Unraveled Wednesday 3/11/26

 Good Morning!

Yesterday was simply gorgeous!  And warm - it actually hit 80 here in Eastern PA.  For the first time since last Fall, Fletch and I sat out on the patio with beverages before dinner.  A butterfly flew by!  Earlier I had said to Fletch that I'd like to see a bluebird and then we spotted a pair of bluebirds along the garden fence.  They were checking out the bluebird house.  It was a fun afternoon.

Now it's Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to chat about making and reading.  Not much knitting was accomplished in the last week.  There was, unfortunately, a bit of unraveling.  First I unraveled the cowl I had started back in December and then neglected for two months or so.  I was off by a stitch and when I tried to fix it I ended up dropping a stitch or two.  So, the whole thing came out.  I hadn't really done that much - maybe 15 rows or so.

Yesterday morning I unraveled the Hitch on the Move that I started in February of 2024!

There were many times I almost unraveled this project over the past year, but I never did.  But, I realized that every time I picked it up to work on it I hadn't liked what I saw.  I was using fingering weight yarn and I think this really needs to be knit in DK weight.  So, back to the drawing board.  I really like these two yarns together, so I may look for another pattern to use them together.  (The yarns are "Wish You Were Beer" and "Weathervane" and are by Emma's Yarn.  Both are Superwash Merino, Cashmere and Nylon.)

It was a good week for reading though!  I finished both the 5th and 6th volumes of "The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion."  These books are just plain fun!  

Fletch and I finished listening to One Wild Bird at a Time by Bernd Heinrich and have started a new audio book for after dinner - Blaze Me A Sun by Christoffer Carlsson.  We are both enjoying this one and once again we have lucked out with good narration!

Finally, with my eyes, I read Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood.  I enjoyed this book, though it began to drag for me a bit towards the last third or so.  Plus, way too much about the mouse plague!  LOL

Now it's time for me to get ready to head over to spend the day with Iris.  I hope your week is going well.

Tiny Needle Tuesday 3/10/26

 Hello and Good Morning,

Well, last night's sleep was better.  However, I was woken early by Mabel coughing up a hairball in the bedroom.  This, of course, necessitated getting up earlier than I wanted and turning on a light so that I could avoid stepping in anything.  Mabel is thoughtful and avoids (usually) puking on a rug.  Instead she usually pukes on the wooden floor which is certainly easier to clean up.  Not the best way to wake up.

Iris was good yesterday.  She is almost always good.  She had not slept well Sunday night and ended up taking a 2.5 hour nap in the afternoon.  Though I don't sleep when she naps, at least I can close my eyes and rest some.

I'm happy to report that the socks for Iris fit!  Though they may be a little loose.  Colin and Iris were out for a stroller walk when I arrived yesterday morning.  When they came in it was minus one sock.  Iris had kicked off her blanket and, though Colin didn't notice it at the time, she had also kicked off one of her new socks and it exited the stroller.  While Iris napped Colin took a break from work and walked in the neighborhood where they had walked in the morning.  Luckily he found the abandoned sock!

Now it's Tuesday morning and time for a TNT update on Appil.  The cat now has a coat of fur and the ground on the bottom right of the sampler has been fully stitched.

An amusing cat for sure.  I'll be starting the left bottom side next!  Dare I say closing in on finishing this piece?

Today's plans include a trip to the library (a requested book is ready for pick up), some laundry (again) and grocery shopping.  It's supposed to be another gorgeous day with temps in the 70's, so I'm planning a light dinner:  shrimp salad on croissants.  Yum!!  I think a little salad to go with that will be nice.  And, Fletch left one of his socks for me to see a hole in the toe...I've already found the yarn with which to darn the hole, so I will do that too.  Finally I need to review all the papers for tax season - my appointment to meet with our accountant is this Friday.

Whatever your Tuesday holds for you, here's hoping it is something good!

Weekending 3/9/26

 Good Morning!

We are back to dark mornings with the switch to Daylight Savings Time.  But, the temperature is mild!!  I washed sheets this weekend and retired the flannel sheets until next Fall/Winter.  I figured that was a sure way to have another cold snap, but so far we are good.  And, it felt great to get into a bed with crisp sheets and to have the window open for fresh air.

How was your weekend?  Ours was very nice and I failed to take any pictures!  The one picture I have I took this morning.  A blooming Christmas Cactus:

So pretty, and there are more buds.  This one did bloom around Christmas and now it is blooming again.

Anyway, as I said, our weekend was nice.  We had dinner with the kids on Saturday.  Burgers, crispy potatoes and coleslaw.  I made a blueberry gateau for dessert.  The family socks were well received and appreciated.  I hope they fit - no one tried them on.  It was mild enough that we had a fire outside after dinner.

Last night I made mushroom bourguignon for dinner.  It was wonderful!  And, plenty of leftovers for another meal.  Definitely a dish I will be fixing again.

I'm missing that hour of sleep that I lost Saturday night.  Hopefully I'll have an easy day with iris today.  Here's hoping your Monday is off to a great start.

