Working on Friday!

 

Not much going on this week. It has been so hot, that we have been staying home and out of the sun. On weekends, the beaches are so crowded, that it isn't worth going. One more day of heat and the weather will be better, so we can get out more.

I have been working on a new project. It is a design by Cheri Saffiote and I got it from the group, Quilts by Cheri on Facebook. I wanted something quick to work on, that I can use now and this was the perfect piece. It is actually a pillow, but I am making it into a wall hanging. With it being so hot, smaller projects are best.

I have also been practicing on my new machine. Free motion is something I need to practice to get the right speed. I am waiting on a table to fit it, so that should make it easier. I also like the idea of doing machine appliqué for kid's quilts and modern ones for the family.

I hope you all have a nice weekend. This seems to be the worst summer, lots of rain, then smoke, now high heat and humidity. Hopefully next month will bring better weather for all of us.

Friday redo!

 

This has been quite the week. We had reservations for camping this weekend, but I ended up cancelling. We had decided to look at larger trailers and were told that we could get back what we owe on ours, plus get cash back. I decided to cancel the trip so we could get things going on a new trailer. Well, once we picked out what we wanted, they tell us we would get back less money, so it was a waste of time. 

I started a new project, so today I was able to finish cutting out the appliqués and the backing is all ready, so I can start that, this week. I redid an area that had a quilted piece in a frame, so that was my project this week. I added a little border and made it into a mini quilt. This is an old design I had done and have always loved it. 

Another thing I did, was buy a new machine. I got a Pfaff quilt expression 720. I was looking at a pricier one, but this one was on sale and just what I need to get my quilt tops finished. Now I need to list my quilter, so I can get back my space.

At home I have been seeing more occupied nests so the moms are busy feeding and more juveniles coming to my feeder. I saw my first Red Bellied young one, so hopefully it will get used to me and I can get a photo.

We also spent a few afternoons at the beach. The water is much warmer this year, but still cool enough to feel good on a humid day. We have a nice weekend coming up, so hopefully we can find places to enjoy without the crowds. We also have bad water quality from the rains at some ponds and the ocean beaches are littered with debris from the floods on the Connecticut river, that wash down into the ocean. 

I hope everyone has a nice weekend and nice weather. It seems we have all had a year of weather extremes.

Friday Finish!

 

I finally took the time to finish my Christmas quilt. The design is by Cheri Saffiote. I really enjoyed making this one and it will be fun to have more Christmas pieces to hang around the house. 

We try and get out when we can, it is either too hot or raining. One day I heard a screeching in the back field, so went out to investigate. I found this Red-tailed hawk, high in a tree, who seemed to be calling to its mom. I am still hearing it back there, so hoping it is just a noisy juvenile and mom is around somewhere.

We enjoyed days at the island, it is the quietest beach and I can swim, collect glass and watch the birds. I was finally able to see the new Osprey's in the nest, but the minute I got out of the car, mom started screeching and the babies ducked down. A couple were peaking out to see what mom was yelling at.

Later I went around to the side harbor and was able to catch them, from there.  This nest usually has 3 each year.

I also caught a Catbird who was singing along, next to the pavilion that was having a party with music.

The bay is the perfect place to spend the afternoon, even with the heat, the fresher air is always nice on humid days. A lot of boaters are out now and I saw this boat coming in, love the sails. I hope you all had a good week and not in areas with the bad floods. 

Friday finish!

 

This week was a short one, with the holiday, so I never got a chance to work on my quilt. I decided to whip up a couple of rocks so I will have a stash to hide this summer. I tend to work on night when I am tired and my arm is sore, so I make a mess. I think I do better with paint, since I can go over mistakes and fix things, better than with the pens. 

I saw these designs on the web and had to try them, mine are definitely not as nice as the originals. Working on rough rocks, doesn't help.

We got to spend time at the beach on the island. It is nice since we can walk, collect glass and bird watch. I finally got a look at the new baby, you can see it hiding under mom.

And the dad, he wasn't happy when I got closer from the other side.

With low tide, I was able to walk further into the marsh area. I caught this Glossy Ibis.

And a Snowy Egret with it's catch.

We were able to get out for a paddle one day. We went out of the harbor and stopped at the breakers.

On the rocks behind Bill, I caught these two Cormorants. 

Since my arm was doing good, we went out into the bay and paddled to the town beach. It was a nicer place to swim and enjoy a snack. On the way back, the wind picked up and the smoke got heavier, so it definitely wore me out. But it was nice to be on the bay again, next time I will use my sea kayak, which is easier to paddle in rougher waters.

Another day we enjoyed glass hunting, the views and more birds. I seem to be finding a few large pieces of old brown glass, but no real treasures lately.

I also got another look at mom and her baby. The baby is still to weak to stand up for long, it was trying but kept falling over. While baby slept, mom caught up on her preening.

I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend. We didn't do much since it rained more, late in the day, but it was nice getting out when we could.