Easter Eggs

I love spring!

Modeling the cat's eye vintage aluminum eyewear I picked up at a yard sale this am.  Looking mighty dorky~ Cat's Eye Aluminum Eyewear here

Blocking Mya's Easter sweater in the sunshine. It's a Kina pattern here and I will make it again and again in much better yarn. That said I really do like this yarn Cuddle Muffin for how soft it is and how perfect for Florida it is. Cuddle Muffin

The bunnies and I had some fun stuffing eggs for tomorrows hunt.

Of course I haven't done one lick of real work today.  I should make the scalloped potato's for tomorrows dinner.  We'll see...
I have been having so much fun thinking about making a hooked rug and I found the most amazing inspiration by Susie Stephenson rug hooking with yarn and have been wondering if I should buy one of these beginner kits for rug hooking with wool ...

available here on Etsy Sharon Perry's Etsy  I am so tempted.

I will be burning the midnight oil trying to figure out this latest burning ambition to be a hooker.
Anne

Patiently Waiting in Spring

We are expecting a new baby in our family in just a very short time. 

Willow Tree Antiques on Etsy

Our little hatch-ling will not be a bobble headed chick 
we are expecting something a little bigger.

This little kitten is not exactly what we are expecting either but very cute and you can find her here: Mamadupuis
Nope not a duck not even this adorable baby duck from efinegifts duck

Even the little duck and the kitty and the chick are not expecting a Hippo in a Bath like 
Wonderdiva's Hippo

Nope not a chick, a kitty, a duck, not a hippo...
We are expecting a baby like this little one right here.

We are patiently waiting for a little brother or sister to appear and be the best buddy of this little boy right here. 
\Praying and waiting. 

Aaron’s blessing in the Old Testament, Numbers 6:22-27:   

May God bless you and watch over you.
May God shine His face toward you and show you favor.
May God look on your with favor and grant you shalom peace.

Anne

The Bride!

My beautiful daughter is engaged! I couldn't be happier for her. 

What dreams are made of!  I love you dear girl.

Projects Completed

I finished the Shabby Chic shelf.  The white paint looked lonely so I added some color. At first I was going to glue some pretty paper onto the inside of the little cubbie holes, but I decided to use my favorite blue paint.

I am happy with the result.  All in all it was 3 coats of paint in most areas.  I distressed it with a really gritty sand paper here and there and then waxed with paste wax.  It is in my etsy shop ...Shabby Cottage Chic here
Yesterday when I was on the way to work I was lucky enough to have time to stop at a neighborhood rummage sale. 

I found so many great items. If course I love the chippy white paint on this corner shelf, but I also fell hard for some mushrooms.

When I was a new bride in 1972 my kitchen was all orange and brown and mushrooms were popping out all over the place.  Now it is vintage.

This collection of thread was begging to go home with me. 
I love community tag sales.

Since the white and blue shelf was last weeks finished project I think I will also show the last plate of corned beef and cabbage I will ever cook.

It looks so yummy, but the salt and the spices and the way we had to air out the house for 2 DAYS!!!!  Not doing this again. I will celebrate St. Patrick's Day with green beer next year.
Anne

Plans and Projects

My weekends are just not long enough for all I want to do.  
I got precious little done today on my shabby chic projects. 

I have several projects to work on and so far only these two have seen any paint.  It was a beautifully sunny day. The temp was 72 degrees and the wind was blowy.  I had paint flying all over the blue table. Tomorrow I will be able to start sanding and waxing these two pieces.  That is my favorite part of the process in creating shabby chic pieces. 

I love the detail on this wooden shelf and can't wait to finish it. 

While I am showing off this pretty carved wood let me show you what I have been finding at yard sales. Tools!  I love old tools. Look how pretty these are.

I have already sold some of them, but still have a collection or two in my etsy shop here
The feel of the wooden handles and the glints of paint, rust, sweat, oil, and patina of use on these old pieces really makes them beautiful. 

Today I found some vintage embroidery hoops.  I love collecting these.  They will soon be available in my supplies section of my etsy shop. here

This last wooden hoop has no spring or screw tension device. I haven't seen one like this before. Who ever owned it put lace trim and string around the inside hoop to give it more 'grip' I think. The wood is smooth as silk.

