I see that I will be boring you to pieces posting all these photos of our livingroom view- it is just so hard not to. It is like having a brand new painting to look at every day!
Still I don't think we appreciate it enough. Maybe me posting it will help me see it with fresh eyes every morning?

sunset

Remember I told you about this? I'm on the edging, and I like it. It will be a tablerunner instead of a scarf. There are many scarfpatterns that would look great when knitted in crochetyarn. So far this piece looks pretty crumpled...but I will block it...

Today's been busy. Hubby's trip to Houston was cancelled,instead he will have meetings in Oslo next week, so he decided to come home for a change-LOL! And when he is home, there is always a lot that should have been done... I've been doing some paperwork on the sheep, there is always laundry, and then a PTA(?)-meeting in the evening. There are plenty of teacher-parents meetings, a result of having four children...















When I came home, it was time to put the kids to bed, and then suddenly DS1 came running out of his room, asking for the camera. Still the same old view, at 11 pm...
Enjoy!

sheepfarming...

We've had a lovely weekend, it was whitsun, so the kids were off school monday. On Sunday we went for a drive-this is the fjord which ends at our place, the island left of the middle is where the monastery ruins are, it is such a serene, lovely place. We didn't go there today, but we have plans for later.
Today (Monday) we did a whole different thing-we gathered the sheep and walked them to their summer pastures in the mountains. DS1, DS2 and the good neighbour helped out, the girls also came by the first lap of the way. This year we walked fast...usually it takes us two hours to walk from sealevel to where we let them go, at around 450m. It is steep and heavy to walk. But we did it in one hour...DS2 and I dragging ourselves up by pure willpower, while DS1 and TGN were running...And the sheep? All happy to get up there, knowing exactly where to go! We got them through the gate on top, and they never even paused, they just went off. See you all back in September! And yes- there ARE sheep in there, maybe if you click on those two pictures in the middle, you might see a couple of woollen 4-legged creatures...!


There is a great view from the top, again you can see the island with the monastery ruins,it is the dark island in the middle.

We had a great day.

wishing you a happy week!

My knitting spot

We have a big, new house, where I even got my very own sewingroom-still haven't gotten that sewingmachine though-lol-but I think my favourite place these days to sit and knit, is the wintergarden/glasshouse/conservatory. It lies next to the kitchen/livingroom, it is bright and airy,and it has a lovely view. We can see the whole shore of our property. Lately we've had heavy rain and an occasional sunray, and sitting "outside" in such weather is quite fun. It hails on the glass roof, or rains, or the sun shines through-I'm never wondering what kind of weather we are having!

Lady Grey, our cat, came down with kittens on May16th...She was BIG those last couple of weeks, and the kittens were twice the size of the ones we usually gets! She had five, but is now left with two. DD1 brought them up,while Lady Grey was taking a bit of fresh air, but then she got back in, and was pretty furious with us for messing up with their sleeping! She grabbed one of them and entered our closet...we got her back downstairs, and she calmed down.

Found the cutest babyhat in a long time here, so I cast on and had it done in a day, together with a pair of miniMayDays! They are just like the regular ones, but with only 8 stitches to each repeat. Fun making them. Should fit a newborn to 6months old, but I haven't got a model in that size- and my own kids are so big that I have forgotten how small they once where...

I've tried to get back to crocheting too, but I'm not in the mood...I'm working on some curtains for my sister,she doesn't know about it,but she doesn't know I'm blogging either...

So instead I cast on for this, only I'm using crochet thread (the size where you need a 1.25mm crochet hook), and intend to make a tablerunner. I will have to make the border a little wider, but otherwise it seems like it knits up nicely. It looks all crumpled, so I won't show until I've gotten a bit further into it-no use in blocking it yet!

DD1 likes to take pictures...here's another one of our livingroom views...Enjoy, and have a great day!

Taking pictures...

When I was staying in California that year (from Aug.-83 through June -84) I took a lot of pictures. I had a simple instamatic camera, and I thought my pictures were pretty good. Then I met MaryAnn... She was swedish, and she had a REAL camera. And we took the same motifs, and I had no problems seeing the difference... So I saved up as much as I could( that wasn't much...I worked as an au-pair, and had $50 a week), but finally I bought a Canon AE-1, using 35mm film, or even slides, and what a pleasure that was! I took "tons" of pictures! I've been using it ever since-well, until I lost it when we lost our house in that fire in Dec.-03. A couple of years ago, hubby bought me a digital camera which is really neat and fun to use- but I still miss that Canon! I like taking pictures, but don't do it often enough. I took the above this morning, though: It was raining buckets here(still is, in fact), the sheep were out where they shouldn't be-on our lawn-their heads drooping, and they looked miserable! Then I noticed one of the lambs- he was kneeling and crawling under his mom for shelter!You can see him next to that tree (which is a maple, btw)
And I've finished my second pair of MayDay socks, this time for myself! Knitted in Silja, on 2.5mm needles. I think they turned out just fine. My niece got hers in the mail yesterday, and she called to say thanks! I have another idea for this pattern too...



