MOMENTS IN TIME

HOOKING AND OTHER STUFF

2012-01-25T08:10:00.000-08:00

THE LION

Finished at last!

I loved doing this piece, designed by

Edythe O'Neill

I wish I could have gotten a better picture of him

but maybe the close-ups will do it.

Since he is king of the jungle I have embellished

his mane with a "diamond" studd.

In this picture the mane loo9ks lavender but it is

really a soft ecru with darker brown accents.

I alove the curve of his tale. It is almost "sexy"

I have hooked it with the same materials as the mane.

These leaves border the whole piece. I used just

what greens I found in my scrap bag. All of them

are soft and muted.

I wanted you to see the background material that

I used. It is Woolrich's blue wool over dyed with

blue and abrashed with green and lavender.

This material was dyed by Helen Connelly Howe

and is the most beautiful piece of abrashed material

I have ever seen. You should see it

when the sun shines on it!

Lots of things have been happening in my

life since I last posted. I have had another birthday -

and I am still wondering where the time has gone.

Lucky person that I am, the kids all got together and I

got a Kindle Fire for a gift. Now! if only I

could figure the thing out!!!!

I have had nother bout with broncitis and

this one was much worst then the first one.

However, the Dr. gave me a clean bill of health

last Friday and I must say it is wonderful

to feel well.

Eloise and I continue to hang out together,

She seems to do a lot of sleeping in this cold

weather. She is strictly an "under cover" girl.

I am still unable to respond to your blogs but I am still

reading about all of you and of course I

remain interested in all of your activies.

Please don't give up on me. I will try to update more often in the

future.

Until next time be safe, stay warm and

count your blessings.

Doris

REPORTING IN

2011-12-21T12:45:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody, it's me again.

I know I have been away from the blog for

a long time but my mom has not been feeling

well and I must stick to her side like I'm glued

there.

As you can see I look fit and

I am afraid I am loosing my

girlish figure in my old age

(12 plus yrs.)

Now that winter is here the wood

stove is going again and I love

to toast my hind parts.

A month or so ago we had the first snow fall of

the season. It was a real surprise to everyone.

We NEVER have snow in October.

Mother Nature must have been having a

bad hair day!

Here I am on the deck steps looking forlorn

because it is so cold out.

I am missing summer when I could stay out

for long periods of time and take sun baths.

I haven't told you about my summer yet.

It was a relatively quiet summer. Mom

and I stayed home a lot and enjoyed the

deck and the wonderful sunshine.

I only had two encounters!

One was a garden snake, about 12 inches long,

I shook him and shook him and

then I flung him to another part of the yard.

I am a mighty hunter!

The second encounter was quite different.

This guy was BIG!

A black runner about six feet long and

quite fat.

Mom cane out with her trusty weapon, the leaf

rake, and moved him along to another part

of the property. Just didn't give me a real chance to

show how brave I am.

Since the weather got cold I have been spending

a lot of time practicing my "poor dog" look.

We had one interesting episode last week. Richard, Sheri and

Traci were here on Saturday. Richard and Sheri

had been down in the family room, getting things ready

for Christmas. When they came up to the kitchen they

saw a mouse on my water bowl.

The nerve of that guy.

Richard tried to catch him - but what do men know about

catching mice? Once he ran he was a goner.

The girls screamed, mom jumped, and

I was very good. When Richard told me to drop it, I did.

Nasty thing!

I caught another one on Monday morning and

now I think the house is mouse free.

My big job now is waiting for Santa.

I have been taking advantage of the living room

chair and mom's computer table to

watch for him. Guess I just have to be

patient a bit longer. I have a very pretty

stocking with my picture on it

and it is hung, with care, and ready to

be filled.

I'm glad to report that mom is feeling better.

She still is having trouble walking because

her leg is numb but she does make herself

walk but she still can't do stairs.

We have dispensed with most of the Christmas traditions

of the house, and will be having a simple repast

instead of everyone's favorite dishes. Mom just

doesn't feel she can cook all of that food.

She will be making her famous Shrimp salad and

Pumpkin Pie is already in the freezer.

Today she baked a batch of her spiced nuts - it

made the whole house smell like Christmas.

We are looking forward to having the whole

family with us this year. I'm sure that Santa

will be his usual generous self and that

all will have a good time.

Mom and I want to wish all of you a very merry

and blessed Christmas as well as the best

of health and happiness in the new year.

Don't forget to tell your family how much you love them.

That will be the most meaningful gift of all!

Until the next time, take care of yourself, I will post again as

soon as I have more news.

Eloise (and Doris, too)

THE WEDDING

2011-11-23T09:00:00.000-08:00

On Friday, November 4th at 6:30pm

Miss Brandi Nelson

and

Mr. Curtis Harbaugh

we married at the Courtland Mansions in

Hagerstown, Md.

Brandi is my grandson's oldest step child

and therefore my great grand child!

They were married in the courtyard of the mansion

Mother Nature provided us with a beautiful

sunset that gave a pink glow to everything.

Just lovely

Starting down the aisle

The groomsmen and best man waiting for the bride

Approaching the alter

Brandi's sister Lisa, the maid of honor

Saying their private vows to each other

An overall alter scene

First dance for the bride and groom

First dance with Richard

Tasting the cake with lots on the face!

Finding the garter

Danyel, Brandi's youngest sister, and

her significant other. A beautiful bridesmaid and a

handsome groomsman

Three beautiful bridesmaid's taking a break from

dancing

I have purposely saved this picture till last.

It is a very special picture.

The bride and groom are exchanging two colors

of sand so that they can never be parted.

This was the most beautiful wedding I have

ever been to. Mother nature provided us with

the beautiful pink glow that lit up the

courtyard. The girls were all beautiful and the

groomsman all young and handsome.

The dresses were absolutely lovely.

No candles were used in the ceremony.

They were used only to light up the aisles.

All of this beauty

and

the bride was the only one that could not

see it. She is blind.

Needless to say I am very proud of

this young couple and of their mother and

step father.

I have so much to be thankful for and I realize what a lucky person I am. My family is the most important thing in the world to me and I thank God each day for them. I hope you and your family have a wonderful Thanksgiving and count your blessings.

Doris

SECOND TIME AROUND

2011-11-18T07:01:00.000-08:00

Well blogger has done it again!

We are simply at odds with each other.

I do wish whatever "knot" he has up his %$#@

he gets rid of soon.

In addition to loosing everything I had typed yesterday

I also have lost over half of my previous postings.

Since I still am unable to leave comments

I guess blogger and I are really at odds!

However, I was anxious to post so that all of

my blogger friends would know that

I am still alive. I have been going thru a bad spell of

depression but am much better now.

AN OLD HOOKED RUG

I gaze upon an old hooked rug

Three generations scaling,

Mosaiced with lots of colored stuff

That gave an eerie feeling.

I know one pattern near the edge

Was cut from Grandma's satin rare,

The brown stuff patterned like a wedge,

Was Uncle John's first little pair.

That bit of scarlet on the right

Was Grandpa's very gayest tie,

And when he wore it he would say

"Inside this makes me feel knee high."

And poor Great Grandma's special dress

Made by a famous Paris house,

In little patterns here and there

Run in and out like a gray mouse.

You know it really seems to me

We ought to tread with care,

Perhaps we ought, I wonder now

Kneel on it with a prayer.

Author: Constance Kemper

From: The Dreams Beneath Design

By: Pearl K. McGown

I have been researching some items

for my classes and came across this poem

and it really touched me.

I wanted to share it with all of you.

As the holidays approch, I hope that each and everyone of you has more than your share of things to be Thankful for. Be sure to tell your family's how much you love them. I feel that we don't use the word "love" with out families often enough.

Until the next time stay safe, keep a smile on your face and a song in your heart!

Doris

AN OLD HOOKED RUG

2011-11-17T08:20:00.000-08:00

IT'S OVER! (Officially over)

2011-10-31T12:00:00.000-07:00

Summer and Fall are definately over!

SIX (6) inches of snow on Saturday

Can you believe that in October????

No more fried green tomatoes from our garden

One of the joys of the Maryland summer

These are from the last crab feast of the year.

Just last Sunday the whole family met at

Gilligan's crab house on Pope's Creek to

celebrate the marriage of my grandaughter Victoria.

So sad to think that we have to wait another

year to pass before we get to enjoy these lovely

creatures again.

\HOOKING

Just a few more pictures from Lancaster. A few of

my favorites. These very large Poppies caught my eye

I think this is my favorite of the whole show!

Look at the love in that dog's face.

A wonderful hooking job

Imitation of Paisley

A very interesting piece

I know I showed this piece before but I wanted to

refresh you memory because I want to show the

picture below.

What a terrific hooking job this face is.

So expressive, beautiful yet sad

Of course, I bought some wool - how could I not?

I think that we all have wool "itis"

Some of the wool for a new piece I am

planning to do. I should be ashamed of myself. You

would think I don't have any wool

Any projects started and in the "not finished"

category.

Oh well, gives me something to think about while

the snow is melting!

I hope all of you that went to Lancaster has a wonderful time.

I'm sure that it will be a long time before ATHA comes

to the East coast again. It was good to see so many folks that I knew and to be able to spend time with Lauren who came all of the way from Ohio.

We had a delightful lunch together.

If you read her blog "Rugs and Pugs"

how about sending a small check to the Ohio Pug Rescue during

this holiday season? This is an all volunteer organization

and all of the money goes to the "dogs."

I hope all are warm and cozy - so many without electricity

in this area. Do take care of yourselves.

Thought for the day -

Everyone who says they have only one life

must not know how to read a book.

Unknown

Doris

MOMENTS IN TIME

2011-10-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

IT'S SHOW TIME

Yes indeed, it surely was show time.
The Biennial held in Lancaster, Pa. this past week
was surely a winner. Frankly, I have never seen so many people in a hotel lobby before. Speaking of hotel's, The Eden is a beautiful place and we had wonderful accomodations.
The pictures for this blog posting are just to wet your appetite to see more.
A few shots of the shoppers - sorry they are fuzzy but
so many people all moving around.

Traci, Joan and Barb looking at wool in one of the booth's
More talking about what wool to select - did Joan make up her mind?
This hooked piece says it all. Hooking is an art!

The following pictures are of some of my favorites in the show.
In another blog posting I will tell you more about our
activities but I wanted you to see some of the
hooked pieces first so that you can begin to enjoy the work.
This picture "stole the show" = it was beautifully hooked.

This closeup's of the man's face says it all - the hooking
was wonderful

This piece was hooked by Joan Strausbugh (spelling)
I believe I have a better picture of this rug which I will post later. My computer has a mind of it's own today.
To me, this was one of the most spectacular pieces in the show. The Lion's face was beautifully hooked and the mane was prodded!
Look at the beautiful colors in the mane. The prodding was quite high and very nicely done.

I hope that this litte bit did wet your appetite. I will be telling you more about out activities and showing more pictures. According to my camera I took 75 pictures but I promise not to bore you will all of them.

I would like to acknowledge my friends that made it possible for me to attend the biennial. THANK YOU Sunny and Traci. Eloise also thanks you!

Thought for the day
Beauty is not in the face.
Beauty is a light in the heart.
Kahil Gibean

Doris

A LESSON LEARNED

2011-10-07T12:34:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, my lesson learned was on a beautiful rug pattern designed by Pearl McGown. The name of the pattern is "Maturity." I still think that it is one of the most beautiful rug patterns

I have ever seen.

The rug is room sized (9 x 12) I had planned it for my dining room.

I no longer live in that house and of course, this rug

will never be completed.

The picture above shows a portion of the rug that has

been hooked.

This pic shows what happens to rug backing when not properly

cared for.

Look at this mess! This is what happens when sun and heat

get to a pattern backing. This did not happen overnight.

This is the result of several years of laying in the sun.

In addition, I folded the rug instead of rolling it and

the creases deteriorated more quickly than the rest of the backing.

I have decided the thing to do is cut off the unused portion of the

pattern, and just simply hem the piece. I will than use it as a visual aid

for my students as they learn to hook flowers.

The following pictures speak for themselves.

I thought I would share than with you in case you are struggling

with hooking flowers.

A lavender Dahlia with lavender leaf.

A dalhia of a different color with bud..

What a mess! However, there is an example of the

back of a rose.

Rose with buds

A better view of the back of a rose.

Yellow is one of the hardest colors to use in a hooked rug. I don't think this rose is super good but it is the one example I have of a yellow rose with blue green leaves.

Lavender Tulips with blue morning glories.

Another Tulip - slightly different color.

A two toned Lily

A different type of Morning Glory with bud

Full blownMorning glories with buds.

A stilll different Morning glory

I hope that I haven't bored you to death. I have been looking

at the wreck of this rug for several months now

and it has been on my mind to share it wilh you.

I hope you like what you see.

I am still unable to leave comments. The minute I preview them they disappear,. Also if you have the small pop up window for

your comments, I am unable to certify who I am

and blogger insists that he./she know who I am.

I would like to say hello to Julia, Courtney, Nettie, Lauren,

Cathy G., Moosecraft, and all of my other blogger

friends

Quote of the day -

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf

is a flower.

Albert Camus

Have a wonderful weekend everyone

Doris

HOOKING AND A DEAD BRAIN!

2011-10-03T07:45:00.000-07:00

On my last posting, I showed pictures of rugs being

worked on at the ATHA Mason/Dixon meeting.

These pictures continue with that meeting.

We are so lucky to belong to that group. Among

our members are three wool vendors. There

is always lots of heavenly pieces of wool to choose

from if you are in the market for wool (and

who isn't?)

