TAKING STEPS

The SU socks are a done deal! 

 I'm pleased with the way they turned out--even the seaming on the side where I carried the unused color looks pretty good!  Despite the fussing with the two balls of yarn,

 I really enjoyed making these socks!

Some sewing took place! 

 I did laugh when I began the second half of the dog 

and almost forgot to reverse the position of the blocks! 

It's good to have to think through a project to get it to work! 

 I thought a lot of my Grandma while making this....she made them for grandchildren and I sure appreciate the work she put into making so many patchwork dogs through the years.

And she is still here.  

D, you will be happy to know my DH  wanted to know what we could name her.  I know the power of a relationship happens when you name a pet--I held him off until we see if she has been chipped to find the previous owner. 

 She looks like a Corgi and something mix. 

 She is a sweet young thing, in spite of being a canine! lol

 

GONE TO THE DOGS

 I will be making this at Quilt Group today!  

It seems a relevant project since I have been adopted by a dog-she came to us during the garage sale on Saturday and no one offered to take it home as a bonus purchase.  We have posted pics around town and hope she is reclaimed soon.  (the cats are furious that the outdoors has been polluted! lol)

THIS CONCLUDES OUR WEEK

The Thunbergia is blooming again!  It is so pretty!

We did some window suncatchers together, played outside

 until it was time for them to wave goodbye.

All company is home and we have a lot of room 

for the cats to come back out from hiding!

 

ROW BY ROW A SOCK EMERGES!

Most of our family have arrived safely home; 

 a few more snuggles endure here still!  

I did have a lot of down time today

 in between laundry loads in which to knit!

  And I finished one man sock!  

THANKSGIVING

From the sun's rising (over crescent lake)

 to the settling of the grands...

(Abigail is missing bc she was in bed already!)

It was an amazing day of preparation yesterday.

Today, I count my blessings and give thanks to God for all parts of my life!

May you have a day fun of thankfulness, too!

WATER PLAY!

We played with watercolor; 

 something my daughter has wanted to do for a long time! 

 Abigail takes art classes so it was a treat

 for all of us to work at it together!

 Lots of laugher and chocolate accompanied the hours at play!

Today the rest of the gang arrives and there will be little play time--food can be a very serious subject!  

TAKING A LITTLE WALK

We have a cute little 2" toad that lives in front of the garage. 

 I enjoy seeing him every evening.

We took a little walk in the woods and were very pleased to see the Indian Pipe is back again this Fall 

but has quadrupled its spread!

Most of the mushrooms are pale white

 but a few have a pretty pink tinge.

Some even have a few specks of black. 

 A very interesting plant!

Look at the little log that is sitting on the trail--

it is a fully intact bark exterior ...

but the wood has completely rotted away!  

A fun little tube now!

This mushroom is a very pink variety 

we see every once in a while...

it is easier to spot when it grows all by itself in a bare patch!

 

Knitting has been happening!  The sock is really shaping up!

SOCKS ON SUNDAY

The misty green socks are finished and ready to gift! 

 It was a good knit because sock knitting keeps you sane!  

I have cast on a new pair;  this one for my son-in-law,

 in the colors of Syracuse University 

which still holds a soft spot to all of us.

(we used to live near there!)

 I am using two skeins and making up my own striping pattern that will definitely be orderly

 even if they look random at first! 

I plan on knitting quite a bit 

on the way to and from church this morning!

KEEPING MY ATTENTION

the yard, shed, estate and tent sale is going well! 

 There was a steady stream of people from 9-5 or so.

  Then we did a bit of rearranging and finally dinner!!!!  

There is a lot of room now for more items to come out from the shed again!  This is going well and what we will be doing for the next two weekends, too!

During a lull, I found some Christmas Berry Bushes (crenata) that Bill hadn't pulled.  It is invasive but birds eat them and I like the evergreen plants so I will be potting these

 and then I can enjoy them!

The East Palatka Holly is fully ripened and just in time for the robins to come along with the other northern birds that visit us for the winter!  The birds chatter and chirp every morning as they eat and catch up on each other's news!

