Finish Line!

We did it! I won't pretend that I'm not relieved that this is the last NaBloPoMo for this year, but I'm also glad that I did it. The experience has taught me several things.

Thing the first: I should not just wait until the muse strikes and a fully-developed post springs forth from my mind, fingers, and keyboard. What has worked for me this month is to write drafts (even if they're just snippets or a few lines!) about anything that sounds even remotely interesting and develop and refine these drafts later if the idea still seems worth writing about.

Thing the second: take photos of everything! I may not have even a fragment of a good idea rattling around in my brain, but a photo might help me conjure one up. Prior to this month, I've mainly written first and taken photos to fit the post later, but doing it the other way around has worked at least as well, and maybe even better for me.

Reading daily posts from many friends has been a great pleasure, learning more about them while they generously shared the happy and sad, ordinary and extraordinary aspects of their lives. Thank you to everyone who took their valuable time to read and/or comment here, especially because so many of you were busy writing your own daily posts.

To celebrate finishing NaBloPoMo, I've also finally finished my latest Hitchhiker. This may be my favorite one so far, but I think I say that with each one. I love the yarn, so I kept knitting to 53 points, and will enjoy snuggling in it while I enjoy the many good memories that it holds. I'll be using the time I gain from not posting daily to cast on a few non-Hitchhiker Christmas gifts!

Sunday Supper

(But it was actually Thursday.)

I started cooking Thanksgiving dinner when we moved into this house 26 years ago. The house has a huge dining room, so we bought a 12-foot table to fill it. We're about an hour away from both of our families, so it was great fun to have everyone filling all the chairs around the table.

Things changed over the years, as things always do. Family members have passed away, moved away, divorced, started working at soulless, greedy stores that are open on Thanksgiving, and bought their own dining room tables where they want to serve their own Thanksgiving dinners. That's okay -- that's life.

Even though the people around the table have changed somewhat, my Thanksgiving menu hasn't changed much in 26 years. These are the tried and true things that work for us, and if something's not broken, I don't mess with it. One of my favorite things to make (and eat!) is homemade crescent rolls. I don't honestly remember how or why I started making them, but they are a family favorite, and far, far better than the kind from the tube. Justin especially loves them, and I look forward to seeing him enjoy every one of the six or eight that he usually eats. Seeing people enjoy what I've cooked, baked, and prepared for them always puts a smile on my face.

Saturday Sky

"Be happy for this moment.
This moment is your life"
        ~ Omar Khayyám

Amaryllis Cam(aryllis) - Week Three

Scarlet, Minerva, and Sakura - Week Three

 

Scarlet, Minerva, and Sakura - Week Three

Just like most other siblings, these three continue to grow at their own pace, each in their own way. Scarlet focuses her energy on growing her  flower stalk, with only one tiny bent-over leaf. Minerva is working on some impressive leaves, with a decent flower stalk just beginning to appear. Sakura hasn't changed much in three weeks, but that's okay. Maybe she's just the shy, retiring type. I have offered her a sunnier, warmer spot, so maybe that will jump start her growth a bit.

What is really the most surprising thing is that we have temperatures approaching

 60 degrees so I can take amaryllis outside at the end of November!

Scarlet, Minerva, and Sakura - Week Two

Scarlet and Sakura - Week One

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing all who are celebrating a very Happy Thanksgiving, 

and a very Happy Thursday to those that aren't!

Quilt Squares II

Today is finally the day for the second installment of Quilt Squares for Christmas! I've been waiting several days for enough light to take photos as I want to show these beautiful squares at their best.

These were all made by John's oldest sister, sil1. She is probably the most creative person I know, and expresses this in sewing (drapes and slipcovers!), embroidery, knitting, gardening, making elderberry cordial, cataloging and growing heirloom apples from seed, in her career as a family practice physician, and the way she lives her life. Not only is she incredibly creative, she also has the patience, persistence, and craftsmanship to carry out her ideas. She is the person I look to when I start whining about not having enough time for everything. She knows the value of time, rarely wastes any on pursuits that aren't fulfilling, is a person that makes reasoned and thoughtful choices, and isn't afraid to express her opinion. I first met her when we sat next to each other in our Great Books class in high school, and was a little bit in awe even then!

