Halloween Decor and Autumn Color

My plan had been to share a completed piece of wool applique with you today, but I still need to add the binding and a small hanging sleeve, so I will show it next time. Instead, I’ll share a bit of the Halloween stitching displayed in my bookcases. What fun I have filling these shelves and changing out the mantelpiece! 

The foliage this year was greatly diminished by the drought conditions we experienced this spring and summer. There are, of course, some lovely spots of color, but it doesn’t seem to be lasting. There was an absolutely gorgeous tree on a main road near by, but before I could get to photograph it, it had dropped a third of its leaves. 

I am loving this view from my deck. Though it is two days before Halloween, my hibiscus plants are still blooming.

Yesterday, I captured this image of ducks on one of the small ponds on the golf course.

On Tuesday, I attended a meeting of the Crosstown Quilters where we were pleased to learn that our quilt show had been a success. Having completed the two quilts that I had in the show, I am now able to turn my attention to other stitchy projects.

I spent a few hours today at the car dealership getting four new tires and sensors in order to get my sticker. Lucky me! I brought a book and a piece of stitching to pass the time, and tonight my plan is to finish that book and do a bit more stitching. :-)

Hope you are all having an enjoyable week.

Bits and Bobs of This and That

 The Crosstown Quilters Guild had a wonderful show on Saturday and Sunday. I had two quilts in the show. The first was  Celtic Blessing, a pattern from Ricky Tims. The completed blocks had languished in a project box for a number of years as I had never gotten around to piecing the blocks together. The back of the quilt is made up of blocks of various shades of green to represent the green fields of Ireland.

The other quilt was “From the Heart.” I had purchased the kit for this quilt at our guild show back in 2018,  and I had assembled all the blocks but had put it aside without adding the borders. Notice a pattern here??? Thank goodness we had this show to spur me on to finish them. The beautiful quilting on both was done by Cannizzaro Creations in Rockland.

I’d like to say that from now on I will always finish quilts and projects in a timely fashion, but I know myself too well to commit to that. I am, however, trying to work through my many, many projects now that I am settled in my new home. Wish me luck!

We had a nor’easter on Monday and Tuesday with lots and lots of rain. I shot this photo from inside my sunporch.

Here’s the scene after the sun finally made an appearance.

Per request, here are some photos of Emma after her trip to the groomer last week.

Note the festive Halloween baubles that the groomer added. :-)

One more thing . . . I recently had some trees trimmed in my new backyard. Well, all except one was done  as one of the workers had noticed a large, active hornet nest hanging from the end of one of the branches. The cold temperatures eventually took care of the hornets and the wind and rain took care of the rest. Here are some of the remnants; the outer shell was like pieces of paper.

Well, that’s the buzz from here. I hope you are all having a happy, positive, creative week.

It’s About Time . . .

 Yes, it’s about time that I got around to checking in with a post. My last post was nearly a month ago. :-(

I thought about posting, but I just didn’t seem to find time to do it. I’m sitting on my deck now, my errands are done, so here goes . . . 

Look!!! Not only is my sewing machine uncovered, but I’m actually using it. Here I was sewing on the binding for my Celtic Cross quilt. The binding, label, and sleeve need to be finished for the upcoming Crosstown Quilters Quilt Show on October  18-19 to be held at the Sister Shawn Center Gymnasium at the Cardinal Cushing Center in Hanover. The hours are: Saturday 10-4 and Sunday 10-3. There is even the distinct possibility that I will have another quilt ready for the show. Fingers crossed . . . 

Yes, dear readers, I would say that my quilting studio is 88% ready. :-) Whoopie!!!

I’ve even had time at the end of the day to do some reading, and so I am going to recommend three pleasant books that you might enjoy. 

1.) The Museum of Ordinary People by Mike Gayle. . . It’s the story of an unusual museum in an old warehouse where people bring items of perhaps sentimental value that they no longer need or wish to keep but are loath to discard. Perhaps this made such an impression on me since I could strongly relate to the premise. Moving meant going through so very, very much. My cellar had all sorts of items. For instance, one of my paternal great-grandfathers drove a Handsom cab in Boston probably around the turn of the last century. (A Handsom cab was a two-wheeled vehicle drawn by one horse which functioned like a modern cab.) His tool for pulling horseshoes always hung from the top corner of the pegboard over my dad’s workbench. Why had my father kept it? Hard to say. I offered it to anyone who came to take tools, but the response was always the same, a polite refusal. So where is that tool now? I believe a friend’s husband took custody of it, but a very old horseshoe resides on a shelf in my garage. 

