November's Starting With a POP!

    November started with a POP!  Sunday afternoon we got in the car and headed to town, but the car made a strange noise...a combination slurp and burp.  With a shake and shutter.  We had just come out of the long driveway on to Smallsbush and it didn't stop.  Jeff pulled over and opened his door and found a flat tire.  He turned the car around and we went home.
   This morning, he replaced the flat tire with the spare...a donut...and we headed to town making it onto Rte 5 before 'the slurp and burp' started again.  I had the 'honor' of checking the tires on the passenger's side and found, yep, another flat tire.

   We were close to Skinner's so Jeff decided to stop there.  We were planning on 2 new tires, and it didn't really make much difference where we got them.  My 'Yarn Allowance' wasn't going to be used for yarn!!  We ordered the tires and bummed a ride home.  The car should be ready later today.  

   This is the first major expense the Hyundai has cost us.  Remember, it is a 2008 car with about 35,000 miles on it.  The tires looked good with little wear on the treds.  The problem is dry rot.  Jeff is a little concerned about the other 2 tires and the hoses but there is not much we can do about that. Just keep our fingers crossed, I guess. If any of them blow, let's hope they do it at home (when we're first starting out) or in town (near a service center) and not on the open highway!!

Eye-let Cowel

 So let's do this thing! First, cast on 162 stitches, place marker, and join in round. Then we'll knit the following set-up rows:

Set-up Rows 1 - 4: purl

Set-up Row 5: p80, place marker, purl until end of round

And once those are done, we'll move on to the main pattern, which is Simple Eyelet Pattern from page 168 of Barbara G. Walker's A Treasury of Knitting Patterns. And we'll proceed as follows:

Row 1: knit, slipping extra marker when you come to it

Row 2: knit until you reach first marker, m1r, slip marker, k1, m1l, knit until end of round

Row 3: * k6, yo, k2tog * until you're one stitch before first marker, k1, slip marker, k3, * yo, k2tog, k6; rep from * until you reach end of round

Row 4: knit until you reach first marker, m1r, slip marker, k1, m1l, knit until end of round

Row 5: knit, slipping extra marker when you come to it

Row 6: knit until you reach first marker, m1r, slip marker, k1, m1l, knit until end of round

Row 7: * k2, yo, k2tog, k4 * until you're three stitches before first marker, k3, slip marker, k5, * k4, yo, k2tog, k2 * until you reach end of round

Row 8 - 10: repeat rows 4 - 6

Row 11: * k6, yo, k2tog * until you're five stitches before first marker, k5, slip marker, k7, * yo, k2tog, k6; rep from * until you reach end of round

Rows 12 - 14: repeat rows 4 - 6

Row 15: * k2, yo, k2tog, k4 * until you're seven stitches before first marker, k2, yo, k2tog, k3, slip marker, k1, * k4, yo, k2tog, k2 * until you reach end of round

Row 16: knit until you reach first marker, m1r, slip marker, k1, m1l, knit until end of round

Knit rows 1 - 16 two times, and then knit rows 1 - 15 again (this piece would probably also look nice if you knit rows 1 - 16 three times, and you'd still have enough yarn to do it if you're using the same). Knit one final row around, removing extra marker when you do so. Then complete the final edging rows:

Edging Rows 1 - 5: purl

Once these are complete, bind off loosely and tuck in ends. Block, allowing purled edges to continue to curl under when you do so.

Sydney & Bear

 

This is Sydney and her new Bear.  

Josephine Morgan 1923-2024

    Yesterday Jeff and I attended the interment of my cousin's (JoJo Morgan) ashes at Calvery Cemetery in Herkimer. I met more cousins...the children of my cousin's children's that I had only known or seen photos of as children.

The service that they performed was touching and different. There were the usual prayers and memories, a report from my cousin from Beyond via a medium, and a favorite Christmas song (if you were in the area, yes, you heard the beautiful 'Tu Scendi Della Stella', a song that it's not Christmas at my house without!) A grandson had built a casket for her ashes and anything else anyone wanted to add, and it was almost too small after the teddy bear and Pooh bear were added. (The pre-dug grave for the box wasn't big enough and would have to be enlarged after the ceremony!)

The reception that followed was 'Italian' from the ziti and meatballs to the tray of cookies that didn't last long! The only thing missing was the bottle of homemade wine.

I was a bit sad as we drove home afterwards. I know that chances are I will never see most of those people again and I was sorry more of the family couldn't attend, especially those live within driving range. I guess I'm just getting old. Oh, well, that's life, huh?

old photos

 

JD and BJ...Toddlers!!(c.1952)

DATES TO REMEMBER

Philomena (Fanny) Terico: 4/28/1871-1/29/1957

Dad (Tony Terico):  7/4/1908-10/22/1993

Mary Braccini Molinaro: d 1/6/1995

John Osredkar:  4/28/1911-12/7/2009

Carol Fiala Paul:   1923-1999

Fran Fiore:  8/17/1921-6/11/1999

Pete Molinaro:  6/15/1918-4/7/2002

Frances Molinaro Osredkar:  11/26/1915-2/4/2009

Mom (Josie Molinaro Terico):  1/13/1914-10/17/2013

Thomas Paul:12/1953-3/15/2015

Phylis Mirgo:  7/7/1927-1/21/2016

Fran Davey:  5/2/1953-2/23/2019

Bill Mirgo:  7/19/1958-4/12/2023

JoJo Fiala Morgan:  1923-7/5/2024

The Bears are on Their Way to Cooperstown!

 

   The Bears are on their way to Cooperstown!  Finally!!           

   Josie was the first bear to 

be knit...last year...but it took all winter for her to be finally finished.  She spent a couple of months in the shop last year but didn't attach much

attention.  Today she was the last
one to be actually finished and dressed!  I was never able to get the hem of her dress to lay flat so I just decided to let it roll...that way you can see the pink bows on the edge of the lace on her bloomers! Her black slipper shoes have satin bows at the toes, too.  And she is wearing a headband with a pink rose.

       DeeDee was the second bear to get finished.  She ended up somewhat                  smaller that Josie...how I don't know...but the bloomers that 
were too big on Josie fit DeeDee perfectly!!  She is wearing a short summer dress with red MaryJane shoes and has a nosegay of flowers with a red butterfly sitting on her arm.

    

    TJ Bear is dressed for his favorite past-time:  Baseball!  He's wearing a Cubs uniform with

his favorite Hall of Famer's (Johnny Bench) number 

embroidered on the back of his shirt. He's even wearing red socks with is black BB

shoes and has white shoe laces!

  All three bears are hand-knit with 100% acrylic yarn and are filled with 100% poly-fill.  Their clothing is removable and is also hand-knit with 100% acrylic yarn and like the bears are machine wash and dryable.  The bears are double-joined (their arms and legs are button joined and then sewed to their bodies to make the joints extra secure) but they are not recommended for children under 3 years old because of the many pieces of embellishment used to decorate them.  Josie and TJ are15" tall while DeeDee is 14".  Because each bear is hand-knit and stuffed, no two will ever be exactly alike.  

   They are available at Cooper Country Crafts, 2 Doubleday Court, Cooperstown, NY (607-547-9247)