Failure

"Failure is success
 if we learn from it."

~Malcolm Forbes

I learned from
my failure.
Success

Not Following Instructions

"Discoveries are often
 made by not following
 instructions, by going
 off the main road, by
 trying the untried."

~Frank Tyger

I spent every spare minute

for a week working on this:

I didn't exactly use the

right size needles :

[I used a size 8]

I didn't exactly use the

right yarn :

[I used a soft cotton]

I didn't make a guage

swatch:

[waste time and yarn?]

So, I didn't exactly follow

the instructions:

I went off the main road

and did my own thing:

And now I have a hat

that could fit two people

at one time.

I love the design of this

hat so I have decided to

start again:

this time with the correct
size needles:
with the recommended yarn:
I even made a guage swatch
and counted the stitches.

I am going to follow the
instructions:
this time.

Kiwi

"Let us learn to 
 appreciate there
 will be times when
 the trees will be
 bare, and look
 forward to the
 time when we
 may pick the fruit."

~Anton Chekhov

A bumper crop this year~
A nice consolation to the pecans~
Very appreciated.

I usually just peel and eat,
but this looks like something
I need to try.

Fabric Flowers

"Flowers really
 do intoxicate me."

~Vita Sackville-West

Instead of touching the pile

of work that really needs

to be addressed I have

spend the afternoon

making these little flowers

to attach to a knitting

bag for my daughter:

intoxicating.xx

Beet Salad

"For all things produced
 in a garden, whether of
 salads or fruits, a poor
 man will eat better that
 has one of his own,
 than a rich man that has
 none."

~J.C. Loudoun

I am so thankful for the fall garden that

continues to fed us so well.

My new favorite salad:

Beet Salad

Cut the tops off three beets and roast the
beets in the oven for 3 hours at 350 degrees. Cool, peel and slice.
[Can do a day in advanced]


Blanch the beet greens in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain
and squeeze water from greens.


Caramelize a sliced onion in a little butter on medium heat until soft and
tender, at least 15 minutes.


Slice a fresh mango or drain a small can of Mandarin oranges


Mix 1/8 cup red wine vinegar and 1/8 cup olive oil together.


Mix all the ingredients together and let sit an hour.


Top with salt, fresh ground pepper and crumbled goat cheese.

The steps to put this together seem long, but it really isn't hard and
the results are worth it.

Enjoy.xx

Christmas in the Air

"It is Christmas
 in the heart that
 puts Christmas in
 the air."

~ W.T. Ellis

There is definitely

Christmas in the

air here:

in my heart and

in my kitchen.

Holiday baking

begins today:

candies

cookies

fudge

Have a great weekend

and enjoy the season.xx

A Fish Bag

"There is certainly
 something in angling
 that tends to  produce
 a serenity of the mind."

~Washington Irving

 ...and there is something
about painting that produces
a serenity of the mind too.

A fishing bag for a son-in-law
who always brings me fresh fish.

It still needs to be lined with
vinyl and a fishing journal added,
but the major part is complete.

Now, to bring out the sewing
machine and start on the next
project on my list...
the sewing machine,
hum...
there goes my serenity.xx

I Know

"I don't believe;
 I know."

~Carl Jung

 i know that the next
three weeks are going
to be very busy.

i pray you take a little
time to enjoy the moment~
enjoy this season of preparing
and waiting. [exhale].

have a great weekend.xx

Toast

"...the noise from good
 toast should reverberate
 in the head like thunder
 of July."

~ E.V. Lucas

toast has been feeding my

creative hunger on these

cold mornings.

knitting in the warmth of

my home with the sunlight

peeking through the blinds

i can pretend it is july and

not 25 days until christmas.

yes, the noise i hear is thunder

and not jingle bells, right?

why, i even  have time to

lounge around and read a

magazine. xx