The Quiltarian

It's True...

2008-06-22T18:18:00.000-07:00

It's true--the rainbow really ends at our cabin in Missouri!

Mr Q and I were there last weekend, celebrating our 35th anniversary and we saw it for ourselves.

I realized that I was about to miss my every 3 month posting, and I had to share this photo.

I have been doing a lot of knitting, but mostly felted bags. And socks, of course, you always have to have some socks in the works. I'll share knitting photos next post.

I also have new photos of the cutest grandkids ever!

And a late Happy Double Digits Birthday to Miss BB! How quickly you have grown! And into such a beautiful, talented, and sweet grandaughter!

Happy 1st Birthday!

2008-03-16T15:30:00.000-07:00

Little Miss T just turned 1 year old. Happy Birthday!
What a pretty and sweet-natured little girl she has turned out to be. BIg brother Mr T is proud and helpful and Grandma Q loves them both to pieces.
This is the photo of my little one and her birthday cake.

And here she is after experiencing her cake.

I promise that no one else helped Miss T make such a mess, except for some of us who were encouraging a game of peek-a-boo.

Wouldn't you know I would finish my mittens the same day my first daffodil bloomed! But since then we have had several cold days, so I have had a few chances to wear them.

Almost Finished Objects

2008-02-10T20:16:00.001-08:00

I'm almost finished with a pair of socks, all they need is closing the toe.
I'm almost finished with my first mitten, just weaving in about 8 strings. And 1/2 way through with the 2nd mitten. And yes, the thumb was not that hard to pick up and knit.
Maybe I will get them all finished by Knit Night on Tuesday.

I started a lace scarf with the bright yellow lace weight yarn that Sue brought to Knit Night last time.
It's pretty stiff, but it softens up a lot when washed. Marianne from Knit Night gifted me with the coveted Make My Day Award, so I also want to thank the people who make my day. All my Knit Night friends: Of course Sue, who forced me to learn to knit and taught me so patiently, who makes me laugh, and who took a kitten off my hands. And Marianne, a friend rediscovered from our childhoods, and the fastest knitter ever. Emma, one of the first loyal knitters in the group, Amy and Joyce, the amazing bag knitters, Tony & Eric, with the lovely flowers and gorgeous knitting, hilarious Ann, and also Eva, Cindy and Esther, who don't have blogs, but need them.
The others who make my all my days: My little sister, My best friends Ann, Theresa & Barbara, my big sister, and my wonderful earth mother friend, Linda, with a brand new blog.

I'll leave you with a picture to warm any librarian grandmother's heart: Mr T reading with his little cousin, Miss H.

Bye-Bye Camelot

2007-12-07T20:04:00.000-08:00

It's been there most of my life, a giant castle standing over my walks home from Jr High, watching over my first drives, my trips to Pennington's and Weber's, my visits to the grocery, to Hancock's, to Church's and Cici's, stroller walks with my babies and long walks with my grandbabies. I have lived within a mile of this huge friend for almost all of my life. And now it is coming down. The big dinosaurs are chopping it into pieces and throwing it into giant dumpsters.
We knew it was coming down, we knew it was coming soon. We knew it was an eyesore, a danger, a firetrap.
But I guess I always kept my fingers crossed that somehow someone would save it, the old castle, and it would regain its former luster and glory. That presidents and entertainers, like Nixon and Elvis, would visit. That seniors could have their proms there again. That we could visit the funky piano bar and hear the lounge singers or attend another special Christmas party on the top floor.
I guess this is really the end.

Finally photos

2007-12-01T09:42:00.001-08:00

Mr Q finally downloaded about 700 photos off my camera onto the hard drive where I can access them. So I am finally posting some photos of our travels this year. Here's an amazing hot spring spa we went to on our trip to Santa Fe with friends.

Of course I knitted socks on the way home through the panhandle of Oklahoma.

My neice and I made the long long drive to South Dakota to visit my sister, her mom. Here's mother and daughter silhouetted by the gorgeous sunset at Lake Campbell. They have a spectacular sunset every day. It's amazing!

Mr Q and I drove to Colorado in October and got to see the aspens in full glory.

But we always have to come back home to the grandbabies! Here are the 3 granddaughters.
Could there be any cuter girls ?

Sweater!

2007-10-09T15:42:00.000-07:00

It has been brought to my attention that I should hurry to meet my every 3 months posting schedule. (Thanks, Amy!) I thought that I had found someone who posted more rarely than me, when I read Ann's blog, but now she is posting every day! (Stop it, Ann!)

