Finishes for 2022

Lots of completed quilts this year.  I participated in all of the Project Quilting challenges.  I also had four sandwiched quilts at the end of last year that I finished this year.  Whew!

Tablet cover, Storm at Sea heart, zig-zag mug rugs
black cat, flying geese circle, tea pot and cups and more flying geese

I Like Thursday: End of the Year

I always have a bunch of posts at the end of the year with finished Christmas projects, my blogiversary and year-in-review.  Whew!  It's hard to find the time to write them all; I never think to do them earlier.  So the last week of the year is always chockablock full of happy things.  I have plenty to share with LeeAnna's I Like Thursday.

Even with all the rain on Friday we had a white Christmas.  Our sump filled from all the rain runoff, froze, then was covered with sparkly snow.  It was really quite pretty, and I liked the patterns around the edges (the water level must have gone down as it froze).

Leafy Sweatshirt

 

Years ago I raw-edge appliqued a sweatshirt with colorful leaves.  The sweatshirt is now well worn and most of the leaves are falling off.  It's heading for the recycle bin one of these days.

I happened to mention to my mom I might attempt to re-make the sweatshirt.  She said she'd love one. I started on the leaves while she found a sweatshirt her size (you can see the original sweatshirt and my first leaves here.)

The new leaves are slightly larger than my original design.  When I first pinned on the new leaves onto my mother's petite sweatshirt, they dominated the entire sweatshirt.  The colors popped but it was overwhelming!

Blogiversary #12

A dozen years of blogging.  I had no idea when I started a blog I'd still be at it this long.  I'm still enjoying writing and sharing some of the fun things in life. 

I did a bunch of quilting early in the year (which will show up in its own post on Saturday).  Only a handful of foster guinea pigs - far less than last year!  We took the summer off from fostering while the kitchen was remodeled.  But one of our fosters, Mark, was a TV star!  

The kitchen and the pandemic interfered with my cooking portion of this blog as well.  I'm still figuring out where everything belongs in the kitchen, but it has been nice to bake again.  I'm looking forward to trying out some of the oh-so-many recipes I have bookmarked.

Dancing started up this summer and it's been wonderful to see old familiar faces and share the joy of kicking up our heels.  I've slowly been getting together again with friends. 

Fingers crossed for 2023:  I'd love to blog about lots of quilting projects, my garden, Chick Events, fun fosters and cooking in the new kitchen.  Thank you all who read and comment on my blog.  

A Kobold Thief

My Christmas ornaments have varied a lot over the years.  This guy may not be in the holiday spirit, but he's a handsome devil.

I recently found out my nephew plays D&D.  Cool!  I asked him about his character:  a kobold thief.  Kobolds are small reptilian humanoids.  I decided his character would be a fun ornament to make.  It was!

I had ideas for weeks before I started.  It took me a few false starts to get the right colors and re-hydrate my old clay.  (Every year I wonder if I'm going to have to get a whole new set of Sculpey.)  He was simply legs and body for a while, until I figured out what his proportions should be.

I Like Thursday: It's Really Winter

The solstice was on Wednesday, so it's officially winter.  Just in time for some wintry likes with LeeAnna and friends at I Like Thursday.

We got in the holiday spirit by attending Winterlights at Naumkeag.  It was a cold and blustery night.  Rob thought the cold might keep people away.  I figured people would dress for it.  

The shuttle bus was packed!  Lots of excited kids.  Everyone was bundled up (the person who checked us in was plugged in with electric heat under her coat).

I Like Thursday: Giving and Getting Goodies

Wow, I am such a sucker for alliteration.  

Lots of good stuff this week.  Our guinea pig foster, Mark, was adopted after his TV spot (see more about that here).  When we dropped Mark off at Dakin, we picked up two more guinea pigs.  It was also an excuse to stop at Ceratto's.  Rob had bemoaned that he didn't pick up any marzipan on his last trip.  Just look at them!  Yes, even that mini cannoli is marzipan.  Check out the glitter on that plum.  Crazy.