 

TWO BINDINGS!

I pushed myself and finished both of the quilt bindings yesterday!  They will be turned in to my local QOV coordinator to be sent to the lady who hand stitches the labels on the back of the quilt!  Each step of the way, (piecing, assembling, quilting, binding and labeling) these quilts are filled with love!

By afternoon I was in the recliner and have made considerable progress on these socks!  I need to wrap it up so I can start some colorful socks next! 

 

WOOD ON WEDNESDAY

Yesterday was our first fire of the season!  

I enjoyed the slow and warm waking up hour!

It was warm soon enough and I enjoyed working on the lathe. 

 The honey dipper is sanded, finished and removed now!

  This one will go to a friend who is a beekeeper!

My rendition of poinsettias in watercolor on another card.

The afghan is waiting for the next lesson! 

 It was a very enjoyable border this time! 

 The afghan is now 48" square.

 

MOSAIC AFGHAN PROGRESS

 While there are more than 600 stitches,

 I am enjoying going around the whole of the afghan

 for this month's installment! 

 It's a nice way to unwind at the end of a day.

NOT ENOUGH!

 When I finished the first 12 cards...

I found out that all there was--which is not enough for all I usually send, so what to do?  

I dug back on his site and found last year's which will be 12 more!  Here I go!

(I'm late on this post because I fell asleep last night too soon!  It was a great day yesterday; church, dinner and games and fellowship afterwards!  It tired me out! lol)

RED, WHITE AND BLUE....AND CHOCOLATE!

They need bindings but the quilts are off the frame!

I did the quilting lines with blue on one...

and red on the other!

I did a lot of kitchen work today getting ready for the dinner after church tomorrow but this shows you I do know how to bake! 

 It doesn't happen often-proof is the bakery cake Bill bought recently! lol

 

A BIT OF FRAME WORK

One quilt finished and the second one is well on its way.  I am doing this one with a medium blue since the first one had read thread.  

This tree is straight out back from the house and it gives a beautiful color every year!  Very unusual for us to enjoy trees with color until well into December.

This is the kind of color we see in the trees this time of year! lol  Soon we will be enjoying eating them.  (January)

 

A FELINE THIS FRIDAY

 

"I have no idea how the pumpkin fell on the floor!"

Yesterday, I went to church to decorate for a after-church dinner to celebrate 33 years for this church's fellowship!  We had a wonderful time sprucing up the fellowship hall. 

When I was home again, I spent an hour planting two small shrubs, Ixora, in the front yard.  They are evergreen shrubs;  butterflies and hummingbirds love their blooms-what's not to like?!

I was pretty tired after all of the physical work so I spent some time catching up on my crochet--I ran out of yarn for the centers so I stopped making more and counted what I had--3 more than I had planned!  But I am not sure I want to be done making them! lol  I just might buy more yarn and make a larger blanket than I had planned!  Just because I can!

OUTSIDE DOINGS

Here is the beauty shot of the finished grapefruit bowl.  

It is 11 1/2" wide and 5 1/2" high.

The bowl is very lightweight considering its size; 

 perhaps due to the dried out state of this wood?

I was on a roll at the lathe and didn't feel like walking away

 so I started another bowl

and it almost made itself!  This Wood is from my son who saw someone cutting down a Fringe Tree and thought I would like a piece or two!  Since the Fringe Tree is in the Olive family, 

this wood looks very much like olive wood!

I turned this piece to mimic the shape of pottery. 

 It is 8" wide and 4 1/2" tall. 

 I'm glad I have another piece of this kind of wood to work!

I also did a bit more of the watercolor cards...I'm catching up  on the one a day schedule as #9 and #10 are partially done.  

And this is why I spent most of the day at my lathe....

Bill is having a yard sale of spectacular size.

He is emptying his collection of shed's (yes, plural) contents

and will sell this Fri/Sat and next week, too. 

This was my view from my side of the garage where the lathe is;  I could admire what Bill was doing 

and enjoy viewing all he was re-discovering!