Shoe Heaven

I saved the best for first today. These are my Pikolinos shoes which called to me in a mall store in Framingham, the best shopping mecca I have ever seen in my life. Perhaps it was the fact that it was the first week of August and absolutely everything was drastically reduced but Donna and I literally couldn't help ourselves, the deals were so great. And the quality and selection were unbelievable. Anyway these Pikolinos were the most expensive pair I bought but they are worth every penny with their intricate cut design and supple leather. Oh, and they feel like a dream on. It's all about comfort, you know?

Next are my Skechers which came with a second pair of laces for parties, I guess. They have orange sparkly bits in them.

These red heels are absolutely gorgeous leather and feel wonderful on, but the funky blue wedges were my biggest surprise. I always like colour so went to these immediatelyjust to see what they felt like on. Well they felt wonderful! I am definitely sprucing up my shoe wardrobe with these babies.

This black pair have the pointy toes and are not quite as comfortable as every other pair I bought but they are very cool with their tiny heels and white stitching. The woven red ones can be worn summer or winter, which I like. And, of course, the colour makes my heart sing.

I bought some dancing shoes--the black sling backs--and yet another pair of dark reds. These are patent, flat and open-toed but just as cute as can be. They will look awesome with my black or grey slacks. The lovely soft leather of the black laceups complements the sleek lines. I look forward to wearing these casually.

These two pairs might not look exciting but they are great. I have been loving the brown leather sandals, so soft and smooth on my feet, and the stretchy quality of the black straps makes for a smart yet comfortable pair of sandals which I can wear well into the fall. They will be great for concerts with my choir.

So there you have them--my eleven pair of shoes. I am still dumbfounded that I bought so many as I am definitely NOT a shopper. I guess I'll just blame it on my wonderful sister-in-law, Donna, who most decidedly IS a shopper. Now if I could just get her to pay for all of these.........

Boston Bits

My sister-in-law and I had a lovely trip to Boston at the beginning of August. Here she is ahem, well, ah, with a statue we encountered (?).

We took the Olde Town Trolley tour and hopped off to see the Mapparium, a large glass sphere of the world all done in stained glass around 1933. Very cool. We actually walked inside it, although I didn't take any pictures.

Here is a closeup of one of the globe light bulbs in the waiting room outside the Mapparium, part of the Mary Baker Eddy Library.

And I snapped this picture ostensibly of the massive wooden doors, several of which surrounded the waiting room, but really I thought the child looked cute catching a little rest. He looked like he would rather have been anywhere but there.

We took a ghost tour of old Boston cemeteries, an interesting and enjoyable couple of hours.

Here is one of the tour guides. I can't believe he did his schpiel in 95 degree weather dressed in this getup.

Here is our main room at the Marriott Custom House, very elegant and quite enough space for us.

Here is my bedroom. The windows faced the waters of Boston Harbour. Very lovely.

This interesting building was out the living area windows. I loved the shape and the brickwork. Boston is full of such sights.

I haven't got to the best part. Of course we did touristy things like the Aquarium and the IMAX Whales film and walked lots of interesting streets to find delicious food but amazingly the highlight of our trip was about 15 miles west of Boston just off the Mass pike. But that's my next blog!

I'm Back! And There's Laundry!

This morning I slept in till 7:30 thanks to my time clock still being on Victoria time. Yes, we've been out to visit Beth and Rich for 9 days and have had a lovely time. Victoria is a wonderful place and I have pictures to prove it. They'll make their way into my blog in the next few days. For now just words.
It's raining here this morning but I can't be unhappy as we've needed the rain for a long time. I'll have to put on my duck feathers if I need to go downtown but not to worry. It's good to be home.
We have some mysteries to track here at the house. Our umbrella is lying on the deck but the pole is still standing. Oops. Was there a big wind? One of our swimmers will tell us, no doubt.
I have a mountain of washing to do and now that we have the pilot light back on and hot water to shower, I can start my day. It will be a day of writing and bill paying, washing and phone calls catching up with folks. It'll be great!

Life's A Little Crazy Right Now

Hello blogger friends! Just wanted to report that I haven't abandoned my blog permanently but life is too full to blog just now. And full in a good way.
We think we've sold our house, a journey that has been over two years, no tears but lots of fears along the way. Of course the offer has conditions so we won't know till that time has elapsed but cross your fingers all goes well. Naturally we have to find somewhere else to go and that is what I'm about today with our real estate person. This should be fun as Ron and I have already done some preliminary scouting and have a good idea of what we want. So think positive thoughts for us.
For the next two and a half weeks I'll be holidaying, first with my sister-in-law for a week and then with hubby visiting Beth in Victoria. Looking forward to the whole thing.
BTW we skipped the gym this morning and swam lengths in our pool for fifteen minutes. Not quite long enough but we're going back in later today. Pool is a lovely 79 deg., not too hot, thank goodness. We will miss the pool but not the cost and upkeep.
I'll be thinking of all of you and checking in from time to time. Have a good one!