A sunshiny day!

 A beautiful day, today. The sun has been shining, and I was not late to take advantage of that. And I just have to stop when I pass by my wild rose. I love rose-hips. Love the color, the red against the green. Lovely! There is so much to enjoy in the nature. I had a little break, sitting down on the porch. I watched a robin jumping around this very bush, showing off his beautiful colors too. And the sparrows, taking a splashing bath in a puddle. :)

But this is what I've been up to mostly. Planting my flowers in the new flower bed. I won't show you more than this, since it looks rather messy right now. :-S They are not all very green anymore, and all the leaves falling off the trees doesn't make the impression much better... Hopefully the result will be stunning (or at least green and filled with happy flowers) next year, and I'll show it then.

I thought the weather would be rainy and dull, so I was planning to sit in my armchair, knitting all day. I made one row, before I went outside... And do you know? I have already too few project bags... :-/ How long did I manage to keep things tidy?

This project warms my heart. My girl started using her scarf, the never-ending one. :) Her friend at school liked and wanted one. "Mum, can you knit one for her?" Yesterday she gave me a note where this little girl had written what colors she wanted. :) So I just had to start knitting. I was really planning to make a hat or mittens, but I'm not that surprised I ended up doing something else.

I got a few questions about my apples in my last post. No, they are not good for much. :) They are not the kind you just pick and eat. But as jam, in a pie or as juice they are delicious! You just have to pick them when they're ready and not wait too long (which is what I did this year). Last time I harvested (it only gives fruit every other year now for some reason) I made jam and put in the freezer. Then I gave it all to my mum, since nobody here was very keen on eating it all. I might have made just a little too much... :) And, as I did this year, I cut some into pieces ready for a pie or whatever. Wish I could have saved more apples, but it hurts so bad in my shoulders when I sit peeling and cutting them. So I am happy I got at least a few bags done. You don't see this kind very often, since they get overripe so fast the stores tend to avoid them. But when people around here were more into making jam, all the women from our little village came to this house and picked those apples. Because there was no tastier jam!

Now, my friends, I'll pull myself in the hair to get upstairs and maybe knit a few rows. Think I might have used my poor muscles a little too much today...  But I love being able to! Enjoy all the things you are able to do, and don't take life and health for granted. It's a precious gift!

What to do and what to write

Hi there, remember me? I'm the one writing here, occasionally... Wow, it really goes a long time between my posts now. Too long. I can't blame it all on the fact that I'm working now, since I mostly work only one day a week... But it is a fact that I haven't been creating much lately. I think that is changing now, I do have a lot going on. And normally when I have a "down" period on crochet and knitting during the summer, I do a lot of berry picking, making jam and that kind of thing. But I haven't at all this year. All the berries I picked was my (huge) wild strawberries from the garden, and they were never more than a handful. So I guess I've had a hard time finding something to write about. House cleaning and tidying up messy storage rooms isn't very inspiring to write about... But let's not dwell in the past. I'm here now, and I hope to show up more often.

If I didn't pick berries, I did pick our apples. Unfortunately a little late, since they were all on the ground... :/ I have done some investigation on the web today and I do believe our apple-tree to be a Transparente Blanche. Makes a delicious jam, but they get ugly as soon as you touch it (very sensitive) and they rot fast. So I guess I will have to throw most of these away. But I managed to get a few bags into the freezer, for future apple pies. 

I also picked these yesterday. The nights are getting cold now, too cold for these guys anyway. I hope at least some will turn red. If they are supposed to, I think one kind is green stripy... I got a few plants from a friend and didn't think I would get any tomatoes at all, since I don't have a greenhouse and live in a windy spot. So I'm happy either way. :) I think I'll try again next year, and try to take better care of them.

Inspiring, don't you think? It is! My neighbor has called me over twice, to get flowers that she didn't have room for anymore. Three (!!!) wheelbarrows full! So we had to dig a new flowerbed. In fact, we enlarged one that was so filled with weed that we had to do something about it anyway. My husband is amazing, not very interested in gardening himself, he dug and dug and dug... Heavy clay mud in pouring rain! That's love! Yesterday I started planting. Didn't take any pictures, since it was pretty dark when I was done. I was planning to continue today, but the weather isn't really the best...

