Felt Like Knitting

Fibonacci Moebius

This shawl was made for my friend who was undergoing surgery last week.  I really liked this Fibonacci Moebius project and loved learning the cast on technique.  There's just something about learning something new...

The yarn was lovely!  I used Kathmandu Aran Tweed and the merino/silk/cashmere blend felt very nice.  

Now about this photo...  I blocked the shawl and was getting ready to wrap it up when I realized I wouldn't get a photo after I gave it away.  So I threw it on over my pajamas (t-shirt and pajama pants) and had Emma snap a couple of photos.  Don't I look lovely?  :)

Pumpkin scones

I have so many things I'd like to share with you - FOs, costumes, decorating - but I have no time to write.  So I'll just share this quick thing - pumpkin scones.  I made them for my Bible study group because

1) Mary first told me about the yummy pumpkin scones at Starbucks and she's in the group.

2) She and Vanessa have both made delicious treats (maple oatmeal scones and butternut squash muffins) and I felt I should do the same.

I liked the scones a lot and will make them again, maybe for Thanksgiving or Christmas breakfast.  They weren't hard to make and didn't take much time (even with two types of glaze on them).  The only change I made was to use 2% milk because I didn't have half-and-half or whole milk.

I hope you're all doing well.  I've been trying to stay up with my blog reading but haven't gotten to them all or left many comments.  Just a few more weeks of this and things will calm down!

Ten on Tuesday - 10 Ways to Enjoy Halloween

I've mentioned before that I don't really like Halloween much but I think I can still find ten ways to enjoy it.  :)

1.  Watch our neighborhood's costume parade.  (I haven't done this since Emma used to trick-or-treat but it's a fun event.)

2.  See the cute kids come to the door.  The little princesses and superheroes that can barely say "Trick or Treat!" are too cute!

3.  Sample the candy.  Not saying any more about that...  :)

4.  Visit my friend - She and her husband throw an annual Halloween party for their kids and their friends.  I usually don't get to stay but it is fun when I do.

5.  Dress up - Okay, this is still fun.  One year I dressed up as a scarecrow for a neighborhood party and nobody knew who I was because of all the makeup I had on my face.  We have a costume birthday party to go to this year and I'm not sure what I'm going to wear.  Steve's going as this Star Wars character.

6.  Decorate - Spider webs, bats, spiders,...  The other day I got out the plastic flies and started leaving them around the house for my family to find.  They weren't as amused as I was.

7.  Carve a pumpkin - love this!

8.  Avoid haunted houses - I'm so glad that Emma doesn't like haunted houses so I don't have to take her.  They really creep me out.  They seem like fire hazards, there are creepy, scary dudes everywhere - no fun.

9.  Avoid scary movies - Yuck!  I've never liked scary movies.  But I just found this list that is pretty funny.

10.  Make your husband hand out the candy - Then you are free to do whatever you want!

Go to Carole's blog to sign up and to read other posts about Halloween!

 

Aah...

A little camping trip was just what we needed.  We're back now and I have several FOs to show you, but right now I'm sewing costumes.  Have a great weekend!

Thankful Thursday

Today, I am thankful for many, many things.

I am thankful that I can support my daughter's drama interest by sewing costumes.  I am thankful for my daughter!  And I am thankful that my husband is a great father to her.

I am thankful that I have friends and that I can knit for them when they are sick.  I am eternally thankful that God hears the prayers I offer up when I knit for my friends.  And I am thankful for my health.

I am thankful that the Chilean miners and rescuers are all on top the earth now and are okay.  I am thankful that my husband has a job that doesn't require him to do something extremely dangerous.  And I am thankful that he is an excellent provider for our family.

I am thankful for cool fall weather.  I am thankful for beautiful leaves.  And I am thankful I have a warm house to be in when the temperatures drop and the rains fall.

For what do you give thanks?

Ten on Tuesday - 10 Ways to Have Fun on Long Car Rides

I'm really fortunate that Steve likes to be the one to drive if he is in the car for a long time.  That gives me time to do other things!

1.  Knit! - My favorite thing to do on a long car ride is knit.  I get sick if I read in the car but fortunately I can knit on the highway.  Regular roads?  Not so much.

2.  Audio books - We love listening to audio books and I especially enjoy the ones we can all listen to together.  Our favorites have been the Artemis Fowl books. 

3.  Podcasts - We try to avoid buying audio books and the library doesn't always have something that my husband wants to listen to. (He's picky!)  So we've turned to podcasts like The Splendid Table and Wait Wait Don't Tell Me.  NPR has a lot of great podcasts.  And LibriVox has lots of great things available, too.  Our favorite has been Frankenstein.

4.  Trivia - This one is a little tough since I get carsick while reading but we enjoy quizzing each other.  This is one of Steve's favorite things to do while on a trip.  I think it takes his mind off of all that driving.

