And Then....

 Good Evening Internet Friends!!!

Super busy of late and forget to post here.  On vacation at the moment.  First week almost finished...  Have not accomplished much as the temperature has been in the 35 Celsius + (95 Fahrenheit) range all week!!! Too hot to do anything. 

I did almost finish my Finish Line Socks today.  These are from the January Biscotte Yarns Mystery Sock Box.  Will Kitchener Stitch these closed tomorrow.  

Just after I received this box Kitty destroyed the contrast colour!!!  I contacted Biscotte Yarns and not only were they super helpful but their first concern was for Kitty!!!  Love supporting small businesses for their amazing customer service.  

During our move and the build of our new home doggie was without a fenced yard.  For those 2 years he had to be walked at least twice a day and I have continued that with him.  Great exercise, and I have zero dog mess in my yard. 

 Every day we walk through a wooded area next to a new construction site.  There are always lots of fresh excavated rocks out and about.  I love rocks!  Always have.  I have started to collect these rocks rather than just look at them and bring them home to my backyard flower bed.  So far I have:

Early this spring I decided that I would start my own seedlings at home rather than participate in the panic rush at the greenhouse.  Last year everything was sold out in record time.  I purchased the Vita garden beds from Costco and set forth on my garden adventure. Zucchini is in bloom and has little zucchini.  Seeds from 

Seeds of Change at Salisbury Greenhouse Sherwood Park.

Raspberries also from Costco greenhouse:

Seed potatoes from Salisbury Greenhouse in Sherwood Park:

Tomatoes are also from Seeds of Change seeds:

While out on our walk this evening we ran in to a Dumb Bunny.  S/he stopped about a meter in front of dog and just stared at us.  Did sit right down before eventually casually hopping off!  

So.....cue the music...that's all folks.  Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you a BEST Day EVER Saturday tomorrow. 

Kathy

Palm Sunday...

 Good Evening Internet Friends!

Somehow it seems shocking to realize that today is already Palm Sunday!  It feels like I have done nothing this year and yet it's a 1/4 finished!!

Started the day out with oven baked fresh strawberry, blueberry French Toast, topped with Vanilla Sugar, whipped cream and Quebec Maple Syrup.  Sooo YUM!

After breakfast took doggie out for his mid morning stroll through the neighborhood.  Bruce the Goose and all his kin folk seem to be moving in and Goose Steppin' around:

Baked 2 loaves of Lemon, Poppy Seed Thyme Bread this afternoon.  It smelled and tasted awesome!!

 Still on my clean everything mission so did 7 loads of laundry today.  As of now everything is washed, folded and put away!!  House smells super clean and awesome!

In between loads of laundry I knitted on my Finish Line Socks.  These are from the Jan/Feb Biscotte Yarns Mystery Sock Box. 

For dinner I made kiddo a mushroom, dill bison roast in the slow cooker.  Served with roasted garlic, parsnip, mashed potatoes, dill salad and a home made dill pickle:

Kiddo enjoyed.  

This evening after floors were vacuumed and mopped I spent a bit of time in my craft room and made another 2020 Darlene D'Eon Designs 52 Week Challenge Block.  "Sew" close to being done this one and getting it out to be long armed:

TAH DAH!!

Spring Break all of this week so will see what I can get in to.  Staying home and staying safe.

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you a BEST Day EVER Monday tomorrow.  Stay Safe.😷

Kathy

Monday...

 Good Evening Internet Friends!

Well, it's Monday and that's about all there is to say about that!  Always a hard day after time change.

Back to work of course today.

This evening after dinner I did a bit of knitting and got through the first pattern repeat of the Fogo Island Mittens from the Saltwater Knits books from River City Yarns: 

TAH DAH!!!

Fingers crossed that the weather holds a few more days and I can finish the left mitten before the snow flies.

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Tuesday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there.  😷

Kathy

It's Coming...

 Good Evening Internet Friends!!!

Parts of Alberta have received snow.  At this time we do not have snow here in Edmonton, but the forecast is for snow tomorrow.  

On that note y'all will know how much I LOVE my woolen knits here in this part of frozen Western Canada.  I have finished the first of my Fogo Island Mittens from the Salt Water Mittens series that I purchased through my Local Yarn Shop River City Yarns.  

