The Woolen Rabbit

Life Editing.......

A few weeks ago when I was reading my friend Carole's blog, I came upon this post that mentioned doing a fall life edit.  This intrigued me so I asked Carole for the link to the article she mentioned.  In the article this line, "Essentially, the idea is that a key part of manifestation is clearing the space to prepare for and invite what you really want into your life." really spoke to me.

It's been a challenging couple of years for me.  With the arrival of Covid, changing jobs and some recent health challenges, staying on track has been overwhelming at times.  This article and a few others I have looked at have come just at the right time. 
Now I am not an organized person on a good day but staying focused these last 2 years has been especially hard and frustrating because I find that I waste time on feeling overwhelmed and not time doing the things that I want to do.

In the last few weeks by journaling about what is causing stress and ways to proactively address it, I am finding my way back slowly to the activities that bring me satisfaction.  I have a few things that have been languishing in my sewing studio that are now getting finished, and a few new things are waiting for me.

You'll see more of these items in the upcoming weeks.
(eek...yarn that I bought, not yarn that I dyed)

If you are feeling overwhelmed in your daily life as many of us do, this concept of doing a life edit is so helpful!

 

No Rhinebeck for me....

As I was scrolling through social media this weekend I saw so many posts from fiber friends who were in Rhinebeck NY.
Why Rhinebeck you ask?  It would be to attend the amazing sheep and wool festival that is held there every year in October.  Because it is usually peak foliage in NY it makes the long ride from NH to NY along the Taconic Parkway a beautiful one.

I haven't been to this festival in many years even though a bunch of us always talk about attending but never seem to get ourselves organized to actually do it.  This is the first year in a long time that I actually felt a bit sad that I didn't go.  Perhaps next year!

 

While I didn't make the trek to NY this weekend, I did spend the weekend enjoying the beautiful foliage in my own back yard working on my Boneyard Shawl.  
(colors are a bit off from the sun)
The sun was bright and warm and the foliage was at it's last day of brilliant peak colors.

~
What did you do this weekend?

Autumn Days....

Song for Autumn by Mary Oliver

And don't you think the trees themselves, especially those with mossy, warm caves, begin to think of the birds that will come — six, a dozen — to sleep inside their bodies? And don't you hear the goldenrod whispering goodbye, the everlasting being crowned with the first tuffets of snow?

As much as I complain about winter, the season before is always so beautiful up here in the North Country.
The smorgasbord of colors never ceases to take my breath away and makes me comment, 
"How lucky are we to live in such a space filled with SO much splendor!"

This weekend was filled with cleaning up the yard and putting the garden beds to sleep.  It's always such a bittersweet time.  Grateful for all the bounty the gardens have given us yet sad to say goodbye to another summer.  The summers always go by so quickly up here.

Time to gather up pumpkins to decorate in preparation for the fall season and to make our home feel cozy as the temperatures drop.  
I'm extra excited to have my children all come home for Thanksgiving this year which has me looking forward to creating a warm welcome for them all. It's been awhile since we have all been able to gather together for a happy occasion!

I still can't resist scuffling through the fallen leaves and listen to their autumny crunch!
Can you?

Beach Walk....

Earlier in the summer I had made a decision to do a year long project along with my friend Anne. It's called Beach Walk, designed by Marion Mitchell.
When I saw how lovely the finished blanket was and the inspiration for it, I was hooked...literally!

Now mind you I haven't crocheted a single thing since I was a young mom over 40 years ago, so it has been a big mind stretch for me to find my crocheting groove again for sure!  After a number of failed squares it finally clicked.  Aren't the colors pretty?

After making all of the beginning squares it was time for a bigger mind bend for me....joining them! This was something that I had never done, so it meant watching multiple videos.  I found this one to be the most helpful.  The designer also created some videos, one of which will really help me with the next step....joining all of these little mini squares once I weave all of the ends in (yikes!!)

