A New Addition

Hello!



I don't have a name yet - my new family can't decide what to call me. The people at the farm called me Jessie, but my new family wants to give me an Australian name since I am an Australian Sheepdog.



I like this place - I've got a girl to play with. She has these long pieces of hair I love to jump up and grab -



- but she tends to yelp when I do it!



I have new toys to play with,



new laps to sleep in -



and a new Daddy who already loves me terribly.



It's a sweet life!

Grilled Cheese Love

I have to say, I make a damn fine grilled cheese sandwich. There are a couple tricks to it, but all in all, it is a simple and delicious thing. I make my grilled cheese in my George Forman grill - it cleans up easily, cooks fast, leaves neat grill marks. However, the squishy nature of the George Forman grill requires bread that can stand up to the pressure - so the best bread for my grilled cheese is slightly stale french bread. Cut slices on the diagonal about 1" thick, spread butter on the outsides of the bread, and layer cheese in the middle. Place the sandwich in the heated George Forman and grill until toasty brown and the cheese has started to melt on the outside. The buttered bread is all crisp and the cheese is hot enough that you have to eat it slowly - and savour it despite wanting to eat it all in five seconds flat.

The Super-Secret Project

Well now, I bet that is something you never thought you would see on my blog! My mother-in-law, Debby, has infinite patience when it comes to me and her sewing machine and didn't mind me sewing in fits and starts until I got used to it again (because in all honesty, I think I have used a sewing machine less times than I can count on one hand since graduating from junior high school).

The finished product? You're going to have to wait until closer to Christmas for that!

...Put Up The Christmas Tree...

What?



It's so nice of you to lay this blanket down for me.



And the tree with all these beautiful dangly things. So pretty - so shiny!



It doesn't stand a chance...

Thursday's Argument

Willow and I were driving home today, listening to the local Christmas music station. "Do They Know It's Christmas" came on, and the conversation went something like this:

Jo: Oh, I love this song - it came out when I was a few years older than you. (cue to me singing)

Willow: (Suspiciously) The beginning of this song doesn't sound like a Christmas song.

Jo: Well, it's a serious song. It's about people starving in Africa.

Willow: (Affronted) Christmas songs aren't about starving people!

Jo: It's a charity song. There was a famine in Africa. A famine is when the crops don't grow and there is no food. A man named Bob Geldof wrote it and lots of famous singers got together to sing on it and it raised money to help the people.

Willow: I still don't think it is Christmas-y.

********************************

It's funny - I started thinking of the video in my head, and thought to myself that the only person that Willow may recognize - maybe - from that group would be Bono - and maybe only when he started singing.

And Onto the Christmas Cookie Baking!

Andrew, Willow, and I headed out to Asami's house today to get started on some Christmas baking and to celebrate her oldest son's 4th birthday. I made all my dough yesterday - I favour slice and bake dough for Christmas cookies because you don't have to do it all at once.

From left - right: Cherry Sugar Cookies, Apricot Cornmeal Sugar Cookies, and Brown Sugar Striped Christmas Cookies:



Close Up of the Cherry Sugar Cookies and Apricot Cornmeal Sugar Cookies:



The apricot cookies were a new one for me, and I changed the recipe I based it on by using almond extract rather than vanilla, and putting a 1/4c of almond meal into the dough. It made for a very fragrant and chewy cookie.

Close up of the Brown Sugar Slice and Bake Cookies:



I think I went a bit overboard with the food colouring on these ones. I used my Wilton's icing dye as that was what I had on hand, but the recipe doesn't specify how much to use. Last night Andrew and Willow ate the little bits I had cut off the ends when I made the layered cookie log (I baked the the ends to get an idea of what they would taste like) - cut to Willow brushing her teeth: "Mom! My tongue is blue!" Now, I had only eaten one small bit and my tongue wasn't all that discoloured. "Andrew! Come here!" He comes upstairs and I demanded he show me his tongue (which I am sure confused the hell out of him). His tongue was bright royal blue! I laughed and told him to go look at himself in the mirror. Don't ask me how - but Christmas red and kelly green dye somehow became royal blue on the tongue.

Ray had the coolest, most icing-laden cake I have seen in a long time - behold - the Dinosaur cake:



Despite a few knocked-together heads and disagreements over who got to play with the ball, a great time was had by all - and I didn't even have time to bake my last batch of cookies. The Ginger Molasses Crinkle Cookies will just have to wait until tomorrow!

