Knitting through the playoffs…

Warning:  Football ahead.

Superbowl XLVI is on its way to our big city.  Every day for the past year, the first thing that pops out when I open the paper is the 3×4 box in the top left corner, “365… 311… 299… 263.. days until the Superbowl.”  Yes, I’ve grumbled  more than once about how far away it seemed for them to be making such a big deal about it.  Todays number? Eleven.  Eleven days left.  And it seems the chaos has already begun.

With my team out of the running, I called Giants in week 14 of the regular season.  It was my consolation move… my last-ditch hope of hearing the words, Manning, quarterback, and Superbowl all in the same sentence.

And here we are… Giants v. Patriots.  Even if the Giants were out, my pick would have been anyone but the Patriots.  I think my husband has poisoned me against them.

My offensive game plan?  The very same  play that got me through the playoff games.

Remember these players? (I’ll apologize in advance for the following commentary… )

The Kickoff…

A brief timeout in the first quarter for some refreshments and a pep talk.

This formation is one of my favorites.  Some very simple, easily worked maneuvers and here’s how it looks at half-time.  Excellent drive.  Flawless execution.

No matter the successes in the first half, be on the lookout for game changers during the last half…

I’ve failed to keep my eye on the  play and fumbled the ball, dropped some stitches… even had the disappointment of coming up a few yards short of where I needed to be.

It’s important to get back in the game right away… back to the line of scrimmage… patch in a new play… keep pushing ahead… yard by yard…

into the end zone for the points!

But then, sometimes there’s overtime…

If a man watches three football games in a row, he should be declared legally dead.

~Erma Bombeck

I’m not sure how that plays out for a girl… I’ve checked my pulse and I’m still alive.  But, yes, all six playoff games are represented here.  Not bad for something I consider only a diversion, a distraction, a hobby.

Football, I mean.

Knitting dish cloths?  That’s Super Ball material!

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I’m still waiting for the dust to settle for our home team.  New manager, a new coach announced today, quite likely a new quarterback next season.  As much as I’ll miss the familiar faces and strategies (I’m reserving my Peyton Manning tears for an official announcement), I’m looking forward to seeing what this new era will mean for the Colts.  It will be the first time since I’ve become a football fan that I get to watch the process from the beginning.

Meanwhile, Go Eli and the Giants!  Your sideline kNFL quarterback will be stitching all the way, and needling the Patriots every chance I get.

Not Much

What’s going on around here?

How much snow will we get?

How often do I see this guy in the woods behind our house?

Is there anything in my feeble brain to write about this morning?

 

Need the answers to these questions?  Just read the title of the post again.

Meanwhile… I’m off to brew another cup of coffee, snuggle under the blanket, knit or knot, finish reading Sarah’s Key, start listening to my newest PlayAway from the library, mess with pictures, eat some chocolate, sew another pillow, throw in a load of laundry, wonder what’s for supper, wonder why none of my kids call it supper anymore, and maybe, if the mood strikes me just right, do an exercise video on Netflix.

I posted this on facebook today already but yes… this is my strategy for January…

… not much.

Building another Bed

After yesterday’s post I remembered a handmade project I hadn’t shared yet… a bunk bed I built from another of Ana White’s free plans.

I’ve built two of these. I sold one for enough to pay for materials only and gave the other to a sweet little girl I know.  There is absolutely no way (for me) to charge enough money to make up the time involved in putting these together especially when you add in the mattresses and bedding.   They are fun to make, though and so cute when they are done… I will continue to make them as gifts.

It’s hard to believe it’s been two years since I stumbled onto Ana’s page and something that seemed so impossible before became entirely possible with her simple instructions.  I’m still building with hammer and nails/power driver and screws/10″ miter saw and Skil saw so I’ve invested very little into actual tools.  Many of the plans utilize the Kreg Jig… do any of you have it and does it really make a huge difference in your building projects?  I keep debating about whether to spring for it or to keep doing what I’m doing.

So many plans… what shall I build next?

Handmade January

It’s looking like winter outside… our pool doesn’t seem nearly so inviting as it did in July.

Since it’s finally winter and I enjoy sitting around under a warm blanket and doing something pointless, I signed up for a handmade challenge on facebook.  I promised to make something with my own two hands for five friends before the year is up and I get to look forward to a handmade gift in my own mailbox, too.  And as I think of my promise, I remember how easily my handmade projects can turn into homemade messes.

I don’t know why store-bought appealed to me so much when I was younger but it did… perhaps because we had lots of handmade things because my parents often improvised ways to stretch their resources by adding a little of their own efforts.  I didn’t appreciate that nearly as much as I should have back then.  I do now.  I love to receive something someone has put their creativity and talent into.  Something that can’t be purchased.  Something made with hands.