These mittens are worked with 2 strands of wool so will be super warm.  Might need to pick up the pace and get these finished sooner than I planned on.

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Friday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there😷

Kathy

Saturday!!!

 Good Evening Internet Friends!

Rained on and off all day today so I decided I would stay home and get things done rather than go out and run any errands.  The forecast looks like rain for most of next week so I will be driving to work as I am not that dedicated to riding my bicycle🚴.

Did the vacuuming, floor washing, baseboards wiped, all surfaces dusted, wood surfaces oiled and 9 loads of laundry done so all clothes, kitchen and bed linens have been washed as of now.

Baked a loaf of banana bread:

After cleaning was done and between loads of laundry I did a few rows on my newest knitting project: 

 I bought this set of books for my birthday last week from River City Yarns.  I bought all three books and as a bonus 2 skeins of their Epic Yarn was included in the pack.  I chose Maritime and Snow for my colours.  

Kiddo wanted chicken for dinner so I marinated some chicken drumsticks that were on sale earlier this week at Costco and made some Parmesan roasted veggies to serve with:

 

 Took kiddo and doggie out for a long walk after dinner.

Will do a bit of knitting now and maybe get to bed on time....

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Sunday tomorrow.

Kathy

Friday!!!

Good Evening Internet Friends!!!

I baked bread today as the weather was cooler.  Used the Everything Bagel Seasoning I picked up at Costco this week:

 

Did a few errands this afternoon as today is the last week day before I head back to work on Monday.

Arrived home just before dinner and did not feel like a big meal so I made a mushroom, spinach, tomato, green onion, parmesan frittata for dinner to go along with the fresh bread.  SOOOOO Yum.

 

Knit a bit after dinner and then took doggie for a long walk.

No plans for tomorrow as planning to stay home and minimize my carbon foot print.

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Saturday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there 😷

Kathy

Saturday...

 Good Evening Internet Friends!

Quiet day today.  Ran a couple of errands.  Braved going to the shopping mall.  Did not purchase anything but I went.  Have not been in a shopping mall since just before the malls closed down as had to pick up a spring jacket for kiddo.

Walked the dog a couple of times on long walks.  Made 22457 steps for the day.

Rode my bike 9 miles after dinner as well.  

When I got home from my evening walk with doggie I kitchener stitched closed the toes on my January 2020 Mystery Sock Box from Biscotte Yarns:

These socks were a challenge at first as I followed the instructions and used a circular needle for the first one.  That was just too complicated for me to knit left handed in a pattern with circular needles.  Went back to double point needles and my left handed knitting was much easier.  What is also worth noting about these socks is that the colour work is done with self striping yarn!!!

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Sunday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there.  😷

Kathy

 

 

BEST Day EVER Sunday!!!

Good Evening Internet Friends!!

I hope y'all had a BEST Day EVER Sunday!

Up early with doggie of course.  Checked on my deck full of plants (still waiting on the sod and landscaping) and found the first fresh strawberry!!!  I ate it and it was DELICIOUS!!!

Bake a Rhubarb Cake this afternoon with rhubarb my colleague brought for me from her mother's garden.  

While the cake was baking I knit on the deck with doggie keeping me company.  Mostly I think he just likes to smell the air. 🤣

After dinner I put the borders on my 2017 Flock of Geese 52 Week Block Challenge hosted by Darlene D'Eon Designs:

TAH DAH!!!

My 2015 version of the 52 Week Challenge is quilted with binding on.  Doggie sleeps in front of the fireplace on it daily.

2016 has borders on and ready for long arming.

2017 needs a backing piece and then ready for long arming.

2018 Red and White is currently being quilted.  

2019 & 2020 are a work in progress.  

Each of these quilts is made with scrap fabric left over from other quilts.  I would like to say that my scrap pile is diminishing......but....alas.....it is NOT!!!!!  

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Monday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there!

Kathy

Making Do!!!

Good Evening Internet Friends!

I hope y'all had a fabulous Victoria Day Weekend.

Today was a stay at home kind of day.  I did walk the dog early this morning of course and took my bike out for a bit this afternoon but that is all.

