I'm trying to be productive

 Well, yesterday it rained. So much for being productive this week.  I know, it's still early, but the rain put a cramp in my plans.  Tomorrow it's supposed to rain. Blerg!

Yesterday afternoon I had to drive one of our vehicles in to the mechanic. Expensive and necessary, unfortunately. 

I was able to pull out my passenger princess sock and do a bit of knitting while I waited. 

This morning, before punching in for work, I was outside picking up the yard and spent a wee bit of time out in the garden. 

The garden gate was ajar. Really odd since we can hook it closed.  I figured someone may have accidentally left it open.  No biggie, really.  Any other year, or earlier in the season I might not feel this way, but this time I wasn't too upset.  I discovered the hook just needed a bit of adjustment.

We had a visitor. 

The visitor knocked down a few tomatoes and nosed around in the onions and carrots, but nothing else looks touched, except for my green bean vines. 

I went around and picked a few things that were ready. 

Not a lot this go round.  A bunch of it is already eaten. 

Homegrown tomatoes and cucumbers ... Yum. Nothing compares. 

Back on Monday, after I posted my blog entry, I was working on my second porcupine cross stitch. 

I tried a few DMC color combinations and I wasn't happy with them. So I ripped one out and tried another. I decided I wasn't happy with that one either. I decided to put it away, after making a post over on social media and in the Lindy Stitches FB group. 

A friend suggested a color. At first I thought I would like it. 

Then I stitched up the wee face. 

No.  I felt this didn't work either. So rippity, rip, rip, I went. ... 

I thought about it for a moment and decided that the face really needed higher contrast from the body.  If that's the right word. It's getting late and I'm a wee bit tired. 

Oh, last night I also made up my quilted Christmas cross stitch in to little pillows.  I was mildly white knuckling it, especially the round one.  I've finished a few cross stitches in to pillows before. There is something about cutting into the fabric when you've spent so many hours stitching it up. 

I'll share the finished pieces on my next video.

Project Name: Quilted Christmas

Started: Late November 15, 2023

Finished: Aug. 22, 2024

Designer/Source: Emily Call

Fabric: Charles Craft 18 count Aida cloth

DMC in called for Colors: DMC Blanc, 168, 469, 3712, 3045, 816, 310

Weekend happenings

 Right now I think I'm *way* more exciting during the weekend. 

If you can call cleaning a car exciting. 

At least once a year I clean my hubby's vehicle. It's either a birthday gift or Father's Day gift to him. 

It usually doesn't last too long, given the line of work he's in.  But, for at least a few days, he can ride in a clean, sawdust-free car. 

That's what I spent Saturday afternoon doing.  By the time I was done, I was tired and was glistening just a wee bit. 

Then I was able to come in to the house to a tasty supper: smoked ribs.  Yum! 

We haven't had ribs in forever so this was a treat!

Bet you can't guess what I did after that. 

If you guessed that I settled into my chair and crossed stitched for most of the evening, you'd be correct. 

Other "fun" things on Saturday included working on my Princess Passenger sock while we went to town and picked up supplies for the week.

I also went out to the garden and heard all the bees buzzing while I pondered what plants and weeds to rip out. I ended up ripping out very few.  The bees seem to really enjoy the violas, so I left most of them, despite them looking a bit ratty. 

We also looked for a "new" spot to set up for hunting. We are going back to the beginning, so to speak, and put the game cam out where we used to hunt, to see if any critters were still traveling through. 

I was also entertained by the hummingbirds and the young hens.  A few of the "babies" of the flock figured out how to get on top of the open air coop and they were hanging out up there. 

Oh yeah, I made a batch of "Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup," which turned out really good.

Sunday the weather switched and it was humid out.  We checked the game cam and saw critters moving through so we spent a few hours out in the back 20 setting up a blind.  

By the time we were pretty much done with the set up, I was done with the day. Temps were in the upper 80s and so flipping humid.  I was going in slow motion, and felt itchy, moist and uncomfortable. We sweat off the bug spray and the mosquitoes found us irresistible. 

I may have been a wee bit cranky, too. 

After going in the house and cooling off in the air conditioning it was decided to stay in for the rest of the day. 

 Sunday afternoon I finished off a bobbin I was spinning and had a ply party. 

I'm not bothering to count yardage yet.  

When I have a decent amount plied up I'll give it all a soak and start counting yardage.  Plying took longer than I thought it would. 

Then, while watching "Columbo" with my man, I worked on the "One Piece" cross stitch. 

Over 300 stitches. 

Monday morning started off with a mild bang. My husband was taking the truck to work and the battery was dead ... stupid battery. 

It was moist out again. The grass was soaking wet and the air was like you were walking through a mist. 

There was a frog hanging out on my window this morning.  Fun! 

Work was kind of chaotic and made worse by all the alerts and notifications I was getting via emails, texts and such.  I ended up putting everything on silent for an hour. Then I was stressing because I couldn't find an article I thought I had laid out on a page last week. ... Turns out I hadn't. Ugh ...  It felt like such a Monday. 

I was pretty happy to punch out at the end of the day. 

