Not a good day...

Mom is in the hospital! It happened with no warning! Her chances are not the best. The doctor is being kind and trying to prepare me...50/50 chance...and at 92 with pneumonia and several infections raging...it doesn't look promising. Although I've seen Mom pull out of some dozzies!

Daughter and Sister are on the way...doctor suggested I might want to call!

Will get back to all of you when I can!

I'm Outta Here!!!...

No, I'm not quitting my blog!

But, I am slipping away for a few days...Going to Boston!!!

Be home Sunday!

Have a good week-end!!!

Ten on Tuesday...

Ten Least Favorite Celebrities

Maybe I'm old - but somehow I can remember when celebrities were regal and they were good actors. This age of celebrities just kind of boggles the mind...and these are the just a portion of the ones I don't like - and go out of my way to avoid anything they are in...

1. Kirsty Alley - I didn't like her in Cheers and I still don't like her.

2. Lindsey Lohan - that's an actress??? Please!

3. Nicole Richie - same as #2

4. Paris Hilton - same as #2 - nothing more than a spoiled brat to boot!

5. Eddie Murphy - What a waste! He's downright vulgar. (And, not because he cusses - but his whole demeanor is vulgar!)

6. Mel Gibson - he just needs to get over himself!

7. Ray Romano - Not everyone loves Raymond!

8. Dr. Phil - Please! Get over yourself - nothing more than an overpriced shrink!

9. Rachel Ray - I used to like her when she first started her cooking show on FoodTV - now, I don't know - she's different! And, the changes haven't been for the good.

10. Pamela Anderson - I, too, could be a "big star" if I had a set of b**bs like she does. She certainly isn't talented!

You can play Ten on Tuesday here

Creating...and an Award...

My buddy, Sarah, over at Mom's Knitting presented me with this lovely award! Thanks, Sarah. She said it was because we think alike - and she is so right!!! I'll be passing the award along sometime in the coming week!
I am much better today...the sinuses are clear - even though it is hot and muggy!!!! Thanks to those who sent kind thoughts...

I am up to my arse in alligators trying to finish up a block that needs to go in the mail before the owner sends the law out to find me. I just could not get it together to work on it...Nothing was happening in my brain! But, I have an idea and I am running with it...

So, I'm off to the sewing machine!!!

SIck...

Had all these plans for a great post today...and it's not going to happen! My sinuses are making my head feel like it weighs a zillion pounds - so if it's okay with you - I think I'll take a nap ...

See you tomorrow!

Water...

It's so damn hot...passed the bank and the sign said it was 94 degrees. Now that's hot! It doesn't matter that I lived in the Florida heat for nearly fifty years...I don't do heat well anymore! That's just a fact!!!

To tell you the truth - I'd just as soon be nekkid and underneath this waterfall!!!! It looked so cool and you could feel the splash - but, alas - it sits right on the roadway on Vermont 5 - not far from my house...maybe a ten-minute ride. But, we can dream...

The top of the fall -
About a 1/4 of the way down...
About 1/2 way down...
About 3/4 of the way down...
The bottom...

Friday Fill-In #81...

1. If I could be a fly on the wall I would listen in on all the creative people I know so I could learn from their knowledge.
2. Jealousy is not an emotion I possess.
3. When I see a shooting star my wish would be that my friends and family will be safe and happy.
4. I'd rather be happy and content with my life than extremely rich and miserable any day!
5. Certain songs when I hear them make me wanna dance.
6. If time were in a bottle I'd be drinking it all the time so that my time never ran out.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to catch up on my desk that is over loaded with papers, tomorrow my plans include finishing a quilt block that must go in the mail and getting a couple of boxes ready to mail and Sunday, I want to chill after church with a good book, some knitting, and maybe some quilting - I know I lead a very exciting life!

You can find the Friday Fill-ins here!

I Spy...

These in my future!

Yes, I am going to make a pair of Felt Clogs...This is the woman who has never felted anything in her life...but I just love these...

And this is the yarn... Yep! Purple - what other color do you think I'd pick??? The dark purple will be the soles and the light will be the tops. They are going to be so cute!!!

And, don't forget my contest - you can read about it here!

Salads and Flowers...

