Orchids

I am a huge lover of orchids, not that I live in the right climate, or that I have a lot of variety of orchids available.  For the longest time I would purchase them at various places, Wal-Mart or grocery store, with blooms, the blooms would fall off and then.....nothing.  That has all changed I am excited to say.  Apparently when it got really cold here, -40 type cold, the orchids went dormant and now are reblooming.  Super excited.  I need to do a little more research as I am keeping them by a window which gets the afternoon light but is still a little chilly.  When we went to Key West this past summer orchids were perched in the trees which was amazing. 

Another plant  has three shoots with buds on it so that one will be loaded.

Waiting for spring, getting seed and flower catalogs in the mail which makes you yearn for warmth and color.  Soon, I keep telling myself.

Knitting on a baby blanket.  My niece is having a little boy so I hope to get this done before he goes to college.  Should be able to it is an easy enough knit.  Will show a picture when it is done.

Working Day

The weather was beautiful today so Danielle and I worked outside while John slept. She stacked wood for the next cold evening so we can build a fire. I worked in the garage getting things back on the shelving units and off the floor. Also am continuing to go through boxes and have 6 boxes of donation stuff. There never seems to be an end to the sorting and pitching. So much waste it is pitiful.

Yesterday was a cooking day. Baked Spaghetti squash, made applesauce muffins, bisquits and cookies. For supper we had chicken pot pie which was a hit except it takes forever for John to eat when he has to pick out all the green and orange vegetables. He is meticulous with his separating out of all vegetables. Crazy kid.  He loves V8 fusion which are his vegetable servings. 

Listed 5 items on E-bay. I need to get going with that again. I'd like my PayPal account to get $200 in it again so I can transfer it to savings. 

Finished Alexander (Tina's unborn) bunting sleeper and it is so cute. I am washing it and blocking tonight, hopefully will have pictures (it still needs buttons but all the knitting is done). Also finished A.J.'s grandmother's scarf for Christmas, a pair of brown mittens for John and a dishcloth. Now I need to hurry and get our minister's baby sweater and hat done, she is due in 9 days. I'm positive it will not get done in time but will still be usable when she does get it. 

Dan said it was in the 60s in ND today, was probably in the 50s here in CT. I'm ready to get home. This has been a good productive time but it has been long enough.

A couple weeks ago I got the best book, The Backyard Homestead. Fabulous reference book and exactly the type of lifestyle I want. Now I just have to convince my husband, surprisingly it probably won't be that difficult.

Fabulous finds

Today we didn't really have anything to do. Sam is still in China, the weather was okay, no rain but no sun either. We went to a small town in Montana as they had a city-wide rummage sale. There are always treasures to behold and we hit the jackpot today. It was a blast.

Beautiful chip-free Pyrex baking container.  $1.00  The yellow and orange are just happy colors.

Baked donut pan - just because it sounds fun. $2.00

Double boiler because Dan thought he needed one to melt chocolate. (We haven't make any candy for years, but you know what, it makes as much sense as a donut pan).  $2.00

Grilling tools - These we will definitely use. Grand total $.50.

Vegetable slicer - this was nostalgic. Not quite sure why we got it as we have another vegetable slicer. Maybe you can never have too many.  $.50.

Old ironing board- it was too wonderful to pass up. $1.00.

These didn't come from the rummage sale - these are from the garden. They have a wonderful fresh taste, starts off mellow and then get a bite to them. Nothing better than fresh vegetables.

One of the best finds of the day was two boxes of old craft magazines. There are probably over 200 magazines, The Workbasket and Women's Household. I've been slowly paging through them. Some are in perfect condition, some have recipes cut out but so far all the patterns are intact. So far the oldest magazines are from 1952 -The Workbasket; and 1965 - Women's Household. They have that old musty sell of history.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend.

What do you do when you are sad/anxious/stressed

Apparently I bake. We had graduate recognition this morning in church and I kind of lost it. They had the kids come up individually and have a slide presentation with baby pictures through graduation.  At this point I weep a little and soon my friend behind me is sniffling and then I start weeping more, my friend in front starts wiping her eyes and we are all soon a mess. After all the kids were done whoever wanted to go in front of the church and pray surrounding the kids went up and we all have a group hug and cry. The kids were probably thinking we were nuts but that's fine, they are supposed to think we have lost it a little. Don't get me wrong I am excited that he is moving on, it is how it is supposed to be, but with Sam it is the end of so many things since he is the last.  Anyway it is obvious I need a nap as I'm still kind of weepy but instead made rhubarb cake, rhubarb blueberry muffins and beer bread. The beer bread is for supper tonight with chili.

