shawl weather

A Shaelyn shawl, rich and red, kept me cozy for an impromptu breakfast picnic with my boys. We sat on a bench and watched the leaves fall as we spooned yogurt straight from the carton, took giant bites of fresh baked bread topped with almond paste, and sipped hot coffee with milk. It was one of those moments I could just live in: the sun still rising, the air cool with morning dampness, the trees ruddy with fall, the three of us together.

All photos taken in Hunt Park, Ann Arbor, Michigan, where we last visited four years ago. I wouldn't at all mind making an annual fall pilgrimage to that bench.

here i am

I am back after some much-needed time away at the beach. I didn't knit a stitch during my vacation. Somehow between swimming, snorkeling, hiking, strolling, eating, reading, and lazing about, I just didn't get around to it.

I'm glad to be home now, snug in my little house as the air turns chilly outside. It was so good to come home to fall. I've pulled out my handknits and am ready to make comfort food. Tonight I made vanilla pudding, and I've got my eye on this sour cream apple pie. I can't wait until it's cold enough to have a fire. And now that the weather is cool, I'm ready to knit again. I've got a pair of mittens on my needles, and my Rocky Coast is calling to me again.

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I'm still sorting through our beach photos, but I'll show some here soon. You'll be amazed at how much Japanese food we ate while we were in Hawaii!

early spring hike

redbud

K and I recently took a weekend getaway. We holed up in a cabin in central Kentucky, read, knitted, played games, and watched college basketball. We planned to have some lazy, do-nothing days, but the weather was so warm that we couldn't help going for a short hike. We hiked to the top of Natural Bridge, which isn't too strenuous, but is rather steep. The views from the top make it worth it, though. We also saw plenty of early spring wildflowers. 

Virginia bluebells

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The time away from everyday life felt wonderful.  

Where do you go for a weekend getaway?

Maine in May

Seeing

{Portland Head Light}

Eating

{Red's Eats, Lobster Shack at Two Lights, Pie in the Sky Pizza, Bartley's Dockside}

Sleeping

{Manor House Inn, Bar Harbor}

Drinking

{Tea time at the Manor House, popovers at Jordan Pond House, coffee in Portland, The Great Lost Bear--a top ten U.S. beer bar}

Searching for treasures

{Kennebunk Beach}

Still searching

{Bar Harbor}

Balancing

{Jordan Pond trail, Acadia National Park}

Hiking

{View of Sand Beach from Ocean Path trail, Acadia}

Breathtaking

{The Bubbles, Acadia}

We adored our getaway to Maine. The days were cloudy and rainy at times, but the fog added a touch of mystery and the rain gave us an excuse to take it easy. We spent our time strolling and then ducking into warm places for tea or coffee. We had such a cozy trip. It was the first time we've ventured to the Northeast, but I know we'll be back to see what else the region holds.

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Where have you been lately? 

Or do you have any plans to travel soon?

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(As always, click on the images above to view them larger.)

Yarn along: balsam fir socks

Yarning along a day late this week

This week I've been working on my Balsam Fir socks, named after all of the lovely firs we found in Maine. Our hikes through moss and evergreens were permeated with the scent of fir and pine.  I worked on this sock on our vacation and still am only halfway through it. Progress is so slow with tiny yarn! I've also been distracted with books lately. This week I'm reading Radical Homemakers, and last week I read The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, which is a really fun mystery.

And because I didn't post last week, but was participating in the yarn along in spirit, here's what I would have posted if I had had computer access:

I've got a lovely pile of Chickadee yarn that I picked up at KnitWit in Portland. I've been admiring Quince yarns online, and once I saw some skeins in person I couldn't wait to knit something with it. Chickadee has a lot of bounce to it--I can't stop squeezing it. My yellow skeins are waiting to be knit into my very own Audrey in Unst cardigan. I won't let myself start on it until I finish my summer sweater, which is stalled at the moment because I misread the pattern. Still, I can't help dreaming of knitting more cardigans. Shalom and Estelle are calling my name, too. The more the merrier!

As far as books go, I've been craving suspense and mystery, so I picked up a quaint island page-turner by Karen MacInerney. It's been a fun read.

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What are you reading/making this week?

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green tea leaves cardigan

Last week K and I sneaked away for a vacation in Maine. It was cool and rainy the entire time we were there, but we managed to have fun in spite of the weather. We got in a couple of wet, foggy hikes in Acadia, which of course warranted lots of tea time to warm up afterward. It was my idea of a wonderful week. 

I took along my very first knitted sweater, which you may have glimpsed as it was coming into being. However, now that it is a full-fledged sweater, let me introduce you...

This is my green tea leaves cardigan. 

I am so proud to have made it. 

I can't help but look at my hands in disbelief and wonder, how did this happen? A pile of yarn is now a sweater; it's sooooo exciting! I have to thank my knitting teacher, Tonya, for helping me throughout the knitting process and for motivating me to make a sweater in the first place. I see lots of sweater-knitting in my future.

I wore my tea leaves cardigan as my jacket in Maine on city strolls and wooded hikes, while scouring outlet shops and hunting for sea glass. The wool stayed warm even as salt water spray and foggy droplets beaded up on it, and I felt amazing wearing it, knowing that my own cleverness and effort were being put to good, tangible use. 

click on photos to enlarge

I'll be writing more about our Maine adventures, my latest yarn endeavors, and our CSA (which starts today!) soon. I'll also be working on responding to comments and visiting your blogs. I've missed you!

