Look Out, Little Hummers!

This praying mantis was very serious about having a hummingbird for breakfast!  I got him off the feeder and threw him WAY out into the grass.  He was very persistent and managed to find his way back across the grass, up the retaining wall, onto the deck railing, and then back to the feeder.

We played this game four times on Friday.  I did research and yes, they DO catch and eat hummingbirds.  And NO they do NOT spit in your eye…  that is a myth.

When I woke up Saturday morning, there he was again, perched on the hummingbird feeder.  It is sad to report that he is no long with us… a casualty of my mother-bird instincts to protect the beautiful hummers I have managed to coax to my feeders.  When I had to choose between a bug or a bird, it was an easy choice.  May he RIP and may my hummers continue to store energy for their long migration, which should start soon. 

The lake is beautiful and smooth this morning, and my kayak is calling my name, but I am plugging my ears and singing the LA-LA-LA  song because I must go quilt today.  A super-busy week is ahead of me with church revival services Wednesday through Sunday so I will be zooming around and not working much the remainder of the week… but it will be so wonderful!

Psalm 145:1-4 (NKJV)
¹ A Praise of David. I will extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
² Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
³ Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.
⁴ One generation shall praise Your works to another, And shall declare Your mighty acts.

Have a wonderful first-week-in-October!  And yes, we are finally getting a little more leaf coloration showing up… love that!

KAT

Welcome, FALL!

This morning the thermometer read 55 degrees… welcome FALL!  I have been looking forward to the morning when I could drink coffee and eat breakfast on the deck without mosquitoes and sweating… and today was the day. 

It is a joy to worship and meditate on God’s Word outside when there is a crispness to the air.  We don’t have much fall color happening yet but the temperature assures me it is indeed coming.

And what did I eat out on my deck?  Malt-O-Meal with craisins and banana… yummy.  The 3 cats tried to help themselves because it has been awhile since I breakfasted on the deck… clearly they have forgotten the “rules”… they get the left-overs only.  They did enjoy licking the remains.

And yes, I have QUILTY content today!  This quilt was fun and easy… it just looks difficult.  The pattern is Disappearing Pinwheel 3 from the Missouri Star Quilt Co.  They furnish lots of free tutorials on their site, so check them out.   I found the tutorial for this one here, on YouTube rather than their web site.

The fabrics are from my Kaffe Fassett collection.  I have no idea who this quilt is for, but when the need arises I will have one ready.

Happy FALL, y’all!  Now I am off to finish housework, do some customer quilts, and prepare for Sunday.  Hugs to you all!

Psalm 91:2 (NKJV)
² I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."

KAT

Seriously?!

 

Seriously, has it been almost a year since my last post?  Time has flown, and since I am officially another year older today I can truthfully ask, “Where have the days gone?”

So much has changed, and yet so much remains the same.  Pardon me while I wax philosophically for a while…

Changes… into the new house on the lake, which we both dearly love.  The guest-house-now-turned-quilt-studio has gone from dark tan and maroon paint to light lilac with darker trim, and soon to have a neat little wallpaper border.  Necessary things are stowed away and unpacked with only a few boxes remaining stashed in closets.  I have settled into routines that fill my day and help me to accomplish what needs to be done.

Same… quilting continues, only a small amount of time spent knitting right now, our three cats and PJ the dog love it here and adjusted well to the move, there seems to be a shortage of hours to do what needs and wants to be done (I bet it is the same in YOUR world, too!).

But perhaps the biggest change of all is… I am entering the ministry.  At the age of 58 I have clearly heard the Call of the Lord to give Him more of myself.  I have known since I was young there was a call upon my life, but it has taken these many years to get to the place where the path was plainly revealed.  I have applied and been accepted into ministry training through the Foursquare Church.  This involves lots of study time on theology, church history, and practical ministry application.  At the end of the journey is a 3-hour interview and of course I am so intimidated by all of this… the teacher in me thinks I must know EVERYTHING before I can even schedule the interview, and the more I study the more I realize that is not practical.  If He has brought me to this place then He will faithfully give me the words to say, but it is difficult to relax and rest in this promise.  Control… relinquishing control is hard for me.  Planning…preparing… years of teaching have settled my dependence of pre-planning and having all my ducks in a row, so to speak.  But He says to rest in Him, so I will.  I don’t know exactly where this path will lead, but know with certainty it is where my God wants me at this time.

