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!

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!

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!

TGIF 6/23/23

 Good Morning,

Another grey damp day here, but a little warmer (64 degrees).  No rain yet though.  I thought we were supposed to have heavy rain yesterday and today, but so far nothing!

Still is tick central here.  OMG!  this morning I picked up 3 ticks off the rug in front of the tub.  flushed them all down the toilet and then when I got out of the shower I saw another one crawling on top of the scale.  I'm calling the vet this morning to see if there is something else (besides Frontline) we can use on Mabel and/or if we can use it more frequently than once a month.  I really hate putting the chemicals on her, but I also really, really hate that she is bringing in to the house so many ticks.

We had a lovely surprise in the mail yesterday.  Colin had sent us a bunch of gifts from his and Mailing's trip out West a few weeks ago.  Among the treasures is this hummingbird carved out of marble:

So tiny and delicate!  I've moved it to a shelf over the buffet - I was afraid that here, on the windowsill with a bunch of other things, it might get bumped and broken.  As it turns out, this hummingbird was a positive omen - we saw our first hummingbird coming to our trumpet vine blooms yesterday afternoon!

We also spotted one lone daylily by the shed.  The deer have eaten all the rest of them.

Right after I walked over to take the above picture, 5 deer wandered into the yard and one of them looked like it was going to munch down on this bloom.  We (Fletch) chased him off.  Among the 5 were 2 very little spotted fawns.  So precious!

Dinner lst night was a meal I have made in the past:  One Pot Sausage and Arugula Pasta.  So good!

Hooray for Penne pasta - one of my favorites.  Bring on the carbs!  LOL

Here's the easy/peasy recipe in case anyone is interested.

Plenty of leftovers too.  I froze some and there is a container in the frig for lunch some day.

Well, it's Friday so I have conference calls.  One at 10:00 and then my 1:00 call was moved to 4 p.m.  I'm planning to skip that one.  I'm looking forward to meeting up with Dee tomorrow morning for our therapy session - nothing better than knitting, sipping and chatting with a friend.  Other than that, no real plans for the weekend.  We may head back over to C&M's house to do some things...or we may skip this weekend.  Time will tell.

Whatever your plans are, I wish you all a wonderful weekend!

More Trail Pictures and a Friday Feline!

 Good Morning!

Another grey morning and a little nip in the air.  Lots of rain around us, but we didn't get any.  In fact, Fletch and I sat around a fire last night for a little bit.  No conference calls today!  But, I have a rather large spreadsheet I need to work on, so I will be busy.  I'll try to walk a little later.  First I need to go back to feed Talbot & Marcel (Colin and Mailing will get back tomorrow).  C&M had a rainy time in Richmond, but were able to meet up with Fletcher's cousin for dinner.  I believe they are heading to Washington today to see a friend.

I did get out to walk yesterday (5 miles) in Oaks.  This trail is paved and easy to walk on.  I looked out at the Schuylkill River and saw a Blue Heron hanging with some ducks.

Herons always look so regal to me.  Then I came upon this EVIL SERPENT and almost screamed out loud (well, I kind of did...)

Yes, I know it's a harmless garter snake, but still...an EVIL SERPENT to me.  Just about scared the sh*t out of me!

On to nicer things.  Just because it's Friday, here is a picture of Tyg (and yours truly).

He doesn't look happy in the picture, but he was purring up a storm.  Tyg is not fond of the fires we have in the pit, but last night he actually came around and hung with us for awhile.  Maybe he is getting used to them?

Well, cheers to the weekend!  Hope you all have a wonderful one.  Enjoy!

Weekending

 Good Morning!

Did you all have a nice weekend?  I hope so.  Mine was lovely...and three days too!  Thank you all for the kind birthday wishes.  I had a very nice day and apologize for not responding to comments, but...I turned off the computer and left if off for 3 days.  So nice!

Meanwhile, Dee came over on Friday and we took a nice long walk along the Perkiomen Creek and then went out for coffee, knitting and more chatting.  It was such a nice time.

I imanaged to get out for walks on both Saturday and Sunday as well.  Saturday I was back at Oaks (Perkiomen Creek) and Sunday I walked the River Trail in Valley Forge which goes along next to the Schuylkill River.  I took a couple of pictures on Sunday, but nothing fabulous.  I saw one guy canoeing on the River (opposite side, so far away) and one bee very busy at some flowers.

It was a beautiful morning for a walk.  Our temps in the morning have been in the lower 60's.  Some humidity, but not as bad as some days.  I'm hoping to get out today to walk along the canal...depends on how busy it gets work-wise.

