Peach Coglo

Photographic Friday ~ Forty-seven

It's Photographic Friday, the day when I share practice photographs from the past few days or so. They aren't perfect. What is really? I'm enjoying the process of concentrating, creating and working up my 10,000 hours of practice. If the spirit moves you, feel free to share your own creations, photographic and otherwise with a link!

Have a wonderful weekend you lovely folks.

Felted Balls-Part Deux

It's Wednesday and time for yarn along, joining Ginny at small things.

Amazingly, I finished knitting my felted balls and now it's time for the actual felting.  I've run two through a long hot cycle and two through two short cycles.  Let's just say more felting is needed.  I could stop now, but things are a little more loosey goosey than I would prefer.  Consequently the felting continues.  If I make these again, I am definitely going for the larger balls though no one seems to sell them, but that's probably just me.

While this project continues to felt, I am starting on my knitted Easter eggs.  Hopefully these will be a quick knit.  It's gotten chilly again and I am wishing I had finished some mitts for myself.  I might just go ahead and start on some, though it will probably be 202 degrees in a few days.  Hmmm.

I have a stack a books a mile high, well, maybe a half-mile high.  Needless to say I am not really reading them all, but using several as references and reading necessary excerpts here and there.  We are gliding along with The Saturdays.  I am reading a chapter in Just One Thing called "Befriend Your Body".  That's pretty self-explanatory, though pretty darn easy to forget.  I am also jumping around in The Backyard Homestead.  This is an awesome reference book.  It tells you how to rotate "crops", staggering small plantings, identifying which plants like to be together and which are mortal enemies, and all sorts of useful things.  Now I just need to get outside and plant.  Perhaps when this crazy week ends we can get out there and start digging.  I am also haphazardly reading The Impressionists, as well as, a book about Claude Monet.  The client for whom I am working is into his blue/green/purple waterlilies palette so I thought it best to referesh myself. 

Hey, at least they are all colorfuly and Springy.

Well this is about all I can handle for a week.  What are you reading and making?

Weekending~March 25, 2012

Joining Amanda for weekending . . . .

 

It was a wonderful one.

My mother gave us the birthday treat of live theater!

While my parents watched the kiddos (thank you!), Greg and I went to see Ma Rainey's Black Bottom in Boston.  After wandering around the Prudential Center lost for a second, we made it out into the night air and down the street to the theater.

The performances were spectacular.  We saw an actress, Joniece Abbott-Pratt, that we saw last year in another one of August Wilson's plays, Gem of the Ocean.  Wilson's work is incredibly powerful and can be difficult watch at times because he relates pain in such a skillful and poignant manner.  He also portrays life's joys and silliness too.  It was amazing.

Oh and talk about range, Yvette Freeman was tremendous.  You may remember her from the show ER.  I never really realize how limiting these hit shows can be for actors, until I see them in live theater.  Wow.  Not to harsh on ER or anything, but I can see why, as an artist, she left to do other things.

We celebrated Greg's birthday (the first go-round as his birthday is tomorrow) with a wonderful  dinner made by my mom and a fruit tart.

I finished knitting my last felted ball.

I made a decision to push through the exhaustion and paint something everyday, no matter how small.  I am almost done with my color exploration charts as a result, and I am feeling calmer about getting my hands on my brushes.

And to top it off, I saw an inspiring documentary about a man and his topiaries-no joke.  If you get a chance, watch it.  It is unbelievable the art this man created.  He was 70 when the documentary was made.  I promise you will be inspired.

How was your weekend?

Photographic Friday ~ Forty-six

It's Photographic Friday, the day when I share practice photographs from the past few days or so. They aren't perfect. What is really? I'm enjoying the process of concentrating, creating and working up my 10,000 hours of practice. If the spirit moves you, feel free to share your own creations, photographic and otherwise with a link!

Have a wonderful weekend.  I hope it's full of all of the people and things you love.

On to Yellow

It's Wednesday and time for yarn along with Ginny; you know what to do.

Ah, so I haven't finished my felted balls yet.  Funny how life takes over, but they will get done.  I have started number three-a yellow ball.  Knitting teaches so much.  For instance, I should probably pay attention to some detail at least some of the time.  Turns out the balls I bought to stuff inside of the yarn are way to small.  Whoops.  So the first blue felted ball may be a little interesting when it 'felts up'.  However the good news is that I am just making the balls a bit smaller to accommodate the smaller super balls.  This has the handy consequence of the balls taking less time to knit.  Still they are pleasant.  Hopefully, I will have some time to make some knitted Easter eggs.

On the book front, we have started reading The Saturdays.  It is actually the first book in the Melendy series.  It is as equally enchanting as The Four-Story Mistake.  We just love it.  Enright writes intelligently for children (and their adults).  For beginners, there are mentions of petit fours, an amber necklace, Mexican devil masks, Schnabel, a woman smelling of camphor, and sheet of music patched together with Scotch tape.  The stories are always fascinating.  I have to stop myself from reading ahead.   In honor of Spring, we are reading the story of Persephone, Spring Story, The Story of the Root Children, and Bring Me Some Apples and I'll Make You a Pie: A Story about Edna Lewis.

What are you reading and making?

Moving Earth

Joining Amanda at the habit of being for weekending. . . .

It was a whirlwind, this weekend-too fast, as they all are

Hansel and Gretel was our movie of the week.  It was delightful.  I was surprised to see David Warner and Cloris Leachman.  She was quite entertaining as the witch.  This version did away with the stepmother angle and people kicking the bucket.

