Summer Bits and Pieces, Mug Mats, and Garden

L-R - Top: Daughter's mug mat, front and back

L-R - Bottom: Son-in-law's train mug mat, front and back.

The pictures above are of mug mats I made for my daughter and son-in-law. These are pretty much the only projects I've finished this summer! I've been very neglectful of blog posting this summer, mostly because I've been very busy with the garden.

My DIY hubby made a kitty bench for the kitties to perch on and look outside.
I covered it with a flannel cat fabric, and they fight over space on it,
so much that I'm considering having him make another one - lol!

Other than peppers, my garden is pretty much non-producing at this point, but I had a successful first year of a "big-girl" garden. I'll do a post later showing before/after photos of my garden from plowing it to building a pergola to full glory. I already have plans for next spring! I canned tomato sauce, ketchup, salsa, pepper relish, pickled jalapenos, jalapeno jelly, pickles, and wild plum jelly

One day I was shopping while my husband was in a meeting, and I wandered into a Michael's craft store and found some Red Heart "Unforgettable" yarn on sale for $3.99/skein. They only had two skeins of this beautiful variegated and soft yarn called "Parrot", so I decided to make a winter scarf for myself. I've been picking it up in the evenings while watching TV.

My husband made me a little shelf unit to house my tea supplies. We bought a whistling teakettle, and I also purchased an infuser teapot. In spite of the heat, I've really enjoyed my evening cuppa.

About mid-July, my husband got a FitBit and decided we should start walking every day. I'm really pleased that he is motivated to get his "step-quota" in each day. We've worked up to between 4 and 6 miles a day. We walk early in the morning while the temperatures are below 80 degrees. We are loving the old logging trails and views of meadows and pine trees. We live in a beautiful national forest on a dirt road, so all the road are unpaved with rustic views.

My quilting projects are waiting for my attention. I hope to become more focused now that gardening is taking a back seat and the 100+ degree days are (hopefully) behind us.

The kitties have found many ways to relax and sleep.

I hope you are enjoying your end of summer!