I will blame Mr Q. and his 2 secondhand laptops. He hooks up one and I use it to download my photos and then when I start to post, he takes it out of town and leaves me the other. Then when I put photos on the other one, he gets a big virus on that one, and so on. I finally got a photo of my pretty purple sweater:

I made this sweater from a Noro pattern with Borocco Ultra Alpaca, which is alpaca and wool and super soft! It was my first sweater, so I was happy that it actually fits. I have worn it already to meetings and to Knit Night and I love it.

I loved knitting this sweater so much that I just bought 20 skeins of Peru Luxury DK from LittleKnits. I got the pretty fuschia, but now I'm afraid it will be too bright. Of course fuschia will be too bright, it's Fuschia!

I will try to post again sooner, but if I post before January, that will be pretty good for me. Hopefully I will be able to show some photos from our trip last week to Colorado where we FINALLY saw the aspens in full glory and it DID NOT SNOW this year!

Knitting Sweaters

2007-07-19T09:24:00.000-07:00

I finally finished a garment that I can wear!

I made this cotton shell and it actually fits. I wore it to work and to knit night last week.

The pattern is Soleil from Knitty, I made it from Cascade Sierra that I got on sale at a LYS.

I love the lace along the bottom of the shell. It was fun to knit and looks pretty, too.

After I finished this sweater, I had the confidence to start a cardigan! It's a Nolo pattern, but I am using Berocco Ultra Alpaca in a lovely purple heather. So far I have finished the back and both fronts and have started the sleeves. I'm knitting them both at the same time, so that they will match.

How far I have come from all those scarves I made for Christmas 2005.

Last night I dreamed that 75 people came to Knit night! We had to meet in 2 meeting rooms and I was worrying about how long it would take for all of us to share our projects. Math in a dream--how boring!

Happy Anniversary, Mom & Dad!

2007-07-09T17:32:00.000-07:00

My parents recently celebrated their 60th anniversary, and we had a wonderful time!

They took the entire family, all 24 descendants and spouses, to Pete's Place in Krebs for a memorable meal. Our Norwegian foreign exchange sister sent an extra-special Norwegian wedding cake, a delicious almond cake with 18 rings.

Here's Mom & Dad with my little granddaughter Miss H., who is about to taste the Norwegian cake.

Tagged!

2007-05-16T15:16:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Amy and Sue.
Here are the rules: Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs the 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog.You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog.

1. I don't know anyone with a blog except for my knit night friends, so I really can't tag anyone. In fact I don't think anyone reads my blog except for the knit night folks, even though I have given my address out to my sisters, sons, and others. Oh well!

2. I read while I walk--to and from work (1 mile) and on my lunch hour. I only fell once and bumped my head pretty bad, but that didn't stop me, right Marianne?

3. When I was in high school, a Norwegian foreign exchange student, Wenche, lived with my family the whole school year. Now she is an architect in Oslo and we still keep in touch.

4. I have worked at the library for 31 years!

5. I quit college in 1973 to marry Mr Q and we lived in Germany for the first 2 years of marriage. We lived in a crazy huge 3rd floor apartment in downtown Weisbaden with coal oil heat, and the kind of clothesline that goes over to the apartment across the alley, and has pulleys to move the clothes along.

6. I read a book a week. As soon as I finish it, I write down every book I read in a little notebook, and average 50-60 books each year. And I have so many many books on my mental list of books that I want to read!

7. I love teen movies, the lamer the better. My favorite day would be spent knitting or piecing quilts and watching either 1930s movies or teen movies of any era: Gidget, Breakfast Club or Big Fat Liar, I love them all. And since we have 4 TVs in our 1000 sq ft. house, I can turn them all on and never miss a bit of my movie.

I will try to find someone who has a blog, and has not been tagged, so that I can continue the fun!
I've enjoyed the facts about all of you!

Knitting and Quilting

2007-05-08T20:52:00.000-07:00

I realize that it has been almost 2 months since I last posted, and I promise to be better.
I just got back from Knit Night and was inspired to share some knitting photos, so I will try to post some tonight.

Here's what I have been busy with:

A summer shell from Cascade Sierra cotton/wool yarn. The pattern is Soleil from Knitty.
Thanks to Marianne for the Addi Turbo needles, the project will go much quicker now!!

And I have been working on this:
Felted bags!
Because you can never have enough bags, and because felted projects just go so fast!

And this: I finally gave my son the quilt that I have been working on for 4 years! Happy Birthday!