2.) The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin is also a wonderful read. Each chapter begins with a paragraph about bees and the fascinating intricacies of hives. I was amazed at the information which she provided. (Eileen Garvin is a beekeeper and this is her debut novel) It’s a novel of friendship and family; trust me on this . . . you will enjoy it.

3.) My final suggestion is The Late Bloomers’ Club. The story revolves around the townsfolk of Guthrie who frequent Nora’s Miss Gutherie Diner. The fictional town of Gutherie is a fine place to spend some time.

There is so much division and discord and plain craziness in our land right now that I offer these three books to provide you with a bit of peace. And I’m wondering . . . what have you been reading and recommending. I’m only looking for light, uplifting books as we are living in very dark, scary times.

Now, I don’t wish to leave things on that note so let me offer you a smile. 

Have an awesome week!!!

Not Going Back to School Breakfast

 I recently hosted a celebratory “We’re Not Going Back to School Breakfast” for a group of retired teacher friends. We usually go to breakfast at Stars in Hingham about once a month. This time I invited the group instead to my new home as each of these ladies had helped me make the move, and I wanted my friends to see my new home.

Folks ask if I miss my former home and my response is, “Heck no. I brought it all with me. :-)”  That includes this beautiful china which had belonged to my maternal grandmother, and which had been stored in the basement for many, many, many years. The mark on the bottom is “Theodore Haviland Limoge France.” I fully intend to use all of my pretty china, and Lord knows I have plenty of it. 

Here are the happy retirees, all former Weymouth teachers. We all loved being teachers, but retirement is also great fun. 

My former home is going on the market on Wednesday.  I will admit that the “Coming Soon” sign on the front lawn did make me teary eyed. I truly loved that house, but this one level home is perfect for me. 

I am happy to note that I have made significant progress in my quilt studio. It’s not totally done, but I have unearthed my machine and cleared off my cutting table. I’m hoping to finish two quilts for an upcoming quild show. One just needs binding, a sleeve, and a label while the other may not be done in time.

Hope all is going well in your life. Have a wonderful week.

CELLARbration!!!

 Yes, that’s not a typo, I’m CELLARbrating because my basement is finally empty!!! If you have been following this blog, you will know that the move to my dream home happened very, very quickly. I had had no interest in moving to a new home, but then a friend dragged me to an Open House on a rainy, dreary Saturday in April. Three hours later I was speaking to a realtor. No one could believe it. It was the only house that I had looked at, but I knew immediately that this was the house for me, and it definitely is!!!

On June 17, the movers brought all of my furniture here, but I had not had enough time to pack up everything. My family had been in our home for seventy years.  With the help of friends, I have been making progress, and today it is absolutely, totally, unequivocally DONE!!!!!! The guys who  have taken care of my lawn for years, hauled the last of the boxes up here, and the house will go on the market in two weeks.

Speaking of celebrations. . . fans around the world are celebrating the engagement of pop princess Taylor Swift and her prince charming Travis Kelce. It seems like a perfect match.

In my previous post, I mentioned having a dearth of blooms on the overgrown hydrangeas in my side yard. Well, these in the front yard sure make up for them. ;-)

Serendipity Sunday

This morning I was looking at some of the very out of control bushes in my side yard. One bush is at least seven or eight feet tall. I’m not sure whether I will have them severely pruned or completely taken out. Near those bushes are also three very large hydrangeas only one of which has blooms, and it has only five. As I was checking to see if there were any signs of more blossoms forming, I spotted this lovely little creature and was able to grab these images.

The photos don’t capture the way the wings glistened in the sunlight.

Now, I won’t bore you with too much information about dragonflies, but did you know that dragonfly-like winged insects were among the first to evolve about 300 million years ago!!!!!!!!! There are 3,000 known species of dragonflies . Okay, one or perhaps two more bits of info. According to an article on the Smithsonian magazine site, dragonflies are able to fly in any direction and also hover. Finally, it is said that dragonflies can reach speeds of thirty-five mph. Wow!

There you have it. Keep your eyes out for these gossamer winged little beauties and have a wonderful week. 

Emma and an Amazing Thrifting Fine

 I cannot believe it has been over a month since my last post, but I know you will understand as moving is very hard!!!

I moved in on June 17, and my new home is all set with the exception of a few boxes here and there. I have been spending lots of time emptying the cellar in my old home. With the help of friends, it is now about ninety percent empty. [Buying this house happened so fast that I didn’t have time to get the cellar packed before the moving date occurred.]

