Snow

This is the view from one of my kitchen windows.  We've got about a foot of snow and it's snowing again.  Ella's very disappointed in the snow this year.  It's been so dry and fluffy, we can't make snowmen or even have a snowball fight.  Not that it stops the fun though, Daddy and Ella were out yesterday tobogganing.  Ella has so much fun when Daddy has time to play.

The kids headed out to play again today.  The temperature is beautiful and it is so bright and sunny.  Daddy built Ella the 'Himalayas' in the yard.  Ella love to watch the new Ice Road Truckers and is amazed by the Himalayan mountains.  Ella always wants to see what Lisa is doing.


Tiger came out of the barn for some loving too.  It's great to see how good the barn cats are looking.

Last night the Grandma's, Auntie Elizabeth and I went to see The King's Speech.It was really good.  Much funnier than I thought it would be.

Dinner Party

Ella and all her babies had a fancy dinner party last night.  I set the table and she did all the 'cooking'.  Ella loves to have parties.   Her toy storage boxes worked great to help the babies 'sit properly'.  As an FYI, this party takes up nearly all available floor space in our living room.  This really is a one child house  :)

Yarn Along -26 January 2011

I don't want to admit how long I've been working on this project!  It's a Jean Greenhowe doll, the one on the cover actually.  I've made a number of her other doll patterns and they worked up quickly, but this one is taking forever!!  I was hoping to have it done for Ella's birthday, but that's not happening.  I'll have to get her done 'enough' and promise to finish it soon.  Once I've given the doll to Ella, then I can work on it any time.

  Right now I'm trying to sneak around.  My book today is a new one.  It's "The Catholic Home: Celebrations and Traditions for Holidays, Feast Days and Every Day".  I've just started it, and it's quite interesting.
Go see what the others are knitting over at Ginny's Yarn Along.

Farm-Girl Fun

Our handy Farmer fixed Ella's skiis and now you should see her go!  Ella and Daddy headed out after lunch and were making laps around the driveway.  It's easier for little people learning if they ski in the tire tracks.  Also seems to encourage her NOT to lift her feet and step (which is what she was trying in the deep snow).



After a while I looked out the window to see what was going on and this is what I saw:

Daddy hooked up the toboggan to the tractor -also note the skating helmet, 'safety first'.  Ella and Daddy had been making laps in the field and having a ball.  Ella was doing her usual and shouting 'faster, faster'.  I can't wait until she's big enough to take on the good rides at the fair.

Needless to say, Ella came in covered in snow and frozen -and complaining about having to come inside  :)

Ella

Our little pumpkin had to have a couple needles yesterday.  We went to the Child Health Clinic in Renfrew and they were wonderful.  I was tired of the fumbling that goes on at the local clinic.  At CHC they only treat children and so are really good with needles.  Ella's a little out of sorts today, in fact she nearly got put to bed for the afternoon.  She opted for quiet time with Grandma. 



  After about an hour she perked up and they headed outside.  It's still rather cold out but at least it's bright and sunny. 
  Ella loves the piles left behind by the snow plow. 





Ella's feeling much better. 

Yarn Along and Show and Tell -19 January 2011

    Wow, I can't believe how many people are signed up over at Ginny's for this week's Yarn Along.  I thought I'd be one of the first  :)

This week I'm working on my felted purse/bag.  I should have it done soon.  I finished a pair of mittens for Ella (also to be felted).  I also finished the socks from last week.  Just need to sew in the ends.  We are enjoying Jan Brett's Christmas Treasury.  It's technically a Christmas book but some of the stories work for the winter too.  I love the drawings and designs around the pages. 

More proof that one person's trash is another's treasure: Ella used all the wool bits from her mittens to make streamers in her Animal Hosipal for Vanilla the cat's (bottom left) birthday.

Sunday Fun

  You may remember that Ella got her first skiis from Grandma and Grandpa Fletcher for Christmas.  Well, we had some new snow yesterday so Daddy decided  today would be a good day to try them out.  Unfortunately, whoever designed these skiis either have never had children or else has forgotten how big kid boots are.  The plastic bindings did not want to fit over Ella's winter boots.  But with much (internalized) frustration, Daddy got the skiis attached to Ella's feet.

And off she goes!  They didn't last long, they fell off the second time she fell down.  Daddy's fingers were too cold to put them on again.  She and Daddy had a great afternoon playing in the snow.

  We finally got around to trying the popcorn that Colin grew this summer.  We were amazed at how well it popped.  Much better than Orville.  And it was so white!  Very yummy!

