31 OCTOBER 2017

A full weekend was had here at LHQ. Halloween outfit dressing for little B with a wonderful tour of Grave's Dairy( a local dairy, makes Noosa Yogurt too). I love the milk at Grave's diary because no hormones and or antibiotics in the milk. Of course they will treat a sick cow with antibiotics but that milk is dumped. I started home delivery of their milk when my girls were 1 and 4 due to the practices used in this dairy. Seeing the baby cows was so fun, soon they will be turned out in the pasture then in 2 years they are put in the milking rotation.

We had our chicken delivery! I call it more like our turkey delivery, those birds weighed in at 18-20 pounds. These are local birds that a young boy raises for his home school activities. I have broth and all sorts of great chicken dinners in my head.

Betty and I cleaned the basement ( just one room...ha) and I discovered projects that I had forgotten about and am excited to get working on again. A wool rug started 'ages' ago but still makes my heart flutter. I am soo close to the finish with this one.
An Amish quilt with heavy, heavy Amish style quilting was discovered as well. That quilting soothes my soul, but so much left to do, even with so much completed already.
One other discovery in the basement, 'Elizabeth Zimmerman' DVD's . Elizabeth Zimmerman is one of my heroes. Her life story is amazing how she and her husband fled  Nazi-Germany, and started a new life here in the United States. Elizabeth was taught at a young age to knit and without patterns. I so admire that kind of a mind that can
just visualize the outcome of a garment and knit it!!!!!

Off Betty and I go now for some Halloween fun. Be safe out there today!

25 OCTOBER 2017

GOINGS' ON

KITCHEN; lots of cooking going on in the kitchen, burritos made with elk meat gifted to our freezer and Caitlin's home made green chili...so yummy and just the right kick. Tried a yogurt, cream cheese pie with a granola crust, it is so-so, nothing over the moon

KNITTING: I finished Shore Cardigan and am happy with the end   product,( pictures to come, I need to get buttons on). I think I may be making another Shore Cardigan for my little Betty. Casted on a Shoreline Vest for one of my girls. Using yarn (BlueSky all wool, DK weight) from my stash (which is so huge, sometimes overwhelming to look at).

KIDS: my youngest went to Wisconsin to visit her Aunti Mary (my best friend and sister). Oh the time they had, horseback riding, round up of Mary’s alpaca to de-bur a few, driving back roads in amazing fall weather, art show and food. Mary and Bob are fantastic cooks!

OUTDOORS: getting in all the fall walks my knees will tolerate with Betty. We really enjoy walking through leaves making them crunch under foot. Most of the leaves are on the ground now with that last wind front that blew through over the weekend. Continue to plant bulbs! I thought I had 200 bulbs to plant but apparently I doubled that order, I have 400 to plant. Spring will be exciting with all the color.

READING: ‘Carolyn’, a new release about Carolyn Ingalls. I loved it! This book presented a Carolyn as a women I could identify with.  A women that deals with  frustrations of being female in a male world, her responsibility in raising children in a changing world and finally finding joy in a life that is full of struggles to meet daily needs.   4 stars for sure.

‘Pioneer Girl’, another Ingall’s book. What I found interesting here was Laura’s relationship with her adult successful daughter. Great back stories to the writing of Little House series.

It's Wednesday here on the Front Range and we are expecting another beautiful 'Indian Summer' like day. Their will be walking, taking in all the beauty that fall has to offer today, hopefully some knitting and or sewing during nap time, then I believe a trip to the library.

16 OCTOBER 2017

Rocky Mountain National Park

RMNP

RMNP

RMNP

Yellowstone National Park

Goings On

YARN DYING-I had dyed 3 skeins wool yarn with rabbit brush last year and it turned out BRIGHT lemon yellow,

               not my kind of a color;-{.  So I decided to play in a chemistry lab and gave this yellow                     

yarn a bath in some rusty nails and a TBLS of Fe ( powder iron). I loved the result of a dull green. I have plans for these skeins.

RMNP-We went to the park to hear the elk bugle, met my brother and SIL for a picnic dinner of homemade fried chicken and salad. Went on a walk through the meadow with buffalo grass as high as my hips. We found the Elk and relaxed into an evening of watching and listening.

YSNP- Some left over pictures from YSNP. Lots more that will be sprinkle here through out the winter months. I miss you YSNP!

