Day After Christmas

It is the day after Christmas and my home is a mess. Boxes and paper are strewn about and the kitchen, oh my poor kitchen, looks like the kitchen-aid blew up. My tree is still a lit and the stockings still hung, but this little lady is glad that it is over.

I am so glad it is done. Normally I do enjoy this time of year, but this year it just seemed to overwhelm me. I made Peppermint Chocolate Torte (but really it was a Chocolate cake with Peppermint frosting) and pumpkin bars for the family. (That is the picture from the recipe. Mine didn't look quite as good.) Surprised my love with an xbox one (was that hard to keep from him or what!) and he even surprised me with an entire set of changeable knitting needles (which I have been eyeing for longer than I would like to say).

My sister and my mother loved their gifts and I am so glad. I put in a lot of effort in those two items. The sweater feels like fluffy bunny fur (but it is not, its baby alpaca) and the orange cowl(infinity scarf it doubles up) is made of an organic cotton/wool blend. It is so soft but not itchy. For the knitters out there who are like me and allergic to most wool baby alpaca doesn't have the guard fibers so you shouldn't get irritated by it, but of course feel feel feel. If it feels itchy while you are in the store, it is going to burn/cause a rash when you get home.

Now I just need to survive New Years. Having Nine, that is right NINE people in my apartment for New Years and two dogs. It is going to be a zoo. I feel like I should start baking for it already. But tonight, tonight I am going to be a vegetable at home and kill some zombies on the xbox. Tonight is a night of relaxation. The baking can start tomorrow.

Time Flies!

I cannot believe it has been over a month since I have posted a blog post. Honestly the time has just been flying. I have been working on so many different projects for the Holidays. I finished NaNoWriMo last month and with some extra words to spare. And now I am swamped in the fear that I won't finish the knitting projects in time to have them sent out by Monday.

I am knitting a cowl for my mother, a quick chunky knit sweater for my sister and M has now decided he really wants an Irish sweater for Christmas. Ugh! I don't think the sweater is going to get finished and I definitely know the brown blanket I was working on will not get finished by the new year. It had to be put on the back burner so I could finish the Christmas presents.

Enough blogging and back to working!

Keeping Busy

Autumn is always a time of getting stuff and staying constantly busy. I think it boils down to the harvest is in the fall and the colder weather and the beautiful colors kick us into gear to get stuff done before we are trapped in our houses for the winter.

I am doing NaNoWriMo. It is where you try to write a whole novel in a month (or 50,000 words). It is a great organization which I highly recommend you check out. They do all sorts of cool things for literacy and finding a creative outlet. I donate every year (or at least have the last three years, since discovering it). Great organization and it brings a lot of people together all over the world.

I am also finishing up all the projects around the house. Knitting both the white shawl and the brown wool blanket (that I started over). Trying to get both projects done by the 1st of the year. I also need to knit a few sweaters for the holidays. My sister requested a pale grey sweater. I am trying to find the perfect yarn (which I might find at a new yarn shop that opened up just over 30 minutes away from me in Carnation. It is called Tolt Yarn company, they look super cute already!).

I am also still cutting squares for the quilt. Trying to keep it super easy and simple and doing it when I feel like doing it. I don't want to kill my passion for it by cutting squares non-stop, especially when I have other projects I am working on.

I am also been on a cleaning rampage. Think the next step is to have my carpets cleaned again. They need it. Having a dog and feet track in dirt all the time makes the near white carpet not look so white in spots. Cleaned so much yesterday. Cleaned things I have been neglecting to clean for a while.

I already have plans for the new year (2014! Can you believe it!?) to reorganize our apartment again. Getting rid of more stuff. Since our friend moved in with us (we are helping him to get back on his feet and in transition from getting a new job) the extra bedroom which was my craft/book storage room is now his bedroom. Love to help him out, really I do. It has been nice for Michael to have his friend near too. I know that but it made me realize how much stuff we are still hoarding even after the multiple trips to goodwill and the dumpster. We are only two people, I don't think we need quite so much stuff.

Well this is taking me away from NaNoWriMo! Those 50,000 words are not going to write themselves (and no this doesn't count much to my dismay).

Until next time!

