Friday, November 20, 2009

THIS IS WHAT IT'S SUPPOSED TO LOOK LIKE!




After much messing around, I finally, I mean finally made the cowl properly! I now know that the other wool was too fat and too chunky....oh, you already know that right?
Anyway, I called Helen a few times, sent a photo of the partial thing and even though it called for circular needles which I uses, I had to cast the stitches on as if it was straight because the wool would have been stretched. I certainly didn't want it stretched as I already have one that is!
So here it is, and it fits. I now must await cooler weather to wear it as we are still in the mid 40s and low 50s here in Whitby...
I am sewing today, it's a safer venue for me.. have a great weekend everyone!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

THIS IS FLEXIBILITY!

Just a short post today, because yesterday just
about exhausted me, so I am showing you
Jamie Salee and Craig Simpson, he being of the
Edmonton Oilers I think.



Here in Canada, for charity of $100,000.00 there was a competition amongst professional figure skaters and hockey players as partners.

The first few episodes were a bit wobbly, as the guys tried to figure out how to skate with those pics....and to lift the girls and do it all for the money!

I just found this photo and she is spinning in the air, and hold her skate with the other hand. Now I tell you her partner is even looking and saying
OMGG! How'd she do that?

So that's why they won. Jamie Salee and her partner David Pelletier, now her husband won a gold at the olympics in pairs and that's the reason the points counting changed at the olympics. Remember how the Russian judges tried to put the fix on and the world just screamed so loud? Well this girl has it all!

Craig Simpson said the guys took some ribbing for donning figure skates, but he said it was five months of hard work!

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

HERE'S 3 DAYS I WON'T GET BACK!





My friend, and I won't mention who, gave me this "fabulous cowl pattern"....So I went out and bought this lovely yarn to knit. I was very excited and spent all my spare time for three whole days knitting this sucker!


As you can see from the look on my face....I have no idea what I've created here, but you know when I asked my sweetie....remember the compliments of quilts of the summer...."did you mess it up?" fame....he didn't utter a word...Not one
word! He didn't want to be up the creek again!

Finally, I asked him what did he think it was?
He said that it looked kinda like a rastafarian
hat! So I put it on...see photos...and he just said
that I should let him take a photo and send it to said friend and ask her if this is how it's supposed to look!

I did look on the web for photos of "cowls" and holy cowl (a bit of levity here) none looked like this thing!

So.....tomorrow is bridge day and I am taking it for the girls to see if they can figure out what to do with it.

Oh....now my sweetie is laughing....me too!

I have been knitting the fingerless gloves for the hospital and have about 7 pairs done and I do think I shall continue that endeavour and give up on the aforementioned thingamajig....

I am also making placemats with the rest of that sheet that I cut up last week. I shall have about 10 finished in no time. Quilting is a lot more successful than my knitting.

I have had a few requests for the little bag I made for my mom so I am going to line and quilt the next few.

When she lived in the Virgin Islands (British) she had her boutique which carried many one of a kind items. One of them were little scarfs with her sandpiper logos on them I do have a few left and am thinking that I shall make a bag out of one of the better conditioned ones. I will quilt it and you know that by doing that I am enforcing the fabric.

Our weather has been in the 50s and I can't believe it! Sun every day, I wore sandals again yesterday and didn't even have cold feet! What makes this weather so great is sunshine. We usually get rain in November due to the hurricanes and tropical storms in the south. But not this year...we are blessed.

I did read that the Islands are getting torrential downpours, but if they wait 15 minutes as the saying goes.....is shall pass.

I was thrilled, needless to say that receiving a note from Lindsey (Five Healthy Hearts) after 5 weeks of not blogging saying that all was well with the world made my week! It's amazing how we all connect even though most of us will never meet yet we are friends.



Wednesday, November 11, 2009

PECAN PIE...



This is the pecan pie I made. I used walnuts because I didn't have pecans and it tasted heavenly!

Also super easy to make....Here's the recipe.

