Another Paddle

Today was another great day for a paddle. We explored the sedge islands in Barnegat Bay, entering from Island Beach State Park. We have a senior citizen's pass, so it was free, which made the day even better. We saw many birds

• LOTS of osprey - at least a dozen nesting pairs
• Great Egrets
• Snowy Egrets
• Little Blue Herons
• Great Blue Herons
• Oystercatchers
• Red-winged Blackbirds
• Cormorants
• Mergansers - not sure which ones; they were too far away to identify
• Tern - also not sure which one
• Brant
• Canada Geese
• Kingfisher
• Laughing Gulls
• Herring Gulls
• Great Black-Backed Gulls
• Flocks of sanderlings
• Willets - I think, though I am hopeless with shorebirds

After our paddle, we walked a couple of miles on the Seaside Heights boardwalk. Less than half of the shops were open and none of the rides, which wasn't too surprising considering it is still April.

NJ Kayaking

Today we took our first paddle of the year, on the river in NJ, taking advantage of wonderful summer-like weather. It was great to be out on the water again. We saw lots of birds, including

Osprey - we have several active nests around us

Oyster catchers Nesting swans And lots of great egrets.

Tote

Here is my latest.I couldn't resist buying the fabric for this one. Stitch 'n Sew Centre has bolts and bolts of gorgeous florals and I've been dying to do something with them.

Oregon

S and I just got back from a nice trip to Oregon to see my parents. We made sure we walked along the nice park bordering the Willamette River where we saw the neat sculptures with "flying" geese.

We also looked for this fellow climbing a nearby building.

Of course once you are down by the river, you have to stop into Great Harvest Bread Company for a sample and a couple of loaves to take home (or is it that once you drive to Great Harvest Bread Company, you may as well take a walk along the river?)

Notes for the next time: We had an 8 AM flight, which meant my leaving the house before 5 AM, but it wasn't too painful. I managed to sleep on the plane and we got to Corvallis in good time. We traveled Northwest Airlines, and they reduced the size of the planes between Newark and Minneapolis after the reservation was made, but it was not a problem. We did a pretty good job of staying on eastern time, which is more difficult when Linda is along. Traveling Wednesday to Sunday is good since we don't have to fight rush-hour traffic getting to Portland for the return trip.

Quilt

Here is my latest creation, a tumbling block pattern inspired by a quilt I saw at the Kutztown Festival last summer.

Tote Mania

I have a new quilting love - totes. This one was free, using left-over fabric, batting, and thread. A great way to use up the leftovers.