Lots to blog about!

Remember these flowers I got from my daughter and her family on Mother's Day?

Here they are now.....in fact there are some white ones blooming too that weren't in this picture.

I've been cleaning and organizing..........

especially my bedroom and my yarns..........I sit and stitch here during the day sometimes as there is a window above the chair that lets in lots of natural light and in the evening there is a great floor lamp that works well.  I put an old picnic basket next to the chair for my WIPs (works in progress) and I also can grab it and take it to the knitting group as is.  What I like about it is it stands by itself where my other project bags fall over and my projects get tossed around.

I used my old farm bench for some of my yarn storage.....organizing my stash is another WIP!

I've been baking too....as in baking powder biscuits...........

Those brown spots are where the milk that I basted them with splashed....I might skip that step next time.
I took a hint from Pillsbury and froze some on a cookie sheet before baking and popped them in a freezer bag after they were frozen.  Now I always have them on hand to use whenever....although that might not be a good thing.

I also tried using wheat flour in my pie crust and just pressing it out with my fingers as opposed to rolling it out.  It was fast, saved a lot of mess and clean up and tasted just fine to me.  It was for a spinach quiche.

The wheat flour gives it a crunchier texture which I sort of enjoyed.  The crust and quiche recipe and the biscuits are all on my food board on Pinterest. They were both Martha Stewart recipes.  Although  I think Martha makes things more complicated than they need to be at times.

I have been busy as you can see and yesterday I mowed and today is Wal-mart.  I'm also walking my 3-5 miles when the weather cooperates and I journal an hour each morning which is my spiritual connection.  I'm trying to  "live the life I imagined" and take care of myself and the girls (Nitty, Annie and Grace) at the same time.  You HAVE to retire in order to do this as it is a full-time job in itself! LOL!
 Oh, I also checked the oil and tires and filled the tires on mower and car a bit and cleaned the mower and filter of grass but it needs a good washing....it's like the never-ending story...my never-ending list of things to do.

YOP Sunday

Happy Sunday!  I have some interesting pictures for you today.....my LYS! 

The round table is where we have classes.  In fact it was ready for our crocheted jewelry class that I had signed up for.

Supplies...so nice not to have to order them online when I need them.

All kinds of yummy yarns and fibers...........

There are books you can borrow and magazines and notebooks brimming with patterns of all sorts.

There's also a big rectangular table in the middle of the room where we all gather to talk and knit and crochet or whatever.........

I 'm making progress on the gusset of my sock but didn't really work on it too much this week as I worked on the blanket KAL and I had my class plus day to day chores which have been taking center stage with Spring cleaning.

Here' s the KAL and this is such a fun project to work on.  I can watch t.v. yet each square is individual so even if you do mess up you can just unravel and do that one square over.  I am just having the best time with it and although easy it's not boring.....LOVE!!!!!  I highly recommend this pattern.  There is no web site but it is called Rambling Rows Afghan and is from Cottage Creations in Carpenter, Iowa 50426-0070.   I'm sure you could ask your LYS for it as they have many patterns available besides this one.

This is the result of my crocheted jewelry class.  If I do it again I would use a smaller crochet hook but it is fun and fast although I'm doing some decoupage on the heart and earrings to match for my daughter's birthday so I will be taking another class to finish the set.  Below you can see the paper I will use for the heart and then the little round ones for matching earrings with the same red and black beads.

The bottom part is my work and the top part is a pre-made heart chain I added to make it longer.  There were 4 of us in the class and we laughed and had a great time!

That's all for this week!  The sun has finally come out so it's back to walking and mowing now after all the rain we've had.  I hope you are "high and dry" where you are and enjoying this Spring!
Happy Trails!

Good Monday to you all!

