Sharing Indigo Tie-Dye!

 Friday brought some hard news and some great visitors!   I learned at the doctors today what I have been pretty sure was happening to me-all of the odd symptoms of the last few months just fell into place when I realized what I am dealing with is Multiple Sclerosis.  I was prescribed some new medicine to help with the numbness and tingling and PAIN symptoms.  Family sure helped to ease the transition from 'denial' to 'lets work on this to manage it' mode!  More posts on this as I get more tests and God unfolds His plan for me in all of this.

 Today, we had a girls' project:  tie dyeing some t-shirts with the left over Indigo!  We put down lots of floor protection since it was thunder storming outside and got to work!  (play?)

 We did some dipping experiments and some tying off designs.

 Also some intricate folding and swirling;  some shirts were dipped quickly and some for longer to get different shades of the blue.

 We hung up the shirts to drip dry for awhile and then put them in the dryer to set the color.  Then we went for a walk because the sun came out!

 The kids loved the run while we tried to keep up with them!  We wound down the hike with a sandbox time while all the adults sat around and watched!

 Great Grandpa and Grandma loved the time with the babies!

Here's the results of the t-shirts!  We have plans for many more!!!

News Flash-the Sandhill cranes are off the nest with their TWO  chicks!  They are just beginning to venture out with them so I will be doing my best to get a picture of the happy family!

Orchids and Mittens!

 These are blooms on an orchid tree!   They are in bloom in so many yards-just amazing!  (This tree is at a friend's house-not mine but we are going to take one of her little seedlings and try to grow our own!)

 My King Orchid is still in full bloom.

My little Phalaenopsis has just opened up a flower-ahhhh, they are stunning!

Two pairs of Evergreen Lake Mittens off the needles and drying after blocking!

Indigo Dyeing!

 I have had all the supplies for an Indigo dyeing day for a long time but we finally mixed up a pot and set to work!  (I used the kit from KnitPicks-very easy if you want to try it, too!)

 We set all our fiber and yarn to soak-and labeled them so we would know what we had when we were done!

 Into the pot, it turns a lovely yellowish green-

 but within seconds of removing it-the indigo reacts with the oxygen in the air and turns the beautiful blue color of our blue jeans!

 We enjoyed out dyeing day!  Being a mad scientist brought out all the inner kid!

We dyed sock yarn, shawl yarn, worsted weight yarn then Cormo and Dor Galen roving!

 While we were working at the dyepot, the men had their own project going on!

 They emptied the portable garage of its contents and stacked what they were keeping in the new shed.

 Then Bill lifted up the whole unit and we helped him guide it to its new home!

 Sissy thought we were very noisy and disturbed her nap!

 We transported the garage several hundred feet to its new landing only to discover...

 we set it up wrong side out!   After a good laugh, Bill backed it up, turned it around and we backed it in again!

Ta-da!  This portable garage was bought when we first moved here 7 years ago and it held all the overflow items we didn't have room for or want at the time.......it has held up well for all this time!
It is now going to house the tractor and zero turn mower way over by the new shed!  Since Mom and Dad will be heading home in a few days, this was our last big projects day and we made the most of it!

This Week

 The driveway is just alive with color-the azaleas are still brightening the yard!

 This Kalanchoe Flapjack has recovered from last year's frosts and has grown to a mature size of 8".

 Mom and I harvested the loofah-you have to peel all the skin off and then save the seeds!

 We got a bushel basket full!  (The plastic baggie holds the seeds!)

 The Fringe tree is putting out her flowers-it is officially Spring!

 The Dogwood only had a few blossoms this year-way at the top!

 I knit a pair of wrist warmers out of some alpaca-several more pairs to come as they really keep my hands comfortable!

 Bill and Dad finished the shed!   They painted the floor yesterday.   They have to wait for it to try before they can move in the 'stuff'.  Bill will be painting the outside sheet metal to match the house later on but it will be finished soon!

 The roses are liking the sunshine and warmer temperatures, too.   Here is this season's first bloom.

Blooming on the needles is a Craftsy project-a pair of EvergreenLakeMittens.  I know I won't be needing these mittens here but I thought I would mail them to my sister for Easter....

Washington Oaks Gardens State Park

 Today was another day trip to explore the beauty right in our own area (within an hour's drive).
We visited this State Park and took a picnic lunch for our sustenance this time!  (we didn't think of it for the trip to Ravine Gardens and liked to starve to death...well, we were really hungry.)

 Named for these great trees and the George Washington descendants who lived her many years ago!

 There are so many trails through gardens-it was breathtakingly beautiful!

 The colors and contrasts were so relaxing!   It was a wonderful stroll.

 Bill and I posed for Mom and she took one of us for me, too!  As the photographer, I don't always include myself in the viewfinder!

(The pic of Dad and Mom is on Mom's camera-I will be adding it tomorrow since I forgot to take them with my own camera!)

 The park is nestled between the Intercoastal waterway, pictured here and the highway A1A.

 There were many benches to sit and enjoy the scenery-we took advantage of many of them!

 Bill enjoyed finding this and telling Mom it looked just like her!

 I enjoyed the pools of water-most are artesian well filled!

 Carp and Koi fish kept us entertained!

 Even the dead trees are beautiful!

 This is the ocean side of the park!  It is so different from our usual beach scene which is just a few miles north of here!

 The rocks are sandstone and their coloring has affected the whole beach!

 Lots of brown pelicans liked the beach here, too!

 They flew in perfect formation!

 The waves had a very rhythmic thunder today and we sat and just watched for a long time.

 Bill discovered a bronze plaque in one of the rocks out ahead of us!

 We couldn't get close enough to read it-another day!

 We finished our drive by heading south to Flagler Beach before turning west and heading home!  Of course, we had a bit of dessert before we did so!

Mom and I are knitting this-it is going to be a fun project-wait until you see how it turns out!