Father's Day

Several weeks ago we had a small gathering to celebrate LM and the wonderful father he is to his children. We all collaborated on a nice meal and used the new grille again. LOVELY!

First thing in the morning, LM and I walked out to the street corner in the front of the house to take photos and admire this spectacular weed, also known as mullein, which decided to seed itself and flourish for us this year. It is at least 6 ft tall and a site to behold. I love wild things!
Speaking of things I love, this little darling came to visit in the morning that day, too, and he was immediately captivated by our solar cats we have placed in the garden (they do light beautifully at night)
After some fun in the garden and playtime with Legos, we took a little walk next door to visit the geese family and look at their beautiful flower garden. Later in the season, there will be lovely cut flowers for sale. There was lots of honking and flapping of wings as we were spotted. I doubt anyone is attempting to steal plants from "their" garden. Click on the photo to enlarge and see the geese in the background. This farmer also has some interesting wagons all around the yard.
We were really happy to have Kristi with us to celebrate her Dad.
Megan and Jose had a great time looking through LM's Air Force yearbook.Sharing our dinner.....my beloved LM in his new shirt! Snapped that photo before his beautiful smile.
A perfect day......Ms G made a few appearances.....

Friday Frazzle

It's Friday, a most perfectly glorious Cape Cod day with gentle breezes, low humidity and clear blue skies. Last night, I had a most heavenly massage, and for the first time in almost a year, I am free of hip pain. You'd think all would be well for 5 minutes, and in the big picture, they really are, but I feel pulled in way too many directions, and also let down. LM was supposed to be around to go to a dinner with friends this evening, and tomorrow he was supposed to attend a wedding shower/party for my dear friends who are marrying in August. Instead, he has abandoned Ms G and me to drive a HUGE truck to Rochester NY. UGH.....how do I keep myself from being annoyed with him??? Actually, I think I am jealous that he got to go on that long road trip, and I have to stay home and work and go to parties, etc!! LOL Life is sure tough in these here parts, isn't it? I think I will be just fine going to a lovely home for dinner on a beautiful deck on this perfect summer evening with great friends. I'm just allowing myself a little WHINE here and in about an hour, I will allow myself some nice WINE to get over myself.

Wishing everyone a lovely weekend and hopefully I will have some lovely photos to share of the events of the weekend.
PS. I'm spending the day with Baby Teddy on Sunday!!

Florida Family

Dear grandson, Marshall, graduated from high school with high honors in Ocala, FL on June 12! I was so disappointed not to be there, to celebrate all his hard work. He is going on to great things, of that I am most certain. Marshall of the wry smile....you have made us all very proud. CONGRATULATIONS!!
Marshall with his wonderful parents, Anne and David.
The week or so before Marshall's graduation, my dear, dear son-in-law, David, lost his father to cancer. There is an echo to the loss which reverberates all the way back here in MA. Knowing David's family, goes all the way back to when I was a senior in HS and they were neighbors of my "boyfriend." That boyfriend later became my husband and the father of my two girls. The family friendships brought Anne and David together when they were teenagers, and the rest is history. David's parents moved to FL in 1980 or so, and in 1981, when Anne graduated from HS here, she moved right away to FL to be near her love. Now Mr C is gone and they are adjusting to life without one of the cleverest and funny people ever. He was a very independent spirit...with a touch of curmudgeon. He loved his children so very much. There is a huge legacy of tradition and adventure, and I've watched as David has created those same memories for his family.
I love this photo. As much as it displays a weary sadness, David is getting the ultimate comfort from his trusty companion, Theo....'bout time Theo made an appearance again. He is a wild child and offers a lot of entertainment to his keepers. Big hugs coming to you, David. We have traveled your path all too recently.

Celebrating Friendship - Old and New

But first.....the chipmunk races have been on everyday.....their number one cheering fan, here in all her glory! She does think they cannot see her.
and now....some lovely friendships....

