I made yarn!

It's not good yarn, and it's not pretty yarn, but I made it with my own two hands (and my spinning wheel). Take a look!

Here it is on the bobbin. Pretty nifty, eh?

Here it is skeined on the niddy-noddy that my dear dad made for me.

Getting a nice bath in the sink. I like the squiggley parts.

I then plied it and voila! Yarn! I used the wool that came with my wheel, which was kind of old. It had a lot of lanolin in it, and it felt like it had been sitting around for while, as it was very sticky. No worries though, it is nice and clean now.

This spinning stuff is really fun. I didn't think I would like processing the wool, but I do. It is truly amazing to take a raw material and turn it into something that can be useful. I think it's the first time I've ever done that before. Now I know how my dad feels when he takes a rough piece of wood and cuts it and sands it and nails it and glues it and polishes it, and it turns into a bookcase or a lamp or a clock. Remarkable!


Here are my two lovelies, WT and the Banana. Aren't they cute? I love them. :o)

Nostalgia

My father and I email each other almost every day. Today he included some lovely family photos that make me feel nostalgic, and both happy and sad at the same time. Happy because they are pictures of people whom I love dearly, and sad because many of these people are gone and I miss them terribly. But mostly happy. :o)

This is a photo from my parents' wedding day, June 8, 1968, in Cherry Hill, NJ. From left to right, we have my maternal grandmother (Ruth Elizabeth, but she went by Betty), my maternal grandfather (Elmer Glenn, but he went by Glenn), my cute mom, all of 21 years old, my cute dad, all of 26 years old, and his parents, Mattie and Earl. My dad's parents were old enough to be the parents of my mother's parents. If that makes any sense at all. In this picture, you see a clue as to why this blog is called The Frog and the Daisy - daisies were Mom's favorite flowers. I will also have you know that the month after my parents were married, my mother's wedding dress was on the cover of Modern Bride. Good taste runs in the family. ;o)

I adore this picture. In the middle is my grandmother Mattie with her sisters, Gladys (on the left) and Minnie Lee, who we called Aunt Sis. My grandmother was the youngest - Gladys was born around 1891, Sis around 1894, and my grandmother in 1899. This picture was taken around 1974 or so - get a load of those outfits! The Hardesty sisters were stylin', no? The sisters were long-lived: Grandma lived to be 84, Aunt Gladys lived to be 91, and Aunt Sis lived to be 96! I hope I take after them.

Here's my dad. This was probably taken around 1978 or 1979. He made that guitar himself. He still has it, and it's really pretty. He has also made a few dulcimers, one of them for me. I should really practice it - it sounds positively lovely. I used to go to sleep to the sounds of my father playing his guitar. That too was lovely.

I so value photos. They take me back to places that have been buried in my memory for such a long time. It's easy to forget how dark my Dad's hair was, or what my Aunt Gladys looked like, or how my grandma looked when she smiled. Photos help me hang on to people longer than real life did. I can look at the first picture and see my mom healthy and pretty and smiling and happy. I can see three sisters, still together after 80+ years. And that's good.

Lots o' goodies!

Hey happy people! Long time no... blog. Or something. Anyhoo, here's part of what I've been up to, because I know you've been dying to know.

Here's a sensationally fantabulous crocheted afghan square. The pattern is, yet again, based on one of the squares in Jan Eaton's 200 Crochet Blocks. Since I can't be bothered with silly details like gauge, this pattern worked really well for me - I crocheted until one edge (or leg, since we are looking at a right triangle here [don't make me break out the Pythagorean Theorem. I'll do it. Go ahead. Dare me.]) was 10" long, then I made it smaller. Jesus, am I clever or what?

Here is the beginning of a super-archi-uber secret Christmas project. I bet that not one single person can guess what this is. Ha! You have to wait until December 26th to find out. I won't torture you all with any more tempting pictures.
I participated in the Knitter's Virtual Vacation Swap, and my pal was Aline from jolly France! She sent me some awesome goodies, and now I miss France and want to go back right now. Above, we have some lovely toiletries that smell heavenly: blackberry bath gel and lotion, and a purifying lemon mask. Yum!

