Whirlwind Handspuns Happenings

2011-02-24T17:37:00.000-08:00

I missed my own handspun...it was in an other state for a long time with a friend who had hopes of opening a little store, but sadly, that didn't work out. So on a trip back to NY, she left it with her mom and I finally was able to pick it up the other day! I've sold 3 already and the remaining skeins are on Ebay. I'm praying they all sell!! I'm looking forward to creating more skeins....it's been too long since I've spun just because. Most of my spinning lately is for orders...not that I mind, but I haven't been able to spin anything of my own creation.

2010-08-30T19:03:00.000-07:00

3 samples of alpaca and nylon blend handspun for the alpaca farm to preview.

My Ashford Kiwi had a makeover!!!! I took it apart, sanded it, spray painted some of the parts "Summer Squash" and then added rub-on transfers of Gerbera Daisies and Butterflies. I love it. It's so cheery and I just wonder what took me so long to do it!!

Both bottom sides are almost identical.

I love this motif!!

2010-08-30T18:55:00.000-07:00

SOOOO...it's been too long since I've posted here!! But I do have good reason...being pregnant during a ridiculously hot summer and then having a newborn and 3 other children to look after...I seem to have run out of time for much else!

Kendall Leigh is now 11 months old and walking! She can keep herself well occupied for short periods of time, so that gives me time to work on my hobbies. I've been spinning again for the alpaca farm and the single on the bobbin above is spun from batts I created from different colors of alpaca. I filled another bobbin with light fawn alpaca and plied it with this. Very pretty...I will post photos of that hopefully tomorrow.

2009-08-04T10:00:00.001-07:00

Fair Haven Beach State Park Trip!

I always catch the funniest faces on Caitlin! She LOVES the water and sand.

We went with my youngest sister, Samantha, and her son, Jaydon. He loves playing with his cousins. :)

I'm not sure what they were searching for?! Maybe shells...there are some, but they are very tiny!

Cara....half buried.

Caitlin just taking a stroll.

Caitlin wanted me to take a picture of her falling for some reason...this was the result. I love this picture!

Brendan making a sand angel.

Cara getting buried by Jaydon.

Caitlin's turn to make a sand angel!

A view to the northeast of the beach. The clouds in the distance were the edge of the cold front and rain that moved away just before we arrived.

A view of the wall to the east.

Attempting to make a moat or pond.

The end result of their castle...it ended up just a pile of sand with a moat that ran back to the lake.

Caitlin making her own sand castle.

Brendan filling up his new bucket.

The kids were all filling their buckets at the same time to fill the moat. That's Samantha helping them out.

They all thought the moat was fascinating...how it would hold water after a while.

We had a lot of fun and plan to go back a couple more times this summer.

2009-05-11T08:02:00.000-07:00

I love this tree! I call it Beaver Lake's Joshua Tree...it stands alone in the meadow.

Wild Violets? So pretty and dainty!

During the spring break last month, I took the kids on our first outing of the year to Beaver Lake...lots of new plants growing, budding and blossoming!

Beautiful tulips...not sure what variety, though I have seen them in catalogs.

A single pinecone.

Gorgeous purple hyacinth.

Looking up a pine tree.

New tulip bud.

I believe this is a dogwood just starting to bud.

My favorite photo....I think I may frame this one. The sky was SO blue that day...and that tree so striking against it!

Looking through a hole in a stump..focusing on the background.

My kids all in one shot...this is rare! Caitlin did not want to stop and turn around for me...that took a little coaxing!

Cara...she loves the outdoors like I do!

Caitlin...she does too...she's the one to get dirty though!

Brendan...stopping to get something out of his shoe.

A tiny new sumac plant coming up in the pines.

2009-05-11T07:53:00.000-07:00

And here's the finished yarn! Isn't it pretty?? I ended up with over 200 yards....I can see this being knit up into something special for a precious baby girl!

2009-03-24T12:32:00.000-07:00

Sonny is now just over 6 weeks old...and growing fast! He's eating now, with a little nursing snack on the side every now and then, using the litter box and climbing the stairs! Our neighbors will be giving him a new home in a couple weeks!

2009-03-24T12:28:00.000-07:00

Closeups from a pretty bouquet my friend Pam and her mom gave me...for a Happy Spring!
The yellow flowers are mums, the pink an Alstromeria and the peach, a carnation.

2009-02-28T10:25:00.000-08:00

Winter Visit to the Zoo!

The kids had winter break last week, so I decided to take them to the Rosamund Gifford Zoo in Syracuse. All through January and February, the admission fees were less than half price. The four of us got in for $9!
It was cold and windy that day, so we only went outside to see the elephants. There are plenty of animals inside to keep little ones busy on a cold day. When warmer weather comes though, we will be going back and I will take more photos of the outdoor creatures!

The monkeys above are Golden Lion Tamarins...such a beautiful color!

A Puffer or Porcupine Fish.

Naked Mole Rats...truly ugly!!

A gorgeous Macaw, who wouldn't turn around!

One of the two lionesses...she was very busy watching something, or waiting maybe for dinner??

The other lioness and male...cozy in their little cave. I think the zoo is fundraising to build a better enclosure for them!!

Lions are absolutely BEAUTIFUL up close...WOW!

A Fossa(pronounced foosa), which lives only on Madagascar. They are a beautiful, reddish-brown color with huge chocolate eyes. This one was looking right at me. I think this is one of the zoo's newer animals.

A Fennec Fox. I don't think I was supposed to take pictures in here because it's so dark...saw the sign too late. Cara loves these animals and begged me to buy her a stuffed one in the gift shop!

The zoo's bull elephant, Indy. He is huge...weighing more than 11,000 pounds!

A powdery Cockatoo looking at treats the zookeeper is offering it. This one seemed very shy. This bird is fairly new here too.

I didn't write down what bird this was...but it is very pretty anyway!

A baboon watching the people. The kids get such a kick out of their colored rears!! It's very funny to hear other children's comments about them.

2009-01-26T09:48:00.000-08:00

Swap-Bot "This is Where I Live" swap!

My name is Amanda and I live in Central New York, USA. We live in a small house in a very small city in lake effect snow country! Sometimes I can't stand the cold and snow, but I'll take that over earthquakes, tornadoes and hurricanes any day!

Sean and I have three children ages 10, 8 and 4...and now are expecting baby #4, due in September! It's going to be a little snug in here, but with a little rearranging, we're able to give Brendan his own room, the girls share a room and an old small bedroom will become the nursery!

I'll be posting photos of the nursery work in progress on my pregnancy blog which can be found here. It has to be totally gutted and we'll be using a part of a large closet on the other side of the wall to create a built-in dresser and closet. Have to make the best use of the space!

This is the messy closet upstairs...my husband's and my clothes, as well as a catch-all. This is due for a good cleaning and reorganizing very soon! Our bedroom is off to the left.

Our livingroom...small, but cozy. I am a handspinner, so my wheel is always there waiting to be used! The entire house has the original (1913-14) pine plank floors. They are splintering and paint is peeling, so we would love to put down laminate flooring eventually.

The right side of my kitchen...I have very little counter space, so I often catch myself filling it up quickly with everything!

The left side of the kitchen and the back door. That sink and cabinet(white) is from the 50's I think...I'm REALLY looking forward to that being replaced...as well as the stove!!

The full bath upstairs...looking down the short hallway. Like the color?? I love bright colors to brighten up small spaces!

Cara(10) and Caitlin's(4) room...we totally cleaned this yesterday.

Our diningroom with a vent-free gas stove behind the table...keeps us very toasty and we can still use it when the power goes out! Caitlin was playing at the table with her little pigs and bunnies.

Our computer area on the landing at the top of our stairs, next to our bedroom. We painted this area just a couple months ago..used to be an icky yellow...what a difference!!

Brendan's (8) room downstairs. This is where the computer used to be. This was painted last month....just a little more spot painting to do. He LOVES his new room, but it still needs a door!

The kid's bookcase outside the upstairs bathroom. Most of these books were found at thrift stores!

A shot from last May...our beautiful lilac bush next to our neighbor's garage. It's getting a little out of hand...time for a trim!

My veggie garden behind our home...last summer. Our property is only 33x66 feet, so I have to make very good use of all the space!

A view of my side flowerbed from the upstairs window last summer. The tall ligt pink and purple flowers are cleomes. Some of them were over 6 feet tall!!!

And a shot from early this winter...just a little taste of the snow that was to come. I think we've received well over 100" so far...and there still almost 2 months of winter!!!
I AM READY FOR SPRING!

2009-01-06T17:37:00.000-08:00

Cara and her new sleeping bag set...isn't it cute??

Cara loves her stuffed animals...and most recently...Webkins. She got a tiger this year. She gets to use the code and play games to earn points on the website.

2009-01-06T17:33:00.001-08:00

Sean chilling in his chair...stinks that I have sneak photos of him!!

Our Christmas tree for 2008! We took it down New Year's day...our living room seems huge now.

2009-01-06T17:19:00.001-08:00

Sean snuggling with Caitlin...it was REALLY cold that night!! Caitlin loves her Daddy!!

Brendan with our tree...I think it was a blue spruce.

