Row by Rowing 2015 - The Fun Begins!!!

Before I get to the "Row by Row-ing," I wanted to show some photos taken this morning with my iPhone6. The sharpness of the images is really impressive especially in the close ups.

The Row by Row Experience 2015 started last Sunday, and of course, I headed that day to our local quilt shop, Heart in Hands, in South Weymouth to pick up the kit for their row which features the swan boats. It's awesome!

On Friday, my friend Laurel and I headed to North Franklin, CT to get the row from the Stitch Chicks Quilt Shop. Their row has a pond with pink water lilies and koi. It was a very long ride, but I really wanted their very special row. On the way home, we stopped at The Sewing Room in Exeter, Rhode Island. Their row has a wonderful nautical theme.

On Saturday, we visited Emma's Quilt Shop in Franklin to pick up their row which features sailboats. I'd love to get started right away on these rows, but I still need to finish one more row from last year, complete that quilt, and make two other quilts by October. Yikes!!!

In case you don't know, this year thousands of quilt shops across the United States and Canada are participating in the Row by Row Experience 2015. The focus this year is water which the shops may interpret anyway that they wish. You must visit a store in person and ask for the shop's free pattern or you may purchase a kit for that row. Why do we do it it? We drive all over the place because it's great FUN to visit new quilt shops to see what they offer. I actually have maps already marked and a small notebook with info about the shops that I plan to visit. The program runs until Sept. 8th.

In case you were wondering whether I purchased anything besides the row kits, the answer would be "yes," but I'm sure you already guessed that. :-).  I bought five yards of the license plate themed row by row fabric for the back of a quilt, a yard of beautiful blue batik, and an assortment of fun and colorful fat quarters for two birthday quilts that I need to make for two of my little cousins. The girls also have a brother whose quilt is well underway. I think he is going to really like his Star Wars themed quilt. It's hard to believe that the triplets will be turning ten!!!

Good Food, Good Friends, Beautiful Views

We are blessed to live in a beautiful part of the country and after the long, long winter that we experienced, it is a joy to have these wonderful warm June days. Last Thursday, I had lunch with friends at the Mill Wharf in Scituate Harbor. The restaurant, situated right on the harbor, truly has a million dollar view.  On Monday, I walked at Castle Island with four friends and then we met four more friends for lunch at Port 305 at Marina Bay. These photos were taken there.

The friends I joined for both lunches were all dedicated, wonderful teachers who are now enjoying these special, happy retirements days, or as we like to say, our endless summer vacation.

    

On Saturday, I also attend the piano recital of one of my little cousins. What a delight it was to hear each of the children perform his or her pieces. Hopefully, they will all continue on this musical journey.

Since I have a flute lesson in just over an hour, I better conclude this post and run through my pieces. 

Do You Believe in Fairies?

This hibiscus bud was photographed Tuesday morning after a day of rain on Monday. Here's that same bud fully open this morning.

On Tuesday evening I attended the kindergarten graduation of my cousin Linda's oldest boy, and yesterday morning I attended the kindergarten graduation of my cousin Kristin's youngest girl. Both ceremonies were wonderful, but I truly wish they weren't growing up quite so fast. 

Just a while ago as I was inspecting my flowers, I could have sworn that a fairy brushed by me. Startled, I threw up my camera and managed to capture this image. What do you think? Do you believe in fairies???

This and That

I would have liked to park myself in one of these chairs and spend time with a good book this afternoon, but I was absolutely determined that I would weed the final, back corner of my big garden. This section was choked with weeds and vines, and frankly, I had never gotten to it last summer.  I also had to wield a sledge hammer to straighten the metal poles holding up the fence around the garden perimeter. The snow had taken quite a toll on the wire fencing. Sooooooo, I fixed the fence and finished the weeding. Yeah!!! The good news is now I have made some room for plants which I would like to move into that spot. 

By the way, I measured the big garden; it is 23' by 16'. No wonder I have trouble keeping up with it!!!  Except for a few cheery tomato plants, it's all flowers. The smaller garden with the solar fountain is 11' by 10'.

On Thursday, I had gone with a friend to the Lobster Hut in Plymouth for a late lunch and stopped by Jenny Pond to see  Mr. and Mrs. Swan and their babies. I kept hoping they would turn around and head my way, but though I waited and waited, it didn't happen. I passed the time photographing this yellow iris at the pond's edge.

This afternoon I also stopped to check on our new parishioners as there hadn't been much activity in the nest after Mass this morning. 

Have a good week.

In My Garden This Week - 6/9/15

I really thought a lot this spring about whether I wanted to continue gardening this year. I just didn't seem to have the time, desire, or energy. It would have been easy to just keep this smaller plot and grass in the large garden, but I worried that I would regret that decision. S-o-o-o-o-o-o, the big garden is intact and I have work ahead of me to get it looking the way I want it to look.

Today, I thought I would share some photos taken with my iPhone of the various hanging pots around the yard and the pots on the deck.

The colors that I selected to plant this year are strong and vibrant, a richer palette than I usually select, but I really like it.