A Door County Sunset

We went up to Door County...the county in Wisconsin's peninsula that juts out into Lake Michigan...last week for a little bit of R&R and camping.  We froze at night in our little tent, believe it or not, but had a great time.  We hiked and fished and shopped.  We went to Wilson's under their famous red and white striped awnings for ice cream.  We had a yummy cinnamon roll at Grandma's Swedish Bakery at the Wagon Wheel Resort.  We walked among the boats at different marinas in the little towns up the coast.  We saw the goats on the grassy roof of Al Johnson's restaurant. It was a perfect few days, and we left relaxed and refreshed (as we always leave Door County).  Did you see the feature in Victoria magazine about Door County?  I haven't read it yet but was glad that Door County was getting some much deserved attention.

A "big deal" is to watch the sun set in the evening--hoping to see a "green flash" after the sun goes down.  One evening we watched from Sunset Park in Fish Creek, and the second evening we climbed the 75 foot tower at Peninsula State Park and watched from there.  When we got to the top...and well out of breath...I saw this pretty sailboat heading into the harbor.  I love the color of the sails.

Then we watched the sun set from our wonderful vantage point.

Going....

Going...

Going...

Gone! 

Ahhh...while we never did see that green flash, it was definitely another end to another perfect day in Door County. 

Catching Up

It HAS been awhile since I blogged last.  Life has gotten busy.  There is only so much time in a day to get things done.  My little blog has suffered.  I can't possibly go back to when I blogged last and catch up on everything.  But I shall try....

In a nutshell:  We finished school at the end of May.  The kids did well this past year, and I'm very pleased with their work.  They are taking a break from violin for the summer but are still working on their piano lessons.  Our daughter is taking swimming lessons to get a little more confident in the water than she is.  We are still doing those lessons, and I certainly see improvement in just this short time.  They are also taking art lessons this summer. 

We went camping for two nights already.  It was fun to get away, and we hope to do some more in a few weeks.  No big vacation is planned this year--just short camping trips around the state.  We really would like to get up to Door County this summer.  I see the newest issue of Victoria magazine has a nice article on Door County.  They are well deserving of the publicity.  It really is pretty and relaxing up there in the "thumb" of Wisconsin.

There have been plenty of parties we've been going to:  graduation, birthday, etc.  My mother-in-law's 70th is on July 4th, and we are helping with a big celebration for her. 

I've been working on many projects.  Unfortunately sales have been a little low, but that is to be expected this time of year when there is so much going on and people are putting their money toward vacations and family get-togethers.  I've been working on some felt projects (I really do enjoy making felt things) and, of course, my vintage jewelry embellishment projects. 

 

Mom and I are thinking of trying a craft show this fall.  She has been in many; I haven't been in any.  We're waiting approval.  I'm not very good at "production", but if we are approved to be in it, I will need to work on that until November. 

Well, I'll try to be more faithful at writing in the days ahead.  Happy summer day to you.

Home Again

I'm back!  My husband had his vacation early this year.  We saved our pennies and worked very hard (especially my husband...working extra hours to save up) and went away to Montana for just shy of two weeks.  It is a state we had always wanted to go to.  Of course, driving out there and back took four days total--it was long but worth every mile.  We went to upper Wyoming first going to Cody and splurging on a rodeo (the kids loved it!) and driving through Yellowstone National Park where we saw Old Faithful, the Beehive, and of course many sulfer-smelling, steaming pools.

We drove through the Bighorn National Forest.  Wonderful! 

Yes, it was a little chilly, but the mountains were gorgeous and the wildflowers were a delight.
We then went on up to Montana where we gold panned (didn't find anything) and searched for sapphires (did find many...but I'm saving that for another post!).  We stayed in camping cabins (thankfully there were heaters in most--froze one night in a cabin that didn't have a heater!) and had many picnics.  I was able to do a little bit of shopping (a different post on one of those places).  My husband enjoyed a little fishing on Father's Day after church...because it was Father's Day it was a no-license day! 

I enjoyed the mountain roses everywhere.

We went up the northwest side of the state and spent time at Glacier National Park before coming home.  We saw plenty of exciting wildlife.

Due to rain and the snowmelt, the rivers, falls, and streams were swollen and rushing...but beautiful. 

The Indian Paintbrushes were everywhere.

The "Going-to-the-Sun" road (the one that goes over the mountains in the park) was opened the second day we were there.

 It was quite a ride, to say the least, but we enjoyed it!

We had a super family time and totally enjoyed God's awesome creation. 

Taking a Break

I'll be taking a little break over the next few weeks--from my shop, from blogging, from Pinterest--well, you get the idea.  I've bought myself a new pair of pretty little scissors and a snappy pile of wool felt, and I'm going to play.  Certainly dabbling into some sort of creative outlet isn't work especially when it is all experimental.  Hopefully this will be a time of refreshment and relaxation for mind and body.  Until two weeks from now....*hugs*

I'm Back and Ready to Go!

