Happy 4th of July

What a gorgeous day at the lake.
great food - friends & family - great kids - great weather. (and, oh, yeah, the Red Sox beat the Yankees today!)

My grandkids do have a few toys!
A little tubing, anyone?

And Casper, their loyal Maltese, waiting patiently at the dock for them to return safely......priceless!
And the next day - a little baseball. That's Jacob pitching and they won their game 13-11.

Happy Birthday Linda Lee

Have a wonderful Day!

Contest Swatch

Aunt Kathy is running a contest from July 1 to August 31 with 9 chances to win. Every day there is a themed contest assignment and for every comment you get one entry in that week's contest. Yesterday was a pattern to try out. Here is mine:

The photo is a bit blurry - but it's a pretty stitch. I'll keep going and make a washcloth since I'm using S&C cotton.

Betcha Can't Make Just One.....

Well - I can't anyway! I made another with the Bernat cotton - this one shorter and fatter (like me!) The Yellow on is based on the Bernat Handicrafter Cotton Market Bag with a few extra rows at the bottom and top, is made with some cotton yarn I had in my stash, I think it's CottonEase, and the pink is from some Sugar & Cream stripes.
This one was also made with Sugar n' Cream -a little bit bigger, It took just a little more than one ball of each color. I have it filled with yarn here - and could stuff it even more if I tried.

Next I'm going to try the June - Go Green Market Bag from Suzies Stuff.

She uses a CD in the bottom of the bag to make it sturdier.
What am I going to do with all of these market bags???? I promised I would do a table for the church craft fair coming up in two weeks. I thought these might sell well since they can be used for beach bags as well as market bags. And, if the Sox keep playing as badly as they have been, I'll probably have a dozen of them made by then.

To Market to Market

To buy some more yarn??? I made this crochet market bag yesterday. I haven't crocheted in quite a while and have forgotten how much I enjoy it. It's fast, easy, and I can watch a ballgame while I do it too! The pattern is basically Turtlegirl's Beginner Crochet Market Bag A Ravelry download. Cristi's felted bag pattern has been a favorite of mine for a long time and I've made many versions of it. I think this one will be a favorite too. I changed the beginning round and the handles a little bit. As you can see, it holds quite a lot of groceries. Imagine how much yarn it could hold!!! I'm working on another one - this time I'm making the bottom bigger and the sides shorter. I used Bernat Handicrafter cotton naturals in a natural tweed and think I can get two bags from one of these (680 yard) skeins.

Back from Vacation

We stayed here, at Mineral Springs Resort in Vernon, NJ for a few days. It has 5 pools - this one (a view from our balcony) was a hot 90 degrees! A little vigorous exercise LOL
And then of course I had to rest for quite a long time. I knit washcloths - very mindless knitting and read Vanishing Act by Jodi Picoult and Trap Door by Sarah Graves and Tears of The Giraffe ( No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series) by Alexander McCall Smith.

Then I jumped off a cliff well - okay - that's not me, it's my 8 year-old granddaughter who finally got up the nerve to do it and was very proud of herself. That's her brother in the water encouraging (daring) her to do it, and then swimming back with her to make sure she was okay.

Click to view video
We also spent a few days at my sister's house on Lake Hopatcong, visiting with friends and family, a day in NYC, and lots of relaxing!

Bags are Packed

And ready to go! Hope you all have a great week . I'll be back next week with pictures!

Meme

If you read this, if your eyes are passing over this right now, even if we don't speak often, please post a comment with a memory of you and me. It can be anything you want -- good or bad. When you're finished, post this little paragraph on your blog and be surprised (or mortified) about what people remember about you.

Summer Vacation!!!

See that timeline ticker up on top of my blog? Whoo Hoo! We have a tradition at our school. On the last day (which ended at noon for the kids today) we always go out and stand around the flagpole and wave to the kids as the buses go by on their way out the dooryard. As soon as they buses are gone, we whoop and holler just like the kids. Summer vacation has officially begun!
On Sunday I'm driving down to New Jersey with my daughter and grandkids. We'll be staying at Crystal Springs in Vernon for a couple of days and then at My sister's house on Lake Hopatcong. We hope to visit with lots of friends and relatives while we are there. I may even bring my knitting along LOL.