Unbaked 9" pie shell.

1/2 cup light brown sugar,

1 1/4 cups corn syrup

1 1/2 tsp four

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

3 eggs

1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 1/2 cup pecans.

Beat eggs together, then add rest of ingredients except pecans.

Pour into unbaked shell, sprinkle pecans over mixture.

Bake 40-50 minutes. ( I have a hot oven so 40 did it for me)

Cool completely, and store in fridge

Really doesn't get any better than that. If you want the recipe for your computer I can send as attachment to you if you want.

A SPECIAL DAY OF REMEMBRANCE.

Today was a Day to Remember and of course with the weather being so beautiful many many more people than usual turned out for the Ceremonies. Always so touching and for this family, in the last year we have lost many of our war veterans. My Uncles, Roland (who served in Second World War, and Uncle Bob and Charlie who served in Korea....We remember them all, my dad was in London, my Uncle Bert fought in France and in my sweetie's family, he had merchant marine uncles and his dad was a courier in France and Belgium...we remember them always, but especially today.

Monday, November 9, 2009

I'VE BEEN BUSY!





When I visit my mother at the nursing home, she has this little bag that she puts her "stuff" in. You know tissues, hairbrush and a few sweets that are handy when she needs them.

My mother, who had a boutique at her restaurant/pub in the Virgin Islands in the 70s till the late 80s sold countless numbers of thes little bags. they came in different sizes, were made of canvass. She designed them and had them made by a local gal in the BVI. People that were sailors often bought these to keep their money, stuffed their bathing suits in them or tshirts when they cam ashore to her bar.

Anyway, as you can see, this is an old one which has been used for a long time. I can't remember my mother without one of these little bags. My daughter has one the is about
a quarter of this size, and she has used it for years for her
make up when she travels. I have a large one that I use
for my meds and whatever else goes to the cottage.

Speaking of the meds, they seem to get more and more
each year, so am glad for the larger bag.


Now since I gave my mother the Oh Cherry Oh! quilts, she asked for a new one in bright colours for her "stuff".


I made this one. I had such a time figuring out how to have the right amount of fabric to go around the circle (made from a cd) and had to cut and cut to get the right size. Of course, I had to sew the straps on last.....easy compared to measuring the circle thing.

She loved it! She was even able to talk of her much
loved Island in the Carribbean where she lived for
over 30 years. She sometimes has a hard time
remembering her life, but this brought back many
fond memories. It made my heart feel so good.




The local hospital is having a mittens tree in the lobby and they are asking for donations. I made 3 pairs of fingerless mittens....all with different cabled designs on them this past weekend.

I was watching the National Geographic Channel regarding the War Years, so my hands were kept busy! I may try to put a thumb on the next pair but since I am knitting them on straight needles, I am going to improvise on the thumb.


I have been cooking new recipes which have turned out really really well. I made two roast beef dinners with two different cuts, one prime rib and the other sirloin tip which were superb if I do say so myself. We like our beef on the rare to medium rare, which they turned out perfectly!

I have never found roast beef to be an easy thing to cook but over the years, I have experimented with different methods. This one is a keeper.

I also made a pecan pie, the most easy pie to truly impress guests. I'm posting that soon. My sweetie said to take a photo of it as it came out of the oven.....so I could post it to "your blogging buddies"

Our weather is so warm, I am back in the sandals again! I think that there is a song in there somewhere...we are also getting the same today! We are having a very late Indian summer I think. People were out washing cars, cutting the grass, well actually mulching leaves with the lawn mowers, and there was a skins and shirts basketball game in the park with lots of people in shorts watching! The Olympic dream girl and her brother were out on the bay working out, as were lots of others. Christmas lights were being put up although only one house, with little ones,
had them lit last night. It was just a super weekend!

Friday, November 6, 2009

WHAT DOES ONE DO ON A RAINY DAY!




Yesterday was a morning that was raining, cold, the wind was blowing wet leaves, and the sky was very dark.....

