Mindful, Meaningful, Tiny Happy Thursday Things

 Autumn is deepening here in Canada but all is well and my sincere hope is that all countries are as peaceful and calm, if not right now, then very very soon. 

 I'm rereading this book, 10% Happier by Dan Harris and enjoying it very much.

 The author got to sit down with all the greats in terms of life coaches, gurus, spiritualists, etc. including Ekhart Tolle. He is very frank in his estimations of these people. You might remember Dan was the guy who suffered a panic attack on the air during a live ABC news broadcast. His quest, to quiet that voice in his head, appealed to me and his conclusions were also interesting. I especially like the Instruction section in the Appendix. 

I did get to have my own little trick or treater, namely, grandson Robbie, drop over for a visit. They were driving their side by side machine decked out for Halloween. A whole lot of fun.

And he was a zombie, my favourite. 

 The neighbours in the area had all agreed to put treats out at the end of their driveways and a lot of folks were sitting outside and also had treats for the adults.  Ironically, the result was a lot more greeting of each other than normally happens in these subdivisions, though socially distanced. In fact, it was declared the best Halloween ever. 

I think about the barred owl every time I walk through a section of the wood with large deciduous trees. I've seen the owl there four or five times now matching the number of years I've lived here. The very first time I saw a barred owl in my life  was when we were moving in and the moving truck I was sitting in rounded a turn in our driveway and there was one sitting right in the middle of the road. I was so happy and took it as a sign I was meant to be here.  In the woods he shows up as a curious dark blob and I recognized him right away.

 This time I had to race Murphy back to the house and get my camera. He was far away and keeping himself hidden in the trees. Lucky I spotted him.

 I managed to take a few photos before a blue jay suddenly appeared and started harassing him.  So off he flew. But I am ever so pleased to have seen him again. He watches me every time too with that way they have of turning their heads and that feeling with those large eyes on you is so different from other birds.

I treated myself to a new fountain pen (yes, it's the little things). It is a Cross, a much cheaper edition, but still writes beautifully. I've mentioned before I'm rather particular about what I write with...always black ink and not fine line. I'm a Virgo, can't help it! That's a beautiful book my sister gave me...she always picks the perfect book as a Christmas gift. She's a retired librarian and it has been true all her days that books are her life.

I like this. I took Daughter's mum pots from last fall and put them in my garage for the winter. I wanted to use the soil as these containers usually have lots of fertilizer, etc. in them and mixed with my composted dirt would make a good blend this summer.  When I went to get them in early May, I was surprised to see a little green growth on them both...this after the whole winter with no water or sun. So I put them outside to see what would happen. And here they are in October.

 Both grew back a lot of the mums though not to the number they had in the beginning. So I guess the point is to save these pots you buy because the flowers just might regrow the next year.  These are now back in the same area of the garage and we'll see if it happens again next spring. 

In the sewing room 

I didn't show the actual final finish of my tabletopper, Flower Garden quilt. It is rather large and I love the vintage style look of it. Definitely a design my grandmother would have made. Here it is front and back

I'm still laying stitching lines on the Halloween Sampler but I must admit, I've kind of lost interest for just now but I'm keeping it around for those odd moments.  I tested the blue marker and it will wash out. 

Now hexies once again are on my mind. More about that later.  I'll share a few stitch alongs gearing up for Christmas stitching next time...those are always fun to check out. 

So happy to link with Not Afraid of Color, Paying Ready Attention, My Corner of the World, My Quilt Infatuation, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Viewing Nature With Eileen, I'd Rather B Birdin' and It's a Small Town Life.