Sean decided to give Brendan his own toolbox, stocked with tools! He was VERY excited about this gift...he can't wait to help Sean in the garage when it warms up!

Brendan and one of the many Transformers he received this Christmas. Ironhide is one of the more difficult ones to transform....daddy usually has to help with that one.

2008-12-09T07:51:00.000-08:00

My kids at Beaver Lake with their Beanie babies!

A shot looking out my kitchen...we had about 3 inches of snow last night...early winter this year!

Cara's guinea pig, Cottonball. She is about 5 months old.

Angel, all grown up, enjoying Caitlin's warm blankie. She is just over 2 years old now.

And Betsy, the best guinea pig ever!!! She is 3 years old and is SO very calm and sweet. She likes to snuggle under my chin.

2008-08-04T12:25:00.000-07:00

Caitlin and Gracie....being silly.

Coneflowers at my grandparents...with visiting butterflies.

A view of my flowerbed from our second story window. The Cleomes, the pink and purple flowers are between 4 and 5 feet tall. The Cosmos are the pink flowers in the upper left...the tallest one is at least 7 feet now. Can you see Gracie at the birdbath??

2008-08-04T12:19:00.000-07:00

These are some happy little girls!! My daughter, Cara(on the right) and her best friend, Danielle went with me a couple evenings to help with the alpacas. This female was loving all the petting...I couldn't remember her name, so they called her Emma!

2008-08-04T11:49:00.000-07:00

Alpacas!!

I've been hired to take care of a local alpaca farm for about a week...I'm halfway through and I must say, I love it! I go out around 8:30 in the as well as around 6:00 in the evening to water, feed and clean up the manure. It is a good workout...I'm usually breaking a sweat by the time I'm finished!

The farm is Willow Creek Farm, here in Fulton, NY. They have 19 alpacas...9 females, 5 young males and 5 older males. Most are a bit shy, but there's a couple that love to be pet and will come up to me.

The photo above is a white female...I think it's Kiana, but I'm not sure.

One of the young males.

Two females...wondering what I'm doing.

More females....

Two females loving on each other....

I believe this is Miracle Man, a younger male. He has a really neat fleece. I am working on washing, carding, spinning and dyeing his fleece.

Beau is my favorite. He is so curious and loves to snuggle.

Beau's fleece is just lovely. I was given last year's fleece as a thank you and this year's fleece is being spun for the farm shop.

Another young male.

The friendliest of the females...so pretty!

Another shot of her...she's very photogenic I think!

2008-07-05T10:06:00.000-07:00

Can you guess what kind of fiber this is? Looks a little like silk, but is not.

It's.....BAMBOO. 100%...dyed with chocolate, pink and purple. It's called 'Chocolate Cherries' and weighs 4 ounces. I'm not sure what I'm going to make with the finished yarn, but I will be spinning it into a thin single, then plying it with another single that is 100% Jersey Wooly rabbit wool.
I've been saving my 'Sweetheart's' wool for a couple years now and I might have 3-4 ounces now. She is a chocolate-colored rabbit, but the yarn from her wool is a pretty gray with a chocolate cast to it. The yarn from these two fibers will be amazing! I'm really looking forward to knitting whatever it is I decide to make.

2008-07-05T10:03:00.000-07:00

Thought you'd like to see a closeup...my eyes...taken with my phone.

2008-07-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

The Flowers are Blooming!

I love these flowers...they will be planted every year. They are called 'Cleomes'. The two varieties I bought are purple and pink. I think I saw white as well. Mine have grown to about 4' tall and they are quite wide. More blossoms are forming on the side shoots, so I should have a nice display of color for a while.

One of many Cosmos beginning to bloom.

A beautiful daisy...but I don't know what this variety is called.

2008-06-13T19:26:00.000-07:00

Veggies & Flowers

In the back left corner of our property(which is only 33 x 66)...next to the lilac...irises, which have already bloomed, Asiatic Lilies, Sunflowers and some kind of tall, pink perennial my MIL gave me. In front of the string trellis are green beans and peas....and behind the trellis is Sweet Peas, I think.

Sorry about the weird angle of this shot! I had to stand in the little bit of shade there was to get this photo. This is in front of the peas and green beans. There are 9 tomato plants in different varieties, 6 eggplants, 6 yellow bean plants and about 12 Nasturtium plants growing from seed.

Here's the other side of the back bed...you can see all the beans, cucumbers and more sunflowers(behind the trellis on the right. There's also a few Morning Glories and a Mini Pumpkin growing next to the bricks.

Beautiful, cheery Strawflowers. These are fast becoming one of my favorite flowers. I have 6 more in various colors that will be blooming in the next few days!

The very beautiful Gazania...a sun-loving flower that only opens in the bright sunshine.

Pam's and my herb garden. In the fence there are short sunflowers, gladiolas, Morning Glories and a couple tiny Zinnias. The light green plant is Golden Oregano, and behind that are Chives. Keep going down the path and you will find Winter Savory, Rosemary, Basil, Lemon Thyme, Curly & Flat-Leaf Parsley, a couple tomato plants, a couple pepper plants and a mum.

Our roses used to be here, with a wooden fence in between. We really, really wanted a place just for the herbs, so we moved the roses, threw out a couple that just weren't thriving and totally redid this bed. We both love it....and so do the kids, who love picking some of the herbs leaves to munch on!

I bought many flower boxes this year, most of the from Dollar Tree! The bottom box is Nasturtiums(which you can eat....the flower.....just pick, wash and add to salads!) and the top box is mixed lettuce. I like growing lettuce in boxes...I can move them out of the hot sun when need be...since they wilt so quickly!

This bed is finally coming together the way I've wanted it to since we moved here. I started this last summer and this summer I extended it all the way to the sidewalk next to the house(on the left). Sean built the edging for me...it was necessary because our lot has a gradual slope to it.

I will take more photos of the individual plants in this bed and posting them. There are too many for me to list right now...

This is along our house...the plants in the foreground are double orange lilies....I've never seen them in any catalog ever! Right behind the lilies are orange Pansies, orange and yellow marigolds and a white mum which has already flowered. Do you like the little yellow lanterns?? Those were a find at The Christmas Tree Shop last month....for only $1 each!!! They hold a tealight candle.

You can see into our backyard, the clothesline and our back porch, which goes into the kitchen. That porch is lined with flowerboxes...perfect spot for the morning sun!

2008-06-13T08:17:00.000-07:00

Caitlin's Pool Adventures!

Caitlin LOVES the water....loves filling the pool with her little creatures and Little People. It's been very hot here lately, so she's been using the pool almost every day.

Oops! She's terribly clumsy some days...but it's so cute!

She also loves the hose...watch out Mommy!

2008-06-09T07:49:00.000-07:00

Finally....new photos of my children!

Cara is now 9 1/2...look at those beautiful blue eyes and freckles!!

Brendan is now 7 1/2...he took this photo of himself.

Caitlin playing outside with all the Maple tree helicopters.

Caitlin is now 3 1/2...and VERY independent!! She loves the camera!

Definitely the family clown....such a silly girl!

Another of Cara I love. I think I will have the two photos of her framed.

2008-06-09T06:16:00.000-07:00

Women of Faith 2008

This past Friday and Saturday, I took my 5th trip with other ladies from my church to a Women of Faith conference in Rochester, NY. This weekend is usually the only time I can get away for a time of relaxing and encouragement each year. I look forward to it very much and I am NEVER disappointed!! Whether you are a woman who is a believer or not, I highly recommend attending a conference near you. Click here to go to the website that offers information on dates for the remainder of this year's "Infinite Grace" conferences held all over the USA.

This year, the speaker's were Sheila Walsh, Patsy Clairmont, Marilyn Meberg, Luci Swindoll and Steve Arterburn (the founder of WOF). All were excellent and all made you both cry and laugh.

We were blessed to hear three amazing singers this year.....Natalie Grant, Nicole C. Mullen and Sandi Patty! Here's a short video of one of Natalie Grant's songs...sorry I couldn't get it all...I need a memory card with more space!! Enjoy!

2008-03-11T06:46:00.000-07:00

Ice, after the storm....

I have sideways icicles on my clothesline!! Not quite sure how this happened, but I wanted to snap a photo before it melts today.

I almost missed this beautiful sight the other night. I happened to look out the window and noticed the tops of the trees were PINK!! Every tree is still covered with ice, so the mornings and sunsets these past couple days have been extra lovely!

I tried to capture the sun shining through the ice on the trees out back this morning.....

2008-03-11T06:38:00.000-07:00

Some finished projects....

This lovely little heart is knit from Tibetan Terrier hair yarn. It's measurements are about 6"w x almost 5"h. The yarn was sent to me to be replied...I ended up just plying the yarn back on itself. I couldn't take it apart and redo it...it had started to felt and was thick and thin throughout, making that an impossible task.
This is one of 2 or 3 hearts that I will be making for this customer. They will be very special to her as her beloved Toby passed away this past December. :(

I made this cotton bib for my 8-month old nephew, Rocco. This is actually my own pattern I made up as I knit. I hope to make more for gifts.

