Knitting Finish: A Bible Tote

I finished my Bible tote that I had mentioned HERE. I am pleased with how it turned out. I just wish I hadn't made that little goof and been able to sell it. It would have been a good item to sell in my shop! It was a bit of a time-consuming project...but enjoyable, as well. I may try another one, soon, to offer in my etsy shop!

The tote handles were cabled. I just love the look of the cables and they seem to make the handles sturdier, as well!

Although an avid knitter...I have been devoting some of my time to crochet. I made a granny square, previously....and am now practicing other stitches. I am a *much* slower crocheter...but you never know, I may ~just yet~ get the hang of it!

Our hens have been laying. We are only getting an egg a day, or so, but it is definitely a start for these girls. :)

Schooling keeps us busy most mornings (and sometimes in the afternoon too!). I am using the McGuffey's Eclectic Primer (in addition to Learning to Read and other kindergarten materials HERE & HERE from Christian Light Education) for Jaxson's education this year...

Xavier working on some schoolwork...

Jaxson...the littlest bean in our bunch...

Madelyn made a fun mask for herself...although she realized, after she put it on, that she didn't space the eye holes out enough! ;)

Today I am quite sore and achy! Chris's grandpa is 87 years old and has a wood stove to heat his home. He *still* cuts, splits, and stacks his own wood! His hands are so strong and tough, he doesn't even wear gloves! The cold has set in our area...and he didn't have enough wood to get him through winter. It is always better to do things as a team....so after church and a quick lunch, my mother-in-love kept the babies of the family while the rest of us, clad in old clothes, gloves, coats, boots and hats, went to get wood! The men-folk chopped down and cut up the trees, loaded them in trucks and then brought them to Papa B's house. That's where us women folk stacked it all. My children and nephews helped too (such good, hard workers they were)! We worked all through the afternoon. By the time the guys had a dump-truck load full of wood brought down, us gals had gotten the previous load stacked. After the very last load was dumped for us to stack, the guys were finished with the cutting and loading so they came and helped stack too! My, everything got done twice as fast, then! :)  

Today, we (at least I do...I imagine the others do as well) have that good-feeling-sort-of-pain. I know the help blessed Papa B but it also blessed the rest of us. Hard work is good for the mind, body and soul. I am, today, in full understanding of how truly out-of-shape I am! ;o) I am also so proud to be part of a family that will work together for the good of another. I wish I would have remembered to take my camera...we were all filthy! It would have been such a hoot to look back upon one day! 

I gotta run (hobble would be a better word...as my aching back and legs won't allow much "running" at the moment!)! 

Things to do; life to live...You have a *great* day!

Kindly,

Katy

Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. 

1 Peter 1:2b

"See the pretty snowflakes...

...Falling from the sky;
On the wall and housetops
Soft and thick they lie.

On the window ledges,
On the branches bare;
Now how fast they gather,
Filling all the air.

Look into the garden,
Where the grass was green;
Covered by the snowflakes,
Not a blade is seen.

Now the bare black bushes
All look soft and white,
Every twig is laden,
What a pretty sight!"
~Anonymous

As I type, there is a steady snow falling outside the windows. I am so thankful to be *inside* where we are warm and snug....with the heat from the wood stove, afghans and quilts. It seems that it is going to be a slow-moving sort of day. We'll do chores around the house, read, watch movies, maybe do some baking and knitting too! Chris's neck and shoulders have been hurting him the past couple of days...I may be in charge of loading the wood stove today!

Yesterday, we joined my sister, aunt, mom and others at the Manor, where my grandmother lives for a bit of a party. Although we don't *do* Halloween, we still went to *be* there and show the older ladies and gentlemen that we do care about them. It seems to bring them joy when children are there visiting. :)

I made some fun cupcakes to take...

My niece, Eloise, was there...dressed as her dog, Boo! (Devon made her costume!)...

Xavier and El...

