Countdown

 Here's your reminder that next Sunday, the 20th is the last day to sign up for the Winter Surprise Giveaway.  I've been busy getting the soap made this week. I have to say the winter fragrances are not usually my favorites but this batch of new scents is very nice. This is Fresh Snow.

 This is my second batch of Peppermint. The Mister loves peppermint. I had to make sure I have plenty leftover.

 Sugared Spruce is an oldie but a goodie. It's one of my favorites.

 Sleigh Ride smells more like something good to eat than the great frosty outdoors. I'm not saying which soaps are for which month yet. I've still got work to do.

I've got these three to make and then it's time for Valentine's soap.
If you missed the original post where I explain the details for this very different giveaway you can find it HERE.

Beating the Blues

This was my plan for yesterday. I have been working my way around the border of that blue baby quilt and I was supposed to finish it up and get it sandwiched.

I didn't get it done because I didn't get any sleep the night before. Micheal formerly known as Hurricane Micheal decided to show up around midnight and scare the beejeezus out of us.  First it was torrential rain, then it was wind. It was a sleep in the lower level kind of night which means no one sleeps. At 6 am we heard a tremendous crash. It was something out in the woods but it was still too windy to go exploring safely. I can see that the neighbor's shed took a hit from one of our smaller trees that broke off. It's always something around here with those #&%*$ trees.

The only good thing about the night was that I got to watch, in real time, a royal wedding I didn't even know was going to happen. It was lovely and I enjoyed seeing all the royals once again in their fancy hats which were getting blown around rather hilariously by a very stiff wind on that side of the pond.
I have to say Princess Eugenie was lovely in my favorite royal wedding dress so far. I do love a royal wedding.

Now as for that baby quilt. It's moving along. I like it and....the best news is that the right backing finally showed up. This is going to work much better than those bathing beauties they sent me before.

All Clear

 The front yard is now officially clear of debris. We cleared three huge piles of tree limbs and lived to tell the tale.

The wood is still there though. The Mister is sawing it up and stacking it a little at a time. It's still very hot and humid. It even got to him yesterday.

Today he went down to the mom and pop grocery and picked up some palettes for some serious stacking. He's starting a new woodpile off the side of the driveway.

 This gives you an idea of how big the tree is we had taken down in the front. Several small trees had to be taken down so they could drop it. The trunk goes all the way across the yard and to the creek. It may be there a while until we figure out the best way to chop that monster up.

 Yesterday I not only was a piler, I got to be a dragger. It's a long walk to the gully in the far corner of the woods where we are piling the debris. We are both covered in scratches, bug bites and poison ivy.  I also don't seem to be able to bend my right elbow today. Good times.

Up next is the side yard but we are waiting for cooler weather. Hopefully Saturday will be a better day. Right now we've got Micheal hitting us with a ton of rain and 50 mile an hour winds all night. Ugh.

And on a happier note....Frankenpumpkin is almost back together. She is upside down here. The bottom is proving to be tricky. Gravity is not on our side. I'm just happy we've gotten this far. I never would have believed it. This could just be a Halloween miracle.

Inktober Update

 Through all the calamity of the past two weeks one thing has helped keep me centered. Inktober. I had never done it before but it's been a real life saver. That is the official Inktober prompt list. What you do with it is up to you as long as it involves ink.

I knew I wouldn't have time for anything spectacular (as if) so I settled for something small. I had been collecting all this Zentangle stuff a few years ago and drug it all out. Zentangle is about stress relief through doodling. Who can't use a little of that.

It is mesmerizing. I cheat and do a pencil drawing first so I can mindlessly ink it. It feels wonderful to just let the pen go.

Since I still have my watercolor obsession going I took it one step further.

 I am using my new teeny tiny Sennelier set with it's teeny tiny brush.

I am also using these teeny tiny watercolor paper blocks. I bought them by mistake not realizing how small they were. I also didn't know they were blocks but now I love them. The paper is a wonderful quality and being on a block means you can get things as wet as you want and it won't curl.

It's certainly not fine art or terribly creative but it gives me a good half hour a day of mindless fun. I don't want Inktober to ever end. I suppose it doesn't really have to.