Knitting Projects and A Home Ripped Apart

While we were gone a dear friend of ours, I would say one of the best, got a new job just a few miles away from us. He currently lives in Portland. That is over a two hour drive away. Yeah, not the best situation when trying to get to work on time. We offered to let him move in with us for a month or two until he can find a place of his own near us. Well, because of this I had to clean out my craft storage room, aka, the second bedroom. Our apartment was torn apart. I had to put books into three suitcases (not all crafting books!) and remove all my crafting stuff from the closet. It was a nightmare.

Luckily, I convinced my wonderful husband (oh how I love saying that) to go to Ikea with me and pick up some shelves. I first found inspiration from Posie Gets Cozy's shelves she has. They are wonderful, but they didn't quite fit where we needed them to go. Then I found some different ones!

As you can see I have already put them together and stuffed them to the brim with craft supplies and Halloween houses. I have most of my yarn, my sewing machine, my quilting stuff (just starting out so I don't have much quilting stuff yet), hex signs I have been working on, and a bunch of other little craft things tucked away in there. I moved the bookshelves that were against that wall to under the breakfast bar. They fit perfectly. Now my dining room feels like a wonderful, cozy, completed room. I love it. Now when I have my second bedroom back I will finally have enough storage in my apartment.

Well with all this cleaning of my craft storage room (I always did my crafts in the living areas of the apartment), I found some of my old WIP. I found a Christmas lap blanket I had started that I am not working on again. I found some baby yarn in a beautiful patterned grey color that I am making into a baby teddy bear, and I am still working on my thick wool blanket.

The teddy bear and the wool blanket are still my favorites.

Recipes! And a Box.

I finally got my recipe cards and box! I am so excited. As a young girl I forever yearned after my grandmothers recipe box and cards. They always looked so perfect in her perfect handwriting and the perfect oak box she kept them in. 

I bought this recipe box from 1canoe2. I absolutely love it. It even came with this sweet thank you card.

These photos were take with my phone so please be kind. I will take pictures when I start filling in the cards. It is so lovely!!!

I can't wait to start baking and cooking just so I can fill out the cards! Only family approved cards for this box!

Life Changes, Life Goes On

Life. It is something special that everyone gets to experience. I recently got married (like two weeks ago!) and we came back from our amazing honeymoon and back into our normal routine. We were pretty much husband and wife as it was. We had been living together for over four years and had gotten into our own comfortable life.

That being said, M's friend got a job while we were on our honeymoon that is near to our home. He currently lives in Portland. That is over two hours drive. We offered to let him live with us for a month or two until he finds a place of his own. So I have been busy moving all my crafting stuff out of the second bedroom. Already my home feels chaotic and a mess. The second bedroom is almost empty. I unloaded half the crafting supplies yesterday and put them into bags and suitcases. I did the same thing for the books. We have oh so many books. I really only have a few things left in the closet but I need to make room for them somewhere.

Ronnie thinks we are leaving again. She hates when we leave and I always wish I could take her with us. She is my little girl and I love her so. She has actually been cuddling with us. Full on cuddling. The cat dog wants to cuddle. It amazes me. Last night I was knitting on the couch with a blanket and she pushed her nose under the blanket so that she could lay in my lap as I knit. She never does that. Normally it is a pet on the nose or two and she is gone. Enough attention she says. I think she will like having another person to pay attention to her in the house. She will hate it when he leaves though.

Honeymoon Abroad

Dublin. It was amazing. Not just Dublin itself but Ireland as a whole. You have a question, ask anyone. The food was beyond amazing. Chatted with a few locals in pubs and at breakfast. Know now where America gets its breakfast from. It isn't Germany it is Ireland. So good!

Our hotel was gorgeous, Dublin was amazing. Cork was stunning and all the tours we took were breathtaking. An unforgettable trip and a great honeymoon.

Honeymoon and Wedding Bliss

I leave for Wisconsin today. Nerves are starting to hit. Not for the travel but for the commitment I am about to make. I get married to my wonderful fiance of 3 years (we have lived together for over 4 at this point). I am already packed. I have been packed for days now. I just need to load my laptop and charges into my carry on and pack my personal items.

I got a new camera two days ago. I am excited to use it. Both on our honeymoon as well as for the blog. I am making a decision to be more motivated in my life and capturing moments. Memory isn't everything, especially when you are trying to share it with other people.

I am off for now. I may or may not update while I am on my honeymoon!

