Lucy, we're home!

Got in just before midnight last night and went straight to bed. Just like last time, Josie cried and woke us up repeatedly all night because she wanted us to pay attention to her. I'm seriously thinking about crating her tonight if it looks like it's going to continue. At least we're done traveling for the year, so she won't have to be all alone again for quite some time.

We had a really nice trip. With the exception of the last few days, the weather was perfect. Maine was gorgeous and relaxing. And it was great to see my family and friends again. Unfortunately, while we were there, one of my "uncles" (my dad's first cousin), who has been ill for a long while, took a turn for the worst and died on Saturday. We'll miss the memorial service, which is this Friday, but at least we did get to see him before he died.

I've got a full day of unpacking, laundry and cleaning ahead of me. I'm hoping to find a bit of time to make some backdated entries about what we did while we were away, so keep checking the archives for those. I've also got a slew of photos from Maine to sort through, too. Better get cracking.

Heading out the door in just a few minutes. Not sure how often (if at all) I'll be able to get online and/or post. If I don't, hope everyone enjoys the rest of the month. "See" you when I get back on the 29th!

"NAME THAT MOVIE" CONTEST - 135

Click here for the entry form.

Thought I'd leave you with a new round of the movie contest before I headed off on vacation. The answer and a new round will not be posted until October 5.

EDIT: It's not Dirty Dancing.

I'm taking a red eye flight to Massachusetts tonight. We leave for the airport in approximately 10 hours. Amazingly, for once, I'm caught up on my work and have all of my clothes and stuff ready to go already. My plan for today is to do a bit of cleaning up in the yard and some sewing this afternoon. Compared to usual when I travel, it's really nice not having to get up at 4am and rushing around trying to get to the airport on time. I just hope I am able to get some sleep on the plane and am not completely shattered come morning. I got some sleep (thanks for waking me up 100 times, Josie) last night and today should be nice and relaxing. It's all so bizarre!

Anyone want to come pack for me? I'll pay you.

Mr Moo captured a few snapshots of one of the hummingbirds that visited our yard this year.


Here's a cropped close-up:

Given how fast these little birds are, I'm amazed Mr Moo managed to get the camera in time.

Things are not boding well for my new PC and the Office MooCam. If it's not the PC pretending the cam doesn't even exist, it's the cam locking up and displaying the same image for hours on end. I think I'm just going to turn that one off a couple days early and deal with it when I get back from vacation.

Today would have been Zoe's 16th birthday.

I miss her.

Mystery solved.

Evergreen Huckleberry - Vaccinium ovatum

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort Stevens State Park

Before heading home on our last day at the coast, we stopped at Fort Stevens State Park for a quick look around. It was very windy on the beach.

There is a great lookout platform at the northern end of the park.

You can see the mouth of the Columbia River as well as the Pacific Ocean and down the coast.

Fin.

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort To Sea Trail

It took us an age, but we hiked the entire trail and finally made it to the ocean.

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort To Sea Trail

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort To Sea Trail

2.5 miles in - 4 miles to go - and I was still smiling.

Mr Moo smartly refrained from taking my picture a few miles later when my knee and hip started hurting and I became a cranky irritable mess. I perked up when we came across this sign though.

We did get to walk in the actual pasture very briefly (even had to walk around a cow to get through the gate), but most of the time the trail was enclosed by fences. I still squeed when we got close to the cows.

Moo!

I started out by fitting my client in muslin. The original pattern called for double darts under the bust...

...which, given my client's shape, just never worked quite right. We decided to alter the pattern to use princess seams instead.

It looked much better. Originally, there wasn't going to be anything around the neckline. After seeing the strong the contrast of the pale yellow sleeves against the green of the dress, I thought it needed softening. I used some of the sleeve fabric to make a small gathered trim for the neckline. She really liked it, so it stayed. You can see it in this photo along with the bodice lining, which I had started to pin on.

This is the inside of the finished bodice. It's fully lined and the armscye seams are finished with binding.

Finally, my client in her finished dress.

It's so nice to have this project done. Now I can focus on getting ready for my trip to MA. I still can't believe I leave in four days.

My client picked up her dress tonight and was very pleased. Woot! I'll post photos later.

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort To Sea Trail

Yes, I know about Tom Brady. No, I don't want to talk about it.

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort To Sea Trail

Nom nom nom!

"NAME THAT MOVIE" CONTEST - 134

Click here for the entry form.

"NAME THAT MOVIE" CONTEST - 133


Click here for the entry form.

Round 133 is still open. I'll have the newest round up before the end of the day. Stay tuned!

"NAME THAT MOVIE" CONTEST - 130




Click here for the entry form.

Round 130 is still open. For all that is good and right in the world, someone PLEASE get this!

Sharky enjoyed our hike last weekend.

He tasted some new things...

...and even swam in the ocean.

Does anyone know what type of plant this is?

We saw it on our hike, but it wasn't in our plant guide.

Astoria, Oregon - August 2008 - Fort To Sea Trail

Another thing we grow well and large here in Oregon are mushrooms.

A third of that one had broken off and it was still bigger than my head!

I don't know much about mushrooms, so I can't even begin to tell you what kind these are. Any mushroom experts out there?

This one made a tasty snack for someone. Nom nom nom!

Due to extensive damage caused by a horrific winter storm in December 2007, the Fort To Sea Trail we hiked this weekend was closed for months and only just recently re-opened. We saw lots of evidence of the storm's aftermath along a good amount of the trail.

Many trees were snapped in half like this one, but most were just completely uprooted. I can't even imagine what it must have been like up on the ridge when it happened. Giant trees fell across the trail all over the place. It took them a long time to get it all cleaned up and the trail repaired.

I wish we had hiked the trail sooner so we could have seen what it was like before.

I'm currently making this dress (view A) for a client:

She's a vendor at Renaissance Festivals and needed a new dress. We're fully aware that it's not even close to historically accurate, but she doesn't care. She just needed something comfortable to wear while manning her booth.

I can sum up our hike at the coast this weekend in one word: slugs.

We may not do everything big here in Oregon, but we certainly know how to grow our slugs.

I've got a metric buttload (yes, that is a highly technical term) of sewing to get done today for a client fitting tomorrow. If anyone is interested in taking a peek while I work, I will be turning the MooCams back on shortly once I grab a shower and stop looking like Medusa.

From this year's Chick-fil-A calendar, One-Hit Wonder Cows:

What he lacked in talent, he made up for in hair. Ladies loved Mulletcut for his role as Dr. Chaz Navarro on a daytime soap opera. Guys related to his passion for chicken - and pants with 57 zippers. Even after his soap was canceled and his hairline receded, Bobby continued to sell out stadiums. In Germany.