 I had been able to get rid of my dad, my grandad, and my brother’s tools fairly quickly. No one who came into my house was allowed to leave without selecting at least one tool. :-) There was a lot of china and glassware; some of which was donated and quite a bit of which came here with me. As you know if you follow this blog, I have many hobbies/crafts so that was a large portion of what still needed to be packed. Also, I have many bins of decorations for every season and every reason. (This new home has a massive cellar for storage though I do plan to donate items as we approach each holiday.)  Perhaps I’m being overly optimistic, but I think that I will be finally be done packing by tomorrow. Then the two men who take care of my lawn will fill their truck and haul the boxes up here. 

Here’s Miss Emma after a trip to the groomer this morning. I’ve been working on this small perennial garden. In my old home, try as I would I could never attract hummingbirds;  not so here as they are constant visitors. 

While I was waiting to pick up Emma, I dropped off some final bags at Savers, but I didn’t go in. Instead I popped in to the Salvation Army store where I found this incredible find.

 

This wooden chest was filled with lovely lavender bath items: bath foam, bath salts, a ceramic pump, a ceramic soap dish, a shell shaped pumice stone, and a bath scrub. The packing holding the items in place on the shelves was impressive. So, what did I pay for this? It was marked $14.00, but when I brought it to the counter, the woman told me that because of the color of the sticker, it was half priced!!! $7.00!!! Amazing!!!

I looked the items up online and saw a similar collection in a basket from the same company, and the price was $99. Now, I didn’t buy this for the lavender items; I simply loved the wood cabinet. Next question: where would I put it? 

Can you believe how perfectly this cabinet matches my jelly cabinet? I see this new cabinet filled with crossed stitched pillows or other fun items. In case you are wondering, this jelly cabinet houses my DMC floss and a lovely collection of assorted charms, jewels, and geegaws.

My former house is going on the market, I believe, the second week in September. That will be a relief.

I’ll have time to finish arranging my quilting studio and actually have time to do some work. I cannot wait!!!

Unpacking, Packing, and Planting

 

The hibiscus that I showed in a previous post is now in full bloom. Our heat wave finally broke, and so this morning I decided to work on the plants in my front yard. I know that I should have been unpacking some of the final boxes, but I had the urge to garden, and so I did. Actually, I spent a few hours working adding some slips of variegated hostas and some Autumn Joy sedum that I had brought from home. There are a few small, sad red geraniums that I believe the realtor planted. I moved a few into a large pot and plan to try to encourage them with a drink of Miracle Grow when I get a chance. I also pruned the dead wood from two red roses and treated them for some issues that they have. I gave all the plants some water and then it was after 1:00. After a quick lunch, I headed to my other estate. :-) 

Yes, I’m still working on clearing out the basement there. Lord help me. There is still quite a bit to do. I’m going through things and packing things up. I’m trying to go through all sorts of boxes; you know how basements are. I have a ton of Christmas decorations that I fully intend to bring to my new house. (I have a very large basement in my new house, so storage will not be an issue.) The basement will be my focus for the coming week as I would like to get my home on the market as soon as I am able. With the two heat waves we have had, it has been impossible to get much done. Fortunately, the temperatures should be more moderate for the next few days. (I was just rereading this post and saw that auto correct had written “modern” instead of “moderate” which must have confused earlier readers of this post. ;-)

Now, my original plan for this afternoon had been to paint some wrought iron shepherd hooks and decorative items before taking them to my new estate. :-) But, I didn’t have the necessary black rustoleum on the shelf. I worked a while in the cellar then headed to Lowes. Now if you follow this blog, you know that a trip to Lowes always means first checking out the half  priced flowers at the back of the garden center. Today was a jackpot. 

Honestly, these plants for the most part are as nice as the ones up front for full price. A few just need a bit of tlc. I know just where I will plant them, but that will not happen for a few days as I really intend to focus on the basement. (Let’s see how that goes ;-).

Keep cool wherever you are and enjoy the weekend.

Unpacking Continues

 

It has been a bit since my last post because I continue to be busy unpacking box after box after box, but most rooms except the quilting studio are done. Truly, I cannot believe I’m lucky enough to live here. My furniture looks great and my newly cleaned oriental which is probably thirty years old looks brand new.  The built-in bookcases sold me at the open house as I could envision my books, photos, and stitched pieces filling the shelves. 

Here’s a closer look. I’m having so much fun tweaking and rearranging items on the shelves. I had a large patriotic display which I intended to keep up for the entire month, but I couldn’t wait to switch out a few shelves and so I did. 

I’m still trying to find two items for the mantel, and I’m running out of boxes. Maybe I’ll come across them today???

