A Rainy Weekend with Lilly

Hello my dear friends.  It's Lilly here writing today.  My Mom is busy taking care of the grandchildren so she suggested that I write this blog post.

I woke up to drizzly, gray weather today so I've had to stay indoors.  I missed walking around the pool and looking for geckos.  But, as you can see in this photo, I found my Mom's lily bouquet and chewed on the leaves.  I know, it's a no no so she put the vase up on the fireplace; away from me and the grandchildren.

My parents took an overnight trip this past week to eastern San Diego county.  My Mom loves the drive there since it's very scenic and such a natural setting.  (They actually spent the night at the Pala Resort).  I missed them but I enjoyed my alone time, too.

Can you believe that my Mom still irons?  She irons every Tuesday and has for years and years.  Who in the world irons sheets and pillowcases in this day and age?  She insists on ironing and it really puzzles me. . .

I'm not a lover of sweet things (I prefer fish and savories), but Mom made a country style apple pie.  It's her own recipe using her standard pie crust recipe along with sliced apples, a few wild frozen blueberries, with a tad bit of butter and some brown sugar and maple syrup.  It smelled heavenly.

As you probably know, I'm a lover of birds - all kinds of birds.  Look what I spied this week near the pool.  Two beautiful little doves.  I sometimes hear them cooing.  Such delicate little birds.

This is the first time I'd have such a close look at these birds.  After they flew away, we had two Canadian geese land in the pool.  Oh my, was my Dad upset as they make a huge mess.  They are so majestic though and flew away.

Earlier in the week my parents went to the beach to have lunch.  It was a lovely, spring day and they enjoyed it very much.  The day before, there had been a shark sighting at the same beach.  Scary stuff! (My Mom "stole" the photo above from my Sister who is an excellent photographer)

Well guys, here I am, relaxing in my recliner chair.  I'm a bit upset since the grandchildren have come over and taken over all my favorite spots to nap.  But, I will survive.

I hope each of you have a wonderful weekend wherever you may be.  It's always good to hear from you and I send you and my furry friends a big MEOW.

Hugs from,

Lilly  

Some Old and Some New

Greetings my friends on a chilly Sunday afternoon.  It was a lovely, warm day today until a couple of hours ago and the cold weather from up North has made it to SoCal.  We're suppose to have freezing temps these next few nights!  I know, I shouldn't complain but it is unusual for most folks who live down here :)

There's so many things I want to share with you and write about.  But, sometimes I am at a loss for words.  My heart is heavy these past few days with yet another school shooting.  I admire those high school students who are now speaking up and I am with them all the way.  One day I will tell you the story about the school shooting that took place in our little town in Eastern Washington.  That will be for another time.

Besides babysitting my little grandchildren these past few days (morning, noon and night), I had a dinner party last week.  It's always enjoyable for me to plan the menu, set the table and all the other things that are needed.

This time I decided to use my Mom's Community Silverplate.  This flatware and chest have been around for as long as I can remember.  I think my Mom would have purchased it back in the early 1950's.  After my Mom passed away back in 1993, I kept this as a keepsake and didn't use it.  Until last weekend. . .

It so happened that I rediscovered this flatware through a dear blog friend I recently met via her blog.  Margaret has the same flatware and had written about it on her blog.  Of course I commented to say I have the same pattern!

  

It was so interesting to learn about the history of this flatware pattern.  The name of the pattern in the US is Coronation.  In the UK, it is known as Hampton Court.  Originally, it was designed and introduced back in 1936, in honor of Edward VIII becoming King of England.  Of course, as you know, he abdicated the throne to marry Wallis Simpson.  Hence, the name was changed for the UK market but stayed the same for the US.  When I set my table last weekend I found that I do have a complete service for 8 along with an extra  dinner fork along with 8 extra teaspoons.  So, I hurried over to Ebay where I found a matching knife and dessert fork so that my set can now serve 9.  Hopefully, one day I can pass this set onto my little granddaughter for the next generation. 

Now for the new, the bed is complete.  After the bed arrived, it was another two weeks for the mattress to arrive via Costco.  It worked out great as Costco's price and quality couldn't be matched at the places I checked out.

Lilly was quite pleased to check out the new blanket and gave her approval :)

Between watching the little ones, cooking and cleaning and the never ending paperwork, I started on my new sock pattern.  It's a fun easy pattern and I love the yarn.  However, I'm finding it's a bit hard to work in the evenings as the dark yarn against the dark needles can be trying.

