Back Home with a Finish!

Finally, we are kind of caught up after being gone to the Midwest for ten days.  Our yard surprised us with lots of crazy flowers (and weeds).  It's amazing what a few warm days can do.

While we were in the Chicago area, we went to lots of swim practices and a couple of meets to watch all three of our grands compete.

Here's the oldest conferring with his coach. (This guy now looks me in the eye!)

 Here's the speedy youngest.

And Missy did well, too.

DD participated also as one of the many timers.  She and I had a delightful lunch in Richmond, IL, with Kathyb.  It's always fun to be with Kathy!  Seeing a fellow blogger in person is the best!

And here it is the long-awaited mystery finish!  I plan to hand it in today to the nurse who requested it.  Can you guess what it is?  No, it's not a water bottle holder.  Here's the link just is case you get a similar request!

 

Have a great week!

A Few More Finishes

We spent most of this weekend involved with our Worship through Music church services this morning.  However, I do have a few finishes to share.

I started this scarf/shawl a long time ago, and it's finally finished. It's an interesting pattern and include directions for a bind off that was new to me.

The colors in the second photo are truer to real life.

Like some others of my knitting friends, I've been in a dishcloth mood.  It was helped by the discovery of the fun Crazy Eights pattern which is reminiscent of the Almost Lost dishcloth.

Our recent warmer days have found me out working in the yard, or should I say fighting with Mother Nature?  Boy, is there ever a lot to do!  Our front yard camellia is really pretty this year.

Oh, and this week I got the strangest knitting request of my whole knitting life.  I may share it when it's completed.......  Have a happy week!

Cannon Beach and Last April Finishes

Wow, life got busy, and I'm later than usual with a new post.  We've been rehearsing with our choir for Sunday's Worship through Music concert.  If you are so inclined, you can watch the live stream at either 9 or 11 AM (Pacific Time) this Sunday, the 6th.  We are singing Ralph Vaughn William's Dona Nobis Pacem and a few other hymns.  We also spent a couple of other days at Cannon Beach, OR, and had the local GK at our house overnight, and Little Miss asked me to teach her to "yarn"!  (She's four.)

Can you guess this mountain?  It was visible in all its glory from a viewpoint en route.

A very low tide let us get close to Haystack Rock and its nearby companions.

This cave was approachable because of the low tide. It's on a beach south of Cannon Beach.

The bunnies are back at Tolovana and snacking on the grass!

When we got back home, we were pleasantly welcomed with these beauties.

And here are two of  my  last three April finishes:

The third one is still drying on the dining room table.  That scarf is a fun pattern for striping yarn that has fairly long color changes.  The socks also work well with striping yarn.  Can you see the one spot that has a dyeing issue?  So long for now, and a Happy May to you all!

A Few Finishes and Lots of Snow, but None Here!

My thoughts are with those of you who, like my sister, are dealing with this in mid-April! These photos remind me not to complain about our rain. At least that doesn't need shoveling.

This week I worked on something unusual, a few quilt blocks.  Our group is making a quilt for a local hospice. The camera sure picks ups on the inconsistencies in my measuring. Sigh.

This one is called Connector Chain.

I love hearts.  Our blocks are to be red, white, and blue, so I think I need to add some stitching to this one.

This was my first attempt at a Disappearing 9-block and looks a bit wonky. 

Has anyone figured out how to make these diagonal dishcloths "unwonky" on that last corner?  This is the Illuminator pattern, once again.

Spring arrived in our living room this week!  Our hibiscus bloomed; it looks like it's yearning to be outside, but you can see just how wet it is on the deck.  It won't be headed outside for at least a month!  Have a good week.

Yet Another Pair of Booties

My only recent finish at the moment is yet another pair of booties.  Lots of spring babies, I think. I will deliver these on Thursday at choir to the baby's grandma.

Our son-in-law sent a few more photos from our trip to Breckenridge.  This one was taken after their arrival in Denver after 24 hours on the train from Chicago. The kids survived the rest of the day amazingly well.

These two hadn't seen each other since last July, but they picked up right where they left off!

The intrepid skiers having lunch together on their last day on the slopes.

Spring really is coming to the Pacific Northwest, albeit way too slowly!  This tree was given to us by a friend after the passing of my mother almost 38 years ago.

Have a great week!

Home Again!

We just got back from a fun family gathering in Breckenridge, Colorado. My hats were a hit and came in handy in the cold, crisp air.

The cousins had fun together playing hide and seek, taking skiing lessons, and enjoying each others' company.

Battleship seemed to be the favorite game of the four youngest.

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And I even completed a pair of socks in one of the quieter moments.

Hope everyone had a nice Easter; we were home in time to have dinner out with a good friend.  Driving home, we encountered an April Fool's snow squall.  It was really crazy as we left the sunny Des Moines Marina and drove north into dark clouds, slushy rain, and then a dusting of snow on our hill.  Very strange!

Booty Frenzy Plus Hats

This pair of booties set off a frenzy of booty knitting, two more pairs of this pattern, and then a hat and booty set.

This pair is for a choir friend's new grandson.

This pair is by request in purple for my granddaughter's math teacher's baby girl due in June along with the set from yarn I already had in my stash.

And then there are the hats:

This one has already been delivered to a quilting friend who's undergoing chemo for pancreatic cancer. I changed the pattern a bit, doing a cuff of 1X1 rib and stockinette for the rest, knitting it with  a mohair yarn combined with a sock yarn with fun results. 

Next on my list were two hats, one for each of our daughters for our upcoming trip to the mountains.

Now there are only five pom poms left of the 12 bargain ones, and I am now free to work on my "real" projects.  Wish me luck as I won't be finishing this month's "choices" once again.