Yarn Along

A post of my current read and what is cast on my needles ~ Inspired by Ginny over at {Small Things}

They're finished! Here are the fingerless gloves that I was working on last week as a surprise for my daughter :) They fit around her wrists perfectly and extend nicely just above her knuckles while not being to tight. Tightness is always an issue as she doesn't like anything she wears to be to restrictive *grin*.

My mom fell in love with the moss stitch on them just like I did and I actually just finished making a set for her in black :) I just need to sew up the seam and they'll be ready for her to wear to.

I picked up some Lopi wool this weekend and I'm going to try my hand at making some felted slippers with it. This should be fun! I'm crazy about these fall colors still :) But before I start the slippers though I just might whip up a pair of leg warmers for my daughter to cover her leggings with when she wears dresses to town. She complains sometimes about being chilly and I ran across a super easy pattern for leg warmers over at Ginny's blog that just might be the answer to cold legs! Now I just have to decide whether to stick with the ribbed look or try and incorporate the moss stitch into them so the match her gloves *grin*.

On the book front this week I actually don't have one to share unless you want to hear about our school books? I could tell you all about cohesion and adhesion or how to properly read the amount of liquid in a beaker using the meniscus *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

Sewing... Sort of

Hubby came home last night just in time for another day of being without power *grin*. I think he was seriously thinking he should have stayed on the boat where he had lights, tv, and a fully functional kitchen LOL. Hopefully this isn't going to be the winter norm of storms and darkness!

I had hoped to get more done on my holiday table runner this morning while Daddy and the kids played but I only made it half way through the blocks before everything shut down. I was chuckling to myself as I was sewing because I'm sure a serious quilter might cringe at how I was sewing my corner blocks on :) This time instead of marking a line down the center of each one I just pinched them making a crease to follow and I actually haven't pinned anything together since starting... I just love to break the rules *grin*.

Maybe tomorrow I'll get a chance to actually finish them.
For now I'm just enjoying being able to check my email and fill some pots full of water for tomorrow morning just in case we wake up in the perma dark again *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

Outdoor Seating

Well it looks like the snow is here to stay for a while :)
Our driveway took a slushy turn the other day when the weather warmed up temporarily so thankfully my dad was able to plow it with his backhoe and make getting in and out to the main road much easier! It also made getting around with our sleds quicker to. My poor little guy was getting all tuckered out plodding through the snow *grin*.

During the summer months we purchased a new sofa and for fun we put our old one out on the front porch so that we would have a place to plunk down and rest on. It's a little ratty but our porch is completely hidden behind prickly juniper bushes so it's not visible to any passersby and no one would ever know it was there.

Well... it's still there *grin*. A little crunchier now that it has frozen solid but still being enjoyed just as much as a place for the children to catch their breath on after running and sledding or as a hiding place to avoid wayward snowballs :) I have a feeling that it will probably be there until spring now LOL.

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend to :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Piecing Pinwheels

I'm getting closer to finishing my holiday table runner and I'm loving all of the red :) The pinwheel blocks have gone together quite well although I did have to put my seam ripper to good use and pull a couple of them apart to adjust the centers so that the points aligned better :)

I decided to modify my pattern just a little though after running across this really cute peppermint twist table runner :) So I just finished cutting 48 little squares in a tan linen to place on the corners of my pinwheel blocks to round them up. I know what I'll be working on tomorrow *grin*.

Happy sunday!

Hugs,
Rosina

Mail Day

I received a wonderful surprise in the mail today :)

A little packet of these gorgeous handmade cards that I won from Amy over at During Quiet Time. During the Potholder Pass swap I participated in she very generously offered them as a giveaway as incentive to get everyone to mail their packages on time and I was the lucky winner :) I never win anything so this is a real treat!

Each one is created from one of her original lino block prints and I can't wait to used them as my Christmas cards. I have an uncle in Austria that paints and I know he will just love one of these :) You really must check out her Etsy shop! She makes the cutest little ornaments, mug rugs, quilts and more of these lovely cards.

Thanks so much Amy. I just LOVE them :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Power Outage

Last night just as we were getting ready to start cooking dinner the house went dark. Not just dim but plunged into an inky black darkness as the power went out. There's nothing quite like it as you slowly fumble trying to see but not seeing while searching for the flashlight you know is right there on the counter... somewhere *grin*.