Yesterday, my husband and I had a wonderful time with an impromptu dinner at the beach followed by grocery shopping at my favorite Persian market.  So, there's plenty of goodies to make some nice dishes for the upcoming week.  I'll sign off now since my homemade vegetable soup is ready to serve along with homemade corn muffins.  It's cold outside!

It's always a joy to hear from you.  Please feel free to say "hi" if you  wish.

Until next time,

Pat

A Great Start to the New Year

 Happy New Year dear friends.  I hope that you had a wonderful Christmas holiday and a great start to the New Year.  I've had a wonderful holiday season with my family.

 

 Yesterday afternoon all the family ventured to the Montage Resort where we sat outside on the veranda and enjoyed coffee.  It was a perfect afternoon to watch the ocean and do a little people watching, too!  It was my daughter's idea (photo above) and we all agreed that this was a great way to start the New Year's Eve celebrations.

 

 Christmas at my home has been all boxed up until next year (although I hope the true meaning of Christmas is in my heart throughout the coming year).  My home is slowly coming back to it's normal, eclectic decor.  My dear son bought me these lovely pink carnations.  They brighten up the family room.

My beloved knitting needles have made a reappearance, too this season.  I'm knitting a pair of socks from the very talented Helen Stewart.  They're called Vintage Fairy Lights socks and you can find the info here on my Ravelry page. (Lilly insists on sitting my my lap when I'm knitting!)

I love to knit socks.  I taught myself how to knit them; unbeknownst to me that they can be a bit of a challenge. Luckily, I and my four DPN's get along very well.  I love the yarn I found on Etsy.  It's from Southern Skeins; she is an indie dyer from Florida.  Her yarn creations are so lovely and best of all, her prices are very reasonable!  My yarn is called "frosted berries"  which I thought was so appropriate for this project.

Speaking of the very talented Helen, she will be hosting The Handmade Sock Society.  There will be six sock patterns included in this KAL.  I can hardly wait until it begins in February.  Fun times ahead!

I received some beautiful and useful things for Christmas.  I love the perfume tray that my dear daughter and her family gave to me.  It sits on top of my Grandma's antique bird's eye maple chest which is in my closet.  It was fun to clean and rearrange the top of this much loved chest.

Lilly wanted to say "hello" to everyone.  She had a great holiday and is enjoying her catnip toys.  I hope everyone out there who has furry family loved ones, to wish them all the best for the New Year, too.

Thank you dear friends for being my friend and visiting my blog.  I wish everyone a very Happy New Year.

With my best wishes,

Pat

Lilly Update and Fires in SoCal

Thank you everyone for your get well wishes for my kitty, Lilly.  She has been doing well and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she is over this bout of illness.  She has her appetite back and being 17 pounds little, that's a good sign for sure.

Like many of you pet parents out there, when she became ill, I was so devastated as I've had her for over 10 years and during that time, she has never been sick.  Of course, she goes once a year for her annual vaccinations which cost a minimum.

So, the trip to the veterinarian was an eye opener for sure. She was a lovely, young doctor who was so kind.  She didn't have an answer right away but suggested a plan of treatment and then told me she'd give me the estimate.  I was perplexed but I waited and the assistant brought in the estimate which had a total price of $713.00!  Wow, a bit costly for sure.  The blood work was approximately $250.00 and the x-ray was $250.00.  Luckily, after a little discussion with the assistant, she suggested I give Lilly the medicine treatment (which was $201.00) and see how it goes.  Lilly received two medicines; one for acid reflux and one an antiobiotic, for one week.  So far, so good.  But, she's my baby and  if the symptoms return, of course I'm going to proceed with further testing.  It broke my heart to see her ill.

 

Many parts of our  beautiful, tranquil setting here in Southern California are up in flames at the moment.  Yesterday, a fire broke out which they named the Thomas Fire.  It started at 50 acres and this afternoon is has grown to more than 50,000 acres!  It's northwest of Los Angeles in Ventura County and many structures have burned to the ground.  It's heartbreaking to see it on the TV.  There are a couple of more fires that broke out today.  The culprit is the Santa Ana Winds which started yesterday.  They are very strong, warm winds that wreck havoc with our dry, parched land.  They're expected to blow until early Friday morning.  Luckily, I haven't heard of any fires here in Orange County where I live.  Although, we have taken precaution and put away things outside and shut off the pool filter since it's filled with leaf debris. We are in a wait and see mode.  There are dry, parched hills which border both sides of the area where I live.   

I hope you are safe and warm wherever you may be.  I had a fun post ready to publish today but it's going to wait until another time.  