Unraveled Wednesday 3/4/26

 Hello All,

Another bleak looking day here.  Yesterday it rained pretty much all day.  At times quite hard.  When I sit on the couch in Colin's living room with Iris asleep in my lap (such bliss), I can look out through the sun room and see one of the many rain chains that are hanging.  The water was pouring over it!  Luckily by the time I left to come home it had eased up a bit.  Also luckily it was rain and not snow or sleet!  It is already a bit warmer today (37), but the dampness hurts my joints.  Oh well, on the positive side, I can feel the hurt!  LOL

Well, it's Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers for the first Unraveled Wednesday of March!  Did anyone hear the Hallelujah Chorus over the weekend?  No?  Well, yours truly was singing it.  The Family Socks are all completed!  Woo-Hoo. Here is a pic of Colin's finished pair and then the whole family:

And there you have them.  Family Socks or maybe Goldilocks Socks (Baby, Mama and Papa).  I am so pleased with how they turned out and also so pleased to (finally) have them finished.  I started with Mailing's in mid October with the thought of making them Family Birthday Socks.  That thought turned to Family Christmas Socks.  Mailing's second sock was finished just after New Year's.  Iris' were started immediately and finished by mid-January.  So, my thought turned to Family Valentine Socks.  However, Colin's took from mid January to the very last day of February!

There was a feeling of playing a bit of yarn chicken when making Colin's.  The blue skein was fairly large and both Mailing's and Iris' socks are short, but still...I ended up with just 2 grams of blue left and only 3 grams of gold left.  There are still 6 grams of turquoise and 18 grams of purple, so those will be used for something.

We will be over at C&M's for dinner on Saturday (warm weather forecast, so grilling!!) and I think I will take them over then.  Here's hoping they like them AND here's hoping they fit.

Meanwhile, Semplice is back in rotation!  Last night I pulled it out and found where my "issue" was (one extra stitch).  I was able to correct that and knit a couple of rows.

I'm so close to the end of this shawl and I'd really like to finish it up.  I think I have about 24 rows left in the final pattern section and then 20 rows of garter stitch to wrap it all up.   But, there are about 342 stitches on the needle and an additional 4 stitches are added every other row.  Obviously the rows are long and take a bit of time to knit.  Being garter stitch, the last 20 should be fairly quick (fingers crossed).  Anyway, it's good to be working on this again at long last.

Reading continues to be a good thing!  I finished the 4th volume of  The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion  by Beth Brower and now am nearing the end of Volume 5.  I do not want these books to end!!  They are such fun and the narration is simply perfect.

Over the weekend I finished Gilead by Marilynne Robinson.  This is our RWU selection which we will be discussing on March 17th.  I can't say I loved the book.  As I mentioned last week I found it to be a bit laborious to read.  The writing is good - no doubt about that - it's just not a book you can storm your way through.  I would call it a meditation on life, faith and family, but for me parts of it just dragged on and on.  Thank God it is a short book!  LOL

Fletch and I are continuing to enjoy Bernd Heinrich's One Wild Bird at a Time, listening after dinner.  We have just about a half hour left, so most likely 2 more nights.  I need to find the next thing for us to read together.

And that's a wrap for moi.  I hope your week is going well and I hope you will take the time to check out Kat's blog as well as the links to Unraveled posts - I'm betting you will be entertained and inspired.  Enjoy!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 3/3/26

 Good Morning!

After our glorious Saturday that felt like Spring, we are back to chilliness and it feels colder than ever now.  Yesterday despite wearing a turtleneck and wool sweater I felt cold all day.  This morning the cars are wet.  My phone says it's snowing, but I don't see anything coming down.  I know we are supposed to have sleet as well.  I think/hope it will warm up enough to change to rain.  Meanwhile my shoulders and hips (arthritis) are feeling it.

Enough of that nonsense!  It's Tuesday and, therefore, time for a TNT update.  And look!  Eve now has a full head of crazy hair.  LOL

That's a whole lot of crazy hair and it took a whole lot of time to stitch it!  But now Eve is finished and I am ready to move on to something else.  I should finish the cat and the ground under that...then, perhaps, Adam?  Time will tell.

Time for me to get ready to head over to watch Iris.  Hope everyone has a great day!

Weekending 3/2/26

 Greetings my Friends,

And welcome to March!  How was your weekend.  Mine was just about perfect!  After taking a couple of weeks off from yoga due to my back bothering me as well as my arthritis acting up - particularly in my shoulders (thank you dampness and extreme cold), I finally went back to a couple of Yin Yoga classes.  It felt wonderful.  Yin is such a relaxing practice.

Saturday, the last day of February, dawned sunny and warmer.  In fact, it ended up feeling just like a Spring day!  For the first time in I don't know how long, I went out for a walk.  Due to all the snow melt, I opted to walk along the Perkiomen River Trail in Oaks which is paved.  The sky was a gorgeous blue.

There were plenty of walkers and joggers as well as folks on bikes.  I think everyone felt a tremendous relief to finally be outside in comfortable weather.  There was still plenty of ice along the banks of the river.

Big chunks and shelves of ice.  There was even a large amount of ice across the path at one point, but easy enough to get over it.

Scents were in the air.  It smelled like Spring - a bit mucky and almost swamp like.  No signs of wildlife yet (other than geese flying overhead), but it won't be long now.  This coming Saturday temps are supposed to reach 70+!!!

The weekend overall was a great balance of things.  I found plenty of time for knitting, stitching and reading as well as getting outside.  But I also managed to get some needed chores done (laundry, cleaning the bathrooms, etc.).

Meanwhile, today is a bit on the cooler side.  My phone tells me it is 23 out, but feels like 16.  My schedule is a bit different this week.  I'll be watching Iris on Tuesday and Thursday, so I will head to the grocery store today.  We are in desperate need of fresh produce.

Did you have a good weekend?  I certainly hope so.

