Invincible Summer

As Summer fades into Fall, I begin to look in earnest for as many flowers that are still blooming as I can possibly find. There are still a few. Thankfully. I am one of those people who doesn't let go of the Sweet Summertime too easily. While everyone else in the universe gets excited over the coming crispness of Autumn evenings, I am still looking longingly over my shoulder for warm nights on my porchswing. I do get caught up in the holiday spirit in a big way but the day after Christmas {literally~ the DAY AFTER} I am wondering if it's almost May.......
But, anyway, I thought I might show you a bit of what's still in bloom in my tiny, overgrown, somewhat neglected garden. Just a few pictures of some of my favorite things.

A magical Fairy stepping stone. A birthday gift from my Mother a few Summer's ago.

I love the Pink Polka Dot plant cascading behind her.

I love this darling birdhouse that was another birthday gift from my friend Krista several Summer's ago. I get lots of garden finery for my June birthday :)

Those are Peonies behind the fence.

The brick house is my Mother ~ In ~ Law's house next door to me.

It's where Scott grew up.

A beautiful Plumbago bush. Once again, a gift, from my dear friend Diane.

She brought it to me when she visited from Kentucky in the Spring.

Thankfully it blooms and blooms and blooms because the bunnies LOVE the taste of it!

Speaking of Bunnies ~ I love this little cast iron fella. He was ~ yes a one time birthday gift! ~ from my friend Karen.

He guards the birdbath where sprigs of Chocolate Mint meander about.

A sweet couple of lover's nestled between the roses and hollyhock.

A gift from Karen as well.

A beautiful Fleur De Lis grill that was a gift from Krista looks majestic amongst the hostas.

 It has weathered and rusted over the years so nicely!

And one last look at the last Rose of Summer.

 

She is an Old English variety.

I no longer remember her name.

Her perfume is absolutely divine.

Straight from Heaven.

And, believe it or not, this is one thing I actually bought for myself!

 

My humble little garden sits just outside my kitchen window.

Every time I gaze at it I feel wrapped in arms of love.

Mother Love.

Girlfriend Love.

The Great, Boundless Love of God.

 

Though I will miss my Sweet Summertime and my Garden, all it's love and promise lay within in my memory and my heart.

Waiting.....just waiting.... ALWAYS waiting...

 

"In the depths of Winter

I finally learned

that within me lay an

Invincible

Summer."

Albert Camus

Tiny Stitcher

On Monday night we all came together for Knit Night again after a bit of a Summer break. We don't always break for the Summer, but this time we all seemed to be running in different directions with our own families for awhile, so we took a little time off. Being back together was like a happy family reunion! :) As always, we drank tea, consumed sugar {in the form of cupcakes this time}, swapped stories and got on the business end of a whole lot of yarn!
Pictured above are the precious little hands of Ivy, our Tiny Stitcher. She is the 5 year old best friend of my granddaughter Gabby. Ivy's Grandma, Carey and I have been best friends since we were 18 and 21 {me being the older one}. We had our babies {all girls for each of us} at the same time and raised them up together and now our daughters are doing the same thing. Isn't lifelong friendship a beautiful thing?

 Ivy and her Mommy ~ Malory.

This is Ivy's first year of being homeschooled and part of her education is learning to crochet. And believe me, she is doing a mighty fine job. Those tiny hands just move that hook in and out right where it needs to go.

This is Ivy's "Meena" {that's what she calls Carey instead of Grandma} taking a peek to make sure the stitches are all lining up.

I just love seeing such little hands taking up the craft already. Makes my heart beat with great happiness! :)

 

And one more crafty thing I have to show off ~

Carey has recently learned the lovely art of basket making.

I am so delighted with her skills!

Aren't they beautiful?

And they had that wonderful baskety smell about them too.

 

She has promised to teach me at some point.

Afterall ~ I'm the one who taught her to crochet many years ago {which she is a PRO at!}.

And then I taught her to knit a few years ago too.

So, now it's my turn :)

 

Grapevine & Roses

I started my day today with a very exciting trip to my local yarn shop! Since this is the week of my hometown's annual  Pumpkin Festival, Debbie, the owner, always has 20% off everything in the store.  I try hard to make sure I always have a little stash of cash set back for this event. So I thought you might like to see my show and tell :)

Pictured above is the new knitting needle set by DENISE. It's called Denise2Go. This is how they advertise it: "It's portable. It's pretty. It's petite. It packs a lot of knitting potential." Well I agree! I mean, all it took was the soft pink, green and lavender color scheme accompanied by those luscious roses and I was sold! The needle sizes are US 5-10, with one crochet hook. Needless to say I am tickled PINK!

