Weekend wanderings!

 

This week I was busy getting ready for our trip, so no time for crafting. I did take time out to get out for a walk last week. We went to the local park again and walked around the pond, then the path to the troll, since Bill didn't get to see him.

The pond is always beautiful, anytime of the year.

Lots of birds, but they are hidden in the trees. I did catch a Cardinal, that stopped for a while.

And the pond had a lot of turtles.

And we made it to camp. Our site is not bad and we have some views. The bad thing is rain all day on Sunday, so I will see how it goes and if it is a washout on Monday, we can just go home. I had planned on having a party for the kids birthday coming up, but we cancelled it till next week.

                                         

We were able to get out for some walks at camp and one at the beach after dinner. The sunset was obscured by the clouds, but back at camp, it spread out beneath the clouds.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and an amazing week,

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!

 The past two weeks, I have been busy working on my sister's quilt. I wanted to get it done quickly so she can use it while she rests after treatments. I used two different packs of precut squares, so I didn't have to cut fabric. Then I made a top with an angel, hearts and a saying. The angel came from a Whimsical book and I added a few extra hearts and sayings. I also messed up on trimming down the top, so I added some borders.

After I got it all pieced, I decided to hand quilt it, so that I did this week. It is a bit eclectic with a primitive boho look. This weekend I need to make a label for the back and I found a nice saying to add to it. "Anytime you need a hug, wrap this quilt around you and feel my love." 

I also got mail from a fellow reader, Kelly Cole, who used one of my older freebie patterns to make a hooked piece. She hooked it onto a jean jacket, what a fun and clever idea.

We have been staying home more with projects that needed to be done. Then my son got sick after he was here and gave it to Bill who gave it to me. Seems I catch everything that is going around, luckily I fight them off and hand quilting kept me busy this week.

A lot of the birds are visiting now that the babies have left the nest. Our resident Cardinal is quite the character.

And a lot more Orioles are visiting, so I have to keep the jelly feeder full. This is one of their young.

And a few more shots of our visitors. I even got a Hair Woodpecker, the first I have seen, but too shy for a shot. I hope you all enjoyed your week and out of the heat wave. I am really enjoying the cooler hair and cool nights. 

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. 

Still working on!

 It seems the weeks go by and I don't get as much done, as I wanted. Our trailer buy turned out to be disappointing. It seems the previous owners didn't mention that they had a leak, so the whole slide would have to come off, new flooring put in and then back together again. Our dealership was going to do it, but we decided to look at a newer one. I love the new version, but then what do I see in the bedroom, a puddle of water. So, if you ever want to buy a Wildwood, make sure it doesn't have a leak. So, we ended up getting a better trailer that we had before, much better quality. It is a little smaller, but has a real kitchen, recliners and plenty of storage. Perfect for us and enough room for the boys to stay, but might be a bit cramped for the whole family. 

I have been working on my stitchery, lots of work on this one, but almost done. Working on the final touches and embellishments. I plan on doing a multicolor border, so I will be done by next week. Since I am not sure yet, if we can get the new trailer in time, I will be getting the RV ready. It seems a few spiders have moved in and I do not sleep with bugs, lol.

We also went to the town beach, love that it is close so we can go, just for a swim. While we were swimming, the Ospreys were flying overhead and catching fish. It is amazing to watch them as they dive down and splash into the water.

I also noticed some birds at the end of the beach. A family of Laughing gulls and always fun to see the young ones as they learn to fish on their own.

One day we went to the island for a swim. This is what I spotted on the beach, made me wonder if I wanted to go in the water. It is a Sand Shark, so not too scary.

The water was rough and wavy, but fun to swim in and no crowds.

At home I have enjoyed seeing more young come in. The Cardinals had 2 girls and a boy, but they are shy and fly off when I come out. The other is a female Cowbird, she has been on her own now, and knows where the food supply is.

