The Mantel

Hanging from the mantel are red, hot peppers...

...and lavender with the last roses of summer.

Yarn Therapy

Candy Stripe Beets

Blocking

My to-do bag of unfinished handwork projects has been growing larger and larger over the last two years. While knitting has been just the thing for low energy levels, blocking (steaming to flatten and define the pattern) has not. Now at last I have had some perfect blocking days.

Among the stash in my bottomless bag were samples of patterns I designed. They will make happy bulletin board décor someday, I think.

Lace. Yes, I went a little crazy with it. Someday I will edge nine pillowcases with lace.

This scarf was one of my challenge projects.

Baby fern lace. I actually knit up this swatch several years ago. Until that point my most difficult knit projects had been dishcloths. This was my second, laborious piece of lace. My first even more laborious piece was torn out. These two pieces were my crash course in more complex patterns. Well worth the effort.

I crocheted this piece eleven years ago. The pattern was for a table runner two to three times wider, but I ran out of thread and interest/time. I'm sure it will come in handy somehow.

P.S. Stay tuned for wedding pictures... once we recover!

Remembering Grandma

I remember the nights that Mom sat on my sisters' and my beds and told stories. They often centered around life in her young years. Grandma frequently came up in those stories. Like how Grandma's cat sat on her shoulders while she worked and wore out her sleeves. (That one predated Mom.) And how Grandma led Mom and her sister in making fresh bouquets from the garden every summer Saturday.

Cats and flowers. They continued to be a part of Grandma's life into my memory making days as well. Hannah's May birthday was highlighted with an evening party with grandparents. Kittens somehow always made their way indoors those nights, and Grandma was a very willing victim of tiny claws and high-pitched meows. Then there were Grandma's bouquets. All summer long we could be sure of finding a bouquet of fresh flowers on Grandma's kitchen table. Sweet peas in a short, brown vase. Roses from Grandpa's carefully tended beds in a vase or round rose bowl. Grandma enjoyed God's creation and had a way of helping others enjoy it with her.

Now a new memory of Grandma is added to my mind. Grandma is with Jesus, where I know she is enjoying and glorifying Him. Much like she did on earth.

Maren's Bridal Shower #5 (and the last)

More dear relatives.

Maren's Bridal Shower #4

Special relatives.

Our cousin led a sweet devotional.



Love and presents. So blessed!

New Cement Party

Dad's shed-in-progess has new cement perfect for a bicycling party. And so Dad organized one.

The Lord Establishes His Steps

"'The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps' (Prob. 16:9). It's okay to have a ten-year plan, but there's nearly a 100 percent chance God will interrupt it."

Erin Davis, 35 Things I Wish I'd Know In High School

Fall Bouquet

Goodbye

 

"But we do not want you to be uninformed... that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope."

I Thessalonians 4:13

 

"The term is over: the holidays have begun. The dream is ended: this is the morning."

C.S. Lewis, The Last Battle, 1956

 

Goodbye for now, dear Grandma.

Maren's Bridal Shower #3

Jason's sister spent the day on the road and made it to the shower. So special!

Lots of good food, of course.

Gulliver and Her Tree Frog