Pumpkin Sunrise

  Good morning to you! How are you? How was your weekend? My weekend was quite busy, but it seems that most weekends are for me. The local grands slept over Friday night after their halloween parade and classroom party at their preschool. It was a long day for them (and for us...). But we had fun between the tired tears :) Saturday morning, after their parents picked them up, I went out with my sister for some morning shopping. I found yarn at a local yarn store to make the local grands hats and mitts for Christmas. Well that is the plan. The youngest grandson is getting a sweater for the holidays and hopefully a hat. I gave out candy Saturday evening for Halloween and we had a whopping 35 kids. That is the most ever. I enjoyed seeing their costumes. So sweet. Lots of princesses and dinosaurs. Sunday morning, we all went to Mass and the sermon was 10 minutes long! What a delight and meaningful message. I wish all of the priests could do that because I can pay attention for that lon...

  Hello! How are you? I am feeling better (I swear I write this every single week but it's a true statement every single week). The weather has been glorious and gorgeous!  Well I did it, I finished the hedgehogs . This project was fun to knit up and they knit up quickly. The fiddliest part is the very beginning of the nose on double pointed needles. However, I got the hang of it eventually. I used cotton for the face and belly and then an acrylic-cotton blend for the body. The pattern is from Purl Soho and they are known for detailed instructions.  Now that this project is complete I'll be casting on a little sweater for my youngest grandson, the yarn arrived yesterday! What are you working on this week?

  Good morning! How are you doing today? Are you experiencing the cooler weather?  I am thoroughly loving this autumnal season. I wish I could bottle up the chill and have it during the summer. I know I am the odd one out but I just love being cold and detest being hot. Every single time I'm outside I see a maple tree showing off it's colors. So beautiful!! Not much happened over the weekend. We watched the local grand kids Friday night and had a great time. There were lots and lots of giggling and glee. They are at a fun age now. Saturday morning was the last soccer practice and it was in the low 40s and very cold and somewhat muddy. All the little ones were bundled up in winter coats, hats and mittens.  I worked on the hedgehogs  over the weekend and am currently on number four out of six. (over half way, yay!). In the evenings while watching TV I work on the second sock . While knitting these I think about another sweater for me. I have yet to cast on but I have i...

  Good morning! How are you? I'm okay. I've been having more salivary gland issues and pain while eating. I saw the ENT last week and I'm scheduled for another sialendoscopy procedure early November. This cannot come soon enough. The last time I had this procedure in mid February, I enjoyed six months of pain free eating, it was truly glorious! Please pray that I avoid any infections between now and then and a successful outcome. I was very busy this weekend with the local grands because my son had an out of town conference. We had fun with the kids and helping our daughter in law,  but I am exhausted from all the 'busy' that goes with them. However, being with the kids helps me not think about my medical issues (almost, ha ha). I started a hedgehog , my goal is to make five of them for the grands and grand nephews for Christmas gifts. I am hopeful I can do this! I'm not sure I will be making Christmas sweaters for the grands, they've been requested though. ...

  Good morning! How are you today? Over here I've been great! The weather has been spectacular and my cooling/heating system hasn't kicked on for days. Since I last wrote here, I've been focusing on the little sweaters that I am nearly done making. I'm itching to knit something else and that's were my main motivation is coming from. On Saturday we were supposed to go to the grandkid's soccer practice and our grand nephew's tee ball game and both were cancelled! My daughter in law and I with the kids did a spur of the moment trip to a neighboring town fall festival. I enjoyed watching the little kids have fun. I did pretty good until the sun was beaming down on me and I got too hot. (sun sensitive and sun intolerance from the autoimmune disease). Overall I did okay and I had a really nice time. I haven't been to a festival since moving here in 2021. Now that I went, I'm probably good for another five years, ha ha. Yesterday we did nothing and that wa...

  Good morning! How are you doing? I am doing quite well, I still have my daughter and her family here today and they are leaving by lunchtime to return home. I have thoroughly enjoyed the visit we had tons of family time together. We hosted our little grandson's first birthday party here on Saturday and that was a big production for me. I wish I had the energy of my younger self!! However MANY helping hands made the party a success. I will miss them when they leave today. I felt very lucky to have both kids and their families at my house each day they were visiting. The cousins played together. Also my sister's son and his family was also here! You will have to imagine lots of smiling faces and the noise. On Friday we ordered sushi for pick up which I loved because no cooking for me. On Saturday we served grilled marinated chicken thighs, roasted potato and carrots, salad, fruit tray, veggie tray and veggie kabobs. (family brought many of the side dishes). My sister made a glu...

  Good morning! How are you? I am improving and I'll take it! Thank you for the healing well wishes they mean a lot to me. The morning weather is sometimes nice enough to take a walk and that boosts my mood immensely. Now the maple trees are dropping leaves!! Fall is coming. This week I've been cycling through some projects but mainly have been enjoying the stockinette stitching of this hat for my son in law for Christmas. It is so nice to sit and not think about anything. I usually am watching tv at night when I work on this. Our daughter and her family are visiting us this weekend and I am frantically trying to get everything ready for their visit. They leave Monday morning (I don't know the specific time) so my Monday post might be on time, late or not at all. I'd like to believe I will post though! What are your working on this week?

