Orange Socks Update

Just need to knit up over that skinny knee and the socks shall be complete.
It has been a bitter (destructive tornadoes in the South) sweet (the Royal wedding) week. Looks like the sun is gonna shine today. Rain again tomorrow possibly :(
Off to run some errands.
Until Next Time!!!!!

Springtime Weather

This system is miles and miles away, between here and Chicago. The features were striking. A very pretty view when I walked out the front door to great my husband who was just walking home from the church.

Mushroom Time

14 ounces of mushrooms that my brother-in-law gathered today.

Strawberry Pie Revisited

Today I made a strawberry pie. Mmmmm. Good.
Here is the original link from The Year of the Pie.

Catching Up

Seems like forever since I posted here. I guess there is just nothing new right now. Been busy with home and part-time job, knitting, etc. The thought of next month's "Bread" has crossed my mind and did just that-crossed it. It hasn't came back. lol
The weather is soooooo soggy. Rain rain and more rain. March is generally my least favorite month, but this year the winner of that category is April. We have some veggies planted in the raised gardens and the peas are poking through.
We put our sweet dog, Jenna, to sleep this week. She was 8.5 yrs. old. Her health was failing to a point where it was just better for her to 'take the long nap'.
Our desktop computer went caput.
But through all of my grumbling I inwardly smile. Because tomorrow is Easter. Easter recognizes that Jesus AROSE from the tomb-which is where my hope comes from. This is the most important holiday we celebrate. If this didn't take place (and I am glad it DID) nothing else would make sense. So may I say to you...Happy Easter and may you be blessed.

Cinnamon Bread - Bread Month Six

On this sixth month of our bread adventure, I tried Cinnamon Bread. I found this recipe at the King Arthur Flour site.

It was fairly easy and turned out quite nicely, with room for improvement. The recipe is at the bottom of this post with a few pictures showing various steps.

At this point I was pretty happy with how it was looking, then I cut another slice and YIKES a bread CAVE..big enough to hide jewelry in. I missed the step that says to brush the tops with butter upon exiting the oven, which may have made a difference in the cave, but I don't know for sure.

Over all I was pleased and will definitely try it again soon. On a side note, remember the Happy Hamburger Buns from Bread Month One? I was able to elongate them into Happy Hotdog Buns. You can see the other bread posts here.

So here is the recipe for the Cinnamon Bread

Mix 2 1/2 tsp. yeast and 9 ounces of warm water together, dissolve and let sit for 10 minutes.
Then add 3 T. sugar and stir.
Then add 1 1/4 tsp. salt
6 T. butter-room temperature
1/4 C. dry milk
1/2 C. potato flakes ( I didn't have those so I used 4 T. potato starch)
I added these to the mixer and let each blend really well, then I added
3 C. flour, a cup at a time or so.

Mix it together really well, then knead it on the counter top for a few minutes until it looks nice.
Shape it into a ball, place it in a greased bowl, cover it and let it rise for about 1 hour or until quite puffy. Mine took about 1 hr. 15 min.

Then it calls for you to press it out into a 6 x 20 inch rectangle. At this point I was skeptical that I could actually press it with my fingers into a shape of any kind. I thought I would surely have to use the rolling pin. But much to my surprise I pressed it right out in to the called for rectangular shape. You can see that I measured it as well.

Brush the dough with a mixture of 1 egg white and 1 T. water that has been mixed thoroughly.
Sprinkle the filling on that .
Filling consists of 1/4 C. sugar, 2 t. flour and 1 1/2 t. cinnamon.
Roll the dough into a burrito type log and seal all edges and place it into a 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf pan.
Tent loosely with lightly greased plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm place until 1 inch above the rim. Mine rose a little more than that. Gently remove the plastic wrap.
I baked it at 350 degrees for 50 minutes.
I put an aluminum tent on the last 15 minutes or so.
Then I should have brushed the tops with butter when they came out but I forgot.....so go ahead and do that.
Let it cool a bit before slicing.
Enjoy.

Schooner Shawl

While I am still knitting the never-ending above the knee socks for The Daughter, I needed to work on something with a little more brain power to it. I chose this 'Schooner' shawl from Classic Elite Yarns free pattern section. The yarn, of course, is from Knit Picks. I have never used this type of yarn before and when the box arrived (God bless our mail man) I was giddy. It is so soft.
Knit Picks
Andean Silk
Lettuce
96 yards
55% Superfine Alpaca (need I say more)
23% Silk
22% Merino Wool (LOVE merino wool)

The pattern was so easy I made it more difficult than need be. After a few trial runs I was off to the races. I believe it shall fit a little gal that lives in this house quite nicely.

The Alpaca Hat

Remember our trip to Kentucky last year? You can see it here. We went to a fiber fest AND a stock dog trial. Both very fun...well actually I was the only one at the fiber fest, just over the hill from the trial. I stayed for a couple hours. But I bought my first ever Alpaca fiber to knit with. I bought one skein of hand spun local Kentucky alpaca fiber. I was giddy. So I knit up a hat. You can see it here on my head. This was our 'go-to' hat all winter. Walking the dog, getting the mail, driving into town, etc. It was either on my daughter's head or mine. I am NOT saying anything ill about sheep's wool, but I DO want to say how pleased I am with this fiber. Although this particular hat style wasn't the greatest for that strong freezing north wind, it still served us well. Not every day in the winter is windy.
What I like the MOST about this hat is it never loses or forgets its shape. When not in use it goes back to its 'resting' shape, like a rubber band does when not being stretched.
It gladly stretches to any shape on ones head, as you can see in the below pics, and snuggly stays there. My disclaimer on this post would be that I can only speak thusly about hand spun alpaca fiber knit in two by two ribbing all the way up-since it is the only thing I have knit in alpaca. Isn't it fun to say alpaca?

Tuesday

On Tuesday we traveled to see the newest member of the family. His name is Ben and he is so cute and cuddly.
This is on 465 going around Indianapolis....I totally have to knit on this road..too scary otherwise.

Actually I knit almost the whole way, adding 2 1/4 inches to Margaret's orange socks. I did stop to snap a couple pictures.

The sky was stunning.

I Love This Face

Remember these posts? This great man was a face in the crowd.
I am not an expert photographer, but when I like a picture I have taken...I LIKE it. His face has so much character and each line was earned I am sure.
This man has a great voice and smile and sense of humor and is always a joy to be around.

Sheepy Pants - Infant size

Sheepy Pants by Mandie Harrington, knit by ME!!!!
Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool
5's and 7's
Length from top of waist ribbing to bottom of pant hem, 11.5 inches on the back side. Front is 11 inches. Short rows in the back allow for extra diaperage.
Absolutely one of my favorite projects.
You can buy the pattern here at her blog or on her Ravelry page. She is Knitwit on Ravelry.