Public Boat Docks in Seeley's Bay

Saturday, January 30, 2010

One Down One To Go

Wednesday, January 27th, 2010has come and gone, meaning, the District Governor's Dinner hosted by our Seeley's Bay Lions Club for District A-4  of International Lions Clubs is over and behind me.  I must tell you that the floral arrangements which my mother made to dress the tables were absolutely gorgeous and she used the Lions colours in those arrangements.   Meaning, one important event is now over and the last for this winter is still to come .......Frost Fest! Only 5 sleeps left before Frost Fest begins and this year from all accounts it will be BIGGER and hopefully BETTER than ever. 

The rain has finally stopped but I know for a fact that many people were coping with water in their basements and with the colder temperatures on the way if that water doesn't dry up nicely before we'll all be skating on sidewalks and the streets, and our ice rinks will need more attention because the water flowed from the higher ground onto the ice and made it rough and untidy, but soon with the colder weather the rinks will once again become groomed with the help from our human zamboni's and Frost Fest day skaters will surely be enjoying the surfaces. 

Dang I seem to be having sewing machine problems again, hopefully though I can work around this problem and finish off those much promised totes for the Frost Fest and some other quilted items to be donated as prizes.... I can't wait to see how well I progress in getting my to do list completed. 

I am so busy I don't have time now to falter, sew, sew, sew that is my motto for this week and next, onwards to the finish line.  I still have the Scavenger Hunt clues and items all packed up too... Wanna come help?

Thanks to a very special man, Rick my Scavenger Hunt Flyer is really neat, I am so hoping alot of families will come and join in on the Family Fun, seeing little ones try and solve the clues and then find the booty and win the Hunt....I am so looking forward to this event and praying it will be a huge success...In my links section you can get to our Fraost Fest web-site just with a click of your mouse.

I have also restocked my Esty Shop and connected it with Big Crumbs....SAVE AND SAVE AND SAVE through BIG CRUMBS.  I mean if your already an online shopper whats the harm in checking this site out - it has 480 Large Retailers and counting and several hundreds smaller online entrepenurial shops, from Esty to e-Bay you'll find many of us there offering cash back, or free shipping, and other types of shopping incentives and this site provides the shoppers with savings and the rest of us benefit of traffic to our stores and savings as well as earnings for small business' earners.  Another idea, if your non-profit group is planning fundraising, this site will provide you with earning for the group too!  People shop, they save your group earns and your fundraising is supplimented with dollars too all done through Big Crumbs and the savings go directly into your fundraiser account, what a neat way to boost your groups earning for the fundraising power.   Again, check out the ad at the top of my esty shop here in the sidebar, click on it and check out BIG CRUMBS for yourself.


The end of my day is now here, but it was a very good day, I was alive and well and that is the most important blessing of all, then to top this blessing off I got to spend time with good people who volunteer their time and energies in helping others. 

Thank you for dropping in and have a wonderful day tomorrow.

Monday, January 25, 2010

Rain, Rain

It has rained all night and all day today and the snow is quickly fading away.  Well so I thought, but the wind has come up and the temperatures are dropping fast, but having gone hunting for the long range forecast, it leaves hope for good winter weather for our Towns Frost Fest.  Our ice down at the Bay was like glass up until last nights rain.  With the dropping temperatures and the snow forecast to be on its way gives hope that the glass conditions of the ice rink will once again make a reappearance.

Yesterday I took the plunge, I joined BIG CRUMBS to avail myself and anyone else I know of the great savings offered through it. It hooks up my online Esty Shop and affords me an opportunity to provide discounts to buyers willing to buy my hand made tote bags and quilted items.  One can but hope it will help me to become a saver as well as an earner.  People who shop online may as well benefit from the savings as well as those retailers gaining more custom.  What a great combination.   When you see the amount of savings you can snare shopping through that site and how much earners can earn, well its positively exciting.  I couldn't help but join.   480 Retailers registered to date all offering huge savings.  People refer other people who shop online anyway why not allow everyone to make a buck or two. Small entrepeneurs like myself really benefit.  I am hoping to do well with it.  Retailers and consumers working in concert and each benefiting from the exercise.

Having said that I needed to make time to list more inventory at the Esty shop which I have done, I feel much better now for having done just that.  Once Frost Fest is over and done with I can finally go back to my beloved quilting, two weeks and counting.