With the oil lantern burning and a few candles lit on the coffee table we enjoyed a gourmet meal of grilled cheese sandwiches fresh off the woodstove cook top :) We had so much fun playing Old Maid, Pictionary and a frustrating game of Sorry *grin*. My poor little guy just couldn't understand why his men had to go back to their home base when someone knocked him off the board LOL.

With the children tucked into their bedrooms Hubby and I had a lovely quiet time just sitting in the glow of the woodstove. It really was a treat to spend quiet time without the interuptions of the computer, blogging, or phones ringing. Just the sound of snow thumping down from the trees onto the rooftop and the crackle of the wood as it burned brightly in the stove :)

The power is back on this morning and of course it is so nice to have flusing toilets and water again but I think I could use a few more evenings of quiet. Maybe we'll turn off all of the lights again tonight and play boardgames by candle light all over again *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

right now, I AM

...smiling.
Winter has finally arrived with gusto and the sledding, snowball throwing and snowmen building marathon has begun. My days will now be filled with squeals of delight each morning as the height of the snow is re-measured, breakfasts gobbled and children being stuffed into snow suits multiple times :)

I love this time of year most of all.

Hugs,
Rosina

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Yarn Along

A post of my current read and what is cast on my needles ~ Inspired by Ginny over at {Small Things}

I thought that I would have a finished little girls hat to share with you this week but I sort of dropped that in the dust to work on a pair of gloves :) My daughter already has a hat so it can wait just a wee bit longer but she could really use a pair of cute little fingerless gloves *grin*.

As I was visiting other yarn along participants I found a link to these gorgeous gloves! Unfortunately I can't remember whose blog it was so if you happen to know which mama made a pair of these for her daughter please let me know as I would love to stop by again :)

I am completely smitten with the 'moss stitch' that makes up the center portion of the glove. I had my mom model it for the photo since I haven't told my daughter I'm making them for her. It's going to be a surprise :) She has been anxioulsy waiting for me to make something pink for her so she is going to LOVE them! I've only got one done so far and it is still waiting to be stitched up but from how tight it was to fit it around my mom's hand I know they will be a comfortable fit for her. I can't wait to cast on the second one tonight :)

Now for the book that I'm reading this week. It is The Christmas Table by Diane Morgan and it is full of yummy recipes. I have marked quite a few already for this holiday season. I'm particularly looking forward to trying the radicchio caesar salad. I love using cabbage and radicchio for salads and I've never thought of using it for caesar. It will look gorgeous on our plates with its bright puple purple color!

Looking forward to seeing what everyone has cast on this week :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Frozen

I just got off the phone with my husband and the poor guy has been freezing his butt off up at the head of Knight's Inlet :( We have some wicked arctic outflows here right now and the frozen temperatures have made it so cold that they've been running their oil stove and two heaters just to keep warm on the tug.

Here I thought we had it bad. When we woke up this morning the windows in the laundry room which is the furthest room from the woodstoves actually had thick ice growing on the inside of the windows! The temperature is at -10 with the windchill bringing it closer to -18 but poor hubby figures they are about twice as cold :( He might get a chance to come home for a couple of days tomorrow due to the weather so I'm hoping he does so that he can get a chance to warm up!

The kids and I made a few mad dashes outside today to gather firewood, go to the mail and visit my mom but I think we are all quite content to huddle indoors *grin*. I woke up feeling very festive and thought it would be nice to have a new Christmasy table runner for the coffee table in our family room. I have seen some very lovely runners lately and really love the pinwheel style quilted ones so I've started cutting out and marking 4 inch squares of red fabrics to sew up and cut into my dual colored blocks :) I just need to find some white cotton in my stash and I'll be ready to start piecing it all together tomorrow.

Hope things are warmer for you all *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

Apple Peeler Fun

This evening the kids had fun peeling apples with the hand crank peeler :)

Opa's apples from the orchard always seem to be a little scabby and the kids prefer to have them peeled so they each took turns cranking their apples round and round on the peeler as it peeled, cored and sliced them all in one easy step :)

What could be more fun than that?
I can think of one more thing... how about eating a giant apple spiral :) You should have seen them gobbling them up as fast as they could spin them on the peeler. Somehow it just makes eating them so much more fun *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

First Taste of Winter

I love how winter transforms our wooded roads into something magical :) So far we only have a dusting of snow but it makes everything look so clean and bright. The kids can barely contain their excitement as they wait for more to fall so that they can pull on their coats and mittens and build snowmen and winter forts in the yard :)

I've been going through the craft cupboard pulling out felt, buttons and thread getting ready to let the kids loose in our stash so we can make Christmas ornaments. I thought this year instead of just stringing popcorn for the tree it might be fun to make a felt garland to. We don't actually get our tree until around the middle of December but I don't think it's to early to start *grin*.

