Turkey Run, Daytona

First thing Saturday morning we finished up our ornaments!  Now they are ready to hang on our trees this week! 

When we take a day trip, I get out my knitting and I am happy to have some hand spun yarn, BFL, on the needles!  Socks are calling me.  

  Every other year, Bill and I go to the car show in Daytona and meet up with a co-worker of Bill's and his wife.  Joe has a 'vette he shows but we mostly walk around looking at the broad expanse of vehicles.

I seemed to like these beauties the best! 

How can you go wrong with BLUE! 

How old but futuristic is this?! 

But here was my favorite of the day, a Lincoln Premiere.

I can imagine myself in this and the back seat is filled with grandkids and we are on the way to the beach.... 

When I got home, I ripped out the sock and decided I was going to design some toe up big-toe- separate socks to wear with my flip flops all winter!  I have the plan all ready to knit in my head.

The big toe is complete!

Here is the secret to all my walking today-we bought this souped up walker with a SEAT so when we stood around looking under the hood of every car, I could sit every time!  It also helped with the walking because I wasn't exhausted having to keep my balance and think about each step.  It was wonderful!  

Post Tryptophan Day

A LOT of down time today after the flurries of the last few days....Ashley and I made a few more ornaments...these are halves of a whole;  they get glued back to back with a hanger loop in between the layers.  We had fun decorating while Will napped. 

When he woke up, we let him decorate his own tree!  He had ideas! 

And was very particular about which color went where.  He did like using the Accuquilt a lot, too. 

AND I AM DONE WITH THE ENTRELAC BLANKET FOR NEW BABY, EATHAN!

It did become a bit of a knitting grind stone around my neck but I kept my eye on the goal most of the time!  I got it done almost whole month before he is due!

I used Prism yarn from Mary Maxim.  The pattern is now engraved on my knitting heart;  it is over a base set of 10 triangles, 10 stitches each.  It turns out about 36" wide by 42" long.

Quick!  Where is some sock yarn?!

Our Florida Thanksgiving

If you are reading this, I am so grateful you are a part of my blogging family!

God blesses me in so many ways and the blog connections are certainly an important part of my life!

To those closer to my home, we were able to share the long awaited feast....the younger crowd and 

The rest of us!   This year is the off year for our big family gathering, so we invited some friends to round out the day with Middle Son and his family.  Our new Pastor and his family joined us and we were kept hopping with the kids so they couldn't be homesick!

After dinner, the kids went in for a swim.  The water was a chilly 80* so none of the dads went in with them but they were the lifeguards on duty! 

While the girls went in for craft time!  We didn't have enough time to finish because the kids got blue lips too quickly but we did enjoy our decisions and arranging until they joined us again!

The two halves have to be glued together with a tie in between so it can be hung on the Christmas tree next month!  We have made ornaments on Thanksgiving for decades so it is a well established tradition and it was nice to share it today! 

We wrapped up the evening with a bonfire and then came in for a game of cards.

It was a perfect day!

It's Over!

These last two weeks almost beat me.  The new medicine was making me a zombie.  Really.

I have read about how people feel on Lithium, I have a better understanding.

Today, after cancelling everything from my schedule for the last 5 days, I awoke a thinking human being.  You are used to feeling and functioning, but to me it was a miracle!  

 I sewed the binding on the tutti frutti #1 quilt.  That was all for the day.

I machine sew the binding as hand sewing is history! 

I would sew one row and then the next and sew them together-that was it for the day.

Really, it was that limited.  I slept away the last week. 

I got one bobbin filled with Masham wool.  It was another way to sooth my creative part of my brain that I knew was in there somewhere! 

Bill brought me a treat-I love these 'snowballs' and eat one and save the other for the next day.  Such a gift of love! 

And today, I sewed the rest of the blocks together and added the borders!  It was wonderful to work for more than 1/2 an hour!

I am smiling again!

Oh, Boy....

Last week, it seemed like a great idea to change my medicine.

The actuality is a bit different.

I am walking around like a zombie.  I have to wean from the old medicine (which feels like having my security blanket torn out of my hands) and slowly introduce the new meds which is too little for a lot of benefit right now!  

I can do this, right?!

I did a little puttering but my mind can't bear concentrating for too long. 

I added a bit of background to the watercolor, 

and I sanded the new resin sea animals, then drilled holes so they can be worn.

I am trying to make up my mind to put them all on one necklace or to have five individual ones.  

Today is not the best day for decisions. 

And I did a bit of this because I can do it with my eyes closed!  

Yes, this fiber is easy to spin;  even if it is Masham top. 

It is a new to me fiber and I am liking it just fine.

I didn't knit again today.......this is not a good pattern.

Tomorrow has to be a better day.

Moving Day #14

These guys have done a LOT of moving around since we all moved to Florida. Son #2 on the right is moving his family to a house this time 

A beautiful home and a fenced in back yard to raise two sons! 

Bill did the stacking and off-loading. 

We got the kids happy in the corner out of the way with a box of toys and they were great!

We had a wonderful and exhausting day!

A Day Home

All of my Christmas cacti are in bloom!  It is beautiful to see all the plants covered with different shades of red! 

I stood and quilted at the frame off and on all day!  It is so nice to be home ;  to putter, clean, work on a project and lay down when needed....... 

The tutti-frutti quilt is off the frame! 

Speaking of fruit-I have been leaving my watercolor out so I can paint a bit in between other ideas.

It was a great day!

We Interrupt This Week....

For a ton of doctor appointments.

And tests.

And labs.

And exhaustion.

But, we did get a bit turned around and ended up driving by the famous St Augustine lighthouse.

We just looked.

We weren't up to climbing it! 

Today, we talked to this guy-he was the hit for live entertainment during lunch following 3 hours of MRI tube time!

I haven't done anything else blog worthy.  I am just too tired.

A Different Kind of Color

We are just starting to see the maple trees change color but in the meantime, we have spectacular color from the Rain Trees!

The color is not from the leaves but from these seed pods! 

They are large clusters on the ends of branches. 

No aroma, just beauty!

(I know a lot of people call them nuisance trees because they make a mess but so , too, do all the falling leaves up North;  it is all in the eye of the beholder.  This eye loves spotting these trees and I love their color.

A Baby Shower

One month away until we get to hold grandchild 8, Eathan Matthew ! 

It was a nice welcome and a good way to share the joy of his coming! 

This is my other daughter-in-law  and her sisters who coordinated the shower decorations and food!

(Second from left)

And the two grandmas waiting for their baby snuggles!

Progressing

Our calendar has been filled with go days and today was surely appreciated as a stay day.

I had a lot to do to get ready for the baby shower tomorrow for my daughter-in-law.

BUT as soon as I finished with the gottas, I loaded up the tutti fruitti quilt!

Now to wait for another home day-looking at the calendar, it will not happen until next Friday.

Who said retirement was boring?!!!! 

I tore down the mismatched flannel table cloths I have been using for a design wall and bought some cotton batting and hung it up-all 12' x 8' of it!  It looks better and works better, too.

Nice to have a win-win solution! 

Of course, I had to put something up on all that blank space!  Another tutti-fruitti tumbler block quilt using the other charm pack I had.  I ran out of block so filled it in with a different edging arrangement this time.  It will cheer me up as I walk past and it will wait for me.....