Saturday I went to WEBS with some friends.  That place is insane.  I had my project notebook with me; it helped-a little.  I was wayyyy overwhelmed by all of the yarn (discounted too) goodness at this place.  Holy macaroni.  There was all kinds of yarn: Noro, silks, wool, wool blends, pretty much whatever you want.  I got some yarn for projects for myself and for the kiddos' birthdays.   If you go, have your list of projects and necessary gauge information (something I forgot here and there).  I urge you to go if you can, but just make sure you have your lists and a lot of time.

After the yarn mecca, we had dinner in Northampton- a quirky and fun town.

I finished a felted ball; now on to the next one.  I also found some more delightful Easter projects-we'll see.

Sunday was incredible.  We spent most of the day outside, prepping the garden-chopping, raking and moving earth. I did take a minute to go buy some CowPots.  You can probably guess their contents.  I think I want to try them with our watermelon and pumpkins since neither plant likes to be transplanted and our growing season is so short.

I ordered a much needed Willow tree, and came a few steps further in deciding what stays and what goes, and which plant goes where.  I do enjoy this Spring ritual.  Speaking of which, the Vernal Equinox is only a day away.

We took about an hour away for the kiddos' Meditation First Communion program.  We all enjoyed the hour even though we had to stop our gardening to go.

Then Greg grilled some burgers and we had our first picnic dinner outside.  It was a chilly one, but it felt great.  We probably looked a bit strange plunked in the middle of our front yard, but oh well.

There was even a little bit of time left over for some Shaun the Sheep and Fat Albert viewing.

Here's to weekends.  How was yours?

Photographic Friday ~ Forty-five

It's Photographic Friday, the day when I share practice photographs from the past few days or so.  They aren't perfect.  What is really?  I'm enjoying the process of concentrating, creating and working up my 10,000 hours of practice.  If the spirit moves you, feel free to share your own creations, photographic and otherwise with a link!

It is always interesting waiting for the leaves to arrive.  They are nowhere to be seen and then pop!, there they are.

Wishing you a wonderful weekend . . . .

One Down

It's Wednesday; you know what to do, joining Ginny for yarn along.

It's been slow going.  I have been working on these felted balls.  They are actually quick knits once you get going and if you keep knitting.  This week I am back on task.  I finished knitting one ball and I am moving on to the second ball.  The start-up process for the second one is not nearly as crazy as it was for the first.  Thank goodness for that.  Only three more to go.  Hopefully I can swing it and get them all knitted this week so I can work on some other Easter projects.

As for books, I am still reading Just One Thing.  This week the focus is on getting more sleep.  I have always struggled with my night owl ways, so this will be a pretty big and I think, continual, challenge.  I am also reading Living Simply with Children.  This book is pretty handy and helps put family simplicity into action.   There is also a section on advertising to and branding of children. It's disheartening to read how mainstream corporate culture attempts to turn children into unquestioning 'consumer units'. 

    On a much lighter and more pleasant note, we finished The Four-Story Mistake.  What a delightful book.  The children in this novel had the best adventures.  I even learned some new things such as what is a 'caddis house'.   The kids learned about Victory Gardens, crater lakes, and dapple greys.  I enjoyed Elizabeth Enright's writing style immensely: "Like ghosts the children walked across the lawn on their bare feet.  The moon was full.  Above the damp grass hung a veil of mist, luminous with moonlight and spangled with fireflies."  We are looking forward to starting the second book in the series as soon as it arrives at our library branch.

What are you reading and making this week?

 

The Flower Show

We have been visiting Elizabeth Park a lot lately.  It turns out they have an annual flower show and sale.  I am glad we caught it this year.  It smelled like heaven in the greenhouse.  I wish I could magic that smell into this post, but oh well.  I hope you enjoy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Tuesday!

Sweet Relief

Joining Amanda for weekending . . . .

Ah, a long (well sort of ) weekend.

Last week was long and we were all looking forward to the weekend.

My mom and dad came down for a quick visit.

We watched How to Frame a Figg-quite a hoot with Don Knotts.  We didn't even make brownies because the grandparents left plenty of treats, not to mention Girl Scout cookies had arrived the day before.

There was more color chart work and color discoveries-Winsor Yellow works wonders when combined with French Ultramarine.  Brown madder is also a nice new discovery.

Saturday evening I broke out the old tablecloths and placed them on the floor so the kiddos could have a "pic-pic", as Eden calls it.  Thankfully Greg made a tasty pizza for dinner because mama was tired.

Then off to a wine and cheese gathering at a friend's house-so good to hang out.  We "partied" pretty hard until 12:30am, or rather 1:30am, due to that dastardly daylight savings time shift.  It was such a relaxing evening after a full day.

Sunday we were tennis and obligation-free so there was space and time for going to the park together, watching Canada geese battle it out, sniffing flowers at the greenhouse and playing ball.

The heaps and heaps of laundry got folded by everyone working together - a first.  The kiddos learned that folding clothes wouldn't cause them bodily harm.

Dinner was a Bittman special: spinach spaghetti with mushroom sauce and a side of squash (so out of season, but Doran begged and I complied).

While the kiddos rode their bikes, I read a bit of Taproot.  It is a reassuring and lovely "community-zine".  That's the most accurate way I can describe it.  Shannon Hayes provided some of the most interesting quotes from the magazine: we "... must embrace what it means to fully be human.  This means spending a few hours resting, a few hours playing, a few hours creating, a few hours teaching, a few hours learning, a few hours nourishing our bodies . . . a few hours tending the soil and connecting with ourselves . . . and our planet."

How was your weekend?