I told you yesterday that last week had been busy......too beat to blog but I did take pictures so here's what I was up to while I wasn't in front of my pc...........in fact this was from over a week ago when I went to the Garden Club sale........this is a very interesting set of books for the grandchildren to have when they're here.  It's from the 1970's and it is called The Bookshelf For Boys and Girls.  There are 9 volumes and each one is different.  There's Stories and Songs, Nature and Science, Things to Make  and much more.  I thought it was from the 50's from the illustrations.  It's in excellent condition and I think I got each book for .50 or maybe .75

 

 Actually, there were 2 phenomenal "bargains of the day"........my t.v. in my kitchen had died awhile back and I have only one t.v. now that I cart back and forth between the living room and my bedroom.  I really wanted a little t.v. in the kitchen again but couldn't see spending the money.  Lo and behold guess what I got for $5.00 at the sale?  An exact duplicate of my kitchen t.v. except this one is black and my old one was white!  Do you believe it?  It works perfectly for only $5.00!  I was overjoyed!

The second bargain of the day was a bed frame for my guest bed.  I had sold the bedroom set but didn't realize that the headboard and frame were all one piece.  So my mattress and box springs have been sitting on the floor for quite awhile now.  I priced frames at Walmart but they wanted $70.00 and I just couldn't part with $70.00 at the time.  I got a frame with wheels for $5.00 (an older much sturdier one than the one at Wal-Mart)!  I know!!!!  Amazing right?

Even though it was a couple weeks ago I still get excited about the deals I got for things I needed.

I am one lucky gal.....the thrift store angels were definitely with me that day!

I also got this basket for .25 I think.......

and these 2 golf books for my son-in-law for his birthday.

That day will stick in my memory for a long time!  There's nothing like a great bargain for something you've actually been shopping for and need.....what a feeling!  I hope you enjoyed my "thrifty" adventure.  TTYL!

Happy Mother's Day!

So sorry I have not been around this week.  I got all involved with going to the LYS and signing up for another CAL this time (a crocheted necklace) and there was shopping and errands and bills and who knows what else but the week just flew by!  I'm hoping to stay closer to home this week.  I will catch up with everyone too.  I've also been putting my health and walking and the girl's health first and foremost and we are all the better for it.  I'll blog it all daily this coming week.  
Meanwhile for YOP Sunday I have been doing well on my projects for this year and also one for next which wasn't on this year's list but it's the KAL (my first) at my LYS.  It will count towards next year.
No progress on the amigurumi or the bee blanket but the sock is coming along and I'm on the gusset now as I've just turned the heel.

You're probably tired of looking at it ........
Here's something new...my KAL at the LYS..........my first "large" square is done and I'm just now attaching the yarn for square no. 2 which is a rectangle...

Here's the pattern I colored for it..........so far this is a lot of fun!  Each patch is separate and you pick up stitches and do a knit cast on to connect the patches.  There are 3 sizes too.  I'm doing the smallest but I can see more of these in my future as they are so enjoyable and the color combinations are endless.  It's all done in worsted weight too.  The striped rectangles are going to be a variegated yarn.

Tami, the owner of the LYS gave us each a sweet little bag yesterday and wished us all a Happy Mother's Day.........

and look what was inside mine.......isn't it precious?  A sock...how fitting for me since I am determined to be a great sock knitter......some day.  I've never had one of these fancy marker's before.  Thank you so much Tami and I hope you have a wonderful Mother's Day too!

I 've done a few more squares on my Dottie Angel blanket..........

and picked up a few more colors when I went to Wal-mart

I got this soft and snuggly yarn to make another Bunny Buddy for Grayson and then Sam too.

I got this for the cat bed that's on my YOP list............it was supposed to be for Grace for this last Christmas.  This yarn has all her fur colors in it so hopefully it won't show all the cat hair that will cling to it.

That's all the fiber projects that are going on this week.
For Mother's Day I am making funnel cakes for myself with fresh strawberries, casting on new projects and working on old ones and it's going to start raining any minute here so I'll have perfect weather for sitting in my easy chair, stuffing my face full of funnel cake and knitting and/or crocheting while keeping an eye on the weather in Iowa where my children and grandchildren live.  The whole state of Iowa is under a threat for severe weather today.  Stay safe, happy and healthy where ever you are and enjoy "your day"!  Happy Trails!
P.S.  I'll catch up with ya'll this coming week....I promise!

