Busy week!

 This week I have been catching up from camping. Lots of cleaning and getting ready for Halloween events. The kids have a trunk or treat so I may go to that and we have some activities in town, so I decided I wanted to have fun this week, and dress up.

I have lots of black clothes, so I have a black skirt, hooded shirt, lace sided jacket and black tights, along with black booties. I also found a hat that I can decorate, I am waiting for black gloves and accessories to add to hat. A bit of mousse and I can frizz or curl up my hair to make it stand out.

I am not sure if you recognize the look, but I was going for the Stevie Nicks look, but most think I am a witch, lol. She has long blond hair with bangs, but I had trimmed mine recently and I refuse to cut my hair into bangs.

We had a nice weekend, a bit cooler and windy, but nice weather for getting out for walks. One beach I never go to is nearby, so we went there and walked on the boardwalk and along the beach. The tide was coming in and the seagulls were waiting for things to wash up.

We also went to the fishing beach to check out the waves. I was watching this boat and as it came around the rocks, it seemed to stop and get rocked around by the waves. It finally started its motor and was on its way, not a good place to stall out.

On the last night, I was on the hill to see the sunset. As I was waiting, a flock of Great Blue Herons flew overhead and were caught by the setting sun.

At another beach we checked out, I spotted a few crazy people, fishing as the tide came in.

I also spotted a group of Cormorants, hanging out in the channel. 

We also got a day to explore the river ways and the foliage. It was raining in the morning but we got a break in the afternoon.

An old mill that sat beside a waterfall dam, but they redid it so the kayakers could get through easier and to help prevent flooding.

And on the other side of the bridge.

While out we went shopping and couldn't resist getting Bean a present. He loves it but hates having his photo taken.

And I am lucky enough to be on a high porch in the back, so I was able to catch the comet. It is still visible but not as much, each night, till the end of the month. I hope everyone had a good week and can enjoy the weekend. 

Friday finishes!

 

I have been busy this week, making some new things and trying new things. I tried some new paint markers and enjoyed using those. Much easier than painting and I am able to do a few rocks in a few hours. I am making more rocks so I will have a bunch for when the weather warms up.

I also made another chick, this one came out bigger and fatter and definitely went too big on the eye. I got some new roving in a lighter yellow and it is perfect for chicks.

And I also tried resin casting. I have been wanting a way to showcase my sea glass and also make gifts and I thought resin, would be a good way to show it off. I tried a couple with items I would get upset about, if I messed up. 

I over filled the molds,  but I learned what I should have done, so hopefully the next ones will be better. I need to get thicker molds so I can use larger pieces of glass. 

On Saturday we went for a waterfall ride. We stopped at several, one closer to home and then into Connecticut.

On the way back, I told Bill to take a side road to see what we could find. I was surprised when we got to the end and saw an old ski area and then Stepping stone falls. We always come from the other end and never knew that the road kept going into Ct. Of course we had to drive down, the bumpy, rutted road to the falls, but well worth it. I got to try my new filter on the falls.

The waters were high and the normal path was flooded, so we went around to the other side, to get the traditional bridge shot. Something we have done, since I was a little girl.

 On Sunday we went to Ninigret bird sanctuary. We spotted a family of deer, hidden in the woods and a few birds in the area.

On Monday we went exploring. I wanted to grab some craft supplies, so we headed up to the stores and then headed to the eagle pond. No eagles, but this swan, seemed to enjoy having its photo taken.

We then drove into the old part of town, to check out the old mills. We were able to talk a nice walk along the River walk.

This old mill is being converted into condominiums. It was wonderful to walk along the falls and listen to the rushing water.

I hope you all had a nice week and enjoy the weekend. We have frigid cold weather for a few days, so I doubt I will be outside for long. Good time to stay inside and work on new projects.

Friday Finishes!

This week I worked on finishing the new stitchery by Kathy Schmitz. This one was fun to do and I did more fancy stitches, as well as add a border to mine. It is fun having something new and quick to do, each month. I am seriously thing about doing sales again, I have way too many finished pieces, starting to pile up.

For fun, I decided to try some new rocks to hide. With the nicer weather, it is fun to place a few, at a time, in places we visit. With everything that is going on, I felt like sunflower pieces were nice to show our support. With my bad arm, it is harder to do a lot of detail, so I kept them simple.

Our weather is up and down lately, rain, warm and then cold again, so one day we went to the kids and spent some time with the boys and a little party for my son's 40'th birthday. Afterwards we drove around their area to look for an eagle they spotted. No eagle but we found an old mill site.

Remnants from the old mill.

The next day we spent some time at the beach. It was a bit cool but I finally got a pair of Bogs, so I was able to walk along the water without having to worry about getting my feet wet or cold. Bean was happy to go along, and the low tide meant, he had more places to explore.

