Pineapple Sage Blooming

My pineapple sage is blooming and it is so beautiful.  The hummingbirds visit it all the time.  I got a new camera because the old one died.   I am not so sure how I feel about the quality on this one.  I haven't been able to capture a hummingbird image and the pictures aren't as in focus.  But with all those caveats, here is my pineapple sage, looking pretty snazzy and lighting up the back yard.

Someone who works at Portland Nursery said they got their pineapple sage to winter over last year even though it was a terribly cold winter for here.  I hope I can manage that because then they bloom much earlier.

Right now its blooms are standing between us and our rampaging bamboo.  After the pineapple sage stops blooming, we need to get out there and do some more bamboo control.

This dog has a goal

Sushi feast

John made a sushi feast last night.  He wore his new apron.  I think that is why the sushi was so good.  I am not even that big a fan of sushi so it must have been the apron.

Daily Walk

It was beautiful when we went for a walk today.

These were taken in the park.

And these were not.

An apron for John

John's been asking for an apron.  So, I made him one.

Sewing machine table extension

When I am sewing larger pieces, a little more table is nice.  I took a 2 foot square piece of styrofoam insulation, wrapped it in some plastic table cloth (for better sliding) and used a couple of small boxes to elevate it....

It gives me a bigger table and it is temporary.  I put it away when I don't need it.  I love these rinky dink inexpensive solutions.  If I can find something in my house to solve a problem, it makes me feel rich and clever.

Hand quilting

I really like hand work.  It's soothing.  Recently I've been hand quilting with size 8 Pearl Cotton.  The stitches are on the big side but I like how they look.  Even when I used to struggle to make my stitches tiny, I secretly liked them best when they were bigger.

First I machine stitch around the blocks (stitch in the ditch).   Then I hand quilt the inner lines of the blocks. The blocks are 10 inches by 16 inches so the machine stitching is enough hold things in place.  No quilting hoops or basting are needed for the hand quilting.

For this quilt I am using Artfabric hand dyed variegated thread.  I like it a lot.

Daily Walk

Nearly every day we go for a walk.  More often than not we are running errand(s).  I think we average about 2 miles a day.

This guy was in the park practicing Good King Wenceslas on his tuba.  I wonder if he is practicing for the Tuba Christmas concert, which happens every year down town.  Maybe we will go!

 John

Garden in October

Big rain day

Although Portland is known for being rainy, mostly it is a gentle rain called the "Oregon Mist" and you can get away without an umbrella.  But not so much today.  Today it is RAINING.

Rain chain in action

Waterwheel gutter in action

For Halloween...

I didn't know porcupines could be so cute.

On my design wall today

Another experiment with crooked...

A second color pile.

I like crooked

I like crooked blocks in quilts.  Here is a block I made....

Here is another crooked look that  I like.

source

Fun little quilt

The colors are not quite right... the photo is fine in Picasa but kind of weird here.

This is a little better.  I like how the patterns and colors bleed into each other...

Short Eagle Creek Hike

It was a beautiful day for a hike.  The air smelled wonderful.

I

Out for a neighborhood walk

Wouldn't Aunt Clara love these doorknobs?