Now, I read a comment on facebook today, about knitting mittens. Mixing wool and mohair, that really got me inspired. Have to go dig through my stash and see what I can find! Hope to be back soon (and I mean it!), probably with something containing yarn... See you all!

My blanket-cardigan :)

I have taken some pictures for you today. Not the best ones mankind has ever seen, but at least you get a decent understanding for what I'm trying to show you. I hope! ;) I find it terribly hard to take my own picture.

My blanket-cardigan (cape sounds too... fashionable?) is really one big piece of fabric, somewhat like a blanket in size. I cut it in half, only not all the way through. I stopped a little bit after the middle of it. Then I sat blanket stitching all day...

How to wear it is truly simple. Drape it over your back, with your head in the cut and the cut pieces over your arms.

Like this. Dead simple!

This is probably how I will use mine, just throw it over my shoulders before stepping outside. The fabric is wooly, which is really all I can tell you about it. No, that's not true. I can tell you it's itchy too! :) I bought it cheap in a second-hand shop years ago, and I don't know a lot about different kinds of fabrics. But it doesn't weigh a lot, and I like that. 

If I want to drape it, it's easy to just throw one of the side pieces over the shoulder. And maybe use a pin or a brooch to keep it there.

I already had a few crochet flowers hiding in a corner, so I didn't have to make something new.

Good to have options, right? To go with the mood of the day!

But I think I prefer to have it hang loose, wrapping it around me easily. I love the idea of this "cardigan", since it will fit me just as well if I wear another cardigan (or even a coat) underneath, or just a t-shirt. It won't feel tight anywhere! :) Perfect on a cloudy day like this, in late summer.

Pretty comfy, even if my girl thought it was too itchy to wear. :) But then I get to keep it for myself! I don't mind a little itching. 

I had a walk around the garden, trying to find a decent background or a good place to put the camera. Didn't find too much of either. But I did find this little one. Did you know you can it them? At least as long as they are firm and white (no yellow inside!). Slice them thin and fry them, and you'll find they taste like pancakes! My daughter doesn't usually eat mushrooms, but she loved this one.

We still have a lot of wild strawberries, big ones. I eat a bunch every day, would hate to see them rot away. Wouldn't eat this one though... Someone else beat me to it!

And finally, a glimpse of the latest project. I have some chunky knitting going on, but as usual I seem to have too little yarn for the project I planned. :( I must be overly optimistic, or why is this happening to me all the time? Hopefully I can work it out somehow, I will keep you posted. 

Happiness

The sun is setting, and I take a walk in our garden. We have been busy gardening, painting our garden furniture, shopping plants and... well, we've been busy! :) But busy in a good way, because we want to do all this for ourselves. We love to be in our garden, and I think both me and my husband has a special thing for our kitchen garden. All the plants of course, inviting us to make something tasty. But also cooking outdoors. Today, my husband made the "kitchen" in the left, from an old sink. There we can prepare food or work with our plants...

But I'm sad to say we have to spend much time indoors, because of the mosquitoes. An aggressive kind has invaded the area around the bird lake we live close too, making it impossible to stay outside. Some days are worse than others, but today we managed to stay outside. Lots of mosquito repellent and some candles they don't like the smell of helped a lot. This is where I spent most of the day, tired because of an upset belly. I hate all the trouble and pain it's causing me (it happens quite frequently), but the overall feeling today was happiness. I love our garden, that we put so much work into lately. I love how the furniture turned out after a much needed paint, and with new pads. I love the view from our backyard, watching the farmers bringing in the hay. I love seeing my husband so enthusiastic over his projects. Happy!

We had my parents over for a few days, spending time together. Lovely! I truly enjoy sharing my gardening enthusiasm with my mum. And I also want to share my little miracle. I don't know much about hollyhocks. But I do know that the plant I received from my husband years ago had the same color as the closest flower below. That's just one plant, that has spread along the wall of our shed. And now, I have flowers in three different colors! The two in the picture and a lighter pink. Isn't that strange? The dark pink one even has a different shape than the other two. But I'm happy, I really wanted hollyhocks in more colors than just one, and now I do!

 Oh, and not only the grown-ups are filling their days with outdoor projects. The kids have opened a flee market in our (not in use) outdoor toilet. :) And when dad made an outdoor kitchen, the son thought we should really use the waste water for something. So he made water cleansers, so that he and his sister can filter that waste and use it when they play, instead of spending clean water for playing around with. :) Environmentally educated kids these days!

