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Monday, January 7, 2019

Progress on all fronts, including rambling on.

We're seven days into the new year and it looks like my plans for a more focused me are taking hold.  I hope I didn't just jinx myself.  I have ticked five things off my list by doing them when I think of them.  Apparently, I have to pounce on the thought like a cat on a mouse in order to get things accomplished.  Geez.


Knitting is coming along swimmingly.  I have finished one boyfriend sock (I had hoped to postpone its mate by volunteering to mail the first sock so he could try it on, then have them mail it back.  Sigh.  No such luck.  It is a very boring knit...)
One down, acres of knitting to go.


My sister's socks are now my socks because I am a greedy little bugger and want ALL THE YARN.  I started knitting them up on the beautiful yarn that came in my totally surprise holiday package (oh, Theresa...) Yarn that my sister had chosen for her socks.  Thank goodness neither sister reads this blog.  I am hoping that she won't remember the original yarn and will be just as happy with some similar yarn.  Which I am now looking at with longing. (Bad me!  Bad!)  However, I will just stiffen the upper lip and knit on.  I have made a vow to not buy any more yarn this year.  (I must have caught myself in a weak moment.)
Not true to color, but it reminds
me of knitting a Monet!




I did knit one tiny object this Christmas, but did not get a picture of it - not surprisingly, I was knitting it up to the very last moment and had to throw it in an envelope and get it in the post.  Maybe its recipient will kindly post a pic?  Hmmmm?  (MP....)  As in most things that catch my fancy - recipes, yarn, patterns, shiny objects - I do not bother to check the details.  Heck, it's more fun that way.  When I got the pattern for the Little Long Johns, it started with, "Cast on 12 stitches and divide among four needles."  Wha?  I am lucky to be able to handle two at a time, let alone five.  After bruising my brain, trying to adapt the pattern to the magic loop (Don't you love knitting terms?  I do!  Everything is magic in knitting - Magic Loop, Judy's Magic Cast On.), I struggled through it and managed a reasonably good facsimile of the original.
(From Susan B. Anderson's website - barrettwoolco.com)
I wasn't fancy with the beads - no time!
Even though I have multiple projects on the needles, I am going to be adding one.  Mittens.
Yes, it was 57 degrees inside.  I turned the
heater on after getting the side-eye
from the dogs.
Our weather has gone from rain to freezing so many times, I am now up to Olympic level on Negotiating the Chicken Yard on Frozen Icy Tundra.  The only ones not bothered by all this up and down are the ducks.  They think sliding on their tummies is ever so much fun.


And speaking of ducks and, therefore, chickens, Mr. Big Red is on his way to Outsville.  We have had the talk - Who's Boss?  I am. - multiple times, but he is, apparently, dense as a brick.  Plus, he's is a big boy.  Right now his spurs and not fully developed.  Well, I am not waiting around until that day arrives.  Neither is he.  He's attacked me twice and, while I usually give a rooster three tries before they are out, I'm skipping number three in his case.  Next up, Fritz.  If he goes a similar way, that will be it for roosters.  I am tired of having to arm myself every morning.


I am also making progress on working through my freezer.  I had my neighbor over for dinner yesterday and made a three-pound meatloaf.  He left with lots of leftovers.  A new recipe that will be moving into Favorites, is Curried Rice and Squash Casserole.  I believe I found it on the Mennonite Girls Can Cook site.  Once again, it struck my fancy and I did not read further than the ingredients.  When I went to assemble it on Saturday, I realized it made a truckload.  Good thing I like it, because I am going to be having it for lunch all week!  Next time, I will cut it in half.
I am NOT a food photographer!
Sunday morning, I decided to tackle canning some Apple Mincemeat.  Because I have two bushels of organic apples starting to wrinkle up in the root cellar/guest room.  This provided a bucketful of peelings and cores - Norman Sheep's favorite treat.  He had to fight Linden the Fat Woolly Eel and the Old Lady Llama.  I'm glad I was on the other side of the fence.


Some hours later, 8 pints were cooling on the counter.  This time, I am going to label everything.  There are still mystery packages in the freezer and I dumped a jar of what I thought was old applesauce in the chickens treat bowl, only to find it was the last jar of mincemeat I had. 
I'm not throwing any of THESE out!
Back to the chickens - they must know we are creeping toward longer days.  Instead of getting one egg every other day, I am getting one egg every day!  Woot! 



13 comments:

Susan said...

