Good Morning!
Whew! It is WET out there. We had rain all day yesterday and then last night (and right now) it is very hard. Imagine how much snow we would have if the temps were cooler!
Well, how was your weekend? Mine was just so nice. A mix of a number of different things. I did a bunch of baking and as of last night, my Christmas baking is finished. I ended up making 8 different kinds of cookies and some pumpkin bread with cranberries and pecans. This is not ALL for us! LOL We will package up a variety of goodies to share with others and will be taking a sampling over to Mailing's parents on Christmas Day.
Saturday morning Dee came over to drop off her car and then we took off for a couple of places. She was kind and brought a couple of presents for Mabel who was not ALL that receptive to the gifts...or to Dee trying to pet her! I think that girl (Mabel, not Dee) is much more wary and careful since her grand adventure.
Anyway, Dee and I took off first for Kimburton and Purls of Wisdom for a little shopping. I was bound and determined NOT to buy fingering weight yarn. Instead I found some beautiful worsted weight which I will use for some fingerless mitts. The pair I am currently using were knit out of fingering weight and these will be a bit warmer.
The reason I did not want to buy fingering weight is that I signed up for the 2024 subscription of Sock Squad from The Farmer's Daughter. I cannot wait!! Knowing that I will be receiving 12 skeins of sock yarn (plus a mini with each skein!!) eliminates the need to get more fingering weight at this point. Anyway, I have so many skeins of fingering weight in my stash it is almost like going shopping when I decide to pick out a new skein. Which, of course, means I don't NEED the Sock Squad yarn, but as we all know, NEED has nothing to do with it!
After that we went to Steel City in Phoenixville for some coffee and knitting. Colin used to hang out at Steel City when he was in high school, but I had never been there. Delicious coffee! And we had a great seat where we could watch all the walkers and bikers going by. Phoenixville was hopping! And, there must have been an Ugly Sweater contest going on somewhere in town because there were a ton of folks walking around in ugly sweaters! LOL
After putting more money in the parking meter ($2 per hour~!!!), we headed across the street to Bistro on Bridge for lunch. My meal (Asian lettuce wraps) was less than stellar, but the espresso martini made up for that! Phoenixville is one of those local towns going through a revival of sorts. There are lots of fun shops and we visited two after our lunch: a local bookstore called Reads and Company and one of my favorite shops - Diving Cat. Both places were very crowded, but what a nice day out (and the weather was really nice).
Our tree, by the way, is finally decorated. As I mentioned, we opted for a table top tree this year not being sure how Mabel would react or if she would behave. So far she has appeared just to ignore it!
I like the small tree for a change, though I miss a lot of our ornaments that would go on a larger tree. It almost fell over twice while we were decorating it and three times now the cardinal at the top of the tree has leapt off!
Originally I was planning on going to the office today, but that will not be happening. One of my tires has a slow leak (a nail? or something?) and needs to be fixed. Fletch has a doctor's appointment at 10, so he will go to that and then take my car in this afternoon. The plan now is to really clean the kitchen floor while he is gone to his doctor appointment. I have been holding off till my baking was done (because I can be pretty messy!), but now that is finished I can dive in and clean. I also have laundry that is begging to be done. There is no lack of chores, that's for sure!
Whatever is on your agenda, I hope your Monday is a pleasant one. Let's all try to find some time to unwind and relax and just enjoy the sights of the season. I'm hoping for some knitting and reading time.
I am looking forward to a very easy week since all the “getting ready” stuff is finished. I am also looking forward to the FDF sock squad. We will have to check in about our yarn and pattern choices. Fun times ahead!
ReplyDeleteWhat a delightful weekend! (and one that must have smelled very delicious as well with all that holiday baking!)
ReplyDeleteLovely tree! It is raining buckets here too. What a muddy mess it is. And we still have a day of rain ahead of us. This has been one wet Christmas.
ReplyDelete2 dollars per hour is steep! Sounds like a good weekend, I have a ton of fingering weight in my stash and I always buy more....ha ha!!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you and Dee had such a nice day out on Saturday! The worsted you chose is a gorgeous color and I'll be anxious to see what pattern you choose. I hope you are more restrained than I would be with all those delicious baked goods meant for others. I baked some cranberry-orange bread and a pumpkin chocolate chip loaf that were meant for our neighbors, but John cut a piece off each of them! I hope you have a lovely Monday!
ReplyDeleteMy goodness, but you were busy. If only you lived near me so that I could benefit from all your baking.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you and Dee had a pleasant day together and avoided any lousy singer. Then again, any day with a martini is bound to be pretty good!
Your tree is cute, and I love the cardinal atop it. Fingers crossed that Mabel continues to be unimpressed.
We have so much rain and wind today, it's blowing a gale out there! I had planned on taking a vacation day but my library has no power and is closed so I get the day off without using any PTO and I call that a win. 8 kinds of cookies is A LOT, go you!
ReplyDeleteYour tree is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI am trying to hold off us January 1 to start the book I bought in Phoenixville, but I may not make it. LOL
I am really looking forward to seeing the yarns you get in your mystery boxes each month.
We flew through that rain on Saturday, so I know exactly what you mean when you say it's wet out! I'm glad you can stay in and dry. I'm excited to see the yarns you get in your sock subscription. I've never done one for a whole year, just three months at a time, but it is fun to get that package and get a surprise.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a wonderful time with Dee--what a nice time together!
ReplyDeleteGood morning Vera, I think you may be getting the rain that we had last week. We've had gorgeous weather since then though.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you and Dee had another great Saturday together. I enjoy hearing about your visits. It must be getting close to the time Colin and Mailing come home for good. I KNOW that you're excieted about that.
Bessings and hugs.
Betsy
Love your little tree. Glad Mabel is behaving (as is Scout!).
ReplyDeleteYour time with Dee sounds just delightful. Glad y'all were able to be out and about on a pretty day ... our weekend was gray and wet (which is why you're having that weather now of course). Our grandsons are coming for a sleepover tomorrow night; otherwise this is a calm week (to prepare for the weekend when Sara & Fern will be back). and WOOHOO for the Sock Squad subscription!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDeleteMine was busy - off to Long Point on Saturday, then Sunday was spent getting things ready for xmas. I'm looking forward to next Sunday when I can relax a little, lol
Good plan to find some time to just enjoy this week. I am hoping to do just that. I will bake a few cookies because I want to and like to share with neighbors. I can't wait to see what your sock subscription brings. How fun. And of course need has nothing to do with it. The worsted weight yarn looks like a very nice shade of blue.
ReplyDeleteThat's better. Cookies, no kale. I can handle that. I saw a great idea for extra bulbs on IG. Using an old window screen perched on a table, the bulbs are hooked and filled solid into a tree shape. Great idea!
ReplyDelete