Here are some delectable edibles: confiture de lait (which translates to milk jelly; trust me, it tastes better than it sounds), strawberry jam, and almond nougat. YUM.

And last, but most certainly not least, we have the yarn, which she ordered specially from La Droguerie (I know I spelled that incorrectly). On the left, you've got the teal bamboo. I'm loving it. In the middle, we have the brick colored linen. Oh my. And finally, I present to you the beige cotton, which is squishy and soft. Thank you Aline! Je te remercie mille fois!!

And naturally, the Eiffel Tower keychain goes with me everywhere these days. ;o)

My baby started kindergarten this week. WWWWWWWWWWAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH. Doesn't she look cute in her uniform though? The week went fairly well, with only the lunch bag disappearing forever. Oh well. She is learning about endangered species this year, and her teacher friggin' ROCKS. Maybe I shouldn't say friggin'. It is a Catholic school. I'm always afraid I'm going to get struck by lightning when I go to pick her up. Maybe God is giving me a break because I'm educating my progeny in the Catholic tradition. Although she does refer to Jesus as Cheezin, so I'm not sure how well the education is going so far. Hm.

Oh my God (maybe I shouldn't say that), how cute are these two? I'm a lucky woman.

Lotsa pictures n stuff

Can you tell I have a master's degree from that title I just typed? I bet you can, cuz my English is so good. Anyhoo, here is a massively long post about stuff in my life. Aren't you glad you visited?

Ah, Brown Sheep Company's Lamb's Pride Worsted in colorway Blue Magic. To become a sweater at some point this year. Purchased at Twist Knitting and Spinning in New Hope, PA. Thank you Regina, for this lovely yarn - I purchased it with the gift certificate you gave me!

Next up we have some Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy in the Cool Blue colorway, which very shortly will become the Summertime Tunic from the Summer 2007 IK. Can't wait to cast on for this one. This yarn is nice and shimmery and pretty and I like it.

Et la piece de resistance, Artyarns Supermerino in colorway Irises, produced exclusively for Yarnmarket. Thanks Dad, for the gift certificate! Yay, I love birthdays! This is going to be a short-sleeved top-down cardigan.

Progress on the Green Gable is being made. One more inch, and I'll be able to do the ribbing at the bottom, finish the sleeves, et voila! ca sera fini. I love the way this yarn smells. It's all, like, sheepy and stuff. In a good way. Not a barnyard way. That would be gross.

Here is the yoke of the Crop Crocheted Cardigan I'm making for Monica. How stinkin' cute is that? I have only 2 more rows, then I can start the body. Her instructions are perfect. I'm using Brown Sheep Company's Cotton Fleece for this. It's kind of splitty, but it's easy on the hands and it's so pretty, who cares?

Here we have some pictures of paradise. This would be a Memorial Day barbecue at John and Regina's house, with our neighbors and family. Our neighbors and family rock.

Here's Anne Marie, Marilyn, Jack, and Todd talking it up.

Total barbecue carnage. Not for the faint of heart.

What barbecue would be complete without cheese curls and knitting?

Warning: Gratuitous cute kitten photos

Carlos sleeping upside down

Joey all stretched out

My pre-birthday present - one index fingered slashed to ribbons

The goddamn utensil that caused the mayhem

So I told you my baby brother graduated from Rutgers, right? With a degree in meteorology? And he already has a rockin' job? How proud am I? Very. I'm very proud. So here we are: me, Glennjamin, and Daddy-kins. I love my family.

Here's a picture of me with the hair I wish I had all the time.

*sigh*

And now for some random flower pictures, courtesy of Regina and John's back yard.

Siberian iris

Peony (my favorite)

And gorgeous red poppies. Who's up for some opium?

Here's the Banana at her 'graduation'. I got pretty darn choked up, I must say. She's known some of these kids for more than half her life. Time to move on though, to the big, bad-ass world of kindergarten.

And here's why I get up every morning, and smile.

Me, Banana, and WT