Saturday's Ten Random Things

Hello friends, It's Saturday morning here and I just read Janet's blog and her take on Ten Random Things who got the idea from Amy over at Love Made My Home.    So, here are mine . . .

#1 I have enjoyed the weather this week with the cloud cover.  My plants enjoy it too.  This lovely trailing plant is growing over the wall from the neighbor's garden.  The neighbors are having a party tonight supposedly with music.  Too bad they didn't invite us :(

#2 Lilly has to be in the center of everything!  She's a curious kitty but so loved.

#3 Thursday night my dear husband and I headed off to the beach to have dinner at our favorite restaurant.  But, there was NO parking anywhere to be found.  We decided to go back home via Pacific Coast Highway and found a new lovely restaurant on the harbor.  It was a fun evening after all!

#4 I am addicted to making my Sophie's Blanket and also to my teacup/tea collection.  Here's the new teacup I just had to have.  It's Wild Strawberries by Wedgewood.  I originally saw this pattern on the Japanese TV show I watch "At Home with Venetia in Kyoto".  Venetia is from England and has the most lovely collection of different china.  The tea is Fortmason from Fortnum and Mason.  A lovely black tea scented with orange.

#5 My children are off camping this weekend.  I love how scenic this campsite is although I don't now exactly where they are.

#6 My daughter ordered some new Tory Burch flats and asked if I wanted a pair.  I liked these gold ones but for some reason, they really don't fit my feet.  Having a bunion doesn't help either!

#7 I did my grandma duty this week of babysitting.  They soon will be turning 8 and 2!  Time goes by so fast.  I'm lucky that I'm just a few minutes down the road from where they live.

#8  I really have enjoyed the cloud cover these past few days.  I'm not a fan or sunny, blue skies!  The sun kills me (although the UV rays are just as bad with clouds).  We're having some monsoon moisture coming our way which is a bit unusual for us down here in SoCal.

#9 My "to do project" which will be a DIY.  I bought these handmade Mexican tiles last month in San Diego.  I'm going to apply them to the wall where the outside bar-b-que area is.  I don't have enough so these will be intermixed along with some large, plain tiles.  Question is; when will I get this done?

 

#10 We found a new coffee place.  I'm not a fan of Starbucks (sorry but the inside of their messy stores upsets my OCD).  But, there is a little lane of old houses in San Juan Capistrano and one of them has the cutest coffee shop with beans roasted onsite.  You can sit outside in their garden under the trees and savor your cup of coffee!  Heavenly.

That's is for me.  I hope your weekend is off to a great start wherever you are!

With my best wishes,

Pat

I'm so Excited . . . and I just Can't Hide it . . .

Hello my dear friends.  I'm back again to share with you something that has taken over my life!  It's Sophie's Universe.  A beautiful crocheted blanket that was designed by the very talented Dedri Uys.  Dedri started this pattern back in 2015 as a CAL that ran for a total of 20 weeks. The pattern is still available on her blog.  It seems as though I'm always behind in joining in with these fun activities.

 

I discovered this amazing pattern from my friend Kate, who recently finished her beautiful blanket.  Since I didn't want to download/print the pattern, I decided to order the book online from Wool Warehouse and it's the best money I've ever spent on a pattern.  

I had sixteen skeins of Stylecraft DK yarn that I had purchase and started to use to make a ripple blanket.  As you can see from the photo above, the colors were not "happening".  This project had sat in my craft closet for over a year unfinished.

I had wanted to mimic the coast ripple blanket I had made from Lucy and Attic 24.  Lucy is such an amazing, talented fiber arts artist.  Her sense of color combinations are unlike anything I've ever seen.  I had a great time making the coast blanket but unfortunately, when I tried to make my own interpretation of this blanket, I was bored stiff with the dull colors and repeats.

Voila!  That all changed when I received my Sophie's Universe pattern book.  My colors are now starting to come together (I think).  It might look very dark right now, but there's going to be a lot of creamy white borders around this blanket as it grows up.  I'm hoping it will measure 70" x 70" when I'm all done with it.