2008-03-11T06:31:00.000-07:00

Claude.....

is a big baby! We are taking care of my sister's yellow lab puppy for a time, until she can get some things straightened out. He loves it here, with all the kids running around. I'm teaching him basic commands, which he's learning quickly.
In the photos above and below, he went into his kennel on his own the other day and decided to take a nap...when I came into the kitchen, this is the sight I saw...made me laugh out loud! He looked extremely comfortable.

Claude is almost 4 months old. You can probably see he's big already. His sire is about 130#, so you can imagine Claude will also be very large!

2008-01-21T13:02:00.000-08:00

LOTS and LOTS of SNOW!

Well, winter here in Central NY decided it needed to come back in full force! In a time-span of less than 12 hours(over the course of 2 days), it snowed at least 3 feet! It was snowing so hard a few times, we couldn't see the neighbor's homes across the street!!

That's my husband digging the driveway out this morning. He ended up not going into work until noon today because the porch roofs needed the snow removed before they collapsed. One of them was creaking a bit!!

Our picnic table totally buried.

The view across the street. The snowplow had already been through 2-3 times. You can see the sign there....and how high the snow bank is!

The city of Fulton declared a state of emergency today due to the DPW's garage roof collapsing early this morning on lots of equipment, but thankfully none of the snowplows were in the building at the time. Garbage pickup is cancelled this week too!

Angel, in her favorite place...wonder what she thinks of all that snow?? If I were her, I'd be thankful I was an indoor cat!

2008-01-20T07:31:00.000-08:00

Amanda's Pantry Soup

Last week I was really craving homemade soup, so I decided to have a go at it and see what I could come up with! Instead of writing all the ingredients first, I will list them with the steps I took to make it.

1 pound ground beef, browned and crumbled, drain fat

Fill a large pot with about 3 quarts of water.
Add:
5-6 Beef Bullion cubes
1/2-1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

While this is coming to a boil:
peel and dice 3-4 small potatoes
peel and thinly slice 2 small carrots

Add to the boiling water and cook until they can be pierced with a fork.
DO NOT DRAIN!!

Once the vegetables are done, add a can of diced tomotoes (w/ basil & oregano), partially drained.
(or you can add all the liquid)

Add:
1/2-1 cup pearl barley
and 1-1 1/2 cups FINE egg noodles

Add extra water as necessary.
Let this cook and simmer for as long as you like.
Salt and pepper to taste.

Add grated Parmesan cheese as a topping.

You can always change what vegetables you use....carrots and potatoes are just what I had on hand.

Enjoy!!
I think I might make this again tonight!

2008-01-20T07:27:00.000-08:00

Cara at Christmas....

Cara opened all the room sets before she opened the dollhouse! She had no idea what was in that big box!!

Ready to open the biggest gift!

Cara and her dollhouse...isn't it cute? She is one happy little girl!

A very cool gift...she worked on it that day.

2008-01-20T07:22:00.000-08:00

Brendan at Christmas....

Brendan happy with his new Hot Wheels!

Very proud of the Gingerbread house he made at home.

Wow! A new Hot Wheels case...and it is full now!

A quiet moment after opening gifts at Grandma's house.

Can't resist a big box to climb into!!

Excited about a present...what a face!!

Yippee!!! More cool Hot Wheels!

2008-01-20T07:16:00.000-08:00

Caitlin at Christmas....

Caitlin and her Great Aunt Linda opening a Pucci Pup. Aunt Linda is one of my Dad's sisters.

Caitlin opening one of her gifts at Grandma's house, Christmas afternoon.

Playing with Brendan's race track.

Just a funny face I caught....

Caitlin with a huge bow on her head....and a strange look on her face. Sean is in the background...and smiling! It was a good day.

I think Caitlin liked the box better than anything else.....doesn't that just figure!!??

2008-01-20T06:41:00.000-08:00

Caitlin's 3rd Birthday!

Caitlin chose cupcakes instead of a cake for her birthday. I let her choose a color to make the cake part...she chose purple. And I had a leftover container of green icing with Christmas tree sprinkles. She was very happy with them!

All three of my children, together, and smiling!

Cara and Caitlin...sisters.

Brendan and Caitlin....it's nice to see them smiling together...they're the ones who are more than often nitpicking at each other!

Just one of Caitlin's gifts..a Little People boat with a pirate and octopus. She's always asking what toys she can take in the tub...she was happy to know that this one could get wet!

Happy Birthday Little One! We love you!

2008-01-20T05:57:00.000-08:00

Birthday time...

The kids each received a new pair of pajamas from Sean's parents for their birthdays. They were all very excited! Their Great-Grandma also sent a gift for each of them...for Caitlin, a Hooked on Phonics Electronic Learning toy, to help her learn the alphabet. Brendan received a Shake n Go Nascar and Cara received the Sweet Family bathroom set for her dollhouse. Thank you grandparents!

Brendan's birthday is the 26th...he will be 7 years old!

Caitlin turned 3 this past January 12th...she's getting so big!

And Miss Cara...she will be 9 this Friday, the 25th. She's been having a few growth spurts...soon she'll be as tall as me....and I have a feeling she'll be taller than me when she's done growing!

This is Caitlin's Hooked on Phonics toy.

2008-01-20T05:50:00.000-08:00

My sister's new puppy.....

Meet Claude, the newest member of my sister's home. Isn't he just too cute?? He is a purebred Yellow Lab. Jackie brought him over the day she went to pick him up...and oh, I fell in love!! So sweet....and still a little wobbly in the backend! ;) He was chasing Cara and Brendan around the house....lots of laughs! Enjoy the rest of the photos......

2007-12-01T16:05:00.000-08:00

A really good day......

Guess what I saw today??!! A BALD EAGLE!! I live in Central NY, so there really aren't too many around here. But I think they are making a comeback in many places. I was driving along the river here in town and I happened to glance over and there it was, flying low over the water. I didn't see it's head, but I did see the white tail feathers and the all dark brown body and wings. I was SO excited to see one in person, that I called my husband and neighbor right away!

Then my oldest daughter and I did a little thrift store shopping and Christmas shopping for family, then went to see "Enchanted" at the theater. What a GREAT movie. We both loved it and I will be buying this one when it comes out on DVD.
To top it off, we picked up some dinner at Arby's and now we're all just relaxing at home.

Hoping you had a wonderful day too!

2007-11-09T08:23:00.000-08:00

I noticed this one day while in my kitchen. I have a round wooden table that is topped with a removable glass circle. The sunshine was coming in the window just right and made the hairline cracks in the glass glow like neon!

2007-11-09T08:03:00.000-08:00

Is this cool, or what?? When I walk the kids to the bus stop each morning, I love to look at the leaves that have fallen on the ground. This caught my eye.

2007-11-09T07:25:00.000-08:00

A finished project!

This was a request from my neighbor...a hunting hat. The orange is a Merino wool blend that I dyed before spinning. The tan is 100% undyed Alpaca from a male named Beau. He lives at Willow Creek Farm in Fulton, NY. One of my favorite fibers to spin!

The pattern is one I found online. It's called the Double Layer Hat. As you can see from the last photo, it can be worn with either color on the outside. This hat is very warm, no matter what fibers you use. You start to knit with double-points, then switch to a circular. You could easily make this smaller for a child by subtracting the number of beginning increase rows, stockinette rows, ribbing rows, and ending decrease rows. I used needles that were just a bit bigger than what was called for...only because that's all I had. But the hat fit my neighbor PERFECTLY! :)

I received another order for one of these...from my other neighbor! Better get started!

2007-10-31T07:42:00.000-07:00

Latest projects

This is a scarf for my neighbor. It is handspun (by me) Merino wool blended with viscose fiber. The viscose gives the yarn a shine a softness similar to silk. I LOVE spinning this blend.

A dishcloth knit with cotton yarn. This pattern took a while, but I love how it made the yarn have a diagonal striping effect! Next time though, I need to bind off a bit differently to make the edge smoother.

This is a scarf that I'm almost finished with...hopefully today. The yarn is handspun by my neighbor's oldest daughter..she's 13. She's fairly new to spinning, so the yarn is a wonderful thick and thin bulky...which makes it fun to knit with! I had the yarn stored here, but there wasn't enough of one color to make something. I chose size 11 bamboo needles and I think they really show off the yarn well. I thought this would be the best use for the yarn...and it just is very her.

2007-10-31T07:34:00.000-07:00

Cosmos

One of my favorite flowers. I planted these from seed this summer. They are still blooming, even this late in the year. I have cut many to bring inside for my table...they make me smile every time I look at them. This pink is one of three colors I have. The other two are white and a dark magenta. Enjoy!

2007-10-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

Another trip to Beaver Lake!

Sean and I celebrated our 10th anniversary on October 25th! He took Thursday and Friday off work...so we could spend some time together. Friday was a beautiful day, unseasonably warm for an October day in Central NY...so we decided to go to Beaver Lake. It is only 15 minutes from here and it's a place the kids ALWAYS enjoy visiting. This time though, Cara and Brendan were in school, so it was just Caitlin that came with us. Here are photos I took...enjoy!

Dried fern leaves.

There were thousands of Canadian geese on the lake...it was very loud! They're just stopping here on their way south.

Fallen leaves and lily pads mingling together in the bog.

A very cool black and red maple leaf....

and an equally cool lime and red leaf. This is maple too, but a different variety I believe.