Well, we have returned from our looooonng drive to and from Maine.  It was great to go back "home" to see the beauty and charm of Maine, where I grew up, hear the ocean, and smell the salt air.  We met up with my grandparents visiting from Florida, my brother and nephew back from New Zealand to enroll my nephew into college this fall, my great aunt, and other friends.  We also said our final goodbyes to my grandmother who passed away this past March.  We were all able to meet at the veterans' cemetery in Maine where my grandfather is already buried for a memorial service for her (this was our main purpose in going to Maine).  It was a beautiful, sunny day and the service, though teary for sure, was sweet and full of memories of dear Gram.  I say it was our "final" good-bye...but that, of course, is only on this earth because she had and we have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, and we know we will see hear again someday.  Such comfort this assurance brings!

While in Maine, we did a little antique shopping, eating on "the rocks" along the coast watching seagulls and fishermen check their lobster traps, hiking, eating fish (yum--can't beat fresh fish!), and looking for sea glass.  I even have a project or two to do with some that I found...that will be another post perhaps.  Anyway, it's good to be back to my real home, and it's time to get busy for the fall.

Taking a Computer Break

It's the last full month of summer, and I'm taking some time off from blogging and my shop for just a few weeks to enjoy the sun, the warm weather, and my family.  I'm constantly puttering around on my Etsy shop--doing treasuries, listing, checking statistics, promoting, re-listing, etc.--and it's time for a break away from the computer (so I'm going to put my shop in "vacation mode").  Oh, I may check the shop out a few times, and I'll be doing some shopping for sure for things for my shop and to embellish with.  I can't step away totally, you know.  Besides, the shopping part isn't work.  In fact, I get kind of edgy if I haven't visited a thrift store, yard sale, estate sale, or antique shop in over a week.  ; )  Anyway, I'll be back in two weeks hopefully refreshed and energized for fall and the busy months ahead.

Been on a Stay-cation!

I've been sort of "out of commission" this past week. Hubby has had the past week off....so we took a week off from homeschooling (hey, we've been doing it since the middle of August--it was time for a break!). With very little money in the 'ol checking account, we have been on a "stay-cation". The Lord blessed us with a beautiful week--the weather could not have been more perfect for Wisconsin in October. It has been warm and clear and sunny all week long! We're so thankful. We took day jaunts to state parks to look at foliage...had picnics...went fishing (didn't catch anything so ended up at McDonald's for a Filet-O-Fish instead)...went canoeing...went hiking...did some things around the house...visited family...and yesterday went to a wedding.

It was a beautiful day for a wedding. My husband's cousin got married. She had fall colors for her theme, and it was held under a leaf-garland arbor. The long, formal dresses were burnt copper and burnt sienna in color, and the bride worn an off white color which went well with the scheme. I loved the red-tipped yellow roses for the flowers. Lovely! By the way...when did it become vogue for people to attend a wedding in jeans and/or shorts and/or flip flops??? I always thought we were to go to weddings in dress up clothes. We dressed in our Sunday fineries, and I'm glad we did. Enough of this casual stuff! Anyway, after the ceremony, which was outside, a little cloud came up in the blue sky from which came a bit of rain and a beautiful rainbow....this in an almost totally clear sky! It was amazing and beautiful!

I've done a little bit of creating--not much, though. I thought my mind and hands needed rest and rejuvenation. It felt strange to just sit while riding to our destinations this past week. I ALWAYS am working on something in the car. However, it think it was good for me to take a complete break. I feel more ready to work on things now and am eager to get going on some projects I have laid out. That will come once we're on a regular schedule again and when homeschool starts up again (the kids work...and I work).

Posting Once Again

Well, I'm happy to say that we are back and up and running again. We now have a new computer. I'm not sure how much of our information is gone from our old computer, but we will have to wait to assess that at a later date when my brother-in-law gets a chance to check things out. We are slowing figuring out how to move about on here and process pictures and such--we haven't arrived yet, but we're getting there. It is good to be back.

We had a wonderful time in South Dakota. We went on a very tight budget and stayed at camping cabins instead of hotels. We were going to tent--and I'm so glad we didn't since it rained--reallllly rained---a few times. We would have been quite wet to say the least. We brought most of our food and tried to spend money only on necessities. We had great weather otherwise and a super time. It will be a memorable time especially for our kids.

We saw plenty of prairie flowers--bluebells, roses, and thistles. They were just beautiful.

We survived a mountain hail storm--our car got dented up pretty badly...but I'm thankful the windshield didn't break.

We saw buffalo at Custer State Park--up close and personal (notice the car window is up!). It is a gorgeous park with lots of wildlife and well worth the visit. We also saw sweet mountain blue birds.

We drove the breathtaking Needles Highway (us and a lot of motorcycles). It truly was an incredible drive with tunnels through rocks and amazing vistas.

Then, of course, we saw Mt. Rushmore. We did plenty of hiking around the park and went back at night for the evening session which paid tribute to America and its servicemen/women and veterans. It was great and a fun and relaxing time!

Back fromVacation--Computer Burnt Out

Hello all! I'm back from vacation. We went to South Dakota for a week and had a wonderful time. The western side is a beautiful area of the country. I was able to get a lot of beading in (it was a long drive!) and have many projects to finish up then put in my shop. Unfortunately, when we arrived home we discovered that our computer got fried during a thunderstorm (turned things off but didn't unplug 'em--learn from our mistakes!). Thankfully I can access things through out library (though for only 1/2 hour at a time). Hopefully we will be able to get a new computer this weekend then be up and running again. There is so much to say and lots of pictures to show, but that will have to wait until another time.