Muggles loving the blue

Finally found the picture of the royal blue yarn, having a terrible time finding some of the pictures when I down load with this program, they seem to go into never..never land and I have to rescue them!! This is Muggles loving the blue yarn.

Where does the time go?

The weather has been warmer so am in muddy paw weather, after seeing all these videos on how smart Jack Russels are I said to Maxx if all those dogs can do what they do you can learn to wipe your own paws when you come in...and he is working at it but when it is mud I have to help out as sometimes it is legs and tummy too. It is nice to be able to open the windows for a while, have to watch the wind as when we get warm weather we also get the wind, left a message for our roof guy that some more shingles need replacing, windfence helps if that is the direction the wind is from but if it comes a different direction it is no help. Trying to think of what I have been doing....went to shop for groc. the first of the week and came home with an order for some wool yarn and she wanted royal blue so had to get the dye pots out, now she wanted five skeins which is a little crowded for the pots I have and have been wanting a larger one, so phoned the local hardware and I could not believe they had a large canning pot!!...I thought they only came in one size, it is exactly what I wanted, it is so large I have to put it on the stove before I put water in it and I have to remove the yarn and bail the water out as there is no way you could lift it, it does not even have handles to lift it, they probably thought if they put them on someone would try to lift it and hurt themselves. I have to find a rack to put in it to use it for a steamer, I can steam a lot of yarn at once in that pot. So have the yarn all dyed and ready to deliver, should dye some more while everything is sitting here. Finished the blue scarf with the multi-colors and made a hat to match and have started on the lighter blue one. Also finished an acrylic scarf out of a soft boucle'.
I managed to keep the poinsettia alive from last year, first time that has happened and I could not believe it the other day when I found that it was starting to bloom, now it's bloom is pretty pitiful compared to when I got it but I am so excited it has tried to bloom...I think that is a miracle.
Posting a picture of Grey Kitty.....you would not believe there is a heat vent under her....that is how she keeps warm....silly cat!! Well off to knit a bit before bed.

Finished the Hats!!

Well the computer is fixed, the only thing is a lot of the programs were updated so have to figure out how to understand the changes and when I put the info for the new camera in the computer all the picture setting changed and am having a terrible time sorting out what is going on with my pictures when they get downloaded but good thing is I am not getting dumped every so often in the middle of doing something. Finally got all the little hats knit up and am now working on a hat to match the blue tone scarf I finished knitting. And we took the alpaca fibre up to the mill this week and had a great visit with everyone there. We acquired another gift llama this week, we were worried about him fitting in with the other geldings as he has been a sheep guard since he was young and has not been around another llama, so we kept him in the corral overnight and let him out with the others....and no problem...it was like he had been with them all his life, thank goodness I tell you after all the hassle we had with the other llamas that came to live with us a month ago, so far harmony exists in the barnyard but we do have a very large coyote coming too close to the buildings, Maxx the Jack Russel thinks he should be out there getting after it so is not happy when he has to stay in the house, he has to wait until the Pyrenees chases it away and then he can go out and sniff around the tracks. Our weather has warmed up enough for us to have to deal with muddy paws. We are supposed to have a warm week so hopefully I can get out to the garage and sort some llama fibre to send to the mill and get it processed, the mill I took some llama and alpaca fibre to last March still has not got it processed yet, will have call them again to see what the problem is. Now that the hats are finished I just have an article on dyeing fibre and yarn to write up for the llama newsletter and then I can get back to some carding and spinning but my mind is already in overdrive thinking about a great idea I have in weaving something with a wool blank I have already dyed. Also have to think about getting the dye pots out again...not enough time in the day...or the week...or the month, but it does make the cold months go by faster...right?

Back in the Deepfreeze

Our warmer weather has left us and we are in the deepfreeze again, a couple of nights ago we had a bad wind in the night and it came from the north where we usually do not get a lot of wind so the windfence could not help us and now have shingles missing off the house on that side and the garage. It sounded like the roof was going at times, funny how some flapping shingles can sound so loud. No snow blew as it is covered in a layer of ice, thank-goodness. now I just looked at the temperature and it says it is twenty-nine below. Number one son was planning on coming out tomorrow morning to fix the computer, please let the weather be reasonable, trying to keep this computer going is really tiring, as it is behaving right now I will try to get a post sent.
I have been busy knitting the hats that I had orders for, have the two adult hats knit and delivered and now am working on the kids hats, have eight of them to do and have finished four and working on the fifth, my brain is getting tired of knitting the same thing over and over again, today I had the hat half finished when I noticed one of the llamas had three legs so had to rip it back, how could I have missed that?? The stitches are so crowded on the round needle it is hard to see the pattern but you would have thought I would have noticed a mistake like that. So ripped it back and rolled up the yarn and thought I would leave it until morning but when I was waiting for supper to finish cooking I got it back out and started knitting and have got it knit up to where I had to rip back, should be able to finish it tomorrow. Then got back to the alpaca fibre sorting to take to the mill, remember the fibre I could not find........I had already sorted it last fall right after it was sheared and it was bagged ready to go.......am I losing it or what!! I think everything is ready to go now so hope some warm weather shows up so we can take it up, you have to take some back roads to the mill after you leave the main road and sometimes they are not great. My sister Jeannie has been in Mexico for almost a month soaking up the sun and asking all the pigeons if they have seen Charlotte, if it does not warm up by the time they come off the plane they will get a shock I tell you!!
The llamas and alpacas were so happy when the weather was warmer and they could get out to pasture, took a picture of Emerson Rose looking pretty perky. Well so far so good, computer has not dumped me yet so better not press my luck, better get the post sent, hopefully weather will co-operate and it will be all fixed tomorrow!!