Yep...there are a lot of ends!  I crocheted all of these little mini squares while we drove back and forth from Prince Edward Island.  I should have woven the ends in as I went along, but they were so addictive to make, I just kept lining up the colors.  I can't wait to see how they look against the portion of the blanket that is finished.
Next week I will finish up with our vacation pictures and maybe even have theses little squares at least semi attached if not completely

I hope you have a wonderful weekend in your corner of the world...

Imagining Anne...

Continuing on our adventure on Prince Edward Island, Ken humored my desire to see all things "Anne".  
Even though the day was overcast as many of our days were, the rain held off for most of the day, so we had fun exploring.  We started out by visiting the "Anne of Green Gables" museum.  As a child, Lucy Maud Montgomery loved this home that her cousins lived in, she referred to it as the "Wondercastle of her Childhood"

Her family turned the home into a museum dedicated to Lucy Maud.  Ken really enjoyed walking through this older home preserved.

The property was just breathtaking.  This big barn reminds you so much of the one Matthew in "Anne" spent a lot of time in and the open fields are so pretty.  The pond that Anne referred to as the "Lake of Shining Waters"...so peaceful to sit by.

I loved this beautiful bookcase filled with all of the author's books that was the inspiration for the "Enchanted Bookcase" in Anne's story.
So much of Lucy Maud's own life was wrapped into the Anne of Green Gables book.  

From there we stopped at the tiny little home that Lucy Maud was born in but only lived there for a year before her mother passed away from Tuberculosis. She went to live with her mother's parents in Cavendish afterwards.
After we left the little house we went to the Green Gables Heritage Place, (pictured above) which was the house and property that Lucy Maud grew up on and where so much of the story inspiration was here.

This was my favorite place...I loved the house, it was utterly charming!

....and we were able to walk down the trail that was the inspiration for the "Haunted Woods" in the Anne book.  Just short of a mile, there were stories along the way to read.  Seeing the trees in the middle of the walk, I can see where a child would find them a little scary. 
(not sure what the rusted tank was for??)
The rain started when we finished that little hike so we did not do the Lover's Lane trail.  We will save that for another time.

All in all it was a wonderful day to do all things Anne.  I think my most favorite part of our adventure as seeing and walking along the Red Cliffs in Cavendish...the very same ones seen in the Anne movies.  Just stunning!
~
Thank you for joining along with me today...

 

A Trip to Prince Edward Island...

It's been a while since I have sat down and actually blogged, but with the change of seasons, I thought I would utilize this space that I keep paying for every month a little more.

With the new season, Ken and I went on an adventure!  A good friend of mine owns a house on Prince Edward Island that she rents out, so after booking this sweet home 3 years ago, we were finally able to cross over the Canadian border..whoop!

 

It was a long ride for sure and we managed to get ourselves to the bridge in PEI without getting lost, which was no small feat given that once over the border I was navigating a paper map to save phone roaming charges.  You forget just how attached we are to our phones when navigating new places.

Once over the bridge however, I managed to put Ken on the wrong route to the house we were going to.  I won't say that we were sad though.  We landed in a little town called Victoria By The Sea.  It is so incredibly beautiful and charming!

How lonely that house looks sitting all by itself against the skyline....but so beautiful!
I loved this town enough that we spent another day visiting this spot and I will share the special treat we found in another post during the week.

Finally we made our way to the place we would call home for a week. How pretty is this view?

Once in the house, Ken was thrilled!  There is nothing he likes more than an older home that still has,what I tease him with...Granny features.  Older furniture, old wallpaper and original fixtures. Ken is always saying he was born in the wrong decade..LOL
He was in his glory all week long!

Once we were unpacked and settled in, we sat outside to enjoy the view and a beautiful sunset that was about to happen.
We knew then it was going to be a very good week!

 

 

Happy New Year!!

This is the moment of embarking.
All auspicious signs are in place.
In the beginning, all things are hopeful.  We prepare ourselves to start anew.  Though we may be intent on the magnificent journey ahead, all things are contained in this first moment; our optimism, our faith, our resolution, our innocence.
 Deng Ming~Dao

Hello friends!

