Farewell to 2014 - Welcome 2015!

Hello my friends!  It's noon on New Years Eve as I write to you.. I wish for you a wonderful 2015.. with lots of love, happiness, family and friends -- and hope that you make the most of the coming year.  It's up to us to make our lives the most rewarding and interesting as we can.  Right?  Let's do it!

My Hyacinth is blooming and it's SO pretty!  Pink and spring green are a natural color combination, isn't it?  I think this is a perfect color of flower to welcome in the new year.  

I talked about the loss of fellow blogger and artist Vanessa Cabban in my last post.  My wonderful friend Gracie had purchased 2 of the books that she'd illustrated and brought them to me to read them to my grandsons - isn't that SWEET?  I so enjoyed reading them both and marveling at Vanessa's amazing paintings.

"Diamonds in the Snow" really spoke to me.. I also marvel at light sparkling through icicles in the winter.  

"No Place Like Home" also touched me deeply.. it was very thoughtfully written and illustrated.  She was a talented knitter, crocheter, paper mache sculptor, and illustrator.  She will be missed in this world.

My "Vanessa" inspired crochet project -- I've decided to make a hot pad out of it as we use them on the table all the time and each time I see it it will remind me of Vanessa and ALL of my fellow bloggers whom I've come to know and love.

I've been doing diagonal crochet for years and I always enjoy how it works out.  If you want the pattern you can either google it or leave in your comment that you'd like the pattern emailed to you.. and leave your email in the comment.  I'd post it, but it's long as there are lots of photos and text.

I am off to swim today.. with Gracie.  Dayle is making us a New Years Eve feast of baked pork chops, fried potatoes and buttered corn.  Tomorrow we will clear the decorations and box them up for another 11 months.  It's going to look very spare in here!  Again.. I wish for you a fabulous new year and am looking forward to sharing it with you.  ((hugs)), Teresa :-) 

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  *H*A*P*P*Y* *N*E*W* *Y*E*A*R*!*

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Quiet Crafting by the Fire

Hi my friends.. are you enjoying that week between Christmas and New Years?  I've always loved this week as we leave the decorations up for the color and sparkle and take them down on New Years day.  I try to never make appointments during this week and like to rest and recuperate from the hustle and bustle of the holidays.  What do you do with this week?  I got my self designed crochet beret done.. and although I had to do a fair bit of ripping out and redoing.. I called it good and cut the yarn and tied it off and have worn it out in public.  :-)  I'm not fully happy with it.. as it probably should of been more lacy to match the shawl.  But to be honest, this works, is warm and it is what it is.  The color in this photo is way off.. it's deep ruby red.

This is a photo of the shawl which I had on a previous post.. this is the true color.  

So.. yesterday my husband and I went out for lunch at Red Lobster and then went to Craft Warehouse to see if I could find some yarn for the baby guinea pigs that my granddaughters have asked me to make for them.  They want them to look similar to their GPs which are black and white and have long hair.  I found this perfect yarn which is a one ply that is 61% baby alpaca, 24% nylon and 15% merino wool.  The pattern for the baby GPs is there.

The black didn't photograph well, and this shows it as dark grey, but it's coal black.

These are the "models" of which I will be making babies to match.  :-)

At the grocery store yesterday I found this glass hurricane with 4 Hyacinth bulbs started.. the the bargain price of $5!  Home it came with us.  It's a pink one.  It will help me transition into 2015!

4 bulbs in this!

When I was making my cotton crochet ornaments I was sadly lacking in colorful cotton, so I found this at a very good price.. $2.19 a skein!  I found them at Herrschners.

I read recently on another blog that a fellow blogger named Vanessa Cabban was hit by a train and killed.  She produced the popular blog - "Do You Mind if I Knit?".  She and I corresponded regarding a design she came up with - a stripy scarf using the diagonal stitch.  I am very sad at the world's loss of her - she was beautiful and a prolific knitter and crocheter - she also was a paper mache artist of some note and sold her sculptures in galleries and in her Etsy shop.  Sadly, she and her husband divorced and she no longer posted on her blog. Goodbye Vanessa!  I think I started this project in her honor.. 

The Amaryllis that my son and DIL gave me is blooming on it's second stem.. what an amazing plant!