This is Barb looking over wool from one of the

vendors. I think that is Bob with her.

Look at this beautiful wool - all for sale.

This is the table of another vendor.

It is so great to have these ladies come regularly

to the meetings.

The program for the last meeting was really interesting.

We divided into four groups and the groups

rotated every half hour to another station. Four stations had been

set up.

At this station Sharon is showing the ladies

how to crochet and edge on an oriental rug so that

fringe could be attached.

This group is learning how to do

the herring bone stitch.

This group is being shown how to frame

any size hooked piece.

This group is learning about prodding.

Now on to the DEAD BRAIN!

I have had a really busy week. The only thing that

stayed home was my camera!!

BRAIN DEAD!

On Wednesday evening I had a delightful time.

My great grand-daughter invited me to

dinner with she, her sister and her

sister fiancee. We had a wonderful time.

We went to the best steak house in Hagerstown

and had a great meal. The nice thing about these

grands is that they enjoy my company. For some reason,

who knows why, they think I am the font of all information

and seems to love my stories of life "in the dark ages."

On Friday I attended a social hook-in at

Barb's house. It was a delightful day. Everyone

was in such a good mood. Rosalie was knitting,

Sandy was pinniung together a sweater that she had just knit

amd everyone else was hooking.

Some really nice pieces are being made in this group.

On Saturday I went to a meeting

of the Boonsboro ATHA group. It was a cold, rainy day

and not a lot of members showed up.

It was the kind of day that you just wanted to stay in bed.

Programs for the future were discussed

and Elinor shared with us her beautiful

Quilts. Her work is so beautiful, and she is very

prolific. We were all thrilled by her presentation.

On Sunday, yes out again, much to Eloise's

displeasure - to a bridal shower at the Holiday Inn.

A very nice affair for my oldest great granddaughter,

She is being married on November 4th

at the Cortland Mansion in Hagerstown.

This is why I say I am brain dead. All of these

nice things and no pictures! Don;t know how I could have been

so thoughtless!

Thought for the day . . .

Life can be complicated

but happiness is really pretty simple.

Marianne Moore

Until next time

stay well, be happy an

tell your family that you love them.

Doris

Rugs, Rugs, Rugs . . . . . .

2011-09-21T08:07:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday I went to the Mason/Dixon Chapter

of ATHA meeting.

They had a most interesting program

which I will tell you about in my next posting.

In the meantime, here are some of the rugs

at the meeting.

This rug was a second place winner at the Maryland

State Fair and was hooked by

Barbara Twigg.

This is another of Barb's rugs. This one

is in porgress. You could pick this fruit right off

of the backing.

This adorable lamb is being hooked by

Pat A. for her daughter. Love the background

color.

A closeup of this cutie's face.

Pat has some work to do on his scarf and

a good bit of background to finish. I

believe she plans to make it into a pillow.

This rug was a blue ribbon winner at the

Maryland State fair. It was hooked by the

Vice President of the chapter, Sharon Kollman.

The picture does not do it justice. It

is a real beauty!

Last but certainly not least, a Christmas Wall Hanging,

hooked by the late Ruth Dietzel.

This piece is a true work of art, with very subtle

shading and the technique of the master's

touch.

When I next post, I will tell you about the

program which was very interesting and a

clever idea. I also have pictures of the

event.

In the meantime, it continues to be cool here and

rainy. This is great hooking weather. I now have a

good book on DVD which I am sure will

expedite my hooking. I have finished the lion and am

now working on the background. I also am

collecting all sorts of green plaids and checks

for the leaf border.

Hope everyone is having as good a week as

I am having! Keep those hooks in motion!

Doris

THE BIG DIG . . . .

2011-09-13T11:58:00.000-07:00

When we moved into this house eight years

ago, at the end of our driveway was the ugliest shrub

I have ever seen. It was some variety of Yew and had been

allowed to spread and obviously never been taken care of.

In addition, it was full of bag worms.

It had to go!!!

Richard and my daughter, Kris, worked at it for many hours and finally

got it out and the bag worms taken care of.

It was decided that a round flower bed at the end of the driveway would

be a nice addition to the yard.

For several years, we added to the garden and it

was a beautiful success. Then as things change during

the years, other priorities took place of this garden

and it became a shambles.

It had to go!

Here is Richard just starting. He probably is

wondering how and where to start. It was such a mess that

I felt ashamed for the people driving down our street.

Over grown, full of weeds. Sedum plants out of hand.

When they were planted, they were just twiggs.

At this point they are approximately 5 feet in diameter!

Those tall "weeds" on the far right of the picture

are Stargazer Lilies. Everything else seems to have turned to weeds.

What a mess!

Now all of the plants, having been dug up, reside in my

garage. Lauren thinks her garage is a mess.

Mine looks like a jungle.

A FEW Iris, Stargazer Lillies, Glads, Stella Doro Lillies

Firecracker bulbs, Daffy-dills, and about a dozen

other plants.

This is how it looks now. The next job is to rake it out and

plant grass seed. That is Richard's job when he returned from vacation.

In the meantime it is better than the jungle at the end of the drive.

Now my job is to divide all of the bulbs and

get then ready to be replanted. Hopefully I can get

started to morrow - I anticipate that it will take

at least a week to sort, divide and clean all of these

bulbs. Wish me luck with this project.

Thought for the day

Beauty is not in the face;

beauty is a light in the heart.

Kahil Gebran

I attended the Blue and Gray hook-in yesterday and have some pictures to show you later. I hope everyone has a great week

Doris

2011-09-08T07:36:00.000-07:00

WHERE DID IT GO???

Summer, that is -

I still have two pairs of white pants with

the sales tags on them. Just didn't get the time

to wear them.

White shoes and purse put away

for the winter.

Heaven forbid! you should wear anything

white after Labor Day. (according to my mother).

Fortunately, it was nice on Labor day until late in the afternoon.

Richard and family had a wonderful

cookout with Beer Can Chicken the

featured menu item.

The Bent Willow Community also had its annual

Labor Day feast at the home of the

Paprocki's and a large crowd it was!

Guess I have the "I'm sorry it's over blues and

the "I love fall and winter" smiles.

I have started hooking in earnest again and am

really enjoying it.

Here's the latest update on the new project.

The Lion's face and mane are finally

finished. I am very pleased with

the way he turned out. When I started putting the

background (more on this) in, he became the

color of gold that I had anticipated.

It's amazing how the color changes when you

add background or any adjacent color.

Closeup of mane and face. I used several different

cuts to get the face as I wanted it.

Most of the rug is being hooked with a #8 and 8-1/2 cut

but the face is done with a #6 cut and some

smaller accent pieces.

I love his tail. It almost looks like a

dragon head. I treated it the same as his mane

except I used smaller cuts here so that

I could get the detail in.

About the background. It is the loveliest piece of

wool that I think I have ever had. It was

dyed by Helen Connley Howe. She is a New York

Teacher. I first met her in 1974 at

a teacher's workshop. I think that she

has been unwell lately and is no

longer teaching. The wool is a Woolrich product

in what I call gray-blue (not sure what Woolrich calls it)

overdyed with Navy Blue and abrashed with bright green.

What makes the piece so rich and velvety looking

is the way it was abrashed.

Sorry, it's true beauty does not photograph

for it is really lovely.

It's another foggy day with rain this early am.

Guess we are supposed to have rain until

Saturday. Sure makes for a dreary day!

However, it is a good excuse to spend

the day in the hooking room.

Thought for the day -

Never go to a Doctor whose office plants have died.

Erma Bombeck

Doris

SHE'S A FICKLED WOMAN. . . . .

2011-08-28T05:40:00.000-07:00

Mother Nature, of course!

On Friday evening I was so tired of hearing about

Irene on the radio and tv that I decided to walk

out onto the deck and see the sky for myself.

What I saw was one of the most beautiful skys

I had ever seen at this time of year.

Have you ever "painted a sky" on wool

to use in a pictorial?

Wou7ldn't it be wonderful to use this as

a color plan?

So peaceful and serene. It made me wonder

what mother nature was thinking.

This is a lady of miracles.

She gives us great beauty to enjoy and

it's all free!

Saturday evening was another story!

She turned her back on us and gave us an

angry sky.

Even tho the sky looks angry there is

still beauty in these clouds.

The sky had gotten very dark and

the clouds were rolling, the wind was

blowing and the trees were swaying.

It was raining steadily but not hard.

I love the clouds so I stood for quite some time watching them as they

rolled by forming picture after picture.

Actually, the storm did not hit this area to badly.
We lost power for about 4 hours and
it did rain heavily during the night.

Irene was an uninvited guest at my grand daughter's
wedding that was supposed to be today. Due to the
location, it was cancelled and they were
married in a private ceremony yesterday.
We will hold a family celebration
several weeks from now.

So, onto "Plan B." We have made reservations
at a seafood resturant in Hagerstown for
"all you can eat" crabs. I can think of nothing better
on a rainy Sunday afternoon that all you can
eat crabs.
Hope everyone is safe and well and that
Irene leaves us in a hurry.
Doris

IT'S TIME TO HOOK!!!

2011-08-24T08:29:00.000-07:00

It's finally happened! I think the Mojo is back! Yesterday for the first time I really enjoyed hooking. I really cannot imagine me without my hooking frame set up with a large rug in progress.

I have been working on my large pictorial for some time now and I think it is about 85% finished. I felt as tho I had hooked myself into a corner.

I am not going to show the whole rug here since I did that some time ago.

When I finished hooking the man's face I knew that I had a problem. I needed something for his shirt that would balance color with the rest of the

piece and that would show thru the bird cage properly. I could not use green because of the grass that surrounds the wagon and the wagon itself.

My "rule of thumb" when encountering a hooking problem is

not to de-hook but take the piece off of the frame and

let it rest for a week. At the end of that time I lay the piece on the

floor and take a good look. Usually by then the piece will tell me

what it needs.

This piece told me it needed a soft blue. Something in the "steel" gray family or like worn out jeans. I took a trip to Grant Street Woolworks and found exactly

whaat I needed in Linda's "odds and ends" jar. I only need

a very small piece and this was perfect.

Thank you Linda.

As I am sure you know, I cannot go a whole week without hooking

so when I took the pictorial off of the frame I had to put

something on it. Since the pictorial is being done with a #3 cut,

I decided it was time to take a break. Instead of getting out

one of the large pieces already in progress, I started a new piece.

This is Edith O'Neal's Lion. I have had this piece for sometime

and have been anxious to see what I could do with it. I am using a number of cuts but mostly #8 and #8.5. Quite a change off from a

#3!

As yoou can see, I have not finished the face at this point.

The face is hooked with a #6 cut and some #3 around the eyes.

I know that Lion's have amber eyes but with the brown/amber of the

beard I thought green eyes looked best.

Close up of face.

Close up of beard. The beard is a #8.5 cut and is done with a brown/amber tweed and accented with a red/brown/orange plaid. The Lion's body is being done with three different dye lots of Dottie Ebi's Spots #1. These materials are quite interesting because they were dyed by two different hookers. Two dye lots are over Woolrich's while wool and one dye lot is over Dorr's yellow. It is interesting for me to see the difference in the wool from one dyeing concept to another. It is also interesting to see the difference that dyeing over colored material makes. I hope you all try this sometime in the near future.

In the meantime, we have had some wonderful weather. Hope all of you are

out enjoying this weather bonus. Eloise has been spending

her mornings on the deck where it is nice and cool. Of course she

has to greet the neighbors and their dogs as they

walk past.

Hope everyone keeps hooking and enjoys the short time left

of our summer. When school is back in session (today is the first day here)

you know summer is about over.

Next week our family has a wedding and a

crab feast. More on this later. Have a great week.

Doris

UP TO MY ELBOWS!

2011-08-22T06:43:00.000-07:00

In tomatoes, that is! This is about one forth of the harvest of red tomatoes from Saturday last week.

There are also yellow tomatoes. I love the yellow ones. They are so sweet and juicy.

The tomatoes in the bowl on the left are cherry tomatoes. We estimate that we had about 500 of those. Very small but did they pack a flavor! The best we have ever had and, of course, the label got thrown away so we don't know what variety they are so we can plant the same next season.

Some really nice eggplants. Since I can only eat so many veggies I googled eggplants and found that I could freeze these. It is very simple. Peel the eggplant and cut into thick slices. Blanch in lemon water for no more than 4 minutes, cool and freeze. I am hoping to make some eggplant casseroles this winter and some eggplant fritters.

In this pot is tomato sauce. I took many of the cherry tomatoes and put them in the food processor. I did not puree them but left some small chuncks since I wanted the sauce to have some texture. I added chopped onion and green pepper. I spiced the sauce with bay leaf, oregano, and fresh basil. I let it simmer for about half an hour. I ended up with 4 containers of sauce. I froze three of them and kept the 1 out to try.

To this container of sauce I added, garlic and garlic oil, some more fresh basil and about a dozen shrimp. I heated it just long enough for the shrimp to cook and I served it over spaghetti. It was yummy! It makes me know that I can add many things to this basic sauce and have many different meals. One of the nicest things about the sauce is that by using the processor you can not even tell that the skins were left on the tomato, after all, that is where a lot of the flavor is.

Now I have time to go back to my hooking!!!!! Have a wonderful week everyone.

Doris

. .FRUSTRATION AND A TRIP . . . . . . . . .

2011-08-20T07:15:00.000-07:00

Frustration has been the word of the past few weeks. During the time that I was not posting Mr. Blog decided to update how you blog. Oh my goodness, all of these changes for an old lady make for smoke rolling out of the ears. Richard finally figured out how to get the picture on and so I am now going to try to update.