My favorite flower by far for impact is a hibiscus. I’ve always had two or three on my previous deck, and that continues here.

Just look at all the buds on this one. It will be spectacular.

For Emma fans … 

She keeps me company in the sunroom when I take a break from unpacking to do a bit of stitching. :-)

We had 7.4 inches of rain the other day, the highest total in the state. Fortunately, my cellar remained dry. There were flash floods but nothing like the devastation seen in other parts of the country. Today it is bright and sunny. Whatever weather you are enjoying or facing, stay safe and have a good week.

Enough time slacking off . . . I have more unpacking to do!!!

My Favorite Room

 

It will be two weeks tomorrow since I moved into my dream home. While I will love my quilt studio, this four season sunroom is something extra special! 

I’m still posting on my iPhone, but thankfully, xFinity is scheduled to come on Thursday morning to get me all connected.

My friends Kathy L. and Annmarie have forbidden me to buy even one more fat quarter, cross stitch pattern, or piece of wool. They will call for an immediate intervention should any quilting, cross stitching, or wool appliqué purchasing take place. And, yes, they are absolutely right!!! I suggested that I could easily store extra material in the guest room’s bathtub, but they felt that was a terrible idea. So, I promise to be good. :-)

Each room still has boxes, but thanks to my friends and family things have been moving right along. It has taken a village to make this move happen, and I cannot thank everyone enough for all they have done.

Time to go unpack another box or two. . . 

My Future Quilting Studio

 I haven’t transferred my cable service to my new home yet so I am posting this using my iphone. It’s not ideal,  but it works. This will be my new quilting studio once I unpack a zillion boxes. It looks crazy, but most of the banker boxes contain fabric which should all fit in this cabinet. 

Okay, I might be dreaming, but I consolidated and gave away, so this should (fingers crossed) house all the fabric that I brought with me. I also have a bureau for my cross stitch projects and supplies, and another storage bench for my wool. 

Miss Emma stayed two nights with her second family while I was moving, but now she is settling right in here. 

One great feature of this new home is a small fenced in backyard. The first morning she was here we were outside. I was sipping an iced coffee and contemplating how perfect it all was when I realized that I had not seen Emma for a few minutes. I got up and went around to the other side of the small yard. . . no Emma! It was then that I discovered that there was gap between the fence and the house. It was wide enough for a certain schnauzer to slip through. I dashed out to the driveway and spotted her trotting down the sidewalk happy as could be checking out her new neighborhood. Thankfully, I caught up to her and brought her home. I later brought two pieces of wood from my basement along with two bricks to block off her escape route. It is behind a large bush, so it will not be visible to folks walking by. 

I went back to my previous home this afternoon and spent a few hours working on clearing out the basement. Tomorrow is Sunday, so I will be taking a well deserved day of rest.

Try to keep cool during this coming week’s heat wave!

Moving Day - June 17, 2025

 

Here is my present dining room as of an hour ago.Things are going well.  I may not be able to post for a few days as I will have a zillion boxes to start unpacking! Fortunately, many friends have offered to help.

In my next post, I will share something wonderful that happened this morning, a sure sign that this was the right move for me. :-)

Have a good week!

Moving Right Along - #4 For Real : CrunchTime - UPDATE!!!

 I closed on my new home last Friday, and Moving Day is this coming Tuesday. Am I ready? Well, yes and no. I have cleared out the attic which was the land of abandoned luggage. Last Saturday, my cousin Kris and her daughter Miss T passed down suitcase after suitcase. It was crazy. Why so many? I, myself, have three different sized suitcases, my mom had one, and one had belonged to my brother. Then there were perhaps three or four which had belonged to my aunts. It was a regular museum of retired suitcases. The oldest was a brown leather suitcase with my dad’s monogram. I put six or seven out on the sidewalk, and all but one was taken. Two were hard side American Tourister bags. They were really heavy empty, so I can’t imagine what they were like filled with clothes. The man who took them wanted them for storage. He didn’t seem concerned that I only knew the combination to unlock one of the bags. He seemed confident that he would be able to figure out the code. I wished him luck! 

