Summer is over....

and today it is drizzling and gloomy after two days of heavy rain!
Oooops! Hello friends! How are you? We are ready into fall!
It's been a while I know. I wasn't really in the mood for blogging all summer. That's because on the one hand I haven't got the best of Internet access at the beach house to blog and on the other I chose to do other things instead of being on the computer.
Anyway here is a loooong post full of photos of what I did this summer.
Summer holidays started just after schools closed and we spent four days on Skiathos island in June.

 I will blog about this trip later on although I know I should have done it earlier to trigger you to visit the island as well. We had a great time!And it was so nice meeting our friend Frieda again!
Then we went to the beach house and spent a week cleaning and redecorating.
I loved the clean look of my mantelpiece.

I also loved all the paintings my friends Marabeth, Eleanna and Ian painted for me!They adorn the newly painted guest room.

We also solved some plumbing problems from last year as we were expecting our American sea glass friends Janet and Bruce to visit. 

You can read all about their visit here. We had a great time!
And then a slow paced summer began. As last summer was dreadful with all the plumbing and sewage problems and my gall bladder operation I really needed to relax and do the things I liked this summer.
So I rested a lot and slept well.
I swam a lot no matter what the weather was like!

I even swam during a rainfall nearby! That was quite a challenge for me!

But most of the time the sea was calm and beautiful!

I went sea glassing  a lot.

I found lots of beautiful pieces some rare ones like this yellow one.

I got tricked by this piece that looked black ...

but was green!

That's a light bulb insulator.

And that's a double piece porcelain.

 That's a burnt piece.

 That's an old Greek coin.

But my favourite pieces are these two. This one that looks like a tiny piece from an ancient glass vessel.

And that Vicks jar lip.

During summer we spent time with family and friends. We ate together.

 Our Syrian friends visited us as well.

And we went to the nearby fountain show again.

We also spent a day at Moustheni village where I have relatives. It was so nice meeting them again!

 During summer Barca was our best companion everywhere. As she hates being alone at the beach house we take her with us wherever we go.

But I am sorry to say there are some neighbours who don't like dogs and we have to keep her inside when they are around!

This summer the sunsets again were wonderful!

My favourite pasttime after sea glassing that is was taking photos of nature. My son's rose bush bloomed all the time!

And our pomegranate tree is full of fruit.

I caught a couple of fish with my own hands.

And a couple of crabs but all of them were left back to sea!

I loved birdwatching!

I spotted jellyfish and sea urchins.

A starfish.

Tiny insects.

Bees.

 Spiders (which are not my favourite)

Isn't our neighbour's cat the most beautiful?

 There were lizards of course, and what a pity that I didn't manage to take a pic of the green one too this year!

 A slug.

 A little frog.

 And many beautiful butterflies!

I met a neighbour who went fishing every day and one day he fished this huge pina (which later I learnt he shouldn't have taken out as it is a protected species)

I read lots of books this summer and completed the #readathon16 of So little sleeping and so much reading challenge but decided to continue nontheless.

One of my favourites.

My favourite of all are the last two.

Handicraftwise I didn't manage to make much this summer. Although I also wanted to take part in the Summer Challenge organised by Anna of In my Closet I couldn't make myself do it.I didn't do much cross stitch either

 but I did manage to make some sea glass felted stones!

...to give as gifts!

I also made the house number plate with beeach finds.

And finally I managed to make the Hamsa hand my friend Ruth had sent me from Israel as a wedding gift.

This summer I even fancied trying this!

And this!

 Or make this!

But I didn't!LOL!

This summer we enjoyed watching the Olympics.

We also went to the theatre and saw Aristophanes' Ploutos which was very good.

We went to Saint Mamas open air market.

And to Marmaras to eat some lovely homemade pizza and ice cream at Flavours' House.

During summer we came back to the city for very specific reasons One of them was to wish happy birthday to dear Angela of Poco Loco at a surprise party at Koumbi coffee and crafts cafe. The birthday cake was lemon pie and it was divine!

We also came back to the city to say goodbye to our Syrian friends who left for Athens and from there they will be relocated to Romania. It was a sad farewell but we wish them all the best and hope they find a better life there and make a new start! We miss them already!

 I miss summer already,too!
I miss the daydreaming....

I miss the light....

I miss the sounds...

I miss the carefree times....

Goodbye summer!