Wordless Wednesday

Isn't this the cutest?

It's actually crocheted and then brushed. I really think I'm going to have to try this. You can find the link to the PDF download here.

If that link doesn't work - try this http://littlegreen.typepad.com/romansock/tutorial-pomeranian.html There is also a brushed crochet tutorial here.

New Wheels

I finally traded in my Buick (the one I threatened to give away as a prize on Whoduknit!) for a 2004 Subaru Outback - love it!

Pay It Forward - Knitting Style - Round 2

I played this last year and it was so much fun I'm going to go around again. I promised Delores on The Knitted Zebra that I would "Pay it Forward" to three other people. This is how it works:

I will send a handmade gift to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this PIF exchange. I don't know what that gift will be yet and you may not receive it tomorrow or next week.. but you will receive it within 365 days, that is my promise! The only thing you have to do in return is pay it forward by making the same promise on your blog. There is one stipulation - if I 'paid it forward' to you in the last round, you aren't eligible for this one - sorry!

Additionally please send your private information to me via email at: grammieknits@yahoo.com

with the following information:
1) Color(s) you like
2) Color(s) you do not like
3) Your mailing address ~ international knitters are welcome to play
4) Your blog url
The first three people to comment here and then email me will receive a confirmation from me letting you know the "fun has begun"! Once you receive the confirmation you will need to post the Pay it Forward challenge on your blog so the fun can continue.

Solve the Riddle

A man left home running. He ran a ways and then turned left, ran the same distance and turned left again, ran the same distance and turned left again. When he got home there were two masked men.

Who was the man and why was he running?
Who were the two masked men?

Saturday Sky

A bit bleak - but still pretty! Yes, we are having rain this weekend, much needed, so 'they' say.



Good day to stay inside and knit and read. (I heard somewhere that Saturday's are for housework - but I don't believe that!) I'm working on the EGEBLAD, using the worsted weight wool yarn I frogged when I could no longer deal with the Hemlock. There are mistakes in this one too - but I'm just hoping no one will notice! I also have another felted bag going - I've knit so many of them I can do it in my sleep - well, at least I can do it while actually paying attention to a ball game. I'm reading another Patricia Wentworth Miss Silver book - Danger Point, and getting ready to read An Unsuitable Job for a Woman by P.D. James, our Whoduknit author for June. Tomorrow I'm changing gears and going to a scrapbooking class. Monday will be here so quickly -why are weekends so short!!!

Contest

Wendy is having a fantastic contest on her blog. The prize is an ipod shuffle! To enter you need to post a Haiku in the contest comments.
Here is mine:

Sailboats on the lake

riding gently on the breeze

lazy days in Maine

Happy Memorial Day!

From Jones Pond

in overcast but at least it's not raining,

Downeast Maine!

Yesterday's Hero

It's Memorial Day weekend in the US - the official start of summer! A time for cook-outs, picnics, parades, family & friends. But most of all it's a time to remember our fallen heroes, past and present. For me, it's a time to remember my dad, a WWII hero, who made it back home. He was 37 years old, married with two children, when he received his draft notice and went to serve in the Navy aboard an LSM in the Pacific. His ship was involved in the invasion of Iwo Jima and then sunk by a kamikaze plane in Okinawa. Fortunately he was rescued and eventually returned home to his family, but he left a part of him in that war. After my mom died we found all of the letters he had written to her during his time in the Navy and I was able to piece together what he had gone through. In one of his letters he wrote"When this mess is over, I can't see how anyone in the world would ever want any part of another war again." Unfortunately, as we all know, that was not to be the case. So, let's remember our war heroes today - both those who have lost their lives, and those who made it back home with their battle scars, both mental and physical. My dad died of lung cancer in 1973, but his words ring as true to me today as they did in 1945 - "I can't see how anyone in the world would ever want any part of another war again."