Anne

Milk Glass Cataracts and Dentists

Visionary

 

Yesterday it was the eye Dr's. I went to get information on cataract surgery. It is like going to buy a new car. There is the dream car you want (never wear glasses again), the mid price sedan with the comfy seats (just wear cheaters to read), and the economy car that still costs every cent you have and you wear glasses for the rest of your life.

You put your head in here and they shine strobe lights across your retinas.

This is blurry and out of focus. Pretty much how everything I look at looks with my glasses on.

I brought him along to be my ears while they threw large numbers and payment plans around like confetti at a party.

 

I closed my eyes and had a mild stroke during the talk about award winning All-Laser LASIK.  
I will get cataract surgery. I really don't want a payment plan no matter how cheerfully they tell me about it.  I will get the economy car.  I was so hoping to wait til I would have Medicare for some of this. Since my vision is like looking through milk glass the waiting is over.
I love milk glass and went a little overboard with it at tag sales in the last couple of months. I should have been saving for Lasik.

Milk Glass and Ironstone

Just thought I'd show it off since it is much better looking than the pictures from Center for Sight. here  

Today I took advantage of another afternoon off work and went to the dentist. A vast improvement on my vision quest. They gave me a tooth brush and the smallest little spindle of dental floss I have ever seen. A really sweet hygenist took pretty pictures of my teeth. 

She was super sweet and told me "it doesn't have to be this way..." not sure what she meant. I think she just felt sorry for me and was trying to be comforting since she also said, " you will need a blood transfusion after this."  Thank fully she didn't find anything new to tell my friendly dentist about. I was allowed to go home with some modicum of pride left.  I confided in her that dentists scare me and that was why it had been a year and a half since my last confession er cleaning.  I know that is horrible. I'm a nurse and we make crappy patients anyway.  That is my excuse.
My afternoons off are all used up now.  So there will be no more appointments for awhile. 

I promise I am never going to the gynecologist with my camera. I will spare you that. I never plan to go there again any way if I can help it.
Anne
 

Spring Baby Blooms

It's knit all done...where is that baby?

little stay on booties the pattern is free on Ravelry here I went down needle sizes to  sz 6 and sz 4.  with worsted weight.

The hat is also a free pattern. One that I love and have made many times.  Also on Ravelry here
My adaptation for the hat is to use size 6 needles to make it more of a newborn size.  
I like to add the leaf also instead of just having the perky little top knot.  The leaf...yup you guessed it free on Ravelry here It is the best leaf EVER. It is double sided and you knit it all up at once on 3 dp's.  The booties and the hat are all worsted weight.  The little blankets are bulky knit. I used this pattern free on Ravelry here with bulky yarn and size 15 needles.  Approx 220 yds.
All set baby! You can come out now!
Gramma Anne

Waiting for Baby

There is a new baby arriving soon to my family. Everything about this wee one will be a surprise until the grand entrance into the world is made.  Very exciting, but as a Gramma who knits and loves color it is a challenge.  
Greens and yellows it is!
A little color work for a leaf top hat Berry Baby Hat

The blankets are small and meant to be used as carriage blankets or over the car seat.  Just a little soft squishy cover. Gleeful Baby Blanket

Mom and big brother are waiting too! 

Anne

Thrift Shopping Junkie

Thanks to hubby for driving me all over Venice this am. We caught 3 great thrifts!  One a church tag sale and two Mobil Home Park Sales. Elbow to elbow and dodging rain drops to get in the doors.  These sales are mobbed. I even went a little later in the morning just so the crowds would die down a bit.  I always find something that nobody else saw as the top layers are sold off first leaving some rare beauties for me!
For my self I bought a hand made project bag from the sweetest little lady in a mobile home park.  Perfect for the knitting I am doing for my next grand baby who is due to arrive four weeks from today!

I wish I had gotten more of these cute bags now.  They also had homemade molasses cookies at this sale. I can't show you them. I ate them all up in the car.  Soft chewy and so so good. 

It just makes good sense to buy baskets. Love these two produce baskets and loved filling them up with more things to buy.  The sifter is small and very sweet.  The books will go to Mya's house tonight. 

Gorgeous shabby chic shelf with tons of detail.

I found this very old framed mirror with some kind of floral painting on it.  Can't wait to get a better look at that beauty. 

Wonder if any one wears bed jackets any more.  It would be fun to wear on Mother's Day for breakfast in bed!  All blue frothy chiffon, lace and satin ribbons.  

Oh I really wish I had shopped more at the bake sale table.  
Anne