Life Is Good!

Scott's MRI was GOOD!!! Praise God! We are so very thankful. My dad took us out to dinner at Cracker Barrel to celebrate last night and, knowing I like salt water taffy, he bought this box of candy for me when I wasn't looking. I love the vintage picture. When the yummy stuff is all eaten up I think I'll save the box to keep bits of ribbon or something stored in. And every time I look at it I will remember the Goodness of God.

Thank You All for your Prayers and Well Wishes! Now ~ it's on with the last minute wedding preparations for us.....   See you all next week sometime.

Life Is Full

I haven't been blogging much lately. Sorry! Life has been a bit hectic on the homefront recently. Thought I'd share a few tidbits with all of you. One bright spot is there are lovely little flowers popping up in my garden. I do love Spring! It smells so wonderful..

As I've mentioned before my husband, Scott, has had a recent bout with pancreatic cancer. He's been having some peculiar health issues for about the last 6 weeks so we saw our family doctor a couple of weeks ago and she did more bloodwork and another CT scan. The type of tumor he had can be persistent.  He will have to have a scan every 4 ~ 6 months for 2 years to make sure it isn't growing back. But all was clear there. Thank God!

Last week we saw the oncologist who ordered an MRI of his brain. That was done on Monday and we go back to the office at 3:30 this afternoon for results from that. It turns out that some of Scott's symptoms could be neurological. This type of cancer is prone to heading for the brain. We did not know that before. So we were a bit shook up with that news. However, the doctor's say the problems could also be a combination of side effects from radiation, which he finished in mid January, and the fact he only has 40% of a pancreas now. He did find out 4 weeks ago he is now diabetic. So, anyway, I have been a bit preoccupied, you might say. We are praying and believing for the best. I appreciate any of your prayers as well.

Another down side for me is that anything that taxes me emotionally flares my rheumatoid arthritis and I have to limit how much time I sit at the computer because it causes me too much all over pain. Plus I have no new knitting or crocheting to show :( because my hands, elbows and shoulders are bothering me so much I have had to take the last couple of weeks off. But hopefully I will pick up the needles and hooks again next week and get back at it. I have still been having my Monday night Knit Night here and love laughing with all the Girls while they create beautiful things! Plus I still  work with my homeschool student most weeks. So I don't ever cut myself off from the world of yarn play totally.

And to end things on a happy note ~ the other thing that has been keeping our household in a flutter around here is that we have another Bride in our midst. So we have had plans to make, apartments to hunt and showers to attend. {The picture below is of my granddaughter, myself and my daughters at Chelsea's house during the shower she hosted for Hilary}.  Oh! And we've had wonderful Mother/Daughter chit chats filling in the gaps here and there. What a whirwind with both of our girls leaving the nest 6 months apart! Though it is time and we are happy for them, it is bittersweet for Mom and Dad!

Gabby, Me, Hilary, Chelsea

Our youngest daughter, Chelsea got married in October. And now our firstborn daughter, Hilary, is getting married this Saturday. We will be taking a little trip for this one. She is having a small, private outdoor ceremony about an hour and a half from home. We will all spend the night away. Then they will be off for a honeymoon and on May 5th we will have a big reception with all our family and friends.

So! Life is full, as it is with all of you. I hope you are all healthy and happy. I will let you all know how things go with my husband and I will post some pictures of my lovely Bride.
Be Blessed!

White Coca ~ Cola Easter Cake

My sister, Bridget, is here from Milwaukee and knowing that Coca ~ Cola cake was my childhood favorite but that I am allergic to chocolate and have not been able to have any for many years now, she made me this wonderful White Coca ~ Cola Cake for Easter. It's so darn cute I just had to show it off before we cut into it. I haven't tasted it yet, but I can hardly wait! I'll share the recipe soon if anyone is interested.

HAPPY EASTER!

Lacy Shells Baby Shawl

Yes! A Dinosaur Egg really can become a Baby Blanket! Remember that MONDO ball of yarn I was so excited to find? Well it did finally hatch itself into a lovely blankie  {a few weeks ago actually ~ I just realized I forgot to show you all!}. So here's the BEFORE picture again:

I love the fact that it was a continuous feed of yarn that didn't require adding new skeins and working new ends in. Just like knitting from those wonderful cones of yarn. Makes the working time faster and the finished product smoother. And then of course, the real frosting on the cake is  when it's over it's over. So... without further ado.....the finished product.... 