My son *begged* for a specific soup to be made. He's feeling poorly and I guess only mom's hamburger soup will heal all that ails. 

For "real" supper, though, I smoked pork chops. 

Ooo, they turned out good.  There are no leftovers. 

It has the makings of being a busy week. Tonite there is chance of thunderstorms going through.  This doesn't surprise me because it's SO miserable outside. I feel really bad for the hens. They are panting and looking miserable. I made sure they had plenty of water and their favorite spot to be when it's hot out is under the deck. They appear to me moving slow today, too. When I saw the rooster coming out of the woods with one of the hens I realized I haven't had any good chicken stories.  Pity.  I haven't been outside enough.  Cause, you know, the weather this summer. 

Next weekend is Labor Day weekend.  Where did the summer go? I feel like I say that almost every year now. I'm looking forward to the long weekend.  And then, just maybe, the weather will behave until the snow flies. I have accepted the change in the seasons now, even though we are having season-appropriate weather. 

Feeling the cozy

 I was having a quick conversation with one of my coworkers today.  We both agreed that it's really feeling like fall out there. This morning I heard the wind blow through the leaves. I thought how in a few weeks the leaves will be starting to change colors and there will be that certain smell in the air because of it.  We also agreed that the weather is starting to feel like soup weather.  Mmmm, soup. I shared this recipe with her, for Autumn harvest soup. 

The weather has been out of the norm this year. I thought we were going to have an early spring and summer, based on the warm temps.  Now it feels like autumn is going to be next week. 

This week has been quiet-ish.  I've appreciated it.  This "Autumn-is-just-around-the-corner" feeling has got me thinking of late September and October, and what things need to be done.  

And hunting. 

This evening I saw a small-ish buck in the side yard.  I couldn't speak for a moment and I know my jaw dropped.  Kind of like this: 

The lone photo I got of him. 

I watched him for a moment and I could tell he was staring at something.  I moved to a different window and spotted the rooster. I suppose they were thinking "what are you?!" to each other. 

Earlier this week I picked up a book during my lunch hour. "Remarkably Bright Creatures." 

So far it's good writing.  I'm still trying to suss everything out.  I'm not far enough in to figure out/learn how all the character storylines will tie in together.  

When I opened the book I saw something the library stamped just inside.  Neat idea. 

I haven't been carrying my phone around with me much this week so I don't have too many photos of *stuff* to share. 

In the evenings I've been working diligently on my "Quilted Christmas" stitch.  Last night I finished the third chart. Hooray!

I even ironed the cloth.

Project Name: Quilted Christmas

Started: Late November 15, 2023

Finished: Aug. 22, 2024

Designer/Source: Emily Call

Fabric: Charles Craft 18 count Aida cloth

DMC in called for Colors: DMC Blanc, 168, 469, 3712, 3045, 816, 310

Now to find some cute backing fabric and turn these in to little pillows. I can't wait!

This evening I thought it would be a good time to go pull floss and fabric for a few new stitchy projects. 

One is a project I already talked about doing.  I'm going to change the color for the body of the porkie. 

The DMC card and the master set of floss really came in handy with deciding what floss to pull for the porcupine. 

I kitted up a couple other projects.  They are in the project bags, and probably won't be started until September. 

I'm thinking this weekend I'll pick out sock yarn and get it ready to go for a September start, too. 

Episode 20 - August wrap up and chatter

Hello!  Thanks for stopping by and watching! Show notes are below. 

Knitting

 Project Name: Monkey Socks

Started: Nov. 12, 2023

Finished: Aug. 9, 2024

Designer/Source: knitty.com

Yarn: Forbidden Fiber Co.

Colorway: Tale as old as time, on the Fortitude base (Superwash Merino).

Needle size: U.S. 1, 2.5 mm

Made For: myself. 

What it looked like at the last update

And then ... 

Project Name: Passenger Princess Socks
Started: June 3, 2024

Finished: 

Designer/Source:Vanilla sock pattern I use.

Yarn: Patons Kroy Sock Yarn

Colorway: Midcentury stripes

Colors: Peach, blue, cream, vintage looking colors.

Needle size: U.S. 1, 2.5 mm

Made For: myself.

What they looked like in the last episode/update

Sewing 

WIPs bags

Tutorial I used is from Fat Quarter Shop.    

Cross Stitch

Quilted Christmas

Project Name: Quilted Christmas

Started: Late November 15, 2023

Finished: 

Designer/Source: Emily Call

Fabric: Charles Craft 18 count Aida cloth

DMC in called for Colors: DMC Blanc, 168, 469, 3712, 3045, 816, 310

Project Name: One Piece 

Stitch count (via pattern keeper) as of Aug. 21, 2024: 3,425/9,029 (37.93%)

Started: March 30, 2024

Finished: 

Designer/Source: Cross Stitch Bay on Etsy. Chart no longer available

DMC Floss: 310

Fabric: 14 Count Aida purchased at Walmart

Needle Size: 26

Making for my son. 

Previous update

What the finished piece should look like:

Up next: My sweet porkie! 