This is what it looks like all closed up. It measures about 5" by 2 1/4".

 

Of course no trip to a yarn shop would be complete without some YARN.

So here's the fiber I chose today.

The color?

GRAPEVINE

Oh So Pretty!

And what to make with it?

A Mobius Wrap for Little Ole Me! :)

Oh! And I even bought a pretty wooden shawl pin for a finishing touch.

 

I just LOVE a Yarn Shop Sale, don't you?! :)

Love One Another

One of my best friends gave this to me for my birthday a couple of Summer's ago. It sits on the hardwood floor in front of my fireplace in the dining room where I can see it from my new knitting chair. Just 3 simple words ~ LOVE ONE ANOTHER ~ but they really do say it all, don't they?

We had a wonderful weekend here of celebrating Scott's birthday. There were 17 of us gathered in my snug little cottage on Sunday for a family cookout. Everyone of us was very happy to be together, to have each other and well... just simply to be allowed another opportunity to "love one another".
Though I should have taken many pictures all day long, I was too busy baking cake, cooking and playing hostess. But I did capture one sweet moment between Gabby and her PaPa.

Sorry for all the snacky stuff in front of Scott. That's part of my sister's birthday gift to him. She's getting him ready for watching The Bear's!

 

Today's post is short and simple. I just wanted to mainly say this ~

Remember that time goes by quickly,

We never know what is around the next corner,

And the most important thing ALWAYS is that we

LOVE ONE ANOTHER ~

Every moment, every chance we get, no matter what.

Period.

Knitting Through the Storm

I woke up this morning to a great, glorious storm. Loud peals of thunder  rumbling through the sky, rain pelting the house and lightening crackling in the heavens. I don't know about you, but I like a good storm. And we have need of some rain. Of course I don't live in the path of a hurricane so I don't have that fear. We do get some serious tornados in our area from time to time however. That being said though, this has not been one of those years, thankfully.

On a personal note though.....it's been a stormy year. August 25th marked one year ago that we were told my husband had a "large mass" on his pancreas. On September 12th it will be one year since they surgically removed that mass, 60% of his pancreas and his spleen. Then they followed up with radiation treatments. In the midst of all that my RA took a serious turn for the worse {uh... Go Figure} and both of our daughters got married and left home within 6 months of each other.

WHEW! It's been a rough year at sea!

One of the reasons I mention all of this today is because actually,

 we have cause to celebrate on this day. Today is my husbands 52nd birthday!

 A year ago, I must admit, I wasn't sure he'd be here for this one. 

Pancreatic Cancer is one of the Big Boys.

.

We are PRAISING GOD today, and every day, that he IS here and CANCER FREE.

One of the things that remains constant for me

 {except when the RA flares to the point I have to take a break ~

 but that is even doing better lately :) }

 is that no matter what life throws at me, I just keep knitting through the storm.  

And as I knit, I pray....and pray....and pray.

I give thanks that we have made it through this year and pray we won't have to go through another one like it. I also give thanks for the family and friends who have been through the thick of it with us.

And I want to extend a special THANK YOU to all of you who take the time to chat with me here in Blogland. It has been my HAPPY PLACE. And I have needed that so much more than any of you know. You have lifted my spirits and given me something positive to focus on. You have given me a purpose to my day, kept me inspired and made me smile. And trust me ~ that is no small thing.

May you all be RICHLY BLESSED. 

I hold you all in a special place in my heart and enjoy the glimpse into your world each day.

So really ~ seriously ~ Thank each and every one of you. :)

I will see you all sometime next week.

We're going to spend the weekend CELEBRATING!

What Do You See?

There is a fairly new vintage store across the street and one block up from my house {ooohhh ~ I could get into so much trouble in there!} called Second Betty's that I just love to poke around in every chance I get. Well today was one of those day's that my Mom and I decided we needed to take a little gander at what might be new {but so pleasingly old!} in there.