Hope you like it as much as I do! I'm crazy about the vintage feel the lovely shade of beige lends it. I put it up for sale on my new {and still tiny!} Etsy Shop ~ Front Porch Knits.

Happy Fiber Frolicking {and whatever else you get your fingers in to} To All Of You Today!

A Basket Full Of Bunnies

Thought I'd show you a basket full of little bunnies before I take them downtown tomorrow and place them on the shelf at Lulu's Gift Shop where they will be anxiously awaiting new homes. They are in high hopes that Mommy's or Grammy's will buy them to place in Easter baskets for little ones to love on them! I know you've seen them before but I couldn't resist showing them off in their different colored suits all huddled together in the same nest.

I will take a break from blogging the rest of this week. I got a call from a friend in Kentucky last night who wants to come spend the week with me! She will be here this evening so we will fill the days with lots of laughter as we catch up with each other. Hope you all have a great week!

Sweet Baby Bunny Hat

I can't get enough bunnies in my life these days! I love bunnies year round. I always have. They're just so darn cute! But in the Springtime, especially as Easter approaches, my days are filled with creating the darling little critters. Every year I make these bunny hats to sell and they are always very popular. This one is on my new Etsy Shop ~ Front Porch Knits. I'll take a few to the local boutique this week also.

I am knitting them out of a lovely blend of pima cotton and silk that is delightfully soft. I love the sheer ribbon bows tied around the ears for the Little Miss. This hat can also be worn by the Little Mr. just as easily by simply removing the bows. And the real kicker? The fluffy pom pom cotton tail in the back!

Happy Bunny Trails To All Of You Today!

Front Porch Knits

This is just a quickie post to let you all know what I've been up to this week. A few years ago I had an Etsy Shop that I closed. Lately I have been really liking the idea of opening one back up. And a few of you have even mentioned it to me not knowing I had done it before. One of you {you know who you are} who knew me from my old blog and my old shop encouraged me to do so again.
So....... I DID IT! Check me out at FRONT PORCH KNITS when you have the time. It's a small start for now. So different from when I opened my first shop with 50 items! But with the progression of my rheumatoid arthritis making me a bit slower than in those days I will just build this one as I can. Plus I still try to stock some things in the gift boutique downtown.
In order to have a picture for this post I popped  my "Little Bunny Foo Foo", as I'm calling it on my Etsy Shop, up at the top for you.
Happy Weekend to You All!

Ta Ta For Now!

Rosie Posies

I am so happy that Spring is finally arriving. Everywhere I look I see little sprigs of crocus and daffodils shooting up, budding and blooming. Ahhh........WONDERFUL!!! The weather is still back and forth this time of year and I like to keep a cardigan close at hand or my favorite denim jacket. But as far as I'm concerned no jacket looks complete without a little foo ~ fooing up! So here's a few picture's of a couple of felted rose pins I made. The larger blue one is knitted and the smaller pinkish one is crocheted.

Hope you like my little flower garden!

Girl Time

Last week my sister, Bridget, surprised me by just walking through my front door. I didn't know she was coming, which never happens. She has spent the last few years living in Milwaukee while her husband goes through a cardiology fellowship. He is at the tail end of his residency and had to work 3 days in a row without coming home last week so he suggested she hop in the car and spend some time with me. I was thrilled! In June they will be coming back here to live. He has already signed a contract for a  job in this area. YAY!!!
Anyway, she is my only sibbling and I am nearly 10 years older than her. So our bond has always been a special one. At her birth she was my live baby doll. She paved the way for me to eventually become a mother of 2 daughters by giving me a little pre~experience! Then when she gave birth to each of her 2 sons I was in labor & delivery with her. I have always been her sister/other mother/best friend. We are very close.
My girls grew up calling her "Aunt Bridgie" then shortened it to "Aunt Bridge" as they got older. Now my granddaughter, Gabby, calls her "Aunt Bridgie" ~  history repeats itself. She loves it. Gabby thinks she hung the moon. They ALWAYS bake cupcakes together.

While she was here we took a trip to the mall one afternoon where Gabby insisted the three of us have our photos taken in one of those booths.  The last time I did this was when Bridget was a little girl and she insisted Mom and I do the same thing with her! Once again ~ history repeats itself.