Contest Winner

The answer to Tuesday's Test was: If you take the first letter and put it at the end of the word it will spell the same word. No one guessed what I am making for my Whoduknit spring swap pal, which is a good thing because I made it a mystery on purpose! But everyone's name went into the drawing, and Cindi won the set of personalized note cards! Thanks for playing!

From a Sheep's point of view

From a sheeps point of view - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAinrKK9aI4

Wordless Wednesday

Tuesday Tests

Here is a sneak peak at what I am making for my Whoduknit Spring Swap pal - can you figure out what it is?








Now see if you can figure out what these words have in common.

1 Banana
2 Dresser
3 Grammar
4 Potato
5 Revive
6 Uneven
7 Assess

All of the comments to this post will go into a drawing for a set of personalized knitting note cards!

Congratulations Jon Lester!

Read about it here

Monday Morning Chuckle

Marriage is a relationship in which one person is always right...and the other is usually the husband.

When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me that I should get it fixed. But somehow I always had something else to take care of first: the truck, the car, e-mail, fishing, always something more important to me.

Finally she thought of a clever way to make her point.

When I arrived home one day, I found her seated in the tall grass,

busily snipping away with a tiny pair of sewing scissors. I watched

silently for a short time and then went into the house.

I was gone only a few minutes. When I came out again I handed her a

toothbrush. "'When you finish cutting the grass,' I said, 'you might as

well sweep the driveway.'

The doctors say I will walk again, but I will always have a limp.

A Prayer for my Blogging Friends!

Dear Lord,

I have this circle of blogger friends,

Who mean the world to me;

Some days I comment on their blogs

At other times, I let them be.

I am so blessed to have these friends,

With whom I've grown so close;

So this little poem I dedicate to them,

Because to me they are the "Most"!

When I see each comment,

And view the message they've sent;

I know they've thought of me that day,

And "well wishes" were their intent.

So to you, my blogging friends,

I would like to say,

Thank you for visiting my blog,

This comes right from my heart.

God bless you is my prayer today,

I'm honored to call you my blogging friend

And I pray the Lord will keep you safe,

Until we blog again!

Monday WIPs

The center flower section of my Hemlock Ring Lap Blanket has been finished for about a week, but haven't gotten too far on the fan & feather portion.
I started the lace scarf from my knitpicks sampler kit. This is knitpicks crayon in a very pretty "Beach Glass" color. I've been wanting to try this yarn, it's very soft, and nice to knit with. It would be good for baby, or kid's things because it is machine wash and tumble dry. The lace stitch is an easy one, even for an ADD knitter like me.

I cast on for this dishcloth tonight to try out a pattern stitch for a contest at Aunt Kathy's Place. To enter you need to knit a swatch of the pattern and let her know what you think of it. It's called a Dot or Spot stitch and is a nice easy knit for tv watching. I'm knitting it with Sugar N. Cream in lilac.





I've also cast on for my project for my Whoduknit Pal, but I can't show you that - it's a surprise!

Sunrise Sunset

Remember the words to that song?

Is this the little girl I carried.

Is this the little boy at play?

I don't remember growing older.

When did they?

When did she get to be a beauty?

When did he get to be so tall?

Wasn't it yesterday, when they were small?

Sunrise, Sunset, Swiftly flow the days,

seedlings turn overnight to sunflower.

Blossoming even as we gaze!

Yes! The twins went to the prom. They are only Freshmen, but because their HS is so small everyone is invited to the Junior Prom. Hard enough to see your children growing older, but do the grandchildren have to do it too?? And their friends!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