What a week this has been.........

I am feeling and doing better today but this week was something else.....I won't bore you with the details as I have "moved on" and things are looking bright on the horizon. 
I messed up my sock right as I was starting the heel flap but all is well as yesterday I went to my favorite LYS and she showed me how to fix it.  I learned how to make a  "life line" and it and she "saved the day"!  I'm back on track and got half the heel flap done last evening. Maybe my days of "starting over" are done...I hope.  I received a few other tips too which is so great as I have been floundering solo for awhile now and some of this stuff just isn't in any books I've read.

The afghan for my daughter and her family is on the rocks and I have decided to chose another pattern which I am familiar with and which I think I can comfortably and successfully use the "yarn from hell".
 I did start an amigurumi project which is going very well.  If I'd known it was all single crochet I would have tried it ages ago.  I am using cotton yarn though and it is hard on my fingers but the pattern recommended it.  I have since seen many people using acrylics.  Any suggestions as to what is the best yarn to use?  I don't care for this red but it's what I have at the moment so I'll go with it.  It's going to be a little bunny.  I know, Easter is over but this is for me and I have a "thing" for rabbits....inside, not in my garden though. LOL!

 My yarn didn't come in yet for my KAL with the LYS group but this week for sure.....meanwhile I started this YOP blanket that I was learning cables for....remember?  I got so caught up in the cable scarf I almost forgot what I was learning them for.  So, I think all of these are on my YOP list for this year...I hope.  I have started my list for our new year come July and I am going to have to pare it down considerably and then some.  I have things I haven't finished from Year 2 when I started!  But now that I have a LYS I am thinking I will be able to stay on task with projects as I won't get stuck since I have so many knowledgeable people I am rubbing elbows with.  Yesterday, there was a bunch of sock knitters there and there are crocheters too.  I forgot to take my camera but next time hopefully I will remember.
I have to save my #8 circulars for my KAL so I had to use these old aluminum ones.  I need to get another #8 circular.  Now I understand why people have multiples of the same sizes.....so you can start more projects!  Duh!
 This is a baby bee blanket that I got as a kit from Knit Picks last year before I knew how to do cables.

I've been working on this Dottie Angel blanket  (it's a great t.v. watching project) and I have all the colored squares done except for 4 in 2 other colors and then the white or cream for in between them.

It's great for using up scraps and/or stash.  But I think the yellow might be a little too bright for my tastes and also I did cream squares but now I think I like white better.

I have to go dig some more in my stash and come up with some more colors and now crochet some white squares since I may not use the cream colored ones.  I have about 4 pattern books I am ordering that I have wanted for awhile now and need to utilize for YOP 1415.  I love the planning part and this year I will have all my supplies ready for when we start.
Happy Trails!

I think I need a nap............

This day started out good but has gone downhill since then.  Last night I messed up my sock so I went on to another project and messed that up then today I went and got ingredients for making crock pot corn chowder and 2 people in the store did not "hear"  me when I said no!  The chowder took all afternoon and it was supposed to be "easy" but then I only have one burner and I should have known since it required cooking an entire pound of bacon.  I wanted a quick crock pot dinner so I could paint today and work outside.  I just finished making it and cleaning up the mess and it's 5:15 p.m.  Sorry, I am definitely crabby today and I never get that way usually but I did go mingle with inconsiderate humans today so that is part of it, I'm sure.  Several people at the store uptown are very patronizing to older people and since I'm only 65 and not limping or using a walker I really do not appreciate it.  I know they think they are being helpful but it's insulting!  If I told the guy 3 times, I told him 4, that I did NOT want any help carrying my groceries out.  I tried to grab my 4 little bags and he refused and was out the door with a cart! And a customer behind me started unloading my groceries and going through them which again I said no but she "insisted".  I do not want strange people handling my food when they're not "food handlers".    What is it about the word NO that some people don't seem to understand?   And why is it that once you get a certain age people ignore you and you seem to lose all human rights?  I'm not stupid either.  I've programmed computer systems using machine code so I'm nobody's dummy but now I get treated like one.  Although, messing up 3 needle projects doesn't exactly make me look like Einstein.  I think I will blog what I had planned to blog tomorrow when I'm in a better mood.  OMG! Am I turning into one of those cranky old people?  Heaven help me!
Happy Trails to you......