I hope you all are having a lovely time, and that you are all able to enjoy your own beautiful surroundings. We are having some warm, sunny days after a pretty cold and rainy summer, so we are enjoying it all very much. Now, I'm wanted elsewhere... Take care!

Herbs

Just a quick hello before my daughter returns and claims the computer. I sat down here as they were getting the mail from the box, and obviously she was in the middle of a game...

Last week, we spent in the caravan on the west coast. Pretty good weather, some swimming and playing on the beach, and then a weekend festival, filled with music and fun. We had a great week! Oh, and I did some more crochet, that I haven't showed you yet. It will turn up here, I promise.

Today, I have been taking care of some herbs that I dried before we left. I love the idea of growing my own food, I love harvesting, and I love to put the stuff in jars and make labels. Only thing I need to get better at is actually using my herbs and vegetables! :)

Well, I think I better leave now, before somebody gets upset! See ya!

Lilac

I've been picking lilacs today. To make cordial (saft). My arms are that tired again, after a period when I've felt strong and full of energy. So right now I have a break, between brushing the lemons and cesting them. Or what ever you call it... Using that knuckle buster on them! :)
It's always tough to go from "healthy" to aching and sooo tired, in just a few days. This cordial making is an attempt to cheer myself up. Hope it works!
By the way, if you still have lilacs you should really try my cordial, I wrote it down on the blog last year, think the post is called Shirt dress and lilacs. Bye then!

Beloved garden

How I love my garden! Not that it's perfect in any sense, not even close. It's full of weeds, the grass is high, and I would have to change a lot to make it the garden of my dreams. But I love the fact that I do have a garden. To sit in, to stroll around in, and actually to work in. It's good for my soul. I brought the camera, since I like how the world suddenly is filled with little wonders when I look for things to snap a picture of. Like these tulips. I don't think I would have noticed that peculiar shape if I hadn't taken this picture. Adorable! (Please ignore the nettle in the background, I do. I'll remove it from the flower bed another day. Maybe.)

And the apple blossoms, aren't they just beautiful?! 

I spent most of my time outdoors in the spicy part of my kitchen, you know, with the mint, the oregano, sage and lavender. They were waiting for me to re-arrange them a little bit and today I finally had it done. And then I added some seeds to the kitchen garden, and planted some flowers... And sat in the hammock with the kids, having cinnamon buns and muffins. Walking around with bare feet, that are now brown from stepping on some of the dandelions covering the lawn. What a lovely day!

Date night, birthday, spring and mint!

I have so much to talk about this time, I really don't know where to start. OK, let's start with last Friday. My husband and I left the kids behind (but well taken care of, of course) and went to Jönköping, a city an hour and a half from here. We haven't been away like that for ages, just the two of us, so we really enjoyed it. We love going places together, since we love sitting in the car talking. About absolutely everything and anything. Quality time, I say! And with no kids interrupting from the back seat, the drive went really fast! The reason for the trip was a concert, Steven Curtis Chapman visiting Sweden for the first time ever, and also some Swedish artist that we both like. A wonderful night! And I even managed to stay awake the whole way home. :)

Next day, we went to Jönköping again, this time to visit my sister who recently turned a year older and wiser. :) Now you can never guess her age, right? ;) I just love spending time with my family, and especially with my nephews. They grow so fast! But I have to admit I kept falling asleep all the time on our way home. At ten o'clock, why is that?

Sunday was all about church and garden time. The kids were playing around in the beautiful weather and I was tidying up the garden after the winter, as always a little late... But at least it's done now. And we had a lovely barbecue in the evening, enjoying the sunshine. Lovely!

Yesterday was a busy day. First of all, I went to work. Yes, that's right. No more sitting at home every day. Some friends have a funeral home, and they need some extra help when it's busy. As always, the head was spinning after the first day. All new impressions and all new things to learn... But I hope it will all settle and turn out quite well.

In the evening (after a rest under a warm blanket), we went to celebrate the arrival of spring with a huge bonfire by the lake, the traditional songs and speeches and everything. (At least a Swedish tradition the last of April.)

Today, we were all at home. The kids were pretty tired after a late night (or several, actually) and chose to take it easy. Reading, playing around, sitting in a chair in the garden... The husband and I, on the other hand, have been working. Digging up plants, making a bigger flower bed, putting plants in the new flower bed, lawn mowing...

