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.

Friday Finish!

This week I finished one small project and about to finish a few more projects. I always like to have one small to do during the week and found a small simple one. A friend sent me a box of goodies last year and I had forgotten that it had kits in it, so I decided to make the little heart pin cushion.

After I made it, I decided to turn it into a lavender sachet, I really do need a lot of those. I am putting one in every box of supplies and also drawers, as well as books, the lavender keeps the musty smell away and it seems to keep the moths away, as well.

Nothing fancy, but fun and relaxing to make.

I also finished the second snowman pillow top. I was all ready to finish them, I added a border, then I noticed how crooked they were. So now I am trying to figure out if I need to redo the outer stitching, or cut more of the main piece, to follow the lines better. I am not sure if the lines are straight on any part, so I may just redo the bottom stitching and leave it as is, what do you think? I am waiting for my brain to work better, before I redo it.

We also got out last weekend, visited some new places, but no eagles. But, I did hit the jackpot with cemeteries, two old ones with a lot of unique stones, so I may just do a booklet and add some sayings and local folklore. I really got a good workout, between hiking and walking up and down hills, along with deep knee bends for better photos. It took a few days for my legs to recover, lol.

We also stopped at local waterfalls,  I love trying the Bulb feature to slow down the water's motion. I don't use a tripod, so I can only do a quick burst, but I was pleased with how this one came out. And if you notice the rocky outcropping, it reminds me of a dog with a stick in it's mouth.

And today I got a nice surprise, a belated Christmas box from my friend. She sent me some fun nautical decorations and made me this wonderful cross stitch piece. I always treasure the things my friends make me.

It looks like a storm is heading our way, so we may not get out as much, but I have been reorganizing and cleaning and today I made a lot of progress, so I can finally move my furniture around in my sewing room, to make it more functional. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and stay safe if you are in the storm's path.

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.

My at Home Vacation Day

Today was a cloudy day, and since we were not sure if it would rain, we decided to do some shopping and see how the weather went. I hit the Pfaff shop and got a new foot for my machine. I have a closed foot, I use for free motion and I cannot see where I am going, so I got myself a real free motion foot. And we also hit the folk art quilt store and I treated myself to some sale fabrics and a yard of tea stained. I love using the tea stained for applique and stitched sayings.



Then we hit the thrift and an antique consignment. Nothing in the antique store, but at the thrift I found this set of vintage linens. I think they would be great with some prim stitcheries and a walnut bath.



The great thing about shopping in the southern area, is we are close to the ocean. So, of course our next stop was the breakers at Point Judith. It was a cloudy day, but not raining and the air was so fresh and clean feeling. This is one of the interesting stories about how it got it's name. A Nantucket sea captain, lost in the fog off the point. The captain's daughter shouted that she spotted land. The captain, unable to discern anything in the fog, exhorted his daughter to "P'int, Judy, p'int!"
You can see the light going on, in this shot.



The breakers were a perfect place to walk today. The tide was low and no waves threatening to splash you off;)



We walked almost to the end, but at that end point, it is covered in Seagull poo. It is gross and all over the rocks, at the far end. Today they were on the beach, fighting over tidbits in the shallow waters.



For some reason, they weren't interested in this guy. This is a skate, they taste a lot like scallops. Seagulls are scavengers, but I guess they weren't in the mood for skate.



Coming back from the beach, we enjoyed the sweet smell of the wildflowers.



All this rain has turned everything into a lush garden. The dune was covered in wild roses.



As we were leaving, the ferry and a trawler were coming into port. It was a wonderful day out and fun having a vacation at home. Tomorrow more rain, so we will work on the house and my husband can finish the wainscoting in the bedroom. Don't forget, comments left in each blog this week, count as an extra entry into the contest.