Caitlin and Sean. He was giving Caitlin's legs a break. No stroller this time!

A view from the lookout tower of the changing leaves.

Sean noticed this interesting tree. It is totally bent over horizontal and resting in the forks of those two smaller trees. It is not broken at all.

A bird's nest you would never see if the leaves were still on!

Caitlin attempting to use the binoculars! She kept looking through the wrong end though...it was very cute. She insisted on keeping them hanging on her neck, but every time she bent over to look at something, they crashed on the ground, or while she was walking, they crashed into her legs.

Caitlin standing next to an uprooted tree. She thought that was fascinating!

Pretty, waxy leaves changing color. I love the two colors contrasting...

2007-10-19T06:23:00.000-07:00

My kids...at the bus stop.

My children are hams....what more can I say!??! Cara is growing up so fast...and she's going to be SO tall...just like her daddy! She will be 9 in January.

Silly girl...her daddy loves this photo!

Grinning kids...gotta love smiles!

2007-10-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

Harvest & Frost

Last Monday the kids and I took a trip with my friend, Kim, to Beak & Skiff Apple Farm in Lafayette, NY. We picked about 17 pounds of Empire and Jonagold apples...the kids loved that experience! And we purchased apple fritters and fresh cider...yummmmm!!! We did get caught in a short rain shower...with some thunder and lightning in the distance. Do you know how difficult it is to hold and umbrella and keep three children under it at the same time???!!!

On our way back, we stopped at a pumpkin patch and chose the pumpkins in the photo above. The kids were VERY excited about choosing their own pumpkins.

Yesterday morning, while waiting at the bus stop, I noticed the dewdrops on these rose petals. I've never seen this before, so I had Cara run back to the house to grab my camera. As you can see in background of the next photo, it was foggy. It's been warm here the past few days...in the 70's...which is not really normal for this time of year in Central NY! You won't hear me complaining though....I LOVE this weather and I am NOT looking forward to snow and cold again.

I was able to plant my spring bulbs yesterday! My MIL and I went in together on bulbs from American Meadows (online). I happened to find their site when they were having an awesome sale...50% off all the spring bulbs! I chose fringed tulips, a big bag of mixed tulips, a big bag of mixed pink daffodils, daffodils that are white with a green cup, double daffodils that are a blend of bright orange and yellow, and purple Alliums. I am really looking forward to seeing all the awesome colors in the spring.

I love the color of new rose leaves....above and below. The dew seemed to brighten the colors. The dew on the red leaves almost looks like ice to me.

2007-10-13T05:16:00.000-07:00

Caitlin...
Enjoy these photos of Caitlin I've snapped over the past couple weeks.

2007-10-13T05:13:00.000-07:00

A neat visitor!

I almost grabbed onto this very cool praying mantis....as you can see, it's on one of my clothespins. It's about 2 inches long....and I'm so glad I was able to snap such clear photos of it. There have been a couple of these in my flowerbeds this year. The first one was very tiny, maybe an inch long. It was chilling on my Cosmos.

2007-10-10T07:33:00.000-07:00

I need a home!

I showed up at Amanda's home Tuesday morning...I can't stay here permanently though(thought Amanda really wishes I could!). I am very, very friendly, soft, and I love to snuggle! I'm young too...still small and still playful. If you can give love me and give me a home indoors, I would be so thankful! Please e-mail Amanda at whirlwindyarns77 @ yahoo dot com .
(Amanda thinks I am a neutered male, but not positive.)

2007-09-30T20:24:00.000-07:00

My DH and Caitlin....sound asleep.

This is about the only time I can take a photo of my husband....he does NOT like his picture taken. :( Caitlin has been very snuggly with him lately...just adorable.

2007-09-30T20:16:00.000-07:00

Growing fast, isn't she??!!

Here's Miss Caitlin, now almost 32 months old! She was pretending to be Superman the other day...her latest cute thing to do. :) Though she doesn't say 'Superman', she says "Supeman", totaling leaving out the 'r'. Simply adorable...makes me smile every time I hear her say it.

She was just being a total ham that day...I snapped a lot of great pictures.

Amazes me how big those eyes are! And how dark!

These two were taken about a week earlier. She has been taking naps again a couple days a week....and that day she fell asleep while watching a movie at about 7PM. Makes me giggle to see this picture. Her hands were tucked neatly behind her back.

2007-08-21T08:45:00.000-07:00

Here's Brendan looking out over the lake. There were many ducks out there between the wall and the shore.

Joshua and Cara climbing down the rocks to the shore.

A view towards the lake from the park. You can see how dry the grass is...we need more rain!

A sailboat anchored just off shore. See the darker water? That's seaweed! The water out past the wall was so pretty....a lovely shade of blue-green.

The lighthouse....and the waves splashing over the breakers. You can walk out at least to the higher breakers...in the front right. The rest going out the lighthouse is much lower, so even if it's a little windy, it's just not safe!

2007-08-21T08:40:00.000-07:00

A trip to the park...

Last Wednesday, I took my kids and my little brother, Joshua, to Breitbeck Park in Oswego. You can see Lake Ontario in the background. The kids always love going to any park....but this is one of their favorites.

Cara and Joshua climbing on what seems to be Monkey Bars..but most kids just climb up and over it instead.

Caitlin loving every trip down the slides!

2007-08-21T08:32:00.000-07:00

Caitlin's First Chore....

While I was folding laundry the other day, Caitlin said, "Me help?"....so I taught her how to fold small towels. This is was she did on her first try...a great job I think. She even placed them in piles on the edge of the couch, then helped me put them away! She became very frustrated a couple times, but I encouraged her to try again...and she was SO happy when she did it right. :)

Caitlin's face after a face-painting trial run. She was very serious and still for me, which I just thought was so cute....tough for this little one to hold still for too long!

Sisters.....Cara and Caitlin playing together. Caitlin was pretending to be a baby again and Cara was holding her...mind you, Caitlin is half of Cara's body weight! So she wasn't holding her for long. I think this may be one of my favorite photos of the two of them.

2007-08-17T21:12:00.000-07:00

Beaver Lake Trip

Last Friday, the weather was just perfect after many hot days. It was cool with no threat of rain, so I decided to take the kids to Beaver Lake in Baldwinsville, NY. It's a small lake that has many, very nice walking paths in various distances. The kids (and myself) always love coming here. I made sure to bring my camera....so here's many photos of that day. Enjoy!

A very neat mass of grapevines...plenty of those in the woods there.

A grapevine that had twisted around a small tree...the tree was gone though! Only a piece of it remained in the spiral.

Brendan posing on a log.

And Cara too.....

And all three on a fun fallen tree near the water's edge. This is one of my favorite photos ever.....

For the life of me, I can't remember what these are called. They are very tiny carnivorous plants found in bogs.

A pretty wetland flower...I used to know what this is called.

Awesome Jack-in-the-Pulpits....another very cool carnivorous wetland plant.

Cara found this beetle on a wild iris seed pod....I almost didn't see it...since the green on his back matched the green on the pod! I was so happy to be able to take a nice closeup!

Just a neat looking tree....

Brendan loving the telescope on the bog trail.

Caitlin looking slightly bewildered.

How was I able to take so many photos in one day with all three of my children together??!!

A pretty fern on the bog trail walkway. I love water droplets on plants.

A small pond in the bog...water level are quite low around here. There were many frogs in this pond!

I believe this pretty flower is called Loosestrife. I think it is invasive.

A nice shot of some of the lake from the observation deck that has the telescope on it. The lake was very quiet today....we could only hear crows and seagulls.

Another shot to the side....lots of lily pads in this lake. There were many with beautiful yellow blooms!

Looking down at the water's edge...from the observation deck.

Another pretty fern....I'll have to look up what variety this is. I love the leaf pattern.

2007-08-08T06:23:00.000-07:00

Before and After!

Below is the flowerbed I made, I think, in the beginning of June. That's peat moss on top, waiting to mixed in. And above, is what it looks like now, with everything grown. There are Petunias, Verbena, African Daisies, Sunflowers that came up from last year's seeds, Jade Sunflowers, Cosmos, 3 different varieties of Zinnias and Cherry tomatoes.

It really is a jungle out there!!

2007-08-08T06:17:00.000-07:00

A field trip around Grandma & Grandpa's yard!

On Sunday, after dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house, the kids and I walked around their yard and looked for little treasures. They each took a Ziplock bag and found acorns, feathers and sticks. I took along my camera and tried to find some interesting shots of nature.

The photo above is a shot I took while looking up through the trees.

I love the red stems on these maple leaves.

This wood is sitting on top of a very large stump.

A cute Curly-Q.

An interesting design some hungry insects left on this grapevine leaf.

2007-08-08T06:12:00.000-07:00

More flowers to enjoy!A gorgeous Dahlia that I'm fighting to keep alive.

One of the many zinnias in my back flowerbed. I love the mini flowers in the center...I believe those are what hold the pollen.

This zinnia and the one below are the same variety...they are quite large! I would say they're about 4 inches in diameter.

2007-08-07T15:20:00.000-07:00

A facelift for my Kiwi!