Saturday night I went to a party...actually it was an ice cream social - but, everyone brought a dish - it just had to be a cold salad or sandwiches.
I took some Baked Potato Salad - it tasted really good - but, it is not a pretty salad to make. Just baked some small red potatoes (with the skins on), cut them up into bite size pieces, added one pound of cooked crumbled bacon, a cup of shredded cheddar cheese, and 16 ounces of sour cream to mix it all together.
The other salad I took was really good. And so easy to make...

1 Avocado (cut up in small pieces)

1 Mango (cut up in small pieces)

1 can whole kernel corn (rinsed and drained)

1 can black beans (rinsed and drained)

Juice of one lime.

Mix all together - that's it! Everyone said it was excellent...

And, aren't the table decorations pretty? Just simple little wild flowers!!!

Ten on Tuesday...July 15...

10 Memorable Vacation Moments

1) Clearwater Beach - This was the first vacation we ever took as a family. My grandmother, mother, sister and I spent a week at a place called the Sea Shell Motel. Probably about ten years old when this happened - but, it was like the best thing that happened. We ate in the restaurant and played on the beach. We didn't own a car so we took the Greyhound bus from Tampa to Clearwater Beach. (The hotel/motel was still around when I was in my 30s - couldn't find it listed now!)

2) Nashville, Tennessee - My first vacation alone! I was in my early 20s and went to Nashville to see the sights and the Grand Old Opry! It was the first time I drove a long distance by myself. Stopped in Atlanta, Georgia for the first night.

3) Road Trip to Massachusetts - A friend and I struck out for Fall River, MA as she wanted to go back home. Didn't want to leave or sell her Mustang in Florida - so I rode along...and then flew home. Fell in love with Boston and Cape Cod...and was ready to move the next week. It would be almost 40 years before I got back to Boston.

4) Disney Orlando - Took Tara to celebrate her 4th birthday at Disney. We took a Greyhound excursion bus - because I knew I'd be too tired to try and drive back home that same day. It was marvelous to see her little eyes light up at the wonder that is Disney! Mine did some lighting up too!

5) Savannah, Georgia - Tara and I experience our very first train trip together...went to visit a friend of ours for a week and stayed on the beach. It was great fun...and Tara learned how to skateboard. We came home on the train with a skateboard for her...

6) Washington, DC - Took a three day side trip to Washington, DC on my way home from a business meeting. It was the most awesome feeling to be there in the middle of the city that houses our government. Seeing the monuments, the graves of JFK and the Unknown Soldier, the Viet Nam Wall, the White House and the buildings that house our Congressional people was so inspiring.

7) Hawaii - It was a dream to be able to go there. I went there on a business trip and stayed a few days to see the wonders that are Hawaii! It was beautiful...and I am glad I was able to go. Stopped in San Francisco on the way home...and got to experience it.

8) Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - this was one of the most memorable places I have ever been. If it were possible to fall in love with a city or area - this was it! I still can envision the places I went and the things I saw so vividly. Beautiful, safe, exciting, vibrant! Yea - that's Vancouver.

9) Cayo Costa State Park, Florida - A small island accessible only by water. I took Scarlett there for her birthday...we lived in a yurt (with the bathrooms across the way), cooked all our food on a grill, walked the beaches and the trails, hung our food from trees so the wild pigs wouldn't get it...lived in a bathing suit for three days and loved every damn minute of it! Left a loaf of bread in the yurt while we went for a walk and came back to find a squirrel family sitting on our bed enjoying the bread...

(You leave for the island from the place that Body Heat (William Hurt & Kathleen Turner) was filmed...we drove over that same bridge!)

10) Quebec City, Quebec, Canada - Another city that I fell madly in love with...I don't know if it was that everyone was soooo French...and soooo Metropolitan! Or if it was the quaint little shops, bakeries, open air cafes. Or maybe it was the day that we spent at the Zone Spa - alternating between a marvelous hot tub and then having buckets of ICE cold water poured over you among numerous spa treatments and a wonderful lunch. Or maybe it was the wonderful little hotel we stayed at...which you can see here! But Quebec City was and is memorable!!!!

You can find the Ten on Tuesday here

Knitty Otter's Contest...

Knitty Otter is having a contest over here! It looks like a fun contest - so, I'm playing!!!

