Saturday, August 12, 2017

Girls Day Out

Hi Friends,

This summer, my brother and sister-in-law, Debbie from She Graces Her Home in God's Beauty came for a visit.  We were thrilled to see them as always.  These two are a lot of fun to be around and lots of laughs were shared.

Whenever they come for a visit, Debbie and I try to find time for a "girls day out". Before their visit, life had been quite busy for them, we also had been working hard to get ready for the wedding at our barn (my hubby's nephew).  Everybody was exhausted.  Soooo...we were determined to go have some fun.  While we were out, my hubby continued to do outside work getting ready for the wedding.  OOPS!!!!  Sorry honey.  



Debbie and I went to Wiarton (Ontario, Canada) and after stopping at a garage sale and a going out of business antique store in a wonderful old farmhouse, we decided to start with lunch.  We purchased our lunch then decided to eat down by the lake (Georgian Bay).  Ahhhh!  How refreshing, listening to the waves lapping up on the shore.  It was so peaceful.

  And then...there they were...seagulls.  Lots of them.


Usually, they just hang around and watch but not today.  They kept dive bombing the bench we were sitting on.  I believe one seagull took a bite out of Debbie's lunch as she was taking a bite out of it.  She screamed - I couldn't help but laugh.  I don't think she knew that it actually took a bite out of her lunch.  Sorry Debbie, I didn't have the heart to tell you LOL.  Mind you, I'm not 100% sure so lets hope I'm wrong.

See the culprit on the left of the photo, the one in flight?  I think he was the guilty party.


The marina is off to the left.  Sorry for the dark photos, it was cloudy when we were eating our lunch.





After we had an enjoyable lunch, it was time to go shopping.  My hubby had told me about this store and said we must go.  I'm so glad he did.  Debbie and I share a love of country crafts and decor and this was the perfect place to be.  It wasn't until later that I realized this was the store that had originally been right in town that I had visited 4 years ago.   It was adorable then too.

When we first arrived, I couldn't get past the front door.  I just stood there and stared, taking in everything around me.  The displays, the scents and the soft music playing - I was hooked.



The welcoming committee.  Isn't he handsome?  LOL.


Debbie must have thought so.


I guess I did too.


Showing off our wares.



This is what I purchased.

The shelf speaks "farmhouse" to me.  Love it!


I fell in love with the heavy metal hooks on this shelf.



This is hanging on the side of my fridge for now, I hope to find a spot that's more complimentary but the walls still need painting.


The funny thing about this store is this is where the antique store was located, where I  had first fallen in love with antique harvest tables as seen in my Harvest Table Adventure Post.  I had wondered where the exact location of that store had been.  I searched for it a few years ago and never found it.  As I found out, it had gone out of business a while back.

After we left The Cluttered Cupboard, we went over to Lake Huron (just a short drive).  We waded ankle deep into the lake while watching many kiteboarders gliding across the water.  One person in particular kept flying through the air, it was amazing to watch.  Unfortunately, they weren't very close by the time I took the photos.  Just look for the spots.


Their visit to Canada involved their travelling in their new-to-them motor home and what a beauty it is.  It was full of their fur babies so I can only imagine how many stops were made.  Donatella their dog, Toby their cat and their new addition, Binx (a chocolate brown bunny).  What a cutie he is.  You can see more about him on Debbie's blog.


Look at those feet.


On the way back, we drove along the beach for quite a distance.  This was in June before the kids were out of school for the summer so there weren't many people on the beach.  Driving on the beach is permitted in this particular area.



Unfortunately, shortly after their arrival at my Dad's house, he became ill and had to be hospitalized for a few days.  During this time they took it upon themselves to help out, doing yard maintenance, etc. as he hadn't been up to it himself.  My brother, Randy, also restructured his deck and front porch.  This was prior to my Dad's cancer surgery which was mentioned in a previous post.  They are both such hard workers and will do anything for anybody.

An update on my Dad - he has been back home now for a while and is doing okay.  They were able to remove all of the cancer and he gets stronger every day.  It was difficult for the first 1 1/2 to 2 weeks after he came out of the hospital but it's good to see he's now getting back on track.  Thank you to all of you that prayed for him and were concerned for him.  It has meant the world to me to see how many absolutely wonderful people there are out there.

For those of you waiting for the wedding photos, I have part of the post ready but am waiting to see if the newlyweds send some of the professional photos our way.  My understanding is that they will, we're guessing within the next couple of weeks (maybe?).  Stay tuned.

Thanks for dropping in and visiting.  I hope you enjoyed "Girls Day Out".

~ Kelly ~

Tuesday, August 08, 2017

In The Garden


Hi Friends,

Before summer ends, I wanted to post some photos of various flowers I currently have in bloom along with some other interesting things.

This guy lives at our pond.  Would you go swimming in there?  Not me...we believe it's a Snapping Turtle and I value my fingers and toes lol.  Mind you, I don't swim in there anyway so I guess I'm safe.  Or so I thought...it turns out he/she was walking across our lawn when my hubby called out to me, I finally saw him for real.  Prior to that, was he just a myth? I think not!  Now I watch if I get into longer grass (especially if I'm wearing sandals lol) as he took a short cut through an overgrown area back to the pond that day. 


The back end.


BEWARE...X-RATED PHOTO TO FOLLOW!!!!!!!!

Okay, well maybe not.  Look at the wrinkles, he definitely appears to be an old guy.  The wear and tear on the shell also makes him appear old.


My hubby's foot (size 10 mens) in the background.  If his foot was right up close you would see that the turtle is a bit smaller than it appears.  But he wasn't taking any chances getting too close.


The following pictures are of the flowers I currently have in bloom on the property.  I think they were late blooming this year as almost the whole month of June it rained.  By rain I do mean torrential downpours and almost no sun.  It was a little depressing.  I'm so happy to see the flowers.

Other flowers have come and gone so these are just the current ones.

Garden Phlox


False Sunflowers

These are about 8 feet tall.


Chinese Lanterns

They're just starting to turn orange.  I love using these in my Autumn decor.



Hydrangeas

I love having an arrangement of these in the house, both in bloom or dried.


Black-Eyed Susan and Garden Phlox


Black-Eyed Susans are one of my favourite flowers.  Probably because yellow is my favourite colour.


Helenium?


False Sunflower?


Garden Phlox


Purple Coneflower


Globe Thistle


Black-Eyed Susan


Bachelor Buttons (second bloom)


I'm not sure what these are.  Does anyone know?



This little guy showed up at our door.  Check out the link, he' quite pretty.



Unfortunately, I found this one deceased in the driveway.  He's quite large and very beautiful.


Bee Balm and Shasta Daisies

(Okay, I cheated.  These two are no longer in bloom).


The last of the Shasta Daisies.  So technically, the plant is still in bloom?  LOL.


Purple Cornflower


Red Bee Balm

The hummingbirds love these.


I hope you enjoyed the tour of my gardens.  The garden themselves are in a bit of disarray so I showed you the plants only.  Maybe next year...they're a work in progress.

Thanks for dropping by, I'm always so happy to have you.

~ Kelly ~