Once I find more time to steal from my to do list I will post pictures of all the totes and bags I have been finishing.

In the meantime I have been thinking about giraffes, those wonderful graceful long necked creatures with legs to have made Betty Grable jealous.  These creatures are my most favorite of all in the Animal Kingdom.    I discovered MongaBay a web site and interview with Jeremy Hance a giraffe expert and Dr. Julian Fennessey.  Want to be in awe, go see the photography.  

In the meantime while your being captivated with my Giraffes I will leave and get back to the work I must do.  Have a wonderful day what is left of it on your side of the computer screen and remember if your reading what it is I have written, then we're both above ground and very blessed.

Friday, January 22, 2010

Out Of Sick Bay

I don't believe it,  here it is Friday again!!!   I have accomplished nothing since Sunday past, all I have done is quarantine myself to my quarters,  drunk water until I could feel my innards sloshing and slept until my bones and joints became stiffer than wood.  

I'm such a fraidy cat and haven't bothered to contact the doctor.  My mother has publicized my ailments and my brother has been badgering me to get an appointment, but all I want is to be left to myself and get over whatever it is that I managed to bring home with me from someone else somewhere else.   Who really knows, but it can't last much longer, can it?  WELL if it does I guess I will eventually have to make it to the doctors' office and take it all from there, but oh how I hate doing that, the images I conjure up are not mentally appetizing and so, I remain here in my quarters and taking my sweet time to get better.  I am drinking gallons of water, eating lots of soups, had some fruit but so far only the cramping has disappeared, I still have the nasties!!!

I am certain some time in between the frequent handwashings while out shopping last week I picked up some nasty germ someone left lying about.   I wash my hands by frequenting the store washroom facilities all of the time.   I keep those anti-bacterial hand wipes in my pocket, I even use that anti-bacterial jell when I run out of those wipes and when good old fashioned soap isn't available.  Obviously I wasn't careful enough. 

I could have picked it up at the grocery store, or the craft shop, or the quilt store, the gas pump handle, or the restaurant where we finally all stopped for supper, who really knows on which surface that nasty germ lay in waiting for someone to come along and carry it off home with them?  So be vigilant, you can't ever be too careful with your health, heaven only knows where the nasties are waiting to ambush you!

Frost Fest is rapidly approaching and I am so far behind in my list of things to have done, I only hope I can accomplish half of the "need to do list".    Not today, today is needed for moving stuff out of the back room of the Hut where the Heater is for the In-Floor Radiant Heating.  The darned thing decided to die this week.  In order to get this old unit removed and the new unit installed, I need to empty out the room.  The man told me I only needed to move so much, but heavens to betsy how can he work in a space already filled to the rafters with Stuff, so from Sick Bay I go to the Hut and make certain that man can do his job properly and not be hampered by all of this junk.

To top off my totally unproductive week the International Lions Club Govenors' Dinner is also rapidly approaching and I have obligations to my Club to get certain things done too.   Who knows how I will accomplish it all, but try is all I can ask of me.

Since having told you all of this I assure you I am still above ground and if your reading this you are too, so have a totally FRIENDTASTIC day and enjoy all of your blessings, I know I will.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

The Closer It Gets

You know the closer it gets, the busier everyone becomes!  Yes, February is fast approaching, nothing can really stop it, and I am so far behind it's making me nervous!  I actually spent more time in meetings this week than at the sewing machine... there is a saying from away back and who said it, I just don't know, but it goes like this "the road to hell is paved with good intentions", can you guess where it is I am headed?

I did absolutely no sewing this Thursday or Friday though I had every intention and plans to do so.  The Frost Fest Savenger Hunt got the better of me and I spent those days thinking, planning, talking, and replanning about it all.  We finally have a working ad set up on the Frost Fest web-site but my oh my I had no idea how detailed it all would become.  I thought it would be a simple activity, but, if you plan on families taking part and little ones enjoying the hunt, your mind must begin to think as children do.  I haven't done this type of thinking in nearly 30 years, come to think of it for me thinking could be dangerous!  Silly ole me!!!

Truth be told, I think now all that is left to do is the physicalities of the Hunt.  Registeration of teams, hiding the clues and the game pieces, getting the flags set up so they can spot the area where the clues are waiting for them and then setting these out very, very early Saturday Morning.  That means I have to press my alarm clock into service.  Hmmmmmmmm I wonder where the clock is...

