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About Queen Bee Knits

Living in Maine, knitting, baking and loving my family. Please be kind!

Hypocrisy?

So, this guy got pretty puffed up about the commentator at the Republican Primary debate’s question about his ex-wife.

As much as I, too, don’t think it’s responsible journalism to start a presidential debate with such a question … I find it a bit hypocritical that a man who has had multiple wives, and who appears to have made some rather outrageous (just sayin’) suggestions within at least one of those marriages would believe that he can write laws about who can marry whom … or anything else for that matter. I believe that the President of the United States should be held to a higher moral calling. Overlapping a marriage and another sexual relationship does not fit that bill.

Gone political … now I’m going to knit.

 

 

 

Finished!

I have finished a few projects and wanted to show them to you!

I finished two hats – one for my son, and one for my shop. The son  one is from a pattern that he found and you, too, can find it if you click here. What I like about Staci’s patterns and site is that she includes tutorials that you can click through to and follow. They’re lovely – and my son needed to have just that hat! (And he loves it … and promises a photo when he gets his phone fixed!) For now, however, here’s a photo that I took of the hat. My son picked the colors!

A Hat for my Boy!

I made another hat from the leftover yarn from my boy’s hat. So, the colors are the same (duh!) I switched up the pattern but kept the ear flap style. It’s likely that I’ll send it to one of his roommates because he reported that they all wanted one! If not, it will be in my shop. Click here for complimentary transportation to Esty (dot) com!

I have also finished a “Boyfriend” sweater for my friend Harriet’s 4-legged fur family. My little guy tried it on and it fit him. I have heard that Harriet’s little dogs are a bit pudgy – too many treats? – so, we’ll try it on one of them and we’ll get another one done for the second little darling. I’m making them just like my little dog’s sweaters because I love them! Harriet will, too!

Lovers’ Mitten – Great Valentine’s Day gift!

I’ve finished a “Lovers’ Mitten” to add to my Etsy shop. It’s Valentine’s Day red. Hope it (and it’s pink sister shown here) will sell this month … and I have yarn to make one or two more! They’re a little bit kitchy but they’re fun. And if it’s cold where you are, think about it – you can walk down the street with the person you love and hold hands without them being frozen stiff at the end of your walk!

I’ve also finished a pair of fingerless mittens intended to be a gift but then I realized they were going to be a duplicate gift so they’ll go into my shop. I think. Or I’ll save them for my … well, if I tell you about it, then the cat is out of the bag, so to speak. Let’s move on!

On the needles …

One almost finished pair of wool and silk fingerless mittens for my shop – they’ll be done very soon.

One half-finished black sock for my son. He’s the one who said he didn’t want me knitting him sock but this will be the third pair that I’ve knitted for him … the second that he specially requested. Ha! I knew he’d love them … who wouldn’t!?

I have 2 of my swatches from the class that I’m taking from the Knitting Guild Association finished. I’m working my way through their process with the goal of becoming a certified Master Knitter. It’s quite prestigious – but I think I can do it. The only part that makes me squishy is thinking about designing a human garment! Yikes! But I do have an idea – my sister Abbie has this really cool, unstructured sweater that I’d like to use as my inspiration.

I have a pattern for another pair of fingerless mittens sitting on my work table in my Atelier. I bought some really pretty red- and another lovely teal-colored yarn and will be making one pair as a gift for a super special friend and another for me.

I also want to make myself a tea cozy. Have you ever seen the book and patterns by Loani Pryor? She’s the Queen of the Tea Cozies! Visit her website/blog by clicking here. She offers a couple of free patterns on her site. I will likely try one of them but also really covet her book(s)! On my Amazon (dot) come wish list! I’m drinking tea daily and am wrapping my tea pot with a towel to keep it warm in the morning. I’ll also be making a tea cozy as a Christmas gift. Trying to think ahead!

Goodness, I’ve gone on … time to hit the hay so I can photograph the finished objects tomorrow and get some more knitting done!

Gone sleeping!

 

Jam! That’s Good!

Yesterday we went strawberry picking. (Yes, it’s the season here in Central Florida. Sorry all you Yanks!) We picked a bit more that twelve pounds of berries and at $2.50 per pound, they’re quite a bargain!

Pappy’s Fresh Florida Strawberries

And today, I made a little bit of jam … and used about half of what we picked to make ten jars of jam (and a little extra for our fridge for tomorrow morning!)

The process of making jam is a very simple one. I washed and chopped the berries (more than eight cups chopped) last night. They’re so sweet and the refrigerator smelled fabulous when I opened it for my milk this morning! This morning I got the jam put together – it’s simple!

