So, how was your weekend?  Did you enjoy the amazing weather that we had here in the Northeast?  I do love these brisk mornings and warm sunny days…I hope that they stay around for a while.

I had a busy weekend and believe it or not I once again headed towards the ocean, but this time it was to take some senior pictures of Hannah.  It was pretty chilly with the wind coming off the water, so we didn't linger too long, but it was still beautiful all the same.

I've been having some real problems with my back again (grrrrr…), so I took the day yesterday to rest it.  I alternated between working on my Bluemoon socks and an online photoshop class, so I can learn how to better process pictures for my website and Hannah's yearbook picture.  What have I learned?  I learned that I have a LOT to learn…LOL.  You will be seeing my progress as I go along here….hopefully it will start to click in my memory, but right now it's a little daunting.

Have a great start to your week!

Kicking a pebble by the side of the road,
Watching it tumble pell-mell.
Chance and randomness become order.
Deng Ming~Dao

This picture probably is a completely meaningless picture to most of you, but to my children it will be bring big smiles.  When Ken and I were spending a few days in Newburyport this week, I snapped off this picture of the board walk along the wharf where the kids and I spent many enjoyable days.  This one's for you kids. 🙂

Have a wonderful weekend in your corner of the world!

Another pair of socks finished!  I started these socks while we were on vacation this summer.  Made from the same Claudia Handpaint, I had better luck with completing full socks this time around.  I love the mindlessness this pattern offers….so easy to knit in the car or when visiting with friends…around and around and around.

Normally I am not a fan of yarn that pools, but this particular yarn when it pooled made me think of Cherry Tootsie Roll pops, which were one of my favorite treats when I was a kid.  That yummy cherry flavor mixed with the chewy chocolate….Mmmmmm! 

Do you remember this commercial when you were a kid?  I do…I was 11 years old and loving every bit of that tootsie roll pop. 🙂

I may have to go pick up one for old time's sake…LOL

If you read my Ten on Tuesday list yesterday you saw that one of the things I have really been trying to include is some time at either a spinning wheel or this little electric spinner.  The fiber that is sitting on this is from FatCatKnits.  It was part of a paired colorway.  The skein that you saw last week was the other color.

I had seen these fabulous mittens (scroll down a bit)on Pat's page last year and really wanted to make them, so I scooped up one of the last packages of this Mixed Blessing paired colorway. Now I just have to find the pattern.

I've been wanting to learn a bit more about colorwork and how much more fun if the yarn is hand spun.  Pat is wonderful about using her handspun yarns…I need to try to do that more often too.  Check out some of her fabulous projects!

…and this was another thing that I enjoy on the weekends.  I actually was able to spend the entire day sewing last Saturday.  It's been a while since I have been able to do that.  I can't show you what this fabric became yet, but I can tell you that working with it was SO much fun!

….now I'm off to do some work. :-)  Have a great day!

Carole's Ten on Tuesday this week is  10 Things You Love To Do on the Weekend, so here we go….

1.  Exploring new places.  This weekend we visited Strawbery Banke for the first time and really enjoyed it.

2.  Visiting old favorites.  We also spent an evening and day in Newburyport as well.

3.  Spending time with Ken.  Now that the kids are all older, we have been enjoying a little more freedom away from the house.

4.  Football in the fall.  We usually plan our weekends around the Patriot's game..not always, but usually.

5. Visiting with family.  My parents almost always come for a visit on Sunday afternoon if we are home.

6.  Spending an afternoon sewing, knitting or spinning.  I don't have much time during the week, so I really look forward to squeezing in some time over the weekend.

7. Going to the gym.  It's quieter on the weekend and I really enjoy my time there when it is quiet.

8.  Friday night's wine and dinner out with Ken

9.  Waking up in the morning knowing that I do not have to jump up and get working.

10. Sitting out in the yard enjoying the garden and the birds who call my yard home.

What do you enjoy doing on the weekend?