I love the mini long johns, right down to the little back flap. I'm impressed by your focusing commitment and excellent start. A friend and I have made a pact to get more organized this year. We have armed ourselves with pretty "to do pads" and calendars. We will evaluate in three months. I lost my pad the first day. I shall refer to you, my role model, when things go wobbly again.

Theresa said...

OMG, homemade mincemeat. I am in awe.....
We keep our house cool too, although 57 is bitch temp for me. I like 61/62. Plenty warm!
So glad you like the sock yarn. It's looking beautiful!. I too need mittens. I'm looking at trigger mitten patterns but the reviews of the few I've found have been spotty.
Hugs all around! Happy knitting!

Mama Pea said...

Your wish is my command, m'dear. I will post a picture of the way-way-too-cute Little Red Union Suit you sent me. Honest to Abe, they are about the cutest things I've ever seen!

Love seeing the pictures of all your projects, knitting and so forth. Keep up the momentum on your "get-it-done" philosophy. I, too, find that if I do something immediately rather than putting it on my To Do List, it tends to . . . well, actually get done. 'Course, the task can't be one that takes more than an hour or so. Otherwise, we'd starve while I worked on my do-it-immediately task and no one cooked!

Debra She Who Seeks said...

I hate to tell you this, but I think you might be a Yarnoholic.

coffeeontheporchwithme said...

What are you actually doing with your rooster? Are you selling him, giving him away, dispatching him yourself? Asking for a friend. -Jenn

Pioneer Woman at Heart said...

Oh my gosh those ornaments are so cute. As for eggs, I think I have to secure my coop now. I may have a smart raccoon breaking and entering. However, no chickens were harmed. Hmm. Hubby doesn't think it's a raccoon, and neither do I, but hopefully we can find a secure place to hide a camera.

Katie C. said...

Applesauce in the slow cooker is also a great way to use up apples. Peel, core, cut in chunks/slices, and into the slow cooker they go for four hours on high. Don’t stir until at least 2 1/2 to 3 hours. You need that heat to build up with the lid on. I put mine through the blender for a smoother consistency. I usually make two batches before canning. Just reheat it on the stove while your canner is heating up. No sugar or anything. I’ll never go back to store brand if I can help it. The homemade stuff just spoils you! BTW, I know it’s not gluten free, but Smitten Kitchen has a nice applesauce cake recipe. Maybe you could adapt it?

I canned something new this year, apple butter. I used the Ball recipe but I started with the slow cooker applesauce. I had to cook and stir the stuff for an hour! The friend that I made it for assured me that it came out great. I saved one, as yet unopened, jar for myself.

I too have too many UFOs (unfinished objects). I’m going back to one of them today. I just have to decide which one! 😄

ellen abbott said...

Your trouble with the rooster reminds me of a story a friend told me. she took on a rooster a friend wanted to get rid of that was aggressive. She batted it away the first time. the second time he came at her she snatched him up, gave his neck a twist, and that was it for the rooster.

doing things when I think of them doesn't work for me because I would never finish anything! I'd be in the middle of one thing then dash off to do another thing ad infinitum. you make me want to learn to knit. ha ha. not really. I would like some hand knitted socks though.

Ed said...

I'm not sure I've eaten mincemeat before but the curried rice and squash sounds appealing.

tpals said...

I won't keep an aggressive rooster either. What worked well was once I had a good, amiable one, I kept one of his sons to replace him in his dotage, then a grandson to replace that one...

Lynne said...

Your yarn colors are so pretty. I think I'd keep the one you were knitting for your sister. It's real nice.I like the other color also.I have ufo's, but figure I'll get to them! Ha! The rooster doesn't seem to learn his lesson very well. Yep, Time for him to go. When I was little we had a rooster named Benny that use to follow me around. The apple mince meat looks yummy!! Sounds like it would be good for mincemeat cookies. take care!

abbeysmum said...

Congratulations on your organizational progress so far this year, sock addiction. ...yep, totally understand.
I find a Bullet Journal very helpful for keeping organised and a record of stuff I can't remember, have a look online and choose something that suits you....they go from the sublime to the ridiculous, I made mine very basic, it works for me, I don't want half a days worth of Artwork on each page ☺☺☺

Sandy Livesay said...

Susan,

Are you sure your sisters don't read your blog? You know your blogger buddies won't spill the beans about the socks :-)
Brr......10 degrees! Yikes, a tad cold you say!!!! We haven't seen 10 degrees in a couple of weeks. Okay, I need to ask.....what is mincemeat? I've never had it, is it apples and nuts mixed together?

Sending hugs and love to you. Please give your furbies a scratch behind their ears :-)