Our garden is continuing to produce.  Fletch picked some more green beans and Sun Gold cherry tomatoes.  Also orange bell peppers which have finally turned orange!  Best of all, our large tomatoes are FINALLY ripening!

We were happy to see this guy show up yesterday...hadn't seen him in a few days and were worried that Tyg had gotten to him!  But he is ok.

Turns out there was another one in the water too!  This little guy jumped right in as soon as Tyg walked by on the patio - lol.  He was not going to take any chances!

I did manage to get a little knitting done over the weekend as well.  I started a hat Antler Toque by Tin Can Knits - free on Ravelry and a new pair of socks using the Hera's Peacock yarn.  The pattern is This One - Val's latest release and it's free!!  Thank you Val.  Loving the way it is knitting up.

I even managed to find time to switch to a Fall tablecloth!  (Also a Fall runner on the buffet).

That's pretty much a wrap on the weekend.  It was a good one.  Now it's back to work.  I'm home today but need to go to the office both Tuesday and Wednesday (Kevin is conducting panel interviews for an RVP position).  They won't be full days for me, luckily.  I'm looking forward to catching up on everything you all have been up to.

Unraveled Wednesday 6/24/20

Hello and Good Morning!

It's a bit overcast and muggy here.  I need to get into the office this morning, so I'm guessing I will not be walking today.  I did manage to walk yesterday morning (around 9:30).  I walked 3.6 miles on the Oaks path.  Though still warm it was not nearly as bad as it was walking at 1 p.m. the day before.

Knitting is moving along nicely.

That is the Hellebore Hitchhiker with a few more teeth and the start of the Tomfoolery sock (which is reminding me of Tequila Sunrise).

Here's a close up of the sock which isn't great - I think this is one where it is going to need to be spread out on a leg for the pattern to be appreciated.  I'm knitting Cathedral Socks by Jeanie Townsend (free on Ravelry), BUT...I am not doing any purl stitches (except in the cuff).  I always mess up when doing purl stitches and yarn overs so I decided just to skip the purls and simply knit (plus I'm much faster at knitting than purling).  There's a bit of lace and a few cables, both of which I wanted.  Hopefully they will look good once on!

I've also managed to make a few more Granny Squares - no real dent in the needed 75 more (at least) for my blanket, but at least a start.

Yesterday when Fletch went out to water things in the garden he found this under our apple tree:

The sweet beginnings of a little nest.  Not sure why it was abandoned or who it belonged to, but it is fun to see how intricately the grass is woven.

As I mentioned, I've got to go into the office this morning.  Suddenly there is a bunch of stuff that needs to be done TODAY, so I will be busy.  Additionally, I had an e-mail from one of the managers at the Embassy Suites across the street from my office.  They are offering (free) 2 rib eye steaks, seasoning packets, an onion and a few other things.  Their chef will be doing a zoom class Thursday late afternoon.  I'm not doing the zoom class, but I am scheduled to pick up steaks this morning!  The hotel has been going through extensive renovations (badly needed) during the pandemic and now they are trying to drum up business again.

So that's my Wednesday.  I need to get dressed and out of here.  Should be a pretty drive through Valley Forge Park to get to my office.  Hope your week is going well!

Please head over to Kat's to see what others are making!

End of the (Work) Week

Good Morning!

We made it to Friday, so cheers for that.  It has been a busy week work-wise for me.  I've missed walking, but the weather hasn't been the best anyway.  More grey and damp today.  Some are saying a chance of snow on Saturday.  I'm not listening/not paying attention/ refuse to believe!

First of all, Happy Mother's Day to all.  Some of us have human children, some of us have animal children, all of us nurture something or someone.  I'll be remembering my own Mom (and missing her) and Fletcher's Mom (and missing her too).

No new Granny Squares since Wednesday.  The heel of Tutti Fruitty sock #2 has been turned and gusset stitches picked up.  Hopefully I will knit down the foot today/tomorrow and this pair of socks will be completed over the weekend.  I'd like to wind the yarn from Make Do (Vicki) and cast on a hitchhiker.  And, if it is as chilly as forecast, I think I will cook a turkey breast that has been sitting in the freezer for months.  And then make a big pot of turkey soup!  That's pretty much as far as any weekend plans for me go.  IF the weather cooperates, I'd love to get outside...yet TBD.

Meanwhile, let's see what's been happening around the yard.  Big news:  the fig plant that the deer munched on last year and left for dead appears to have revived!!  There are several buds on one of the twig stalks.  Happy!!  Even bigger news:

We have two Asian Pears forming on our little tree!!!  There were so many blooms we hoped we would get a pear or two, but didn't expect to see them so early!

