Weekending 6/30/25

 Hello My Friends,

Here we are on the last day of June.  How is that even possible?  And what a weird month it has been weather-wise.  After a cooler weekend, I can feel that the heat and humidity are building again.  But, after all, it is summer.

How was your weekend?  Mine was good.  I took absolutely no pictures to show anything.  Friday I took a 3 hour class on Continental Knitting (which is not how I knit).  Oh my!  Good for the little grey cells as Hercule Poirot would say.  I completely ripped out what I (attempted) to knit in class.  It was pretty pathetic.  LOL. But, I will be trying to get it.  I've been practicing some.  Luckily there is a video recording of the class that I am able to access.  But, my fingers are not behaving.  My right hand keeps looking for the yarn that my left hand is holding.

The balance of the weekend was spent running errands (Saturday morning), laundry (Sunday morning), cooking (both days, but nothing fancy) and there was time each day for knitting and stitching and reading.  All in all a very nice weekend.

My "work week" this week is short.  I'm only caring for Iris Mon-Tues-Wed.  Thursday Bonnie (Mailing's Mom) will take over.  She is also "working" the entire next week!  Friday, of course, is July 4th.  I need to make a dessert on Thursday or Friday morning.  We will be going to Bonnie & Zhongren's for a cookout on Friday.

Tme for me to get ready to head over to see Iris!  Have a great Monday.

The First Week

 Good Morning All,

The temps have eased up a bit I am happy to report.  It still feels humid to me but at least it's not a heat index of 105!

When I pulled into our driveway yesterday afternoon I stopped and got out to get the mail.  Rob, our neighbor and friend from across the street, was in his garden and called me over.  He handed me this group of radishes!!

These may be a tad too big to be tasty, but we shall see.  The funny thing is that Fletch gave Rob the extra radish seeds he had.  And then our radishes never sprouted!  Even funnier is that Rob and Eva don't even like radishes! 

My first week of caring for Iris full time went very well.  Colin said he thought it went better than he expected.  It IS tiring, that's for sure.  Iris is not yet very independent.  Not walking, not even crawling. She sits well, but will topple over when tired.  And, she gets bored easily.  She also still likes to be held.  A lot.  

On Wednesday afternoon there was some nature drama going on in Colin's backyard.  A fledgling blue jay was on the ground.

You may need to click to enlarge, but the fledgling is on the 4th slate from the bottom.  The mother kept flying nearby and calling to it.  The poor thing would flutter its wings and hop around.  I did not step outside to get a better photo as I didn't want to scare the baby or alarm the mother.  We lost sight of it after some time.  Thursday morning I didn't see it, but later in the morning I saw the mother swoop to the ground right by the door from the sunroom.  I looked out and the baby was tucked in grass and ivy taller than it is.  The mother was feeding it.  Later again the fledgling was gone.  I hope it survived and learned to fly.

Our snapdragons have finally started to open.

So far only white ones, but I noticed some deep maroon buds yesterday.  Sitting on the patio yesterday before dinner, Fletch and I both commented on how much we miss seeing our bluebirds.  The babies have flown off and the nest has been abandoned.  The same with the wrens, though we still see wrens and, in fact, noticed wrens checking out two additional birdhouses we have hanging in the apple tree.

I'm excited to pretty much have today to myself!  Fletch is taking my car in this morning for inspection.  I plan to knit or stitch or both.  And then I have my continental virtual knitting class from 12-3.  Really looking forward to that.  Some books in my queue have come in for me - I may pick them up later today (if it is not too rainy out), or wait until tomorrow or Monday.  No rush - they hold them for a week which is nice.  No other real plans for the weekend other than the usual:  catching up on laundry, a couple of cleaning chores and most likely cooking (especially with cooler temps).

I hope your weekend is a good one.  Have some fun!

Unraveled Wednesday 6/25/25

 Hello My Friends,

Whew it's been hot.  Everywhere!  My brother in Colorado has been texting about the extreme heat they are having.  That blasted heat dome.  I think today temps will moderate a little and then be even cooler Thursday and Friday.  It also looks like a rainy weekend which is unfortunate as Colin and his buddies who were all in his wedding have a 3 day backpacking trip in the Laurel Highlands planned.  Oh well, at least the rain should keep their temps down a little bit.

