Friday Finish!

 

This week went by fast with the long weekend. We cut our vacation short, since it was raining on Sunday and more rain on Monday, so we came home. When we do weekends close to home, I plan on being outside and easy access for biking and paddling, rain kills that. We have our big vacation coming up next month, so I plan on getting things done at home and getting ready for that. 

This week I decided to start painting the stones I had. I plan on taking some on our trip, so I start with painting them all white and adding the group name on the back. People can sign up when they find one, but not necessary. The photo makes them look funny, since the camera seems to pick up things that don't look spotty in person.

Before we went home, we had one day that was nice enough to go for a walk along Black Point. I hadn't been there in a while and found a new stairway at the end of the path. I had never been down to that section before, so we went to check it out.

It was a nice spot to walk around on the rocks.

We even found a heart in the rock.

The path way goes around a point, that had a home, that is no longer there. 

They even had a new sign that told about the former history.

Today we got out for a walk at the park. It has several paths to explore, that traverse along the salt water pond, to paths through fields and woods. At the pond, I spotted a few Snowy Egrets.

In the trees I could hear a lot of birds and spotted a Baltimore Oriole.

And in the wooded path, lies this old tree that has so many unique knots, that I could spot 4 tree spirits, hiding within. It was nice to get out and a little cooler near the ocean.

Tomorrow we will celebrate everyone's birthday. The boys were born on the same day, a day after my husband's birthday and Ivy was born a few days before, so we celebrate them all. I had planned on doing it at camp, but the rain cancelled that. I hope you all enjoy your weekend. We have some rain tomorrow, but a good day to cook and get ready for the kids for a dinner party.

Friday finishes!

 

This week I worked on a stitchery I am making for my sister. I am using the bike pattern and turning it into a pillow. I also worked on some paintings, though they did not come out as well as I hoped. The directions are basic, so I follow along when I can and do my own things on other parts.

This one came out darker than I meant, but with water colors, it is hard to fix mistakes. It is a nice way to relax and get the feel of doing watercolors, before I do my own projects.

The next one was a white daisy. I followed the instructions, but the flower looked plain, especially against the white background. This is one I wished I had practiced a muted background on, then the white would have worked. So, I painted over what I did in yellow shades. The butterfly was colored this way, but not very realistic. Even so, I enjoy the process. 

Today I didn't do much, seems I caught another bug, so I am taking it easy. We have nice weather, not too hot and no rain, so hopefully we can get out for a bit this weekend. I hope everyone had a good week and good weather this weekend.

Friday Finish!

 

This has been a busy week and I am exhausted. I made reservations at a camp in NH on a river, so I have been planning and packing and keeping up with the house. I made time to finish a painting I started awhile ago. Unfortunately I lost the instructions, so I just went by the photo and then added a couple of whales. The original was on a shorter board and my canvas was larger, so added to it. 

I do not have a steady hand so I am a bit messy, a bit wonky, but I am happy to have finished it. It's been a while since I did acrylics, so need to hone my skills so I can finish another I started.

Last weekend we went for a walk at the ocean park. It has longer trails and less people on the backside, so we enjoy that section. It used to be an air force training field in World War II. This path is what is left of the old runway.

Most of the other trails are overgrown and lined with all types of vegetation for the wildlife. We spotted this Snapping Turtle on my section.

Tomorrow is our 50th anniversary. I really wanted to rent a place on the island, but missed the opportunity to get an affordable place in time. The area we are going to has places I want to visit, and we have a river site, so hoping to relax and enjoy seeing some new things. We will be there all week, so next week I will share some of our adventures. I also have my art supplies and embroidery supplies, so hoping to spend time making up designs and stitching them, while I relax.

I hope everyone has a nice week and not affected by all the storms that have hurt so many. We are lucky to have good weather this week, but it will be hot, even up north.

Friday Finish!

 

This week I finished a painting I had been working on. I had a photo of the boys at the beach, so I removed the people and just added the umbrellas and houses in the back. It was fun to do and good practice. I will need to get better paper, since this paper tends to pill when you add too much water, but it is good enough for practice.

Last weekend we got a nice walk in at the park. We spotted a turtle, half way in a hole. Not sure if it was resting or laying eggs.

I also spotted a female Eastern Towhee.

