The BIG Day!

We had a big day here yesterday!

Sweet!

Simple!

Quick!

We wish Jordan and Christopher a beautiful life together!

Viki

p.s. Mariah took most of the pictures.

black bean and sweet potato quesedillas

We don't eat a lot of meat anymore. We do eat some, but not often, Maybe once or twice a month we will eat some beef. Chicken about once a week and Fish once a week. The rest of the time we eat a vegetable based diet. That is pretty good, but we are trying to eat even less chicken and beef. (Mariah hasn't eaten beef in over 2 years)

I have bookmarked a blog that I visit fairly regularly called Vegan Dad. He has a cookbook coming out. (As a side note, I find it amazing that so many people who blog have ended up with book deals of one sort or another.)

Back to Vegan Dad. He had a recipe on his blog that sounded so good and I had All the ingredients just sitting here so I made Black Bean and Sweet Potato Quesedillas for dinner the other night. I didn't follow his recipe exactly, of course, but used what I had and what we like and they were outstanding!

I used 2 smallish sweet potatoes chopped and cooked in water, then drained and mashed.
1 can black beans drained
1/2 a large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 cup of leftover corn
1/2 a jar of Frog Ranch salsa
cumin
a few handfuls of spinach leaves cut up or torn up.
chili powder
hot pepper slices

cooked the onions til clear and browning, added the corn and garlic then the beans and mashed potato and salsa and spices and spinach. I spread a few tablespoons of the mixture on whole wheat tortillas and browned them in the iron skillet.
They taste great with guac and sour cream too.

Anyone else have a great meatless meal recipe?

Viki

Way down yonder in the pawpaw patch

This is the chair I sat and read in most of the weekend.
A terrible picture of the pretty little tree.

Okay I don't have a patch.

I have one little paw paw tree, or is that Papaw?

I'd have to look it up.

I am trying to find another little tree. You need two for fruit. I got this one from an older gentleman who lives in the neighborhood.  He is related to paw paw/papaw growers in Ohio.  Evidently they provide the fruits to restaurants around the country.  I haven't seen this gentleman for a few years.  My mother is trying to contact him for me to see if he has any of the trees to sell this year.

Why am I even going on about paw paw/papaw trees?  Mine Bloomed this year!  For the first time.

Last week I had an allergic reaction to some guys aftershave while I was in the bookstore for Odd Tuesday.  Yes, I have "issues".  Evidently that reaction opened me up to infection... 

I Lost my voice by Weds. evening.  Thursday I called into work and then crawled back into bed and even had Jordan pick Mariah up from school.  I just couldn't stay awake and I had no voice.  Try answering a phone in a whisper.  

Friday, I had an appointment to have labs drawn at the doctor and they kindly fit me in to see the Nurse who filled me up with meds. because the virus was leading to a sinus infection.  It is now Monday.  I finally have a little bit of a voice.  However, I am not talking when I don't absolutely need too.  This Laryngitis thing is really a hassle.    Five days of no voice.  I am ready to talk again.

Remember that beautiful shawl I posted a while back.  Well check out my friend Anita's finished shawl on her blog.  

Beautiful.

My friend Cindy has finished a beaded stole and you can look at it on her blog too.

Now that is a lot of work.

Also on her blog is a link to her podcast.  Check it out.

Viki

Blues

I've been spinning this endless pile of blue merino on the AA Wheel.

Usually while watching American Idol.

I plied the first bobbins and I have under 300 yards!  I really thought I'd spun more than that!

I took the skeins (yes skeins, the singles broke while plying) outside this weekend when the Sun was Shining on Saturday to take pictures.

Pretty yarn.

Viki

Stash Enhancement

Spring Break we went to visit Dave's Dad in York PA.

Which just so happens to be very close to one of my favorite fiber shops: The Mannings.

What a pleasant place.

This time I even spun on a few wheels and fell in love with the Ladybug Wheel.  Don't know if it is in my future or not, but I  really enjoyed spinning on it.  Easy to treadle and enough ratio's to make me happy.  The price is pretty too.

I of course participated in stash enhancement.  The cotton yarn came from a high profile hobby shop.(I have been requested to knit some dishcloths)  The square sock needles and the flat feet came from Uncommon Threads in York.

The spinning fiber, and the Noro sock yarn and Trekking sock yarn came from The Mannings.

Not shown is Mariah's new wooden needles and silk merino lace weight yarn and pattern for the shawl she has decided to knit.  That all came from The Mannings too.