We had a 2nd Christmas on Friday when my son and his family returned home from their beach trip.  The boys were beside themselves with happiness when they received these kid cameras from us.  We also got them a radio-controlled truck, some Legos, etc.  They've been playing with their toys happily for days now. 

Well, I guess I need to get started on some baby guinea pigs.  :-)

What are you up to?  ((hugs)), Teresa :-) 

Christmas Day at the Farm

How was your Christmas?  We had a lovely day!  We slept in.. had some fresh pastry and a cup of coffee.. then Dayle started a fire for us.. and when we felt like it.. we retired to the drawing room (work with me here) and leisurely opened our presents to each other and the ones from our daughter Amy who lives in Ohio.  These are Dayle's surprise gifts to me.. he thought the ornament looked like us.  I thought that Santa was ready to bop Mrs. Claus on the head with the rolling pin.  LOL!  He also got me a few chocolates from the General Store in Troutdale.

He also got me a weekender bag from Pendleton, but it wasn't a surprise.  :-)  I am going on a trip to New Orleans in April to spend a week with my daughter and she invited my two sisters to join us which they were happy to oblige.  I'll be able to use this bag as my carry-on along with my rolling carry-on bag.  The blanket pattern is Chief Joseph in sage.

My daughter sent me this neat pair of barley twist candlesticks.  They look really nice with the taller ones she sent last year.  She knows me well, I love candle holders and candles!  Thanks, Amy!

I got a tooled leather checkbook cover for Dayle - he's used those plastic ones that come with the checks his whole life and I thought he'd enjoy a nice one - and he actually loves it!  I also got him a Carhartt t-shirt.  

Our daughter Amy sent this wonderful book to her Dad.. he loves doing crosswords in the newspaper, but we finally cancelled our subscription since they cut back on the days that they deliver.  I sneakily bought one for myself on Amazon so we can do crosswords together.  :-)

Here's my surprise on the tree.. those are my two granddaughters in the photo ornament on the right.. Paige and Jenna.

Dayle baked the ham in his pellet smoker/grill and it turned out DEE-liscious!  It has a red currant glaze that is very tasty.

Our son Shawn, his wife Beth and sons Michael and Gabriel arrived at 2:45 and Michael jumped right in and helped me prepare the roasted potatoes and asparagus.  I think he might become a good cook in his own right.

All set for Christmas dinner!

We got the boys these MiP robots, and they had a total blast playing with them!  They dance and play music and even have a little tray so you can send your robot to deliver something to someone across the room.. they are really fun!  We also gave them an Air Hog UFO hover craft thing that was really fun to watch.  Last year we gave them all clothes, but this year I wanted to give them fun things and I think they were a hit.

Our son and his wife gave us this.. yum!  And some Aplets & Cotlets and some Belgian chocolates.  Oh my.  I will have to swim faster!

One of the robots.

This is one of them all lit up.  You can run them from your smart phone or computer!  They had them going all around the house, beeping and dancing, it was fun to watch.

I am going to haul my carcass out and go swimming today.  Yes, I am.  I really am.  Right?  How was your day yesterday?  Did you get something fun?  Was your dinner delicious?  I'm looking forward to a mellow week ahead, and to work on 2 crocheted baby guinea pigs for my granddaughters.  :-)  But first I need to find some fuzzy yarn!
((hugs)), Teresa :-) 

All is Calm, All is Bright

Hello my friends... I hope all is well with you and yours.  My dear husband is out trying to find me a surprise present.. poor sweetheart.  I told him he didn't need to go.. but off he went.  Me.. I tidied everything up and took a few photos and returned to my crocheting.  Dog on my lap.  HGTV on the telly.  Our son's family who live with us decided to spend 4 days at the beach over Christmas - so I am here, alone, on Christmas Eve.. in the quiet.  ::insert cricket sounds here::  We're having pizza for dinner!  LOL!  

The living room is all set for our Christmas day with our son Shawn and his family.  We got a special ham that comes with a red currant glaze, asparagus and squash and I'm going to make roasted potatoes like I did for our blog girls luncheon.  We also got a chocolate cream cake for dessert.  Say.. I just noticed that the lights that were out on my wreath magically came on.. it's a miracle! :-)  I took a whole set of photos and when I downloaded them to my computer I noticed that the stockings were missing that were there.. they must have gone to the beach!  So, I found more of my stocking collection and hung them up and did a whole new set of photos.. awww.. now that looks right.

