Monday, October 12, 2009

Weekend knitting

Weekends are for knitting around here. I do not get much knitting done during the week with all of the learning and outings going on but come the weekend I knit and watch movies. The children and I watched Dante's Peak, Pride and Prejudice, and Little Women. Christy and I knit and the other children played and colored. I LOVE weekends!

I finished Jack's hat:

pattern: my basic beenie
yarn: Red Heart
colorway: Camo
needles: US 4 & 6

I am getting close to being done with my second sock:




This is the hat I knit for Christy a couple of weeks ago:


pattern: my basic beenie
yarn: Plymouth Encore
colorway: grey and cream
needles: US 4 & 6

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

Monday, October 05, 2009

Beautiful things



We have finished up our elderberry study and are ready to move on to October's Lemon Balm! Our elderberry tincture is just about done and we have had a blast shaking it up each day




In knitting news: I knit Christy a hat and am now working on one for Jack. It seems they don't truly appreciate the pumpkin hats anymore. Toby and Hannah still wear theirs with pride and look absolutely adorable doing so. The weather has been nice and cool the last few days and I am blissfully happy! I am also knitting a pair of socks for myself, I am ready to start the heal flap on the second sock. This beautiful autumn-y sock yarn arrived today and I cannot wait to cast on for another pair for me!

Lorna's Laces Trick or Treat colorway:


John keeps mentioning how much he loves his pair of warm wooly hand knit socks and bemoaning the fact that he only has one pair. LOL! I have some STR that I plan on knitting up for him. I was thinking about giving them to him for Christmas but I don't know if he can wait.

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Outdoor Hour Challenge #2



We did the second challenge today and enjoyed being still and listening. Lots of giggling was heard as we used our words to describe what we heard. Hannah made a little home for bugs in her wagon.




After our nature time John and the children played basket ball and then soccer. I picked up a couple of pizzas and we ate dinner outside in the shade. The clouds started rolling in and the wind picked up. As I was bathing Hannah it started raining. I LOVE the rain!

John read the last few chapters of Robinson Crusoe to the children while I showered and had some time to my self.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Expanding my craftiness

I knit and tole paint but I have always been afraid of sewing. I can do it a little bit, but it intimidates me. When I was pregnant with Toby I sewed several little cloth diapers and they turned out pretty well and I can sew baby blankets but that is it. I have decided to spread my wings and sew.

This book arrived in the mail yesterday:


I have thumbed through it and I am in love! I picked a project and am going to use this fabric that I bought when I was pregnant with Toby. I had planned to make a ragged quilt but that never happened. This fabric has been sitting in my room for 6 years. Time to use it.


I washed the fabric all up yesterday and then just stared at it. In theory the project is fabulous. I was terrified to cut the fabric. I almost gave up before I even started. After I put the children to bed I busted out the chocolate (for courage) and went to work. I didn't cry. About half of it is cut out and I am not afraid to finish today. I cannot wait to have the finished product!

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

The Outdoor Hour Challenge #1



John had the day off today and we took the children to a wetland preserve park. These are some of the neat things we saw.












Monday, September 14, 2009

Herbal Roots Zine




I have found such a treasure! http://herbalrootszine.blogspot.com/ Herbal Roots Zine is a monthly zine that focuses on one herb each month. I bought September's this weekend. Elderberry is the herb of the month. This is just so neat! There are so many activities and so much information.

Today I introduced elderberry to the children and we recited the poem and song. I do not know where any elderberry is off the top of my head but we are on a mission to find some so that we can make the elderberry syrup and dye.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Planning for the upcoming school year

I have been super busy this last week getting everything ready for our official first day of school next Monday. The children are so excited they can hardly wait! It is so much fun to see them happy about learning.

We have tried nature journals in the past but we tend to be stop and go. This year I am beyond thrilled to have found this blog. http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/ (Can anyone help me put links in my blog posts?)

Here is a quick show of last weekend in pictures:




I found this yummy blueberry cake recipe at http://totallysmittenmama.blogspot.com/



Sunday, August 09, 2009

Sunshine




"Keep your face to the sunshine
and you cannot see the shadow.
It's what sunflowers do."
by Helen Keller

Saturday, August 08, 2009

Neglected garden

We didn't expand our garden this year as planned. Our little garden was planted but pretty much neglected. I have a few pictures to show you though.



Round Black Spanish Radish:



Royalty Purple Podded Snap Bush Bean:



Tomatoes:



Moon and Stars Watermelon:


Basil:



Flowers:




I leave you with this thought:

Connection with gardens, even small ones, even potted plants, can
become windows to the inner life. The simple act of stopping and
looking at the beauty around us can be prayer.
- Patricia R. Barrett, The Sacred Garden

Friday, August 07, 2009

Garden Sanctuary

I will have garden pictures tomorrow. For now I leave you with a lovely gardening poem.



Garden Sanctuary~
You who walk,
Maybe with troubled thoughts,
Come, enter here and rest;
And may the sweet serenity of growing things,
And the heavenly peace,
Be mirrored in thy soul.

-Doxis M. Palmer

Monday, January 05, 2009

Back at it

We have officially started school again. We are more than ready. It seems that things fall apart here without our normal routine. We are supposed to get a lot of snow here again today and it is the perfect setting for snuggling up with my children and reading and baking.