I took a trip to Grant Street Woolworks several weeks ago. I did not take pictures of rugs. Kathy (woolfind) always does a good job of that. Instead I chose to "Take the Road Less Traveled" to Chambersburg. I wandered up Maryland Route 11 instead of taking interstate 81. It is a lovely senic drive and probably only takes 10-15 minutes longer and no trailer-tractors to contend with.

This is one of the lovelist stone houses on the way. In the spring and summer it is doubly beautiful because the occupants have planted the whole property in the English garden style with climbing roses all along the fence.

This is the new building, just finished, at the Hagerstown Regional Airport. It is a very large airport for the town size but occasionaly Air Force One land there.

I love old barna! This is a really nice one. This farmer raises goats and the pasture is full of them. They are really interesting.

This is one of the older homes on the route. Very picturesque and so peaceful looking.

Crazy lopsided picture taken out of the side window. It really is hard to take good pictures when driving. Look at the "Gingerbread on the porch.

This is the airport again. A mistake to have it on twice but I can't figure how to get rid of it!

A beautiful day with soft puffy clouds floating the the sky. When I was a kid I loved to look at the faces, the animals, and the castles in the clouds. These looked like big marshmellows and some looked like cotton candy.

There are lots more interesting barns and houses on this route but no place to pull off of the road to take pictures. I do enjoy the ride.

In addition to that, I have been elbow deep in tomatoes. More about that later. Also I have started a new hooking project. When I run into a problem while hooking my rule of thumb is to take the piece off of the stand and let it rest for a week. Usually at the end of that time the piece tells me what it needs. Of course, I cannot a week without hooking! Sooooooo, instead of working on one of the many "already started" pieces, of course, I started on new design. More on this in the next post.

In the meantime, Joan, Richard and I visited our favorite Mexican Resturant last Saturday and after Richard is finished mowing today we will venture out for another luncheon in one of our favorite places.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. The weather today is perfect!

Doris

2011-07-21T10:35:00.000-07:00

A MAGICAL DAY . . . . . . .

I am very late in posting this blog. Hope you will all forgive me. This weather has made a slug of me! Just don't want to do anything. The "magical day" was last Friday. The weather was glorious. Beautiful blue sky with white puffy clouds floating on a slight breeze and no humidity! So unusual for July. It was also the day of the release of the new Harry Potter movie.
Yes, this is my ticket. So glad we ordered them on line. No standing in line at the theater. We went to see this film on Friday afternoon - the 4 o'clock showing. In attendance were my daughter Joan, her son Richard and his wife Sheri, their daughter Danyel and her special friend. Ages 21 to 80 something!

As I sat there watching the previews of coming movies I had the following thoughts:
(1) I would not pay good money to see anything they were touting!
(2) I could not believe how few children were in the seats and how many over 50 were seated. You would think with school out and an afternoon showing that the seats would all be filled with the young.
(3) As I looked at my family all sitting together I suddenly realized that we had four generations ready to watch Harry Potter. I wondered how many other families could say they had four generations watching Harry?
(4) I thought about my father whose name was Harry and remembered an old song that my mother used to sing - "I'm just wild about Harry and Harry's wild about me."

As we came out of the show my thoughts were that the Disney studio did a fantastic job on the special effects in this film. The film did not go as deeply into the story as previous films did but it was wonderful in its own way. It was fun to see Harry, Ron and Hermoine all grown up. I really enjoyed it and am glad that I had the opportunity to go.

And now I guess it's time to grow up!

The other magical thing of the day was my daylilly garden. When I went out to get in the car this is what I saw -

This garden is about 35 or 40 feet long and all of the lillies were in full bloom. It was a sight to behold. This bed is along the edge of the property and faces the street. Several cars just stopped cold in the street to look. It was really beautiful.

Perhaps this will give you an idea of the size.

A little closer look.

This lilly is called Chicago Apache. It is my favorite. A very beautiful red with some orange. Really hot looking!

A lovely yellow and beige ruffled lilly.

The sun setting thru the trees on the West side of the front yard. The end of a truly magical day.

I hope that everyone is keeping as cool as possible. Please take care of yourself in the terrible heat. I want everyone to stay well. Have a wonderful weekend.

Doris

2011-07-03T06:36:00.000-07:00

THRU MY EYES - - - - -

Hello all of my blog friends. It's me again. I'm talking about last Thursday. My mom left me all day! Can you imagine that? When she decided to take the summer off, that is not teach or go to many hook-ins, I was one happy pup. She has been home with me most of the time and that means lots of attention and extra belly rubs! Geesh! on Thursday she left home just after 9 in the morning and went to the doctors. I understand that so I didn't mind that she was only gone about 2 hours. However, I knew that something was up when she didn't take her shoes off when she came in. She never wears shoes in the house.

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The next thing I knew she was going again. Seems as tho a lady blogger that she talks with was coming to the Grant Street Woolworks all of the way from OHIO. Yes, Lauren of Rugs and Pugs came for a 1 day visit. Her friend Mary was with her. Mary is not interested in hooking but is an avid antique collector. I heard mom on the phone telling someone that she wished she had spent more time talking to Mary since mom is a collector of antiques also. Mom was so pleased to meet Lauren. She and I have been interested in Lauren's work with the Pug Rescue Group. We both fell in love with Eema when she fostered her.

Lauren also came bearing gifts. What a lovely surprise.

A wonderful smelling candle in a lovely ceramic container, a "spoon" pendant with the words, rug hooker and PUPPY COOKIES. Boy, Miss Lauren sure knows how to win a girls heart.

Did you ever see such cute cookies? Not only cute, but taste awfully good and have a lovely enticing smell. I heard mom tell somebody that these cookies were "eye candy" for pet owners. Thank you Miss Lauren, for your thoughtfulness. I really love them. I have hidden one under the chair in the living room. Shhhhh, mom does'nt know,

Left to right - Joanne and Lauren. Don't know who that is also snapping a picture.

Joanne and Linda watching some antics that were going on in the shop.

Mary, Lauren and Kathy color planning Lauren's new project.

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As I started out telling you, she left me all day - didn't get home until after 6pm. Mom knows that I always eat about 5.

I showed her just how unhappy I was by turning my back on her. I just ignored everything she said.

No, I don't want to come in. I'll eat when I get ready and not before!!!!! Maybe I won't eat at all.

When mom went into the hooking room to put her things away I did make a gold star on my place. Even I couldn't resist macaroni and cheese with broiled chicken breast.

Well, Thursday was a very interesting day. I do hope that Miss Lauren and her friend Mary can come back again before to long. I'm happy to report that mom has stayed home the last 3 days so I am a happy camper again. As you can see this is a very long blog so I am tired and have to rest now.

Mom and I hope that all of you have a wonderful 4th of July. Do be careful with the fire works.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA

Eloise

2011-06-20T06:10:00.000-07:00

THIS AND THAT - - - - -

I am going to try to do a little catching up. When you live a quiet life you often feel that you have nothing to say. I have let a few things accumulate. First, my Stargazer Lilies are in bloom! They are so beautiful this year. I planted than 3 years ago and now they are at their peak

Richard was here on Saturday and was mowing and pulling weeds. The only thing that grows when it doesn't rain is weeds. We seem to have more than our fair share.

This yellow lily is a real beauty. There are red, orange and some two color ones. A deep magenta is growning in the garden at the house but not in the group that I took a photo of.

This white one is a real beauty!

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A week ago on Saturday our whole family (a very small group!) met at Gilligans Seafood House on Pope's creek for a crab feast. On my, is there anything better in the summer in Maryland than it's crabs??? Needless to say we ordered the "all you can eat crabs" and the all you can eat shrimp.
Look at these beauties! What a wonderful day we had. My daughter Joan and Richard and his family live near me but my two granddaughters (Richard's sister's) live in southern Maryland. This is somewhat over a 2 hours drive and since everyone works, we don't get together as often as we like. For this crab feast the girls were there with their significant others and Richard's wife Sheri took the day off and joined us. It was wonderful for all of us to be together.

The shrimp are large, plump, and succulent, served with Old Bay seasoning and melted butter. Oh my, so good! In addition, Gilligans is on the beach and boats from across the bay come over on Saturday's and Sunday to enjoy the food and company. At night there is a band and dancing in the sand. There is nothing better in Maryland during the summer than it's crabs, corn on the cob and home grown tomatoes!

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I'm sorry to say that "Blogger" still hates me. It won't let me leave comments on any blogs so I do want to comment on a few things:

Kim - I'm so glad your braces are off. Hope you will buy yourself some delicious chewy taffee or caramels! Please give Mom and Auntie my love and regards.(I love the "Golden Girls")

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Lauren - Thanks for the update on Eema. I know that your visit to her must have been sweet and sad at the same time. Keep 'em flying!

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Pamela - Summer colds are the worst kind. I'm so glad Edward is keeping you company. Keep your spirits up and the Kleenex coming.

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Joanne - So glad your eyes are better. Sorry that I have not been able to get to Cburg but hope to get there and see you soon. Give Jonsey a hug for me.

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Kathy - Congratulations on your daughter's graduation. I know you must be very proud of her. Her prom gown was lovely! Hope to see you soon.

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Cathy G - I have been missing update's on your hooking class. Please let us know how the ladies are doing - or have you stopped for the summer?

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For myself, I have decided to take the summer off. I have not been going to a lot of hook-ins or doing much traveling. Seems most of my traveling is to the Doctors but I hope that my health will soon be better. I am not holding regular classes during the balance of June, July or August. I am available and my students know to call me for a private lesson. Eloise continues to be her happy self, taking many sun baths on the deck and barking at all of the dogs in the neighborhood. I hope that all of you are having a great summer. Enjoy the beauty of the season and stay safe!

Doris

2011-06-07T11:47:00.000-07:00

FAVORITE THINGS - PART 2
WAFFLES - - - -

One of my favorite things is sourdough waffles. I make these on a regular basis and store them in the freezer so that they are always available. I find that they are good breakfast, lunch and dinner. Oh, so easy to make, oh, so delicious, and oh so good for you. Try using them as a bread for a ham sandwich or with a scoop of ice cream between two of them.

This is the sourdough starter pot that I keep in the fridge. I also keep a cup of sourdough in the freezer in case the starter in the fridge goes bad or gets to "liquory." I try to keep half of the "liquor" poured off each time I use the sourdough. Did you know that this "liquor" is what the 49er's drank to give than that "high kick?" It can get powerful!

This is what the batter looks like. As you can see I have already used a good bit of it. The batter is usually very thick depending on how thick your sourdough is. If you perfer to make pancakes instead of waffles, just add a bit more liquid.

My waffle iron is an inexpensive one from WalMart but makes 2 good size waffles and works like a little gem. This need not be an expensive item. I like this one because it clicks when the waffles are done.

This is the finished product. The receipe makes 18 to 20 waffles.
This is a good way to spend an hour or so stocking the freezer so that this delightful food is available at the drop of my hat.

Recipe:

1 Cup milk*

3 large eggs - Beat milk and eggs together.

Add: 2 Cups sourdough starter

1 3/4 Cup flour

2 tsp bakiing powder

1 tsp. soda

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/4 Cup sugar

1/4 cup melted butter.

Stir all ingredients until well mixed. Let stand while the waffle iron is heating. My waffle iron takes 1/3 Cup per waffle.

* I often use fruit juice for part of the liquid, i.e. lemon or orange, makes wonderful tasting waffles. If you perfer to make pancakes, just add a bit more liquid to make batter a bit thinner.

Enjoy!

Doris

2011-06-01T06:12:00.000-07:00

Pictorial Update - - - -

I think the "Mojo" is back! The hooking Mojo, that is. I am not a moody person but I have "leisure time" moods. For instance, in my free time my mood may be to read, hook, or perhaps play games on the computer but I don't do them all at the same time. I have just come off of a reading jag and now I am hooking again. So I thought it was time to update the large pictorial. Hope you like what I am doing. I still have much to do.

An overall view. This piece is just a bit larger than 3 x 5. So still a lot to do.

Some of the items in the wagon. I love this chicken

I knew the mojo was back when I decided to tackle the horse and I am pleased with him.

The pigs and sheep are finished as well as all of the chickens and the cow.

The barn complex.

The very large tree and some of the sky. I have used 4 different colors in the sky. Unfortunately they don't show up in the picture.

I thought you would like to see the "cock of the walk."

Overall view. As you can see, I have started to put a "frame" on this pictorial. Just by itself, the frame is a lot of hooking. This whole project is being done primarily with a number 3 cut altho I have done some faces with a 2. I am hopeing to have it finished by the end of summer. That is, if the air conditioning holds out!!!!

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I still am unable to leave comments on you blogs. Please believe me, I read them everyday. I do this as I have my coffee. I like starting the day with my friends. I hope everyone had a pleasant holiday and is doing well in this very hot spell we are experiencing. Until next time, Eloise and I wish you a happy day.

Doris

2011-05-28T13:33:00.000-07:00

FAVORITE THINGS -

Hello everyone! I have been reading your blog's every day but like Kim "Mr. Blogger" would not allow me to leave a comment. Geesh! Then I discovered that he would not let me update my blog. However, today he relented so I thought that I would be easy with him and just do something simple. Therefore, one of my favorite things pictorially.

More catching up later.

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday.

Doris

2011-04-30T05:11:00.000-07:00

HATS AND OTHER THINGS . . . . .