There are over 5,000 people on Ravelry doing this project!  Wow, that's a lot of yarn.  If you are new to crochet (I've been crocheting for 41 years), don't be worried about the complexity of this project.  The book is designed as follows:  each page of the book contains one row of the pattern along with detailed instructions and very detailed photos.  Dedri shows you exactly what your stitches should look like.  And, best of all, the color scheme can be whatever suits you.  And, you weave end the yarn ends as you go along so when you are all done, you are completely finished; no more yarn ends to deal with!

I hope you have enjoyed seeing my latest obsession!  Please feel free to share what you've been up to this week.  And, thank you again for visiting Lilly My Cat.

Best wishes,

Pat

Five of my Favorite Blog Friends for Five on Friday!

Greetings my readers.  I hope your week is going well.  All is fine here in SoCal although summer's heat has officially made its appearance!  I've been so behind in joining in with Five on Friday.  Today I'm going to share with you some friends I've met through blogging. . .

First up is Teresa Kasner who lives in Oregon.  Although I've never met Teresa, I love reading and following her blog.  She's an expert at crochet and shares such wonderful patterns.  And, the photos she shares of her area are breathtaking.  She lives in a lovely home tucked away in such a beautiful setting and her garden area is a perfect oasis.

Second is Gracie at One Saylor's Log and Gracie too lives in Oregon. In fact, she's good friends with Teresa above!  Gracie loves to paint, crochet, travel and share her beautiful family activities with her readers.  Last year, I sent Gracie some tea from Turkey as I know she loves tea, and she sent me this beautiful handmade card and bookmark that she had made.   

Number three is Karen at Beatrice Euphemie.  Karen lives in my home state of Washington and is such a talented lady and has a special talent for decorating.  She shares her handmade creations (like the little basket and heart she made for me pictured above), recipes, family, garden and the beautiful photos of the lovely area where she lives.  We both say that it's too bad we didn't meet before I moved to California, as I lived not too far from her when I was in Gig Harbor.

At number four is Christine, the author or Writing From Scotland.  Christine, who is originally from Oregon, writes about her life in Scotland.  I find it so fascinating to learn more about this beautiful country where she resides.  And, she is an expert knitter, creating such intricate, beautiful creations.  I "met" Christine when I asked her to translate some antique French postcards that I had been given as a gift.  

Last up is Heidi from Heidi Wanders the World, a new and exciting blog.  All you need to do is click on the link and immediately you will see the delightful tone of this blog.  Heidi shares her fashion favorites, along with some great bargain shopping and most of all, her amazing travels around the world with her family. (whew, I hope this is OK Heidi?  For those who don't know, Heidi is my delightful and much loved daughter!)

From the five people listed above, I only "know in person" Heidi but I feel as though I truly know and consider the others as my dear friends.  This past month, we were called away to Washington State and I had wanted to visit Teresa, Gracie and Karen.  But, that didn't happen as we were short on time and had to fly instead of drive :(

I'll be back again soon with another five of my favorite blog friends.  I really enjoy reading these blogs and learning so much and being inspired too, versus writing my own blog these days.  Thank you for visiting with Lilly My Cat (Lilly sends you her meows).

With my best wishes,

Pat

 Linking to:

Five on Friday

 

It's HOT Here!

How I wish I could be more spontaneous and write a daily post to my blog!  For me, it's not the writing that's difficult, it's sharing some random thought or idea with my readers.  I'll give it a try. . .

We are really in the midst of a heatwave here in SoCal!  Temps reached 102 degrees and that's too hot for me.  My husband's brother and his family from Delaware visited last week with us and of course we took them to the beach.  It was lovely to see the clouds in the sky as the weatherman was predicting rain.  But, no rain appeared.

Lilly is taking the heat in stride.  She can easily find a cool place for her to "rest".  I can't believe that we've had this little cat for over ten years!

Usually as soon as the sun sets, it cools off.  But, this week the heat has kept up with highs in the 70's even in the evening.  Last night we sat out by the pool and I turned on my fairy lights.  It was so nice sitting and feeling the little breeze.

Of course, I had my knitting/crochet basket next to me until it became so dark I couldn't see.  I was inspired to make this little bag after seeing something similar on Etsy.  I just made up the pattern as I went along.  It's made with leftover cotton yarn and will be for a dear friend who loves owls.