Happy Thanksgiving

Yes, those of you from this area know this picture had to be taken last weekend before the eerily Seattle-like weather set in. Andrew and Willow went outside to rake leaves into piles (mind you - they had absolutely no intention of disposing of them) so they could jump into them.

Our Little Scarecrow:



I hope all my American friends and family have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I am thankful for my family, my friends, my health, having a job I love to go to everyday, and having enough yarn to insulate my home. What are you thankful for?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Breakfast Muffins

Looks yummy, doesn't it? I love pumpkin-y things.

Pumpkin Breakfast Muffins

3.5c AP flour
0.5c white sugar
4 tsp baking powder
0.25 tsp salt
1.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 eggs, beaten
0.5c milk
0.5c melted butter
0.5c pumpkin puree

0.25c + 2 tbsp melted butter
0.75c brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375'F

1) Mix together the first 5 dry ingredients
2) Melt butter, then add in milk. Pour into well in dry ingredients.
3) Stir twice, then add in beaten eggs, stir to just combine.
4) Add in pumpkin and mix to just combine, then knead 10 times.
5) Turn onto floured surface, then pat or roll into a 12" by 16" rectangle.
6) Mix last 3 ingredients, then spread onto rectangle.
7) Roll carefully as for jelly roll, then cut into 12 slices.
8) Spray extra-large muffin tins with baking spray, then put one slice into each muffin spot as if a cinnamon roll.
9) Bake for 20 minutes, then check on muffins. Baking time varies from 20 - 25 minutes.

Eat while warm or microwave with a pat of butter on top - so good!

Note - you may need to add some more flour in during the kneading stage. Dough should be pliant and not sticky. Add sparingly or the muffins will turn out heavier than desired.

I'm The Odd One Now Again...

I'm the odd one now again...

Well, odd-number aged, anyway. I used to always like the odd-numbered years better than the even ones, but I have to say - 36 was a pretty good year. If my old belief holds, I can't wait to see what 37 brings!

Remembrance Day

My Auntie Daryth gave me this poppy to wear on Remembrance Day - I think it must be more of a Canadian thing, because I don't see too many people wearing them here - in Canada you would see oceans of them. I grew up every year reciting 'In Flanders Fields' - so here you go:

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
— Lt.-Col. John McCrae (1872 - 1918)

Pretty dramatic stuff for children - but I think the somber view was needed.

No Nonsense November

Yes, I am at it again. I love it when I can find a good alliterative groove for my exercise.

At my Weight Watchers meeting Saturday morning, my leader pointed out that there were only 10 weigh ins left until the end of the year, and compared the trifecta of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas to the Bermuda Triangle. People go into it with all sorts of good intentions, never to be seen again. I've lost nearly 40 pounds this year - and that nearly is so close that I was tempted to throw out a deep exhale and tell them to weight me again. I have already had a few setbacks this summer/fall - two really bad bronchial infections that made it difficult to breathe, much less exercise, and the high-eating habits of my parents' visit (Mom, Dad - I love you, and please come visit whenever you want - but you throw my eating habits some nasty curveballs. Do you know how much cheese I have in my freezer right now?!?!)

So, I decided that I had already used up my free passes for the rest of the year, and I really needed to stick to the Plan and exercise every day. Hey - I am nine days into it now and going strong. I am sure there will be pitfalls - my birthday is this Friday, I am meeting friends for dinner next Tuesday, Thanksgiving is right around the corner... but I can do this. And I am determined to have more than 40 pounds in my pocket when I reach the other side of this Triangle.

Socks in Progress

I'll have to admit I have been slumping through projects ever since I finished my cabled hooded vest. I wore it to work on Friday and had many compliments on it. One of these days I will take some pictures so you can all see what the finished vest looks like.

Since finishing the vest, I started working on Mi Escuelita for Willow in a grape purple superwash merino, and I have these two socks on the needles:



The one on the left is my second attempt at Jaywalkers (rav link) - you may remember the first pair I knit was way too skinny for my cankles and I had to give them to my sister. The pair on the left are a Christmas present for someone (I'm not telling you who - other than it is no one in my family).

Rest In Peace, Caddie

From here:



To here:



I have a broken-hearted little girl tonight. We thought Caddie was rallying, but it wasn't meant to be. All I could tell her was that all dogs go to heaven and can only hope that helps.

Wonder Woman and Company

Willow decided that she wanted to be Wonder Woman this year for Halloween, and her grandmother whipped up a costume for her. Yes, we could have bought a Wonder Woman costume from Target, but I didn't think my 7 year old needed to be prancing around in a bustier just quite yet.