My second "full day" of caring for Iris was again a very good one.  Once again we read books, played with her keyboard, chewed (well really gummed - no teeth yet) on a lot of things (LOL) and had fun.  She and Colin had lunch together again which gave me a little free time.  I knit a bit.  So, I've made it through half of my first week of full time care!

And now it is Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to discuss all of our making and reading.  Be sure to check out the links you will find on her blog - so inspiring (and, as I've said before, enabling!!).

The leg of my Simple Skyp Sock has been finished and during Colin & Iris' lunch time yesterday I started the heel flap.  I plan to knit the foot plain as I don't like patterns so much on the feet (particularly the sole) of my socks.  This pattern, though, is a quick knit and a fun one!  The toes will be in the contrast color used at the top cuff and I will probably add a stripe or two before the toes.

As for reading, I've finished just one book.  I've been trying to catch up on magazine and newspaper reading (we get the Wall Street Journal weekend newspaper and The Christian Science Monitor and Colin passes on his New Yorker and Economist magazines).  Last week I mentioned that I had started Writers & Lovers by Lily King.  At that point I was not really wowed by it.  However, I continued reading and found that it picked up so nicely and ended up being a 4 star read for me!  Not sure why I wasn't enthralled with it initially, but am glad it picked up.  I'm now looking forward to her book "Heart the Lover" which will be published in the Fall.

After reading Sarah's book reviews last week I requested Banyan Moon by Thao Thai.  I received notice the next day that it was ready to pick up.  I'm a little under 100 pages in, but it is a nice family saga and a good summer read.

Well, I'm off to try and catch up on a little blog reading and have some more coffee.  Stay cool!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/24/25

 Good Morning Everyone!

My first full day of caring for Iris went very well.  The time went faster than I expected!  We read a number of books, played with a keyboard, took a couple of naps (Iris, not me).  When Colin took a lunch break from work, he had Iris sit with him in her high chair and have a bit of food with him.  I opted then to have a little break and managed to read a chapter in my book.  And before I knew it, it was time to go home.  Hoping for more of the same today.

We are now at the final Tiny Needle Tuesday of June 2025.  Hard to believe.  Although I did not stitch as much as I thought I would, I'm pleased with what I managed to do.

The leaf has been filled in and the beginning of the outline for a flower has been stitched.  I'm looking forward to more color!

Wishing you all a wonderful Tuesday.  The heat is on (here in the Northern Hemisphere)...remember to stay hydrated!!

Weekending 6/23/25

 Hello My Friends,

Well, the Summer Solstice certainly has brought the Summer heat!  Whew!  The beginning of this week is set to break some records for soaring temps.  How was your weekend?

My weekend started Thursday night/Friday morning.  I can't really call helping to care for Iris as "work," but you know what I mean.  Anyway, I had Friday off.  I did some baking in the morning and running errands (primarily restocking wine) and then taking it easy.  Fletch and I went over to Colin & Mailing's for dinner that night.  We started with some delicious mojitos topped with fresh mint sprigs from the garden.  Colin grilled hot and sweet sausage from the farm and we had that with a big salad and fresh sourdough bread.  My baking that morning was a blueberry gateau which I took over for dessert.

Topped with whipped cream, it was so yummy!  It was a gorgeous evening and we ate outside.

While C&M bathed Iris and got her ready for bed (including story time), I knit a little and Fletch dozed a bit.  Then we headed outside for a fire in the pit.  (Friday's weather was really beautiful and nice enough to enjoy a fire.). We sat out there until almost 10 p.m. watching bats and fireflies.  A gorgeous ending to a lovely day.  And a nice way to celebrate the solstice.

Saturday found me catching up on laundry (a great day for drying stuff on the lines) and doing a bit more cooking.  And Sunday I managed to clean the bathrooms before it got beastly hot.  We had a cold dinner of chicken salad, macaroni salad and pickled veggies.  I also cooked some shrimp that we will have for dinner tonight.  Sunday morning I saw the doe and her two spotted fawns in our backyard.  The little fawns reminded me of colts the way they were almost jumping and kicking up their legs - so joyful!

