My BIL's dog, Franklin, managed to pop up between two chairs
as we were still sitting at the table after Christmas dinner
and get a good slurp of gravy in. Oh happy day!
For more Wordless Wednesday fun, click here.
January 4, 2011
Oh Mittened One
No, no, not that one. I said mitten, not glove!
Today is my sweet niece's 21st birthday. (Oh Lord, we're gettin' old, sis!) She had requested something knitted for her birthday -- a pair of mittens -- purple mittens.
I was so far behind on my Christmas knitting, that I never even got a chance to start her birthday mittens until after Christmas. And then we had that tragically sad week between Christmas and New Year's when I really didn't get anything done around here, including knitting. So ...
I have one finished. Behold, the lone mitten ...
Here you see it perched on a wine glass for the photo op, which I thought was extremely fitting since she is now 21 and of legal imbibing age.
And here's the best part. I emailed my sister and asked her to give my apologies to said niece because her birthday gift is going to be way late this year and I received this email from my Minnesota niece in response ...
It's okay Aunt Jayaycee! When I drive, I only put one hand on the steering wheel, so that'll work out just fine! Nobody will know that I only have one mitten! hahaha jk.
I SUPPPPPPOOOOSSSSEEEEE I can wait. My mom says I can't be disappointed because you guys have been a little stressed out this holiday season, so I completely understand and will wait, mittenless, in this butt freezing cold weather, for you to finish my right hand masterpiece. Love you MUCHES! (That's spanish, so ask Huncle for a translation). :D.
-Love your smart ass Niece
Makes me laugh every time I read it and I have re-read it frequently this week. Kiddo, you kill me and I absolutely adore you!
To explain a few of the above references. Hubby has been working on Spanish in Rosetta Stone so he should be able to explain to me what muches means. And when this niece along with another niece and nephew were out here a few years ago for a visit, we made the mistake of showing them a manipulated picture we had taken at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas where our faces were scanned into a rather scandalous photo that made Hubby look like Fabio on steroids. Ever since, they have called him Huncle! Dontcha love it???
So Happy 21st Birthday, Sweetie Pie Niece. I promise to have both mittens in the mail to you this week -- even though your Huncle thought I should just mail them one at a time. =D
January 3, 2011
A Foggy Day in Phoenix
We've had some real desert-style winter in Phoenix recently. Our temperatures dropped into the low 20s on New Year's Eve and we even had some actual snowflakes in parts of town. We've had some bushes and trees freeze to the point that they've turned completely brown and will, hopefully, live on after it warms up and they've been trimmed back. A lot of people cover their landscaping with sheets and towels in an effort to hold in some of the heat and protect from the freeze. I know to all you folks who shovel your way out every morning this sounds like a walk in the park, but it is definitely unusual for this part of the country.
On the morning of Friday, December 17th, we woke up to some strange looking fog and these pictures are so surreal considering we're usually bathed in sunshine, I just had to share them with you. These are color photos - I did not manipulate them at all - and the first three shots were taken in the back yard at 8:28 a.m. ...
I walked out the front door one minute later and it was brightening up just a little as you look down the street, although you can't see a thing at the end of the block and there are houses there ...
Then in the back yard one more time at 8:30 a.m. where the fog was lifting and we could start to see some actual color ...
So that's what a foggy day in Phoenix looks like over a two to three minute period.
On the morning of Friday, December 17th, we woke up to some strange looking fog and these pictures are so surreal considering we're usually bathed in sunshine, I just had to share them with you. These are color photos - I did not manipulate them at all - and the first three shots were taken in the back yard at 8:28 a.m. ...
I walked out the front door one minute later and it was brightening up just a little as you look down the street, although you can't see a thing at the end of the block and there are houses there ...
Then in the back yard one more time at 8:30 a.m. where the fog was lifting and we could start to see some actual color ...
So that's what a foggy day in Phoenix looks like over a two to three minute period.