I think there are 300 different fabrics in this quilt!
I think he and his wife like it a lot, and now I just have to put on binding and they can take it home.

Next post--grandbabies!!

Wecome, Tiny Grandaughter!!

2007-03-17T14:55:00.000-07:00

I want to welcome a new grandaughter to the world and to the family! Here are some photos of all my grandbabies.Here is adorable little Miss T with her great big brother, Mr T. And a photo of Mr T with the other grands, Miss BB and MIss H, who is obviously unhappy at being kept from exploring, even for one minute.

I know that I am blessed to have 4 grands while I still have the energy to enjoy them. They are really the light of my life, and also fun to make things for. Mis B got socks, Mr T got the felted hat, LIttle Miss H got a nifty pink hat and I am knitting Tiny Miss T a sweater, my first attempt! I am almost finished with her quilt, too.

What I'm Reading

2007-01-31T14:30:00.000-08:00

Sue and Emma both posted a fun meme, and since it involves books I had to do it, too...

Instructions:
1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the next 3 sentences on your blog along with these instructions.
5. Don't you dare dig for that "cool" or "intellectual" book in your closet! I know you were thinking about it! Just pick up whatever is closest.
6. Tag 5 people

I am reading "One Thousand White Women" by Jim Fergus for my book club, so I had it on hand. And 3 sentences made more sense and was more interesting than I expected.

" Narcissa White came now among us, nearly beside herself with Christian righteousness. Evidently her religious beliefs do not permit dancing. "The recreation of the Devil," she objected."His evil trick to inflame the passions and overcome the intellect.""

Consider yourself tagged.

Felted Hat

2007-01-30T19:27:00.000-08:00

Here's my kindergarden grandson wearing his felted hat that I made and gave him for Christmas---and a kitchen strainer, too.

Mr T is expecting a new baby sister any day, and I can't wait!

Knitting Progress

2007-01-29T16:36:00.000-08:00

Now that the holidays are over and the library has reopened, I have found some time to knit.
I FINALLY cast off the lace scarf that I started last January! (And immediately cast on another one with the rest of the pretty green yarn. )
I made progress on the 2nd striped sock I've been working on.
And I finished the first front piece and almost finished the 2nd front of a baby sweater for my new granddaughter who is due any day. I have never made a sweater and think that a baby sweater would be a good first try. So far it is fun, but I don't realloy understand where I go from here. Luckily my knit group will show me the way!

I finally finished a baby quilt for a great neice. It's not my favorite, but it's cute and bright. Now I need to get busy with the quilt for the new baby. (I should be making her quilt instead of her sweater!) My DIL asked me to make the same pattern that I made for my son when he was a baby, but in pink instead of yellow. I think that was very sweet, and I love the very pale pink polka dot fabric she chose.

2007-01-06T15:04:00.000-08:00

It's Jan 6 and I'm taking a break from packing the last of my Christmas stuff to wish everyone a very very happy 2007. It looks like a good year for me with a new grandbaby arriving in February, a spiffy new library and good health and happiness for my family.

.

I'll close with this adorable new photo of my baby granddaughter.

Let it snow, let it snow...

2006-12-01T18:08:00.000-08:00

It has snowed the last 2 days in Tulsa--a lot. We got 8 inches at my house, one of the biggest snowstorms in years! As distressing as I found the snow in Colorado, I absolutely loved the snow here. Probably because the libraries were closed, so I could stay home and read, knit, quilt, bake and watch old movies on TV. Heavenly! The cats won't leave the house and I haven't gone farther than the front porch myself.

I have had a very productive few days. I worked a while on the quilt for a little great-neice, but then broke my needle and have to wait to finish until I can make it to Hancock's tomorrow. I finally finished a sock I cast on months ago, and I even got the Kitchener Stitches to work the first try this time. I cast on the mate, so I will have to finish the pair before I start another pair. I have also been working on some secret Christmas presents for some of the wonderful guys in my life. Last year, as a novice knitter, I made scarves for all the girls.

My library is currently in the process of getting a facelift, and I am temporarily displaced, so a few snow days were even more welcome than usual.
I really love snow when I am at home!

Keeping Busy

2006-11-13T18:30:00.000-08:00

This weekend Mr Q and I went for a quiet weekend to my family's cabin in Missouri. The highlight of the trip was eating ripe persimmons and watching 9 deer drink water from the creek. Magical! We had a lovely visit there, even though I had to read most of Freddy & Fredericka, a 550 page novel, for my book club for today. I did finish it and enjoyed it, but it was just way too long. Only 3 of the 8 in the group managed to finish the book and this is a group that usually reads anything I choose for them.