Our newest fosters, the Cheeses (Bleu and Provolone), have been settling in.  We have zoomies at night and they've just started to wheek when I'm in the kitchen.  They're still terribly shy, but it's progress.

Finally Binding

This quilt has taken months to get quilted, which is frustrating for a project that should have been no more than a couple of hours.  It was a mixture of life getting in the way, along with technical difficulties and a lack of motivation (that said difficulties made worse).  I had a block of time this weekend to doggedly apply myself to the problem.  Yay!  Breakthrough!

It took hours to get the first two thirds of this quilted.  I'd quilt a foot or two, then the machine would start skipping stitches.  The more I quilted, the more times I'd need to stop, pick stitches, bury threads and start again.  Checked needle, thread, tension, traded bobbins.  Trading bobbins seemed to work briefly before failing again.  That seemed to indicate the problem was somewhere down there.  I pulled apart the entire bobbin mechanism and found two tiny pieces of packed lint (I love the instructions that come with these old machine!).  I cleaned it, reassembled, and suddenly was in business again.  The last third was quilted in well less than an hour.  Sheesh - the first part took hours of work.

Another Pig Swap

Foster Mark has left the building.  A quick recap:  my write up of Mark's holiday photos made drew the attention of Dakin's media relations person.  Rob stepped into his guinea pig taxi role and delivered Mark to star on WWLP Mass Appeal's pet of the week on Thursday afternoon.  Door-to-door service and his own personal handler - what a star!

I had no idea Mark would be quite that active.  Or talkative.  And 24 hours later I got the call that he was adopted.  It was sad to see Mark go; he was a fun piggy.  I hope his new owners love him as much as I did!

The morning routine with Mark was so much fun.  I tried to capture it (I'm getting a second light for the cage, which should make future videos a bit more clear).  Mark would pretty much do this the entire time I cleaned the fleece. 

I Like Thursday: A Busy Season

Time to link up with LeeAnna's I Like Thursday for my weekly likes.  I need to focus on some good stuff, since the short days, rainy weather and being pulled in a dozen directions is fraying my calm.

I put up our Christmas candles in the sunroom.  I had to work around a tomato plant and some kale that just keep right on going!  I've never had a tomato last this long - there's at least five of them still on the plant (although I may need to bring them in for any hopes of them ripening).  Ha!  Maybe I should put Christmas lights on the tomato plant?  Wouldn't that be festive!

Fostering Mark

Our foster guinea pig, Mark, is still hanging out with us.  He's become very familiar with our routine - when I get up in the morning, when we go to the kitchen.  His most interesting time to wheek at us is just as a show that we're watching has ended.  I'm not sure if it's the end credits, or the sounds of the TV or how we move, but he'll start wheeking for treats before we even get up from the couch!

However, his longish stay with us landed him as our subject for the annual holiday photo shoot.

I Like Thursday: December

 

I liked having a few days off after Thanksgiving.  Baked a lot of cookies.  Finished some yard work.  Attended a cookie party!  Aunts, cousins and second cousins got together for the first time in two years.  Yay!  We swapped cookies and decorated gingerbread houses.   

Quite the collection, wouldn't you say?

 

 

I Like Thursday: Thanksgiving Treasures

Of course it's Thursday - it's Thanksgiving.  But did I realize that yesterday when I needed to be writing this post?  Not so much.  However, this Thanksgiving is a quiet affair, and as I have a bit of time before a family zoom call, I'm writing up this piece.

I've spent a lot of time remembering family the last two weeks.  I sorted through some of my family's coins, recalling stories from my mother's side of the family.  My dad's brother and wife came to visit, bringing more stories and memories.  My mother dug up Dad's Navy gear, which led to some show and tell and more reminiscing.  

I'm pretty sure these coins originally came from my great aunt.  Top row is an 1856 penny next to a 1941 steely penny.  My sister was amazed at how big the older penny is.  The bottom row is a three-cent nickle (I had to look that one up), a half dime and a dime, from 1866, 1839 and 1900.  The half dime is so tiny and thin!  How did people not loose them all the time, especially if they were kept in the same purse as those pennies?

