Changes

 

{Heron playing hide-and-seek}

Although it's been a while since I last posted (as usual), I'm certain most of you remember me saying in my post before last that I would not be going to the lake over the holiday weekend and was not sad about it.

Well, yeah...that changed.

At the 11th hour (a biblical reference, believe it or not), the replacement flooring finally came in, and, in a stroke of luck, the flooring contractors managed to fit the project in within days.

I still had no intention of going, however, because the place was still in shambles - boxes everywhere, the toilet still in the bedroom, the vanity still under the stairs, and the contents of the closets (not to mention the pieces of what once the closet) who knew where.

But my son and daughter-in-law started making noises about going up, and because it would likely be the last time in a long time that they'd be able to go (Baby No. 2 expected any day), plans changed.

I contacted the contractors who had done the original work, and they moved mountains to get most of the things put back into place (i.e., the toilet and vanity back in the bathroom, rebuilt the closet, rehung doors, etc.) Yes, there was work to be done...and heavens knows, a LOT of cleaning, but it would, at least, be habitable.

On the day before I intended to leave, I went grocery shopping (did I mention the nearest town is SWAMPED with tourists and traffic on holidays?).  I was nearly finished when my DIL messaged me and told me they were not coming after all...or, if they came, it would only be for a day.

😖

I decided to go up by myself regardless since I knew I should check on things and that there would be more than a weekend's worth of cleaning and sorting, sorting and cleaning, to do.

(And, after all, I had a ton of groceries since I could not bring myself to put everything in my cart back on the shelves.)

It was good that I went but little cleaning was accomplished.  (Another long tale - this one of having purchased 3 floor cleaners...the first of which was defective; the second of which was stolen by one of my husband's "invitees" before I had even opened the box it came in; and the third of which (which was used one time and one time only) was, it turned out, missing a very indispensable part when I attempted to use it this time - a fact I only realized after spending several hours with the online manual and YouTube videos, and digging in every possible remaining box and caddy searching for said part.

Apparently, the "water mitigation team" (a term used ever so loosely) must have "disposed" of it while doing their demolition "mitigating."

Grrrr....

So that "plan" changed as well.

It was beautiful nonetheless...noise notwithstanding.

The forecast had been for storms and rain, but there was nothing other than a brief shower.

The swans were initially elusive They are recluses, I think, like me, but they showed themselves after the interlopers tourists left and things quieted. They had changes to reveal as well:

Two little cygnets (such a strange word, in my opinion, for a baby swan), although the second one is mostly hidden by the reeds in the photo.

I enjoyed the peace after the days of fireworks and firecrackers and, despite not having the magical part for my floor cleaner, did manage to get some things accomplished.

As I was preparing things to go back to Nod, however, there was the sound of a horrendous explosion. It was louder than any of the fireworks in the past many days...and much, much, closer. 

Have you ever seen those cats in the animated cartoons that shoot straight up in the air when there is a loud sound/bang?

That's EXACTLY what happened with my two cats...despite having been conditioned over the weekend to the noise and sounds of the fireworks they went straight up and scrabbled to hid under the nearest bed.

I ever so tentatively walked around the property in an attempt to determine the source of the noise fully expecting to find something smoking.

What I saw was the old tree that my eagles favored as a roost had snapped in half...

...and one half had landed on my (metal) dock.

So, another change.

(...and yet another thing to deal with.)

Did I mention that the weather at the lake was beautiful? So much better than predicted??

Well, that, too, changed once I returned to Nod.

I awoke a few days after returning to the smell of smoke. 

Like the idiot who ran around the lake house trying to find the source of the "explosion," I was now running around the house here in Nod trying to determine what, exactly, had caught on fire.

This was my view...but nothing was on fire.

It was the smoke from the Canadian...and Minnesotan...wildfires.

We have been on the top of the AQI air quality scale (the maroon/hazardous range) for over a week now.

The smoke has seeped in everywhere despite closed windows and doors and a/c. 

I had an appointment at the medical center and thought that that building, at least, would be smokefree.