I decided my Ashford Kiwi spinning wheel needed a facelift! I took the wheel off, sanded it a bit, then spray painted it this pretty pink. (Caitlin's toddler bed is this color too!) Then I purchased the pretty flower rub-ons and decorated it! It's so very me...I just love it.

2007-08-07T15:16:00.000-07:00

Almost forgot these....

Photos in the van just before we left for our zoo trip. They were all so excited to be part of a surprise.

I love Caitin's face in this photo.

And a shot of our neice, Myah. She has the cutest smile. She has started crawling and pulling herself to standing now!! Watch out! She'll be one at the end of November.

2007-08-07T15:12:00.000-07:00

Latest crochet project....

A cute vest made from the yarn I found at the Rescue Mission's yard sale. The trim is a fun fur type yarn. I made this for my neice, Myah. ( I took this photo with my phone, so it's not terribly clear....sorry!)

2007-08-07T15:06:00.000-07:00

Cara and Brendan

Brendan playing with his new toy wrench.

Cara posing with her Mountain Dew.

Cara will be very tall and thin like her Daddy!! She's going into third grade already...doesn't seem possible.

2007-08-07T14:55:00.000-07:00

Shots of Caitlin

She was watching the kids ride bike, enjoying the shade.

Another great Sunday at Sean's parents. We usually go over about 4 PM, enjoy a yummy BBQ, then just hang out and visit. They have a wonderful back yard with a swing set....the kids can just run and run...they always wear themselves out and then sleep very well that night.

Caitlin looking a little worn out!

Cara was playing with Caitlin one day...and filled her hair with many barrettes. It was very cute, but she didn't want to leave them in. This was the face she made while taking them out.

I LOVE this shot. Need I say more?

2007-08-07T14:42:00.000-07:00

More zoo fun!

The tiger statue was just too hot to sit on this time, so Brendan posed next to it instead. can you see how red his face is??? It was so hot outside....his head was covered in sweat. We saw all the animals outside first, just in case the rain came.

This Humboldt penguin was just chilling out at the glass....his(or her) beak was tapping the glass and his eyes were almost closed. These penguins are small and live where it's hot...on the coasts of Chili and Peru.

I just had to laugh out loud when I saw the male lion. His mane must be SOOO hot. But he sure looked comfortable!!

One of my favorite water animals are the seahorses. They are so beautiful, but difficult to photograph through the glass. I love how they swim, then quickly attach to a plant.

This tiger was loving his pool!

2007-08-07T14:34:00.000-07:00

Elephants need to cool down too....

It's been so hot here in Central NY the past couple weeks....I am so very grateful for air conditioning. But being cooped up inside for days at a time can start to become irritating! So this past Friday, I decided to surprise the kids with a trip to the zoo.....even though it was in the low 90's and it was threatening to storm. I took them to lunch at McDonald's first, then headed to the city for the zoo. Cara finally guessed where we were headed about a mile away when she noticed a sign! They were all very surprised and happy!! We made a stop in the gift shop and I let them each pick out something. Cara chose a stuffed Lemur, Brendan chose 2 small plastic frogs and a pencil and Caitlin chose 2 plastic animals...a badger and a tapir. Such different tastes!

The first creatures we saw were the elephants. I believe this is a mother and her young one. They were enjoying the cool water and each other. Heads were swinging back and forth...so lots of splashing, then the young climbed on mom's back. Priceless. We arrived at just the right time to see this....and I'm so very glad I did not forget my camera! Enjoy!

2007-08-07T14:27:00.000-07:00

Shots of me.....

You know, it's really difficult to photograph yourself. I was all dressed up in a pretty orange dress my mom gave to me....and I did my eye makeup to match. I think the orange eyeshadow makes my eyes seem more blue. I'm always the one taking the photos of everyone else, so why not take some of me....and that way my blog visitors will know who I am!

2007-08-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

Newest Handspun Yarns

Colonial Superwash wool yarn. I purchased this from seller 'ashabee' on Etsy. I ended up with 376 yards, 4.2 ounces and 17 wpi. I believe this would be enough yarn for a pair of socks?? I don't knit socks, so I'm not positive on that. This yarn is for sale for $30.00
E-mail me if interested.

I custom ordered 8 ounces of Superwash Colonial (Corriedale) wool roving in white, pink, light blue and spring green from 'ashabee' on Etsy a couple months back. I finally got around to spinning half of it up this past week and it sure is lovely. This skein is for sale!!
332 yards / 4.1 ounces / 15 wpi
$28.00

E-mail me if interested.

2007-07-17T08:40:00.001-07:00

A gift, a find and a project....

Last Saturday my neighbor, Pam, and I spent late morning and early afternoon just having a fun time together. First we went to the Farmer's Market here in Fulton, and found some wonderful vegetables and homemade pies. I also picked up some homemade peanut butter fudge that was so yummy!

Then we ventured a few miles north on Rt 48 to visit an antiques shop. Pam has been before, but I have not...I tell you, I will be going back! Every room in this house is full of wonderful antiques and collectibles. So many wonderful things I would love to bring home, but always so little money. Oh well...one piece at a time. The vase below was that day's find. It caught my eye instantly...the colors work perfectly with our dining room decor. I think I may be cutting some of my sunflowers to place in it.

There are no markings on the bottom of the vase to tell me where it was made, so if anyone knows anything about it, I would LOVE to know!

I had to place this project on the backburner for a couple days...I was becoming very frustrated with it. I dropped two stitches and was having a tough time reversing back to where I messed up. Maybe tonight I'll pick it back up when the kids are sleeping.

I created the fiber blend and spun the yarn for this scarf. It's about 75% black and gray alpaca and about 25% white Satin Angora. Very soft and it wanted to be spun thin!! ;) I'm using a size 5 bamboo circular needle...I think it's knitting up beautifully!

2007-07-17T08:35:00.001-07:00

Closeup of a Zinnia that is almost fully open. The colors darken as the flower opens. The first flower on this plant is a dark red-orange.

A Jade Sunflower....from a Martha Stewart seed packet. These are not as green as I thought, but they're still very, very pretty. I was able to capture this honeybee going about it's business collecting pollen.

2007-07-17T08:28:00.001-07:00

More flowers....

An Osteospermum...or African Daisy. This was a gift from my MIL for my new flowerbed. I love the combination of orange and purple...very striking.

Funky Hens & Chicks...the tops of those stalks will have many, many light pink flowers.

Hydrangea

A red Oriental Lily at my MIL's.

A variety of Rudbeckia...Cara picked this out at Lowe's for the new flowerbed.

2007-07-12T05:19:00.001-07:00

More flower photos.....

All of these flowers reside at my MIL's home. I took these about a week ago...the rain had just ended and almost all the flowers had raindrops still on them...making them even more beautiful! This is an awesome cactus....all of those light brown spots were bright yellow flowers. They last only a day or two. This cactus loves where it's planted...mind you, were in Central NY too!

A gorgeous hot pink Gerbera daisy.

Cheery lemon daylilies. After the flowers all die, my MIL will be dividing these and the orange lilies below up and passing some on to me!! :)

A very pretty Clematis on the back of their house.

Stunning bright orange Oriental lilies.

2007-07-12T04:59:00.000-07:00

A visit to an Alpaca farm.....

Yesterday, the kids and I went to visit friends of ours at Willow Creek Farm, just across the river from us in Fulton, NY. The thunderstorms had just moved past and we only had to deal with a few sprinkles during our visit!
They have a very nice herd of alpacas in a beautiful range of colors. I have been spinning many of those colors for them for the past 2 years or so to resell in their store.

Two of the crias that were playing together...and checking me and the kids out. They're very skittish at this age, so we weren't able to pet them....they need more time being handled by their owners. The dark brown cria is about 5-6 weeks old and the lighter brown cria is maybe 3 weeks?

I think they were watching Caitlin in this photo...hmm...something smaller than them! We've had so many 90 degree days lately that Nancy sheared them...otherwise they would look a bit more fuzzy. Their fleece is so very soft, but very short, maybe an inch...and some had the cutest little waves and curls.

Here's Cubana's cria...I think he/she is only a few weeks old...very tiny and petite! And so full of energy....bouncing all over the place with one of the other crias. Aren't those faces precious??

This is Nairobi....a very sweet 2-year old. She let me pet her and she was gently rubbing her nose on my cheek... What wonderful creatures they are!!

This is Cubana. She's about 10 years old and has a new cria that's only a few weeks old. The brown cria two photos above is hers. Cubana has a beautiful, soft fleece, even for her age. She is actually a black, but she's graying with age. Gray is one of my favorite natural colors to spin.

2007-07-11T06:20:00.000-07:00

I'm an Auntie again!

Little Rocco made his appearance into the world at 2:09 AM on July 11th. He weighed 9 pounds and measured 22" long....a big boy! My sister, Jackie, was in labor for over 20 hours after being induced Tuesday morning, having a shot of Demerol and 2 failed epidurals! Needless to say, she is extremely tired. I went to visit her and Rocco last night at the hospital. He's a little doll and had his eyes wide open for me. He has a perfect round face and a tiny little nose that is so adorable! I got to gently rock him to sleep while Jackie and I talked. He has a quiet cry...which I'm thankful for, for Jackie's sake!

