THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY & GOING GREEN

We're "Going Green" one baby step at a time. We've been trying to reuse our plastic shopping bags, you know you have them too....... breeding in the closet. So, you have these "plastic" bags neatly folded in the back seat of your car....your ready for the next grocery trip...that's right were going to save a tree, stop global warming and bring peace on earth... and reuse the bags.
Then, you open your window...... Unrestrained grocery bags loose in a car become worse than a car full of balloons! They fly right in your face all plotting to cover the windshield. They plan it while waiting for us... in the hot car. I'm firmly convinced. Try and catch one as it flies past..grab it, slide it under one cheek, ( you know which cheek) slap at the next...just try and tuck it with the other....one ALWAYS gets away! You become the crazy lady waving her arms, trying to drive, shift & put the windows up all at the same time. They communicate ....I'm sure of it, one is always making a bid for freedom out the window, They need a warning label!
So, You make it to the store alive, grab all the bags & stuff them into one to carry, grab your coffee cup and..it spills into...the bags.
To heck with reusing the bags, I'm making some! Got home, logged on to Ravelry and found the "Malika Bag" pattern free! It's a sign! I read through the directions, quick & easy knit, O.K., I can save a tree, have a bag, and use some stash! We were on our way to the 4H auction and this was my sanity saver. I don't know about you but I can only take so many chickens, rabbits, cows & sheep ........after a while they all blend together! Anyway, my quick read of the pattern was to quick, Of course I forgot to take the pattern! The original bag has a spiral design and is wider. But, I LOVE my "Almost Malika Bag" It's unbelievable the amount of things that will fit into it. The second I lengthened the body and handles a few inches. I believe I know a few people who are still fighting the plotting plastic bags...Guess what they will receive this Christmas

Mini Vacation & WIP's

We took a quick, 3 day work related trip to Orlando Fl. last week. Turned into a mini vacation for me. We stayed at the Peabody Hotel, which I highly recommend. It’s a beautiful Hotel, spacious rooms with a welcoming atmosphere

There were nearly 500 gathered at this hotel and still had plenty of room!
Orchids, real ones topping the fountain and everywhere else in the hotel.


Part of the Peabody charm and history is the daily duck appearance in the main area.
Its obvious they are famous (and know it) as they ignored everyone in the hotel

I spent 2 wonderful quiet mornings at the pool goal setting. Redefining prioritizing & putting in writing my personal and business goals. Just me and my notebook making a plan. What a relief to have it done! I'm sure it will be tweeked and adjusted as time goes on
Its funny, we go through life, completing our daily tasks, doing what needs to be done. Be it going to work, providing a roof & food, raising children, some floating,some just managing to survive. I've gotten to the point where I had to ask myself, where do you want to go in this life, what do you want to accomplish. Most importantly why? When was the last time you put in writing your personal goals. Real or, silly to others, they are yours. Start jotting things down for a week or 2, your thoughts, ideas & dreams. What steps will you need to take to attain them? It's made a major difference for me. I cant say things have been perfect, I have a LOT of organizing to do first but, that's part of the plan. I have better direction. I know what I'm reaching for. What are your goals or dreams, DO YOU HAVE A PLAN TO REACH THEM?



On a lighter note.. More WIP's...I did accomplish some knitting on the flights and presentations. Soakers with a wonderful pattern from Sheepy Time Knits. These are knit with Patons Merino & LLB Designs (an Etsy Purchase).

Summer Fruits & Goodness

Don’t you just love summer? All the beautiful fresh colorful fruits and veggies to choose from.
Some of the names of “Green Beans” just amaze me. For example you have:
“Greasy Grits” string Beans, sounds nasty but a good standard staple green bean. (Who would in the world would give them that name?)
My new finds this year are the "Gold Mine Green Bean", a beautiful yellow/green shade, not as strong bean flavor and very good. My new personal favorite is “Dragon Tongue”. Is this not the oddest thing? It’s a white green bean with deep purple streaks that show when shaded by the leaves, they will fade to a light pinky purple when exposed to full sun as it grows. I love fresh raw green beans, these are quite possibly the best I’ve ever had. I assumed they were a hybrid but they actually are a “Heritage Bean” . No genetic alterations what so ever, they are the same bean brought from Europe with the settlers.
My friend Johanna’s, family has grown these for years and, have graciously given me some. Guess what will be growing in my garden next year!
Trying to take advantage of all the fresh fruit I have been canning quite a bit. Found a great deal on some peaches, so my canning pot is getting a work out! So far this year we have canned cherries & sliced peaches, Cherry, Peach & Blueberry pie fillings, with enough left to make the same in jams. In my second batch of the peach jam I added the skins (washed) finely chopped. They cooked down to nothing but added a beautiful Amber color and, richness to the flavor.