 When I went around the corner & entered the second room I nearly squealed out loud with pure delight the moment my eyes lighted on this darling little white wire ~ thingy! I snatched it up, ran back  around the corner and said, "Mom! What do you see when you look at this?!" And without missing a beat, her reply, "A head form for your baby hats." Well done Mother, well done!

I have been scouring the internet FOREVER looking for something to take blog/etsy pictures of my baby hats on and have never found anything I like at all. I knew in a glance this would do it! So take a look. What do you think?

It really DOES IT FOR ME! Made my whole darn day!The shopowner got a real chuckle out of how tickled pink I was over this fabulous little purchase. Oh! And a fringe benefit ~ it only cost $9.95. Even I can afford that today :)

A person can only take so many flat hat pictures. They just don't show the hat off as nicely usually. So now I can list this sweet ruffled silk hat on my Etsy Shop soon.

Yay for fun vintage finds!!! :)

Flower Garden

So great is my love for flowers, especially roses, that no matter what else I am working on I sometimes have to just create a little bloom in the midst of everything else. When I do this and don't have an actual purpose for the flower I just knit or crocheted I always add it to this wonderful, heavy glass jar that was a gift from a friend years ago. I think it originally had a candle in it. I like it better with my hodge podge flower garden growing inside! 

Just like my little cottage garden outside, this one is forever changing. I am constantly putting in and taking out. It's so nice to have a fresh supply to go to when I need to pluck a flower to embellish a hat or bag or even a tea cozy.

 

Flowers are just one of those things that keep me inspired.

And like many of you, my pattern source grows continuously. The first place I look to for a pattern for beautiful blooms is one of my favorite books ~

100 FLOWERS TO KNIT & CROCHET

BY LESLEY STANFIELD

It was a gift from my Dad a couple of years ago. Once again, Thanks Dad!

 

"Just living is not enough...

One must have sunshine,

freedom and a little flower."

Hans Christian Andersen

 

Coming Up Roses

 

One of the things that matters to us as we nestle in to knit or crochet is what our surroundings look like. Right? Well, my new chair is positioned not in the living room {like one might suspect} but in the dining room. I know ~ seems odd. But, actually, this is probably my favorite room of the house. It's rather ecclectic. So many of my most beloved treasures live in this room that I just love to sit in here and look around sometimes. And now I can rest between stitches and do just that! So here is just a little tour of a few of my favorite things ~

My corner china cabinet. It was my mother's when I was a child. She gave it to me when I was first married and I removed the doors, painted it white and pasted pretty rose wallpaper border to the background.

There are 2 things you can tell about me the minute you enter my home ~

1) I am crazy about ROSES {and PINK}!

2) I am NOT  a "less is more" kinda Girl!

Here's a pretty rose covered clock that helps me keep track of the time {lest I get lost in my knitting and forget ALL else!}

And this is the view above my desk where my laptop sits. Yes ~ even my desk and computer have their home in my dining room! Can you see why I LOVE this room?

Not to mention this is where we gather to eat and laugh and play games as a FAMILY and Monday nights I fill the dining room table with a gaggle of Girls and Yarn for Knit Night!

Who wouldn't love this room?!

Afterall ~ It's coming up roses everywhere I look :)

 

I am a firm believer in surrounding ourselves in the things that inspire us not only to create, but to relax and enjoy the journey of life with those we love. And to have peace within ourselves.

I wish you all a week filled with great inspiration, deep peace and abiding love.

 

A Touch of Lace, A Sprinkle of Cinnamon

As I said in my last post, we are having a quiet holiday weekend around my house. No firing up the grill on this hot Labor Day. The resident Grill Master is taking it easy {and I am breathing down his neck making sure he does exactly that!}. While he has relaxed in the recliner, I have sat back in my new chair with my feet propped up happily knitting away! I finished this sweet baby hat just before going to bed last night. I love the soft blush pink color of this wonderful yarn. It's Pima Silk by Cascade Yarns. The fiber content is 85% pima cotton and 15% silk, making it such a heavenly choice for delicate baby skin. I usually use it for my bunny ear hats as well.

If you're interested in this darling pattern I found it on Ravelry. Here's the link ~
http://www.gsheller.com/2009/08/the-story-of-a-hat-pattern-
It was a quick knit and I love the simplicity of just a little touch of lace. Very sweet. It's done in multiples of 9 and can be easily adjusted to any size you want to make. I have one in a gorgeous shade of green on the needles now in a smaller size.  The lacework is very simple and done in only 3 rounds.