Unraveled Wednesday 2/25/26

 Hello and Greetings,

The last Unraveled Wednesday of February 2026 finds me looking out the window at more snow...  Yup, it snowed a bit overnight.  Nothing big - roads are clear, but the car will need to be cleaned off before I can drive to Colin's.  And last night was one of those nights where I hardly slept at all.  I'm tired at 6:30 in the morning!  Hopefully that sweet child will take a nice long nap this afternoon.

Well, it's time to link up with Kat to talk about making and reading.  I'm still plugging away on the Family Socks.  Specifically the last one.  I thought I might be finished or at least speeding down the foot on the final sock.  Instead I find myself meandering and pausing now and then.  It's ok.  It will get done eventually.

I've been thinking about/toying with ideas of what to knit next.  Definitely another pair of socks, but I will pick up something else as well.  Perhaps I should get back to Semplice - it has been in time out for a bit.  The last row I finished found my stitch count off by one and I have not really wanted to deal with it.  But, I'd really like this to be off the needles and blocked.  We shall see.

Reading has been good.  The Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion continue to delight and entertain me.  I finished Volume 3 and am more than halfway through Volume 4.  Already I am wishing that there was not an end to these books.

Fletch and I are enjoying listening to Bernd Heinrich's One Wild Bird at a Time which is giving us some interesting and surprising facts.

Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards was read with my eyes and I loved it.  Historical fiction set in Bruges, it includes mystics, saints, anchoresses and beguines.  Not something I would normally chose to read, but it was truly lovely.

If Canticle didn't provide enough religion, I'm now reading (with my eyes) Gilead by Marilynne Robinson for our RWU group.  I know I read "Housekeeping" by Robinson decades ago (when it first came out) and I think I liked it, but honestly don't remember anything about it.  Gilead is proving to be a bit laborious for me.  There are times when I'm reading that I thoroughly enjoy it and the writing is beautiful.  What Robinson has to say about family, faith and life is truly wonderful.  But then there are times that I keep thinking, get on with it!  Fortunately it is not a terribly long book and I should be able to finish it well before our discussion on 3/27.

Here's hoping your Wednesday finds you immersed in a wonderful book or two and having fun making something!  Enjoy and be sure to check out the links on Kat's blog.

Tiny Needle Tuesday 2/24/26

 Hello!

Welcome to the last TNT of February 2026.  Hard to believe that by the end of the week we will have been through the first two months of 2026.  Whew!  Progress has been made on the Appil piece.  No more hair for Eve (yet), but some creatures have been added.  Here's an overview of the entire piece as it is this morning:

As you can see, the creature on the right has been outlined.  I think it's a cat.  Here's a close up of that:

And two bugs (I think they are beetles) have been stitched on the other side of Eve.

Fun things!  More creatures to come and (of course) Adam needs to be added on the other side of the Evil Serpent.  Even though there is still a lot (a lot!) to stitch on this, I do feel as though good progress has been made and I am steadily moving on toward the end of this.

Our streets are now bare (they were by yesterday morning) and Colin came over in the afternoon (with Iris) to help with shoveling.  Fletch says we ended up with about 9.5", but most of that has now settled down.  It's pretty chilly though.  But at least the sun is out today.  My phone is showing the possibility of snow for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday!  Luckily less than an inch each day.  What a snowy winter it has been!

There are mushrooms and some meat marinating for kabobs for dinner. Peppers and onions will be added to the kabobs.  I'll try doing them on the indoor grill I just bought.

Here's to a great Tuesday!

A Winter Wonderland! 2/23/26

 Greetings from Eastern PA,

It's a beautiful Winter Wonderland outside.  We had some rain yesterday morning which turned into what I call "thick rain" - not really rain, but not quite snow, but not sleet either.  That eventually changed into all snow and it is still coming down this morning.  I took this picture when I came downstairs and stepped out onto our patio:

It's a lot.  Right now it is very pretty.  The street has not been plowed.  I was supposed to watch Iris today, but I'm not going anywhere!

At Thanksgiving I had gotten a free (8 lbs!!) turkey breast from one of our grocery stores and decided to cook that yesterday.  I made stuffing and a small green bean casserole.  Good food on a snowy day.  This morning I have the bones simmering on the stove for soup.  I think a turkey sandwich is on the menu for lunch!  I will freeze the soup for another day.

Some nice surprises over the weekend:  I discovered a new flower on my biggest Christmas cactus!

And then I discovered buds on another Christmas cactus!

I guess they really like living in my office room (where I never turn on the heat).  When I watered plants this morning I noticed even more buds on the one plant.  

So, a good day to stay in.  We don't even need to go grocery shopping tomorrow if we don't want to.  Plenty of food in the freezer.  I think today will be spent knitting and/or stitching, some reading and listening to the Unselected Journals of Emma M Lion and, perhaps, a little nap after lunch!

I hope everyone is warm and cozy and if you are in the midst of the storm or expecting it, stay safe!!

Unraveled Wednesday 2/18/26

 Good Morning!

Greetings from very foggy Eastern PA.  It's still quite dark out, but my phone says dense fog until 10 a.m.  And, Happy Birthday to my little brother.  The temp is a bit more mild this morning (34) and I think this week will see us above freezing overnight all week!  Both cold temps and damp weather are bad for my back, so I will be glad to see a change in the weather.  Of course our forecast shows we could get snow on Sunday.  Ugh.

It's Wednesday and time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to talk about making and reading.  I love Wednesdays.  Always inspiring and often enabling in the best kind of way.

Today I have one and a half socks to share.

The last pair of the Family Socks!  The first is finished and the second is up to the heel flap.  It should not be long now.  I intended to work on this yesterday but pulled out my stitching instead.

