Keeping the Home Fires Burning

Hello my dear friends.  I've been away from my blog for awhile and time has slipped by so fast.  It's been a bit busy around here at Lilly My Cat.  My little grandson was here for a week and it was a joy to take care of him and take him to and back from school as his parents went to NYC for a business meeting.  How I remember those wonderful days.

 Two weeks ago my husband had surgery for a torn rotator cuff.  He's been doing well although it's a very painful and long recovery.  Tomorrow he will see his doctor for the post op follow up and we are hoping that all is well.  In the meantime, we have had occasion to go down to the beach and enjoy dinner and the sunset.

Sometimes, I feel that my knitting has taken over my life!  Haha...not really but I'm lucky that I found this hobby that keeps me grounded.  Have I told you that I love, absolutely LOVE Ravelry?  There are so many resources online.  Above is a little baby set I knitted as a gift for a dear blog friend.  This was the yarn I had received from my Little Woollie Yarn Club from Australia.

Pictured above is my Bois Blanc Island Quill Shawl which I recently completed.....but wait....I didn't like the size of it and I had lots of yarn left over.  So, after frogging the border, it's back on my needles again.  Maybe I'm old school, but to me a shawl should be something to wrap around your body but today's shawls are designed to go around your neck for a stylish look.  (yes you are correct, I'm not a fashionista by any means)  But, if you lived in year round warm southern California and still suffer from hot flashes, you wouldn't want anything wrapped around your neck either!

I made my little granddaughter a fun little tiered jacket awhile back and I had one skein of yarn left over.  I found this pattern on Ravelry and it's the perfect pattern for a one skein baby sweater.  I named it the Little Danish Sweater since the designer is from Denmark and I'm half Danish!  It will be a gift for someone someday.

With all this knitting and using my brain cells, I do find time to enjoy a glass now and then of my favorite red wine.  Don't you just love this glass "Knit One, Sip Two".  How great is that?  My dear sister-in-law, Lynda (who is an excellent knitter, quilter, needlework artist) gave me this glass.

We've had rain today and this evening down here in parched southern California.  Some much needed rain with more supposedly on the way.  Lilly has found her warm, winter bed to snuggle in. Although, it's beyond me how she fits her body into this tiny, little bed!

I hope all of you are going well.  Please feel free to say hello if you wish to leave a comment.  Until next time,

Wishing you all the best,

Pat

Linking with:

Handmade Monday . . . 

A Norwegian Birthday Party

Greetings  my dear blog friends.  I hope your week has been going well.  My week started off attending a birthday party on Monday for my dear friend Laila.  Laila is the cultural director for my local lodge of Daughters of Norway.

Gerd from our lodge hosted the party for Laila.  She had her house all decked out with the Norwegian flag along with our American flag.

The table(s) were set beautifully in anticipation of the guests arriving.  I love the Norwegian napkins as they add a special touch to the setting.

Laila was seated at this special table setting since it was her day to celebrate.  All who attended brought a dish to share for the potluck luncheon.  It was so nice to be together with friends and enjoy our afternoon.

Before the birthday cake was cut, we (all) sang this Norwegian birthday song.  It's a good thing that we have quite a few members from Norway whose first language is Norwegian!  Our lodge is planning on having Norwegian lessons for us other members.  It should be a fun adventure.

Ta Dah!  The special marzipan birthday cake.  It was layer cake filled with whipped cream and marzipan; heavenly.

And, to add to the festivities, Astrid, one of our dear members made this kransekake cake.  Someone had already nibbled a piece from the top!

Laila enjoyed opening her gifts.  Her favorite color is turquoise hence the wrappings.

And, here's the birthday girl opening her gifts.  Isn't that plant beautiful?  It was one of her gifts, too.

This is one of the gifts Laila received.  It's a handmade art card featuring hardanger embroidery.  This type of embroidery is very traditional in the Scandinavian countries.  It employs counted thread and drawn thread, usually white thread on white even weave fabric.   This lovely piece was made by Bonnie, one of our members.  Bonnie is so talented in this type of needlework. 

Maybe some of you are wondering about Daughters of Norway?  I'd love to share a few things about this group...

1.  The mission of the group is to unite into a sisterhood those who wish to preserve their Norwegian* heritage.

2.  The organization was started in 1905 with the first three lodges being in Washington state.  There were a lot of Norwegians who immigrated to western Washington at the end of the 19th century/beginning of the 20th century as there was waterways and they were experts in this field.

3.  In those early days, the lodge meetings were held speaking Norwegian.  It's quite fascinating to see how things changed as the years went by.  Today, we have many Norwegian/Americans whose grandparents immigrated from Norway.

4.  The Daughters of Norway are a vibrant and growing organization with over 1,600 members nationwide.  New members are joining monthly and lodges are continuing to be formed.

5.  If you are interested in learning about a lodge in your area, please check out their list of lodges. 

*As you may already know, I'm not Norwegian but Danish.  Lucky for me, the Daughters of Norway embrace all with Scandinavian heritage.  

As I think back about this organization, I find it quite fascinating that well over 100 years later, this group that began back in 1905 is still flourishing.  I'm also a member of the Danish Sisterhood of America.   The lodge closest to where I live meets about 60 miles away so I have not been able to attend since moving to California.  The Danish Sisterhood has similar beginnings at the end of the 19th century.  And, they too are still growing and thriving; getting new members every month.

I hope you have enjoyed this little glimpse into my Scandinavian clubs.  I grew up in a Danish farming community and after getting married, I moved to a "new" area where there were no immigrant families.  I missed my Danish heritage.  When I moved to western Washington about 20 years ago, I found these two organizations and they have brought back so many wonderful memories for me as well as increasing my knowing of my Scandinavian heritage.

Thank you for visiting today and I wish you all the best!

With my best wishes,

Pat

Linking with:

Amy's Five on Friday . . .