A Different Kind of Weaving

In the recent SpinOff magazine there is an article about weaving dried plant materials. It so inspired me , I showed it to my daughter. Well, it just so happened that Marsel had saved and dried some lavender from her garden a few weeks ago , so we went to work! Using the stalks, we removed the flower heads (which will go into a sachet later) we then proceeded to warp up my rigid heddle loom. We all took turns enjoying the easy rhythm of weaving. (Except for Abigail, who was napping.)

It will make a wonderful trivet and give off its scent each time a hot dish is placed upon it! A very satisfying conclusion!

What a Find!

It all started with a perusal of CraigsList; a Harrisville floor loom (36", 4 shaft, 6 treadle) with accoutrement and it was within driving distance! Gratefully, Marsel was up to the adventure as long as I drove. Another exciting fact is that it folds up and I think I can get it in my little car for the drive home! (The extras include a warping board, boat shuttles, bobbins and books!) See me smile!
On the way we passed a beautiful state park on Lanier Lake and Buford Dam; the road is right on top of the dam so the view was breathtaking! We will be coming for a family outing here when we come back in July.
We stopped for lunch at the Dawg House and can you guess what team they root for?!

On the way home we stopped at a yard sale. How could I complain about stopping after hauling them around for hours on my adventure! So, this is Marsel's revenge; a picture of me as proof that I went to a yard sale! Stinker......

David helped me unload most of the treasures we found but Marsel did have to suffer with the exertion of carrying in the loom with me-we were ALL excited to see it set up and check it out. I did tucker her out though, she is back in bed where she belongs.

(To see her treasures, click here!)

One of the hardest parts of keeping house here is the progress I make ahead of me is sucked into the vacuum of David/Abigail's imagination behind me..........I had forgotten how much energy it takes to pick up but how little it takes to make a mess! This is the livingroom which just minutes ago was spotless!

Here is the new loom in Marsel's room so she could lay down and see me play around with it!

Memorial Day 2009

The kids are playing, Bruce is puttering, Marsel is mostly resting and I am savoring the family time.

Bruce came home with the groceries and a bonus for the kids......a wind-up airplane!

Nyki is having fun visiting with the fish.

I made myself bring the previously dissatisfying Pi shawl but I figured out where I got stuck and am making progress again. It takes an hour to go around a row and a row only adds 1/8" to the shawl but it is working and I have added an inch since arriving. (The shawl even survived a mishap with a pair of scissors............don't ask. This shawl has quite a history even before it has been worn !)

Georgia Doings

I arrived at 2 in the afternoon on Thursday; my first solo flight (car trip) from our house to my daughter's in only 7 hours. Traffic was pretty light for the Atlanta area and I was grateful Nyki (kitten) only threw up once early on in the trip! When I arrived, I had the joy of surprising the grandkids with my presence but they were confused that I didn't have Grandpa in the car, too!

To celebrate their last day of school, they had planned a dinner at BeniHanna's, a Japanese restaurant. I was excited to be included even though I have never eaten Japanese food. The evening was a delight in every sense of the word! Notice the sweater that Abigail is wearing-it is the 'baby' sweater I pictured just a bit ago-it is only right that the sweater should go to her as the original UFO was one for her as a one year old-now at 5 she is finally getting a sweater out of that yarn!

After a day at doctor's appointments, library and Walmart on Friday, we were all ready to drop!

That is it for appointments , though, so it will be just rest next week! Doctor Mom's orders!

Since I am here to make Marsel rest so she can recuperate from the tendon inflammation caused by an adverse reaction to the antibiotics for a kidney infection......that is what she was forced to do on Saturday. While she took a much needed nap, I played LOOM with the kids. Remember playing with these when you were young?! See Abigail use her left hand (cerebral palsy makes this feat a miracle)! We really had a great time together.

Sunday evening they had a special time recognizing the students of their church family by having a recital. David and Abigail participated in their first 'public' pieces and it was wonderful to get to share. They were both excited about doing this so neither were too nervous. The much older students went first and set a good example for the younger ones-good idea!

Marsel felt better after her day of rest yesterday than she did today but being in church was worth it.

A Yarn to Share

I finished the dusty rose tablerunner! (This is of the handspun/dyed Suffolk fiber I bought from a local shepherdess.) It is still pouring rain out so I haven't wet finished it yet but it turned out so nice. The gold adds just enough sparkle to make it special. I am bringing my loom to Marsel's to make another tablerunner and look forward to the kids helping me warp it and then to weave on it! We have read a lovely kid's book about spinning/dyeing and weaving cloth so it will be nice to share the loom with them! (Marsel has had a very nasty reaction to an antibiotic and it has inflamed her tendons in her hips and shoulders; she could use some prayer and I am going up to help with the day to day responsibilities as she is supposed to rest........)