Somethings always remain the same and true, which is why I always use this inspiring Tao quote to start off my year and this year is no different.

Last year I was ready to embrace the optimism that I felt waving good bye to 2020, but this year my optimism has been challenged.  I don't know what to feel or expect...do you?

Last year my word was listen...and I was going to repeat it again because it is such a challenge to shut down thinking what your response will be and just listen, isn't it?  I was just starting to feel a kinship to this mind challenge, which is why I thought I would repeat it this year for reinforcement....but other words just kept creeping in over the last few days.

So...my word this year....it's not just one word...
Multiple words have jumped out at me over the last week from different sources that I follow on online..and truly it has all been in the last few days.

Grounded, Patience, Stillness, Boundaries...

This year I have seen more Blue Herons than I have ever seen in one year.  Every time I open up my computer at home and at work I see a picture of this majestic bird.
Every time Ken and I have gone for a drive to the Maine Coast, I see multiples in a day. 
I have always felt a kinship to this bird but I think this year I need to listen to what the message in all of these sightings may mean to me.

I just read this article last night and it was all there when I was did a search.

Grounded, Patience, Stillness and Boundaries

On a positive note, I accomplished a good number of the goals that I set up for myself last year, which is always a win for someone who struggles with ADD. I cleaned out a lot of clutter in my home and my brain, which is so freeing.  

I stretched out my inner introvert and joined a group or two that helps me feel connected to friends from afar making me feel less isolated.

 This year I will try to focus on the excesses in my studio and find places where fiber and fabric can be a gift to another because I don't have enough time left in my life to use it all...reality.

As we start another new year, we still need to respect that space in between to keep each other healthy, but we can still remind each other how much we love.

~Peace~

Creativity....

I keep trying to be a better blogger, but at the very least, I keep showing up, right?  

I have found a few new things that have kept me off of social media and I am completely ok with this because social media can be such a mindless time suck that really doesn't produce much other than a sense of not being able to keep up with people who seem to be able to do it all. A wonderful life, amazing talent, beautiful pictures, etc.  I know I am not the only person who feels that sense of "less".  I'm not sure that "less" is the right word...but still I'm sure many of you understand what I mean.

 I recently stumbled upon this Zinnia app on Instagram (social media ,ironic right?).  I signed up for the trial but forgot to cancel it before I was charged for the full year, which is 34.00, so I figured if I paid for the App, I was going to learn how to make it work for me.

Well let me tell you, it can be a deep rabbit hole when you start looking at all of the ways you can customize it.  It is so much fun creating for a month.  It can be journal, tracker or a planner or all wrapped into one. So far I have not regretted that 34.00 for a year.

Here are a few links to some of the videos I have enjoyed.

https://youtu.be/-jt83Gkj-3w

https://youtu.be/0ubeqFP2WmY

Karin also has so many videos on Procreate which is another amazing app.  I am learning so much from her. Along with digital watercolor art, I am learning lettering as well on practice sheets similar to when I was in the second grade!
It's the first time I have truly been excited about journaling, tracking habits, spending and joy.
I love it!

Another thing I did was to step out of my comfort zone and join a book club that included a Zoom meeting once a month.  After a year of being confined so much due to the Pandemic, I was ready to reach out and be a part of something.
Sandy Hurley an old time fiber friend along with familiar friends, Norma Miller and Teresa Campbell made it an easy place to step into, even though I was nervous. 
Social Anxiety, it's a real thing....
I so enjoyed my first Zoom meeting with them!

Our first book for me with them, was Maid.  It was an interesting read, but I think we all came away from the book with a similar sentiment.  Maybe not very well written, maybe not a likable character and a sense of sadness that people live in this kind of poverty lacking the ability to find their way out of this poverty.

I am looking forward to the next book and actually listening to it instead of reading it.  This is a first for me and I'm not every sure how to do this, but I have a sweater that needs to be finished soon, so I thought that this might be a good way to do both!
Hopefully I can figure it out..ha!