Have you ever trieed Kool-Aide dyeing? I was sure Kool-Aide was some sort of drink, and couldn't understand what this was all about. Then I read Kristy's encounters with it...read and enjoy! I know hubby will have to buy me some packages if he goes to Houston,TX next week...

Have a lovely day!

Looong day...

So we went to meet the Canadians- and you know something funny? They looked just like us!!!
No,really- it was so much fun meeting them. My husbands father and the mrs. mother were cousins. The mr.s father was Norwegian, but had been in Canada since 1952. Three of their five children came with them, and we had a big meeting with cousins once/ twice removed, lots of kids running around playing football/soccer, cakes, coffee and talk-talk-talk. They live in Manitoba, on a 10 000 acre farm...we have 150 acres...
I picked up the kids at school at 2:15 pm, and we drove up north, it took us three hours- first 45 min drive, then 15 min ferry, 45 min drive, 30 min ferry, and finally 45 min drive. And back again tonight...we spent less than 3 hours with all those relatives, but it was worth it. My daughters were jealous though- the Canadians had horses!!! One each! And my kids have a terrible mom who won't allow any horses on the premises!!
We came home at 11:15 pm...so it was a long day. Our view, only minutes from home:














It was raining (the white spots), but it doesn't get really dark at night.
I did put in some knitting too- 90 minutes on the ferry is plenty for turning a heel!
Have a nice day.

Spring...

our plum tree...we're hoping for some fruit this year.

We've been rather busy cleaning the barn this weekend, it is an old building, from 1860, and not very easy to use or clean up or anything. Now we have to remove the dirt from the sheep, they've been in the barn the whole winter, so there is plenty to take out. That aches on my back and arms...but it's okay if I don't go too many hours in a row. I do get some knitting done, though-lol! I've started another pair of MayDay socks, this time for myself, using the larger size. Great pattern. The first pair I made, was sent off to niece today- it was actually her birthday today- I'm just a bit slow...

Tomorrow I'll pick up the kids after school, and drive up to my MIL, there are Canadian relatives visiting(my husbands relatives), so it would be nice to meet them .Hubby is at work, so I doubt if he'll meet them this time.

Have a nice day!

17.MAI

Norways independence day was today, May 17th. Happy birthday to you all!
We've had a glorious day, sunny but cold, but we didn't get any wind either, so it was nice.
The day started in church, with a celebration sermon, then putting down flowers to remember the victims of the war, and then there is the parade! First the flags, carried by the sportsclubmembers. Then the brassband- this year consisting of 8 "cheerleaders", 8 kids playing, and 4 parents helping out...They sounded great though. They played our national anthem amongst others- several times...The parade walks from church to the retirement home, where there are more speeches and singing and playing. Then off to school for games for the kids, coffee and cakes, and even more speeches...
The main thing for the children, seems to be allowed to eat as much icecream as possible! DD2 (Åshild,with the checkered apron) and her friend are doing just that.
The area we stay at, is around the school and footballstadium-or soccer, as some might call it.
We went home for a break in the early afternoon, inviting some friends to join us, and ate "rømmegrøt"(porridge made of sourcream, wheatflour and milk-very heavy, but oooohhhh so good)and hotdogs, which is also a must on this day.

In the evening,DD1 and her classmates of 6th and 7th grade, had a 2hour long play, which was great! Lots of laughing and jokes, and music. They even had a goat on stage. And The King- Elvis Presley himself-came by to see his anchestors birthplace! Is that all new to you, you say? Well, it turned out that his grandfather was born on the small farm of Prestvik, which is somewhere around here...but of course he had to change his name when he came to the U.S.! They had made their own translations of Presley-songs that they performed, and it was really great! We have a lot of actors in this community, I can tell you!
As for the bunad-there were plenty to be seen today! We have a vast variety in Norway, there are so many beautiful ones, and people use them on May 17th, and for weddings and confirmations and so on .Here is finaly a couple of shots of mine.






It has a heavy wool skirt, a green brocade vest, white linen shirt, white linen apron with wool(!) embroidery, and the knitted lace! The belt is woven, I did that too- it is at least 20 years ago, but I have made several for family and friends, and it is great fun, and also they are so pretty! There are a lot of different patterns both for the belt and the apron.
And on the back of the vest, there are silver bands! Of course, there is also plenty of silver...broches, buttons, a chain,...
























