tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-104871072024-03-17T22:59:24.887-04:00Cottage on Blackbird LaneYvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.comBlogger2215125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-68864838315723675012023-08-10T11:04:00.002-04:002023-10-02T11:14:06.840-04:00Pagosa Springs, Colorado We spent the week visiting with family in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. The days of activities were full of family meals, golf, exploring town, fishing, and family time. Lots of hot air balloons every morning and I ended my nights working on the next NPS hat. Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-52161741476585069172023-08-07T16:00:00.002-04:002023-10-02T11:00:49.518-04:00The Great Sand Dunes National Park We spent Monday until lunch time playing at the dunes where we met up with Keith’s sister and her family. The kids had a great time playing in the dunes. The kids tried sand sledding. It didn't go as well as we hoped but they managed to find it fun. We watched several serious sand sledding families. They have a system of making it work using lots of wax and better sleds. &Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-61023494369350646142023-08-06T21:30:00.006-04:002023-10-02T10:44:08.720-04:00NPS Hats: Great Sand Dunes National Park Sunday afternoon we arrived to the Great Sand Dunes National Park. I got a couple pictures of my first official NPS knitted hat in the wild. You can see the clouds coming in for the afternoon which makes the dunes look brighter and darker. Overall I thought the hat looked pretty similar to the landscape. We were not able to get a good distance picture. The park was doing Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-61237073618134256952023-08-04T23:00:00.010-04:002023-10-02T09:57:31.286-04:00Heading West We began our journey to Colorado with a stop in Cincinnati to watch the Washington Nationals play the Reds. (Nats won woot!) We arrived early enough to walk across the Ohio River to the stadium in Ohio. There the kids were able to run around at the Riverside Park before the game. What a gem that Riverside Park system is for Cincy. We could have been there for hours letting the kids play. Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-23715331028793912402023-07-31T09:10:00.001-04:002023-10-02T09:36:19.380-04:00NPS Hats: Mesa Verde Cast on I cast on for the Mesa Verde Beanie of Nancy Bates National Parks hats series. A late start this was one I had to get going quickly to meet my deadline. In my mind these hats would all have been done by the end of July. I didn't account for the time commitment. It's one thing to knit and it's a whole other thing to knit color work patterns while keeping an eye on a busy toddler. I had to Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-49323886526716990462023-07-29T09:02:00.000-04:002023-10-02T09:37:01.955-04:00NPS Hats: Great Sand Dunes I have completed the second on my to do list of National Parks hats for the visits planned in early August. The hat turned out as I expected. It was a fun knit with a good amount of color work and cable work. I was pleased that the yarn stash selections worked out quite well. The colors came together so nicely. I added a little more to the brim and added a few rounds in the "sand dunes" Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-49734629526513491312023-07-21T16:02:00.002-04:002023-10-02T08:57:33.909-04:00NPS Hats: Great Sand Dunes Casting on Next National Parks hat project list is the Great Sand Dunes in Colorado. We will be camping there next month I am looking forward to seeing this finished hat compared to what we will be seeing there. There weren’t any kits available for this hat when I ordered the Big Bend and Black Canyon of the Gunnison kits. Finding the six colors of yarns needed for this pattern was a challenge Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-19501142674510517422023-07-20T14:18:00.048-04:002023-07-21T14:44:33.536-04:00Non-Toxic Sink ScrubThe other day I was cleaning my sink and noticed that the mason jar of cleaner was empty. I keep this old Parmesan cheese container full of the sink scrub under the sink to refill the “prettier” jar. Then I just thought I have come to hate that jar because I am always worried that it will slip out of my wet hands and break. (I have dropped it a couple times already) Why was I keeping this jar Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-68775627665657675842023-07-16T13:48:00.001-04:002023-07-21T14:17:43.549-04:00Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park Hat I have completed my first Nancy Bates’ National Park hats. I have to acknowledge Sharon who I met in January. It was our conversation at the Knitty McPurly Cozy Mountain knitting retreat where I learned there was such a thing as hats for National Parks. We are huge lovers of the NPS and have been checking off the parks on our list for more than 20 years. How could I not want Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-78683257955651559722023-06-17T13:38:00.006-04:002023-07-21T13:46:40.479-04:0023 Years Today marks another year in the books for us. All those 23 years ago on our wedding weekend there was a wildfire burning in Northern Colorado. (Not to mention our cancelled flights and a desperate need to take up the offer to spend the night with family in Dallas) The skies were an eerie yellow hazy color. Not yet ideal to say the least. We worried about how our plans for pictures and just Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-5019528202567089742023-06-08T19:30:00.016-04:002023-07-21T12:14:29.181-04:00Summer and other thoughts Oh hi! It’s June you say? How is that possible? All I can say is that I made it through another May still standing-ish. The little kids have school for another week with more end of year activities yet to go. Have I mentioned we (or shall I say, me?) made it through manic May. That May gauntlet is so truly hard on moms and even more brutal for single parents. (I can’t even begin to Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-32955087560559379092023-05-31T12:04:00.007-04:002023-07-21T12:09:22.008-04:00Growing Season Living in the Mid-Atlantic coastal region has taught me that no two growing seasons are the same. Each year comes in differently making it challenging to gauge by the calendar your garden expectations. I have since abandoned that whole thought/advice of using the various farmers almanacs. They too have been unreliable. Instead I began remembering back to all the words my grandfather often Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-57843674847835313402023-04-26T11:54:00.012-04:002023-07-21T12:09:34.796-04:00LilacEach April the lilac blooms catch me unprepared for their presence. Lilacs are hardly visually