Simple Woman's Daybook 31

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...I am pleased to see blue skies and sunshine.

I am thinking...that my puppy is crazy and loud!  She is doing laps around the tv room.  Her stuffed toys do not stand a chance!

I am thankful for...a visit from an old friend this week.  R came by with his son and his dog.  It was like blast from the past.


From the kitchen...all is quiet.  I'm not much of a summer cook.  

I am wearing...my pink flowery pjs.... so comfortable and cool...just like last week.  

What I'm creating:  still working on the necessities over at 40 M baseboard staining will be the order of today.  I did order three 10x13 prints from my sunflower photo collection.  They will be framed and hung in the master bedroom.  I love them!

I am going...to  get busy early today.  It is going to be a very warm day so I want to get my staining done early. 

I am reading...a new series... well I have not quite started... The Hunger Games.  N has already read the first book and is about to begin the second.

I am hearing...the fan and finally a quiet puppy!  (she's eating now)

Around the house...things are looking good!  I have been spending a bit of time organizing the 'nice' living room and in order to be ready for fios I cleaned off the top of the tv armoire downstairs and the inside of the tv armoire upstairs.  I hope this new organization lasts longer than one weekend. 

One of my favorite things...is the quiet of the early morning.  

A few plans for the rest of the week:   not much other than staining baseboard and perhaps going to see Harry Potter.  

Here are pictures I am sharing..Flicka's new friend!  His ears are bigger than her head. They were very cute together. 

Peace!

Friday Fill Ins

And...here we go!

1. Summer is a time when the living should be easy.

2. What  is unchanged remains the same.

3. Aargh! They delivered the wrong dishwasher!  Nothing is ever easy.

4. Coffee in the morning.

5. Seven: is one of the sacred numbers...I think? 

6. Life is too short to be angry all the time and let little things bother you don't you think?

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hanging with the kids and watching some episodes of bones, tomorrow my plans include staining woodwork at 40 M and Sunday, I want to _just stay home but I'll probably be working on staining more woodwork!

Peace!

A Quick Hello

Today came and went very quickly!

Yesterday an old friend dropped in as he was cruising about town.  R is someone I enjoyed spending time with as a young girl.  Our parents were friends and we spent many a summer day and night together as our parents drank cocktails and played Wist at the kitchen table.  The last time I saw R was 8 years ago after his Mum passed away.  Since that time we have both lost our fathers.  It was good to see him and meet his 16 year old son A as well as his 8 month old german shepherd puppy Loche.  Flicka enjoyed making a new puppy friend in the process.

Today came and went very quickly! Lots of cleaning and puppy care.  Puppy check up went well although she had three shots and is in a bit of pain at the moment.  Hopefully she'll feel better in the am.  We are preparing for Verizon reps to come and install fios.  From what I understand it is a lengthy process.  We'll see how it goes and I'll report back tomorrow.  I'm hoping that we will have little interruption in our internet service.

So that's all for now.

Peace!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Peace!

Texture Tuesday

This week at Texture Tuesday is all about dreams.  For my image I used Kim's aurora texture for two layers and I also used her Dream brushes.  

I chose this image of a hydrangea flower because it reminds me of Cape Cod and the ocean.  It is by the ocean where I feel at peace and able to dream about my future.  Some of my future is wrapped up in a house by the ocean.  At that home I picture a sea shell driveway lined with beautiful hydrangeas of all different varieties....oak leaf, lacecap and mophead.  Some day I would like to be the 'inn keeper' of 40 M.  In my mind 40 M will be a place where people can come and seek serenity, solitude, peace and happiness. It will be a safe harbor for the tired and the weary.  It will be a home away from home for families who need to be by the ocean to unwind and spend quality time together.  I picture myself polishing the fireplaces and furniture before each new arrival and baking cookies and muffins for our weary travelers.  It will be a haven for all who come.  Watching over it all from a distant place will be my beloved parents.... smiling down on all that we have achieved, proud.  This is my dream. 

Peace!

Mellow Yellow Monday

This painted tera cotta pot is perhaps my favorite painted pot ever!  I love the tone of the creamy yellow paint and how some of the paint has pealed away over the years.  It make me think of far away places in foreign lands.  I carefully store this pot year after year so that I can enjoy it and photograph it each summer season.  It brings me joy!  Isn't that what life is all about.... joy?  

Peace!