With my best wishes to you,

Pat

Beauty of Nature in Small Packages

Hello my dear friends.  I've had a great two days at home enjoying my favorite things; keeping house and cooking.  For some reason, I feel I have so much energy and have already started to plan for the holidays.  I hope this energy stays around for awhile :) read to the end of this blog post if you want to hear me rattle on. . .

I love to collect little dishes and such.  You know those tiny jars you get jam or honey in at a hotel?  This is a tiny little succulent that I'm trying to sprout and it's in one of those little jars in my kitchen window.  I love the symmetry of it all.

Last week I pulled out all the old tomato vines.  There was still a handful of green tomatoes on a couple of them.  Here they are in a little earthenware dish I bought in Spain.  I hope they turn red.  I did leave a few of the unripe one on top of the soil as last time they reseeded themselves and grew up to be lovely tomato plants.

I made a mini bouquet from the flowers I bought earlier in the week.  My little crystal vases were being used for something else so this is a Turkish tea glass I'm using as a vase!

This is a pumpkin candle.  I have a set of them that I use for decorating my fireplace mantle. It sure doesn't feel like fall. . . we are expecting the heat wave to hit tomorrow and they're saying it could break some records.  And, it's the end of October!  I'm a bit scared as with the heat they are saying the Santa Ana winds (which are fierce, hot winds) may be blowing.  That's a huge red flag for fires.  Where I live, there is a huge ravine (not sure if that's the word but it's a huge expense of lowland with higher ground on either side that goes for miles).  There are communities on both sides of it.  Actually, in the area where I live there are three different cities that connect along this ravine.  And, there are three  bridges that cross over it.  Last week, I saw a car parked off the road after crossing the bridge.  I first thought it was a police car scanning for speeders. But, there on the side of the car door was a sign "fire watch". I'm not sure if these are volunteers who provide this service or if it's part of the fire department.  Either way, it's a very smart idea as if that ravine ever caught fire, it could spread throughout all these communities.

 

I know the heading of this post is beauty of nature in "small" packages but I just had to share a photo of Lilly this morning during her morning naptime.  She's not "small" but to me she is so beautiful.  And, she is such a sweet natured kitty.  My little two year old granddaughter was here last week and loved petting Lilly.  Lilly was so kind to her.  I think they are good friends now.

I have a question/survey to ask you my dear readers.  Do you read blogs or other social media sites where you feel the author writing these pieces has real likes or dislikes?  For instance, I read a lot of blogs and they span many subjects.  But, there are a couple of them whose main theme is being thrifty.  I love to shop for a bargain as do most people.  But the more I read some of these blogs, the more I am totally dismayed.  It appears that these people are very closed minded and set in their ways unless you follow the same path they do.  Examples would be:  

- buying clothes from a department store - never!

- travel/take a cruise - never!

-shopping at an upscale grocery store -never!

-buying a designer/name brand item - never!

The list could go on and on.  I have likes and dislikes but I never ever would try and push my agenda onto someone else.  Hey, if you want to buy a no name brand or buy a designer brand, that's up to you.  But, don't bash people who don't think like you.  I'm finding it very rude sometimes.  And, their opinions are not limited to consumer goods.  Oh no.  Some of them are ethnocentric as they don't want anything to do with America and they frequently share this on their blogs.  It puzzles me as to why people who know nothing about someone, can hold such negative opinions. I've met some very dear friends abroad via my blog; friends that I hope to meet in person one day and visit their lovely countries.  I truly feel we should embrace what we have in common rather than divide.   Anyway, that's my rattling on tonight and it has nothing to do with nature and yet it does have to do with one's own nature.  I try my hardest to never offend anyone or make anyone feel they don't belong.  We should be embracing the beauty of this world we live in regardless of where or what country we live in.

Enjoy your day everyone.  Lilly sends you her meows.

With my best wishes,

Pat

Fall Dinner

Haha...this is titled Fall Dinner but it sure doesn't feel like fall.  It was another warm day today in the mid 80's and we're expecting high temps again this weekend.  Where are the glorious clouds and rain?

I had a great day today.  As my dear husband told me this evening, you got to shop and cook.  What more can a girl want?  I did have fun this afternoon shopping at one of my favorite store, TJ MAXX.  You never know what you will find there.  Then I came home and made dinner.

I had some huge boneless pork chops I took out of the freezer this morning.  I was inspired by a recipe I found on Margaret Powling's website, Devon Dreaming.  I didn't add the cider as I wasn't sure if it was hard cider or regular cider?  Either way it turned out very nice.  Although, I cooked mine on top of the stove in my le creuset dutch oven.