I Like Thursday: A Little Buried Treasure

Busy weekend.  Crazy week at work that doesn't seem to be ending.  Ugh.  So I don't have time to share all the nifty stuff  I came upon.  Maybe next week? 

I can share this one:  this is one of my great aunt's lucky pennies.  Whenever she found a penny, she'd wrap it in a scrap of paper and set it aside.  This was a 1910 penny.  The paper says "Found in junk. July 29 1951.  Eva."  From what I've been told, there were piles of these little paper-wrapped pennies in her house when she died.  I found this one in my Dad's stuff.

I Like Thursday: Pegboard and Whiteboard

It's November and the clocks have been set back.  I'm still trying to get used to it getting dark so early. 

I had picked up a stool from Freecycle this spring planning to use it as a plant stand.  It was really worn around the edges and needed a coat of paint.  I ended up with a neutral beige paint.  When I spray painted the stool I also slapped a couple of coats on my Dad's old pegboards.  

We installed the pegboard in my sewing room closet.  I love it!  A home for some of my thread and my rulers.  There's room for more!  Rearranging the closet freed up some more space as well.  I've been wanting something like this for a couple of years - I'm thrilled to have it set up.

I Like Thursday: Halloween Festivities

Welcome to this week's likes!

I had a jammed packed weekend.  Went to a Halloween dance on Saturday night.  Some fun costumes.  My favorite was Baba Yaga's house.  He actually danced in it for a short while which was pretty funny to see in the line.  One couple came dressed up as Punk n'Pi (one person in fantastic 80s punk and the other in orange with π on the front and 3.14 on the back).  I threw on my basic goth outfit - I didn't have time to pull together anything else.  There was a Laura Ingalls - in pigtail braids and wearing her mother's old Gunne Sax dress (I remember those!)  A wolf in sheep's clothing.  Heidi.  Witches and skeletons and winged creatures.  All good stuff.

I Like Thursday: I Got Goodies

It's Thursday!  Time to join up with LeeAnna's crew to share the good things going on in our lives at I Like Thursday.  I've been all over the place this week. 

I am totally chuffed to be published in a medical journal.  Never in a million years did I envision that: High rates of oral anticoagulation in atrial fibrillation patients observed in a large multi‑specialty health system in the Northeast.  How nice to be included for digging through databases to gather and present information.

Another trip to Mom's house.  I picked up all sorts of prizes:  a gift basket I won from the Chocolate Tour raffle earlier in the month as well my quilts with their two Topsfield ribbons.  Mom also sent me home with a bag of Lindt dark chocolate truffles.  Yum!

Floral Fabric Finishes

Earlier this year I bought over four yards of a floral print knit (at Swanson's at $4 a yard!).  Not what I needed, but the pastels were pretty and the price was right.  I had been keeping an eye out for red or green to make a new dress, but it's been hard to find a non-polyester or nylon knit.  A burn test revealed this was lyocell (it smells like marshmallows - how odd).  It's really soft and has a nice drape and weight.

This is the dress pattern that I traced from a favorite dress and lately added some color in another project.  Goodness - I made that dress 10 years ago?!?  From what I remembered, the pattern takes takes about three yards.  So four and a half yards was more than enough.

I Like Thursday: Foolish Piggy, Finished Flimsies and Fabric

Not a lot of photos for this week's likes.  But I'll start out with the cute ones!  

The Dakin shelter emailed to say they have over 38 guinea pigs in care, most of them in foster.  They're looking for fun photos to post online, so we did a quick shoot with Mark.

Sea Glass Flimsy

I finished the sea glass flimsy.  I've started to design the backing and thinking about the quilting.  And binding?  What am I going to use for that?

The black stone fabric stands out a bit more than I'd have liked, but it amuses me to have it in there.  The teal green isn't as dark as I thought it might be.  I really like the colors.

Sharing with:
Wendy's Quilts and More - Peacock Party
My Quilt Infatuation - Needle & Thread Thursday

I Like Thursday: Lots of Colorful Stuff

Welcome to my I Like Thursday post as I join up with LeeAnna and her crew with some good stuff of the week (check them out the other likes at Not Afraid of Color).  I have lots and lots of photos this week - and this was after i weeded out so many of them.

