blueberry pie

October 12, 2017October 12, 2017 a tangle of yarn1 Comment

Eva had a birthday this week. I have always called her ‘Pie’ and this year I got to bake her one for her birthday dessert. She chose blueberry from the Bake From Scratch book.

I follow @thebakefeed on Instagram and was thrilled when I realized our library had their baking book. This is a gorgeous book and laid out in a way that makes the most challenging recipe doable. Thankfully, the blueberry pie was one of the quick & easier recipes. Baking can be time consuming and we had a busy day celebrating. I was glad for minimal ingredients and store bought crust. Eva made the braided crust on the top and did a great job, looks like the picture.

I have never been a fan of fruit pies. This pie ~ I love. I wish I had remembered to make whipped cream for it. Next time.

*I just noticed that the 4 was backwards on her pie, for crying out loud. And they let me home school… Awesome!

rainy day

October 6, 2017October 7, 2017 a tangle of yarn1 Comment

We have had drizzle or a light rain shower all day. The feeders are full and the birds have gathered to eat. Our hummingbirds have moved on. Oh, I love days like this. Wednesday night we were out and about wearing fleece and I got to wear a knitted scarf. Yay!

Time to cast on for Eva’s sock. She chose some gorgeous Madelintosh yarn. The toe and cuff will be in the cream. She wants no pattern in the stitches and a full sock, no anklets.

The pumpkin Eva painted with blues and greens has been nibbled on by the squirrels. I sprayed some nasty deer and rabbit spray on the pumpkins but the rain has rinsed it off. Our neighbor has two squirrel houses in the trees of her front yard and several, several piles of seed lining her side walk and drive. The squirrels flock around here. This is the third year we have had squirrels eat our pumpkins, since her first house went up. I noticed yesterday that they had discovered the pumpkin display belonging to the family across the street.

Can you see the white of the pumpkin on the right? Hard to get a good photo on my phone, in the drizzly gloom, and from across the street…

Eva made some cookies and I baked them. This recipe made 40 good sized cookies using the scope we have ~ not sure the size but it looks like the average size you’d buy anywhere. I think this is the first time I did not forget a pan of cookies in the oven. They are chewy and delicious. No need for a slice of bread in the container with this batch.

We took the girls to the roller rink with some friends last night. Mike and I don’t skate so I took Olivia’s anklet along. I still had all the ends to weave in. Junior high memories flood back when we are at the rink. Friday night skating parties with school were a big deal in the 80’s where I grew up. I had my sister’s white skates with pink wheels ~ insert how cool I was here.

Y.M.C.A. …

Tomorrow I will take four girls to the mall to look at bath and beauty products.

autumn · daily life

it’s October

October 1, 2017 a tangle of yarnLeave a comment

Normally, I’d say ‘It’s October, already!’. But this year I’m saying, “Finally, it’s October!’ There are so many wonderful things about this time of year. I love it. The colors and the smell in the air. I am an autumn and winter girl and today is the beginning of my happy season.

We’ve had such late summer/early fall hot temps. But now that the calendar has turned to October, we have true confidence in the fact that the heat won’t last. It will get colder and it could happen any day. I will be able to get my warm snuggly cowls out. October also starts the holidays in this house. From now until the end of the year we have birthdays and our anniversary, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Last night the seasonal movies from Hallmark started. Two of us in this house were thrilled ~ two went to the basement family room and watched a movie about a military helper dog. I hope this isn’t the beginning of the end in my alliance for holiday cheesiness.