Whoa Nellie!

 Yes, I'm still here....almost got blown away but it steered about an hour South.  These poor, poor people who have to deal with all the destruction and loss.  It was a tense day and night though.  The girls and I went to the basement several times.  The weather radio woke me in the  middle of the night.  I'm lucky I got down those stairs in my sleepy stupor but I am truly one of the lucky ones.
I've finished the cuff on the sock..now on to the heel flap!

  I have some truly gigantic news too...this is good news....I found an LYS, a local yarn shop!  I went to the library book sale (I'll blog about that another day) and 2 total strangers told me about a new yarn shop in Salem, the next town over where they have classes and get togethers and KALs and CALs and where the owner is really nice and knowledgable too.  So, off I went on down the road!
I spent the entire afternoon there chatting with a KAL group and joining in the fun with the project below.  I looked at yarns of all kinds and bought some wooden dpn's to replace the treacherous aluminum ones I had gotten at Walmart.....ahhhh.....love my wooden needles. 

I met so many lovely gals and even a little girl who knits and crochets and is just a little sweetie at 8 years old.  One of the grand daughters of a customer.  I'm already planning on going back Friday for movie night and snacks and we work on whatever we want.  I'll go Saturday too for the KAL.  The owner, Tammy is just a doll and so personable.  I hope to have pictures next time.  I am so excited to have my own LYS and a group of fiber fanatics like me to hang out with.
Now, I 'm off to get my jammies on and watch DWTS's (Dancing With The Stars) and catch up on some much needed sleep....nice sound sleep! Gosh, I hope I don't have nightmares about my weather radio going off!  Thank you for all your thoughts and wishes...it must have helped as I'm still here!

Look what I got in the Royal Mail...........

A little while ago, I was the fortunate winner of a drawing held by Helen Philipps 
I was ecstatic!  If you are familiar with her work you already know how talented she is and an artist at heart.  She has written books on cross stitch and quilting projects and is regularly published in Cross Stitch magazine.  So, now you see why I was so excited and still am!  I was afraid it had gotten lost in the mail and so was Helen but it arrived today!  Okay, I'll show you first and then write my heartfelt thank you to Helen.
First, look at how sweetly wrapped they are.  She has magic in her fingers as everything she touches turns into something beautiful.
 Gingham tissue paper...where can I get some?  If we can import cars and all sorts of mundane stuff why can't we get "the pretties"?  And sweet little flower stickers and washi tape.....

 

 Are you ready?  Oh my gosh....it is all so infinitely precious........ can you believe it?  I mean really?

I was jumping with Joy except she wasn't even here! (Joy, that is....lol!)

Helen made the the little pink flowered bird and the heart and then sent me some cute polka dot ribbon from Cath Kidston and a little sewing kit from CK also.  Check them out.....

I told you she was talented!

And then some gorgeous Springtime fabrics.......

I am "over the moon" with all of it and my photos are on "cuteness overload"! 
  I have been trying to make Friday nights a creative evening with no television which isn't hard because there is nothing on t.v. on Friday nights and I seriously want to create something every day but we'll see.  I also need to clean everyday, landscape everyday, cook every day and organize everyday! But tonight I am definitely going to get out Helen's books and grab that fabric and sewing kit and C R E A T E !

Dear Helen,
    I cannot thank you enough for the lovely and beautiful items you included in your drawing.  They are very special to me especially the bird and the heart that you made yourself.  I will always treasure them.  You made my day, my week and I think the year so far!  If I sleep with the heart and bird under my pillow do you think maybe just a teensy bit of your talent might rub off on me?  You are such a lovely lady and not only hugely talented but with an extremely generous heart also!
Fondly,
   Sam

Keep an "eye on the sky" this weekend as severe weather is expected Sunday and Monday and maybe even Tuesday across the middle of the U.S.  Happy Trails!