Happy New Year!

 

With the holidays, I haven't had much time for crafting. I have a little project I started, so I will finish that and get back to my unfinished projects. 

With Bill having days off, we get out more. We took advantage to some sales and did a few rides around the beach areas. On one day we went to Galilee, which is a port with lots of fishing boats and birds. I spotted a hawk on a pole, that was being harassed by a group of crows. He sat long enough for a photo before he got tired of the harassment.

Around the area I spotted a few Blue Herons and lots of seagulls. The Herons looked like they wished they had gone south.

We sat at the docks and enjoyed the views from the car. This building is one that they process the incoming catches of the day. Their idea of a Christmas decoration.

Then we stopped at the fishing area and walked up the hill to enjoy the views.

At another beach, we enjoyed the views across the bay.

Another day we did some areas to look for Snow buntings, none found but I spotted a large group of Lapland Longspurs.

At home our feeders are always busy. Some will stay still long enough for a photo and others, grab a seed and take off. Snow and cold, always brings in more visitors and it is a nice way to find joy on cold winter days. I hope everyone has a wonderful new year, filled with joys and good health.

Friday Finish!

 

I am trying to finish old projects and found one in a box, in the basement. This was a runner I was making for my sister and for some reason, never finished it. It is a pattern I found in an old Better Homes and Gardens magazine. The original has a quilted middle, but I left that out. The only thing I did was hand quilt around the appliqués and border to finish it. 

It is done with old fabrics from an old fabric store that had sale bins, so not choices I would make now. The only bad thing is, two flowers have staining, so I will try and get those out and then send it to my sister. The side view makes it look shorter.

Last weekend we got out for a ride, still too cold to be outside for walks. We stopped at the breachway and enjoyed some fresh air and the incoming waves, for a bit.

The next stop was at the marsh. Lots of birds in the area and always nice to enjoy the area.

Our last stop was at Point Judith. It's a great place to park and see the ocean, without having to be outside. 

Another gull came in and let me take its photo. There are always a lot in this area since a lot of people get take out seafood nearby and sit here to eat, so they wait for leftovers.

Another day we stayed close to home and took a ride through the old base. Lots of businesses in the area, but a lot of area is left for wildlife.

With the snow and colder weather, I am seeing a lot more birds. There is a flock of Black-eyed Juncos that have decided that they like hanging out in my yard.

And a new pair of Cardinals, they are shy but the female finally decided to eat out of the feeder and stays nearby in the scrub bush.

And today I was able to catch the Sapsucker. It hangs out in the maple tree and has been drilling holes, all over. Usually the sap runs in February or early spring, so I guess he is making sure that he will get plenty when it comes in.

I hope you all had a good week. We are staying in a cold spell and maybe a little more snow next week. It seems the weather is reversing and the south is getting it all. 

Friday is for the birds!

 I really tried to put more time into finishing my quilting, but I have one more outer row to go and then the binding, so that will be doable, next week. We have gotten out more and have enjoyed more birding. 

We went to our favorite spot and checked out the further end of the point. No birds in the marsh, but with the rougher waters, I caught a group of gulls, enjoying the beach area. This guy was having fun, taking a bath and splashing around in the water.

In the inner marsh, we caught the resident Belted Kingfisher. 

Bill spotted the female, hiding on a rock. The minute I started to get shots of her, the male decided to chase her away. 

In another section of the marsh, I spotted a group of birds. This one is a Greater Yellowlegs.

And this one is a Dunlin. They look similar but you can see the difference in the beak colors and shapes, and the leg colors. The Dunlin is about half the size of the Yellowlegs.

At the island I caught a group of Red-breasted Mergansers. The males were showing off for the female.

And I caught a group of Greater Scaups. Love their eyes and coloring.

At home we got a snow storm, so I enjoyed seeing the birds who came to visit. I love the Carolina Wrens and was finally able to get a shot of one.

And the White-throated Sparrow, stopped for a visit. Usually they are on the ground and always on the move.

And The Dark-eyed Juncos, snow always brings more around.

And it is that time of year, where the hawks are pairing up again and on the hunt. So far they haven't bothered the birds at the feeder. This one was above my neighbor's chicken coops, lots of wood piles and areas where the mice hide. He is a Red-shouldered Hawk.