5.  iPhone - Steve has one and it's great to be able to look up things or check email.

6.  Scenery - I really enjoying seeing this beautiful world while we travel.  Living near the North Georgia Mountains, it doesn't take us long to see some scenic landscapes if we are traveling north.

7.  "I Spy" Games - When I was little we would play games like trying to find license plates from all over the US or finding letters of the alphabet in order.  Or what about the memory game where you had to name a series of items based on the alphabet? Like "My mother went to the grocery store and she came back with artichokes, bacon, cookies,..."  I still enjoy games like this but I think I may be the only one in my family who does.  :)

8.  Planning - I am throwing this one in for Steve.  He loves to plan in the car.  What should our yard look like?  What do we want the bathroom to look like when we remodel it?  This drives me insane!!!  I can't do anything about it so I don't really want to talk about it.  I can't walk into the yard to look at a flower bed and I can't measure the bathroom.  Just let me knit.  ;) 

9.  Stop to see things - I rarely get to do this.  There are always signs for museums that I'd like to check out but we're always on a mission to get somewhere by a certain time.  But I think we're going to stop in at an apple orchard when we take our camping trip this fall.

10.  Stop for lunch or dinner - Many times we drive through and grab fast food but sometimes we do stop for a meal.  It's nice to have a chance to stretch our legs.  Our current favorite drive-through place is Steak 'n Shake.  They have a nice variety of food and it tastes a little more like a sit-down restaurant than some of the other places we stop.

Here's a little tip for long car rides...  Keep a small notebook in your car's glove box.  Write down exit numbers and pertinent information about those exits - gas stations, restaurants, good bathrooms, etc.  It's great to have this info for the return trip or for the next time you're on that route.

What do you do while on the road?  Sign up on Carole's blog to get Ten on Tuesday notices.  While you're there, share your ten things for this week!

WIP Wednesday - Costumes!

While I have been knitting, I don't have photos right now.  I've been working on swatches for my class, a prayer shawl (Little Colonnade), and the Through the Loops Mystery Socks.

What I've been doing more of is costuming - a lot of thrifting, some altering, and some sewing.  Costume check is this Saturday and there is a lot more to do so I probably won't be doing any more blog writing or reading this week. 

Have a great rest of the week and weekend!

 

Ten on Tuesday - 10 Things To Love About Fall

What's not to love about fall?!  Here are some of my favorite things...

1.  Cooler weather and lower humidity - I can breathe again!

2.  Fall leaves - They look pretty and smell great!

3.  Cooking - While I love grilling out in the summer, I'm ready to start eating soups and stews now.  Plus there is pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin ice cream,...

4.  Thanksgiving - It's my favorite holiday.  We've already invited most of our guests and I've started planning the menu.

5.  Wearing handknits - I've been wearing my socks and it's cool enough to put a shawl on, too.  It was so cold in the house this morning that I ended up putting on mitts while I typed.

6.  Decorating - I mentioned last week that I enjoy decorating this time of the year.  

7.  Camping - We try to camp one weekend each fall and I just love it!  I'm looking forward to this year's trip.

8.  Carving pumpkins - I'm not a big fan of Halloween but I do love to carve pumpkins.  This year we had three pumpkins from our volunteer plants - one for each of us to carve.

9.  Scents - I love the smell of fall and my favorite candle scents are available this time of year.  My current favorite is Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin from Bath and Body Works.  It smells good enough to eat!

10.  Wardrobe - My fall/winter wardrobe is better than my spring/summer wardrobe.  Corduroy jackets, clogs, sweaters, flannel jammies ...

What do you like about fall?  Check out Carole's blog to read more and to submit your own post.

 

Weekend Odds and Ends

Fall weather has arrived!  Last night it was almost cold while I was out and this morning the thermostat in our bedroom read 63 degrees F!  So I threw on my fleece pants and made some tea.  I like how cool the steam looks in the photo.  

We had a busy weekend.  Friday night was robotics practice and all day Saturday was costuming for Emma's current production (Treasure Island).  While on a run to the fabric store, I stopped in at a used book store I've been wondering about.  I just had time to browse through their craft section.  I found History of Costume (except mine is the first edition hardback from 1965) and Knitting on the Road by Nancy Bush - each for $2.93!  There were many more knitting books but I resisted (for now...).  It turns out someone had just brought in their knitting library.  I'm hoping to go back when I have more time.

Yesterday we did something fun.  Our church had a Blessing of the Animals.  We didn't take Trump because he would have been freaked out.  There were so many cute dogs there (22) and six birds.  And our friend brought their new 9 week old puppy that they had just picked up.  Here's Tucker:

Isn't he adorable?!  He's a Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier and he'll be blonde when he's older.

What did you do this weekend?