Today is Colin's first day back to work, so I will be off to take care of Iris earlier than usual and staying longer than usual.  Not sure the opportunity will present itself for me, but I will take my book and some knitting just in case.

Wishing you all a beautiful start to the week.  Stay cool!

Unraveled Wednesday 6/18/25

 Greetings My Friends,

Another damp, foggy, grey morning here.  Everything feels moist and my body feels achy from all the dampness.  Oh well.  What are you going to do?

Once again it is Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to chat about making and reading.  Always fun and always inspiring as well as often enabling!!

Despite spending a lot of time on my stitching during the past week, I did manage to knit some on my Simple Skyp Socks and the leg is now a bit more than halfway down to the heel flap.  I am so loving these colors and the pattern.

Such a fun pattern.  I even was able to knit a few rounds while at Colin & Mailing's yesterday.  Only because when I arrived Colin was out for a walk with Iris.  When they got back home, Iris sat on the couch next to me watching me finish up a round.  She was pretty interested, but did not try to pick up the yarn or interfere with the knitting.  I did tell her that one day I would teach her how to knit!

As for reading, I finished One Long River of Song by Brian Doyle.  I had mentioned this a week or more ago but had said I was attempting to drag it out.  His essays are just so dang good!  I've now started Writers and Lovers by Lily King.  So far it is ok, but I am finding it easy to put down.  I'm hoping it picks up some for me.

Fletch and I are still plugging away at "One Man's Meat" (E. B. White) after dinner.  I think we've passed the halfway mark, but I can't remember for sure.  No matter.  Bottom line, it's a great book.

Time for me to pour another cup of java and attempt to wake up.  These dull/grey days are hard to get going!  Remember to head over to Kat's to see what everyone is doing!!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/17/25

 Good Morning,

Another foggy and wet day here in Eastern PA with temps rising steadily all week.  It is supposed to hit 90 or higher by Friday!

Looks like I have an easier week this week!  I will not be caring for Iris on Friday.  Mailing is only working in the morning and then they take Iris to the doctor for her 6 month check up.  Colin told me not to bother coming over for just a couple of hours in the morning, but instead invited Fletch and I to come for dinner that night and...hopefully...a fire outside later in the evening.  Of course, it may be too warm for a fire, but it will still be nice to be with them for dinner.

Turns out my Sunday afternoon time all by myself paid off in the stitching arena!

The sun has been completed (what a face!) and the outline of a leaf on the right has been stitched.  I'm really looking forward to stitching some of the plants in this sampler.  All are pretty fantastic.  As a reminder, THIS is the sampler I am stitching.  All the different creatures crack me up and should keep the stitching interesting and fun.

Once again, the month seems to be slipping by rather quickly.  What are you up to on this Tuesday?  Whatever it is, have some fun.

Weekending Mid-June 6/16/25

 Hi All,

Well, it sure was a soggy and cool weekend here.  After the hot temps earlier in the week, the coolness was appreciated, but I was downright cold last night!

I guess it was a good weekend in that I have no pictures to document it.  We spent time on Saturday at Colin & Mailing's celebrating Iris' 6 month birthday.  None of us are sure how time has gone by so quickly.  Food was plentiful and good and Iris was in a great mood enjoying the gifts she received.  It was nice to see Bonnie and Zhongren again too.

Fletch spent Father's Day afternoon with Colin.  The two of them watched a guy movie (as Fletch said, a flick filled with testosterone).  That meant I had an entire afternoon to myself.  I did some stitching and some cooking.  It was wonderful!

This is Colin's last week of paternity leave.  His time off has flown by as well.  Next week will start much longer days for me over at their house.  Bonnie will start taking over on a day or two, but that first week she is traveling, so long days for me.

On the wildlife scene, it appears that our wrens have fledged.  Towards the end of last week it was very quiet at their house.  No activity and no chirping.  Our bluebird house is further away, but we can see the parents are still taking food into their house, so those babies have not yet fledged.  The doe continues to rest in our yard periodically.  There are several places she likes.  One morning I saw the spotted fawn.  So precious!

Time for me to pour another cup of coffee and attempt to wake up.  That is a difficult task on these gloomy Monday mornings.  

Have a wonderful day!

A Little Wine 6/13/25

 Good Morning!