Gabby decided we should all do something silly for this one. Notice she and I both instinctively stuck out our tongues. Hmmm.....

Hope you all spend some time in the coming days building precious memories with cherished loved ones!

Faberge' Egg Cosies

Being in a Spring state of mind where all things having anything to do with Easter are very appealing to me, I am still working away on little bunny items and egg cosies in between the baby blanket I am crocheting. Also being a big fan of Jane Brocket I purchased her book The Gentle Art of Knitting the very minute it was available.

Nestled amongst the lovely pictures and inspiring prose of this wonderful book are so many gorgeous patterns it's hard to decide where to start. I knew the moment I saw these little egg cosies I would have to get some needles into action on these as Spring approached though! 

I actually made these for my knit night girls and gave one to the girls who came last night. They were thrilled, which made me so happy! I still have two more to give to the ones who couldn't be here this week. I just love the bead work on them. I did each one a bit different and had lots of fun with it. I think they make a pretty little Easter adornment.

After all ~ It's the smallest things that fill your heart!

Can Dinosaur Eggs Become Baby Blankets?

Okay~ so where have I been? Well, actually I can answer that question right off the bat with a big confession: I am the BIGGEST YARN SNOB I know. That being said, I must admit I did not know such a thing as Lion Brand Yarn Pound of Love even existed.... so imagine my surprise....well SHOCK would be more like it....I mean this thing is MONDO!.... when wandering around Walmart a couple of nights ago, looking for crochet thread for my little potholder dresses, I made such a discovery!

Now I knew before I touched it that most likely it was 100% acrylic. Totally NOT my thing. But I just could not resist. So~ tentatively I reached out... and to my great amazement it was pretty darn soft. None of that old fashioned scritchy scratchy ickiness that turned me off all acrylic yarn 25 years ago. Then I read the label which says it will make either a whole baby blanket or a baby layette. Well I have a blanket I've been wanting to crochet so I thought why not give it a try! I will confess right here and now that I stood right there {looked both ways to make sure no one saw me!} and gave a tug on the center pull just to make sure. There's NO WAY I was going to bring that BEAST home and have to fight it from the outside of the skein or rewind it. But like magic it pulled out real easy. Oh! And the real selling point~ it cost $8.27!!! I just might buy this again.

I do have to say however, the cat is uncertain about it. Spying it in all it's glory she immediately jumped on the table. I figured I was in for a fight. This is the same cat I once came home to find in the basement literally wrapped in pure alpaca {acting high as a Georgia Pine, mind you} with the rest of the skein wrapped 3 times around the circle of the upstairs! But she pawed it once, gave it one sniff, looked at me as if to say, "You're kidding me, right?" and took off. She couldn't detect an animal scent therefore she was not one bit impressed by the size. Talk about your snobs!

But this die hard snob was impressed by the size, softness and price therefore I brought it home because I am dying to find out if dinosaur eggs really can become baby blankets. By the time I went to bed last night it was starting to look promising.

Foot Note {or Paw Note}

After publishing this post I stood up, turned around and this is what I found!

Turns out she was just waiting for a wee bit of a blankie to snuggle up with.

La Petit Dress

Yesterday I posted pictures of my Little Dress Potholder which was actually larger than the pattern meant for it to be due to the yarn I chose. So last night I decided to crochet one using cotton crochet thread in red and ecru for a much more petite one. I LOVE IT! This one is more like the vintage potholders we find when we scour the Antique malls. I took a picture of the two together to show the size difference. I still like my oversized one as well. But I will be making more of the little ones to sell and give as gifts. What cute Mother's Day Gift's they would make! Anyway, just had to give you a peek.

Happy March 1st Everyone!

Spring is just around the corner...

YAY!!!

Little Dress Potholder

I ran across this book, EASY TO CROCHET POTHOLDERS Over 25 Patterns for Everyday use, Handmade Gifts, and Holiday Fun by Cornelia Dobiasch  at the library recently and since I only have a gazillion of my own knitting and crochet books filling the shelves at home {not to mention the numerous binders full of loose patterns!}, I needed to  check this one out as well. After all, there's stuff in there I DON'T have at home! And what a cute book it is.

