Pumpkin Sunrise

What's that?  Are you wondering why my orange pullover is in disarray?  Well, you see, I ran out of orange yarn and wasn't able to get the sleeves down to the cuffs.  So I undid the ribbing of the body of the sweater to steal some much desired orange yarn to finish both of the sleeves to the cuff.  All of the ribbing will be striped colors of the yoke detail.  I am happy that I have enough yarns to accomplish this goal (or so I think).  As of this morning both sleeves are finished and now I'm reworking the ribbing of the body. Phew!  If you remember, I do love a good game of yarn chicken but that's mostly because I win.  When I lose I like to problem solve and it does take my mind off of the state of the world.  So not knowing if I have enough yarn is a win-win situation in my brain space. I love working on the citron shawl but I cannot read while doing this because the yarn has some silk content and so it's a bit slippery on the needles.  I can't ri

How was your weekend?  Mine was mostly cloudy but I managed to only document the blue skies.  Focusing on the positive is my mantra these days.  That innocent face of Frodo is a deceptive face, he killed a baby garter snake yesterday.  This was a first and we didn't see him do it...  Usually he barks at them to tell us they're in the yard.  We walked Saturday and Sunday getting our daily fresh air and enjoying the signs of spring.  On Saturday afternoon I painted Easter cards for  my family and had fun creating at the kitchen table. Of course we pulled out the grill for some hamburgers and french fries.  Look at that green sheen in the background! Sadly, I am running out of burnt orange yarn for my yoke sweater that is NOT photographed.  Just imagine me being a little disgruntled.  I will probably steal yarn from the ribbing of the body of the sweater to get the sleeves as long as they should be and I'm guessing all the ribbing of the sleeves and body

My husband and I have settled into a new rhythm to our weekdays.  He's busy working remotely from home in my craft room upstairs (also known as the cat room...or guest room).  He'll be in various virtual meetings and Holly will walk across his laptop to take center stage.  If only she new that people were watching.  After lunch we take a walk with Frodo as long as it's not raining or like yesterday not super windy.  This morning I heard a woodpecker while drinking in the beginning of the day as I stood outside.  I try my very best to write a few things down that I'd like to do during each day and they're simple goals.  Mainly my watercoloring has been scant.  I don't 'feel' like it and when the afternoon arrives I know I won't do it at all. Yesterday I set up the paints and supplies right after breakfast so that when I walked by I would be reminded to do something, anything.  This worked!  I enjoyed playing around with color mixing and foun

I finished my second hitchhiker shawl over the weekend and I'm quite pleased with the results.  I decided to knit 45 teeth sections which required me to dig through my stash and unearth some purple sock yarn to achieve my goal.  There is something soothing in knitting garter stitch and making each row longer and longer. I'll be saving this finished knit for the fall to wear.  The yarn was a Christmas gift from a friend and I loved the colors that were throughout the skein.  I started reading A Reliable Wife  a few days ago and the reviews are iffy on Goodreads.  However, whenever a book description includes the word 'gothic', I am roped in because in my youth I read nothing but gothic romance novels. So far I am enjoying it. Ravelry notes What are you working on this week? Joining Ginny

How was your weekend? We were able to walk yesterday but Saturday was a rainy drippy dreary day.  I missed the sun while it was raining and the day felt like it lasted forever. Frodo and Holly were in the same room!  Frodo didn't know Holly was on that loveseat and he did figure it out eventually.  It was a noisy morning.  I think they have fun with their dog-cat game.  Holly knows what he does and she likes to instigate once in a while. As you can predict, I knit a lot, cast on some new stuff, and finished a project.  I'm stuffing my brain with all the knits!  I finished a 'meh' book and needed a day to recover.  So let's hope what I pick next is better, honestly there is nowhere to go but up for me. I met with my real life knitting friends for a zoom meeting.  It was nice to see everyone and I took a photo of my knitting mess below.  Good times! Sunday I watched Mass on youtube and did my laundry as always.  What did you do this weekend?