On another note, I took my Kindle on the trip.  Not only could I read books I had downloaded, but if I knew an exact web page address I could read online.  I spent hours in the car and in the house reading online!  Without dial up costs or WiFi.  I am so glad they have that experimental section on Kindle.  Their Whisper Net works Even in the Mountains of Maryland.  It was great.

My Kindle is version 1.  The Newest Kindle came out a few months ago.  Check out the web site.

The interesting thing is that the handbook doesn't tell you everything you can do with your Kindle.  I downloaded a $4. book onto the Kindle that tells how to download books from free sites and how to use the Experimental section of the menu. 

If you want to see all the relatives check out my flickr account for an amazing amount of pictures.  Gosh those kids have all grown!  Everyone missed seeing Jordan.  The visits with relatives were much too short.

Some knitting was accomplished.  Part of a sock on the way up and cotton dishcloths on the way back to KY.

Viki

wants to go to The Woolery, which has relocated to Frankfort KY only 45 minutes away!

Spring Spinning

Bright and light!

On the AA wheel is a bright blue merino that I spun while watching Idol last night.

The white fiber is a mystery fiber from my stash.  I know I should label those bags of fiber.

I am spinning the white on my Bosworth Moosey.  I actually spun this at work yesterday afternoon while the kids were napping.  Those that were not asleep had fun watching me spin.

Trying to figure out what to take to PA this week to keep me busy.

Wish I had a truely portable wheel.  Anyone have a little hatbox wheel?

Maybe a hitchhiker wheel would work...but the ratios aren't what I usually use.

Guess Spindles it is.

Viki

Feeling Itchy

It is one of those days.
I feel itchy. Not allergy like itchy or mosquito bite itchy....
Mentally itchy and restless.

Like something should happen.

Like a storm is coming...which it may, we are due rain sometime tonight.
But it is like that feeling before a storm.

I can remember feeling this way when I was much younger and when it finally rained, stormed, I danced in that rain in relief and joy.

Until

My grandma yelled "Victoria Susan you get inside Right Now!"

She didn't understand in the least.

Was it the dance that was needed?

I wish I could remember what changed that day.

Today,
Something is building, a tension that I don't know how to descibe.

I being wife and mama have to do mundane things like go to the grocery and take the dog to be groomed,
(he is very shaggy)
instead of figuring out where this itch is coming from, this tension.

Any ideas?

Viki
on the verge of something

Signs of Spring

today is the First Day of Spring! Happy Spring!

These pictures aren't great, but at least they don't show the rest of the yard! It's a mess.

Spring is here though, buds and leaves are starting to pop out and the trees are having sex all over the place, so allergies are getting worse too.

The time change about killed me this year. I wake in the dark to the birds singing that it should be daylight already! I felt as if I could sleep the day away the whole first week! It was awful, but I'm getting used to it now.

If it warms up maybe I'll get out and start cleaning up the yard!

Viki

The Girls

Haven't posted much lately.

I found on my camera a few pictures from the last few weeks.

Jordan got her hair done last Friday and came by to show me and she looked so happy I just had to take a picture.

Mariah got all dressed up the night before to go to a LYPC (Louisville Youth Philanthropic Council) awards dinner.  A teacher at school invited her thinking it might help her get more involved.  It is a service organization that would teacher her how to write for grants to help charitable organizations in town.

We ended the weekend by going to Cirque du Soleil at Freedom Hall( Thanks again Chris!).  It was so much fun!  I would have loved to do this when I was younger.  In fact I did try to run away to France to do mime.  My parents wouldn't let me.  After the show, Mom turned to me and asked me if I missed not doing something like that with my life and I surprised her by saying yes.

Viki

A few of my Favorite Things: Socks!

It was a balmy 18 degrees this morning, no snow, but it is cold and crispy outside.

One of my favorite things about cold weather is the need for warm socks.

I knit lots of socks.

And

I wear them. 

That is what they are for after all.

This pair is made out of Opal yarn. I haven't washed them so they are not very soft, but they should be hard wearing. Hard wearing means a lot.  I used to only wear my hand knit socks with clogs so the heel's wouldn't wear through. Not any more. I wear hand knit socks with my athletic shoes too. 

The so called design element in this pair of socks is that for the leg area, if I came to a color I purled it, gray = straight stitch color = purl.  Easy.  For the foot area I of course just knit straight.

Since I am wearing my hand knit socks in more than just clogs I am checking them more frequently for holes.

If I DO get a hole in a hand knit sock, then I repair it. I always check my socks to see if they are getting a bit thin or holey so I can salvadge them before they get too bad.