Here she is with her friend Bat Woman (aka Mackenzie). I took plenty of pictures in her classroom, but at some point I gave up on having a photo where everyone is in focus. Seven and eight-year olds just can't stay still for that long!



Wonder Woman taking her mission seriously:



My favourite costume of the parade - Willow tells me that this is her friend, Bella. Her Christmas tree costume is adorable.



Willow on Halloween night:



She has gone back to her old form of closing her eyes for flash photography. I just don't get it. In any case, we had about an hour of trick-or-treating before the deluge began. You can see in that last picture that we were pretty soaked by the time we got home. I was really surprised at how many kids were going through our neighbourhood - we had more kids come to our door before we left for trick-or-treating than we had in the last two years combined!

Small Potatoes

I'm not kidding - this post really is about small potatoes.

I had to work late tonight, so Willow and I stopped in at Trader Joe's to look for something quick for dinner, and we found these mini potatoes. How mini?



Um, does the fact that I could put 4 of them in my handy-dandy shot glass tell you anything?! I wasn't sure how long to cook them for - so I put them in a pot, poured in enough water to cover the potaoes and then some and salted it - and let them cook on a high boil for 15 minutes.

I squished them with a fork, put a little butter and some garlic and salt - and they were so yummy! I was a little afraid the skins would be bitter, but they weren't in the slightest.



(The rest of the quick dinner? Broccoli and cauliflower (I had eaten the cauliflower before I thought to take the picture), foccacia (meh.), and breaded fish fillets with mango salsa.)

Stitches East Recap

Trust me folks, this was the extent of our sightseeing in Hartford, CT.

When I first heard that Stitches East was moving from Baltimore to Hartford I was quite excited. It was a little more difficult and longer to get to, but I had never been north of Manhattan before and being a history buff, was really eager to go into New England. My friends and I book Amtrak tickets back in March, reserved a hotel room in the Marriott connected to the convention center where Stitches was being held, and we were on our way.

This was my first long distance train journey since living in Japan where train travel was part of my daily life. Maybe I should just say upfront that it was a good thing that I brought a 800 page book with me. Our 5 hour train trip took closer to 7 hours due to electrical problems - but I was okay. We arrived in Hartford just before 11pm, caught a taxi back to the hotel, and I was amazed at how clean and pretty the city looked. We passed the State House and some other historic buildings and I was eager to get out and explore the next day. The Downtown Hartford Marriot is a gorgeous hotel, by the way. It has a golden yellow theme throughout and is very striking.

The Stitches Market was fabulous as well - I had no problem spending money. There were a few vendors I missed seeing - Carodan Farms, Uncommon Threads, Rosies Yarn Cellar, Brooks Farm Yarns, Maple Creek Farms - none of which were at Stitches East -but there were some other New England-based vendors I had never seen before. Here's what I bought:

Farmhouse Yarn's Fannie's Fingering Weight in Aruba:



Handpaints by Artsygal:



Doodlebirds Creations in Watermelon Whee:



Creatively Dyed Yarns in Cadiz:



Great Adirondack Yarn Company Soxie in Blueberry:



Valley Yarns Valley Superwash DK in a grape-y purple to make Willow a Mi Escuelita cardigan:



This should keep me busy for a little bit!

The burblings of trouble started when I was took a break from the constant walking and sat at one of the cafe tables. One of the women who sat at the table said that she was unable to get reservations at the hotel restaurant because the hotel was booked solid. No problem - we'll go elsewhere to eat. But then we started hearing problems about Hartford's escalating gang problem and how it wasn't safe for people to be milling about the city.

Jeez - how bad could it be? The concierge advised us to not even walk the two blocks to the Arch Tavern. One of the local Hartford vendors told us that when he travels into Hartford on the weekend, he carries a pistol with him. My friend Denise had something irritating her eye and wanted to go to CVS to get some eye wash and was told it wasn't possible - that CVS closes at 3:30pm on Saturday and doesn't open again until Monday morning. Omigod - this is not a great location for a conference that is 95% women! Yes, there is strength in numbers and all that, but was this even taken into consideration when Hartford was chosen as the next location? We had a laugh on our taxi back to the Amtrak station the next day - 1:30pm and the McDonald's, Dunkin Donuts, and other restaurants we passed were all closed! (Thankfully the Subway in the train station was open so I could get a sandwich for the trip home!)