Good morning!  I'm sitting at my kitchen table writing this post while watching the sun rise and send beams of light through the window.  The birds are singing and I hope to have a walk later today, weather permitting.  I noticed a drippy drip at my kitchen sink and I need to call the plumber to schedule a visit.  I'm sure we need to replace the faucet. Remember last summer when we (the royal 'we' - I did nothing) ripped out the bushes in the front yard because the deer were eating them and ruined them?  Well my husband planted crocus bulbs here and there and I swear the deer are nibbling them.  We have no rabbits on the property, Frodo has scared them all away.  Of course the groundhog could have done it as well, or any other roaming rodent but I like to blame the deer, I see them daily looking at me with guilt in their eyes. Anyways I'm happy that lots have sprouted and are blooming, as well as my daffodils in the back yard.  I believe all of our new dee

How are you?  I've hit my knitting stride this week after adjusting to all the changes that have occurred with my schedule.  First and foremost I finally decided on my new project.  I pulled out some luscious yarn and casted on yet another citron shawl .  According to Ravelry this is my seventh one but I gave many of them away.  I think I own two of them.  I wanted a true comfort knit and I love the pattern and how it grows and the rhythmic stockinette knitting.  Also the yarn is a gradient so I'm interested to watch the colors change. My sweater hasn't seen much knitting overall but I did manage to add another inch.  I should get back to this and get to the sleeves!  I won't be wearing this until the fall since spring is here.  I will have something new in my wardrobe when the leaves start to fall which I find exciting and hopeful. I've been working on my hitchhiker in the evenings while watching TV.  I found some left over sock yarn from a previous

Our weekend was low-key because of the PA shutdown.  So what does one do?  Well we are trying our best to walk every single day if the weather permits.  On Saturday we saw HUMANS.  I said 'hello human beings!' as we kept our more than six foot distance.  We live out in the country so our human sightings are limited.  However, I see humans more than I see bears, and I see deer more than I see humans. My husband was whistling this weekend and I asked him what is he so happy about.  He replied 'I love social distancing'.  As you can imagine he is an introvert. All of the daffodils are blooming and are a cheerful sight to behold.  There is a hill speckled bland with dead grass and bushes yet to sprout leaves. In the middle of this hill there's a cluster of daffodils booming and screaming 'it's spring!'.  So lovely. I'm starting to focus better as I adjust to what is going on, I heard your advice to quit consuming the news, I am trying

Hello!  How are you all doing?  Here in PA we are in the midst of a statewide shutdown of all non essential businesses.  Earlier this week my husband starting working remotely after a scramble of setting up the remote duties.  I know that Frodo and Holly love having us home so much.  We are walking daily taking in the soft signs of spring as it emerges.  There is a faint green sheen on the bushes and some trees.  The daily walks also help manage the doom and gloom feeling of the 'new normal'. So far my kids are safe at their places and we have tons of food even though people keep panic buying and making shelves bare.  You would think I have been super busy with knitting and creating but I am struggling to focus.  I am consuming the news too much, mostly because the news changes so quickly.  I've made a list of what I want to get down.  I need to make an exercise routine so I quit wasting time deciding what I will do.  I'll be dusting off the yoga mat as w

How are you? My knitting is the same as last week, this time I thought I would show you my progress of my hitchhiker .  The garter stitch is soothing and calming while I watch the news and try my best not to freak out.  I thought I would share some links to keep you busy if you are experiencing a shut down in your state like me, or if you are huddled in your home. Scott Shapiro, a professor at Yale Law, is doing a podcast class on Jurisprudence and is opened for all if you are interested.  He is fun to follow on twitter and that's how I found the class. Cambridge university press  is making all their online books free access Need some culture?  Here's some  Free museum tours And for all you Catholics (and religious) Magnificat has made their publication free.  I highly recommend their publication, I've subscribed for years. Please if you know of any other resources to share mention them on your blog or in the comments section.  We are all in this together, s