Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Mermice and Socks...........


I just finished the second Mermouse for our other granddaughter's birthday which isn't until December.  Since that month can be extremely busy, I wanted to get her done now.


For more information on where you can buy this pattern, please see our previous post on the Mermice.


Now I can settle in and get more socks cranked out on our antique sock machine.  Isn't it amazing that a hank like this can become a pair of socks like this?


In other knitting news, a new pattern that I started a hundred years ago is almost done.  Seriously!  If you love Intarsia knitting AND dogs and cats, you will love this design!  I think two more days of solid knitting should do it and then I will have to redo the chart on Adobe Illustrator.  That in itself may take about two days.  This is the start of a new series called, "DOGHANS AND CATGHANS - Tail Wagging Afghans."  Does that give you enough of a hint?  The first pattern will be called, "Pals."  So, stay tuned and hopefully we'll get it up and running next week.

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Visiting a Local Farm


We decided to drive over to the Cummings Valley and pick up some tomatoes from one of our favorite farms.


This photo above is a nice view of the entrance into Bear Valley Springs.  There's something like 5 valleys in our area.


The Cummings Valley has many farms and ranches and even the Ostrich Ranch is located here.  Since my husband has never been to it, I promised that we'd visit very soon.


This is looking south in the valley and these mountains are part of the Tehachapi Mountain chain.


And while we were out and about, we spotted an estate sale and decided to stop.  We picked up this small sculpture called "Supper's Ready" which was inspired by the August, 1903 cover of Field & Stream magazine.  It's not a bronze or anything like that, but we just liked it!

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Mary's Birthday Present.......

Our adopted granddaughter's birthday is coming up and she'll be a big four years old.  This little girl has been through so much, so I wanted to make her something extra special.


And when I saw an adorable book called, "Phoebe's Birthday" by Joanna Johnson, I knew just what Mary would receive for her birthday - a Mermouse!  Joanna's husband, Eric, did all the amazing illustrations and of course Joanna's story is absolutely darling.
 

Not only will you find the sewing pattern for "Phoebe Mermouse" in the book, but several knitting patterns and one for a lovely quilt as well.  I bought Joanna's book from her Etsy shop, which she so kindly signed for both Mary and Dana.  You can also visit Joanna and Eric's website at www.slatefallspress.com

Dana's birthday isn't until December, but I'll make her Mermouse tomorrow and put it away until then.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Back to My Old Life.........

For the past 5 months I've been watching our five grandchildren, which meant getting up at 5 a.m., watering, feeding all the animals and then driving one hour to Bakersfield.  I did this 3 days a week and then rushed around here the rest of the week trying to keep everything caught up.  Somewhere in there I even managed to get a "40 pair of socks" order out.

And tomorrow, all the munchkins will be in school - all the way from pre-school up to Jr. High.  My old life returns tomorrow and I have to tell you - I'll miss the kids, but I'm so glad to see those 5 months come to an end.  I'm sure that I have enough material to write a book on what 5 kids can do to one grandmother!

Today I thought I'd get a headstart with my sock knitting and made this pair that will be placed in our Etsy shop tomorrow morning.


These were made on "Doris", our antique sock machine which has 72 needles.  The stripe pattern will definitely vary based on the number of stitches that are used.  This is the Sakkie sock yarn from Plymouth Yarn Co. and it's a 40% mohair, 40% wool, 20% nylon blend.  I love this yarn!


The girls seem glad to have me home, too.  Gosh, they've grown so much these past several months.


The pears on our trees are just about ready and the girls come running when my husband offers them one.  We can't decide if they love corn or the pears the most.


We kinda thought by now that there'd be a "head hen" but they seem to treat each other as equals.  Occasionally, one will get a bit "peckish" and chase the others, but so far they've been quite sisterly to one another. 

Hopefully, the posts will be a bit more frequent now and occasionally I'll share some of the "highlights" of supervising 5 grandchildren.  I was hoping that Friday, being the last day together would end on a high note, but that fantasy came to an abrupt end when our 8 year old grandson slammed the front door (accidentally) on our 3 year old grandson's head!  Yes, he's fine and I survived it, too!

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

A Week in Review......


 

I'm about to start a little sewing project for our two new adopted granddaughters.  Here's a hint: they're what one might call a dual creature!


Last Wednesday our 8 year old grandson, Mitchell, came home with us and spent two nights.  He hadn't seen the chickens yet and was so thrilled to get to go inside their coop and feed 'em some corn on the cob.


Saturday we picked the most delicious peaches at a local orchard and decided to make some jam for those long winter months.  YUMMO


And since there were still oodles of peaches left, a pie got popped into the oven. Double YUMMO


We've had about 5 days of monsoon weather coming up from the south which sparked a fire to our north.  It's still burning and today our valley is thick with smoke.  A good day to stay inside and clean house?

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Sock Giveaway....The Winner Is.......


This hank of Sakkie sock yarn which is color #404 became.........


this delicious pair of hand cranked socks!  And the lucky randomly drawn name is.......
Beth W.  Congratulations Beth!  I will head over to Ravelry and send you a message from there or if you are reading this post, please email me with your mailing address.  Sure hope that we made your day! 

It was oodles of fun having this giveaway and reading all your wonderful comments.  I read each and every one and absolutely love hearing from you.  Please be sure to visit again to read about our life in the California mountains, raising chickens and living totally off the electrical grid.  And on one of your next visits, you just may see that we're having yet another giveaway!

Have a wonderful weekend.