Before I head off to bed I just have to share this very strange sunset with you. We were loading the groceries into the car when I looked up and noticed the sky all aglow. The photo really doesn't do it any justice but what was so interesting was the dark shadows coming from seemingly nowhere. It didn't matter what direction we traveled, it stayed the same. I have no idea what could have been making them but we weren't the only ones gawking at it when I took the photo!

Wishing you all a happy Sunday :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Holiday Linky Love

The snow has been falling all day and it has me wanting to sing Christmas carols *grin*. Okay well maybe not quite yet but it does have me thinking about what gifts I want to make and what new holiday decor we can craft for our stash :)

I am loving these adorable miniature gingerbread houses!! I ran across them over at Not Martha and I can't wait to make some with the kids :) They will be perfect to perch on top of our cocoa mugs!

Need a good stash busting project for the holiday season? How about one of these fun fabric flower wreaths! Another perfect project to get the kids involved with as it is just fabric circles layered and tacked to an inexpensive vine wreath :)

These little yarn trees are so stinking cute *grin*. Now that I've started doing more knitting I've got little odds and ends of wool leftover from projects and I'm going to let the kids go crazy winding up these little trees. I think they will be a lovely addition to our nature table :)

And last but not least are these little trinket pouches that will be just perfect for my little guy :) I love the oversized grommets for attaching a carabiner to! I can just see him clipping them to his pant belt loops and filling them with his special treasures or taking them outdoors when we go for nature walks. I wonder how many rocks or pine cones we can fit into one of those little pockets *grin*.

What are you making this holiday season?

Hugs,
Rosina

Weaving Cedar Bark

Earlier this week the kids and I had a chance to participate in one of the many fantastic homeschool programs that a nearby museum offers. This class was particularly exciting because we were going to learn how to weave a mat using red cedar bark. So cool!

The above photo shows a coil of bark that had been harvested from cedar trees only minutes from where we live. Members from the museum went out into the forest with a first nations guide and he showed them exactly how to harvest the bark from living cedar trees without damaging them. They had a photo slide for us to view and the fellow said a little prayer/blessing to the cedar tree before cutting into the bark and then they pulled strips of bark off of the tree in giant lengths reaching from the base of the trunk all the way upwards. Once the bark was pulled from the tree they then separated the softer in bark from the rough outer bark and the inner portion was what we worked with :)

When we arrived there were strips of the bark that had been soaked for a couple of days to soften them and make them pliable for weaving waiting for us on the tables.



We started with a very basic basket weave pattern of just weaving the strips in and out of each other while alternating the pattern so it looked like a checker board.



As soon as all of the pieces had been woven we started to work the ends in by flipping them over and weaving them into the opposite sides. It looked really simple when we were shown how to do it but when it was time to do it ourselves you really had to pay attention to which way you flipped the ends because one wrong move and you muddled your pattern *grin*.

Here are two of the little woven mats the children made. As you can see there were a few little boo boos where the pattern got a little mixed up :)

We all had so much fun and now I'm tempted to try pulling some of the bark off of a few of the cedar trees we have here on our property *grin*. I think I'm supposed to wait until spring though so that will give me a little more time to find out exactly how to do it so that I don't hurt the trees :)

Hugs,
Rosina

right now, I AM

....marveling at how there is always a calm after the storm!
Last night the wind and rain blew so ferociously that I thought our roof would lift right off yet today it is clear and bright. I was teasing the kids that there mustn't be one pine cone left on the trees above our house because it had sounded like McSquizzy and his army of squirrels had pummeled our house with every one up there *grin*. If you don't know who McSquizzy is you can see a quick one minute animated clip of him and the rest of his Fuzzytailed Clan here *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

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Yarn Along

A post of my current read and what is cast on my needles ~ Inspired by Ginny over at {Small Things}