Rhubarb cake:

Rhubarb/blueberry muffins:

Yes there are only 10 as I ate two when they were hot and steamy with a cold glass of milk. They are really good.

Bread is still in the oven so no pictures. The recipe for the bread I got from the comment section of Enjoying the Small Things (one of my favorite blogs).  Smitten Kitchen is another really great cooking blog. She has a book coming out, so will have to pick that up.

We had cold rainy day yesterday and today is absolutely beautiful, sunny, warm, breezy.  Finished planting the garden yesterday. In total we have 5 rows of radishes, 5 rows of peas, 5 rows of green beans, 5 rows of yellow beans, 6 tomato plants, sage, parsley, rosemary, 3 hills of zucchini, 2 hills of watermelon, and a ton of sunflowers.  This morning I noticed the radishes are up, can't wait for radish sandwiches - yum. Now the great struggle begins as to who will win, me or the weeds. I'll let you know how it goes.

What happened to my spring?

It is so cold and rainy today it feels like it could snow I didn't mean to swear- sorry.  It is only, okay it says it 57 degrees, but it feels like the low 40s. It is cloudy, rainy and I have double layers of clothing on.

Thursday went to a card making party, the companionship is the best part but the card making is fun too.

We are going to take the summer off from making cards so will start to go to quilting again on Thursdays.

Don't know much else. Will probably iron Dan's shirts today and keep cleaning. Mom is coming for Sam's graduation so need to tidy up a bit.

Bought plants last night, 5 tomato, rosemary, and parsley. The sage plant survived the winter so I will dry herbs again this fall. I still need a chive plant and then I'm pretty much done.

Last night's pictures

So last night came and went. I need to stop saying when I will post stuff as it never happens.

Here is the woven scarf.

Yarns used: Nature Spun in Black and Fleece Artist Hand dyed in Nyoni. There is enough of the hand dyed to do a pair of socks for John or one of the new babies on the way.

And the dishcloth

Needles: Size 4 bamboo
Yarn: Ugly left over Sugar & Cream

The garden was tilled today so will have to rake out any clumps and any weeds that got ground up.  Hopefully will get some stuff planted too. I'm going to wait until the sun goes down a bit, pretty warm right now.

Tomorrow the seniors are honored at Church and we have a potluck afterwards. I'm making a 7-layer salad and a rhubarb cake dessert. I haven't make the cake before but they are always good people to experiment with new recipes. Later that night we have the banquet for the seniors which is really the parents doing skits about their kids. It is kind of goofy.

Finishing

It always feels so good to finish something, doesn't really matter what but after you have put in time, it is nice to be done. If you are a list person you understand. I have a daily list, a monthly list, a yearly list and list to be done by the time I'm 50 (which is coming fast). Some lists have the same things on them so it is a double or triple cross-off, those are great.  Just crossing it off gives you a feeling of accomplishment.

I am done with school. My last grade posted for Composition and it was an A, so my GPA is a 4.0 and has been for a while. This really makes me feel good. This is a 3 list accomplishment, month, year, and 50. I have also finished weaving my second scarf, (pictures tonight, right now it had a bath and needs to dry) and I really like it. There is still work to do be done to be more consistent on the edges but I'm getting better. This is on the month and year list.  Also I finished and dishcloth that was on the monthly list.  My sock is coming right along, I am working on the heel although I seriously doubt I will get it done this weekend.

Tonight Dan is staying in Bismarck after a meeting in Fargo. He is tired. Sam is going to work. One of the banks in town is have a 100th anniversary. I need to make an appearance, besides it will be a good time.

Last night I went to quilting for the first time in probably a year, it was fun. It is nice to just pick up as if you never had left the group. Also was talking to a friend who lives two doors down from quilting and she is pregnant, third child. So now Tina is due December 1st, minister's wife (Kate)  around Thanksgiving, and Sandy is due beginning of November. Knitting baby stuff is fun so I'm happy.