We've had a few warm days in the last week and I'm squeezing in whatever kayaking I can.  The first day was so calm, the water was like glass.  Look at the color!

Playing With a Pastel Palette

It feels so good to be obsessed with a quilt again.  Another baby quilt!  The request on this one was for sea glass and ocean colors.  I pulled through all my light greens, blues and golds.  Then I dug through my saved patterns and decided Squareburst was just what I wanted.

Now that I've put together some blocks, put them on the wall and stepped back, I can see some minor adjustments i want to make.  I dug through some scraps to add in a few more different blues and greens.  I have a sand dollar print that I love, and the colors theoretically go with this, but I'm not happy with how it looks.  The one block that I put it in will likely get moved to the backing.  Some golds worked better than others.  Turns out the quality of blue or green can be picky, too.  I've had a few pieces of fabric go on and off the wall a few times already!  There's a pebbly dark grey that has made it into a couple of blocks and I think it will stay.  It's not exactly in the color scheme, but it amuses me to have pebbles amongst the glass shards.

I Like Thursday: Feels Like Fall

I attended the Newburyport Chocolate Tour with my mother on Saturday.  Always a fun time and nice chocolate.  Every year I look forward to stopping at the Garrison Inn to see their tea rooms.  Look at all those pretty teacups! 

I Like Thursday: Heading Towards Normal

Another week gone?  Good grief!  Time to join LeeAnna's I Like Thursday group.

My first like is that I've squeezed in enough time to write other posts than this one this week.  Did you see my nifty little tablet cover? 

The kitchen floor's last coat should be cured enough this weekend to start testing what we want for a kitchen table.  I've even gotten used to the open expanse.  I've been loving the kitchen.  Yay!

A Few Fun Things From Chick Weekend

Chick Weekend was a short, small affair this year.  A few of the fun highlights:  

This dog was so unbelievably happy - he'd run out after the ball, bring it back to his humans, then roll around in the sand.  He was beside himself with joy.  Then he saw a seal pop up in the water - he'd run out full tilt into the water as if he was saying, "come play with me!!!"  The seal would watch him, then go:  hell no.  Dog would be all confused - where did my friend disappear to?  This went on a few times.  I'm pretty sure the dog thought the seal was another dog. 

Tablet Cover

I inherited a 10-inch tablet and proceeded to spend way too much time getting it up and running.  Not knowing the pass code, I did a factory reset then thought I had bricked it because it refused the account (until I realized I was using the wrong Google account).  But yay, it's working now.  

I mostly wanted it for an occasional e-reader and to use for some online recipes so I don't worry about spilling flour all over my laptop's keyboard.  I needed a cover to keep it clean and projected an room for the charging cord.

I Like Thursday: Summer Comes to an End

Not only is it September, it seems October is just around the corner.  But I am enjoying the cooler weather (and finally some rain).

The one basil plant I bought this year turned into an amazing bush.  I harvested it last week - took me 40 minutes to pick off all the leaves.  I ended up with this pile.  I froze enough to fill two quart bags (not packed), make pesto and dried a bunch for my spice jar.  Nice!  The whole freezer still smells of basil.

I Like Thursday: Small Things

I'm juggling too many things at the moment and spread a little thin.  But I didn't want to miss a a second I Like Thursday.  So here's a few small likes.

I harvested an eggplant.  But would you look at the size of it?  The tomatoes dwarf it!  The plants are blooming like crazy right now - do you think I'll get another eggplant by the end of the season?

I Like Thursday: Ends and Beginnings

Let's see if I have time to whip out this week's I Like Thursday post.  

I tested negative for covid.  Yay! 

We're moving back into the kitchen!  Obviously that floor needs to be done;  the work starts on Friday.  All that's left is a few minor tweaks.  Loading everything back in the cabinets is taking a while since the layout has changed.