Birthday Goodies & Rachel Up Dates

Is it just me or has July been a Crazy month for you? I feel like we hit the ground running every morning and have nothing accomplished!
I celebrated my birthday on the 8th & was I ever spoiled! My oldest Daughter Danielle made a wonderful 3 layer Chocolate Cake, butter cream frosting. MMMMMM Good! No photos, we started eating it to fast! She also gave me a book on birds I have been wanting,” The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America” A great outfit from Erika, which I love! Will be great to use in Florida next week.Larry the ultimate fixer & thoughtful husband out did himself this year. I use the “back of the chair “ method to wind skeins on my ball winder. I somehow always manage to tangle the last few yards. Larry came home at the end of such a cobweb tangle and said “isn’t there a tool for that”? After my mental YES arm pumping Tap dance, I explained with the addition expenses etc. I would rather hold off making that purchase.
Of course that does not apply to yarn!
So, this was one of my gifts from him, A large Ashford Swift.!

Cuts my winding time in half.

He also gave me a OBN Photo Light Tent. No wonder he couldn't find the “right box” to make one! I’ve been taking late afternoon-evening photos, bet he thinks super will be on time now LOL! Now I just need to learn how to use it.

I have accomplished some test knitting & started on a few Christmas gifts. Yes, I said it Christmas. Starting now I possibly will have them completed by the 24th!

The best news I had was from Rachel. Another good check up, no new Cancer cells & the site is actually SHRINKING!!



With news like that July is proving to be a wonderful month

Test Knitting

Part of last week was spent test knitting for Lisa Milan of Digknittydesigns The patterns are available on her website.
Here is her new "Days of the Week" series;

Were is Monday? Well, If you know me very well.........you know I don't DO Mondays!

Have a good tomorrow.

Knitterly Wednesday

What a great week. I've had about 15 wip's (work in progress) going in various stages of completion. Thought it was time I knuckled under and finished them. So, I have a lot of finished projects (FO) to share.

I've been on a kick of baby sweaters. My oldest daughter Danielle took one look at this and said that’s "Carrie Fever" I think the name fits, cropped sleeves, smart and sassy for a 12-18 mo little Fashionista!'

"Cotton Candy" was next, cropped sleeve, traditional soft pink with flecks of color. Cute ceramic kitten button closure. Fits the average 9-18 month in the diaper crowd.

"Play Ground Princess" Just screamed "I want to play" when I finished. This sweater has a lot of give and will fit a newborn by rolling the sleeves to a average 9 month

I had a few pairs of Booties left to seam up. Fun colors for boys or girls, 100% cotton

So, whats on your needles?

Knittin at the Regatta

I did get some knitting accomplished watching the races. With the holiday I kept in theme with an American Heart Flag.








No race boats to to be found but, I did come up with a Sailboat. At least it was watercraft!

Also nearly completed a diaper soaker. Will post with photos later

4th of July at the Madison Regatta

Watermelon Boy, if I heard it once I heard it 10 times,
GrandmaIlove youCanIhavemorewatermelon?
Yeah, I'm easy.






Flotilla of brave geese, passing between heats.







For years we have been sponsors of the Madison Regatta and this year was no different. We had a blast, fast boats, food, plenty of friends and family. And more food. Beautiful hot sunny summer days.

Our tent was directly across from the start -finish line which provided us with excellent seats





Did I say Fast boats? My poor camera was full of shots just like this!




Bridge traffic stopped for the free show




The Ballet of boats.


The crane operators were amazing, transfering the boats to and from the water. They made it look like scooping up a childs toy.

Dont blink or you'll miss it!

We came home hot, sunburned but with a lot of renewed friendships. And a greater appreciation for air conditioning

We The People

I belive we as a nation forget how truly blessed we are. By no means are we perfect, we too have those who are hungry, homeless, jobless, aged or ill & without medical care. But we have more freedoms than any country I have been.
The first time I traveled out of the United States I was shocked to see airport security and police walking around with M-16’s. My first thought was I had walked into the wrong place at the wrong time! My whole since of naive American security was gone in an instant.

