Yarn Along: sweaters, cowls, and a little mystery

Joining Ginny over at Small Things for the regular Wednesday Yarn Along!

Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? ~ Ginny Sheller from Small Things

Knitting

I'm back to knitting another Gap-tastic Cowl because it is such mindless work (all in the round, the same pattern over and over) so I can do it while listening to a book on CD or watching the Oscars or sitting in church... very meditative and soothing. I've also started on the Broadway Coat, a little project from the September/October 2011 Crochet Today magazine. Well, "started" may be an optimistic word to use; I've crocheted a sizing swatch and am gearing up to dive into the real deal. I'm generally not a fan of crocheted clothing, but this little number captivated me and made me think maybe I could pull it off. I'm using a lovely cobalt blue Cascade wool which I hope to line in a modern vintage fabric. I'm excited and nervous to really delve into it since it is a bigger project and requires exact sizing and I'm so inexperienced in the world of making sweaters and clothes, but here's to overcoming fear!

via

Reading

Among the Mad by Jacqueline Winspear, was a fun, quick little read. It is the 6th in the British Maisie Dobbs Mystery series, which I've quite enjoyed. Fascinating time period, interesting, strong female character, engaging mysteries - makes for a good, empowering, happy read. I mostly listened to it on CD and I loved the narrator, Orlagh Cassidy, who I learned is an American actress but is absolutely amazing with dialects. A nice, light read for spring.
And I'm still chipping away at Nicholas and Alexandra. 

perched in my soul...

     

Hope is the thing with feathers 

That perches in the soul, 

And sings the tune--without the words, 

And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard; 

And sore must be the storm 

That could abash the little bird 

That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land, 

And on the strangest sea; 

Yet, never, in extremity, 

It asked a crumb of me.

~Emily Dickinson

It's hard not feel that resurgence of hope as things start to wake up from their winter's sleep. Though the winter was mild, it still left the earth brown and barren here. But little by little we see what Maya excitedly calls "signs of spring!" I also feel similar stirrings within me - desires to learn and grow and nurture and overcome some things that have been weighing me down. It's amazing to see these delicate snowdrops insistently pushing upwards towards the sun. So fragile, and yet they withstand such frosty weather. They are intrepid, daring to be the harbingers of the new season. 

Oh, the hope swells within!

Spiritual Food

A few weeks ago my friend, Katie, sent me this article on Mormon food from the New York Times. It was fascinating to read and got me thinking about how my Mormon cultural background has influenced my food choices and preparations. Of course, there is the avoidance of coffee, tea and alcohol. And the propensity to store food, grind my own wheat (something new for me!), can my own produce and make my own bread.

But as much as I'd like to congratulate myself on my sophisticated and healthy eating habits and be snooty about how I generally avoid Mormon mid-western fare, I have made a recent re-discovery. A new guilty pleasure. A return to traditional Mormon roots.

JELLO!

What?! I forgot how tasty and easy to make this stuff is!

Okay, granted it is not GREEN and there is no sign of COOL WHIP anywhere. And though I found some old boxes of actual Jello, I've actually been making the Natural Desserts brand kind (because I'd rather avoid the artificial colors and flavors), but I have to admit that I have become a fan of this little culinary throwback. And while I may not be casting my vote for Mitt anytime soon, I'll jump on the Mormon bandwagon when it comes to this simple little treat.

What better way to celebrate this new discovery then to create something that combines both my Mormon and my Japanese heritage by making... Grapefruit Jelly!

Japanese Grapefruit Jelly

Ingredients

1 ruby red grapefruit
1 T gelatin powder (1 packet)

1 cup water

1 T honey

1 T sugar

Directions

Peel grapefruit and cut them between the membranes, keeping the juice in a bowl. Dissolve gelatin powder in 4 T of water, whisking briskly. Bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil in a pan. Remove from heat and dissolve sugar and honey in the boiling water. Add gelatin mixture to the pan and stir well. When the liquid has cooled off somewhat, add about 4 T of grapefruit juice and stir well. Pour the liquid into four cups and arrange grapefruit pieces on the surface. Cool them in the refrigerater.

*Makes 4 servings

{this moment]

A Friday ritual (inspired by Soulemama).
A single photo--no words--capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your "moment" in the comments for all to find and see.
Have a wonderful weekend!

yarn along

Joining Ginny over at Small Things for the regular Wednesday Yarn Along!

Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? ~ Ginny Sheller from Small Things

Knitting Project
various little animal toys that have been waiting to get finished up (see Monday's post!). And some new cobalt blue yarn for a new project...

Books
A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick. I mostly listened to this one on CD and I will be straightforward about this: I didn't like the narrator, the characters or the story for that matter. The writing was tepid and unsophisticated and it had an element of trashiness that annoyed me. But I finished it, partly because I had no other book-on-CD to listen to while I worked and partly because, yes, I was a bit curious about how the story would pan out. But at the end of it all, I was left completely unfulfilled. Such a disappointment to have invested time in this one!
I'm still working my way through One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp (which I am actually enjoying and finding inspiring) as well as Nicholas and Alexandra by Robert Massie (which is wonderful but long!).