Holly Shaltz has excellent darning instructions here.  Pictures and Everything!  Thanks Holly for sharing.  I need pictures.

I was checking out a pair of hand spun hand knit socks just last week and I discovered a hole.

Good news is that when I make socks out of my hand spun yarn I tend to make them a little big so they will felt a bit in washing.  This pair is thick.  It looks as if I could just wear them forever and that little stitch that popped wouldn't go anywhere, but I'm looking for the left over bit of yarn to darn these so they will last longer.  

Viki

Ice Storm Cardigan is Finished

Okay, it has been finished for weeks.  I just needed to sew on the buttons.  My friend Sally gave me enough of these beautiful buttons to finish the sweater!  Thanks Sally!

It appears much lighter in the photo than it really is.  I used Brown Lion Brand Fisherman's yarn and a Pure and Simple pattern(#9725).  

I think I'll wear it to work this week.

Viki

Finally a FO

That is a Finished object.

Okay it is blocking today.

I finished the border on this pi shawl in October, but never seemed to find the time to block it.

Today while reading blogs I happened upon soulmama's blog. She has a sweet little shawl on there today knit out of Noro sock yarn, which I found interesting.

Anyway. Seeing that little shawl prompted me to block this baby. Why it took me 2 years to knit the border and then almost 5 months to block it, I don't know. It is beautiful.

More info for those who want to know. This was a Mystery Pi Shawl and is now known as Desert Sun. http://www.bopeepswoolshop.com/zencart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=5_7&products_id=11

Mine is much smaller than the one pictured in such a sunny yellow. Mine should possibly be called something other than Desert Sun.

Viki

checking out patterns and stash yarn for a simple little shawl for a friend.

a late Valentine Card

the front
the back
This card is similar to the one I made on Tuesday evening as a sample for my Wednesday class.

I gave that card to my friend Sally.

I was really just playing this morning.  I like the one I made early in the week a little better.

I like the way I folded the cards so they could stand alone and not lay flat. 

 The ones the kids made didn't have the music so there were 4 sections for them to work with on the front and 4 on the back.

  Only one child wanted to work on the back.  I also let them go wild with flower stickers. (Thanks to Cindy for giving me all those stickers from the Easter Egg dye last year. I cut the flower section off to use with these cards.)

Viki

Forget about it

It has been a week!

Here is a picture of Bailey after he was washed and groomed last Monday.  He is a pretty boy again not so shaggy.

We did lose power again, lucky for us it was only for a few hours this time.

School was open even though 14 schools were without power.

Mariah was sick most of the week, started with a sore throat and then progressed to flu like symptoms.  Thursday she lay on the sofa with her eyes covered and the curtains closed because of a massive headache.  Saturday I did the same thing.  Such a nice way to spend Valentines day.

I couldn't even knit. I missed the Soul Journal Valentines Day Blog Party too!

Wednesday I made Valentines with my class of 6 little girls.  I had to help with the ink but they had lots of fun with the stamps and stickers.  I'll see if I can recreate my sample to post a picture. (I gave the sample to a friend, cause that's what you do with Valentines)

Viki

who has just realized that there were NO Pictures taken of Me on My Birthday week before last.

You say it's your Birthday!

 Jordan turned 21 today!  Here she is holding the socks I knit for her.  She loves brown and pink and was thrilled.  She and I spent the afternoon together.  First we had Mexican food and then we went shopping.  Now we are waiting on pizza.  

Mariah missed school today due to a throat infection.

I finished the cardigan except for buttons last night.

We are due to get rain and high winds here tomorrow.  If I don't post a cute picture of Bailey here tomorrow (he just got groomed), then we are without power.... again.

I'm busy gathering bits and pieces of stuff to make Valentines with my class of 3 yr old girls tomorrow.  Hope they have fun.  I know I will.  I'll try to take pictures of them creating.

Viki

end of a long two weeks

Dave was too tired to take Bailey for a walk last night.  Instead they opted for a cuddle on the floor, both fell asleep.  

I stayed up and finished the first sleeve on the Ice Storm cardigan.  I hadn't picked it up in a few days and in no time at all I had a finished sleeve.  When you are used to knitting on size one needles, size 9's make cloth quickly.

Hopefully I can post pictures soon.

Viki
 

ICE = Not Nice

I know it is old news the Ice Storm of 09.  However, it took a week long bite out of my life and I thought I would share a few pictures.