My copy of the Butter Baked Goods cookbook was still out so I made a batch of Sugar Cookies.  I LOVE these sugar cookies; the recipe uses butter and oil and makes a perfectly crisp on the outside soft in the middle cookie.  Perfect for Tea Time:

Between Batches I knit on my XO socks that are from my January 2020 Biscotte Yarns Mystery Box.  Not sure what keeps holding me up on these socks.  Could be the circular needle that does not allow me to knit the left handed way that I want to!  Or....could be that the colour work requires attention:

I have now passed the gusset and so was able to try them on.  OMG are they comfortable!!!  Might spur me on to get this one finished so I can start on the other one☺

For dinner I used freezer food.  Since the 10th of March we have been eating what we have in the pantry and the freezer.  I have had milk and fresh fruits and veggies brought in.  Two trips to Costco since that time and both have been in the last two weeks.  I would like to say that we have made a dent in the freezer....but alas it is still full somehow.  Today I used some Bison sausages, perogies, and green peas from the freezer.   Sauteed onions and mushrooms from the fridge along with sour cream (will need to start a shopping list for this one):

I am not a fan or meat but on occasion for some red meat I will eat a wee bit of bison.  This is kiddos plate; I had a half sausage and might eat the other tomorrow with the leftovers we have.

Heading out to walk doggie now as tomorrow is work and I still have one more load of laundry to put through so that everything is clean!!!

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Tuesday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there!

Kathy

Progressing....

Good Evening Internet Friends!

Got to go for my own hair cut this evening!!!  119 days since my last haircut.  Let me tell you.....it feels great to be rid of the extra hair!!!

Knitted a bit more on my XO socks this evening:

Super tired though so going to walk the dog and head to bed.  Lots of little things to do tomorrow.

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Saturday tomorrow.  Stay Safe out there.

Kathy

Knit On!!!

Good Evening Internet Friends.

Back to work today and that felt good.  Miss my job when I am away from it.

This evening after dinner and all the responsible things I get to do in the evening I did spend a bit of time working on my XO Socks.  These are my January 2020 subscription box from Biscotte Yarns:

This is the first time that I have used a self striping yarn along with a solid yarn in a pattern.  SOOOO cool.

Hope this inspires your own creativity.  Wishing you the BEST Day EVER Thursday tomorrow.  Stay safe. 

Kathy

Knit One....

Good Evening Internet Friends!

Did a few errand type things today and not really that productive.

I did finish knitting my latest sock and stitch the toe closed:

This sock is knit with Ancient Arts special colour Around the World in 80 days.  The pattern is Baker Lake by Canadian Designer Dana Gervais.

Going to have to cast on the next sock this evening before I take doggie out for his walk.

Hope this inspires your own creativity.  Wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Tuesday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there,

Kathy

I LOST April....

Good Evening Internet Friends!

A look at the calendar as I sat down to blog made my realize....I LOST APRIL 2020!!!  Seriously.  Where did she go?  I knew Mother Earth was on a time out, but seriously.

I still get tired very easily if I try to do too much so taking it easy most of the day.  

I planned to make some greeting cards to send out for Birthday's and to friends that I know have been staying home on isolation due to medical conditions.  

I got side tracked though......

First I appliqued a cup towel.  I bought this set over a year ago at Sew Divine.  Previously I have appliqued one of these towels so today I did another:

Then I decided to head over to my scrapbooking area of the house but on my way I found this lovely skein of cotton yarn.  I decided I NEEDED a new dishcloth....or someone did.

So I spent some time this afternoon knitting this:

TAH DAH!!!

That was my day.  I think this may be how I lost April....

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Saturday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there 🙏

Kathy

Knitting

Good Evening Internet Friends.

Quiet Monday here at home.  I am staying home due to my asthma acting up now that it is pretending to be Spring outside.  

Not having a lot of energy I decided that I would cast on a new pair of socks to work on from my sofa watching tele!  I COULD do this.  Easy win there for mental health - do something that is achieveable.