Reading has been quite good!  I've listened to the first two volumes of The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion and they are simply wonderful.  So good that I'm almost finished with Volume 3!  And, yes, I did write "listened" - me!!  My library does not have the books, so I decided to download from Audible to use up some of the many credits I have.  The narration is superb and the story is just plain fun.  Thanks to Sarah for this recommendation,

With my eyes, I read Seascraper by Benjamin Wood.  What a book!  Moody, atmospheric, perhaps even a bit melancholy.  Beautiful writing and I highly recommend it.

Fletch and I finished listening to Run for the Hills by Kevin Wilson.  Again, the narration was quite good.  We both laughed a lot and enjoyed the book, though by the last hour or so we were tired of it and ready for it to be over.  Last night we started listening to a book by Bernd Heinrich - one of our favorite nature writers.

Due to my aching back, I never managed to get around to putting orange oil on my cabinets yesterday.  And today I'm off to watch Iris.  Perhaps I'll get to the cabinets later in the week.  Tomorrow I have an early doctor appointment and a massage in the afternoon - can't wait for that!  I may sign up for a yin yoga class Thursday evening - depends on how my back does today.  I think the slow stretching is good for me.  I just need to remember to not twist too far!

Whatever your plans, I hope you have an enjoyable Wednesday!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 2/17/26

 Hello!

It's Fat Tuesday!  Happy Mardi Gras!  My beans have been soaking overnight and I have hot Italian sausage thawed.  We will be having red beans and rice for dinner.  I can't wait!  But first, the rest of the day awaits and it is time for a TNT update.

Stitching (some) was accomplished this week.  The solid fill-ins do take some time.  But the ground underneath Eve (the Garden of Eden?) has been filled in and, the bottom line over to the right side (as you look at it) of the sampler has been stitched!

Obviously no more hair was added to Eve and I don't know if that will happen this week.  There is a creature off to the right that I am anxious to stitch.  Also a few more bugs between Eve and the Tree as well.

I'm happy to report that I did manage to get my chores completed yesterday!  That was scrubbing the kitchen floor and vacuuming upstairs.  Today I may wipe the cabinets with orange oil if I am so inspired to do so.  First, though, I'll cook some bacon & eggs for Fletch and me and we will do a quick run to the grocery store to procure some things (mostly fresh veggies and fruit).  Hoping to find reading, knitting and stitching time at some point.

Have a wonderful Tuesday!

Weekending 2/16/26

 Good Morning All,

How are you and how was your weekend? Ours was very nice.  Fletch and I went out to breakfast on Saturday morning.  That was a great treat - I love going out to breakfast.  The rest of that day was spent on good things - books, knitting and stitching.  I cannot complain.

Sundy morning we met Colin, Mailing, Iris, Bonnie and Zhongren at the Colebrookdale Train Station in Boyertown.

Such a beautiful train station with elegant gingerbread trim.  It was mobbed!!  I think the train was full.  The cars were all beautiful.  White linen tablecloths, cloth napkins, fancy silverware and nice china.  There were fresh flowers and chocolate truffles on each table.  Wine and champagne and even a boy (teenager) strolling through the cars playing his violin.  I kept expecting to turn around and see Poirot!  LOL. It really was fun.  The food was surprisingly good - French toast, eggs and sausage for brunch.  And everyone received a long stemmed carnation as we stepped off the train.  The ride goes through what is known as the Hidden Valley.  It was pretty with snow still on the ground and I'm betting it would be gorgeous in the Fall with colorful leaves.

We got home around 1:30 and yours truly took a nice, long nap!  Then we went over to C&M's for dinner.  We had coq au vin with mashed potatoes - a perfect meal for a winter's night.  And chocolate mousse with whipped cream for dessert.  And, of course, wine.  We were all beyond stuffed at the end of the meal.

On our way over to C&M's we had a bit of rain, but as we left to come home, snow was falling.  This morning we woke to a few new inches of snow - the kind that coats all the tree branches.  Very pretty (but I am tired of snow).  We had been commenting that the snow has been sticking around for such a long, long time.  And then Fletch heard on the news that this is the longest a snowfall has stayed on the ground since 1963!  At least the new snow is still pretty and white and has covered up a lot of the grimy patches.

Nowhere I need to go today, so I will be staying in.  There are a few chores I should take care of - time will tell whether I do or not.  I hope your Monday is a nice one - enjoy!

Wrapping up the Week

 Good Morning!

How are you on this Friday the 13th?  I am doing well.  Other than a Restorative Yoga class this evening, I have no real plans.  There is laundry to be done and the kitchen floor is pretty dirty, but nothing major.

Yesterday I ran errands, set up appointments (including with our accountant for taxes), did some knitting and a bit of reading.  It was so relaxing.  One of this things I picked up on my errands was this cute little bunny basket for Iris.

Isn't it sweet?  I also picked up one of those cars that you pull back and then it zooms off.  The one I bought is a banana.  LOL. I will get some other goodies to fill the basket for Easter.

After Iris was born and we were going through all the books that were Colin's when he was young, I was disappointed not to find two.  The first was Sheep in a Jeep and the other was a Golden Book - Two Little Gardeners.  I had forgotten that the author of Two Little Gardeners is Margaret Wise Brown who wrote "Goodnight Moon" and "The Runaway Bunny" - two of Iris' favorites!  Anyway, I ordered both books.  The Golden Book is coming from Abe Books, but Sheep in a Jeep I ordered from Amazon and it arrived yesterday!  I'll probably take that to Iris next Wednesday when I will be watching her.

