Friday Finish!

 

I was able to finish a piece this week. It seems I have so many plans for the week and it is gone before I get half of it done. I always love getting the new stitchery from Kathy Schmitz, something fun to look forward to each month.

This year she is doing a theme for the yearly contest, making sets of pillows or small quilts with the designs, so of course I am going with pillows. She offers wonderful prizes at the end of the year and this is the first time I can actually enter with what I make.

I added lavender to it, I think it makes nice gifts and I also plan on selling off a few things this year. I thought it looked off balance so I added the words, I do wish I had thought of it, before I put it together, then I could have done nicer lettering.

We had a nice day with the boys. I had gotten a raft for Alex, but hadn't found one for Nick. So we bought his over and they loved playing with them in the pool. Nick had to show me how well he is riding his new bike, he loves it and hopefully we can get to some bike paths and ride together.

We also got to spend some time at the beach, when Bill got home. The tide was coming in this week but I found some nice goodies for my collection. We also had some threatening storm clouds, roll in, but luckily they went in the other direction.

And glass is not the only thing you can find on the beach. This is a skate, some places use them in place of scallops by using a special cutter. Two had washed up with the waves, not sure why.

We also had a day with fog rolling in. I love how it looks as it moves across the bay.

At home I have been enjoying a few new young birds that are coming to visit the feeder. This is a young female Downy Woodpecker.

And a young female Cardinal. I also set up a jelly feeder and saw my first Oriole today's so hopefully I can get some photos of them, when more come.

I hope everyone is enjoying the summer weather and getting outside more. One more week and we take our Anniversary vacation. We are staying close to home since it is hard for Bill to drive long distances. I was lucky enough to find a cancellation for the state camp near the beach, so we will be spending the week there.

Weekend Wanderings!

This weekend we spent with the boys, always my favorite thing to do. They love getting out and exploring with us and with the trailer, they are comfy on the ride and we have plenty of snacks. We had a change of plans and headed to Connecticut to see if we could find a good spot at the state park. I decided to see if the camping area was open and there was no one at the gate and found out from the ranger that it is ok to park for the day, just no over night.

We picked a campsite across from the beach, nice and shady and no one around.

Alex fell asleep as usual, so Nick and I sat outside and an ice cream truck came by, perfect treat for a hot day. When Alex got. up we walked around the camp, also a good place to bring their scooters, with the paved roads.

The ranger also said it was ok to let the boys play on the beach, though they ended up in the water and got wet enough to cool down. Of course Bean had fun too.

We got the boys pizza and treats for lunch and while they ate, I walked around to see if I could catch some birds. Of course they all hid when I came, but I was able to catch a Baltimore Oriole.

And across the pond, I spotted a Great Blue Heron.

Yesterday we stayed home so I could do some cooking and catch up around the house. I wanted to get things done so we could go out today, but thunderstorms rolled through Connecticut so we will do that trip tomorrow.

They dropped the boys at our house and they had fun swimming and sliding, perfect for a hot day.

Today we decided to head to the ocean to get a pass for the trailer and take a swim. We found out that we cannot take it into the state beaches, but there was one that takes trailers, so we headed there. I could not believe there were only two others there. They have acres of grass that you can park on and spend the day. We will definitely spend more time here with the family, perfect for picnics and space for the boys to play, as well as miles of beach.

Friday Finish!

A new month and new stitcheries from the One Stitch Club by Kathy Schmitz. This month we got an extra free one, so I decided to make that first, just in time for the holiday. I almost had it done in time, but yesterday was spent with the kids, so cooking and a party at their house, put me behind.

Today I finished it. I didn't have much time to work on things this week, so I rushed it a bit, but it was fun to do and I used up fabrics in my scrap box. It measures 9" x 7 1/2", great for a small area on the wall.

And of course I enjoyed a day with the kids, even the big kids had fun;) Bill has to stay out of water for another week, but he had fun squirting the kids with the hose. Alex is afraid of the big pool, so he has his own to play in. Hopefully I can get him to the pond without his mom and get him used to the water. She is petrified of drowning, so I think it is best if I teach them myself. Maybe someday I can help her overcome her fear.

Bill has this week off, still not sure what we will do, but the weather will be nice without the humidity. We will be looking at trailers again, I think I make our dealer crazy, I can't make up my mind, large and comfy or smaller to fit in more campsites, plus I want space for the kids so we can all go together. I love the comfort of a trailer, but I like to camp, and I don't need fancy or a bunch of Tv's.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Whale and Driftwood Punch Needle!

It seemed to be too long of a week. Our anniversary week and Bill took it off, but it rained on and off, so we never got to do anything we had planned. We got some time at the beach, but I never got to relax or work on anything, so today I made up for it, lol.

I have been collecting driftwood and thought it would be fun to design something to go on a flat piece. Today I made a whale with Jonah inside, based on old drawings I had seen. I wanted to keep it simple and see how it would look, so it is not perfect, but I like how it came out and with a few tweaks, I can make it into a pattern. I have already gotten interest in a pattern, so I will be working up a new one, that may be different, so I can make two in this set.