I cast on Baker Lake Socks using Ancient Arts yarn "80 Days Around the World" colour way.  This was a special edition dye lot from their Sock Yarn Box subscription a couple of years ago:

Hope this inspires your own creativity.  Wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Tuesday tomorrow.  Stay safe out there and please WASH your hands🙏.

Kathy

Day 14...NO End In Sight....

Good Evening Internet Friends.

I hope you all had a BEST Day EVER Sunday today.

We somehow slept in.  Doggie usually has me up by 0500 for his morning walk, but today he let me sleep.  After a leisurely breakfast we headed out to the park to walk around the lake that we had planned to yesterday.  Yes, my elbow is still swollen and black but I did not want it to get more stiff so off we went.  It was a lovely walk and the ice was better than yesterday.

After lunch while I got laundry started I cast on a new project.  It will be a matching cowl and toque.

I baked a loaf of coconut banana bread but some Monster got in to it before I could get a photo.  Oh well....It was yummy though.  

We are still eating from the pantry and freezer and making sure that NO food goes to waste.....mostly it just goes to my waist.... For dinner this evening I made lemon pepper chicken, lemon aioli, jasmine rice with green onions, and roasted mushrooms/zucchini/onions.  Turned out delicious.  I even ate a bit of chicken:

 

After dinner in between loads of laundry I sewed on the first two center block borders for my Lush Quilt:

TAH DAH!!!

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Monday tomorrow.  Stay safe at home, WASH your hands and get out for a bit of fresh air if you are able to maintain social distancing.

Cheers

Kathy

Flattening the Curve...

Good Evening Internet Friends!

It has been a while since I have had time to blog.  🤷

Today was a conscious decision to "Flatten the Curve".  In my head though I had the Good Ol' Boys song stuck in my head𝆕. 

We started the day with pancakes, fresh fruit and Quebec maple syrup.  Apparently we have no whipped cream in the fridge so added that to my Grocery Wish List.  Who knows how long that will take to get.....

After breakfast we took doggie out for a really long walk.  The neighborhood was super quiet.  No one seemed to be doing anything.  Was very odd to see. When we got back I made a batch of Rice Krispie Squares. I had bought the cereal a couple of weeks ago before the crazy shopping began.

Turned out delicious as a treat.  After that I decided to get serious about planning for the week with lunches etc and knowing that what we eat mostly has to come from what I have at home.  Banana bread of course is a staple for lunches and no worries there are still LOTS of frozen bananas in the freezer.  There will likely still be bananas there when the pandemic is over.  🤣

While the banana bread was baking I finished the toe stitching on my latest sock.  🧦

Might try to start the other one before bedtime this evening.....

For dinner I made a Cauliflower, Green Bean, Lentil Dahl as these ingredients were all available in the house.  I also made a batch of fresh naan bread to go with and topped with herbed sour cream.  So yummy and there will be left overs for tomorrow!

After dinner I finally got around to washing the basket of scrubs that I have been keeping in the garage.  I wear my scrubs to work and then change in to the hospital ones for my day at work.  At end of day I put my own scrubs on to travel home.  The reason for this is that scrubs are able to be washed in hot water and dried in a hot dryer.  

While I waited for the laundry I finished the last row of my 2018 Red and White 52 Week Block Challenge from Darlene D'Eon Designs:

This quilt called for a patch work and snowball block a week for 52 weeks.  I chose however to make this quilt larger to fit on my overstuffed bed.  I made 156 blocks instead of the 104 so I will justify my tardiness on this quilt by that factor🤣.

We have no learned that school will be cancelled indefinitely.  🏫  This is going to be interesting......however, tomorrow I will put on my scrubs, wash my hands and go stare this beast in the face!!!  Literally.  

Hope this inspires your own creativity and wishing you all the BEST Day EVER Monday tomorrow.  Staff safe and WASH your hands.  🙏

Kathy

Fresh Start...

Good Evening Internet Friends!

I hope that everyone had an AMAZING New Year's Eve and Day and that this is going to be the BEST Year EVER!!

Last night kiddo and I attended the Broadmoor Lake Park Fireworks as we have now for a few years.  It is always an amazing show.  It was super cold out but thankfully I had my newest knitted toque on:

On Sunday evening I found an old copy of the Northward Toque I had knitted several years ago.  In my stash (yarn) I also just happened to have this skein of Superwash Six - a bulky 100% Merino.  I thought this was a perfect knitting combo because both the yarn designer and pattern designer are from Vancouver.

