Knit and Natter Friday!

One of the best things about Spring is the lambs in all the fields.

When I was a little girl not so many moons ago , my parents told me that black lambs were the first to be introduced to mint sauce as their fleece could not be used. Certainly there weren’t any black sheep in the field and so I resolved to have a black lamb only farm, with black sheep. I still love a black lamb, even though I know better these days. Mean parents.

Meantime thanks everyone for last week. I loved the way Kate and Wild Daffodil started nattering in the comments. It was brilliant, just what this post is all about, nattering with each other. Please keep it up.

Also thanks for ideas for my message with the lap blanket. I went in the end with “Cherished scraps cover with kindness”. The Make it Shop in Chorlton has called its craftactivism event The Tree of Kindness, so it seemed appropriate to include the word kindness. Anyway the blanket was posted off on Thursday. I want to give time for it to arrive and will post a final picture on the 15 May as part of a Scrap Happy post.

I bought myself some new bamboo needles in the end to replace this sorry pair.

I can’t do justice in describing the joy of having a new pair of needles. Suffice it to say the yarn just glides along.

I have finished the back of the jumper I am knitting for Little Miss F and am on the front ribbing now. 183 stitches! That’s a lot.

Anyway enough from me, what yarny chatter do you have to share? Love to hear from you all.

17 for 2017- April

Status

Life is galloping away with me! One third of the way through 2017. It’s been an odd mixture weather wise, lots of lovely sunny days then a short blast of Summer or Winter. The daffodils are over and my garden is full of bluebells, tulips and forget me knots. As for goals, well..

17 swims- 1 more so that makes 4

16 Hour long walks- going well , thanks to son and dog!

Maundy Thursday at the start of a walk along the Roman Road above Snape. Mr J, Master H, Miss S and Ms M, and the star of the picture, is Coco. I also managed a lovely walk myself, but more of that another day. Clocked up an impressive 5 walks, giving a total of 11

15 books read from the heap by the bed- just one this month, total now 11

14 lbs lost- one word, ok two, Easter Eggs

13 cards made- total stuck at 8

12 village posts- one more this month, 2 in total

11 days out- One added this month to York

The blossom in the Museum gardens was lovely and

York Minster is as magnificent as ever. 5 now

10 new things tried- bit miffed on this, two things arranged and postponed, maybe next month. Life! Total remains 2

9 knitting/ crochet projects. Oh Bagpuss

I don’t believe it, that makes NINE. Goal achieved!

8 other craft projects- 0

7 sewing projects

One babies ball, makes 2

6 Non Fiction books- 5 now, see below

5 bits of family history research. Bit of a cheat because this involved the reading of a non fiction book too. The book was about the local school, how it was set up etc. Originally part of a charitable foundation which involved local almshouses too.One of the surnames mentioned on the outside of said almshouse is that of an ancestor, question- was that my ancestor? It wasn’t but I was rewarded with this.

A picture of my Grandfather , second from the left. Whoever thought of school teachers acting in the school play?

So although the answer was a negative I have answered another question, so that makes 2

4 sort outs-still 3, kitchen is half done.

3 interesting finds-still 1

2 picnics-0

1 boat trip- o

o craft supplies added to, already failed thanks to the gremlins visit in March. Toy stuffing bought this month for Bagpuss, but that’s allowed.

Need to go away and have a big think about these goals. Some have gone well, some not at all. How about you? How are you doing, and what motivates you to achieve the things that back in January seemed like such a good idea?

 

 

 

Yarning Along

Rachel has started Yarning Along for us knitters and book lovers to link into. Please pop over there and see what people are knitting and reading! Rachel helped me in my early days of blogging and this is a big new venture for her.

April Books.

I do miss Ginny’s Yarn Along, not just for the knitting but also for sharing my love of books and in reading posts from others picking up some good recommendations for new to me authors. So I have come up with the idea of sharing what I have been reading in a monthly post. Please tell me what you have been reading, whether you have read anything by the authors I mention , in fact anything to do with books at all.

I started this month with reading another book from the heap by the bed ( part of my 17 for 2017).

Derek Tangye- A Drake at the Door. Derek Tangye and his wife started a successful Daffodil farm in Cornwall, in the late 1950s. Think The Good Life . Derek Tangye wrote a number of books detailing their life in all its ups and downs.

As this was number 11 from my heap , I decided that I was making good in roads in my goal to read the books I had accumulated,  so treated myself to some books from the library. It has subsequently occurred to me that the books in the heap are books I have picked up from various sources because I could. They are all perfectly good books but don’t excite me, if you follow my drift, and that is why they are in an unread heap.

All three books are by favourite authors. In the order I read them

Ann Cleeves- High Island Blues-not from the Vera or Shetland series of books. A well crafted detective story involving British Private investigators set In America. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

Joanna Trollope- Balancing Act- That old work life balance thing, with relationships, empty nests, the old making way for the young. A good read.

Anne Tyler- Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant- I am still reading this one. Reminds me very much of her other books about ordinary people bringing up the children and then watching from the sidelines of an Empty Nest. It feels a bit samey! But a good enough read.

So now over to you. What have you read recently , anything to recommend please?

Yorkshire Spoolettes.

I was so disappointed to have managed once again to miss the Yorkshire Spoolettes meet up. However I was in France at the time and then Thimberlina aka Ali told me I won the competition to guess the total miles traveled by everyone to get to the meet up. But the best bit was when she said would I like to meet up so I could receive the prize. Well of course I would like to meet up, prize or no prize. And so we did, just before Easter. And I got to meet Cyber Mum too.

