Somewhat rumpled pics of Anna enjoying her new sweaters!

I have more yarn again...now what to make! Little ones are so fun to knit for! And I really need to get clickin' on the Jean Greenhowe dolls that I had planned for gifts this year, they're adorable and child-safe.

It's been crazy-busy with family activities and husband's woodturning, big state fair at Perry .. I love Autumn! And our 37th wedding anniversary is on the 21st this month as well!

We heard bells....

From Mom and Dad, our Blessing on our son and daughter

David and McKensie
Joined heart and hand
Tears and laughter,
Two golden bands;
May you stand as you are today
At the weddings of your grandchildren.

It was lovely! And now, our feet hurt, we're all exhausted from the chaos that at the end falls together for a perfect union, so I'll write more later! But the couple are on their way for a four day cruise, the children are gleefully spending those days with grandparents and we can all breath again!
My son and beautiful new daughter in law!

http://www.madeinusa.org/nav.cgi?data/toys
I found this handy site for Made in USA products and toys. Hopefully this will make coming holidays safer for the kids. And..finished the autumn scarf, altho I have tons of ends to weave in and I think a navy border in crochet will look nice. Pics when I get time here. I'm so loving yardwork in this beautiful weather that I don't want to come in and do anything else!
The big hedges under my front windows are on my list to remove and replace with hydrangeas in the Spring, however I can't take them out until the seasonal dreamweavers are done with their brief appearance. There's two that have anchored intricate webbing to the branches.
Tell me they're "just spiders"...but they're special little creatures to us, so we will wait a little while on the hedges.

I've been happily basking in the early autumn sunshine and doodling with yarn. Out of the recent purchases, I had 3 balls of RH soft just to see if it really was soft..it is! So I put the three colors together in the way they seemed to want to be..Tangerine, Paprika and a bit of Caron SS in Navy.

No idea why my burgundy chair appears purple or why that pic washed out.

But it's coming along and fun!

The end of summer..those special days when the season hangs between rich, bright autumn and the sweet smell of hay. Grasshoppers sing their vespers and wild muscadines drop to the ground laden with sunshine and sweetness. I feel the changing season whispering to the trees and it's the most poignant time of year, like dandilion wine and remembrance. And each year, the dreamweavers visit to draw magical designs and to record the year in silken symbols.

At my door...

..early today, one of our little hens dropped by to check for treats and to show off her two new chicks.

I know I haven't kept up with the Blog lately, but it's summer, and..well...it's Summer! I have kept the needles somewhat occupied when the chance presented itself, tho.
I found a ball of yarn tucked into the corner of a cabinet and have no clue what type or brand it is. The color pattern reminds me of the beach, perhaps a small tidal pool...it's soft and snug!

By the way...

July 2007 010
Originally uploaded by Svarrer.

Guess what came in the mail! I can't wait to start a little Hogwart sweater! I think I have some nice tweedy blue somewhere, if I can find a wee bit of gold'ish yarn for the H on the front...
And I adore HyaHya needles! No discoloration, chipping, icky stuff that I've been hearing about with nickel plated and other finishes..these are simply stainless steel, smooth and the sweetest joins on the circulars. I've really loved those double pointed needles they have too! Lighter than air, so I can even use the steel for making kids hats and socks without them falling out or tiring my hands.

More catching up!

It's summertime! Lovely, lazy, shade-tree summertime! Therefore, the blog sits patiently, while I'm dreaming thru the daze. Not to say I haven't been busy with my needles...here's the progress of a little yellow sweater, no pattern but my old method that allows me to mindlessly knit and it seems to always fit. Sweaters do look pitiful as they grow, then suddenly they blossom. The little pink sweater has mismatched sleeves, the white on the left will come out and be replaced by the softer speckled yarn on the right. As usual, no pattern, just knitting....

Catching up!

It's been ages since I posted, but summertime is always so full of things that need to be done and those lovely lazy hot afternoons. I've knitted and goofed off joyfully! Of course the herb garden isn't yet done, the old computer up and died finally, the new puter is settled in nicely, the kids are growing, dogs are following the shade diligently and the cats are being cats.

Today's news...our son has popped the question amid flowers, lobster dinner, cake and much laughter. M is a lovely young lady with two children, our son has one little guy and they've combined families perfectly! (Notice the surrounding applause...)

We're all thrilled and looking forward to watching wonderful years ahead for them all!

The garden..

March 016
Originally uploaded by Svarrer.

See that gloriously bushy mess of green life? The old dogwood is saluting the garden where our vegetables will ..the other garden is further back and larger,where we'll have some sweet corn, watermelons, squash, gourds and all sorts of nice things. And probably another year of very fat deer watching over the gardens.

March 30

March 021
Originally uploaded by Svarrer.

Remember when I said I'd stop the puppyposting? Well..I lied. Sam is nearly grown now, in size at least, (that's him on the right there) and the Trio of Terrors are the best of friends. I'll get back to blogging soonish, but for now, I have seven rose bushes to plant, my herb garden to reset, some bricks to order, a house to scrub, knitting that wants doing, books that want reading, a yard to make neat again and kids to kiss...and flowers to glory in! I love Springtime, there's so much to do and plan and dream!

It's lonesome..

March 2007d
Originally uploaded by Svarrer.

Horatio and Dimity dropped in for breakfast with the pups and found no one at the bowl. Thankfully, the pups all have good homes now and Freckles has been named Sam..we kept him. Gnash was adopted by our daughter and we puppysit when they're out. I do miss the little horde of silly creatures tho. And thus ends the puppy posting. (sure miss those guys..)