We can travel any time & location we choose, no need to show papers at state borders.
Our women and daughters can travel freely with out “escort” & receive the same education as our sons. I was sent to one country where I was instructed not to wear pants, short sleeves or a skirt shorter than my calf. I was required to have a minimum of 2 male escorts at all times. After 15 minutes I would have preferred 4 or 5!

Child labor and slavery is nearly non-existent, at least it not an accepted practice by our laws.
I was in a Turkish market, planning on purchasing a beautiful rug, less than pennies on the dollar. The merchant expounded upon the quality of fibers & density etc. He offered to show me the products in production. His production line was a small room, no windows with approximately 15 children sitting on the floor knotting the rugs. I left empty handed.

We can choose our place of worship, or choose not to worship.

We can write or speak freely. Express our opinions for or against our government with out punishment or “disappearing”. O.K, so there may possibly be an IRS audit in your future!

We as a nation have made out mistakes, some of our laws have become so twisted the original creators may possibly be turning in their graves. But we allowed that to happen thru our votes or lack there of. Our choices, our free elections.
We were on a trip to Haiti once, just in time for a Coup. We may have political coups but on paper not thru blood shed.
We don’t stand in line for milk, shoes or toilet paper, and hope there is enough to go around.

Many times I’ve heard people from other countries mocked because “they live like sardines”, with large groups living in one house or apartment. To many it’s no sacrifice, its what they are willing to do for freedom. Just ask them, most will gladly explain.

We take so much for granted. What are your basic everyday necessities, the "Mc Mansion", the 2nd car, cable, more TV’s than people in the house?

When was the last time you were excited about ……a 2nd pair of shoes, the ability to purchase groceries instead of needing to rely upon what you were capable of growing, turned on a light switch or water tap….and have it work. I’m not knocking what we have. We work hard, we play hard, I just don’t think we truly appreciate it.

You may or may not agree with me. But, I have the freedom to write what I choose, you have the freedom to comment.

What do you take for granted?

Pocket Garden

With everything going on in our lives & all the projects we have planned, pending and are dreaming up, we're going to be pretty busy this summer.
I wanted to put in a garden but knew I would not have time to properly take care of it. Larry found the Earth Box. We ordered one to see how it was made. As a true test of its published abilities, I bought plants that were half dead & marked down (yes I’m cheap)
They were about as thick as a pencil and 4 inches tall when I planted them.
Here they are at 2 weeks! So much for a test, I knew I would have time to replant with healthy plants if needed. They say you will yeild 2-5 times from a traditional garden. We'll see but it looks as if were off to a good start.
We need to come up with more small PVC to make a frame to stake them on and QUICK!

Cherry Pickin Time!

Last week I went with my friend Johanna to pick Cherries at her parent’s house. They had gotten what they wanted so we cleaned the tree.

That means Mr Larry got fresh Cherry cobbler last night. Can you smell it? I was able to make enough pie filling to can a few pints.


I learned something new also.

Did you know you can pit Cherries with a straw?



I thought Jo was nuts when she told me that but, it works great! Micky "d's" being a bigger & heavier works the best.






Not a lot left but it will be great this winter for pie or cobbler!

Waiting for Surgery

Chris’s hand waiting for surgery. They came home with instructions to keep it elevated & pain pills every 6 hours. They were to call the Surgeons office at 8 am for the scheduled surgery time. Good thing we had him stay here last night, he got the call at 7am. We don’t know if its for surgery or the another exam tho. Poor guy, he was still awake at 2am when I took him more pain meds. I doubt he got any sleep. I’m not sure if it was actually the pain or, worry about the future use of his thumb. Erika said she will call when they know anything.

Hit the Wall on the Wall

Then---------->

I’m beginning to think building the wall for this patio is never going to end! I belive the wall is shrinking or, someone is removing rocks when were not looking!

I had to pull up some photos of what it did look like. Hard to see but, if you look at the trim under the window of the house, you can see how high it has had to come up.

We added a little over a foot today & The yard art pile is shrinking. Our oldest daughter Danielle came and gave Larry & I some major help. Excuse me, I for got Isaiah. At least it wasn’t as hot, mid 70’s and overcast. If I had the energy I would tap dance. Only one more row on the base wall, and then the upper knee wall,finish filling in and steps…..then we get to start on the floor. Boy will it be worth it! No knitting for me today, my fingers are to stiff.