The weather is perfect, mid 70s, sunny, slight breeze. Honestly could not be better.

Have a great weekend.

Great Day

Today was a great day. The garden is made ready for the city tiller (one gentleman who drives around town on his tractor and tills every one's garden). All the dead plants from last year are cleaned up and it has finally stopped snowing (I hope), so it is time to plant. I always love this season of planning and hoping and praying for rain and for warm weather. The anticipation is almost too much.

The mail was great today also. Received the new issue of Mary Jane's Farm and Hobby Farm Home. The house in CT needs to sell so we can buy some acres out here. The market is still pretty bad so am not anticipating a sale anytime soon. Anyway, at some point it will sell. Then we have big plans for fruit trees, raspberries, asparagus, etc. All the things that take a while to get established. I am trying to talk Dan into letting me have some chickens. Maybe by the time the house sells he will be worn down enough to acquiesce. Bees are also something to think about.

School is finally over for Chris and I. He received his Bachelor's degree and I finally finished my Associates through an on-line program out of Iowa. One class still has to post the grades but I'm sure it is not a problem.  Sam graduates on May 30th, then registers for college, then goes to China for two weeks. What fun.

Today the lawn got finished mowing. My little neighbor lady, (she is 83 and rakes every day and has a garden thinks I am crazy), I purchased a push mower (like Grandpa Schaffner had in town), with the rotating blades, no gas and no electric, just human push power.  She is wondering why anyone would make mowing the yard so difficult.  She is cute. I would like to find one with a larger cutting width at some point, maybe at an auction this summer. Saves time not going to the gym, a natural work-out. Planted some annuals today in some pots, they are so colorful.

Rhubarb is ready. When we were kids we would go to the garden with a container of sugar, dip the rhubarb and eat it. Now that sounds disgusting although I still love rhubarb. We have three plants which came with the house which is way to much for us. Hopefully I can pawn some off at church on Sunday.

On the knitting front I am finishing a washcloth and one sock this week. Also am finishing my second weaving project. That is great plenty for one week.

Knitting Project Finished

I am sincerely trying this winter to get some knitting done, maybe for Christmas gifts, maybe just for fun. Anyway I finally finished a scarf.

The  above pictures shows the actual color, cream but more of a white. (I really want to take a photography class and get so much better.)

The stitch definition.

The finished product.

Specifications: Knit Picks Wool of The Andes (Not my favorite yarn)
About 1.5 skeins
Size 7 Brittany Bamboo needles
Pattern: Basketweave Scarf by Ann Budd

This was a free download from Knitting Daily. It is a very good scarf for a beginner.

Today I am going to make either rhubarb muffins or bread in a continuing effort to empty the freezer.

The countdown is on to go to my weaving class, can't wait - only 18 days.

Freezer Update

I am starting to make a concerted effort to clean out our little freezer. In about 3 months we will have spring and I don't want to end up throwing out as much as I did last year, what a waste.

Tonight we are having baked garlic chicken, left over mashed potatoes, mixed beans (from the freezer) and I am making banana blueberry sour cream bread (blueberries and bananas from the freezer). The chicken has been in the freezer a while also so it will be nice get rid of it.

Sam and Dan are going outside to shovel as it has been lightly snowing all day.

Nothing much else up. Have a devil of a cold I am trying to fight off, unsuccessfully so far.

Maybe third time is the charm

We'll try again at this blogging thing. Sam is sitting here doing art and Algebra, he would rather be just about anywhere else.

The house smells fantastic. In the oven now is a loaf of zucchini bread. Rhubarb muffins are already done and there is a loaf of white bread in the bread machine. The zucchini and rhubarb is what was frozen from the garden this summer. A concerted effort has to be made to get it used up as last year I threw a bunch of stuff out. The living room smells like pine as we decided to get a real tree and am so glad we did. It seems like a waste to cut down a tree just to throw it out but it is so worth it. The tree is beautiful, takes up about 1/4th of our living room. It expanded a little more than we expected when it got warmed up.

The cat was sick but is now doing much better. He is on antibiotics and special food. Amazing how perky he can be after laying around for a few days.