January 2, 2011
Christmas Knitting 2010
It amazes me that after I thought about it and talked about it for most of the year, I was still knitting right up until a few days before Christmas trying to get everything done. When will I learn? *sigh* Probably never!
Made 9 hats, a bracelet bag and a cowl for Christmas gifts ...
The bracelet bag was for my niece who goes out on the town with her girlfriends. I got the idea from Laurie at http://www.crazyauntpurl.com/ who made a felted bracelet bag. I'm not into felting so I revamped it with Lion Brand Homespun yarn in the black and gray Edwardian colorway.
I have to stop writing patterns down on post-it notes as I'm making them up because I can't find this one now. Basically, though, the Homespun yarn calls for size 10 needles, but I went down to size 6 dpns to make the fabric really tight. I started by crocheting a small circle (about 1-3/4" in diameter) for the bottom of the bag with a size H crochet hook, then picked up 30 stitches and knit in the round for about 4-1/2 inches until it was long enough to hold my cell phone, driver's license and a lip gloss.
I bound off 9 stitches, knitted 6, bound off another 9, then knitted the last 6. I continued knitting and purling the last 6 stitches back and forth for about 5 or 6 rows until there was enough length to fold the tab over a bracelet and stitch it down. Then I reattached yarn for the other 6 stitches and did the same thing. After searching a number of stores, I finally found the pair of bangle bracelets at Cost Plus World Market. Since my niece likes yellow gold jewelry, I would have preferred gold bracelets but could only find silver which, fortunately, ended up looking pretty good with the black and gray yarn. I also knitted a small flower pin to attach to the side that can be removed. The button in the center of the flower looks like it's covered in black velvet, which dresses it up a little more.
The beauty of this bag is you just wear it. If you're out at a club or dancing, you don't have to leave your purse unattended at the table. You simply wear it on your wrist ...
I also made a last minute cowl for our youngest daughter who has moved to a colder climate. Her new winter coat is chocolate brown with some pink trim. I used a double strand of worsted weight variegated yarn on size 17 needles and cast on 23 stitches. The pattern for each row was slip 1, knit 1, *purl 2, knit 2*, repeating the stitches between the asterisks to the last stitch which was purl 1.
It measures 11 inches wide and I knit until it was 24 inches long, then bound off.
I picked up four chocolate brown buttons that look a little like leather at Jo-Ann's and sewed them on evenly across the cowl. Since the stitches are loose because of the large needles used, she can actually button this anywhere she wants to, making it tighter, looser, asymmetrical, folded over, whatever makes her happy at the moment.
So that was the extent of my Christmas knitting for last year. I guess it's not too early to think about Christmas 2011, is it???
Made 9 hats, a bracelet bag and a cowl for Christmas gifts ...
The bracelet bag was for my niece who goes out on the town with her girlfriends. I got the idea from Laurie at http://www.crazyauntpurl.com/ who made a felted bracelet bag. I'm not into felting so I revamped it with Lion Brand Homespun yarn in the black and gray Edwardian colorway.
I have to stop writing patterns down on post-it notes as I'm making them up because I can't find this one now. Basically, though, the Homespun yarn calls for size 10 needles, but I went down to size 6 dpns to make the fabric really tight. I started by crocheting a small circle (about 1-3/4" in diameter) for the bottom of the bag with a size H crochet hook, then picked up 30 stitches and knit in the round for about 4-1/2 inches until it was long enough to hold my cell phone, driver's license and a lip gloss.
I bound off 9 stitches, knitted 6, bound off another 9, then knitted the last 6. I continued knitting and purling the last 6 stitches back and forth for about 5 or 6 rows until there was enough length to fold the tab over a bracelet and stitch it down. Then I reattached yarn for the other 6 stitches and did the same thing. After searching a number of stores, I finally found the pair of bangle bracelets at Cost Plus World Market. Since my niece likes yellow gold jewelry, I would have preferred gold bracelets but could only find silver which, fortunately, ended up looking pretty good with the black and gray yarn. I also knitted a small flower pin to attach to the side that can be removed. The button in the center of the flower looks like it's covered in black velvet, which dresses it up a little more.