  Good morning! How are you? We have a long weekend here due to Labor Day. So today's Monday feels like Sunday and the whole week will feel weird. Also, our garbage day is one day later as well. I'll have to keep checking the calendar to see which day it is.  As you can see in the above photo, I've been knitting little sweater ornaments . They are definitely fun to knit and I seem to be able to knit one in two days if I am knitting each day. The local grand kids sleep over every weekend now for one night and I tend to not knit the day they arrive and leave. I get so very tired! ha ha. On Saturday afternoon my daughter in law and I drove an hour away for a bible study friend's baby shower. The photo below is the floral arrangement at our table. So beautiful!! We had wonderful table buddies who matched our sense of humor so there was lots and lots of laughing. Sadly I wasn't able to eat most of the food because of all of my limitations, but the salad and bread was ver...

  Good morning! I hope you are doing well. Over here we are heading into another heat wave (boo). I thoroughly enjoying wearing jeans once last week. The cold front was a hint of things to come. I cannot wait!  I don't know what got into me, but I was motivated to start some new knitting projects. I dug through the stash and unearthed some fingering weight yarn for a sweater and then dug some more to find something to make a musselburgh hat for my son in law. He loves my hats and he would love this one since it's double layered.  Selfishly, I was seeking some super easy knitting for the evenings. So it's a benefit for me as well. The grandkids slept over Friday night and as always we had a great time. Friday night is the easy day, Saturday morning comes with challenges to keep the younger one entertained. Oh! She had her family birthday party on Saturday afternoon. She's three years old, growing up! I think we are winning the pantry moth problem in the laundry room, eve...

  Good morning! Golly, the weather yesterday was beautiful! My hair looked fantastic due to the low humidity which is a bonus. On Saturday we had a crazy thunderstorm breeze through and luckily I kept my electricity, my sister and my son did not but it quickly came back for them in the late evening. Phew.  When the weather and the wind is mild, I go for a walk instead of doing my cardio inside the house. The above photo was taken on my Saturday morning walk, are they not adorable. I love how they stare me down. The local grands slept over Friday night again, we are trying to make it a weekly event as long as our schedules permit.  We had so much fun! Friday night we had pizza and played with toys. Saturday morning is a little more work because sometimes the little one is grumpy. I believe it's because she is giving up her naps. gah. I  bought the drawing book in the above photo while I was visiting our daughter and her family in the Boston area. I guess I was stresse...

  Hello, good morning to you! How are you doing today? Gosh, I feel like I have a lot to catch up on. First of all I have minimally knitted this week because of recovering from the 'virus'. I'm happy to report that I am feeling much much better!! I had a video doctor visit with my pulmonologist who is awesome. I cancelled lots of meetings last week so I could stay home and rest as well as keep the virus away from others. Today will be the first day I exercise in a week (!!). My body needs is desperately! While I am not at full steam, I need some range of motion and feel like my regular self.  Friday night the local grandkids slept over and we had the best time ever. We went out for ice cream,  there's a local place that has delicious dairy free options. I chose mint chocolate chip which reminds me of my childhood. Saturday was their first soccer practice then much needed rest afterwards. Yesterday I watched the kids after church the whole afternoon, the photo above is t...

  Good morning! How are you? I'm 'okay' - I've been plagued with aches and chills and yes a fever all day yesterday and through the night which sets off a nerve pain from a very very old disc herniation (1999). Thankfully ibuprofen helps me and I cannot wait to eat breakfast and take some, Tylenol just doesn't touch it. This virus was going through the kid's house two weeks ago and I avoided it skillfully UNTIL my husband started symptoms earlier this week. It was only a matter of time I would get it. Sigh. On Saturday before my illness we went with the kids and grandkids to the Children's Museum where they had an Eric Carle exhibit. The kids loved it. To be honest, I loved it. On the wall was his biography in bullet form that took mere minutes to read. Fascinating. I was surprised that the museum wasn't crowded either. I have been half-heartedly knitting the first sock. And I finished a few books since reading was all I could do yesterday. I also starte...

  This blog post is brought to you by the beautiful butterflies in my front yard. How are you? How was your weekend? I'm doing pretty good, I am completely recovered from the trip we did last week. As a committed homebody, traveling takes a lot out of me mentally and physically. All I did this weekend was stay home and played about with catching up on chores and dabbling in my creative crafts. We have yet to see the local grandchildren because they've been running fevers. I cannot wait to see them! It's been over a week now. Yesterday I was in my art room adding a bit more watercolors to the picture I shared with you a while ago. Dare I say I've been thinking of holiday knitting? Yup. I usually knit an ornament for local family and I really need to figure out what I am doing this year. There is nothing worse that deadline knitting and so I start super early in the year to avoid that feeling.

