Thursday, March 29, 2012

What's with the New Layout????

Hey Blogspot!!  Hey Google!!  Don't like the new tool bar.  Where's the option for font size????  Whassup with the "normal", "subheading" , "minor heading", "heading" ???  This is ridiculous; not helpful at all!!  I would prefer the old numerical choices!!!

Please reconsider and return the tool bar to the previous one.

Thank you.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Energy Abounds!!!..........

Yep...I got into Spring cleaning!!  Got the curtains and shades done in the dining room, as well as wiping down picture frames, furniture, etc. Really not bad since heavy cleaning was just done in the Fall.  Did the kitchen cupboards yesterday - a job I absolutely hate .  Today it's very cloudy, gray with rain off and on.  Good day for baking.

So....there are 3 apple streudels in the oven and 3 loaves of bread rising on the cupboard for baking this afternoon.

Tomorrow may be cleaning the spare room - washing curtains, cleaning out the closet, reorganizing.  Then on to the utility room.  Gotta paint the inside window frames, clean out and wipe down the storage cabinets (another job that gets put off as long as possible).

Or if it rains ---- more Fasnaugts and more caramel pull-apart bread.

Got daughter's taxes done last night; hopefully tackle ours before the week is out. 

My son in NY has been laid up with a bad knee for a couple of weeks now.  I'm thinking of sending him a streudel, some Fasnaugts and a pan of pull-aparts.  Hey, if he can't go to work, he can enjoy some goodies while sitting in the recliner.

So, did regular weekly cleaning on Sunday (actually, regular "whenever the mood hits me" cleaning); laundry is caught up, spinning is coming along and I started on the front panel of the cardigan.

Boy, I hope this burst of energy doesn't fade away any time too soon.  I'm actually kind of enjoying this!  Being busy every day, getting caught up and not just sitting on my arse, watching the idiot box and feeling dumpy.  I just might get used to this busy bee thing!!

Hope you all have a great week and weekend filled with lots of sunshine, warmth and enjoyable projects!

Sunday, March 11, 2012

It's Here!!!....It's Finally Here!!!.........

Holy crap!!  55 degrees yesterday and possibly 58 today!!  All high 40's, low 50's next week.  This really gets the adrenalin boosted.  The snow is melting fast...so fast that our driveway and the road look like something from an old western movie.  You know, where the mud is so thick that wagons get stuck and women's ankle length dresses have a 6" border of mud along the bottom.   Well, ya gotta take the good with the bad, I guess.

So, I've been spinning like a mad woman.  BH tells me "Spin.  Spin like the wind!"    Ehhh, yah.  If only it were that easy.  But progress is being made.

Got tired of the white BFL; had 4 bobbins of 3 ply fingerweight. Wanted something thicker for the patterning on the blue sweater, so I cabled it.  Now to skein and wash. Decided to move on to the grey Shetland that was dyed some time ago.  Working on the dark green/grey heather.  It's very pretty; love the color.  But the Shetland......jeeesh! Lots of VM, knots, bumps and something that feels like gravel.  It's a slow process, but I know how this Shetland feels and acts as yarn, so it's worth the trouble.

A couple (few?) weeks ago, I plied the leftover denim blue and navy blue.  Couldn't figure out why they weren't done before when all the other blues were being plied.   Well, on the second bobbin it occured to me........because they're all Superwash Merino.  Ohhhh Crap!!!  I've had one really bad experience with that yarn and swore I would never make it again!  I use Superwash (because I love the softness of it) only as a plying single.

Anywho, what's done is done.  5 skeins of it.  Thank goodness there's a nice shawl pattern waiting.

3 of the 5 skeins:


It plied beautifully

Here is the sweater up to the armholes.  The front opening is pinned together while the back is being knitted.

The pattern didn't come out clearly, but it's the "Waffle".

The white cabled yarn.  There is irridescent Firestar blended in.
And on Friday, I got up the energy to make 2 apple struedels.  I have been dieing for apple struedel!!  So...one for now; one in the freezer.  There is still a gallon and 1/2 freezer bags of our apples left.  I think I'm going to make 2 more struedels next week.  Yummmyyy!!


Pictures were taken before the confectioner's glaze was swirled on.
So, all the housework is done for today.  Grandson is visiting and helping Grandpa split wood.  He'll stay for supper -- fried chicken!! but has to leave at 5:30 for bowling.  We love having him here; wish he would come more often.  But he is 14!  I know they have places to go, people to see, things to do.  He'll be 15 in a couple of months.  I guess we should be thankful for the time we'll have with him -- while he still wants to come and visit with the old grandfolks!!  I'm getting veklempt.

Well, I'm going back to the spinning.  OMG -- it's just about noon!!  The day is shooting by.  Have you ever noticed that when the time gets moved ahead, for the first week or 2 it seems like the days just fly by!  Yikes.  I gotta get myself in gear here.

Wishing everyone pleasant Spring days!