Peach Pie and cozy knitting

 

I leave for Wisconsin to get married tomorrow. But I have all this food and produce from CSA that I had to use us before we leave. By the title I am sure you realize that I had a lot of peaches to use. I had never made a peach pie before but I reached for the handy and always yummy smitten kitchen to help me out. As always, she helped me make a delicious and basic peach pie. The flavors really shown through with just the simple spices and buttery crust. She honestly is a woman after my own heart.

While the peach pie was in the oven Ronnie and I cuddled on the couch while I worked on my oatmeal colored sweater. She loves when mom knits. She gets extra blankets and lots of cuddles. Especially when you are making pie late at night.

Gardening in the City - Reclaiming my Passion

Let me just start out by saying living in an apartment and gardening is not an easy task. I love gardening almost as much as I love knitting. I love the feel of dirt between my finger nails and the smell of just good soil. The feeling of watching the plants I nurtured grow. The whole process is wonderful.

Gardening and Apartments are almost two complete opposites. I went back to Wisconsin for a long weekend just a few weeks back and I got a taste at what gardening could be like again. My folks are great people and they have many gardens. I used to love to spend hours out there weeding and trimming and making the gardens look great. They never looked as great as I wanted them too just because the restrictions of them not being my gardens but I took pride in my work. Now the gardens are over run and unruly because my parents neither have the patience, time or passion to do it. I sat down that Sunday morning, gloves on, beat up jeans and an old shirt, hair pulled back and my tools handy. My father literally said "Do what ever you want to get the gardens looking great." I smiled and replied "You really know what that means?" He answered "Yes. Just don't cut down this one tree right here." It was the beginning of cleaning up. I de-headed and pruned and weeded and pulled stuff out. I trimmed trees and worked on getting the garden back to what it should be. I worked for hours, on one flower bed before I was called inside to get ready for a party. I should mention it was my own wedding shower, but my thoughts weren't on it but the plants I was tending to. All the gardeners in my family immediately noticed and came up to me saying how nice the garden bed was looking and what a great job I did on it.

That being said I came back to Washington on that long plane ride half way across the country to my little tiny plot of garden space and my wilting flower pots and felt out of touch. I saw the wilting of my plants and my soul nearly died with them. I had neglected my own little plot because it was grand like my parent's gardens. They have a half an acre with a good 50% of it designated to garden beds. I saw the barely started rock path and the flowers that were for early spring and nothing for the heat of summer. I looked at the black raspberries that were over taking the side of my apartment again and felt discouraged. I felt overwhelmed and underwhelmed in the same moment. It wasn't until I really let that sadness seep into me that I made a change. One day on my lunch hour, after feeding Ronnie (our dog for anyone who doesn't know) and slipped off my shoes and touched each and every plant. I filled up the watering can and gave life back to the burnt plants. I moved the barely started rock path to the other side of the concrete sidewalk to create a nice rain border along the hill. Just with that one little change I was able to make two things look better in one swoop. I opened up the plot of land for more flowers and made the border to my front door look even better but I also re-sparked the passion in me for gardening. I am planning on buying more plants for late summer/fall and planting them this weekend.

I promise to take pictures of the progress and to swear lots at the plot of land that is literally concrete of the dirt world. But I also promise to enjoy every minute of it because gardening is what made me want to start homesteading in the first place and it would be a shame to lose that dream because I lost a part of myself.

Knitting Progress and the Start of Something New

Yesterday marked the start of a new adventure for me. I started on my very first sweater. Okay, well I started it two days ago but disliked the yarn I had for it so I bought different yarn and started over yesterday. The problems of a knitter I swear :)

M came with me and I got buttons and yarn and just enjoyed the whole process of picking out the yarn. I already had the pattern picked out, the needles at home and fingers itching to start working with yarn. The pattern is more of a cardigan than a full sweater but I am excited to start it nevertheless. The color I chose is a close grey color with a bit of warmth to it. Last night I was able to work the starting rib and work the next row of the actual pattern. 

I am still working on a wool blanket that I am trying to play catch up with. It is thin yarn with small needles and lots of stitches. Or in other words, it is taking me a really long time. I started it with the intention of doing a row a day. Now I am playing catch up because I started it last year and do not even have half the amount of rows I should have by now. It is okay though because I do enjoy knitting it. It is my bed time knit that helps me calm myself into sleep. Super easy basket weave stitch that helps me mindlessly drift into relaxation.