Several weeks ago, one of my dearest longtime friends, Sue, and I spent a Saturday afternoon together to celebrate her birthday. We started out with a lovely and elegant lunch at The Brewster Fish House....a really fine, unique, tiny gem of a place on historic Rte 6A in Brewster. We always have so much to talk about and always spend part of our time reflecting on the years we've known each other and how our lives have evolved. Our friendship was born out of a healing journey, on which both of us were traveling back in the 80's. We've seen each other through the happiest and saddest times, and it is the greatest comfort to know we can always pick up where we were, always be there for each other, and celebrate all we've had and all that is current. Sue, you are a treasure.
After lunch, we pursued one of our favorite pleasures, and stopped at some great consignment shops. We each came away with a few gently used items to enhance our work wardrobes, and had some great laughs. We also made a stop at The Hopkins House Bakery in Brewster (the above photo of Sue was taken in their lovely old-fashioned garden). Their baked goods are the best I have had on the Cape and remind me very much of things my mother made. Get there early, it is a very popular place. The muffins are very delicious, as are the sticky buns and cookies.

If it were not for Sue, I would not have been to Rhode Island yesterday to drop off a huge quilt top to be professionally quilted...I'm so happy to be sewing and creating again. More deatails on the quilt when it comes back.

Last weekend (I'm a week behind in all my news...Father's Day coverage later this week) , I met some new friends for a very delightful afternoon of tea and a little tour of Sandwich, my old home town. Earlier this year, I found Erin through her blog, I Heart New England, and have been captivated with the lovely way she writes about her dream of living on Cape Cod someday. She had written longingly about her coming dream trip to Cape Cod, so I offered to meet with she and her Mom to have tea and then take them on a little tour of Sandwich, the oldest town on Cape Cod. We started off at the Dunbar Tea Shoppe in the heart of Sandwich Village....my tea tray was delectable and the room was so pretty. We talked for the longest time and enjoyed our tea and treats very much.
As part of our tour, I took them to the Sandwich Boardwalk, and although it was foggy, they thoroughly enjoyed seeing the vast expanse of march in its beautiful late Spring splendor.
Thanks Erin and Susan!! I enjoyed meeting you both so very much and look forward to sharing more of Cape Cod with you someday!

My Famous Nephew

Most of you know Bob, the ever constant source of my fascination and admiration (shhhh, don't tell Ms G). He is just too much love, cuteness and fun in one feline suit. When he first came to live with my brother and wife, Trish, Bob suddenly became quite sick with a serious lower digestive area issue. After bringing him back from near death, the vet ordered Bob to eat pumpkin everyday to prevent a recurrence. One would think a cat would not eat such a thing, but Bob adores it, and dutifully he gets several spoons full daily. Recently, Trish discovered that pumpkin was not available in any stores for quite a distance around. Bob, having a very discriminating palette, will only eat One-Pie brand, and Trish has been told that there will be none available in stores until September. CRISIS time for Bob! Not for long, though. A call was put out to Bob's major Facebook fan club and soon enough, people came from far and wide to deliver their spare cans of pumpkin, thus, ensuring a happy cat.
Amazing the power of the internet!
Love me some Bob!

House Tour

Trying to wake up and get a dark, dreary, "I really want to call in sick"- Monday launched. It took me hours all weekend to get these photos loaded but here, finally, is the house tour of almost two weeks ago.
A day or so before one of our clients takes ownership of their new or renovated/restored home, the entire staff is invited to tour the house with the design principal and support staff to discuss all the finer details. It is such a fun process and this particular house was really interesting as it is our first completed "green" project. A tremendous amount of planning went in to making this house as energy efficient and sustainable as possible. It is in a very private setting very close to the village on beautiful Oyster Pond ( salt water coming in from Nantucket Sound).
Arriving for the tour at the front of the house. Lovely that the front profile is low and unassuming. The curving roof is very representative of many of our projects. Landscapers were working very hard to complete their work as we arrived. The gardens are lovely....

I cut this photo off but we all gathered at the front with the one of the lead architects and discussed the outside siting.

Landscapers putting down turf between huge rocks. There is an amazing water reclamation system to provide irrigation for the grounds.
To the right of the driveway
The house is fitted with solid wood windows and doors (Tischler und sohn) and is all wheelchair accessible without sills.
Interesting lighting above the elegant curved stairway in the front hall.
The windows open from the top, and also swing in from the side, allowing for perfect ventilation. Our design principal is demonstrating the window function.
Friend, Jeff (he's getting married soon and is getting that special gift I've been working on), admiring some of the work he did on the second floor curved porch.
The ceiling of the curved porch.
The view from the 2nd floor porch....more landscapers hustling to the finish line (they made it).