So, I decided that I would get some sewing done but didn't really know what to do. I had bought a sheet at goodwill for using it as the back of a quilt which of course it didn't look good, so it's been sitting on the shelf for ages.

I cut it into placemat size and went on a spree! I made 8 placemats in no time and have enough
fabric for doing napkins today. I had such fun
doing this, that I may use up a lot of scraps
and get rid of all the little pieces of batting that
I just don't have the heart to throw away!

I also made a pair of pyjamas bottom which turned
out well also. I had a sheet with a lovely bottom
decoration to it and serged this in about 15 minutes.

And since it was a crappy day, I decided to make
bread and pizza. My dough turned out so high
and light that I took a photo of it for you to see the way dough should look when making bread.

So many of us use the bread machine these days, but you know there is something to be said to just standing there, kneading dough and feeling how lovely it feels when it finally becomes a soft and completed little ball of dough.

The day wasn't a total loss as the sun came out in the afternoon which meant walking the wonder dog. I tell you dogs really are more frisky in cooler weather. The Westie runs all over the park on cooler days. Warm days, he walks and sniffs, no big deal...We returned home after about 45 minutes and within minutes, the sky had darkened, the hail hit the front of the house and travelled to the back with the wind howling, picking up leaves and what ever else was on the ground and blowing it across the park!

It's a good thing I had returned, it could have lifted the pooch!

I am also knitting the fingerless gloves for the hospital Christmas tree in Oshawa General. I assume that there will be a bazaar to go with the tree. My friend says that these mitten trees are quite popular. I need wool, so am off to Walmart and Zellers to get some bright colours today.








Friday, October 30, 2009

SOCK IT TO ME!

Oh I know it was a lame way to start a blog! But I did love Laugh In! when it was on.


I am making these slipper socks for my mother to wear at night. I can make one a night if I put my mind to it. I mean one sock a night not the pair.

I downloaded the original pattern, but it was way too small so I had to "improvise" (I do that all the
time in quilting, remember?) and make the pattern
larger. I think I have it down pat now and will make
a few pairs for her to wear at night in bed. I may even
make a few for me! They really are comfy.




Well this morning when we were just getting our day started, I wasn't even dressed at 10 am but when I looked out the window which faces the park and beyond that the new school, I could see little fairies, devils, witches, and clowns followed by hundreds of other dressed up munchkins!

I quickly dressed and managed to get a couple of shots of the kids as they went around our neigh-
bourhood marching and waving all the time laughing and following the parade!

What a sight. I wished for the days when the
grandkids were young again and doing this dress
up for hallo'ween.

I used to love that night when my children were
of the age....I used to have a large tub filled with
water, have apples there for dunking and loads of towels with
which the kids could dry their heads after the
dunking!

I made lots of caramel toffee apples, which was my specialty and since we lived in a small community, everyone knew I made them. The kids had to dunk, get the apple then they could pick out the apple of their choice. I got to really laugh a lot on that night. I remember one night when one boy failed to get the apple and he said that he would be back....went home changed costume and returned to win it the right way!

I also made butter tarts, brownies to give choices
to the little ones. Ah, those days when we didn't
lock our doors and every kid was safe in our neighbourhoods....yes those were the days.

I am still not sewing as yet, but my friend who is learning to quilt has her four tops done and next week, like it or not, we are quilting. That should do it for me.

I haven't been totally useless though. I did make a spaghetti pie that I hadn't done in years and years, made a meat loaf that also hadn't been done in eons. But the best thing I made was a supperb, (if I do say so myself) fresh apple cake. I can't remember where the original came from, but mine has been kicked up a notch, so much so that it has surpassed the "cowboy bread" as the new favorite quick cake. Now that's something.

I will post the cake soon. It makes a 9 X 13 so it's big. It also freezes well. (I tried that even though the next day it was unfrozen)

I'm like a few of you who sometimes just doesn't know what to write about.. isn't that something? Me........ without words...OMG!