Yes, indeed, I awakened at 4am and put on my newest Mickey Mouse T-shirt, my dark green bath robe, without matching shoes (didn't paint my toenails) and attended "The Wedding!" I knew it was formal and did the best I could. I must say that both the bride and bridegroom looked wonderful. Her dress was simply elegent. The most beautiful grown I have seen in years. But Oh those hats!!!!! Have you ever seen anything like them before? Cocked over one ear or purchased on the back of the head and hanging precariously. After seeing that style, I have decided that I will stay with WalMart for this seasons headgear.

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In the meantime, I have had a busy two weeks. I often don't update my blog for I feel that I nothing to say. Several Friday's ago I attended a hook-in at my friend Barb's house. This is a social group, friends living in the tri-state area that try to get together once a month to hook, exchange ideas, and eat the wonderful goodies we all contribute.

This is Barb's rose project. She is working for her teaching certificate from the McGown Guild and this is one of her homework assignments. It's really lovely.

Tracie has laid her table runner out on the floor to see how it is coming along. This is a long, narrow piece that is really lovely. The colors are soft and antique looking.

And here is the runner! She started this piece in a Cynthia Norwood workshop held last November and is doing a wonderful job on the piece.

This piece is being done by Jill. She also started this in the Cynthia Norwood class. It is jill's first experience using a wide cut. She is doing a really nice job of this with soft coloring.

This is our friend Linda working on her snowmen bodies. She is starting early to make a number of Christmas ornaments. My oh my, to be so organized!

This is our Jill working on her piece. She will be leaving us in June and going to live in Japan for 2 years due to her husbands new job. We will sorely miss her - she is a wonderful member of our group.

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I also attended the Cumberland Valley hookers this past Monday. It is the first time I have been to this group in several months due to my illness. I was very glad to see everyone again and I am afraid that I didn't get much work done - to busy talking! I know that Pat (Hook,Hand and Heart blog) has already posted pictures of this event but I have a few different ones.

Here is Ann working on her large Pansy. I think this will be a seat cushion or a mat when she is finished. It is a beauty.

One of the ladies is working on a checker board. Sorry I can't remember whose piece this is.

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On Tuesday last week I taught my regular Tuesday class. Ellen is back home from Texas and we were all glad to see her. She had "show and tell" of the pieces that she worked on when she was away. She attended some classes with a teacher living nearby and had a number of things to share with us. Also Elinor had attended a Pam Bartlett workshop and had things to share with us as well as the project she worked on in the workshop. All in all a good day and a good lesson session.

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On Wednesday I attended my Pearl McGown Guild Chapter meeting. These are my oldest hooking buddies and I really enjoy this small group. Our numbers have dwindled over the years due to moves and deaths as we all get older however, we are all avid hookers and many of the ladies have there work shown consistently in Celebrations. This is the group that gives me inspiration and helps me to keep hooking even when my hands say "no more."

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In the mean time spring has arrived. What a wonderful time of year, however we also have had terrible rain storms and high winds.

In spite of it all the bulb garden that we planted around "Mr. Tree" last year has bloomed and looked lovely. A sure harbinger that summer is on the way.

And the Magnolia tree was lovely this year. Blessed with more blooms than ever until the last rain and wind storm. When I sit to the computer and look out the window this tree is in my line of sight. What a lovely view.

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I hope all of you are having a wonderful weekend. Richard is here and I hear the lawn mower going full force. Time to sign off until next time and get a bit of year work underway.

Doris

2011-04-15T11:39:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY - to me!

Yep! it's my birthday. I was born on April 15, 1999. I'm twelve (12) years old today. I cannot believe it. I don't know where the time went. I was born on a farm where the owners both worked full time away from the farm, raised cats as well as Jack Russell Terriers, and left us to our own devices every day. The only other pup in my litter was a boy! He was much bigger than me and managed to get all of the food. Boy, oh boy, I was very skinny and as they say, high on my legs. My mom thought I was the ugliest puppy she had ever seen. When her daughter, Kristen, brought me home, she couldn't believe what a mess I was.

Look at me now - I'm beautiful. I used to have to steal any food that I got. But when I went to live with the Aymar' even tho they had Molly, Lucy, and Beau, we all had separate bowls and I got plenty to eat. I did keep stealing my own food for a long time but I am over that foolishness now. I haven't posted for a long time because my life has been very placid. No illnesses, no strange critters in my play yard. We did have some snow this winter but not as much as last year. It did seem colder to me this winter and everyone but me had a cold.

Here I am sitting on the deck steps in the snow watching the birds. I sometimes try to catch them by leaping up in the air but they are very quick to take flight.

Last week mom and I were out on the deck and this is what we saw in our pasture. The whole herd had come to munch on our newly growing grass.

There are 12 deer in this herd. We see them often. I am so good when they are in the pasture. I never bark or try to scare them away - they are so big compared to me!

I am patiently waiting at the back storm door for mom to let me in. It has been warm enough this past week for her to leave the kitchen door open and I can smell what she is cooking. Boy, oh boy, she cooks chicken, and other goodies for me. The Vet says that for my age I am really in good shape. It's true that my girlish figure has gotten a little "bulgie" here and there, no ribs showing on me, but the vet says that my diet is a good one and I agree with him. It tastes really good to me.

This is my "poor dog" look. It is the one I use when mom puts her shoes on. In the house she wears slippers and I know that when the shoes go on she is going to leave me. I have perfected this look and it gets her every time.

I know you have seen this picture before. I hope you don't mind that I am posting it again. I am still up to my old tricks, trying to give mom a laugh every day. Ths crazy picture is one of her favorites so I thought on my birthday I would make her laugh again by showing it.

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In closing this post, I want to say a special hello to all of my friends in blog land, Eema, Peanut, Loocie, and of course, Miss Millie. I hope all of you are well, appreciating the good life, and keeping the barks and laughs coming. Until next time . . . . . . . .

Eloise

2011-04-13T08:26:00.000-07:00

BLUE AND GRAY RUG SHOW

Each month at the Blue and Gray Rug Hooking meeting one of the members is responsible for giving us a rug show. This month it was Doloros's turn. Enjoy!

All of the above rugs were our show plus

many that I didn't get pictures of.

This is a rug in process and it is being

hooked by Brenda

Brenda just finished this lovely pictorial

This dog rug was hooked by Joan. Note the

interesting border

This is not a hooked piece! It belongs to

Thelma. It is worked like a penny rug

would be done - all applied pieces and

absolutely adorable.

I always enjoy not only the rug show at Blue and Gray but the companionship and the willingness of all of the ladies there to share their knowledge. It is a group that is a pleasure to attend.

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I will be attending a local hook-in on Friday so look for more rug pictures next week. This is really an area that is in to rug hooking in a big way .

Doris

2011-04-12T04:58:00.000-07:00

The Storm - - - -

Last evening a little after 5 Eloise and I went out to the deck to look at the sky. A storm was coming. The sun was setting.

At the horizon it looked like the sky was on fire The firey sun thru the trees

This black cloud immediately above the sunset

A frighting and awesome sight.

Doris

2011-04-07T06:13:00.001-07:00

FEELING GOOD . . . . . . .

When I awaken Tuesday morning I really felt good! Hooray, hooray! It's been a long haul. When I went to the doctor's last week I complained about my lack of energy and always feeling tired. His answer was that I had been ill and I was no longer twenty-one. DUH! I knew that! So, feeling well I decided that I could accomplish something.

First thing I did was take my pot of sour dough

out of the frig, put it on the counter to warm.

Tuesday evening I set a sponge to rise

Wensday morning the sponge has risenEarly Wednesday morning I gathered the

ingredients for sour dough honey bread and

using the special honey that Sunny had given me

I proceeded to make bread. I meant to take

pictures of what I was doing but got

so engrossed I forgot. However, above are

the four loaves of finished bread.

This bread has a wonderful texture and

is really yummy just as is or toasted.

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In the afternoon, it was so warm and sunny that I spent some time walking around the front yard. Yep, it's beginning to look like spring. The grass is green, the Magnolia tree is full of buds just ready to burst and the peonies are beginning to peep thru the earth.

Just a few pictures of some of the early

flowers that are blooming.

sorry I couldn't get pictures of my Jonquils.

They are absolutely beautiful. We had a

very windy day and they are facing downward.

Ah! Spring.

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The weather today is beautiful, strong sun and a warm breeze. Eloise is outside taking a sun bath on the deck and all is well with our world. With good energy, good vibes, good bread to eat and beautiful flowers to see, what more can a girl ask for?

Doris

2011-04-04T10:36:00.000-07:00

HOOKING IN -

About 10 days ago I went to a hook-in of the social group that meets monthly in the homes of it's members. This past month Beth R. was the hostess. It was the first time I had been to her charming home. It is situated somewhat up South Mountain and the view from the dining room windows is awesome!

Barb, Jill and Beth -

Jill and Barb have just returned from their second

year of Teacher's training held at Cedar Lakes,

W. Va. Jill is treating us to a presentation

that she was required to give as part of her

training. It involves a geometric that she

hooked.

Here she is showing us the geometric.

A close-up of the piece. This piece is hooked in secondary colors, green, purple and orange. The shades of the colors used makes all of the difference. To further complicate things, Jill had to use dip dyed mateials. I call this a job well done! The ribbons twinning thru the geo are wonderful. Here is Barb working on a rose - one of her workshop projects. Joan is working on a wide cut oriental. She had taken a workshop in this facet of hooking the week before and is well along on this rug. It was a cool day and we all appreciated the warmth and the glow of the fireplace.

The following rugs were hooked by Beth and

adorn her home. This rug is mounted over

the fireplace.

I believe this rug was on the floor in front

of the fireplace.

This rug was hanging on the wall. I could not

photograph all of the rugs in this lovely

home but believe me when I say they were

all well done and interesting.

In addition to hooking, we had a lovely luncheon. It is always nice to have friends to hook with. The companionship and the wealth of shared knowledge is priceless.

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I do think that spring has finally arrived. I have jonquils and and some miscellaneous bulbs blooming and I am beginning to give some thought to how the yard looks and what needs to be done. Looks like it's time to mulch, mulch and more mulch.

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I am working again on my pictorial and I hope by the next posting I will be able to show some pictures. Until then keep the hooks moving and do enjoy the spring.

Doris

2011-03-30T07:37:00.000-07:00

CATCHING UP

In my last posting I talked about my "stitches" workshop. Several e-mails arrived asking me what that was all about. Guess I really didn't explain the purpose of the workshop. This is a 4 hour session where we learn to use 6 different embellishing stitches and do one element of the design as a "proddy." The proddy element is the sun, the tree trunk is done in chain stitch, and the wall in the brick stitch. There are other stitches involved but I'm sure you get the idea. This is a really fun course and everyone that takes it seems to have a ball. I have taught this on 5 different occasions and have seen the finished product farmed to be hung on the wall, finished as a table mat, and several mounted as pillows. The pillows seems to be very effective. I hope this clears up the mystery of what this workshop is.

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Several of you have asked about the design that I use. Several years ago when I first started thinking about this workshop I consulted my friend Pat Wenger. I am no artist, strictly a "stick figure" girl. I showed Pat thru the stick figure process what items I wanted in a pattern, the size of the pattern and the approximate places I wanted the elements. The rest was up to her. She produced this charming pattern and I have used it for the past 2 years. In addition, Pat has done several other patterns for me. She is a wonderful artist and has some very imaginative ideas when it comes to rug designs. If you ever need a design or a design enlarged, I suggest you contact her.

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In the past I have told you several times how proud I am of my students so I have decided that from time to time I will feature one of them on my blog. This blogs feature is Syd. Syd is a new hooker, that is, she has been taking lessons from me since last fall. Before that she did not even know about hooking. She saw a demonstration at a fiber artist's meeting and decided to give it a try. The demonstrator told her about me and so she joined my Tuesday class.

Here is Syd going thru part of my stash looking for just the right color for a project. In the past Syd has raised sheep and is very familiar with the feel and usage of wool. She also is used to the feel of burlap since feed bags or made of this. It feels natural for her to work with these two products.

This small piece, featuring a tulip, was her first hooking. Sorry the picture is not of the finished product. Unlike many hookers, Syd has to finish things even if it mean staying up a night! I assure you this piece was finished and is very nice. In addition Syd has done another small piece that I don't have a picture of. Since she wants to hook with a three cut, following all of the old principles of Pearl McGown, I sugggest that her next piece be a rose. She like the idea because she has an antique foot stool that needs a new cover. So working together, we put a very nice full blown rose on a backing for the foot stool. At our next class Syd expressed her concern that her stitches did not look good enough to work on the rose and she would like a "practice" piece" in order to perfect her technique.

I drew up this piece I call "bare bones." The idea of doing this practice piece was not only to improve her technique but to be adept at doing curves, rounds, and to understand what the difference is between hooking vertically and horizontally. as well as making sure straight lines are straight. Syd has a frame that rotates 360 degrees and I asked her not to use it. I wanted her to see how the stitches pull when you have a frame that is stationary. When she started on the piece she had more lumps and bumps on the wrong side than the had on the right side. Also the right side loops were many different heights.

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As she and I discussed this project, the other members of her class also get a lesson in hooking techniques. To do this worked out well for all of us. My expectations of Syd were as follows: I expected her to do several of the circles, to do about a half inch of straight hooking, to show us how she could do curves in a few lines of hooking and that her technique would improve somewhat. In addition to the pattern, I furnished her with a few strands of assorted green wool left over from a project. The following pictures are of the finished piece she brought to class two weeks later!

Vastly improved techique. No lumps or bumps on the back and the right side looks vastly better.

The finished product is lovely. She added the browns and the off white background. The picture does not do the piece justice. Up close and personal, as they say, this looks like an American Indian creation. It really is beautiful. There is no substitute for imagination and creativity. These kinds of surprises is what makes teaching so rewarding.