Well, my husband made all the hard work. Except digging up the mint that was escaping their due place and had to be taken care of. That was hard work, I tell you! Those roots... Aaargh! They could make anyone crazy!

Came bedtime for a tired girl, and I sit by the window. Watching the husband still working outside, watching my potted plants thriving from all attention I've been giving them. Growing, flowering...

Tomorrow is a new day, and I'm working a few hours. So it won't be a late night for me... I need my rest. Hopefully I'll be able to use my aching shoulders tomorrow... that mint! But I enjoyed it, at least most of it. Gardening is good for the soul. And best of all, I was strong enough in hands and arms to do it! Yay!!! :)

Much better

I'm quite happy today. I'm stiff and sore, but it's because I did something yesterday. And that kind of pain is a lot easier to bear! I felt a little better yesterday, so I did some sewing. It worked fine, so I ran to get some yarn and a hook...

...and got started on a little shawl in love knots! Yay! I probably should finish some of my projects instead, but my little girl had asked me so kindly if I could make her some more shawls. She has one in purple, but it doesn't go with all her outfits so she thought she needed some in different colors. And I am so happy to be able to work a little bit on this one.

But the thing that really made my day was probably this. My garden, how I love it! It always makes me feel so much better. Just walking around, checking what is new and what is growing. It gives me such a feeling of well-being. 

Soon, really soon, I'll be able to make some nettle soup. I love to, both since it's tasty and healthy, but mostly because my son loves it. And he doesn't like vegetables or anything green, so I'm thrilled that he actually is looking forward to this soup. :)

Ah, I love these little beauties! I wish they would spread out faster. I just love those old gardens that turn all blue in spring, with the lawn filled with them. Lovely!

This isn't that lovely, though. I guess that roe deer came back when I didn't see her and had a good meal. I'm not too upset, since this is actually the first time they've eaten my tulips since we moved here seven years ago. Just hope they don't get at taste for it now... 

Well, what can I say? A little needlework and a stroll in the garden really lifted my spirits. I'm happy. And that gives me strength to keep going a little longer, even though it still hurts a bit. Today is laundry day, but I also hope to be able to plant the pansies that are waiting on the porch. It's hard not to do too much, once I have a better day... But I'll try not to overdo it. :)

A little bored

I admit it. I'm getting bored. I miss knitting and crocheting now, so I'm trying to start again, slowly... Two rows of knitting and a little crochet on Saturday, four rows of knitting today. I long to finish this bolero, and it's not really much left to do. Maybe six more rounds before binding off, and then a little ribbing for the arms. I hope I can take it slowly enough, not upsetting any joints or nerves or what ever has been wrong with my arms lately.

 I know exactly when I stopped being bored today. It was as soon as I saw this beauty in the corner of my garden. Investigating the compost, moving slowly along the border between lawn and field. Passing just a few meters from my kitchen window. Grazing a little, then climbing up the earth cellar and walking out of sight.

Who can watch that, and then go back to being grumpy? Well, not me anyway. I sat in my sunny window upstairs, trying to get a second look. Then got started on the laundry, of all things! :)

There's a chance I'll get bored again though, so I think I'll look up the possibilities of making some clothing for my kid from t-shirts or something like that. My creative nerve is forcing me to do something!

Spring is in the air!

The sun is shining, and as soon as I woke up today I could hear the birds outside the window. Lovely!

I like our house, but what I really miss is some kind of outdoor place with a real floor and sheltered from the wind. We have a porch at the front door, but it's facing north which makes it a pretty dark and cold place to be. Summertime is fine, the lawn is more than good enough. At least when the sun is shining... But a place to go when it's a little too cool to sit outside, or when it's windy. Which it is most of the time here.

So yesterday, when the sun was shining and the tree tops weren't moving at all, I made a quick decision that we would make supper outside. Didn't find any "real" outdoor food to be prepared in a rush, so I decided on fish soup on our little kerosene stove.

The kids love outdoor cooking, so they helped me with the preparations. Although one of them hardly tasted the soup, since I had put some "vegetables" in there. Carrots and parsnip...

The other one loved the soup, and asked when we could eat outside again. Soon? Maybe on Thursday? :)

Even if the soup wasn't acceptable to all, at least we had a wonderful time out in the fresh air together. I have to do this more often!