I hope you all had a good week and not in the flood zones or storms coming through. We have a lot of wind tonight and some heavier storms expected overnight. A nice week coming up, so I hope that you all get better weather and can enjoy the rest of the summer.

Friday Finish!

 

This week I have been getting my energy back, so catching up around the house and yard. I made another heart sachet, something I enjoy doing while watching tv at night. It is fun to do something with bright colors and something cheerful. You can find this design, along with others at  Pinker N' Punkin.

This week I had a new visitor. The first time I have seen a buck, not sure where its mother is.

And more birds are coming to visit. Lots of young and the new jelly feeder, has bought the Baltimore Orioles.

Last weekend we got in some walks at the lighthouse. It is always cooler there and a good way for me to get my strength back.

We got out for a walk at Ninigret park. I was able to catch a Common Yellowthroat.

And I was able to catch a few others along the paths.

Today we got to Trustom Pond. It is a 3 mile walk and always full of wildlife. The humidity was gone and we had a nice breeze, so it was nice to get out for a longer walk.

The Osprey was giving me the eye, they do not like it when you get near their nesting grounds.

I saw a lady, taking photos of something and she showed me the Swallows in the nest. I would have missed it, if she wasn't there. The mom was feeding her baby, a large dragonfly. The other two were fledged and out on their own.

More of the critters we saw along the paths.

Afterwards we heading to a nearby beach for a short walk along the shoreline. I almost missed the baby Piping Plovers, they blend in with the rocks and are tiny. They are so fun to watch. The moms were close by, watching and if you got too close, the mom would feign a broken wing. The males fly over head and dive bomb you, if. you are in their area.

The Fishing boats are coming back to bring in their daily catch. It was a nice way to spend the afternoon and unwind. I hope you all have a nice weekend and are not in the paths of the storms.

Friday Finish!

 I was able to finish a project this week, a design by Cheri Saffiote. The original was more of a colored drawing on fabric, so I colored mine and outlined with black floss. I changed the layout by adding the saying and mittens to the side, to make it a bit longer. 

Last weekend was Riverfest at Mystic Seaport. I was excited to take the boys, but was told they had a party that day. So, we went by ourselves and found out later, they had the wrong date, so the boys could have come. 

It was nice though, lots of fun for the kids with rides and activity, but we just enjoyed the cool breezes and the live music, while we walked around. One of the highlights was Newfoundland dogs, they pulled the kids in carts and also did rescue training, so that was fun to watch.

Today we went to the island and walked the beach and spent time at the rocky end. Bean enjoyed playing on the open beach areas and I did a little glass hunting and bird watching.

At home, I was greeted by our resident Cardinal. He wasn't happy that the feeder was empty and let me know. I see a lot of areas are having heat waves, we are hot, but we also have ocean breezes. Tomorrow is another big event at the seaport, a Jules Verne exhibit, with a submarine and other fun things for the kids. Hopefully nothing goes wrong and we will be able to take the boys for a few hours. I hope everyone has a nice weekend.

Friday Re-Finish!

 

This week I was deciding on some items, I could donate to a charity raffle. I made up a potholder set and while looking through my box of items, I found an older item. It was a little quilt I made years ago and messed up the quilting, it was all puckered. So, I took it apart and remade it into a pillow. I also added a little lavender pillow to go with it. 

This was a design by Red Brolly, and I painted it with acrylics.

We did our usual ride over the weekend. With the cold weather, it is nice to get out and enjoy the beach, even on a dismal day, the beaches are beautiful. Looking across the breachway.

In the breachway, I watched two Common Eiders, trying to catch fish, as the tide was going out.

And in the coves, I was lucky enough to find a Great Blue Heron, that didn't fly away.

At home, my feeders have emptying fast. I was thrilled to finally see a couple of Goldfinches. They love the Nyger, so I put it where they would see it from the pines. I had to take a photo through the window, since they are shy.

And my resident Cardinal. He is quite the character and his mate will come too, but she is more shy. I hope you all enjoyed your week and are enjoying a respite from all the rain.