Friday, July 23, 2010

PAN AMERICAN GAMES...

Well our grandson has made the team to go to the
Pan American Games in October, in Mexico City!

Now do you think I've been able to do anything but cry with joy? He's just an amazing kid who has such a talent and at 15 he will be the youngest member of the Canadian team!

Enough said of how proud we are. I just wanted to share this with my blogging "family". We are all so close that we do weddings, graduations, baptisms, or whatever else tickles our fancy.

Another great kid this summer is the grandson of my "private" teacher who is playing lacrosse for the provincial team here in Ontario....don't you think that family is proud too?

Don't you all have something to cheer about this summer? Be it just a little bit of news or big event stuff, we are always happy to know a bit about our lives in our journals.

The granddaughter has had her second radiation treatment on her tumor and is responding well. A bit stiff but she is back training and coaching too. We are keeping our fingers crossed that the third time will not be required.

Back at the lake, there appears to have been some pretty big storms around and some of the plants took a bit of a beating, though still standing.

I finished a little quilt today which is sort of a crib quilt and I'll be sending it off to the granddaughter of a friend who had a "miracle" baby girl...see all kinds of good stuff happening this week!

I'm putting the nine patch together starting tomorrow. It'll be as you saw in the last post...looks better now that I do see it after almost a week. I'm putting a six inch sashing around it all and using white on the backside too. White is might!

Then, I'm going to work on using my walking foot on the Janome. I gotta tell you though, I sure have a hard time following directions! It took me a half hour of putting the stupid thing together! I know how it works now, so bring on the spring quilt! I'm ready!

Monday, July 19, 2010

THE WINDS AT THE COTTAGE!





Returning home from the cottage on a Sunday afternoon is something we don't often do. Since the weather wasn't going to be ideal for a Monday return, we decided to do the drive on Sunday. Lots and lots of traffic, but still with the back roads that we know, we made it home in two and a half hours even with a couple of short stops. We were quite happy.

This is who we found munching grass in our back yard. I think he actually lives next door where they have lots of flowers and no dog. Our "stupid westie" didn't see the rabbit for about 3 minutes, till the little guy decided to high tail (no pun indended) it out of the yard!

What is with the weather? Is there tropical storms somewhere that we haven't heard of? In Canada, we will
get the remainders of some storms from the south, but not at
this time of year!

On Saturday, the wind was such that only the brave left the safety of their cottages. Now we are a large lake, deep too, so when the wind comes up there is rough waters. It's hard to take a photo to show the roughness in photos, but let me tell you....it was rough!

The neighbours, (no more new from now on) have lots of water toys, one of which is this trampoline tube...It was so rough that it's anchors couldn't hold it and the tube was dragged against the rocks at our cottage!

Not a fun time for the neighbours as this is a new tube this year and they don't come cheap I am told.

So after a lot of looking and trying to figure how to save it from being bashed and destroyed on the rocks, it was decided that the tube would be released from the anchors, a long rope
would then be attached, the tube would be pushed to our dock which would protect it due to the currents on the lake.

So, the cottage guy got into the water to release the anchor when the wind caught the tube and it looked like it was going to take off, so the cottage girl, jumped in to help. Not the most flattering photo of our cottage girl, what with the wet hair and all, but the two of them managed to release the said anchors!

Of course, just then Bob jumped in the water to help which was good as the wind was making it hard to manage the tube due to the winds!

Between the three of them, along with my sweetie getting an extra long rope on the tube, they managed to secure the tube to our floating dock.

It rocked and rolled over about a half dozen times at our dock
until the winds finally died down.

I didn't realize until this third shot appeared on the blog where the cottage guy was, I thought he was on the outside of the tube. They must have been tired after this effort. It took about a half hour to secure!

I tell you, I'm glad I've got the camera at hand at all times, as so much happens in an instant!

We are having a pot luck supper in a couple of weeks to get people on the islands together to share stories, get aquainted and of course have great foods! I'm sure that this tube story will be one of them since we delivered the invites later in the evening when the winds were somewhat calmer we were asked about the flying tube off the end of our dock!


My sweetie laughed about it as he said that this past couple
of weeks, we've not had a dull moment due to the wind conditions!


As you might have known, we've had Bob and Mary up to the cottage for the past week. I didn't get too much done in the sewing area, however, I did manage to finish putting the patches together.

This top is from a jelly roll that I've added white to just make it more of a summer quilt. It currently...not this final word...measures about 60" square.

I'm not sure I like it being matchy matchy as I look at it and am thinking about putting a white squared sashing in the top.

Do you understand what I mean? I'm not convinced that adding the border sashings will make me happy. I like symetry, just not this much I think.

It's been left on Mary's bed in her bunkie so that I can think on it when I return.

I tell you that life is so interesting these days! We are awaiting results to see if our grandson has made a national team for the Pan Am Games, or even on the team to train for Junior Worlds in Canoeing, his sister, our darling girl who kayaks is having her second operation for the tumor thing, she is also getting prepared for university, and I, note I am last here, am awaiting a date for the hip replacement in September!

Thanks to all who asked for the lovely article that Helen wrote about me! I am truly humbled, and for those who know me it takes a lot to humble me! Stop laughing....this did it!

I am still following Karen on her travels throughout the country as she and Mike are posting fabulous photos! Each year Karen, ie Karen Quilts on the blog roll does a great travel blog of the back country of the United States. Thanks so much as I do feel I am there with them....have a boo!