In between bouts of reading my book, I found time to take a long walk, watch a couple of movies and work on 2 scarves I am knitting. I have been working on a green lace scarf or stole since February and I decided to finish the last 6 inches so I can block it and use it this winter. I also got some new lace weight yarn and, of course, I had to start another lace scarf/stole with this. I started one pattern, but ripped it out and now I'm trying the Feather and Fan from KnitPicks. I don't think anyone else would want these scarves, so I guess I am being greedy and knitting them for myself. But sometimes, something that takes a little concentration, but not too much, is just the ticket for keeping from going completely bonkers. My library is getting spruced up in a week or so and I will be homeless for about 6 weeks, and there is just so much to do, that these scarves are just right to work on. I can concentrate on the patterns and ignore the stress!

Since there are 2 new baby girls in the family, (Welcome--Katlyn & Kinsey!) I finally went into my stash to find fabric for 2 baby quilts. I was pleased that I had plenty of pretty fabric for both without having to leave my house. For Katlyn, I found some pretty blue and pink fabric with tiny hearts that I used for her aunt's baby quilt 6 years ago. I also had a lot of cute fabrics with flowers, animals & other designs and I'm making a simple 1/2 square triangle quilt. For Kinsey, I found 3 different purple and blue fabrics with stars. I haven't picked a pattern, but it will be simple in order to be finished by Christmas.

It seriously snows in Colorado

2006-10-29T15:56:00.000-08:00

Mr Q and I just got back from a lovely week in Colorado and let me tell you--it snows in Colorado.
We checked with weather.com before we went and it was supposed to be 50-60 degrees all week. We spent a weekend with my lovely neice in Denver and it was warm and beautiful fall weather. The next weekend we spent with Mr Q's gourmet cook nephew and his wife and their adorable little girl in Denver. Cold but still fall-like.

In between we went to Mr Q's sister's beautiful cabin in the mountains near Fairplay, and it snowed, and snowed and snowed. I was expecting a week of me reading and Mr Q fishing and long walks in the woods, but got a week of reading, knitting and watching the snow fall and fall and fall. We couldn't get to any of the lakes to fish because all the roads were closed. My SIL and I planned a trip to Breckenridge, but when we got about 20 miles from the cabin it bagan to snow in the mountains so we went to the tiny library in Fairplay and met the not-so-friendly librarian and used the internet to check the weather which forcast more snow, so we went back to the cabin again. Luckily BIL had set aside a good supply of firewood and the big black stove in the cabin was plenty warm. I had lots of books and lots of knitting projects to keep me busy and the snow was lovely. On the trip I knitted a Harry Potter scarf for kindergardener Grandson for his Halloween costume, and worked on a bigger striped bag to felt, and a stripy sock for me. We ate some dandy homecooked food and drank a bit of wine, too.

The only really scary part was leaving on the last day when we slipped off the road into the ditch. Luckily Mr Q doesn't panic in the snow, so we got the car out of the ditch with Mr Q carefully accelerating and me pushing the car. It took 50 minutes to drive the 9 miles from the cabin to the main road. The rest of the way into Denver I was clutching the arm of the cardoor and even covered my eyes around turns. Obviously I need to stay in Oklahoma where it rarely snows and when it does it melts the next day. And I live one very flat mile from my work. Thank goodness!

After we got safely back to Oklahoma, where it is now glorious fall, it really snowed in Colorado--2 feet of snow! I was so happy to be here instead of there. Next time we visit Colorado in the summer! And I plan to finally get to see Jefferson Lake and Breckenridge, too.

Back to Quilting

2006-10-12T14:46:00.000-07:00

It's time to get back to quilting again. I have been only knitting for such a long time, but I have baby relatives on the way. I have a new grandaughter expected in February. Younger son and his wife will have a daughter to go along with their kindergardener son. We are all thrilled. Of course, new baby needs at least one quilt from Grandma!

And Mr Qs neice and nephew are both expecting babies next month. The other day Mr Q said "Are you making quilts for these babies for Christmas?", which threw me into shock. Of course, I'm making these babies some quilts, I have made them for all the other babies, and it shouldn't take too much time. I just need to clean out my sewing room of almost a year of junk, and stuff from my sister's move. Then buy or sort out fabric and cut and piece and quilt them! That would be OK if I just stayed home from work for about 2 weeks or so. I think I will get them done and I'm actually getting excited looking through books for just the right quilt, and for a pattern that is really fast to make up!