We enjoyed our day, and are now looking forward to a long weekend.

Have a lovely weekend, you too!

MayDay socks done!

Done. And pleased. Fun and interesting pattern to knit, and not too many difficulties- exept for I ran out of yarn on the first toe-9 rounds to go...I ended up ripping from the ribbing, using the thread to finish the toe, and then make a neat bind off to the ribbing. Or at least it should have been neat...If you click on the picture you get it bigger, and then you'll see what I mean- just examine those two ribbings. I like the colour of them, and I like how the pattern shows up in a solid colour. I will be making a pair for myself too, but thought of using the same blue variegated that I used for "Sheri's Lace Socks" (a couple of posts back...haven't figured out how to link to that yet...too lazy)

I see now that I am going to brag about that tablerunner too-LOL! It is knitted by me for that table-our diningroom table, which we also use as a kitchen table. The size of it? 1.60m widex3.00m long, and oval shaped...The runner is 2 m long...I also made curtains for our kitchen window in the same pattern, found in the magazine" Familien". Those are the only curtains we have. We live all by ourselves-no neighbours close by, there is a road nearby, but no insight, and we have the most beautiful view from our livingroom windows, so I don't want to put curtains there at all! I think my mother-in-law is the one that is most uncomfortable about it.

I got a new book today, from a bookclub, James Patterson's "4th July". I know- it's probably not new- but I haven't read it- yet...I started it while eating dinner. I'm really not good at doing only one thing at a time, I read and eat, knit and watch tv, read and listens to the radio,knit when talking on the phone...blogging is done on it's own though,but then I might actually have to think!

Have a lovely day!

not knitted...

We live on a farm. I had to drive DS2 to school the other day, he missed his bus, and on my way home, I took this. It is the fjord with our farm at theend, with the mountains behind us (the peak in the middle is where DS1 and I made that new gate) There were snow this morning, and a bit cloudy. A couple of days later the photo of our plum tree was taken. Both the cherrytrees and the plumtrees have bloomed, and there were quite some bees too, hopefully enough to make for some tasty cherries and plums in the autumn...
Have a nice day!

pictures...

These are made in Silja from Gjestal, a nice, soft sockyarn- it seems more durable than Sisu from Sandnes, but there are not as many meters in Silja...which means that I will need just a liiittle more than two skeins for a pair of socks for myself...unless I make the cuff really short...

This is the MayDay socks, finally in progress.

I just had to finish these first..."Sheri's Lace Socks" by Sockbug. Nice pattern, easily knit up, some small adjustments made though- I knit for a child, and had to cast on fewer stitches (one pattern repeat)

Below lies Lady Grey, our very pregnant cat...

And then there are two good friends...

MayDay socks

Finally on the needles! I finished a pair of blue varegated for my niece, and cast on for the MayDay socks in a green colour. Pictures later-it is just too late at night to pull out that camera...

We watched the Eurovision song contest this evening, which Serbia won, and later Jim "rubberface"Carrey entertained us in "liar,liar"-bad tv makes for good knitting!LOL! I've started the sock cuff down, have turned the heel, and done the first pattern repeat on the instep. These will be for a niece. Will have to get more yarn for myself- and if I continue to use Silja, which seems soft and durable, I will need three skeins for my feet...which I don't have at the moment!
Have a lovely Sunday!

Eight random things

So Caroline tagged me! Eight random things about myself...hmmm
But first: The rules!

1: Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2: People who are tagged, write a blog post about their own 8 random things, and post these rules.
3: At the end of your post you need to tag 8 people and include their names.
4: Don't forget to leave them a comment and tell them they're tagged, and to read your blog.

Here you go!


1:I am very tall (187 cm, or 6feet1and1/2) This used to bother me, because people would mistake me for a boy, or a young man. The very short hair I had, or the lack of makeup, might not have helped...

2: We lost our house in a fire in December 2003.We got out alright, but lost everything. Now the house is rebuilt, and we're doing fine. After the fire, we found a few items in the ruins- a couple of silverspoons, some glasses, a piece of jewellry-only small things. But the very first thing we pulled out, was my Bible and a cross, the Bible severely burnt on the outside, but NOT ONE SINGLE WORD OR PAGE WAS MISSING OR UNREADABLE.

3: My grandmother taught me how to crochet at the age of 4 or 5. I've been doing it ever since. My two younger sisters claims that I've got all the craft-genes of the family- from both sides...

4: We are readers. My parents and sisters and I all read. And then we are lost to this world. We all married men who don't read...

5: I live on a farm. So does my two sisters!