A STUNNING SENIOR MOMENT
A very self-important college freshman attending a recent football game,took it upon himself to explain to a senior citizen sitting next to him whyit was impossible for the older generation to understand his generation.
“You grew up in a different world, actually an almost primitive one,” the student said, loud enough for many of those nearby to hear. “The young people of today grew up with television, jet planes, space travel, man walking on the moon, our spaceships have visited Mars. We have nuclear energy, electric and hydrogen cars, computers with light-speed processing and………”, he paused to take another drink of beer.
The Senior took advantage of the break in the student’s litany and said,“You’re right, son. We didn’t have those things when we were young……..so we invented them. Now, you arrogant little sap, what are you doing for the next generation?”
The applause was resounding.

Moving process..

I'm slowly getting moved over to "Purls and Parsnips" for a change of scenery. I have a few Lists that I'm on and will change those over during this next week. It's time, I think. I'm not doing as well with the new Blogger as I did with the old version, and being a creature that doesn't make changes easily...widgets!
So bear with me, as I dual post until the move is complete.

Anna's sweater

Anna's sweater
Originally uploaded by Svarrer.

See? Told you I was knitting...however as I was about to put the cutest little buttons on Anna's sweater, I realized that two of my buttonholes had misbehaved. This means I get to rip out the buttonhole stuff...and to do this, I have to rip out the collar as well, since it's sort of attached to the buttonhole thingie, then I'll rip out the other side where the buttons would go and re-knit a bit. Soon as I decide which of two nifty yarns to use for trimming up the wee jacket.

I blame all this on Agatha Raisin! I would have noticed something was not quite right, but I was reading and knitting...(and giggling at silly puppies.)

More window view..

More window view..
Originally uploaded by Svarrer.

Yep, probably appears obsessive puppyposting to normal people, but I'm so amused by small things. They seem to be in a full-belly coma, resting up for their next onslaught at the dinner bowl or stirring themselves to tease Ms. Dumpling the hen that visits them often.
(Of course I'm knitting! Why do you ask...?)

I'm experimenting with Wordpress again, since Blogger went to the new stuff. (http://psalm.wordpress.com/)
Still not 100% sure about moving, it's not easy leaving behind my little daily bits I've accumulated. If anyone has any views on the blogger vs. wordpress, I'd love hearing from you.

Breakfast Ready?

Odds and Ends 015
Originally uploaded by Owlheart.

Even Allen is finding the pups hard to resist! (I have my eye on a couple, and might keep one...but which one??) Peeker, Booboo, Freckles, Tannie, Cotton, Fiddle, (Fiddle was so named after he managed to get on top of a chicken coop where he yodeled gleefully at the others, but "Fiddler" didn't exactly fit him) Spinner and the irrepressable "Gnash" Rambler.

And not one of the little darlings has made a poo on my back deck! I knew they were brilliant little creatures :D

Meantime...still knitting along on that family blanket, altho there seems less time for me to knit lately...

See them grow!

The accidental puppies are getting quite tubby! The mom is a stray that was dumped on the road (or ran away from home) a couple years ago, and of course she immediately located our house, possibly homing in on the scent of fresh biscuits. (She loves biscuits and buttermilk) Unfortunately she has been treated so badly in life that she's afraid of coming near a human, therefore I haven't found a way to catch her and have her spayed. She's fat and seems happy with her present lot in life, but we're thinking up ways to catch her and make her life a tad better. She's sweet-tempered and a pretty little thing. I dont mind her retiring here in comfort for the rest of her life, but finding homes for the cuties is challenging. (Ohhhh, they are ADORABLE! And so is the Mom!)
We live in a very rural area, so imbeciles often dump the tragic results of their heartlessness on the roads. Little do they realize that God notices these things.

My "cozies" are here! I love the calmer part of winter, when holidays have settled down and so can we! Wrapping up in a warm woolie shawl with tea and a cozy to read is one of the lovely things of life! I finished the one Aunt Dimity book and have become a complete fan. It's a simple story with just a touch of magic and lots of love...about hope and growing. I have to go feed the puppies and then...I can curl up with the indomitable Agatha Raisin too. Now there's a real character, with all the flaws and doubts of any of us, but...she's real and she's making her way thru life in the village.
As I finish them, I pass them to Amanda to read, then we get to send them on to Theresa! I think our Theresa will like them!

And yes..I do knit while I read and between reads...Amanda and I have begun a blanket that will be a family thing, with each ...well. When done, I'll surprise us, if I talk about it before I finish it...why, it might fly right out of my head and not be finished!

I have neglected the blog terribly over the holidays! I haven't even had time to knit until yesterday, but I made up for it with a spree that got a little baby cardigan made and two books finished. Then I ordered more books! Of course I had to order enough to get the free shipping, so quite a bit of the Agatha Raisin series and a couple Aunt Dimity's are on the way, lol. Nothing quite like having a light cozy to read while immersed in comfy, fluffy knitting!

I will catch up on blogging tho, and fling pictures around gleefully...tomorrow! Meantime, I am absorbing colorful goings-on and various other rather gothic and labrynthine (how is that spelled..!) quirks of small-town southern life.

My resolutions for this year? Hmm...one is to knit more for charity, even a little bit can help. Another is to just listen more. Hard for me to get a word in edgewise around here, but instead of fussing about that, I think I'll hush and listen. If everyone else is talking, it's a safe bet they ain't listening, and someone surely should... Something every person needs is just to be HEARD and SEEN.

Another is to take a nice long, contemplative walk with myself at least 3 times a week. I figure my soul needs the excercise as much as I do.

And I think that's enough resolutions for the year. The rest will take care of itself.