I live on a busy street, so most things were taken within twenty-four hours. Quickest to go: a bookcase made by my brother in shop class in the sixties. It was gone in five minutes!!! It was nice but my new home has built in bookcases, so I wasn’t taking it. Another fast mover was a vintage, and I do mean vintage, chaise lounge with two matching chairs. You know the type with the aluminum frame and webbing. I put them on the sidewalk and walked down the hill to put something in my friend’s barrel as mine was already filled. As I was walking back up the hill, I saw a woman stop and examine the set and then look around. When I got closer, she asked if I knew who owned them. . . my response: Well in about three minutes, I hope they will be yours! She was super happy to take them as her family does a lot of camping, and she thought they would be perfect. I was happy too as I know the chairs which had been stored in the garage had never been camping before and I imagine they would enjoy it. ;-)

Moving is a team effort. As I mentioned previously, friends have packed my china, taken things to be donated at various places, and kept the process moving. A neighbor who lives down the street, has come twice with his son to haul heavier items to the sidewalk. This morning it was another shop class desk and a maple rocker. At last check, only the desk is still there. Peter told me not to hesitate to call if I have more items to go out. Peter was one of my eighth grade students many, many years ago. He is quite a wonderful character. I’m glad that he took home a heavy, wooden Christmas tree with lights that had been made for me by another neighbor. I loved putting out the tree, but each year the process was a bit more difficult. Pete  loves Christmas, so I am certain it will be in very good hands.

My cousin Greg came with his truck on Sunday to haul many boxes to my new home. Yes, I’m having movers come on Tuesday, but I had about a zillion banker’s boxes filled with fabric. At twelve to  fifteen dollars a yard, I wasn’t about to chuck it. With the help of my friend Annmarie, I had brought many bags of fabric and quilting books to put on the back table at our guild. I was happy giving it to fellow quilters,  but I just didn’t want it to end up in a landfill. Don’t worry; with the amount of fabric, wool, and cross stitching items that I am bringing to my new home, I’ll never have to shop again. . . no, really, I’ll have enough to keep me busy until I’m  at least ninety-five. :-)

I had been pleased with how things have been going until last night when my back told me in no uncertain terms that I have been lifting and carrying way too much. My cousin Kristin and Miss Lucy came this afternoon to help, and we got a great deal accomplished. (Well, they did; with my back issues, I just directed efforts.) 

Later, we headed up to my new home where my friend Kathy L, a human dynamo, continued to organize my kitchen while I sat on a comfortable stool and watched. 

How lucky am I!!!!!!! I’m moving into a dream home, and friends, family and neighbors are helping make the move possible. Keep good thoughts that my back feels better soon as I only have three days left to PACK!!! Movers will take the furniture, and I’ll no doubt be back to finish things here . . . 

Wait did someone ask about the cellar? Please don’t as that will be a project in itself. The work bench is clear, all the tools have been given away, but there are still totes and boxes of holiday items to go through and then bring to my new home. Maybe it will take a week? Two? I’d like to get this home on the market soon. Once again, think good thoughts and wish me luck!

UPDATE: My cousin Greg’s look of horror this morning when I pointed to things that I hoped he would bring up to my new home for me.

He hauled all this and more!!! What a great guy!!! There will definitely be a quilt in his future once I get a zillion boxes unloaded. ;-)

Moving Right Along #3 - Crunch Time

 Greetings from the land of packing boxes . . . I’d like to tell you that I am making great progress, but that would not be totally true.Let’s just say that things are moving steadily along. I pass papers on my dream home in three days, and the movers will be here on the 17th.

My home definitely looks different. Two oriental rugs were picked up this morning to be cleaned and will then be delivered to my new home. A friend broke up a large credenza, and that makes the dining room seem much larger. He will use the mahogany wood in his woodworking projects.

The sidewalk has been busy as I put out items, big and small. It is amazing how quickly things are taken. Some things are scooped up in only five or ten minutes; items still on the sidewalk at night are usually gone by morning. Other furniture pieces which I am not taking will be donated to charity.

I wanted to share a tip with you. This small side table was badly sun bleached from probably twenty plus years in the sunporch.

Could it be saved? Why, yes, it could! After reading reviews, I applied one application of Howard Feed and Wax” and look at the difference. Amazing!

I also used it to revive a vintage washboard from our cellar which I plan to hang in my laundry room. Yes, no more lugging laundry from the second floor to the basement and then back up again for me; I’ll be living in SUNNYLAND!!!

It has been an incredibly daunting task going through all the treasures/stuff in this house. . . seventy years worth, but occasionally I have found something that I don’t remember having ever seen before. Case in point, this light green Abingdon USA vase. A search indicated that it was probably from the 30s or 40s. When my aunts years ago had their kitchen updated, my dad, crafty fellow that he was, removed their old cabinets and reinstalled them in our cellar. This vase was in the back of one of the bottom row of cabinets.

It will have a place on one of the shelves in my built-in bookcases. ( I am truly looking forward to decorating all of those shelves! )

That’s it for now. Have a wonderful week.