So there you have it… my BIG REVEAL.  Needless to say, time for blogging is even less than before, but I can’t get much WORSE than I have been for the last year, can I?  LOL!  I really am going to make attempts to be regular at this, but I think you will all understand the focus of my blog will probably change to some degree.  Yes, there will still be quilting and knitting, but also more of the spiritual journey I am on.

Psalm 27:8 (NKJV)
⁸ When You said, "Seek My face," My heart said to You, "Your face, LORD, I will seek."

Dreaming of fall in the mountains…

KAT

We’re Moving!

Moving to our dream house in a wonderful location, closer to family.  That is just one of the reasons my Blog has suffered neglect.  Hopefully after the relocation is complete I can get back to the routine of posting.

Look out Zwolle, here we come!  That is the town where I was born and raised.  I will be within 10 minutes of my Mom and Dad.  I will be closer to all my family and many of my friends.  And of course the fact that we will be on Toledo Bend does not hurt my feelings at all.

 

Can’t you just envision us roaming about in our kayaks out there?  Bass boat ready to jump in and go at a moment’s notice.  Crappie fishing off the dock. 

And did I mention the QUILT STUDIO?  What was once a “guest house” will contain all of my quilting things (I hope) so I will no longer be working throughout the whole house.

Soon… scheduled to close Oct. 7th.  Now, to get back to sorting, cleaning, packing.  Big changes coming!

Blessing to you all!

KAT

Today…. and Tomorrow

Today…

Today I am planning, gathering, organizing, gathering some more, loading the car in between rain showers (for which we are very thankful!).

Tomorrow…

Very early tomorrow, I will pick up my best bud and we will head to Cold Spring, TX.  Yes, it is THAT time of year again… RED BARN RETREAT!!

So please pardon my blogging absence (Like I haven’t been absent WAYYYY too much this year?) and know that when I return I will share the fun with you.

And when I return I will explain the picture you see above, because this will play a major part in my main project for retreat.  Now how’s THAT for a teaser?

Have a wonderful week.  Wish you could all come with us!

KAT

Congrats, Jenn & Brad!

 

The décor.  The ceremony was performed by my pastor and friend, Paula.

The kiss…

The maid of honor, my Katie Bug…

 

Relief!  We did it!

What every bride should wear with a formal wedding dress… pink  Converse tennis shoes!

 

The wedding cake… to be saved for the first anniversary…

The guests had 3 flavors of cupcakes….  The cake tower was Jenn’s idea and I love how it turned out.

 

The families…

Now, perhaps life can settle down a bit around here…

or maybe not.

Have a wonderful week!

KAT

Almost Ready…

The wedding cake is made and decorated (only 1 small tier, thankfully).

The 3 flavors of cupcakes are baked, iced, and decorated.

Serving dishes have been washed, labeled, and packed to take.

Filling for cucumber sandwiches is made.

Condiments and trimmings for sandwiches are ready to go.

Now if the decorating fairies would just show up tonight and get that finished…

Tomorrow morning I will head out early to deliver cake, cupcakes, and finish set-up and decorating for the outdoor wedding.  I am concerned the new blouse I bought to wear is going to be extremely hot in the predicted 96 degree weather, but it won’t be the first time I have sweated…however, this time I will have an audience.  But then, THEY will be sweating too!

Tomorrow will be so busy, and then I plan on just crashing for several days.  I even think I will boycott the kitchen and let DH throw a few meals on the table.  We’ll see how that works out.

Now, off to bed for an early and very long day tomorrow.

KAT

Dashing off…

I’m dashing out the door right now to begin decorating for daughter’s wedding.  Please pardon the brevity of this post but I am sure you all understand.  Next week, life will be somewhat normal (or as close to normal as it gets around here) and I promise to retrieve photos from the camera and give you a REAL update.