I always worry that I didn't get enough or not the right thing.. but you know what?  It's all good.  It's really about spending happy times together, isn't it?

This is my view from my easy chair and it fills me with happiness.  Our warm little farmhouse.  It's not big, it's not spotless, but it keeps us safe and protected.  The dog is on my lap (my left thigh is his "place"), I pet him and brush the hair out of his eyes.  I've got Christmas music playing on my laptop while I write to you.  A new song that I recommend is "Mary Did You Know" by Pentatonix - an acapella group who sang this in a cave to get really nice acoustics.  My DIL Kristi recommended it to me.  Click HERE to watch the video.

The dog and I keep an eye out for Dayle to come home.  This is the bay window behind our chairs, we have a circular drive there.. and the barn beyond.  Oops, there is a jar of marbles there.. but that's okay.  :-)

I am trying to make a hat to wear with my shawl.. it's the same yarn.. 50/50 alpaca and silk.  I'm making my own design as I go and there have been some challenges.. the yarn is rather fine and when I got to the brim part it Did. Not. Work.  ::sigh::  Rip, rip, roll and rip.  Now I'm trying out a ribbed brim with a smaller hook and my dear friends.. it looks like it's going to be too small when I get done.. I should have added a looser rib.. we'll see.. I might be rip, rip, rolling again.  But I'm not giving up!  :-) (ETA - I had to rip out all the ribbing and start over with a G hook which I used for the main beret body.)

My last image is of my Nativity scene with my new camels.  I kind of think I need a few more animals.. what do you think?  This scene abides on the top of the china cabinet that Dayle's father bought for his mother and it was her most cherished possession.  It is now one of ours.. and will pass down to their namesake grandsons.  What is your most cherished possession?  I know it's your family and friends.. but do you have a family heirloom you treasure?

And so my friends.. I am wishing for you peace, joy and happiness.. love and health and wonderment.  Thank you for being my friend and coming to visit.  I will likely have some new photos to share the day after Christmas.

((hugs)), Teresa :-) 

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*M*E*R*R*Y* *C*H*R*I*S*T*M*A*S*!*

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Snippets of the Season

Hello my friends!  I hope you're enjoying the good parts of this season - the colored lights, the excitement of secret surprises, candy canes, decorated trees, happy faces calling out Merry Christmas!  Yesterday I tried again to make a crocheted "jacket" for a round ornament and I think I had success.. there are a couple of "oops" in it, but I like it.  I actually followed Lucy at Attic24 blog's pattern for a "Bauble Decoration".  Her design is actually nice as you just stuff it and add buttons, beads and bells.  But I made her pattern and sewed the 2 sides over the ball.  Fun!

Here I am hard at work following Lucy's excellent tutorial.

I am enjoying the sparkle of Gracie's beaded star ornament.

Santa is on a practice run for the big day.  o<[]:{D

I didn't like the way the electric cord showed in Santa's Village, so the boys helped me by putting some stuffing over the cords and now it looks prettier!  They are fascinated by this little village square.

We have a few last minute packages and cards to send today.

Travis and Kristi surprised me with this gorgeous Amaryllis!  There is another bud on the back.

They had her family holiday dinner and gift exchange yesterday - they picked this Poinsettia up for Dayle and I on the way home.  Isn't that nice?

Here's one of my favorite scenes at Christmas.. my sleeping Santa and sleeping mice.

This is a common scene here.. Hayden and Caleb playing games on our iPad in the living room.  :-)

I found this vintage carousel ornament in an antique shop, if you press a button on the bottom it plays a holiday song.

While the littlies were gone yesterday I finished up wrapping the last of their presents.  ::whew::

I'd like to say I'm all done with preparations, but after swimming today I need to pick up a few surprises for Dayle.. and he reads this.. so shhhhhh.  But I'm almost there!

We also will be going out into the fray tomorrow to buy a big ham (or smoked turkey), rolls and some asparagus for Christmas dinner.  But it's all good.. no stress here!  :-)  Are you all set?  ((hugs)), Teresa :-)