Pumpkin Sunrise

  How was your weekend? Mine was pretty nice overall. My husband and I went to a garden center for ONE pumpkin for the front door and ONE mum to be planted in the front yard. Last year we bought three mums and none of them survived. I have no idea why, but also those pesky deer nibble them as well. So why invest in them if they will be disappearing? The weather continues to be gloriously lovely. Definitely cool days and sometimes drizzly like yesterday. We took a walk in the drizzle mist and gosh it was refreshing. Even Frodo loved it. I love this in between weather! I did not take a photo of my manic gnome making for the holidays. I have tons of worsted weight wool scraps and I'm just winging it as I go. What fun! Kat  has made many beautiful gnomes! I have dreams of depleting the scrap bag.....let's see if that dream becomes reality. How was your weekend?

  The last day of September! This month went fast for me and with the fastness came lovely cooler weather that seems to be endless in the forecast every morning when I check on it. My husband is sad that summer is over and keeps hoping for a mini heat wave, not me at all. Being cold is where I want to be! I've been furiously knitting Christmas presents that I will share next week with you in detail. On a whim I cast on something for myself but now I'm rethinking the yarn and the colors I chose for the project. So until I figure out exactly what I am doing that little project is on a temporary hold. I've been sketching daily, well I'm trying to sketch daily. I feel rusty and the only way to 'unrust' my skills is to practice every single day. I have all the pencils right by my side along with my sketchbook so there's no excuse for me. Frodo and I have been thoroughly enjoying our daily walks in the neighborhood. Each time I'm outside I make a mental note o

  Maybe, just maybe I have regained my energy levels after the trip to Cambridge MA last weekend. I've been knitting furiously both Saturday and Sunday thoroughly enjoying a burst of creative energy from the cold weather we are having and will continue to have this week. Saturday morning I wore wool on my walk, first time of the season!  Holly have been a little devil over the weekend. She keeps sneaking up on Frodo. Most of the time he is asleep but she thinks it's great fun! She is living her best life. Frodo is too.  I started knitting Christmas gifts for my grandson and my grand nephew. Almost done!! My weekend contained: -homemade chicken noodle soup - lunch out with my dad and step mom - daily walks with Frodo in the chilly air - lots of reading - lots of knitting - a phone call from our son - watching PBS.org 'the US and the Holocaust' documentary by Ken Burns (highly recommend!) - four loads of laundry - a squeaky clean kitchen floor - apple cake -  How was your

  Good morning! I hope you've had a fabulous week. My week was perfection, I spent each day catching up on all those tasks that were set aside for traveling. I'm currently sitting in my kitchen drinking my last cup of morning coffee before the day officially begins. The weather is deliciously cold (gah!). Yesterday was windy which turned warm air into autumnal breezes. The week's forecast is going to be cold, finally. We had lunch outside on the patio probably for the last time earlier this week. Well, at least I had my last lunch, my husband might just sit out there in the cold clinging onto the dregs of summer living. He is so sad that autumn has arrived. I am not, I've been daydreaming of sweater wearing weather for about six weeks.  Yesterday I focused on knitting and finishing the sweater , all day long and as you can see by the above photo it is drying after a little bit of soaking and mild blocking. My husband thinks Holly will sit on it, I do not. Who would wan

  How was your weekend? My weekend was blessedly calm and somewhat productive. I've been working on the grandson's first Christmas cross stitch ornament a little bit each day. I can see it so that makes the stitching all the more enjoyable. (14 count!) I also did the laundry and cleaning for the week. Fall is creeping in slowly, the leaves are changing, the days are shorter. I had my first cup of hot green tea in the afternoon yesterday. I'll be surprised if it gets super hot again, but then you never know with the weather. Frodo and Holly have been at it after weeks of keeping their distance from each other. Holly found a new snuggly sleeping place in the family room and Frodo found her. There was a ton of hissing and barking. I thought after that encounter Holly would be tired of Frodo and just stay out of the family room. No such luck!! The next two photos are Holly slinking in and staring at a sleeping Frodo! Then she decided to perch on the window sill and watch the ch

  Good morning! Well, it's another Friday and here we are checking in with each other. I've quickly jumped back into my ordinary days enjoying my creative projects and it's been wonderful! Traveling does that to me, I am renewed in being grateful for the simplest of things: my favorite mug, sitting with Frodo, oh the list could go on. On my daily walks with Frodo, I am paying attention to the slightest changes of fall showing up. The mornings are chilly (yay) and I am all for it!  Besides knitting daily, I've been doing a small drawing challenge - The Inchie Challenge . My sister alerted me to the challenge and asked me to join her. We share our daily sketches via texting and compare our interpretations of the prompts. I've been using my graphitints by derwent . These pencils are water-soluble colored graphite and are fun to play with. I only have seven colors so I have to be creative with what I have. Yesterday, my husband with the help of a neighbor removed the fa