noticeable rather their fragrance is what tells me they are here. Each year I think “Now?! So soon?! It can’t be lilac season this early” yet it is and has always been. I have been the one to be so set in my delayed expectations that these gentle shrubs are always a delightful surprise. To be Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-85225922827831405462023-03-19T11:48:00.005-04:002023-07-21T11:54:10.308-04:00Making Room for New Growth Currently Enjoying: this solo bloom on my salvaged orchid. You may not know this but I am a collector of sad and forlorn plants. Most of my plants both houseplants and garden plants are frequently found on the discount shelf. Categorized as being in need of “tender loving care” they are often ignored by many left to wither away and be forgotten. But, really, aren’t we all in need of some Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-28216723870920333842023-03-03T11:38:00.001-05:002023-07-21T11:43:37.338-04:00Making Plastic Bag Mats Lenten Service Last weekend I led a class on how to make Mercy Mats for my parish’s Lenten Retreat. Mercy Mats are sleeping mats for the homeless made from single use plastic shopping bags. Each 3’ by 6’ mat requires between 500-700 plastic bags. Those plastic bags are cut into loops to make “plarn” balls that are used to weave, braid, or crochet into mats. It takes about 6,400 yards of plarn to make one Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-4511631300124947102023-01-03T12:57:00.003-05:002023-06-25T13:01:17.247-04:00Fidra Hat The Fidra Hat is done. The pattern is by Gudrun Johnston. I cast on 73 stitches to accommodate the invisible join method for joining the round. Since the first stitch is a slip knot I finished the final cast on of stitches 72 & and adding stitch 73 with the German Twisted cast on.Pattern is super fun to knit. Love the design. My choice of yarn using the Plymouth chunky merino superwash Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-3522122708185802462022-12-29T12:32:00.001-05:002023-06-25T12:57:02.172-04:00Santa Key Tradition When we talk about holidays the one word that comes up often and especially with Christmas is Tradition. What are the things we do as Christmas traditions? Some are handed down through our families and others we just come by. This Santa Key is one we just came by. This tradition was one we built with our little family. The tradition in our family is to set out a special magic filled key on Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-72134321641921811792022-12-19T12:22:00.011-05:002023-06-25T12:31:47.824-04:00Monster Cables Beanie Over the weekend I finished a hat using some bulky weight yarn. I used the pattern called Monster Cables Beanie by Cali Taylor. It is a great pattern for a quick hat. I can’t remember what I planned to make with this yarn but I think this was a good use of it. I had just enough to complete the hat…played a little yarn chicken and ended up winning. It’s hard to tell but the yarn has a Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-32333558743812808112022-11-02T20:05:00.020-04:002023-06-25T12:20:34.387-04:00All Souls Day Happy Feast of All Souls Day. It is also known as Day of the Dead. It is the commemoration of all the faithful departed, that is, the souls of all Christians who died but have not yet received salvation, who are currently in Purgatory. Souls that are not perfectly cleansed from venial sins, or who have not fully atoned for past transgressions, are excluded from the Beatific Vision (Heaven).Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-6046804204437316832022-09-15T11:58:00.001-04:002023-06-25T12:05:27.550-04:00Karen's Bonnet knitted project Last September I knit a similar bonnet. This September I am knitting another! I like this semi tradition that seems to be coming together. I am making this sweet little bonnet by request of a friend for a precious baby nephew. I used the same pattern from Petit Knit called Karen’s Bonnet as I did for knitting the previous two bonnets. As for the yarn: I chose to make Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-77706020711661748672022-08-14T11:48:00.007-04:002023-06-25T11:58:03.151-04:00Syrup Sticky Family The baby smells of syrup. He has a tangled cluster of hair where it appears syrup dripped on to his head as he was being held by an older sibling during breakfast. The younger version of myself would be deeply troubled by the messy, sticky hair; Likely I would have begun admonishing the older gals for forgetting to clean him up. Because in my past's eyes being good caretakers meant neat, Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-54847829546944816192022-08-01T19:27:00.005-04:002023-06-24T19:31:42.980-04:00Shawl for Mama Summer crafting has mostly involved knitting. In June I came across this pattern: Botanical Garden Shawl by Kristen Finlay of @skeinyarn . I was looking for a Shawlette pattern that wasn’t going to be an enormous project. (I have a few other shawls in various stages of work that have become large and tricky to travel around with making them forgotten in attention.) So far this Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-65763348859597726062022-07-05T19:13:00.018-04:002023-06-24T19:26:53.679-04:00Here We Are What I love is….sitting in this chair a sleeping toddler’s body is draped over me deeply snoring from a busy day of exploring. Between his snores of sleep I hear the soft sucking noises he makes as his mouth and body still are programmed to be nursing for comfort. Sweet pieces of his babyhood still linger these 22 months along. Back history: he went on a nursing strike one year ago. Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-10279403700979167892022-06-09T19:11:00.005-04:002023-06-24T19:13:02.206-04:00Summer Mornings Early mornings are a must when your children are toddlers. We have been venturing out into the garden early every day exploring all the things that bring fascination to a child. Strawberry season is over for our small berry patch. It was a well loved few weeks of delicious berries. Little DK learned quickly where to find his favorite snack. I loved watching him play about the yard making Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10487107.post-35203016496005063632022-05-23T19:07:00.004-04:002023-06-24T19:10:20.122-04:00Beautiful wonderful May In Virginia early May brings the most lovely garden flowers. By far my favorite is the peony. Fragrant, large, layered blooms they have such a timeless romantic beauty. Peonies represent romance and love and when found in a bride’s bouquet are considered an invocation for a happy marriage. Consistently peonies have been associated with positive virtues: honor, respect, and courage. Yvonnehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08367932522316232498noreply@blogger.com0