At last............wet paint drying!

Finally!  I got some paint on the wall.....well actually this is the ceiling............

but here's a wall.............it will need 2 coats....what doesn't?  But I love the color so far.  This is an entryway closet that is directly across from my front door and is not really needed so I took off the doors and decided to make it a little entryway alcove instead.  Those are shelf brackets and the shelf will most probably go back in but then probably a mirror and a little piece of furniture.

So, more painting today and............when I was looking for grout sealer the other day at Walmart (which they didn't have or I didn't find) I ran across this handy item....hopefully.  The bristles are sturdier than what I've been using.
 More grout cleaning is in my future!

Seeing progress, albeit small, is motivating.  Also, Duck Tape came out with their brand of Washi Tape which has been sorely ignored in this country.  The Brits have had it for forever! 

 Little owls.....how cute are they?  Have a great Saturday!
Sunny here and getting to 76 today....clothesline weather.
Happy Trails!
 

Slacker week............

 I just couldn't seem to get any traction this week.  I was busy but it was just maintenance and no real progress on anything I really wanted to get done.  I did laundry, cooked, baked, paid some bills and that was about it.  It rained most of the week too and was chilly.  Maybe I went into hibernation mode.  I did finish this book, the 3rd in the Ladybug Farm series.  I really enjoy this series.  The 4th book wasn't available on Thrift Books and Amazon wanted $13.00 so I guess I'll wait until Thrift Books gets it in.

So, I started over with the Harry Potter books and boy did I forget a lot!  I'm enjoying it more this time.  After I read this first book I will watch the first movie and so on and so on.

I also finished the audio tape of The Beardstown Ladie's Common Sense Investment Guide but there is so much good information and resources in it that I need the book.  Plus, right as I got to the end the tape broke so there won't be any re-listening to it.

I'm still reading this one and trying to pick up some organizational tips for storing crafts and supplies.  There are quite a few but some are pretty pricey looking or requiring a custom remodel!  Many of the rooms are from professional craft people that make their living doing these things. I bought this book a while back but now I would just go on Pinterest for ideas.

 Reading another National Geographic and I learn so much from these magazines.....I'm an armchair traveler.  I got them all free at our library.  Such beautiful photography too.

 I started knitting the 2nd sock of my Canadiana Hudson Bay socks and actually I finished the cuff and was several inches down on the leg when I realized that the colors weren't showing up and the other sock had 2 stripes by that point.  I sat and thought and realized that I should have evenly split the skein at the beginning of making the socks and that the colors were probably at the other end of the ball.  So, I frogged it all and rewound the ball and..................

 VOILA!  There are the colors.....so I will start over now.  Still not sure if they will line up exactly but that's not that important to me.  I need to not use a long tail cast on when trying to match colors or else make the cast on the exact same length for both socks.   The more I knit the more I learn!

I finally sewed up my Happy Hooky pillow using needle and yarn and doing an overcast stitch with right sides together and going under the 2 loops on each side.  It's a little twisted but I'm hoping the pillow form will take care of that or at least it won't be so noticeable.

I found some buttons at Walmart that look perfect for it but I'll wait until I get a pillow form in it before I decide on placement.

I also worked on my Maybelle flowers..........squaring them up............
Of all the flowers I've ever crocheted, I think these are my favorite!  I have all the yellow done, 1 more brown to do, 3 of the dark rose color and then 4 of each of the top 3.  Then there's the joining.  I'm really enjoying this project.

 

 I hope you had a good week and I will be doing my usual "catchup" with all of you!  Enjoy your weekend!  Happy Trails!

Excuses, excuses, excuses.......

For not blogging. Yes, I have them!  Do you want to hear them? No?  Alright, then I'll just show them to you...........
On Friday I went shopping at Walmart and then Saturday I mowed the lawn

 

Sunday I washed 2 loads of clothes and hung them outside as they predicted rain for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday......  

The girls (Nitty and Annie) guarded me while I worked..........

Nitty

Annie

 I tried to get them to help me but they said guarding was a full time job...........what do I know?  I worked at weeding and mulching around my propane tank which I have wanted to do for a while now.  I probably should have used stones but the mulch bags were heavy enough! LOL!

