A year for craftiness

Last year ended up not being as crafty as I would have liked. I finished one project. One. And it took longer that I should admit to to finish a hat. Granted, it was a rather complicated hat, what with short rows, horizontal cabled band that was started on a provisional cast on, then knit to the band of the hat as I cabled along. I learned a lot. I am happy with the results, I just wish I had finished it sooner.

SO, here it is. The Bloody Stupid Johnson hat. As modeled by the Bean.

Next up for knitting, the Aviator lace scarf. I picked this on a pay-it-forward promise to one of my best friends. We have known each other since 1st grade, and though we have not sat in the same room with each other for several years, we have and will always pick up right where we left off.

This scarf has been difficult. I frogged & restarted several times, as my stitch count would get crazy from row to row. After a couple long car trips, a new row counter, and a little more practice, I think I've got the hang of it. Progress is being made, and maybe, just maybe it will get done by next Christmas.

Last week, my friend and I joined the local knit group that meets at Starbucks. It was a great evening. Both of us had our work oohed and aahed over, which makes a person feel good. It also inspired me to work harder on my craft projects. I will spend quiet time at home working on the lace, and start some easier projects to take to Knit Night.

First up, I will make the girls some ballet sleeves/shrugs. I like the look of this one. I will be using a sock weight or sport weight yarn, so it will take a little longer to get done.

 Legs and I went to Jo-Ann's today and picked some yarn. I got a basic black that I know won't be out of code for ballet class, a pretty variegated purple for Legs' sleeves, and some self striping yarn for me. We also found a pattern for pants that may actually fit her. She is growing by leaps and bounds this year ... I think 3 or 4 inches at least. At the beginning of the school year, I could put my chin on her head, now, not so much. Store bought pants just aren't cutting it. She's excited about spending our day off on Monday making a new outfit.

OK, that's enough for now. I have some prep work to start.

Reminiscing

It is Friday night, the kids are abed, and I have most of a bottle of wine to myself. Two good friends are available on chat, and I'm watching oldies, but goodies. I started feeling nostalgic today on the way home from work. The radio played "Do Anything for Your Lovin" by Natural Selection. I'd forgotten the "Make it smooth to the groove like sandwich bread" line. I chuckled the rest of the way home. So, tonight, I watched an all time favorite movie, Much Ado About Nothing and followed it up with a new-to-me, Strictly Ballroom. I must say, Strictly Ballroom has become a favorite, and is on the "Will watch again 100+ times" list. I'm out of wine, Netflix doesn't have the movie I want to watch next, so I suppose I will go to bed.

New Year's Resolutions

The new year is coming faster than I'd like, and for once I'm going to put my resolutions in writing for anyone to see & attempt to hold me accountable.

In no particular order:

Attempt my first 5K this summer. I know several people who run & who would be my cheerleaders, so I'm going to go for it. I even started early & hopped on the treadmill last night.

Going along with the above, the no-brainer: lose weight. I have lost, then something changes and the 5 lbs I lose comes back. I wish it would stay lost.

Finish the unfinished projects before beginning new ones. I had a fit of finishitis before Christmas & finished the living room curtains, only to find out we have packed the curtain rod hardware away somewhere. I need to find that so I can hang them and move on.

Take more pictures. I received a lovely new camera for my birthday. I need to give it a workout.

Spend more time with my horse. This includes sending her to a trainer in the spring.

Get the family passports so we can take a fabulous vacation somewhere warm & sandy.

Wish me luck. Happy New Year!

Progress

Emily's room is done. Her closet is not. 2 weeks ago, my parents came over & helped us put the carpet down. The following weekend, we moved her bed & got her set up in her room. Closet organizer will come at a later date. The girl needed her own space.

Garden update

The garden is growing! We only had one set of dud seeds (lavender), which we replaced with plants from the 50% off plant sale. The corn was knee high until the storms came through over the weekend. Some of the bigger stalks were knocked over, but are straightening up quickly. The pumpkins are starting to bloom. All the tomatoes are blooming. The carrots are growing lush tops. We have 1 bell pepper until the squirrels steal it.

Mother's Day Gardening

I had a great Mother's day with the family today. Hubby gave me a hammock to relax in the shade. Quite comfy, I tried it out this afternoon. The girls each gave me something they made at school, very sweet. After breakfast we went out to the hardware store to pick up a few garden tools, the the local nursery for plants!

This afternoon we planted the garden. First I replaced the landscape timbers at each end of the garden that had been pulled up to till. Then I set up a 2x2 ft grid to plant in.



We got everything out & decided where to put the plants & where to plant the seeds, and went to town. Each girl got a square for pumpkins and a pot for the flowers they picked out. We planted corn, tomatoes, peppers, cilantro, parsley, lavender, lettuce, marigolds, geraniums, bird house gourds, carrots, strawberries, pumpkins, peppermint ...



Nora helped rake the seeds in & planted most of the flowers. Emily helped plant the lettuce & carrots. Shannon planted tomatoes & peppers. I planted most of the herbs.

When we were done, we all took turns in the hammock.



We still have 4 squares to fill. One will take the strawberries that came up from Rolla with us. (I haven't killed them yet!!) And at least one more will take some onions ... Don't know what to plant in the last 2 yet, but I'm sure we'll find something.

Now we watch & wait.

Garden

We're going to garden this year. Over the winter, I collected horse manure from the barn & spread it in an 8x16 ft patch we selected in the yard. A couple of truckloads & we were full. Everything has composted & is ready to be tilled in.



What are we going to plant? The kids want to plant pumpkins and flowers. I want corn, lettuce, strawberries, tomatoes .... The list goes on. I think we're going to try to limit ourselves so we don't get overwhelmed.

More to come!