perspective

We had some wonderful time with Sweet B. I took her and pepe to the hike my friend and I did the week before and they loved it. 

She is growing like a weed!!

We gathered some acorns and bits, voila!!

We have acorn people!

She thought up the people, I ran the hot glue gun. She was thrilled, so was I.

We even made a little acorn dog! Her mom tried to do some with her and she said "It's ok Mom I can craft with Gramie you are good at other things." lol.

Then she wanted to try hooking. 

the hooking you see is mine, I had her try it on the project I was working on.

For the first time with a hook in her hand I thought she did great!

As you can see I am almost done with Daisy. I am going to try and finish up the couple of stair risers I have left to make before I start my new big rug.

Taking B home on the other side of the mountains. It almost doesn't look real but that is Mt Washington,  it was still getting snow this past week. 

I read,but I go in spurts, I will read a lot and then I will not read for a couple of months. I love this author she is a lot like Agatha Christie.

At the end Inspector Gamache solves a case in a very tucked away  resort. It sits in the woods on a beautiful lake and he says. "Is this place heaven or is this hell?" To Gamache it is heaven, but to his right hand man it is pure hell. He hated the bugs and how far out it was he couldn't wait to get back to the city. 

 

So I started thinking about this house, our home. 

When we first moved here the house was still in construction phase. I moved away from my family and friends. I didn't know a soul. I cried when I filled out the emergency form for my daughter's school I had no one other than us to ask to be a contact. I was lonely. Then the first thunder storm we had the house got hit! If someone had said here is $10.00 for the house, I would have packed my underwear and headed back to Maine.

But now all these years later it is pure heaven for me. When we go back to see family I am over whelmed with the traffic and the people. When Covid hit I was even more thankful than ever, this place truly hugged us and kept us safe. We have been asked several times lately if we are interested in selling . The real estate market is red hot here,  No one has ever seen it like it is now. We are about 2 hours from the heart of Boston but worlds away in lifestyle and they all want it and I don't blame them.

Heaven and hell is all about prospective. 

***

Have a wonderful week in your own personal heaven.  

I Was Feeling All Superior When...

The May flowers are in bloom a bit early. They smell heavenly.

When I was little we use to pick them on May 1st put them in a little colored plastic basket and put it on the door knob of a neighbor and knock and run! I remember just waiting for our knock because sometimes there was candy in that basket too.

Last post I was telling you about my new hiking boots. Well my friend and I headed out to the 7 waterfalls. It was a clear beautiful morning just glorious!

It is on the property of the castle in the clouds (which I have posted about lots of times) an easy hike and more special with a friend.

I will spare you from having to look at all 7 but trust me it was beautiful! And my boots were great. I did have my old ones in my backpack but there was no need for them.

We have had every type of weather this week snow, below freezing temps with high winds, sunny and warm and in spite of it all the trees are budding and the tulips are blooming! This tree was decorated with yellow finches just waiting for me to fill the feeder.

Every work morning I work I drive by a Dunkin' Donuts and see a line of cars just waiting to get that cup of coffee. I have been brewing a pot every morning for years and taking a couple of cups in a thermos (that was given to us) to work. And every morning I say as I drive past "How crazy is that? A complete waste of money!" I was feeling very superior about it all and then..

I ordered a rug hooking pattern that would keep me in Dunkin Donuts coffee for a few months sigh.. that will teach me.

Like my husband says "It's all about what something is worth to you."

 

More on my new pattern later. I am working on Daisy. I had to pull all my flowers out, I hooked them in pink and it just did not stand out from my background so white it is!

I have told you before about Tubi a streaming station that is free.

They have some wonderful older movies. This week I watched the Ya-Ya Sisterhood. I also found Dark Shadows a creepy soap that was around when I was a kid, my mother did not let me watch it so I would go to a friends house everyday after school, her mother would let us watch it lol. 

***

This is school vacation week for Sweet B and my daughter, they decided to take her to Boston for an overnight and to the aquarium.

When they told her she said "Great I want to see Paul Revere's house!" Love that kid to the moon. But the best part is she is coming for an over night!! So excited!

*** 

Have a healthy happy week

April Snow

We are in a drought and need rain but our rain came in the form of snow. Pretty and it was melted by night, but I am ready to move on from snow at this time of year.

I am ready for dandelions to weave into crowns with Sweet B.

We spent the most of last weekend uncovering gardens and raking so we are ready!

I have worked on my rug. It is a quick hook, I am working on the last of the flag and the mane, then some background.

Usually we have projects every one of my days off to 

accomplish but today we decided to just do nothing. I did do laundry and change our bed, took a walk ,but other than that I didn't do much.

Tomorrow I am going on a much needed hike with my BFF.

 I got the compass out that my daughter got me for Christmas! Um directions galore yikes!

And I have new hiking boots that I haven't worn yet.

So for tonight no slippers just boots. I will put my old boots in my backpack in case I have any issues with these.

****

Have a healthy and happy week.

10,000 Steps

Unusually warm weather and the gardens are waking up.

Ice out was declared on Squam Lake this week, a few weeks early.

Since we had a mild winter and not much rain this spring we are in a drought all ready this year. 

My father-in-law's chives. He has been gone many years now but we continue to grown his chives.

I know this is a bad picture but this is why I do not clean up gardens before winter. The little birds snacked on the cone flower seeds all winter. 

I had some nervous energy so I washed windows and curtains today.

The house just seems fresher somehow.