We have warmed up a bit

We are finally out of the deepfreeze with warmer temperatures but are now dealing with icy snowbanks. The drifts were getting so high down by the back door/basement walkout we almost could not use the stairs to come up to ground level, no way can I get near the compost bin so worked my way down to the hedge and dumped the compost. RH has been moving snow steady for three days with the bobcat and has cleaned a path so he can get to the hay pen to move a large hay bale for the llama girls and he cleaned in front of the barn and now we have these big piles of snow, the good thing they are on the edge of the hill so when the snow melts the water will run and not stay in the yard. Last night we had a warm wind all night and it was amazing how it shrunk the drifts. The llamas are happy as they can get out to the fields where the wind blew the snow off the grass.
I have been sorting alpaca fibre to take to the mill and I can not find the fibre from when the shearer came and sheared the males %^&^%$%^ It was in the front of the llama barn and RH said he brought it down to the garage but I can not find it, will have one last search tomorrow and if I can't find it I will just work with what I have.....I keep telling myself not to get stressed.....not to get stressed. I should go have a look in the barn, have also looked in the storage room and it is not in with the fibre stored in there. My New Years resolution has to be to get all this raw fibre organized. As soon as the alpaca fibre is at the mill I have to get the llama together to send to another mill that has a dehairer.
Meanwhile on the knitting front I made three more pair of slipper socks, just washed and blocked them and have to put the suede on the heel and I have one pair to deliver to a customer. I had an order for two adult hats with the llamas on them and have knit one of those and started on another scarf using two rows of the rainbo dyed wool and two rows plain in the blue colors, the first few rows looked a little mixed up but as I went along I was finally getting the color swirl. Then I had a call from a lady yesterday and she ordered four baby hats with the llamas on them and two children's with sheep on the sides and two children's with llamas on the sides, so you know what I will be doing. I keep thinking about this bag of baby camel and silk roving that RH bought for me at the llama convention silent auction and I am itching to spin, I had it sitting there as a reward to spur on the fibre sorting.....now I have all these knitting orders....and the carder has been pouting as it feels neglected. Will have to spend a bit of time with them all. Really should get the other adult hat finished so RH can deliver it when he goes to the club meeting this weekend, then I can work at the kids hats.
Well I can not believe how well the computer is co-operating right now so better not press my luck. Now with the new camera I am doing great at taking the pictures and am getting them downloaded to the computer...but...am having a head banging on the desk time trying to get them organized once they are downloaded!! I will get it!! I will get it!! So who knows what pictures will get posted!! I forgot to show a picture of the pin felted ornaments daughter M.J. made us for Christmas so hopefully will be able to post them too, they are so cute!!

Darn Computer

Computer would only let me put one picture up, it had a little moment and decided that was all it was going to do so did not want to push it and lose everything. So will try again!! Forgot about these cute little gift card holders my son and daughter-in -law gave us for Christmas, Jen finds the coolest things!! Well I think I am pushing my luck with the computer, it keeps trying to kick me off!!

First Post of the New Year

I seem to have gone into a veg mode as I can not decide what I should do first....better make a list and prioritize. I have been doing things, when I really think about it besides laundry or cleaning and cooking, but of course a person does not count those things....do they? I had someone order a pair of alpaca/wool slipper socks so have them completed and RH dropped them off when he was in town just a bit ago and the guy just phoned and loved them, he got them made for his wife....and now he wants a pair for himself just a bit larger...then he says his daughter is coming to visit from down east and she will really like them....should I have asked her size too....better get a few pair made I guess. I had made some small quilted Christmas ornaments as gifts and as I still had the stuff out in the sewing area I thought I would make a few more to start next Christmas off. I did not want to prewash the fabric but I really should have as I am allergic to the sizing. Eye's were running so bad yesterday I finally put it all away until next year. I sent a couple to my sister and she said her husband could not figure out what they were???....could he not see it was an angel!! I have been knitting...mindless knitting of dishcloths...have eleven knit but better get onto more serious knitting. Started a adult hat with llamas on it last night but for some reason all the color changing was making me crazy, will try to get the color changing thing done tonight.
I think I have overtaxed my brain keeping the computer going, then the internet was down for a couple days grrrrrrr! I had a friend phone and ask me what my address was...and I could not remember it!! While I was madly looking for something that was addressed to me it popped into my head. It might be cabin fever too, it has been sooo cold and with the snow and blowing snow I have not got far from the house I tell you. RH keeps using the bobcat to move the snow from in front of the barn and the next day it is back, he got it cleaned up and the hay guy got in to deliver a load of hay for the goats thank-goodness as the next morning it was all blown back.
I also better get some llama and alpaca fibre sorted and off to the mills, the local mill does it's exotic run the first of Feb. so they want the fibre the middle of Jan. which is going to be pretty soon, so better get at it. I am off to make my list, wishing everyone a great New Year. Am so loving the poinsettia we got this year so have to post another picture, I have been practicing with the new camera.