It's strange(and awesome) to see my sister as a mother, but I know she loves Rocco to pieces and will take wonderful care of him. And me as his aunt...I'll be seeing lots of him...and of course, taking lots of photos as he grows. So check back often....and if you want to leave comments for Jackie, Rocco, or Pat, I'll make sure they get them!

2007-06-19T07:40:00.001-07:00

Gotta love yard sales!!

My MIL and I went to a huge yard sale the Rescue Mission was holding this past weekend. She works in their office answering phones. The Rescue Mission has received so many donations, they just can't put it in their stores in this area. So to avoid throwing it away, they decided to hold a public sale and prices were lower than they would be in their stores. Below are the things I found at the sale and at a barn sale near my home.

These are all new greeting cards...a nice variety of birthday, Christmas and misc. These were all in a bedroom-sized trash can and I think it was only $1 or $2!

I love the bright colors of Mary Englebright products... This tin is hinged and inside are some new note cards and a nice pen.

I am SOO glad I found this set. It's ELLO...a creative system for girls. My oldest daughter loves this and I plan on finding more for her. I paid $1 for this!

Okay...I lumped almost everything together for these next two photos...just easier. :)
The picture on the left is of an oil painting print.....a cottage with huge rose bushes surrounding it. The other picture is a Monet print, called "Path in the Ile-Saint Martin". I paid $1 each for these....they do need new frames though.
The square object in the front is an acrylic trivet that has dried and pressed Queen Anne's Lace flowers and leaves in it...that was $.50.
The pan is a stove-top grill....$1.00. Next to that are three huge spiral-bound cookbooks.
Behind those are a pile of Ty Beanie Babies...3 mini and 3 regular size. Cara is always asking for Beanie Babies..this time I could afford them!
Next to the beanies is a nice pile of Bernat yarn...all of that for $1!
And behind everything are 3 things for the kids....a NIB Dora Colorforms, a puzzle...40 Hats for 40 Cats and Moley Gets Dressed. His clothes are magnetic!

Okay....the rest of the pile is books....lots of books! I think I paid $4 for all of them..mostly children's paperbacks....but all are in wonderful condition. Oh....there's also a butterfly photo frame, from Home Interior's...that's was $1 also! That is for Cara's room.

I've wanted one of these coats for a long time....it is completely washable and it's very warm! It fits perfectly and I paid $2 for it!!

These are one of my favorite figurines...but I've just never purchased one. This is the Learning Angel from Willow Tree. Her head was broken off, but with a little Super Glue, she's almost back to normal...just a little chip missing from her shoulder/neckline.

This was a great find! I paid $4 for this. It is now my nightstand.

To say the least, we had a wonderful time together and found some GREAT deals! I hope to visit more yard sales this summer. Now I will be on the lookout for school clothes for Cara and winter clothes for Caitlin.

2007-06-19T07:38:00.001-07:00

There are two different types of roses growing in front of this trellis....but both are red. I think the one in front is an old-fashioned rose and the tall one is a tea rose? The shorter rose has multiple flowers on the end of each stem, the other has only one flower.

2007-06-19T07:31:00.000-07:00

The Roses have Bloomed!

Close up of the Honeysuckle flowers behind our house.
They smell divine!

2007-06-09T11:29:00.001-07:00

Caitlin....the Ham

Our neighbor's 10-yo daughter took all of these photos of Caitlin yesterday. I say she did a nice job capturing Caitlin with some great expressions! Caitlin is almost 29 months old.

2007-06-09T11:17:00.000-07:00

Still growing....

The Zinnias are growing beautifully....there's even a couple with flower buds on them! I think my back porch receives just the right amount of sunlight. They are growing at least 5 times faster than the zinnias I planted in the back bed!

And here are the calendulas....no flower buds on these yet, but it shouldn't be long! I'm looking forward to adding petals from these to my salads! Yes, you can eat Calendula petals!

The Jade Sunflowers are growing nicely too! These should just about reach the top of the fence behind them. I believe this is a multiple branching variety too!

Cherry tomatoes....these won't stay on the plants long after they're ripe!!

This rose was purchased at Kmart last year....I didn't think it made it through the winter, but it surprised me. We had a nice warm spell and suddenly leaves appeared! The color in the photo is true to life...isn't is wonderful???!!!

2007-06-09T11:08:00.000-07:00

New Flower Pics!

This beautiful Gerbera Daisy was a gift from my neighbor for my birthday. This bloom is not fully opened yet....I just loved the look of it!

I do believe this perennial is an aster. Such pretty lavender petals.

One of the rosebushes ready to open up! I didn't realize this before, but there are two differents varieties of red rose in front of my trellis. This one has multiple blooms on a stalk and the other has only single blooms.

The last iris...these flowers are gorgeous, but they don't last long enough in my opinion!

The color of this rose is difficult to photograph. It's a coral-y-pink, not as red as in the picture. Can you see the raindrop in the center?? We had a doozy of a thunderstorm roll through last night.....very windy with lots of rain, thunder and lightning.

2007-05-23T12:16:00.001-07:00

My birthday present!

I had a tough time deciding what to buy with my birthday money....didn't need any clothes or fiber or yarn, so this is what I chose! When DH and I visited my Dad in the nursing home last Friday, there's a large tank set up just outside his room...it has a couple Angelfish and Gouramis. I've always loved tropical fish. The last time I had a tank was before Brendan was born. I had goldfish for a while, then some African Cichlids. Both are beautiful, but the tropicals are what catch my eye!

DH and I went to PetSmart on Sunday and found a 10 gallon kit that was marked down due to the box being opened. I picked out some plants(artificial), the gravel, the decoration...it's a stump with two plants attached to it and some pretty glass shells.

Yesterday and today I went to two different pet shops for my fish. Here's what I have: 1 yellow Guppy, 2 Dwarf Platys, 1 Red Wag Platy, 2 Sunset Platys, a Swordtail(this one has a beautiful tail...both the top and bottom fin are long, not just the bottom one), a yellow and black Sword, another Platy that is an off-white with a red tail and a Green catfish(he isn't green though).

They are all doing wonderfully and the kids all love them!

2007-05-23T11:59:00.001-07:00

My Swap box arrived!!

Last month I joined a swap on Desert Garden's website. We were to fill out a questionnaire concerning our fiber and yarn likes and dislikes, garden questions and questions about ourselves in general. Jennifer then paired each person up and a-spinning and a-shopping we all went!
I received this wonderful package today from Jane Plaugher at Fiber on the Mountain in North Carolina.
The yarn is a lovely shade of pink in 100% Superwash wool....and there's about 500 yards of it too! I will be searching online today for a pattern...I'm thinking s lacy stole?
Jane also included a YUMMY bar of dark chocolate, which is almost gone...my indulgence for today!
The bottle of body spray is Raspberry Vanilla...smells so nice! The little calender is adorable....that will be hung on my fridge. And the last item is a gift pack of 5 seed packets...all Wildflowers of the Blue Ridge! These will all be planted this fall and will bloom next year.

Thank you, Jane! I love it all!

2007-05-23T11:44:00.001-07:00

New Growth!

These are pink, white and red Cosmos popping up. Cosmos are one of my favorite flowers to grow....they require little care and grow quite quickly once the weather warms up.

These are Calendulas growing in one of my flower boxes on the back porch...these too, are very easy to grow! And I believe that you can eat the petals of this flower. I think these are a mix of yellows and oranges.

And in the other two flower boxes are Zinnias. This variety is called "Thumbelina". The plants only grow to about 6" tall and they come in yellow, pink, orange and white. Most of the seeds I planted sprouted, so some will be transplanted to my back flowerbed when they're a little bigger.

The Allium opened! Well, almost...as you can see, it's covered with lots of tiny flowers that don't open all at once. I'm not sure what variety this Allium is, but it stands about 18" tall. It is very picky about water and heat...have to keep my eye on it!

I can't remember what this perennial is...maybe an aster? It's a very pretty pink. I'll take another photo when it blooms.

And finally, my sunflowers finally decided to grace us with their presence! I wasn't sure they would come up...they were buried very deep after soil from the neighbor's yard was pushed through under the fence. I took away what I could and here they are! This variety is special...it's called "Jade"...a very light green Sunflower. I found the packet at Kmart. It's a Martha Stewart packet. These grow to about 4-5" and are branching, so I should have lots of flowers this year!

2007-05-23T11:43:00.001-07:00

A beautiful mum my two oldest and my husband picked out for my birthday! I love the fluted petals!

2007-05-19T07:59:00.000-07:00

I turn 30 today!
My photos are a little out of order, but oh well!

I found this adorable swimsuit for Caitlin on Ebay last week...only paid a couple dollars for it too!

Caitlin decided to put Brendan's costume on today...now she's playing outside with it on!

I love this card my mom gave me today for my birthday. She also gave me a little money to use towards whatever I would like.

And finally a photo of me on my 30th birthday, today, May 19th. This week I decided to lighten my hair a few shades and get it cut. It was getting so long and the ends were so ratty, they didn't want to flip up anymore! I think the next time I color it, I'll go a little lighter. I've had so many compliments and my husband loves it!! :)

2007-05-18T14:23:00.001-07:00

Our Trip to the Zoo!

