Christmasgreetings...

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all:-)



Thank you very much for all your nice comments, mails and feedback during this last year. Reading your blogs has given me lots of ideas, I've learned a lot of new things, and it has been really fun.



Now we've eaten our Christmas dinner, opened all our gifts, and the kids are watching a movie. The sheep got an extra treat tonight, as well as the cats. I'm off to bed. Tomorrow will be a very relaxed day around here...



Happy Holidays! See you!

...keeping busy...

I'm a lousy blogger these days...most of what I makeis unbloggable, because of this thing they call Christmas...;-)but I have a couple of things to show off- AND I have a couple of awards to accept! Thanks!!



Yesterday the kids and I went Christmasshopping. We're almost done, but not quite...I was looking for "something special" for someone special, but didn't find any. On my way home, it suddenly struck me: I have a piece of crocheted lace! And I have a piece of a linen/viscose blend that was meant to become a blouse. The lace was already joined in a square, I've had plans for that for quite some time, just waited for the right fabric- and then it somehow got "lost" on the bottom of the drawer. So home we came, and I dragged out my sister's sewingmachine, I borrowed it this summer, but haven't used it a lot yet.



It didn't work.



The underspool jumped out of place again and again. Finally I gave in and found the old machine that was given to me some years ago. It's not a good machine, but it will do.



It didn't work either...



In the end, I called a friend and got to borrow her machine...and here's the result:
(and I might keep it myself...)


A square tablecloth, 115x115 cm. I like it. It's not perfect in any way, but it was fun making it. Apart from the sewingmachineincidents, that is...

A detail of the lace. Crochet is what I started with, when I was around five. My grandmother lived nearby, and she taught me. I make mostly smaller items, not having the patience for those big tablecloths and bedspreads that Gran used to make.

I'm sure I did it all the wrong way too! I cut out the middle part, and hemmed the middle and the inside of the square, and the zigzagged the lace to the fabric...I'm not very fond of handsewing...

These are cheap kitchentowels made a little more personal with appliqued hearts. Fun to make, and really easy.

Then over to the awards...sorry I'm so late in passing these on!

The first one came from Beyla .

"The blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and realationship! These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prices or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prices are cut,even more friendship are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers!Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eightmore and include this cleverly written text into the body of their awards."

"Denne bloggen investerer i og tror på NÆRHET- nærhet i rom, tid og forhold! Disse bloggerne er usedvanlig sjarmerende og søte, og formålet er å finne og å være venner. De er ikke opptatt av utmerkelser og selvhevdelse. Vårt håp er at når båndene på disse utmerkelser er kuttet, vil enda flere vennskap ha forplantet seg. Vær vennlig å gi litt ekstra oppmerksomhet til disse! Gi denne utmerkelsen til åtte bloggere, som igjen må velge seg åtte nye. Inkluder denne teksten på utmerkelsen deres".

I'd like to give this to:
Lucy Locket

Moogsmum

Rani

Heidelweiss

Harpa J

Janice

Ragnhild

and I'll also add Ruth! Go check them out, and enjoy:-)

I know some of you have already gotten this award, but you deserve another one;-)

The second award came from Melanie over at JellyBeanAngel- check out her blog- she writes daily through December, and it's sooo fun and interesting to read!!! Great pictures, and great crafting.



This award came from:Melanie

The rules of the award are:
1. The winner may put the logo on her blog.
2. Put a link to the person you got the award from in your blog.
3. Nominate 5 blogs.
4. Put links to the blogs.
5. Leave a message for your nominees.

Prinsesse Elin

Marit

Hege

Knitting Linguist

Blueberries in the field

There are many more bloggers out there that I read on a regular basis, and you all deserve an award- I really need to update my links so that you can find them!

I'm off to send the gifts to my sisters...late as usual, they might be getting the gifts for NewYear instead...

Have a great day!!!

...walking the cats...

...on a beautiful frosty morning... ...not a car in sight...

...so I may have some fun...

Thought I'd give you a couple of links for some Christmaswritings and -fun...

BrittArnhild writes daily about the meaning of advent, and she also has an adventblog for kids( sorry, Norwegian only...) here.

Melanie also post daily- look at that himmeli she made!

And of course- just like last year- Drops/Garnstudio has a Christmascalendar, also availible in english...

Have a nice day:-)

...yarngifts, PIF, knitting and weather...

Finally back to normal-LOL! Both computers are working again, and I've catched up on my blogreading-so now I'd better write something myself! I tried to write a blogpost yesterday, but spent more than an hour trying to upload the pictures, and then the kids came home from school, so it was put on ice...