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What's going on with you this week? 

Appreciating: Time Away

I'm taking a cue from my friend Fumiko and *appreciating* things that make me love life.


While I often post moments that I love, I want to think about how these moments connect. What threads run through my life that make me happy? 


I plan to continue this Appreciating series to reflect in the wake of the Japanese disaster. Feel free to join me by posting on your own blogs or leave a comment here!

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One thing I absolutely love is taking time away to escape the stresses of everyday life. Last weekend, Korey and I spent several days at a cabin near Natural Bridge and Red River Gorge.

We slept late, emerging from the loft bed only when the sun reached the high window and made us feel like bums for not being out to enjoy it. 

We breakfasted on granola, yogurt, and honey. Black coffee, too.

We realized too late that we do not own hiking gear. We didn't let that bother us. We hiked through mud and up steep trails to see amazing rock formations.

We acted goofy. We ate lots of pizza and drank Ale 8s and red wine.

We sat out on the deck each night after dinner knitting (me) and reading (K) to soak up the sun rays before they disappeared behind the mountains. We listened to bluegrass music on the radio and played cards and board games late into the night. I am a gin rummy fiend!

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Two, four, six, eight (sorry, couldn't help myself),

What do you appreciate?

weekend snippets: ann arbor

this weekend was fall break for me, so k and i took a little road trip to ann arbor. we visited my friend kristie, who happens to be from the same hometown as k. kristie and i have been friends for going on ten years. i usually only get to see her at christmas or when she happens to be passing through kentucky. this was the first time i'd ventured up north to see her in her natural habitat, and wow...she lives in such a beautiful place.

we stayed in the house where she lives, which is a kind of old-fashioned boarding house. blue bottles lined the windows. 

this large copper kettle sat on the antique stove, ready for making morning coffee.  

i hopscotched on the way to our adventures.

we visited a nearby park to see the beautiful trees. this photo is absolutely not retouched. those are the colors: burning orange, deep burgundy, clear blue, grass green. k and i sat on a bench taking it all in, then looked up to see...

are you ready to have your mind blown?

this couple with their new baby. what's so special about running into them? they lived in the same prefecture as us in japan! we hadn't seen or talked to jessica and dylan since we lived in japan two years ago, and then they just happened to be at the same park as us in michigan. how serendipitous! 

kristie showed us around downtown at night. i snapped pictures of neon lights.

k heard about "the best ramen shop in the midwest" so we headed out to matsu chan in canton, michigan with kristie and her friend catherine.  the noodle shop was a hit!

we also managed to swing by lake erie on our way back home. i dipped my toes in the cool lake water and crunched my way through the dry yellow leaves that dotted the sand.

* * *

it felt wondeful to get away from real life for a few days! i hope you had a great weekend, too. i realize we're already halfway through another week, but is there anything you're still savoring from last weekend? or something you're looking forward to this weekend?

Minneapolis in a Nutshell

Lucky us, we got to hang out in Minneapolis and St. Paul last week! K and I visited our best friend in Japan, Christine, who now lives back in her homestate of Minnesota. It was our first trip to the Twin Cities, but hopefully not our last. There are so many cool things to do and amazing places to eat there. I would definitely recommend a visit--it's easy to get around because it's very bike-friendly and has great public transportation, too. Thanks to Christine for showing us around!

(Click image to see larger version)

Top row, left to right: Spoonbridge and Cherry sculpture, dandelion fountain, Christine and lego Woody, the Mighty Mississippi, clever revision of a street sign.


Middle row: Playing in the water at Minnehaha park, Candyland, cue the sad Peanuts music, Minneapolis skyline, Punch pizza.


Bottom row: Taffy-mouthed twins Mary and Christine, shopping at the Mall of America, Mary's hat toss, Minnehaha Falls, Dinkytown.

Signs of the Weekend

K took me on a little birthday day trip to Bardstown, Kentucky (home of My Old Kentucky Home) this weekend. We drove less than 40 miles outside of the city, but it felt worlds away.

We passed this intriguing flea market, though we didn't stop this time. I have a feeling this place is over-hyping itself just a tad, you think? Has anybody local been there? I'm curious about it.

We also passed several bourbon distilleries, including Jim Beam. Fun fact: My grandfather on my dad's side was related to Jim Beam. Another fun fact: My family favors Maker's Mark, and K really likes Wild Turkey. I was a bourbon drinker for about a year, but I'm retired from hard liquor now.

This is a dry cleaner's sign in Bardstown. It's kind of clever, kind of creepy.

Food highlights were fried dill pickle chips at the Old Talbott Tavern and ice cream from Banana Moon. The ice cream shop reminded me of the apartment from Big--it had high ceilings and contained all sorts of things kids daydream about having, like lots of monkeys, bicycles, life-size cardboard cutouts of Elvis, a giant plush Superman, and tons of ice cream.  The sundae was K's; I had the biggest chocolate malt the world has ever seen.

I hope your weekend was wonderful! Have a great last week of January!
(is it just me or is this year already flying by?)