There has also been cooking, of course.  Last night I made white clam sauce and added some smoked mussels along with the clams.  Highly recommend!!  It was quite tasty.  Tonight I am fixing baked ratatouille - lots of veggies and a bit of cheese.  YUM!

We have no plans for Valentine's Day and I have yet to figure out what I will cook, but there is time to figure it all out. On Sunday we have plans to meet up with Colin & Mailing & Iris and Mailing's parents for a brunch train ride on the Colebrookdale Railroad in Boyertown.  That should be fun - it will be Iris' first train ride!  Also, Sunday is Zhongren's birthday and he loves trains, so perfect timing.

I hope this Friday finds you well and enjoying life!

Unraveled Wednesday 2/11/26

 Good Morning One and All,

The warming trend is (thankfully) continuing.  Today it is 32 out right now which is roughly 10 degrees warmer than yesterday!  Woo-Hoo!  I'm still in comfy leggings and two sweaters, but I don't feel stiff and cramped with cold.

It's Wednesday!  The day when all the cool people link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to talk about making and reading.  I'm happy to show you that the first of the last pair of Family socks (got that?) is almost finished!  I only have the toe decrease and kitchnering to do.

Honestly I think I could have (and maybe should have) finished this last night, but my eyes were getting a little tired and my hands were beginning to ache just a tiny bit.  Better to not over-do it.  Hopefully I will finish it up tonight and even cast on for the last one!  I kept weighing my yarn to be sure I would have sufficient and I'm pretty sure I can get the second sock to match this one (fingers crossed).

Reading has been so good!  I finished The Black Wolf by Louise Penny and found it to be much, much better than The Grey Wolf (which I didn't like).  Like Kat, I was happy to read that the next Ganache book will be centered in Three Pines and should include more of the "characters" we have all come to love so much.

A ton of books have come in for me at my library - many of them new and therefore not renewable.  I may have to return one or two before reading, but not a bad problem.  I'm in the midst of Seascraper by Benjamin Wood and the writing is just wonderful.  Because of Kat's review, I've started reading Wintering by Katherine May which is just beautifully written.  I'm going slow with this and reading maybe 10 pages or so just before turning out the light.  And Sarah prompted me to download Book 1 of The Unselected  Journals of Emma M Lion which I am finding to be just wonderful!  The narration is excellent.

Fletch and I are continuing to enjoy Run for the Hills.  I think we have about 2 hours left.

And, of course, I still have "Gilead" by Marilynne Robinson for our RWU group. Other books waiting for my eyes are Canticle by Janet Rich Edwards and Stone Yard Devotional by Charlotte Wood.  And yesterday I received notice that Heart the Lover by Lily King is ready for me to pick up.

Whew!  What a bounty of books.  Lucky me!!

What are you making and reading this week?

Tiny Needle Tuesday 2/10/26

 Good Morning All,

Well, it is roughly 20 degrees warmer this morning than yesterday!  Progress!!  And I saw 40's in next week's forecast.  But, let's not jump ahead.  As we all know, the forecasts are more often wrong than correct.

I spent a delightful day yesterday with Iris.  We read so many (SO MANY) books!  Some of them multiple times.  Have any of you seen or read The Zabajaba Jungle by William Steig?  This is not one we read yesterday, but what a funny, weird book.  That William Steig must've been smoking something when he wrote this one!  Wednesday will be another day with Iris.

Anyway, it's Tuesday which means it's time for a TNT update.  The only time I stitched on Appil was Sunday afternoon for an hour or so.  Therefore, not a lot is new.  I skipped working on hair and instead concentrated on the ground under Eve's feet.  A little more outlining and a bit more filling in.

It is difficult to see, but there are a couple of shades of green in the ground.  There will also be some brown (of course...this piece has so much brown!!).

Today's plans include grocery shopping and making shrimp fajitas for dinner.  Yum!  I'm hungry for them right now!  Hope your Tuesday is a good one.

Weekending 2/9/26

Hello My Friends,

The above picture tells the story.  It is still wicked cold...and more wicked than it has been!  That window is my front bedroom window.  As a child, I loved seeing the frost patterns on windows.  Now I still find them interesting and pretty.  They also make me feel cold.  On Saturday the temp never even made it to 10 degrees at our house, and the winds were so fierce.  I actually ventured out - there were two books to pick up at the library and I needed some peppers and mushrooms for the dinner I was going to fix.  At the library I almost couldn't open my car door because the wind was so strong!

I managed to warm up some by doing cleaning (that's one good thing about it...that and when it's done things are clean!).  I vacuumed and dusted and scrubbed the bathrooms.  It was chilly in the basement where I went to visit the washer, but it was cozy to remake the bed with sheets straight out of the dryer.

There was a visitor to my front office window on Saturday.

As I sat at my desk a motion caught my eye.  This guy was nibbling on a bush that's just off to the side of the window.  See his little tongue sticking out?  And on Sunday, I caught some deer laying down in our back yard.  I bet their butts were cold!

Sunday's temps were not much better and the wind picked up again just about the time I went out.  We were in need of wine, so I ventured out only to find my favorite liquor store was closed for inventory.  Grrrr. I ended up just picking up a couple of bottles at Wegman's (which was mobbed and I had to park what felt like a mile from the store!).

The days thankfully have been bright.  The sun is strong (and blinding with all the snow).  But when the temps are in the single digits with 25+ mph winds, the sun doesn't do much to warm things up.  We made it through the first week of February, so that's a success.

Other than cleaning and cooking, I did some reading, a little knitting and a little stitching.  Not much.  I cancelled my yoga classes due to my back issues...hopefully it will be better by Thursday so I can get back to some classes.