No such luck. Even the examining rooms in the far recesses of the building were smoky.  Virtually all outdoor activities and events were cancelled.

By mid-morning, my eyes are so dry and irritated that I wish I could scratch them out. By the afternoon, not only are my eyes suffering, but my head is pounding and breathing gets difficult.

We had a day and a half of somewhat a reprieve but then the winds shifted again and brought more smoke, and we are still under a hazardous air quality alert.

It's unfortunate that this can look beautiful.

Another change: 

The day after tomorrow, this little girl's entire world will change: She will become a big sister.

You may remember that she came very, very, early and things were scary for a long while. Thankfully, she has grown and thrived.

Her mother (and the rest of us) had hoped the second child could be delivered normally (vs. caesarean) given the pain and long recovery time she endured the first time around.

Unfortunately, that's not to be and while one child came out "under-done," this one is turning out to be "over-done."

A decision has been made that, for the safety of mother and child, the child be delivered sooner rather than later via caesarean.

Prayers for a safe delivery for both mother and child would be most welcome if you're so inclined.

Oh, and for me...Gigi duty is going to test me this week as we're embarking on very new territory.  

This one has never spent a night alone without one of her parents present.

😬

Marshmallows, Mermaids and Moonlight

 

{When your cappuccino matches your mug....}

 

I took a quick trip up to the lake over the holiday weekend to sort a few things and soak in a few last rays of the summer sun.

The weather was distractingly amazing.

{Heron on the sandbar} 

Unfortunately, I know I cannot store enough of that energy for the winter ahead.

We have already had frost and there are frost warnings in effect for tonight again.

Back home, I am trying to "sort a few things" as well, but with little-to-no success.  

Many of you, I know, are "sorting" in your own ways - downsizing, purging, minimalizing - as I well should be.

The "need" becomes more apparent with each day that passes, and, at times, the motivation increases as well, but I'm not quite there yet.

If you hadn't figured it out by now, things come slowly to me.

And, most often, I do what I should not do and put myself more than a few steps back.

I have too many collections and I have mostly done well at not adding to them. But every now and again I give in to a weakness.

I can't tell you when I last added to my marshmallow tin collection - other than last week when I added this one.

Nope...I don't like marshmallows particularly - but I do love these old funky tins.

This one will likely end up in the back row - once I wrangle the ladder inside.

(You're right - one probably won't see it back there - but I'm about the only "one" who even knows there's a collection of marshmallow tins up there.)

But back to sorting!

For me that involves tying up loose ends and taking care of things that have lingered about too long.

Like my mermaids. 

I stitched these many years ago - when we first purchased the lake house I believe. (There's not a reason I can conceive of why I would choose to stitch mermaids if I did not have a home near water. And, no - that was NOT the reason we purchased the lake house.)

Anyway - they are finally framed.

First up - The Mermaid of Salem Bay (pattern by The Primitive Hare).

This is stitched on 30 ct "Pirate Linen" also by The Primitive Hare (2 over 2 with a gazillion quarter/half/three-quarter stitches and backstitching and beading). 

I had a meltdown when I ran out of the overdyed floss called "Mountain Mist" and could find none remotely close to what I had started her with as the dye lots had changed dramatically.

Marly (Samplers and Santas) came through with many skeins of not only Mountain Mist, but other colors she thought would work.

She was right.

Marly is always right when it comes to color.

I'm not typically a bead person, but the beads made this design.

And what's better than 1 mermaid?

Two, of course.

This is, obviously, another Primitive Hare design.

This one is called Oceanarium and is stitched two over two on 30 ct. "Ancient Stones" linen, also by The Primitive Hare.

Again, lots of quirky stitches, backstitching and beading.

I should have done a video so you could see how the beads twinkle - but I didn't.

If these make it to being hung on a wall, it will be at the lake house.

They don't quite "fit" here in Nod.

And, lastly, moonlight.

Last night was a full "blood" moon - and a total lunar eclipse no less.

While the eclipse wasn't visible to us here in the states, the moon still put on a spectacular show.

 

...and now back to sorting.

😒