Thursday, July 4, 2019

Happy Fourth


Happy Fourth to all my American friends and family!!
Red white and blue, long may she wave


If you are looking for a quick dessert for your celebration 
consider layering the colours in a clear glass bowl:
Blue on bottom: blueberries
Then a layer of yogurt or whipped cream
White middle: pound cake or angel food cut in cubes
Another layer of yogurt or whipped cream
Top: strawberries or sweetened cherries
And a last layer of yogurt or whipped cream 

Be safe!! 

Monday, July 1, 2019

Pocologan...Betcha never heard of it


I've gotten some more done on Grandma's Rug:

I think the side flowers will have to be pale
and pastel-like.
Celebrated another end of year rug hooking club
with a potluck followed by a rousing game
of Left-Right-Centre.
Rhonda won and she always does!
Here are pics of my gardens.
 The first Brown Eyed Susan emerges
Load of Ladies' Mantle this year
 Phlox on the right and Hollyhocks coming up on left
 Not sure what the yellow is?
Some kind of primrose?

And my girlfriends and I just spent
two nights in Pocologan, New Brunswick.
We had a bonfire on the beach, waded,
walked, drank wine, whined, ate seafood
and watched
 a sweet seal frolic.
Lisa, Brenda and Sandy
Good Gals!!!!!


Happy Canada Day!!!!!

Thursday, June 20, 2019

Of Moving and Moose


This prepping the house for sale fiasco is for the birds.
The current practice is to get rid of anything that
looks personal and then stage it.
Well I’m already tired of feeling like I live on a movie set - 
each thing we touch or mess up
has to be put back in place.
Have y’all seen Escape to the Country?
No staging there.
Happily, our lilacs are out, making the home extra pretty!
 Our neighbourhood excitement this morning was the rogue, 
teenage moose loose in the park beside our house. 
The forestry department is shooting it with tranquilizers for relocation. 
Poor, poor thing he must be terrified.

And a shot of Lucy who always wipes her face on 
the huge wool rug after she's had a treat.
The whiskers look too cute for a scolding.
I must get out Grandma's Rug today. 
I love that it's geometric and easy to stop and start!



Friday, June 14, 2019


I’ve been decluttering like mad to get this house market ready.
The agent suggested I use the wool room as the packing area as it
already has so many boxes 😬.
Then I thought I was nearing the end and had a
Home Stager come in and I had a brand new list of to-dos.
You can tell the dog isn’t used to my cleaning as it is making her
very nervous!
I started on “Grandma’s rug.”
This was a free pattern in the Mar/Apr/May 
1995 RHM issue.
I thought I deserved a break from the sorting and boxing
so I went with a friend to her cottage at the head pond.
The head pond refers to the body of water at the top of the dam.
O it’s wonderful!
She and her hubby are building the cottage slowly but steadily.
We sat on the upper deck with hook
 (her rug is fall leaves and my Grandma rug) 
and wine in hand as the winds rustled the birches and the sun shone down.
Ahhhhh....
When we drove home from NC, we stopped outside of Portland, Maine
at Mackworth Island State Park and did a hike around.
Jack-in-the-pulpit

 The island was quintessential Maine with its evergreens,
rocky coasts and clear, cold water.
 
One portion along the trail had a fairy house forests.
Dozens and dozens of little fairy houses dotted the
area- all made from forest floor offerings.
 
My hubby and I added to the construction of a couple.
Dog Lucy was good and just sniffed.
We highly recommend this enchanting place if you
are in the area.
Happy weekend!



Thursday, June 6, 2019

Home A Jig Jig


The old nursery rhyme: "home again home again jiggedy jig"
was one we used when our kids were little
to let them know we were returning home.
But I shortened it calling it "home a jig jig."
So, yes we are home again in Canada
 after a very fun,very warm trip South.

We managed to stop at one hooking place,W. Cushing in Wells, Maine.
I also wanted to return to Camp Wool in Kennebunk.
Alas they are closed Tuesdays and that
was my only day.

But Cushing was fun and Liseanne and her
employee were welcoming and helpful
even with an informal hook-in going on.
Outside was welcoming but the cozy warren of rooms
 and loot inside was most fun.
An assortment of hook books, antiques and pottery.
Hooked models and wool remnants.
I must say these gals were very quiet. 
Our bunch would have sounded like a buzzy beehive!
Cupboards of offerings. Something to see everywhere.
Threads for the puncher and stitcher.
I was tempted by the ornaments.
My loot:
Two wools, dye, needles, a pattern, tape and a quilted bag.
Wouldn't you say I was pretty behaved?
I would recommend stopping in,
even going out of your way to pop in, 
to this well stocked store.
We were on time constraints but I
could have spent well over an hour here.
Lucky for my purse, I could not.


Thursday, May 16, 2019

Maine-ly Rug Hooking



Yay!!! I'm done!!
Birds & Cat from Pat Cross' book Simply Primitive
I love how the simple design and two colours speak volumes.
The colours I chose were just like the sample in the book.
Where will I hang this?
I think I'll wait as we are putting our house on market soon.
No use sticking in new nail holes...
We'll be downsizing but staying in the same town we've grown to love.

Soon I'll be heading South to see family and get warm (ha ha!)
I'll be going through Maine.
Did you know how many rug hooking places there are in Maine??
To name a few: 
Parris House Wool Works, Cherylyn Brubaker, Halcyon Yarns,
 Camp Wool, W. Cushing, 1840 House Jacqueline Designs!
Yee haw. Just have to persuade my driver to stop.







I got Lucy groomed today.
This is five minutes after she exited the car.
Had to dig up a bone. 

Our area was 36F yesterday and rainy.
Just miserable.
Today was not so bad but drizzly.
Still, I walked for an hour and feel better
for it mentally.

Can you believe May is half over?
May your day be wooly wonderful.

 

Sunday, May 12, 2019

Happy Mothering Day


Celebratory days can be hard as we’re so far from family.
My mom, dad and siblings are together in NC honouring Mom’s Day 
and my nephew’s graduation from Duke.
Today in New Brunswick it will be 50 degrees but sunny.
We’re having a picnic supper with several in the same ex-pat situation;
three are from Australia, one is from Mexico, and another from Ghana.
With a nod to my Southern roots 
we are having sloppy joes, baked beans and banana pudding.


  This is a pattern by Black Sheep Wool that I hooked
many years ago- it's my most motherly image!

And here are my own Sweet Peas, all grown and just terrific.

A loving shout out to my own mother who so splendidly gave and gives her best.
XXXXOOOOO
I think back over the years to women who didn’t have children of their own but who mothered
me when my mom couldn’t be there! 
Thank you for your mothering gifts.
They were priceless in my formation and they continue to be.
 My heart overflows today.