How was your weekend?

Unraveled Wednesday 2/4/26

 Hey, Hey!!

It was above 20 degrees this morning!  Flurries had been in the forecast (like we need more snow??), but no sign of any precipitation overnight.  Snow and ice are slowly sinking down and there is a bit of melting.  Fletch went out and did a little shoveling - he needed to make a path from the driveway to the side of the house so that our water meter could be read.  We had a letter from our water company that they've been doing estimated guesses for our water bill because the water meter was inaccessible.

After a week of hit or miss mail delivery, my February Sock Squad yarn finally arrived yesterday.  I love the main color but am not all that thrilled with the mini skein.  But, I'm thinking of saving the mini skeins to make a scrappy cowl or shawl later (like next year after I have them all).

On this Unraveled Wednesday, let's link up with Kat and see what everyone is making and reading.  I do enjoy Wednesday posts so much.  Similar to my Appil sampler, the Family Socks are progressing in a slow and steady way.  As you know, I'm on the last pair and the first of that set has reached the beginning of the heel flap.

The foot will be in blue once I turn the heel and then the toes will pick up the yellow again.  I'm liking the color combination.  You may remember that my thought had been to make Family Birthday Socks which didn't pan out.  Family Christmas Socks did not happen either.  And now it looks as though Family Valentine's Day socks won't happen either.  No way I can finish this sock and make a second matching one by the 14th.  But, that's ok.  It will be fun to give them to C&M&I whenever they are finished.

Reading has been good.  I did finish "Invitation to a Banquet" and learned so much about Chinese food and cooking.  I also read and finished The Devil's Cave by Martin Walker.  This is the 5th book in the Bruno, Chief of Police series and it may be my favorite one so far.  It definitely was good to be back in St. Denis and in the company of Bruno.

Fletch and I are listening to Run for the Hills by Kevin Wilson after dinner and we are both enjoying it a lot.  The narration is very good (usually that's a complaint for one or both of us).

Tell me, what are you up to on this Hump Day?  I hope it is something fun.

Tiny Needle Tuesday 2/3/26

 Good Morning!

I guess it's no surprise that we are in for 6 more weeks of winter.  It feels as though it will take at least that long for the snow to disappear from our yard!  But...my car thermometer said it was 36 (!!!) when I left Iris yesterday around 4 p.m. And the sun was still high and bright in the sky.  This morning's temp is in the teens rather than single digits.  There is hope my friends, there is hope.

Now it is Tuesday and time for a TNT update.  Eve has been fully fleshed out!

She even grew a little more hair on one side.  Here's a look at the whole Appil sampler overall:

While there is still so much (so much!) left to stitch, I feel as though progress is being made.  Slow and steady.

No plans for today other than a small grocery shopping and a trip to CVS to pick up a prescription.  I may do some laundry...or I may not.  I've been having some back pain, so I may just take it easy!  Whatever you are up to, make it a good Tuesday!

Weekending 2/2/26

 Hello, Hello!

Good Morning and Goodbye to January!  Happy Groundhog's Day.  It is probably still too dark for Phil to have come out of his cozy bed, but from where I am it seems like winter will be going on for some time.  I hope I can remember these frigid days when I start complaining about the heat and humidity this summer!

How was your weekend?  Ours was good.  There were the usual things:  yoga, reading, knitting and stitching.  We also ventured out Saturday for dinner at Colin & Mailing's.  We had a delicious bolognese with hearty pasta, a huge salad and a yummy olive oil cake with blueberry compote and whipped cream for dessert.  And wine, of course.  Iris loved it all (no wine for her though and no salad).  She is a whipped cream fanatic just like her Grandpa (Fletch).

We got home Saturday a bit after 8:00.  I was sitting at the table in the kitchen reading and I looked out and saw that we had a visitor:

Obviously taken through the screen and glass of our patio door.  Mr. Raccoon was on the shelf that is over our outdoor basement steps.  That's where we store birdseed and peanuts for the birds.  Once he saw me he jumped down and waddled down the shoveled path in the backyard that goes to the bird feeder.  We have not seen him since.

Sunday after breakfast I baked some peanut butter cookies with chocolate and peanut butter chips.  Yum!  Dinner was a chicken casserole that bakes in a low (275) oven for three hours.  It was nice to have the oven on in the afternoon to help warm the kitchen.

Plenty of food and making and reading over the weekend.  For me, that's pretty perfect!  I hope your weekend was just as nice.

Unraveled Wednesday 1/28/26

 Brrrrr and Good Morning,

The bitter cold continues (and it will for a bit more).  What a good time to have wool in your lap!

It's time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to chat about making and reading.  Nothing better!

The last pair of Family Socks is continuing.  Although I spent so much time cooking over the past few wintry days, I did manage to do a little bit on the sock.

The blue yarn that ties all these family socks together has been added to Colin's first sock.  I purposefully made the cuff longer than usual and then knit more on the leg in the yellow to be sure I have enough blue for both socks.  I did add the lateral braid in the yellow section.

It has been a number of years since I knit a lateral braid and it was a little fiddly on DPNs, but still fun to do and I really like the way it looks.  

I'm sticking to my guns (so far) and not starting anything new until these socks are finished!  Project dreaming is fun though!

Kind of the same story with my reading.  I'm staying with Invitation to a Banquet while I wait for books to come in from the library.  The Banquet book is still very interesting (at least to me) and I am now on the final section of the book (and hoping something comes in from the library pronto).