Everyone on the Frost Fest Committee is working hard, these people are dedicated to this event and give much of their time and energies into making sure everything goes off without a hitch.   Making certain people enjoy the winter fun and make a few sheckles to turn back to the community too.   THIS year I hope to eat my first Beaver Tail too!!!  Beaver Tail you ask, here is what it is essentially, nicely described for you from Jens' Food & Whine Blog - you'll love her blog if you love food and wine!  We will have two locations for those favorite sought after treats this year that is how popular these have become.  Here is a picture of a Beaver Tail borrowed from Jens' Food & Whine Blog





Now it is time I stopped playing and get into my day, I already have supper cooking in the crock pot, the dishes being washed in the dishwasher, time to shower and dress, make and eat brunch with mother, and after all that to make my way back to the sewing machine, if I ever want my donations ready for this years Frost Fest.

Again, if your reading this your like me, we're above ground and lets enjoy this blessing today.

Friday, January 15, 2010

TGIF

I love Fridays don't you? Seems like only yesterday it was Monday and already I have forgotten many of the activities I participated in these past four days. It must be a sign of aging, not remembering from one day to the next?

Seeing as it is Friday once again, I have managed to wake late, have two cups of coffee, taken two phone calls, one from each of my brothers and said goodmorning to the day by being greatful that once again I find myself above ground and in good humour. That my friends is a real Blessing.

The difficult work for the Scavenger Hunt for our Annual Frost Fest has been accomplished and put onto paper for approval by the Committee tomorrow morning and now I have only the physicalities of the Hunt to prepare. Oh my, alot of physical cutting and inserting of the clues, setting up the markers and making certain these are too hidden. I wouldn't want some of those teams to hunt for too long. Seeing as I have planned on the hunt taking place out of doors and not having the contestants go into any business establishments, the objects the hunters are to gather need to be in plain view but not too easily found. Saves having those snowy mucky boot marks being trampled all over floors, or customers being jostled or inventory knocked off shelves, besides Frost Fest Activities should be out doors and in the fresh air, which we have plenty of in our Town.

I have ready the Silk Floral Table Arrangements all made by my mother and the tickets and quilt for the Canada Guide Dog fundraiser innitiative we currently have going on. WISH us well in the sale of these tickets because all funds raised will directly benefit those wonderful Guide Dogs.

While your here and if you would consider it, please support my Social Vibe The Vision Charity. It is afterall a wonderful and worthwhile cause.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

The Push and Shove is Over

Finally all of the pushing and the shoving of the furniture is over, those large pieces of furniture are all in place and many of the re-organization of the items of the work space is nearly complete.  A few bits and pieces, but there simply isn't enough time to continue until the obligations I owe to the Towns' Frost Fest activities is over.

Today I have errands for Frost Fest that need to be taken care of.  Next is a trip to the Post Office.  I have items to mail and mail to receive and its the receiving I am excited about once again.

If your a Quilter and belong to an online group or a number of groups, ubdoubtedly you've learned of or taken part in online swaps.  I belong to an online group who have been together for the past twelve years.  We've had mini-retreats, large gatherings and been together through thick and through thin.  This year we are starting it off by my hosting a Birthday Block Swap, and what a wonderful block it is too.  We've borrowed a block from The Quilters Cache, the Dutch Nine Patch and chosen the same colour combination as Marcia Hohn has used in her block instructions.

This Block is turning out so prettily, and already I am receiving blocks to my snail mail address.  I had thought to send out the blocks to all on their birthdays, but decided to ask them all if they'd like to have them now instead of waiting nearly a whole year until their birthdays roll around.... I will wait for their replies before telling you the final outcome of that question.

I have already begun receiving huge stuffed envelopes with these pretties inside, what a beautiful Birthday Quilt this is going to make.

Here are some of the envelopes I have already, and some pictures of the actual blocks.  All different shades of blue are being used and they all stand out so well on their own, but combined together will make the quilt I wish to make a stunner.






Look at all of the stuffed envelopes I have so far.







This is a block out of one of the envelopes


This is one of my blocks. 
You see these are all going to be so very different while being all the same block.  Now I really must stop playing and get to those many errands else I will fall farther and farther behind.  Seeing as we are all above groud today, I am wishing you a fantastic 1.