Whew it got warm hot yesterday.  When I got in my car to drive home from Colin & Mailing's, my car thermometer was registering 101.  It dropped into the 90's as I drove, but still...just too warm for me.  Today is overcast which will help keep the temps down a bit and then rain (of course) later on.

You all know that I often buy wine for the label.  Usually it works out.  Case in point, my most recent try:

When I was in the "Fine Wine and Spirits" store earlier this week I came across this bottle.  Naturally I had to buy it.  The Little Sheep of France.  Love the sheepy drawings on the label.  And, bonus, the wine was not bad.  We had salmon for dinner last night and I had a glass then.  Very drinkable.  And not pricey - just $9.99 for the bottle!  

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend.  We will be over at C&M's tomorrow to celebrate Iris' half birthday!  I can't believe she turned 6 months yesterday.  Time is flying.

Unraveled Wednesday 6/11/25

 Good Morning,

Wow!  Not raining!!  The sun is up, the sky is blue and the temp is (so far) pleasing.  And it's Hump Day, or as some of us prefer to say it is Unraveled Wednesday.  Time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to chat about making and reading.

Today, on my needles, is the start of a Simple SKYP Sock - the cuff is finished and the leg has been started.

The yarn is from last year's Farmer's Daughter Sock Squad and I'm loving the blue.  If you click to enlarge, you might be able to see the beginning of the pattern.  It's a fun one - easy to do and easy to memorize.

My personal reading has slowed a bit.  No books were finished this past week.  I have, however, been reading a lot of children's books.  Iris enjoys being read to, though she is still at the stage where her preferred method of consuming a book is by eating it.  LOL. Hopefully I'll have some book finishes (and a sock further along) for next Wednesday's post.

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/10/25

 Good Morning My Friends,

Still quite soggy and wet here.  Again, I am checking for webbing between my toes and fingers.  Sometimes the rain can sound like a lullaby.  Case in point - Mabel wanted to go out at 5:15 this morning.  I went downstairs, let her out, and went back upstairs and crawled back into bed.  As soon as I was in bed the rain started again and it just was such a beautiful sound and lulled me right back to sleep!

But now I'm up and have had a good half a cup of coffee so far.  It's time to talk stitching.  After all, it is TNT day.  My Scarlet Letter sampler, And All Was For An April is underway!  I'm happy with what I was able to get stitched during the past week.

The "angry" dark swirly cloud in the upper left hand corner has been finished.  And, the outlining on the sun has been started.  It's early days, but this is a very fun stitch.

I'm looking forward to seeing some of you on Zoom tonight for our Read With Us book discussion.

Weekending 6/9/25

 Good Morning!

June 9th already and another grey and damp Monday.  Rain is in the forecast for several days.  Then a quick break.  And then more rain!  One of the pepper plants that Fletch put in the other week already has 3 peppers on it!  That's fast.

Last night as Fletch and I finished dinner, I glanced out back and "our deer" was back at rest by the tree my clothesline is tied to.

Such a sweetie.  She did not move when I stepped outside to get this picture.

Anyway...how was your weekend?  Mine was a very good mixture.  I ran some errands, took care of domestic chores and also found some "me" time for stitching and knitting.  Can't complain about that.  I also did some cooking on Saturday.  First I made one of my favorite summer salads - pasta with a ton of different veggies chopped up and everything dressed in EVOO,  S&P.  Yum!  And I made a peach crostata!

It turned out well and today I'm taking half of it over to C&M.  There is still some in the frig for Fletch to have.

Fletch discovered The Mountain Detective on PBS and it's pretty good.  I've only seen one episode so far.  The scenery is amazing.  Because it is in French with subtitles, it's not really something I can knit to.  I'm thinking some of you might enjoy this show.

Time for me to fix another cup of coffee.  Here's hoping this Monday finds you all doing very well.

Unraveled Wednesday 6/4/25

 Hello All,

Another glorious day here in Eastern Pennsylvania.  The sun is up, the sky is blue and the forecast is for temps in the 80's.  Yesterday was gorgeous as well.

It's mid-week and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to chat about what we are making and reading.  I think this is my favorite day to post...and my favorite day for inspiration when I read what everyone is up to reading-wise and making-wise.