This is for the mothers who have sat up
all night with sick toddlers in their arms,
wiping up barf-laced with Oscar Mayer
wieners and cherry Kool-Aid saying,
'It's okay honey, Mommy's here.'
Who have sat in rocking chairs for hours on end

soothing crying babies who can't be comforted.
This is for all the mothers who show up at
work with spit-up in their hair and milk stains
on their blouses and diapers in their purse.
For all the mothers who run carpools and
make cookies and sew Halloween costumes.
And all the mothers who DON'T.
This is for the mothers who gave birth to
babies they'll never see. And the mothers
who took those babies and gave them homes.
This is for the mothers whose priceless art
collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors.
And for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at football or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars. And that when their kids asked, 'Did you see me, Mom?' they could say, 'Of course, I wouldn't
have missed it for the world,' and mean it.
This is for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store and swat them in despair when they stomp their feet and scream for ice cream before dinner. And for all the mothers who count to ten instead, but realize how child abuse happens.
This is for all the mothers who sat down with
their children and explained all about making
babies. And for all the (grand)mothers who
wanted to, but just couldn't find the words.
This is for all the mothers who go
hungry, so their children can eat.
For all the mothers who read 'Goodnight,
Moon' twice a night for a year. And then
read it again, 'Just one more time.'
This is for all the mothers who taught
their children to tie their shoelaces before
they started school. And for all the mothers
who opted for Velcro instead.
This is for all the mothers who teach their sons
to cook and their daughters to sink a jump shot.
This is for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little voice calls 'Mom?'
in a crowd, even though they know their
own offspring are at home -- or even away
at college -- or have their own families.
This is for all the mothers who sent their kids
to school with stomach aches, assuring them
they'd be just FINE once they got there, only
to get calls from the school nurse an hour later
asking them to please pick them up. Right away.
This is for mothers whose children have gone
astray, who can't find the words to reach them.
For all the mothers who bite their lips until they
bleed when their 14 year olds dye their hair green.
For all the mothers of the victims of
recent school shootings, and the mothers
of those who did the shooting.
For the mothers of the survivors, and the mothers who sat in front of their TVs in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely.
This is for all the mothers who taught their
children to be peaceful, and now pray
they come home safely from a war.
What makes a good mother anyway?
Is it patience? Compassion? Broad hips? The ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner, and
sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time?
Or is it in her heart? Is it the ache she feels when she
watches her son or daughter disappear
down the street, walking to school alone
for the very first time?
The jolt that takes her from sleep to
dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put
her hand on the back of a sleeping baby?
The panic, years later, that comes again
at 2 A.M. when she just wants to hear
their key in the door and know they
are safe again in her home?
Or the need to flee from wherever she is
and hug her child when she hears news
of a fire, a car accident, a child dying?
The emotions of motherhood are
universal and so our thoughts are for
young mothers stumbling through diaper
changes and sleep deprivation...
And for mature mothers learning to let go.
For working mothers and stay-at-home mothers.
Single mothers and married mothers.
Mothers with money, mothers without.
This is for you all. For all of us...
Hang in there. In the end we can
only do the best we can. Tell them
every day that we love them. And pray
and never stop being a mother...

Teacher Appreciation Week

Happy Teacher Appreciation week to all of my fellow teachers, including those of you who home school! At our school we were treated to a buffet lunch, set up in the gym, by our PTC members. And, since we usually eat our lunch in the classroom with the kids (we don't have a cafeteria), the PTC also provided volunteers to take over our classrooms while we had a kid free lunch, so it was really special. There were also door prizes for everyone. Numbers were on the bottom of our plates and then prizes raffled off. Prizes ranged from a $100 gift certificate to the Lucern Inn, down to Peninsula Bull Dog coffee mugs. I won a $40 gift certificate to a the Bud Connection & Chocolate Barn.



I dug right into that stash I received yesterday and started on a "Hemi" (Vicki double-dared me) It's the Hemlock Ring Doily Throw , a 1942 pattern from the Canadian Spool Cotton Company written to be knit as a doily with crochet cotton. But the Rainy Sisters have converted it into a throw by knitting it with large needles and worsted weight yarn. I'm using some 100% Botany Germantown Knitting Worsted Wool that must be at least 20 years old, if not older. It was made at the Botany Mills in Passaic, NJ, which is right next to the town I grew up in (Clifton). Wish there was a date on the wrapper - I'd love to know how old it was. I've got this much done - you really can't see the pattern too well yet, and I will have to buy some longer circs because it is already getting squished.

Got Yarn!!