  Ah. September, how I enjoy you and welcome you in. I'm not a fan of summer but I try my best to enjoy what I do like about it. One of the best things about summer is that it leads to fall. And I am ready! My super early morning walks with Frodo are chilly most of the time. School is back in session and I wave to the school kids as they drive by in the yellow school bus. This weekend will be in the high 80s and I just don't care, I know it's the last hurrah even if it takes until October. This week has been so nice. I am thrilled that so far (fingers crossed) my husband  and I continue to remain healthy. May it continue. After the massive catch up from being out of town unexpectedly, I've settled into a comforting knitting routine. I've got some ideas for holiday knitting but I'm still sticking with my selfish 'for me' knitting this month. I will ponder the gift giving knitting only. September inspires me to reflect on the remaining tasks around the hou

  Good morning! How was your weekend? Mine was boring and you know how I love the simple everyday comings and goings of ordinary living. I pulled out my watercolor paints because Kat  and my sister have both been painting up a storm. It was nice to get back into dabbling. Thanks for the inspiration you two! Saturday I started a blanket with 'vintage' wool and on Sunday I ripped it all out. It was TOO rustic for my taste. I was hoping the drape of the fabric would win out but the scratchiness was just unforgiving. My husband's sock is coming along and I've put many more rows on my blue sweater. On Sunday was had a fantastic rainstorm with thundering. All the plants got watered for free.

  Good morning to you! How has your week been? Are you soaking up the last bits of summer? I have been very excited this week for many reasons. My knitting has been good, I'm enjoying my projects and that sock yarn in the above photo is soft in my hands. I keep forgetting to mention the bag in the photo was made by my sister many years ago. It's my go to sock project bag because CATS. My big news this week is the photo above. Look at that dogwood tree changing colors. Autumn is creeping in and I'm all here for it. Also that deer is a bold one, she stands and waits until I'm practically right up to her before it snorts and runs away. Frodo would love to chase her! The flowering apple trees in the backyard are dropping leaves as well.  On my daily walks, I focus on my five senses (a mindfulness technique) and now I have an added goal - seeking out signs of fall. The crisp air is delicious and being chilly is so nice.  For Mother's Day this year my sister gifted me a b

  Just when you think you've had it with the hot humid weather, Mother Nature just goes around and blows in cool crisp air. Heavenly! I opened a few windows and enjoyed the chill, refreshing and rejuvenating. I just might make it to the fall season without being overly grumpy. How was your weekend? Friday night we had dinner at my sister and brother in law's house (no cooking!). Afterwards, we sat on their back patio and enjoyed the evening. On Saturday after walking Frodo, I did a bit of cross stitching which is frustrating for me because it is white thread on off-white linen fabric, ugh. I also did a mini marathon reading session of the novel,  The Stand . I am closing in to the end of the book. (yay me) Sunday we went to Mass and I did the usual pesky household chores once we were home. Throughout the weekend I sat outside either at the patio table or on my gazebo swing (reading of course!). Oh and I started a pair of socks for my husband, just because. How was your weekend?

  Good morning!  Around here the humidity has left and Mother Nature has gifted me (us) some beautiful cool crisp air. I'll be walking this morning with a sweatshirt on - what blessings! The days are shortening quickly hinting at fall weather, thank goodness. I'm sitting here with jeans on hoping that I do not need to switch to capris later in the afternoon. My husband and I went to a restaurant with outdoor seating for lunch over looking a pond. The food was delicious and the views made the food taste better. All you could hear were birds chirping and an occasional flopping fish in the water. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I've been in a creative lull.  I'm just going with it because I know it will pass. Yesterday I wanted to start a pair of socks for my husband with this delicious merino yak blend in the photo below. I ignored the voice in my head that said 'but you have three other projects you should be working on'. Life is for living in the moment an

  Happy first day of August! We are crawling towards FALL and it is glorious. I'm noticing how the days are getting shorter and the cicadas are quite loud this year.  How was your weekend? My weekend was quite restful! My husband and I took it easy and relaxed. Relaxing for me was reading and knitting, not necessarily at the same time. I started a pumpkin hat for our grandson yesterday - I'm making a bigger size because then he can wear it multiple fall seasons. We sat on the back patio coordinating our planners bringing them in paper sync. I am thrilled to be home, to be sleeping in my own bed, having quiet mornings to ponder everything and nothing at all.

  Hello! Oh boy have I missed this space. I haven't taken a break from here for a week, ever. So the break was good. My husband and I went to a residential area of Virginia Beach with our son, daughter in law and our sweet grandson! Sadly, our daughter and son in law were unable to attend due to work schedules. It was HOT, too hot. I stayed in the air conditioning most of the time because I am sun sensitive due to Sjogren's Syndrome. However, mornings and evenings were fine for a walk on the beach. Also the added bonus of staying inside was baby duty! Our grandson is perfection and he is such a happy baby. How blessed am I to have had this opportunity! I am so glad we were invited. Of course, I did NOT knit a single stitch, painted a picture or journaled about anything. All I managed was reading The Stand whenever there were pockets of time. Each evening I was tired from the vacationing. I forgot how busy babies make a day. I need a vacation to recover from the vacation, ha ha.