I hope you enjoyed seeing the birds in my area. I really never noticed birds and the types, until I started looking. A lot of birds blend in with their surroundings, so you might not even notice them. Also, a feeder is a great way to bring birds to your yard. It is a fun way to bring a little sunshine to the winter and help them get through the colder months.

Friday Finish!

 

This week I wanted something small to work on and I do need some new lavender pillows, as I redo boxes and storage. It really helps to keep the musty scents away. I took two patterns from my Fraktur design booklets, Horses and Rooster. These two make nice stitcheries and fun to color in. 

To color on cloth, I use freezer paper. After coloring, I use a paper stylus to rub the color into the cloth. With these two stitcheries, I used two new threads. The horse was done with cheap black floss, not the best floss and a bit fuzzy. The rooster was done with Anchor cotton floss, that comes on a spool. I like the Anchor on a spool, so much easier to use and no messy skeins to store. It is a bit thinner, but nice if you want more defined lines. On the horse, I used antique ink, spattering it on with a brush.

The cold has settled in and that makes it hard to get out for walks. We do enjoy driving around the beach areas. You never know what you will see and the water views are always nice, especially in a warm car.

The Breachway was a nice spot to see a few birds, but it was so windy and cold, I hate to take a few shots from the window. The gulls across the way, were feasting on something that must have died in the storm. Most beaches still have debris and damage, but slowly rebuilding the beaches and cleaning up.

At home I enjoy watching the birds who come to visit. The Red-bellied Woodpecker is very shy, so he stays in the tree and waits for me to leave. I have also spotted a few hawks this week, this one was checking out the grounds, behind our RV.

A few of the birds who visit the porch. The Sapsucker is making holes in my maple tree, he will have some nice sap, come spring.

And the ground feeders. Since the ground is frozen, I can throw some feed out, so they don't have to find scraps that fall to the ground. They have been coming up to the porch more, with snow on the porch, it is more natural for them, to forage. I noticed the White-throated sparrow is missing a toe.

I hope you all enjoyed your week and can enjoy your weekend. We have bitter cold coming in, so car rides will be all I can handle. 

Friday Finish and Fun with the Boys!

 

This week I have been working on finishing a couple of projects. One is still in the works, but I was able to do the binding and add the quilting to that. This is a panel I bought years ago and decided to hand quilt the design. Originally I was thinking a long pillow but it is too big for that. 

I just finished the last stitching tonight, so I need to clean it up, chalk marks and pet hair. I have a plan for hanging it over my desk, so when Bill makes me a hanger, I will show you what I came up with. It is hard to see the stitching on the piece, the outlines are gold and I did a black stitch around all of the designs. Someday I might make a straight quilt, but so far, that isn't happening.

Last weekend we got to spend some time with the boys at the beach. The weather was nice, but it got cold after we got there, but they still had fun exploring and playing.

Nick was a bit disappointed that he couldn't find any treasures. The tide was just going out, so not much on the beach. He was happy that there was a playground, he loves playgrounds.

Alex is at a fun age, and he loves to have his picture taken. He is happy just being a boy.

I also have been enjoying my backyard birding. This weekend is the great bird count. Anyone can join in,  you just sign in and they have a bird ID program if you are not sure what you have seen. It helps them with statistics around the states. Check out, The Great Bird Count.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and maybe enjoy birds in your area. There are lots of different feeders, and that is the best way to attract them. 

May The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.”

Friday Finish!

 

This week I started one project, then another and then I got the new stitchery of the month. The second project I made and finished before the others since it is for the boys. It was a design in a Whimsicals book and I did a few in fun colors as bookmarks for the boys. 

I started the new stitchery next, but still working on that, they will be hot pads for me, and perfect for Valentines and Easter, so I will get those done next, then the project I was working on, will get done. With the cold and now an ice storm, I will have a lot more time indoors.

I used some glitter threads and ribbon with glitter on the tags.

I hope everyone faired well in the last storm and the ones coming through this weekend. We had a lot of rain and now it is icing, so the roads will be a mess.

