Perdido Bay Trail

This past Sunday I agreed to go on a 7+ mile hike with my youngest son.  I figured with me walking on the treadmill for an hour a day and walking the dog, I would be prepared for this hike.  I also figured it would take us about 3 hours max. It took us 5.5 hours…not what I expected.

I was SO WRONG!!!  After about 2.5 to 3 miles, fatigue set in.  I had to take frequent rest breaks.  I had episodes of shortness of breath which I attributed to the heat and humidity.  I drank lots of water, but still felt wiped out for the remainder of the trail.

I did manage to finish, thanks to the patience and encouragement of my son.  And, yes, I am going to do the trail again….when I am better prepared.  I plan to utilize shorter trails until this coming fall when I will again attempt this trail.

I did manage to get some photos of our trek.  There were places with standing water that we had to either walk through or find a way around.  Part of the trail passes the beach and part is a savannah like area…grasses and pine trees and no shade.  There were tons of tadpoles, baby toads and adult toads along the way.  And, of course, way too many gnats, mosquitoes, and no see ’ems flying around, biting and sucking blood.

ETA: Pay careful attention to your clothing.  Wear lightweight, comfortable clothing.  I wore jeans and a t-shirt.  The t-shirt was fine, but after a couple of hours the jeans felt like they weighed a 100 pounds.  And use an insect repellant and a sunscreen.  I did have on my Tilly hat which protected my face and neck.

How to Make a Corded Envelope Style Pillow

Per a friend’s request I am posting a photo tutorial on a corded envelope style pillow.  Making the cord is not difficult.  It can be a little tricky to sew it in place, but it is not impossible.  Just take your time.

First, decide on what size pillow you want to make.  Then purchase or make your own pillow form.

When cutting out the squares for the pillow case, they must be one (1) inch larger than your pillow form.  So if you have a 12 inch pillow form, you squares must be 13 inches.

When I cut out squares for front and back, I cut out 3 and they are all the same size.  Two I use for the back of the pillow. I fold over and sew about 1/4 to 1/3 of the back pieces.  You will see this in the photos.

I use 2 1/2 inch wide strips, sewn together end to end, to encase the cord.  For the cord, I use cotton clothes line.  It is soft and pliable and fairly easy to sew through.

Now for the photos:

Here is another corded pillow I made.  This one is appliqued.  The owl I drew on regular 8.5 x 11 paper and cut out the pieces.  I used Steam a Seam 2 to attach the pieces and ironed them down. Then satin stitched around them.

Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park

April 5, 2015 (Easter Sunday) we decided to take a drive to Tarkiln Bayou Preserve State Park and take some photos of the area and especially the Pitcher Plants.

The park utilizes the honor system in collecting entry fees, which are cheap, by the way.  There is a small pavilion at the entrance and an information board about the 2 trails through the park.  One is about a mile or so long, round trip and the other is 7+ miles long, round trip.  We opted for the shorter one yesterday.

My youngest and I took quite a few photos of the trail and the bayou at its end.  Hope you enjoy them.