Tired but happy

It's been a busy weekend. My sister and nephews live an hour and a half away from us, and sometimes they visit us for a few days. They left just a couple of hours ago, and it's rather quiet here now. It wasn't before, and I already miss them! :) But I need some rest now, I'm actually awfully tired.

We went to our kids' school for some winter play (twice), and I'm not used to all that action and fresh air I guess. 

But it's not all action when they're visiting. They also love to stroll around in our garden, sit down and read together or just cuddle for a while. I love it!

My kids love to spend some time with their cousins. By the way, can you tell her mum loves to make her stuff? ;)

I have a lovely photo of my son too, in his new scarf I haven't even mentioned to you. Shame on me! But he's getting all grown up about certain things now, so I'll have to ask his permission to show pictures of him online. Not more than fair, so I'll ask him if he'll let me show you. I made her (another) one too, but I don't have a picture of it yet.

I think I've mentioned making fingerless mitts for the oldest, and that the two little ones wanted me to make them a pair each. Well, last night I finished them, and I can tell you they were appreciated! That surely warms auntie's heart! You will see them again shortly, since I'm planning to share the pattern.

I've been working on that potholder too as you can see. It takes some time to make them since you should use thin yarn to create the right effect, but I enjoy working on them. The color is completely off here, they're really blue. I'll get that right next time, OK?

Quite a week

Sometimes time moves very fast, and this week really disappeared in a hurry. Maybe because it's been more busy than I'm used to.

It started off great - my husband was invited on a cruise by an association where he works extra as an instructor in CPR, helping kids to know what to do if they get lost in the woods, avoiding accidents in your own home and stuff like that. It was all for free, and I was also invited! So we took the train to the capital on Sunday, almost didn't board since we were missing on the passenger list, but finally took off for an overnight cruise to Åland. Nice dinner, very interesting people and I also got to meet some of his friends from far away parts of our country.

(This is where I meant to show you a picture from the cruise, but all the pictures are on my phone and won't bother to go get it...)

We had a very nice time, even though my husband came down with a fever... He's the one who always remains standing when the rest of the family is coming down with something, but he even had to stay at home for a few days. I think a few bugs jumped over to me too, 'cause I've been really tired, cold and a little dizzy this week. Actually I was so cold, I almost scared my love half to death one night, by accidentally touching him with a foot as cold as ice. He was asleep, but sat up in terror trying to find that creepy, cold thing in his bed... :-S Ooops! :) Poor guy!

I brought a lot of yarn, since we had to spend some time on the train (and I honestly thought I would be sitting in a corner on the boat while my husband talked to his friends about things I wasn't too interested in), but the time was spent talking, solving nonograms (those Japanese crosswords that create images) and I simply had too much fun on the boat to even think about knitting. This little piece is all I made, waiting for the train on the way home.

This is how I spent the morning after the cruise. Birdwatching. That pole has a bird feeder on it, in the shape of a red cottage. But most birds look for food on the ground. Especially two kinds, the European goldfinch and the yellowhammer. I have also tree sparrow, blue tit and great tit, nuthatch and sometimes the blackbird passes by to get some apple. Occasionally the woodpecker pays a visit, and I have a few willow tits I think... And of course the magpie takes a walk around the place, scaring the little ones away. What birds do you see around your feeders? I miss the bullfinch though, always saw a lot of them in the woods where I grew up, but I have only seen them here on the fields once.

And look here, I'm on it again. Snöstorp. Hopefully I'm on the right track this time. I have to get going a little further to see how much it stretches out, but it looks promising. Last time I tried I used 9 mm needles, and I thought I would need at least 12 mm to make a difference but I was wrong.

That 1 mm made a big difference, this piece isn't that dense as my last try. And I think I will need less yarn too, so I might have enough.

Oh, speaking of yarn, I almost forgot. Wednesday, I was invited by my aunt to a yarn inspiration night at GarnMalin, that lovely yarn shop not far from here. She had invited a few friends, and we could just walk around with the shop all to ourselves, trying out yarns and ideas, test knitting and talking. I loved every minute of it! The lady who owns the store is such a sweet thing, so kind, caring and positive. She loves to share her patterns and ideas, and she is very encouraging. Yes, we had a great night with a lot of laughter and knitting.

Well folks, I think I have done enough writing for one day here... trying to keep you updated. :) Let's hope I have some progress to show on the Snöstorp next time!