Last weekend we got a few feet of snow, now it has all melted and made ponds in my yard. I have gotten quite a few visitors with the snow and cold, they need more energy to keep them warm. The wind was so bad, I had to put a heavy bowl on the porch, so the wind wouldn't blow it away.

The birds seem to be more active when it is cold or raining. A few more from last Saturday.

Since we have been stuck in the house so much, Bill took a day off, when the weather was a bit better. We took a drive to the beach at the southern coast and enjoyed walking in the fresh air, until the fog rolled in, then it was more like rain.

Before it got wet, I was able to catch a few shots of the Sanderlings. They are busy little birds, so hard to get a shot, it took me 70 shots to catch a few good ones.

Eating and cleaning.

And we found a few treasures. The beach was full low tide and no people, but so much beach and rocks, along with no sun, so harder to find pieces. I did luck out and found a marble and a few old pieces. 

Time to set up a little table so I can play with my pieces and start making some art items. So many ideas and projects, I need more time in the day. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and enjoy some crafting time this winter.

Friday Finish!

 

I hope everyone is enjoying some crafting time, now that the holidays have wound down. I have been reorganizing a bit and working on some new projects and getting some old ones together, to finish. I am going to try to do something new, along with something that needs finishing.

This piece spoke to me, It is from the book, Folk Art Favorites and I loved the saying, perfect for the times and valentines. The background fabric is a linen.

For an old project, I took the binding off my Noah's ark quilt. My husband decided to do wall work and got the plaster on the bottom edge. Luckily I had some of the fabric left, so I was able to piece it together for a new binding.

I think I will wait to redo the wall, before I put it up again. Once I get the Christmas things down, we can repaint the walls.

Here are some close up photos, to show some of the details.

We also had a chance to do some beach combing.  We were lucky enough to get to the beach at low tide before anyone else, so I found a few nice treasures.

I hope this post finds everyone well, it seems the new variants are spreading in every state. My son made the mistake of going out with a friend and he got sick and gave it to his wife. I have been sick myself this week, but fighting it off with meds. Today was a snow day and I enjoyed watching all of the birds coming to the feeders. Tomorrow I am hoping to get out for a bit and enjoy some snow scenes around our area.

Friday Finish!

 

Another week has gone by and a few more weeks for Christmas. I have gotten out my packages and most cards, so I can relax now.  I finally got a change to do the stitchery of the month, by Kathy Schmitz. I decided to use up the last of my balsam and making a pillow for my neighbor. 

I used glitter yellow thread on the stars and ties, to give it a fun pop.

At home I am still able to get out, even though the days are cooler, but the fresh brisk air, does wonders for my energy levels. We went to the docks to see what was going on and stumbled onto an event. They were doing a 24 hour polar plunge for Special Olympics. Every hour for 24 hours, they jumped in. Way too cold for me.

While waiting, I caught this guy.  He was trying to break it by dropping it in the sand, but he finally figured out, he had to drop it on the nearby rocks to crack it open.

Then we sat and watched the boats come in. The parking is at the entrance, so we can sit in the warm car and enjoy watching them.

The next day we went to Moonstone Beach. I haven't been in ages and wanted to see what it was like and do some birding. Unfortunately, no dogs are allowed, I thought that was just during breeding season, so we couldn't stay. I got out to take a few picts of the beach and actually found a green piece of glass, laying on the ground. 

We drove down the back road and followed the coastline till we found a private beach that is open to all, off season. If you look at the photo above, you can see the house in the distance, that is where the other beach starts. 

And this is the beach we ended up going to. The tide was the lowest, I have ever seen, so we enjoyed looking through the rock piles for treasures. Not as much glass, but what we found was nice and a few large pieces. The house you could see in the last photo, is at the end of this beach.

And this is the house, it has been through a few hurricanes and been moved a few times. The original area was grassy with a lot of summer homes, but the ocean has claimed all but 3. The one next to it, was a carriage house and all that remained of the main house. 

Today I was out walking Bean and spied a hawk, scouting the area. Once he was gone, my feathered friends came back for the food I had put out. I hope you all had a wonderful week and can find your own ways to get out and explore your area.

The big guy is a Red Shouldered Hawk. Then a Dark Eyed Junco, White Breasted Nuthatch, Tufted Titmouse and another nuthatch.