Category Archive: Uncategorized

After all the Christmas decorations have been packed, January has seemed a bit colorless, so a trip to the dollar store was needed.   Just the bit of red Valentine decorations give the table a bit of sparkle and I’m ready for March as well.    There is even a big tulip for the next month.  But I think it will need company, so mid March I’ll go see what other spring “pretties” they have.   It really doesn’t take much to brighten a room.

The sun was shining and the weather in the 40s so time to get some outside chores taken care of.   How do you like my farm wagon?   DH doesn’t want a truck, so this is my “truck”.  This is the second garbage load (no home pickup)  which was not as full as the first.    Then there was the recycling trip.   The car DID get a workout today.  It’s great to have that task done for a few months.

The rabbits all got their worming and trimmings.   They are good to go for another month except for one who needs a full cut.

After a lovely afternoon walk in the park today with our youngest daughter and her husband, we came back home to reality this evening.

Do you have piles like this of mail that must be addressed?

Or a magazine pile like this including seed catalogs that you want to look at?

In January, I thought I would just make a list of what I wanted to accomplish this month.   It didn’t work for me.  I wasted time because it seemed like there was still plenty of month left.   Here I am now on the last week and know that I could have done more if I had scheduled it.

For me what works best is taking  a calendar page like this and detail which days I plan to do which items, which is what I’ve done in years past.     No, I don’t get it all done everyday, because I always think that I can do more than I can.  However, I do get the important things done as well as a lot more that I want to do and I do not stress if something doesn’t get done, I just add it to another month.   So tomorrow, I will sit down and make out a menu for the following month as well as fill out this February page of projects I’d like to get done.  Both the menu and the items to do can be altered, but at least I have a guide that keeps me on track.

I thought you  might enjoy seeing what the chickens are up to.  Most of the chickens use the boxes in the hen house, but since the chickens are free to roam, some have decided the front porch, behind the mini waterfall is a great hiding place.   I don’t know if they will be happy here when we have the pump replaced.  But for now, it looks like they are happy.

I started this quilt for my mother-in-law a few years ago, but she passed before I got it quilted, so it went into a ufo pile where it lived until  just before Christmas, when I finally quilted it.  Then it went back to wait until now.  Today I squared it up and put the binding on.   It is finished! Tomorrow it will get washed and laid out to dry so the binding will be straight.

This is called the BQ pattern and I love it for large pieces that I don’t want to cut up.

Now I’ll go work on supper and then knit for awhile on the socks.

I love winter rain because it is better than frozen.   I don’t have to break ice for the livestock, the bunnies can use their water bottles and my hands don’t freeze when caring for them.    The freezing days we do have give me  sympathy for the Midwest folks with all the low temperatures they are enduring..  The temperature here today was up to 45 and will stay in this area all week, with nighttime temps in the lowest 40s.   With livestock, rain often times equals mud, which is one of the reasons these sheep wear coats..

In the sewing room, I started  binding my BQ quilt and worked on my Celtic Solstice blocks, which in photos have not been pressed or trimmed.

I think I learned the toe up cast on for the socks.   At least I was finally – after several attempts – able to get both socks on the needles and started.  Here is the pattern I’m working

I started the day with my trusty seam ripper.  It seems that some days that little piece is overworked.

For more fun, this little lady, Lacey, is going out of heat and there is quite a commotion at times.

Here is her friend, Beau. 

 In addition to that, look at these boys.  How did they all get on the wrong side of the fence?

I still don’t know.  However they spent the day chewing weeds in the garden.  I’m really glad the beds were covered with straw as they didn’t bother that and I still have beets and garlic out there plus the strawberries they ignored.   Days bring their challenges, but I love my mini farm and its tenants.   Challenges are designed to strengthen a person (or wear them down).

 I have much for which to be thankful.

Today is a beautiful sunny day, but froze last night,   which means bunnies need water dishes instead of bottles   The dogs must think spring is coming as we will be expecting Great Pyrenees pups in about 9 weeks.  It also means fence repair as they have been getting out of different pastures.

Happily for the last two days I’ve reached the 10,000 step mark on the fitbit and looks like I will again today.

As for the blogging,  this is a real process!.   One that has consumed to much of the last  days.   So for now, we’ll move on to projects.  Eventually you will find a button to see yarn in and yarn out as well as the same for fabric.  For now I’ll send you over to Judy’s blog where you can see what others are doing in those departments.  And soon I will put up a list of BOMS that I’m following, though it seems I get myself on overload there as well.

Fortunately the ufos are all in the quilt list.   January’s  goals are here.

Today I am working on Bonnie Hunter’s Celtic Solstice quilt top in a baby size.

I’m also trying to learn a cast on for toe up socks.

I’d love to hear how your are doing with your goals.  Are you working ufos,  leaning new techniques or ?