Kathy B. says just snippits are fine, so here you go…

I FINISHED the Farmer’s Wife quilt and it is absolutely stunning, if I do say so myself.  Pics later.

I am almost done with 2 pairs of socks… Pics later.

I have finished another Basket Whip Cowl… pics later.

This week will be swamped with the making of wedding cake and cupcakes… pics later.

You get the drift!  I’ll give a full report from the wedding and try to catch you up on things happening here… later.

Hugs to all!  I am hoping the tulle fairies really help us out with the decorating… I’ve never been really good with those kinds of things!

Kat

It’s Sort’a Like…

Getting back to posting on the blog is sort’a like…'

1.  Getting back to exercising after slacking for a while.

2.  Cleaning house after you have let it go to pot around you.

3.  Calling someone you have intended to talk to, but have put off so long you are embarrassed to call.

4.  Doing that little thing for yourself, that you enjoy, but you are so busy “fighting fires” in your world you just keep procrastinating.

5.  Feeling guilty every time you see others doing something (blogging) you know YOU should be doing.

 

For whatever reason(s), the blog has sat idle for months now.  It’s just hard to get back in the habit, so I will have to make a “routine” to cover this.  Yes, I have had lots of things I could have posted.  Yes, I have wonderful pictures of events over the last 5 months that could have been shown to you (most of them still captive in my camera).

I’m trying again… please be patient with me as I try to reestablish my blogging routine.

My latest feat… finishing my Farmer’s Wife quilt (all 111 – 6” blocks)!  I’m sewing the binding down now, and will hopefully be finished with it this weekend.  I absolutely LOVE it!  It is HUGE, so getting a good picture will be challenging but I will do the best I can.

Lots of knitting has been done in the last five months.  I will try and get those pictures loaded.

Kilt construction… yes, everyone needs a camo kilt to properly participate in the “Men In Kilts” golf scramble.  And DH makes such a striking figure in a kilt!

Stay tuned… in between wedding preps (for DD) and dealing with garden veggies, I promise to really give blogging a better effort in the future.

And love to all of you who have sent emails to check and be sure I am ok… I really appreciate it!

KAT

PS:  You KNOW it has been too long since your last post when you have to SEARCH for the “post” button to send the latest attempt to the blog…. so sad!

A Fickle Persuasion…

Knitting can be such a fickle thing… it goes from wonderful to hair-pulling on a whim.  I am always just 1 mis-stitch away from a disaster, it seems.  It is sort of like Mr. Boots, our beloved minx stray that adopted us.  He craves attention and loves to be scratched or rubbed, but he may very well nip the hand that is loving on him.  Knitting is that way… except it may bite on the nether parts.

I am working my very first lace pattern!  Yes!  I can do this!  I am at the half-way mark on my project.  I proudly pat myself on the back from time to time as I am working along, loving the way the pattern is developing, row by row. Pattern row, knit row, pattern row, knit row.  But wait… something is not working out here.

“Pride goeth before the fall.”  How true these words of wisdom are.  It only takes one time of forgetting to do the YO (yarn over) to totally throw the pattern off. (Actually, I MAY have forgotten to YO several times on the offending row, but it only takes ONE time to blow the pattern out of the water.)  And since there is a plain row between each pattern row, being the novice knitter that I am, I did not realize the incorrect stitch count until it was too late.

“Frogging”  (Rippit-rippit!) goes so easily in quilting, although it is a real time-killer when you are under a deadline.   When I mis-stitch in quilting I just grab the seam ripper and pick out the offending stitches, re-stitch, and we are good to go.  You would think knit “frogging” would also be a breeze but it just is not so.  And I submit the evidence below:

1.  Just a quick glance can usually tell me where the quilting went bad… I have worked on finding my knitting mistake for about 1 1/2 hours now.

2.  Taking the knitting OUT is easy, but making sure you have all the live stitches on the needles is a real pain, and very time consuming. This has taken about another 45 minutes to rip back one row of 120 stitches.

3.  Then there is the little problem of being sure the stitches on the needles are turned the correct way after frogging.  I am slowly figuring this out… experience is a hard but good teacher on things like this. 