 

Single line drawn from one ocular corner to the other.
White clouds firmly tethered to shadows.
What is close at hand must first appear on the horizon.
What is cast upon us always has a source.
Deng Ming~Dao

Whew…I posted every day this week and I think I am finding my groove again.  Next week Ken and I are taking a mini vacation in Newburyport Sunday and Monday, (thanks Ashley!) so there may not be a Monday post….but you never know.
Have a great weekend!!
xoxo
Kim

August was such a whirlwind of busy that I forgot to post about the August Yarn club mailing.  The designer for this mailing is the very talented Bristol Ivy

The theme this year is The Roaring 20's and Bristol designed these mitts to capture the strong, clear lines of the Art Deco period and I think she did a fabulous job. Thank you Bristol!

The yarn for this mailing was Lucent in soft shades of brown with coppery highlights.  Bristol requested soft Sepia shades….I named this color "Speakeasy" to keep with the club's theme.

My short freckly fingers are not quite as elegant as Bristol's, long thin hands, but I do love the nail polish color for fall! 
I had a lot of fun with this mailing. 🙂

Before I start this post, I want to thank each and every one of you who wished me a Happy Birthday yesterday.  I feel very blessed to have so many wonderful and caring friends!  A special thank you to Carole and Margene for sending many of you here for a visit.

~

A few years ago I discovered this little Hansen Spinner.  Any of you who know me, know that it was the beautiful woods that captured my eye at first.  I will admit however that I was completely sceptical about the spinning
quality, that is until I sat down and spent some time with it.  This little machine can spin for sure!

Sadly however it quickly became neglected and spent it's time looking pretty in a corner of my sewing studio.  I would play with it now and then, but if I went to a spinning meeting it was always a bigger wheel that came with me. 

Recently when I took a class with a friend this summer, she had her Hansen Spinner with her and this great little carrying case…a Zuca bag.  She told me that she couldn't understand why I brought my heavy wheel when I had the lightweight electric spinner at home.  Bingo!  She was so right…slap on the forehead! 

I haven't had much time for spinning this year, but when we were getting ready to go on vacation, I thought that it would be nice to sit on the porch and spin if we had a rainy day.  With that in mind I spent some time researching the Zuca bags and picked out this pretty bag.  What is so nice about it is that you can place the spinner on the top for spinning, which is actually a seat as well, so it's pretty strong too.

Fortunately we had amazingly perfect weather on our vacation so the little spinner stayed neatly packed in it's pretty bag.  When we got home however, I set her up in my work studio.  As you can imagine, my work studio gets very steamy and humid which is why I never have a spinning wheel set up in there for fear of warping the wood in the wheel, but I'm thinking this girl will be fine living here where she will get used a lot more.
I spent some time this week playing with her and cranked out this pretty skein.
~
I will be demonstrating her at The Fryeburg Fair next month.
(yikes….it's almost that time already…how did that happen?)

Today's Ten on Tuesdays topic is Ten Favorite Sunday Dinners.  When the weather has turned from summer to fall the menu tends to change as well.  A little less grilling and a little more cooking.  Back when I was a child and even when my own older children were little we always had a large Sunday dinner after church.  I kind of miss how much less hurried life seemed during those days, don't you?

Here is my list of Favorite Sunday Dinners…brings back happy memories. 🙂

1.  Pot Roast with roasted vegetables….so delicious.
2.  Lasagna
3.  Spagetti and Meatballs (My mom's sauce has been passed down from her, to me, to my daughters….it's very yummy and not chunky)
4.  Roast Chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy.
5. New England Boiled Dinner…..although I hated the cabbage.
6.  Meatloaf….the way I make it
7.  Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese
9.  Baked Ham with raisin sauce….mmmmm.
10. Chicken and Dumplings

There you have it.  Of course these days of watching my weight a lot of these are things I can only have once in a while, but as the days get cooler, we will indulge now and then.  Did you eat the big Sunday Dinners when you were younger?

It's coming……….but we are going to enjoy one last beach day tomorrow.
To the girls running this weekend….and you know who you are….good luck and have fun!!