Picture by Thimberlina. Lovely to meet Ali and Cyber Mum, and we had such a nice chat. Hope to meet up again one day, and to get to the next Spoolettes meet up.

Meantime that prize, oh WOW.

It came in this great big bag and was full of amazing goodies.

I mean would you look. So Yorkshire Spoolettes, a great big thank you. There was a book, sewing notions, pattern weights, coasters, a pretty box full of pins, a wooly hat much needed in Yorkshire, a drawing. Some were named so a call out to Hannah, Chris, Margaret, Catherine,  Jay  and Jenna many thanks all of you. Now where is my sewing machine?

One a week Photo Challenge- Arch

Spa Bridge Scarborough, taken January 2017

Ruins of St Mary’s Abbey, York, taken this month

Bootham Bar, York. The entrances to the old part of the city of York are called, Bars. In other UK cities they are also known as Gates. Confusing, but we Brits like to confuse!!

Please leave a link in the comments below for any Arch posts. Wild Daffodil will do a monthly round up at the end of April.

Next week’s prompt is Nature.

Happy Snapping!

Scrap Happy- April 2017

Just a baby ball

This side and

this side . Joining with Kate for some lovely scrappiness.

Have a Happy Easter.

One a week Photo Challenge- Lunch

Whilst I was in France in February I was determined to eat a pancake. I had two, both for lunch.

In Carcassonne , with lemon and sugar. Delicious.

As a starter at the Golden Wedding Anniversary party. Buckwheat pancake with cheese, mushrooms and bacon. The filling was tasty but the pancake a bit hard!

Never the less, I enjoyed both.

Looking forward to seeing what you had for lunch. Please leave a link in the comments.

Next week’s prompt is ARCH.

Happy Snapping!

17 for 2017- March

It’s true time does go faster as you get older. Apparently March is over and it’s now April. Not quite certain how that happened. Been another lovely busy month, for which I am most grateful. So how did I do with my goals for this year?

17 swims – 2 more this month, making that 3 for this year.

16 hour long walks- I have done quite well this month and added 4 more, giving me a total of 6

This was the first one, through Cropton woods. A bird left me a present on my head shortly after I took this, I persist in believing that good luck is now assured for me and it’s not just an old wives tale! Walks in Dalby woods, the Oxfordshire countryside and seeing the daffodils in Farndale followed.

15 books read from the heap by the bed! I have read another two novels since the last Yarn Along (sigh)

One was about Hollywood in the 1930’s , and a dismal picture it painted of all the hopeless hopefuls. The other about the Land Army Girls in WW2. They were ok.

14lbs lost- hurrah for the first 1 1/2!

13 cards made- 8 all in one month. Three were cross stitch.

Four featured these bird toppers

And the last one for a certain 16 year old to be.

12 Posts about Yorkshire Villages- 1 , Cropton

11 Days out- 4 now, two added this month. One was to see my lovely grandson H at Oxford Utd, where he was one of the mascots. he had a brilliant time, with a tour of the ground, a meet and greet with the players, a training session and finally walked on the ground with the players. As it happens the player he walked out with scored the winning goal! Just saying.

H is the little lad all in black( his Dad Mr J just behind him) walking over to his adoring fans ,doting grandparents, family. Shame about them.

My Boys!

The second day out was to Combe Mill.

10, try 10 new things. I am adding one more this month, total 2. I went with a group from the Family History Society to the County Records Office for a behind the scenes tour. I haven’t been on such an outing before, and was a bit apprehensive going on my own with a group of strangers. But it was a great day. The Society put out an appeal for someone to write a report for the newsletter. I waited to see if anyone else would volunteer, but they didn’t so I wrote one, and it was great seeing my work in proper print. Bit nerve-wracking but I did it.

9 crochet/knitting projects. Two more this month, the Mermaid.

Here posing with her brother now sporting an earlier finish of mine. And the little baby matinée jacket. Total 8.

8 craft projects- 0

7 sewing projects- still 1

6 non fiction books read- half way there, total is 3

5 questions answered about my family history. Whilst at the Records office I did some research. I didn’t find what I was looking for, but I did read some Banns for marriage and may have discovered the maiden name of my 3x great-grandmother. And that’s family history for you. You never know what you will find. In the meantime I have been taking care of more immediate family history. I have finally got round to scanning in my Dad’s slides. And it’s not easy to recall who is shown and where they are taken. It occurred to me that my most beloved Granny is Master H’s 2x Great Grandmother, and so I need to write down who she is in the pictures! I am counting this as 1 by the way, even though it’s not what I set out to do.

4 Good sort outs. The garden has been tackled, that gives me 3! Just the kitchen to go.

3 Interesting things found- At Combe Mill there was a wood-turning area, and in a box labelled FREE help yourself, were some practice bits. I selected this one.

Very tactile, but I have no ideas what to do with it. Any suggestions most gratefully received.

2 Picnics- 0

1 Boat Ride- 0

0 additions to the stash of craft materials, yarn, fabric etc. Whoops! There was a bit of an accident with the keys on my computer and some yarn and a pattern were bought. Bit of a mystery what happened there.

Never mind…..

Onwards and Upwards. Hope you had a good month. April should be good… chocolate.

And as they say if life is giving you lemons there is always lemonade to be made.

 

 

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