Where to start? Maybe with these little beauties? I got mail the other day... from Judy. I signed up for PIF with her a short time ago, and got these stitchmarkers (guess I uploaded the wrong picture, but here you see the cute little "cat"markers), and bamboo needles, straight in 8mm- just perfect! Thank you, Judy:-) PIF, you ask? Pay it forward. Well, I guess it's been around in the blogiverse for quite some time, but I'll still pass it on, the rules are as follows: I will pay it forward, and make something for three persons that say in the comments that they want to participate. I have a year- 365 days- to do this. So please, if you'd like to take part, tell me in the comments.

Do you remember the blue sweater from Feb.25, 2008 (couldn't figure out how to get the link...)? I had knitted it for my sister 20 years ago, but it was too big, too short and never used. I liked the colour though. So I ripped it, washed the yarn, and let it ripen on the shelf....I've started this sweater with it. The idea was to have a round yoke, but that didn't work out, so that piece ended up as a peplum instead:-D .There's a lot of cables on it, celtic cables and beehive pattern, even some hearts. I need to work on this when I'm alone, and now it's been put away for some time, so I can get some Christmasknitting done.

I've been more lucky (exellent English...)
Tracy had a give-away on her blog some time ago, and I won two balls of Smart- here are the mittens I made from it! I used The Shetland Traders pattern for Crofter's cowl.

Here's a vest I made for our 4-yearold neighbour, a vest in Silja sockyarn from Gjestal (their webpage didn't work today...). Cables on both front and back. It needs blocking! DD2 wanted to knit a shawl "with holes in it and so on", but turned it over to me after a little while. She's working on another in limegreen, really easy, cast on 3 stitches, knit, turn, *slip 1st st.,m1, knit to end,turn* Do this on every round until you run out of yarn.

This one is knitted in Kitten Mohair, one ball, it's just big enough around the neck.

Did I tell you that I got some yarn quite some time ago?
Andrea had a give-away, and I was the lucky winner of this yarn, Katia Azteka, 3 balls/300gr/540m. I really like this colour. I'm thinking of knitting a top/vest of it- any suggestions? I'd like to try something top-down for a change. I've never done anything top-down, exept for a babysweater. Some of this was written yesterday, and some today, so it's very messy- sorry!

Oh well, you'll get the view...I was off looking for 4 sheep that had run off(not far- they were inside the fencing!), and the weather was good and we even had snow! I startled two deer- got a photo of one, but it's not a very good one, so I'm not uploading it.

We've been busy with the sheep too. Every year we slaughter a few of our sheep at home to make
pinnekjøtt and sausages , so I've been cutting and salting and stuffing ...the freezer is filled with good meat. It's nothing I have to do, but it's a tradition, and I think it's important to keep a few of the traditions.

We've had snow a couple of times, and the sheep are waiting for hay. I always feed extra during winter.

Yesterday I tried to make a little video- we have a small river next to our house, nad with the rain and wind we've had lately, it was growing big. And really noisy! We use to think that we live in a very quiet environment- and yes, we don't hear a lot of cars and citynoises- but it's loud enough!

To all those of you celebrating Thanksgiving: I hope you've had a great day:-) Now that's a holiday we could have imported!

Off to feed the sheep...

Just want to say GRATULERER MED DAGEN to my sister...it's her birthday today:-)

Have a nice weekend!

...computerproblems...

I'm still more or less offline...thunder and lightning took our internetconnection nearly 3 weeks ago, we got it fixed, but it turned out both PC's had given up...both networkcards(is that the right term...?) had stopped working. They are now being repaired. I'm using DD1's laptop right now, but that's one she is supposed to use for schoolwork, so I don't like using it. Anyway, I hope to be back during the weekend! Or maybe next week...

The advantage of being offline is that it gives me more to time to actually knit...;-)

Have a great weekend!

...more lace...

Thanks for all your nice comments on my last post! That's what I really like about this whole internet/blogthing- all the connections, all the nice and creative people out there!


My daughter is a happy 13-yearold, and she came home from the footballgame on Saturday, and they had won. So on Wednesday they are off again- leaving right after school, and coming home late. She's not going though, we're going to Måløy to meet DS1 onboard the ship. They are sailing, from Stavanger to Ålesund, and all the way down again. He told me last night that he should be on engineduty from 2am to 4am...


It was also the night of the first "proper" storm we've had this fall, so I wonder if he's been seasick...?


