2017 Review

This year I have knit 6 1/2 pairs of socks; I gave two pairs to Cynthia and kept these for myself.  I really enjoy the feel of these lightweight wool socks and wear them often.  You can see that the unfinished pair uses a different design, one with a basket weave.

I finished two quilts in 2017.  This one is "Soul Searching," the one below is "Fractured."  These are the names of the patterns; perhaps I will give each one a more personal title.








As to my resolutions for this year, I met some but not others.  1.  I continue to try to improve my eating habits and walk more.
2.  I have read more non-fiction; last year 13% of my books were NF, this year 17% are.  Not a huge increase but some.  My goal is still 25%.
3.  Blogging continues on a regular basis.
4.  As to quilting goals, so-so success.  I did finish these two, but still have one top that needs quilting.  And I didn't do Sarah's quilt or one for donation.  Maybe in 2018.
5.  I visited Dad three times.
6.  I visited Sarah and Erik for a bridal shower, then we went to San Diego for their wedding.
7.  Meeting a friend for lunch or another activity has been easy to accomplish.

In summary, 3, 5, 6 and 7 were fully met; the others were only partially met, so I will keep working on them!

Sorting

Cynthia told me the other day that they have already packed 34 boxes as they get ready to move in April or May.  They've made numerous trips to Goodwill, sold (or donated) a couch and chair, cleaned out a closet or two.  What an inspiration she is!  I wish she could come out here and help me!  E encourages me in my effort to de-clutter; she is very good at looking honestly at "things" and marking them as unnecessary.  I'm not sure why it's so hard for me, why I cling to objects don't use any more.  Yesterday afternoon I worked in my sewing room, sorting fabrics and patterns.  But there's a long way to go.

More sorting of fabric happened this afternoon, clearing off the cutting table so I could begin work on the challenge for the quilt guild.  Our house plants are all in my workroom so James won't nibble on them and throw up, so it's even more crowded than usual.  Last night I recycled some quilt patterns, most of them black and white copies not color.  While they apparently appealed to me years ago, seeing them without color leaves me blah.  There are so many quilts on my want-to-make list now, I don't need to go back twenty years and add old ones.

Good dinner tonight:  roast chicken (on sale for 78 cents a pound at Safeway), dressing, gravy and Brussells sprouts.  And I made two loaves of bread this afternoon.  That's one thing I miss when I'm watching the children all day at their house, being able to cook.  Perhaps I could if they were here; after all, I cooked when our girls were little.  I guess I feel ec still needs lots of supervision, and there might be a bit of "they're not mine, so I'd better be careful."  Boy, that sounds strange, but could it be?

Boxing Day

Christmas dinner tasted delicious!  E and es made a lot of Parmesan Breadstick Candy Canes, maybe twenty-four, and we ate all but two.  The lasagna and broccoli were well-received, even by es.  One funny story--after I finished my breakfast early on Christmas, I took out the ingredients for Strawberry Salad, only to discover the bag of frozen fruit was not strawberries as I expected but rather raspberries.  I certainly was not in the mood to go out looking for an open grocery store.  What to do?  For some reason I had a box of sugar-free raspberry Jello in the cupboard, so I took a chance (using my intelligence guided by experience, as Nero Wolf frequently told Archie) and simply substituted raspberries for strawberries.  The result was a bit tart but still very good.  The raspberry seeds added texture.  I think Joann liked seeing the children and interacting with them a little.  She has no grandchildren.

After eating we FaceTimed with Grandpa-Great, then opened the few gifts under the tree.  EKee went home to pack before heading south for "second Christmas."  By 7:00 I was drifting in and out on the couch, so we nixed the idea of watching a new DVD and went to bed early, at least I did.  Randy stayed up a while.

Tuesday morning I practiced a bit and dried clothes at EK's.  Then we went to Dena's for a Boxing Day feast.  I had expected just six of us, but eleven people enjoyed an afternoon of prime rib and Yorkshire pudding with roasted vegetables.  And of course lots of appetizers--cheeses, crab dip, crackers, Brie in puff pastry.  Cheese cake and stollen ended the meal.  Home by seven, and then we did watch the new movie, "Remember the Night," with Fred McMurray and Barbara Stanwyck, an improbable but fun holiday story about a district attorney and a shoplifter.

Merry Christmas!

Saturday morning I went to the church, eager to see if the piano had been fixed.  While it is indeed much much better, it does not sound as good as it did before the damper problem last week, so I will have the technician return.  I practiced organ, preparing for Christmas Eve services, then we met at EK's to discuss layout drawings from our contractor.  After lunch I made my annual Cherry Almond Wreath, a sweet bread full of red and green candied cherries and almonds, and Randy and I have eaten at least half already.  Yesterday I played for three services:  the normal Sunday morning service, the family service at 5:00, and the 9:00 service with choir. EKee and Randy attended the 5:00 which included two songs by the new community children's choir (es is ready to sign up), two short children's sermons, and two saxophone pieces by one of the boys, as well as the traditional carols and candlelight "Silent Night."  The church was not quite packed, but more came than to the later service.   Randy had hoped to sing in the choir but his cold prevented that.  Home by 10:30 or so.

Randy and I are fighting colds; he's been sick a month now, I've had mine less than a week.

This morning we will decorate our tree, I hope, and perhaps put the angels on the piano.  I haven't done much decorating this year, and the box of Christmas cards is still sitting on the table.Why?  I've just had a lot of other things to do, and with Randy not sleeping well I'm not sleeping enough either, so my energy level is low.  EKee and neighbor Joann will join us for lasagna, broccoli, strawberry salad, breadsticks and peppermint ice cream.  Then EK and children will drive down to see K's family and participate in a wedding.  Looks like James will stay with us while they are away.

What was that?