Getting to Know you Contest Questionnaire:

1.) How long have you been knitting?
Been knitting since I was in my early 30s - so that would be about 30 years.

2.) How long have you been knitting socks?
Socks - now that's a horse of a different color - I never started knitting socks until I moved up to New Hampshire - and had been here for about a year and a half. 2005 was when I took my first sock knitting class. I didn't do too good with those funny four little needles - so the instructor taught me how to use the magic loop and I've never looked back!!!!

3.) What do you do with a problem like Maria?
Put a pair of knitting needles in the girl's hands - maybe that will keep her calm and quiet for a while!

4.) What is your all time favorite sock yarn?
You ask tough questions! I don't know - I haven't knit a pair of socks with all the different sock yarns that are around. But, I do like Brown Sheep Company's Wildfoote Luxury Sock Yarn, Trekking, Barefoot, and Cabin Cove hand-dyed yarns.

5.) Toe Up or Cuff Down?
Cuff down! Haven't had the courage to try toe up socks yet. But, I will!!!

6.) What's your favorite color (this week or for all time)? Do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?
I LOVE color! Tend to go towards the purple family a lot...but, am getting a bit more diverse in my color choices. I used to think I didn't like orange - until I found this great pumpkin color - so, no real colors that I just can't stand.

7.) Do you have a pet(s)?
Yes, I have a wonderful 12-year-old cat named Killian. Also, am part owner of two dogs - Isis Dreamweaver (a lab/Weimmie mix) and Prozac - Zac (for short) (a Dalmation/Jack Russell mix) - they live with my ex as I can't have dogs where I live and they could not be separated.

8.) Babies: Oven Roasted or Barbecued?
Oven Roasted...

9.) Besides socks what is your favorite type of thing to knit?
Love to knit scarves, hats, mittens and afghans. Want to try and knit a sweater again - it has been a long time since I knit one.

10.) What's your favorite scent?
Lilacs, Lavender, fresh mowed grass, the earth after it rains...I love scent...and the worst is that I have really bad allergies - so sometimes I am not able to smell anything...

11.) What music are you really loving right now? Like a song or a band?
Westlife, Michael Buble, Cher, Tina Turner. The truth be known I love music!!! Always have - even though I can't carry a tune in a bucket - I still sing along. Found a great 0ldies station (60s and 70s) on the radio and it is always on when I'm in the car.

12.) How many pairs of socks have you hand knit?
Eight! Working on number 9 as we speak.

13.) What's your favorite treat? Salty or Sweet?
Both! Love Butter Pecan ice cream. Hot fudge, nuts, pretzels, chips, Werther's Originals are among my favorites.

14.) What was the most interesting thing you smelled yesterday. Not good or bad necessarily, just the thing that stuck out most so that you actually took notice of it.
The way the ground smelled after the rain...it was awesome!

15.) Needles - DPN's: Wooden, metal or plastic?
Use circulars mostly - audi turbos, aqnd Inox are my favorites. The DPN's that I have are metal.

16.) What is your favorite sock pattern that you've knit? What do you recommend?
The only pattern I have ever used to knit socks is: Classic Socks for the Family: Fingering, Sport, & Worsted Wts by Yankee Knitter Designs. But, lately I have been seeing some really cute patterns and I intend to try some new ones.

17.) The last Question: If you were stuck on a deserted island who would you want with you, what knitting would you want with you and would you ever want to leave?
I would want my family and friends with me...my entire stash of yarn so I could knit socks and scarves! And, yes, I would want to leave - because no matter how much we love our family and friends we need new experiences in order to live and grow....

And, don't forget - I have a contest going over here!!!!! Do drop by and play...

My First Contest...

My quilt guild just had a challenge to create a Christmas Stocking...(I didn't participate). Now the stockings are hung in Town Hall. People are voting on them and will be picking their favorite. The one with the most votes wins...

My contest winner will be the person who picks the one that the citizens who voted picked.

Here is how this will work:

1) Vote for your favorite stocking - there is a number in each photo and that is the number you will chose.

2) Once the winner is announced at the guild - I will see who picked that particular stocking - if more than one person picked the stocking - all the names who picked that stocking will go into a pot and one will be drawn.