I found some nice treasures and thrilled to find another marble and a large piece of lavender.

On the way out of the beach, I noticed a bird sitting at the Osprey nest and stopped to take a photo. It seems a Red Tailed Hawk and his mate have made a home in the nest. I am sure the Osprey is not going to be happy when it returns and sadly, it will kick them out, so I hope they havn't laid eggs yet.

I also got a surprise in the mail, a gift from Kathy Schmitz. She has a contest each year and this year was to make 6 of the same items and post a photo. I posted a photo of my pillows and instead of picking a winner, she sent all of the girls who posted, a gift package.

I hope this finds you all well and enjoying time creating and time exploring your area. Warm weather is heading our way, so Bill has two days to take off so we are planning some day trips this coming week.

Friday (Almost) Finish!

It seems the holidays took up a lot of time with cooking and cleaning and spending time with the boys, but it was all worth it. I worked on several projects that are larger, so they are still in the works.

One project I was eager to try and finish was a pattern by Kathy Schmitz. She had a sale, so I treated myself to a pattern I had my eyes on. This one was so fun to do, that I am making another in a different color scheme.

I used Dmc blue for this one and for a pop of color, I used the new DMC sparkle thread. It comes in different colors and shades, so I know I will be trying it with my punched pieces too. I went when they had a big coupon sale and got a supply to try out, it does look better in person, so hopefully when I make it into a pillow, it will show up better.

We did a lot of drives and explored some old places and some new places. I took this photo from the middle of the bridge. The river runs through a good portion of Rhode Island and ends at the ocean. It is a dividing line for Rhode Island and Connecticut, so I am in two states at the same time.

We enjoyed some. walks through some old cemeteries. This one had some beautiful old stones and lots of history with the founding families of Wakefield.

I also wanted to see a waterfall at a dam in the upper half of RI. Sadly, it is also a reservoir, so the signs said no trespassing, but. you could park and view from the top or take a walk on the old road, that goes along the pond. Too cold that day, but we will go back for a walk with Bean.

I noticed a road on the other side, so we tried that and I was able to get a partial view of the falls. As you can see, the guy in the white truck is there to patrol the area.

The fun thing about old back roads is, you never know what you will find. There were three old cemeteries, overlooking the pond.

This day we were on the hunt for eagles, but not one sighting. Later I saw that there is an area below where we went, that is also a hatchery, so a place to take the boys. But, I found a wonderful old cemetery with some unique stones, for future patterns. This is a portion of the cemetery, which was on a river, so a nice walk to end the day.

At home I have been relaxing and catching up with the house. I love watching the birds in the winter and it is easier to spot them with the bare trees. I noticed this guy sitting in my neighbor's yard and was lucky enough to get closer for a better shot. It is a red shouldered Hawk.

I hope the New Year brings many blessings to you all.

Weekend Wanderings!

Another cold weekend, so shopping was more on the agenda than going for walks. The good thing is, we got to enjoy a few nice rides and check out the frozen scenery.

We drove down some back roads to see the rivers. With the snow and rain melting it all, the rivers were running fast and high. This area is part of an old mill village. There are mills all along the different sections and the main mill was a textile mill.

With the rising rivers, it meant rising waters. The boat ramp was getting swallowed up. A lot of people like to start here and go down river, along the rapids. We always start further down and paddle the slower moving, section. I noticed a few areas that I can get down to the mill section, so when the weather is better, I will have to do some exploring.

On Sunday we did our ride to the ocean. It is nice to get out and hit the stores at the south end and then enjoy the scenic drive, along the waterways to the ocean. The problem was, way too cold to get out. On the way home, we stopped at the boat launch in town. Even with the rains, the cove is still half frozen.

There are still boats in the water and I was surprised to see this pirate ship at the docks. I heard it is wintering in our harbor. It is actually a motor boat that was outfitted with a pirate facade. Even comes with it's own lady pirate.

I love shopping this time of year, got some great bargains and even found a large Glitter house church with lights for only 3.50. Another thing I have been looking at is bean bag chairs. I thought it might be a fun and comfy chair for my room, something I can sack out in when I am drawing or creating. I was surprised when I found one in a TJ Maxx home store and a matching ottoman, and half the price. So, it came home with me and it is so comfortable, but it is a lot bigger than I thought, lol. Now I have to redo my room, maybe time to get rid of things I just stuck in there. I will have to find a nice crate to use as a table.

For now I decided to leave the chaise in the room and I actually like it much better, now that it is in the other corner. Seems more cozy and with some large pillows and a quilt, it will be another cozy spot to relax. Still a work in progress, so I may change my mind again.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. Time to get going on my projects and I even found two new greens to match up my stockings better.

Weekend happenings!