Long story short, I THINK I have found the problem, I THINK I have ripped out all the mistake-ridden row, and I THINK I have all stitches turned the correct direction.  We will see… the next pattern row will be the “proof in the pudding”.

But it will be SOOO worth it when my Fresco Basket Whip Cowl (a free Ravelry pattern) is finished.   The soft, squishiness  of the KnitPicks Andean Treasure yarn (100% baby alpaca)  and the “Tidepool” color are wonderful things.  (It is a little brighter in color than the photo shows.)

I know you are thinking, “She lives in Louisiana.  When would she ever need a cowl?”  Sometimes it just is not about NEED, my friends, but rather a NEED to KNIT!  Colder weather is coming next week, and I will be so ready for it, in my Fresco Basket Whip Cowl, which I am hoping does NOT cause “hat-hair” when used as shown in the Ravelry picture.

For those visiting from Judy’s Patchwork Times “On the Needles Friday”, you may enjoy seeing the BOATLOAD of knitting I have done in the past month.  Check this post for an update, please.

Happy knitting, my friends.  May all your k2tog’s and yo’s be correctly placed!

KAT

Socks In A Week…

And Other Knitting Feats Beyond Belief!

Yes, really.  I did knit a pair of socks in one week!  I knit while watching TV, and football is a wonderful opportunity for knitting.  So what does this accomplishment tell you?  I have been watching WAY too much football, but it will soon be over.

The pattern is “Circle Socks”, a free pattern from Ravelry.  The yarn is Lion Brand Sock-Ease.

I have been knitting up a storm, and a lot of it was for gifting.

Pedi Socks for my Katie Bug from a yarn that pooled too much in my size.  She loves them!

Socks for my step-father… finished 5 minutes AFTER they said, “Let’s open presents now!”

The Reader’s Wrap, finished, blocked, and gifted to a friend.  (That is my sock blocker sticking into the pocket so you will notice how pretty they came out!)

Three crocheted shawls to leave at church so those of us that are cold-natured can be comfortable while the hot- natured ones have the air going.  I have yarn for another one but it will have to wait until I get over my knitting frenzy.

I played around with the Slipper Purse pattern (another free Ravelry pattern).  I am still working on getting it to come out the right size.  I have made one that was way too large and another that was way too small… hopefully the next attempt will get it right.

I am working on finishing up this pair of socks started in October.  I really did not like the yarn (It was sale yarn, so that excuses me for choosing this.) and it was so very boring knit in plain stockinet stitch.

I debated abandoning the project, but I just don’t do that.  So I ripped back to the gusset decreases and worked the “Simple Skyp” pattern, another free Ravelry pattern.  I LOVE doing this pattern, and it is keeping my interest enough to go ahead and finish the pair. 

One sock is complete and I am working on the foot for the next one.

And I have knit 1 fingerless mitt for myself.  I promise pictures when they are finished.  I am hoping to get the other one done soon… having only one is useless, so I will try to have the 2nd one done before really cold weather returns.

And there you have it… knitting up a storm.  I have to because… (SSHHHHHH!  Don’t tell, but my KnitPicks order of more yarn should be here soon… I am SOOO weak when they flash the S-A-L-E word around.)

Happy knitting, or sewing, or whatever you are finding to do on this wonderful, rainy day.

KAT

Fair Warning!

Quilting can be very HUMBLING!  Regardless of your “professional” quilter status, regardless of how many awards you have won at large quilt shows, regardless of having had one of your quilts printed in a nationally distributed calendar, this week I discovered you can STILL do something really STUPID when quilting!  And no, I was not drinking, so I have nothing to blame it on except plain old not thinking!

The pieces for hubby’s sofa quilt are all cut out from recycled shirts and a solid cheddar fabric.  I had created a quilt plan in EQ7.  I printed out the picture of the quilt.  I figured fabric amounts needed.  I made notes of piece sizes and borders to cut.  That is all great… until I realized that I , too, am human and made a rookie mistake. 

