Enjoying Summer Crochet

 Good morning. 

It's been a lovely, (although strange), summer here in the valley. Normally by this time each year we are very dry and brown with loads of heat. This year has been much cooler and instead of heat, we have had loads of rain. I mean gully washer, downfall kinds of rain. It's really made it nice to spend more time outside, when it's not pouring, of course!

 

See this lovely chair?  Our wonderfully kind neighbors gifted us not one, but TWO sets of this wrought iron patio furniture.  I didn't know what to think when Hubby came home and unloaded all this furniture into the yard.  It's nice to have good folks who think of you, isn't it?  Major thanks are headed their way.  I only wish I knew what to give them in return.  What do you give people who have everything? 

 



 

This sweet pillow was found at a local consignment shop.  Another handmade goody full of gorgeous colors!  It looks very at home in this outdoorsy setting, don't you think?  I wish I had a set of these.  Maybe, just maybe, if I was really good with needle and thread I could make a copy of this beauty...  I can assure you I'm not all that good with needle and thread, but if time allows I may take a chance.

 

 

However, yarn is a different story.  I know exactly what to do with that!

 

 

I adore summery crochet apparel.  Sometimes I make things up as I go along, but very often I find a pattern that has something about it I love. 

 

Then I tweak it a bit to make it more 'me'. 

 



 

This is the Airy Lace Shell from Lionbrand. 

It's a free pattern, but you do have to sign in to access it. 

 

 

In pure Christina Fashion, I added a border all around to give it a little something more.  This is just an alternating scallop and 3dc cluster. 

 

I made it using Knit Pick's Comfy yarn.  It's a very soft, cottony yarn that feels wonderful!

 

 

So today, I hope to grab some time for patio crochet.  I need to work on a baby blanket for a nice couple's first baby.  I think I'll sit out by my lavender pots with my yarn and enjoy my cracked paint.  I love to make a hot cup of tea and snip a bit of lavender to pop in my cup.  Divine!  And then I sit there sipping and smelling the most amazing, calming aroma.  Yeah, I need calm.  And I think about how if this cracked paint patio were in Europe, it would be very fashionable and romantic.  Lol.  Thankfully the house does NOT have this paint problem, but whoever did this particular courtyard did not quite get things right in this area. 

 

When people come over and step out onto this patio I often hear comments about how they feel they are in Italy or some other lovely place.  Yes, it does have a slightly different feel due to the softness of this old look...  Funny how most folks would be running to buy paint to cover this up immediately, yet I hesitate and enjoy it.  No, it's not Italy.  It's just a tiny spot in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.  But it's pretty special, too.  In fact, it's kind of a big deal to me.  

 

Happy weekend, folks! 

 Thanks for stopping by!

xoxo

 

 

 



Visiting Natural Bridge

 

It was a day for Homeschoolers at Natural Bridge today. 

 

It's just a wonderful place to visit.  It offers so much to see.  The area is rich in history and it's a great place to walk and spend time outdoors. 

 

Honestly, I'm too tired to think straight after all the fun I've had today.  Walking, looking for little fish in the creek, being amazed at the size of the actual rock that makes the Natural Bridge, the Indian village, the caverns, toys, and butterflies.  But the best part?  I got to meet a dear friend for the very first time.  That was awesome.  I'll explain later.

 

Have a lovely tomorrow!

We'll be off on another field trip.  I hear my pillow calling. 

 

xoxo

 

 

 



Our Wintry Gift

Loving our snowy, wintry gift.

See the little, feathered friend?

It's always good to come back inside to something warm. 

How PerFect to find a sunshiny yellow sprinkled donut to match my mug!

Lemon Surprise, from Blue Collar Joes, of course.

Lemony sweet and pretty to eat!

It's supposed to be 60 degrees tomorrow, so I thought I'd better bond with this beautiful winter gift before my ideas change back to gardening prep!



Busy Happy Days

Every day is an adventure around here, but sometimes we actually get to go out and have some fun with a Young Man kind of adventure.  This fall he has given us ample opportunity to get outdoors and do things we wouldn't have otherwise.