A friend of mine inherited a very large yarn stash from a friend who moved into a retirement home. This friend must have been collecting yarn for a very long time - apparently there was an attic full. So Roni has been sharing - and look what she dropped off at my house this morning! It was just as I was leaving for work - and I couldn't wait to get home to go through it!

Most of it is 100% wool. Some of it has no label, so I'll have to test to see if it's wool or not- especially if I'm going to felt it.

I'm so excited I feel like it's Christmas and my birthday!

The yarn for my 'Hemi' is in there someplace, and some great irish knit scarves and hats, some shawls and felted bags, ......I really need to retire!

TGIF

My Knitpicks Victorian Yarn Sampler arrived today (it doesn't count as buying yarn, right?). I love this! Can't decide which project to knit first.

Also on my list is this Little Lace Bag by Barbara Coddington. It's the bag featured on the Bag-A-Holic Yahoo Group this month.

Just have to find the right yarn.

Tomorrow there is a "Celebrate the Sheep" day in a nearby town. There will be spinning demonstrations, sheep shearing, and roving, natural dyes, and hand-spun yarn available for purchase - think I just may have to go and check that out - just to look of course!

Sunday I'm going to a scrapbooking class. We'll be using stamps to create a card and a scrapbook page. Doesn't look like there will be much time for housework once again this weekend - oh well! I learned how to take care of that a long time ago. It's a secret - but I'll share it with you.

HOW TO CLEAN THE HOUSE

1. Open a new file in your PC.

2. Name it "Housework."

3. Send it to the RECYCLE BIN

4. Empty the RECYCLE BIN

5. Your PC will ask you, "Are you sure you want to delete Housework permanently?"

6. Calmly answer, "Yes," and press the mouse button firmly......

7. Feel better?

Works for me!

Happy May Day

The winter seems like it will never end and then all of a sudden it's May and you think - wow, this school year just flew by! It's spring and that means baseball games, huddled under blankets to keep warm, the first inning lasting one hour! Talking to the other parents and grandparents, more than actually watching the game - too cold to knit! And the boys lose again - but that's okay, as long as they are having fun!
Not much knitting content for you tonight - but here is a contest for you to enter - go on over to Cass's blog cheer her up, give her some advice and win a prize!

How to get lost

on Ravelry! You click on your friends, then on their activities to see what they have been queuing, then you click on one of their friends and see what they've been queuing, etc, etc, and all this time you are 'adding to my queue' everything you see that you would like to knit if you live to be 200 years old! I'm on Ravely as Grammieknits (in case you haven't figured that out!)

How Time Flies

When you are on vacation! Wednesday already. I've been spending my 'vacation' doing things around the house that never get done when I'm working. We bought a hot tub a couple of months ago, thinking it would be just the thing for those aches and pains you get when you are as 'young' as we are - but it spent the winter on the deck while we got the back porch ready for it. One thing led to another of course, but it is finally almost finished and the hot tub is in (it takes up half the porch). Now to get it hooked up and running!


I've been knitting more felted bags. Great knitting for watching baseball games because I don't have to look at what I'm doing, or count stitches, just knit around and around like Jacoby and Dustin running bases!


I'm also stash knitting - trying to use up all of the leftover wool from other projects (and yes, I'm making sure they really are wool.) I'm thinking of playing a baseball game with my next bag - like knit in one color until the inning ends and then switch to another color - doesn't take much to amuse me!


This one is a donation for a Chinese Auction
(Also called Tricky Trays, and Silent Auctions in other parts of the country)
to benefit the 8th grade trip to Boston in June.
I'm not buying yarn right now - but couldn't resist Knitpicks Sampler offer - you get one skein each of 6 different yarns for and patterns to make a one-skein project from each one of them. Now - that doesn't count as buying yarn, does it?


And for my fellow Sox fans - Some great memories.

Spring Vacation

It's our spring break - yay!!! And it even feels like spring outside. And...the Red Sox are in first place - Sweet Caroline!!!!!

I finished another felted bag. This time I used the random stripe maker at Kissyyourshadow.com instead of playing the Vegas game, and .....I made sure I was using 100% wool! I also made a cell phone pocket on the inside of this one.

