ANOTHER SET BACK

It's been a hard week, we started out with a bad reaction to meds, then getting a new one.  It is so hard to get in touch with the doctor's!  Anyway, here are the green beans I planted--

all growing nicely.T

The radishes are growing quickly

 and I am anticipating a good crunch soon!

The summer squash are off to a good start 

though it will be a longer wait for these to be ready!

And I did pick the last of the carrots!  I sure did enjoy them!

I have an appointment for an MRI and then a CT scan today. 

 Lots of fun ahead.  It's a good thing I excel at just laying down.

 

On the Ball

 Lena has developed a manic need to be brushed.  Often.  Every time we move, it must be to go to this table (who is the dummy that started brushing her here?!) to brush her!

So when I put the bowling ball here, she was not happy-it was right on her place!

And I had a brush in my hand, but it wasn't HER brush.  

Anyway, I have had these bowling balls in my flower beds in our last home (NY-13+ years ago)

and now in FL and they certainly needed a bit of spiffing up!

 I couldn't believe the acrylic paint lasted so long!

This time, I am going to make them all blue with a sparkle finish-just like the fancy bowling balls!

And they will be in the newly renovated gardens in front of the house!

Yup, they will be very pretty against the terracotta of the wood chips!

Only a few more coats to go!

(I did brush Lena-on the floor so any hairs didn't stick to the wet paint--between coats!

Progress Abounds

 Our Loofah is blooming and

 fruiting!  These are ready to peel and dry out for use!  Cool, huh?

 Bill has brought in his big trailer and is loading it up for the big yard sale on Saturday!  Wait until you see how full this trailer will be....

 I finished the Georgia Clay socks!  This was Knitpicks Hawthorne yarn in Sunnyside colorway.
I put a little zig-zag up the leg.  I have something else besides socks on the needles now-

a shawl for Marsel from her sale yarn!   It is moving quickly, I will add lace to the border when I get about 2/3 done with the skein.  We will see how it works out with this shiny, boucle yarn!

 I have also been busy in the sewing room.   I loaded the belated birthday table runner on the frame.

 I used this for a pantograph and got it done in an hour.

 Then I cut out the backing and batting for this little quilt.  If you have never tried this method for cutting your backing and batting, I suggest you give it a try.   You just fold the quilt top in half and in half-neatly and evenly, fold your backing the same way and just layer it under the top with the long fold on the same side-in this case all folds are on the left.  Lay the batting under the top two layers and trim it to match the backing.  I always cut the backing and batting several inches larger on both top and bottom areas.

 This method of cutting out the layers works whether you are putting the quilt on a frame or pin basting it next for domestic machine quilting.  It is accurate and not a misery every time!

 When I have slivers of batting, I use it to give all my machines a dusting and then last, I wipe my quilting machine rails to get the crud out of there!  Good job done!

 I have another quilt from Millie!  See, I really use this folding method for every quilt I do.  Floor time is not easy for me any more so I can do most of this folding in the air and only spend a few minutes cutting on the floor!  Phew!

 I will load Millie's quilt on after I get this one done!   I am on a roll.   It feels good to get these small quilts done and off the shelf!  I hope to have this done tomorrow...

 I tried a free pattern for this little hat.   I normally shy away from chunky yarn-this is why.

 It is cute, yes, but I do not like thick yarn.  I didn't like knitting it, I don't like the big needles, and I am not thrilled with the results.

But-I have enough yarn to make another one and I am going to do it-then the skein will be gone and so will this project!

Seeing Red

 So many of my red flowers are in bloom!   I rarely wear red myself, but I do love it best in the garden!

 Turk's Cap Hibiscus

 Bromeliads

Fancy Hibiscus

 Tricolor Ginger is mostly white and green on top but......

 the underside of every leaf is scarlet!  Stunning!

Red Ginger

Do you have anything red in your garden right now?

Sharing a Day Trip

 We loaded up and took a drive to Washington Oaks State Park today.   Will slept the whole ride there so he was raring to go when we got out of the truck!  Most of my pictures on the playground are just a blur-he is that fast!

 He was in this swing for half an hour-singing and looking and enjoying!  David kept him company for most of the time!

 When we were done with lunch we took a hike to the fishing grounds.

 He did pause in his running long enough to watch.  (The water drops off quickly here in the Intercoastal Waterway so we kept a short leash on Will!)

 Abigail found a hermit crab!

 This has captured the essence of my husband.  We often say David was cloned from Bill.......

 ...you can see what we mean.

Well, yes, you can see it here, too!

 Here David is getting some instruction for watching the tip of the pole to check for a bite. (They had nibbles but no fish during their 2 hours.)

 We left them to continue our walk-Will, walk!!!!

 First stop was the rose garden!  It is a very large circle with paths.  We had visual and olfactory delights on every curve!

 This was my favorite!

 Will walked the paths and the curbs....

 He couldn't escape since it is completely wall in.....the sign says to keep out deer but we appreciated the extra help in corralling this guy!

 He did give a worried call when he couldn't see us!  Loved it!

 He also liked smelling every one!

 Yay, freedom!

 This pic is for my Mom-see how the caladium has grown and the hair has grown! lol

 The koi fish gave some passing interest.

 I loved the whole relaxation of the cool walk under all the foliage-we were almost the only ones there so it was quiet and restorative here.

 We even managed a selfie shot with my camera in the gazebo!

 Butterflies were cavorting-inviting us to follow right down the garden paths.....

 This is for anyone still feeling the need for a greenery fix!

 Yes, the ride home was a good nap time, too.

And waking up to pizza when we were home was just right!