Last night Fletch and I FINALLY finished The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown.  We listened to the audio book (22 hours and 50 minutes) and what a slog!  Fletch did enjoy it but not me.  It will be good to start something new tonight!

I hope everyone stays safe and warm.  Be careful if you need to go out in this frigid weather.

Tiny Needle Tuesday 1/27/26

 Hello My Friends,

Well the storm has come and gone though the bitter cold is lingering and even increasing.  Fortunately we did not get the full amount that was predicted.  I think we received 9.5" - 10" overall.  With the crazy winds blowing everything around it's a bit difficult to tell for sure.  Then, of course, the sleet came and covered it all with a crustiness.

Our neighbor Rob came over on Sunday to bring us cake!!  He had made an Opera Cake at Eve's request for her birthday.  Boy is that delicious.  And, he promised to be back on Monday to clear our driveway.  Sure enough, he was over yesterday morning and made short work of our driveway and sidewalk.  When Colin & Mailing came over (with Iris) late in the day, Colin cleared the snow off our cars.  What a gift to have such wonderful people in our lives.

More than anything, my time was spent cooking.  I made split pea soup on Sunday and baked some bread.  Yesterday I made vegetable beef soup and a blueberry quick bread.  Some stitching and knitting was accomplished and naps were taken.  I also read a bit.  And watched the birds as they attacked the seed Fletch had put out for them.

Mabel was in and out about a hundred times!  Not staying out too long at any one time, but spending some moments rolling on the (bitter cold) patio and closely watching the birds.  At one point I watched her chasing a tiny mouse across the snow.

So now it is Tuesday and time for a TNT update.  Eve had a bit more flesh stitched and when I tired of that color I started to fill in the ground below her.

I really need to stitch more of her hair - she just looks so weird right now!  LOL

And look who has become interested in learning how to stitch!

Today we will venture out for some groceries.  Here's hoping the store won't be too crowded and we can get in and out quickly.  Stay warm my friends!

Unraveled Wednesday 1/21/26

 Good Morning Friends,

Typing and rubbing my hands together.  Waiting for the coffee to finish brewing.  I'll be out of the house early today to head over to be with Iris.  I do love her and spending time with her, but I really, really don't want to go out.  And, I will need to gas up the car.  I was ignoring all the dire predictions for this weekend, but when I was getting my massage yesterday, one of the women mentioned that her phone showed 16-22" of snow on Sunday.  Yikes!!!  This morning, my phone is showing 20-25" on Sunday.  I imagine our plans for Sunday will be cancelled.  But, we have plenty of food.  Also books to read and things to knit and stitch.  Being stuck at home won't be all that bad.

Meanwhile, our snow cover is still here and now it is Unraveled Wednesday.  Time to link up with Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers to talk about what we are making and reading.  Good stuff!

My time away from the computer last week enabled me to wrap up the toddler socks:

And get a start on the final pair of Family Socks.  This last pair will be for Colin.  I've made the cuff a tad bit longer than usual and have started down the leg using the light color.  Doing this to be sure I have enough of the dark blue for both of his socks.

I may put in a lateral braid (also known as Vikkel or Estonian Braid) just for fun.  I enjoy knitting that and I think it looks nice.  Then I will add in the dark blue and work my way down to the heel flap and turn.  I may or may not use the yellow for the flap and turn - that is yet TBD.  The toe will definitely be in yellow.

Reading is good.  I did finish "Broken Country" (finally).  Definitely not a top pick for me.  I'm continuing slowly with "Invitation to a Banquet" and am thoroughly enjoying it.  Though...I'm a tad bit tired of reading about various snake soups (pit viper anyone?  Not me!).  Yesterday I stopped at our library and picked up Gilead by Marilynne Robinson.  I remember reading "Housekeeping" by her, but I don't believe I ever read Gilead so am looking forward to starting that.  It's a short book, so it should be quick.

Stay warm and enjoy the stark beauty that winter presents.  Happy Wednesday!

Tiny Needle Tuesday

 Good Morning!

Yes, it is frigid cold here.  My phone says 14 degrees, but "feels like" 3 degrees.  I do enjoy four seasons and am glad to live where I do.  BUT...I'm already over the cold.  I need some warmth!  Let's see if I can remember these cold, cold days next summer when I am over the heat and humidity!  LOL

It's Tuesday and time for a Tiny Needle update.  Many stitches were put in while I stayed off the computer late last week!

There is Eve fully outlined!  She hasn't gotten more hair, but her fig leaf is in place and there is a bit of rosy color around her knees.  Here's an overall shot of the piece:

Steadily moving along.  Only a little flesh on one leg has been stitched...more to come.  It does feel good to have Eve's outline finished.  

I may find time to work on this today, but I may not.  We'll be going out for groceries this morning and I have a massage booked for the afternoon.

We heard yesterday that we could be in for some major snow next weekend.  When I look at weather it is only showing a few inches of snow on Sunday which is not too bad.  But of course this past weekend we were in for a dusting and received roughly 8".  Who knows?

Hoping everyone is comfortable where they are.  Stay warm if you are in this bitter winter weather!

Weekending 1/19/26

 Good Morning and Brrrrr!

It has been a snowy weekend here for sure.  The trees are so pretty and the roads are clear, so that's good.

The above picture was taken (I think - hard to remember) either Saturday early evening or Sunday early morning.  In any event, we ended up with 3-4" on Saturday and then another 3" or so yesterday.  Way more than what had been predicted (a dusting).