Dan and I had our first Christmas party on Tuesday for Rotary. Have another one on Friday for the hospital, that includes dancing and this year bingo-- I love Bingo.  On Sunday a group of ladies, 4 of us, from the church are going to Minot (about 2 hours away) to see the living Christmas tree program at one of the churches. We will go shopping a little depending on the time and then out to eat afterwards. These are great ladies it will be fun.

Finally last night I finished school for this semester. It seemed like it would never get here. I had one paper to write last night so after the party grabbed a glass of wine and went for it. Unfortunately I should have not sent it last night as I was thinking about it today and could have elaborated a little more than I did.  It will be fine anyway.

Water park pictures

This was the end of a very long hot day at the waterpark/amusement park (Lake Compounce). Really nice guy asked if he could take a picture of all of us. People basically, for the most part, are really nice.

Sam and Audrey on a Ferris Wheel type ride. Probably the most tame one of the day.

Tina and Audrey posing, I think Audrey was waiting to get on a ride.

Chris and Audrey on the swings. He looks like he is having a blast doesn't he? When the ride was over he did say it was kind of fun.

Finally my cold/yuck is doing better. I think just the change in the climate and weeds and such brought it on big time. Took two Benadryl last night to try and sleep it off.

Rained and hailed today.  Between the rain showers we have beautiful blue clear sky and then another cloud rolls in and lets loose. Kind of weird, we haven't really had a summer with the dry weather and heat.  

Tomorrow I am going to dehydrate onions, probably in the garage so it doesn't stink up the house. There is a cake pan full already cleaned and ready to be sliced.  Finally get to try out my new dehydrator!!

Good Things About Coming Home

The mail --

Lots and lots of mail.  We received 4 rebates, $6, $50, $50 and $16.  Two were Verizon phone rebates. Sam wanted a new phone so I got one too, total out of pocket was about $40 for both (The $50 rebates). The $16 is Dan's for paper at Staples and the $6 was at Menards in the form of a check that you have to use there, which is fine will just roll it into another rebate.

Also received some great coupons from Pssst for Fiber One yogurt and Vocalpoint for the new Bounce Bar fabric softener.  Anybody want some, just leave me a note and I'll get them out.

This morning before working also sent out some rebates from shopping in CT. Rite-Aid spent $24.22 and will be getting back $16.49 and $6.99. Also went to Staples picked up a couple of items - spent $32.91 and will be getting back $28.99.  Also went to CVS but that trip got a little messed up as one of the ECB didn't print (Actually right now I can't find the receipt with the ECB on it, that's a problem).

The garden --

The other big thing with coming home is if you have a garden you know what I am going to say. The weeds grew like crazy while we were gone.  Apparently there were some pretty good storms as the beans are laying on the ground and everything looks a little beat up.  I did pick beans and got a strainer full and have 6 zucchini sitting on the counter. Last night for supper we had some beans (about 1/3rd) and six ears of sweetcorn. The sweetcorn needs a little more time.   We have huge tomatoes and are just waiting for them to ripen.  

This week is supposed to be cold yet again. We didn't hit the 70s until about noon and tonight is supposed to get down in the 50s.  Way to cold for August. We need about a week of really warm weather for the garden to finish up.  

The State of North Dakota is looking for about 200 gardeners in the state to test some new vegetables. Each gardener can test two and then fill out an evaluation form.  Sounds like fun and think I will do it.  These are Asian types of vegetables testing to see if they will thrive here.

Still unpacking so no pictures today. Will probably work some more tonight as we are a little behind.

Quilting and gardening

Can you see him/her?  See what he/she is right next to? My beans.....but he/she is so cute, just a baby. Sam and I go out and talk to him/her every morning. There is no name (yet).  Dan already informed us we can't have another pet. 

Went to quilting tonight and had a great time. I need to go to our local store and purchase some dark green or dark purple fabric to use on my 9-patch table runner. I have backing fabric already from mom so will only need to purchase a small amount and was also given some hints on how to quilt it, so hopefully this weekend I will have a finished product.  I also took the apple core fabric and they were highly impressed (I think they just want me to keep sewing/quilting so went overboard) with my first curve. One of the quilters in the group is Kathy Johnson who works at a quilt store in Williston and also teaches a ton of classes.  She is doing a one woman show yet this summer and is organizing all her quilts which she estimates to be about 150.  Wow -- I think I will be excited if I even finish one.  She does fabulous work.