I am also reading another book with different group of my favorite people as well, and we will have our discussion about the book, "Matrix", soon as well.
It feels nice to be doing things with friends instead of the solitary life I have lived over the last few years and reading new books I probably never would have chosen.
New experiences!

....and finally, I move on to something that gives me so much joy.  
Beach stones..

I have long collected stones from the ocean and beaches for as long as I can remember.  When we first started staying on Cape Cod, I started off dating each rock that I collected and where it came from, until finally there were just too many beautiful rocks in the bowl to keep up with.

Ken shakes his head at the number of rocks I bring home with me, but I love that he indulges me in this thing that gives me joy.  Seriously I have bowls and bowls full, but any rocks that I don't love once they have dried, go back to the beach I collected it from to spend it's life where it came from. 

Recently, I met a woman who nurtured a new sense of creativity with my rocks and with her amazing generosity, she gave me the tools and knowledge to be creative with them.
Look in this space in a few weeks to see what these precious to me rocks will become. 

I know it's been a little while, but now you know why I have been a bit quiet.
I have SO many creative ideas floating around in my head!
I just need to catch them and focus all that "Sparkling Energy!"
❤️

Time to Give Thanks.....

I know....another weekending post, but this was a different kind of weekend.  It was a weekend shared with friends, some of which we haven't been able to see for 3 years now, so it was an extra meaningful time filled with laughter and good food!

"Friendsgiving" was hosted by my talented friend Sean, sitting at the head of the table.
He is an AMAZING cook and dinner did not disappoint, as you can see from the top picture.
Everyone brought something to share and what a meal we had!

I was also able to meet Sean's husband, Michael, for the first time.  Every-time I have visited with Sean at his home, Michael has been away, so it was nice to finally put a personality to a face!  What fun he is!

More than anything, I was grateful for the time away to gather with friends.  It was a magical time!
These days it doesn't happen nearly enough living with aging dogs and the care that they need.

Speaking of pets, I was so happy to meet the Siamese twins, Fred and George!
So much blessed cuteness in 2 little bodies...such little loves!

Weekending and Making...

I want to start off by saying thank you all so much for the kind words you left me last week.
Aging hands and brand new hands. ❤️

Ken took a few days to head south to visit his mother and brother's family in Pennsylvania last week and after working 2 long weeks, I was ready for some down time for sure.  Saturday I spent some time knitting, reading and playing in my shop trying out some new things.

 
Sunday, I packed up my car with both a winter and a rain jacket not knowing what kind of weather I would find at the beach.
I was looking forward to feeling the cold salty weather on my face once again.  I was definitely happy that I brought both my winter jacket and a hat...and the lonely single Angora mitten that I pulled out of my pocket was so appreciated because it was very chilly.
(Reminder...you need to make a new pair of mittens!)

As I was searching for beautiful stones, I met the sweetest nun who was also enjoying her walk along the beach.  She told me a story of how she found a half of a sand dollar with a tiny sand dollar tucked in as if tucked under a blanket...and how it grew little by little into a little tiny nativity scene.  Precious!

As I was heading off the beach, I ran into her again and she held out to me this small little stone and asked me if I saw anything?  
I told her that I could kind of see a face and then she pointed out all of the face features.  She asked if I had any children and when I told her that I had grandchildren, she tucked the stone in my hand and said, "take this little stone for them".
Sigh...such a endearing moment.  You never know who will walk into your life at just the right moment, do you?
I have tucked this little stone away to make something special with it.


...and for the Making part of my weekend...
I spent part of my Saturday trying out a new drill press that will give me so many options for endless creations with the rocks that I have been collecting for years.

It's going to take a little practice, but I think I did ok with the first 3 stones I drilled out, other than the scratch on the big one. No cracks and the teeniest of blow-outs on the back of the stone with the bigger hole.
Isn't it fun to discover new things?
I love it!