 

I had bought some root vegetables  last week to make roasted vegetables.  I was inspired by a recipe from my friend Elizabeth.  This was the first time I had peeled and roasted a raw beet.  It turned out quite well.  In the past, I've always either boiled or roasted an unpeeled beet and then used it in my in dishes.  Beets are so cheap.  I paid 50 cents a pound at the Persian market.  If you want fresh beets, they are like $1.50.  Yet, I see on TV those advertisements for super beets supplements.  No need if you go to your local market and pick up some fresh beets and roast them.

I just had to buy some fresh flowers for my kitchen table today. I found this huge bunch of chrysanthemums for $5.99 at my local Sprouts store.  Sprouts is a unique little market with lots of organic, artsy stuff.  But, when they have a sale, it is really quite good.  And, best of all, it's across the street from TJ MAXX!  

I found two ripe pears in the frig drawer so I made a pear crumble.  No recipe really. I just sliced up the pear into two individual dishes and made a crumb topping with a little flour, brown sugar, oats and butter.  I added in a little vanilla powder and cardamon for some flavor.  They tasted quite good.

Here's my sweet kitty, Lilly.  She enjoyed her morning outside with me today.  She's almost too big for the patio chair!  It was pleasant sitting outside this morning as we had a little breeze.  The good thing about SoCal is that it's warm during the day but almost always cools off at night.  Except this week . . . it was still warm when the sun set.  Unusual for us for sure.

Thank you for your kind comments and listening to my complaints on my last blog post.  I have to say that finally, keep my fingers crossed, I feel a bit at home this fall here in SoCal.  It's probably because I do have memories now made here that I can grow and expand on.  I know it sounds funny but really when you get a bit older and your children have grown up, it can be hard to settle in a new place.  But, the best thing is that my little grandchildren are a 10 minute drive away and it's so much fun seeing them grow up.

I've love to hear what you've been up to.  How is your weather?  I miss the four seasons but I probably don't even have proper shoes to wear for winter :) Sandals and flip flops won't work!

My best to you,

Pat

Music of Life

I used to play the piano.  It seems likes ages ago but at one time, I was really quite interested in my music.  Probably when I was in second grade, I began piano lessons.  We lived in a small town in Idaho and I went once a week to the local music store for my lesson.  My Mom then changed teachers and my new teacher was from eastern Europe; I don't know from where as all I remember is her accent.

All those years, I had an old upright piano that was quite sufficient.  We moved back to my hometown of Ellensburg, Washington in 1965.  I was in 6th grade and my piano teacher was just around the block from where we lived.  My Dad found this piano for me at the college (it's now called Central Washington University), and we bought it and brought it home when I was in high school.  It's been with me every since.

A few years ago I tried to find out when it was made but didn't have any luck.  It's a Ludwig piano and from our move to California it has gotten a few nicks in it's body.

It's a shame that my piano sits all by itself in a empty living room (it's filled with furniture but no people).  So, today I went in and pulled out my old piano books.  My piano teacher, Mrs. Hertz, was a wonderful lady.  Oh, how I wish I could meet her today as I would so appreciate her love of culture and music.  She insisted that I only learn/play classical music.  I loved Chopin and I loved playing Clementi sonatinas as the fingering had to be just right to have your hands float (fly) across the keys. 

At one time in my life, my fingers could float across all those keys.  Here's what I found remaining of my favorite piece I played in high school for a piano recital; Malaguena.  I loved this piece as it featured some selections that were played quite boldly.  Now, I don't even know if I can read this music to make it sound like anything!

I had much better luck today playing this sonatina.  I remember the fun part was the fingering as I mentioned above.  I used to play these pieces over and over again in my head years ago.

Also found in my piano bench was my old piano notebook with my teacher's notes.  She wrote quite illegible, didn't she?  Do you make out the $3.00 price per weekly lesson; unheard of now days.  Mrs. Hertz lived in a stately, old two story home.  I remember her dining room with Wedgewood Queensware dinnerware.  In her conservatory/sun room where I waited for my lesson to begin, it was filled with intellectual literature to read.  No tabloid magazines allowed!  Her husband, Dr. Hertz, was the head of the music department at the college.  My teacher was a very special person who really wanted her students to excell. 