While sewing the pieces together for these 4.5” finished 9-patch blocks I stopped to measure and be sure everything was as it should be.  But wait… the strip sets are measuring 5”… well DUH!  With seam allowances it SHOULD measure 5”… but then it dawns on me that I have cut 70 squares (the 60 I needed plus 10 more so I could adjust if colors ended up together… wasn’t I smart in thinking ahead like that?) that only measure 4.5”, from my precious recycled shirts, and some of them I used the last little bits I had… you get the picture?  I went back to check my notes, and written plain as day beside the notes for the squares is “cut 4.5 inches”.  GRRRRRR!

I will now try to scrape together enough shirt fabrics of the appropriate colors to cut 60 squares in the CORRECT size of 5”.  And I was making such good progress on this until reality burst my bubble!

The good news is… I am off for SIL  New Year’s Quilt Retreat tomorrow.  Fun, food, and sewing from now through Jan. 1 sounds just wonderful to me.

So, HAPPY NEW YEAR to you all!  May all your cutting measurements be correct in the New Year.  (And I hope that blessing comes back to rest on me… it appears I NEED it.)

And thank you for hanging with me in my blogging absence.  Inspiration (and time to post) has returned and I promise to be a more frequent poster.

Love and blessings to you all in the New Year,

KAT

Checking In…

The festivities are about to begin.  There will be some SERIOUS food indulgences… Weight Watchers will take a back seat in my eating today, then back on the plan tomorrow.  There will also be lots of laughter, visiting, busy children and catching up with siblings.  Thanksgiving at my Mom’s & Dad’s house will be absolutely CRAZY!  That’s because by the time all 5 of us children plus spouses, plus our children, plus grandchildren (and often a few non-family members added into the mix) get there we will have close to 30 people crammed into her house trying to get a reasonable serving of her homemade dressing before it is gone.

There will be tons of other food, but I’ll probably skip dessert for the most part and get 2nds on dressing if there is any left.  All this is written to tell you, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

And much in keeping with the traditions we were taught about the first Thanksgiving, DH killed a nice deer this morning. It won’t make it to the feast, but it will go into the freezer and I will be very thankful for it all year long!

I apologize for my great absence from the blog and also inform you that there won’t be much blogging between now and the new year.  Life is busy!  I am sure we can ALL use that excuse right now.  Yes, I have things to blog about but difficulty finding making time to do it.  Please bear with me!

The new laptop has a learning curve getting things set up where it is convenient to do the things I did so quickly on the old one… but I am slowly getting there.  There is an unbelievable difference in XP and Windows 7… I am SOOOO glad I opted NOT to get W8!!  That would be so beyond me at this point since the only thing I know about “smart” phone-type browsing is I don’t have a smart phone, and I don’t want one.  And then there is this thing where the cursor just jumps to places I don’t want it to go while I am in the midst of typing… anyone out there got a fix for THAT?  It is seriously causing me angst!  I guess you can’t (easily) teach an old(er) dog new (computer) tricks!

Enough dribble…. I’m off to eat, visit, and watch football.  I wish you and yours a wonderful day of counting blessings.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING, Y’ALL!!

KAT

I’m Back!

Did you miss me?  I REALLY missed all of you!!  You might be wondering where I have been.  The following poem will explain…

ODE TO MY DEAD LAPTOP (By Kathy Ellzey)

My very useful friend for the last 5 years…

Your untimely demise brought me to tears.

File clean-up?  So sorry… that took too much time.

Organize all my files? It will all be just fine!

Regularly make back-ups? I’ll get to that some day.

I now apologize for all my negligent ways!

Printing business invoices?  I no longer can do them.

No more surfing; no more Face Book on a momentary whim.

Finding phone numbers, weekly blogging…  Oops! No more for me!

Solitaire? Mahjong?… just a sad, sad memory.

My loyalties are now split between you and another…

Because this week I purchased your bigger, faster brother.

So welcome home, new laptop.  I’m loving you already!

You rescued my rear end, and made my world so steady.

So now you know!  It will take a while to get things all organized and set up for uploading pictures and such, but at least I am now back on-line.  I have lots of posts planned and lots of photos to rescue from the camera.  Hopefully by the end of the week I will have this new OS figured out.  Stay tuned… good things are to come!

