Pumpkin Sunrise

  Around here I've been watching Spring do its thing. The trees are super leafy green, my walks are intoxicating with beauty. All those pesky rainy days seemed to have rewarded us with sunny pleasant weather. More rain is coming but I'm ignoring that for now. This week I witnessed my first hummingbird of the year at the feeder. So sweet!  Around here, my husband and I have been enjoying seeing what blossoms on this property. Mystery flowers and sometimes plants we are familiar with from our old house. I sometimes still miss living in a rural area but I'm slowly getting used to living outside of a big city.  Around here my creativity is overflowing with many ideas. I can't keep up with them all so I jot them down so I don't forget them. Maybe I need to start a nature journal? Do you have one?  Around here I am enjoying all of my knitting projects.  

  My husband and I went to McConnells Mill State Park  along with my sister and brother in law for some mild hiking and sightseeing earlier this week. Oh to be in nature and to feel at peace among the trees and water. I was hoping for some fall foliage photos but it's still to early (kind of late this year). I didn't feel disappointed though, we all enjoyed the day trip.  As I adjust to living outside of the Pittsburgh area, I sometimes miss the country rural life. Sometimes. I continue to acclimate to the relocation and we are glad we did this move. There are a multitude of positives that outweigh a heart tug to the rural life. Adjusting is adjusting, I am just being with it and I know I'll get used to the change eventually. I did lug around the BIG Nikon camera at the state park and took some great photos but I've yet to look at them on the computer. I'm so used to using my iPhone for snapping photos. Technology changes and so do photographing habits. Before I for

  Around here it looks like fall but it feels like summer. Those days are numbered and I'm patiently waiting for cool breezes and seeing my breath in the early morning moments and being cold, hopefully sooner than later. How are you?  I've been busy with....knitting! Yes I finally feel like my pre-moved self and have been sitting and knitting while listening to old podcasts (I am 1-2 months behind). When I am not knitting, I am reading also playing catchup to made my reading goals I set before I even knew I was going to move. I just might make the goal but it's okay if I do not make it. Some time this month the awning guy will arrive and take down and store my shaded patio area. My husband and I love to sit out here and eat lunch. Frodo loves to sit and watch the dog walkers on the road (and bark at them) or be dazzled by the family of chipmunks that pop up in one hole run right in front of him to disappear in another hole. I can't tell what he is thinking - he watches,

  How was your Thanksgiving (for those of you in the USA)? I had a lovely Thanksgiving. It was just the two of us and I enjoyed the non-traveling and the cosiness of being home. I missed the kids and I missed my family. I had phone calls and zoom meetings and that bridge the gap of being together.  I've decorated my house earlier this year because I can. It's our third year with the 'smaller' tree because of Miss Holly the Cat and her inquisitiveness. So far she has not tried to climb into the tree. We have the tree bungee corded to the wall just in case. I'm one step ahead of her, or so I would like to think so. Because I can, I am choosing to focus on creativity and mindfulness. Each morning I set an intention and think of what I want my day to be like. Sometimes I follow those intentions and sometimes I forget those intentions. The beauty of each morning consists of a brand new slated day - the newness and openness is a treasure. Because I can, I repeatedly list

  Good morning! How has your week been? Overall my week has been a good week. I've been thoroughly enjoying watching the leaves change color around my neighborhood. The oak trees are starting to do their leaf dump, in the next week or so the oak trees will be finished. Autumn goes much too quickly for me! All of the holiday plans in the next coming months are completely undone and I keep trying to think of ways to gather without gathering. Can a fire pit keep you warm outside for socializing in late fall early winter? I don't know. Also if it's raining sleeting or snowing that makes it a little nuts to be outside. If you have any suggestions let me know! always a sunrise photo neighborhood sign I saw my kidney doctor yesterday and she said 'you are too healthy to be in my clinic'. So I'm discharged!  That was quite exciting. I was so upset when I was referred to her back in February, but now I will miss her, she is a kind, patient and caring doctor. I'm in t