This weekend was a mix of sun and rain, but we did get out one day and enjoy exploring a new area. We headed to Salmon River Forest, the main destination was the Comstock covered bridge in Connecticut. We took a back road down, so we enjoyed new views and old barns, but most were hard to stop and get photos of.

The Comstock bridge had to be rebuilt, but they kept the original bridge, just new lumber and trusses to keep it from falling again. It was a beautiful spot to get out and walk along the river.

The bridge is the route for the bike path, we will have to come back to ride, someday. We walked along the river on the main trail and came up some steep hills to enjoy this beautiful view. We walked a bit more, but it seemed the trail was heading away from the river, so we turned back. Now I wish I had remembered to print a map, there was a waterfall not too much further and I really wanted to see that, next time.

There is a bit of color but not what i was hoping for, maybe next weekend. It is still beautiful though and there was a hawk flying down the river, searching for dinner.

We saw a road on the other side of the river and decided to check it out. Along the road was an old mill, it was wonderful to explore, as I walked around the outside, but a bit creepy since it was so large and filled with places, critters might be living.

We continued on and came out to a parking lot, where you could park and start on the bike path. The old railroad bridge is part of the path, beautiful area surrounding by woods.

We got a late start and it was a longer drive, so we will definitely go back to the area and explore more. The towns above this area are historical and lots of parks with hikes. On Sunday it rained in the morning so we waited till it stopped and headed over the Jamestown and walked along the beach at Fort Getty. I wanted to get a few more rocks for painting and it is a great place for Bean to play. Unfortunately the rain came again, so we rode to the lighthouse and it stopped again, long enough to enjoy a walk around the lighthouse loop and hide a few rocks.

On the way home we passed through the village and the kids were trick or treating at the stores. I couldn't get photos as we were moving, but I did get a shot of this storefront, they always have a decorating contest at the local stores, this one was fun.

And online, I saw a beautiful rock that a neighbor found. It was an angel with the saying, " Your wings were ready, but my heart was not". I thought that was the perfect one for me to find and then she messaged me to see if I wanted it. It wasn't a message that had meaning to her, but for some reason she decided to take it and then thought of me, so I thought that was really nice. Now the angel is in my rock garden, in my beach room and she will stay there for now, someday I will see someone who needs that message and pass it along to them.

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. We lost power at 11pm last night and it is still out. We are always one of the first to get it back since we live near a school, but it seems everyone else is getting theirs, but not us. We do have a generator, but it is a pain to have wires all over the house and I really need to wash some laundry, lol.

Weekend Wanderings!

We had a nice weekend, though a bit cool for long walks. One thing I love to do is shop at the antique  thrifts and Saturday was a good day for the barn and a visit to Chepatchet which has several antique stores and a primitive store.

With all that shopping, I didn't get much, but I treated myself to an angel valentine doll. This one hangs on the wall, but I put her on the table for the photo. She looks good, either way so once I get more decorating and cleaning done, I may give her a space of her own. For now we are keeping the main wall free of decorations so maybe, just maybe my husband will clean it up and get it repainted so I can put up my easter decorations.

I also found a plain wooden boat for a dollar, I will sand all the varnish off and remake it into something for my beach room, maybe add some fabric sails.

When we were in town, I saw a step falls but it was impossible to get a photo from the right angle, too much brush and slopes. I did see a small falls on the other side and I loved how the water at the top was smooth as glass but whorling so that the shadows looked like an art painting.

On Sunday we got a late start and headed to Woodstock Ct, for some more shopping and to visit Putnam for some photos. We always try and take a different route to find new sights and on this trip we stopped at a mill. It looks like this one is still operational.

In Putnam we found a parking lot across from the falls, so we took a walk over and I enjoyed watching the falls. With the snow and then rain, they were running, full force. It was too cold for me, to take a walk along the river, so we went back across the street to check out an antique store.

Well, it was not a store, it was an antique mall, four floors of booths and in areas, whole rooms with glass cabinets, filled with goodies. It was so overwhelming, I don't think I saw half of the things, lol. And so big, we spent hours just walking and looking. I saw a lot of nice things, but prices that seemed to be inflated compared to what I have bought. It is well worth a visit if you are in the Putnam area, they do have a lot and there are other stores in the area, as well as small shops and restaurants.

Since we spent so long in the store, I decided that I wasn't up to going up to Woodstock and doing more shoppng. But, I did realize that we were were about an hour away from sunset and if we headed back down to the ocean, we could just make it, lol, yes, we drove an hour back down and went to Barn Island, since it was the straightest point from where we were.

It was a beautiful place to enjoy the sunset, but no place to stand, so we had to go out on the marshy point and walk carefully along the thick tufts to stay out of the muck. The sunset is always the most stunning when it falls below the horizon and a beautiful way to end the day. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend, filled with your own adventures.