This toque is an easy and quick knit and I think I might need to put it into use a little more frequently.

Last night there was a bit of snow fall and wind so when I took doggie out for his walk this morning the world was our blank slate:

It was also an added bonus that the temperature was only about - 2 C (28 Fahrenheit).

It was very peaceful out and as such we were able to be about 10' from this dude and watch him closely:

The doggie even sat very still watching.  

This afternoon I sorted through my scrap fabrics in preparation for the 52 Week Block Challenge.  As you know I have done this challenge for the past five years.  I am a bit behind on the others right now but hopefully with a bit of planning I can fix that up.  I have now sorted through the scrap fabric on my desk that has accumulated since moving and cut it to the various sizes that I will need for these blocks.  All scraps are now in plastic zip seal bags ready to be sewn into blocks.

A friend gave me a tote for Christmas that I have decided will be the perfect size to store the bags of scraps and the sets finished blocks:

Left Block is Flock of Geese 2017 - these blocks were a casualty of moving.

Middle Block is 2018 Red and White Snowball - just behind on this series.

Right Block is 2019 Jewel Box.  "Sew" far I am not behind yet🤣.  

Will relax for the evening now with a pair of socks that I am knitting that have a special mission and I should get those completed ASAP.

Hope this inspires your own creativity...

Kathy

Snow Much Fun...

Good Evening Internet friends.

Busy day at work which was great, but also a wee bit tiring.  Traffic on the way home was sloooooooooooow, but I made it home safely.

For dinner this evening I made a Kathy version of Chicken Parmesan Spaghetti Squash.  Yet another 100% Costco meal ☺

Spaghetti Squash (3 pack from Costco)

Frozen Chicken Parmesan (Costco)

Spaghetti Sauce (Costco)

Fresh Mozzarella (Costco)

Served with:

Garlic Bread (Costco) 

Garden Salad (all veggies from Costco)

Turned out delicious and of course there are left overs for tomorrow evening!!!  BONUS.

After loading the dishwasher and tidying up the kitchen I took a few minutes to knit on my latest pair of socks.  These are being knit for a very dear friend of mine who has help me IMMENSELY with our move and getting everything in order.  She has a really awesome desk job but for a couple of weeks of the winter she will have to be outside, so I decided that she deserved and needed a pair of my hand knit wool socks ☺.

The colour way is Be Awesome from Sea Turtle Fibre Arts.  I picked this skein up at the Prairie Fibre Festival the day after my house sold.  My friend was a very integral part of helping get the house ready for sale and sold quickly.  

After a bit of knitting I decided to brave the cold.  The temperature right now with a bit of snow fall is - 16 C (3.2 Fahrenheit).  I was dreading going out, but once I got out with dog it was enjoyable.  A 128 lb Labrador/German Shepherd toddler is a lot of fun in the snow.  Plus, the scenery was amazing.  I was able to get this pic that I love as the falling snow is caught in it and the sparkle of the snow under foot.  ❄

 Keep Warm everyone and,

Hope this inspires your own creativity...

Kathy

Fall Back...

Good Evening Internet Friends!

Well,.....it's that time of year.....Fall Back an hour in time because someone once thought this was a good idea.  Still not a fan of this day.

Yesterday in preparation for this day I made sure that I did all my errands so that today could be a stay at home kind of day.

Of course no one informed the dog that the time had changed so he still had me up bright and early to go for his walk.

It snowed over night so looked really pretty outside.

The plan was to work on some of my craft and quilting projects today and I was successful with that.

I finished all 22 flying geese blocks for my Flowers for My Wedding Ring Quilt:

Seriously loving making this quilt.

I also decided it was time to graft the toes closed on a pair of socks that I started over a year ago but kind of lost my crafting mojo on:

TAH DAH.  "Sew" I decided to wear them all afternoon around the house.

I am hoping that now that life is a little less chaotic and I am only crafting for myself that I will be able to get back into being creative regularly.

Hope this inspires your own creativity...

Kathy