I Like Thursday: Tantalizingly Close

Only one photo this week, but it goes with one massive like:  we have a kitchen sink and dishwasher.  Once the tiling is done the stove will be back up and running.  Look!  Doors with handles!  Finished trim!

There's still two cabinets that need to be replaced and the rest of the trim to go up.  The floor needs to be refinished.  After a month of nearly no work the end is in sight.

Happy dance!

Leaf Edges

My mother has asked for a sweatshirt appliqued with leaves (like this one I made years ago).  I haven't found a sweatshirt small enough for her, so I'm currently doing a practice run on an extra sweatshirt I have right now.  So far I'm having mixed results.

The leaves on the original sweatshirt were raw-edged applique that I glued then zig-zag stitched to the sweatshirt.  This was great for the the spiky leaves and sharp corners.  However, I set the zig-zag stitch too narrow and most of the leaves have partially peeled off (this photo was right after I completed it).  Given that the sweatshirt has been heavily used in the last 15 years, it still did pretty well.

Another Swirly Dresden

Years ago I found a really cool swirly dresden plate paper pieced pattern and used it to embellish a sweatshirt.  Loved the result, but turns out the sweatshirt was too big.  Not that I mind having a bulky sweatshirt, especially in winter, but was really loose.  The sleeves were too long as well; the cuffs were always in the way when cooking or washing my hands.  

I bought a couple of blank sweatshirts over the winter, because my mom wanted a version of my leaf sweatshirt.  (Hmm.. I appear to have made that before I started blogging - I'll have to dig up a photo.)  Turns out both sweatshirts were too big for her, but one of them fit me better than the oversized one.  I decided to make a new color wheel.

I Like Thursday: Looking Up

This summer have been a crap shoot.  Joining LeeAnna's group of bloggers for I Like Thursday has made me stop and focus on the good things.  

I'm not sure if things are generally looking up, or if I'm looking up to see bottom.  The summer "fun" continues!

Despite the hot weather and lack of rain the Peppermint Stick zinnia seeds my sister gave me have started to bloom.  They really are pretty and I hope to see more of them in the yard.

We then got a half inch of pouring rain on Monday night.  I think my entire garden sighed in relief.

Hexie Crumble

Hexie Crumble is finished and labeled.  I started this quilt in 2015.  I had just finished Shattered Kites and needed another crumb quilt to work on.  Quilt-as-you-go hexies had been featured on another blog and I thought: that would go great with crumbs!

I also was wishing for a portable project - something I could stuff in a bag and work on a bit at a time, like my knitting friends.  The idea was to make a stack of these hexies and hand stitch them together.  Timing is everything; the hexies were finished during the pandemic and I stitched everything at home.  It was a nice idea!

Each quilt-as-you-go crumb hexagon is finished with 2" sides.  Initially I made my own cardboard pattern.  Eventually it wore out so I made a pair of plexiglas templates and kept going.  Every time I finished a quilting project I'd sew up some more crumbs, cut some more backings and flannel for batting and create more hexies.  I averaged 20 hexagons at a time.

I Like Thursday: Birthday Bounty and Battling Bad Luck

Thursday already?  The week started out so well.  So let's focus on that for this week's I Like Thursday, shall we?  

Although unable to attend Family Weekend, I at least spent some quality time with my sister.  Sunday morning was cool and sunny - a beautiful time to go kayaking.  I have not seen the water so low in the pond.  We desperately need some rain. 

August OMG - I Can Only Pick One?

July was a month of no motivation.  My goal was simply to survive the month.  But in the last week or so, my quilting mojo started to reawaken.  Last weekend it hit in a storm - you can see the aftermath.  There's eight different projects going on there.

1. dress  2. crumbs  3. selvedge blocks  4. strings  5. color wheel sweatshirt
6. next baby quilt  7. baby quilt after that  8. leafy sweatshirt

I Like Thursday: This Week's Crumbs

We've had another crummy week of mishaps and setbacks.  It's gotten old, we don't know when it will end, or how many more problems are yet to come.  Covid has now has postponed our counter installation (slated today) which we had dared to hope would result in a working kitchen.  I canceled going to the Cape for Family Weekend and visiting friends.  I had really been looking forward to that.  It may limit what we'll do for our birthday week.  And it jeopardizes having my mom come out so we can attend QuiltFest New England. 