My niece poured a bit of herself into this sweet cup that I enjoy my tea in often.  And the little saucer in the background, too… I love them. I love thinking of her every time I use them.

We had the knitting and crochet out while they were visiting over Christmas holidays… she had a colorful beanie going for herself and a bright scarf for a friend.  Both were looking really cute by the time she left.

I crocheted a hat, too, over a couple of days… but mine turned out too big, too loose, too everything.

My kids think it would be fine if I owned a beautiful black afro instead of mousy graying flat dishwater blonde hair.  Trust me… if you saw the back, you would agree.   So I’ll have to settle for this fleece headband I stitched together in five minutes and try again on the crocheted hat.  The mittens that I tried to make to go with the headband?  We won’t even talk about the shapeless blobs those turned into.

As for the challenge, I’m still not entirely sure what will end up in the packages.  Hopefully a couple of little things.  And hopefully they’ll be worthy of the “handmade” label, instead of the homemade horror that some of my projects have turned into.  While my artistic overly ambitious self wants to make lovely ceramic cups for each of them, my frugal self is telling me that won’t be happening.  And my easily bogged down with details self is telling me to keep it simple or it won’t happen at all.

I’ve had fairly good luck in the past knitting useful cotton dishcloths… Maybe I’ll see what I can do with these.

Something tells me my friends won’t want floppy red hats.

Pieces of my New Year

This sky, like a puzzle, fitted itself into my New Year’s Day afternoon, from east to west, and as far south as my eyes could see… and then, as if returning to its cardboard box to save for another day, it disappeared as quickly as it came.

So far, in the first week of the new year, we’ve had some very lovely weather to play around in… temperatures in the 40′s and 50′s…  the forecast for the next ten days doesn’t suggest too much different.  There are still a few bits of lettuce growing in the garden alongside the green onions.  Some buds on trees and spring flowers poking up their heads worry me just a little, but I guess Mother Nature has her way of dealing with wily weather.

I’ve made my Grandma Ruth’s Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas twice since the clock struck 2012.

Rich, creamy, a bit of zip…  we all love this dish.

Chicken Enchiladas.  Serves 6.

(I doubled the recipe in the photos…)

Boil 2-3 c. chicken in 5 c. water for 30-40 minutes, shred. Saute 1 c. onion, 1/2 c. green chilies and shredded chicken in 2 t. butter.  When onions are completely tender, spoon mixture into 8-10 taco size flour tortillas; roll up and place into 9×13 pan.

Make a white sauce with 3 T. butter, 1/2 c. flour, 2 1/2 c. chicken broth and 3/4 t. salt.  Whisk while cooking until smooth.  Stir in 1 c. sour cream until completely blended and pour sauce over rolled up tortillas.

Sprinkle with 1 1/2 c. shredded monterey jack cheese.  Garnish with sliced jalapenos if desired.

Bake at 350* for 30 minutes.

Smile and think of grandma with every bite.  She died in 2002… 10 years ago this year.  I’ve always believed she was ahead of her time with this recipe.

I found playaways at the library and am hooked.  The first one I chose to listen to was My Sister’s Keeper. I had seen the movie so thought I knew what I was getting into but I almost threw the thing when the ending went awry.   I’m still reading The Help, too, in the conventional method, page by page, and appreciating the richer details that a movie can’t begin to encompass.

I’ve loved having all three kids around for the past three weeks… with their cousins and friends hanging out, playing games together they no longer play with us, almost adults one moment, still kids the next.  I cherish this time… I know I’ll miss it.  Too soon.

Seven days into the New Year and I haven’t even thought about resolutions.  I think that’s a good thing.  As the pieces of the year come together, stretch out across the landscape of time and opportunity, I hope I’ll covet peace, cherish love, crave enrichment and capture the hope each new day offers before they slip away into memory like cloud puffs, dissolving into a pale gray January sky.

Peace to you in your new year.

The best thirty minutes…

I’m slow at getting a new post up here… my apologies. Our Thanksgiving was lovely, with family and friends and food. I spent a few hours getting things ready, all worth the time. Hands down, the best thirty minutes of preparations was spent loading old photos onto our new hard drive and setting it as the screen saver. Thirty minutes provided hours of entertainment… and when the new drive crashed just days later, I had to do it all over again.

We’re still enjoying it and we added a few new ones to look at, too.

Happy holidays to all and I’ll see you in the new year.  2012… What kind of memories will it hold?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thou hast given so much to me,
Give one thing more, – a grateful heart;
Not thankful when it pleaseth me,
As if Thy blessings had spare days,
But such a heart whose pulse may be Thy praise.
~George Herbert