Just A Moment

It is quiet.  All I hear are the fans bringing in the semi-cool air.  The room is dark and the shades still drawn. I am soaking up this moment of peace, knowing full well that it is fleeting at best.  I will breathe it in with all that I am so that I can go back to this moment later when the day is busy and more than I want.

Peace!

Interesting Reaction

So the other day we received a mailing from the church that I attended as a child and a young adult.  Raised Catholic I was active in the church from a young age, starting with 'Sunday School' and choir, moving on and working in the rectory counting the collections and helping with office work and finally working as a Sunday School teacher.  I was married in this church. My children were baptized in this church and both my parents and my mother in law were buried from this church.  For many years I have been a non practicing Catholic.  I have talked a little bit about this from time to time here on my blog and I won't go into all those details tonight.  I remain on the mailing list and often get letters of appeal looking for money for the church.  I figured that the most recent mailing was more of the same.  Usually I just tear the mailing in half and throw them away.  For some reason I opened this envelope.  It was an invitation to an informational reception.  I had to look at the image on the invitation over and over again before I finally realized that the parish is planning on building a new church!  I had the most unexpected reaction to this realization.  I literally felt sick to my stomach.  Even now the thought of this huge change makes me so sad.  The plans call for keeping the current church building and using it as a parish center.  My rational side tried to tell my heart that I had no right to have feelings about this news but my heart did not listen because so much of me is tied to that building.  Interesting reaction, don't you think?

Peace!

Friday Fill Ins

And...here we go!

1. Life is a highway....

2. A sports event is one of the best places to people watch EVER because there is so much going on and such a wide range of people around.
3. if I was going somewhere, the one thing I have to bring is my handbag and a bottle of cold water.

4. This heat wave will break  soon enough.

5. Next year, I will be able to enjoy my summer because the puppy will be a year older and 40 M will be done and rented!

6. Said a prayer to Saint Anthony (and Mum and Dad) and I found what was lost.  It works every single time!

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to sleeping in the ac, tomorrow my plans include trying to stay cool in this heat and hopefully getting something done over at 40 M and Sunday, I want to just relax but I'm sure that will never happen!


Peace!

Simple Woman's Daybook30

Simple Woman's Daybook Week 30

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...for the second week in a row I see the dark night sky. 

I am thinking...about how much fun it was to go to the movies and see the new Winnie the Pooh movie with my big kids tonight.  When I was pregnant with n and N was just 1 1/2 we used to watch the original tape every day like clockwork.  It gave me time to rest and both of us some well loved snuggle time.  Those days seem very long ago. 

I am thankful for...all that is good in my life, including my family, friends and new puppy.


From the kitchen...not much this week as it has been way to hot to cook!  I'm hoping to cook fish on the grill tomorrow.  Yumm!

I am wearing...my pink flowery pjs.... so comfortable and cool.  

What I'm creating:  still working on the necessities over at 40 M but soon I'll be creating art for the space and I can not wait!I

I am going...to  work on the house for part of the day tomorrow and maybe I'll do a little bit on my planning for school next year.  If I'm feeling really ambitious I'll work on creating some more photo cards.  

I am reading...a little bit of n's summer book; The Quiet Boy by Lois Lowry. 

I am hearing...the drone of the  fan as well as nick@nite on theTV.

Around the house...there is a lot of work to be done.  The heat, the puppy and 40 M have kept me preoccupied and away from my day to day tasks.  Hopefully I'll put a dent into the work tomorrow.

One of my favorite things...is peace and quiet for a short time.... have not had much of that lately.  Oh another favorite thing would be puppy breath, feet and kisses.

A few plans for the rest of the week:   puppy training, cleaning, swimming

Here are pictures I am sharing..

Peace!

Texture Tuesday (a day late!)

Things have been busy and I have not made time to work on my photography.  :(

I managed to do some work to one of the photos I took while in DC at the end of June.

I added several layers of aurora  to my image.

Peace!

Mellow Yellow Monday

It's a beautiful day today!  The air feels relatively dry and the breeze is beautiful.  I am so thankful for the gorgeous weather we have been enjoying.

I love the creamy yellow centers of the peony flowers!  They have passed by but now I can look forward to more blooms next year!  

Peace!

  

The Weekend

Ahhhh don't you just love weekends?  It's been lovely here for the past few days.  We've been enjoying real summer weather.  Even last week it felt like true summer.  I was even lucky enough to head over to my friend C's house for a dunk in her pool!  So refreshing.

