Lazy Summer Days

Wait! It's not summer! But it sure feels like it. Right now, Florida is one of the hottest places in the world.

The thermometer registered 95 Saturday.

The kids had a blast washing the car.

Of course when there is water outside, there is WET BIRD.

I did accomplish some knitting related items. THE DREADED EMBROIDERY on the cuddle bear.

For the Love of the Moon and Piggies Too

Last night, the moon was gorgeous. I have to say, I have always had a growing love of the moon. It's just so pretty and wicked at the same time. Here's what I got.


Where are the werewolves?





I have to say, I was creeped out taking these pictures. I went outside to walk the dogs alone and noticed the moon. I couldn't pass it up. I kept hearing noises in the bushes. FREAKY MAN!

I also learned, the camera has a night time feature. I wish I could have gotten how orange the moon really was.

And for my piggy love.

Lunar Eclipse

The clouds actually cleared up last night to see the eclipse. Only one of my kids made it to 10:30. The red on the moon was very pretty. The pictures didn't come out too well, but here's what we got.

Ravelry or Homeschooling?

Ha! Well today was kinda a waste for homeschooling. Trying to get back into the routine after vacation is tough. We had a good start but as soon as I turn my computer on, I have to click Ravelry, just for a second. Yes, my just a second, turns into hours. I am a Ravelry addict. I did do a few minutes of crochet, working on this blanket border.



BUT.... Ryan did accomplish some computer work. I like to use the internet a lot for schooling.

Kailen also did some reading in The Castle in the Attic

So, tomorrow is park day, another day of no schooling. I can't wait for our schedule to resume. Now all I have to do is stay away from Ravelry.

YA RIGHT! (;

The Case of the Haunted Doll

The strangest thing happened today. I keep a baby porcelian doll on my dresser in my bedroom. Well I had knitted a baby hat and have always kept it on the doll's head. I was vacuuming my room when I noticed the hat was on the floor. I turned around to find out my doll was missing. WTF!? I called all the kids in my room and they all swore they didn't touch it. I know it was there yesterday because I had contemplated taking a picture of the knitted hat for Ravelry. We searched and searched and still no doll. Just as we were about to give up, my daughter looked under the nightstand and there it was. Now both my daughters had to physically lift the nightstand up to get the doll out, so I know Sugar Bears could never have done this. The doll came out unbroken and intact. The strangest thing about this story is.... last night I was thinking about my recently deceased grandfather who I was extremely close to, and I felt such sadness and to why I hadn't gotten a "sign" that he was ok. Was this my sign?

I Forgot the Chickens!!!

I can't believe I almost forgot one of the best highlights of the trip.



The chickens and roosters of Key West.




They were everywhere! On roofs, in the streets and even under houses. The ones below had babies.

Every so often, you could hear the roosters crow.


We stopped to have fries at Island Fries, a really good burger place right on Duval Street. The kids fed them fries galore.

More Key West

I really wanted to share how beautiful the keys were, oh and of course my kids.


This is my oldest daughter enjoying the evening on the beach.








The kids must have caught at least 100 or more crabs. Sugar Bears really got a kick out of the baby crabs.





The sand was very soft and when it was dry, it was actually white!






Little Sugar Bears fishing at the pier right outside our door.





I really loved this Inn. We even barbequed hamburgers that night since we didn't catch any fish.




This is what I was busy doing while the kids were playing...

My first Clapotis. I'm not too keen on the colors but it did turn out softer than I thought.

Knitting with Combined Crochet

I have almost finished my first combined knitting/crochet blanket. This was one of the most tedious of blankets to work on, but I must say, it sure turned out beautiful. I love the combination. Here are some photos of the process .

I started with a basic granny square as the main block. Then, I knitted each side of the square. Next, I crocheted mini grannies for the corners; each individually sewed in. There is a lot of weaving involved in this project. I also crocheted a border around each square before sewing them all together. I will end it tomorrow with a blue border.

Key West Trip

This weekend, we took the kids to the Keys for Ryan's birthday. We rented an efficiency which was really nice at the YellowTail Inn. It was fabulous. We had our own beach right outside our door. The kids had a blast on the beach catching crabs and searching for sea stuff when the tide was out. Although we didn't get to catch any fish, we really enjoyed living the lazy life of fishing and strolling in the white sand. Ryan caught a huge conch that was still alive. It was great for the kids to see all the living creatures hiding out in the ocean. I definitely want to go back. On our last day, we drove all the way down to Key West. It was rainy at first but as the day cleared, the Keys came alive. I really enjoyed all the touristy shops and the museums. My favorite store was KnitWits, the only yarn store in the Keys. I bought this wonderful alpaca yarn to make my second Clapotis.





















Here, the kids are enjoying themselves on the beach at low tide. How strange it looked when the tide was out.