KAT

Lost…

I’ve lost it!  I can’t seem to find it anywhere.  Several times I thought I was getting close, but it was not so.  I’ve lost my blogging incentive.  Several things have happened and I would think, “I ought to do a blog post about this.”  But I never followed through.  I know you don’t want a list of excuses so I offer none.

Distractions… perhaps I am just distracted by other things going on right now.  Life things, fun things, sewing things, knitting things, other things… so many distractions!

As quickly as it left, it is likely to reappear, so I am not overly concerned about this happening.  Stuff HAS been happening around me, a few pictures have been taken, and so I’ll post  these meager offerings in hope of keeping you with me…

The Stack and Whack donation quilt.

 

The quilting design is “Honeysuckle”, one of my favorite leaf and vine designs.

 

I had another quilt also, but managed to “oops” the pictures while transferring from camera to computer.  I REALLY must go change my recycle bin settings where things are kept there for a while so I can retrieve my mistakes!

I have been getting lots of knitting done.  The Reader’s Wrap is so near completion.  Just a few more inches and I’ll be ready to work on the pockets.  It is at that gangly, difficult-to-photo stage, but I hope you get the idea.

 

I think you will get a better view of the color on this photo.

Almost done with sock pair #8  for the year.  I’m rushing to finish these because I want to cast on…

this wonderful hand painted yarn that was gifted to me.  I had really thought about taking a break from sock knitting but have been drawn back in by this lovely.  I think I will choose some sort of rather simple pattern for this, rather than knitting my usual fast and plain stockinet.  We shall see.

Now… off to do housework, sew a little, pack for quilt club tonight, and then start gathering things for a few days of quilt retreat with friends.  Distracted… that’s exactly what I am!

Have a wonderful week!

KAT

A New Perspective

Today gives me new hope… a hope of getting better with age.  A hope of feeling better and looking better.  A hope of strengthening my relationship with my Savior.  A hope of aging with grace, and continuing to enjoy outdoor activities for many years.  A hope of a renewed outlook on relationships with others and my life.

Today I turn 56.  A lot has changed in the last year.  I have totally rewritten my life’s plan.  Perhaps I should say I have SURRENDERED   MYYYYYY plan and given in to the leading of the Holy Spirit.  It was a long battle with my will, but I am so thankful that God does not give up on us.  He has been convicting me for the last several years about my unhealthy lifestyle, but I would not listen. He has called me closer, but I would not commit the time.

Because I finally got to the place of obedience I am now much healthier and happier than I was last year at this time.  Because I have chosen to listen rather than remain in rebellion to His will, I am now almost 40 pounds lighter, feeling better than I have in years, and walking in power rather than defeat.  THANK YOU LORD!

Because I finally surrendered the time to “visit” with Him each day, I am encouraged and filled with His power, rather than struggling to change by myself.

The journey is not done, because I still have a long way to go, but the victories I have won in the last 6 months have taught me that it IS a war that is winnable… through His power, not mine.

There are rough roads in places (recurring foot and knee issues have really thrown my exercise plan for a loop), but He leads me on.  Temptation comes, but He is faithful.

Thank You, Lord, that 56 (and beyond) looks better than the last several years have been!  “I surrender all, Lord. Be glorified… I surrender all!”  (From the Terry MacAlmon song, “I Surrender All”)

Have a blessed week!

KAT

On The Needles Today…

 

I am making a little progress on the latest pair of socks.  I am working on the heel flap, and will soon do the turn.  It is going slowly because…

I have really gotten SUCKED INTO this Reader’s Wrap.  I am loving it!  It is an easy and fun knit.  I forget how quickly large needles and large yarn add up!  The color did not come across well in the above picture.  It is called “Bronze”, is a beautiful tweed with black and tan nibs works into the yarn, and has a little more golden-brown cast to it than the picture indicates.  I have about 22” done, and try to knit at least 2-3” each day.  I need 58” before I work the ending pattern and make the pockets.

Check out what others are working on at Judy’s Patchwork Times!

