Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Prayerful week-Yarn Along

This week I am working on knitting a prayer shawl and a prayer scarf. The prayer shawl was intended for church and I had started it a couple of weeks ago. I had put it aside to work on a prayer scarf for Maddie's friend Norah. They are attending winter camp together this year and Maddie wanted her to have one like the one I made for her last year. However this weekend we learned that a friend's wife had suffered a stroke and was in the hospital. I am now working quickly to finish up the shawl. It seems that sometimes we start something without a recipient in mind and the correct person just pops up. Angels at work I think!

I have been reading A Knitter's Home Companion It is a fun collection of little stories mainly about the author and has been fun because she grew up in Troy, NY which is right down the road from us.

Maddie just finished a lego set! I love to watch her work at those. She doesn't like puzzles so Lego fills that niche quite nicely.



I must get back to the shawl! What are you working on and reading this week?

Joining Ginny at Small Things for the Yarn Along.


Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Winter (?) Yarn Along



I think perhaps winter has finally arrived here. Maybe! At least there is a dusting of snow this morning and it has been cold outside. Maddie and I have been playing Dragonwood at naptime this week after finishing schoolwork instead of Maddie heading right outside. That would be an indication of both the temperature outside as well as how much she likes the game! Its got some good sneaky math practice in there so I am all for it!

This week I started Gulliver's Travels. I have read bits and pieces of it but not the entire book. Its on Maddie's reading list this year so both of us are reading it.

I am working on the Pioneer Girl Shawl. I have finished all the garter stitch rows and have the stitch markers in (almost every one I own!) for the lace rows. Since this is my first time with lace and a chart I thought going with the optional stitch markers was probably a good idea! Now I need some quiet time while I am not tired to give the lace rows a try. I love the little Conestoga wagon stitch marker that came with the kit.
You can see Maddie's Narnia drawing in the background. We had a lot of things going on last night!

I also thought I would share our stowawayasaurus. He came in something my mom ordered for Maddie for Christmas and she sent him on with the package. He made several appearances in my yarn so I knit him a tiny scarf out of sock yarn and my smallest sock needles. We all keep hiding him on each other. This morning he was waiting for me on top of the jam jar in the fridge! He has been in coffee cups, mittens and pockets. In other words we are having quite a lot of fun with this guy!


I hope you are keeping warm on this chilly breezy day! What are you working on, playing, reading?
Joining Ginny for the yarn along.

Sunday, January 10, 2016

Back to School!

Tomorrow Maddie goes back into the school routine. I think the current schedule where we get 6 weeks in the summer and another 6 at Christmas has helped us quite a lot. We feel rested and ready to tackle things again! We enjoyed the last weekend before starting back! Here is Maddie today all ready for church.

As you can see on the table behind her we had been reading everything under the sun....national parks, Curiosity Cabinets, Epic Tomatoes!.....plus drawing and knitting. Busy beavers!

This afternoon we played Catan with the knights and castles expansion pack. It still took 2 1/2 hours but I think mostly this was due to the robber and the barbarians attacking every other turn at the beginning of the game more than needing to check the rules every other turn.



Due to that Momma may have forgotten to start cooking the beans we were meant to have for dinner! Breakfast for dinner to the rescue!

The Stowawayasaurus keeps appearing in my knitting for the last week....


So I thought perhaps he was cold and made him a scarf....
he loves it! Now he is hiding in Maddie's tea mug to be found in the morning so he can show off his new accessory.

Tomorrow its off to Chemistry, writing science cause and effect papers, the age of imperialism and Gulliver's Travels! We hope you have an excellent week!

Wednesday, January 6, 2016

Yarn Along


I started my temperature scarf on January 1. We have a cold snap going on...well, I think actually its probably seasonable temperatures and we are not used to it! I have the first little bit done. I am using a natural color to start and to designate the months.

Now that the Christmas knitting is done I have gone back to my pioneer girl shawl. I am still in the easy part of just increasing on the ends with garter stitch in the middle so its "growing" pretty well! I just finished A Wilder Rose which is a novel based on the life of Rose Wilder Lane. It was really interesting and I enjoyed it. Now I am back to reading the series about Beatrix Potter. I am sensing a theme here!

Maddie and I just got back from the library. She requested a large pile of books for research on her 4H Public Presentation Project for March. Our future ranger has picked a subject near and dear to her heart....John Muir and the National Parks. I believe she is going to try and work in a part about how to behave in a National Park...as in come and look and enjoy then leave it for someone else to do the same.



Joining Ginny for the Yarn Along today.

Friday, January 1, 2016

Between Christmas and New Year

Maddie and I were lucky enough to have the week off between Christmas and New Year. We didn't do a whole lot! A lot of snuggling on the couch with our books and Momma's knitting which was good, it was what we needed, both of us!

We did get out to the Saratoga Battlefield on Monday and ended up having the park mostly to ourselves making it an extra treat!
Milkweed Pods

One of our favorite spots. I wouldn't have wanted to be in this little farmhouse in the cold wind going on we had that day! 

Maddie on the porch

Little Owl getting down for a shot! 

Way over at the very top of the tree is a C130. I thought that was the best I could get but then....

they came back around in a big circle!

Right over our head! Unfortunately I got too excited to get a good shot especially with my big fuzzy mittens on. 

We may have gone off the trail to get this shot...then we had to do an extra tick check.


You can see Maddie's photos on her blog here.



We did finally get some snow this week and that made a trip for snowpants necessary. Maddie outgrew the pair I bought this fall before she even wore them! On New Year's Eve Maddie and I decided to make new nature journals. We had learned to make some with a stick as the binding but we went back to our old method. It seems easier to write in because the pages lay flat. My journal is to go along with a knitting project I have going for the year! I am going to knit 2 rows in a color corresponding to the temperature every day and will have a rainbow scarf at the end! 

Brian would like to be home with us but at the same time was happy to miss the mod podge smell! 

Momma's journal and knitting all ready to go! 

Temperature Key! 

Maddie's new journal and looking much more like her than the old one made when she was 8 or so.

The inside cover with some scrapbook paper and the backing to the new centennial pin we got at Saratoga.


Today it is finally snowing a bit more. Well, Ok, its flurries that will probably amount to nothing! Maddie went out in it though and I got a shot of her next to the wall she built earlier in the week.



Happy New Year!