I got one side done but ran out of mulch......

Do any of you have a good method for enclosing the mulched areas so I don't eat it up with the mower?  A rock border?  My neighbor who doesn't live here anymore had some T-shaped plastic borders that I thought were wonderful but I have never seen them anywhere.  Picture an upside down T with one side under the mulch and the other side allowed you to put your mower wheel on it so there was no trimming needed and yet it kept the mulch in too.  Brilliant!  But I have yet to see any anywhere.

2 bookends back-to-back with no books in between would be the same.  It would require a lot of bookends though! LOL!

 I also spray painted my bench. All that's left of a picnic table set that was about 40 years old.  I tightened all the bolts and sanded it and used 2 cans of spray paint but need more paint. 

  After all my running around to get things done before the rain yesterday......it never rained a drop until last night after I went to bed!  But we did lose power for about 3 hours yesterday and I have no idea why.  Crazy!

I hope your week is going well so far and I hope to get back on track with my WIP"s which I have now put on my right hand side bar.  I will update regularly.  I feel like I'm making progress on some worthwhile projects for a change.  Sometimes documenting what we do makes us realize we really do get things done! LOL!

Happy Trails!

Back in the groove

We were supposed to have storms yesterday again but it just rained and then it cooled off, the humidity went away, the sun came out and it was a perfectly beautiful day!  I opened all the windows and caught up on a few things.  It's amazing how much time is spent watching the weather and planning around it especially down here in the South!  And with all the lightening you should not be bathing, washing dishes, running the washing machine or dishwasher or standing near windows and unplug t.v.'s and pc's. and don't flush the toilets.   I do follow those precautions as I had an uncle who's t.v. exploded right in front of him from a lightening strike, my Mother was hit by lightening washing dishes in a stainless steel sink in front a window and my daughter got hit in the ear while talking on a landline phone.  No one was seriously hurt but there was also a county extension person out examining a farm field on a sunny day who was struck and killed because lightening can travel 10 miles!  Needless to say, production slows considerably when there are storms here.  

I made some scrambled eggs with organic greens.......bacon. toast and orange juice got me off to a great start yesterday!  I find eggs really energize me and I can last until supper when I have eggs in the morning.  So, if I have lots to do I try to have eggs for breakfast.

 I vacuumed the closet floor and dusted the walls finally.  Hope to get some painting done this weekend.  I also vacuumed my bedroom.  The shedding by Nitty seems to be coming to an end, finally!  Annie, the dachsund, doesn't seem to shed much at all.

 I also got some more grout cleaning done although this section might have to have a redo.  It looked fine until I looked at this photo! LOL!

  I need to get some grout sealer too.

I finished all 30 of the Maybelle flowers...my Spring needlework project.  Last night I got all the ends woven in too.  Tonight I will start on turning them into squares. 

I've been fixing Reuben sandwiches for supper with turkey pastrami, sauerkraut, swiss cheese, and thousand island dressing on my SIL's homemade rye bread.  Delicious and a nice change.  I haven't had a Reuben sandwich for years.   We have a nice little deli department in our local grocery store that has some great meats and cheeses.  I had mustard greens as a side. 

While I was weaving the ends in I watched Little Bobbins podcasts and it amazes me how much knitting these gals get done. Dani is from the U.K. and they learn knitting young plus their technique is very fast.  I might have to learn how to knit faster.

I finished this old National Geographic magazine but age doesn't seem to make a difference as most of it is scientific or history anyway.  I find them so interesting.

Percentage of WIP's (works in progress) and a few others I forgot....actually I have divided "my list of Never-Ending projects" into categories as there are too many to ever get around to each in one day, or even a week....some may take a lifetime! LOL!  But it helps me to plan and prioritize and I have always been good at that....it's the action part I have trouble with.  But here are my categories and what is today's or this week's or this month's priority in each area.  These may change without notice also.  This does not include daily maintenance such as making the bed, washing the dishes etc.   There should not be 2 projects in the same area going on at the same time but as you can see there is one.....in Crochet.....need to remedy that soon!

