It's Snowing!

Oh, the weather outside is frightful,

But, the fire is so delightful,

And, if we've no place to go,

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

:-)

We are getting our first snow of the season.  It probably won't amount to much, but I'm loving watching it drift down.

Let it snow!

HDP

On the Other Side of Halfway

Well, I'm on the other side of halfway on my sister's Christmas afghan.  I've been working on it here and there over the Thanksgiving holiday.  It felt good to sit down this evening with hook and yarn.

I love all the texture in the blanket...

Between the worsted weight yarn and the bit of wool mixed in with the acrylic, this is sure to be warm and toasty.  Perfect to wrap up in on a cold January night.

I was hoping to have this done by the end of the month, but I think I'll fall short of that goal by at least a week.  One nice thing is that with all the same color of yarn, there aren't too many ends to weave in.

I'm off to start on the next series of cables. 

Hope you are enjoying your Thanksgiving afterglow. 

We've got a fire going, the Christmas tree lights on and A Christmas Story in the DVD player. 

Nice cozy Friday night.

Cheers!

HDP

Happy Thanksgiving

Blessings to you and yours.

HDP

Holiday Cheeseball

This is an all-time favorite in my household and I always serve it around the holidays. 

We really enjoy it, and I love it because it's super simple to make if you have a food processor.

Gather your ingredients:

  

Holiday Cheeseball

+ 2 (8 oz) packages of cream cheese (brick)

+ 2 small packages Budding Beef

+ 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

+ 2 tsp Accent

+ 1 Tablespoon chopped green onions (dried)

+ 1 Tablespoon milk

• Throw everything in your food processor (chopping blade) and run until ingredients are mixed together and smooth.

• Place mixture on a plate.
• Using a rubber spatula smooth into a ball shape.
• Cover and let sit in fridge overnight.

Enjoy! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

:-)

HDP

Turkey Craft and Party Favor

I wanted to have a little party favor for the boys on Thanksgiving.  So I gathered together some materials that I thought I'd need to make this craft. 

It just took about 20 - 30 minutes to make these cute little guys.

What you'll need:

+ Movie-size boxes of candy

+ Kraft paper

+ Construction paper in various colors

+ Scissors

+ Glue

+ Tape

+ Markers

Directions:

1. Wrap the boxes of candy in the Kraft paper.
2. Cut out a circle for the belly and a circle for the face.
3. Cut out fat triangles for the feet and a skinny triangle for the beak.
4. Cut out almond shapes in various colors for feathers.
5. Cut out a little red wattle.

Glue all the pieces in place and draw a face on your turkey and some toes on his feet. 

(I wanted to use the those googly eyes for the face, but we were fresh out.  The marker worked just as well.)

And, he's done.

My son made his; it was a fun little project.

The little one is now making Indian feather headdresses out of construction paper and glitter glue to go along with the turkeys.

:-)

It's raining here....perfect day for crafts.

HDP

Pecan Chewies

I found this recipe for Pecan Chewies last week on Mommy's Kitchen.  They sounded really good (and easy to make) so I printed out the recipe and set it aside to try later.  

This evening, my father-in-law and his friend will be arriving to spend the night on their way to PA for Thanksgiving.  With this in mind, I needed a little something to serve up once they arrived.  This seemed to fit the bill.  

I couldn't wait until they cooled to try them, so I dished up a couple for us to taste.

Hubby's on his fourth one, so they must be good..

I need to hide the pan so I have some to serve my father-in-law.  

:-)

HDP

Getting Close to Midway...

The week has quickly blown by and it's already Thursday evening... 

I haven't had as much time to dedicate to the Basketweave Fisherman blanket this week, but I am making some progress; midway isn't too far in the distance. 

:-)

I've made it past another series of cables and am into the next basketweave section.  I think I'll block it before I put the fringe on it to give it a nice finished look.  Hopefully my sister will like it. 

On a different note...

It was a pretty day today, with the sun shining brightly in the sky.  I took advantage of the sunshine and had hubby grill out some burgers to go with a BLT salad for dinner.  Soon, the grill will have to be retired to the garage and we won't have another good hamburger until spring.  Burgers just don't taste the same cooked on the stove...

Beware the grocery stores this weekend, it's going to be a mad house.  I think I'll try to get most of my shopping done tomorrow evening and just have the few odds and ends to pick up next week.  I did get the prize purchase made though...

Ole Tom Turkey weighing in at 23 pounds. 

We'll be enjoying leftovers for a long, long, long time. 

Gobble, gobble...

HDP

Thanksgiving Planning

I've started planning my Thanksgiving Day menu.  

Early this morning, I was digging through my stack of favorite recipes, looking for just the right ones.  

I usually get out a manila folder and write the menu on the front of the folder and put the recipes I'm going to use in the folder.  It helps me stay organized.  

I make my pies and quick bread the day before as a prelude to the big event.  I usually put on some festive Christmas music and get an early start.  And while the pies are baking, I'll throw together the cheese ball.  I can tell you my dishwasher gets a workout on pre-turkey day.  

:-)

Thanksgiving Dinner Menu

Ole Tom Turkey

Mom's Pecan Dressing

Mashed Potatoes

Gravy

Sweet Potato Casserole

Golden Au gratin Potatoes

Green Beans w/Almonds

Cranberry Sauce

Pumpkin bread

Salad (I haven't decided on this yet)

Dessert

Pumpkin pie

Pecan pie

Toll house pie

Appetizers

Shrimp tray

Cheese ball & Crackers

I'm looking forward to all the festivities.  My sister and her family will be over for dinner.  Then we'll relax in the family room with desserts and a game (or two or three) of Catch Phrase.  I imagine the boys will run around like wild critters and have a blast.  