All the children with my grandma (Xavier...always a character; making faces)...

Jaxson and Mama...

After spending an hour and a half there...it was time to go. We went to my dad's garage (the central meeting zone for us where we can all visit). My Chris and the squeezle...

My sister trying out a side-french braid on Madelyn's hair...

All done! I think it looks great!

Madelyn and Eloise...

X and El...

Jaxson and Eloise...

Who's that beautiful baby?

Oh! It's **You**!

It has been at least 3 years or so since I have last had my hair trimmed. Madelyn's hadn't been trimmed in quite a long time either. My aunt graciously met us at my dad's shop and gave us trims!

Madelyn's hair, angled in the front and trimmed at the back...still long and lovely but much healthier looking!

My sister got her hair *cut* as well! I took pictures but I think she will share them on her BLOG instead! It looks really nice! She had been so nervous to get as much cut as she did...but it turned out wonderfully! She hasn't posted the photos yet...but keeping checking back to her blog! :) 

As the snow continues to fall, I best *start* my day...although I have been up for hours...like I said at the beginning of this post, it's a slow-moving-sort-of-day! It's time for a hot shower and to get things done! I hope you enjoy your weekend. Thanks for stopping by! 

Warmly,

Katy

Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

  1 Peter 1:2b

Egg-citing News!

 Unfortunately, this basket full of eggs is *not* from our girls. These are eggs from my mom's hens that she graciously shared with us (She even has a hen or two that lay green eggs! Isn't that neat?). (It is a bit embarrassing having to buy eggs from the store when you have your *own* chickens!)...

But...I *am* excited to report that we are *finally* getting eggs from our new girls (these are the second batch of chickens we have raised since peeps over the years...the other girls were getting older and not laying as much)! Just a few days ago, I shared my frustration with their lack-of-egg-production HERE. No sooner had I published the post, and the children ran in with an egg! They are quite small...but that is to be expected as they are new-layers! We have gotten a total of 5 eggs, so far, although three of those five have been cracked. Here it is...the very *first* egg layed by our coming-of-age-to-lay hens...
 

All washed up and ready to be put in the fridge (and you can see there, to the left, the two white store-bought eggs among the lovely home-layed eggs. They sure stick out like sore thumbs, don't they?)...

The cable tote I was working on and shared with you **HERE** has been ended and bound up sooner than was patterned for...I found a couple small mistakes (Chris says they aren't very noticeable...but to me, they are horrid). I didn't realize the mistakes until I had gotten too far along. I had *no* desire to rip it all out...so I decided to end it early...making it a smaller tote than it was suppose to be.

I wrestled with the idea of selling it for a lower price in my etsy shop...and just pointing out the two mistakes...but after a while, I figured that wouldn't be a great idea. So, I decided it would be the *perfect* size for a bible tote! I am working on knitting the handles right now. Here are some photos of the actual bag...

If you look to the left cable, you can see where I goofed it up...

My bible fits perfectly inside...

Here's another close up of that messed up cable...down towards the bottom...

I rarely keep anything for myself (of things I have knit) so I thought this would be a perfect *imperfect* item to keep!  I plan on trying to knit more totes though (this time, without the mistake)! I will be sure to take a photo of it when I have finished the handles, as well! It's a bummer...but thankfully, still useable! :)

Thanks for stopping, again, to visit me here! 

Hope your week is going well! :o)

Warmly,

Katy

Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.  

1 Peter 1:2b

~Knitting Projects~

This is a cardigan that I knit a while back...when I first began knitting! It's the first cardigan/sweater I ever made! I have had it all this time...and now, I think it will be quite perfect for Eloise to wear! It should fit her perfectly (I hope!). (By the way, if you click on Eloise's name, above, it will take you to my sister's blog. She has a new header that is simply adorable!)

I have also been working on some other knitting projects. Here is a cabled bag that I am knitting, in the round...

The photo below shows a better look at the actual cables. This should turn out to be a beautiful bag...which I will have for sale in my shop, hopefully soon!

