Busy Week!

 

This week I have been busy, always something to do around the house and yard, but I have been working on my projects. I also made an Americana wreath, but it needs the finishing touches. I have set up a new garden area for the birds with a bird bath and it has had a lot of new visitors. My resident Hummingbird is back and still territorial.

Today we finally got out on the bikes. We went to the bike path that starts at the train station. It goes through woods, marshes and ponds and we ended up in town since the last part goes across busy roads. The area has bridges and a pond, so we took a break there to enjoy the wildlife.

Lots of turtles in the pond.

The floats are a favorite place for the cormorants to hang out.

On the way back we took a side route to visit the farm. 

Lots of cows in the field and they were fun to watch. Lots of young ones.

This one was running all over the place, just having fun. 

And this one was taking a lunch break.

Tomorrow will be rain, so we plan on having the kids over for dinner, for an early Mother's Day. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Working on!

 

This week I finally pinned a new project that I wanted to do. The quilt top was given to me by my Sister-in-law. She had a lot of old craft supplies and handed them to me. I thought this would be perfect for a charity quilt. I am hand quilting it with white pearl cotton and going around the main designs. I don't want to over quilt it, since it would make it too stuff for a young one. The only bad thing was, I noticed some spots on it, so if they don't wash out, I will donate it to the thrift.

Last week we went on a walk to the Great Swamp. It has a nice loop path that goes to a pond, then around a small pond, so it has great views and wildlife. I was hoping to see the Ospreys, they nest in the line of telephone poles that go through the little swamp. A few had set up nests, but not as many as the last time we saw them.

Another day we decided to check out the local marina to see the Ospreys there. One was in the nest hiding and the other was on a pole, taking a break.

We also got a surprise when I spotted a Little Blue Heron, a first for me.

After we went for a short walk on the bike path. As we were heading back, a beautiful Kestrel flew over head. He landed in a tree, so I walked back to get a shot. 

I hope everyone had a nice week and can enjoy the weekend. It is nice to get more sun and some rain. I added more plants around my bird bath and some new ones for the porch, so a little rain will be good for them. 

Friday finish!

 

This week I was in the mood to paint some rocks. With camping trips, I like to hide them in areas we visit, so I want to make as many as I can for the summer. I find ideas on the internet and there is also a Facebook site, where she gives step by step instructions. Of course I just take the finished one and free hand it myself, so not always the best, but fun enough. The problem was, I realized all my old varnishes are thick and no good, so I have to wait to finish them.

Last week we took a walk on the beach. The tide was low so I was able to find some treasures and then we walked to the other end.

 Along the way we ran into this crab, who didn't want to be seen, so he ran to the surf and buried himself in the sand.

Today we took a walk at the bird sanctuary. It is a never ending joy since each time I see new birds that are coming in and we get a good 3 miles in. The weird thing I spotted today was a large dead bird in the osprey nest. Her mate was in a nearby tree, pruning himself. When a pair of geese tried to come onto the island, he chased them off, he is not one to mess with.

I also saw that the long term couple, finally made a new nest on a lower branch. 

Another nice surprise was, catching a Palm Warbler, who sat still for a second. 

We went by the marsh and I caught a group that were foraging. This one got itself a crab.

So far the weekend looks good, so hopefully we can get out for some more walks or maybe a bike ride. I am bummed about next weekend. The weatherman said rain, now he is saying warm and sunny. I had to make. decision yesterday when I thought it was going to rain or I lose all the money for camp, so I cancelled. It used to be that I could cancel up to 2 days before, so it makes it harder. 

I hope everyone is doing well, I heard the news about the tornadoes and bad weather and hope that no one was affected. 

Friday Finish!

 

This week I was busy getting the trailer ready. It seems I take all week with packing and planning and cooking, on top of taking care of the house but I was able to get it all done and not forget anything. During the week I got a chance to finish a small pillow. Another stitchery I never finished off, so bit by bit, I am whittling down items in my box.

Last week we went to the island for some beach combing. I noticed a goose, close to shore and was able to get close enough to see it was in distress. He has wry neck and that can be a sign of Avian flu. It cannot raise its head, so it is unable to fly. I also saw two dead birds on the shore, so it is possible with the large flocks of geese and gulls in the area. I contacted a few organizations in the area, so hopefully they could help it.

Lots of Ospreys have come back and new ones are nesting so not sure if this is a regular or a new one who may be thinking of nesting in the tree.

Today we got to camp. We got a nice spot on the cove, so it's a great place to relax.

After we set up, we went to the beach and enjoyed some time beach combing and the cooler air. A storm was coming in, so we couldn't stay out long.

Back at camp, I enjoyed relaxing and watching the storm as it rolled in. With the tide being so low, I was able to walk out further in the marsh with my boots. Tomorrow is cloudy and cooler, perfect for bike riding. Sunday will be rain, and I paid for the night so we could stay all day, so it will depend on the rain.

I hope you all had a nice week and can enjoy some nice weather, though I saw there are some bad storms in some areas. 

Friday Finish!

 

This week I took some things out of my, to do list. This one was all stitched, just needed to be finished. I decided to make it into a pillow. It is a pattern by Cheri Saffiote and this one I did in red work. The fabric was a tea stained muslin but my lighting turned it a bit red.

Today I finally got a chance to hike to the Blue Heron rookery. The path had a lot of downfall and new growth so it was a maze to get around things.