I bought lots of Wool of the Andes yarn from Knitpicks and have been crazy knitting little bags and felting them. I made an adorable green bag and actually sold it at our library craft sale the other day. WooHoo! I was sort of sorry that it sold because I really liked it, but I can make another one just like it. After I make the 2nd sock from the River Rapids Sock pattern from Sockbug, and finish a lace stole, and finish the striped sock I have on my needles right now.....

Mr Q and I are leaving tomorrow for Colorado to visit relatives and I guess I can knit in the car, and in the motels, and in my sister-in-law's cabin. Maybe I can at least finish a sock, and maybe that stole, too. I just went to visit my sister, and knitted quite a bit on the stripey sock in the car, but there were no mountains or hills or curves on the way to South Dakota, jut corn fields and soybean fields. We had a fabulous time and now I can visualize where my baby sis and her new husband live, and work and eat out. I cannot quite visualize it with 3 ft of snow, but I think I will get photos when that happens, since baby sis is the champion photo-taker of all time!

Birthdays!

2006-08-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

It was birthday weekend this weekend.
Baby grandaughter turned 1 on Saturday. Isn't she the most adorable baby ever? She had an enormous party with 30 people there, and she was pretty bewildered by it all. But she loved her new riding toy. Thanks to nephew at alienscreations for the wonderful photo.

Then grandson turned 5 today! Happy Birthday Mr T! He also had a big party on Sunday afternoon and got all kinds of wonderful aliens, animals and knights, including a remote control snake! Also some boring clothes, but this year he remembered to say "Thank You" for them anyway. He's a wonderful, active, imaginative almost-kindergardener.

It's HOT in Oklahoma. It's always hot here but this summer is hotter than most. It's August 15, and we have already had 12 days over 100, just in August. I think we are up to 19 this summer. My flower beds are drooping and I think I lost an azalea. All I can do is sit and watch TV and knit. I am almost finished with my first River Rapids sock from Sockbug. It's so pretty and green and lacy. I just want it to be cool enough to wear socks again!

I-Cords are Amazing!

2006-07-20T14:16:00.000-07:00

I just learned how to make I-cords last night and they are truly amazing. They remind me of using the spool with nails and yarn to make tubes or cords when we were kids. Mr Q thought I was crazy but all the girls did this back in the day.

I have been extremely stressed lately, with the wedding and now hiring a new children's librarian. I have been going straight home and eating whatever Mr Q cooks and then I sit in front of the TV and knit. I have finished all but about 2 inches of my granddaughter's 2nd sock, but the other day I pulled out all my yarn and started a Booga Bag. Fannie Pie made a few of these last year and gave me the pattern from Black Sheep Bags and told me they are easy, and she was right, as always. I also saw a photo of a cute bag on KnitPicks and bought the exact yarn and loved the stripes, so I am combining 2 patterns to make a bag that looks a lot like the one above. I started this bag on Monday and I finished it last night and started the I-cord straps. I swear that knitting this bag has saved my life!

Knitting, grandbabies and "Project Runway" are keeping me going right now.

Love is in the air

2006-07-10T15:25:00.000-07:00

I just looked at my blog and I last posted 2 months ago! That's incredible!

Then I remembered: Oh Yes, my little sister got married last weekend and wedding stuff sucked up my last 2 months! My little sister is a super creative person, and this is her 2nd marriage. She finally got the right man, and she did everything her way this time. Welcome to the family, Dr. Dan!

They had a wonderful wedding at our parents' cabin in the Ozarks. The weather actually cooperated and it was only 90 degrees, instead of the 100 that we expected in July. It was a lovely day, and everyone had a wonderful time.

Before the wedding Mr Q and I helped my little sis out by doing little odd jobs around the house, helping pack, running the sound and video at the wedding, helping shop for wedding stuff, as well as mowing, weeding, painting, cleaning, hauling, fixing at the cabin. We also lent her our sons for packing the UHaul, DJing at the party, creating the wedding video, playing the euphonium at the wedding, and parking cars. And our grandkids were the flower girl and ring burier, although the 4 year-old ring burier decided to resist his job, and he threw the ring pillow on the ground and kicked it and sat on the steps just moments before the bride and our dad were ready to descend. Luckily he is really cute and everyone thought he was quite adorable. (The real rings were safely with the best man and maid of honor.)