They call this trip a recruitingsailing, and friends of Gann and other interested are invited onboard. 10th grade from school here are going Thursday to see the ship.





The Swallowtail Lace Shawl is done. It IS a quick knit, I used only three days. It's not quite as big as BeeFields, but it turned out bigger than I thought. Blocking might have a central part there...
Pattern:

Evelyn Clark's Swallowtail Lace Shawl
Yarn: pt2 from Raumagarn 100% wool, 50g/165m. Used nearly 3 balls.
Needles: 4mm. Or perhaps 5mm? Don't remember. It's been 3 days since I finished it!
I knit it as stated in the pattern. I saw some shawls over at Ravelry that had be n enlarged, but wasn't sure how much yarn I needed, so I decided to stick with the pattern.
I like this yarn a lot, but I think I like Lamullgarn better.

Lily of the valley-pattern.

This is probably the most accurate colour.
Weather outside is lousy, there is no chance of taking any pictures, so this one will have to do:-)
The moving wool tried to grab a few bites to eat, but then it started raining buckets again, so they disappeared into the woods. They stand still, head lowered, shoulders up, not very happy. Almost time to bring them inside.
I'm off for another cup of tea and some more knitting- there's a pair of socks on my needles...
Have a nice week:-)

Done! ...again....

I know it's too long since I posted when even my sister tells me so...Hei, K!

Anyway- this one is done- again... Spesifics: BeeFields Shawl by AnneHanson
Yarn: Røros Lamullgarn
needles:Knit Picks 4mm
started: August 31st 2008
done: October 5th 2008 (but hubby was home all September, which meant very little knitting time...this is not exactly a tv-knit...)
Size: I knit the big size, and it's probably 2,30m across, and 1,15m from neck to tip...(it's blocking on a mattress that is 200cmx90cm)
Recipient:Britt-Arnhild. Enjoy:-) It's a fun knit, but a real "pain in the a**", especially the beeswarm section...I've knitted a lot of lace during the years, but mostly there are no pattern on the "wrong" side- not so here...
When this was done, I started a sweater for myself...for I keep looking at it, wondering if I should rip it or not...so while pondering over that, I knit a shopping bag (from

I live on a farm) Very roomy, and my 13-yearold refuses to talk to me when I use it-LOL!

I needed another quick knit once that was done, so here's the beginning of Swallowtail lace shawl. Actually a very quick knit, but it turns out rather small, compared to the BeeFields it's TINY! Oh, well, it'll be a nice scarf for someone, it probably get's tossed in my giftbasket. Someone said Christmas is coming up soon...hmmm, already???? TodayI got my third teenager- DD1 turns 13! She's beeen acting 13 for a couple of years... She requested pizza and creamcake;-) No party tonight, or this weekend, she's off on a footballmatch early tomorrow. She's a happy, bright girl. Happy Birthday:-)

(See the macraménecklaces? She made those herself. )

Hubby's back in Houston for the rest of the month. He says the flight is boring. I keep telling him to learn how to knit! He's not too eager. Funny. He was home most of September, and had fun playing with this little toy...also picking potatoes...this year's harvest! Not so much ,but then we didn't plant so many. They turned out big, and very tasty. I'll save some for Christmasdinner, I think.
The sheep were sent to the slaughterhouse last week, the rest are still walking in the fields. The weather has turned, it's autumn, beautiful colours, lots of rain, long dark evenings. We get a fire going in the fireplace and cuddle up inside.

"Picking potatoes" wasn't the only thing hubby did on his September stay-at-home...see down by the seahouse? Looks pretty good, right? We have finally gotten the area outside cleared and safe. Took this photo only an hour ago, we can't even see across the fjord today:-(

The kid- the only one left that is not a teenager- is coming home from school now. With a friend. Better get some food on the table!

Have a great weekend!

I'm back:-)

Thanks for all your nice comments:-) I really appreciate it. Life has been busy lately, so there hasn't been much time for blogging, unfortunately. It's a lot easier to do when I'm home alone...like now, hubby left for Houston this morning, and the kids are in school. So it's just me and the cats.
Hubby's been home five weeks- he got an extra week becuse of Ike the hurricane. So he's been busy outside, we've got a new driveway down to the house, and we've done a lot around the seahouse.He's used the excavator, and also hired a man to help. Getting the stones in the right place isn't always easy.

