Oops time has flown by AGAIN!

I'm sorry for being MIA for so long but life has gotten in the way and working etc, blah, blah, blah!
But please don't think that I've forgotten about any one. I have been knitting, quilting, crocheting painting, you name it its been happening. Oh and then there is that bad four letter word called "work".
Don't get me wrong I love my job, but it tends to get in the way of my not-so retired life!

My newest excitement came a few weeks ago when I got it into my head to chalk paint an old chair of  my aunt's. My mother will probably have a canary when she sees it but I do love it and it is going to go in my daughters home beautifully. Granted it took me a few weeks of humming and hah-ing to decided if it was worth the risk, but after going through many Pinterest pins, I didn't think I had anything to loose.



This is the "before" chair, not bad but definitely
not something a modern woman
would want to have.

 

This is the "after" version of the same said chair.
Quite the transformation I think and still very comfortable.

I'm sure many of you have used chalk paint in some form or another, the one I used was FAT paint. I'm not sure if its available elsewhere but it is in Canada. The grey color I made my own version of chalk paint, latex paint, Plaster of Paris and water. There might be a difference in quality, but by looking at the two, I will dare to say I couldn't really see or feel the difference. So after three coats of paint to cover the floral fabric, a light sanding in-between and a coating of wax over all the fabric. I believe it was a success.

Recently, I found a "pin" about an Annie Sloan paint being used on an old chaise, and they too say it has given new life into the piece of furniture. So I say, give it a try, nothing ventured nothing gained.

Well December is just around the corner and its time to "deck the halls" in preparation for the holidays. I will have 2/3 children home for Christmas, and this year thankfully my son and his girlfriend will be joining us. No deployment this year, thank you Lord! Take care and have a good weekend! Ciao!

 

 

 

Well its about time................

I got off my tush and updated my blog, sometimes life just gets away on you and before you know it days and weeks have gone by......so that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Since the last up date, I've gone to two wedding, a celebration of life and a visit from my cousins, and sister-in-law, not to mention having our daughter home and working more days than I care for. The one main concern is my recovery from my fractured foot, that seems to be slowing me down. I have tried a few times and its not bad but not a 100% either.....so my patience is wearing thin!

I won't bore you with all the little projects of late but I am excited to have made a few pickles! Its been years since I have tried making dill pickles, since the last time I tried and ruined many jars but these have turned out delish!

 

Dill Pickles

Pickles Beets

Veggies from the Bountiful Garden
 

Spaghetti, zucchini, acorn, all have grown randomly in the garden, not sure where they came from rogue seeds from last year we think or a mix up in the seed packets! The scarlet runner beans are reaching the clouds so its time to pick them and start freezing them.......a hummingbirds dream with all the flowers.

That's my domestic side in the kitchen......then there's my home renovator side that has decided to tackle our kitchen cupboards. When we first moved into this house, I loved the dark cupboards but over the last few years, I've come to realize that the kitchen is too dark as it is and it was time to paint out some of the darkness. Sooooooo....... with a little help from a painter I know........

 

 

 

 

 

So now that I've started this endeavor I'm thinking I may go further with them. I like the dark on the bottom half but.......well the verdict is still out......so I will leave them for a bit. Besides my painter is away for a while.

 

I have so many projects that need my attention, I don't think my brain can function at that magnitude! so I need to prioritize and decide which one is more important and I'm guessing my master bedroom closet is next....before the poles snap in half and everything ends up in a heap on the floor!

 

So as summer comes to an end in a few weeks, harvesting, putting the beds to sleep, and general clean up is in order.......summer just ends too soon......the smell of autumn is in the air.  Back to school for some and the changing of season and back to scarves and boots........now that I'm looking forward too. A DSW visit is coming in the near future! Well gotta run and get this show on the road. I will try to get back here soon. Hope your days are filled with joy and happiness and lots of crafting ideas!

 

 

 

 

 

Pedal and Paddles Adventure Sports

Kayaking was great yesterday. The water was calm, the sun was hot........and of course the sights were amazing!

 

 

 

 

The jellyfish were blooming so they were every where! We saw only one starfish which was really disappointing :((( oh well maybe next time....So now we are on the look out for a couple of kayaks.....

 

 

The Hubs sort of enjoyed himself but not being really a water person he stayed close to shore and admired the million dollar homes that are built along the inlet, I think if his shoulder wasn't paining him paddling would have been easier. But he was a good sport and let Kait and I explore and take off to the other-side of the inlet in search of starfish.

Well that was my Canada Day! Hope your day went well now its back to reality, house cleaning, laundry, groceries......and hopefully a few hours in my studio to finish of "The Race"

Have an awesome day! Be safe, and don't forget the sunscreen! Ciao!

Happy Canada Day 2014!

That's right it July 1st, 2014 and Canada Day! A beautiful sunny day and perfect for kayaking on the ocean! Yeah!

Well I for one and glad its a sunny day and we are able to get out and so something fun today! Its also the 14th anniversary since my dad passed away and went on to another journey. Miss you Dad everyday.........