At the pond, I noticed there were less nests and less Herons. The storms this year, really did a lot of damage to the nesting areas and I guess it hit here too. Add the colder temperatures and I assume most are still heading up. 

Not sure if this one was nesting or just taking a rest. 

This one is waiting for its mate. Very sad to see so little activity. It is usually teaming with birds and nests. One problem was, I had to walk through narrow paths in bush to get a clearer shot, so I spent a lot of time picking ticks off my pants. Once we got home, we took all our clothes off and did a body check. Bill did find one on his back, so glad we found it before it did any damage. I guess this is not a good time to be in the bush.

This area is also home to a lot of barn swallows. They are beautiful to watch, but I do wish they could build a platform on the pond, so I could stand in a clear spot to enjoy the birds. They have a main trail that is kept up, but the side trail to the birds, is not taken care of.

I hope everyone had a nice week and enjoying nicer weather. We are warming up and have a camping trip for next weekend. 

Friday finish!

 I finally decided what to do with my bible block. It is from the Bible quilt by Jan patek. I planned on making the whole quilt, but never had the time, so I decided to make the block into a mini quilt. Since it is primitive, I wanted to antique it, as well. I haven't pressed it out, so it looks a bit wonky.

Last week we spent time, riding around the south coast. It was cold as usual, so riding is a great way to get out and enjoy the views. We spotted the Osprey near the seafood restaurant, still waiting for his mate.

And another along a back road.

This week, his mate came in.

Today was a hike at the bird sanctuary. It was a cloudy day with fog rolling into some areas, but I always love walking in the cooler temps. As we walked we could hear all the Ospreys flying around. A lot were hanging out in trees along the pathways.

 

Most didn't like us walking in their area and let us know.

Nearer the ocean, it was foggier. The old timers, still haven't built a nest on the island. Most of the others repaired or built new ones, all destroyed by the winter storms.

And the Swallows were flying around us and claiming their nesting boxes.

And the best surprise was spotting an Eagle in the field. He was carrying a stick, so he is nesting nearby. Tomorrow we will get another nice day, but cold coming back in the afternoon, so hopefully we can get out for an early hike. Then I need to get the side dishes made up, so all I have to do is reheat them. 

I planned on doing a treasure hunt with clues for the boys, but they are saying rain on Sunday. I will have to rethink it to do one in the house, with the last clue telling them where their treasure bag is.

May you all have a blessed Easter holiday.

Friday finish!

 

I finally finished my stitchery and it was a fun one to do. The design was a free coloring page by Karla Dornacher. I decided to color it on fabric and stitch around it. I made it into a wall hanging that I could put in my room, something inspirational to wake up to. You can click on the link to see Karla's page and sign up for her newsletter. She makes a lot of wonderful inspirational designs and tells wonderful inspirational stories about her life.

Last week we went on a hike to a forest in Connecticut. It was a little cool but it made for a brisk hike and kept me going. We went to the regular path and part way down, all I could see was a swamp, so we had to take the long way around to avoid that. Our first stop was the pond, along the way.

Our end point was another pond, that had a beautiful little waterfall. A great place to stop for a rest and snack break.

On the way back we passed by a lot of small streams and ponds. All the snow melt and rain, made for a lot more waterways. This is a fish hatchery that is open only to kids. Each year they have a fishing tournament  for them.

As we came through the woods, we stumbled onto the old sheds. Previously when we saw them, we had no idea what they were for. Now they have signs and this one was for explosives.

There is another one, further away. It was used to store the igniters and other tools.

Back at the main camp, we passed by the fishing bridge. As you can see, this stream was overflowing, so no one will be picnicking there, anytime soon.

I hope you all had a nice week. This week I will be getting ready for Easter. We always cook the meal since I have a special diet. I hope you all have a nice weekend and it looks like it might be warming up for a lot of you.

Friday finishes!

 

This week I am still working on my stitchery, but was able to make up two new stuffed pieces. The owl is a remake of the first one I did. The wings are a fun addition and I changed up the face a bit. The problem was, I over stuffed it which changed the shapes, and then my ladder stitch at the bottom is a mess. I plan on taking it apart and re-stuffing it to flatten it out a little and make more room for the closing stitch.

The dog, I made the mistake of cutting it out on the wrong grain. So, when I went to stitch it up, it started to ravel at the edge and I couldn't get a good stitch to close it. I ended up pinching it together and resewing along the first stitch and that helped, but not sure if it will not fall apart. I learned not to cut like that again.

Last weekend we did our usual drive around the beach areas. Way too cold to get out for a walk, so we stopped at spots with views. At the docks, we caught the gulls, going into a frenzy when the boats were coming in. The fishermen throw out the unused bait and they are all ready to grab it.

On the way I home, I spotted two white birds, mixed in with the doves. They are domestic pigeons that are bred to be white, then released at events. Sometimes they get lost and don't find their way home, but these two knew, there is safety in numbers. They were moving too fast around the field to catch them together.

Today we got out for a walk at the bird sanctuary. It was warmer, but closer to the ocean, so the breezes were a bit chilly. There is a lot of downfall, so we had to climb over a few trees. Not too many birds have come back yet, so no photos, but an enjoyable walk.

I hope everyone had a nice week. We have rain tonight, so not sure if we can hike tomorrow, most trails here are in swampy areas. I hope you have nicer weather and can get out to enjoy it.