GARDEN-Pulled out the green tomatoes, squash, cukes, and the end of the lettuce. In the front garden, cleaned out so much over grown perennials that weren't flowering anymore because they were just too old, (like me). 90% of the Irises are gone! Irises here on the front range grow like weeds and crowd out other flowers. GONE now! Discovered a lady bug painted rock that one of my girls painted when they were in kindergarten, ( so sweet). Betty will be soo excited to find it tomorrow, (she loves lady bug rocks).

PLANTING- Garlic and 200 tulip and daffodil bulbs. Betty and I have much work this week while the weather is still Indian Summer Fall.

HARVEST FESTIVAL- Betty and I have hit two different Harvest Festivals thus far. The second one had so much more for us to do...animals to pet and lady bug rocks. Oh, the time we spent with these two attractions. The German sausage lunch with homemade sauerkraut was over the moon.

QUILTING-working on several quilts that I can't show yet. I have been photographing some of the quilts I have made over the years. The quilt pictured on this post is my design using flannels with some fun stitching and penny flowers, the best- is little hands of my four kids appliquéd on the quilt. Be still my heart...

RED BOOTS-I am in LOVE with those red boots. Eric and I bought them in Montana when Betty was way too small to wear them. She loves them now...and so cute!

TUCKING IN-Organizing inside so that we all can keep busy through the winter with projects-re-doing cabinets, painting house, drawing/painting pictures, Christmas gift making, and all the books that will be read these coming cold months. Thankfully our winters tend to have few really bitter cold days, so their will be walks, oh how we walk here, several miles each day unless it's raining hard, or snowing in feet. Cold, is not a weather condition that keeps us in doors. 

9 OCTOBER 2017

First snow of the season is happening here today! It is not the BIG storm that the weather people were predicting, but it is snow! Coloradans love snow! And I love it because of all the woolies I  get to wear and knit for all the people I care so much about in this world. Admittedly, most of my knits are for my little people here, an 18 mo. old and a baby boy due to arrive early December.

In preparation for the snow and freezing temps I cleaned out the garden of all edible goods, lots of lettuce and green tomatoes. Fried green tomatoes will be on the menu this week with veggie soup and salad to kick off the week.

I don't know about you, but I find myself reading a lot of articles, affirmations, prayers, and books to keep me calm with all the craziness going on in Washington, mainly by the White House. 

I feel so helpless with our elected officials and their inability to govern, that if I am not careful I could spin into a deep depression.

I must start with me! And do what little I can, first, to take care of my family and provide a safe welcoming home, relationships with them, then to write/call to Washington often! 

And keep calm.

5 OCTOBER 2017

New car delivered to this girl in Minneapolis.

My sister's place in Wisconsin. She raises alpacas.

Working with grandpa, getting Mom's new shop opened. Soon very soon!

Found these books left on sidewalk. We read them and left for someone to claim.

A dear friend picked this book up for me...so good!

The season is surely changing right on time. Morning's, cool and crisp, perfect walking weather, my time to think, meditate/pray and look for all the beauty in this world I am journeying through. The sun warms us up during the day but 80's does not feel so suffocating with the cool evenings and 1-2 quilts on nights.

The kitchen has been busy with family in from out of town. Ribs, lots of ribs slow cooking in the oven all day. Served with corn on the cob, lettuce salad, coleslaw and a wonderful couscous salad, all made here in my kitchen and eaten with family on the back porch. Fall is my favorite time to have meals on the porch. The sun casting that fall shadow -its magical!

The above two paragraphs were written two weeks ago. So, so much has been going on since then:
- a six day road trip to Minneapolis and Wisconsin to see my youngest grown up girl and then a short weekend visiting my sister. I drove by myself to Minneapolis in 15 hours, yeah, Im too old for that again.
- finished another 2 inch square scrap quilt for my sister in a week.
-I back our trailer into its storage space for the winter-that's a first for me.
-Walk, walk and walking daily! My A1C is going down! Moving works.
-having a blast with my sweat baby girl
-dying yarn
- starting to tuck in for winter. It's been cold and wet here in Northern Colorado, day and night.
*organizing BB toys. Putting some back to bring out later in winter to relieve winter boredom.
*decluttering rooms and starting a deep Fall clean of the house

So much more to do to get ready for winter here, though I really enjoy the tucking in process.
Oh, and I ordered 150 bulbs! YIKES!