  Good morning! How are you doing? Right now it is nearly 6 a.m. and it's still dark outside, the days are getting shorter. I am all in for the approaching fall like weather that is very very far away. As you know I was busy traveling to visit our daughter and her family and I barely knitted a stitch, but I thought I would share with you the beginnings of another shawl  when I did pick up my knitting.  I am doing the same pattern as the last time. I was in the Boston area and we decided to split the super long drive into two days of driving. On the way up we stopped overnight in Beacon, NY and on the way back home we stopped at Ithaca, NY. I went to every independent bookstore I could find that was opened in each town plus the Cambridge area. The above photo is my book and stationary haul from the entire trip. I am excited to dive into some of my books. Two of the books I've read more that 3-6 times which are:   Wuthering Heights and a Tree Grows in Brooklyn. ...

  Good afternoon! How are you? I’m doing pretty good. We finished a whirlwind trip to see our daughter and her family in the Boston area. It’s going to take a few days to recover. I loved seeing our littlest grandson, so sweet! Can you believe he’ll be a year old soon? I cannot.  It’s going to take me a few days to get caught up with the laundry and other duties so I hope to visit you soon.  I took these photos before I left. I am more than ready for fall. Summer is rough for me with all of my health issues. However I do enjoy crisp AC air that is abundant inside buildings! I started another shawl for the trip and did not knit one blessed stitch. My intentions were there though. 

  How are you doing today?  I'm doing okay, the Canadian wildfire has messed with the air quality which is messing with my breathing and my dry eyes even when I am wearing the scleral lenses. I tell you what, it is always something for me. Yesterday we all went to my dad's house to celebrate his birthday. We had a nice time. the grands (his great grands) were there and he had a potato digging event. The little ones loved it, they even had little garden gloves in which to dig into the dirt once the potato plants were emptied into the wheelbarrow.  Later on we had a lovely lunch on his screened in porch. In other news, I started another sock - don't be fooled I went outside for this photo and then came back inside due to the poor air quality. What's new with you? How is your air? 

  Good morning! How are you? I'm writing this early Sunday morning instead of early Monday morning, since tomorrow is really busy. Since I last posted, I have made significant progress on my shawl and hope to cast off today. Right now the sun is shining brightly which is nice considering they are calling for rain next week. In the above photo, my daughter, son in law and grandson sent me a 'just because' care package. I love it! I was so surprised when it arrived. They are excellent at knowing what I like but my daughter says I'm easy to buy for. Below is a photo of my early Mother's Day gift from my son, daughter in law and grandchildren. I cannot wait to do the puzzle and dive deep into writing answers about my life. How I wish there was something like that for my mom when she was alive. That would be a treasure.  My adult classes have ended before the summer session begins. I like having these breaks to catch up on other stuff that I neglect (dusting!).  What hav...

  Good morning! How are you and how was your weekend? I'm doing pretty good. Once again the weather went from hot to cold and once again I am happy about that. However, every I have difficulties dressing for the weather. Yesterday, I changed twice - I wasn't warm enough.  This weekend was quiet and uneventful. My husband and I did some clothes shopping and then gathered all the clothes in our closets that we did not want anymore. I got rid of all the clothes that are too big for me,  On Saturday my sister and I went out shopping and I bought some watercolor pencils, above is the doodle I did with them. We had a nice time out and about. We stopped at a new juice/smoothie place which was 'okay'. We miss the one that went out of business over a year ago, they were so tasty! I did a LOT of knitting. I'm trying to see how much knitting I can get done before my medical tests next week, it's a game that I think I am winning at. I would love to finish this shawl and the...

  Good morning! Happy Easter! How are you doing today? I'm doing pretty good. Since I last posted, I've been busy with the local grands because their daycare was closed Thursday and Friday (also today) for the Easter holiday. They were here both Thursday and Friday with their dad who worked from home and it was very busy.  Saturday we went to the Science Center where I did not take one single photo so you'll have to pretend you have some photos. The whiplash weather was nuts! We had 81 degrees Saturday then on Sunday it was 46 degrees....My body cannot handle it. The warm weather always makes me feel unwell.  Easter Sunday we went to Mass then afterwards to my sister's house for a luncheon. I brought a veggie tray (my standby contribution) also I baked the free turkey I earned at the local supermarket during November. There is no way my husband and I can eat a turkey.  I gave as much as I could away and have put the rest in the freezer. I labeled it so I know what it...

  Good morning! How are you? I'm doing okay. I have an early morning appointment with the ENT today. The week I do not have a doctor's appointment will be a miracle! However, I am grateful I like all of my doctors who help me out. This weekend was crazy weather! This tree that fell over into our neighbor's yard and knocked out their power is NOT our tree but is close to the property line and it did NOT knock our power out, thank God. On Friday evening our lights flickered so many times during a horrific wind storm. My husband and I ran around the house, filling water bottles (I like cold water) and charging our phones and flashlights. We were lucky and our electricity stayed on! My sister's did not and she lives very close to me. Yesterday after Mass, my daughter in law and the two grands came to stay at our house for a few days while my son is traveling for work. Party! The grands love having a sleep over here and we love helping out whenever we can. I knit very minima...