Another finished project

I am 100% sold on taking classes to learn new hobbies. It was so great to have an expert at the ready to offer instruction, encouragement, and motivation to complete two - count them - two projects in four weeks. Behold the hat.

While I am far from an expert knitter (more like novice-beginner-prone-to-mistakes knitter, surely there is a class for that group?), I am developing confidence. My new resource to help me navigate my inevitable errors is Debbie Stoller's Stitch 'n Bitch. The title was good for a laugh from my husband, and I have found the book to be most helpful in fixing my mistakes and offering inspiration for future projects.

We are also really happy to have our newest batch of yarn and roving back from the mill. Sally at The Shepherd's Mill did such a great job in cleaning and processing our alpaca fiber into beautiful skeins and yards and yards of roving. I am so excited to share our new arrivals with my knitting friends.

A finished project

My first knitted project is complete - behold the headband. It has a few holes and some lovely imperfections. It was a good first attempt at knitting.

I am most proud of starting a project and finishing it! I have a quilt that has slowly been inching towards finished - just a few hours of binding left. There is the scrapbook that needs some journaling, page protectors, and bound. Let's see...the pile of stuff that needs to be sold or donated. And, boxes and piles of supplies for aspirational projects, like the zipper flowers I saw on an episode of Martha Stewart. But, one project is finished!

I am on my second week of making a hat. Stay tuned!

I am learning to knit - finally!

My first knitting class was on Tuesday night at Wildflower Yarns and Knitwear in Manhattan. Kennita was a very patient teacher, as promised!

Our first project was a garter stitch head band (10.5 needles and a bulky weight yarn). I love the yarn - a pistachio 85% wool, 15%mohair.

I began as all thumbs and revealed myself as the class perfectionist - surprised, right? I started over a couple of times in class and pulled out several rows at home. Last night, I got on a roll and now I am stiching a row in the morning and a row at night for practice. I may have the longest headband in history!

Our next project will be a hat (8 needles and worsted weight yarn). I am so excited to have a finished project! We will finish our headband at the next class and start on the hat. Stay tuned!

Spring flowers

Spring is winding down and I am just now getting my spring pictures organized.

We had beautiful spring flowers - irises, peonies, and a beautiful clementis!

We were so pleased that our peonies finally bloomed. We planted them years ago and was just about to give up on them. Finally, we had two bushes loaded with blooms! I thought they looked spectacular under great-great grandpa Heinrich's (Henry) and grandma Katarina's portraits. The black and white picture on the left is of my dad's family when he was around five. The cake plate on the right is great-great grandma Katarina by way of Cousin Betty.

These irises knocked my socks off! One day we went out into the yard to find this beautiful blossom with the purple edge. I couldn't help but bring the flowers inside to enjoy for a few days.

I am looking forward to my sunflowers shooting up some more and the black-eyed susans taking off. The summer flowers are always so much fun.

The hunt for bees

Several weeks ago the packet from the Great Sunflower Project arrived. The packet had the Lemon Queen Sunflower seeds, instructions for planting, and the data collection sheet.

My sunflowers are starting to have a good stand in the garden. The recent rains and some help from my husband with a watering in between, have given them a nice start.

I am looking forward to seeing the first blooms and starting my observation of bees.

Spring at Prairie School Farms

We are so blessed to have had exceptional weather this spring. The rain has been in the right amount and we have had plenty of sunshine as of late.

Our clementis is loaded with blooms. The side that faces east was especially full where blooms were on top of blooms! I originally planted the clementis with the hopes that it would grow to cover the post holding up our cast iron bell that Jer's parents gave us several years ago. Finally, it looks just like I imagined.



Wes was enjoying a hay snack on a sunny afternoon. It was so funny to watch him eat with such gusto! I really enjoy just being around the alpacas this time of year. The weather is so beautiful and the animals are always up to something.







Manny was lounging one Sunday afternoon and using a pile of hay as a pillow! He looked so comfortable that I couldn't help but take a picture.

Too cute!

B on Main in Ventura, California was the cutest shop! We made a small purchase and it was packaged in a cute brown lunch bag stamped with their name and a bee on the back with light brown and light blue tulle to close it! What a great idea for simply wrapping a gift.

I loved their merchandise, though I had to resist my compulsion to organize and straighten. It was a tad shuffled - put like things together, people!

A must-see in the cute, historic downtown in Ventura.