:-)

What's your favorite Thanksgiving dish?

HDP

Snow Flurries Predicted...

Last night at dinner, dear husband said, "You know, they are predicting snow flurries tonight." 

Hmmm...

What's a girl to do? 

I wrapped up my nightly chores, threw on my pajama's, turned on the gas logs, and grabbed my crochet.   

For a little while, it was just me and our extra-large house cat "Pebbles".  As you can see, she thoroughly enjoys the fireplace.  The "boys" were playing marbles in the other room and I was enjoying a little bit of quiet time.  No TV, no thoughts but for the next row's stitch pattern...

Dear hubby came in to join me a little later and turned on an historical war program, but I kept stitch'n...

I didn't see any snow flurries last night, but it sure was cold this morning; 28 degrees when I came downstairs. 

Snow flurries predicted again for tonight? 

I hope so! 

:-)

Happy Friday and enjoy your weekend!

HDP

Basketweave Update

A little progress update on the Fisherman Basketweave I started working on last week.  I'm making this as a Christmas gift for my sister.  I'm about a third of the way into it and when it's done, hopefully it will look like it does in the booklet. 

:-)

I'm hoping to have it done in the next couple of weeks.  I'm "itching" to start on my next project, but I really want to finish this first.

This is a great booklet with some really pretty afghans in it.  Maryfairy on Ravelry made one from this booklet using a medley of the different stitch patterns, you can see her beautiful work of art HERE. 

I love these fisherman afghans, but I'll be ready for a little color once I wrap this one up.

:-)

HDP

Rainy Day...

It's raining here in southern Ohio and I'm having a quiet morning...

I'm letting the little one sleep in.  Rest is one of the best medicines when you are feeling a little under the weather.  I hope he is feeling better today.

My Mom sent us a few thanksgiving books she found at the second hand book store where she volunteers.  I think I'll set aside the current chapter book I've been reading to dear son and start reading to him about the first thanksgiving. 

I started a new book (for myself) over the weekend, it's called Be Encouraged by Warren W. Wiersbe.  It's a commentary on 2 Corinthians.  We are doing a bible study in our Wednesday evening service on that chapter.  I thought it would be a good accompaniment.  

Quick clarification on my post the other day.  I'm not going to be entering the blanket I showed in this POST in the Vanna's Choice Contest.  I made that for someone a couple of years ago.  At the time, when I made it, I had wanted to submit it, but didn't meet the deadline.  I don't have the blanket any longer since I gifted it to a friend.  If I enter, I'll make a new blanket.

On a different note, Rie over at CraftyRie is in the process of creating a universal blog list for crafters.  Go over and check it out, lots of fun crafty blogs to get lost in...

I hope you have a good day today.  I think things will be quiet around here again today.  Just taking it easy.  Sometimes I think we get so wrapped up in our day-to-day lives and rushing here and there that we forget to breathe. 

Take care until next time.

HDP

Slowing down...

Every leaf speaks bliss to me,
Fluttering from the autumn tree.

- Emily Bronte -

That beautiful maple tree is across the street from our house. 

The turning maple, is to me, the emblem of Autumn's glory.

---

Dear son is feeling a little under the weather today, so slowing down and taking things easy.

HDP

Vanna's Choice Contest

Lion Brand's Vanna's Choice Yarn and Michaels are teaming up again to have their ANNUAL CONTEST. 

I haven't read all the fine print, but it sounds like they will select finalists and then the projects with the highest number of votes will be the winners.

I made the above blanket a couple of years ago for a dear friend and "old" roomy.  I had hoped to enter it in the contest that year, but didn't complete it in time.  It's super heavy in the technique that was used and Vanna's Choice is an "aran" weight yarn; slightly heavier than worsted weight.

Even though I didn't finish it in time, I don't count it as loss since I made it for someone special.  Hopefully, she has relished many hours of cozy movies or just time relaxing under it's warmth. 

And...

there is always this year! 

:-)

Has anyone else seen this yet?  Any plans to enter? 

Something to think about.

Happy Friday!

HDP

New Month, New Project...

Can you believe it's the first of November?  The outdoor thermometer says it's 60 degrees out and the sun is shinning brightly, but the house feels cold.  So I decided to light the fire, have a cup of green tea, and relax for a spell with my latest project. 

When I made the fisherman-style afghan this summer, my sister saw it and fell in love with it.  She said she would like one "some day."  Joann's was having a sale on yarn a few weeks ago (30% off) and I found an on-line coupon for free shipping, so I took advantage of the good buy alignment and bought the yarn for this project.  I decided to go with Wool-Ease again.  I really like working with this yarn and I think the fisherman color has a pretty tint to it. 

I'm using a different pattern this time around though, it's in a booklet I got last year (I think it was a Christmas gift from hubby).  It's called Aran Afghans to Crochet.  It's a Leisure Arts booklet with five designs by Bonnie Barker. 

It's too early to really see any progress, but I'll keep you posted as the afghan grows.

Happy stitching and happy first of the month!

HDP

P.S.  In the blink of an eye, we'll be roasting our turkeys, whipping our potatoes and giving thanks at the Thanksgiving table...

hard to believe.

:-)