Last week I decided to take a little break from the computer and instead of getting online with my coffee I sat and worked on my knitting and stitching a bit.  It was lovely.  Kat mentions how she does her daily stitching in the morning and I decided to do some making early in the day.  I found it to be soothing, calming and just all together wonderful.  And so it continued for a number of days!  

My yoga classes were also wonderful.  The restorative yoga on Friday evening was excellent.  I will be taking that class again when it is offered.  The snow kept me from attending class on Saturday, but I had plenty to keep me occupied at home.  Colin, Mailing and Iris came over in the mid-afternoon.  Colin was doing a few things for Fletch (including shoveling the driveway!).  Iris enjoyed playing with the magnets on the refrigerator and also a rattle:

This wooden rattle usually sits on a shelf in the kitchen.  It was carved from a single piece of wood by my paternal grandfather - Iris' great-great grandfather!  Being wood, it's not very loud, but it gives a satisfying sound when you shake it.

Luckily the snow had stopped at that point.  I had booked dinner reservations for us at a local restaurant - Agua Bistro.  So we headed over there for an early dinner.  There were oysters and escargot for appetizers both of which Iris enjoyed.  I don't do oysters, so I stuck with the escargot.  Our meals were very good (I had sea trout, Fletch had scallops, Mailing had rigatoni with broccoli rabe and Colin had a steak).

When we got up Sunday the snow started again.  I made some breakfast quesadillas for us and we stayed put till the afternoon.  A trip to CVS was in order to pick up a prescription and then we dropped off one of our cars at the mechanics for an inspection appointment today.  Fingers crossed nothing needs to be done!

All in all, a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend.  Though I missed catching up with your blogs, I did not miss being on the computer.  I hope your weekend was just as nice and here's to a good week ahead!

Unraveled Wednesday 1/14/26

 Hello My Friends,

Another mild morning here in Eastern PA - it's around 40 degrees outside and should rise to the low 50's today.  In a few days we will be back to the cold, winter weather, but let's enjoy this little break whilst we can.

I had a quite productive day yesterday!!  Me - who doesn't make lists very often - had a list of things I wanted to do and all but one of them was crossed off!  I started to gather and summarize "stuff" for tax preparation and set up my spreadsheets for 2026.  I did 2 loads of wash (even with the not so hot dryer) and scheduled the repair guy for the dryer to come back Friday morning.  Two boxes of glassware (mostly vases) and one large bag of miscellaneous things were donated.  Vitamins were picked up at CVS, groceries were bought and dinner was cooked.  A little knitting was done and also dinner reservations made for this Saturday night.  Whew!

Here we are now at mid-week and it's time to join Kat and her Merry Band of Unravelers for an Unraveled Wednesday update.  Luckily progress on the family socks continues!  Last week I showed you a completed pair of shortie socks for Mailing and the start of the first toddler sock for Iris.  Today I have one toddler sock completed and the second one well on its way towards the heel flap!

I'm loving the turquoise with the dark blue.  My plan/hope is to finish the second toddler sock this week and then get started on the biggest pair - the man socks for Colin.  

No new books have been finished this past week.  I'm in the midst of Broken Country which is a Reese's Book Club selection.  It's ok...kind of predictable (and therefore a bit on the boring side for me).  Maybe that's why I haven't yet finished it.  

Invitation to a Banquet is continuing to hold my attention.  This book would not be for everyone, but I am enjoying it slowly.  I found it interesting that many homes in China do not have an oven.  Roasting meats or anything else is not common.  Meat is often cooked over a fire or simmered.  Colin reminded me that when he spent a year in South Korea teaching English he initially stayed with a host family until he was able to move into his own apartment.  That host family used their oven for storage - chips, pretzels, etc.  Fletcher's Uncle Steve in Virginia does the same thing with his oven!  (Though I believe when his wife was alive she did cook things in the oven.)  Another interesting thing (to me) is that millet was much more important than rice for a long time.

Be sure to head over to Kat's blog to see what everyone else is making and reading and have a wonderful Wednesday!  Just about halfway through January - hard to believe!

Tiny Needle Tuesday 1/13/26

 Good Morning Fellow Makers and Bloggers,

After our warm tease of last week we are right back in the cold weather.  Fresh out of the shower, my head is cold and soon I will need to go back upstairs to dry my hair.  Our weekend was lovely including dinner out with Colin, Mailing and Iris on Saturday night.  Yesterday I was watching Iris, a bit earlier than normal thanks to a conference call/meeting that Colin had first thing.  But the day was pleasant, Iris was fun and took a 2 hour nap in the afternoon.  Yesterday she turned 13 months old!!  Iris had a play date on Sunday afternoon - right across the street from C&M is a couple with a little girl (Madeline) who was born just 10 days before Iris.  All reports indicate they had a great time.

Now it is Tuesday and time for a TNT update.  I'm happy to tell you that the first tree trunk has been filled in.  Additionally, Eve (looking a bit weird) with some rosy cheeks has appeared!

Eve is as strange looking as the snake!  I think she looks a bit like an alien.  LOL.  The beginning of her (brown again) hair is there and the black line snaking (pun intended) up towards the Evil Serpent is the start of her arm reaching out.  There is lots and lots of hair to stitch and the "flesh" color looks a bit on the yellow side to me. But, it's coming together nicely.  

Meanwhile, my dryer is working, but not as hot as it used to be.  So...I will be calling Mr. Appliance back today.  Maybe the part that was installed is faulty...I don't know.  But Sunday I washed a load of towels and they were just barely dry after 3 cycles in the dryer.  In the past, one cycle would be sufficient.

Time for me to go back upstairs and dry my hair (and get warm).  Have a wonderful Tuesday!