  How's your week been?  Mine was somewhat busy and a little bit stressful. I decided to bundle a lot of my errands and tasks on Wednesday just so I could cross off a huge list, instead of every single day having a dribbling effect of going somewhere or doing something. So my Wednesday was full but I was quite productive. We've been going on daily walks, where I soak up the autumnal changes, I'm afraid I'll blink and the colors will be completely over. The maple trees are in peak colors right now and the oak trees are starting to drop leaves. There's a mini warm up predicted for the weekend and then hopefully we are back to light jacket wearing. I've got some plans in my head for some aimless car rides on back roads in the next few weeks.  Frodo continues to act like himself and chases Holly whenever he gets a chance. It's nice to not be worrying about him as much as I was over last weekend. My husband and I have been watching all the Marvel movies in the or

  October!!!  I made it to the best of the first months of glorious brilliant fall foliage, cool breezes and the quietening of summer.  Phew.  Now the question I ponder upon is how do I savor this blessed month? I already keep a journal and I take photos.  I document so much of my days in more than one notebook even though they seem mundane and nothing changes day in day out. I guess I will try my very best to be mindful and in the moment.  This is a challenge since I'm thinking of the next thing I want to do or accomplish. Inktober started yesterday!  I do love pens and ink the best (besides watercoloring).  I'm eager to return to a daily sketching habit.  My husband mainly does pastels and is now dabbling in colored pencil.  Oh I am a wannabe when it comes to colored pencil and it just doesn't jive with me.  I like the permanence of ink and the sloppiness of watercolor.  I'm also not patient enough to layer colors like he is.   Thank you  Mary for a great book recom

  Guess what!  I finished the wedding shawl and it is blissfully blocking and drying in a spare bedroom.  The casting off took 3 hours. Phew! I don't know what your weather is like but we are saying good bye to cool breezes and hello summer weather once more. Hopefully it will be a brief breeze by hello. I do like the cooler weather, I might think better and my knitting productivity goes way way up. This week was kind of all over the place with scattered thoughts. I've had some minor stresses and that puts such a wrench in my day. Above all I chant 'this too shall pass' and realize that this moment is not going to be the ever lasting moment. In these times I find just allowing myself not be so focused on productivity and trying and to be content with whatever I am doing while I'm doing it. If I'm cooking or making dinner, I try to be present in that moment.  I'm not sure why but just allowing a day to be non-productive is productive!  I feel renewed. I love

  Good morning! How are you doing? Did you have a good week? Sometimes these days seem the same day in and day out. I like it over all and find it soothing. My week was pretty good, the maple trees are slowly dropping leaves and even though it might be summery temps it feels like early fall. Today is supposed to be cooler and I'm all in for that. Yesterday I made chocolate chip cookies and zucchini bread (two loaves). The aroma was delightful and I couldn't wait to take a bite of one of those cookies. They might be my favorite cookie. Since his retirement we have settled into a routine of sorts. I'm still getting used to him being here everyday for lunch and the 'noise' he creates with the tv on. I sit in silence all day long! However, if he puts on Mystery Science Theater I am all in for the distraction. I giggle a lot. My journaling goals are going quite well. The only task I am unable to incorporate as a daily task is sketching and drawing. There is next week so

Oh September thank goodness you are finally here.  September hasn't been one of my favorite months because it tends to be hot and summery.  However, September leads to October and I am all for that month!  There were a couple of cool mornings this past week with low humidity that hinted of fantastic weather to come.  Yesterday the humidity was back and I hid inside the house doing my crafts. My September goals are quite minimalistic.  I want to read, knit, work on my artistic skills and journal.  For quite some time I was reading a lot in June and July but August was not a reading month.  I don't have a reason but I can reset and focus.  I want my sketching and watercoloring to improve and the only way that can happen is to do it more than once a week.  Do you get into ruts?  You know, the kind that you do everything else but what you really want to do.  I'm not sure why I sabotage my own goals.   My journalling and keeping track of what is important is helping immensely.  

This week the weather has decided to give me a much needed break.  I've been enjoying low humidity and mild temperatures that have been rare most of the summer.  I know this reprieve will end soon.  I've noticed some leaves falling, dare I hope that it is an early sign of fall?  I'd like to believe so. This week I've been seeking peace and calmness in my days.  I love when I have a string of easy days where nothing is pressing on my mind, oh to bottle up that contentment! Then of course there are those days when everything is on my mind, I magnify their importance and maybe just maybe I am magnifying in error.  How lucky that every single morning is a personal reset to focus on what matters. This is why mornings are the sacred time of the day for me. This week my husband has put up netting to save the kale and the cabbage from cabbage worms.  It's a battle.  He'll be retiring next Friday and the duties and tasks are in multitudes until that day arrives.  The gar