I finally finished those Deborah Norville Serenity socks. For some reason these just dragged on and on, but they are done at last. This is the color 'Sapphire'. I liked the feel of this yarn, but I guess my knitting mojo has been gone for a long while now and I had to force myself to finish these up. I think I am just soooo tired of knitting socks from the top to the toe, so I am going to get started right away on a toe-up pair. I have both Wendy Knits books so I just have to choose a pattern and get started.I have been busy with the harvesting and putting by for the winter. So far I have made pickle relish, jams, applesauce, and hot pepper jellies. The garden did, and is still doing, great this year:
A forest of volunteer zinnias came up in the middle of one garden patch, hiding the beets and carrots, but I just left them there. The butterflies love our yard and so far we've seen tiger swallowtails, monarchs, and of course, those blasted white cabbage butterflies. We planted extra this year because it is such a bad economy, and our daughter was out of work, and other family members were feeling the pinch. The good news is that our daughter found another job, as did my nephew and his wife, so we are feeling very thankful. I wasn't sure how those hot pepper jellies would taste since I tried some new varieties, but I took several jars to my brother's birthday party last Saturday, served them over cream cheese in the usual way with crackers, and since there were only empty serving plates left in a short time, I would have to say they were acceptable. I made regular green hot pepper jelly, apricot/cranberry/jalapeno jello, and pineapple jalapeno jelly.Here's an August view of 'The Back Forty' which has changed quite a bit since last month. There are very many winter squashes hiding under those leaves. It's amazing how much you can grow in a small suburban yard.
I know that most of the eastern and middle portions of the country are having a blazing hot summer, but here in the west we had a mild summer with only a few patches of really hot weather. Most of the time the nights have been nice and cool. We got a really late start on the yardwork this year because we had to go back to the Midwest in May for my inlaw's anniversary party, so that set us back weeks (though it was well worth it). I was surprised how fast the garden got with the program and started producing. Makes me wonder if the effort of trying to start the seeds in the cold spring is necessary.
Right after we got back from the trip, I found a new stash of vintage knitting pamphlets, so I'll have to get started again with Retro Knit Friday. Just not today.