I wish my lovely sister and her kind new husband all the happiness in the world.
I will miss them tremendously and hope that they have a wonderful new life together.

Mother's Day

2006-05-16T10:13:00.000-07:00

I had a lovely Mother's Day on Sunday. Mr Q and I went to lunch with his mom and dinner with my folks. So I didn't have to cook anything except for scrambled eggs for breakfast. Not that I cook that much anyway. Mr Q is usually home before me, and he likes his own cooking better than mine anyway. (He cooks with butter!)

I am working on some socks. My children's librarian made me learn to knit them, and I am hooked. I bought (horrors) acrylic yarn because it is cheap and I didn't think that I would really make anything useful. Actually this is a cute self-striping yarn and I like them. I made 1 sock (Hooray), with metal dpns, then 1/2 of the other one.
Then I got new needles, size 1 birch dpns, which I love, and started another sock, and decided to rib the whole sock, which was much more work, yet more boring somehow. I finally finished it, and it doesn't fit! So Sunday, my almost 8 year old granddaughter came over and I showed her the sock and told her it didn't fit me and I didn't know anyone who could wear it, and she tried it on and it fit perfectly. I was shocked because I was trying to make a Women's size 9 for me, and it was a little small, maybe 7 1/2 or 8, and she is seven and wears a woman's size 6. This girl is going to be tall!
So now I need to make that other sock before she outgrows them!

I thought I would be able to post a photo of my socks, but I don't have a driver for the digital camera I was planning to use. I hope soon that I can post photos, in addition to Oprah!

Oprah!

2006-05-08T15:38:00.000-07:00

I'm going to try posting a picture and who is better than Oprah!
I just got a camera and I hope to post pictures of kitties or knitting or quilts next.

Happy Birthday, Kitties

2006-04-13T10:46:00.000-07:00

My kitten, Boo, turned 1 year old last week. I have her mom, Atticus, too, and have thouroughly enjoyed the past year with them. I had never experienced a cat having kittens, and it was some roller coaster year.

Last Jan. 1, my sister found a kitty in her attic and when I met her I fell in love, and took her home and named her Atticus, of course. Within a month she got out of my house and got herself pregnant. So in late March we got 6 new kitties in the sewing room closet. I expected Atticus to use one of my bins of fabric for a nice nest, but she chose the closet floor instead. We had 3 long-hairs and 3 short-hairs. 3 gray and 3 tortoiseshell like mom. 5 girls and 1 little boy. Watching little kitties grow and develop and fight and tumble is a wonderful thing.

My niece in Denver took the male, short-hair gray kitty, and named him Tokyo. My friend from work took a long-hair gray kitty and named her Scout. 3 kitties found new loving homes, thanks to my daughter-in-law's sister, who works at a vet. And I kept my favorite, a tortoise-shell short-hair with a funny stipe down her nose. I named her Boo, keeping with the "To Kill a Mockingbird" theme. I still need to get a digital camera so that I can post a photo of my little darling, Boo, and her beautiful Mom, Atticus.

So HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY, to Boo, Scout and Tokyo: 3 sweet and goofy kitties!!!!

I Win the Gold!

2006-02-28T15:19:00.000-08:00

YarnHarlot says that anyone who finished their knitting project wins the gold, so I win!

I started my baby blanket as I watched the opening ceremonies and I finished the border as I watched the closing ceremonies. I finished casting off while watching the credits! What timing!
I just started knitting in October, so I felt pleased to make a real, useful item in just 16 days. Mr Q. was very sweet, cooking dinner so that I could knit. On Sunday we went out of town with my sister and her fiance and I knitted in the car most of the day. What fun. Thanks YarnHarlot for making the Olympics and the knitting something really special this year.
Now I can give my pretty baby blanket to my friend at the hospital and hope she can use it for one of her babies.

My library branch will be renovated sometime soon, I hope and the library system is buying lots of new books. We got to order lots of quilting, knitting, crochet, sewing and decorating books and they are all coming in right now and I am in heaven looking at all these gorgeous books. But I want to make everything I see! Now I need to decide on just 1 or 2 projects that I might be able to actually finish. I think I found a quilt that I want to make, and after my sock class, I need to try to finish my first pair of socks, and I want to finish my lace stole that I started in January. I may never cook or see Mr Q. again!

