Yesterday Once More

We had a great visit with my parents last week - we drove down on Wednesday, and came back home on Friday so Thursday was our only day to spend together. 

Sunrise on Thursday morning was really beautiful.I couldn't stop taking pictures.

Sunrise.  I used to climb that tree on the left.

View from the front yard looking south (that point of land is for sale kiddos!)

We always said "front yard" when referring to the water-front side of the house.

My folks are precious to me, and it feels like I hardly ever get to see them.  We spent the entire day together on Thursday, morning till evening, and wrung out the day like a wet dish rag.  Breakfast at IHOP, sightseeing downtown (Mobile), drove across the bay to my favorite antiques place, then supper at Cracker Barrel. It was over too soon! 

Mom and  Dad (married for 52 years!)

Their lovely new house post-Katrina.

View from the front yard  looking north

Looking north from the porch swing

New friend - little Tony from NYC

While driving around downtown, we stopped by the building where my dad used to work when I was really young.  It was a great place to park when we went to Mardi Gras back in the day.  The building is in disrepair now and is owned by someone else, but they allowed us to come inside and grab a few photos.  

This is the stool my dad used for many years in the office. 

Square metal stool; mid century modern ~

See the stool just inside the opened garage?

Original light fixture

These building were once used as carriage houses!

Below is the original bakery building where the public could view bread being made and packaged on conveyer belts.  The buildings above are where the delivery trucks were serviced and painted. The red lamp above is where the old gas pumps were.

I also got to see the orphanage where my grandfather lived for a while.  It is deserving of another post, so I'll save those pics for later.

I did get a lot of knitting done on the drive to and from my parents' house.  I'm really glad I took it along.  I completed the first chart and have started the second!

Rows 1-24 of the Flower Basket Shawl

I pretty much completed the first cable pillow and need to bind off and block it. 

While we were at the antiques place, I found some really cool milking stools from Europe.  I think they were French or German.  Most all of the items in the place are from Europe, and usually from Scotland.  I had pretty much decided on a stool to use with my spinning wheel in the garage, when I changed my mind.  The price was too high and not really negotiable. My mom seemed pretty sure that there was a stool at my grandmother's house, on the back porch that I was welcome to use.  

Granny's round wooden stool

As soon as I sat on it, I knew the height was perfect to use with my spinning wheel.  And to double my joy, I knew exactly where it came from, so now there's sentimental value attached to it.  What a find!

And to round out this post, I have to share the peach wool I'm spinning.  I love this color and can see another shawl in my future......

Thing One and Thing Two

After a couple of days of rain, we are having beautiful weather today - breezy and not as humid with some delicious sunshine.  Woo hoo!

Zinnias my daughter cut from the back yard!

And....I'm pretty darn excited to be taking a little trip tomorrow to see my folks down on the Gulf Coast.  They live about 7 hours away so we can make it in half a day - very doable and I don't mind driving at all.  In fact, I prefer it to flying in most cases!

I'm taking two knitting projects along, regardless of whether or not I touch them while I'm away.  I hope I at least get a chance to sit on the porch swing for 10 minutes and knit 3 rows.

Project Numero Uno (while I don't speak Spanish, I did hear this phrase in a movie and it means number one)

Ecru Cable Pillow

 I had to do some digging to find just the right color of Ecru, and like buying paint, I had some choices to make.  There's off-white, cream, ecru, and about 30 other shades of it, as I looked through my stash.

30 shades of Cream

And because my twist is inconsistent, and the ply is not always two or three ply (makes a difference in thickness) I had to get a really bright light, un-hank all the skeins and hold them up next to one another for almost an hour.  I eventually found enough skeins of the wool I felt comfortable starting with, and began knitting right away.  I hope to get a 12"x12" square from it and since its all homespun, I make no promises on the evenness of the finished pillow. I'll definitely have to press it when I'm done.

The other project I'm taking on the trip (Numero Dos) is another shawl I've started.  Its going to be light blue.

Zephyr Acrylic Needles from Knit Picks

The wool is from my stash and is a blend of Romney and Mohair.  Not extremely soft, but very light weight.

 I'm planning on using an easy shawl pattern from the same author as the Swallowtail Shawl.  This one's called Flower Basket Shawl and I got the pattern from Interweave Knits magazine, Fall 2004.  It should be on Ravelry, too. 

We had a house full yesterday for my father in law's birthday/Labor Day. Steaks on the grill, homemade cookies and some really good nacho cheese dip.  I love that stuff!
And my husband's friend brought over a large organ for the recording studio upstairs.  Just like the kind your grandma played at church!

My reading is still in limbo right now.  I am having trouble settling on something, but that's not unusual.  It takes me a while to make up my mind;  I am very indecisive.  Not kidding.
 But I've got my Kindle in the knitting bag so something will happen, I'm sure.