I woke up in the wee hours of January 28th to the sound of trees cracking and falling.  I stood at the back door watching the next door neighbors tree fall to bits. It sounded like gun shots all over the neighborhood.  Power was out before 10 that morning and didn't come back on until the night of Feb. 3rd.  

Mom's power went out too.  Lucky for us, Jordan offered us a place to stay, her apartment was crowded but warm.  Warm means a lot.  DH stayed nights in the cold (35 degrees cold) house with the dogs.  He says the worst was getting out of the HOT shower into the 35 degree house.

 I didn't even lose a lot of food because I was able to store it outside in the garage.  I fixed dinner every night we were at Jordan's.

While at Jordan's I tried to knit on socks, but dark gray wool on dark wood needles was very hard to see.  So while checking the house and letting the dogs out on Thursday the 29th I picked up a Pure and Simple pattern for a top down cardigan and a huge skein of Fisherman's yarn and size 9 needles (bright green metal tips) and started the sweater.  I finished the body and have started on the arms.  It was quite nice to sit with the bulk of that sweater on my lap during the time away from home.

Anyway, Mom's power came back on Last Friday and we moved to her Huge house last Saturday.  It is amazing how much stuff I had to move from place to place.  I really missed being at home with my stash.

Viki

click on the pictures to make them big.  The second one really sparkles.

SNOW DAY!

We're having a Snow Day today.

We didn't really have a lot of snow 3-5 inches so far. However, it is the freezing rain on top of it that caused school to be closed.

Although, according to my oldest, the roads weren't plowed at all at 5 this morning. She works for that big Health Insurance that starts with an H. They closed BEFORE she could get to work. So there she was downtown at 6 A.M. with the roads covered and more people beginning to venture out. What to do? Brave the expressway, try a corkscrew back road? No, head over to Norton Hospital to hang out with Dad until the roads are a little less crowded. Oh and drink free coffee too. I think Dad even bought her breakfast.

The dog wont go outside.
I open the door and he hears the ice hit the snow and looks at me like I'm crazy.

What am I going to do today?
Read,
knit,
and hang out on Ravelry.

I have lunch and dinner all planned and I'm glad Mariah and I can stay in all day.

Unfortunately I've had to cancel Odd Tuesday Knit Night, No one could make it with the roads such a mess.

I think I'll brew another pot of coffee and get my sock I'm knitting.
Have fun!

Viki

Waiting for toast

This is Mom's dog Sasha (on the left) and my Bailey waiting for Mom to drop a bit of toast for them.

They have already split their own piece and are quite greedy.

Very intent.

I did pick up the FLAK sweater last night and knit over an inch.  For some reason the cabling seems easier this go round.  Hopefully I will finish this soon.  

Question:  Has anyone knit with those square double pointed needles?

Viki

Relm Tam & Circle vest

I've been busy.

Knitting.

Dave was delighted to pose for a picture wearing 

The Relm Tam.  Pattern is in Knit 1 and was created by Jared Flood of Brooklyn Tweed fame.

My version is not cashmere.

It is woolease. It is large.

 I was very relaxed

 and my gauge shows it.  I am usually 

a very tight knitter.  The cables are 

beautiful and 

I liked the way they continued 

through the 

decreases.  Which is the whole reason I knit this tam.

I needed someone tall to give this to and my friend Beth, 

who is both as tall as an Amazon and  as beautiful as one too, 

is now the proud owner.

She seems to love it.

Dave is thankful as he thought he might have to retire and 

grow dreds to wear the tam.

Next up is the Circle Vest

 for Mom.

  It turned out great!  I really liked knitting this. It isn't perfect.  I had to 

concentrate at first to M1 the right way for a purl or a knit stitch.  I don't

know if it was an attention problem or a TV problem.

Mom loves the colors and is thrilled that I knit something else for her.

If you know me you know that I have a hard time making more

than one of some thing.  Socks are easier now but I rarely knit

the same yarn or pattern twice.

BUT if I ever make another Circle Vest, I think I'll use bits and bobs of

my handspun yarn.

No Anita the FLAK isn't finished. I swear I will pick it up tonight.

Really.

I didn't say I'd knit on it, but I will pick it up.  I really love that FLAK,

I just can't seem to get the momentum going to finish.

Meanwhile it stares at me making me feel guilty.

There are all these other sweaters I've been drooling over 

AND 

I even have the yarn for some of them.

It is so hard not to swatch for a gansey or a top down simple sweater.

Then there is all that Kauni yarn.

The urge to start something new is 

nearly overwhelming.

Viki