~ it's time to relax...

...Ozzy has the right idea!

~ merry day after christmas...

Sending our best holiday wishes to everyone!

~ oh, the weather outside is frightful...

                                                        ~*~



Inside, the elves are very busy.  Here's some Christmas music to chase away the blahs and get you in the Christmas mood!

Christmas songs on the radio

Fa la la... :-)

~ it's snowing...

                                                     ~ YaY! ~
 

                                                           ~*~

~ never a dull moment...

...when you're travelling with Sofia :-)


Happy Thanksgiving!

~ happy sunday...

Today I have quite a few projects to choose from.  We have bright blue skies, cold temps, and wind...  Not really a good day for playing outdoors.  Luckily, there are a few choices for me as far as indoor projects.  I can continue working on my kitchen window curtains (almost done), or, do some holiday shopping (probably not a good choice on a weekend), or, stare at this fabric fat quarter bundle.



I won this from Fat Quarter Shop a few weeks ago!  They were having a give-away and I won the awesome prize which included this and a bunch of other wonderful fabric goodies.  I was sew happy :-)

So while I am staring, I will also be drafting my first Burgoyne Surrounded quilt block.  There is an online quiltalong that I want to participate in -- but it doesn't begin until December.

Stay tuned...

~ thought for the day...

If you haven't already seen this, it is definitely worth the 5 minutes to watch...

 


...it is surprisingly enlightening :-)

~ taking a commercial break...

I am busy cleaning windows -- so instead of boring you with that, I want to talk about the "Sleepy Hollow" tv series.  Sofia was excited to watch this when it started back in September -- so, not expecting much from it, I agreed to watch the first episode with her.  The newest episodes air from 9 p.m. - 10 p.m. -- so I just assumed that I would fall asleep halfway through.  Strangely, that did not happen.  I was pleasantly surprised by the interesting story, excellent casting, and special effects.  We have since watched every episode at least twice!  Two thumbs way up!



http://www.fox.com/sleepy-hollow/

~ happy birthday...

...to my baby sister!

photo circa 1969

Hope your day is filled with excitement! :-)

~ busy, busy, busy...

We've been so busy.  Taking down halloween.  Putting out minimal thanksgiving decorations (I do not like a stark looking house -- makes me uneasy) and some not too christmas winter decorations.  By the end of next week I should have the christmas decorations flowing.  But for now, I am stuck behind this pile of fabric that I am using to make some red valances for the kitchen windows.



We've also been auditioning some baking recipes that we will be using for the holidays.  Miss Sofia has decided that she enjoys baking.  Sofia has fun baking, the guys have fun eating -- I clean up the mess...sound familiar? ;-)

~ vintage fall crafts...

The weather made me feel a bit nostalgic yesterday -- so after I finished taking down the outdoor halloween decorations, I decided to pull this guy out of semi-retirement and hang him on the front door.  The colors are still pretty and bright outdoors with all the red and gold leaves on the trees -- so I think he fits right in.  Don't you?



I made this for the front door of the apartment we rented as newlyweds on South Kensington Avenue -- seems so long ago...

~ granite countertop...

...installed!



So happy that this area is functional for kitchen purposes -- so far we have the pantry cabinet, base cabinet with recycling bin/garbage pullout, overhead light/electrical outlet, and, countertop.  The "message center" part of the project has not started, and there is spackling, molding, painting, etc. that still needs to be done.  In the photo you can see that I am auditioning paint chips -- the two chips up against the wall are battling for first place.  The chip on the left side is named custard and is the lighter of the two.  The chip on the right side is name tahini and it is the darker of the two.  Which one do you think will win?

Oh, yes -- and in case you are wondering about what's going on under the countertop, up against the pantry cabinet?  It was necessary to make a "T" brace to support the weight of the granite countertop.  In the photo, it looks dark and unfinished, but it is painted the same color as the cabinet and looks fine in person.  Normally on the underside, there would be only the piece of wood running parallel to the countertop, but we didn't trust the integrity of the side of the pantry cabinet with the weight of the granite.  The construction of the cabinet is fine if you're not going to hitch a slab of heavy granite to its side -- but, since I didn't take the granite weight into consideration when we purchased the cabinet, we have a "T" brace.

Stay tuned...

~ halloween leftovers...

Sorry Ozzy -- not much left from all that halloween candy.


Last year's record of 150 trick-or-treaters was broken.  We were able to accomodate up to the 150, but Sofia held fast to these butterfinger candies that she plucked out of the candy bags.  There were some stragglers in cute costumes who left empty handed. :-(

~ and he's off...

in my car!  Rick is taking him out for practice with his driver's permit.  Yikes!  :-)

Let's see how he does on his road test in March... :-)

~ the witch is in!