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Happy hooking until next time.

Doris

2011-03-28T07:34:00.000-07:00

SOME THOUGHTS AND A WORKSHOP -

About 5 weeks ago I began to have trouble breathing. It was not to bad, I just thought that it was the cold weather. I had no pain. So, being the stubborn person that I am, I just went on my merry way, moving a bit slower. Several weeks later, when one begins to sufficate, seems it's time to go to the dorctor! In all honesty, I had no idea how sick I was. I had no knowledge that bronchittis/pneumonia could make you so ill. It was only when the doctor told me he would give me three days in which to get better or I would be hospitalized that I understood that I was in trouble. I was not going to leave Eloise, so I had better get on the ball, take my medicine, and behave myself. That's just what I did and I am glad to report that I am much better. This seems to be an up and down thing. My lungs are much better and I have days when everything is great. Then the next day I don't have enough energy to get out of my own way. I did not know that anything like this could make you so tired. I have been able to do a few things but my schedule is very curtailed.

My Saturday class sent me these lovely plants.

The minature daffadils and narcissis are just

delightful. I am planning to save the bulbs

and plant them in my round garden.

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Several months ago I scheduled a "Stitches" workshop for last Saturday and since I was feeling much better, and the workshop was sold out, I decided to go ahead and teach it.

There was 8 in the class. In the past I have only enrolled

6 when the workshop was in my home, thinking that

I could not accommodate more than that. However, when I

offered registration I immediately had

8 and thought I would give it a try.

It worked! We had a great time and there was certainly enough room..You can see from the messy table that everyone could put their "stuff" on the table.

We managed to get all 7 seven stitches on the

pattern by 2:30. This is what Elinor accomplished.

She is a very neat and tidy hooker and her work

reflects the care she takes.

This is Syd's piece. She is a relatively new hooker.

Her technique is totally different from Elinors.

Look how much bigger her apples are.

I think this is Darleen's piece but I am not sure.

Sorry I didn't get pic's of all 8 pieces but I am sure

you can get the idea from these few.

This is what the finished product should look

like. It incorporates 7 different stitches as well as

the usual type of hookiing for sky and grass.

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I taught this class several times last year and have seen a number of these finished. Several were made into pillows and were very effective. I was very proud of this workshop since all 8 members got all of the stitches and accomplished a lot. No only that, but we had a lot of fun. What a great group to teach - lots of repartee among them - a good time was had by all.

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I am very proud of my students. I have been accummulating pictures of their work and will post a group of those shortly. Ellen has returned from Texas and will be joining us next week as we continue learning together and enjoying each others company.

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I keep hoping that Mother Nature will make up her mind what season this is. I am sure we will all be better if the sun shines and warms us all up. In the meantime, I am going to continue with a curtailed schedule, but keep teaching, and attendiing only 1 or 2 hook-in's a month. I also need time to develop several more workshop's that I have been asked to present. Never enough time, always something to think about, boredom is something I know not about.

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There comes a time in every girl/woman's life when she has to do something practical. I hear the washing machine and the vacuum cleaner calling - so until next time - keep the faith!

Doris

2011-03-22T12:53:00.000-07:00

IT REALLY HAS SPRUNG . . . . . . .

I saw this scene when I looked out my

kitchen window - a long shot that they would

still be there by the time I got the camera.

A bit closer. I really know that spring has

sprung when I see this years herd in

my pasture.

They seem to have jumped thru one of the

bars of the riding ring. Guess they were anxious

to get to the grass.

This is a scene that makes me very happy. In the herd that frequents my pasture, there are usually 12 deer. I often see several does and their young but I have only seen the buck twice. He is a really big fellow with a nice rack, that stands off from the does and young, always on alert. These deer arrived just before the Lady Moon did her beautiful display. It never ceases to amaze me just how intelligent the animals are. They always seem to know what mother nature is doing and always warn of storms and unusual weather.

Hope you are enjoying this little big of spring that we are having.

Doris

2011-03-19T13:27:00.000-07:00

IS IT SPRING YET?

Everything is in place . . . . . . . . .

The seed catalogs started coming about

three weeks ago. A wonderful variety of fruits,

flowers and vegetables

The buds on the Magnolia tree look as

tho they are ready to burst - it should be

beautiful this year

Today is a beautifully warm and sunny day.
Just look at that lovely blue sky!

The bird feeders have been cleaned and

repainted, ready for customers.

The double daffy-dills are up and loaded

with buds. Looks like it will be a colorful

spring.

In addition, the garage has had a spring cleaning! Oh, my goodness, we are

ready for spring, are You?

Doris and Eloise

2011-02-23T04:51:00.000-08:00

ADAM AND EVE

It's finished! That is the hooking is finished. Feels to me like it took a long time to complete this piece. I think that is because I did not hook for the six weeks before Christmas. Did you ever get "hooked out?" I have only had that happen one time before and it lasted for five years! Fortunately, this spell only lasted six weeks. When I say finished, I mean the hooking only. I have started to add the kick strip but I am only half around.

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I do not know why my computer blog program will not double space between paragraphs but this star thing seems to work. When I first began to hook and attend workshops, camps and social hooking groups I was advised to pack lightly. Oh how right my advisor was. Some people think they have to take everything in their hooking room with them to camp. I travel light. The older I get the lighter I travel. Hence, kick strips and rug binding are only added to finished pieces as I go to social groups. It is just to much to carry a heavy frame and large rug for a days social gathering. Since I have a number of rugs in my home I am not in a hurry for Adam and Eve and can take the time to add the finishing touches.

An overal view of "Paradise"
My cross-eyed angel
I love her - she happened by accident and
I think she is to cute to change

Adam

Finally a picture in which the background

shows up. I have had a difficult time getting

this to show in pictures.

The background consists of eight

different fabrics and was a joy to hook

It was all the snakes fault!

The snaake is two different paisleys worked

together (this darn computer!)

Eve in all her glory!

I saved her for last to hook because I

wasn't sure about her arm and skin color.

I love this little Lion element.
Is it a deer, elk, or moose?
I really liked this pattern and think that

Edyth Oneil did a great job of designing.

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It is always fun to complete a rug and I am glad this one is done. I am trying to do one folk art piece a year altho I think this year there will be two. In all honesty, I am much more comfortable hooking with a #3 cut and so I am glad to be working again on my large farmyard pictorial.

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We had about 7 inches of snow yesterday and today it is very cold. It was 7 degrees at 6:30 this morning - enough to give anyone the shivers. I was supposed to go to a hooking group today but am opting to stay home. My car is buried in snow and it is just to cold to try and clean it off. Perhaps I can get some more hooking done today. Also, I must get in the dye pots. I am taking Pam Bartlett's workshop in March and need to dye for water and waves. I am planning to do painted and sponge dyeing for the waves. This should be an interesting project.

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Keep warm and safe and pray for spring.

Doris

2011-02-19T13:23:00.000-08:00

MORE RUGS -

Last week was a busy week for rug hooking. On Monday I attended the Blue and Gray hooking group in Gettysburg, Pa. I posted pictures of their rug show on my last blog. On Tuesday I attended the ATHA Mason/Dixon Chapter. For this meeting the group chose to have a "show and tell" program instead of a speaker. This "show and tell" program was an outcome of the Buckeystown three day workshop held last fall. Many rugs were started at the workshop and we were all anxious to see the results of three days work. As it turned out many that attended the workshop were not at the Tuesday meeting. However, many attendees did bring samples of their work and I hope you will agree with me that the workmanship is excellent and the variety wide.

This rug was hooked by Ginny and is in

wonderful shades of pink, blue and purple
closeup of one of the Iris'

This Oriental was also hooked by

Ginney and is a very long runner.

A close up of the center of the rug. The color

scheme for this rug is red, blue and green with

a neutral

This is Elinor's rug started at the

Buckeystown workshop. It is being hooked

with a number 3 cut and is her first

truly shaded rug with flowers. A great job.

This is a "protest" rug done by one of the

Mason/Dixon members in protest to the

continued killing of the whales

This is the corner of an exceptional oriental
rug hooked by the late Ruth Dietzel. Mrs.
Dietzel past away about 6 weeks ago. She was a long
time hooker of exceptional talent and a
wonderful person. We will all miss her.

The center motif of Mrs. Dietzel's rug.

Absolutely beautiful!

This is a very interesting small piece.

It was hooked by Sally A. I'm not sure if it was

started at the workshop. Here is what makes

it so interesting . . . . . . .

A close up of one of the roses. Sorry the picture

looks a little blury. All of the roses are

hooked with satin ribbon!!!!

Two color satin ribbon was used throughout -

a truly impressive use of alternative

material.

This is just a partial photographic showing of the rugs presented at the meeting. I guess that I start talking to people and forget to take the pictures! It sure was interesting to see what other members are doing.

In addition to the above, I did show my Adam and Eve. The hooking of the rug is finished and I am adding the kick strip. I will show some pictures of this rug on my next posting.

In the meantime the wind is blowing like fury this Saturday. I hope where you are it is a bit calmer. I attended an Oyster roast this afternoon. I must say that it was yummy. In addition to the Oyster's there was Ham, Roast Turkey, Dressing, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy, Saurkraut. String Beans, Dessert and coffee. A fair feast all for very little money and for the benefit of the local Ruitan club that does so much for the small town in which I live.

Hope all of you are having a wonderful weekend - hold on to your hats if you go out!

Doris

2011-02-16T11:57:00.000-08:00

BLUE AND GRAY RUG SHOW

Last Monday I attended the meeting of the Blue and Gray hookers in Gettysburg, Pa. What a wonderful turnout they had. As I have told you before, each month we have a rug show. Everyone is welcome to bring a rug they have just finished or are still working on to show, however, one member is designated each month to give us a rug show. We are seeing some wonderful works of art.

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This month the rug show was put on by Lina W. Lina has been hooking for many years. In addition to the Blue and Gray hookers, she is a member of the Mason/Dixon Chapter of ATHA and the Pearl McGown Cattail Creek Chapter of the National Guild. She also hooks with a group every week in Cockeysville, Md. I have not attempted to get the names of all of these rugs, nor did I ask her the particulars of each rug. Sit back and enjoy this lovely rug show.

No picture will ever do this rug justice. The

colors just glow as tho a light is shining

thru a window!

A wonderful rendition of iris using the
stained glass method of hooking."Reddy Fox" on the prowl

Another piece that just glows. Look at the

shading in the leaves. They curl and bend as

tho they were in the garden.

A sampler of fruits.

A lovely footstool to prop tired feet.

Wish I had gotten a better picture of this rug.

It is one of my favorites that Lina has hooked.

The wool was dip dyed so that all of the colors

automatically blend into one another.

Simply lovely.

Last but not least by any means. A beautiful

rendition of a crewel design

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As I have stated before this computer has a mind of its own. Since it usually will not double space between paragraphs I thought I would try the star method and see what happens.

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Yesterday I attended the Mason/Dixon chapter of ATHA. I will post some pictures from there in my next blog. They had a very poor turnout. I can't understand what is happening there. A great chapter with wonderful contacts and interesting projects and it seems to be having growning pains, or is it shrinking pains?

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We have had two days of beautiful weather. Such a relief. I had been down in the dumps for so long that I had begun to wonder about myself. Sunshine sure does help. This is a time when I am very busy. I have 4 new students all at different levels of skill. It is a real challenge to get materials ready for all students and keep everyone interested. I do find that once my students get "hooked" on hooking they don't quit but keep getting in deeper and deeper and trying new things. In addition to new students, I am preparing for a workshop that I am giving late in March. It is sold out so I have to really get everything ready.

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My next real chore in the hooking world is to get in the dye pots. I am taking a 4 day workshop in the middle of March with Pam Bartlett. I am really looking forward to that since it is a subject that I really am interested in and am going to challenge myself with the dyeing. I should mention that the hooking on "Adam and Eve in Paradise Dwelt" is finished and I have begun to add the kick strip. Pictures in a later blog.

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Get out and enjoy this beautiful weather. Eloise is out on the deck taking a sun bath as I am writing this. She has really enjoyed these last two days. She is a little girl that hates rain and cold weather. If she could dance, it would be on sunny days. Take care everyone and have a wonderful week.

Doris

2011-02-09T05:10:00.000-08:00

THIS AND THAT

It has been sometime since I posted. I don't know what got into me. I have been so depressed. First I had a flu like cold that knocked me for a loop. I thought I was over it and boom! it hit again. Now for the third time I think I am over it.

I am also disconcerted by the fact that something has gone wrong with my picture reception on the computer. As I have commented before, my computer has a mind of its own. Sometimes it does what I tell it and other times it does as it pleases! That is the case with the pictures. It no longer tells me where it is putting my pictures - they just go into cyberspace - it is a hide and seek game.

My grandson, Richard, played with my blog as you can see and it now has a different look. I'm not sure how I feel about it but I guess change is good. Until I can figure out some things to do with the blog, it will just stay this way.

In the meantime, I gave a program at the Boonsboro Chapter of ATHA last Saturday. I took rugs that showed two things. One was simple color planning - monochromatic, 2 color, etc. and two was the various styles of hooking. If you would like to see the rugs that I showed and read a bit about them go to:

www.thestonefencecottage.blogspot.com

I do have some hopes for spring. When I sit to the computer I can also look out of the window to my front yard which is bordered with Pine trees. The Snow Drops planted under the trees are not only up but some are in bloom. Can spring be far behind?

