Where the time went

Dear Mom,
Wooo. I feel like I sort of lost a couple of weeks. They were a busy 2 weeks, though. Family vacay, a side trip to Amish country, 2 noisy days of dental hygiene for the pedodontist and 2 birthdays will do that to a girl.

I am now living under the same roof with two teens. And My Hero begins his 6th decade.

Enough said. We will quickly move on. No good will come from dwelling on either of those facts.

We spent a week in South Haven, MI for the family vacation this year. We were joined by My Hero's brother, Eggbert, and his family. The house we shared was cosy, but just right. The guys played golf or tennis every day, we spent hours on the beach, and ate way too much food. I knit only a fraction of what I packed, but I did spend some good hours spinning.

I didn't, but should have lost weight. To get to the beach we had to negotiate these steps. There were 150 of them. ONE HUNDRED FIFTY STEPS. Not a problem on the way DOWN to the beach. But getting back? Let's just say we didn't want to forget anything, and on day 2, we decided to leave our beach chairs piled up in the sea grass until we packed to come home.

We found sea glass, skipped stones, built sand castles and buried the Young Man (at his request, and after he dug the hole).

Things were very relaxed.

 Don't be alarmed!!! These are candy cigarettes.

I visited 2 yarn shops and a fiber farm, and came home with more knitting projects than I had packed. A lot more. I wish I could buy time.

At Needle in a Haystack, in South Haven, I purchased the yarn and pattern for this shawl. I visited Lizzie Ann's Wool co. in Holland and found too many things.(I'll blame it on all the great shop samples they had.) That's the thing about visiting yarn shops. There is so much yarn and so many ideas, that no one shop can have it all. Visiting new shops gives a knitter the chance to see new things. Or new to her anyway. For example, The Grabbit is not a new pattern, but I had never seen it. Lizzie Ann's had a shop sample and the Young Lady and I were drawn to it immediately. It is one of those "why didn't I think of it?" things. So, I bought the pattern and yarn for it. I also brought home the yarn and pattern for this A-line tunic and this Rowan pattern book. I stopped myself before I bought any yarn to make the sweaters I want in this one. Like this one:

 and this one:

I also like this model's hair style.

My Hero drove me out to Marr Haven fiber farm, near Allegan, MI. and I brought home a couple of cones of her gorgeous wool and a bat for spinning.

Because, really, how could I not? I wish you could reach into your monitor and feel how soft this wool is.

We also sailed on the Friends Good Will, a replica of an 1810 schooner that fought in the War of 1812, was captured by the British, recaptured by the Americans and later burned by the British. It is the sloop that Admiral Perry refers to in his famous quote, "We have met the enemy and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop."

We were treated to some beautiful sunsets, warm water and sunny days.

There is no place like home, and despite everything good about our trip, I was ready to get back home. I am still catching up and need to get in gear before the in-laws arrive on Tuesday (TOMORROW!!!- trying not to panic now) for a short visit, and it is time to start thinking back to school- they start way too early, on August 10th, and I never thought I would say this, but I am NOT ready for them to go back.

Love,

Kim

Happy Birthday, Bonnie Jo!

Dear Mom,

As we were growing up there were lots of times I wished I didn't have a sister, or any siblings for that matter, but now I have to admit that being without Bonnie Jo would mean having no one to share early childhood memories. 

Minturn Lane and Ann, Mark and Evelyn and dressing up their cat, Ping Pong. Making perfume in Evelyn's bathroom. Loretta. Allison. And the Coulson's ( is that how you spell it?) next door. Cuddles and Ruddles. Making potholders. Riding in the Corvair on benches so we could see out the window and not get car sick. The goldfish- Herbie, Cindy and Jinks, and Salt and Pepper and the time Mom and Grandma had to get Herbie out of the tank cause he was wayyyy too big. Going to the circus and the time the clown kissed Mom. Riding in Grandma's yellow mustang convertible, Mary Sunshine, and walking on stilts at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Roller skating and skate keys. Having one tv- black and white- and watching Captain Kangaroo, and then a few years later, Not being Allowed to watch Dark Shadows after school. Getting a color tv and watching the moon walk. Exercising with Mom and Jack Lalanne. Dwarf when she was a puppy. Saddle shoes and watching the Indianapolis 500 parade at night and scuffing up the desk tops at Daddy's office where we sat to watch. Learning to snap our fingers. Bonnie learning to whistle, and me not. Ever. Picking dandelions for fish funerals. Running home for lunch from Evelyn's house to discover Bonnie had taken a bite out of the stick of butter. Harcourt Elementary. Going to doctor appointments with Mom and waiting for the twins to be born. Playing in our beds when we should have been sleeping and falling asleep while listening to albums Daddy played- Finian's Rainbow and Simon and Garfunkel come to mind. Playing in the "boat" next door, and right now I cannot remember their names, but the mom had long black hair and lots of boys- looking back now as a parent, that boat was genius- a crowd of kids all climbed in and and the grass was water and we dared not get out of the boat... and there we stayed for how long? til dinner?.... there were days I would wish for that boat when my kids were little. Playing dolls. The Twins flushing Tracy's dress. Moving to a new house and having to change schools and ride a new bus. Watching The Wizard of Oz and getting scared, and crying every time we watched Lassie -even choking up when we heard the theme song. Those were the days when Charlie Brown specials really were special.

