Thursday, February 26, 2015

A Rare Snow Day

Hi there,
We received about 3" of beautiful wet heavy snow overnight.  It was not enough to cause any problems getting into work, but K-12 schools were closed.  Please enjoy these scenic photos from one of my favorite places.




















xoxo Tammy


Wednesday, February 25, 2015

A Nest

Photo taken on Feb 17 by my DH* 

Hi there,
I'd say we can expect some baby birds this spring! A nest and eggs must be in her plans. This photo makes me think of the classic description "empty nester", a label that sounds outdated and stale.

My extraordinary son and daughter both have college degrees, do not live at home, they pay their own bills and are independent, happy, and healthy. We couldn't be more proud of them!  A couple of years ago, we completely re-feathered our nest.  It does not feel empty because we are still living here!  Home is definitely where my heart is.  When I'm away at work or anywhere really, I would always prefer to be home.  And when I'm in the company of others, I would always prefer to be with my hubby.  Spring is coming, and I look forward to fluffing our nest to prepare for the new season.


*DH = knitter-speak for Dear Hubby (Steve).  He's posted more amazing photos on shoofography.com.

xoxo Tammy 

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Nonessential Tuesday

















Hi there,
Freezing rain, sleet, ice -- this is what the combination of those things looks like in our backyard. Temp is 24* this morning. Oh happy day, for weather purposes only, I'm considered a nonessential employee! So I get the day off, how great is that?! [For all other purposes, I'm an extremely ESSENTIAL employee.]

We have a tree frog who lives in that garden pond year round. We think he goes into hibernation when temps drop, but as it warms up, he lets us know he is there. Oh my word, he is loud! It used to be annoying, but now he is part of our family.


My plans for the morning:

  • wind a skein of the periwinkle Ultra Alpaca
  • cast-on the Purl Ridge Cowl
  • curl up by the gas logs to watch Hoda & Kathie Lee

xoxo Tammy



Saturday, February 14, 2015

Periwinkle
















Hi there,
Happy Valentine's Weekend!
A serious case of Spring Fever forced me into my LYS on Thursday where I found this luscious Berroco Ultra Alpaca in Periwinkle Mix (62175). I was hunting for a spring color to make a second Purl Ridge Cowl.  

Is periwinkle considered blue or lavender? I am slowly adding purple of any shade back into my life. Several years ago I had a boss who had this weird obsession with the color purple. She was one of the best veeps I've ever worked with, a brilliant successful woman. Anyone who ever met her knew of her deep love of all-things purple. Her entire wardrobe was purple, her office was purple, her font was purple, her hair was (sort of) purple, even her husband was purple! So I found it necessary to eliminate purple from my personal rainbow. It was Roy G. Bi, drop the v. I'm now able to tolerate and even enjoy it in small doses.

Special thanks to my DH and lifelong Valentine for the photo.  He was able to capture the shade of the yarn quite beautifully.  

xoxo Tammy   


Thursday, February 12, 2015

Blog-worthy Books!














Hi there,

Have you read either of these?

I finished The Good House, by Ann Leary, last week. And I just started The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins. There is coincidentally a similar story line between the two in that both have a main character who routinely blacks out after drinking alcohol. I don't read novels near as much as I used to--now I'm more interested in reading your blogs or other interesting publications on the Web. Both of these would make great movies!

xoxo Tammy 

Sunday, February 8, 2015

The Spark

















Hi there,
October 2010:  So I dropped by a colleague's office to take a look at a baby blanket she had just finished knitting as a gift for a baby shower. It was made in multi-colors of Peaches & Creme cotton, and she called it a log cabin design. I LOVED IT! Then she showed me the book containing the pattern, Mason-Dixon Knitting, and told me there was also a blog. I couldn't get back to my office fast enough to look it up, and I remember the first post I read was this! The next morning I ordered the book from Amazon. I spent several weeks devouring the book cover-to-cover and binge reading the blog from its first entry. This is when I knew I wanted to become part of this online click for knitters. I emailed the authors Ann and Kay to say hey, and they were both kind enough to reply. Soon after, I discovered the Yarn Harlot and repeated the process--binge reading Stephanie's blog and purchasing her books.

February 2014:  It was a Sunday morning, and I happened to glance at Twitter on my iPhone. There was a new tweet from Kay Gardiner saying she was visiting the town nearby where I work. I immediately attempted to tweet her back, but I had no clue what I was doing. When I didn't get a response, I tried sending her an email, and she replied (!) and agreed to meet me for coffee (!!) I was a nervous wreck, but once we started to visit, the awkwardness disappeared, and it was like any other chat with a friend. Kay is amazing! I had the privilege to meet her family too.

I've had some pretty cool encounters in my life:  I drove QB Peyton Manning in my minivan to my kids' elementary school when he and I were at The University of Tennessee.  I've met and chatted with NBA Star Stephen Curry when he was a student at Davidson. And last summer we got to see Derek Jeter play in his last game against the Red Sox at Fenway Park in Boston. Spending an hour with Kay was by far cooler to me than any of those experiences!  I always had the feeling I would have the privilege to meet her, but thought it would be in NYC. It was extra special to see her in NC.

Me and Kay, February 2014










I'm hoping that 2015 will be the year I get to meet Ann Shayne!  My Twitter is ready!

xoxo Tammy 



Monday, February 2, 2015

The First One

Hi there,
For years and years, I wanted to learn to knit, but could not find anyone to teach me.  I fondly remember my German grandma knitting and crocheting while I was a little girl growing up in Wyoming.  She made lots of house slippers with the pompoms on the toes for everyone in the family.  

About ten years ago my daughter came home from soccer practice with some yarn and needles and said "Meghan taught me how to knit."  We sat on the couch, and she showed me how to knit, purl, and cast-on.  Meghan's "Stitch 'n Bitch" big sister has no idea the gift she has given me three-degrees separated.  

Around that same time I read the first book of the series by Debbie Macomber, The Shop on Blossom Street, where I discovered the free pattern included with the story, Baby Blocks.  It would be my very first project.  I had never used circulars or read a pattern.  I shopped at Michael's for yarn, probably acrylic, and was nervous about spending over $3 per skein (haha!)  I can still remember how thrilled I was to get started, and there were many many frogs, tears, and restarts.

The day I brought home the yarn!
February 2006











The finished blanket for our niece's baby girl Emalee (now in 3rd grade).
March 2007














Wow, have I learned a lot since then!

xoxo Tammy