I love to sit outside in the cool mornings and drink my coffee, wait for the geese to fly over and listen to the train. I wait every year for the geese to fly over when I hear the train. I love the sound of the train in the distance. I remember when I was in my early 20’s I read Jack Kerouac and listening to the train has never been the same. The haunting and romantic hum of the locomotive working its way across the rails from one state to the next. Thinking about the people that have had a life riding those rails in the times of poverty, desperation or pure adventure. You had me at chug a chug a…

There is a pumpkin stand near our house. An old gas staton gets turned into a pumpkin market every year. They have pumpkin varieties that I have never seen. Every shape and color imaginable. The prices are wonderful. I just discovered it two years ago and it has been there for 20 I’m told. Guess I’m not very observant but in my defense it is because we always went to the pumpkin patches. The girls were young and a day at the pumpkin farm was something we all looked forward to every year. Riding the tractor out to the field to pick a pumpkin, roasting marshmallows, enjoying hot chocolate and a slices of pie, getting lost and frustrated in the corn maze…yep, all a thrill! And the apple cider donuts…

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I think we will have to make another stop for more pumpkins…

finished objects · projects · yarns

Livi’s anklets ~ FO

September 30, 2017 a tangle of yarnLeave a comment

There is a reason there is not a close up of Olivia’s anklet…it’s a bit wonky.

When I handed the anklet to Olivia to try on we laughed so hard. They were a bit baggy, not much but they looked like they had been stretched out already. There were some sloppy stitches that were improved after the wash but it was clear that this was not my best knit.

The needles read a 1.00 but after checking them on a different needle gauge they were actually a 1.50. That was enough to make the sock a bit bigger than Olivia’s foot. She is 11 years old and will grow into them. I was knitting two at time on magic loop and adding a stripe ~ on the wrong stitch. That caused a bit of an odd add and made my stitches not quite tight enough. I have my mistakes all figured out now (I hope) and feel encouraged enough to make some for Eva. (She has already picked her yarn and it has been caked up.)

These anklets are actually the first socks that I have completed. I have knit a sock from cuff through heel and then frogged before getting to the toe. I have knit a sock from toe up through heel and then frogged before getting to the cuff. I went all the way with these bright beauties but only because I had a little girl cheering me. Olivia kept telling me it didn’t matter if they were perfect. She loved them the way they were. (Insert sniffle here.)

With all the fidgeting about with these sock, I enjoyed knitting them. I think the colors are perfect for my sweet girl. She is bright and fun and the socks match her to a tea. The yarn is a dream. Sweet Georgia Tough Love Sock yarn. So soft. They wash and dry beautifully and with hardwood floors and two dogs, we need washable socks.

And my mom always says, they want be the last thing I knit.

They are only socks after all…

finished objects · my mother's yarn · projects · yarns

FO ~ the hat

September 27, 2017September 27, 2017 a tangle of yarnLeave a comment

Mom’s hat is complete and has been shipped to Colorado. I did not rip it back. Instead, I called my mom and did what she told me to do. K2TOG a row, knit a row and continue doing that until I could seam up the last few stitches remaining. Brilliant! I am very happy with the way this little gem turned out. I plan on making more of these little hats this winter!

finished objects · my mother's yarn · projects · yarns

FO ~ the wrap

September 20, 2017 a tangle of yarnLeave a comment

A few weeks ago I finished my moms wrap. I wanted to get a cute picture of one of my girls wearing it but the days got away from us. Last night I had Eva come outside with me quick and get a photo in front of the rose bush. Everything matched.

This wrap is cozy and the yarn knits up with a wonderful squish. Perfect for Mom to throw over her shoulders while she watches a cooking show or reads.

Of course now the rose bush is full of bloom again and the light is better today…

The label has long been missing from the pink lacy yarn. The cream chunky yarn is by LLH (it is written in cursive letters) Almeria 6034. I couldn’t find this on the internet anywhere…

You could use anything for a wrap like this, its a rectangle, knit and purl.

my mother's yarn · projects · wip · yarns

a hat for mom

September 17, 2017September 20, 2017 a tangle of yarnLeave a comment

I am dragging my feet on my Mom’s hat. I love the yarn and the addition of the alpaca and silk blend yarn makes this hat incredibly soft. It will keep her small, white haired head warm for sure! I am happy with the pattern but not for Mom. I think it is too slouchy and I ned to rip it back and do the decreases over. I am dreading this as the yarn is small and so are the needles. I need to just do it!

See the slouch in the back? I’m several rows from the end…