I am still working on the dish clothes. I made one that was perfect. The second one has a defect row and then the first one the ball of yarn ran out of just near finishing. Wanted to them to be the first thing in the shop but I want to have a least a pair that are perfect and beautiful before I post them. I will keep you updated on them. They are a beautiful linen stitch that is super thick and luxurious. 

It has been a week of knitting delights. Enjoy the pictures below.

Explosion of knitting

Knitting. Knitting. Knitting. It has been a weekend if knitting. I have almost finished the log cabin knit blanket. I just have to finish the outside trim and see it together. I worked on my wool blanket I had set aside for a few weeks and started on a linen stitch scarf. It will be so warm and beautiful come winter. 

Here is just a few pictures of my progress. 

Relief and Release

This past weekend both M and I have decided to not move to the east coast. It seemed like a great plan of moving our future forward but after careful consideration we realized that it was actually moving us back a few steps. In the long run it might have worked out but it would have been a lot of sacrifice to get close to where we are now. It was a conflicted decision but I think a wise one. Both M and I feel as if a huge burden was lifted off our shoulders and we are now able to start living again.

I was not saddened anymore when I saw the hard work I put into my garden going to be all for naught. Now I actually got my hands dirty again and finally planted my lilac bush. I put the seedlings of vegetables in the little container garden I have and made sure all of them had a good drink of water. I am look forward to actually finding a home with some land again and even started my search. I do not feel like I need to give up everything I own now for a life than might have been.

I think over all it was a good experience for Michael and I. We put our life on hold for another life that might start up. We stopped planning our wedding, worried about ever taking a honeymoon, stopped wanting to hang out with friends because we figured we wouldn't see them in a few months from now anyways. It was a really hard time for us and I think it just showed us that we really have roots in WA and are really happy just the way our life is.

Front Hall! Finally complete

It took a while to find all the pieces I wanted for the small space I call my front hall. The stool is even hollow to store my reusable bags! I love it.

Log Cabin

Knitting has always been a hobby of mine and yet I just figured out how to do the log cabin tiles! Been knitting away at my new project!

Dandelions

I got an email last night from an herbalist from my hometown about Dandelions and it was too good to pass up. I, myself, have been thinking of taking up the challenge of getting used to the bitter but wonderfully good for you Dandelion.

Have a read for yourself because honestly I do not know why we wouldn't want to try this amazing plant.

http://www.moonwiseherbs.com/dandelion-a-spring-tradition/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=dandelion-a-spring-tradition

Living The Green Life

I love living a green lifestyle. I love when I pull out my reusable bags at the grocery store. I love seeing the plants in my apartment grow from seed to plant in what seems like a blink of eye. I love buying fresh, locally grown food. I love donating old things instead of just tossing them in a landfill. I love when my recycling is bigger than my trash because it means I am choosing better products to fill my life with.

Now that sounds like a whole lot of perfect doesn't it? It does to me. Am I perfect all the time? No. I forget my bags at the store a lot. Who thinks of bringing them when going to home goods stores, or the comic book store? I always forget. I don't have a compost pile because I live in an apartment and just isn't accessible to me. Could I make it so? Yes, will I? Probably not. I still buy water bottles and most of the time my recycling is full of them instead of using the filtered water we have in our fridge. My point is I am trying but I am still making a lot of mistakes. I would love a small house in the middle of this vast land filled with animals and crops and just wild land that I can explore. Am I ready for it? No. I want to be fully self sustaining and have no garbage output. I am a long way off from that but I am trying.

Life is about trying and making mistakes. Today while I looked at a plant covered in aphids because I forgot to pay close enough attention to it made me realize this. I felt its tug saying I need attention for a while, but ignored it because of other life things. Now I have it sitting in the rain hoping it heals. I really hope it does. But if it doesn't it is a lesson learned the hard way again.

One Project Done

I have officially completed one project of Operation Get Rid of Stuff, aka, clean house. It feels so great! Last night M and I went through the last of the books and now have about 3.5 book shelves full of books instead of the 6 before. Huge difference. Now we have things that matter to us on display on the bookshelves in our dining room and it makes the whole living space feel more like us.

Tonight we are going to sell a few bags of them and then try to sell the rest this weekend when we have more time. We have a lot of books to sell and I don't think they will all fit in my Bug. So tonight is stage one and this weekend will be stage two.

It is great having all this extra space and every time I get rid of something I feel a little bit more like I own my stuff instead of the other way around. I have done a few more projects around the house but the books were by far the biggest accomplishment.

