Knitting and Reading

First socks knit on double pointed needles - I feel much more confident about this now.

Dear husband, Mike tells me he would love a pair of hand knit socks  lovingly knit by his wife  - what do you recommend in a sock yarn that will hold up to lots of wear - a wool/? combo...

Using some more wool yarn I hand dyed - one in painted yellows and moss greens and the other kettle dyed in yellow to coordinate.

The vest is a very simple pattern that I am making up as I go along.  Pictured is the front and I now have the back cast on.  The size will be about a 4T.

And, after passing by the Into the Wilderness series at the library for a couple of months, I decided to pick up book 2.  It has drawn me in already - there is just something about her writing that keeps me reading and not wanting to stop - usually, however, sleep calls me long before I am ready to put it down.

Looking forward to all of the sharing today with Ginny at Small Things for the Yarn Along.

Stuffing from Nature

Isaac gathered the heads of many cattails.

Taking the brown part of the cattail, he held it against the tire (mountain bike tires work best, he tells me) and this makes all of cattail's fluff - well, fluffy.

He then collected all of the fluff and stuffed it into a pillow he had hand sewn.

This was all his own initiative and idea - I think it is pretty neat!

Reinvention

I recently treated myself to the new book, Reinvention by the wonderfully sweet, creative and oh so talented Maya.   She included a hand stamped lavender sachet and hand stamped little book ( she hand carved the stamps) and a little hand note of appreciation inside the book.

I have enjoyed her blog for several years.  One of the aspects of her creating that I appreciate is how she uses what is available instead of buying new materials, to make useful and beautiful things.  

This satchel is one of the projects from her book.  I used materials on hand - some linen and batting from a big box of supplies a neighbor passed on to me and some cotton patterned fabric I had purchased years ago.

I love how simple it was to sew up and plan to make some in different sizes using old jeans and other cast offs I have in my stash.

Then just a few days later our neighbor called to see if we wanted a large bag of stuffing as they are cleaning up their attic in preparation for moving.

Well, yes I answered.  Not knowing how large the bag was going to be.  

Now, though, I can use it to make some of the "poufs" in Reinvention.  

Summer Love

Wishing you a summer weekend filled with beautiful moments.

Warm wishes,

Tonya

Yarn Along

I have been experimenting (playing) with dyeing lately and having so much fun!

This skein reminds me of the day lilies that are out right now all around our pond. 

I knit another Plain Vest and added some handmade maple buttons (another fun project of late using the maple saplings that were easy to peel).

I grabbed a book off my shelf to read through again - The Unsettling of America by Wendell Berry - one of my favorite authors.

And then on my desk I have my home school planning piles - planners, three ring binder, catalogs, notes, and I have been reading through When Children Love to Learn, A Practical Application of Charlotte Mason's Philosophy for Today - by Elaine Cooper.  A really excellent book that is giving me much to think about and apply in our home.

Joining in with Ginny's Yarn Along today - and looking forward to seeing what everyone else is knitting and reading.

Happy 4th of July!

Warm wishes,

Tonya

Excited About Zucchini

I know in another month, I will be looking through all of my cookbooks to come up with creative ways to use all of the zucchini  - but for today I am excited to have a new vegetable to serve after having lettuce and kale nearly every day for a month (no - I am not complaining - but just excited for a little variety!)

I remember thinking last year at the end of June, beginning of July that there this is this space of time in the gardening cycle where we just seem to be waiting after the spring crops are coming to an end.  Perhaps I should add some other greens and go back to snap peas as the shell peas are wonderfully fun for the children but would require a lot of space to amount to enough for us all to eat.  Any suggestions for something to fill in that gap to plan for next year?

Goats

We brought these two home late April of last year, bottle fed them for weeks, weaned them, been through a terrible poison scare when they ate skunk cabbage (were hand fed some by a one of our children), clipped hooves, repaired fences after numerous escapes (thankful that the onions and kale completely recovered)....

I have come to love these two girls.  Now comes the time when they are nearly ready to breed - this fall they should come into heat.  Now comes the time when my fears all surface - will I be able to handle the birthing, the milking, separating the babies from their moms.

Listening to reason I know that the goats' milk will be such a blessing to our family - to our daughter who has a mild lactose intolerance to a perfect second milk for a toddler.  Plus how wonderful it will be to not have to buy milk at the store or even rely on our neighbor's raw milk ($9.00 a gallon is a lot and for sure we will save some money).

Now to come up with a plan to get them bred.  Do we buy a buck and companion?  Do we find someone that rents one out?  For you goat owners, I would love it if you would share your thoughts and experiences.

Warm wishes,
Tonya