So yesterday I decided to crochet this adorable Little Dress Potholder. Now I knew it would come out larger than the pattern said it would because I opted for a yarn from my stash instead of the recommended one, not caring too much about the size anyway. I really just wanted it to hang somewhere in my kitchen and look cute. I mean it's about the last thing I'm going to grab to pull something hot out of the oven with. Not only would it ruin the cuteness of the little dress it would burn the snot right out of me!

The yarn I used was Knit Picks CotLin. One skein of Cerise and one skein of Swan. I think it gave it a nice blend of softness and crispness. Plus I was tickled pink when I went on the hunt for a place to hang it last night and discovered it matches my kitchen curtains perfectly. As you can tell by the pictures, although they are overcast ~ sorry about that!~ my kitchen is very ecclectic, so just about anything goes. But I think this little cutie adds just the right touch. I'm quite pleased with it actually.
Oh! And the ratty little ancient looking cross stitch that hangs underneath it is something I made in 1986. It has the look of being stylishly tea stained but I must admit it is TIME stained, as it has hung around my kitchen all these years! And I just had to put one last dim picture in because my sweet kitty, Mercedes jumped in there just in time.

Oh ~So~ Charming!

Recently I made some knitted baby hanger covers and really liked them. Then I decided I would crochet some instead and I must admit I like the finished product much better and will be doing it this way from now on.

Knit Picks Shine Worsted is one of my favorite yarns for various baby items therefore I usually have quite a variety of it in my stash {although it is time to restock ~ yay!} and I have discovered yet another thing it is really nice for now.  So using that and a size F hook {I am a loose crocheter/knitter} I chained 11 stitches and after turning the first row continued to chain 1 and single crochet 10 stitches every row for approximately 48 rows or about 10 inches ~ to cover the hanger. Of course this could be adjusted for an adult sized hanger as well.

Then I added a little rosebud and leaf to the top center but the possibilities for embellishment are endless. I just happen to love roses for anything and everything I can use them on! Anyway, I think they are Oh~ So~ Charming!

"I haven't much time to be fond of anything," says Sergeant Cuff. "But when I have a moment's fondness to bestow, most times...the roses get it."

Wilkie Collins

A Fondness for Roses

Happily Ever After

Though I have been under the weather the last couple of weeks I did make it to a gala event last  night with my family. The daughter of my husband's life long best friend got married, so I HAD to be there! It was beautiful and fun and it was good to be out of the house enjoying an afternoon and evening of laughter and good times with family and old friends. Just thought I would show a few photos.|

Chelsea & Eric {my youngest daughter & new Son~In~Law}

Just remember I am still looking a bit pastey! Still not up to snuff just yet. I have my daughter Hilary's bridal shower this afternoon at the local library. She is a librarian there and her coworkers are having the party for her today. It will be a lot of fun. There's always something deliciously exciting feeling about being in the library when it is closed to the public! Anyway, after that it will be back to my flannel jammies! Hope you are all have a wonderful ~ and healthy! ~ weekend!

Hilary & Brandon {my oldest daughter & soon to be Son~In~Law}

Brandon, Hilary, Chelsea, Eric, Me & Scott

And we all lived Happily Ever After!

The Gift of Friendship

Knowing that I have been sick for 16 days now {but who's counting?!!!}, a very dear friend of mine, Mary Anne showed up at my door this morning to check on me. There I stood in my flannel jammies and there she stood in her cute hat she knitted herself at one time. That's the beauty of real friendship ~ it doesn't matter how we are dressed for the meeting ~ or that we didn't know there was to be a meeting!

She came in with a flurry of movement, a hug and lots of laughter {because that's how she ALWAYS is}. Tucked under her arm was a pretty wrapped gift and card for me. Being the child I am, I LOVE  gifts. The unexpected ones are so much fun!

When I opened it I was so excited! Mary Anne made me this beautiful pink rose filet crochet doily!!!
I LOVE IT! Thanks so much dear friend, you really lifted my spirits on this bleak day.
And all you who spend all your time making things to give away know that we so seldom ever recieve anything someone made for us. What a treat. What a treasure. The real treasure, of course, is FRIENDSHIP.

"A friend is not only a rock of shelter to us in time of danger, but is also as rivers of water in a thirsty land, when our hearts cry out for life and love." 

J.R. Miller