 

I did manage to put the knitting needles down momentarily and heave myself out of the chair long enough to wander into the kitchen to bake up a tiny treat {well, it IS a holiday afterall...}.

Cinnamon Rolls

Don't be too impressed. Pretty darn simple. Just make your favorite pie crust recipe {I use real butter, not Crisco}, roll it out, spread melted butter all over, sprinkle liberally with cinnamon and sugar {and chopped pecans if desired}, roll up, cut and bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Or buy ready made pie crust. Pilsbury is delicious.

As for a holiday dinner, my daughter is here cooking for her Daddy. So we do have a bit of family filling the house this evening. That's the main reason I chose the cinnamon rolls. My granddaughter LOVES them :)

What goodies are you making for Labor Day?

Cozy Comfort

I have been away from my computer for the last few days to spend some time in the hospital with hubby who had to have some tests run. We are now home, trying to recoup and regroup! My body is still protesting from sleeping in one of those dreadful recliner things they offer up. But we are having a quiet weekend and I am giving hubby some TLC along with the homemade chicken soup his mother brought over and the lovely pumpkin cupcakes my sister baked up. Ahhh..... it is always so wonderful to be home!

And I just have to show all of you the delightful surprise I came home to ~

 

A cozy new knitting chair! I am so excited!

Here's the story ~

As my RA has progressed over the last couple of years I am having a harder time being comfortable even in my own home, on my own furniture. Last Summer we replaced our old couch. Then in the Fall we bought new {used actually, but more padded} dining room chairs. And then, sadly I got to where I just could no longer sit to knit in the chair that had always been "MY" chair.  But we just have not been able to afford to replace it. So while we were in the hospital my Dad noticed that two elderly sisters who live near him were having a yard sale. As he was driving home he spotted a chair and decided to swing back around to investigate. And ... Voila'!  For only $25.00 I have a chair I can now sit in and knit in cozy comfort! Thanks Dad!

 

Of course I had to doll it up with one of my favorite doilies from a long ago flea market treasure hunt! And the little fairy and bird scene at the top is a view from my new knitting corner. It sits in front of my fireplace on an antique three legged spinning stool I inherited from Scott's Great~ Aunt.

 

Now I will spend the rest of this peaceful weekend catching up on what the rest of you have been up to. That is when I can rouse myself up out of my new favorite spot in the whole world!

Have a happy, healthy and safe holiday weekend!

 

Visions of Pumpkins...

As August prepares to give way to September, I am still busily creating as many pumpkin items as my fingers can possibly keep up with. My towns annual Pumpkin Festival begins in two weeks and I must have these goodies finished up and delivered to the gift shop downtown that's awaiting them. Customers start asking about my pumpkins by mid Spring {Are you kidding me? All I can think of at that point is ~ SUMMER... it's almost here... FINALLY!}

 

I did get some tags on some pumpkin hats last Saturday and dropped them off  at the shop so there would be a few there for some of those eager beavers!  My stack continues to grow here at home but I don't want to deliver anymore because I have ordered new business cards that should be here in the next day or two. After all, I must torture myself by having my name and number on every one of them so I get more outside orders for these silly pumpkin hats, which literally haunt my dreams at night this time of  year. Seriously ~ I go to sleep thinking about them, knit them in my dreams and wake up knowing they are the destiny of my darn day! Sometimes it's like this through October. {Did I mention before that pumkins don't do it for me in a big way and that orange has never been my favorite color?} I do have to smile and be thankful however. They are a big money maker. Last year my dear husband was having 60% of his pancreas removed during the Pumpkin Festival week {he had pancreatic cancer} and I spent 6 days and nights in the hospital with him. I took all my supplies to keep whipping these hats out thinking I'd bring a fresh stack to the shop. I didn't make it home with a single hat. The nurses snapped them up with more excitement than a bunch of fat kids in a candy store! Never saw anything like it in my life.

 

Anyway, this year I decided to give myself, and those pumpkin enthusiasts I am surrounded by, a bit of variety. I have been knitting up these sweet little pumpkin pincushions. Well, the pattern refers to them as pincushions and they are great for that. They are especially nice for a blunt yarn needle. But they make really cute table decorations as well. Even I really like them :)  Of course, you'll notice I have to sneak white pumpkins in the mix for my own viewing pleasure!

