A Quiet Monday

On the weekdays I watch my two grandsons from 7:30 in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon while my daughter is at work. They are 2 and 5. It's fun, challenging, tiring, and rewarding. Shortly after they arrived this morning Landon, the 5 year old fell asleep. Richard, 2, sat on a chair by the open window next to my computer and watched the traffic drive by as the breeze cooled him off while sipping on a cup of cold chocolate milk. Mornings like these are wonderful. Quiet, but not alone. I am blessed to be able to spend time with them while they grow, I just wish my aging body was able to keep up with them.

I tried to do some research on my computer in the quiet, but instead found blogs that kept me enthraled for most of the morning.

Remembering the pictures from this past weekend of the boys, I decided to put together a slide show. I opened up my Video Studio and began uploading pictures and music. I created titles, credits, and a story line. I finished it, fell in love with it, and then the dreaded message. Internet Explorer has encountered a problem. I didn't save it. All was lost. But that's ok, tomorrow is another day. Who knows, maybe the new one will be even better than the last.

Landon Anthony

Richard Alan

Tonight the evening is cool, unlike the past few evenings. We even had a little bit of rain today, with a rumble of  thunder and a little bit of lightning. It didn't last nearly long enough though, but atleast the birds were happy for a short while. 

My husband brought home rotisserie chicken and steak fries so I wouldn't have to stand at the stove to cook. It was good, and we all enjoyed it. No left overs to put away, or pots and pans to wash.

And now. A nice and quiet, relaxed evening. I am on my computer, reading, writing, checking, and playing. My son is on another computer in the other room, playing and messaging friends. My husband is watching his movies that he's been waiting to see. We are only a few feet away from each other, each of us  enjoying our own thing. Quiet, but not alone. They come into my room to find out why I'm laughing, I share a few of the jokes I read on One Yarn After Another.  My sons phone rings and we ask him who called, his friends want him to go to the park, he leaves, but not before saying "goodbye, I love you."  I stop and give my husband a kiss on the forehead on my way to the kitchen for a cold drink. My life is simple, I love every moment of it.

A Quiet Monday. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

Thank you for stopping by, have a wonderful evening!

Sugar 'n Cream by Lily, Peaches & Creme

Sugar 'n Cream by Lily
100 % Cotton (Grown in the USA)
2.5 oz/7.9 g
120 yds/109 m
90 Colors
Made in Canada
sugarncream.com

Peaches & Creme
100% Cotton (Grown in the USA)
2.5 oz/70.9g
120 yds/109 m
63 Colors
Made in Canada
peachesandcreme.com

These are wonderful cotton yarns that are easy to work with. I mainly use them for dish cloths and hot pads but you can use them for almost anything. The finished product is soft, and it shows off stitches really well.

Below is a hot pad I made using three colors, White and Hot Green from the Sugar 'n Cream line, and Bright Pink from the Peaches and Creme Line.

I am in the process of writing the pattern for the hotpad, and I will share it as soon as it's done.

Thank you for stopping by, have a wonderful day!

Pipsqueak by Bernat

100% Polyester
3.50 oz/100 g
120 yd/a09 m
7 Colors
Made in China
Bernat.com

B A B Y   S O F T ! ! ! !
I love this yarn!

It is so soft, it's like slipping into a cloud. It's fluffy fun you can roll into a ball and create the most fun things, you will love this!

Knit or Crochet, when you finish you don't see the stitch.

When I first seen it I thought it might be a little bit difficult to work with. I thought the fuzziness might make it hard to stitch. But it wasn't, not in the least bit. Knitting with it was dreamy. When I first started crocheting with it, I had a little bit of trouble finding the stitch in the previous row to work a new stitch in. Once I realized that if I felt for the stitch instead of trying to see it, it was much easier. Now after working with it for a while, it's a breeze.

If your having a baby or know someone having a baby, make something... anything, with this yarn. You will be glad you did. Afghan, booties, hats, sweaters, this is the perfect yarn.

My next project with this yarn is going to be a pair of fuzzy socks for myself for this winter. I can't wait to slide across my wooden floors with them on. (Hopefully without falling and breaking a hip.)

There are three solid colors - Blue, Pink, and White. The ends tend to look a little dusty, but I think alot of that is due to the lighting in my house.
There are four multi colors -
Pink, Green, and White
Blue, Green, and White
Pink, Blue, Green, Yellow, and White
Brighter Blue, Pink, Purple, Yellow, and White

I have used all of the colors for hats, and I like each of them equally.

Below is a picture of some of the hats I made. They were all done in crochet with a size H hook.

The hats pictured above can be purchased from my store on Etsy.

GOTTA HAVE IT!

I found something I absolutely love via a post on Handmade Success,  To Do (Now or Later).
Boy Girl Party has some of the cutest things. When I seen the  2012 Clockwork Agenda by Susie Ghahremani, I knew I had to have it. For now it will be on my To Do list, marked sometime between now and later. Meaning I want it now, but it will have to wait a couple of days.

2012 Clockwork Agenda by Susie Ghahremani at Boy Girl Party.

Thank you for stopping by, have a wonderful day!

Homespun by Lion Brand Yarn

100% Acrylic, 2% Polyester

6 oz / 170 g

185 yd / 167 m

60 colors

Made in the USA

LionBrand.com

I loved working with this yarn.

Knitting - I used a set of No. 10 needles the first time I picked up this yarn to knit something. I chose the No. 10's because of the look of the yarn, and decided to try a scarf. I didn't want something tightly woven, the yarn seemed like it need room to breathe (I hope that makes sense to you). I cast on 20 stitches and worked in the garter stitch for about 10 rows to see how it worked up.

Crochet -  I did a couple of  swatches using hook sizes H and K in a double stitch. Both size hooks worked wonderful for the yarn, but I decided I liked the H hook swatch a little bit better. There was alot of give with the stitch, but it was just the right tension for making my project.

 

As you work with it, you just know that the finished product will be so soft that you want to snuggle with it before your finished. But when your done, you realize not only is it soft, but so perfectly warm for fall and winter designs.

The colors are great. I have worked with Wild Fire (shown in example) and Painted Desert (can be seen used for hat below).

The color charachteristics of the two I used were so different. While the Wild Fire Had different hues, when I finished it was like looking at a single color. Painted Desert Changed as you went along. currently I'm working on a knitted scarf with the Painted Desert yarn and it changes form a greenish blue, to a burnt orange, to a darker blue, and so on. The changes in color are gradual, so the blend from one color to the next is very pleasing and really stunning when the project is finished.

The only downfall that I found with this yarn, is not with the yarn itself, but with the knitter/crocheter (me). If your not careful, it is very easy to snag the stitches with your needle..

Below is a photo of the hat I made with the skein of Wild Fire. As you can see, there was more than enough in a skein for me to finish this adult size hat.

My lovely daughter's Amanda and Allison modeling the hats.  They said they loved the hats, that they were soft, comfortable fit, and very warm.

You can purchase hats just like the two shown above at my store on Etsy.

Thank you for stopping by, have a wonderful day!