putting my pins on baseball caps.

This one shows who my favorite baseball team is. I cheer on the Seattle Mariners. Do you have a favorite baseball team?

One summer, Mom, me, and my sisters spent some time together on a wonderful trip to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

We had so much fun together!

This hat is special because my Dad gave it to me when we were on a trip together.

The U.S. Coast Guard stationed our daughter and fam in Alaska for a time. We took a fantastic trip to Alaska while they were there.

The U.S. Coast Guard moved our kids to the east coast (North Carolina) and that gave the Hubster and me the incentive (as if we needed any) to make two cross-country trips by car.

I have lots of pins that represent many places that I have been so blessed to visit as a result!

My pin collection tells you that I enjoy family, quilting, baseball, nature, travel, and American history (as evidenced by the places that I have visited). A couple of pins even share where I have worked and what my beloved dog’s name is.

Pretty revealing.

Do you collect anything? If so, what do you collect and what does your collection reveal about you?

Have fun and see the world around you!

19 Comments

Posted in Uncategorized

Tagged British Columbia, Canada, collector's pins, LCsCottage, memories, souvenir, travel, Vancouver, Washington State Quilters, WSQ

Cross Country Vacation Sept./Oct. 2025-Post 5

Posted on October 31, 2025 | 10 comments

Illinois

Sightseeing and scenic drives were not all that was planned for this cross country drive.

I had in mind to do a bit of genealogy and visit some ancestor gravesites in Illinois.

I won’t bore you with photos of ancestor’s headstones (even though this would be the month to do it). My children get enough of that as it is, but they are kind to indulge me.

Although this was a ‘graveyard day’, one could still find plenty to see if one looked around. Upon passing through Jacksonville, Illinois, the first thing that caught our eyes was this lovely chapel.

MacMurray College, Jacksonville, Illinois

*Clicking on a photo will give you a closer look!

The chapel belonged with a complex of buildings that made up MacMurray College.

MacMurray College was originally founded by the Illinois Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church as the Illinois Conference Female Academy in 1846. It stayed all female until 1955 when the MacMurray College for Men was started, however, the two sexes were kept separate, even eating separately, until 1967 when the dining hall went coed. In 1969 the two colleges merged.

Over the years, the college suffered budget struggles, falling enrollment, lack of updates (such as air conditioners and computers), disrepair, staffing issues, majors being eliminated, Covid and more.

After seventy-two years of MacMurray history, the college closed in 2020 and the buildings were auctioned off to various buyers for $600,000.

Apparently, the Hubster and I should’ve spent more time in Jacksonville. From the Wikipedia link above:

The attorney Abraham Lincoln occasionally had legal business in Jacksonville, frequently acting either as co-counsel or opposing counsel with David A. Smith, a Jacksonville resident. In what is now Central Park, Lincoln delivered a strong antislavery speech on September 6, 1856, in support of the presidential campaign of John C. Frémont, lasting over two hours.

Built in 1840, the Woodlawn Farm became an important stop on the Underground Railroad for runaway slaves escaping the terrors of slavery in the South.

One of Lincoln’s early political rivals, Stephen A. Douglas, settled in Jacksonville in 1833, where he first got involved in local politics. He quickly rose up the ranks of Illinois politics and was elected to the House of Representatives in 1842.

In the summer of 1965, in order to keep up with customer demand for records by the Beatles, the wildly popular English band, Capitol Records opened a vinyl record pressing plant on the western outskirts of Jacksonville.

We also drove through Bath, Illinois.