About Me

October 31, 2019

From Long Ago ....


Love the vintage Halloween postcards that many
friends have posted on FB and other social media
tools. I love the sentiment in the wording and the
sweet art that would have been so popular, long ago!

Happy Halloween ....

~ Chy

Irish Pub.


Our favorite Irish Pub in Victoria.
Authentic, cozy and amazing food.


Outside was too chilly this time so in
we ventured. Our favorite spot was full.


We love sitting in the snug, with its
own fireplace and windows to the street.


But we were able to sit close by and order
quickly without a wait at all for our drinks.


Just what we needed after trekking
around town looking for wedding rings.


A spot to rest my weary feet and relax.
A nice atmosphere and great hosts.


Eggs Benedict with the best Caesar
Salad. Perfect on a cold Sunday morning.


My guy loved his Fish and Chips and
was very glad he only ordered 1 piece.
Every time we head to the coast, we
visit this pub and it's never let us down!

~ Chy

Lapping Waves.


After we left our little island, we
spent some time in Victoria and
headed to Sidney By The Sea to
shop and hike down to the ocean.


It was chilly and windy, so the waves were so
loud and lapping along the shoreline to my toes!


Our 1st stillborn son, Bretton. We wrote his
sweet name in the sand and watched it disappear.


Our 1st stillborn daughter, Ciara. What we
do in memory of Bretton, we do for Ciara.


It didn't take long but soon both their names
were just memories in our minds and hearts.


Petrified logs along the beach, as Ciara's
precious name washes back out to the sea. 


Perfect hole in the log. Seaweed and shells
dot the landscape. We picked some sea glass.


Soon it was too cold and we needed to find
a warm place to sit and watch the lapping waves.

~ Chy

The Best News.


Had my annual mammogram on Tuesday,
late in the afternoon. Today, I received a
big letter in the mail from our local health
authority, letting me know the final results
of this tense exam. I'm happy to report that
at this time, I am NOT 1 in 8 women who
will receive a breast cancer diagnosis in
their lifetime. I'm relieved but have had
many women in my mind today as I waited
for any news. Relieved and humbled ....

~ Chy

Halloween Cookies.

 

Dh decided he needed cookies for when
his buds were coming over for a recording.


Dd, aka mama, is the expert cake baker
and decorator in the house and joined in.


Grandbaby was happy to help out with
decorating once the mama did the icing.


Cookies were a great hit, the night before
Halloween, while they recorded a podcast.

Did you have cookies on Halloween?
Or just chocolate and sweet candy?

~ Chy

1st Watercolor.


I'm just learning, so be patient with me!
Trying to capture the Alliums we grew.

~ Chy

October 30, 2019

Who Knew ....


.... that a plant that was almost dead
would instead revive and thrive itself
when I placed it in a very out of the
way spot. This area gets nice morning
light and then the rest of the day, it's
filtered as the sun moves around the
house. Who knew this finky plant in
the end would love a corner, on a shelf!

~ Chy

New Additions.


I've had such good luck this year finding
more bits and pieces of my favorite dishes,
Lace Cream by Skye McGhie. I love the
lacey edges and the creamy, soft color.


If you look on the bottom shelf, there is
now a sweet baby dish with 3 divided
sections, behind it is the matching baby
cup with 2 handles and on the left, by
the big platter is a lovely butter dish. I
am so excited to have these new pieces.

~ Chy

Vintage Desk.

 

I love my vintage writing space.
So dreamy, quiet and inspiring.


Nooks and crannies to store tiny
items I cherish. Or need as I write.


To my left, my favorite chair and
a picture gifted by my parents. My
grandparents vintage lamp and our
son't Celtic harp. A favorite corner.


To my right, a peek in to the turret
with all it's windows. Lovely light
and a great visual distraction when
I need a bit of a break from writing.

~ Chy

Garage Update.


Our garage is now painted, with a finished
textured ceiling. On the weekend, we laid
out the vinyl flooring that is covering up
the ugly concrete. And then we hung up
the blinds on two of the four windows. The
oval window won't have any covering
so just three sets of blinds. This weekend,
we'll be unloading the outside bin and
setting up the workshop and filling up
the storage room. Can't wait to be done!

~ Chy

October 27, 2019

Concentration Kid.


Here he is again, concentrating on his reading. The room is so quiet! He was waiting for his hockey coach and had to finish reading later in the day after this picture was taken. We used to chat in the car all the time but not that he's discovered the joy of reading, he brings a book into the car every time. Now our car rides are even quiet. If I start to talk, he tells me "gramma, stop! I'm reading." All righty then!

