Shrug and a White Christmas

I don't remember if I made this shrug last year or the year before. It is knitted from my handspun yarn.

I like the shrug, I especially like the back. However, I don't like wearing it. It doesn't really keep me warm and I am not happy with the fit.  Soooo,

 I have decided to rip it out.

 Above is the back. I really like the back and I am not going to rip the back. I am going to rip the ribbing that is around the edges and the sleeves. I am not sure exactly what I am going to do with this, but I am hoping to be able to have enough yarn to knit 2 fronts and make the circle shrug a vest type sweater or shrug.

Yesterday, we had snow during our Christmas dinner!!! A white Christmas in north central Texas is rare. We were very excited and happy.  I took pictures this morning.

Overnight the temperature dropped into the teens, so our beautiful snow, turned into ice. Driving was interesting, to say the least.

Below is the front of the house, with tiny icicles hanging from the roof.  :)

This is the view from the back deck.  I love the way that snow makes everything look beautiful and bright!



Snow doesn't usually last long here. The sun came out today and it has started melting. The temperature is supposed to warm up tomorrow, so the snow will probably be gone by tomorrow night.

Christmas is almost here.

Wow! I can hardly believe how fast time has flown by this year.  I just wrote our Christmas letter. As I sat down to write it, I wondered if there was anything to write about. Then as I started thinking about it, I realized that we had had a pretty busy and eventful year, when I reached page two of the letter, I thought "WHOA!" So, I backed up and consolidated it to be only one page long.

To end up my year, I have just finished working at THE UPS STORE as Christmas help.  As usual, it was a fun 2 1/2 weeks. This year instead of wearing a Santa hat, the UPS Store guy let me wear a Christmas fedora. That was fun!

I just was reading a blog that I visit once in a while. It is called Attic 24. She is a crocheter in England and loves COLOR! I love to stop by and see what projects Lucy is working on.

For me, several years ago, in a crazy moment of life, I bought some cobweb weight yarn. Yep, me who loves worsted weight and bulky weight yarn, bought cobweb weight. After several attempts at making something, man that yarn is tiny, I finally succeeded. :) This shawl, although not complicated, is so light and airy. It can actually be gathered up and worn as a scarf. It does slide through my wedding ring!

I have written the pattern and it is currently being test knit! I am calling Wil-o-Wisp, because it is so light and airy. Currently, I am not sure when the pattern will be released.

So, today I am off to straighten and clean the house and ready it for Christmas celebrations tomorrow.

I do hope you all have a blessed Christmas Day with your friends and loved ones.

My Mom and Long Island, NY

I just arrived back home, to Texas, from visiting my mom in New York.  We had a very good visit, as always.  :)

Mom lives on Long Island, not far from so much devastation left behind by hurricane Sandy.  Her home survived this hurricane all right and only lost power for 2 hours.  However, we have had damage from hurricanes, that have come before, and have had power outages for a couple of weeks before. So, our family is used to the loss due to storms.  This time we feel very blessed that all is OK.

Here's mom! We were having lunch in her kitchen and I snapped this photo!



One day we decided that we would take a drive around town, to see the damage that some of her friends were dealing with. By the time I arrived to NY, most folks had gutted their homes of walls and carpets, cabinets and furniture. They were working on rebuilding and fixing. Her friends' homes were being repaired and starting to look pretty good.

We drove to the local boat docks along the south shore of Long Island, near her home, and stopped in our favorite spot for just sitting and looking at the sea.  It was an extremely calm and beautiful day. But, here is some of the damage that we saw.

This is a local seafood restaurant.  They were getting it repaired, so they could open back up and serve the public.

Some houses being repaired. All the first level floors were being ripped out, while the families were inhabiting the top floors. If you look close you might see the wood leaning against the houses.

More houses and more devastation. But, repairs were under way.
All of these homes are right on the bay, the bay opens into the Atlantic.

This, below, is one of my favorite views. :) Why? Cause it is a picture of the bridges to the beach and I LOVE the beach. Yes, there are two separate bridges there, but they are built close enough, that from a distance they look like one.  We noticed that cars were crossing, so I started the car and we drove to the bridge and tried to get to the beaches.

 After we crossed this bridge, and a draw bridge, we couldn't get to the third bridge, that leads to Fire Island.  The bridge was ok, but the road on the other side isn't.  We tried to visit a couple of other beaches, but they are all closed, due to damage.  So, we turned around and went home......

We had a great day, visiting with each other and seeing the water.  We both always enjoy just looking at the different views of the water.