New Shawl, Soup & Downton

I have never enjoyed a handcrafted wearable item like I have the shawl that I made last summer!  The last time I was in JoAnn Fabric store I picked up another colorway called Sea, in shades of blue, green and purple.  So, I have begun a second shawl for wearing in the late winter and early spring.  I only have a few rows done, but I'm loving the colors of this - it's rather like crocheting in watercolors!  My blog friend at Sweet Posy Dreams blog finished one like this and hers is what spurred me to start my 2nd shawl in this pattern.

This is the yarn, it's made of microfiber, so it's soft and washable.  It's a small-ply, but I use a size G hook which gives it a lacy, loose feel. 

You can see my finished shawl and the link to buy the pattern on this blog post, click HERE. 

I'm really enjoying working on this one, as I figured out the errors I made on the last one so it's easy sailing on this.  My little sister Denise liked the yarn and has bought 2 skeins of Sea and 2 skeins of Moutain Heather, which has pink, lavender, yellow, green and white, and now I want some of that! :-)

I get a kick out of this.. the top of our pellet stove stays warm but not burning hot due to the air that blows out of the vent and our cat Lucy will lay on there even when the flames are blazing.. isn't that silly?  See Dayle in the kitchen?  I'll show you what he's up to in a bit.   

I tried to get her to turn her head and said.. LUCY!.. and so she stood up.  What a face, huh? 

Here is our hummingbird having dinner.   

Dayle made bean and ham soup, using my friend Shirley's recipe, but he added veggies, such as onion, celery and carrots, and some pasta, too.  But the soup she has in the recipe is very savory, you can find it HERE in my blog on the subject. 

And he also made corn bread to go with it, using the traditional recipe (on the back of the corn meal box :-) - and baked it in our wonderful vintage Griswold cast iron pan. 

Boy this soup and bread was great, and we had it again for lunch yesterday and it was even better!

Lastly, if you haven't seen Downtown Abbey - read no further if you plan to watch it later.  And if you haven't seen Season 3 or the end of it, read no further. 

BUT.. those of you who have seen it.. please join me in a moment of silence... ok, now you can cry and scream with me.  WAHHHHHH!!!!!!!  I understand actors leaving to accept big money after making a name in a wonderful show.. but really?  REALLY????  ::sigh::  OK, I'm calm.  ((hugs)), Teresa :-)