I finished my little pixie hat that I was making last week and thought that I would challenge myself and try a new pattern using circular needles :)

I've had a copy of the cutest little book called Baby Beanies by Amanda Keeys but all of the hats are knit on the round or with 4 needles so I was a little intimidated but I thought that I'd give it a go and try this little beret. I just love the little lace pattern it has :) I'm using a soft merino wool and so far the pink ribbed portion has worked out well but I'm having a bit of trouble joining my green. The first time I didn't join it properly and it didn't knit in the round and the second time when I wrapped the two colors together like it said to in the book it messed up the dashes of green wool showing through the pink for the first purl row so I'm going to have to check out youtube for a little tutorial and see what I'm doing wrong!


What I'm reading this week... the November copy of the British Country Living magazine. Love, love, love this magazine!!! This issue was very fitting for my yarn along post as it a great article on Britain's wool production over the years and another article of thoughts on growing up constantly surrounded by sheep, a wool directory and even an article on one woman's small business of turning fleece to yarn :)

Can't wait to see what everyone else has been up to this week!
Hugs,
Rosina

Operation Christmas Child

Every year the kids and I always want to pack a shoebox full of goodies for the Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child and this year we got two boxes to fill for a little boy and a girl :) When I announced that we were going to do some shopping for our boxes the kids hit the store running *grin*. Each of them had their own shopping basket and got to pick out pencils, erasers, notebooks, markers, crayons, activity pads, face cloths, toothbrushes, soap, and of course a little toy and some candy :)

Tonight we spread out all of our goodies on the kitchen table and sorted through them dividing them up into two piles and tried to squash as much as we could possibly fit into each of the boxes. I sure hope that they don't mind that our boxes are slightly bulging! LOL. Now we just have to find out which church in the city is one of the official drop off spots and we can get them sent on their way :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Pixie Hat

Oh man am I having fun knitting *grin*.
There was a slight change in plans though. Remember that gorgeous fall colored merino wool that I started with? Well apparently I can't read a pattern properly or maybe I was just to excited to get started but I goofed up and was supposed to knit with two strands of wool instead of just one. So long story short, I ripped out half the hat, started over with adding in some mossy green wool and voila I have a new look! The bright orange tones of the first wool are still there but much more muted now. I'm still loving it though and the double strands have given the hat such a thick and yummy weight :)

The main body of the hat is finished complete with a little pixie top which is so cute :) Now I just have to finish the ear flaps. I had never 'picked up' stitches before so that was interesting to say the least but I think I've got it all under control now *grin*.

Hugs,
Rosina

News from Haiti

Photo via {GAIN (Global Aid Network) Canada}

Remember those little notebook and crayon sets that the kids and I made and sent to Haiti with my uncle about a month ago? Well I just got an email letting me know that he had posted this photo on the GAIN facebook page of some of the children enjoying them while waiting to see a member of his medic team :) I can't wait to share this with the kids in the morning!! They will be so excited to see pictures :)

We have been following along in the news with updates on Haiti. Hurricane Tomas struck Haiti causing flash flooding and evacuation in areas just before the GAIN team landed and tonight my aunt told me that they were rocked by a fairly strong earthquake and rioting as well. All this on top of the cholera outbreak that is spreading. I know that any prayers for the safety of the volunteers and for the people of Haiti would be greatly appreciated :)

Hugs,
Rosina

right now, I AM

...thankful to be home with my backseat full of precious kid cargo.
236 kilometers (roughly 146 miles) later we have made a round trip to the city through heavy morning fog and icy conditions this evening. Everything is glistening outside tonight and we are sure to awake to a carpet of prickly white in the morning. What a pretty sight it will be :)

Hugs,
Rosina

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Yarn Along

A post of my current read and what is cast on my needles ~ Inspired by Ginny over at {Small Things}



I stumbled across Ginny's blog and her lovely 'yarn along' meme and it was the perfect inspiration to finally cast on some stitches and stretch my rusty knitting skills :)

I found this gorgeous chunky merino wool at the little yarn shop in the city and I thought the colors would be just perfect for a fall pixie hat for my little guy. So far I've only finished two rows of an alternating knit purl pattern that will make the ribbing of the hat but this is the first time my knitting has gone so smoothly in I don't know how many attempts. Maybe it's my new wooden knitting needles or maybe I've just learned to relax more while doing it *grin*.