We were able to accomplish a lot of work over at 40 M yesterday.  All the trim work was stained by moi!  n came over and kept me company and helped me move things around.  She did quite a bit of staining last weekend so she just wanted to hang out and not work and that was fine with me.  As we were working our neighbor walked by and commented on how warm the ocean water felt.  That gave both of us the itch to get to the beach and go swimming.  By the time we got home last night the tide was out so we deferred our swim until today.

 We were down at the beach mid day along with many other people who I think must have been renting one of the houses as I did not recognize them.  I much prefer to go to the beach when it is quite and only the regulars are lounging about.  Be that as it may n and I ventured into the water.  It was cold at first, but not the ankle biting cold that the ocean is known for around here!  Once we were in it was wonderful.  We both laughed and swam and floated to our hearts content.  We knew that we didn't have too much time on the beach as R had to run out to the store for supplies and we didn't want to leave N alone with Flicka.  After about 45 minutes of swimming we spent a few minutes on the beach before n went in for a last dip.  Hopefully we'll go back down tomorrow and have the beach to ourselves.  Weekdays are usually much more quiet.

Today is also a big day over at 40 M.  All the finish trim around the windows is hopefully being finished today.  We'll be calling for flooring tomorrow.  I can't wait to be finished.

Peace!

Friday Fill Ins

And...here we go!

1. I hold my family and friends close to my heart.

2. n, my sister c and my sister d are people (is someone) I like to travel with because we all get along so well and have so much fun together!

3. That day, I knew that I had been given the gift of reconnecting.

4. Only good things this year.

5. Trust your first instinct, it's almost always right.

6. Sometimes my mind races in the dark.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to just hanging and watching Bones with the kids, tomorrow my plans include painting and staining and Sunday, I want to just be.


Peace!

Simple Woman's Daybook 29

Simple Woman's Daybook Week 29

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...I see the dark night sky. 

I am thinking...about how lucky I am to have a best friend who knows all about me; the good, the bad and the ugly and she still wants to be my friend.  I am so blessed. 

I am thankful for...having a puppy who is forcing me to get up off the sofa and go out and walk!  I am seeing results from walking (and all the painting I have been doing).  I actually fit into my size 12 jeans!  They are not comfortable yet... but they will be by the end of the summer. 


From the kitchen...well this week has been a bit of a scramble week!  I tried a new recipe on Monday that included sushi from The Market  and lettuce cups filled with shrimp, noodles and mixed marinated veggies.  I thought it was delish but no one else cared for it too much.  They deconstructed it and ate the separate pieces.  We've also had hamburgers and hotdogs and steak tips and rice.  Tomorrow will be either chicken salad or BLT's.  We'll see. 

I am wearing...my grey cropped pants and comfy white top.  The air is comfortable just like my outfit.  

What I'm creating:  I'm still working on my vision for our 'rental property'. I have two or three art projects planned as well as some plans for rustic coffee tables and end tables. Can't wait to get started on these projects as  we are hoping to finish by August 1st and get 4 to 8 weeks of rental income.  Fingers crossed.

I am going...to  hopefully finish all my painting over at 40 M tomorrow.

I am reading...just my blogs and my continuing ed/professional development web site still.


I am hoping that my children will just be quiet and that our new walking routine will help calm little Flicka.  Those two things would help to create a more peaceful household.  We'll see. 

I am hearing...the drone of the TV.... summer fun with Big Brother.   

Around the house...there is evidence that I have been spending more time painting at 40 M than tending to the work that should be done here.  

One of my favorite things...is feeling the cool evening air after a beautiful perfect summer day.  

A few plans for the rest of the week:   planting, painting, playing..... and repeate

Here are pictures I am sharing..

If you were to stay at 40 M  in America's Hometown you could enjoy the above views as well as the secluded beach just steps away!


Peace!

Peace!

Wordless Wednesday

I'm planning on printing some of my photos to hang on the walls over at 40 M.  These are three that I'm considering.  What do you think?

Peace!

Texture Tuesday

This week's challenge was a simple word.... PINK.  Well just so happens that my beautiful pink calla lilly bloomed and I captured some lovely shots.  I did some texture work and the following is what I came up with in the end.

I duplicated the original image twice the second on multiply 100%, I then added two black and white layers one normal at 91% and the second saturation 54%, I used masks to reveal the color from my calla lilly.  I added kk2 on screen mode, a magenta photo filter and a layer of aurora screen 100% with another mask.  I did a lot of tweaking today with this photo and I love the soft effect in the final image.  I wonder what you think. 