6: I have two sons and two daughters born within a period of five years. There are 16, 23 and 21 months between them. I love them. But it often amazes methat I am related to them at all!

7: I went to California as an au pair when I was 20 (in 1983...), lived in northern Berkeley, and really enjoyed myself. I've lost contact with that family.

8: I speak Icelandic, though not fluently, due to my stay in Iceland for 18 months in 1985/86. I still keep in touch with that family, they've been here to visit several times. I would love to go back!

So, there you have. 8 random things.

Now I just have to tag someone....

Judy ,Mother Chaos ,Faith ,Bea , Anniken ,Audrey ,Nathania ,Sonja : Your turn!

As for the bunad (national costume)- on May 17th we will celebrate our independence day (our 4th of July)- that is usually a great day for airing and wearing the bunads! (and maybe I'll be able to have someone take a picture of me too...LOL)

hehe- the link worked!

more socks...

...but no pictures- at least not yet. I've finished the first and cast on for the second sock for my 13 year old niece, and THEN it will be time for the MayDay socks. I'm planning to knit those as a birthdaypresent for my 19-yearold niece( There are 5 nieces and one nephew-so it's not that bad...)There are already so many beautiful socks being made, and I really like the looks of the pattern. So my hope is to cast on for them this weekend...

We've had pretty nice weather today, but it was cold. We're in the middle of May, and still there is only 4degrees Celsius at night (like right now)

Went to school to watch dd2's theaterplay with her class- Hakkebakkeskogen by Torbjørn Egner,he wrote some really nice childrens books,we read them when I was a child too.DD2 was playing Bakermester Harepus (Bunny the Baker). The kids are all 10 this year, and they were doing great. Spoke loud and clear, sang the songs and remembered their words. The play lasted 55 minutes! Afterwards there was cakes and coffee in their classroom. DS1 and 2 went for the golfcourse instead of going with DD1 and 2 to the play.

Okay- then I have to find out whether I made that link for the NayDay-socks...
MayDay,that is...LOL!

Have a nice day!

And no, I have not yet figured out why there is such a big space between the photos of my last entry...

still catching up!

As for knitting-well, there just hasn't been time. But I've had a peek in on sockamania, and there are so many great socks in progress- I really look forward to picking up my needles again!

Meanwhile, enjoy our sunset...

Have a nice day:-)

Catching up

Back to normal...it's been a lovely, exhausting, fun,sunny weekend, with lots of family and friends coming for the celebration- my son chose a non-religious confirmation ceremony, together with 16 other youths, the ceremony was great, with beautiful song from a group of 4 youg girls singing folktunes, and guitarplaying older men, DjangoReinhard-style, and a nice speech. He was happy with it.





When we came home, it was time for dinner. He chose the menu too, a pork steak with vegetables. The table is decorated with shells and seaside stones, and those glass balls where used on the fishing nets in earlier times. He has always loved to fish and look around in the sea, so I thouhgt it would be a good idea. The red flowers are japonica, from a friends garden. My sister and sister-in-law decorated the table the night before while I was making a cake, and the sauce , and some other stuff...
We used shells for placecards too, my son got the biggest...








We were 21 for dinner at home I had two good friends helping out cooking and serving, and everything went smoothly.
















And then there was cake....





I got several cakes from friends, and made Devils Food and Lemon Meringue Pie myself (American recipes- my mom is born in Brooklyn and grew up on Staten Island, New York by norwegian parents-and the cakes has folloowed her...and they are yummy!). I also made KRANSEKAKE(the coneshaped one), which is almonds ,extremely finely grained sugar, and eggwhites.Very good.


There were krumkaker, svele, karamellpudding, creamcakes, chocolatecake,cheesecake....


Later we ate bread with salmon, eggs, cheese, jam and so on...





The three siblings had made their big brother a song, and Åshild,10, played while we sang it.













My sister gave a speech- and she is wearing the same bunad as I have- did I have my picture taken? I think not...We took a lot of photos- but any of me? noooo
-but here is a photo of the apron with the knitted lace, it is linen fabric with wool embroidery, and a cotton lace.... Have a nice day!!!

an update

Today's been really busy- we've been putting up a fence for the sheep, and also made a gate before letting the sheep out- and no,I didn't take any pictures...I'll have to do that later. The lambs are calling for their moms, they've never been out before, and it is dark and cold and "where is mommy???Bææææh" (These are the other kind of sheep we have- kept inside the whole winter, let out in the spring)

The celebration is coming up this weekend, I think I'm on schedule...Need to bake some more.

The lace is finished, only need to attach it to the apron, and sew some buttonholes on my shirt...

Have a nice day!!!