All the money we get from the books will go into our savings for buying our own little plot of land. Homesteading is just one step closer.

Homemade dryer balls

Quick project of tonight. Homemade dryer balls. Means I need more yarn to finish my other projects. Always an excuse for more yarn. I can't wait to finish them. Into the wash they go.

Simpler Living

Yesterday M and I discussed about feeling disconnected from ourselves and each other. We decided to do something to get us back into feeling better and getting more refreshed. We started off by declaring that no t.v. or computer time will be allowed (besides allowing to put music on and to watch a work out video). The outcome was amazing.

So what did we do in that time? I started and defeated casting on my first toe up sock. I cleaned out the entire second bedroom closet and threw away 2 more bags of garbage (where does this junk come from?), started working on the foot of the sock, read some more about tiny living and minimalism, and made a wonderful cod dinner as well as organized most of our books.

The closet it self was a big project. We had the entire shelf above the clothes bar full of papers, half filled note books and things we just generally did not need anymore and had forgotten about. I went through every piece of paper and threw out everything we had not used in the last year (which was almost all of it). The top of the closet is now almost bare. M even asked last night what we were going to do with that space and I smiled and replied "I do not know." It is nice having the extra space.

Next was the books. I went through the book shelves and put books in order based on fantasy/fictional books and educations books and homesteading/craft books. That took a while. I am not even close to be done with it all either. Next weekend (because we have company coming over Sunday for game day!) we are going go to through the books and decide what ones we want to sell and plan on selling at least 75% of them. We have a lot. By a lot I mean 6 bookshelves, 1 closet and a few stacks hidden places as well. And these book shelves don't just have a few books on them, no. They are stuffed with books on top of books to use up as much space as possible. We love our books but it is time to let go of the ones we do not plan on reading again.

The dinner was delicious. Wild Caught Cod with olive oil, some herbs and a fresh orange made a delicious dinner and helped us relax after working so hard on trying to organize and clean.

We finished off the evening by M reading and I knitting on the couch just enjoying the quietness of the evening. Ronnie (my dog) cuddled on the couch with us and we just enjoyed being. It was a great feeling and one that I plan on recreating again tonight. A night without technology really brings bliss.

The Tiny Space

Tiny houses. It was a new concept to me until about a month ago when an acquaintance of mine showed me what they were.

Growing up I think most of us are taught that wealth and prosperity is shown by a big house. Prosperity equaling happiness in the long run. I, myself, would have never dreamed of living in a house that was under 1000 sq feet. Apartment living sure, but to buy and permanently live in something that small was beyond crazy! Who would do such a thing?

At first, paging through the images I thought this would never be right for me. I have way too much stuff. I would never be able to downsize two people's stuff into something that would fit into a shed. But I kept looking and looking. And while I still don't think I will live comfortably in a home that is under 500 sq feet it made me realize that happiness does not equal prosperity. It is the things you do in life, who you share your moments with, not the items you have. I had always known this but as spring rounded the corner it really sank in. The moment of balance came into view and I set off to start working if getting rid if the stuff that has been weighing me down and owning me to a point.

In the post before this I mentioned how I had been cleaning a lot, organizing and throwing things out left and right. And this was the cause. I figured that if I ever wanted to save up for a homestead I would have to start, most likely, with a small home and add to it when money and time became available. Start small and you cannot bring a ton if stuff with you. You only get to close the few items you need to survive and to have the sense of home.

I plan on posting more of my progress and hopefully some pictures to. I am hoping to have all of my items fit in just one closet instead of the four it is taking up now. Is it possible? I am not sure but I am going to try.

Spring Cleaning

I have been reading and researching a lot about tiny homes and being a minimalist. Let me just say that is definitely not me and my family as of right now. However, I do want to mention that I am trying to at least de-clutter my life.

Last weekend I was able to go through our huge storage closet and throw away 6 bags of garbage and create 5 bags of donations. Today we threw out three more bags out but that was only in the kitchen. I want to be able to clean out an entire closet and have it empty. I want to be able to downsize our stuff until it is just what we need and what is really important to us. Right now we have a lot of junk.

I am planning on cleaning out a bunch of our knick knacks and things we have not used since we moved to our current place (which has almost been two years). It is showing to be a lot of hard work but even M is wanting to help and downsize our belongs as well. It is always nice when you get your partner to help you and even goes along with what you want to accomplish.