I hope those trick or treaters get here before the rain and wind :-(

~ halloween host & hostess...

...all dressed up and ready to greet the halloween guests. :-)

~ halloween eve...

...these two started the celebration early :-)

~ calmly waiting...

...for trick or treating {in a couple of days}...and...enjoying the quiet. Today is the 1 year anniversary of hurricane Sandy -- maybe that's why the weather is so beautiful. In nature, it is all about the balance...

~ halloween quilt top...

Four days until halloween!  I have to remove the basting pins and correct a mistake on the pieced back.



I am not going to meet the dead line.  Eeeeek!

~ kitchen corner update...

Good morning!  Thanks for stopping by.  I was just about to throw my half cold cup of coffee in the microwave, and saw this photo-op moment staring right at me.  Yes, that is my philodendron sitting just beyond the gate -- waiting for a wash and trim before going upstairs to spend the winter in my sewing room.

Outside, the temps are dropping -- so that means its time to move a bit quicker indoors.  The kitchen corner is almost done!  The base and pantry cabinets are painted and installed -- complete with door/drawer pulls and soft-close dampers on the doors (love these!)
 


The high hat light fixture is installed, wired and working -- along with a new electrical outlet.  The countertop needs to be cut (again) so that it fits perfectly.  We also will be adding a "message area" on the wall, and, a decorative shelf.

Stay tuned...

~ c'mon trick or treaters...

...we're ready for ya!



Last year, even Hurricane Sandy couldn't stop the trick or treaters from coming to our house.  We had an unexpected 150 trick or treaters -- this broke our 2011 record of 120 trick or treaters.  This year, we are well stocked, and, ready! :-)

Yes, the two bowls on the top shelf and two bags on the bottom shelf are all filled with candy bags prepared for trick or treaters. We do have a bit more, unprepared... just in case!

Note:  Because of Hurricane Sandy, last year, our trick or treating festivities were delayed until November 5.

~ the transformation continues...

Every fall I purchase a few of these cute little $1 scarecrows.  They are only displayed for a short time, and then put away -- and usually end up in the trash because they get moldy.  This year, I decided to get a little more use from them.  I had 4 of them, so I cut a yard of white lightweight cotton fabric into 4 squares, draped a piece over the head of each scarecrow and tied at the neck with a bit of twine.  The most difficult part of the whole project was running down to the basement and back upstairs again while fetching art supplies from Sofia's stash.  Sofia is very particular about lending her paintbrushes and paint, so.. it was necessary for me to paint the eyes and then quickly clean up and put everything away before she came home from school. ;-)



Yes, as soon as she saw these, she knew...  You'll be happy to know that my punishment wasn't too bad -- I only got "the look" :-)

~ my gory girl...

...auditioning makeup for halloween...EEeeeek!

~ burlap pillow cover...

...for halloween :-)

~*~

~*~

I cannot finish my "halloween" quilt until some fabric (for the binding) arrives in the mail.  In the meantime, I needed a halloween theme pillow cover for the antique chair in my stairwell.  Since burlap is so popular right now, I decided to use that.  The center applique is a fussy cut piece from "the ghastlies" fabric collection.

~ getting ready for halloween...

...15 more days ;-)

~ fall vignette...

...side yard

~ my pretty girl...

...sitting on a bale of hay :-)



This year, as part of our fall outdoor decorations, we decided to create a little farm theme vignette in the side yard.  This vignette was totally inspired by the milk can in the photo -- it was a yard sale purchase :-)  It has taken quite a few days to piece the vignette -- a trip to the local farm for the bale of hay, another trip to the local farm for the corn stalks, a trip to the store for wood, a trip to the store for spray paint -- I'm sure you're getting the idea.

This is not the completed vignette-- we should have it done by tomorrow.  In the meantime, I thought you might enjoy a photo of my lovely daughter :-)

~ misty autumn morning...

                                                         ~ 7:09 a.m. ~
                                                                    {my inspiration for today}



...I watch the mist as it floats up from the conservation area, over the bikepath, and into the street...

                                                                ~*~

Click on photo to enjoy a better view ;-)

~ happy sunday...

Just popping in to say hello :-)  We are up to our ears in half finished projects -- and I'm not finding the "beauty shot" in any of them.  Maybe I will find it during the week.

I can't write a post without sharing a photo, so here is a pretty, late August afternoon view of that Shady Corner Spot post that I shared way back in April.



Hope you're having a lovely day :-)

~ lovely autumn morning...

I am happy that Ozzy decided I should take him for a walk earlier than usual this morning. What a picture perfect day! I took the opportunity to snap a photo of my little halloween sewing project and share it with you. Since my halloween costume making services are not required by either of my "clients" -- a.k.a. Nicholas & Sofia...



