Friday Finish!

 

This week I have been working on hand quilting, so that will take awhile. I have a box of projects that I made, but never finished, so I took two out and finished them. I made them into little pillows and added a yarn edge. The fox will be a Christmas present to a friend. I have a lot of finished pieces, so I may need to do a craft sale someday.

Last weekend I was still recovering, so we did a few rides to get out, and then rain. Today I was ready to get out for a bit and wanted to get some apples before they ran out. It was not too crowded, so a good day to go. I got a large bag and a smaller one for the kids.

We took the scenic back roads home and made a few stops. One is a pond with an old sawmill. With the drought, they have not been able to open for visits, since the falls are not flowing. It is a nice spot to stop and walk around the pond.

There were a few Mallards enjoying the pond and this couple had a friend, sharing their log.

We drove by the farms.

And a stop at another pond. Lots of colors popping in Connecticut, but a lot of areas have narrow roads and no place to pull over, so I couldn't get shots in a lot of areas. Hopefully tomorrow I will be up to a bike ride or a walk, to catch more foliage.

I hope everyone had a good week and can enjoy the fall weather in your area.

Friday Finish!

 

This week I finished a Thanksgiving piece. I needed something for the holiday, for the front entry area and this was perfect. The design is by Cheri Payne and a fun one to do. 

Last week We went for a drive to see if we could find some fall foliage. Not as much yet, but we did find a few spots with splashes of color. The first stop was a reservoir with a dam, but with less rain, less water coming down. It was still beautiful though.

We took a walk along the path to the old bridge. 

Our next stop was Old furnace park, across the border in Connecticut. It is a bit of a climb up to the cliffs, but worth it for the view.

There are more trails that run along the side of the pond, so we took a walk part way to enjoy the views.

The next day we took the boys out. We took them to the bird sanctuary for a shorter walk on the pond side. They enjoyed walking along the paths.

And seeing all the critters along the way.

And we spotted two Praying Mantis along the paths. Love the look this one was giving me. It is always fun to explore with the boys and good to get them away from their electronics. 

This weekend we have a storm coming in and of course I seem to have gotten a flu from them, so taking it easy for a few days. I hope this finds everyone well and enjoying the cooler fall weather.

Friday Finish!

 

This week I worked on another project to get through my patterns. This one is from a Simply Need'l Love book, called Scare the Crows. It was a fun project to do and a great way to use up more wool from my stash. 

Last week we spent time at the island, on the beach. The water was rough, so it was hard to swim, but fun to ride in the waves. Always something going on, on the water. A tug boat pulling a working barge up the bay.

A few sail surfers were out, enjoying the wind and waves.

Today we went for a walk at the bird sanctuary. The state beaches at the ocean were all closed, due to rip tides, so no swimming today. I spotted a friendly pair in the pond.

Lots of chipmunks were along the paths today.

And more turtles sunning on the rock. It was a nice day for a walk, but got hotter as we went along. Warmer weather coming in, so we can get back to the beaches and enjoy the last days of summer. 

I hope everyone had a nice week and enjoying the weekend. We want to get away but have to wait till after the holiday and my husband has to be back at work on the next Monday, so we will have to slip it in, between the holiday and the following Monday, so I need to decide where and what to do. 

Friday Finish!

 This week I was able to work on my pillow and finish it. It is a design by Whimsical quilts and can be found in the book, For the Birds. The original pillow has a longer side piece, but I wanted to use a material that was not as long, so I modified it to fit my size. 

It is done with a flannel background and wool appliqué. I pinned the pieces in place and did a blanket stitch on them. The background has small stripes that are browns and a blue one, so it fits perfectly with my living room colors. I use it on the back of the couch for decoration and when the sun hits me in the face, I can move it to block the sun. 

Last weekend we went to the island. It was too cold to be out long, but a nice sunny day. A few of the docks and some of the fishing boats.

Today we got out and were able to walk on the beaches, since it got up to a balmy 38. I haven't been able to find as much nice glass, but with the cold, I try to walk more and bend less. There was a ship on a ship next to the bridge. With oversized ships, they cannot get in for repairs, so the larger ship is a dry dock, that they can get on and do their repairs.

I also spotted a group of American Black Ducks.

A male Mallard.

And it's mate. I love seeing so many ducks and other birds that winter on the island. It is a nice way to get out and get rid of the winter blues. This weekend will start out nice and then rain coming in and on Sunday we will get snow in the afternoon. I am not sure how much we will get, since we are always on the line, so hopefully more snow than rain.

I hope you all enjoy your weekend and find ways to get out and beat the winter blues. Making new things to decorate with, is always a good way for me to enjoy my days when I am stuck inside.

Friday Finish!

 

Since I am working on several large projects, I like to have something that I can make up quickly. This Christmas mat is a pattern from BareRoots. I have been gifted a lot of items on top of things I have bought over the years, so trying to finish them, a bit at a time.

