my husband, the tuna fisherman

Ok, I know I've been talking about Patrick's boat a lot recently, but it is a pretty big deal here in our house. Yes, I have more fishing adventures to tell......

When Patrick took ownership of the boat & they went out for sea trials, a reporter from the news drove up and asked to do a short story about Patrick & his wheelchair-accessible boat. We kind of forgot about it...until yesterday! The story ran on WCSH 6 news at 6pm. I DVR-ed it for Patrick because he was out fishing. Here is the link to the story: www.wcsh6.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=106087&catid=2

(it gets better)....then I get a call in the afternoon....Patrick caught a tuna! This is the 1st fish of this season & the earliest fish he or any of his friends have ever caught. He was beyond excited. I met them at the dock, along with a big crowd, to snap a ton of pictures. His friends Anthony, Maury, and Brian were out with him. Its of to the tuna auction & he'll find out next week what it sold for. So happy & proud of my husband.

great day for a party

I was SO THANKFUL for a break in the rainy weather for Patrick's boat christening party on Sat. We had lots of family & Patrick's fishing friends around to celebrate. I loved seeing him smile from ear to ear all day!
So surreal seeing my name on the back of the boat :-)

I made caramel corn in paint cans for party favors....people seemed to like it.

Me, breaking the bottle of champagne over the bow afterPatrick said blessing of boat.....SO HAPPY the bottle broke on 1st try...I slammed that bottle!

So, come July, I'll be a "fishing widow' but I'm happy knowing how much joy this boat will bring Patrick & that he'll be safe, comfortable, and secure out at sea.

flower frenzy

I wanted to make sure to take some photos of flowers before the days of rain came this week..so glad I did! The iris above blooms outside my husband's bathroom....I love seeing that burst of bright purple in the morning.

the 1st rose bloom....this rose bush has been so hardy, as its been ripped up, had ice chunks fall on it, you name it. It just keeps blooming.

A tree peony started from bare root 7 years ago. Man, they take a long time to get going but the payoff is amazing.

Crafting with K & C

I had a blast onMonday hanging out, crafting (and eating!) with my friends, Karen & Catherine. It was my "cheat day" from WW and Karen made this unbelieveable molten chocolate cake...yes, that's Catherine licking the splash of pudding...let no drop of yummy food go wasted!

Karen was VERY patient as she walked Catherine & I through bookbinding & creating our our art journals. Though we stumbled through the beginning...ok, I did...we were stitching pros by the end.

Here's the inside of my book, ready to glue the signatures in.

All of us with our 75% done books!!!! hmm...I was planning on giving mine away, but now I'm kind of attached to it :-)I always have such a great time with these gals.

my Dad, the wildlife savior

I am definitely my Father's daughter......in many ways, but we especially share our love of animals. I remember him bringing home all sorts of creatures....the blue heron that recouperated in our horse stall, the chickens from a barn fire he helped fight, dogs in crummy conditions that he'd pay the owners $50 for. Anyway, he found an injured loon last week, brought it to a rehab then was asked to release it after its wing was healed. Of course, I was there to see it all ....and release a sea gull that they gave him too :-) I was amazed how big the loon was, having never seen one so close. You'll notice the gloves he's wearing....those loons have SHARP beaks!

After release, the loon did well, flew a bit, swam & dove for a snack. A happy day for all.

the Kelley Anne is here!

I've been hard at work on invitations for 4 separate occasions lately....boat invites (more below), invites for my Gram's 90th b-day, and 2 sets of invites for customers...phew!

Patrick's new boat, the Kelley Anne, is finally here! She's resting at her new marina by Joe's Boathouse in South Portland ( my fav restaurant!). Patrick is just beside himself to have a boat that is completely accessible to him & his every need. As much as I may gripe about waking up at 3am so he can fish for tuna, my heart is full seeing how happy he is.

This week, amid getting projects done for the store site, I'm working on favors and final details for Patrick's boat christening. We're keeping it small...just family and Patricks' fishing buddies, because you can only fit so many people on those skinny docks! I'm a little nervous about whacking the champagne bottle on the boat though....

Paper Trey box of fun

After receiving a particularly large order from the store's site last week, I rewarded myself with a little shopping therapy and ordered some stamps and buttons from Paper Trey Ink. The box arrived today...now if I can just find the time to sit and play....