Today we did our walk at the lighthouse. It was a beautiful day and we lucked out, when the Newport Regatta came by.

These two boats were neck and neck.

When they come around the lighthouse, the waves get rougher. 

It was a nice walk, though we went back and forth and side to side to watch them. They race around the island, so we got to watch the last of them coming around the other beach. I always enjoy getting out in the fresh air, and always a fun day for Bean. 

I hope you all had a nice week and aren't stuck in the rain. We have rain coming tomorrow, so hopefully we can get out on Sunday.

Friday Finish!

This week I worked on finishing another small table mat. I used different precut mini blocks to make it, using some patriotic and others to match, with matching colors for the border. 

I also got in the mood to do my own painting. I used a photo I took on our trip. I did an outline of the main pieces and then made a mess of it. I wanted the background to be faded like the photo, but it came out too bold. After I watched a video and saw what I did wrong and what I can do next time, a learning experience. I also overdid it on the bird and my paper starts to degrade with too much water. I am used to doing acrylics where you can paint over things but not with watercolor.

We got in a lot of walks and sightseeing in the nearby areas. One area has a nice cliff walk, with views of the bay. And after, we walked at fishermen's beach, and a foggy day by the light.

We also enjoyed the birds and wildlife along the way.

We also walked along the fishing port, fishermen working on their boats.

I caught this guy in the parking lot. He has a filleted fish and swallowed it whole.

Another day we went to the ocean beach. Last weekend they were closed so not as crowded and I spotted this Mockingbird hanging out in the nesting area. 

And always a lot of birds in that area to enjoy.

And this pair in the reeds.

And finally on our last night, a sunset.

On our last day, I paid for the night so we could stay the day. But, I woke up sick again. I guess I overdid it and it came back at me. So this week I went back on stronger meds and rested more, so feeling a bit better again. Lesson learned, if you see mouse droppings, get out and get a mask on.

While Bill got the trailer ready to leave, I sat and enjoyed watching the birds in front of our camp. I finally got photos of the Yellow Warblers, which never stay still.

And this is the one I did a painting of. It sat and sang for a while, a nice way to end the weekend. 

This weekend we will spend time with the kids. Birthday month, so tomorrow we celebrate Ivy and Bill's and next week is the boys. I hope everyone had a good week and enjoy getting out this weekend.

Friday finish!

 

This week I worked on a simple table topper for the summer. I have had the sheep fabric for years, and thought it was perfect for a little table I have to keep snacks in. I also got out to the trailer to check it out and get it ready for a trip I planned for next week.

Well, not sure I am going now, not since I walked in the trailer and looked around. Since I broke my foot, I hadn't been out to the trailers myself, so this was the first time I went in the new one. I started to notice little black spots, mouse turds. Then I noticed them on the top of the bed, and then found them in the dish drawers. I started looking everywhere and luckily they didn't go in any of the top areas or clothing cabinets, but what I found was, their nest, in a little drawer. It is the one my husband uses for some shorts and bathing suit and he left them in there and they had made a nest in there. 

Then I looked around and could not figure out what they used to make the nest, until I opened the hidden storage under the bed. They had chewed a hole in a quilt and used the stuffing from inside. As I was taking things out to clean, I noticed a horrid smell in the bathroom and it wasn't until I lifted the garbage can with a swing lid that I found the mice, both dead. They jumped on top and fell in and couldn't get out. So, I have sprayed everything down with bactroban and letting it sit till the sun comes out. Then I have to clean every surface and open windows to air it out. Luckily the smell is gone, but I read up on sanitizing and following those steps. It is going to take me awhile to do all that cleaning, so leaving on thursday seems too much. The Rv is also a mess, seems the workers who installed the new generator made a mess, so that has to be cleaned too. 

So, not too happy with all that and that someone who said things was fine, did not look in every space like I said. So, for now I am just going to take care of me and work on projects and getting my rooms redone so I can be more organized and enjoy being in them again. 

And I finish another painting. I find it hard to follow her directions, but I try and do the lesson parts and a bit on my own. The next one was another sunflower, so I skipped that and am onto a rose. I will keep the ones I don't do for Alex, he loves to paint and I can teach him a bit with watercolor painting.

Last week we went for a walk at the farm sanctuary. Lots of birds, but none wanted a photo, but I was able to catch a funny pair of swallows. Another swallow kept going to their nesting box and they were getting upset. It finally left and the two were happy again.