Bad words.

Rob said he'd be interested with what I could possibly have to like this week.  Let's face it, we've had more bad than good this week.  However, so this doesn't spiral into a pity party and because Rob tells me I delight in defying him... here goes.

I Like Thursday: Look What Popped Up

I found a few likes this week.  The heat has drained my motivation to kayak, walk, quilt... pretty much everything.  I'm hoping this will blow over soon.

First up, I finished assembling my hexie quilt.  Both sides are so much fun.  It's quite heavy, though, and I'm wondering how well the hand stitching will keep it together.  I'm pondering quilting over the whole thing to help distribute the stress.  On the other hand, I like how it looks now.  I may leave it as is, get a label on it, and if it can't take the abuse, quilt it later.

I Like Thursday: Now We Wait

Counter template has been done.  Now we wait for counters, trim, cabinet doors and two new cabinets that are back ordered.  Need to order tiles and handles.  I'm waiting, too, on my car's AC getting fixed.  All I can do is cross my fingers that nothing else goes amiss.  

I'm generally not a selfie person, but I finally got to wear the dancing tank top I "fixed" two years ago.  That's exciting stuff.  It went awesome with a skirt that nothing else I have goes well with.  Huzzah!  Added bonus, I got my hair chopped off earlier that day, which means I got the braided pigtails that makes me feel like a kid.  Oh, what a wonderful way to kick off the weekend.

I got several compliments and even had a person or two recognize my top from the original blog post.  Fun!  Great music, lovely dances, saw a few more people I haven't seen in years - it was a fun night.

I Like Thursday: A Long Weekend

It was a long weekend... and not all in a good way.  <sigh>  But even as I sit here thinking holy @#$% what a week, there were some good things to share with LeeAnna's I Like Thursday.  (Thanks LeeAnna!)

Get a load of the artwork on this car.  At first I thought it was paint, but as I got closer, it looked like duct tape.  How fun is that?

I Like Thursday: Stress and Progress

When I told Rob I needed to sit down to write my I Like Thursday post, he asked what I had to like about this week.  Admittedly, it's been a long, exhausting and stressful week.  Every single day some minor crisis or decision came up with the kitchen.  The workers are great and the noise level was reasonable, but it was hard to concentrate on my high-priority project due next week.  We took in a very ill foster guinea pig that didn't make it.  We're both pretty frazzled around the edges.  Goodness, just writing this down makes me tired.  

But...

I have over a half-dozen photos documenting the good things that made me smile this week.  Let's take a gander at them, shall we?

Rob clearly is not impressed with taking selfies, but look! We're dressed for a contra dance!  This was the first contra we've been to since March 2020.  The masks make it warm and I need to figure out how to keep hydrated during the dance in a way that makes me comfortable, but it was lovely to see happy people and get out and move.

I Like Thursday: Chaos

Busy, crazy week - some anxiety, lots of running around, not enough time.  But lots of likes!  Let's see if I have enough time to tell you about them!  

Last week we got word that our kitchen remodel would start this week.  Great!  Except that I had just handed off all our good boxes and packing paper to my sister for a move on Saturday.  So now she was doubly excited that I was helping to unpack on Sunday, because I would take boxes and paper with me!

But first - Saturday I met up with a friend for a hike and some kayaking around Tully Lake.  It was a cloudy, cool, windy day, which was great for hiking.  Not the best for kayaking, but we managed to find a sheltered area to give it a go.  

We met only a few people on the trails - we had most of the four mile loop to ourselves.  Most of the walk was in the woods; the trail popped out at various points for some great views across the lake.  Came across his big rock that looked blue.  I thought it was spray painted at first, but it turned out to be turquoise moss all over it.  Very cool.  

