7-31-2014 Out & About

Things I saw

while out & about

on this morning's 4 mile walk...

...under a bridge...

...more bindweed...on a fence...

...along the trail...

7-30-2014 Pool Shades

Today was hot and muggy...

perfect for cooling off in the pool.

Wish my shades were this cute!

Happy anniversary to DD and S-I-L today!

7-29-2014 LUCY

DH & I took advantage 

of Senior Discount Day

and went to see the movie LUCY.

Predictable,

but we still enjoyed it.

7-28-2014 Bindweed

I've been keeping my eye out for bindweed

( see post from 7-24-2014 )

and found this patch of the white variety

on my walk around our neighborhood.

It certainly fits the description

given to my fairy

whose name will be Bindweed Saturnfly:

She is a troublemaker who loves to hug

and lives at the bottom of tangled gardens and in hedgerows.

Check out 

how she hugs everything 

in this tangled garden

in the top photo!

You can click on the photo to enlarge it.

7-27-2014 Knitted Bunny

...this used to be a swatch square...

I folded it up

and stitched a few seams

and

out pops a bunny!

Here are the pattern instructions.

7-26-2014 Tea Time

Today

Oma made some REAL tea

for our afternoon tea party

and GD got lots of practice pouring!

7-25-2014 Linus Blanket Squares

 The July KAL at my LYS

is to knit four 6" squares

for the Linus Blankets Project

in order to have your name entered 

into a drawing for a $25 gift certificate!

Sign me up!

Here's my 4 squares...

unblocked...

...and blocked...

7-24-2014 Bindweed Saturnfly

This July,

I am starting yet another KAL

(Knit-A-Long)

on one of my knitting forums.

One is supposed to type their name

into an online 

"Random Fairy Name Generator"

and it will give you a "Fairy Name."

So, I typed my name into the RFNG

and here is what I got:

Bindweed Saturnfly

She is a troublemaker who loves to hug! 

She lives at the bottom of tangled gardens and in hedgerows. 

She can only be seen at midday under a quiet, cloudless sky. 

She wears tangled multicoloured skirts made of petals 

and has pale pink wings like a cicada.

Then we are supposed to 'design' a fairy

to match our given Fairy name!

So, I've started doing some research

on Bindweed and Cicada wings

for starters...

7-23-2014 Bag Progress

The African Flower Granny Square Bag

I started while on vacation

is coming along nicely!

I'm in the process of seaming the squares together.

7-22-2014 Growing Like a Weed

Grandchild #1 has been growing like a weed...

barely fits in the 'pack and play'

for naptime

so DH and I splurged

and bought a youth bed today.

I hope it will be more comfy for grand baby!

7-21-2014 A Visit from Great Grandfather

 My dad took a road trip this weekend

to see his two new great-grandchildren...

one in Chicago...

and one in Iowa...

stopped by for a brief visit, lunch, and

a trip to Antique Archeology.

7-20-2014 Anderson Japanese Gardens

This morning at church

we heard some folks

talking about the Anderson Japanese Gardens

and since we had the day off

from babysitting duties

we decided to go check it out!

Other than a few hostas,

very little was blooming,

but overall it was lovely...

tho IMHO, way over planted!

Very little 'negative space.'

7-19-2014 Cucumber Sangria

Saw this in a mag at the hospital yesterday.

It sounded good at the time

since I had gone 18 hours without food or water!

My son always uses red wine and fruits

to make sangria for family gatherings...

I thought this might be 

a cool and refreshing

change:

white wine

cucumbers

limes

green grapes

mint.

7-18-2014 Happy 1 Month Birthday, Grandson!

While you were celebrating your

1 month birthday

Oma was spending the day in the hospital

having surgery!

So, I'm guessing that

we were BOTH speaking

baby talk/goo goo/nonsense today!

Love you, dear grandson!

7-17-2014 Purples

I was blessed to see

5 different kinds of purple 'flowers' blooming

on this morning's 5k walk.

Here is a pix of one of them.

Everyone who knows me

knows that purple is my FAVE color!

7-16-2014 Zoo Time

Following yesterday's Polar Vortex
and record-breaking low temperatures,
today's weather

was just perfect for a trip to the zoo!

...a ride on the train with Papa...

...feeding the Lorikeets with Papa...

...riding on the Merry-go-Round with Papa...

...feeding the Koy fish with Papa...

...giving the dinosaur a hug...

"I'm King of the Jungle!"

7-15-2014 Polar Vortex Sets Record Low Temps!

The "Polar Vortex" set record low temperatures

in Iowa last night and today...

...so I stayed inside and finished this WIP...

 This morning I finished seamed up

the entrelac fingerless mittens

that I began a while back.
(See my post on 6-13-2014)

I can't decide if I want to add the 'fingers' or not...

I really like how they fit and feel right now!

7-14-2014 Daylily Paintbrushes

 

Smearing the daylily blossoms

onto the front porch

she says

"I'm painteen wid da fwower paintbwuses."

Which then necessitates a trip to the birdbath

to wash off her hands...

...while baby sister plays in the grass

under Papa's watchful eye.

7-13-2014 Assemble the Minions!

Happy 2nd Birthday Dear Grandson!

His birthday party theme:

"Assemble the Minions!"

Chillin' with Opa...

Baby brother

(3 weeks old)

 sleeping through the birthday party.

Minion cupcakes for the B-day party guests.

Hanging out with Daddy...

check out the cool Minion shirts Daddy made for us!

Birthday cake frosting ~ yum.

(Notice the shirt change?

He got his minion shirt soaked 

playing in the beverages tub ice bath.)

Checking out daddy's condo downtown.

One rarely sees this kiddo without his baseball cap.

He loves the thing!