1.  cleaning - grout (20%)
2.  decorating - entryway closet (30%)
3.  gardening - plant plants I bought (0%)
4.  landscaping - weed and mulch around propane tank (30%)
5.  crochet -Spring needlework project - Maybelle Baby Blanket  (30%)
6.  crochet -Happy Hooky Pillow, blocked and unpinned now (70%)
7.  knitting - secret gift #1 (45%)
10.quilting -  house blocks (25%)
11.cross stitch or embroidery - gather supplies for "secret project #2"
12.pets - make dog treats (0%)
13.sewing - 2 knot bags, need to cut out the bottoms (30%)   
14.cooking - plan next meal (0%)
15.moving -  pack a box  and take to basement or vise versa (0%)
16.organizing - clean out porch for repairs in July (5%)

There are a few categories I didn't put on here because they are either too personal or would give something away to someone who reads this blog....such as Friends and Family, Business, Personal, Spiritual,  Contribution and Financial.  I may shrink or expand this list at any time.  There are so many things I want/need to do that I have to prioritize or they will never get done.  It's so easy to get carried away with the "little dailies" as I like to call them and never get to "the big rocks".  Plus, I always need to schedule around the weather and have "rain plans" and "sun plans".  For example, today is nice and I need groceries out of town so that is a priority, I also need to go to the auction tonight and confront those people who have had every opportunity to call me and tell me what I am owed or tell me to pick up my stuff....neither of which they have done.  I took the items back in February and they are only there on Fridays so that's a priority and some other financial/bill paying obligations and then hopefully I will have some energy left to get a few more things done.
I hope you are having nice weather where you are and that you are doing what you need/want to do today.
Happy Trails!

Finishes and surprises in the mail.........

Look what I received in the mail from a drawing I won over at Carol E. Herman Designs on Ravelry!

First this cute card from Carol.  Carol designs knitwear and has patterns on Ravelry.

I won 2 handmade buttons that I will have to knit something special for so I can utilize them.  She also included those yummy-licious salted caramels!  How did she know I love them!?!?  Thank you so much, Carol!  YOU are the sweet one!

As for finishes..........this audio book was very good except for the love scenes...I'm from the generation where you didn't discuss that type of thing in public and I'm not much of  a romantic anyway. I covered the girl's ears...lol! But the rest of the book was very good and it was a good story.

I also finished reading the 2nd book in The Ladybug Farm series.....so good!  My kind of book for sure!  I highly recommend these books especially if you're older, like me.  It's about 3 older women but there are some youngsters in there too!  If you liked Jan Karon and the Mitford books you would enjoy these.

My next audio that I am listening to is The Beardstown Ladies Common Sense Investment Guide.  I'm not sure this information still applies as this is from quite a long time ago but I am sure I can learn something from it and it tells their history and story which is interesting.

I've decided that I will list my WIP's (works in progress) and not just needlework....all my projects I am presently working on...
 1)  Maybelle Baby Blanket - I have 23 of the 30 flowers crocheted and next will be weaving in all the ends (great for t.v.watching) and then you crochet them into squares if I'm not mistaken.  The dark one is a chocolate brown but it looks black in the photo.  I learned from The Patchwork Heart that it is more efficient to do all of one thing at once and then move on...kind of like factory work ie; do all the flowers, then all your ends, then all your squares etc. as opposed to completing each square before going on to the next.  Divide and conquer!

2)  grout cleaning -  no progress as there were storms and catchup around here.  Hopefully, I will get back to it today or for sure tomorrow.
3)  closet - needs vacuuming and dusting and I need to gather up my paint supplies.  It's amazing how several days go by without any progress but  there was laundry, ironing, and general maintenance that I can't let slip either or I won't have anything to eat or to wear! LOL!
4)  YOP 2016-17 starts in July and there are all those birthdays in July and my son is coming down to work on the porch then too so I have some planning, organizing and cleaning to do for that. 
BTW......our neighboring town (6 miles away) had their small airport and 5 small planes destroyed in that storm the other night.  There was also damage to the hospital and school.  The weather service said after investigating, that it was straight line winds and not a tornado but the winds were equal to an EF-1 tornado at 80- 100 mph.  I never go to the basement unless it's a tornado warning.  I'm thinking maybe I should set up a bedroom down there! LOL!
Stay safe and Happy Trails!

