Is it nap time yet?

A lovely morning which is suppose to become hot...they say 100. At the moment it is comfortable. Murphy and I took our walk but had so many distractions; bunnies, quail and doves! So much excitement that  he is napping.

Poor boy needs a trim. He is still handsome (going to be 8 months old on May 3rd). This is a place he likes to sit to look out into the courtyard. He will poke his head through the verticals and move aside the curtain.

This is how he greets Alan every day. He will grab onto Alan's bag and wrap his front legs around and Alan will walk into the bedroom with Murphy in tow.  Before it gets to this however, Alan is usually sitting on the floor in the middle of the living room giving Murphy total attention. The same when Lisa comes in from work... she also must just sit and Murphy is all over her with kisses.
Yesterday I made a cover for my bathroom window....

The fabric is cut into strips and on a few I embellished with fussy cuts to mimic the top section. The window is a frosted one and is visible from the roadside. A nighttime when a light is on I feel as if there is no privacy. I am happy with the look.
I rearranged part of the living room again.

I moved the bookcases all together and the saddle over to the side of the desk. Yes, there is an English Saddle in the living room. Lisa was taking lessons back in RI and will eventually find a place out here. We ordered a desk set for Alan which hopefully will arrive by end of week.

New to our kitchen area is a pantry cupboard which completes everything for now.

 Eventually we are having the cabinets redone in white.  This freed up a cupboard for bowls and containers.
Well, I have been swishing and fluffing in the laundry area. Time for another cup of coffee and something to munch. Sleep was not really there last night. I spent much of the night awake... tired today!☕
I am wishing good thoughts for all of you...stay well and be careful out there. I go out only when I need to and Alan gets me home very quickly. Trying times for sure. If you need to "chat" you can always email me and I will be sure to "chat" right back. Being there for one another anyway we can!🙋
Thank you for your kind words and for your friendship.

Garden and Dining projects

The weather has been so cooperative for us to work on the garden make-over....

There is no trace of a corner pond. The brick work has been extended and the wall painted and the fence looks great. We still have some planting to do but for now it is lovely.
Murphy is still enjoying sunbathing and he is getting used to the fence. One thing he does enjoy is sitting on the stool in the kitchen

where he can look out into the garden. Beside the garden work, we have finished the dining/kitchen area.

We have added a hutch. 

Behind the two glass doors we have Lisa's mother's china. The pale green pattern hand painted pattern is called Green Thistle Arabia. It was their first china when they married and was bought in Finland by Jerry, Lisa's dad who travelled the world.

The center cubby holds some of my tea cups and a tea pot which will change periodically

Lower bottom center hold wine and a few smaller tea pots.

The stainless steel counter top holds a Demitasse coffee set and in the corner a tea cup, a gift from Lisa that is from the "Grace" collection.

Across the room is the dining table and sidebar. Lisa brought with her a lovely cabinet...

 Lisa's dad Jerry made this cabinet and her mom Carol painted the design.
On the top we have started an "air head" collection.

That is what we have named them as they hold an air plant on top of their heads. We are quite happy with how it all looks.  We certainly have been very busy around here.  

I had a nice surprise yesterday. Lisa informed me before leaving for work that a Fed Ex package was arriving. When is did I sent her a text and she told me to open it to get a gift for me!

It is a heavy canvas tote, 21x23x11. Huge! It is stamped the Boston Public Library on the front and inside it says; "The Commonwealth require the education of the people as the safeguard of order and liberty." It can carry 27 pounds of books....or lots of crafts.... or Murphy! Some of the proceeds from purchase benefit the Boston Library. The library still uses these to ferry books from one branch to another.

So although creative hands have been idle, things have been on the move around here. So nice that you had some time to visit. Thank you for your kind words and for your friendship.

Slow down, you move too fast

You got to make the morning last......ah yes Simon and Garfunkel. This is not the day to over do. Very little sleep last night and a dull head this morning. First let me tell you that last night there was thunder~~~there was lightening~~~there was rain and wind. I hate nighttime storms and finally it all quieted down so off to sleep. At 5 AM it started all over again! Now the sun is out and it is hot and humid. I did go out to clean up the yard a little. Again there is not painting today. But I did manage to get the spotlight on the waterfall
and it looks nice. The light changes from red--blue--white--yellow and green. I will probably keep adjusting it until I like how it reflects. I have it on a separate remote control so it is off all day and on when I click it.

The weather takes a toll on everything out here. The blue umbrella will be meeting with the trash guys on Tuesday. The red and green will stay until I get to replace them; as soon as Monsoon season is over which is mid-end September. It is on the To Do List with several other things. Many items are already crossed off my lists but I am trying to slow down with some that are not on my immediate agenda.
I am pleased with the kitchen area

some minor changes to be made with the storage of items at the desk and the file cabinet.  I ordered a keyboard slide to attach under the desk.  I like it much better out of the corner. There is more natural light coming form the large window across the room as well as the slider right next to it. I also like the tea cups moved

 The bakers rack is just off center on the wall. This has opened this side of the kitchen area.
I should mention the Aquarium and the tenants. They are all fine....well, the 3 little silver and black fish that are schoolers who do not always school like they did at the pet shop, are now slightly orange in color.  The tank has not been too much work. I just changed the charcoal filter and I remember to move the moss ball around. The filter has a water wheel so it has a nice trickling sound.
I am a bit sad this morning as I dropped my favorite pen on the tile floor. Denny bought it for me many years ago, a Diplomat and it writes so nice and had a good feel to it. It will now not retract the refill. I guess it is not so bad as it sits on the desk in my antique pen and ink holder. A reminder that nothing lasts forever. I think it is time to take something for the headache which is now more that dull, and feed my hungry stomach. So nice to chat with you. Than you for the kind words and for you friendship. Tomorrow I will tell you about a friend, a card and an angel. Let's have a good day.