Marion, Indiana - Knit 'n' Purl

 We finally found it way out in the county.

 This is the lane to her shop behind her house.

 Behind the house were several cars.  We came on a 'come and knit all day' group.  They were having a lot of fun.

I am working on the sleeve of the Aran sweater and I am reluctant to go to double pointed needles yet.  I will but wondered if there was a shorter circular needle than the 16 inch that I was working with available to me locally.   

My daughter drove me out to this yarn shop that used to be in town but it changed owners and it moved to a ladies building behind her home.  We had never been.

So off we went.  She had a nice supply of needles.  She even had square ones.  I picked up a Hiya Hiya 12 inch circular needle and some stitch markers ( I am always losing them).  She also had a nice supply of yarn and books.  We will definitely visit again.

Red Beans and Rice

 Margaret was very small the year we lived in New Orleans.  If she had red beans and rice she doesn't remember.   On days when I work with Chris I need to be able to cook a good meal in a short amount of time....so  I have been looking into some pressure cooker recipes.   My mother has a smaller pressure cooker that I have borrowed on occasion.  I don't have one and I wanted to try out the smaller one to see if it is something I would use for a family of three.  Some folks are skiddish around these cookers, but don't be afraid they are much safer than they used to be.  

I must admit that the amount of liquid and the fact that I would be cooking beans gave me visions of liquid beany stuff shooting out the vent hole.  But that didn't happen.   The pot cooked this dish in 7-10 minutes.   I cooked the rice while chopping up the veggies and I had already soaked the beans since the A.M.

While I didn't work with Chris yesterday I was quite busy with errands and such so when evening rolled around it was easy to put together.   It was also easy to heat up for him when he finally arrived home at 10:30 at night.  (I will put up a post about what he is working on soon).

 The recipe called for beef broth-I used chicken broth.  I also used brown rice instead of white and a green pepper instead of red (only because I read the recipe wrong).

I also tried a smoked sausage called Wright's.  The package declared it to be gluten free.

Over all we gave it three thumbs up!

Sweater Sleeve

 Picked up and knit for sleeve.  Continued in the established cable pattern.

This was started for Chris but preliminary findings show it might be a bit small.  If it doesn't fit Chris it might be a nice over-sized sweater for Margaret......or someone else.
I am enjoying learning the ins and outs of creating a sweater.

Kitchen Curtains

I finally got the curtains sewn.  While I am not totally in love with them yet, I do like them.  The bottom looks like the top when pulled shut.   I think I want to make one more panel on each side to make it a little fuller.  But if I get lazy and don't do it....I still like them well enough to keep them as they are.

Dragonfly

The Bay Window

You've come a long way baby. 

Parmesan Feta Peppers

Yesterday I made Finding Joy in My Kitchen's,  Parmesan Feta Peppers.   I had never purchased or even tasted feta cheese and I never was too fond of peppers.  But they really looked tasty.  Plus I love freshly grated parmesan cheese.  So last night I made a small batch to see if they were as good as they looked.   YUP.  They were quite tasty. 

Keep Calm and Keep Knitting.

 Chris was working on a roof the other day.  It was one of the more pleasant days we have had this summer...OK, it was the ONLY pleasant day.  I went with him, basically to call 911 in case he fell off. (Joking, but serious)  :)       I did help him get things ready, but I am limited to the ground crew so I knit a few rows.  I was a little apprehensive taking my sweater because I thought I could get distracted too easily. 

It worked out o.k. and I was able to process a little more wool.  Since then I have been able to join the left and right front sides, which I was very nervous about-needlessly.  I just need to Keep Calm and Knit On!   :)