Didn't get much sleep last night....

We had a humdinger of a storm or actually about 3 storms that went through last night.  The weather radio went off 3 times and then there was the lightening flashing so I finally gave up trying to sleep and sat up and read some more.  I don't think it calmed down until about 2:00 a.m. and then I finally got some sleep.  Of course that meant we all slept in this morning until almost 8:30! 
I did get a few things done but it was a slow-motion day.  The satellite went out right after DWTS started last night so hopefully I can watch a rerun tonight since I missed it.

 My daughter sent me a beautiful card and pictures of 2 cute little soccer players.........

Sam...........

and Grayson............

Pictures of grandchildren......the perfect Mother's Day gift!  Thank you, Amy...you are my favorite daughter....you know that don't you? (She's my only daughter! LOL!)  I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day!

My peony bloomed for the first time in 6 years!  I love peonies for both their fragrance and their looks but they are so short lived.

The roses are going gangbusters...........

Coral Belles are blooming...........

strawberry plants have blossoms.................

American Iris.............

and Japanese or Siberian...........

 and my zinnias are growing too....pretty soon there will be blooms on them too!

I took these pictures the other day and glad I did before the storm came through.  I hope you are all safe from Springtime storms.
Happy Trails!

YOP Week #45

Week #45 of 52!  It's hard to believe this YOP year is almost over with but what fun to plan the next one!  I was "on the road" a lot this week so I didn't get too much done but...........I finished my 2nd sock.........(I know some of you saw this the other day...sorry for the repeat)

I also cast on my 2nd Canadiana yarn Hudson Bay sock but since this picture was taken I  have frogged it....I just don't feel like doing another sock right now.  I need another knitting project in between.  I wanted to do my first sweater and I have the yarn but I couldn't find my circular needle in the size that I need. I'll either need to order one or pray it will turn up before I do. 

So, of course I ran across a free blanket pattern that I happened to have all the materials for so I started a new project but it's crochet not knitting and I really want to do some knitting.  But for now at least it keeps my hands busy.
It is The Maybelle Baby Blanket over at My Rose Valley
These are the colors in Stylecraft Special DK and she uses a cotton yarn but I am substituting this acrylic and the hook size I am using is F.  I tried a larger but it didn't turn out like hers so I went down in size until the flower looked compatible.
The 2 yarns at the top are the joining and border and for some reason I put the wrong pink yarn in the picture as you will be able to tell.  You make 5 flowers of each of 6 colors for a total of 30 flowers but of course you could make a bigger blanket if you wanted to and you could make the flowers each unique or whatever colors you wanted to use.  I really need to place a yarn order soon!

5 pink flowers done....25 more to go but they are fun and easy and I am able to watch podcasts while making them!

I also FINALLY blocked my Happy Hooky pillow cover and there is a bad mistake on the front that even blocking won't fix but I will hide it within the seam.  My problem is that I don't think there is a pillow form that size so I may have to make one myself which is sort of the reason I put off blocking it.  Instead of using plain water to wet it down with, I used Mary Ellen's Best Press in the lavender scent.  If it doesn't look good at least it will smell good! LOL! 

 That is some serious "pooling" on the back!

 I also have not auditioned any buttons yet for the closure.  For me, the "finishing touches" take longer than the initial project.

We are celebrating Mother's Day here in the U.S. so I bought myself some chips and dip and some butter pecan ice cream. (Holidays are a free zone where I get to eat whatever I want regardless) (I made up that rule myself because if the doc thinks I am going to give up ice cream and cheese and all dairy products from now until I die well then they might as well take me now! LOL!  So this is how I compromise.   Although I haven't told the doc yet but my tests are all good so what he doesn't know won't hurt him)  I will have the ice cream after supper with the cherry dump cake I'm making and then there's that yarn order!  Yes, Happy Mother's Day to all and you know who you are!
Happy Trails!