I would love your input, what you do and don't like, anything you would like to see in nautical or beach pieces? I antiqued this piece, the blues were too bight and light, I tend to grab floss out of my scrap box, to use them up. I also had to go with 6 strands, since I can't seem to find my smaller tip, so I will look for that tomorrow.

I want to thank everyone for the anniversary wishes. I try and answer comments, but some are anonymous and some have no email, and not all come to my email. If you have a question and I cannot answer you, I will answer those in the comment section.

We had planned on taking the kids out a few days, and on Saturday I got too sick to do anything. Sunday they came over and had a fun day at our house, I was still weak but having them, always picks up my spirits. Unfortunately Bill put way too much chlorine in the pool, so my son bought one of their small ones to play in. That along with squirt guns and we all got cooled off. Bean had a blast too, but he got so excited listening to the boys screaming that he tore off the lower half of my screen tent, ugh. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and made memories of your own.

Monday this and that!

This weekend we didn't do too much outdoors, though we did get some time at the beach with Bean. I spent the time walking in the water and playing with Bean, but no photos. We did go to the lighthouse and as we walked around, I found my first rock. It was done by another group, so I took a photo with my phone. I put it back so someone else can find it.

 One thing we did do, is go shopping. Bean needed a new leash so we went for that and I found one roll of netting, so I grabbed it.

What did I do with it? I made a curtain for the little window in my beach room. I had a pair of cast iron, blue anchors and I put those at the top of the window and dropped the netting over that. I haven't gotten a chance to get new lights so I threw up my starfish to see how they looked. I might try and find something large, since the netting is heavy and bulky, would be fun to find beach items on one string, or things that get caught in a net.

Not a great photo, just used my phone and I will rearrange the area as I go. The room was dark when I took it, so the lights look funny and a little figure at the end.

On Sunday we worked around the house. I also got my oar on the wall, I had to place it above my painting area, since it didn't fit in the other space with the longer mermaid hooks. My son and Nick came over for a visit, he had to return some tools and decided he would eat dinner with us, he loves shish kabobs.

He and Nick went in the jacuzzi, Nick loves to swim in that, but when my son went to cool off in the pool, Nick decided he wanted to try it, after all. My son was blowing up the raft and Nick decided he didn't like the deep water, but after awhile he got used to it and was having fun.

And of course, Bean was thrilled to have his buddy to play with, especially when they splashed water out of the pool. I wonder if Bean will ever slow down, wish I had half of his energy, lol.

I hope you all had a nice weekend. Today I started on the rocks I found, this time I am just going freehand, I make so many messes, having lines doesn't help. Next I need to work on some pillows and the blue jean quilt for my beach room.

Friday Finish and Fun!

Another whirlwind week, lots of outdoor time with Nick, way too much extra cleaning and a sleepover, but I did manage to get the newest block done from Suzy's Sitcom.

This one was fun, love the word and how she has the little baby bird, taking his first step from the nest. This is something that will be a great inspirational quilt and hopefully I don't make a mess of it. She has borders, so I may do her style or I may do it more wonky and fun, that way if my blocks aren't perfect, no one will notice;)

With a record hot week, we spent days at the beach, having fun in the water.

Afternoons in the pool, having fun. Having fun until Nick kicked up water and his foot landed into Beans mouth. So, after a few days of a sore bruised toe, he is back to running around again.

Yesterday I bought my play kayak. It is great to putt around in and the water was calm enough to paddle around the cove with him.

Today was the last hot day, which is fine with me. Nick found a friend to play with. I took some videos of the two of them, if you would like to see, you can visit my You Tube Channel. It is cute, since Nick was watching over him and holding his hand. His dad was very appreciative to have someone play and watch him while he sat with his baby daughter.

I am still cleaning and will be till I go to bed, lol. I do not plan on spending my weekend at home, the weather is cooler and it is a perfect time for some hiking. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Holiday Weekend!

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday weekend. For me it means staying home and away from the crowds of people that hit the roads and the beaches to get in that last minute summer holiday. This week will be my fun week. Bill is finally taking time off so we can get out for some fun and the weather will be perfect.

I did have a fun day with my grandson. Time with him brightens up my day and he always makes me smile, he is just so happy and lovable that you can't help but be happy, along with him.

Since it was so hot, I sat him on the edge of the pool and he loved kicking his feet in the water. Last time he cried when I put him in, so we just sat and played a bit.

Then he started leaning forward and splashing his hands so we decided he was ready to go in. Of course I didn't have my suit on, so I jumped in with my clothes on, lol. He loved kicking and having me pull him around in the water.

Last week I took a photo and forgot to put it up. I have a few bunnies that visit and a couple of them stay close and know I won't hurt them. I took a photo of this little guy with my zoom and I didn't realize, until I saw the photo, that he must have escaped being coyote food. Better a piece of ear, than becoming the main course;)