The sugar snap peas are growing quickly and climbing the trellis.  No blooms yet, but it won't be long:

And the rhubarb is now flowering:

That's another weekend thing - I need to harvest some rhubarb and bake a pie 😊

Our wisteria seems less full than usual - a bit on the sparse side, but still very pretty and so fragrant:

Given today's forecast (rain - heavy at times) I decided to cut a lilac bloom to bring inside:

Gorgeous, non?  Early this morning (4:30!!) Tyg wanted to go out.  When I walked downstairs and headed towards the kitchen to let him out on the patio, all I could smell was lilac.  It was wonderful!

And that wraps up things for me today.  I have a conference call in an hour and then another one after that.  I'm hoping for an easy afternoon!  Have a wonderful weekend.

Some Pretties and Some Creatures

Good Morning!

The sun is out and it looks like it will be a beautiful day.  But, oh boy!  The temps sure dropped last night.  Fletch actually shut the patio door and turned the heat on in the downstairs bathroom before dinner!  Good thing I did not mess with my clothes yet and winter woolens are still available (don't really believe I'll be wearing them...but...).

Yesterday I never made it into the office.  I got busy with work and then all of a sudden it was time for my 10:00 conference call.  So, the plan is to make a mad dash in this morning and be home before lunch.

Finally our lilacs are beginning to open.  The fragrence is just amazing!

This is a plant that I brought down from Vermont years ago and it has struggled ever since.  We never have many blooms.  This year I think there are 5-6 clusters.  Last year it was pretty much choked by a vine of some kind (can't remember this morning what it is), but I think we were able to rip all of that out, so here's hoping that the lilac will now thrive.

Then there is this plant that we have down near our crepe myrtle by the edge of the street.  It is something Fletcher's Mom brought to us and neither of us can remember what it is.  Does anyone know what it is?

And a close up:

The flowers almost look like spent nut shells.

Now for the creatures.  First of all, Tyg.  This box is at the end of the hallway (the area that appears to be a dumping ground for things to go down to the basement...), just outside the office room door.  He curled up in the box and was purring so loudly when I started my conference call at 10 yesterday morning.  And, he ended up sleeping in the box for over 2 hours!  So silly and so cute.

Last afternoon/evening while I was preparing dinner I walked from the livingroom into the kitchen and glanced out the patio door.  I saw this guy hanging out at our peanut feeder:

I love this shot!  I think it was a red-bellied woodpecker, but he flew off before I could get closer.

Yesterday was also a fun mail day.  Last week I ordered a skein of yarn from Vicki and it arrived in yesterday's mail!  Woo-Hoo!  It is even more gorgeous in person than in this picture.

There is a lot of yarn here folks - 463 yards and it is a soft 4 ply fingering (75/25 superwash).  The colorway is Hellebore and it is just so pretty.  I did not have anything in mind to make with it, I just fell in love with the colors.  But now that I have it in my hands, I believe it is screaming Hitchhiker!  It's been a year since I knit one, so it might be time.  What do you think?

Weekending

Good Morning!

How was your weekend?  Mine was filled with a variety of different things which was nice.  I managed to get out for a walk after lunch on Friday and it was the perfect time to go.  I walked along the towpath between the canal and the Schuylkill River in Phoenixville.  The trail was pretty empty - just a few people here and there.  Plenty of BIG turtles were out sunning themselves.

I also saw the Evil Serpent

A good reason to NOT go paddle boarding here!

Best of all, I saw the Blue Heron

These birds are so majestic looking.  I never tire of seeing them.

Friday night I made the mushroom tacos that Vicki blogged about in mid-April.  Oh my!  I could eat these every single night.  The creamy slaw was delicious and the fried shallots are to die for!!

That night I mixed up some "artisan bread" that Minerva blogged about the other week.  Easy Peasy.  Four ingredients you can leave overnight and then bake in the morning.  No kneading required.

A bit lop-sided, but tasty!  We had it Saturday night with some grilled hot & sweet Italian sausage. 

Saturday afternoon I went back to Oaks to walk along the Perkiomen Creek.  It was a beautiful, sunny day and the trail was mobbed!  I have never seen so many cars parked there and I had to wait for walkers, joggers and bikers to pass before I could even get onto the trail.  Way too many people, but I did manager to walk for over an hour which was nice.