So, we stayed in the confines of the hotel the entire weekend. We weren't the only ones, either - we saw plenty of people ordering pizza and Chinese and eating it at the hotel and not venturing out. We had fun - my friends are great company, the hotel was beautiful, I had lots of yarn to fondle - but my friends and I have decided we are not coming back to Stitches East next year. We will go to another festival - perhaps SAFF or Rhinebeck.

Nigh-Finished!

The knitting is finished! I gave the hoodie a bath in Soak, found out she was too big to spin out in my salad spinner so I had to squeeze her dry by hand, and she is all pinned out:



It's not as huge as it looks - I took the picture at a bad angle. I made the largest size - 48" chest so it would give me about 4" of ease - I didn't want this snug at all. I also lopped about 3 inches off the length because I am terribly short-waisted.

Here are the buttons I bought for the hoodie:



I knew I wanted metal buttons, and these bronze ones are perfect! The wool (Northampton from WEBS - bought at last year's Stitches East) has the odd yellow fleck in it, so silver was out of the running. I also like the celtic knotwork look of it - it goes well with the cables.

Lucky was very interested through the entire process:



"You know I am going to sleep on this at some point before it is dry, don't you?"

Saturday Wrap-Up

Sorry for the long delay! When you have four adults who all use computers heavily in one house, and only one computer to go around...

Mom and Dad flew back to Canada today and we will miss them terribly - especially Willow. It hasn't started yet, but I suspect the waterworks are going to open up right before bedtime. We had a wonderful time while they were here - for the most part the weather cooperated, and Mom and Dad did a lot of independent exploring while Andrew and I were at work.

Last weekend we drove down to Rehoboth Beach so Mom and Dad could see the Atlantic Ocean:



Dad can now say he has been on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean (England and Delaware) and Pacific Ocean (Vancouver Island and Japan). The weather was pretty nice - it was cloudy and windy, but about 78'F. Check out this sky:



Luckily, the heavy rain managed to hold off until we were on our way home. There was a greyhound adoption conference going on while we were down there, and there were gazillions of greyhounds about. Rehoboth is normally a very dog-friendly place, but there were so many greyhounds around that it became odd to see a terrier or pug walk down the street!

Willow lost another tooth - the day after her first one came out:



(and another one came out this afternoon - the Tooth Fairy is going to have to take out a loan if this keeps up at this pace!)

I even managed to finish some stuff while they were here - the Cucumber Socks:



I loooove these socks, and they fit me perfectly. I will be washing these socks this week and bringing them with me to Stitches next weekend. I have almost finished my hoodie vest for the trip as well - all that I have left is the button band and we are good to go. Pictures soon!

Willow Lost Her First Tooth!

My baby hit a milestone - one a long time in coming.



And a close up of her snaggle-toothed glory:



I think that second tooth is coming out tonight!

All Good Days End With Knitting

My parents are visiting right now, so I took the day off work to do some touristy things in Philadelphia with them. Despite the fact that we have lived close to Philadelphia for close to 9 years now, I have done very little exploration of the city - so I was looking forward to this.



We took the train to Suburban Station, got out, and walked around Philadelphia City Hall and headed down to the Reading Terminal Market to have lunch. My Dad loves markets, so this was a great place for him. If you are ever in Philly, you can get about any food imaginable there.

After lunch we walked down to Independence Hall, where we saw this beautiful murals:



It's hard to give you the scope of that picture - the building was about 6 stories high. The building next to it had this great trompe-l'oeil facade:



And in the same lot, there was this third, very life-like mural:



There are murals like this all over the city - it reminds me a bit of Chemainus, a town on Vancouver Island.

After walking around Independence Hall, we went to the Liberty Bell Center (which, for those of you who don't know, it is free to go to both Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell Center). Here's a picture of Dad, me, and Mom in front of the bell - I am always in awe at the small size of the Liberty Bell.



We saw the famous Love statue:



I turned around from the Love statue and saw a woman in a box knitting with the biggest knitting needles I had ever seen!



I went over and teasingly asked her if she was knitting with size 90 needles - and she replied that they were size 50mm. I didn't ask her how much the needles weighed, but I am sure it was tiring on her arms after a while. If you closer, you can see that she is knitting with roving (which was very soft, by the way) and she had knit the ottoman beside her. Her name is Eugenie Perret, and she and her partner Candy Depew were part of an art installation called The Welcome House, where a different artist does something in the box every day from 10/4 to 10/13. I just lucked out to walk by on the day there was knitting in the box!