Visitors Week


My latest cactus is blooming beautifully but this week has been a week for visitors! 

 We began with finding Eckoe as we finished our morning walk. We rushed her (?) home before my physical therapy and have been feeding and doctoring.

She is residing in the old rabbit cage until I am sure all the fleas are gone and she will use the litter box.

Then there was Petey the Pigeon. He landed on the porch and insisted on staying. We fed him a little flax seed, caught him and by going on line found a number to call. We gave them the numbers on his band and found we were talking to his owner who had released him the day before in Red Bluff heading for Simi Valley.  He stayed overnight feasting on popcorn and head out Monday morning.

Spring is just around the corner and the almond tree is in full bloom.

I have gotten busy with socks, socks, socks again. 

Also trying a new (old) technique of double knitting. I made a little pad for the newest great grandchild just to try out this type of knitting. 

I love the sock yarn and patterns I have been getting from Joslyn's Fiber Farm Sock of the Month.  I added a scallop to this really jazzy pattern in red and purple.

OD socks for soldiers and a couple of beanies for SFS. 

The shawls for my Prayer Shawl Ministry have suffered a bit.  

The latest one came out quite long but I like the color combinations. 

As usual knitting is often my salvation and keeps me busy on those days it is too cold to work out in the garden. 

We finally have rain and our sad old wooden fence blew down.
The year has begun with a lot of new projects. I am receiving a Sock of the Month from Joslyn's Fiber Farms again. Love the yarn and the patterns are interesting. Just finished the December Harlequin Socks. 

I am also working on EZ Fans which works from Elizabeth Zimmerman's "Knitters Almanac" with a different project for each month of the year. 

I started an Aran sweater (January) but it has been put aside temporarily while I tackled the February Square Blanket. I made a small one just to try it out and I love the pattern. May try it again in a larger version.

I tried a crochet afghan for Warren Parker, our newest great grandson, but I am not sure I like it for him.... to girly. Did enjoy the pattern however. Will probably donate it to Prayer Shawl Ministry.

My latest project is also Elizabeth Zimmerman for February a double knit pad for Warren Parker.

The year moves along and summer works it way into fall. I continue to knit and crochet all kinds of critters. I loved this little guy and he sold at the bazaar. I also made a turtle and a piglet. 

I had a brief fling with purses. Not too popular, but they were fun to make and used up some of the stash of oddball yarns.

And then there were the shawls, and lap robes for Prayer Shawl Ministry and for gifts to family. I especially enjoyed making the lacy pink beaded shawl.

 Then there are always the socks, socks, sock mostly going to Socks For Soldiers.

The hat craze has continued. I was so thrilled to sell one of my hats to a chuch member, who had been admiring the ones I wear, that I went to town on some of my stash of 100% wool. She has asked for one in white so I have made two white hats, a cloche and one with a brim. I also crochet a beanie from some Thick & Quick yarn and made another large brimed blue hat.


The lovely Beaded Wrap, that I took a class on from ABC's of Creative Knitting, was completed this week also. It is spectacular and I may save it to enter in the County Fair.

I almost ran out of beads because TC (our cat) decided that the tiny bag of beads had something good in it. I found most of the beads but I think a few disappeared into the rug.

I am in a hat mood this week. Kathrine from church so admired my hat that I offered to make one for her. This one was made with double strand of Noro Kureyon and a Cascade Heather. It did not shrink enough to fit her needs.

The first one I made was a single strand of Cascade with contrast of Knit Picks Wool of the Andes. It should be a perfect size.

I continue to work on socks, a pair of mismatched blcks socks (the two partial skeins looked the same before they were knit) and a pair of BBS for Socks For Soldiers. I also made a couple of Prayer Shawls from donated and left over project yarns.

Knitting for Socks For Soldiers has slowed only slightly. I sent off a package to Kim early in the month. I have several pairs ready to go in February as soon as I complete a pair of BBS (legs by Michelle K.)




Highlight of the month was a visit to our LYS (ABC's of Creative Pursuits) by Maria Hart, our moderator for Socks For Soldiers. Karen, the owner, and I got a chance to visit with Maria and talk socks, sock machines, yarn and the group. This has been a very inspiring group for me and for a lot of us. A small chance to contribute.

One of the highlights of my trip to see my sister in South Carolina was our wide swing into Ohio with a quick stop to see Kim. She is just as she sounds in her e-mails. Such energy. She was most worried that the place was a mess. It looked wonderful to me. So much getting done.

There were boxes and boxes of goodies and socks ready to send off. I am amazed and don't know how she manages to keep it all under control.

I was able to present to her the socks that took first place at our county fair for the USA division of needlework.



Another wonderful surprise when I got home was a plaque for "Best of Show" in the USA division. I will be mailing off two more pair BBS that I was able to complete on the road.

I tried something new this year and entered several of my plants in the county fair. I was so pleased to received a ribbon on each of my entries. The weather was great this year. We had warm, not hot days with some clouds and breeze. Made for great walking around weather. We even got some early rain, but it held off until late evening so as not to spoil any of the fun.

Knitting continues with another prayer shawl, my 30th pair of leisure socks and my 12 pair of Big Black Socks. I really struggled with this pair of leisure socks. Frogging it numerous time until my tired brain figured out the mistake that was causing me to add stitches.

It really doesn't pay to start a project when you are over tired. I did get the socks finished and got a whole slew of projects entered in the Kern County Fair.

These late days of summer have brought clouds, wind and heat. We still take our morning walks but try to get out early to beat the heat. Mandy is very dissapointed if we miss our walk. She keeps us trekking.

I spend many hours with my passion, knitting. Socks are what I knit the most. Most of my socks these days go to SockForSoldiers .

There are always new yarns to try and new patterns to learn. Relaxation and frustration all rolled into one.

I especially liked this one. It was a lot of pattern but really brought out the colors in the sock.
Each month a bundle of socks goes our to Socks For Soldiers. Leisure socks and especially Big Black Socks which are the standard socks the soldiers wear on duty.