Pile of To Do

Here’s the pile of washcloths I still need to sew the ends in for.  For some reason I just hate sewing in ends.  On the other hand I’m happy to have finished knitting a few of these and there is something so soothing about knitting these for me.  I think it’s that I splurged on Lantern Moon needles and am in love with them.  I prefer knitting with wood needles generally but there’s something about how beautiful these needles are.  I decided that since I knit up washcloths constantly it was okay to have something I loved as a splurge.  Washcloths are what I use to try out different stitches with and being short and sweet I don’t get tired of them.  I am also on a mailing list that sends out 2 different patterns for dishcloths each month and that keeps things fresh and enjoyable for me.  I try keep some cloths on hand for hostess gifts and they really go over great.  Who doesn’t love a bar of yummy soap wrapped in a handmade cloth?  Okay off to get some more yarn on the needles!

Strawberry Jam

I made my last batch of strawberry jam last week and it is so good.  Hopefully I’ll have enough to last me until next year!  I used a recipe from The Blue Chair Jam Cookbook, one of my favorite jam cookbooks.  She has several recipes for strawberry jam and I used what is probably the simplest.  You may notice that I also used some of my precious Weck canning jars.  They are so gorgeous but they are a splurge item only.  I love the simple lines and glass tops that they have!  I’ll be asking for more of these as a present since I just can’t bring myself to get another batch of them, but I love them dearly.  So let’s see…strawberry season is done here so what’s next?  I’m thinking I’d like to get some kimchi made but who knows!

In the Garden

My roses are doing really great this year.  This is their second year in the ground and I think they are starting to come in to their own.  A friend and I had made a trip to The Antique Rose Emporium to pick up some roses and I simply fell in love.  I wish I had taken the time to get some pictures of the place because there are so many wonderful things there.  They have a maze and tons, tons, TONS of roses planted everywhere.  They have also nestled little gardening sheds all around the property and you can peek in them and be surprised at what you find.  The other great thing about it is that it’s located in Brenham, Texas home of Blue Bell Ice Cream which means you must stop there and get a scoop of tasty ice cream.

Croque Monsieur

Last night was yummy croque monsieurs for dinner. These are something that I don’t make very often since they are so rich but I just can’t resist them every once in a while.  They are basically a sandwich with a cheese sauce poured on top and then baked until it’s a warm gooey mess.  I made these with turkey since we had some leftover but traditionaly they are made with ham.  And I know they must be scrumptious since hubby gets really excited whenever I make them and there are never any leftovers.  I use Ina Garten’s recipe from here.  Don’t you just love her?!

Summer bounty

The garden is doing great so far.  I have two kinds of tomato plants, Big Boys and Early Girls, and both have tomatoes dangling from them.  Hopefully I’ll have tons to can later on!  I’ve been really lucky about not having any bugs bothering my precious plants and I’ve been diligent about remembering to water them.  Normally I kill things with in a few days so keeping these beauties alive for so many weeks has been a major accomplishment for me.  And lest you think that all I have planted are tomatoes here are some squash blossoms.  I’m also looking forward to a bounty of squash in the summer.  The husband has requested zucchini bread to be made as soon as possible!  I didn’t take another picture of the strawberry plants but they are producing too, unfortunately not enough to rely on them for jam making though.  I’ve already made one batch of strawberry jam but it’s clear I’ll need another batch made to get us through the entire year.  Well that’s the farmer’s news from here!

A waffle knit dishcloth

I knit up another dishcloth…well kinda.  I haven’t sewn in my tails yet but that should be taken care of  tonight.  This was a SUPER easy knit and I love how scrunchy it is.  The pattern is here.  I probably should have blocked this before showing it to you, but the reality is that I’m going to be using it and won’t be blocking it.  I know it makes for a nicer picture and a much better view of the pattern but there you have it.  Oh! and some people have wondered where I’m finding all these dishcloth patterns and the answer is Ravelry.  It’s an amazing site that all the knitters I know use and I’m not sure how I lived w/out it before.   Confession time.  Don’t tell anyone ok? I ducked into Joann’s today for some needles and somehow wound up w/ yarn jumping into my cart.  At least I’m using my stash at the same rate I’m acquiring it lately (not that that is much comfort to the hubby).  I’m hoping to make about 10 dishcloths to clean out some of my cotton stash.  Wish me luck!

What happened to the yogurt?

Some of you may be wondering whatever happened to the yogurt I made?  Well I’ve been slowly going through all of it and I have to tell you…the flavor is SO much better than what you get in storebought yogurt.  It’s tangy and creamy and delicious.  I add some honey to make it sweet but you can add anything to this stuff and it will be awesome…fruit, nuts, granola, melted Nutella,…the possibilities are huge here.  I’m thinking I need to make some homemade granola to add to this for a perfect breakfast.

Happy Earth Day

Chinese Waves dishcloth

I finished another dishcloth today.  It’s made from some of the blue in my yarn stash and I have to say I do love it in this color.  The pattern is called Chinese Waves and I followed the excellent (and free!) directions on Maggie’s Rags.  It’s super fast to knit up but it gave me a lot of satisfaction.  I love the undulating pattern on the right side and how it’s slightly nubby on the wrong side.  I’m trying to cut down on my waste and knitting dishcloths helps me do that.  I’d love to have a ton ready to battle all the dirt in the house and now I feel like I’m on my way.  Reaching for a dishcloth instead of a papertowel creeps me a little closer to being a little greener in my life.  The other thing about this dishcloth is that it’s the only thing I’ve knitted in what seems like forever.  I wanted something quick and easy, something that wouldn’t sit on the needles for so long that I’d forget what was going on.  A dishcloth like this took a couple of nights watching t.v. with my husband, definitely a short project to get my juices flowing about knitting again.  Hopefully this is just the first in a stack of cloths.

Strawberries

I started a garden this year.  Almost every year I start one with high hopes and this year looks like it’s going to be a winner!  Watering my strawberries this morning I glimpsed this little girl nestled down in the leaves.  She’s not ready or even nearly ready but she’s there and now I know it.  I decided to plant my strawberries in regular strawberry pots this year and not in my square foot garden.  There’s something I love about looking out my window and seeing a few pots full of life sitting in puddles of sun.  I have to confess that I did have a strawberry earlier but something decided it looked tasty and snacked on it before I could get to it.  That’s ok, I’m hoping to have bunches more so one or two lost berries won’t crush me. probably.