Ok so while I liked my original image it didn't translate as well on the blog as it did in my elements program so I went back and did some tweaking with the adjustment layers.  I also removed the black and white element of the photo.  I think I like the second version better.  It seems softer. 

Peace!

Mellow Yellow Monday

I thought I'd share some yellow captured during our Washington DC trip.  I still can't believe how much fun we had together.

For more Mellow Yellow Fun:

Peace!

Accomplishments....

So much to share!  Yesterday I enjoyed a lovely visit with my cousin B and her daughter and grands.  It was so good to see her in the flesh rather than just a photo on Facebook.  Her grands are so sweet and enjoyed visiting with n and Flicka.  Baby G was simply adorable and had so many smiles for anyone who was interested.  We ate Jordan Marsh Blueberry cake, a recipe from my Mum's recipe box, drank coffee and chatted as the thunderstorms banged and flashed around us.  After spending some time together I took them over to see 40 M.  B has many memories of time spent with my Mum in that house as well as the memories and stories that were shared by her Mum.  There was much laughter and happiness in that little house back in the day.  B was astonished by all the work that has been done over at the house.  She was especially happy that even with the changes the house still had the same feeling that she remembered.  I was very happy to hear this observation.  All in all it was a very nice visit.  

Today was spent working at 40 M.  I've been doing a LOT of painting!  Today was spent cutting in the bathrooms again after changing my color choice from a sea-glass green (read mint ugh) to oat straw (read cafe au lait).  I am thrilled with the new color.  I think I'll accessorize with sea glass colors.  I painted a second coat of paint in one of the downstairs bedrooms and a first coat of paint in the other bedroom.  I was also able to apply a first coat of paint in the upstairs bathroom.  I rounded out my work day by staining several pieces of moulding and flat stock.  I'm happy with all that I accomplished today and I 'm looking forward to finishing the painting so that I can get some photos taken and uploaded.  

Tonight R is playing out for the first time in ages.  I'm happy to be able to spend the night just me and the kids!  We're going to watch movies.  We started the evening with this summer's first soft serve ice cream run!  Flicka came with us for the ride and loved her little taste of vanilla ice cream.  Too cute. 

Peace!

Friday Fill Ins

And here we go

1. I am from the kitchen table, from a furniture store long since gone  and the worn comfy sofa.

2. I am from the simple house filled with love, raised out of the sand by Dad and turned into a home by Mum.

3. I am from the beach plums and roses, the saturated color a feast for the eyes and scent that perfumes the air and lingers in your senses.

4. I am from clam bakes and Sunday diners and depression, anxiety and catastrophic thinking, from Bob and Joan and the Melletts and the Dillons.

5. I am from the love of extended family and trials and tribulations of moving away from your clan.

6. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hanging out with the kids, tomorrow my plans include picking up a new color for 40 M and painting and Sunday, I want to relax and catch up with laundry and housework!


Peace!

Simple Woman's Daybook 28

Simple Woman's Daybook Week 28

FOR TODAY

Outside my window...I see the dappled sunlight dancing on the beautiful green of my back hill.  The air is warm and the sunshine beautiful. 

I am thinking...about all the painting I have to do over at the other house.  My plan is to finish this post and get over to 40 M and get one good coat of paint on all the rooms downstairs.  It's a big job but I think I can do it.  

I am thankful for...the fact that we had a wonderful vacation and made it home safe and sound.  


From the kitchen...well this week has been another  good week in the kitchen. Salmon with potatoes and salad, delicious mixed meat sandwiches with big slices of tomatoes and crispy lettuce, hot dogs on the grill and tonight we'll have marinated steak tips with salad, rice and grilled bread(I think).    

I am wearing...my pj's and will soon change into my painting clothes.

What I'm creating:  a vision for our 'rental property'.  We are hoping to finish by August 1st and get 4 to 8 weeks of rental income.  Fingers crossed.

I am going...to plan some fun things to do with the kids next  week.  Any ideas?    

I am reading...just my blogs and my continuing ed/professional development web site.


I am hoping that we get a tiny reprive from the 90 degree weather.. just a couple of 80 degree days would be nice. 

I am hearing...the breaking news...Casey Anthony's sentencing hearing is being breadcast live.  Such a very sad situation.  We will never know what happened to that little girls.  I must believe that she is in a better place.  

Around the house...there are barricades everywhere to keep puppy out or in.  It looks a little silly. 

One of my favorite things...is getting up early and watering my flowers.  Such a peaceful task. 

A few plans for the rest of the week:   planting, painting, playing.....

Here is a picture I am sharing..

Peace!