Knitting Olympics

2006-01-28T11:23:00.000-08:00

I just joined the Knitting Olympics at the YarnHarlot site. The challenge is to cast on a project during the Olympics Opening Ceremonies and finish by the Closing Ceremonies. I am going to make a baby blanket and give it away to a hospital. A librarian in our system died in the fall and her mother donated her yarn stash to the library, so we are giving it to any librarian or customer who will knit a project for charity. I'm using some of this yarn, pretty soft baby blue acrylic, for my project. I think I will do a simple basketweave pattern, which will be easy, but fun.

I am currently knitting a lace stole, which will definitely not be finished by late February. At the begninning there are many, many, awful inintended holes, but now 15 inches into the stole, it's looking pretty good, if I do say so myself. I have improved a lot during this project, and I think the baby blanket will be good for making my stitches more even.

Yes, I'm Alive

2006-01-23T10:35:00.000-08:00

It's been months since I last wrote on this blog, but the holidays are a blur.

At the library, we are now planning a renovation project, and we will be closed for 6-8 weeks in April and May. My staff will be farmed out to other branches and I will work in the closed building. We are rearranging stacks, recovering worn-out furniture, and getting new flooring with Eco-floors, made from recycled tires. It's all very exciting!

On the quilting front, I finished darling grandbaby's pinwheel quilt and presented it to her in November. She was not that excited, but Dad (my older son) and Mom were quite pleased. If I had a digital camera that actually worked, I could post a photo.
I also machine quilted a twin-bed sized quilt that my other daughter-in-law made for my 4-year old grandson, with a darling 4-patch front and Thomas the Train sheet as backing. He got this from his mom on Christmas and he was very excited. He brought it Christmas morning for the family to see, and when we were admiring the pieced side, he told us we were looking at the wrong side. The THOMAS side was the good one, so we admired that side as well.

I have not been blogging or quilting, or even reading much lately, because I have been knitting. I had absolutely no interest in knitting until I took a class at the library staff training day. I learned to knit, and I was hooked. It's so fun and so portable. For Christmas, I made 6 scarves for presents for most of the girls in the family. Then I started a lace shawl, and have been having so much fun with it, but it is full of holes, some in the lace pattern, and many that are not supposed to be there. But, I guess that's to be expected for someone who just started knitting in October.

I will write more frequently, and find a way to post photos!

Rotton kids after school

2005-11-09T13:37:00.000-08:00

Our library is lucky enough to be across the street from an elementary school and from the bus stop for 2 busloads of kids from the middle and high schools. So every day at 2:45 about 15-20 elem kids come over and hop on the computers and fill up the tables and act like kids. They are really OK. But right at 4, the busloads of big kids arrive and all hell breaks loose. They arrive en mass and the noise level goes through the roof, and they all have to hug each other, and annoy the little kids and cuss and in general drive us crazy. Of course all the staff is busy with customers, and doesn't have time to deal with all the noise.

Yesterday, at 4, the noise was high, and a mother came up to me at the desk and said "Somebody needs to DO something. blah blah pepper spray, blah blah". What? Pepper Spray? in the Library? I finished helping the customer and went out to the tiny lobby, where there was a gang of about 20 kids. I finally saw the boy bent over at the drinking fountain, washing out his eyess. It turns out that one of the kids from the bus sprayed pepper spray in the air, not meaning to hurt anyone, of course, and it got into the kid's eyes. It happened in the parking lot of another business, but of course the place to wash out your eyes is the public library, so they all trouped in here. I finally got the boy to go into the restroom to wash his eyes, and disbursed the crowd, and reassured the voting staff, since the library is a polling place and it was election day.
Quiet library, Hah!

New computer

2005-11-08T08:44:00.000-08:00

Mr Q has got us a new computer, so we can access the internet again. WooHoo!
When we figure out how to do it, we can also post photos. Mr Q was on a job and mentioned that we needed a computer and a friend said he had one that we could buy for $75. Since our computer was on its last legs, this is a big improvement for us. Eldest son says the computer was maybe worth $75, which I think was an insult, but we are happy anyway that we don't have to shell out the bigger bucks right now.

We are trying out Firefox for a browser, too. I think I like it but some things are different from what I am used to with Internet Explorer. We got SBC internet, and the browser is something from Yahoo, which I really don't like.

I know, boring post. I'll tell a library story next time, much more exciting.

Happy Halloween

2005-10-31T10:47:00.000-08:00

Today is Halloween, and our customers must think it's a full moon. Everyone is cranky and asking peculiar questions today. Tonight will be fun with the kids coming around to the house. I hope I get to see the grandkids. 4 yr old grandson made a robot costume with his parents, and then refused to wear it, so we will see if he is a robot or a bat with last year's costume. 7 yr old granddaughter is spending the evening with her dad so I probably will not see her in her cheerleader costume, but 2 month old granddaughter might come trick or treating in her pea in a pod costume.