Half-Kite Wonky Squares

I bought the Creative Grids Kites Plus ruler because I liked its versatility - I could cut triangles and hexagons and kites.  I was rather disappointed in the lack of interesting patterns I found online for it.  Still, I found the ruler endlessly intriguing.  I designed Shattered Kites, then Stained Kites.  While working on the latter's backing I hit upon the basic block design used for Sunrise and Bouncing Boxes. 

I Like Thursday: Finishes and Starts

Welcome to this week's likes.  As usual I'm joining up with LeeAnna at I Like Thursday.  

I have been loving the yard and the garden this week.  We've moved from purples to yellows, pinks and whites.  It's been pretty.

Sage is finishing flowering.  These plants looked so beat up from the winter, but they have just leafed and budded like crazy.  There was a huge bumble bee working on it his wings going so fast they didn't show up. 

We had our first bunny sighting last night! 

Bouncing Boxes

Huzzah!  This is the last of my promised quilts - and my OMG.  (For now, of course - I'm about to promise at least two more this year.)  My sewing room has reverted back to its normal configuration and level of disorder.  

Bouncing Boxes is another baby quilt.  I really enjoy working on quilts this size.  The request was for neutral colors, with pale yellow, sage or mint greens, pale browns and greys.  I dug through my stash, then went out to pick the odd colors I didn't have.  I cut so many pieces before I figured out which of the fabrics to keep and where to use them.  

This is another half-kite block design.  I like the diamonds between the squares.  Unlike the pinwheel-and-square layout, all the points come together.  That's eight seams all in one spot!

I Like Thursday: Flowers, Sewing and Sanding

I'm in one of those DO ALL THE THINGS mood and simply don't have the time.  But it's nice to be jazzed about life right now.  This week I've managed to actually do some of the things - so that's a plus, too!

My sister gave me nasturtium seeds for Christmas and the first ones I planted are starting to bloom.  They're pretty!  The potted ones are doing best, but I have several in the garden that are thinking about budding. 

My marigold plants are tiny, but two already have flowers.  Zinnia seeds are sprouting all over.  They have a ways to go.

June OMG: Continuing May OMG

I spent most of the month fighting with thread tension issues, which slowed this down quite a bit.  I didn't make my May goal of finishing the quilt.  However, over Memorial Day weekend, I worked out that my thread setup was contributing to the problem.  Addressing that stopped the thread from winding around my needle.  I still had some issues - I buried twelve sets of threads in one diamond alone (that's a lot of starts and stops).  But the rest of it quilted up a lot faster.

The diamonds are done, as are the green squares.  I've got the rest of the squares to go.  So my goal this month is the same as last:  get this quilted, bound and labeled.

Sharing with:
Elm Street Quilts - June OMG

I Like Thursday: Three Day Weekend

Three day weekend.  Woot!  And is it really June already??  How can that be?  Regardless, it's Thursday today - time to link up with LeeAnna's buddies to share the bright spots of the week at I Like Thursday. 

I met up with my sister on Sunday before it got too hot.  Leverett pond was hopping!  Some nice guy in a pickup kindly moved how he was parked, which gave just enough room for my sister and I to squeeze in.  Yay!  So we were able to park right near the launch instead of down and around the corner.

I love the water, the rocks, the trees.  So much green and blue and brown.  A bit of a breeze and lots of sun.  It was lovely.  We had a great time.

I Like Thursday: Gardening and Kayaking

It was a crazy hot weekend, and what did I do for two days straight?  Weed the gardens.  Nuts.  But the garden looks so much better and I planted more seeds.  Yay!

I pulled out some lily of the valley when I weeded around them.  They look great in my little vase I bought last fall.  They lasted longer than I expected - they're still pretty good today.

I planted a bunch of zinnia and marigold seeds by the driveway.  I mostly just scattered them and I was convinced none of them would sprout.  But I saw a bunch of them sprouting! 

Oru Kayak Seam Channel Repair

My sister and I have the original Bay St Oru kayaks.  The piece that attaches the seam channel to the hull snapped on my sister's kayak last summer.  I can see mine is starting to wear in the same spot.  She contacted Oru several times, but was unable to get a replacement part (she offered to pay for it, but was still unable to obtain the piece).  The hull wouldn't shut properly.