Once again Semplice saw no love.  I have not lost interest in it, but it has been difficult to find a stretch of interrupted time to knit on it.  Instead I cast on for a new pair of socks!

The yarn is from last year's Farmer's Daughter Sock Squad...I think July's yarn.  Only 5 rows of ribbing for the cuff completed so far, but it's a start.  I haven't fully picked a pattern yet, but I think it will be something with slipped stitches.  Perhaps Simple Skyp Socks.  At any rate, it has been awhile and it feels good to be knitting socks again.  I was fairly tired of dish cloths!  But, I did manage to (finally) finish the dish cloth I had been knitting and it has been put to good use!

I had picked up a newer book from my library (Big Chief by Jon Hickey) and read roughly 80 pages or so, but just could not get into it.  Not sure what it was, but either the time was not right or the book is just not for me.  Anyway, I am now reading One Long River of Song by Brian Doyle.  WOW!  I am purposefully making myself go slowly with this delicious book of essays.  I want to savor each and every word.  

I know many of you have already read One Long River of Song, but I was hesitant to try it.  Years ago I picked up Doyle's "Mink River" and never got into that.  It might be time to give that book another try.

Fletch and I are slowly getting through "One Man's Meat" by E. B. White (a chapter a night after dinner).  We've read this book several times already, but it is surprising how much I have forgotten about it.  Another good book to savor.

I will leave you with a picture of a peaceful and restful morning:

I saw her when I got up this morning and looked out the back bedroom window.  She stayed there for another 45 minutes or so while I fed Mabel and let her out, made coffee, etc.  

Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 6/3/25

 Good Morning My Friends,

Mabel was a naughty girl and stayed out all last night.  I went to bed quite early last night (lack of sleep the night before and a long day with Iris made me very, very tired) and I told Fletch she was outside.  But, she never showed up before he went to bed.  Luckily she was by the patio door this morning when I went downstairs.  When I opened the door to let her in, I noticed two deer and a little spotted fawn in our backyard.  The adult deer must be teaching the youngster to be safe or cautious because when I opened the door, one of them chased the little fawn down a trail into our woods.  I don't appreciate them eating my plants, but I do love seeing them around.

Here we are with the first Tiny Needle Tuesday of June and I have a new project!  Keeping with the Tiny theme, my start on this (rather big) piece is rather tiny.

The chart I have chosen has been in my stash for eons!  It is And All Was For An Appil from The Scarlet Letter.  I am using 36 count Antique White Edinburgh Linen and using DMC floss.  I started out with two strands of floss, but it just looked too thick, so a single strand of floss over two linen threads.  The finished piece will be roughly 17.2" wide and 13.88" high.

Another Adam & Eve sampler which I seem drawn to.  I've stitched so many and just love doing them.

The start pictured is the upper left hand corner of the chart (one of the "angry" looking clouds).  Like PPL (A Parrot, A Leopard, A Lion) that I stitched years ago, each motif is outlined in black and then filled in with color.  A lot of stitching ahead of me!  LOL

Today promises to be another gorgeous day here in Eastern PA.  The temps are steadily rising all week and Fletch told me that Thursday is now forecast to hit 90!  All last week I was in sweatshirts and sweaters.  Now it appears I will be sweating.

Weekending 6/2/25

 Hello and Good Morning!

And hello to June!  May certainly flew by - mostly with rain and winds.  Yes, we had more rain on Friday night and into Saturday and fairly strong winds as well.  And then more rain Saturday night.

We had a delicious dinner Saturday night at Colin & Mailing's.  Colin fixed the BEST beer battered cod I have ever had!  It was almost like a tempura batter.  And home-made steak fries and coleslaw rounded out the meal.  The peach upside down cake turned out well.  THIS is the recipe I used.  My peaches were a little on the firm side, but it still came out tasty.  I think this recipe would work well with any stone fruit - plums, apricots, or even a mixture.

Sunday was filled with chores.  Laundry, cleaning bathrooms, scrubbing the kitchen floor, paying bills, dropping off a donation at the local food pantry, picking up prescriptions, etc., etc.  But, I managed to get everything done that I wanted to, so that was good.  I would have liked more time for relaxing with knitting and/or stitching, but c'est la vie.

How was your weekend?  I hope it was good.