The beauty of this bag is you just wear it. If you're out at a club or dancing, you don't have to leave your purse unattended at the table. You simply wear it on your wrist ...
I also made a last minute cowl for our youngest daughter who has moved to a colder climate. Her new winter coat is chocolate brown with some pink trim. I used a double strand of worsted weight variegated yarn on size 17 needles and cast on 23 stitches. The pattern for each row was slip 1, knit 1, *purl 2, knit 2*, repeating the stitches between the asterisks to the last stitch which was purl 1.
It measures 11 inches wide and I knit until it was 24 inches long, then bound off.
I picked up four chocolate brown buttons that look a little like leather at Jo-Ann's and sewed them on evenly across the cowl. Since the stitches are loose because of the large needles used, she can actually button this anywhere she wants to, making it tighter, looser, asymmetrical, folded over, whatever makes her happy at the moment.
So that was the extent of my Christmas knitting for last year. I guess it's not too early to think about Christmas 2011, is it???
January 1, 2011
Here We Come 2011
Happy New Year, everyone! I'm planning to be productive in 2011, as in not wasting a second. Even just sitting and thinking can be productive, right? Being in the moment - enjoying all the knitting and cooking and sewing, learning new things, making a happy home for my sweet Hubby and showering love and attention on all of my loved ones - being in the moment!
I've been changing the photos in my masthead every month for a while now and today is no exception.
From left to right, we have three photos taken on Christmas morning: Louie and Miles playing tug of war with a candy cane shaped rawhide bone; the annual Monkey Bread breakfast; and a photo taken with one of the coolest gifts from Hubby. The last one was on New Year's Eve. Apparently, fireworks are now legal in Phoenix so the Granddaughter begged Hubby/Bampa to pick up a package for last night. We had so much smoke on our back patio, it looked like a Cheech & Chong movie. It was just plain fun and a great way to bring in the new year.
I understand there are many versions of Monkey Bread out there. The one I've been using for many years, I pulled out of a magazine. It was in an ad for Blue Bonnet margarine and Rhodes frozen roll dough and they actually call it Caramel Pull-Aparts. Even though this stuff smells like heaven baking and has been known to get the family out of bed, we didn't need any help getting up Christmas morning because the Granddaughter SET HER ALARM FOR 5:00 A.M. Then, as always, she crawled into bed between us and started talking. I'm not much of a morning conversationalist so I was happy to start heating up the oven, baking breakfast and making coffee while she talked her Bampa's ear off.
Here's the recipe for our Monkey Bread ...
Caramel Pull-Aparts (Monkey Bread)
24 Rhodes white rolls, thawed but still cold (any brand will work)
1 small box non-instant butterscotch pudding (used instant because non-instant wasn't available)
1/2 cup chopped pecans (we doubled this because we like a lot of pecans)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
Spray bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray. Cut rolls in half and roll in dry pudding mix. Arrange in pan alternately with pecans. Sprinkle remaining pudding mix over the top. Combine brown sugar and butter; heat together until butter is melted and syrup is formed. Stir well. Pour syrup over rolls. Cover with sprayed plastic wrap. Let rise until double in size or even with the top of the bundt pan. Remove wrap and bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Cover with foil the last 15 minutes of baking. Do not underbake. Immediately after baking, invert onto a serving platter.
Prepared but not yet risen ...
After rising during the night but not yet baked. As you can see, ours outgrew the bundt pan by morning but that's okay ...
Yum ...
I'm going to put a post together about the cool present that Hubby got me so you can share in the fun. Again, happy 2011 to everyone!!!