The second part of the meme is to share what I'm currently reading and lately I am enamored with poetry. I've got an open copy of Moon Crossing Bridge which is full of beautifully haunting and heartfelt poetry by Tess Gallagher. If you get a chance check out some of the other yarn along participants. There are so many lovely blogs to peruse :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Think Globally... Act Locally

K's grade 6 social studies this year is all about being a good global citizen and how to "Think Globally and Act Locally" and it just happened that on Saturday the Plastic Pollution Coalition aired a live broadcast all day of it’s TEDxGreatPacificGarbagePatch conference. We both watched on and off throughout the day and it was SO INSPIRING to hear about how people around the world are banding together to end plastic pollution and just as equally scary to see just where our plastic garbage is ending up.

So we decided that we would start a project that would take us through recycling everything we possibly could and doing a weekly weigh in to see just how much plastic, tin, bottles and so on that we actually use every week. Through this we will be able to track our consumption, work on using less and help us to make smarter purchasing choices to further reduce our plastic waste!!

Our goal is to chart our findings with bar graphs from now until the end of May which is when we usually wrap up our school year and get everyone involved and caring about what is happening in our trash and shopping baskets. My 4 year old has been keeping tabs on what we are putting in the trash to make sure we don't accidentally throw away something we can recycle *grin*. It's great!

I love what J.D. Russo said..
"We need to raise CARE, instead of AWARENESS".

Everyone knows that they need to recycle, reduce, reuse and so on but we need to get more people to really feel it and to care about why they should be doing these things. If you've got a minute you should check out his short talk below... He's 14 years old by the way :)

Hugs,
Rosina

Sunday Lovelies

I just had to share with you the newest holiday issue of Inspired Ideas!!!! It's chock full of great Christmas crafts, printables and ideas :) The perfect eye candy for a Sunday afternoon. If you liked the first edition then you are going to love this one even more *grin*.

It was a rainy day here today so the kids and I snuggled up on the sofa with our blankies all afternoon and ate popcorn and watched the Sunday movie which happened to be the Princess Bride. I just love that movie :) I can't believe that we are already in November to! With the time change last night it put us in total darkness by 6pm this evening. It's definitely starting to feel like winter *grin*.

One of my winter projects that I want to tackle is brushing up on my knitting and teaching the children how to do it to. I know how to do the basic stitches but have a habit of knitting my stitches on the needles so tightly that I end up unable to get the next needle through them to go any further *grin*. I must have some unspoken inner tension that I try to work out while knitting! LOL. Small things is hosting a yarn along and I have been checking out the links and all of the fabulous things that others are up to and I can't wait to put needles to yarn so that I can join in to :) I really want to make some little elfin hats for the children so if you know of a pattern preferably free that shows how to make knitted elf shaped hats I would love to know :)

I hope you all had a wonderful Sunday.

Hugs,
Rosina

Rotkohl

I am enjoying the cabbage we picked from our garden earlier this week immensely! Well actually we all are *grin*. I brought one of the heads into the house right away for dinner. I had to strip away some of the outer leaves that were loose and bug bitten and extract a few little creatures but those are the joys of organic gardening LOL.

I was laughing to myself in the kitchen as I was cutting it in half because I was more interested in photographing it and studying the intricate pattern hidden within the head than getting down to business and chopping it up!

Hubby had just returned home from work and I had great plans of making Rotkohl and bratwurst as a special meal and with all my shutter bugging it ended up taking me a whole hour longer than I had planned to get things out on plates *grin*.

As a child I remember having the most delicious rotkohl that my Omi made and it has been years since I had tasted its sweet and slightly sour flavor so when I ran across a recipe for it I just had to try making it. Mmm, so good!! The kids all loved it to and I knew they would because it really is like eating candy *grin*. Regular sauerkraut made with green cabbage is quite strong and has a very strong vinegar taste but this is the completely opposite end of the spectrum and the kids don't question what it is then LOL.

I'm thinking that this will be the perfect way to use up all of the red cabbage so that I don't waste any of it. I have never canned cabbage though before so I still haven't found out exactly how I need to process it. If you have any experience canning rotkohl please let me know! This would be such a special treat to pull out for sunday dinners :)

Hugs,
Rosina