On the weekend I finally got the opportunity to go and visit one of my favourite artists on the coast here.......I've admired his work since I moved here and one day I hope to take some classes from him.

Todd Clark

If you get a chance and you are into abstract art, give him a Google and check out his works........he is self taught and down to earth and loves to share his ideas and inspirations. When I first saw one of his paintings it was in a coffee shop, it amazed me what paint can really do.......its a good thing I work in a paint store! The access to colors has been amazing!

This is one of his works and its called Canada's Hottest. The colors are beautiful as are the combinations. The Hubs is still shaking his head that someone would pay $3000 for a painting!

When we were there on Saturday, at the time the farm was alive with Peacocks, apparently they just roam around his property freely and that's crazy with cougars and predators lurking in the bushes......he said they had lost a few over the years but basically they just hang around.

This male has the longest tail, when he fans it out apparently
its like 8 feet high!

What a beautiful bird. This guy was king because he has the biggest plume.

I loved the color of these birds and their heads, so brilliant!

This afternoon we are heading out for a two hour paddle to this place, Sechelt Inlet,  and its just gorgeous! Second time for Kait and I, the first time for the Hubs, I'm bringing us a lunch to have along the way.......these are some of the views.......

I doubt that we will see any whales but they have been known to enter the inlet, but I am sure we will spot an eagle or two.

So those are our plans for the day, I hope you have a great Canada Day! where ever you may be, and you are also proud of your country as I am of ours. Take care and have a wonderful day!

28 years......................

The Hubs and I celebrated our 28th anniversary yesterday, hard to believe so many years have gone by, three children, four houses, three moves, 2 career changes, multitudes of animals, amazing to think about really......but its a good thing. In this day and age, 28 years is probably an anomaly to still be married, although, a few of my friends have my friends have surpassed us and a few have recently become widows but that's not a nice place to visit.

 I came home from work on Friday feeling worn out and tired from limping around all day and to my surprise there was a gorgeous bouquet of 28 roses awaiting my arrival along with two bottles of wine! What a great guy he is! He know certainly knows how to make me happy! Then we went for dinner on Friday night with our daughter and Saturday out with a couple of friends for dinner again! I am spoiled for sure.......thank you my dear for going the distance!

I had a fairly productive week considering my state of impairment, but I am not one to let things keep me down when I want something done. I figure it only makes you stronger when you have to overcome obstacles in your life........

 

 

I've been wanting to make a pond in the front yard but the Hubs seems reluctant to dig up six feet square of turf to help me put one in...... so my next idea was a water fountain feature by the front door. Rather a simple solution for the time being and fairly easy to accomplish with a broken foot. I love the water lettuce floating around,  a really cool plant, and so many choices but only so much room.......I'm still working on the pond idea.........I'm pretty positive Steve would love to have a few fish to watch swim around.......oh and think of the plants I could experiment with! Cross your fingers maybe next year........its all part of my plan to eliminate grass and mowing!

The other list of to do's was to paint out my island. You didn't know I owned an island?  Well I do and it needed painting.........

It looks so much better white than dark brown, now I am going to get the top cabinets painted by one of our contractors and I really think it will change the whole look of the kitchen, not to mention brighten it up in the gray days of winter.

I'm not doing much knitting or crocheting these days, as there is a certain little kitten, namely Stella Blue who thinks it is part of her enjoyment to grab at the needles and hooks and drag yarn away.......silly little baby.......so instead, I have been painting in my studio and trying a few new things and I am quite taken with my quirky new friend "Pelican Pete"

 

 

My studio has taken a beating lately and I seriously need to get in there and spend a week organizing and rearranging its contents.......how these things get away on my I do not know........maybe this week........with a little help from my friends I can make things right.......

......................Well time to shuffle off and get ready for my day, I need to go check in with the group and see how their run went today, and enjoy a cup of coffee, then get back here and start the process.......enjoy your weekend what's left of it, hope all is well you and I may just check in tomorrow with an update, and hopefully some progress! Ciao for now my amiga's and amigo's!

Taking a break........

Because I have so many things going on and probably you don't need to hear about all of it, and I wouldn't want you to get bored.......between working all last week, fracturing my right (left one was last summer %^$$%^%#)I know STUPID.......any whooooo, I have been painting and doing a few projects.

Our middle child has moved to the coast, so for now we are no longer empty nesters, we are a three people, three feline household......the Hubs doesn't know if the house is big enough, well dear, we did have 5 people, 3 cats and 2 dogs in a much smaller space at one time, so I think we can manage! Geez Louise!

I've bought material that I have intended to make a pillow with doing a quilt version for assembling the pieces, another thing that got put on the back burner.....new yarn for a shawl, and sweater......, a few canvases with some art ideas brewing in my brain.....books that are calling my name, and now that I won't be running for 8 weeks I will be able to catch up on my sit-down projects.