It occurs to me that I have no memory of life before Bonnie Jo, and that having a sister so close in age makes those hazy memories of our Wonder Years more focused and real.  And I never would have believed it all those years ago, when I wished desperately to be an only child, but I am happy to be able to wish Bonnie Jo and Very Happy Birthday today.

Love, Kim

Vacation Plans

Dear Mom,
If there is room to pack 2 sets of these

and a bunch of these

then there should be no problem with this

and this

and this

and this

or especially this

.

Love,
Kim

Cover Girl

Dear Mom,
I interrupt my regularly scheduled  vacuuming to let you know that the September issue of Creative Knitting Magazine has arrived on my doorstep and yes, let me shout it our far and wide....THAT IS MY SWEATER DESIGN ON THE COVER!!!!!

For real.
Pinch me.
Lord, help me not to share the news with complete strangers in the grocery store, or camp out in the magazine section at Barnes and Noble. Amen.

Love,
Kim

The last thing I should be doing

Dear Mom,

Why is it that the very last thing you should be doing is exactly the thing you do???


Last 2 bucket hats. But I am not promising anything at this point. Moving Judy Jetson, my vintage "Slant-o-matic" Singer sewing machine, upstairs did not deter me.
This first hat is for a brother-in-law, who, after seeing the hats I made for his wife and daughter, dropped several not too subtle hints.

 And this next is for the Young Lady. She found some bandannas on our most recent visit to Hancock Fabric and asked for another hat.

I applied fusible interfacing to both bandannas to give the fabric a little more body. This hat has earned a spot on my favorite list. Who knew that two cheap bandannas and a bit of interfacing could turn into something this cute. And leave it to the Young Lady to see it.

Okay, now back to what I should be doing.

I hope.

Love,

Kim

Scratching the Itch

Dear Mom,

I have more bucket hats to show you.

this one may be my favorite

this is my least favorite- I used black burlap

This last batch has scratched the bucket hat itch. For now. I still want to make some wool hats with flannel lining for autumn, but for now I am letting my sewing machine rest.

Love,
Kim

It's gonna be loud

Dear Mom-

The Cul-de-sac Fourth of July Celebration Preparation started a couple of weeks ago.

And he has plenty of fuse.

Boys.

Love,

Kim

Rags to Rugs

Dear Mom,
It was rags to rugs around here over the weekend.

On Saturday, two friends and I took a "Rug in a Day" class up at Tabby Tree Weaver. To prepare for the class we cut 5-6 yards of fabric into 1 1/2 inch strips to be woven into a rag rug. I didn't want to love weaving. Looms are expensive and take up space. I just wanted to like weaving and have a good rug to show for it. I wasn't too far into weaving the rug when I caught myself rearranging the house to accommodate a loom. I reigned myself in. A big part of weaving- warping the loom- was already done for us when we arrived for class and just thinking about setting up all those warp threads is pretty daunting. Before I fall headlong into turning myself into a weaver, I'll need to take a class that teaches every step of the process and I'll see if I still like it. I'll do That, and start saving my money.

As you can see, our rugs were all very different from each other. That is mine in the middle. TheNeverDullAlwaysCreativeBecky's is above mine and CarolWhoseHouseGotStruckbyLightning's is below.