 ...this year, I was feeling the void. To compensate, I decided to make a small quilt using a free pattern from my favorite online fabric store. It really wasn't the free pattern that grabbed me -- it was this video tutorial taught by the lovely Kimberly Jolly herself!  Jelly Roll Jam video tutorial

Here is the photo of what I have completed.  It is the 3 six strip sections.  I did this yesterday in about 90 minutes.  It would have taken me about 30 minutes less, if I didn't have issues with my bobbin thread (resolved), and a break to prep dinner :-)  Today, I need to make a run to the store for non-flaking spray starch, and, thread.  Hopefully I can get that done and back in time to starch, press, and, cut the strip sections into blocks.

                                                              ~*~



                                                              ~*~

Stay tuned :-)

~ practice makes perfect...

                                                            ~*~
       
                                                           
                                                              ~*~

Sofia took this photo of herself (with her ipad camera). She edited the photo also.  Pretty good multitasking, huh? ;-)

~ cabinet update...

We are in the process of painting the cabinets.  For this part of the project, we decided to use the Rust-oleum Cabinet Transformations kit.  There is no sanding involved.  There are no nasty odors.  The kit includes everything necessary -- including a step-by-step DVD.  At this very moment, Rick is waiting for the bonding coat to dry (that's him back there in the photo :-)  Actually, this photo was taken before we even started, so he was just waiting for me to take the artsy fartsy photo for the blog -- hee...hee...



I'll do an update after Rick applies the glaze coat, and, then the top coat.

Hope you're having a beautiful Sunday...

~ fall plants...

Yesterday, we purchased some small chrysanthemums from Lowe's.  They were only $1.68 each -- so we will first use them to replace the spent petunias in the hanging baskets on the porch.  I only need them to look pretty for a few weeks until I take them down and hang up the halloween decorations.  We will plant them in various locations around the yard -- and -- if they like it here maybe they'll come back next spring!

~ the wall is bigger...

...the gate is smaller ;-)



                                                         ~*~

View with pantry cabinet.  We purchased the pantry on clearance in Lowe's and saved $$$!  It will be painted to match the existing cabinets.

~ the path is not as long when travelled with a friend...

...hope all my family and friends are having a lovely evening!



You can click on the photo to enlarge it :-)

~ switcheroo sunday...

Yesterday, Rick did some work on the electricity part of the corner kitchen project.

 

 View of the corner -- the light switch is way over there...

 

After discussing a few options, we decided the existing single light switch should simply be moved to the other side of the wall.  This light switch is connected to another (3 way) light switch that is located on the wall to my right where I am standing to take the above photo.

Here is the cutout for the new placement of the light switch.  The cereal box that is taped to the wall is catching debris.



View of the new opening.  It is located next to an existing switch in the front room.



View of the switch in it's new placement.



View of the spackle/patching to close up the hole on the kitchen side of the wall.



This is the construction view of the electrical wiring in the wall (to the left side of little miss sofia :-)  This photo made the switcheroo job much easier!



The total switcheroo took less than an hour.

Note:  The above photos cannot be viewed larger unless you have a flickr account and have been added to my "family" list.

~ the plastic fish saga continues...

After working up a sweat in the yard, I thought about jumping in the pool.  Since the weather has been a bit cool, I walked over to check the water thermometer and saw Ozzy's plastic fish tangled in the cord.



Then this guy popped out...




                             !!!  DON'T TELL OZZY  !!!

{The first photo is Nicholas taking a photo of the spider with his ipad -- he really needs to clean that screen!)

~ yes, it's a plastic fish...

This plastic fish floats around in our swimming pool every summer.  This year, Ozzy has decided that this fish belongs to him.  He bends over the side of the pool and retrieves it every time we take him outside.  We are trying to teach him to voluntarily put it back in the pool before he goes back in the house, but, so far we have been unsuccessful.

sigh... ;-)

~ morning stretch...

focus...
breathe...


focus...
breath...



now, let's take a look at your technique...



Update:  If you are viewing this on your ipad, the video may not appear.  To correct this problem, you can view the video with this link: Sofia's technique


Ta da! :-)

~ sunflower update...

I was waiting for the sunflowers to fully open before giving this update.  However, as Nicholas and I were floating around in the pool I thought that it might be a good time to snap a photo -- just in case -- because of the possibility for thunderstorms this afternoon.




As I expected, the sunflower on the left is the tallest...once again.  The sunflowers this year are not so spectacular.  Most of our plants this summer seem to be that way -- except for those strange marigolds in the large pot.  Have you ever seen long stemmed marigolds?  These are Rick's "experiment".  Do you think he's invented something new?  hee...hee... ;-)