I had seen these giant dragonflies on Pinterest, so my co-worker Jason and I built a few, mine I wanted for the front yard to hang on the fence.

Giant Purple Dragonfly

I have another one in the works and hope to have it airborne this weekend. My brain works too much, and being a one legged hop-a-long right now is not helping the cause!!!

I'm reading the best book right now by Janie Chang, Three Souls......

its one of those books you don't want to put it down or to end, but I'm almost there so I can move on to my next one The Fire Witness by Lars Kepler....

I've been reading out of my "norm" lately and I have to say there are a lot of really great writers out there......its good to explore new avenues some times.

So funny the other day a customer came into the store who used to be an art teacher so of course I struck up many topics about art and composition etc, etc, and now that he is retired he is starting to dabble in hobbies that he didn't have time for before......and he is into photography and excited about his new find a Canon AE that he picked up for a song with all the lenses......he told me I should give it a try, nope been there done that......I'm loving the automatic digital cameras, less strain on my brain and then there is Lightroom and Photoshop, well the possibilities are endless for great photos with the click of a mouse....... I know "real" photographers are cringing but you can't tell me they aren't loving new technology!

Anyway, painting is my thing right now, that is an adventure into my quirky brain indeed, indeed!

Well that's it, that's' all for now......so if you don't see me around again for a few weeks, no worries I'm out there re-inventing myself! Ciao for now, have a fantastic weekend.

Marathon of Gardening

Well the sun seems to be showing its face a lot more often now and since I had so many projects to get done. Sunday was a perfect day to go the distance and garden till I dropped. The Hubs is doing a marathon of his own but not by choice! Work has become a nightmare of sorts and when he finally gets a day off, the last thing he needs to do is spend all day mowing lawns........the veggie garden needs planting and that's suppose to be his "thing"!

So on Sunday I got busy after my morning run, I started mowing lawns.........7 and half hours later...............OMG! The yard looks amazing! If I do say so myself! The boat is planted, the planters are done, the gate was painted, weed whacking was done......phew!!!!!!
What an amazing day! It was hard to believe I hadn't collasped in the yard at some point, but it was all good. I let Stella crawl around the yard exploring and Steve was a great big brother and kept an eye on her......she was so excited to get out side.

Miss Stella Blue

I painted the gate (just one coat) but I think it works

I would like to stain the whole fence white, but in this climate it wouldn't be practical......and seriously..... as crazy obsessive as I am, I'm not touching that project, but I will power wash it and spruce it up...........when the Hubs shows me how to use the "new" fancy power washer. And of course I will use Benjamin Moore's Arborcoat Wood Cleaner and get it to look like nice greyed cedar.

Hanging baskets on fence

Planted boat

 

New tree, Weeping Laburnum, its so pretty!

Pink Rhodos

Purple Rhodos

Beautiful Lemon Yellow Rhodo

So I'm feeling good about the yard, and I know the Hubs appreciates some of the pressure is off of him. I think I would like a full load of cement delivered soon thou! When I win the lottery paving stones, gravel paths are going to replace some of this golf course! WAY to much GRASS!!!!!! And grow? Crikey! Slow down already!

Well today is my Mom's 88th birthday, so I am going to go visit her and take her to lunch. Then a trip to the beach this afternoon to find some driftwood........I hope you have a stellar day! Time to get this show on the road. No running today, we did an hour and 45 yesterday, so today its weights.......give the ol' feet a rest!

Have a great day!

Head Spinning!

I am in serious need of an intervention........so many ideas, so little time.............is sleep really important? I mean really sometime it is such a waste of valuable time, think of all the crafting that could be done with no interruptions at 2 in the morning! I'm seriously considering sleeping less and doing more in the night! Do you think the neighbors would mind a drill going in the night or a staple gun?

We have been doing some serious gardening, I have pots to plants, a new addition to the garden to plant up!

Boat needs a name.......

The Hubs bought this little boat last year when he wanted to go out crabbing but it was too small for two people and all the traps.......but its a beautiful little cedar boat, so instead of it just sitting neglected in the yard, I re-purposed it into a perennial planter. How cute will this be! It weighed a ton before and now that it has 2/3's of a yard of soil in it, this boat will not be going anywhere, anytime soon!
I have been meaning to post a few photos of the new flower beds for my friends, so here they are......just a few!

 

The horse chestnut tree in this photo needs to come  down.

 

But in the last few days when I haven't been running and seeking plants and flowers.......I want to address this gate......

I think I want to paint the gate and add some art to it. If you go searching for gate designs your head will "spin"! I mean seriously, I wish I could weld! Some of the iron gates out there are phenomenal! Even the wood ones blow my mind.......and if you know me I think I can accomplish something similar!

 

 

So you can see why my head is spinning! Omgoodness! So many ideas! So after I go to the dentist, get some groceries, buy some flowers, and get back home, I have a busy afternoon ahead......no running today, 30km under my new shoes this week, so a little rest for today.
                       Have a great day! Its another sunny day!