lots of little things...

 

It's the eve of a holiday here in the US and I'm looking forward to staying in for the next few days to prepare for my family dinner.  To make things easier on my brother and s-i-l we have our gathering on a separate day.  They don't feel so rushed and stuffed that way.  And it gives us more time together as they don't have to rush off to, or come rushing in from, somewhere else.

I'm hosting this year.  It is the first year I've really had enough room for everyone to be comfortable and have felt like doing all the work.  I'm pretty excited and starting to get a wee bit nervous.  We'll gather on Saturday so I have Thursday and Friday to do prep work and figure out my plan.

This past weekend was kind of a blah time for me.  I didn't feel well, at all - more than the usual aches and pains.  I spent it resting with a bit of crochet (I'm learning via YouTube videos) and watching sports and shows on Netflix.  I'm still working my way through the second season of The Following and have just discovered Sherlock with Benedict Cumberbatch.  The only thing I really did was to start a batch of vanilla extract.  The bottle I brought back from Cancun is almost empty and it is the best vanilla I've ever had.  I've heard that it is very easy to make, so I'm trying.  I hope my current bottle will last for two more months. 

Monday was a soak in the sun with a cup of tea day, planning menus and making grocer and errand lists, and general piddling around the house.

Tuesday was errand day.  Mum and I went to a warehouse shop to pick up bulk items for our three households.  After a late start, we were starving just after finishing that shop so she treated me to lunch.  

We headed off to a few more shops after lunch and then a visit with a friend who lives in her neighborhood.  I'd forgotten to take my earplugs with me and all that noise from the shops, traffic and restaurant was just horrid.  After that, I still had the grocer to get through - it took two hours.  Yes, the grocer was so packed it took two hours for me to get everything and get checked out.  I was so happy to get home to the quiet!

This morning I headed to the farmer's market to pick up my turkey (you can see part of him in the last photo).  I also found some pansies (to replace my poor fading mum at the front door), sweet potatoes, granny smith and pink lady(?) mountain apples.  I also treated myself to a nosegay.  I just love those.

A quick stop to visit with a friend and my two favorite littles, who aren't so little anymore! Then another run to the grocers for broccoli, since the farmer's market didn't have any.  And now I'm home.  I hope to not have to leave again until Sunday.

I've been functioning today on less than two hours sleep. Every time I'd start to doze off, I'd hear someone call my name loud and clear as if they were right by my ear.  My eyes would pop open and I would be wide awake.  I never did see or sense anyone nearby and heard nothing else.  I was up and down, surfing on the net, or reading.  After my second round of lying there for over an hour trying to fall asleep, I got up and worked in the studio for a while.  Even that didn't stop the name calling.

It was very cold and rainy when I left this morning and throughout my errands.  About an hour after I made it home, the sun broke through the clouds.  I've become a bit obsessed with the sky here.  At the cottage, there were so many trees around that I could really only see sky just over the cottage and the back garden.  There are so few trees here and all of them on the fringes of the complex so there is lots of open sky to view.  My instagram addiction is in full force and lots of sky shots show up there.  Anyway, while the sun was out I went out back to take a few pictures, just playing around.  I heard the strangest sound coming from the pond area.  Peeking between my fence slats I found the strangest looking bird.  I tried to get a few photos of it through the fence but couldn't tell what it was.  So I opened my back gate just a bit (so as not to startle it off) and found that bird in the third photo.  Then I saw the bird in the fourth photo.  I was pretty sure the second bird was a crane or a heron, but that first one was a complete mystery.  Thanks to google, I found that the blue bird is a Belted Kingfisher and the second bird is a Great Blue Heron.  I just love the wildlife around here.  Now if I could just spot some deer, I'd be thrilled!  Though, I think there are too many people and dogs around for the deer to pass through here.

Well, I didn't mean for this to be a long post, but there you have it.  This is what my week has been like since my last post.

I hope those of you who celebrate the US Thanksgiving will have a wonderful holiday tomorrow.  And those of you who don't, have a wonderful regular day.  :-)

I think it might be time for a nap.

blessings
~*~