My husband was on vacation this week and we decided to take our youngest daughter to the zoo Monday morning. She went when she was about 7 months old...but no memories of it of course!
My favorite animals were the penguins....these are Humboldt penguins that live on the west coast of South America. They are small, maybe 2 feet tall.
I used the action setting on my camera and was able to catch these wonderful underwater shots! Enjoy!

This is Suri....one of the zoo's elephants. She turns 40 years old this year! Caitlin was able to touch her...she was very fascinated. The keeper was giving Suri jelly beans as a treat!!

A woodchuck that took up residence under one of the rock walls near the tiger exhibit. He (or she) was just chilling out on the pile of rocks in front of his home.

This life-size tiger is always a favorite stop! Caitlin was a little bit hesitant at first, then she suddenly wanted to get on. I just love her smiles!

2007-05-10T05:37:00.000-07:00

Flowers, Flowers

One of MANY lilac buds on my bush this spring....trimming in late winter-very early spring makes a huge difference for this lilac. I checked this morning...there's a few buds opening and I can smell the sweet fragrance. I've been looking forward to it for a long time!

One of the few tulip buds almost ready to bloom. I think this one will be red with a black and yellow center.

Brilliant Johnny Jump Ups or Violets, or whatever they're called. I don't care if they spread like mad....they're just so beautiful!

A pretty daisy-like perennial in my back flowerbed. Didn't save the tag for this one...anyone know the name?

2007-05-10T05:27:00.000-07:00

The first batch of yarn ready for my Aunt in Florida. She purchased three batches of batts from me and I am spinning them to about a size 10 crochet thread weight, single ply. This blend is pink and gray with some pretty sparkles....very difficult to photograph and achieve the correct color!

I love this photo...I think it should be on a notecard! These are Osteospermum....or African Mum, I think...have to go check the tag. Found this at Lowe's along with a few others daisy-like perennials. This plant is in the back of our yard, in front of the neighbor's new fence.

This little bed is about 3 1/2 feet by 2 feet....it's on the side of the house next to a window. I planted 3 perennials(can't remember which though), this single allium and 6 little orange marigolds. It receives a lot of sun, so I have to water the allium at least a couple times a day...it does not like direct sun too much!

Pretty blue forget-me-nots planted on the side of the garage. Such dainty flowers...these came from my MIL's flowerbed....she had an overabundance of them this year!!

My first real herb garden! The top left is a Coreopsis...just because I had no where else to plant it! There's Curly-Leaf Parsley, Golden Oregano, Chives, Purple Sage, Rosemary and Lemon Thyme...which smells wonderful!
I'm very much looking forward to using these in my cooking!

2007-05-02T06:56:00.000-07:00

More plants....

I decided to plant Zinnias and Calendulas in my three flower boxes this year, instead of buying annuals. Almost all of the seeds came up! You can see the difference in the leaf shapes. The Zinnias are rounder and the Calendulas are longer and thinner. I'll be taking more photos as they grow so you can see the progression.

This is Golden Oregano. Such a lovely green. Part of the back flowerbed will have herbs. I've wanted a nice herb bed for a long time.

New buds on the lilac. The bush is full of them this spring again after a good round of pruning a few weeks ago!

The Forget-Me-Nots I planted in the bed alongside the garage. There might be some blooms open today! These spread like wildfire, but that's just what a need to fill in that bed.

New leaves on my red rose. I love the color of them and how they change.

2007-05-02T06:37:00.000-07:00

Spring is finally here....

A single purple allium...our previous neighbor gave this to me before she moved last spring, so this is the second time it's bloomed here. These are such interesting flowers. I'd love to purchase more this fall. I've noticed that this likes the shade and water. I may have to move it to a different bed this weekend. Though I may just put some mulch down and see if that helps.

A lovely Columbine I purchased at Kmart the other day. I'm still deciding where it should be planted as it needs partial shade. I'm thinking in with my rose bushes. One of them didn't make it through the winter unfortunately.

Some of my daffodils. All of these were here when we moved in almost 3 years ago. They have multiplied wonderfully! This color is so pretty...a lovely contrast.

Another shot of the two colors. These are all I have...but this fall new bulbs from Brecks will be arriving for planting. My MIL are I are sharing these bulbs since Brecks is having such nice sales, plus a bonus coupon! We're getting these tulips, these daffodils, and these daffodils which actually have a nice fragrance.

A shot of half the flowerbed that runs along the side of the garage. I dug up some of the daffodils from the back and then planted some Johnny Jump Ups and Forget-Me-Nots from my MIL's garden. There are still 2 Hostas in there that need to be dug up and planted in front of the house. My husband will be making that flowerbed soon. Can you see the shape of the rock leaning against the garage? It's a heart! I didn't notice it until I was moving the rocks around....so glad I did!

2007-05-02T06:08:00.000-07:00

Worms & Dirt & Kids...a great combination!

I think this is my most favorite photo of Caitlin. Yesterday I spent hours outside digging up my large flowerbed. Every time I found a big worm, (and these two were the biggest) I showed them to Caitlin. She just wanted to carry them around. She was very careful not to squeeze them. I asked her if I could take a picture of the worms and she happily agreed. The look on her face is priceless to me. She's very much like I was, well, and still am....fascinated by all creatures. :)

I forgot to post this photo last time. The kids were all having a mid-day meal of cereal at Grandma's house....if ran for the camera, since, well, they're all sitting still next to each other...that's rare! You can see the milk running down Caitlin's chin!

This is the large flowerbed in progress. Our neighbor that lives behind the fence has been doing lots of yard work..with big machines and such...and he had some extra dirt I could have. He just dumped it over the fence and it sat in a pile for a couple weeks. The kids decided to dig a hole to China...or at least tried. Yesterday was a beautiful day and I was tired of looking at the hole! So armed with only a shovel, I broke it all up, filled in the hole and kept Caitlin busy with worms. To say the least, I am very sore today, my middle back muscles and my arms...it's almost tough to work on any spinning today...but I must!

And here's the flowerbed almost finished. I had tons of stones laying around...they all came from my grandparent's property....I used the flat stones in the middle for a walkway and the rounder and odd-shaped stones for the edging. The lower bed is about 4-5 inches higher than ground level and the back bed is at least a foot higher. I need to put some sort of edging behind the walkway stones to prevent the dirt from collapsing....my husband will figure that out tonight. I also need to move all the little stones I have leftover...probably they'll go behind the garage...which will eventually be covered with more dirt. The only plant growing back there are double orange tiger lilies. Very pretty. I'll be sharing those with my neighbor and my mom. You can see on the left of the bed my huge lilac. I trimmed the old seed pods off a few weeks ago and what a difference that made. There will be MANY blooms in just a couple weeks.

2007-04-25T13:11:00.000-07:00

Fun day at grandma and grandpas!

Caitlin riding her hot wheels tricycle. She can reach the peddles, but hasn't quite figured out how to actually use them to move. She just uses her feet on the ground to move...which means she catches the backs of her legs a lot!

Brendan wanted a photo with no hands! You almost can't see the training wheels hiding in the shadows...hehe. Silly kid!

These John Deere bikes were a gift to Cara and Brendan from Grandpa. He was trying to build a go-kart from the old lawnmower frame, but it just didn't work out....had to be scrapped. So he found these at the Farm & Country store. They are so cute and very well made! The kids loved them. You can see Cara took advantage of the little holder on the back....perfect place for her little puppy!

Silly grins from Brendan...he loves to pose for the camera!

Sister and brother getting along for 2 minutes! This is a great photo of them...I will cherish this one.

2007-04-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

My children....
Cara....8 years old and very flighty and creative like her mommy(gets distracted VERY easily!) ;) She will be very tall and thin like her daddy. Her cheeks are pink from lots of playing outside at Grandma's and Grandpa's house this past Sunday, the 22nd. This past weekend was so beautiful! Unseasonably warm...high 70's - low 80's, but who's complaining!!!??? I did get a lovely sunburn though...crazy...sunburn in central NY in April...hmm. So I'm a little bit sore and I think my shoulders will peel...sigh.

Mr. Brendan....he's quite the little guy. Tons of energy, gets bored easily and is very silly! Brendan is 6 and is almost done with Kindergarten already...hard to believe. He's reading simple books now, since he's learned many basic sight words. He's very proud of himself.

And last, but not least...Caitlin. My little whirlwind! Caitlin is 2 and growing so fast. She's finally putting words together...we're all guilty of talking for her...so she's had no real need to talk! She's very smart though...remembers so many things! This picture was taken when she was sitting in daddy's recliner watching some cartoons. She loves PBS shows like Curious George, Clifford, the end of Sesame Street with Elmo's World and then Caillou after that. That's part of the morning routine. They are not all one after the other, so we do things together, then she watches a show while I work on my spinning or household chores. And sometimes I just sit with her and knit or spin and I ask her questions about what's happening in the show. Lots of mommy and Caty time....I just love it. :)

2007-04-13T19:11:00.000-07:00

Around my house....

These are pretty daisy mums from my MIL for Easter. Flowers are amazing....they ALWAYS make me think of God and his creative nature....now that's an imagination.