Have a great weekend!  I plan on spending as much time as I can sitting in my chair knitting on the Reader’s Wrap (and nursing a very painful knee).

KAT

In Praise of the Redneck!

Honestly, the picture below shows the opinion of most of the world about rednecks.  I realize this is just in jest, and I do consider it funny, too!  BUT, the poor redneck has been given a bad rap.  Today I will convince you of that!

Most folks think of rednecks as lazy, trashing up their yards with junker cars, beer guzzling, gun slinging, cussing fools.  Now WHERE would they get that idea?  From movies and reality shows, for sure.

My least favorite of the reality shows set in our area is the “My Big Redneck Vacation”.  I’ve only watched it a couple of times because that is about all of that foolishness I can stand.  We are portrayed as drinking around the clock, passing gas without any modesty, doing really stupid and even dangerous things, destroying property and not thinking twice about it, and having no class whatsoever.  Although I realize these are characteristics of MANY young people in MANY cultures, I assure you that this is NOT the way mature rednecks work.

Mature rednecks are creative and resourceful, because they may NOT have the expensive gadgets that others have.  It might well be the reason they don’t have the expensive toy is because they just choose not to spend their money that way… not that they are poor and can’t afford it.

How would YOU get to muscadines that are way too high to be reached with a ladder?  DH has it all figured out!

Take your tractor with front-end loader, securely strap this double-stacked basket apparatus (created from metal baskets purchased at the paper mill salvage yard),

climb into the top basket, then get your wife to operate the tractor and lift you up to where the muscadines are.  Ours were growing WWAAAYYYYY up in a large pine tree.

No problem now, because you are now located about 20 feet up in the air!

       

YUM!  These muscadines are so good!

You might be wondering why the baskets have this cammo mesh on them… This also doubles as a portable deer stand.  Secure it to a nice size tree with straps, climb up the side of the metal, and you are all set to go!

SEE… I TOLD you we were resourceful  and creative.  My DH has been blessed with great “improvising” skills!  And yes we do have what others would consider “junk” (he calls it his “innovation pile”) but it is not lying around our front yard in an unkempt manner.  He has it more or less organized down by the barn where he has easy access and it is not unsightly. 

Yes, he hunts and quite often has a gun with him, but he is not blasting things just for the fun of it…  his hunting puts meat on the table. 

Now the passing gas thing…. I’m not EVEN going there!

KAT

On the Needles Today…

Actually, this is fresh OFF the needles.  My July socks are done…

 

…and the August socks have been cast on.  Well, actually, ONE of them has been cast on.  I have once again abandoned the “2-at-a-time” method.  It just adds a layer of stress to my knitting, and this is supposed to be relaxing and fun.  Since I don’t have the dreaded “2nd sock syndrome” it is not a biggie.  I’ll keep knitting socks one at a time and enjoying it.

Also on the needles is a practice run on the Reader’s Wrap. 

I am patiently trying to be patient in waiting for my KnitPicks order to arrive.  For the last 2 days I have run to the mail box as soon as I hear the mail carrier go by… still no package.  BUMMER!  The lovely wool tweed yarn that is ordered will make such a wonderful wrap, but it is slow in appearing. 

I was so antsy to get going on this project I decided to do a trial run.  The above yarn is some acrylic Red Heart yarn I just had lying around.  I’ve made a dry run on the cast on and knitting so there will be no stress once the yarn arrives. 

Some have asked via email how we managed the storm (hurricane Isaac) and the truth is it went too far west of us to give us more than a spattering of rain.  We were surely hoping for at least a couple of inches, but only received about 5/8”.  I sure wish folks on the eastern side of LA and MS could send us some of the water that has flooded their areas.

Now, to finish off this post I MUST share the really unusual bug I found on the screen porch.

You simply MUST click on the picture to see the ridges on his back.  AMAZING!  From a distance I thought it was the average spider.  As I moved closer I thought it was a huge stink bug.  Closer still, and I was amazed at him.  God’s creation is SO wonderful!

And I also suddenly remembered that I have forgotten to finish my “Redneck” post, so that will be in the queue for sometime soon.

Have a wonderful weekend!

KAT