I think today calls for homemade soup and bread. The children and I could eat soup and bread every night for dinner and be perfectly content. John, on the other hand, prefers to not eat soup. I have expanded my soup repertoire to include more hearty soups and stews and the husband is much happier. Our new favorite is Linda's Lentil Soup. I doubled the garlic. I LOVE garlic!
http://fourlittlebirds.blogsome.com/2008/12/01/lindas-lentil-soup/

The seed catalogs continue to pour in and I often find myself lost in dreamy thought. The day the first one came I threw myself in my cozy chair and time melted away as I devoured it. John would make comments about, well I do not know what exactly, and I would answer and get back to my seeds. Eventually he started laughing and I pulled myself out of my happy place and asked him what he was laughing about. He said that every time he said something I would look at him and start talking about different seeds. Apparently I didn't even realize what I was doing. Later that day I asked him if he would go shovel the snow from our walk and he looked at me and said, "So, what about those seeds?" LOL!

I must go and deal with the laundry but I leave you with this thought.

IT IS GOOD TO BE ALONE IN A GARDEN AT DAWN OR DARK SO THAT ALL ITS SHY PRESENCES MAY HAUNT YOU AND POSSESS YOU IN A REVERIE OF SUSPENDED THOUGHT. ~JAMES DOUGLAS, DOWN SHOE LANE

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Saturday, December 20, 2008

A Tea Party for Hannah

After felting. All done!
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pattern: The Pattern Box Tea Cup and Saucer
yarn: Peace Fleece Worsted
colorway: Natural and Glastnost Gold
yarn: Pattons SWS
colorway: Natural Denim
needles: US 8

Notice the Ravenclaw colors? That is my House. My daughter Hannah (2 years old) has claimed the tea cup and saucer. She asked me what I was knitting and when I told her she started clapping her hands and jumping up and down saying, "Mama knitt'n a tea parteee for meeee!" How could I refuse?

This was very fun and a fast knit. I haven't been inspired by my knitting in a while and this was just what I needed. I was so eager to finish and I really enjoyed this little project.

Saturday, December 06, 2008

A couple of knitting projects I finished this summer

First up, John's socks-

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pattern: Country Socks
yarn:Nature Spun Sport
colorway: Charcoal and Natural
needles: US 2

And then some socks I knit for my sister's birthday-

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pattern: Yarn Harlot's Basic Sock Pattern
yarn: Socks That Rock Lightweight
colorway: Lucy
needles: US 1.5

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

So happy

Monday my landlady and I were talking about the economy and the hard times. She was telling me how her daughter had put up a bunch of food from her garden and was sharing with her. I mentioned how our little garden had provided good things for us this summer but not enough to put away for the winter. She commiserated with me and then I asked her if I could put in more boxes next year. She said YES!!! I am so happy and so very grateful. She said we could put in as many as we want.

Now my head is spinning with ideas........

Happy Thanksgiving all!

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Putting the garden to bed

Yesterday morning I put the garden to bed. While I pulled out dead plants John and Jack raked up leaves.

Putting the garden to bed

These are our five 3x3 boxes. John and the boys built the trellises on the back.


Here is an up close picture of one of our boxes. We have one square of carrots left. I will pull them next time I make soup.

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Last but not least, a picture of one of my little garden gnomes. I have one in each box!

Garden gnome

Monday, November 24, 2008

Garden lessons of 2008

Lots of lessons learned this year!

-Next year I am going to triple my tomato plants. We had 5 and that was enough to eat but we did not have any to make into salsa or sauce to bottle for the winter.

-I am going to plant the pumpkins somewhere else, probably along the fence. They took up so many squares in our boxes and I need those to plant tomatoes. I baked tons of pumpkin seeds and they are already mostly gone.

-The watermelons just didn't work. They were all gushy and rotten inside.

-The zucchini did great! I planted 4 plants out by our mail box. We had lots! Plenty of zucchini bread and fried zucchini for dinner. I also have 24 cups of shredded zucchini in my freezer.

-We need more green beans. We had enough to eat while we played in the backyard and for dinner a couple of times a week but not enough to bottle for the winter.

-We need more radishes. They grew so well and we loved them!

-We need more carrots too.

-My spring crop didn't do so well. The radishes and carrots did great. The spinach, lettuce, chard and peas did not. I think it was just too cold at first so they did not grow well. Then it got too hot and they wilted. The peas finally started growing just when it was time to plant the tomatoes and I needed those squares. We had one good salad from the lettuce, spinach and chard.

-I want to more than double our garden space next year. We have five 3x3 boxes. I want to add four 4x4 boxes come spring time. I am not sure our landlady will approve that though.

-I also want to do a 4x4 herb garden. So I guess I need five 4x4 boxes.

Saturday, June 07, 2008

It's about time!

I finished John's socks. Really, I did. I am so happy and relieved. Seriously, it is a very good thing. John is very happy and put them on right away. I can now knit other things and not feel guilty.

Pictures to come.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Slow start

It has been a pretty cold wet spring thus far. We have had some nice warm days lately but it is has been raining 4 of the last 5 days here. My little garden was very slow to start. Everything is growing now but soon it will be too hot for things like my peas and spinach. They are just getting started. As soon as it warms up later this week I will plant the tomatoes and peppers, beans and squash.

As far as knitting goes, well it's laughable! I have so many projects going at once that I never finish anything. I believe it is time for another UFO-a- thon. I need to get these finished.

I have been working on de-cluttering and I feel good about it. Right now I am in that horrible place where I have worked my tail off but there is still so much to do, *just keep working, just keep working* and, we will be debt free by the end of this summer. The end is in sight!