 

 My children have been busy exploring the world this summer.  My daughter and son-in-law and grandchildren attended a swanky wedding in England (West Midlands).

 Before reaching England, they toured Romania for a week on their own in a rented car.  The photos she shared were amazing.  I want to go to Romania!

And, my son has been busy working in Georgia (the country) and enjoying the sights of that beautiful area.

I feel as though I haven't really cooked in my kitchen for a week.  When our guests were here last week, we were invited out for a couple of dinners and took them out a time or two.  Today, my husband is insisting on taking me to the beach for dinner.  I'm not going to complain!  Our home has air conditioning but after awhile, it becomes unbearable to sit inside all the time!  I'll be so happy when this heat wave is over.

That's whats been happening in my part of the world.  I'd love to hear what you've been up to this summer.

With my best wishes,

Pat

Going Back Home

I've ignored my blog for awhile.  I thought I would share some photos of my "home".  This past week we traveled to my home state of Washington to attend a funeral of our long time friend.  It was bittersweet and yet, we saw many friends (who are really like our family) and that was a joy.

I lived here on the lake in Moses Lake for 22 years.  This view is from my friend's home which was just a house away from where I lived.  The sunset was stunning to say the least.  Moses Lake is in Eastern Washington, right off Interstate 90.  It's a huge agricultural area since the Grand Coulee Dam was built in the last century which brought much needed water to the area.

This was taken at Rye Grass which is on Interstate 90 just after we crossed over the Columbia River.  It's the highest spot in this area hence the glimpse of majestic Mount Rainier in the background.  After you cross the Columbia River at Vantage, there is a sign warning you to "turn off your air conditioner" as the climb up to this point along with hot weather can cause havoc to your car's temperature.  

Going West from Moses Lake, we stopped in my hometown of Ellensburg which is right in the center of the state and home to Central Washington University.  This is a photo of Hebler Hall and when I lived here it was known as Hebler Elementary. I attended this school in 6th Grade.  It had a lovely entrance with curved staircase, fountain and a real library with wood paneled walls!

Here's the home I lived in with my parents when we moved back to Ellensburg in 1965.  It's changed a bit of course.  Just at the end of the block, across the street was Hebler school, a short walk to school.


 This home belonged to Mrs. Taylor, the widow of Dr. Taylor who established a medical clinic in Ellensburg.  It was directly across the street from where we lived.  You can't see it in this photo but this home is three stories high.  I was in sixth grade when I was lucky enough to go inside and tour this stately home.  It reminded me of a Gone With the Wind home.  It's funny,but to this day my style was established due to seeing this home when I was 12 years old!

This is a photo of the home my grandparents lived in after they moved to town from the farm.  Sorry for the bad photo as it was taken through my car windshield.

These home are on a tree lined street.  I was so happy when I saw that this neighborhood still retained it's original look and style.  I love trees!

Down the street from my grandparents home lived my piano teacher, Mrs. Hertz.  This is how her home looks now.  It reminds of Cape Cod style with the siding.  I would love to buy this home as it has such memories of when I would go each week for my lesson.

Downtown Ellensburg has become quite historic looking with many of the buildings being restored to their original design.  I love this advertisement on the side of the building.  I believe it's a horse maybe advertising the well known Ellensburg Rodeo.

It was soon time to head back onto Interstate 90 going west to Seattle where we were going to catch our flight to return to SoCal.  This is a scene that is dear to my heart as it is Thorp where I lived with my parents during my high school years.

Snoqualmie Pass is the highest point of Interstate 90 as the road goes over the Cascade Mountain range.  It can be treacherous during the winter months.  They are in the process of widening the roadway but the scenery was still amazing.

We had planned on driving to Washington from SoCal but we didn't have time to make the drive (it takes two days each way) since we had guests arriving.  It was such a good feeling to go back to my roots and see my hometown where I grew up and the city where I moved after getting married.  And, although it was a sad time, I was blessed to visit with my dear friends.

I hope you have enjoyed these photos from my part of the world.  I'm back home in SoCal where the weather is delightful for the next couple of days.  I hope wherever you are, you have a joyous Fourth of July and stay safe.

With my best wishes,

Pat