Erika’s boyfriend Chris was coming over to help again but, while practicing his domestic abilities (he was washing dishes), sliced his hand at the base of his thumb on a glass. Now he can’t move his thumb. They spent the day in 2 Er’s. First one said it was beyond them and sent him to Jewish hospital in Louisville. For now he’s in a temporary cast & has surgery in the morning to try and find and then reattach the tendon. Looks like it slipped up into his wrist. We were teasing him and said he could have found a better way to tell us he didn’t want to haul rocks. And, obviously he needs more practice washing dishes! Have to find humor in the bad stuff!

Now ----->

Family Time

One of my favorite photos of Rachel and Adam.
This was taken of their vacation a few yrs ago in Fla.

Hayden was our preemie grandson. Such a tiny thing. He was due the 1st week of January and was born the 19th of October. Hard to believe it was nearly 3 years ago.

Wow, Busy past two weeks!
Last weekend our youngest grandson Hayden was here, and yes he brought his parent’s, Rachel & Adam. Poor kid almost 3 and they still won’t let him drive! We held off working on the wall, just wanted to enjoy the time together.
It’s so neat to see the changes in Hayden, he’s growing so much, long and tall string bean.


Of course Grandpa had to break out the Big Boy Toys. Hayden is on front, Isaiah is on black. I’m not to sure who the biggest kid was, but I believe he's in the middle!

It was wonderful to see them. Rachel is looking better and better. With the heat she’s given up on wearing scarves except for work. Shiny heads are fine with us. Adam has been wonderful thru all of this. I'm glad they found each other.

THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY, Something to Think About

Found this on babylonglegs blog and thought i would share.

THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY& Having Fun going GREEN with a Free Pattern

I don’t like doing things that don’t stay done. Like dusting, vacuming, dishes (at one time I had 4 dishwashers, but they all grew up!) Nor do I like to constantly replace things we use daily. Have you ever noticed that when purchasing towels, you pay only $1.00 less for the hand towel? Really, who pays $3.00 for a wash/face cloth? I don’t mind paying for good towels, but $3.00-$4.00 for a washcloth that you get dirty? Make-up kid dirt...so, what’s the alternative?

How about making your own?

There are literally hundreds of patterns for knit and crochet wash/dish cloths. Simple patterns to intricate designs, and anything in between. The cotton is wonderful to bathe with, as the stitch patterns become an exfoliant or, more of a spa cloth. Soft enough for a baby but durable enough to scrub away the remnants of a child’s summer fun! They soften with age and just last forever! Converting my husband to these was not a concern but I thought, why not have fun with it. I was seeing lots of cutesy patterns, but not many “guy-ish”.
That is until I found the designer Lisa Milan.

Think of a sport or activity, racing to soccer she has a design. How about a Dump truck, school bus or airplane for the little guys? Gardening, to flip-flops, rubber ducky to teddy bears. Want to give the moon and the stars? Lisa has a pattern.
Handmade dishcloths last forever. The cotton believe it or not rarely stains. For extra scrub ability (is that a word?) you can use your acrylic scraps. There are nearly 350 patterns to choose from. All are accessible on her website digknittydesigns.blogspot.com. or Ravelry. Some are even free so, you have the chance to try them. Try it you’ll like it! Lisa sells her patterns for a mere $2.00 each. Purchase 5 and you get a free one!

Once or twice a month she runs specials where you buy 3 get 1 free. Every month she hosts a KAL with a new pattern in her Yahoo Group http://groups.yahoo.com/group/digknittydesignsdishcloths/join.
I’ve only “known” Lisa for a few months but she has been wonderful concerning special requests for pattern designs. We belong to a camping group called “the Pampered Campers” & I wanted to give some dish cloths as gifts. Not a problem. Rocking horse had it within a day. The same cost, $2.00. She is always open to suggestions for new designs.
O.K., if you have over 300 fun design options and, it runs about .75 cents to make a face/dish cloth…why would I pay the extra for a dinky wash cloth everyone else has? Oh, Be sure and check out her holiday patterns! These make wonderful gifts and great stash busters.

Lisa has offered this Recycle pattern for FREE

I Can Spin!....sort of

Saturday Knit in Public gathering was a blast! I spent a few hours knitting and spinning with the Ann from the Grinny Possum & a group of Ravelry friends.

That’s right I was spinning! I knit for a bit, then started drooling over every ones wheels, knit a bit more. Then I went for the kill. I pulled out my virgin ashford drop spindle and said … “can some one teach me how to use this”? 0.1 seconds I had teachers!! A big thank you to Christel, Ashley and Anne!