3) There will also be a random number drawing from all the comments...and that person will also win a prize.

4) The person in my guild whose stocking gets the most votes will also get a little something from me.

4. The prizes will be something special that I have created and some other goodies...

Now please go play...in the comments to this post and make sure there is a way to contact you if you win...

This and That...Again...

I know that time again - much going on today...and not at all organized...

1) My contest: I will be posting the contest tomorrow...Still have to upload the photos from my camera...and I'm slow...

2) I was totally impressed today when I was looking at this. Please check it out - it is a beautiful mural that was painted at a Montreal hospital - on the floor where gereatric patients live while waiting to transition either to their home or a permanent nursing home facility. It is amazing what people can do to help others enjoy their lives more!

3) In the middle of making Baked Potato Salad...and a mango bean salad...to take to the party tonight...I'll post photos of them later (if they turn out pretty!!!)

4) The second Sock is well on the way - and I am looking forward to finishing it this coming week - I hope!

5) Guess I should have picked BBQ sauce...Yesterday when I did the Friday-Fill-ins! (Thanks, Deb!!!!)

You Are Barbeque Sauce

You are a social person. You enjoy cooking for other people. You are both skillful and competitive. You enjoy mastering hard tasks. You appreciate complexity more than simplicity. Your taste in food tends to lean toward interesting flavors. You appreciate exotic spice combinations. You tend to like cutting edge, fusion cuisine. You get along with all personalities from a distance. Except salsa personalities, who always seem to annoy you.

What Condiment Are You?

Later...see you tomorrow!

Friday Fill-ins #80

1. Oh, I can't wait until I have a few days in Boston with friends.

2. A dish of fresh raspberries is the first thing I see when I open my refrigerator.

3. I never leave home without my cell phone and camera.

4. If I were a condiment, I would be sweet pickle relish because even though it is sweet it still has some kick to it - just like me. I can be sweet but I still have a little "bad girl" in me.

5. People who have a ton of items getting into the 20 items or less lane is really high up on my list of pet peeves.

6. The last thing I thought of before I went to bed was how the heck was I going to move the new chair that came for mother into her room by myself. It weighs a ton.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to watching tv and knitting or quilting, tomorrow my plans include driving over to Woodstock, Vermont and wandering around the shops then going to a summer covered dish and ice cream social with friends and Sunday, I want to sort of chill out with a good book or my knitting after I come home from church!

You can find Friday-Fill-ins here.

Good news...and a contest...

Some good news for a change...

I spoke to my sister, Mary Ellen, today. She lives in Tampa, FL. Word from the Vet is that Russell's margins came back clean!!!! So they got all the cancer from the sweet little fellow. He is improving and getting stronger every day!

Rhonda's husband has been able to communicate with her...which is an improvement. We still need to keep her in our thoughts.

Scarlett's mother, Helen, seems to be improving, too.

I'm having a contest on my blog!!! Yep - my first one!!! I'll post the details this week-end!!!!

Rain...

Rain...rain...and more rain...but, at least I keep wishing that the rain will cool down the heat. Another storm is on the way...and we've already had two today - so, am going to close down the computer...no sense in risking it due to lightening...

Gonna sit down and knit...and relax...and listen to the pitter pat of the rain drops!!!!

Ten on Tuesday...

10 Favorite Movie Characters

1. Vivian Ward (Julia Roberts) - Pretty Woman

2. Jude (Jim Sturgess) - Across the Universe

3. Scarlett O'Hara (Vivien Leigh) - Gone With The Wind

4. Rhett Butler (Clark Gable) - Gone With The Wind

5. Clarise Starling (Jodi Foster) - Silence of the Lambs

6. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) - Indiana Jones Movies (all)

7. King Arthur (Richard Harris) - Camelot

8. Guenivere (Vanessa Redgrave) - Camelot

9. Grace King Bichon (Julia Roberts) - Something to Talk About

10. Sydney Ellen Wade (Annette Bening) - The American President

You can find the 10 on Tuesday here!

I splurged...

I did it! Ended up getting the following books. Shopped for the books over at Knit Picks as they are having a 40% off on all books through August 8th...