Yesterday morning the Trinity choir presented its special Christmas music.  In the middle of the second piece I heard a loud bang from inside the piano, and the damper pedal stopped working, leaving the dampers off the strings.  What a weird thing!  We finished the song, but a few minutes later we were able to look inside the piano.  I hoped the rod that connects the pedal to the damper bar had come loose and we could just put it back in place, but no such luck.  I played the final piece on the organ, which scared me a bit since I hadn't practiced it that way.  After the service we looked more closely but could find no loose connections.  So we have a call in to the tuner/technician, hoping he can fit us in this week without it costing too much.  Julie and I had planned a couple of flute/piano duets for the Christmas Eve service, but I will choose alternate pieces just in case we can't use the piano.

Play-Doh

For her birthday es received the Play-Doh Toolin' Around Playset, which includes molds, scissors and a pocket knife.  Before you start to worry, these last two items are totally safe for a toddler.  I don't think the scissors will cut anything other than the soft clay.  And the various "blades" on the knife are also just for the play-doh; the can opener tip is perfect for opening the tin of play-doh.  Two of the molds are like cookie presses; you fill a tube with the clay, then use a pusher to press the clay through a shape at the end.  One extrudes skinny spaghetti-like strands which es calls hair.  Yesterday she stood on the stool at the bar in the den for close to an hour playing with this new toy.  Part of the time I played with her.  She directed our activity--she was DaDa and ran a barber shop.  I was Bilbo and came in for a haircut.  For my part I had to mold a figure and put the strands of hair on him, then wait for my turn in the chair.  Once two goblins were in front of me.  I discovered if I rolled out a chunk of the pink clay then cut out Bilbo he was much sturdier than if I shaped the body parts separately.

Standing

He pulls up so easily now that it's hard to remember the days when ec just stayed where I put him.  He crawls quickly and pulls up at the wall, the sliding glass doors, the couch, dining room chairs, even the foot rest under the bar.  Anything not flat on the floor.  He releases his hold and stands unsupported for 5-10 seconds.  He transfers his hold from one thing to another.  It's fun to watch!  And he's getting so strong, able to walk/stumble along holding on to just one of my hands.

This morning when he finished his egg and fruit I dampened a paper towel and began to wipe his face and hands.  I removed the tray from his high chair.  Oops!  More Cheerios and blueberries in his lap!  What a grin as he carefully took those little pieces from my hand.  I expect we will go to Target this morning for a couple of things, maybe to Kohl's.

Cascade colors

This pair was finished in early November; I took the picture at that time, but forgot to post it.  The yarn is Cascade Colors by Patons Kroy.  It's a little heavier than the first sock yarn I used but still very comfortable to wear.

For the next pair I decided to try a new pattern, Cath, that features a basket weave of sorts.  It's rather free in that the leg portion is the "fancy" design, then the directions say to use your favorite heel, then knit the foot, then use your favorite toe.  For the leg I had to follow a chart, a grid of 16 stitches across and 14 rows, to be repeated four or five times (I chose four, that was long enough), so I dug out the magnetic strips and plate I've used for years for cross-stitch projects and laid the chart on that, making it quite easy to keep track of which row I was working.  I have made it past the heel now and am working on the foot, having decided not to continue the curvy pattern on the foot but to do plain stockinette.

Holiday movies

One of my favorite Christmas movies is The Bishop's Wife.  I can't begin to say how many times I've seen it; it's the first holiday movie I watch at the beginning of each December.  Years ago I recorded it on 8mm tape, then more recently I bought the DVD.  It was featured at the local theater as a classic film, so I got to see it on the big screen, which was a lot of fun.  Apparently Cary Grant started as the bishop and David Niven the angel; a new director came on board and realized the two men were in the wrong roles.  He persuaded Cary Grant to drop the title role, which he had wanted, and to play Dudley, which became one of his most praised roles.  After seeing the film I can't imagine the two men in reversed roles.

Yes, Holiday Inn, White Christmas, Elf, Love Actually, One Special Night, La Pastorela, It's a Wonderful Life, and more are on our shelf, but this is the one I pull out first.  There's just something about the premise of being unaware of angels among us, answering prayers.  In 1996 this film was re-made with Denzel Washington as the angel, Courtney B. Vance as the minister, and Whitney Houston as The Preacher's Wife.  I haven't seen it.  Cary vs. Denzel...both are good, but after seeing the older one, it would be hard to like the new version.

Round and around

Round and around the little boy goes, where he stops nobody knows.  This VTech "Touch and Learn Activity Desk" lives in the family room.  Both children play with it, though in different ways.  es uses it as intended, playing the alphabet games, identifying parts of the body and colors, dancing to some of the music.  Her brother loves to push the desk and pull the legs out of the stool.  Sometimes he manages to turn it on, but I imagine it's a total accident.  Today he pulled up by it and cruised around it three or maybe four times.  The fun part came as the desk moved.  It sat against the cupboard, so to get on the back side ec had to push it out a bit, but as he progressed to the front side he pushed it back against the cupboard.  I had to laugh.  And so did he!

Twinkle, twinkle little bug

Sunday I gave es a new book which has two stories about Sesame Street characters.  In the second one Big Bird captures a lightning bug and puts it in a jar with holes punched in the lid, much as I did as a child.  Since fireflies have not crossed the Rockies es has not seen one but she seemed to understand the concept.  The bug twinkled for a couple of Big Bird's friends, then stopped.  So Big Bird tried giving it a cookie, a pillow, various things, but it would not twinkle any more.  Finally Grover asked, "Would you twinkle if you were caught in a jar?"  Big Bird released it and it twinkled brightly once more.

We had fun acting out the story, taking turns being the bug, captured, sad, then set free.  She amazes me with how often she can repeat, with minor variations, the same game.