Combine the following ingredients in a large pot on the stove

4 cups chopped or mashed berries (you can use any kind! I used strawberries and mashed them well)

4 cups sugar

1/4 cup lemon juice (I didn’t have fresh but that would be my first choice!)

Over low heat, mix ingredients until sugar has dissolved. Raise heat to bring jam mixture to a rolling boil (stirring constantly) until, using a candy thermometer, temperature reaches 220 degrees.

For the details of the process, please click here to go to the recipe that I use. And click here for good directions about processing your jam (so it won’t get all yucky in your pantry and make you sick when you eat it in six months!)

I don’t worry too much about skimming foam or anything fancy. I also don’t use any pectin because I can’t decide whether it’s gluten free (or not). So, the fewer ingredients, the better. This jam has been a fool-proof treat in my house for years and it never fails. And when the berries are sweet and at the height of their season, all the better! Nothing like it in the stores – even the berries had about ten times more flavor than the ones in the supermarket!

In season, fresh, local … can’t get much better than that! And the process is so centering. I feel more balanced, calm (well, mostly calm) and it’s a great feeling to make something like jam from fresh, local ingredients. We’ll enjoy it for months to come!

Gone knitting!

Memories and Peace

Whenever I hear this song, I’ll remember Diane. She was my neighbor and friend. She called me to ask me for help with caring for her children. I couldn’t help her when she really needed help. I know it wasn’t my fault, it wasn’t my rules, I tried my best. I simply couldn’t provide an au pair for her children when we all knew she was leaving our world for a better place, leaving her children to grieve her loss, open and raw. The program regulations do that to protect the au pairs. I still felt helpless.

It’s funny how songs reminds us of something and can have such powerful, nearly physical memories attached to them. This version is only slightly different from the original but still invokes strong memories for me. Diane’s in the arms of the angels and her family soldiers on. They moved away and, last I heard, they were moving on; Jim was remarried and the kids were doing well. Tyler and Samantha. I’ve not heard from them for a long while. I don’t expect I will again but I still think about them and Diane every time this song is played.

My loss is not like theirs but my life, too, was forever changed in 2007. Everything I ever believed was called into question. It’s been four years and a half and I’m still working to make sense of a re-ordered world. A world that is strangely unsafe and only somewhat familiar. Without choice, I’ve been soldiering on, like Diane’s family. I do pretty well most days and am grateful for friends and family who have faith in me when I loose faith in myself. I know I have angels in my life who are watching over me (as Diane, no doubt, is watching over her family) and hope this path will dump me out into a sunshine-filled field where I can find safety, comfort, happiness and peace.

Gone knitting.

Looking at the Open Door

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m ready to start a new life. Not really a new, new life. Just a new one. While I know that this is somewhat confusing to all of you, I know exactly what I’m talking about. I am ready to stop revisiting the old stuff. I’m ready to forgive and forget and move on. I want to be surrounded in positive, healthy and forward-looking.

What’s done is done. My old life is old. It will never be the same again. I can’t go back there. My life has been forever changed by this divorce and everything that I believed to be true was proved false by a cheating (now ex-) husband. But he didn’t just lie to me and our kids; he lied to himself and he has to live with that for the rest of his life. I can forgive him and move on knowing that I did everything I could to make our marriage work. I did everything I could to make the process of separating and divorcing be fair and kind. I hoped to be able to have a friendship (of sorts) because we will forever be connected by our children. He doesn’t know how to play fair and won’t take responsibility for his behavior then or now and, again, he will have to live with the consequences of his choices.

I am working to be forward thinking. Today. Tomorrow. And for each day thereafter. I am so fortunate to have a roof over my head and food in my belly. I have three healthy kids and two darling puppies, wonderful siblings, friends, and a man who loves me. I’m counting my blessings even as my ex is trying to undermine my positive attitude. He sucked me back into his whirling dervish tornado of abuse and sick thinking for a brief time today and I allowed it. But I’m back on track tonight and next time (if there is one) I will do even better at keeping my pledge.

I have a good feeling about 2012! I’ve turned around and I’m looking at the open door!

Gone knitting (after a bit of sleep!)

“Au Revior” Allergies

Yucky Dust Mites

Anybody who knows me knows that I have this annoying (yes, it’s even annoying to me!) allergic cough. I’ve had it for years. YEARS! I’ve done everything known to man – x-rays of my sinuses, allergy shots, doctor visits galore – and all with no result … well, no positive result, anyway!

I just read a great article in Natural Home and Garden Magazine about getting rid of allergens in your house. I thought I should share them with you here!