89

 10-10-29. That was Daddio's birthday. I can't tell you how many times I had to say that date to get him signed in for stuff. I know his birthday and social security number better than my own. These are his two boxes of photos.

I've shared so much about him over the years that I had to go looking for new material for the "blop". His word for my blog.

He was a lineman. He did the heavy climbing work before they had bucket trucks.

He was a lineman when he met mom. Here he is on his wedding day with my grandmother, my mother's mom. They didn't care much for each other but he was the one who took care of her in her final days. It was him and I who heard her last words and fed her a last meal in the hospital. He could be an SOB but when you needed him he was there.

 He built doll houses. Exquisite doll houses. The insides were amazing. I wish I had photos of all the teeny tiny details.

 He was the official Santa at holiday parties. Middle Son wasn't having it.

He had three daughters and then a slew of grandsons. He was a huge tease and tormented the kids half to death. He did that to us growing up too-and we all survived.

I've got so many memories of him that I don't know what to do with them anymore. This is the one that comes to mind the most these days. He held my yarn while I knit in the nursing home. He never said a word. He'd just nod and smile and then reach for my hand for a big squeeze. He would have been 89 today. I am sorry he didn't make it to 90 but he was worn out at 88 and made a graceful exit after a very long life. We should all be so lucky.

A Blog Post Gone Terribly Wrong

 Yesterday morning when I went out to feed the outdoor cats I decided that today's post was going to be about the weather. This white stuff that looked like frost all over the grass is mold. It's that hot and humid. In October.

 This big fella and his little baby are growing right outside my front door.

 I hated to whine and complain again but today we had work to do outside. On Sunday we cleared one half of the driveway of tree debris. In this heat it was brutal.

 Yesterday we wanted to get to the other side that had an even bigger pile.  The Mister cuts and....

 ...I make piles. Then the branches are drug was back into the woods. It's miserable work and the bugs make it so much worse. Ugh. We last about an hour and than have to stop or die. Even beer doesn't help.

 Back inside later I decided to end this post with a picture of my Halloween stuff all still in the container. I usually have it up by now but's too hot to even think about it.  When I was taking the container off the table to put it on the floor for a photo I dropped it. At first I thought nothing of it and then......

....I remembered that in the bottom was my precious ceramic Jack o Lantern my mother had made for me years ago.

 Yep. I had shattered it. I sat on the floor and had a good loud cry. How could I have been so clumsy? Just yesterday I had dropped an entire steaming hot pot of chili I had just finished making for dinner on the floor and down the front of me. What a mess that was. This was a mess and a tragedy. I was heartbroken.

My wailing brought The Mister running. After the chili incident he's not sure what's up with me anymore. Gathering up the shards I found this. That's my mom. E. K. 82. The year before Daughter was born. More wailing.

The Mister went to his model table and brought up files and glue and tape. Right now we are piecing it back together a little at a time. We call her Frankenpumpkin and she will survive. She will look terrible but she will shine again this Halloween. Somehow or other.

Yarn Chicken

 Yesterday things were finally starting to feel like normal around here again. I got up early and got two whole rows on the sweater while the house was still quiet. I try to get two in the morning with my iced coffee and two at night with whatever I am watching. Yesterday it was the new Dr. Who. Loved her. I am a big Dr. Who fan and wasn't sure about a lady Who but it was perfect. Perfect.

 The whole time I am knitting away at this very enjoyable knit a little voice in my head keeps telling me that I don't have enough yarn. I usually buy a ball for each sleeve and two balls each for the front and back when I buy this sort of yarn and in the past it's worked out just fine. But-that was for the pre-retirement me and I think in many ways I have become so much more well-rounded since I quit working. Ahem.

 I only have two balls left and so much more to go. I do have about a quarter of a ball left on each sleeve.

I can get about 5 inches from a ball and that's before I join the sleeves which is going to eat it up even faster until I get to the yoke decreases. Sigh. This is going to one epic yarn chicken battle that I will probably lose. If I do, I am resigned to ripping it all back and restarting with another yarn. That's going to feel terrible but it serves me right for not checking the yardage before I got started.