In 1993, we decided that we would also make quilt squares for birthdays in addition to Christmas. These are birthday gifts to me in 1994 and 1995. I had never heard the poem "Interior" by Sir John Squires, but if the shoe fits ... and it does.

I and myself swore enmity. Alack,

Myself has tied my hands behind my back.

Yielding, I know there is no excuse in them --

I was accomplice to the stratagem.

The one on the right is a beautiful crazy quilt square. We went to a quilt show about a month before my birthday where I admired the embroidery and textures of the crazy quilts, so I was lucky to be gifted with one of my own.

The ocean and starfish square on the left was inspired when our families spent a week at the shore together in 1993. I love the shaded ocean strips, applique, and embroidery.

On the right is a gorgeous cathedral window square. I've never made one myself, but it looks technically difficult and fiddly, and I admire all the perfectly matched points. I really love this one.

This is an imaginative square from Christmas 1995. You probably can't tell, but Merry Christmas and the stars are embroidered in gold, and the planets are well-represented in their fabric versions. I think Jupiter might be from the fabric sil1 used to make a shirt for her husband and matching dress for herself when they got married, and I think I recognize Mars as a leftover from the cushion covers she made for their living room.

If I had to pick a favorite square, it would most likely be this amazing knitting basket from my birthday in 1993. I don't know what the technique is called but it's three different layers, cut and embroidered to show different parts of each layer. It's kind of like trapunto, but isn't padded with batting. The addition of some real knitting on the needles makes it even more special.

See why I'm in awe?

Ten on Tuesday - Let Us Be Thankful

I'm so sure that today's Ten on Tuesday topic is going to be 10 Things I'm Thankful For that I'm going to take a chance and write it ahead of time on Saturday. *

* To avoid repetition, Carole has tweaked the topic just a bit to 10 Things I'm Thankful For Right Now. I'm so grateful for some of the big things that they have to remain on the list year after year. I'm also thankful that what I wrote on Saturday still works (with only a few minor revisions) on Tuesday!  

I'm thankful for games like Scrabble, Mahjong, and St. Petersburg that I can play online because my husband won't play games due to some childhood trauma involving tears and being hit on the head with a Monopoly board.

1.   My Family - A wonderful husband, two terrific sons, a loving and accepting extended family - I couldn't ask for a more wonderful bunch of people.

2.   A roof over my head and a comfortable home - I am so grateful that we have been able to afford a house, as it's something not to be taken for granted. It takes a lot of maintenance and I've been known to complain about the increasing property taxes, but I'm also glad we have the ability to pay those.

3.   Enough money for a comfortable life - This one is huge and I'm thankful every day.

4.   The ability to read - I'm thankful that Mrs. Neusch taught me to read in first grade, that my mother always supported my reading habit by not telling me to go outside and play too often when I was immersed in a book, that I have access to some great libraries, and that I can find out almost anything I'm curious about by reading.

5.   The ability to knit - I'm thankful that my grandmother taught me how to knit, my mother reinforced it and helped me when I got stuck, that I can buy yarn even when I don't need it, and I can show people how much I care by knitting for them.

6.   Health - Overall I'm in good health, and so is much of my family. We've had some years where this hasn't been the case, so we try to take care of ourselves and I don't take good health for granted.

7.   Access to health care - We have health insurance, and while it has a very high deductible, we can afford it and it is insurance. I hope we never meet the deductible because that would mean someone is quite ill, but it is comforting knowing that insurance and access to health care is there if we need it.

8.   Ironing - This one comes with a caveat. I'm not especially thankful for ironing, but I am thankful that I finally quit procrastinating and spent all of Sunday afternoon working on a mountain of ironing. What I'm really thankful for is that it's all done!

9.  Tea - It's a small thing compared to my family and a comfortable home, but I really am gratified that somebody thousands of years ago thought to put some tea leaves in hot water. It wakes me up in the morning, warms me when I'm chilly, and calms me when I'm feeling stressed.

10.  I am thankful that my list this year is remarkably similar to last year's; I am so incredibly lucky to have this much good fortune on an ongoing basis.

I'm also thankful for everyone that takes the time to read my ramblings. Thank you!