I did finish the rug I was working on,just ok. the selvage is so large I will not bind it until I hook a stair riser on it.

I started another rug on monks cloth. I use to use monks cloth all the time and liked it, not sure why I changed as I am enjoying working on it again. 

I want to thank you for the prayers, thoughts, and emails.

Husband is home, his poor battered body, he has had much sickness in his life and this was scary, but he came out of it pretty good. 

We are both trying to take it one day at a time. 

I have started back walking, the stress was doing me in.

Today was the first day my phone beeped to tell me I reached 10,000

steps. So the journey of a thousand miles starts with the first step. I pray this is the first step to may more miles with him. We have been together since we were teens. 

****

Wishing you great health and peace.

Life

We were able to get Easter in between hospital stays for husband.

So if you have an extra prayer he could use it. 

(It is not covid)

It's Almost Like Old Times!

We have had a couple of foggy mornings. There is something beautiful about the fog as it rolls through the woods. It is quiet and peaceful. When we get up in the morning there is no TV, no radio, just quiet. I also rarely use any radio or music in my car, just me and my thoughts.  I have said this before but I think the world is noisy, you have to look for or make your own quiet. 

 Sat night the moon was just coming up over the trees.

We will not see the full moon tonight it has been raining pretty hard most of the day. Tomorrow high winds to dry it out with wet snow flakes coming by the week's end. Early spring in NH you never know what you will get. It was 60s this past week.

I have been trying to eat healthy so I dug out my egg coddle.  

Just spray it with some Pam, add an egg, put the cover on...

Microwave for 40 seconds, voila yummy egg with no fuss or muss.

It makes eating breakfast very easy.

I dug out some of my Easter decorations. (We are having Sweet B and family over night the night before Easter just like old times!!!!!) This really is a table of memories. The painting was painted by my daughter when she was 4, and the eggs were all colored over the years by sweet B. While it will not our usual Easter...

With the whole clan! but it is a start,just having Sweet B and family.

I am still working on the same rug. I think it is because I am not loving this rug but I refuse to give up.

***

I looked for new running shoes this week I went to 2 shoe stores, none in my size! So as a last resort we drove about 45 minutes south to the city. I finally found hiking boots and running shoes( that I walk in, I like the extra cushion) I like to buy local but they almost force you to order on line. ( am I not an Amazon person)

****

Have a wonderful and healthy week. 

 

Spring Fever

 

It's spring in NH and that means muddy dirt roads. This road runs behind us, I have shown lots of pictures over the years as I walk it a lot! We had a thaw and this road got so muddy in places that they just dumped rocks to keep it passable. When we first moved here 30 plus years ago they would shut this road down during this time. 

Then we had some winds and it helped to dry everything out a bit.

It is warm again here 60s which is wonderful for us and for the next 4 days we can expect that kind of weather. 

The sap is flowing!

And the brook is thawing out and running pretty fast. It sounds so lovely while I am walking. 

After my walk this morning I started cleaning again and changed the winter curtains in the living room to the summer ones. My husband walked in and said you know it is only March right? Yes we will still get cold weather and maybe a snow storm. But I am ready for warmer weather with the windows open!

I also decided the rug I was hooking needed a darker background and since I didn't have any(all to light or to dark) I decided to dye.

When I first learned to hook we went to a 1800's center chimney cape tucked at the foot of a beautiful mountain on a tiny dirt road all by it's self. Sorry the memories came flooding back sigh. She insisted we learn to dye. I used to roll my eyes and say I will never dye. She said "You will and be glad of it" If you can hear me in heaven Phyllis "You were right!" I am glad I have the basics at least.

The before is the whitish strip on the left and after is the right. Just right I think.

I made bread again last week and we had a few slices left. Not wanting to throw it I cut it up added some olive oil and some garlic powder and baked it. When I took it out of the oven, I grated some Parmesan cheese over it. They came out perfect crispy on the outside and soft inside. We had it in our tomato soup tonight, very good!

And because gardening is around the corner for us, I had been keeping my egg shells all winter and crushing them up. I use them around my tomato plants. The egg shells are sharp and the slugs etc will not crawl over it to get to my plants.

Last week I told you about visiting my 97 year old aunt. She has crochet as long as I ever remember. But she has had some health issues this past winter and her memory is not as good as it was. (she was so sharp until this health issue)

She has forgotten how to crochet, it makes me cry just writing this. 

And the worst part is she knows she forgot. She is fuzzy on some names in the family, but the minute I walked in she came over and hugged me and said she was so glad to see me. I have not seen her in a year, but stay in regular touch with her. I just know how much happiness it brought her and kept her hands and mind busy. I told my husband I wish she had forgotten me and remembered how to crochet because I can remember for the both of us and she would have something to keep her happy until her time comes. 

So she loaded me up with some of her past treasures and sent me home. I have many of her treasures in my home and now they are all the more dear to me.

On one of the facebook pages I follow this woman showed a birthday crown she made for her little girl's birthday.

oh my word how darling is this??

she used wool and needle felted the animals and flowers on.

I am in complete love with this! I think we all deserve a crown like this on our birthday! 

My daughter got a letter from school this week about Sweet B.

It was from a teacher's aid that holds the door in the morning at school so the kids to not have to touch it and she greets them.

She said that Sweet B was the sweetest kid in the school as she skips in every morning saying "Good morning, and Have a great day!!"

She said what a great job my daughter and son in law have done. While yes they have but I think it is mostly Sweet B's personality showing through. Love that kid to the moon!

***

Have a healthy and happy week!