Views out to the pond and the enclosed vegetable garden made by the owners. She is a master gardener.
Back inside, the guys thought my outfit matched the shower tile so made me get inside for a photo. I'm lucky they did not turn on the water!
I LOVE these ceiling fans which are in all the second floor rooms. The center is a bicycle sprocket, the blades are made from fishing rods and parachute material. Very quiet and graceful.
Faux beach stone fireplace in a guest bedroom.
Love the gable window which allows lovely light.
More interesting lighting. Simple.

The kitchen is on the back of the house with lovely views and doors leading out to the terrace. These custom glass windows will be installed in an opening between the kitchen and living room. They were custom made by Taqua Glass in N Truro, MA.

This beautiful custom table was designed in-house and made by West Barnstable Tables. A work of art!
Another shot of the kitchen windows tilting in for ventilation.
The construction supervisor, Perry, shows the function of some of the built-in cabinetry in the living room.
Outside, we made our way to the waterfront side.


The house faces southwest, thus the placement of solar panels. There are very sophisticated weather instruments in the house and in the foreground you can see the outdoor component just by the garden.
This is a "Smart House" and can be remotely controlled from any computer. I did not get photos of the bottom floor which houses several large control rooms for, sound, environment (HVAC) and for the solar components. Truly amazing! The project came in on time and the new owners are now launching their first summer in residence.
Although, it is above and beyond anyplace I will ever live, I do love being a small part of the process in creating beautiful homes. The lovely young family will enjoy this home so much and make beautiful memories here for many years to come.

In other news.....the quilt top is DONE! It goes to the quilter next weekend. Sara and I had an interesting time learning some self-healing techniques and doing Qi gong and reflexology at a local spa on Saturday, LM's Learn to Fish Day was a huge success except for the rain which came near the end - guess who caught the only fish!! Yesterday, I met a fellow blogger and her Mom in Sandwich and that was a delightful time. Several pictures to come later....Erin and Susan, it was such a pleasure to meet you and show you a corner of beautiful Cape Cod.
Ms G went to the chipmunk races yesterday and is completely exhausted from turning her head back and forth repeatedly....REALLY...LM and I watched the races, too, just before we FINALLY had some time to ourselves, went out for a fish dinner and ride to the beach. Perfect end to the weekend.
Hope you are all well!

Memory Scents

Many of us dream of having a magic carpet, some would like to go back to a time in the past, or some to a place far away. Last night as I opened a new box of Earl Grey tea, the scent drifted quickly to my nostrils and a deep inhale presented my magic carpet. In the blink of an eye I was transported to the 70's. There I was in our travel trailer, taking out a box of Earl Grey to make tea for my friend, Jane, who had joined us for a weekend away with her son, Brandon. Jason was about 5. It was a bit chilly, and while the boys played outside on our campsite, we were sipping tea and having the best discussions about our lives at the time.
Just a little moment in time.
The weekend is full of fun activities and I also hope to have time to post the house tour I did last week.
Peace and magic carpet rides to you ALL!

Quilt Week

Finally, I'm able to share a little bit of the quilting process with you. Not what I would like it to be but all that I seem to be able to upload right now.
"The Gentle Art of Quiltmaking," by Jane Brocket, has been a great inspiration for the design of this special piece, as well as the beautiful fabric of Amy Butler and Kaffe Fassett.

The quilt is made with 5" squares. Here, they are arranged in 4 square blocks in preparation for sewing.
My little work corner
After sewing, I hang the blocks in progress to get an eye for fabric placement. This quilt is pretty freeform with arrangement, except, I did not want like squares against each other, and I wanted to have a sprinkling of lights and darks.
From my production area, I pinned the blocks to a sheet on the guest room wall. This way I could turn and arrange them 'til it all felt right.
Yesterday morning, I sewed all the blocks together and added to more rows at the bottom. As this comes together, I am in a constant state of gratitude and re-living the times spent with my sister , Margaret, making my first attempt at sewing pieces of fabric together to form a tiny quilt, and also, the patience she showed in teaching me how to hand quilt.
Today, as time draws near to get this gift to the quilting service, I took the afternoon off to make one more trip to Tumbleweed Quilts to purchase the backing and the border fabric. I'd ordered them on line, received confirmation and they NEVER came. Fortunately, I was able to buy similar fabric but it is not as originally planned.
The new fabrics have been washed and hung to dry and tomorrow I will be able to do the final cutting and sewing. My mind is already spinning with ideas for other quilts! Oh, oh..