It's been crazy busy the past few weeks. My baby granddaugheter got baptised yesterday, it was my mom's 80th birthday, my daughter-in-law's birthday, our neighborhood annual Halloween parade, a huge library system meeting, and now Halloween. And now things just get more busy as the big holidays approach.

Blues Blues

2005-10-17T10:51:00.000-07:00

As I wrote that last blog entry, I realized that this whole blog would be much, much better with photos, of the blues festival and of the rainbow. And of my quilts as well. So I think Mr Q and I will have to bite the bullet and buy a new computer. Our computer now is barely limping along and it's just too much to expect it to handle lots of images. Mr Q has 2 digital cameras and a nice digital movie camera, so I hope that soon we will be able to post photos. He got about an hour of filming at the blues festival, so we should be able to post something sometime.
Hello, Dell!

Blues Festival

2005-10-15T11:57:00.000-07:00

Our trip last weekend was so fun! Mr Q and I went with another couple to a Blues Festival in Helena, Ark, a little town on the Mississippi. Thursday night we drove to Tunica and stayed at the Gold Strike casino, where I played for hours without losing anything, while Mr Q lost about $40. But my friend won $140 on the penny slot machines!
The next day we went down to Helena, which is about an hour south of Tunica, but on the other side of the river. We set up our lawn chairs on the sloping bank of the levy and proceeded to listen to all kinds of great blues music, and shop and eat and drink beer, lots of beer. There were probabably 5-10,ooo people there, and blues music playing on 3 official stages, and another 4 or 5 impromptu spots, too. It was fabulous weather, 70 degrees, and sort of sunny. It got really cold when the sun went down, so we went to Walmart and bought blankets for Saturday night. Saturday was also lovely, but it rained in the evening. It was gentle rain, and the blanket kept us cozy and warm. There was a fantastic double rainbow over the levy, and it was magical!

Actual email from hip evening library clerk

2005-09-27T16:09:00.000-07:00

"Tonight has been crazy. I was just preached to by a strange woman. The police were up here an hour ago looking for J R J(a regular). Her mom apparently kicked her out and her grandparents were coming to get her and they called me personally to tell me the entire story. *yay* That was a mess. One regular is being loud and several patrons complained. Nearly every customer is having some weird problem with the computer or with their record. *sigh* Another fun filled night at the branch. =)"

This is an actual email. Luckily hip evening clerk still showed up to work today, anyway!

Last night I had a lovely night, sewing on Youngest Son's quilt. I started it for his 21st birthday and now he is 23 1/2! It's a queen size Thousand Pyramids made up of over 600 5" triangles. I probably have about 200 different fabrics, and most of them mean something to Son and his wife. I have only the last 4 rows to finish, and then I can sew all the sections together. I have been working on this so long I will almost miss it when I am done. But I will be happy to get it finished and give it to them, and I hope they will be happy too. This sounds like it's taking a really long time, but I made Older Son a queen size flying geese and I started it for his 21st bday and he got it on his 25th!

first post

2005-09-23T10:07:00.000-07:00

This is my first posting to my blog that my wonderful son set up for me. You can see that I am a librarian and a quilter, as well as a grandmother. I like to read quilt blogs and library blogs and just decided to try to write my own musings. I am a librarian at a branch library in a big system in the Midwest, (or the Plains or the South or the Southwest, depending on which book you look at ).
I have been married a very long time, I have 2 married sons and 3 adorable grandchildren.

I was wishing that I had this blog up and going on Saturday, because the weirdest things happened. At 6:30 the security company called me to say there was an alarm at the library, and they would call me if the police saw anything suspicious. This happens about once a month, so I wasn't too worried. So Mr. Q woke up and went in the other room, and the cats were acting scared, hissing and snarling, right at the entrance to my spare bedroom/sewing room. He got me and we went to investigate and there was a racoon in the sewing room! It was a big racoon, just looking at us. We were afraid to go into the room, because we thought it might attack, so we decided to call someone later, and we went back to bed. When we woke up at 7:30 the cats were just fine and dragged me into the sewing room and asked for food, so I assume the racoon had left. Now we will lock the cat flap (or cat fwap as our grandson calls it).

A Brave New Blog

2005-09-16T11:52:00.000-07:00

Welcome to