Spring!

The Lens Day challenge for this week is Blossom.  How fortunate that I bought two bouquets of tulips the other day.

They were on sale for $5 a bunch and I knew I wanted two bunches but I had the hardest time deciding on the color.

I finally went with one pink and one yellow and I love the combination of the two.

The pink speaks to my girl-y side.

And the yellow speaks to my yearning-for-spring side.

And the whole thing just makes me happy. Tulips are good for the soul.

And really fun to photograph. Perhaps even a little addictive.

In the spirit of “begin as you mean to continue” I spent my time this weekend, the first of not only a new year but also a new decade,  doing the things I love the most.

I knitted, of course. This is the start of the Mondo Cable Pulli in Beaverslide. The yarn is yummy and the pattern is well written and I’m enjoying knitting this.

I also did some spinning. This is pencil roving from Rhinebeck that JessaLu threw at me suggested I buy. It feels good to spin again!

I started my Project 365 set on flickr.

I kicked Dale’s ass playing rummy. I’m going to pay for posting this (he’s a very sore loser, you know) but it’s so worth it!

I watched some Women’s College Basketball. The Tennessee Lady Vols rocked against Oklahoma.

I cooked. I made delicious chicken chili and crab dip and I baked homemade bread. I love baking bread and the yeasty smell that fills my house when I make it. Mmm.

I finally made homemade pasta. It was fun and the results were delicious! I made fettuccine and then threw together a sauce with baby spinach, mushrooms, garlic, bacon, wine and heavy cream. Yummm.

Let  me see . . . I know there was something else . . . oh yeah . . . I finished Flyingdales . . . on December 30th. wOOt.

I took the photo of the chair by the pond that was  in yesterday’s post while at the birthday party of a friend last weekend.  He and his wife run a local bed & breakfast and it’s a beautiful spot, nestled among a pretty little pond and some cranberry bogs.  I took quite a few photos and would like to share some of them with you.

Isn’t it lovely?  So peaceful.  I could sit on their deck and knit all day long.

I took pictures of a new pair of socks yesterday but for some reason they won’t upload to my computer.  I have always connected my camera with a USB cable but now it’s suddenly not working.  I have no idea why this is happening but all the experts say to get a card reader and I’ll be doing that later today.  Keep your fingers crossed that this solves my problem.

In the meantime, here’s a pretty picture of the ceiling at the Unitarian Church where the Presidents Adams are buried.

I’ll be stepping away from the technology now.

A few months ago my friend and fellow knitblogger Gale and I began planning a Photography for Knitters Workshop to be held at my library.  And yesterday was THE day.  I was really excited to take a photography class from someone who “gets” the whole knitting thing and I was not disappointed.

Here’s Gale with some yarn.  She was sniffing it, moments before.  I told you she gets it.

Part of the class was a slideshow of Gale’s work and that was wonderful.  I loved seeing the different ways she showcased hand knits.  And part of the class was “hands on” and we all went outside and took photos of our finished knits.  Gale pointed out some great features of my library for use as photo backdrops and I loved seeing it through her eyes.

I brought my Hemlock Ring Blanket to photograph.  It’s been finished for months and I just hadn’t been able to find a good way to showcase it.  Thanks to a bike rack and some decorative grasses (and Gale’s keen eye) I found a great spot right outside the library door.

In case you’ve forgotten after all this time, the yarn is Cascade 220.  And, while I have loved other versions of this blanket, mine just doesn’t excite me.  It’s okay but I don’t love it.  In fact, I’m sort of meh about the whole thing.

I did enjoy knitting it, though, and perhaps it really just needs a more severe blocking.

I am pretty happy with the photos of it and I’m thrilled to have discovered a new place to photograph my knits.

I just have to make sure no one catches me throwing an afghan over a bike rack or a pair of socks over a bush.  It is my place of business, after all.

Yesterday was a hot day and that made it a good day to hang around at home.  I did some knitting and some spinning and some relaxing.

The phlox are still blooming and that makes me happy.

It was hot and humid and sunny here yesterday.

That made it the perfect day to:

splash in the water.

knit on the beach.

and take a sail.

The vacation is going quite well so far.

A friend of ours told us about an abandoned field of blueberry bushes so last weekend we went in search of it.  We found it but it was really overgrown and the blueberries weren’t very accessible.  The trip wasn’t a total bust, though, as we spotted this flock of wild turkeys in a nearby yard.

It’s nice to see the critters are doing so well in our area these days.  Makes me feel all Pilgrimy.

So I’m on vacation for the next two weeks.  I’m home this week and then next week is our annual trip to Cape Cod.  In the interest of spending less time on the computer and more time knitting, spinning, hanging out and all that good stuff, I’m going to take a slightly different approach to blogging this week.  The plan is to post a picture (or two) every day of someplace I’ve been or something I’ve seen or something I’ve done.  Sort of like Eye Candy Friday but on the other days of the week.

Let’s start with this one.

This is the backyard of one of our fellow Kiwanians and the site of a really fun Kiwanis cook out last week.  My vacation is already off to a great start!