Friday Finish!

 This week I worked on finishing my quilt. It is a panel, so I stitched around the black lines of the designs and then used red and green for the smaller areas. It is hard to see the stitching since it is on the lines, but looks quilted in person. I was thinking of doing a couple of large snowflakes in the empty spaces, so I may try to do that this week, before they come for dinner. I really wish I had machine quilted, it took weeks to finish and I have more to do. At this rate, I might get one done.

Last week we went for a ride in Connecticut. The new bike was great on the rougher trails, I do love having shocks. We did a section going up and turned back to the other side and did a few miles on that side. It was a beautiful trail, lots of wooded areas, riding along hills, and along ponds and swamps. We will definitely go back and do more of the trail. 

Today I turned 68 and I wanted to do a bike ride. The weather was a bit cool and my joints a bit stiff, so we went for a walk at the bird sanctuary. It was cloudy and cool, but perfect for a walk. Along the field we stumbled onto this young doe. She was not afraid of me and let me take a close up.

On the other side was her sibling. 

The pond was full of ducks today. I am not sure what we were seeing in the big blocks, but I am pretty sure these were American Widgeons.

We also saw a few that were swimming closer to us. I guess the various ducks flock together as they head south. 

I saw a lot of birds today, but most were high in trees or flew off, when we startled them. With the clouds, I couldn't get clear shots today, so I just enjoyed a walk in nature.

This week I am going to be busy. Three days to get the house organized and cooking. Then three weekends to get the house decorated, get the cards out, last minute shopping and making time to finish at least one quilt. 

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Friday Finish!

 

This week I have been working on hand quilting, on a cheater quilt for the fall. I am stitching around the designs, so almost half way done and should be done by next week. While camping we stopped at Herman Melville's house and museum. We didn't take the tour since we had Bean with us, but we were able to go in the gift shop. I got myself a whale cookie cutter and tried it out this week.

I decided to add a Christmas hat on him, for fun. Then I glued him to a small piece of driftwood. I did an AI background so the driftwood is thicker than it actually is. It was fun to try, but I think I do better when I freeform my pieces, cookie cutters have their limits.

This was Melville's home, where he wrote, Moby Dick. There are also fields and paths to walk on the property.

We got to go on another bike ride. This time we did the upper area, between two towns, so we enjoyed a quiet ride. It goes through a lot of wetlands, so we saw lots of critters in the ponds and marsh birds.

It also went through wooded areas and then along a river.

Another day we went to the Natural Bridge park. The natural bridge was formed by years of glacial melt.

And this bridge was built by man, roped off since it is dangerous now.

And while shooting photos, I noticed this strange formation, caused by the waters carving it out, over the years.

We did ride along the Mohawk Trail. There are a few stops with views of the mountains, nearby and you can see some of the ones in the surrounding states.

We spotted this sculpture, along the way. 

Another place we visited was an area called Greylock Glen. We found a beautiful waterfall, and also the park nearby. There are paths at the park and ones that take you to Mount Greylock, so we walked around a pond and enjoyed the mountain views.

Another place we visited was the Norad mill, which houses 3 floors of shops. We went to the pet store and Bean got a new toy and a bag of cookies. Then I went to the candy store and got the boys some treats.

It was a wonderful place to stay and the area has a lot to offer for outdoor adventures. We stayed at Mount Greylock campground, similar to a state park with spacious sites, but more amenities. 

I hope you all had a wonderful week and enjoying the fall weather.

Friday Finish!

This week I was resting but I needed something to keep my hands busy, so I made up a little piece to work on. It is from a Kindred Spirits book and was part of a grouping of pieces, that would be hung on a stick. I decided to take the reindeer appliqué and add the saying to that for a small wall hanging. 

It was fun to do and I am thinking I might do another, but this time, use a different reindeer and make it more fun, for a piece for the kids. I have a lot of projects I want to finish and start, but I can only stand for so long and sitting isn't much better, but my tailbone is a bit better than earlier in the week. 