Explosion

Does anyone else out there have a pile of mending and works-in-progress that have been sitting around FOREVER, taking up occupancy in coveted corners of the room? The other day Mike asked if I knew where his grey suit pants were because he hadn't seen them in ages. I had a vague recollection of seeing them before... and sure enough they were at the bottom of my I'll-get-to-it-at-some-point pile, still unhemmed. So for the past few weeks I have been trying to diligently tackle that pile(s). 

My work room has been a disaster - fabric, yarn, paper, clothes, thread all over the place. But little by little the piles are getting smaller. Pants are getting hemmed, tears are getting fixed, straps are being added, projects are getting finished! I've forbidden myself from starting on any new projects until this pile gets significantly diminished. And though much of it is not fun work, it is gratifying to finally get it done! And it is so lovely to regain some space and organization in this little work room of mine.

{this moment}

A Friday ritual (inspired by Soulemama).
A single photo--no words--capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your "moment" in the comments for all to find and see.
Have a wonderful weekend!

happy love day!

Hope your day was full of passion, friendship, fondness, affection, and of course, AMOUR. Happy Valentine's Day, friends.

sweet valentine

The past few weeks we've found moments here and there to work on our Valentine cards and gifts. Besides the lovely little card creations that Mayumi has been making, we came up with this little project that seemed to fit perfectly with her little pre-school co-op called The Honeybee Hive.

Amongst my crafty bits I found an old stamp that read "Bee Mine." Maya stamped them onto little rectangles of pink card stock.

I punched holes along the bee's "tail" and at the top. I clipped the corners to give it a taggy look. Then we sewed yarn through the holes, inspired by this idea I found on Pinterest.

After Maya personalized them, we tied them to honey sticks (get it, honey... "bee" mine?) with an origami flower on top.

A special little bouquet for her to share with her buzzy little friends!

little corners

Little by little the corners of our home are coming together. We've been here for two years now. Sometimes it seems like an excruciating process - making our house into the home we want it to be. But I mostly like that it comes along slowly, that we have time to figure out what really works best.

Alas, our bedroom is one of the last things, but if all goes right, we will have new furniture in a few weeks! 

newly painted pale gray walls and new(ish) couches from Craig's List.

the view down the street from our front porch

I know it has been the trendy thing to post photos of blossoming paperwhites, but I couldn't resist. They're simply too lovely...

nothing glorious, but we finally finished painting the trim and doors in the upstairs hallway.

I smile at this every time I walk into my bedroom

the bathroom is one of my favorite rooms in the house - bright, cozy, with a little greenery

Feeling very grateful to have a sanctuary like this with hot showers, hot radiators, bread in the oven, and a little space for snuggling, creating, playing...

{this moment}

A Friday ritual (inspired by Soulemama).
A single photo--no words--capturing a moment from the week.
A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your "moment" in the comments for all to find and see.
Have a wonderful weekend!

a poetic day

There was something brilliant and rather poetic about our outing the other day. It was unplanned. We had finished some chores in the house and I realized Mayumi could really use some focused Mama time. Some time where she could be in control and make the decisions. So I asked her what she wanted to do and she announced that she wanted to go to the Museum of Natural History.

So we did.

We took our time - for once we didn't have to rush in order to meet friends. It was just the two of us and we had no real agenda...

Everything is so much more beautiful when you take the time to really see it. We noticed things we'd never noticed before, despite having been here so many times.

And since it was a Monday afternoon, it wasn't very busy. We practically had the place to ourselves. Maya led the way through the great halls and exhibits. 

And when she had asked all her questions and had her fill, we headed back. And when she requested that we stop and ride the carousel, we did.

Her smile was the most beautiful and poetic part of the day.

That Rascally Rabbit

Because I don't have enough stuff to clean up around my house...

But like another little mess-maker who shall remain un-named, it is hard to stay exasperated because she is so darn cute and loving.

Mourning...

It hurts the morning after...

Pinterest Comes Through!

It seems like everyone I know is addicted to Pinterest these days (okay, I don't know that many people - my world is small!). I include myself among the addicted. Definitely too much time has been spent browsing through other people's boards and justifying it by saying that I'm organizing bits of inspiration for future projects...

But occasionally there is follow-through. I actually make something that I found on Pinterest. 

Like brussels sprouts with bacon, avocado and lime. And it was DELICIOUS. We were devouring it at dinner. I like brussels sprouts, but this was beyond my normal powers of simply roasting them with a little coconut oil (another yummy way to serve them, though!). If you'd like to try the recipe, visit The Little Red House.

Now I feel a bit more justified by my obsession.