Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Yarn Along Time

Hello and HAPPY SUMMER!!!!!!!!!!!
We made it! Kids are out. Temps are warm and clocks are out the window.
Happy days :)

It's Yarn Along Day...
Time to share what you are knitting and reading.

I knitted up another Outlander Cowl.
My sister, Andee designed the pattern. Now, yes she is my sister so I might be bias, but honestly this is a wonderful pattern! I never get bored and it's easy to travel. Perfect combo!
I used up the rest of the skein from my first version and used a second skein to finish up.
This one was knitted on size US7 so it's a smaller version. I sold the first one in the farm store last weekend, so this one will be on sale too! 




 Haha!!!! Garrett has alpaca ears! A blooper from my angle while Garrett took my picture wearing the Outlander Cowl.

 Hi Smoke. He got a fancy hair cut around his face this week. Our award winning shearer paid the farm a visit to shear the babies and Smoke got some special treatment!

And onto the next knit. Another Outlander. I told you! I don't get tired of this pattern.
This time on big needles like the first and in a light gray alpaca yarn that we sell at the farm.


I tried reading Outlander....I just couldn't get into it. So I stopped. Fail. But I picked up a new book and I loved it by the second page. So hoping this one keeps my attention. 

Miss Dandelion Deer has a new friend. Mr. Basil Fox is all together.
This was supposed to be a gift for Chase's birthday, but he's already playing with him.
I am intimidated by the tiny doll clothes that need to be sewn, so I think I'll knit him a sweater.
Who needs pants? Not this guy. Donald Duck didn't. So he doesn't.
I am making him a knitted scarf right now.



A whole armful of goodness.


I added some felted embellishments to my Smoke Alpaca Slippers!



And some weekly outtakes......

First summer morning. No bus stop. No craziness. Just calm, slow morning.


Garrett won the championship! Very exciting!







Babies got haircuts!



Have a great week!

Joining in with Ginny at Small Things.

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

Knitting, Felting, Summer Yarn Along

It's that day once again. Yarn Along Day.
A time to share what you are knitting, crocheting and creating.

For this week, I didn't get much knitting done.
I casted on another Outlander Cowl, designed by my sister, AndeeKF.
I am finished up the rest of the skein that I used for my previous cowl.
My plan is to knit up a bunch to sell at the farm store.


I also snuck in a few more rows of my "Strawberry Fields" shawl.
The pattern is Pendulum by Amy Miller.
And my rose bush is in bloom! It blooms every year during the last week of school.
A welcomed scene to start the summer.



A seldom seen shot of me. I'm usually behind the camera but Garrett took this photo of me while I was knitting on Father's Day at Monmouth Park. So there I am, being a dork.


I finished up teaching another session of the Beginners Knitting Course.
The world has 3 more knitters! Yay! I LOVE teaching people to knit. It makes me so happy.


The second class of this course we take a break to make some felted soap. 
It's so much fun and good for all ages.

 
For teaching info, class list, schedule, etc....Click Here

After classes, Liz worked on making some felted slippers using alpaca fleece from Smoke's neck.


Some of the little boys hung out while we worked the farm store, knitted and felted.
 

By the end of our day on Saturday, Liz and I both had custom made Smoke Slippers.
And a beer...and some knitting. Yes, it's good to end a day this way!


Here are the slippers. They are soooo comfy! I'm going to fancy mine up with some felted accents and embroidery. But for now, they're great and I wear them constantly.
 
That handsome alpaca is Smoke Ring, our Herdsire. Thanks for the fleece for my slippers!


And on to other things from the week....Alpaca and Kid related....
The babies are adorable!!!!!! They are a fun group. Always running around!
 






Check out this cover!
Yup! That's my sister, Liz and Smoke Ring on the COVER of Alpaca's Magazine, 
Alpaca Owner's Guide Edition! Very cool.


My middle son, Garrett, made it to the little league Championship. This is a big deal for him. His team has never made it this far. This team are nicknamed The Comeback Kids. A great group of boys that never give up and win big!
 

Living minutes from the beach is the best. And I really appreciate it when we can run up to the rides on a Tuesday night for some fun.



Happy little cousins! Ice cream, rides and beach fun.
 


And I'm really, really, really sad to say, but our feathered friend,
Mr. Guinea Pig Hen could not escape the MEAN predators that lurk in the woods.
We don't know where he came from, but he was ours for 5 days.
I loved having him around. He must have ate a gazillion bugs while he was here.
We're guessing that a fox got him. Unfortunately, we had a feeling this was going to happen.
Chickens and Guinea hens don't last long around here :(


Wishing all a good week. Summer vacation starts Friday for my kids.
Looking forward to  a slowed down schedule and much needed chill time.

Happy Knitting!

Friday, June 13, 2014

New Friends, Fires and Fun

It's almost summer vacation around here! 
Last week of school and then warmer weather and summer fun!
The new baby alpacas are doing great. They're live wires!!!! Adorable and running around constantly.

Thought I would share some photos from the past week.


  First fire of the year :)


Baby Grant is getting big! 2 months old now. He's a good boy.
 

Farmer's market dinner always tastes better.


We have a new friend. This guinea hen came from somewhere. No clue where, but he or she is here and has been for 2 days. Chase chased that thing around for an hour. 
And we all asked ourselves, does it fly? I don't know.
Well, we found out!


Harper the dog jumped the fence. And that bird flew right into the alpaca field!
So yes, guinea hens fly. He/she has been happy pecking around and eating bugs.
Kind of hoping that it sticks around and eats the ticks.
 

Cleaning.

The apple tree boys checking out our new feathered friend.
 


Headed to check out the bee hives and found some honeysuckle. It wasn't juicy yet, so we'll try again.
I love the sweet nectar of those little flowers.
 

 The beehives grew! Our beekeeper friend is doing an amazing job.
The bees are so happy and everything looks beautiful. I can't wait to taste the honey.
 

Chase made me laugh when we chased the guinea hen around. He was still in his pjs and the morning grass was wet. He cracked me up. Holding his pants up high. He was so mad at that bird because it wouldn't be his friend.


And I spent my day Thursday doing very important work. Ok...not really. I had a day off of work and I spent the day crafting. I have admired all the fun things to make over at Posie Gets Cozy and I treated myself to some of her projects. Chase wanted me to make him Mr. Basil Fox and I really liked the little deer. So, I made the deer first in case I messed up, then I could do better on the fox.




I thought she would look cute as an alpaca. So I made her a top knot.
Chase loves her.

 He fell asleep with her last night. It's probably girly, but I don't care.
I have three boys. I'll take any girlyness I can get.

 This morning Chase decided he didn't want her to be an alpaca. What??? WHY? Ok then.
She's a deer again. So, yup. Like I needed another craft and hobby. But seriously, she's cute.
And I never liked dolls. Sorry Nan. But they creep me out. Felted toys, much more my speed.
Next up, Mr. Basil Fox.


Wishing everyone a happy weekend and Happy Father's Day to all those dads out there!!!!