I finished the baby sweater! This is the project that languished in a drawer forever (4 yrs actually!) which I unraveled and reknit. I am glad it is completed and off the pile of UFO's that nag at me. See the texture, Lynne?!!

I got the urge to see just how much usable fabric I had in my stash of old jeans........I think they are going to be slashed into 1/2" strips for weaving a rug. Thanks to the inspiration of this website (May 13 post) I have a plan in mind.

Rain and Flowers

Our 50' Magnolia tree (grandiflora) is doing its thing......... We are having a ton of rain-5 inches over the last week and more is due all week, too. It is wonderful for this area. The rain lilies are in full bloom-the yard is so pretty.

The rain keeps Bling in except for quick excursions to bring in 'live' presents for Nyki and then they play cat and lizard......

Catching You Up

While I was on duty with Caleb, Bill was supervising the process of insulating the house.

The open areas of the south addition now look like this......

The breezeway has a whole new look, too.

This is the panel box pic for my dad who spent many loving hours running wires to get it to this point!

The ceiling and outer walls were sprayed with open foam and the interior walls were insulated with mineral batts in case you were wondering. It is so much quieter now and no more drafts! Amazing what a difference it makes!

Mission Accomplished!

Home from my tour of duty as nurse. Caleb is back on his feet, not standing too straight yet, but well on the road to recovery. What an adventure!

This is Sunday night on Mother's Day just after they moved him into his room for the night and had given him his pain meds......

Incision.

I did get to knit at Caleb's after he got home and until I ran out of yarn. Nyki missed me, too....

Caleb bought this for me on the day I left and he had his first outing-to Wally's of course-to buy some groceries and a toy for me-I had fun trying out some of the 'weaves' I have been reading about on the computer since I ran out of fiber stuff for myself!

On Being A Full-Time Mom

If you follow my daughter, Marsel's blog you will know where I have been; if not, I have been given the privilege of caring for my youngest child after a surprise surgery for appendicitis! He called with a very unique Mother's Day gift-an ER visit and so we drove up to be with him for the surgery!

What a wonderful/awful place hospitals are.......

Bill went back home and left me with Caleb-you cannot be a patient alone in the hospital without an advocate! He and I are at his home now and he is recuperating very nicely for a body that has been so assaulted by infection!

I am knitting and reading while he naps and doing the usual woman's work while he is awake. It has been interesting to sort out my care/advice initiatives and for him to receive it as an adult child and not a little boy. We do have an excellent relationship, gratefully, and both of us being blessed with humor gets us over any rough spots!

Bill went back to our house to supervise the complete insulation of our home-the original building and the additions. Nice adventures that I will elaborate on in future posts.

Finished the Loose Ends

Here is the finished scrap yarn feather and fan shawl. I have mixed feelings about the outcome but it feels delicious and it will go to our local nursing home for some recipient who thinks the A/C is set too low! I started a new baby sweater using up yarn from an old project that I ripped out. It is from the book in the picture. I will work on this while we take a trip to Ocala today. Going to help Matthew with a home repair project and then to watch him play basketball (Caleb comes when he gets out of work) at their league at the local YMCA.

Just look at the dahlias that are blooming in the front yard! We deadhead the old blooms and new ones just keep coming!

Ladies Day Trip

A few of the ladies from church invited me along for an adventure; to find a previous member's new residence in Mayo, Florida, and take her out to lunch. She is 91, widowed and need I say desirous of visitors to her assisted living home.........

I also had to co-pilot on this 3 hour trip and so had the best view of all the wildflowers along the road! (I think they are wild phlox(pinks) and coriopsis(yellow).

The majority of our 170 miles one-way trip was through countryside; dairy farms, chicken farms and small state parks/springs. It was just beautiful!
I took along my knitting and finished the harvest socks.......though with temps in the 90's, I didn't rush to wear them!

On the way home I started a comfort shawl with some leftover yarns (I am trying to make this the year of the total destash!) It took me a bit to adjust from the number 1 sock needles to the number 13 with multiple-strands project but I did it!

It was so good to be with other women-to share, laugh and just enjoy each other's lives. I think we need to do this again.

Treasures

Here is our beach harvest. We even found some bits of barnacle covered coral which is an unusual find .
Here is a different kind of harvest-oh, they are so sweet and tender!

Bill cut all the tops and then put them in the spare refrigerator in the garage. (The beets are already in there but I missed the pic of them!)

I sewed 2 more pairs of capris and did some weaving. It was good to have a stay at home day! (Nyki likes to help me knit and hides her mousie in the weaving !)