A Gathering of Lace - I have been wanting this book for a long time - it has been on and off of my wish list forever...so, when I borrowed it from the library - couldn't believe that I sat down with it and read it - from cover to cover - and kept finding things that I would make out of it. I know there were four or five things - so, the price was worth it - cause each pattern comes out to about $3.40!
I am a yarn skein collector - when I travel - I always seem to pick up a skein of this and a skein of that...and then I wonder what the heck am I going to make with this...so, I leafed through this book and saw a ton of cute things I would make...
And, of course, I love the Yarn Harlot's books - and I didn't have this one...so, now I do!'

So, I'm a happy camper!!!!

Friday Fill-in #79...on Sunday...

1. Holidays in the summer are meant to be spent outside enjoying yourself.

2. Steak and shrimp are my favorite things to grill.

3. My thoughts are slower to rise to the top during the heat of the summer and usually have to do with keeping cool.

4. The fact that there is no rain scheduled is what I'm most looking forward to this weekend!

5. My favorite book so far this summer is A Gathering of Lace as it has inspired me to get going on my knitting and not be intimidated by knitting lace.

6. A bagel with cream cheese is the best way to begin a day. Ideally, it would be watching the sunrise - but, since I'm rarely up that early...I don't see it often.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight (Friday) I’m looking forward to watching Vantage Point, Saturday my plans included going to the Farmers Market and to the grocery store to buy fresh frut and Sunday, I want to attend church cause I'm really liking the new Sunday School class and then just chill and knit!

You can find the Friday-Fill-ins here!

Randomness...

You know how it is...things that don't actually need an entire post of their own...but, you wanna talk about anyway...

Movies: Last night I watched Vantage Point the new one with Dennis Quaid, William Hurt, and others too numerous to mention! I had been looking forward to it for such a long time...and I was so disappointed! Damn, I hate it when that happens!!!

Pictured above are most of the guild members from one of the two quilt guilds I belong to. This was taken after our yearly dinner. The last meeting of the year we always have dinner somewhere nice. I am looking forward to getting together with them in the fall. The guild meets at the local hospital from September - May. We have a lot of fun! And, they are a great bunch of women willing to help each other with quilting!

Been wanting a certain knitting book - A Gathering of Lace - for a long while now. So, I checked it out of the library to see if I would really want it in my collection...and I still don't know! I love the book and the patterns...and if I owned it I would probably make maybe four of the items...so I have about decided to go ahead an order it. (My sister gave me a gift card to one of the book stores) Anyone have any thoughts?????

Today, I intend to relax and read...watch tv...and knit...and finish a block that needs to go in the mail...

Happy 4th of July!...

Photo from

montevideo.usembassy.gov/

Happy Fourth of July!!!!

Farmers Market...

Today is Farmers Market Day! I love to go down to the town square and see my favorites from other seasons. Hope the rain stays away today...Veggies and plants are always at this stand...and they have the best potatoes (when the they are in season)...but in the beginning it is beautiful plants and lettuce.
A pretty plant up close and personal.
Soaps...Goat Milk soap to be exact. And there is even one that smells like lilacs...it's in my shower now!
And, of course no self-respecting farmers market would be without some type of entertainment! Don't know who they were but they were doing a great job!

Please keep in your thoughts...

Please keep the following of my family and friends in your thoughts this week...things are not going so well for them...

My friend down in Salem, MA, Rhonda - her husband had a very serious accident from a fall this past Saturday and has had to have immediate brain surgery. He is recovering but needs all of our thoughts and prayers!!!

My sister and her husband had to take Russell back to the vet for another bout of surgery. The first surgery came back and the margins were dirty - which means he was not cancer free. They are hurting very badly as Russell and Maggie May are like their children as they have never had two-legged kids.

Helen, Scarlett's mom, also suffered a fall this week and has serious injuries on both her arms - she is in a lot of pain...and having to have the dressings changed every day - very similar to having burn injuries...

It's not been a very good week!!!

Thanks...

Beautiful Yarn...

New Beautiful Yarn added to my stash! So soft. And, the colors - gorgeous! You can find some of your own over at A Piece of Vermont!

A Piece of Vermont Yarn & Fiber

60% Merino 30% Bamboo 10% Nylon

Superwash Fingering Weight

4 oz. 434 yards

Color: On the Bay