Pumpkin Sunrise

Weekends are for memory making,  relaxing and enjoying quiet moments of our days.   If you would like, please share your weekend moments in the comment section with a link to your blog. My husband celebrated his birthday this weekend and being the generous person that I am, I made him HIS favorite cake but it's definitely not mine.  German Chocolate cake (mix).  I prefer just plain chocolate with white icing.  He loves that the cake was all about him.  I hope he savors every bite because it will be next year when another one is baked :) I forgot to share the snow drop photo from earlier in the week when the weather was acting like spring.  This morning when I went to 7:30 Mass (yawn) the temperature measured 8 degrees.  Insane.  I believe the weather will be warming up once more but for now, I'm hibernating and waiting. Yesterday, our son arrived for his spring break week and was busy setting up his new computer.  There's nothing like new t

started all over again! I'm still adjusting to the fact that Lent started.  Doesn't it seem like we tucked away the Christmas decorations?  Oh the passage of time goes faster and faster.  I grew up Catholic (and still am) and historically for Lent I would give up something, usually candy and would fail before Easter.   I remember my mother taking Lent seriously.  Very seriously.  She once gave up smoking and lasted about five days.  Those five days were stressful for us kids!  I'm sure those five days were pure agony for her as well.  She switched her intention after five or so days.  I admired her for those five LONG days and she did quit smoking later in life successfully. I guess I could give up something.  The first thought was my "complaining".    I focus on being positive and present in my journal writing daily and here on my blog, but in person I can go on and on about complaints.  So much so that I don't like the way I sound.  Compla

My reading is the same as last week and I'm nearly done reading both books.  I love Britt-Marie and all of her thoughts and reflections.  Britt-Marie is my soul sister with her love of list making!  Backman's writing style is quite refreshing, poignant and funny.  He can be quirky too. As you know, I love anything that Anne Lamott writes, so her Small Victories  book which is essentially a collection of essays about faith and life, makes me want to be a better writer and an observer to my everyday occurrences. My knitting is chugging along.  The shawl is nearing the end and each row is pure bliss.  My top down cardigan has met with some problems.  I had to rip back and fix a crucial step in the construction so while the sweater here looks like there is progress, I am facing a little bit of catch up knitting to match the above photo.  I'm okay with that, mistake finding is humbling :) What are you knitting and reading this week? Joining Ginny and Frontier Dream

Weekends are for memory making,  relaxing and enjoying quiet moments of our days.   If you would like, please share your weekend moments in the comment section with a link to your blog. my sister made the bunny and all of the chicks :)  Hello!  Another weekend has come and gone, can you believe that this Wednesday is Ash Wednesday?  Where does the time go?  Hmm.  A burning question.  I spent the weekend nursing a upper back spasm that just made me uncomfortable enough to complain but was not debilitating. Theses back woes make me enjoy and love those days when I'm not even thinking about my back.  And to answer your question, I did nothing to cause it, nope, nothing at all.  I would never ever suggest it's from sitting and knitting ;) I am feeling much much better today and I'm not even thinking about my back so that's progress. So my knitting was minimal since sitting was the worse pain of all.  Instead, I decorated for Easter.  I did a food inv

I finished those socks , you know the ones I grumbled about over and over again.  I believe I knit into each stitch too much bad karma.  You see, I decided to do an afterthought heel (not my favorite but it works well with weird stripping).  I proudly finished the heels and buried the threads and thought "gee these look fantastic" and the DO. But they do not fit my feet.  There was no way I was going to undo and re-knit the socks at the toe or at the heel.  I'm finished with them.   Don't worry though, I know whose feet they will fit, my daughter can proudly wear them. So my socks have a happy ending. I love knitting my sweater , this is my slow and savory knitting.  You know, the kind you want to just sit and knit and enjoy each blessed stitch.  The progress is slow but the therapy I'm getting while knitting is in multitudes. My asana shawl is the project I'm most excited about.  I knew when I arrived at the beading portion of the directions