1) We track in most chemicals on our feet and our fur-family drag in yucky stuff on their little feet. With that in mind, vacuum frequently (um, I’m making no promises on this one) with your windows open while you vacuum and for 30 minutes after. If you have pets or carpets, this is especially important: Use a HEPA vacuum. There are also HEPA air cleaners and if your budget allows, this is recommended. The best ones have carbon for chemical filtering. You might also consider leaving your shoes at the door and wiping your pet’s feet every time you go into your home.

2) Moisture makes your home a really lovely place to live for mold and other allergens. Run exhaust fans when cooking or bathing (and for 30 minutes after bathing) to get all the extra moisture out of the air. It’s really important that your exhaust fans vent to the outside … otherwise your air is recirculating. If it’s not humid and you can open your windows, do so!

Also, check outside drainage – water should be directed away from foundations – and when you have carpets cleaned, use chemical-free cleaning methods that require the least water.  Only clean carpets when outside air is dry and you can open windows. (Or get rid of your carpets … hard surface floors are nearly a prescription “cure” for allergies!)

3) Dust mites are horrible creatures. Before you make your bed, pull back the covers and air the bedding. Wash sheets weekly in hot water. New sheets and bedding are coming out that are made with chemical-free, organic wool which is naturally mite-resistant. use mattress and pillow covers woven to at least 4.91 microns. Make sure your bedding is free of PVC and antimicrobial, stain- or wrinkle-resistant treatments.

4) If you have seasonal pollen allergies, sorry, you can’t do this next tip – open your windows! Fresh air and sunlight are free remedies for particulates, mites, moisture and chemicals. For faster action, turn on exhaust fans (exhausted outside of course) at the same time.

Thanks to Mary Cordaro Inc who wrote this article.

 

 

New Year, New Promise

I love being the Queen Bee, don’t get me wrong. Unless this business picks up really quickly and I find a way to be self-supporting lickety split, I need another job that will provide me with income and benefits. In today’s world, people need these things!

I am going to do my best to look forward and only forward. Positive thoughts will lead me to where I need to be. I will make my best effort to get myself out there and meet new people and work to find a new opportunity for me.

2012 is going to be a great year for this Queen Bee – freedom from worry, prosperity, fulfilling work for a fair salary.

Gone knitting.

Another Tumble

I took another tumble today … literally … silly old leg fell asleep while sitting at my desk chair and when I stood up to walk over to the other side of the Atelier, crash … landed on my left knee. A little ice and a little levity and I was back up-and-at-em! A good day.

My student has learned to cast on, knit and cast off. She also learned how to weave in the ends. She did a great job with her first scarf. Part of her success is that she kept frogging it when she realized that she’d made a mistake. I love teaching. Next week she’ll learn purl. Then we’ll follow a pattern!

Tonight was my new knitting group. A great group of women … just what I was looking for. Social and inclusive and my age! This weekend is Orlando’s “Distaff Day” and I’ve volunteered to demonstrate making yarn from old t-shirts. I’ve done it once. That makes me a pro! (hahaha!)

Big Feet … Big ?

Slippers socks! Duh!

Before ... ginormous!

I had a pattern ages ago for knitted and felted slippers. I’d made myself and N. each a pair – and I think N. may have gotten more than one pair. I made a pair for N’s youngest one year for Christmas. They’re great! Natural fiber (wool) wicks away sweat but keep feet really warm, too.

After ... drying!

I had a couple of pairs that I had not given to anybody because I had some extra wool sitting around and it’s an easy thing to make and since my pattern uses doubled worsted-weight wool and it’s on pretty big needles so they knit up really quickly. When I opened my Etsy shop, I put the felted slippers (sized to fit me … and, as it turns out, the most popular women’s size) up for sale on my shop. I learned a lesson, too!

I listed two pairs (one blue, one pink) in the same listing but as two items for sale (two pairs of felted slippers). And, miracle of miracles, they’ve both sold … but not without a “problem” … The first person to order bought the blue pair (with green toes) thus leaving the pink pair for the second buyer – who didn’t want pink! Fortunately, the second buyer was happy with a certificate that I printed up to give to her “giftee” and I’ve just knit a custom pair of felted slippers for her. I re-listed the pink slippers and, wonderful news, they’ve sold, too! I guess they’re priced right and they do, indeed, make a great gift!

Today I’m felting the ginormous socks and shaping them. They’ll take a day or two to dry completely so that I can package them and get them in the mail. Whoopee! Felting is always a bit of a science experiment and one that I don’t always enjoy but my head is in the right place and it’s going to be a good day for felting!

But for now, I have to sign off. We have a lunch date and I have errands to run …

Gone running (but not the jogging type! LOL!)