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How was your summer??

After a nice long, restful vacation we are back in Paris. Unfortunately that vacation included my daughter/granddaughter moving to NC and a trip to the ER for me with torn ligaments in my ankle, but other than that, was restful. Actually the first vacation we have taken in years where we did not have a list of "to do" items. Was hard to leave this year and even with almost 5 weeks of doing nothing, we were still not ready to return to the hustle and bustle of Paris life and work. The time flew while we were there. We did manage to see a few old friends and share a/some meals with friends and family. We only got to the lake once, very rare for us to not be there almost daily.

The next step will be to actually unpack all of the suitcases, including the one that got forgotten when we left (LOL!! :) ), do some cleaning and then start getting ready for craft fairs in a couple of months. The time passes so quickly. I also need to get designing again. Seems like forever that I have not done that. My e-mails have piled up to the point that it will take weeks to get through everything and no clue what I have missed. I don't have to worry about finding things to do for a while do I?  

We did find out (update on old events) that we blew the head gasket on the 1985 Nissan between the 1 and 2 valves. :( So we now own a 1994 (newer but not new) Honda. It actually turned out cheaper to buy that than get the Nissan fixed, but miss that car. It was always so dependable and great on gas mileage. I have it for sale on Craig's list, someone who can fix cars themselves could end up with a great little car if they replace the head/gasket/bolts.... and it does need an exhaust system also. Part of me wants to spend the money to get it fixed, the other part tells me we have a car that runs and as we only need a running car for 5 weeks a year, that it is senseless to get the old one fixed. If we were there full time (and we will be after he retires), that would be different. The car has been in the family since it was new, first my mom had it and I bought it from her and have had it for at least 18 years...the last 12 with it only being run during the vacation in the summer. Hence, the body is in great shape especially as it was 'run into' by a deer 2 different times, once on each side, so the paint job is in great shape for a Michigan car, with minimal rusting. 

It was nice to come back to our own  little apartment, but miss the space and clean air of Northern Michigan.  The ankle is doing better, I am able to actually walk on it (very carefully) but am limping and by evening it is swelled. Guess that is where the ankle wrapping and braces help. Must get to all of that unpacking and trying to find room for what we did bring back!  

Keep your eyes open for the upcoming kits that will hit the store and a freebie or two!!