Jammin'

Here we go 'round the mulberry bush...........

They sure do grow much bigger here than on the tree we had up north!   Most of the ripe ones are as big as my thumb!  This tree resides at a friend's house but we have plans to plant one out back by the pond area.  (The birds love these trees, too, and they leave proof of their appreciation all over your house/vehicles! 

Sure does smell good-yup, jam cooking on the stove!

All lids sealed-love to count those pops!

I have long had this idea in my head, a bamboo trellis, and it turned out as beautifully as I had hoped. 

 The construction is a very fast work, so I will be making a bunch of these!  This will eventually be going in the pool area but for now it is going to help support the new wisteria I am starting!  And then I want some by my roses....

Speaking of the pool area, we have this going on in the backyard.

And this evening they had it connected to the house!

It is coming just in time because the beautiful breeze and the newly leafing LiveOaks are making for a very messy pool bottom!

Gotta love the internet; I was able to find a source for the discontinued skein of lace yarn!  It is on its way to me already!  In the meantime, I am working on this-I have plenty of extra yarn so no worries in that regard this time!

(Luna Limberlost mystery shawl)

Shades

I started out he day with another batch of strawberry jam.  We had bought some new jars and they really helped the whole process along.  I was much more coordinated on the whole canning dance this morning.  The whole house smelled so good!

After cleaning up the kitchen, I moved on to the sewing room.  I have two of the four bedroom windows shaded!  Quite by accident, I matched the patterns of both panels!  There is plenty of material to be sure and do that on the other two also.

Fresh radishes for dinner tonight!  The garden is coming along just fine.  The rain we got yesterday gave immediate results.

Some leaves off a cactus rose.....yes, Dad, your cactus rose is doing wonderfully and still has a little flower left on it.  I hope to make some new ones from these leaves Bill knocked off by accident. 

 (This plant has grown from one little rose-have I mentioned my dad has a green thumb, well, two green thumbs!)

While knitting away , I notice this..........and that sinking feeling that only knitters experience when there are 10 more pattern rows and 10 more knit rows and not enough yarn to finish the shawl. 

Saga to be continued.

Sliding Through a Saturday

I dyed another crockpot batch of wool-this time I used the wool/silk skein from KnitPicks.

After whipping the house into shape, I went to the sewing room.  I made a larger version of the portapockets.  Also , a checkbook cover and a coupon organizer. 

I love the space these things organize!  I made this without looking at the directions once until I got fed up with the mistakes I was making and had to regroup with the instructions to move ahead! 

Bill and I worked until 2pm and then met for an hour's relaxation in the pool!  Oh, it is a dream coming true!

We have been collecting quite a few cats again.  This little cat always causes us to check her out- "Is it Nyki?!"  She was pregnant, has obviously delivered, (has full teats) but she is not away from our porch much to be taking care of them.  We have looked but haven't found a litter nearby.  Time will tell.  She is very skittish but warming up to our conversations toward her.

This is Stubby, who has made himself right at home in the front yard.  He always teases to be petted.  For a tom, he is a pretty mellow fellow.

Nyki is talking back to me;  conversations indeed! She doesn't like it when we use our kitty voice toward the front porch cats!

Kitchen Work

It is a well known fact that I don't favor cooking time in the kitchen.  The main reason is that I like a return on my investments..........cooking takes up time and the results don't last!  (Yes, I know the logic of needing to eat , etc.  but that doesn't make the task of cooking any pleasanter; I would be one of the first to sign up for energy bars if they contained all the nutrition you needed in a day and then once a week I could eat something more palatable like pizza!)  Perhaps this is why I like preserving food-it lasts!  

I cooked up the jam and then while the jars were cooling, I chopped a quart up for strawberry shortcake.  Is there anything so good?!

Ahhhhh, fresh zuccini and summer squash for dinner tonight-the fresh veggies are rolling in the stands.  I do enjoy this time of year!

This is my favorite kind of kitchen work.........crockpot dyeing skeins of wool!

Butterfly Rainforest

I went with friends today for a field trip to Gainesville University to visit the display called the Butterfly  Rainforest.  It was just too full of wonder for words!

It is hard to describe how magical it is to have the butterflies floating all around you!  I could not catch them in flight but did get a bunch of them while on the abundance of flowers. 

To add to the beauty of it all, there is flowing water and koi fish, turtles and sunfish to watch.

The flowers are beautiful and so colorful even without the butterflies!

Orchids are so tropical!

You had to look carefully to see if it is blossom or butterfly!

And when one lands on you.........well, it is something special.

We had these brochures to help us identify what we were seeing....this guy checked out his neighbors, too.

The outside garden was pretty, too, but not quite in its fullest bloom except for the water lilies.

On the way home, we saw that our neighborhood fruit and vegetable stand is open again!  Guess what I will be doing tomorrow!

(If there are enough left, that is!  It is hard not to nibble one everytime you walk by!)

Move #2

Today we moved Caleb from the  house he and Matthew shared, to his own apartment just across town.

We didn't have a UHaul this time so we loaded up the truck and trailer for two trips and took a full trailer and truckload back to our house as there just wasn't enough room for all his furniture! 

Caleb's apartment is on the second floor.  Which wouldn't be the end of the world but for the stairs that are narrow and then do this.........

Another 90 degree turn!  It made for some crazy manuevering!

The couch and loveseat were a real challenge.

In fact the couch got up so far and the wouldn't fit for the last turn at the apartment door and so they had to bring it back down the stairs and ....

.....yup, saw off the legs!  It was the only way to make it fit!  Caleb will be making a trip to Lowe's to buy some chunks of wood to use for legs now!

What a great way to spend a day!

We saw these pretty wildflowers growing along the side of the road on the way home-well, we just couldn't resist! 

Crowning Touches

Bill and I cut the crown molding for the top of the cabinet and got them nailed in place-it is just the finishing touch the bathroom required!

I got the binding all sewn on the Psalms quilt.  It uses the leftover shade fabric in the livingroom and is just the right touch to invite you to snuggle up under the Word on the couch!

Moving Day #1

                               Good bye to the old house.........

                                Hello to the new apartment community!

Come on in!

Everything has to go upstairs.......

View from the front window.

Settled in.....mostly!  The apartment is new, clean and close to work; just right for this time of his life.

I worked on knitting on the two hour drive to Lake City, progress on the lace shawl is slow-over one thousand stitches each row, but I will conquer!  Too tired to knit on the way home......what a great day!