This is the start of a baby blanket for my sister, Jackie's first baby, due at the end of June. My first pattern was a circular afghan, but I had to tear it out three times...I would never finish it at that rate...it's was making me mad..that's when I knew I needed to quit!!! This one is a simple basketweave pattern in, I think, Bernat baby yarn. This I can do...and it works up rather quickly. I also used a bigger needle...size 9 or 10 1/2. The afghan will be more open...better suited for warmer weather.

Just a neat shot of the table in the corner of my living room. The table was painted by my husband's Aunt Steph, who passed away last year from cancer. She is very much missed and this table will always bring back memories. The little baby in the front photo is my husband's only neice, Myah. She is a little over 4 months old now....and SOOO adorable. The picture on the right is of me and my little brother, Joshua. I think that was taken the year I got pregnant with Brendan...2000. Joshua is 21 years younger than me! The photo in the back is of Caitlin, our youngest...that was taken last fall. The photo on the left, sorry you can't see it that well...is of Caitlin at Grandma and Grandpa's last summer on her Hot Wheels bike! She just loves it...and every time she sees the picture, she wants to ride. :) Hopefully this year she'll be able to almost reach the peddles!

The plants are all from Price Chopper....they were having a great sale...2 for $2.50! My house needs more plants...and that price was too good to pass up. Tomorrow one of my projects is to re-pot them into slightly bigger pots that I found at the $1 store.

Gotta love great deals!

2007-04-13T18:56:00.000-07:00

Fiber Fun

This is one of the projects I've been working on this week. The above photo is a nice-sized pile of hand-carded llasa apso dog hair from Debby's dogs. The fiber arrived in the box below....big balls of fiber. Much of this batch can be picked apart and spun, but if I want a more even yarn, I need to go through the whole box, picking out any matts or really rough guard hairs....then handcard with two dog slicker brushes. It takes quite a bit of time, but the finished yarn is so very nice!

This gorgeous pile of fiber to spin is my goal for the next two weeks, maybe three. The orange and pink roving was dyed by Jared, who lives in Kingston, Ontario. His mom and I are friends...we trade fibers....once angoras and my Kiwi wheel came from her. :) The dark brown roving is a CVM x Merino blend from Royal Fibers in California. If I don't sell most of the yarn, I'll be knitting myself a new pair of mittens for next winter!
I think I will be able to spin most during that time....lots of inside time this next week. A lovely late-season Nor'easter is due Monday....blah. And I was so looking forward to getting out a little early and flatten out my big pile of dirt for my back flowerbed. Oh well. The poor plants around here just don't know whether to keep growing or go back to sleep! Today was rainy with a little wet snow and just kinda gloomy...I was very tired today...just wanted to lay down and take a nap. But that just didn't happen with all three kids home on school break this week. Whew...it's been a short but long week...if you catch my drift. ;)

I think this is one of my favorite handspun yarns....it's Superwash Colonial wool I purchased on Etsy.com from seller 'ashabee'. Very good price and the roving spins up SOOOOO quickly! It just flows through my hands. I bought two other rovings from her....the red and pink, and the pink, white and brown braids in the picture above.

Did I ever mention how much I love fiber and spinning???????? I will never tire of the beautiful colorways that people come up with.....and then there's the angora rabbit wool...my most favorite EVER...........nothing can compare in my opinion!!

2007-02-17T07:41:00.000-08:00

My cat is weird.....

I walked by the toy area on my way downstairs this morning and realized what Angel was doing. I laughed so hard....she was just chilling out, soaking up some rays. I ran to get the camera and thankfully she hadn't moved. My husband is right...every pet I've owned is weird...but I think Angel wins this one hands down!!

2007-02-15T06:45:00.000-08:00

And here's Angel...she's almost 6 months old already! She is a very beautiful cat, half tiger and half calico...a very unique coloring. She is quite the ditz though...she gives me lots of laughs, but drives Sean crazy. She loves water....loves to sit in the sink or on the edge when I do the dishes. She even fell in the tub when I was taking a shower one day. It didn't seem to bother her too much. And the other day she was watching the second hand on the clock tick away. A very curious cat indeed! She is sweet too....she loves to sit on the desk when I'm at the computer, sometimes trying to catch the mouse cursor on the screen and she'll sleep on my lap when I'm spinning or knitting. Keeps me warm...who needs a blanket!?

2007-02-15T06:40:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day!

My dear, sweet husband brought me these surprises home last night...a beautiful mini rose, chocolate and Ben & Jerry's ice cream. He really made my day. :) The night before, I gave him his gift...a very soft and cuddly microfiber blanket to match his recliner. He loved it. He very much looks forward to relaxing in his chair each night after a long day on his feet.
Last night I made dinner and got all dressed up for him...I wore a pretty dress and did my hair...which did exactly what I wanted it to for a change!! And yes, he did notice.

2007-02-15T06:25:00.000-08:00

We're all ready for spring!!!

It's still snowing her in Oswego County, NY. Last week the lake effect continued for about a week, with some towns receiving WELL over 100". Tuesday night a Noreaster hit and ended last night. We received about a foot here. Now a little bit of lake effect is kicking in again. Shoveling is getting old....the snowbanks are so high in some places that it's very difficult to throw the snow over them. I often have to push the snow to another lower bank. Needless to say, I'm getting lots of great exercise this month!
The photo above is a view out the back door, looking at our garage and driveway. The poor Neon has been sitting for over 2 months now, waiting for it's fate. You can see the piles of snow on the porch railings of our neighbor's house...which is vacant now...so no one has shoveled in the past month.

Another view out the back door, looking at the side of the garage. That pile was a lot higher until the kids played on it. It was easily more than halfway up the side of the garage!

A view looking out our front door. You can see the trash can across the street and the bank next to it. Most are much higher than that...and you have to remember that a lot of the snow has compacted.

A closeup of the neighbor's garage across the street and the houses behind.

This is looking out our front window to the left. That maple tree is at the edge of our driveway and the telephone pole is at the other side. Those banks are so high, I cannot throw the snow over them anymore. I have to push most of the snow from the bottom of the driveway up to where the little apple tree is(on the left side of the photo).

2007-02-05T08:38:00.000-08:00

Latest projects and more....

A nice batch of little batts I made with leftover fibers. These will all be spun to use for crocheting granny squares for a swap with Debra. The last 4 squares I've made are below.

I crocheted one mitten for Cara yesterday...the other will be done today. I'm using Lion Brand's Jiffy yarn...thick and fuzzy and warm! Too bad it's too cold for the kids to go outside today. Many of the schools around here closed for the day due to bitter cold temperatures and a nasty wind chill. The lake effect snow is hitting again and it's looks like we've already received 6 inches in the last 3 hours! And from the looks of the radar, it might be sticking around for a little while.

A knitted scarf in progress with TLC's Macaroon yarn in the colorway Raspberry. I'm using size 13 needles, so this will knit up very quickly. Each skein is 115 yards.

I visited our local dollar store, Real Deals, and found this yarn...yep, $1 a skein!!! The multi yarn is Moda Dea Swirl in a color called Tinker...SOOOO soft! The blue yarn is Moda Dea Tutu in a color called Cabana Blue. These yarns are not cheap when bought at full price...so I was VERY happy to find these. Most of this yarn will become scarves or headbands or wrist warmers or fingerless gloves!

2007-01-31T15:42:00.000-08:00

Caitlin's 2nd Birthday!

I totally forgot to post these photos(thank you Aunt Bonnie for reminding me!!). We celebrated Caitlin's birthday the evening of the 12th. It was just the five of us at home. Caitlin loved opening her gifts...we gave her a cute wooden train set and extra trains. She just loves it! We thought she would like her own set...she's always playing with her brother's!

2007-01-31T07:18:00.000-08:00

A photo of me....

I am always the one behind the camera, it seems, so I thought I'd have a little fun and try to take photos of myself. I must say, it's not easy when you can't see the screen. But I think I did a pretty good job! So...this is me...fair skin...bright blue eyes. My husband liked the photos I took very much! ;)
I will be 30 on May 19th...I sure don't feel my age...well my joints do, but mentally I still feel like I'm in my late teens, early 20s...hmmm. I think that's a good thing...very young at heart.

2007-01-12T10:16:00.000-08:00

My Process of Creating Spinning Batts

Here's what I begin with...the batch I'm working on today consists of(from left-right), turquoise and blue Polypay wool, light green Alpaca and bluish-green Targhee wool. I washed, dyed and carded all of these myself from raw fleeces. I take the time to pick out as much vm as I can. And all the fibers that I wash from the raw state are run through my carder a minimum of two times to get to this state. I'm a fairly picky spinner, so I want the fiber I sell to reflect my personal preferences!

I started carding and the first run-through looked like this. I split the batt in half lengthwise, kept one half separate and carded the other half. You can see that the colors blended a lot(top of photo)...I didn't quite like the look of this...so I tried it again...this time with thicker layers. (below)

I did the same thing....split the batt and carded half. This time it was better...not blended quite so much...but I just wasn't satisfied. I then decided to not use the white and card one thick layer of each color. I took the batt off, peeled off each color in it's entirety, pulled it into a roving form and ran each back through in stripes.
My carder is a Louet Jr. The larger wheel is about 4 inches wide, which I love...so the four colors fit perfectly with a little overlapping. I think these came out beautifully...and I was quite satisfied!