Today was busy. We had to be up early to get the grandbaby ready for his hockey evaluation. Mama worked a 12 hour shift last night, so she came home just as we got up. Off to nap she went for a few hours. We fed him, got all his hockey gear ready and then went out to our garage to do more work in it before the snow arrives. Our garage contents are sitting in the POD on our driveway. We had our contractor tape, mud, sand then paint our walls and texture the ceiling of the garage. Looks so amazing now! We ordered a vinyl product that lays flat on the floor and looks great as well. Today we laid the flooring out, placed the large metal shelving unit where dh's workshop will go, and rearranged the few items we do have in the garage. We also washed the windows, then installed 2 of the 3 blinds on 2 of the 3 windows. After grandbaby was picked up, we tidied up, had showers and then headed down the highway to pick up an item I bought off Marketplace. New pieces for my Cream Lace collection of china. I'll post pics at some point. After that drive, we headed back in to the City and met up with mama and grandbaby for his hockey game. We had a lot of fun chatting with the other parents/grandparents and I even got to hold, rock and play with the sweetest new baby. The game was really good, we won 10 to 0 but I did feel bad for the other team. Our kids did really well. After we said our goodbyes, we headed back to our little hamlet, stopped to get water, groceries and then treated everyone to warm hot chocolates from Timmies. By now, the sun we had earlier had disappeared, the clouds moved in and by the time we were heading home, there were some flakes swirling around us as we drove down the highway. Home looked so good when we came down the driveway. Unloaded our groceries and the water bottle, took the garbage bins down the lane and then settled in to make dinner. So yummy, again! And tonight, I've done my mom's laundry, wrote half of a grant for 2020, answered emails and texts, and watched an episode of "Escape to the Country," another of "Unexpected" and once grandbaby is asleep, we're going to head to bed as well to watch the first episode of a new series our son recommended. We just finished the 2nd Season of "Succession" and it was amazing!! Can't wait for Season 3 but that looks like it won't be until sometime next Summer. Such a long wait but it will be worth it in the end.

How was your Sunday?
Busy like ours or restful?

~ Chy

Early Dusk.


It's getting darker and darker, earlier
and earlier each day. This is 6 p.m.


Next week, we change our clocks back.
Soon it will be dark by 4ish. Yuck ....


We keep our night time activities in the
Fall very limited so we can stay home.


A nice cozy house, a warm fireplace,
family and a good movie to watch are
all we need when the light fades and
we retreat back inside. Happy Fall!

~ Chy

Concentration.


Our little guy reading on his iPad after
dinner one night. His concentration is
so good that we have to almost jump up
and down to get his attention. Sweet boy!

~ Chy

Homey Fall.


Fall around the house. Just two pictures
tonight but the two I like the most of all.


We found this Fall pillow at M's on a great
sale a couple of weeks ago. I truly never
thought about buying a "Fall pillow" but
this one was too cute to pass up. No regrets.

The green basket on our mantel was a thrift
store find for $2 originally but it was a half
price day, so $1. No arguments from me. I
love the weave and the color works perfectly
with our style. Lots of tiny pumpkins and
Fall flowers round out the look for our home. 

~ Chy

October 26, 2019

Miniature Project.


At the Dollhouse Show back in September, we
met a lovely lady who makes these neat boxes
to decorate. I work on dollhouses on my own
but dh and I came up with the idea to create a
project together. So we chatted with Erika and
then ordered our box. We decided on a bakery
and the rest of the time spent at the show was
finding items for our new project. It was a lot of
fund but we had to wait for the box to be done.
I picked it up a couple of weeks ago, in the rain. 


Isn't it sweet? We'll paint it up but she already
put wallpaper inside for us. Pictures to follow.
The back I'm going to take off and attach it to
the side. I think it will be easier than trying to
prop it up to work on the inside all the time. I
do want to hang pictures or shelves on the back.

Our together project to work on over the Winter,
instead of working on work. Excited to tackle this.

~ Chy

Enjoy!


And I did. Cause if you tell me to, I
will do my best. A treat from my dd.

~ Chy

October 22, 2019

Nature Works.

 







Even though we're home now, safe, sound and warm, I have lots of memories to share about our island vacation. I will apologize in advance for spreading these memories throughout the rest of October as I sift through our pictures and add words to the images. Bear with me!

One of my favorite stores on the island is called Nature Works. It reminds me quite a bit of our Planet Organic store back home. Nature based food items and products that don't contain chemicals. My kind of store, my kind of eating! I love the atmosphere too. Kind of like shopping at one of the old stores we used to go to when I was small and we spent Summers at the lake. Everything was wood, the door was screened and you took your groceries home in a basket or a paper bag. So earthy, so natural. Just the way life should be!

~ Chy