Picked some more yellow beans and another zucchini from the garden.  I'm not sure what happened to the green beans because all I am getting is yellow, which is fine because they are so good when they are fresh.

Today a gentleman laid linoleum in the kitchen. He is quite a character but does a fantastic job. Really likes to talk, said he would be done at 5 and left at about 7:30. He has to come back and put the refrigerator and stove back. He is also coming back on Saturday to tear apart the bathroom, lay subflooring and linoleum. Our bathroom is currently carpeted and is gross. After that we are going to sand the hardwood floors (I'm still trying to find someone I can hire) and are awaiting the new curtains. Then we are done.  I am not a good living in chaos but will be nice when it is done.

Rain, Rain, keep it coming

A few knitting pictures per the request of mom.  

Dishcloth made of Sugar and Creme, fun little knit from the Dishcloth Knit-Along. The group knits two washcloths every month, one a pattern one a lace pattern. Last year I made a goal to knit every one and reached the goal. This year is more pick and choose.

The lousy picture blow is a pair of socks I made for Danielle's birthday. The paint on the floor is what we found when we pulled up the carpet this fall. We still need to refinish the floor. The sock is kind of lacy even though it is hard to see on the picture. The yarn was from Hobby Lobby and ends up being about $5 with a 40% off coupon.

It finally started to rain a little this evening which we need desperately. From the garden we have already had beans (yellow and green) and stir-fried zucchini. There are also many more zucchini which will be ready this week so will be able to freeze some shredded for muffins this winter. The tomatoes hopefully will be ready next week.

Today was a day off for me as we were very low on work so I volunteered to take it off.  This is what I accomplished. Okay the photo's didn't download, will try again tomorrow.

Trying something new

Okay I just uploaded some photos and will try to upload them using iphoto.  

This was our snow storm last week. Quick and then gone.

Our four rhubarb plants after thinning out.  Obviously will have to pick again.

This is the book I got for Mother's Day, love, love, love it. Although it is Norwegian so is a little hard to decipher.  A friend and I went to the Good Shepherd Home (nursing home) and spoke with a little 90 year old lady who knows Norwegian.  She was able to read the big print but not the majority which was really small. The book contains mostly patterns for new hand coverings based on old samples they found which are also shown in the book.  

The last picture is the over eager garden Sam and I have going this year. There is one part that is not included in the picture which is planted in yellow and green beans, top part on the picture has onions, middle space will be for tomatoes and the end has sweet corn and squash. Now hopefully we get the necessary rain.

It worked -- yippee. Next will be knitting pictures.

Try again

Okay after pressure from Mom and Tina I am here again.

The weather has been absolutely beautiful, in the 70s but very windy. I hung laundry out today (only 1 load) and had to put extra clips on to keep it on the line.  The stuff was dry in about 10 minutes.  It was actually so windy that we lost power for about an hour. Through this whole terrible (snowy and cold) winter that we had, we never lost power. Quite a comparison to CT when we were losing power all the time and those lines were even buried.

The quilt show in Duluth is coming up in early June which should be a good time. Haven't signed up yet and need to by the 10th or you have to wait in line to register. Still not sure if I want to take any classes or just go, look at the marketplace, buy a few trinkets, and just relax. I feel like there is enough on my plate without trying to add quilting.  There is also a fantastic yarn shop in Duluth where I can get some hemp to make string bags for the farmer's market.

Will try to get some pictures up tomorrow of some knitting, see if I can remember how to do it since its been a while.  Dan bought a pot of bulbs that we have transplanted and they are starting to bloom. The flowers in the front are purple (don't know what they are but mom will) and the tulips in the back I don't know about yet but I'm sure it will be pretty.

There is a gentleman in town who is going to come and till up the garden space tomorrow. I can't wait. Sam said he is going to help so we'll see how long the enthusiasm lasts. We will be about doubling the size of the garden and doing some companion planting to take advantage of space. 

Sam has 11 days of school left and is so ready to be done. He counts down every morning.

Love to all,

Leslie

Gurney's Sale

If you are putting in a garden this year and order from Gurney's they are having a 50% off sale today only. We don't plant that much so won't take advantage of the sale. We will again plant mostly tomatoes and possibly expand a little bit into other vegetables but have to find a way to keep the deer from eating them. They liked the green beans last year.