My daughter and I went shopping on Monday. Found a few things that I needed. I own 5 watches, all batteries had stopped, so get 2 of them fixed. Got a much need hair cut. I purchased a little lightweight jacket for spring. It is bright yellow. It gives me hope that Mother nature has not forgotten we are all waiting for her to warm us up.

I continue to work on my Adam and Eve rug. I only have Eve's upper body to do and a small amount of background around her and the rug will be finished. I am pleased with the way it is turning out and will be glad to get it finished. Pictures once I figure out this darn computer

I hope all are well and keeping warm.

Doris

2011-01-31T07:31:00.000-08:00

ODE TO JOANNE

Dear Joanne,

I read your blog and nearly fell off of the computer chair laughing. So you are approaching your 50th birthday and have just received your first junk mail from AARP. Whoohoo! This is only the beginning.

In the next few weeks you will learn how good their health insurance is, how they can get you discounts on cruises and other vacations, how important it is for you to have their sticker on your bumper and other sundry things. Of course, they are not the only organization that will be contacting you about "your old age."

Now that you are approaching your 60th birthday, you must be getting ready to retire. That means that you must have some money in the bank to live on. You will be surprised how many organizations want a share of that loot. For instance, St. Luke's hospital for Children, Children living on the Indian Reservation will send you a dream catcher, Disabled American Veterns will send address labels, as will 30 or 40 other groups. By the time you reach the age of 69 you will have accumulated at least 2000 address labels. I think they are planning on your living to 105. Don't forget to give to your local Sheriff and the Bene. Order of Police - they send you a bill - not a plea for a donation. I could go on and on but I think you get the idea.

Now that you are approaching 70 I'm sure that your eyesight has suffered from all of those long days in the sun and watching the ocean. Do you know how many ophthalmologist's there are in your town or county? Gosh, there are lots and they all have large advertising budgets. Cataracts are surely dimming your eyesight. You probably don't realize it but the advertisers sure do. Lots of advertising in the mail box. This is also the time of your life when you begin to go deaf.

Now that you are approaching 80 - guess what??? You are deaf, dumb and blind! Of course anything that you don't understand that the younger generation is doing makes you senile or "in the generation gap." I say phooey on the generation gap. I still believe that manners and morals are important. I also believe that the English language is a beautiful thing. It's to bad that our young people have forgotten how to communicate with each other. I do not consider - I M OK - R U ? to be legitimate communication. However that belief does not make me deaf!

Now is when the cemetary brochures show up in the mail box. Do I care if the dirt above my head has been sifted so there are no lumps on me? Heck no. Do I care if the handles on my casket are silver or gold. Of course not. I will be with my God and loved ones and not worrying about such things.

They say advice is only as good as what you pay for it. Here's my FREE advice to you. Keep your mail box cleaned of junque mail. Keep your sense of humor fresh and sassy. Keep a positive and upbeat attitude. Remember to sing in the shower and dance in the kitchen! Sing and dance every day.

The best years are yet to be lived by you!

Posted with love,

Doris

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOANNE

2011-01-26T17:44:00.000-08:00

FRUSTRATION OVER .......I THINK

I have been very frustrated for the past week and unable to update my blog because my computer has a mind of its own! For some unknow reason, to me, the computer decided to no longer tell me where it was putting my pictures when I transferred them from the camera. I find using the computer one big mystery - even Basil Rathbone could not solve.

On Saturday Traci, Elinor and I ventured to Sterling, Va. to the Goose Creek Hookers Hook-in. This turned out to be a great adventure. First, we decided to listen to Tom-Tom but we didn't like what the lady was telling us so we looked at MapQuest that Traci had printed out. Very conflicting instructions. After about an hour, and a few run-abouts we arrived at our destination. Believe it or not, we were a bit early so ventured to the shopping center to visit McDonalds. That proved to be another interesting trip. The layout of the shopping center was done by a cross-eyed engineer and confusion reigned!

However, we did finally get something to eat and then were on our way back to the church meeting place. This proved to be a most delightful hook-in. My guess is that about 75-100 people were in attendance. It was held in the church recreation hall, a very large room, with several smaller rooms leading off of the main corridor. The room was extremely well lit, which is so important to hookers. The smaller rooms housed the vendors leaving plenty of room in the main area for hookers. A most pleasing arrangement. The co-chair persons, Anne Geiger and MaryAnne Harden, did a wonderful job of preparing and seeing that everyone was confortable. Raffles were held every hour on the hour and a very nice rug show also was hung for all to see.

The following pictures are from that show. I did not attempt to get all of the rugs nor did I get names of those that hooked the rugs or titles of the rugs. I hope that you will enjoy seeing what some of the rug makers in Virginia are creating.

This study in color was created by
Sarah Provence

This is a close-up of parts of a pillow. The

flowers are all three dimensional

An overall view of the pillow. It was

much more beautiful than my picures

show

A very nice half-round in the

crewel style

I don't know whose piece this is but I do

know that several attendees were from

the Nova Scotia Guild - was someone

there from Wales????

A very nice pictorial

Another color study by Sarah Provence

An interesting design

I loved the pastels of this rug. I belive that

the flowers were prodded

As last years hook-in the chapter offered a

challenge to its members and attendees to

do a snowman piece. This is one of the

finished pieces

A different snowman

A third interpretation of the snow man

theme.

I hope you have enjoyed this little rug show. This was the nicest hook-in that I have ever attended. Enough room to set up and actually hook and yet room to visit with friends and meet new people. Well organized and a well thought out plan by the chairpersons. If you have an opportunity to attend next year I recommend you do so. A good time was had by all.

It is snowing and sleeting in Maryland today. A thoroughly miserable day. I put on a pot of spicy bean soup early this morning. The whole house has a wonderful aroma of soup cooking. My latest rug project is on the hooking stand waiting for the hook to do its work and I have several good books to read. The book that I won from Pamela Terry's House of Edward arrived yesterday and it is a beauty. I have only looked at the first few pages and can't wait to read it. Eloise is tucked up in bed with several blankets around her. On a cold snowy day what more could a person ask for?

Doris

2011-01-18T13:40:00.000-08:00

A SNOWY DAY -

It began to snow about 5 pm on Monday evening, just a lightly snow that felt a bit wet. Not big flakes, not small flakes, just white fluff drifing down from the heavens above. Eloise and I did not think much about it since it had been forcast most of the day. We went to bed at our usual time and were surprised when we arose this morning to see about 2 inches on the ground.

Wonder whose foot prints these are?
Well, white on white, with a bit of
brown so she can be seen in the snow.
For someone that hates rain she is
very adept with snow.

Look closely at the left hand side of the
picture. These are my neighbors horses
picking for grass thru the snow.
This was a very picturesque scene and
oh, so peaceful and serene,

This hand carved Antelope normally stands

on the hearth in my family room. We

moved it outdoors for Christmas since

we were having a small child in attendance.

He looks wonderful in the snow.

So regal!

Richard came this afternoon with his
shovel. He purchased a snow blower
last year but still prefers to shovel.
Silly boy!
This was my first knowledge that
there was an inch of ice on top of
the snow. What a slippery mess.

These are the scenes that I love. When I
see these barren branches against the sky
I know that Mother Nature is showing us
the beauty of her world.

The curving lacyness of these branches
are a thing of beauty to me and inspire me
to know that all will be right with
the world.

Upright branches against a molton sky.
Hard to find a more beautiful sight.
It's the small things of life that are so
important, just looking around us and
seeing our world for what it is.

Doris

2011-01-16T06:00:00.000-08:00

THAT DARN GARAGE -

What is it with garages? How do they get in such a state? Mine is a mess. I have two 18 foot freezers in the garage and I go to them frequently. Since I live some distance from the grocery and I have a teaching schedule to keep and I love going to hook-in's, I try to cook ahead and keep several months food on hand, especially in the winter.

See that tennis ball hanging in front of the freezers - that is the guide for how far you can pull a car into the garage (LOL - big laugh, folks) No car has ever seen this garage.

This is Richard's side of the garage. It contains a riding lawn mower and every tool known to mankind. Plus odd chairs and rug cleaning equipment.

There is a bookcase down the center of the garage also containing tools and on my side of the garage another riding lawn mower. Along with some general chaos and my beautiful wooden bench that is on the deck in the summer.

On the inside wall next to the freezers is this wall shelving and counter with storage underneath. It houses small appliances not used daily and extra pots and tupper ware and baking dishes since my kitchen cabinets are full. Guess I should have a yard sale but I like my "things" - just have too many.

On the far wall, my side of the garage, is all of my dyeing equipment along with many jars of unused dye. I am a dye saver. When I mix a formula if I don't use it all I store it in a jar for later use. I find this a handy time and money saver.

The place is a mess. It is to cold now but when spring comes there is going to be a change. When I mention this to Richard his response is "It's a work in progress and will be as long as you live here." I know that he is right.

I was getting something from the freezer last week when I spotted a box that I had not noticed before. This has happened a number of times since we moved here. At first, I rented two lockers and stored all of the extra's in the lockers. Little by little things were brought to the house and either kept or discarded. Most boxes were gone thru and taken care of - but here was a box that I didn't recognize. Upon opening it I found the following treasured items.

Four absolutely beautiful oval Nantucket Basket molds. They were filthy dirty. I spent much time cleaning and waxing them. These, of course, belonged to my late daughter.

Eight graduated round Nantucket Basket molds. If there are any basket makers among my blog readers you know that these are priceless tools. I know that these were furnished to her by her friend and internationally know basket maker John McGuire of Geneva, N. Y.

This last picture is a closeup so that you can see the beauty of the woods in these lovely handmade molds. Altho they may never be used again, their beauty is almost breath taking. Now it is the problem of how to display them in my home. I love just looking at the beautiful craftsmanship and the combinations of woods.

I noticed that I have several new followers of my blog. Thank you for taking the time to join me as I go through my moments in time. I so appreciate your comments and enjoy knowing that there are others out there in blog land. Thanks for stopping by my garage tour. Hopefully next time it will be neater!

Doris

2011-01-12T06:07:00.000-08:00

THOUGHTS OF SNOW AND RUGS -

Yesterday it snowed, not as much as we usually get, but more than a dusting. I am guessing about an inch or so. It was a beautiful sight altho we all know that it plays havoc with motorists. In the early evening, just as it was getting dusky, Eloise wanted to go out into her play yard. As I opened the door the beautiful white flakes were slowly wafting down. The white dog exploded into the flakes with the speed of Superman. The white dog in the white flakes, leaving a trail of vapor and a plume of snow behind. After the run, rolling in the snow, creating doggy snow angels. What a delight. Never a day goes by that Eloise does not bring joy into our home.

After a good romp, a girl has to rest.

RUGS -

I also attended the Blue and Gray hook-in in Gettysburg on Monday. If you have checked Pat's blog. you know that she also attended and has posted many pictures. The turnout was great. We had not seen each other for two months since the December meeting was postponed due to the weather. So much chatter and exchange of ideas. A wonderful group of women all sharing ideas, recipes, and laughs. Many rugs were shown on Monday, and like Pat, I took many pictures. I have gone thru mine and will try not to show to many duplicates altho I know there will be some.

Many of these rugs I do not know

either design name or who the

hooker is - but I do hope that you will

enjoy each and every one of them.

This is a rug being hooked by Joan S.

Lovely soft color plan.

This rug in process is also being hooked
by Joan S. She started this rug
at the Buckeystown Rug Workshop
last October or November

This is a original design with poppies in the
corners. Designed by Jeniece F. and being
hooked by her.

This rug is a beauty. It is being hooked
by Judith. Judith likes to hook seasonal
rugs in the season. This rug was started in
October - love the crow!

I'm not sure but I think the rest of these rugs
are Peg V's rugs. Some of these pictures
may be duplicates of Pat's posting.

I hope that you have enjoyed this bit of a rug show. If you ever have a chance to go to a Blue and Gray meeting I am sure you not only enjoy it but that you will be exposed to some outstanding rugs and rug hookers.

As for me, my Adam and Eve rug is progressing slowly. I did manage to get a bit of background done yesterday. I under estimated the amount of skin color needed to hook two angels and Adam and Eve. As a result, wool is soaking and this afternoon I will be in the dye pots. I feel as tho I have to "hurry" and finish because I have several other large rugs in process and Pat has finished the designing of my new rug. Oh, Oh, Oh, I have to live to be 103 and then I'm not sure I will get it all done. Probably get more finished if I would stop playing Bridge, but I love that too. How can people ever say they are bored and have nothing to do. I wish the days had 48 hours, or is it that I am just slow?

Enjoy the snow, drink hot tea, prop your feet up by the fire and enjoy this season of the year.

Doris and Eloise

2011-01-11T02:58:00.000-08:00

COMMENT -

All summer and early fall the news media and many areas of cyberspace informed us of how angry the American people were. Were they reporting facts or merely stirring up trouble? I never felt angry. Instead I wondered why those of us that love this country, and took the time to vote, were not giving our President and Congress positive reinforcement in helping them to do the business of the people. Now I am angry! Angry at the happening in Arizona. Angry that the people of this country seem to have so little interest in and compassion for the brotherhood of mankind. I could write a very long commentary on my feelings but instead I will merely quote Pogo:

"We have met the enemy

and he is US"

Doris

2011-01-07T12:41:00.000-08:00

UNRESOLVED !!!!

A resolution lasting the shortest in the history of the world! First let me thank all of you who left comments on my last posting and all of you who sent me e-mail encouraging me to continue blogging and blogging as I wanted to. Sooo, I have resolved to do just that. It is my blog, my place to vent, my place to teach, learn and make friends. Hopefully, this will prove to be a wonderful blogging year.