December 31, 2010
Ending 2010
I don't like to post about sad things but this has been a horrible week. One of our neighbors, a beautiful lady with a terrific husband and two great kids, passed away the day after Christmas after a year-long battle with cancer. As we were getting ready to attend her memorial service, my FIL called to let us know that Hubby's sister's husband had been killed in a head-on collision the night before. I have such a headache from crying.
All of this came after we had a very nice Christmas, which almost makes me feel guilty.
I hope all of you have a very warm, wonderful and safe New Year's Eve and head into 2011 with peace and love in your hearts.
All of this came after we had a very nice Christmas, which almost makes me feel guilty.
I hope all of you have a very warm, wonderful and safe New Year's Eve and head into 2011 with peace and love in your hearts.
December 24, 2010
Merry Christmas to All ...
This is the first Christmas Eve I can remember when I'm not doing last minute wrapping. Now that's a Christmas miracle! I'm going to do a little baking today so we can deliver plates to a few of our favorite people. Maybe we'll watch a few holiday movies that we haven't had a chance to see yet and the puppies need baths.
Here's our naked Christmas tree a few weeks ago; a 9-foot Noble Fir that smells so wonderful ...
And here is it all dressed up and ready for Christmas ...
And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.”
I'm feeling the joy!
Here's our naked Christmas tree a few weeks ago; a 9-foot Noble Fir that smells so wonderful ...
And here is it all dressed up and ready for Christmas ...
Holiday teddy bears, a wind-up Santa and the beautiful Christmas patchwork basket my Mom made filled with chocolate treats ...
I am feeling the joy!
Luke 2:9-14
And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men.”
Wishing you and yours a safe, warm, joyous holiday!
December 18, 2010
Back Amongst the Living
We have had the most dreadful gomboo at our house for over a week now, which equates to a combination head and chest cold, the kind of coughing that turns you inside out, stomach flu, fever and (for Hubby) a sinus infection. We have been passing this mess back and forth like we're playing ping pong and it has left everyone feeling pretty much like this ...
I had to call in sick to my new job two days this week. Gaaaaah! And don't even get me started on how far behind I am on Christmas now. Just thinking about it makes me want to crawl back into bed and pull the covers over my head. But, nope, I'll be blasting some Christmas music and making a To Do List. I have one week left to get everything checked off.
Before we got sick, we managed to get a few Christmas decorations up on the front porch ...
And the Granddaughter has always put up her own 4' tree, decorated with a lot of Ty Jingle Beanie ornaments ...
Yes, that is a PINK tree!
When we first bought our retail store nearly 10 years ago, the Granddaughter was 4 years old. She loved, loved, loved to spend time at the store and she had no problem chatting with customers. She'd walk up to anybody and everybody and say something along the lines of, "Let me show you what I like." Then she'd march them over to the section with Beanie Babies and plush toys.
We did a lot of custom printing of stationery and holiday cards and wedding invitations and such, and had an area of tables in the back of the store where we'd sit with customers and take orders. Once when I was on a phone call with a vendor, an older gentleman came in to order note cards. Seeing that I was tied up on the phone, the Granddaughter climbed up onto a chair, grabbed an order pad and pencil and asked him, "How do you spell your name?" What makes that so cute is she really had no idea what she was writing down, but she proceeded to take his order. He was completely charmed!
The other thing in our store that she was extremely fascinated with was the cash register. She'd pull a step stool over to the check-out counter, climb up and start pushing buttons on the register. There were several nights when my totals were so off, I had to start from scratch to figure out what sales were like that day. So that first Christmas after we got the store, we bought her a Barbie Cash Register so she'd have her own to play with. This thing had all kinds of great bells and whistles, including a credit card swiper and a microphone with loud speaker. Hubby's parents were visiting that Christmas and we were all in the kitchen getting ready to eat when we heard my FIL in the living room calling over the loudspeaker, "Clean up on Aisle 4." Still cracks me up!!!
Hope you're having a Holly Jolly Christmas so far!