We got out for a bit on the weekend. We went for a scenic ride and stopped at a bike trail, this time I walked a small part of it. The views were spectacular from the top of the aqueduct, but hard to envision in a photo. We also stopped at a pond, that we pass by and enjoyed the fall foliage that was coming in. Not sure why, but I guess you could call it a delayed reaction from my fall. The pain got so bad, I could not sleep and I had to get a butt cushion so I could sit. 

The next day we stayed closer to home and visited a reservoir. The views are beautiful and they have a nice walk around the pond. We walked a little way to a bridge before turning back. It was a painful walk, but nice to get out for a little while.

And I finally felt up to going to the beach for a bit. I only walk up and down for a bit and stick to looking for large pieces so I don't bend too much. The fresh air always makes me feel better, but I do limit myself for now. I actually found a huge hunk of white, just sitting on the beach, it is 1/2" thick. Bill always finds a few pieces too, so just finding some nice ones, makes me happy.

Tomorrow the kids want me to go with them to a park, an hour away and take photos for their Christmas card. Then Sunday it will be a drive to find more foliage. It is popping in some areas and some are still green, so hopefully we will have a few more weeks to enjoy the colors. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

Friday Finish!

 

I made my last piece for Halloween this week. It as a free design by my friend Kelley and it was just right for a little wall hanging for an empty space on my wall. I seem to have fewer of those, with all the pieces I have been making.

I colored it for a fun look but still kept it prim with the fabrics. The pumpkin fabrics was gifted to me, years ago, from Kelley, as well.

Last weekend we were able to get out for some bike rides. The first was in a town in Connecticut, along the Quinebaug river. It was a nice ride, not too long and it ended at the dam.

Since it was a short ride, which I later learned was over 5 miles, we decided to go to the trail we did last week, but from the other end. It was a nice trail, fairly flat and went by several ponds and mostly wooded.

I had a destination, to end at the reservoir that we stopped at, from the other end. I did not realize how far we had gone on the first ride and this one was longer than I realized, so I was getting tired each time I had to try to go up hill on the cross overs and of course I fell, not once but twice. The first time I fell on my tailbone, but I have no sense and kept going. Then I fell again when I died on the hill and fell over on my knee, so I realized it was time to give up, lol.

Luckily I always carry bandaids and taped up my cuts and walked around the area to relax before we headed back. I found a beautiful farm on the road we stopped at and took some photos. The lady came out and told me about her farm and what they do. They have rescue horses and also a working farm with meats and fresh produce. They have programs where you can learn about the horses, have a picnic and they even have bikes if you want to ride a portion of the trail. If you are ever in the Connecticut area and looking for something different to do, you can visit their website, Hidden Springs farms.

After that day, I decided that riding was out for now and we went for drives. The first day we rode up the Shetucket River and visited a few waterfalls, along the way. The first stop was the boat launch at BUtts Bridge. The scene was beautiful from the main bridge, but at the launch, it was so overgrown  that I had a hard time finding a spot to shoot from.

The next stop was in Occum. The views were beautiful but the river was high, so another place that was hard to find a place to stand.

Next was Baltic, the river was just as high there and the places we usually sit to relax and enjoy the river, where flowing with water.

And on the way home, we stopped at our favorite falls. It started to rain at this point but I was able to get a few shots before it got worse.

Our last day, we headed to Coventry Connecticut. Our first destination was the Nathan Hale Cemetery. It was was a beautiful old cemetery and of course I took photos of all the interesting stones.

 

Our last stop was the Nathan Hale home. I was surprised at how big the area was, lots of land to walk around on and they even have trails you can hike on.  The museum was closed but we enjoyed walking around the grounds. The rides we take are nice this time of year since there are pops of colors every so often. 

This weekend will depend on how much I can walk. My tailbone hurts if I bend too much and my knee hurts if I use it too much, but I will still get out and enjoy the scenery and maybe find some new places to explore. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.