Yesterday was my birthday. To celebrate I "visited" with my cardiologist and after being poked, pushed, pulled and thumped, her analysis was that nothing had changed. Looks like I am good for another 4 months until my next visit.

I moved to the Hagerstown area a little over 7 years ago. The move was made to downsize from a 13 room house to an7 room house, more the size that I needed, and to be nearer to some members of my family. Hagerstown is a western Maryland town that has seen more than its share of ups and downs. During World War11 it was a bustling manufacturing town with a railroad terminis and aircraft manufacturing plant. After the war it returned to its status of farming country. The soil is rich and the grass plush. Holsteins love it. Farming was prosperous, no need for higher education, or worldly wisdom. As you know times change. The housing boom found inexpensive land for sale. Housing sprang up everywhere. Suddenly the population grew and grew. The county and city fathers did not!

However, I have found two gems in Hagerstown. I have written in the past about the wonderful Museum of Fine Arts located in the city park. The building itself is a gem. This museum houses many art works that you would expect to see in a New York Gallery. It's other gem is the Robinwood Medical Center. A large complex of buildings joined together with a center lounge housing all of the specialty medical needs of a community. Everything that you used to go to the hospital for, with the exception of chronic problems, birthing, and operations can be taken care of at Robinwood. For instance, if you are a woman and need x-rays pertaining to woman problems go to the blue door, if you need a cardiologist go to the orange door. It is also the location of the John R. Marsh Cancer center. a truly wonderful facility.

In the past it has taken me about 20 minutes to arrive at the Orange door. In the meantime, the County and City fathers decided to build a new hospital on the same grounds. Just North of the Robinwood center is a very large complex housing the Hagerstown Community College, just South of the complex is a high school and a grade school in the midst of being built. It is planned that on the same side of the street, between the Robinwood Complex and the College a Senior Center will also be built.

This is a look at the main intersection to

the complex. It is a nightmare!

Traffic is always in a JAM! The city fathers

think that by widening the intersection they

will cure all of the problems.

I now allow an hour to go the 20 minutes from home. The citizens of Hagerstown wanted the hospital built on the outskirts of town just off of Rt. 70 with easy access. Politics and money won the battle. It boggles my mind to think of an ambulance on an emergency call trying to get to the hospital emergency entrance. Enough, Doris, Enough!

Now to answer the question what do I use for skin tones when I am dyeing for a pictorial. I was not satisfied with the material on hand when I got ready to do Adam's face in the piece that I am working on so I went back to my tried and true face colors.

This material is what I am using. It photographed

a bit darker than it is. It is Chroma Craft Formula

#11. I only dyed 4 values but usually keep

8 values of this on hand. The formula is very

simple. It is designed for strips 3 x 12. I dye

over pieces 12 x 14 so I double or triple

the dye depending on what I need it for.

1/32 Aqualon Yellow - 2/32 Mahogany in

1 cup boiling water. Measurements as

you choose. I usualy start with1/4 teaspoon.
It looks much more orange in the picture

than it is.

Or you can do as our Canadian friend Julia

did and use onion skins. (this darn computer

has a mind of its own) for skin tones. The

picture above is material dyed with light

onion skins.

This is the result when using darker skins.

Just don't use the skins from red onions.

The weather man forcast snow for this area last night. Eloise always has a reaction to the cold.

Yes, there she is folks. In the middle of that heap. Her sentiments about snow!

Sidebar:

Jen thanks for reading my blog. It was so nice to get your comment. I have been asked to do the February program at the Boonsboro ATHA meeting. I will be showing "that rug" that you thought was Cynthia's among others. Hope to see you there! Please keep reading, I love your comments.

Doris

2011-01-04T17:57:00.000-08:00

BLOG ASTRAY

When I started my blog back in 2009, I meant it to be about rug hooking which was and is an important part of my life. Somehow I went astray, and began to include things about my personal life and my family. Wow what a mistake. I have inadvertantly offended a member of my family by not including them enough or by showing you a picture.of them. This is something that I never meant to do - I guess it just happened - and for that I am truly sorry. SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO my resolution fo 2011 is to stick to my original premise of this blog and talk only about my love of rug making. I will deviate from time to time in the new year as Eloise does like to post her "doings" from time to time. Her antics are always worth a laugh!

It is my hope that as I post hooking hints and some formulas that may help other rug makers, that you will enjoy and learn something from what I have to say. I do hope to update my blog at least weekly. I am a very lucky person in that I have a vast history to share with other hookers. including many early publications by Pearl McGorwn and a complete set of the "Rugger's Roundtable" published by Mildred Sprout starting in the 1950's. As I go thru these materials in the coming year I plan to share with you the joys of rug hooking and the vast knowledge of those hookers of the past.

As for me, I have been on "hooking vacation." It is something that happens, but only rarely. Those who know me, know that I hook 3 hours each day, every day of the week. I have not picked up a hook in the past 6 weeks. To much turmoil in my life but I am now getting back to normal. I have begun again to work on my latest project. The one that I started with Cynthia Norwood in November. It is a lovely and at the same time a funny pictorial, an Edyth ONeil design called, Adam and Eve in the Garden Dwelth.

Earlier I had posted a picture of the crossed eyed angel

in the upper right hand corner. Here are some of the

flowers that I have since accomplished that

surround the angel.

I just did this Lion yesterday. I love him! He got

so cute! He is just below Adam in the design.

Here is the angel that I spoke of earlier. This
view is with the background in around her. I
love the fact that she turned out cross-eyed, it
touches my sense of humor.

I have been rummaging thru my stash and been
displeased with the materials I had for the face
and bodies of Adam and Eve. So this morning I
got myself in gear and soaked some wool. I used
Chroma Chraft Formula #11 which I have used
many times for skin and face and dyed only
4 values. The results are what you see in

Adam. I think it turned out pretty darn good.

So, that is an update on my hooking. I think that I am back in the "hooking groove" again. I certainly hope so!

I hope all of you have your hooks poised and ready to accomplish wonderful new rugs in the new year.

Doris

2011-01-01T07:34:00.000-08:00

REFLECTIONS

I have spent a lot of time these past few weeks thinking not only about the year just past but also about my life as a whole. I have birthday next week. This is an anniversary that I consider a real milestone. Many people never live to this age and if they do they are incapacitated in some manner. I think of how lucky I am to have all of my facilities (altho there are times when my family would disagree) and that I am physically able to maintain my own home and take care of my daily living needs. I have divided my life into categories for this blog purpose. There are other categories, I am sure, but these will do for now.

HOOKING -

This has been a very busy year for me. I have completed 2 large rugs and have about one half of a very large pictorial finished. I also managed to make 15 Christmas ornaments as gifts to my hooking friends. I entered 5 pieces in the Maryland State Fair and received 5 first places (blue ribbons) and the Judges special award. All in all a very successful hooking year.

STUDENTS -

I continue to teach. I now have enough students that I have two classes, teaching 4 days a month. In addition to the students I teach on a regualar basis I did 3 workshops last year and 2 are planned so far for the coming year. I also have 3 students that I teach by e-mail. This is a very interesting concept for me and I am enjoying it very much. After all, if we can home school our children via the computer, why not rug hooking and many other arts?

This is Syd going thru a stash in my

hooking room looking for just the right

material.

POGO -

Bridge has been one of the loves of my life. My mother and father were avid players and taught me the game when I was 17. My husband was also an avid player and much better at it then I was. It always has amazed me

how "bridge friends" drop away when you lose your partner. It happened to my father when we lost my mother and it happened to me when I lost my husband.

After the advent of the computer in my life I discovered POGO. What a wonderful thing this has been for me. I can play bridge with partners located in any part of the world. Frequently, in the night, when I can't sleep, I play with a gentleman located in the north of England. It is a small world. I am also amazed at the friends I have made in the bridge world, Shauna, DancingDaisy, BeerClam, to name a few. I love the creative names that people have given themselves who play this game. They say the computer is a thief of time but for those of us living alone it is a God send!

ELOISE -

My darling Eloise continues to be my constant companion giving me unconditional love no matter what I do. She is still very active for an 11 year old girl. This year she has had a cyst removed from her eye, a slight operation on her foot to remove an imbedded toenail in the pad and she is limping off and on. I believe that the limping is a pulled muscle and also some of the signs of old age. A baby aspirin seems to alieviate the problem and lets her get some rest.

She continues to do her funny antics.

She gives me a smile every day and

in return I give her a belly rub!

THE HOUSE -

I admit I have done very little to the house this year. One of the most important things I have done is get Richard to hang pictures and other memorbilia on the stairway to the family room. This is something that I have wanted to do for years but just put it off. Now it is in the beginning stages and I have, just today, gotten many other things out of the closet to add to the wall. As for the rest of it, I continue to enjoy the deck I added last year, and continue to think that I live in the best neighborhood of all. I have the most wonderful, supportive neighbors that anyone could have.

Eloise also enjoys the deck.

We often take our lunch here in the

summer and it is an ideal place to

hook when the weather is warm.

THE FAMILY -

Like all families, this one has had it's ups and downs this year. I continue to receive unconditional support from all of its members. My daughter Joan, has been having severe pain in her shoulder and has been diagnosed with a spinal problem, This is a cause for concern in the new year as we are awaiting a diagnosis from the surgeon. Richard continues to support me in my endeavor to remain independent in my own home. He mows the lawn, plants the flowers, cleans the beds, and generally does all of the "handy man" jobs that are constant in a household. Sheri, his wife continues to be a source of love and support as do their three daughters. Danyel is in the third year of college at Frostburg, Lisa is working and has found a "significant other." Brandi is planning her April wedding to Curtis. Our BIG UP this year, has been Brandi's recovery from her double transplant of Pancreas and Kidney. She is coping with being blind and is doing more things including leaving the house more often.

This is Richard with his best

girlfriend, Roxie. Roxie was

only 4 months when this picture was

taken.

Brandi, enjoying the sun on the deck.

We are so glad that she is still with

us and we are all looking forward

to her nuptials in April.

As I reflect on all of these things, and the many friends that I have made in the hooking world and my many acquaintences in the blog and pogo communities, I think not a bad record for an old broad! It really has been a good year. I do look forward to opening the new year with new experiences, learning new things, making more friends, acomplishing a few things and in general, being a contributing member of society. I hope that each of you, as you reflect on your year, will find yourselves encouraged to look forward to new and rewarding experiences in 2011.

Doris

2010-12-30T04:52:00.000-08:00

THOUGHTS FOR THE NEW YEAR

"An optimist stays up until midnight

to see the new year in. A pessimist

stays up to make sure the old

year leaves."

Bill Vaughn

Ring out the old, ring in the new

Ring, happy bells, across the snow

The year is going, let it go

Ring out the false, ring in the true

Alfred, Lord Tennesynon

New Year's day is every man's

birthday

Charles Lamb

Be always at war with your vices,

at peace with your neighbors,

and let each new year find

you a better man.

Benjamin Franklin

Many people look forward to

the new year for a new start

on old habits.

Unknown

Doris

2010-12-27T11:01:00.000-08:00

IT CAME ON SILENT FEET

As Christmas always does, it came on silent

feet . When we are

young we wait with baited breath in our beds

hoping to hear Santa on the roof or the

pawing of a Reindeer hoof. As adults we

hope to get all of the toys assembled before

the first awaking - and then the family grows

up and as the years go by the family changes.

Our family has changed a great bit in

the last few years with the loss of my

husband and our youngest daughter. It

seemed to me that the family had

become very small. Now it is changing!

Richard and Sheri's girls are growing up

and beginning to start lives of their own.

What a joy it is to see the family growing

again.

We began our celebration in the family

room with an appetizer table set with

goodies to sample as we opened our

gifts. A beginning of our Christmas feast.

Danyel, the family clown, cut a pumpkin
face in the Gouda Cheese.

I didn't take as many pics this year as I

normally do, guess I was just to busy enjoying

myself. This is daughter Joan in the white

sweater, in the foreground, is Sheri's oldest

daughter, Brandi, our child that has been

so ill this year and is now recovering nicely.

Sorry this picture is so dark but I did want

to get am overall picture. This is a small

portion of the room.

Brani and her fiance' Curtis. This young couple

will be married next April and we are all

looking forward to the nuptials.

For the first time in 47 years there was a
toddler in the house! What a wonder it was
to have this little one with us. Her name is
Savannah and she is 18 months old. She is
the daughter of Lisa's significant other.
This is Sheri, Richard's wife holding her.

Savannah and her daddy.

The best pictures of Savannah are not on the

camera. They are in my memory. She loves

loves animals. Well, guess what - Eloise is

just the right size for this little one.

The best memory is of Savannah getting

down in the crawl position and kissing

Eloise on the nose. Happenings to fast

to get a camera picture.

All in all, it turned out to be a lovely day. The anticipated snow storm changed its mind and all were able to travel safely. Gifts were exchanged, some very nice, so very funny, all received in good spirits. To me, the most important part of the day, is the meal we share together. There is something about the "breaking of bread" as a family that personifies the spirit of the season and goodwill toward men.

AND IT LEFT ON SILENT FEET

Eloise and I wish each and every one a happy, healthy, and peaceful New Year.

Doris

2010-12-22T06:52:00.001-08:00

HELLO AGAIN, EVERYONE

IT'S ME ....

My stocking is hung - it looks just like me.

No way HE can make a mistake!
Our friend, Miss Elinor, brought mom and
me these wonderful cookies to share
with Santa. They are out on the counter
for him to help himself. I will add milk
Friday night to help with his flight

I know it's early - but - I have

been watching for him.