Tomorrow we are going to go for a walk in nature first and then get to work straightening everything out and getting rid of the weight holding us back.

I wish everyone else luck who is going through the same thing. I would love to hear what you have been up to.

My Goat Obsession

Let me start out saying that I used to hate goats. Abhorred them. I thought they were mean spirited and just out to cause little children pain. This was of course after seeing my younger sister get head butted in the stomach just for wanting to pet his once cute face. My whole family was scarred after that.

Then a few months back I started reading books about self-sustainability and homesteading because I wanted to be able to support myself if ever the need rose. Especially since I was also learning about the increasing dangers from the food products in the stores. Well in one of the books this woman went on and on about how wonderful her goats were and how she wondered how she lived without them. She had mini goats for her backyard in the suburbs. It was my first re-introduction to goats. The book peaked my interest beyond what I thought possible.

I kept reading. Finding tidbits of information in all sorts of sources. Mostly a small chapter here and there in the overall picture of starting a hobby farm. But about a week ago I finally got the courage up to go to the library and check out their shelves for books on goats and homesteading. I have read more about them and realize they are the perfect animal for me when I do get enough land to have a few. And that is the problem, you need a few. The goat of my childhood was all by him lonesome and I realize now that he was just grumpy and lonely and didn't know how to socialize. He was one of the only animals left on the farm and it was a cruel joke by the farmer to keep him all by his lonesome in a small pen. I realize now, that is why the goat was so mean. It was not his fault at all but his owner. The person who was suppose to take care of him and socialize with him and play with him constantly (since we was all alone.)

Anyways, I digress. Goats are lovable creatures with so many uses as I am finding out. They can give fiber for making yarn and fabric out of (cashmere and mohair anyone!), the females can give tons of milk to make healthy whole milk, butter, cheeses, skin creams, the list goes on and on. They can also be a great source of meat since it is so lean and still grass fed. But it isn't just what they can give us. They can eat just about anything growing out on the prairie or grass fields. Thistle, grass, weeds of all sorts, plants, woody plants, just about anything. Talk about cleaning up the place.

I am learning more and more everyday about barnyard animals and honestly I just see goats as a great addition to my family when the time comes.

In The Pursuit of Dreams

Today was a day of complete delight

Homesteading Dream

This week has been full of things pushing me towards fulfilling my homesteading dream.

First off, on Monday, I finally learned how to knit socks. This may not seem like a huge deal to many of you but to me it is HUGE! I have been knitting on and off since about the age of seven and the thought of knitting a sock terrified me. I was always afraid that it was going to be impossibly hard and I would get super frustrated and give up with out accomplishing anything. Well thankfully the life saver of modern times, aka YouTube, saved the day. I finally learned how to turn the heel and make the gusset (the triangle thing by the heel for those who don't know). And now I have completed my first pair of socks! Amazing I know. They need some improvements but I figured for my first pair they are pretty darn good. I am wearing them as I type.

The second thing that really has me on the homesteading bandwagon is making my own onion powder. Yup, I did it. Another thing I thought near impossible that I accomplished this week. It was super easy as well! I even got to use my mortar and pestle! Oven baked the onions until they were super crunchy (low heat over a few hours) and then pounded away at them with my stone. It was great fun and really made me think of doing this for the rest of my life. Now the only thing that could have made it better if I grew the onions but there is always room for improvement.

I continue to read up on homesteading . Put a ton of books on hold at the local library. Would love to own them all but we have to save all our pennies, nickels and dimes if we want to afford a homestead in Western Washington.

This was a great week for me and realizing my dreams. I can't wait until next week when I get to try something new.

Until next time!

Knitting Progress

I have done it again. I have become addicted to knitting. I go in these spurts where all I want to do is knit. It all started because I went to clean out my knitting corner (currently a huge pile of yarn, needles and projects half done or "phd" underneath an end table in my living room) and make it look at least presentable and usable again. Well of course it goes without saying that once I clean something out I usually play with half the things I find, aka knitting.

This past week I have worked on a panel of a stripped blanket. It is going to be blue and green. The two panels currently are seperate and I am actually using one as a shawl as I work on the other one.

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Then I found an old ball of yarn I got about a year ago (yes that is old for me, I can't collect a stash no matter how hard I try). I am knitting squares found from a coaster pattern I found and plan on making that into a quilt or pillow or something like that. It is just too cute for me to just have it is as a coaster.

