Almost semi annual blog update

 This is sort of a recap of half a year. No excuse just good intentions.

We play ukulele weekly and get to gather in great places.  For 5 weeks we played at the Huntington Beach Pier, facing the Pacific ocean, waiting for the sun to go down.  This is in conjunction with Island Bazaar a  Ukulele store in HB.

I am in the red visor on the right with Tom to my right.

 And we get to play together at home parties and gatherings.  Usually there is food involved..

 We spent months remodeling our home: shower, heater, water heater - that sort of thing.  This cabinet was painted with chalk paint and I stenciled the glass doors.  Horizontal surfaces are often used to stash stuff and this cabinet allows that stuff to be hidden behind decorative doors.  Chalk Paint makes the impossible to paint, paintable.

 I took a 5 day workshop in Newport Beach with Portland artist Jesse Reno.  As you can see he paints with his hands to start the process.  It was intense, it was out of my comfort zone.  I don't know what I learned but intend to practice.  I would go again, I think.  Look him up  http://jessereno.com/

The class was  all woman with one young man.  Jesse calls everyone Dude.  Beats Mam or hey you or you guys and beats having to learn names.  He has a perspective and something to say, I am not sure what - yet.

One of my feeble attempts at creating, seeing, capturing, isolating, building out.

 Tom's band practice in our back yard.  Next time the neighbors want the words so they can sing along.

Confessing my addiction to Estate Sales.  This rustic pie safe now looks great in my entry hall.  Tom complains when we go pick up my latest cannot live without find.  I know he loves the challenge of making the wooden furniture better.  The previous owners bought this at a barn auction in Georgetown, Colorado - more than 20 yrs ago.  And it was old then.

 We have just completed, yesterday, my first cousins family reunion.  We had 30 for dinner Friday and Saturday but started the event with breakfast at the Beachcomber Restaurant in Crystal Cove State Park.  The weather was fab.  The waves were fab. The sky and  clouds were fab.  We first cousins have been doing this for more than 20 years.  This year we had more and new next generation attendees, including my kids.  All of America was represented.  Many came to the beach Thursday evening for ukulele and dinner at Sandy's - under the pier.













We remodeled the inside but also the
back yard.  The same footprint, less
grass and more drought tolerant plants.

patio out our dining room door

patio out dining room door at night - love the lights

 Tom who worked really hard and is still playing with the sprinklers and plants.  You can over water a drought tolerant plant with love.

 View out my new sliding glass door off my bedroom.  My intention is to someday go out and have coffee in the morning under the wonderful  umbrella in my 2 wonderful estate sale chairs.  I did have them painted.

Lots of points of interest.  Brian's artwork tucked here and there.  Come see.

This  is some of the stuff that happened this year.  I have quit sewing quilts and sewing in general.  I want to spend time painting, sort of Jesse style and write the next great American novel - (not)(maybe)