In the works!

 

I am still working on my stitchery. It has a lot of stitching and some things I am thinking on, as I go. The background fabric is coffee stained color from Moda, so a bit darker than I usually do. I am using brighter threads so they show up and adding detail inside so it stands out. A bit more to do and then a christmas fabric for the border. It is another design by Cheri Saffiote. I don't like how the stitches in the mustache look, so I will redo that and I may add some glitter, red knots in the center of his robe squares.

Last weekend we took a ride around a section of Connecticut. Our first stop was the waterfall in Putnam. I never get tired of walking along the river and listening to the roar of the falls.

Our next stop was Goodwin forest, we stopped for a little walk and a view of the pond. A bit of color coming in.

Then we headed over to Diana's pool. It was a bit wet, so the falls weren't as stepped, as they usually are. After that we headed down to Mansfield to see the dam, always beautiful views.

Bill had a day off this week, so we headed to Newport. We enjoyed a walk along the cliff walk. This photo cracked me up when I realized there was a little man, sticking out of the pack.

After that, we went to the bird sanctuary and took another walk. Always a beautiful walk with views of the ocean and I was able to get a decent shot of the lighthouse across the bay.

At the cliff walk, a friendly Catbird was chatting at me and at the sanctuary, I spotted my first Black and White Warbler.

At home, my winter visitors are coming back. I hope everyone enjoyed their week and have a nice holiday weekend. As usual we have a rainy Saturday, but we will have two nice days, so I can't complain.

Friday this and that!

With the long weekend, I didn't get as much done at home and we decided to extend it one day, since the weather was so beautiful. We ended up going to Newport and enjoy the fresh air and walks in the area.

We went to one beach to let Bean play, but there were a lot more people and surfers, so we enjoyed watching them and headed back to the cliff walk. We were lucky to find a spot close to the walk entrance, even if we had to pay to park, it was worth it. Here is a view of the beach, after the walk, we rested here and had a snack lunch and I collected a lot of glass. The waves would roll in and push pebbles and glass in, then go out and come in with another batch. A lot was new, so I just took the worn pieces.

The cliff walk was nice, but it was a lot hotter than I expected, so we only went half way. I realized later that half was was 3 miles, so I guess I got a good walk in. Hard to notice how far you walk when you have views like this.

We took the scenic route back and stopped at Fort Adams. At this point I was tired and it was low tide, so Bean was able to have some fun on this beach. It was nice getting out, but it did wear me out.

Since Bill had more time off, we went shopping and found some boards for my beach room. They are aged gray, so I am leaving them as is, I like the gray and will make a nice backdrop to hang art pieces. I am not sure about the darker boards now, maybe I will white wash them, later.

I also started a punch needle. It is a design by Tonya Robey from Primitive Quilts and Projects. It is a rug design, so I reduced it for punching. I had to redo the face, my needle had a burr and I realized when I looked at the front that it was all messed up. I am still debating on the background, thinking dark blues to bring out the lighter colors?

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. I am hoping the rains stay away and we can get out and see some foliage.

Weekend Wanderings!

Saturday was a beautiful day and I knew we had rain coming on Sunday, so I really wanted to get out and do something different. The problem was, Bill had to take the dog in to have his eye checked out and they were crowded so we got a late start. The good thing is that it is summer and the days are longer. The bad, getting a late start meant no parking at the regular spots. I just checked my maps and looked for some side roads and found one that looked good. It had a church on one side and a faculty parking area on the other, but school is over so we were able to park there.

I have lived in Rhode Island all my life and have never walked along the cliff walk in Newport. I finally got to and it was the perfect day to go, sunny with a nice breeze. The path starts at the beach and ends at another beach 3.5 miles down. We weren't able to do the whole walk, but close to 5 miles. The further end was rougher with cliffs and Bean was not doing too well with the spaced rock paths, he kept falling in the cracks. Maybe if he payed attention to where he was going instead of trying to head to the water or people walking by, he might have walked better;)

The path follows the coastline, nice walkways for the most part and a lot has been rebuilt since the storms that destroyed a lot of the trail.

All along the shore are beautiful homes or should I say mansions. Some are out in open areas, but most were either hidden by tall fences or plant growth.

Can you imagine owning the home with this gazebo, I would be out there, all day. Bean was more interested in who was coming, of course he got lots of attention from passerbys.

In two areas you go through a tunnel, one was long and dark, Bean was a bit weary of that one but this one was unique and shorter. I would like to go back and do the entire walk, you just can't beat the scenery on both sides. The walk and parking is free, but they do have trolley service, so you can always park your car in town and visit places by trolley.

After our walk we drove along Ocean Drive, it goes past all the mansions and old homes and follows the coastline. We found a fishing area to stop and enjoy and let Bean have some fun in the water. I think this will be a future paddling place.

The next stop was Fort Getty. The coast was a popular place to defend the country and easy access by the ships. Another great thing about getting a late start is, by the time we got here, people were leaving, so we were able to get a front parking space.

This is the start of the walk, a lot of people come down and just sit on the lawns and docks and enjoy the day. They were also setting up a wedding while we were there.

We walked along the path, following the old fort. It is a large fort and has a large inner space, as well.

We walked to the end and instead of going around the fort, inland, we came back along the water. It was just too beautiful and cool next to the water. Everyone was enjoying the water, even though the fog was rolling in. This is another thing you can do for free, they do charge if you want to take a tour of the fort, but the park itself is free for use. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.