I'm ready!!
We had both of our chimney's

cleaned so your pants won't get dirty.

I promise not to peek!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Eloise and Doris

2010-12-20T07:35:00.000-08:00

THE TREASURE CHEST

A short history to introduce you to

my treasure chest. It is my theory

that every girl needs a treasure chest.

I was born and raised in the city

of Washington, D. C. This was

during the time when it was fashionable

for gentlemen to smoke Cuban cigars

and ladies to use long cigarette holders.

My how times have changed!

My father owned and operated

a tobacco shop in downtown

Washington and I often visited with

him after school. At that time

Cuban cigars came packaged in beautiful

mahagony boxes with inlaid tops.

This is the one he gave me for

my treasure box. I think I got this when I

was about 8 years old. I often think

of this box and its contents as to this

day it resides in my bedroom.

The original treasures in this box

were my favorite paper doll and all

of her clothes, my best marble, an "aggie"

of course, and my most precious

- my Wheaties box top

decoder ring!

My ideas of treasures have changed

over the years but these are

cherished memories.

I have a new treasure box!

My friend Barb gave me this beautiful

box for Christmas. It came

filled with cookies which I have

transferred to a tin to keep fresh and

this box is now on my dresser as a

companion to the cigar box.

My treasures have changed but

the memories are as near and dear to

me as any memories could be.

This old leather fold up purse is now

in my treasure box. It was always

carried by my mother.

It contains several silver dollars which I

am sure that many of you have never seen.

Her theory was that if she carried them

with her always she would never want.

They were passed to me upon her

death

This beautiful porcelain box was given to

me by my husband on our 58th anniversary.

It is to large to put in my treasure box

but it contained a note.

This note is now in my treasure box.

A favorite cameo bracelet that I wore
on a special occasion with special
memories - now in the box.

My mothers charm bracelet that holds

the gold coins that my father refused to

return to the government. Telling my mother

that if the economy failed under

Mr. Roosevelt he would still be able

to be groceries for the family. I am now

ready to pass this along to my

daughter.

Last but not least by any means. Sorry I

have no picture. A note written on

a sheet of notebook paper, written by

a young child that reads as follows:

Dear Tooth Fairy,

I put my tooth under my pillow

wrapped in a kleenex,

Please leave me a dime or a

quarter. Best of luck

to you.

Unsigned -

I have been unable to decide which of my two girls wrote this note but

needless to say it the most precious possession in my treasure box. This is the most nostalgic time of year for me. I know how lucky I am to have the family that I do but Oh, how I miss those that are no longer here. I hope that each of you will take the time to remember your loved ones at this time of year.

The shopping is finished, most of the cooking is done, just a few more dishes to prepare on Christmas eve and of course the Turkey and roast to cook on Christmas day. A quick vacuum through the house, a bit of a pick up and I am as ready as I ever will be for the big day.

Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy New Year to all.

Doris and Eloise

2010-12-14T11:25:00.000-08:00

AND THE BEAT GOES ON

On Monday I had planned to attend the meeting of the Blue and Gray hooking froup in Gettysburg, however, the meeting was called off due to the uncertain weather forcast. It was a real disappointment to many of us but we will have our Christmas celebration in January so all is not lost.

I could not afford to waste the day so the Christmas preparations continued:

I made spiced nuts to give as gifts. I had

not made this receipt for some years and had

forgotten just how good it was. Of course, I had

to taste to make sure it was right!

Then on to a dessert for Christmas day.

Chocolate cupcakes for all of the chocolate

lovers in the family. My house is very small

so I like to serve buffet style and have everyone

help themselves. That also gives me a

chance to circulate and talk with everyone.

I admit, I am bored with this whole thing.
Nothing in the pot for me yet. Geesh, I
live here too. You would think that a girl with
a bumb leg would get some attention. No,
just a lot of food going on in the kitchen.

Ooops! I underestimated the food preparation.
This is a crock pot full of chicken gizzards and
thigh pieces cooking for ME!

Well, she is still working on Christmas stuff.
On the cooling rack are the spinich balls. I
made 60 of these last week and they are almost
all gone - so another 60 - requested by
friends. Also a great receipe for a
small gift for friends that request them.

And I always find myself with this!

I am planning to serve a pork loin roast as

well as a turkey for Christmas dinner. So

another make ahead dish in the freezer.

This is the raisin sauce for the roast.

It is yummy and goes over any type

of pork.

I have lots of tools in my kitchen but
not many "gadgets." However, I love this gadget.
It is a digital therometer that has never
let me down. Several weeks ago I bought
prepacked half turkey breast (boned)
thinking that if it roasted nicely I could purchase
several of those to supplement
the roasted turkey. It roasted beautifully
and Eloise and I have been having
it for our dinner the last several nights.

When I cook chicken for Eloise I skin it so

that she doesn't get to much fat in her

diet, as well as remove all of the fat

that I can. I freeze this until I get enough

to render. I was surprised one afternoon

when listening to Jacque Pepin's cooking

show to hear him say that rendering

chicken fat was a French way of doing

things. It was something that my mother

mother always did. I just thought it

was a "waste not, want not" thing. I do

know that until you have tasted an

egg fried in chicken fat you have not

had the full delight of a fried egg!

After the fat is rendered it is liquid gold!

I use it to make liver pate' one of my

special holiday dishes. This is not a make

ahead dish but I will wait until

Christmas eve to prepare it.

No matter what I do in the kitchen
it always ends up this way!!

When I see that many dirty dishes I

just get into my usual position in the

bed. Especially the last few days because

It is soooooooo cold.

Hope everyone is having fun decorating and cooking for Christmas. I love this time of year and seem to spend most of it in the kitchen. It is so much fun to pull out the receipe's that are special for this time of year. Next thing on my agenda is to try Pamela's gingerbread. I had forgotten how much my girls loved gingerbread and lemon sauce when they were little. Guess I will look up the old receipt and compare it with Pamela's and probably try both.

Our weather is miserably cold and condusive to staying indoors, a perfect excuse to be in the kitchen. Take care of yourselves - stay safe.

Doris

2010-12-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

TIME OUT!!!!

It all started las Friday. My friend Traci was here and on the

spur of the moment I suggested that we go

to the Red Lobster for lunch and a little shopping.

That took care of the rest of Friday.

Saturday morning I had the meeting of the ATHA

chapter in Boonsboro and the on to meet

Richard at the mall to choose a Christmas tree.

That took all of Saturday. On Sunday after the morning

duties were finished, I worked on some handmade

Christmas present that I should have started

in August.

Monday I left home at 9:30 and shopped all

day until time to come home and feed

Eloise.

Tuesday I had a class to teach (morning gone)

and then into Boonsboro to pick up prescriptions

and a little shopping at the dollar store.

Wendesday was the luncheon and gift exchange

of my Pearl McGown Chapter hooking group.

This was near Ellicott City so of course, took

the whole day.

When I got up this morning my legs told me

that if I planned to go out today, they were

staying home and I would be without them

for the rest of the holiday. Also, it was fiercely

cold. It was time for a TIME OUT!

So the first order of business was to start

the wood stove. Coffee in front of the stove, dressed

warmly, a real treat.

Then I looked around - Oh my, Oh my -

Clothes hung over a chair

Pile of diry clothes on a small table in the
bedroom

Overflowing hamper

Sink full of dirty dishes

Trash overflowing.

Time for a whole day of TIME OUT!!!

Now it is about 5 in the evening and the mess is

all cleaned up and a few more things are fixed

for Christmas. In addition to cleaning the above mess

I have made 2 quarts of plain turkey gravy and

2 quarts of giblet gravy.

I have arranged my "Snow People" collection with

a center piece made of styrofoan and covered

with antique ornaments

These cuties sit on the edge of the table

I had decorated the tree last Sunday afternoon.

If you look closely you will see that the top

portion has no ornaments. I am not tall enough

to hang them and have to wait for Richard

to do that.

Close up of some of the ornaments.

My kitchen and dining area are all in one and I

have hung cute decorations on every door handle

in the kitchen area. It is really festive looking.

Most of the ornaments on the kitchen cabinets

are handmade either by me or by friends and

given as presents in past years.

I have fixed this arrangement to be used as a

center piece for the Christmas dining table. The

ornaments are all antique and very fragile so

no longer go on the tree.

They really look beautiful in these glass

candle holders.

The front door arrangement has been hung.

As well as the back door. I do not know why

but in the country everyone seems to come in

the back door. Have you noticed that?

And of course, my ever present helper. Under the

covers as usual on a cold, cold day. Just this little

foot and leg sticking out. I love her crazy poses under

the covers. She gives me a smile every day.

Hope each of you has caught the spirit of the season and is having a great time getting ready for the big day. I still have much to do but am looking forward to the family gathering. Take care of yourselves, keep warm, and above all, drive carefully in this busy season of the year.

Doris

2010-12-05T04:00:00.000-08:00

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR

Yesterday was the meeting of the Boonsboro Chapter of ATHA. It was our annual Christmas gathering with wonderful goodies to eat and an exchange of handmade Christmas ornaments.

As you can see the goodie table was loaded with

wonderful homemade treats
The rest of this entry concerns the handmade
ornaments. I am not going to attempt to tell you
who made what because to many names would be involved.
This is only a sampling of the ornaments
that were exchanged.

There were many more ornaments than I show here.

Many were wrapped and I could not get

pictures of them. All were very creative. Some were

sewn, others were felted, but most were hooked.

I hope that you are enjoying this little

show of ornaments. It shows some of the creative

juices that are flowing in this group.

I had no idea that such a variety of patterns

and ideas existed for ornaments.

My hope in showing these wonderful hooked items

to you is that you will get your creative juices

flowing and make your own interesting ornaments

for next years tree.

Doris

2010-11-29T04:40:00.000-08:00

RANDOM THOUGHTS

I think I should complete Thanksgiving before moving on. Every year my daughter and her husband go to his mothers for the Thanksgiving feast. I go to granson Richard's house where I enjoy the feast with Richard's wife, Sheri, her family and their assorted friends. This year was a very special year as far as I was concerned. You will notice that I have only two pictures, I was just to busy enjoying myself.This is not a good picture but it is all I have. The redhead with

her back to the camera is Sheri, the young lady

standing is daughter Lisa and the lady

in pink is Sheri's mother.

The house was full to overload with 22 in all plus

two dogs and two cats!

It made for a lot of food, a lot of chatter, and must fun

and laughter.

The young lady in blue in this picture is my oldest grandchild, Karen,

We rarely get to see Karen, as she is a single mother,

working, and living in Southern Maryland, some

2-1/2 hours away. She brought with her, her two sons.

The youngest, Cameron, I had seen 4 years ago at the age of 12.

At that time he was the ordinary "brat" that most twelve year-olds are

but at 16 is a young gentlemen. It is always amazing to me

what an immature mind with raging harmones is like. It also amazes me that as the young person matures into the harmones and the

brain begins to work how amazingly wonderful

our young people turn out. I often think that at age 30-35 they

revert to the 12 year old again but that

probably is environmental.

The joy of the day for me is that I met her older son, D.J.

short for Darren Jr.

He is now 23 years old and this is the first time I have ever seen my oldest grandson. As they say, "due to circumstances beyond

my control," I had never seen this young man.

He, too, is a fine gentlemanly young man. He is on

the verge of trying his wings and will be leaving the

shelter of his home shortly after the first of the

year to try his wings.

Sorry I don't have pictures but as I said I was just

so busy talking and enjoying myself I totally forgot about the

camera.

Just before Thanksgiving and in the few days that have followed I have begun cooking for our Christmas dinner. I always cook ahead, storing whatever I can in the freezer. I really like to enjoy watching the opening of the small gifts on Christmas and do not want to miss everything by being in the kitchen. I consider it "storing my nuts." I thought that now that Richard's three girls all have "very important others" that they would no longer want to come to Gma's for Christmas so I had originally planned on 9 for dinner. However, I have been informed that they wouldn't miss if for the world, so the ranks have risen 15 for dinner. I not sure how the math got that way but it sure did. Soooooooo, some of the things I have already made need to be made again in order to have enough. As a result I have decided to skip several hooking opportunities this month, including the Cumberland Valley hooking group in Chambersburg.

Speaking of hooking. I am still getting in a few hours of hooking on the

new project that I started with Cynthia Norwood. All of my hooking career I have worked with a #3 cut or have done hand cutting if I was working on a primitive design. I am hooking this new project with a #8 cut and loving every monute of it. The pieces is called "Adam and Eve in the Garden Dwelt."

The two upper corners have angels watching over

the procedings. I have only hooked this one and have

used 3 different dark blue wools in the background.

This is a closeup of the angel. She turned out so ugly as I hooked

her that she is delightfully cute and I

wouldn't change a loop for anything!

This is bit of the center of the piece. I am extremely

pleased with the serpent. He is hooked of two

different paisley's and really stands out as he should!

I am disappointed that the background does not

show up in the picture. It probably is to neutral in

color but is hooked of 8 different fabrics and

really is beautiful. I also find that hooking backgrounds

this way, not only enhances the piece, but keeps

the background from being boring and makes

it a joy to hook.

I have decided not to decorate the house until about The 10th of Dcember. I like to leave my decorations up until the 12th day as I am a 12th day child. It seems to me that taking them down just before Epiphany is appropriate,

I'm sure it was an epiphany for my parents to realize on the 12th day that they had a girl child. They had a boy child 5 years earlier and now their family was complete.

Now my "random thoughts" are complete for this entry to my blog. Hoping that everyone had as wonderful a Thanksgiving as I did and the days to come will bring you joy and good tidings.

Doris