 

So~ if I disappear again for a few days at a time, you'll know I'm wandering around in the pumpkin patch {trying not to come unraveled!}

M'Lady's Rosy Cloche

 

I'm sneaking out of the Pumpkin Patch just long enough to show you a few new items I listed yesterday in my Etsy Shop ~ Front Porch Knits. They are my absolute favorite ladies hats in the world! I love the pure luxury of 100% Baby Alpaca. Nothing beats the sumptuous softness. And  crocheted shells always lend that light, lacy air of femininity. Then, of course, the real Ooh~La~La factor for me is the ROSE!  { I have a confession to make ~ I so much prefer ROSES to pumpkins...shhh.... don't tell that to anyone in this town right now... I may get tarred & feathered!}

 

These fit close to the head and give a bit of a vintage~flapper girl look when worn. The rose goes to one side. They are very charming and actually quite warm. Though they are somewhat lacy and airy due to the sheer nature of the crochet, the Alpaca is very insulating. Quite soft and snuggly!

 

For a better peek at them  go to frontporchknits.etsy.com

 

Well, I really must say TTFN {Ta~Ta~For~Now!} and get myself back to the pumpkin patch.

Want a sneak peek of today's pumpkin finery?

 

 

It's patiently waiting for me to grow it into a Pumpkin Pincushion.

More on that in the next day or two!

 

So My Dears ~

Be Healthy ~ Be Happy ~ Be Blessed ~

Until we meet again!

 

 

The Pumpkin Patch

As knitter's, crocheter's, or crafter's of any kind we are usually working on more than one project at a time. So this is what I have been doing along side the pretty little pink sweater I just finished up. I've been working in the pumpkin patch! The small town I live in prides itself in being "the Pumpkin Capitol of the World" and every September we have....you guessed it....  a PUMPKIN FESTIVAL.
The gift shop downtown, LULU'S, that carries my handmade items sells these hats like there's no tomorrow. For a few weeks people in this town will buy ANYTHING that remotely resembles a pumpkin! This is the first year I have knit them up in this off white. I just LOVE it! Not being much of an orange lover,  I happen to prefer white pumpkins in all their creamy loveliness anyway. So I thought ... Hey, why not? And I think they are rather sweet and pure and soft.... just like a baby!

So now my workbasket {actually a Longaberger Pie Basket ~hmmm....must be dreaming of pumpkin pie while I knit!} is full of pumpkin making goodies. So the afternoon's find me sitting on my front porch swing with my knittting. As an added bonus each breeze brings with it the smell of Libby's Pumpkin Factory, which is just down the street and around the corner from my house. It permeates the whole town through August and September. It's what Fall smells like to us!
 

And notice the soft pumpkin shade of orange I use instead of a brighter shade. Much more to my liking. I think it has a nice vintage feel to it. I do occassionally make a bright orange one when someone requests it or just to offer up something different because we all have our own tastes. That's what makes life fun!

 

Hope you all have the best weekend ever. As for me... I'll be in the Pumpkin Patch!

Whitewashed Workbasket

Over the years I have collected, accumulated and acquired so many beautiful baskets and bags. I've done the Longaberger thing, the Vera Bradley thing {both to great excess!} and the anything that catches my fancy thing. Lately most of my finds are from thrift shops ~ let's face it, I'm tapped out!
Anyway~ of all my pretty little finds this whitewashed Longaberger sewing basket with it's removable lid and gorgeous wildflower liner is my absolute favorite workbasket! It spends its days sitting next to my chair in the front room holding my small current projects. The date on the bottom of the basket is 2002. Longaberger only did these lovely whitewashed items for a limited time. I'm so happy I purchased this one :) 

Until yesterday afternoon my current work in progress had been a sweet little pink baby sweater. Actually the pattern refers to it as a "matinee jacket". How cute is that? I finally finished it though and off it goes soon to Miss Amelia Grace in Kentucky, born to Maria, daughter of one of my best friends. This is her first grandbaby and she is one Happy Grammy!

And of course I had to put my favorite heart buttons on for the Little Sweetheart!

So~ Do YOU have a Favorite Workbasket and if so, What's in it?