Happy Birthday Mom

I still miss you every day!

Groundbreaking

Four years ago the school that I had worked in for over 20 years - the school my children had gone to, and my grandchildren were now attending - closed down because mold was found in some of the walls. It was a small community school, less than 200 students in grades k-8. On our last day we waved a tearful goodbye to the students on the busses leaving our schoolyard for the last time and then began packing for the move to a neighboring school 7 miles down the road. Since then we have taught in crowded conditions, held parent conferences in the janitors closet, held classes in the hallway, and tried above all to keep our sense of humor.

Today, we broke ground for our new school, scheduled to open in September 2009.

It's being built on an absolutely beautiful piece of land (thank you Roni!!!)

And a reward for a job well done!

Losing at Vegas

I gambled and lost in the Vegas knitting game! I keep my leftover partial balls of yarn in large zip-lock bags and I'm always careful to keep all of the 100% wool in a seperate bag from the super-wash - well almost always careful. The felted bag was not a pretty sight! Half felted and half not. But along the lines of making lemonade out of lemons - I'm going to cut off the felted part and cut it into embelishments for another bag.

Our visitors are back......

It's brown, muddy and dreary in my back yard, but there must be something coming to life under all that because our visitors keep coming back to feed- and who can complain when you are greeted with this sight in the evening. (the audio in the background on the video is the Red Sox/ Yankees game which is now in a rain delay - it is pouring in Boston! Be fine with me if they call the game - it's the 8th inning and the Sox are ahead!)

Contests!

Pheelya is going to be a "Zia" (aunt in Italian) again and wants to know what to knit for for the baby that is due in November. Post a comment with your idea and tell her I sent you!

Then go over to the Cloverhill Yarn Shop Countdown to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival and leave a comment to be elegible to win a hand dyed skein of yarn.

And a ton more contests here.

The Vegas Knitting Game Bag

Thanks for all of your suggestions for beating cabin fever and for sending some sunshine our way. Today was sunny and the temp. actually reached 50! Here is the black/gray bag I knit for Annie. I like it, but if it had been up to me there would have been a couple of red stripes in there.

So to amuse myself this weekend I started on this bag. You have heard of the "Vegas Knitting Game Scarf"? (Knitting Pattern a Day Calendar, March 21, 2006)

Well, here is my Vegas Knitting Game Bag!

I grabbed:

6 partial skeins of leftover 100% wool yarn from my stash and labeled them 1-6.

One Die

5 playing cards - I used the 4, 6, 8, 10, and queen of hearts. The queen = 12.

Then I rolled the die, found the yarn with that number on it and CO 40 stitches on size 10 1/2 26" circs. I knit 40 rows in garter stitch (20 ridges) and then picked up 20 stitches along the side of the rectangle, the 40 CO stitches, 20 stitches along the other side of the rectangle and joined into a round. Then I rolled the die again - found the color (if I rolled the same number twice, I rolled again), shuffled the 5 cards and drew one. That's how many rows I knit with the first color. roll the die again - tied on the yarn with that number, drew another card, and knit that many rows. This is what I have so far. I'll keep going until it is about 14 inches tall, then roll the die for the color of the i-cord handles - two - probably about 36" long, then felt them along with the bag, shape and dry over a plastic cereal box. When it is dry, the handles will go on pretty much like the Black Sheep Booga Bag.

Here's what I have so far - hey, it's the next best thing to going to Vegas LOL. The dark color is actually purple and not black - no black for this bag!!!

Cabin Fever

I haven't been blogging much lately - Cabin Fever has set in big time! It's time for spring but mother nature doesn't know it here in Maine. Temps are still in the 30's and although the ground is pretty much bare - these huge white flakes come down everyone day or so. The kids at school are feeling it too. It's time to be out riding bikes, fishing, playing baseball - and it's freezing! Even my knitting is in a slump! I did finish a felted bag that a friend asked me to make for her - but she wanted black and grey stripes - and knitting it just added to the doldrums. I need something much more colorful to bring me out of my knitting slump! Got any suggestions?