Thorpe Hat

I've slipped into this schedule where I'm staying up way too late at night and knitting after Burl falls asleep. This child of ours, still not a very good sleeper, stays up until midnight or so. That means my mama-time-after-he-falls-asleep lasts until 3 am or there abouts. Zombie knitting doesn't produce the best quality finished products. I made several silly mistakes with this hat, but it's still cute and gets the job done.

The details:
Thorpe pattern, size small. I used two worsted weight yarns, one a vintage thrifted wool, the other a hand-painted wool from Acorn Street. Size 9 needles.
I love the pattern, a popular one floating around blogger land. I first saw it at Yarn Pirate, (thanks for the idea Georgia!). Since casting on, I've seen it on several other sites, like here, and here, and here.
Alex has requested one now. I first need to finish his hat I started, frogged then restarted over week ago. I'm not worried though, I have plenty of zombie-knitting nights ahead of me.

Seventy

Arkansas Travelers for my Papa on his 70th. Spending his day with him, listening to his stories and looking through old newspaper clippings from his baseball days at Chaffey High, I can't think of a better way to spend my day. Perhaps being at a baseball game with him just might top our evening tonight. But Spring isn't too far off, and that means baseball games with my dad, I can't wait. Happy 70th Dad.

*I of course tweaked this recipe: I've been making it for years and always add a little milk or cream, about 1/4 cup, I use baking soda instead of powder and increase the flour by 1/2 cup. For a vegan version, I use Earth Balance, egg replacement or eggs from rescued chicks.

Every Winter

Each year about this time, Alex and I revisit the same conversation. Initiated by me, the conversation of "let's move to California?". I start searching the web for property on the Northern California Coast and brainstorming about how we could move our lives there and what we would do for a living. Buy a Bed and Breakfast? A Cafe perhaps? My daydreams of being back home get pretty intense.

This California girl really misses California winters right about now.

It's also about this time every year that Alex reminds me and I remind myself that I really do love living in Seattle. Come Spring, I'll remember why I love it so much. In about a month or two, when my paper whites start to bloom and it's time to start my seeds indoors, when my daffodils start to poke through the soil and I get started on my garden, that's when I remember why I love living in Seattle so much.

So, mostly for my benefit, here's a reminder of what I love most about living in Seattle:
Having my family near. My home. The ocean within walking distance and seeing it daily. Living at sea level and the security that gives me (I know, it makes no since). The safety I feel in the Puget Sound with all the waterways. The culture and diversity. The various Farmer's Markets. The grocery stores - yes I love the groceries available for my family. Trader Joe's less than a mile from my home. The many thrift stores.

So I keep reminding myself that all this recent snow shall melt soon enough. At least I don't live here.

Christmas: Peace for All Creatures

Occasionally I'm needed at the farm to help with sick animals and sometimes that means putting them to sleep. This Christmas Eve it was Roy's time to go. I can't think of a more humbling and meaningful way to spend Christmas Eve than to celebrate the full circle of life: the birth of our Savior and the life of a beloved dog.

I met Roy a few years ago when he was rescued from the shelter and saved from euthanasia. I'm honored I was able to spend Christmas Eve with my family in his presence. And I'm even more grateful to Roy that he helped me teach my son about the true meaning of this season.

I have a belief that life and death, peace and compassion, heaven and earth, Christ, humans and animals, are all intertwined. And it's because of our Savior that we are able to become whole again. So in celebration of the birth of Jesus, I also thank those creatures who have taught me more about peace and compassion.

"Those creatures once scared and alone, welcome to Peace for now you are home"

Snowed In

We've had so much snow the past few days, so many things around us are canceled or closed because of the conditions outside. We've spent our time hibernating indoors mostly, enjoying the time together, working on indoor activities and taking in the views outside our windows.

Alex has a bad case of cabin fever though. I've offered to teach him how to knit too, so he can pass the time more quickly. I think he's more happy staring out the windows, dreaming for the day Burl is big enough to go snowboarding with him.

Soon enough...

What I Love: Waking Up

To the season's first snow outside. Warmth inside. Homemade cinnamon rolls. And mexican hot chocolate. And spending the day cuddled inside with my babe.

Recent Craft Trades

I've had a great time the past couple months attending and selling in various craft fairs. I've had even more fun meeting other local crafters, and I've been even luckier to trade handmade goods with some of them.

At the top of my list is my good friend Georgia down the street at Yarn Pirate. I met her at La Leche League right after our boys were born. She was generous enough to trade some of her beautiful hand spun, hand dyed yarn. I'm still dreaming about what to knit with these. It has to be something special.
How cute is her little boy?!


Another one of my favorite trades was with local artist Greg Hartman of The Painted Perception. You can find him at the Freemont Market every Sunday. I fancy several of his paintings, especially this one. But the one that spoke to me the most was this interpretation of the Chinese Zodiac. It told me to take it home and hang it on my walls. I love the colors, the culture, and of course the animals.


I also took home this cute little picture frame made by Allie. It's handmade, the designs burned into it, then hand painted. Pretty cute isn't it? At this same fair, I met Anne of Tenuki Handcrafts. She graciously traded some of her lovely hand spun, hand dyed yarn.


Finally, last weekend was Urban Craft Uprising in Downtown Seattle. My favorite vendors were Betsy of Intertwined Designs and the Spinsters at Spincycle Yarns. It was a tough decision, but I settled on the hemp skirt and this yarn.

Cheers to supporting Indie Crafters.

Creating with my Sister

Her, some peacock jewelery from our mom's peacock Mr. P., RIP. You can find her new ETSY shop here, it's not quite open yet. But stay tuned for some beautiful work, she's way more creative then I am. Oh how I adore having her back home near me on this coast.

Me, the beginnings of some I-Cord for a project I'm working on. The yarn is thrifted vintage wool. The needles are, I mean were, some of my favorite DPNs. They have just the right give and slip for small circumferences. I threw them in my tote yesterday to rush off to a craft fair I was selling in, one broke along the way. Blast! No worries though, I just saw the same set at the thrift store down the street for dirt cheep. I'm off to go snag them up before they're gone.

Things are changing around here

This seems to be the state of things in our home lately.
Every room in our home seems to be a little jumbled currently. Painting, tiling, new stuff coming in, old stuff going out (that's always hard for me), yes, things are changing around here.

Even my blog has taken a turn for change. Since I'm doing some sort of creative endeavor on a daily basis, it's seems fitting to blog about that. We'll see where this takes me. Thanks for accompanying me on this journey.

Here's a peek at my new desk, isn't she awesome? More about her later.

What's especially exciting for us around here has been the homecoming of our nephew Taylor who lives with us. He's been in Connecticut serving a mission for the past two years. He's more like our brother than a nephew, since he's not much younger than us. He's the brother Alex never had, oh how we've missed him. Now I just need to empty his room that I've taken over...