We stopped at the beach and walked a bit to see if the piping plovers were nesting behind the fences. I took photos and realized when I saw them, I realized I had spotted a group of Killdeer. It is a protected area, so I guess they are using it too. We also spotted an Osprey and a Willet. 

The other day I was watching tv and I heard a loud thump on the back door. I found this poor guy on the porch, who was stunned from the hit. I watched him until he finally moved and then he jumped over to the rail, and eventually a tree, then off to the trees where they stay. I was so glad he was ok, I love seeing the Orioles come to the feeder, they are so beautiful. I have stickers on my windows, but when the sparrows dive in, they scare off others who fly into the window on occasion. 

So it was a week of good and bad, among other things, so for now, I will just relax and decide if I can ever sleep in a bed that had mice pooping all over it, even if I clean it, lol. We had a tent trailer that happened to, and they ate through the mattresses, we sold it. I hope everyone has a nice Mother's Day, another holiday I avoid, but I find a way to enjoy the day in other ways. It looks like warmer weather and less rain next week, so I hope you all have better weather and we can all enjoy some time outside.

Friday Finish!

 I finally finished my stitchery. It is a pattern by Bareroots and a fun one to do. I did it on a tea towel, like the pattern, but I think this would make a fun pillow. I used an iron on cloth to cover the back stitches, but it shows through, so not sure if I like that. 

I also did another painting, my first flower. I find it hard to follow the instructions, some make no sense, so I tend to do my own thing. I really don't like copying someone else's style, but I like learning a few new things and practicing techniques.

Last week we hiked at a park, that also has a bird sanctuary area. Some paths are paved, part of the old World War II airport training camp.

Other areas are grassy and others are wooded pathways, so a nice variety of scenery.

We also spotted a few returning birds, but only caught the Eastern Towhee. On the ride home we spotted a  Merlin and a few other things along the way.

Another day we went to the island and let Bean have some fun time at the beach.

Today we went to another sanctuary. There were so many birds and critters, we barely took a few steps before seeing something. Most were shy and ran away when they saw us, but I caught a few along the paths.

A Yellow-rumped Warbler.

A Yellow Warbler.

A Tree Swallow.

And a few more things we spotted at the ponds and path. We have rain coming, but it may hold off tomorrow, so hoping to get out again. It is nice to see signs of Spring at the parks and at home. My flowers and trees are blooming, so it is a great mood pick me up, after a dreary winter. I hope you all can get out and enjoy spending time outside.

Friday Finish!

 Well, I worked on my stitchery when I could, but I still have a few more leaves to add. There are a lot of flowers and leaves, so taking longer than usual. So, I worked on another butterfly painting. After this, I have one more butterfly and then I move onto flowers. I work on painting a bit a time, in between cleaning and cooking. I also put together two smaller table toppers to work on, when I finish the stitchery. 

This butterfly was more pink in the tutorial, but I didn't have that color. But, I realized on my next one, I was missing the part that gives recipes for those colors, by using the ones I have. 

Last week we went to the island for some beach time. This time of year is always nice, no crowds yet, so we can enjoy beach combing and Bean can run free.

In the fields we spotted a flock of Glossy Ibis. They are always on the move, so hard to catch one.

I always like to stop at the cove with lighthouse views and was surprised to see the new addition to the Osprey nest. Not sure how it got that white cloth there, maybe stole it from someone's clothesline?

Today we went to the farm preserve. Last time it started to rain when we got there, so it was nice to have warmer weather with a nice breeze. The donkeys seemed to be loving it up today.

We also spotted an Eastern Bluebird.

And a lot of Swallows in the other boxes.

The walk ends in a cove from the river, so we spotted a few more birds there. 

And on the way home, we caught the female Osprey, calling out to her mate. They can be quite vocal and get upset if their mate stays away too long or doesn't come back with dinner.

Tomorrow will be rain, so a day in or maybe shopping. We want to do some things around the house, so we might go looking at supplies to see what we can get and pricing. I am getting anxious to go camping, but it seems to rain on the weekends, so hoping we can go next weekend.

I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend. We had a nice day with the kids. I wasn't going to do a hunt, but Alex asked if we were doing it, so how could I say no.