But I've had a couple of hikes too- to look for the sheep. First nearly three weeks ago, the weather was gorgeous, and I had a great day. Found all the sheep too, but they were not ready to go home yet, so they ran off from me, and I didn't have the guts to go after them...I'm in awfully bad shape:-(
I took a few pictures though. Hubby bought a new camera, aKodakV1273, which I haven't learned how to use properly yet...and it's REALLY hard to find the pictures on my computer afterwards! It does help a bit when I remember to download them though...LOL! Hubby was unable to use, it has a touch-screen, and he can't see what's going on, so I got it;-)
It's a nice camera so far.

Enough of that! I was going to show you this set- I carried it along the day I went for the sheep, but it was too warm a day to wear it. So it only got out for display, I thought the background was quite nice. It's Crofter'sCowl by TheShetlandTrader. I made a matching hat. The yarn is SandnesGarn Alfa, a 85%wool,15% mohair blend, very soft, and a bit "sloppy". Colour 4323. I knitted it on 6mm needles, and it's very warm (yes, I have used it- last week when we went deerhunting. And no, I don't shoot, but I try to go anyway) More knitting- the lambjacket for the vet's little babygirl. There is a pair of
booties there too, pattern made by Laura, it's a great pattern and very easy. They don't show up very well, but they are really cute! I liked the sheep-pattern so much that I used it for a pair of socks....
This pattern from WoolyWorks, with a bit of my own ideas. I really like the edging on the cuff! They are knit mainly in Silja from Gjestal. The cuffs are done one at a time on 5 DPN's, the heel and foot done with magic loop. I always make a mess of it when using magic loop for colourwork!
Now over to something else...the wool:-) The kids, our sheepfarmer neighbour and I went looking for the sheep last Sunday. And found them. The kids did really well, and we got them all back home. So now we are hearing bells again. It feels good to get them back home. They weren't too eager to come, since the weather was so good, but now it's turning, and they are better off down here.

As I mentioned earlier, we went deerhunting last weekend...this is what met me when I crawled up a hill! 12 goats, very curious and friendly. They belong to a neighbour.
Hmmm, I still haven't figured out how to sort the pictures here- this one is taken when we gathered the sheep. The island in the middle is Selja, more info if you like. Behind is Stadhalvøya. This is the view from the deerhunting trip....a bit steep.... our farm is at the bottom, and we walked the sheep home over those mountains to the left of that little lake.
Oh, I've found a way to use that boat i wrote about earlier! We went to Drøbak this summer, the kids and I, and this boat was down near the harbour. Really cute! I think that will be a good way to use our boat which is beyond repair....We'll see next spring. It would be fun to have it next to the seahouse with some flowers and herbs.

We've done a lot with the kitchengarden too, planted raspberries and other berries, and picked the potatoes. Next week I'll get some asparagus from hubby's uncle, and plant. I'm trying to figure out more to plant now. Guess I'll just have to use the winter to plan more. Unfortunately I don't have green thumbs... I'd better stop here, there's more to share, but that will have to wait.

Have a nice day!

note to self:

Remember that you now have TWO cameras. DD1 uploaded the old one yesterday. Your pictures are on the NEW one, which you are in charge of yourself. Please upload, before accusing said daughter of hiding your pictures...

...still here...

Thanks for all your comments on my last post...I had great fun reading them all!

DS1 has started talking, and he still likes school. One of the first days, they went hiking here... and that's where this picture is taken. 600m above sealevel...



There should have been more pictures today, but DD1 uploaded all the photos, and I can't find them!!! I've been knitting quite a bit, and sewing too, but I really need to find those pictures!!!

In the meantime, we're enjoying a lovely autumn, with sunny and warm days, and chilly mornings and evenings. We did a bit of planting this weekend, raspberries, blackberries, blackcurrants and grapes. Have also picked potatoes, they are nearly ready. And yummy!

Went to look for the sheep- they were not ready to come home yet! Will try again this week.

Also, I got tagged. By Heidelweiss. A looong time ago! I will not tag anyone else, but play along if you like:-)

10 things I can't do without:

1. My kids. Even if they are noisy and fighting! And hubby too, of course. Does that count for five???;-)
2. A cup of tea in the morning.
3. Knitting!
4. Sewing!
5. The sheep, at least most of the time...sometimes I just want to put them all in the pot and make a giant lambstew...
6. Books!
Hmmm, this was harder than I thought!
7. Good friends.
8. The blogosphere...
9. Autumn
10. wool!

Okay, that's all for now- off to find those photos!
Have a nice day!

...conversations...?...

Internet chat with the boardingschool son, his first day was today!