This really doesn't have anything to do with music, but I found this watercolor in my piano bench; it's been there for years and years.  It was painted by my 7th or 8th grade classmate, Ellen Sogge.  If I recall, her father was a professor at the college when he went on sabbitical to Africa and he took his family with him.   (I just goggled this and found out he went to Malawi; all those years I thought they were in Kenya).  I met Ellen when her family returned to our small town as we had classes together at Morgan Junior High.  Our English teacher was so taken with Ellen's adventures in Africa that she and her family took a trip to Kenya the next year.  The teacher was Miss Anna Shuck.  I'll never forget her as she was the type of teacher who wore black dresses and was very strict.  The odd thing I remember most vividly is the support hosiery she wore.  She would tell us how she sent the "runned" hose to Frederick & Nelson Department store in Seattle to be rewoven.  Imagine that today!  (do people even use the word hosiery?)  She lived with her sister and mother.  Neither she nor her sister were ever married.   Miss Shuck won a raffle with the local Catholic church which was a trip to Hawaii.  Instead of going to Hawaii, she used those funds for the Kenyan trip.   I often wondered what happened to Ellen.  I believe her brother graduated from Harvard and went on to marry a girl from the east coast.

Do you remember seeing those stuffed animal cats that are all curled up and sleeping?  Well, here is Lilly all curled up and sleeping today.  I love this cat so much...

 

I hope you have enjoyed this look back into my youth, music, hometown, long lost friends, and of course, Lilly My Cat.  Today I'm linking to Amy's  Five on Friday party.   I'd love to hear about your week.

With  my best wishes,

Pat

 

Trellis Lace Scarf and Downton Abbey

I can't believe we are almost half way through January - time goes by so so fast.  It seems the last few posts I have written have been about recipes so today I'm going to share with you two (three actually) of my favorite things; knitting, Downton Abbey and Lilly my cat!

First off is my precious little cat, Lilly.  My son captured this picture of Lilly.  I think her expression is so sweet. 

So, are you hooked on watching Downton Abbey?  I find that show fascinating and I'm a faithful viewer every Sunday night to see what is going to happen next with the Grantham family. As you probably know, Downton Abbey is filmed at Highclere Castle.  This is the home of the Carnovan family.  Lord Carnovan (5th) was the chief financial backer of Howard Carter who discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamen in Egypt in 1922.

 I love this book on Lady Almina of Downton Abbey.  She was the wife of Lord Carnovan the 5th and the daughter of a Rothschild.  She's the one who brought the money back into the family.  Almost like Lady Cora bringing her American wealth to the Grantham family.  This book is filled with pictures and historial facts about the real to life family who lives at Highclere Castle, the place where Downton Abbey is filmed.
 

As to my current knitting project, you can see that I have started knitting this trellis lace scarf.  Last spring I wrote about my visit to Churchmouse Yarns and Tea in Bainbridge Island, WA in this post.  Although I can't visit this store often, I am on their mailing list.  They had this pattern for the Trellis Lace Scarf in their Spring 2014 newsletter. I am using Rowan Fine Art fingering weight yarn.

I always try and add a link to the patterns I am making.  I'm not fond of paying for patterns; not because I don't want to support a fellow crafter, but because I'm always hesitant as to whether I can master the pattern without it getting me flustered....Anyway, here is the pattern for the above scarf.  So far, it has been a fun and easy project to work on.

Can you believe that Downton Abbey is into season 5?  I think I have watched it from episode 2 of season 1.  The Victorian era and Edwardian era are my favorite.  I enjoy reading historial novels set in this time period so when Downton Abbey appeared, it was immediately my favorite show.  Have you seen some of the "behind the scenes" specials they have aired?  Food and drink is such a big part of their lifestyle.

My dear daughter bought me this cookbook awhile back.  It's so much fun to "read" and cook from as the recipes are attached to Mrs. Patmore, Lady Grantham, etc.

And, you can't have food without drink......

Again, my daughter, Heidi, bought me this special Bordeaux from France.  It's a lovely wine.

Did you notice the unique knitting needles in the picture above.  They were a Christmas gift from my daughter.  They are made so well and a joy to knit with..... 

 I believe she purchased them on Etsy from this seller.  The size I'm using is size 9 and they are just the right weight - not too heavy and not too light and the points work well for fine yarn.

That's about all the news I have for now.  We have our sunshine back and the hills are a beautiful green color after the bit of rain we received.  I hope wherever you are that you are safe and warm this winter season.  Until next time...

my best to everyone,

Pat

P.S.  I'm linking up today at Planet Penny's Happy Friday
Please stop by and say "hello" to some wonderful, talented crafters!