The wisteria is beginning to open now and is so fragrant.  Our iris are budded and should open this week (right on time - they always bloom the first week of May).  The lilac is still not fully open, but I could see that some clusters are slowly opening.

I had a zip lock bag filled with ends of embroidery thread and yarn, so I spread that out on the fire pit for birds to take.

I think most of it blew away before any takers came.  We do have a pair of wrens fixing a nest in our apple tree (in a bird house hanging from a branch).  I think there is a nest (robin??) in one of the bushes at the front of our house - every time I walk by I hear something/someone chirping at me.

Sunday afternoon I rearranged my sewing and knitting books.  They were in a jumble and not readily accessible.  I needed more space/another bookcase!  So, I put some of Colin's books into two boxes and grabbed the bookcase those were in to use for my stuff!  Of course I spent some time flipping through books I had not looked at in years.  An enjoyable way to spend an afternoon.

Today or tomorrow I will go into the office for an hour or so.  I have things I need to print on what we call "big boy paper" - 11x17 - (easier on the eyes for some things) and my printer at home doesn't accommodate that size paper.  If nothing else, it will be nice to take a little drive through Valley Forge Park.  I did gas up the car the other day - first time since March 15th!!  And wow has the price of gas dropped.

It feels like Spring is finally here to stay and the days are getting warmer, so it's time to put away the winter woolens and drag out the capri pants and summer tops.  I may try to do that at some point this week.  No rush as I wear the same thing every day - lol.  Leggings and tee shirts or jeans and a tee shirt.

There was some knitting and crocheting over the weekend too.  Another granny square was made and a second one started.  The leg of tutti-fruitty sock #2 is progressing (about a third of the way finished).  More on those things another day.

Wishing you all a wonderful week - enjoy!

Unraveled Wednesday 4/29/20 and a Walk

Good Morning All!

How are we already at the end of April?  As many have already noted, the months seem to be speeding by.  The days are so often all alike and yet all of a sudden a full month is gone!  It's that "Oddball Effect" that Kym mentioned on Monday.  Weird stuff.

So here we are at the last Unraveled Wednesday for April 2020.  A little progress was made on the Tutti Fruitti sock for my SIL.

The heel is not quite the HOT pink I had envisioned...but I seem to be out of that and this Mad Tosh yarn in the colorway "Coquette" seems to work well enough.  A bit more to knit on the foot and then I will add in the green for the toe area. 

And, I've been making my Granny Squares.  I'm up to 8 now!

I really am enjoying these.  Sometimes I think about the color and a lot of times I just stick my hand into the basket where all my bits and bobs are and see what comes out!  The colors for #9 are in a bowl waiting for me to pick up my crochet hook.  Maybe today.

On the reading front, I believe I finally am into a book that I will finish AND enjoy!!  LOL  My reading slump has gone on for so long and I've been so distracted.  I do love memoirs, and finally picked up Bella Tuscany by Frances Mayes.  I loved "Under the Tuscan Sun" (the book...I didn't really like the movie) and this continues their story of their second home in Tuscany.  So far, so good and I'm about 100 pages into it.

Head on over to Kat's to see her gorgeous knitting and also see what others are making and reading.

Meanwhile, yesterday turned out to be an unexpected day of SUNSHINE!!!  So, after lunch I headed over to the towpath for a much needed walk.  It was a little busy but everyone kept their distance.  There were people in kayaks, walkers, runners, bikers and a bit of wildlife.  Turtles were everywhere basking in the sun (some are SO big!!):

Some cute ducks by the side of the trail and then a family of geese out for a little swim.

On my way back a gorgeous cormorant flew from the river to the canal and landed nearby:

When I got home, Fletch was mowing the yard which desperately needed it.  When he was finished I walked around a bit.  First up our redbud which is so gorgeous this year:

And our arbor looks so pretty.  This is sort of at the end of our back yard and at the entrance to our woods.  We do have a (very young - not visible here) forsythia trained around part of it and a wild rose also.

The garden is really coming to life.  Lettuce is abundant and the rhubarb leaves are already the size of dinner plates!

And lastly...out front I came across this...near the front door....

A segmented spider egg case.  Yuck!  But, it is interesting and I had never seen one before.  Ironically Colin had taken a picture of one at his house the other day and sent it to Fletch to see if he knew what it was.  And then I find this!

Well, if you've read through all this, thanks for sticking with me.  I was just so happy to be able to spend time (comfortably) outside yesterday!  Today seems to be a mix of sun and clouds.  There is a flood watch for our area, but I don't see a strong likelihood of rain in the forecast.  Who knows?

Hope your Wednesday is a good one!