Tuesday, January 12, 2010

A Few Hours in Time

The telephone rang yesterday and I was asked by a dear friend if I cared to accompany her into Kingston and do a little bit of shopping at the new Quilt Store that opened up.   Actually it isn't new, but it is.  A merger by two large and popular quilt shops The Quilters' Choice and The Perfect Stitch both in Kingston amalgamated into a rather large and attractive "new" quilt shop.  It is now called The Quilt and Stitch. 

Now you know I really don't need more fabric, but, to my absolute delight I found what I just had to have and bought a meter of it, that meter cost $19.98 Can. whoa camel, but textile prices sure have risen.

I have been saving pennies for a new and improved sewing machine and a Tin Lizzie 18 which has me drooling.  I looked at the sewing machines in the new Shop yesterday, but in all truth these didn't excite me as much as the Industrial Bernina I saw at my repairmans' shop, Eric of V.B. Simkins Sewing Machines has the bang for my buck that I have found.  So I must learn to become much more thrifty than I currently am and do nothin but save, save, save.  Not too easy to do when your in a beautiful new Quiltp shop and you just have to have some more fabric which you don't need but just have to have!
Believe it or not, when a crafter makes something for sale and you see the price you must take into consideration the cost of materials that make up this piece.  Hours of work and other incidentals that go into the piece aren't even considered by most.  Sometimes I wonder how cottage industrues survive.  Makes one stop and think though does it not?

TODAY I plan on cleaning up this sewing and computer area.  I am moving in my new computer desk and will have to rearrange the entire room to accomodate its placement, it is exciting, but I really don't want to have to do the moving.  I will have to take some pictures once I have the final set up arranged and ready to go.  I can't take too long at this because I have obligations to complete orders, but honestly feel that if I do not rearrange this all now and put away all of the fabrics I have pulled out all over the place I won't be further ahead I'll end up further behind.

Off to move furniture.  Wish me luck!

Monday, January 11, 2010

A Little About This and A Little About That

Two days into the new blogging regime and already I am slipping up.  Somehow though  Sunday managed to slip past me without time to accomplish too much.

I picked up a nail or something rather sharp and discovered a flat tire while out doing the weeks shopping for groceries on Saturday evening.  I arranged to have the tire changed and will get it into the garage to have it repaired sometime this week. My doorbell just kept ringing and people were coming and going all afternoon, even after dinner there was no let up and so it went until bed time.  

I have been trying to work the kinks out of the Scavenger Hunt I am planning to hold at our community Frost Fest.  It being a first time event, I would really like to see it become an annual event.  It really isn't easy to plan a scavenger hunt is it?  That old movie "My Man Godfrey" with Carole Lombard and William Powell back in 1936"  made it all seem so very easy and alot of fun.  I love old balck and white movies, don't you?

Todays' scavenger hunts must be a bit more sophisticated though because we just don't behave like they do in movies and those days of the 30's no longer exist now do they?
So I have stolen some ideas from others who have graciously put their methods on the internet for others to make use of and will be hiding frozen coloured muffins with pennies inside.  To find the muffin and collect the penny they must solve a riddle or a clue, allowing for the entire team to participate in the whole game.  I really am hoping this will be successful and a great deal of fun for all who will venture to play along.

Not only am I responsible for the Scavenger Hunt for Seeley's Bay 15th Annual Frost Fest,   but I am also a member of the Lions Club here in the Bay, I finished my Round Robin Quilt and pledged it as the First Prize in this years Seeley's Bay Lions Club Fund Raiser events.  All money derived from the sale of tickets on the quilt will go to benefit Guide Dogs Canada.  A very worthwhile charity for Lions, as Guide Dogs are much in demand for those without sight.   The picture I took isn't terrific but it will give you an idea of what it looks like.  It measures 64.5" X 64.5" Square. 

This Round Robin quilt left here with my concept of what I saw from my window where I lived on the east coast of Canada and what it is that I saw from that window.  All of the women in my Round Robin group went along with the idea I presented them with and this is the result.

At the quilts center is my immaginary neighbours house across the road. Obviously it is a work day because my neighbours' quilts/blankets,  as Maritimers are want to name them are hanging out being aired before putting them back on the beds.
From my window I can see the garden in all of the four seasons of the year.   The garden extends into the forest beyond and from that forest the trail leads you to the sand dunes which extend themselves out into the Bay of Fundy

It is my hope that many others will like this unique quilt enough to buy lot of tickets so that this year we may present Guide Dogs with more money to train new puppies who will grow up to become Super Guide Dogs for those who are in need of these wonderful animals, who give of themselves 24/7 with total adoration and service.  What more could I ask of this quilt to give but its warmth and my immagination and a Guide Dog?