Here are some close ups of the rugs-

After about 6 hours of weaving we all were really tired- not that any part of it was physically that difficult- I think it was a combination of learning and being inspired that left us drained. We all wondered if we would "feel it" tomorrow. Becky decided to forget about the Bow flex- working the loom was a good upper body workout! The only reminders of my day of weaving were a tender spot on my right hand where my middle finger meets my palm and another on my right cheek where I had it planted on the bench. (Surprising, considering the padding I have there.)

My rug is now home and after "trying it on" in different locations, I think this is where it is going to live-

in front of the kitchen sink. It is long enough to cover the width of the sink and dishwasher. It has also been claimed as a good resting spot by Patsy.

Then, on Sunday, as if one rug in a weekend wasn't enough, I decided to get on with it already and finish something in an attempt to clear off the project queue on my dining room table. The one taking up the most space and also the one most likely to be completed in an afternoon was the Rag Doily Rug I posted about awhile ago. Shorty after posting about it, I purchased some sheets at the Goodwill and tore them into strips. They were wound into balls and waiting for further action.

It felt better scratching this one off the list than it did in the actual knitting of the fabric strips. Fabric strips do not slide through each other and across the needles like yarn does, so this project was work. Not hard knitting, and the pattern is easy to follow- it was just the fabric that made it tough. I like the rug though, and wondered while I was knitting what it would be like to knit it in mop cotton, or that shiny rope stuff from the hardware store, or even lots and lots of strands of cotton yarn held together. And maybe the fabric strips would be easier to knit if they were cut and not torn and thinner.....(As if I need more rugs or more knitting projects. But sometimes these ideas wiggle around in my head and won't leave until they get some play time.)

After all that rug production, the house needs me to do some catching up. To be honest, I am surprised there isn't a pile of dog hair somewhere in those rug pictures. The vacuum cleaner is my friend.

Love,

Kim

Something finished and a serious case of startitis

Dear Mom,

This cardigan was started sometime last summer and set aside for a  forgotten reason. Maybe because I knew even a year ago that it wasn't gonna fit me. The good news is that it will fit you if you want it.

The lesson here is- even if the knitter wrote the pattern, she STILL has to get gauge. Or find a body to fit the sweater. Good thing you are tiny.

I made a few modifications- I used 6 different yarns rather than the 10 called for, made 3/4 sleeves and I knitted a mitered and hemmed border around the hem, button bands and neckline with loops for the buttonholes.

Having finished that, I went into a ball winding frenzy, with plans to start several projects, all with different levels of difficulty and concentrations required. Yes, there is a method to this madness.

I started this, using one of the hand dyed yarns from the workshop I took last month.

And last night I began this cardigan using a soft mercerized cotton- Ultra Pima by Cascade in a happy orange sherbet color that reminds me of Pushups we got from the ice cream man when we were kids.

It seems I am in an orange/coral/fiery red phase.

Have no fear. I have plans for this today:

This is Black Water Abbey yarn, color Forest, and I am extremely anxious to knit with it. NO matter how hot it is outisde. I need a wool fix.

And I should probably start a new pair of socks even though my sock a week resolution is pretty much trashed.

Love,

Kim

Olympic Dreams

Dear Mom,

Do you think Benny is dreaming of winning gold in diving?!

Love, Bonnie Jo

Photography

Dear Wendy,

Thank you for posting the new header photo of the stunning daisy!  Your photography is awesome.  I hope your busy schedule opens up so you can join us in posting more of your beautiful photos and mouth-watering recipes!  We miss you!

Love,  Bonnie Jo

Hats

Dear Mom,

Inspired and working efficiently, I briefly became my own little bucket hat assembly line, cutting out several combinations of hats and linings, then sewing them all step by step, pressing all of the seams open at the same time- you get the idea. Doing it this way was almost hypnotic, and listening to a lame thriller on my ipod while I worked put me into a time warp. I was shocked to look at my watch on Friday night and see that it was actually 2:00 on Saturday morning! At that point I made myself step away from the sewing machine. 

I didn't have much more to do to finish them all- and this batch doesn't seem to have cured my obsession with this hat. I am imagining button and embroidery embellishments and frayed edges and secret pockets and even wool/ flannel combinations for autumn hats.

Here they are so far....

Love,

Kim

Sharing

Dear Mom,

This is what happens when two hens need to lay an egg at the same time (and there is only one nesting box)!

With Gloria on the left and Marge on the right side, they sat patiently together while Golda waited outside.

Love, Bonnie Jo