we HAD to shop for yarn and beads

Oh My!

Mary I really like the yarn we bought. It is so nice and thin and soft and perfect for the cowl. YumO. And even though we did NOT spend $20.00 on Swarovski crystal we have perfect beads for the yarn.

Now all we have to do it knit it and we will look sooooooo marvelous.

I am going to start now.

Love,

Nancy

For those of you who weren't here at Christmas (1)

While Nancy is preparing for our feast, and other family members pursue whatever activities interest us, Mom takes the time to give Alice the cat a ride on her walker. View it right here.

Holiday break: knitting plans....

Yesterday was a day of feasting (here's our loaded dinner table.)


Today is a day of recovery and knitting plans. Nancy's idea is for us to knit a joint project - or the same project - or whatever, but t0 use her laceweight merino wool to knit some "fluffy lace." We think we may have found the perfect project here.

Together Again

We had to wait and wait because the snow/sleet storm kept planes from coming in to the Minneapolis St Paul airport.

So we played a game or two of Hand and Foot. Then at about 9 pm we started for the airport. Traffic on the freeway was about 40 mph. I found Mary and Ol' Bear around 10 pm while Jim circled twice around the airport.

We finally got home and Mary HAD TO EAT RIGHT NOW so she had a ham sandwich in the kitchen before bed.

YAY!!!

A tree topper for Dad

Hi Nancy,
Remember all the tetrahedrons and octahedrons and other odd polyhedrons Dad used to make out of construction paper? Look at this: a perfect top to the Christmas tree for Dad, and it can be knit!
Har! I get a newsletter from Berrocco, and this free pattern is in their most recent one.
I'm going to bed right now or I'd look it up to see what the pattern is like. I wonder how hard it is to make? G'night! Love you, Mary

back home again

Hi Mary,

We didn't get started till noon. Alice was really sneaky in hiding under a chair in my reading nook. We looked there and didn't see her until we got down on our hands and knees and peered behind the wooden slat covering the front of the chair.

The morning was foggy and when it lifted everything was covered with frost again. It was really beautiful but we didn't stop to take a photo so this is from the other day.

By the time we got half way across MN it was cloudy and it is supposed to stay cloudy for a while. By the way... are you coming in Saturday the 22nd or Sunday the 23rd?

Somehow I got Saturday the 23rd on my mind and that is just plain confusing. So send me those flight numbers etc OK?
Love,

N.

Posted while talking about the burning barrel....

Nancy, I love the head. I think it is great, and more defining of the blog. It's evolved from just knitting, that's for sure.

Yay! I am done with school WAHOOOOOIEEEEE! At least for Holiday Break. Here's the soundtrack of first quarter of distance - Masters of Library and Information Science (dMLIS) right here.

Now it's time to post some pictures. I have been getting a little bit of knitting done. I've found that I can knit headbands while I listened to lectures:

I've also started back on a pair of socks that I bought the yarn for last time I was in Minneapolis. I've been looking for my three - ring binder that I kept all my important patterns in and I haven't been able to find it since we moved. That makes me a little crazy.
I can finally think about packing to come to Minneapolis now. If Brian doesn't get called to work, he will come with me. And Christy will get there four days later.

We actually are lucky enough to have someone stay in our house to take care of PJ, the plants, and the birds and squirrels we've been feeding. Speaking of - a week or so ago I was in bed with a headache, when I heard a racket outside:

The Bohemian Waxwings had come for their mountain ash berries. Within two hours there wasn't a berry left on the tree. There are either 10 or 11 waxwings in this picture. I can't really tell.

Also, I finally got some exercise last Monday, skiing. Brian took a video and I'm planning to post it as soon as I can figure out why I keep getting an error message. I'm excited for the premiere of "Drewtube." Har! It takes so little to amuse me. Sayonara. mdp

frosty morning

Hi Mary,

It is beautiful out there this morning.

Love,

Nancy

Much better

Hi Mary,
Well, that is better. It is not perfect yet because although I have shortened it several times it still goes over the border outline on the right edge. But it is much better. I now have a head!
I am busy trying to pack and clean things. My sticking point right now is the refrigerator. sigh.....
Dad just called and wanted me to finish the hat for Junice so she can have a Christmas present. I better get it out and work on it. I have been ignoring it although I knew just where the bag was. Maybe I can work on it during Monday Night football.
Love,
Nancy

can't figure out the heading

Hi there Mary,I have been trying to put our photo up on the heading but although it was up nicely this afternoon now it has cut off my head. Drat the thing! You are nice and clear though. Humph!

I have just finished cleaning the mudroom so I don't have the energy to fuss with it some more.

Instead, here are some cat photos.

Abbie was posing on the stairs so I took some pictures and then Alton got jealous and had to be there too.

Love,

Nancy

More Thanksgiving pictures

Hi again Mary,

I am just trying to give you something else to read on the computer. I am starting to worry that you won't get enough exercise 'cause all you do is sit in front of the computer.

Deb sent me some of Chris's pictures from Thanksgiving. They fill in the holes in mine quite nicely, so here they are too.

Mom putting in her hearing aid so she can talk to us.

Nancy reading a short article about Donald Westlake and how he created Dortmunder to Mom (and Dad).

E getting ready to trounce us at Hand and Foot.

Here are Jon and E with their dueling 'stuffies'. E has two from Caribou coffee and Jon has his pal "Ace". Ace left Jon and played for Nancy for a part of the game. She had great luck with him too.

That's all for now.

Love,

Nancy

1958 Cheesecake

Hey Mary,

I have long been jealous of your picture on your comments. Today I found one that might work for me. Tell me what you think of it. And I can crop out that little rug rat in the corner so just ignore her.Love,

Nancy

Winter and Suet

Howdy Mary,

Yes winter arrived here on Saturday. We had about 6 inches of it. I took a picture of the garden but the house shades most of it so it looks dark even though it was a lovely sunny day.
I am going to make some more suet tonight. This is the recipe I use. I got it out of Wildbird Magazine and it is attributed to Martha Sargent. It gets eaten up about three to one faster than the commercial ones.

1 Cup crunchy peanut butter...the real stuff is preferred not the homogenized stuff2 Cups 'Quick Cook oats
2 C Cornmeal
1 Cup lard - no substitutes
1 C white flour
1/3 C sugar
(Non salted nuts and berries as you wish may be added.)

Melt lard and peanut butter together in microwave. Stir in the rest and pour into three recycled commercial suet pans or into a square plastic freezer container. Put in refrigerator to set. You may remove and store in the freezer once they are set. I usually just keep them in the fridge as they get eaten up too fast to spoil This is a picture of one of my bluejays and an American Goldfinch in flight. They are at my 'winter feeder' which is my own invention...and construction. A garbage can with holes cut in the bottom and hardware cloth inside to hold sunflower seeds. It is very popular and lasts about a month. Inside on the bottom is an upside down enamal pan to keep the seeds close to the edge of the can.

Cool eh?

Love,

Nancy

You must have been having some fun.....

Yep, Thanksgiving at the ol' Mater's and Pater's house sounds like a blast. Sigh.
Oh well, I'm feeling chipper today because it snowed, finally. And look who came to dinner:


And after he was done, look who came for leftovers:


And then, somebody got impatient for his turn:

It's blurry, but that's a downy woodpecker on top, waiting for the red-shafted flicker to get done with the suet. I made that suet myself (oh how modest!). Well, gotta go, we have a BIG project due tomorrow. Love, Mary