Another cable knitting project I am working on...

Truly, knitting cables is *not* difficult and adds so much to your projects! If you are a knitter and haven't tried cabling before, I encourage you to try it! You can find a how-to video HERE.

My latest knitting *finish* (just finished this morning, actually) is this preemie baby pod - sleep sack! It is meant to look just like a pea pod! 

Here is a closer look at the hat. It has some twirly vines on it, too! If you (or someone you know) may be interested in this set...you can find it HERE in my shop! :o)

The weekend kept us busy...with Chris getting loads (and loads) of firewood for the wood stove, and me keeping busy with housework and knitting projects. Saturday afternoon, I helped my Mother-in-Love wrap deer meat (at the meat market) and then, Madelyn and I were able to get out for a couple hours and do a little shopping. One thing I found was this rug (at a decent price) for in the kitchen...

Sunday was just beautiful. Blue skies and sunshine were such a mood-lifter after previous days of clouds and rain. After a lovely time at church worshipping the Lord Jesus and fellowshipping with friends, we came home for lunch and a rest. Since we don't have television programming (except for Netflix), Chris and the children went to his brother's house to watch some football for the evening. I chose to stay home, light some candles and continue working on my knitting!

I lit this candle not long after everyone left...

...and here it is (below), still glowing as they returned home. Candles lit in the day are pretty...but when they are glowing at night...it stirs in me feelings of cozy warmth and comfort.

Well, there is no time to continue to dawdle here...I must begin the day's work...we have schoolwork and housework to attend to! If you have any projects you are working on, I would love to hear about them!! :) 

Thank you for visiting me!

Warmly,

Katy :)

Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

1 Peter 1:2b

"Oh, hello. Am I glad to see you...

...It's more friendly with two...."

 ~Winnie the Pooh

The days are getting shorter. October is in full swing, here in Western PA. The wind is quite blustery and cold...which I don't mind so much (as it gets the clothes on the line dry quickly!) except for the fact that it is blowing all the leaves off the beautifully-colored trees. My children don't mind though...the more leaves on the ground means there are plenty to be raked up and jumped in!

Inside, things are snug and cozy! The outdoor wood stove keeps things heated while the candles and oil lamps create an atmosphere to be enjoyed. The children bundle up and run out doors to play after our schoolwork is finished for the day. Here are some photos from around here at home...

Xavier, doing some schoolwork...

Madelyn reading to Jaxson...

Breakfast-for-supper (I bake my bacon in the oven...I don't fry it!)...

Making applesauce...

Books and schoolbooks...

A watercolor print I purchased a while ago on etsy (which you can find HERE, although I only paid $6 for my print!). I just love those chickens!!!

Below is a gift I received from my friend, Amy, quite some time ago. It's still hanging in my dining room. I am really fond of it. :)

Penny...

The wee-ones, Pearl and Polly (don't they just warm your heart?)...

The girls...who I am *quite* frustrated with right now...

We have raised these chickens from peeps. They *should* be laying eggs by now (my mom and others ordered the peeps in bulk with us...and theirs are laying)...but ours are *not*. We have looked to see if they are laying somewhere else in the chicken run, but to no avail. They get plenty of food and water...so I am not sure what the trouble is. We had no problems with the last group of chickens that we raised...so I am not sure why these gals are not laying.

And new, in my shop, you will find a newborn baby pod! It's a sleep sack and hat! I am working on another one now (although the one I am knitting presently is green and will *look* like a pea pod when I am finished!). It stretches wonderfully and keeps the baby snug, warm and comforted. :)

Thank you for visiting me today. The words and pictures I have shared today are nothing overly-exciting...but just a snippet of my simple life. I hope your *to-day* is absolutely wonderful! Smile a lot (even if you don't necessarily feel like it)...it truly improves the day!!! 

Warmly,

Katy

Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

  1 Peter 1:2b