I ‘m totally hooked! I went home to an empty house (never happens) and spun the evening away. Christel blessed me with some beautiful roving, Blue with purple blended. Came out fingering weight (sure I meant to do that Ha!) I spun some Purple last night, I wanted more of a worsted weight. There are a few lumps and bumps but I feel pretty good about it as a 2nd attempt.

Here is the required photo for you to oooh and aahh over! Don’t you love my designer cut off paper towel roll! It’s what I had and it works for me!

I think I’m going to keep up with the random colors and make a bag. I want to make a memory “something” to keep.

I love learning new skills or arts really. It was very humbling in a way as I was spinning at home by my self. I can do this for joy, for the art. I started thinking of the women before us who spun and wove out of necessity. The many long hours it would take to make the family garments needed to survive. They were the department store.

As my arms began to ache, I started thinking of all the old photos & drawings I've seen of spinners & knitters of eons ago. They were all by the hearth, knitting and spinning in the evening by firelight after the "chores" were done. This was the "light work" , the relaxing and easy stuff at the end of the day.

With these reminders, I finished what roving I had. I figured I could deal with achy arms and be greatful!

Knit in Public Day!

Today is National Knit in Public! Where will you be?
I’ll be heading to downtown Jefffersonville for “Jeff Fest” in Preservation Park. There are a group of us meeting up. Knitting, spinning, and other knitterly crafts!
I hope I can con someone into teaching me to use my drop spindle today! I’m sure I’ll have a difficult time of that. HA!
Hope to see you there!

Finish-itus No More!

I’m still learning how to place photos so, bear with me if they are out of order.

I seem to be recovering from my finish-itus. I finally got the buttons sewn on the Mini, so she’s done! I decided after much debate not to add the buttons on the bottom. It was just a bit too much. It was fun to make, have to think of more color combos!


I also frogged the Pure and Simple Jumper. I found 3 or 4 other patterns and adapted a bit of each. Using Cascade 22o, I tweaked it a bit under the arms and I like the look better. It’s just such a versatile garment, jumper for winter and sundress for summer. I was trying to decide what to trim this with and decided on Dragonflies. They are all over our pond, and back yard. They remind me of children zipping around out side after being inside to long!

I know I will be making more of this one, possibly gray next time.
I have a few sweaters to post, just need to re charge the camera batteries.




I had to add Dragonfly to the back, after all, with little ones that's what we see the most!

THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY& GOING GREEN

For a quite a while I have been thinking of all that we as a society waste. Since the early 70’s Reduce, reuse & recycle has been the mantra. The next few weeks I’d like to look at a few little things (call them baby steps if you’d like) that we can all do with little effort.

Ever driven down the road and see good furniture, toys, on the side of the road? Waiting for the trash, on the way to the Dump. Some say landfill but excuse me, the land is full, and we dig a hole to dump things into it!

Good things possibly, toys the kids no longer play with, a wheel maybe missing, wobbly leg table, dirty lawn furniture, bed frames, curtain rods, dishes, lawn mowers, I could go on but we’ve all seen the piles.
I always think there is some young person moving out for the first time or a young couple just getting started that could fix those things and use them.

When did we become a throw away society?

What happened to fixing things?

One gentleman I know picks up lawn mowers tossed out. He fixes and sells them on the side. The things he found wrong with them; need a tune up, wheels tightened, once a (new-one) spark plug was not connected. No more than an hour or so of work, they are cleaned up, running great and ready for a new home. Granted fixing lawn mowers are not a hobby for everyone. But for goodness sake pass it on to someone who could!
You could have a yard sale, take it to your local thrift store. Don’t want to haul it? There is another alternative, my family has recently found.
Ever heard of ”Freecycle “ (This is off the website)

It’s a wonderful way to get rid of things you no longer need.

“Where one person's trash is another's treasure!The Freecycle(TM) mission is to build a worldwide gifting movement that reduces waste, saves precious resources eases the burden on our landfills while enabling our members to benefit from the strength of a larger community. We are open to individuals, businesses, schools, and nonprofit organizations. Our goal is to make it easy for everyone to find new homes for good items rather than throw them away. In the process, we'll reduce waste, save precious resources, and ease the burden on landfills.”


You should check it out, just type freecycle in your search engine. Clean out some closets, or if you’re real brave the basement!