It's fire pit time.

I've been looking at old pictures, reminiscing about our summer fires...one of our most enjoyable past times during the warm evenings of July and August. Those nights call for a blazing fire, a soft guitar and smores. There's even an outdoor movie now and then. We acquired our copper fire pit about 10 years ago when hubby gave it to me as a birthday gift. It owns a lot of dents now, and the shiny copper color is no longer, but it still serves us well each and every summer. The nice thing about a portable fire pit is just that...it's portable. We can have a fire wherever we want. Every August, on the evening after the road race, we move the fire pit out to the big area in front of the house where we have lots of room for lots of people. It's always the perfect ending to a perfect day.

The Falmouth road race now draws over 10,000 runners each year. We usually have eight or nine running from our group of family and friends. When the race is over, we all celebrate for the rest of the day with great food, music and a lot of laughter. As much fun as the day is, everyone really looks forward to the evening when we all sit around a beautiful fire with the little ones toasting marshmallows for smores. There's quite a bit of talent in our group. A good fire inevitably brings out the guitars and and a song fest ensues. This year's road race is only two weeks away. I'd better get busy.
Even though I've been bad, bad, bad about sewing aprons, do check out my etsy shop at apronsgonewild.etsy.com
I've got two new ones that will be posted this week.

No complainin' today.


We've had a good stretch of sunny weather. I almost welcome the rain this morning. I won't have to water the flowers. Our Queen Victoria's plume, pictured here, is moist and full on this dewy day.

Not much to report since last time. I'm still a bum in the sewing department. My etsy customers must think I've abandoned my shop. It's just not the right environment around here in the summertime, to haul out all my fabrics and trims, etc. in order to cut and sew some new items. I need quiet time to be creative. I dragged everything out one day last week and before I got to even sew a seam, daughter Joanne called about going to the beach and that was the end of it. Hard to stay indoors and sew while the sun is shining and the beach is calling. Of course....off I went, leaving the scissors and thread and sewing machine abandoned.
We lost a dear friend this past weekend. She was 89 so those who came to honor her life essentially were a gathering of friends who hadn't seen each other for a long time. It was actually fun to catch up. Just the kind of environment that Isabelle loved herself. Going back to Connecticut is always like a reunion of sorts for us. It's where we spent the big chunk of our lives when we raised our four children, so there are a lot of attachments and reminders.

I am sitting here this gray, drizzly morning writing this, listening to the fog horn. Not sure why I love the sound because it inevitably means no sunshine! But, it keeps me focused and reminds me of how close the water's edge is. Being near the water is something I never take for granted. It's like nourishment to me. When I don't have it, I feel starved. I remember the three years we spent living near Chicago when hubby transferred for his job. I felt as if I'd been dropped in a hole. The neighborhood where we lived had a community swimming pool but it was always crowded and noisy. The nearest thing to water for me was Lake Michigan. It's so enormous that it almost comes close to feeling like the ocean, but not quite. We bought a small sail boat and trucked it to the big lake each and every weekend to get our "fix," so to speak. But, I never quite felt right. The droning sound of that fog horn on mornings like this certifies that I am truly home now. And home this time, is in a truly spectacular place. Sooner or later, I'll get back to making aprons. In the meantime, check us out at http://www.apronsgonewild.etsy.com/

After several gorgeous summer days here...
we are back to the rain and drizzle. But...we did get in two days at the beach. Daughter Patti visited from Vermont with her three little ones, so we felt blessed by the warm sunshine and balmy breezes. A spectacular show of fireworks with a bird's eye view from the shore topped off our July 4th. Having young feet around is a trip. We never know what to expect next. When one is relaxed and wanting some quiet time, another one is wired and wants to play tag. I now know where the meaning of "never a dull moment" came from. Must have been someone with lots of young children. Of course, they are all so adorable you could eat them. The house will be quiet now for at least a few weeks. The teenagers don't make much noise. They are either working, facebooking, texting or sleeping. Oh...I forgot eating. They are always eating. But they are quite independent and don't ask for much. I try to maintain my "summer rules" about keeping their rooms in order. Sometimes they fail, but for the most part, they try to keep things reasonably neat.
I plan to get back to the sewing machine now that the house is quieter. I've been a complete failure since we got back from Florida. It just seems that there is always so much work to do on the house. Hard to find time to sew. My apron stock is sorely depleted. Meanwhile, the outside of the house trim, fences, decks, etc. all need painting. Hubby is limited this summer because of his back. However, his exercises are making him stronger and he's been able to do a lot more than he had anticipated.
I found two interesting "deals" recently. The Sheraton chair pictured here, I found on Craig's list for $30 while I was looking for sofa. The ladder back chair was at a yard sale for $5. It looks very old, partly because the seat is quite low. I've learned that the height of the seat is a good clue as to the vintage of a chair. People were shorter generations ago. Most of the furniture from the 1700s and 1800s is of a much smaller scale and height. Both chairs have very sound rushing on the seats. Replacing the seats in chairs of that age is costly and the major reason why people sell the chairs rather than fix them. For that reason, I felt fortunate to get them for next to nothing. The fact that they are black was an added bonus. I use a lot black in decorating our home because I find it is a grounding color that accentuates everything else.

I hope this will be the last post I write that doesn't feature a new apron. I'm determined to have something new added to my etsy shop to show you next time. Until then, check us out to see what we have at www.apronsgonewild.etsy.com