Racoons, Cats, Flowers, Children and of Course Yarn

I am in charge of the Prayer Shawl Ministry at our church. We ask for yarn/money donations to buy yarn for our knitters and crocheters to make into shawls. We get alllllll kinds of things donated. When there is something that isn't appropriate for the shawls and I want it I trade appropriate yarn for inappropriate. I am going to try some felting projects with the tapestry yarn.

This is cotton yarn and I love the colors. I haven't decided yet if I am ripping out the things that are started or not. It may depend on what I use the yarn for and if I need to rip. It is large enough and nice enough it could be a pillow cover or something. Time will tell.

This lovely wool I received in a barter on Ravelry. She needed scraps to finish a granny square afghan that she inherited and I had plenty of that to share. This is yarn she bought while living in Ecuador. I envision felted projects. She was very generous and I love the yarn.

I love my roses. They are just off the deck on the east side of the house. This combination of just about to open and half open is so lovely together.

This rose is a trooper. It hung in there after a hail storm and tried to bloom. This is as far as it would open due to the damage I guess. The base was pretty beat up and seemed to keep it closed. It is still beautiful to me.

7/12/08

The granddaughters were visiting again and we were playing outside. During a game of kick ball 4 is about to kick the ball. 2 has found a particularly delightful bug on the grass. Can you guess what happened next? 2 was upset that she lost the bug and 4 couldn't understand why 2 didn't kick the ball back. I think we switched to golf after this.

The raccoons visit when the cats don't clean up all of their food. I think this guy has figured out that if he shows up before supper is over he gets the good stuff not the left overs. I was too far away with not enough lens to get very good pictures but at least I captured this story.

Notice the two cats off to the side. They aren't too concerned.

Soon though, Baby has had enough of this guys backside in her face so she moves.

There that is better.

But then a scratching sound is heard from the tree above. A young male descends to sit and watch the intruder. I don't know how high up that tree he had been but apparently he felt a little braver and came down a ways.

Finally one of the kittens had enough of hiding under the deck and decides to strike out across the yard. Not too close now. I think the score is now raccoon 1, cats 0.

7/7/08

This is one of the most delightful gentlemen I have ever had the privilege of knowing. He is my husband's father. I have only known him about six years and still do not know him well. He lives two hours away and when we do get together it is usually a family reunion, funeral, etc. and you just don't get to know people well that way. After a couple of weeks in the hospital Dad needed some more time to recuperate so we brought him to a nursing home close to us. I have enjoyed the last two weeks immensely. I was able to watch Dad get stronger every day. I have enjoyed numerous conversations with him and I have learned what a witty, intelligent and gentle man he is. Unfortunately I have also leaned how poor his memory is. I fear his days of living at home with his wife are numbered. We hope to move them both back closer to us very soon. I look forward to that day.

7/19/08

I can't believe I missed sharing this lovely lady with you. She resides in a day lilly and iris garden a few minutes from my home. We have an art show there in the spring and we use the gardens occasionally for portrait photography. When I arrived for the art show this spring I was delighted to find this lady right next to our space. I should not covet but I cannot help it. I want this sculpture.

6/8/08

She sits at the top of a rise and looks out over the gardens to the north.

Her back is as lovely as her front.

Gentle Giants

6/29/08

We were driving east across Kansas on Sunday when we came upon these. We had not traveled east from Hays since state basketball a year ago and these were not here then. It was fascinating to drive for several miles watching these advance toward us and fade behind us. I particularly liked this photo. If you look closely you can see the utility poles running along the hill toward the giant on the left. I remember driving near them in the past thinking how tall they were. Isn't it amazing how things like height are relative?

6/22/08





My kids give me a new rose bush each Mother's Day. This one is two years old and I simply love the color. But then so do the insects. They have been munching on my roses and the leaves but they are still beautiful to me.

Now for the knitting content of this program. Mittens! Yes mittens. In the middle of summer. The special feature at our county fair this year is mittens. I enjoyed making the Peekaboo mittens so much I knew I wanted to make more. Knitting knowing that the item will be judged by someone who knows more about knitting than I do makes it not quite as enjoyable but I still love the pattern.

Remember this? I knit it for a dishcloth exchange back in February/March. I have it on my projects page on Ravelry and Rachel asked to use my photo on her pattern page. I am very honored of course. If you would like to make this dishcloth you can find it here.