I said I would, so here I am

March 28, 2008 at 5:54 pm | Posted in art, blogging, Christmas, country life, country living, dating, dogs, faith, family, flowers, food, free knitting patterns, gifts, Holidays, knitting, love, marriage, pets, photography, relationships, romance, snow, stockings, yarn | 14 Comments

Yes, I said on Wednesday that I would write more this week, so here I am to keep that appointment. Have a cuppa with me?

I am on a mission to publish my first knitting book by the end of this summer. It will be a book of hand knit Christmas Stocking patterns, the firefly way. It is an ambitious mission because I do have writing clients I must attend to, my fine art paintings to continue creating, and my husband, daughter, and dog to continue to attend to as needed here at home. I must design and knit one new stocking each week between now and mid-June in addition to my other responsibilities and joys. I think I can do it … we’ll see how it all turns out.

If you check my “Christmas Stockings” page (see link above) next week you will see some photographs of my progress. I’ll use that page to keep people apprised of my progress, in case anyone wants to cheer me along.

See that lovely cuppa in the photo? You know that feeling you get inside when you select and present a gift that just zaps a person right where they live and tickles them up one side and down the other?

Well, my sweet parents struck such a home run this past Christmas when they gave my husband and I a cocoa latte maker. It is a cute little machine that heats the liquid and stirs the ingredients together for a perfect cuppa hot cocoa, or a latte, or whatever foamy hot drink you wish to make. It heats the drink to a perfect sipping temperature and then, as it dispenses the drink there is a frothing feature so you get a perfect, lovely froth on top.

We have been enjoying our cocoa latte maker daily ever since we got it. One of my favorite things to do is to heat up and froth about eight ounces of plain, unsweetened soy milk (I add a bit of Splenda so that it sweetened, but sugar-free). I’ll then put about half a cup of hot tea or coffee in my oversized mug, and dispense frothy soy milk on the top half. With eight ounces of soy milk, I can do that twice in the morning with my breakfast and feel quite cozy and toasty the rest of the day. Yum!

Tomorrow my husband and I are going to take a drive through parts of Western New York to visit a few independent, local yarn stores. I will be showing samples of my printed knitting patterns to shop owners to see about getting them carried in some of those stores. We enjoy taking long, meandering drives so a yarn shop crawl will give us a purpose and direction for this one, which we are both looking forward to. Blu will most likely accompany us, and I hope he will think it is as fun as we most likely will.

Poor Blu wasn’t feeling very well for about a week or so. The snow was melting and many piles of who knows what were thawing out all over the farm and, well … he needed to check a few things out to see what was what. Unfortunately, something he ate upset his stomach and it took him a few days to recover. What amazes me is how quickly he changed from feeling bad and out of it to being his usual frisky, sometimes naughty, self. And yes, he can be quite naughty. Lovable always, but very naughty at times.

I am told that spring is out there, outside somewhere, patiently waiting to arrive. I have seen the first signs of her in the arrival not only of the Canadian geese but also in the tiny little snow bud flowers (or whatever their real name is) and some other bulbs climbing their way up out of snow and left over autumn leaves beneath my kitchen window. I love to get down on the ground and photograph these dear, tender little beings.

Yes, spring is out there somewhere … in spite of the fact that it snowed again last night and now the world is covered in white once again. Last year on March 28 I posted this photo as well as a sound file of peepers chirping up a storm. Today, March 28 again, it is all white and cold out there.

I am not complaining. As you know, I do love the snow, but we are ready now to enjoy the beauty and growth of spring. Get here when you will Spring, we will welcome you with gladness and bid our dear snow farewell for now. No hard feelings, no regrets. Change is beautiful, and we welcome the changes you will bring when the time is yours.

Now I must take leave myself … but I will be back early in the week to give you another peek into our world.

~firefly