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Finally I wanted a quick project for me to do start to finish and found this adorable baby blanket pattern on the purl bee (via pinterest). It is a simple seed stitch blanket with very chunky yarn and a knitted border. I am changing it up by using three strands of heavy weight yarn by Homespun (you can get it at any craft store, especially Joann's) and following the same pattern.

It is a simple pattern of

CO 51. Seed stitch until all balls are used up (with some left over for a BO).

With the homespun I am using 6 balls of yarn since they are bigger than the local homemade skeins. After that is all done I am going to use a lime green color to make a crocheted border around it. The purl bee version as I mentioned had a knitted border but I thought it would be easier to crochet it than having to worry about picking up stitches and the like.

This is my progress so far.

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Of course I am also always working on dishcloths. I can never have enough of them and they are simple projects to do while sitting in front of the TV or relaxing in bed.

What kind of projects have you been up to? I would love to hear about them.

Adventures In Making Butter

For the holidays I got a gift card to William Sonoma. Well this past weekend M and I decided that we would go spend it on some things we need around the house. Okay in reality we didn't want to spend any money because we are trying to save it all and were going stir crazy so we went to William Sonoma (a store in which I love but just normally can't afford all the goodies in there).

So anyways, I went around that store like six times. M dragging behind me just saying pick something already. (Nothing like going around the same store 6 times to make you want to go back home and not care if you are stir crazy anymore, trust me.) I picked out some measuring cups we needed (the liquid measuring cups. I only have dry ones) and we still had a lot more on our card to use up. So I saw in the little homesteading section they had a butter making kit. I thought to myself that looks fun and put it on the register along with the measuring cups. Went to the store bought the other ingredients I needed and we headed on home.

Of course now I have psyched myself up for it. I am getting excited so the moment I get home I bust open the kit and follow the instructions. My patience just is not the best when I am really excited about something so the 30 minutes or so until the cream got to room temperature for me to start shaking away was nearly deadly.

15 minutes later of shaking vigorously. Let just say my arms ached for days. Then after I went to rinse off the butter in the ice water I realized I hadn't shook it long enough or waited long enough to let the cream warm up. So 15 minutes of one of the best arm work outs of my life and I didn't even get butter. Nope. It turned into a pile of liquid mess that ended up going down the garbage disposal.

I know the lessons now but geez. Making sure your whipping cream is very much at room temperature before you start shaking otherwise that 15 minutes will probably be closer to 30 minutes. I know I will try it again (after my arms recover) but it was an adventure to say the least. I am glad I tried it and even though I blew it I am excited to try it again.

Have you ever made butter? How did it turn out for you? I would love to find out.

When Things Step Between You and Your Plans

So I am not the best at blogging. I will be the first to admit. I had the most perfect intentions of writing on this blog every week and it being my baby. As you can see that hasn't happened. Life has a way of stepping in and make even the most brilliant of plans fall through.

I have been trying still to make our apartment a home and save pennies to someday have a house to call our own. Then of course our bearded dragon needed emergency surgery and 800 some dollars later a lot of our hard work to save went down the drain in one very stressful evening. We are still saving little by little and making budgets and plans to save as much as we can. The new year for a new start.

I haven't been knitting as much as I would like but with the start of the new year I have a few new projects I am working on. Mostly blankets and dish cloths (can never have enough of either!) The blanket I am working on is a Yule time themed blanket of green and red. I am hoping it is warm and lush and finished before Easter rolls around. Then I will be in the mood for some spring time projects and cleaning house.

The organizing has taken a very steep decline because in Seattle area the sun doesn't really come out at all and by the time you get off of work to organize it is dark in almost every corner of our apartment (we rely on a lot of natural light most of the year in the majority of our apartment.) I have a plan made of down sizing our collection of items and trying to get some extra money by selling some books and things we do not need.

I have tried to re-boot the herb of the month club with a group of friends. It is a lot more work than I was imagining and I need to get into work on that more. It is a lot of fun while at the group meetings but the collecting all the information and planning meetings is definitely not easy. I am hoping it gets easier the more I do it and get comfortable with it.

In entirety life is hectic. You plan and plan but something always comes up that was outside of your planning. No matter how much you plan something somewhere will go wrong but the best you can do is plan for everything you can think of and smile through the problems and get them resolved. That is what we are still trying to do and what I will continue to do.

Until next time.