Project name: Crested Porcupine

Stitch count (via pattern keeper) as of Aug. 20, 2024: 815/64,152 (1.27%)

Started: June 27, 2024

Finished:

Designer/Source: Purple Stitching on Etsy.

DMC: 167, 168, 169, 310, 317, 318, 413, 414, 415, 433, 437, 451, 452, 453, 524, 535, 611, 612, 640, 644, 645, 646, 647, 648, 762, 779, 840, 841, 842, 844, 927, 928, 934, 935, 939, 3021, 3023, 3031, 3032, 3041, 3072, 3371, 3756, 3787, 3799, 3828, 3863, 3864, 3866

Fabric: Half yard of 14 count Aida purchased from Forbidden Fiber Co. 

Needle Size: 26

Stitching for myself.  I know it is going to take years. Story about Porkie is here. The follow up post is here. The story is towards the end of the post. Scroll down. 

I ordered my needle minders from Sweet Autumn Stitch at https://www.etsy.com/shop/SweetAutumnStitch

12 Days of Stitchy Ornaments

Project Name: 12 Days of Stitchy Ornaments

Started: Dec. 3, 2023

Finished: Officially, Aug. 2024

Designer/Source: Erica Made Designs

Fabric: Aida cloth 14 county Hobby Lobby Zweigart, with the sparkly threads running through it.  Opalescent? 

DMC in called for colors: 3862, 498, 470, 472, 598, 761, 745, 844, B5200

Youtube channels I mention: 

Periwinkle Stitcher

Pat Sloan

Stitching Mommy

Karen Combs

Julie in Stitches

Stitching with my Kitties

Nancy the Disorderly Stitcher

Mamma Nevin knits

The Honeystead

Not ready for the changing of the seasons

 It wasn't until I opened up blogger to set up for this blog post that I realized it's been a quick minute since I've last written. 

Oops. 

Sorry. 

I've been ... not in a mood or out of sorts.  Something has been off and my body has been reacting to it, and my attitude has not been what it should be.  Kinda cranky.  Kinda tired, kinda out of sorts. 

A bout of insomnia has started up.  My body was acting like it was in defense mode, or something, too.  

It wasn't until Nancy the Disorderly Stitcher said something in one of her videos about the school year being just around the corner that it hit me. The change of the season will soon be upon us. 

Who else is with me on it feeling like we have had not that much of a summer this year? 

After hearing Nancy's comments and realizing I was probably a bit wore out and burned out I decided to take a couple days off work and have a long weekend. 

Apparently it was just what I needed.  Though it would have been great it was a just a bit longer of a break. For those who may be curious or wondering, I'm *still* healing.  The one doctor said it can take months.  Lovely. 

Thursday I decided to have a bit of a mini-retreat at home.  I spent the morning sewing and quilting. It was fun.  I also decided that it takes me a stupid amount of time to make WIP bags.   I had five bags to make and I actually completed the last one last night, right before bed.  

I remembered some cross stitch ornaments I had stitched up close to the beginning of the year.  I pulled them out and went and found some fabric for backing. 

The ornament charts were ordered from Fat Quarter Shop, and are a design by Erica Made Designs. 

Fat Quarter Shop did a video showing how to finish them.  I was debating on whether to add trim.  I like how they look with just the wooden hoop and I'd probably make a mess with the hot glue gun. 

I discovered I missed completing a bunch of stitches on one of the ornaments. I need to go track down the floss and get it done. 

Friday I dragged my son with me to go to a couple state parks that are in the area.  The day trip to the parks was a lot of fun, though it was kind of humid out.  

We first went to Amnicon Falls. I haven't been there in at least six years.  Maybe longer.  I went there with my friend Dawn when she came up for a visit many moons ago. Our boys had fun jumping a side stream and finding frogs. 

Some photos in no particular order. 

After Amnicon we went over to Pattison State Park, home of the tallest waterfall in Wisconsin. 

The weekend was full of bike rides and bumming around in the garden and around the house. 

The few flowers I have growing this year are really pretty. 

These cosmos are volunteers.  I'm keeping an eye on the flowers so I can collect seeds for next year. 

I know I've shown photos of the flowers before but I can't help it.  I love them. 

The hollyhocks will always remind me of my mother-in-law. 

My first year being successful with Bachelor Buttons. 

They are so delicate looking. 

While I was pruning tomato plants I spotted these jewels. 

I do not recall if I mentioned the coleus I have growing in the greenhouse.  My coleus were pretty wimpy until the last couple of weeks.  They are coming in to their own now.  Not as glorious as the plants I had back in 2019 or 2020, but pretty amazing, considering the weather we've had this year. 

Oh! Something I almost completely forgot until my husband just now brought it to me. 

Last week we harvested the peaches off our tree! 

Yes it's peeled.  He peeled it for me because I'm a princess. No, it's because he knows I'm not keen on peach skin. It was the peaches first year here.  I hope from now the tree produces like mad. Enough to make a peach cobbler, at least. 

So, in a nutshell, that is what's going on.  I've been cross stitching almost every night.  Or a bit of sewing and quilting. Slowly I'm knocking my works-in-progress list down. I told myself I wasn't going to start any knitting projects until next month. Just in time for hunting season.