December 10, 2010
Christmas Time Out
That's right ... I'm going to give MYSELF a time out for Christmas. People, Christmas is THE SAME DAY EVERY YEAR so WHY am I always so far behind? Maybe I just perform better under stressful conditions.
Speaking of performing, if you have delicate sensibilities, stop reading now because I'm going to tell you something Hubby said the other day. I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off and he goes all biblical on me and says this stupid thing -- and I quote:
I probably should have simply told him he could pick up pipe cleaners at the craft store and I even have a coupon. However, what I said back to him is not in the Bible and wasn't particularly lady like either. Remember on "Everybody Loves Raymond" when Debra called Ray an idiot? Well, IDIOT!!! Actually, after 25 years of marriage, I am so glad that we still laugh together every day, even if that's all we're doing together. And some days we laugh a lot harder than others!
One of the reasons I'm so far behind is I started a new job in November doing part-time administrative work for a medical office and guess what? As Sally Field so sweetly put it in her Oscar acceptance speech, "... I can't deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me!" They like me. They've already added more hours and given me a raise. Woo hoo!
Let me share with you a picture my baby sister sent me from her home in the greatNortheast Northwest (depends on which way you're facing and I've always been directionally challenged) ...
Oh, *sigh* I do love that front door and her wreath is so beautiful! She actually cut the holly and hawthorne berries in her own yard and put this beauty together for only $2, which was the cost of the grapevine wreath from the Goodwill that she used as the base. She's been saving the ribbon since the 90s (oh yeah, another pack rat in the family) and since she used to work in floral design, she has the bow tying thing down. Great job, sis!!!
So back to my Christmas time out. I still have several gifts to knit and sew, packages to wrap, box and ship, baking to do and (thank you Jesus for just the right job) work to go to three days a week. We haven't even decorated the Christmas tree yet ... it currently sits, all gorgeous, fragrant and naked in the corner of the living room. I'm not a big fan of egg nog, so I think I'll just pull my chair into the time out corner and knock back a tequila shooter while I knit. I apologize in advance to anyone who gets something I knit while under the influence. It is the thought that counts ... right???
Speaking of performing, if you have delicate sensibilities, stop reading now because I'm going to tell you something Hubby said the other day. I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off and he goes all biblical on me and says this stupid thing -- and I quote:
Thou shalt service thy husband and keep his pipes clean.
I probably should have simply told him he could pick up pipe cleaners at the craft store and I even have a coupon. However, what I said back to him is not in the Bible and wasn't particularly lady like either. Remember on "Everybody Loves Raymond" when Debra called Ray an idiot? Well, IDIOT!!! Actually, after 25 years of marriage, I am so glad that we still laugh together every day, even if that's all we're doing together. And some days we laugh a lot harder than others!
One of the reasons I'm so far behind is I started a new job in November doing part-time administrative work for a medical office and guess what? As Sally Field so sweetly put it in her Oscar acceptance speech, "... I can't deny the fact that you like me, right now, you like me!" They like me. They've already added more hours and given me a raise. Woo hoo!
Let me share with you a picture my baby sister sent me from her home in the great
Oh, *sigh* I do love that front door and her wreath is so beautiful! She actually cut the holly and hawthorne berries in her own yard and put this beauty together for only $2, which was the cost of the grapevine wreath from the Goodwill that she used as the base. She's been saving the ribbon since the 90s (oh yeah, another pack rat in the family) and since she used to work in floral design, she has the bow tying thing down. Great job, sis!!!
So back to my Christmas time out. I still have several gifts to knit and sew, packages to wrap, box and ship, baking to do and (thank you Jesus for just the right job) work to go to three days a week. We haven't even decorated the Christmas tree yet ... it currently sits, all gorgeous, fragrant and naked in the corner of the living room. I'm not a big fan of egg nog, so I think I'll just pull my chair into the time out corner and knock back a tequila shooter while I knit. I apologize in advance to anyone who gets something I knit while under the influence. It is the thought that counts ... right???
December 8, 2010
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