The Four Seasons

Saturday, January 9, 2010

Here we are, Saturday, January 9th, 2010 already.  Where does time go to? The morning is a bright one with temperatures in the low single digits.  Brrrrrrrrr, 7F for those who are not using the celcius scale, and supposed to hit a high of 17F if we are fortunate.  This deep freeze is not kind to arthritic sufferers.

The whole town suffered a hydro blackout last night, just at supper time.  No one had any idea as to what caused it.  One minute I was sitting in front of my sewing machine and the next plunged into darkness. It didn't last too long though only an 1 1/2.  We were toasty warm with the use of our propane firepalce and cookstove.

This morning bright and early I attended a Frost Fest Committee meeting.  What fun - virtually everyone on the committee arrived and it was a full house.  The Retirement home once again played host and provided a breakfast of juice, croixsants, muffins, bagels, toast, fruit salad, tea or coffee...Mmmmmmmmmm.   I thought I had all of the details for my scavenger hunt settled but really it must all be changed.  Not all digital cameras perform well in the cold.   I will have more to tell you about this the closer to Frost Fest it gets.



Wishing you a wonderful day from Seeley's Bay.


Friday, January 8, 2010

Another New Year Begins

Happy New year everyone.

I have been thinking of deleting my blog because it is so boring!!!! With this being the beginning of a new year, possibly I can learn to become a more interesting read? Who knows?


This Thanksgiving mother and I decided to take ourselves on a little journey.  Mother at 87 years young managed to drive shotgun with me all the way to Ft. Meyers, Florida.  By the time our month was almost over we were on the way back to Canada.  It was alot of driving but I admit to loving every moment of the time I spent on my journey.  Look at this splendiforous tree at one of those rest stops,





Look, I discovered cotton fields in bloom and coy and turtles in Shopping malls





I nick-named this one Myrtle.  So many things we saw and did while visiting there, but we were so happy to return to Seeley's Bay.


With the onslaught of 2010 there are already too many obligations on my schedule, and time spent for myself is becoming premium.   So I have enlisted the help of the other "me" and hopefully I can keep up with her...

The annual Seeley's Bay Frost Fest is coming again - oh boy a ton of fun and games in a winter setting are once again being planned, and more and diversified activities are added. The committee members are excited about their quest once again to make this a stellar year. Each and every dollar earned during Frost Fest will be returned back into the community, so virtually everyone in our community becomes a winner.   IF your interested in the events and activities planned for this years annual event you can get there by clicking on the Frost Fest Link in the links section of this blog.




I'm pretty sure I told you I now am living in Seeley's Bay, Ontario, which is located in the heart of Rideau Heritage country.  I'm adding some intresting links about this wonderful place in the links section just in case your interest has been triggered. These sites explore the wonders of this region I now live and play in.  I must tell you that Ken Watson is wonderful, his site is chock full of interesting information, image gallery of scenic wonders throughout, links to other numerous sites for destinations within the region and so very much more.  This mans site is so informative and interesting.  I do hope you'll think about visiting our region one day soon.  Why not take in the Annual winter activities and fun offered by our 2010 Frost Fest?

Since I make no real resolutions when each new year rolls around I once again didn't bother this year either.  However, I feel guilty for taking up this space and not blogging on a daily basis, if for no other reason than to let you know I am here and what trouble I may have managed to get myself involved in.   So in spite of not having made a resolution I will make every effort to come here every day and let you discover what I am up to.

Since moving here I have managed to join a few committees and the Seeley's Bay Lions Club.  As last year, I have undertaken to make totes for giveaway prizes and a few other articles which I hope may become sellers and earn me back some of the costs so that I may replace my materials.   This will be fun seeing as I only have a few weeks left to complete these tasks. 

I also volunteered (yes, I volunteered) to run a new activity event for the frost fest, a virtual scavenger hunt - now this should be fun, or at least I am hoping others will try it and find it fun.

I am also diligently working on my Esty Shop to increase my stock.  This isn't going as fast as I thought it would, but I am working on it.   Looky - here is a new bag.





So, if your still reading and you think some of these dithers of mine will be interesting to follow, by all means please stick around, you never know when you'll catch me having a race to see which one of me will finish first.