Yarn Along Update

This is what I found when I got up this morning :                                                                                            

That's Figaro sleeping in my knitting bag!!  Luckily she climbed in very carefully and nothing was ruined.  Even better, she didn't eat any wool.  I had a Siamese cat that ate 5 feet of wool.  Luckily I had pet insurance and could afford the surgery to save her life.  Guess I'll have to make the bags a little more inaccessible or else put the cats downstairs over night since they can't be trusted.

I have a better Yarn Along picture this morning.  I love knitting for little people, it goes so quickly.  As you can see, I'm finished with the feet and starting up the let.  If these fit Ella well, I'm going to make her a pair of knee socks.  I've had some pretty wool for  her for a while.

Yarn Along -12 January 2011

 

My first Yarn Along of 2011 and not much to show.  I've started a pair of socks for Ella from the toe up.  I got help from Nancy with the math, so hopefully they will fit.  As you can see, I haven't got the Christmas books put away yet.  Ella and I shared an old favourite, Raggedy Anne and Andy.

It's great to see all the people joining Ginny with this week's Yarn Along.

  We finally gave in and got rid of the Christmas tree.  I'm happy to have space in my living room again, but it was sad to see it go.  It dropped almost no needles and was growing.  As you can see, some of the new growth is 3 inches long.  We've never had a tree do that before. 

Sock Workshop

Had a lot of fun yesterday afternoon.  A bunch of the Knit Night girls got together and had a sock workshop.  Meagan from Earth Rocks in Eganville was our hostess.  She invited Nancy from Log Cabin Yarns to come up and demonstrate socks from the toe up with the Magic Loop method.

 

At the end of the afternoon everyone finished one little sock.  I'll be ripping this one out later, it's been a long time since Ella's feet were this small.  I'm not sure I like the Magic Loop method, I think I prefer the 2 circular method.  But I'm going to give this one a fair try.  I do like toe-up.  It's very useful when you aren't sure how much wool you have.  You just keep knitting till you run out.  I really like that Nancy gave us the math to figure out our own toe-up patterns.  Also, she taught us a new way to increase for the heel gusset.  Did you notice the lovely curve in the sole of the foot?   This new way of increasing will hug the instep and make these socks very comfy to wear.  I have a pair of knee socks (short stockings) that I have been wanting to make.  Now I have the method to make it work.

It was a very nice afternoon spent with the girls.  Daddy got some rest and Ella had a Grandma sleep over and played in the snow.

Christmas Round Up

Christmas is over but here are a few of our favourite things:
Cross country skis from G&G Fletcher

Big girl camera from G Rees and bunny ears provided by Uncle Stefan.


    "best Christmas ever!!" -provided by Momma and Daddy.  I finally tracked down a Littlest Pet Shop Animal Rescue Centre -or amnimal hosipal  :)




Momma got a nice big new bundt pan, it's by Nordicware which is the best pan company if you ask me.  Can't wait to get back to baking.
  And to go along with my new pan, my sister picked up a whole whack of Pam for baking.  It has flour in the spray and is perfect for fancy shaped bundt pans.  It's also impossible to buy in Ontario, so Belinda bought a bunch when they were in the States Christmas shopping.  Along with the Pam I also got a whole case of my guilty pleasure -Cherry Coke.  Yummm!  It's also something I can't get here in Ontario.

Of all Daddy's presents, I think the 'funny' present was his favourite.  I got him this 'Elmer Fudd' hat from Princess Auto, it was kind of a joke, but mostly a 'it'll keep him warm regardless of how it looks' type gift.  But he loves it and I think it looks pretty good on him.  Colin says it will be great this winter/spring when he starts cleaning seed again.

Finally I want to share a picture of our Christmas tree.  We haven't had the heart to take it down yet and here's why:  

Our tree is growing.  We have new branches about 2 inches long.  I've had trees start to bud before but nothing like this.  It's amazing.

Epiphany

 Today is Epiphany,  we celebrate the arrival of  the Three Wise Men in Bethlehem.

The Adoration of the Magi, 1619

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas...

Today is the last day of the Christmas holiday.  Today is the day for putting the house back into order.  The decorations come down and we say goodbye to the tree -though it will sit in a snowbank for a long time yet.  It feels good to get the house back to normal but it's been a lovely Christmas season.
In the Middle Ages tonight would be a wild celebration.  Twelfth Night was a time when the Lord of Misrule was in charge and the high and mighty became low.  Shakespeare's Twelfth Night was written to perform for the Twelfth Night celebrations.

Twelfth Night Giclee Print by Jan Miense Molenaer - AllPosters.ca.

Happy New Year!!!

Wishing every one a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!!!

To Wish you a Happy New Year Snowball Fight Scene Giclee Print - AllPosters.ca.