Last week we went to the pond, to see if we could find the eagles. None in sight this time, but I did catch a Killdeer at the water's edge.

After we went for a walk at the bike path. Would love to try my new bike there, but it is either too cold or too windy lately. Lots of Chickadees at the park.

Today we went to the lighthouse. It was windy but warmer. Lots of seagulls were enjoying, floating in the winds.

We ended up taking the back paths and found out they go a lot further in the opposite direction, so we got a nice long walk, along with views of the bay. 

Most of the foliage is gone now, but we still see pops of color, here and there. My backyard came in late, so this was last week and now they are bright yellows and falling with the wind. I hope you are all safe from the horrible storms, crossing the middle states. We have good weather this weekend, so hoping to get out for long walks and maybe a bike ride.

Working on Friday!

 

This has not been a good week for me. I was all ready to have a fun weekend and woke up Saturday, sick with bronchitis. I spent this week coughing my lungs out and today was the first day I could breathe without coughing. So, not much got done, I had no energy and spent more time doing nothing but coughing.

I was able to put together the next pieces for my Christmas hanging. I did some stitching on my other piece, but not as much as I would have liked. 

Today I felt good enough to get out for a bit and I really wanted to get some fresh ocean air. My house has been filling with my neighbor's fireplace smoke, so that hasn't helped with my coughing. It was nice getting out and the island was popping with color.

On the way home, I spotted this Red-tailed hawk, hanging out in the shipyard. My camera wasn't working right and they couldn't fix it, so I got a new replacement. I still need to redo the settings for focus and other things I use to get better shots. I used photoshop to improve the quality.

I am hoping I keep improving and will get out as much as I can this weekend. I feel better when I am out, even if I get tired after. I hope everyone is doing well and avoiding this flu that is going around, not a fun one.

Friday Finish!

 I was able to finish one piece, that I started this week. They are designs by Cheri Saffiote in the Facebook group we have in her honor. I wanted to play with fabrics and love how the background on this one came out with the cat.

We have been able to get out more, with the nicer weather. Last weekend we enjoyed a walk at the bird sanctuary and then stopped by a local beach. They had a lot of birds in the area, across the street. One area was full of Snowy and Great egrets, as well as a few Blue herons. Migration is in full force, so more birds are stopping to rest and feed before they move south.

Today we took the boys to Mystic Seaport. In all the years that I have lived here and been in Mystic, we have never gone. We got a grandparent pass, so it includes the boys and special events through the year. The boys had fun exploring the shops and the ships.

Of course Alex wanted a photo with all the anchors. We ate in the pub, but the food wasn't that great and found another place that had more kid friendly food, so they enjoyed a plate of fries. There are a lot of things to do and enjoy, so we can visit the ones we missed this time.

I hope you all had a nice week and enjoy your holiday weekend. The apple orchards open for the season, so we are all going to pick apples tomorrow and I am hoping the pears are good this year, I love those too.

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!

 

This week I wanted to use up some precut pennies that I had from my stash and some from a friend. I still have lots of wool, so it is fun to use what I have and make something new. I decided to do stitcheries on the pennies and used a loose chain stitch so it has a bit of a rope look. It seems a lot bolder since I used a lighter floss but I did wash antique medium over them, to tone it down. The camera seems to pick up more lightness. 

I just added what fit on the back of the piece I had and made it up, as I went along. It was fun to do and a nice way to keep my hands busy while I watched tv.

Over the weekend we had a family get together. My sister got a trip home for her Christmas present from her daughter and son in law, so they came this week, to visit and some sight seeing. My brother and nephew, as well as my son and family, so it was nice to have family get together. It was hot, so we enjoyed time under the trees when the breezes picked up.

I also spent some time at the beach. One day it was sunny and warm, so great for swimming, the next was cloudy and cool, which was so nice with all the humidity we have had. I even found a few treasures. 

Today we had an early dinner and went to the beach later. It wasn't as hot but the waves were rougher. I was able to slip into the ocean for a quick swim, in between the waves and found a few pieces of glass that the waves threw up. More heat for the weekend, so we won't be outside as much. It seems we wait all winter for summer, then it is too hot to be outside. I hope you all have a nice weekend and a break from the heat.

Friday Finish!

 I finally finished my wool piece, a bit wonky as usual, and a bit darker than I wanted, but it does look better in person than in the photo. It is a design by Crane Designs called, Lighthouse Landing.

I also enjoyed watching the moon, I do wish I had been able to watch it rise from the beach,  it was beautiful as it came up.

This afternoon we finally got a chance to go to the beach. While I hunted for glass, I got to enjoy the race, around the island.

A few more from the race, lots of beautiful sails. I have been spending most of my time cleaning and getting the yard ready for a family get together. I seem to have gotten bitten by something and it gave me a reaction, so not being up to par all week, didn't help. So, guests will have to be happy with specialty pizzas from a local shop and a few side dishes. 

I hope you all had a nice week and a wonderful weekend.