October 1st was blustery cold here and we did have a little bundled-up sort of picnic by our fire ring.  The usual fried chicken, potato salad and fruit accompanied by the family dog, drooling of course.  For us it's just a fun way to welcome fall.

Then we went on a little camping trip for Young Man.  Just one night and we knew it would be a little chilly, but we were excited to go as it would be Sweet P's first camping trip. 

It was fun setting up our little 'home' for the night.  Sweet P.  enjoyed every bit of outdoor time spent toddling and trying out her new 'run'.  Young Man had lots of friends and activities to enjoy.  We rarely saw him actually...

 Our fun afternoon turned into a bright, chilly night.  It was a great time to sit around a campfire and chat with friends and chase little people who loved the idea of outdoor freedom in the moonlight!  We did wake up with cold noses and very, very, very much enjoyed our morning coffee.  Yes, I did say morning coffee. 

It's still camping - but with coffee!  You've got to have priorities, right?

 A gorgeous, crisp morning full of light.

 It was all great fun for little people and big people.  We can't wait to do it again.

 Next, young man had a fishing trip to attend and we wanted to go as a family.  That meant setting up a little day-camp for Sweet P. and myself.  As she would like to 'be the fish' and play in the water that was much too cold, we had to make an interesting site far from the fishing spot.

 It was a beautiful day to be out.  It was one of those days when the sun felt so hot we would put our blanket just in the edge of the shade, but as the sun moved we began to notice the chill.  It was an afternoon spent moving our blanket many times chasing the sun's warmth.   

This was our view of the fishing spot.  A view dappled with color. 

 But this was our 'close-up' view!  Yarny goodness and happy toddler-time goodness was very much appreciated in our sun warmed spot.  This is a small afghan I made with stash-on-hand. 

And at the end of the day everyone was smiling.  Young Man was successful and had a great time catching our dinner.  Sweet P. was very interested as long as she maintained a little distance from the catch. 

Ahhhh...  It was just so gorgeous!  

Just looking at this picture now makes me feel so relaxed.  I need to make a screen-saver with it.  Then print it out poster size and hang it in every room, lol! 

Happy Day to you!

August's Attempts

August is like my school-year alarm clock.  Ding ding ding!!!  September is near and you need to have everything ready and in it's place!

And you need to have a clean, comfortable, learning space!

So it was time to get rid of the plain beige walls and get a little more comfortable.  Young Man likes blue and when he says blue he means vivid, saturated, tropical waters blue... but that's a little much for me for a room in the middle of our house.

So off to the home DIY store for paint. 

First off, I want to tell you that the darker blue paint blob to the right is what happens at the DIY store when you finally agree on a more soothing shade of blue with your Young Man and you hand the paint chip (with a paint company's name on it)  to the representative of a different paint brand who happens to be behind the paint counter and says "Well I can make in it our brand."

It does not work and apparently, after returning to the DIY store, it is also not legal to cross paint numbers from one brand to another.  Who knew?  But obviously there is a reason.

So you can see our much lighter blue cut-in here.  Yes, yes...  a little color, a little blue to give us a little personality in our little room without being too distracting.  Wow.  Look at all the mess we had to move and pile up to be able to work in this room.  The dining room was really piled up (prev pic). 

And by now it's dark outside, but our painting is done.  I will admit it was quite rushed and not the best quality painting I've ever done.  But September was coming quickly, you know?

So now we do have a lovely space that we all enjoy being in to learn and play and read.  Even Hubby likes to be in this room.  Now I really want to complete the room with a futon cover and I have a plan to make some curtains.  Crocheted curtains of course!

It's always so much fun to move back into a room and make it function.  I enjoy being able to put-and-putter and make our spaces feel homey.  We've had a good couple of months working in here and we've learned so much.  It's hard to believe a quarter is already over.

August in the Blue Ridge Mountains:  It was still hot, very beautiful and always welcoming.  It's a much different scene now with brightly colored leaves flying to the ground.  Time for soups and big blankets. 

I hope you are warm and cozy where you are. 

I have almost finished my little hooked sweater so hopefully I'll be back to share that REAL soon.

xo