Thank you and another dream

Good morning everyone ~ Again I want to say thank you to all who visit. To those who leave comments thank you for doing so.  They are encouraging and I appreciate your taking the time to leave them.

The hardest work of doing the patio is the heaviness of the stones.  We had the stones laying so we could see them while working, and one time I brought a stone over to the area we were working on, and it wasn’t the right one, and DH said, “You’ve got to pick the right stone.” That cracked me up.  To read a wonderfully hilarious story about that go to Karen’s wonderful blog Quarry Garden and read it here.  DH and I both enjoyed that post. Karen has a wonderful gift of writing and I always enjoy reading about her life with Carl there at Quarry Gardens.  They are an inspiration.

As to getting the stones to be the same level on the top, we just keep smoothing more dirt under until they feel and look right.  I look forward to having this project done, so that I can just get back to gardening.  We sold the junker car the 3rd of October, so we’ve really done quite a bit since then in spite of rain. I am really loving this area a lot.  It is perfect for the Gypsy caravan.

Right before waking up this morning (old time so that I woke up at 5 instead of 6 like my body was telling me it was), I dreamed about visiting some boutique/gift shops that took consignments or you could have a little space of your own. It was kind of neat, and when I woke up I came out here and started working on a project that I’ve not touched in a few days.

I love to create, but am not crazy about the selling end. It was ok when we had our own shop many, many years ago, but the idea of becoming another seller among thousands on Etsy, hoping that you will be noticed and someone will buy, is rather daunting and discouraging.  I’m a timid sort anyway, and am not one to put myself out there, so I procrastinate. I’ve drawers and containers filled with pieces I’ve created.  My wish, prayer, hope is that some boutique/gift shop owner would like and buy my work and then I wouldn’t have to worry about selling it to individuals. Creating is such a joy, selling is a drag. At least that’s how I feel right now.

Anyway, I’m going to ‘try’ to not stress over the whole thing and just keep creating, in between gardening, homecaring and work.  Creating is a part of who I am.

I’m playing/creating/experimenting with this piece, using two kinds of needlework I love doing, crochet and embroidery. I’ve lots to learn and enjoy as I go.

Here’s how my workspace looks this morning.

Here’s the piece.  You can see embroidered and beaded sachets, waiting to be stitched together and stuffed with lavender. I’ve about a dozen or so of these to finish up.

I don’t have a plan I just go with the flow.  I love hearts and flowers.

I found a wonderful book at the library this week which I need to get for myself.

It is ‘the Beaded Edge’. Crocheting and beading.  Wow! Can be found here.

That’s it for now.  I need to get away from the computer for awhile, fix some breakfast, wash dishes, fold and put away laundry, then we have errands to run.

FlowerLady

***

This is the day which the LORD hath made;

we will rejoice and be glad in it.

Psalms 118:24

***

For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food, for love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.

For flowers that bloom about our feet;
For tender grass, so fresh, so sweet;
For song of bird, and hum of bee;
For all things fair we hear or see,
Father in heaven, we thank Thee!

Ralph Waldo Emerson

***

Blooms and projects

Good evening Folks ~ It is 7:14 eastern standard time, and I am feeling ready to head off to bed, because that’s what I usually do about now, only the time changed, so I’ve got to try to stay up longer.  We even got up earlier than we normally did, before 5, so we are totally messed up.  We ought to sleep really well tonight because of that, and because of the work we did today.

I wanted to work on the caravan patio area by the clothesline, DH wanted to do drywall ceiling in the caravan, and we would need each other’s help.  Dealing with drywall overhead is a real pain, but we did it, and have two more pieces to put up and the ceiling will be done with that part.  DH wants to put drywall on the top part of the walls inside, and paneling on the bottom half.  Remember we are recycling here, so some of what we are using is not pristine. It gets the job done though, we are using things up and once painted no one will know the difference.

We have a 5 gal. bucket of stain blocker/primer sealer that we got for free, that we will paint all the interior with before painting.  Then we have about a gal. and a half of gloss white wall paint that we have left over from when we did work on the kitchen a few years back that we will paint the walls with. We have two neat lights for the ceiling that DH bought this week at HD and they should give off plenty of light, the space is only approximately 6’x8’.  We had the back window open today, no door on the front yet, so there was a nice breeze blowing through.  It was around 80 degrees and humid so we were sweating, although, not as bad as in the summer.

Below are pictures of the patio area before and after.  I’ve still more work to do on laying what we have left, and we need to find more to fill in, but my body was aching and I was starting to trip over my own feet, so it was time to quit for the day. This patio is made with a load of broken pieces we picked up curbside one morning on our way to do our errands.  This is a mosaic patio, and the crack areas will be filled with with small rocks that we have left over from when we redid our drain fields for the septic tank.

Now for the blooms.  The next 3 photos are of 4 o’clocks.

Louis Philippe or Cracker Rose.

Colors in the shed garden, porterweed, philippine violet, 4 o’clocks.

Same flowers as above with the addition of Louis Philippe roses.

Where’s the path?

Blue pea vine.

When I saw the shadow on the wall I had to take a picture.

Tomorrow is errand day, and I’m to hear from my boss as to what I’ll be working this week and it could be a 5 day work week for me.  That’s why I wanted to work on the patio area this morning.  We’ve had a bit of rain this afternoon and earlier this evening, so that’s been nice for the gardens.

I hope you all have a nice week.  Don’t forget to count your blessings.

FlowerLady

***

We die daily. 

Happy those who daily

come to life as well. 

George MacDonald

***

What a difference …

 

Thank you friends for your comments.

Blooms, etc.

Here it is another Wednesday. It has been sunshiny and breezy today. I washed and hung out a load of laundry, which is probably dry and ready for me to bring in. I was back there at the clothesline area earlier, thinking about the patio work that needs doing, and plants I want back there, when I spied Tork in the clothespin basket. What a hoot she is!

After coffee and before breakfast, I went out with camera in hand and although I took quite a few pictures, not all were post worthy.

This is Cape Honeysuckle. I have this color and a bright orange/red color.

Here we have a shabby Gulf Fritillary. I tried to get a zebra longwing this morning, but with the wind blowing he just wouldn’t stay still.

Next are blooms from one of my rooted cuttings of my climbing Maman cochet. I love this rose and it’s scent too.

I love these pretty salvias too.

That’s it from me. I think hormones are messing with me today, as I feel like bawling for no reason. You know how when your throat gets tight, and your cheeks feel strange and tears are threatening behind your eyelids? That’s me today. Tomorrow is another day and I’ll probably be back to my normal positive self. Down days make us appreciate the good days.

Enjoy the rest of your week. I’ll be working again the next three days.

***

Feelings are much like waves,

we can't stop them from coming

but we can choose which one to surf.

Jonatan Mårtensson

***

I’m going to head out back to take down the laundry,

feel the breezes and enjoy the scents and colors all around.