Much to my delight, I found Britt-Marie was Here  in paperback over the past weekend at the bookstore.  I've been wanting to read this book for quite a while.  Backman's writing style reminds me of Roald Dahl for adults.  Also I started Small Victories by Anne Lamott, she is such a fantastic writer and observer of life.  She's a treat to read! Today I'll be doing afterthought heels on my socks in a pretty lilac that doesn't match but definitely "goes" with the socks.  I continue to make progress on my shawl and sweater , but no photos today. What are you knitting and reading? Joining Ginny and Frontier Dreams

Weekends are for memory making,  relaxing and enjoying quiet moments of our days.   If you would like, please share your weekend moments  in the comment section with a link to your blog. We had the best weather ever over the weekend.  Blue skies, warm air-- I loved it!  I had my first walk of not wearing a hat or mitts or a scarf.  I felt free and easy - unfettered in my fleece jacket. My confession is that I do like the signs of spring.  My love of winter will never waiver, but spring has some awesome moments in my life. My husband and I had dinner at a chinese restaurant laughing over our fortunes.  Mine spoke truth! Saturday we tackled some pesky household duties.  I bought some new furniture knobs to replace one I broke on our bedroom set (very old, bought by my parent's in 1961).  Now I'm trying to be gentle as I yank open drawers.. My husband started to work on the kid's bathroom again.  He redid the bathroom last April but during the

beads!! My attention these days is here, there, everywhere.  I read the news, I disconnect from the news.  I pick up one project to knit and then put it down and knit on another.  I set a goal of eating a salad every day for lunch only to eat cheesy toast and sabotage my dietary goals. Do you do this?  I feel quite fickle in my intentions and attentions to myself. squishy mad tosh sock yarn = bliss.  I know and you know that crafting is what can save a person's sanity.  The sitting and picking up a project to add some stitches and ease into a meditative state of being.  For me this cardigan does just that.  The yarn is just so very squishy soft.  Tactile happiness to the fullest! The more time I commit to my knitting projects, the "noise" of the world becomes a whisper instead of a roar. Whether I sabotage my personal goals or not, every morning when I wake up is a new beginning.  I write out my tasks and my intentions and try again.  A beautiful reset

I started another top down raglan cardigan for me over the weekend.  I thought long and hard about what pattern to use with fingering weight wool and decided to knit a cardigan that fits beautifully and I've knit twice.  I'm in my happy knitting place! I'm enjoying My Name is Lucy Barton  so far.  I should be done with this book some time tomorrow.  This novel explores a mother-daughter relationship and how life experiences bring complexity to our interactions with the ones we love.  If you are a mother or daughter or both, you might like this book. What are you knitting and reading this week? Joining Ginny and Frontier Dreams

Weekends are for memory making,  relaxing and enjoying quiet moments of our days.   If you would like, please share your weekend moments  in the comment section with a link to your blog. How was your weekend?  The weather was quite bizarre for us in PA.  We had beautiful views of lots of snow, then warming temps, then all day rain with the threat of sleet and freezing rain.  Last night, I heard the mighty winds and I prayed that I would keep my electricity.  So far, so good! Friday night, my husband and I went out to dinner and caught up on his day at work.  We started talking of some vacation plans but so far they are only discussions.  The calendar has to cooperate as well! On Saturday morning we drove to State College to have lunch with our son and I had every intention to take some photos, then forgot!  The weather was a balmy 57 degrees!  What a delight to be teased with spring time weather.  We had a great time together and the visit was short.  Once we re

This post is laden with wintry photos because I know and you know this will be melting and drab brown scenery will return with the melt down.  When there's snow on the ground, a cloudy day is easier for me to tolerate, don't you agree? With February, comes thoughts of vacations and possibilities of where to go and what to do.  My husband and I haven't really agreed on anything, but it sure is fun discussing the possibilities.  For now, I'm content to stay home a little longer and enjoy the ordinary days. I continue to waffle on reading the news feeds and not reading the news feeds (and still wanting to read them).  What a pickle!  I find that when I am sitting and knitting, I get into my Zen state of mind.  So there is the answer to my happiness and possibly yours.  Sit and knit.  Sit and knit. I've been away from my yoga practice since October due to weird back issues.  I feel like maybe I could try to do some positions but my hesitation and my back