Me: so, how are you?
He: okay
Me:did you get a nice room?
He: yes
Me: how big is it?
He: no idea
Me: how are the teachers?
He: okay
Me: have you unpacked yet?
He: yes
Me: is the food okay?
He: yes
Me: are you homesick?
He: no
Me: you can call or send me a mail anytime.
He: yes
Me: okay, I'll leave you, just make sure you call sometimes!
He: okay

hmmm, I need to teach the other 3 how to keep a conversation going...

...ready to leave...

Tusenfryd... and SkyCoaster...ready for take -off... A great bunch of people- the kids at Tusenfryd together with hubby's cousin. I went to
Stoff og Stil in Drammen instead... DS1 is ready to leave. Hubby will drive him to

Stavanger this weekend, so we are busy packing him up, and getting him ready for Gann. It will be strange to see him leave. He's always been around! But he is ready to go, and eager to go, and very motivated for school, so I think he will be fine. He will stay onboard the ship, it's like a boarding school (which makes it easier for me to let him go! I know he will get proper food, and there are people to check on them, and he'll get help with his homework. ) 105 pupils this year...he'll have a great time!

I'll be back with knitting shortly...

Have a great day:-)

...a few finished objects...

Farming on the westcoast means quite some work during summer, to save the hay for the sheeps winterfeed. Those of you who has been here, knows that living here means a lot of rain. A lot! We seldom get several days in a row with sunny, warm weather. So this year has been an exception! First a long period in May with dry weather, then it got cold in June, but when hubby got back in late June, the weather turned again, and we saved a lot of dry hay, plus a few roundbales.

The old barn is filled to the rim with lovelysmelling hay! This will be great to feed the sheep with during winter. I prefer hay, it's easier to handle, and it smells better, also the sheep seem to like it.
The boat you can see a glimpse of, has it's own history-LOL! It's an old færing, and we used it a lot those first years we lived here. It's only for roving, no motor on it, but great to use for some fishing. When hubby was at work, I had to empty it for water every now and then, because it would lie at sea at all times, and it would be filled with rainwater(yes, it "sometimes" rains around here...). Since it's a wooden boat, it doesn't sink easily. But I had been emptying it for water, came back up to the house, and thought it lied just as deep in the water as before. Went down again, emtied it, this happened several times. I finally complained about it to hubby, and he just told me to keep on! Then he came back...and we decided to lift the boat out of the water to check it. It leaked like a strainer...it was the funniest thing to watch! Turned out it had been eaten to pieces by some sort of worms that would make lots and lots of holes through wood! It used to be a good boat, but it would be much to expensive to repair, so it's just been placed in the barn as a curiousity. We've been off on a vacation a few days, and before we left, the cherries were almost ripe, and the trees were laden with them...this is what we came back to: not a single cherry left! I blame the crows...

The sheep are shorn, we did that before we went, and most of them stay in the pasures like they should- these days mostly in the shade! It's a very dizzy photo, I know, I was standing on the road in the sun, and the sheep was lying around in the shadows. I also have a little garden this year, with some potatoes and salads. Looking forward to harvesting the potatoes, but it's too early still.I have done some knitting too. My green jacket is done and worn, and feels great! Yarn:
Føn from Gjestal, knitted on 5mm needles. The yarn is 70% bamboo, 39% cotton, and really soft, but extremely splitty! I've knitted some socks too,Rainforest from Sockamania in June. They were done by the deadline, but I didn't have time to blog about it! Then there are
these from Knitty, both socks knitted in Silja from Gjestal on 2,5mm circulars, two at a time, magic loop.And finally- the little sheep! Our neighbours got a baby daughter on Saturday, and I thought this would be the appropiate pattern for a veterinarian and her sheepfarming hubby! The pattern is from Svarta fåret, but I found it in a Norwegian magazine, NorskUkeblad # 35 2007 (Aug.27th, 2007) Knitted in Gjestal babywool. Most of the body was knitted in the car, on our way to Voss where we stayed while DS1 went to a concert...in Bergen! Yes, he did get tickets to Metallica, and yes, he loved it:-) The kids are finally waking up, they all sleep on the porch because it's so hot! Around 30 degrees Celsius, and a blazing sun is not very common! So we stay in the shade, the kids swim alot, and we do as little as possible, only enjoy the terrific weather! It will soon enough start raining again!

So, have a great rest of the summer- thought I'd share a little tree we spotted on our trip...this is an oaktree, hubby is walking under it...and it grows on my mother-in-laws birthplace! It's protected since many years back, and the sign has almost disappeared-again! It's gorgeous!
Oh, and if you don't know- there is a big event going on in Måløy this weekend, TallShipsRace!

Have a great day:-)