Exteriors

We'll start with Veronika's exterior. Her dress is done.

I used this pattern, which is designed for toddlers. I used thinner yarn than called for (fingering weight/4-ply) and the smallest needles I have (2.0mm) to get the gauge/tension down to 9 sts/inch for the bodice and then went up to 2.35mm needles for the skirt. I think it might work for any 18-19.5" doll, because the waist is large and gathered a bit with a ribbon through a row of eyelet holes. It took about 70g of Stroll Tonal from Knit Picks, left over from a previous project. She will be wearing it in a future story.

The exterior of our house has been painted for a new look. Here's a reminder of what it looked like when we bought it.

They pressure-washed on Wednesday of last week, they took down the shutters and started masking off on Friday and started the painting. They worked a bit on Saturday. Here's where we were by Monday.

I'll spare you the in-between photos. To summarize, they worked for the next couple of days, took some time off on Wednesday when we had a big rain storm and finished on Tuesday. We still have the steps and deck rails to do, but we haven't agreed on a color yet, and that's our job.

We had an adventure on Wednesday after the rain stopped, but it turned out well. About 5:30 PM, the rain stopped, so we decided to do our walk. I grabbed my hat and parka, put Dusty's leash on him, while DH got ready. Then I started looking for Rocky to put his leash on. I couldn't find him. I searched in every room, upstairs and down. I went out and searched in every part of the backyard. No Rocky.

We were pretty sure Rocky was there when the painters left, but we wondered if he could have escaped from the yard while the gate was open. We moved the search to the outdoors. DH searched the neighborhood, while I went to the trail to search. I walked the trail with Dusty in tow, then walked to the dog park, then back along the busy street Rocky would have had to cross to get to the dog park. It was still daylight, but the sun was getting low. Working separately, DH and I asked everyone we passed if they had seen Rocky, but no luck. Rocky will be 15 on Saturday, and our time with him grows short, but we didn't want to lose him this way.

I wandered through the wilderness we sometimes walk in, but it's acres and acres. No Rocky. When I asked Dusty if he knew where Rocky was, he just tried to go in the direction of home, where I knew he couldn't be. I searched the house again when I got back from walking. DH called and said some neighbors had suggested putting a notice in Nextdoor.com, but I had already done that. I had also called animal control, the Humane Society and the Sheriff's office.

I was on the phone with the 24-hour Veterinary Hospital when DH came in. The nice lady at the vet emergency room suggested contacting the microchip registry we're signed up with. She was giving me some other suggestions, while DH put his parka away in the front hall closet. When he opened the door, Rocky ambled out as if nothing had happened. As near as we could figure, DH had opened the closet to get his parka, and Rocky walked in, knowing there are a lot of dog toys and tennis balls there. A black dog in the dark closet wasn't visible, and Charlie just closed him in, not realizing he was there. Rocky missed the walk, but the rest of us did more walking than usual. I didn't turn on the Walk for a Dog app, so it didn't count, other than we got some exercise. Dusty must have known he was there. I just didn't believe him! We're so glad Rocky decided to come out of the closet! While we were outside, he was inside.

We're having a birthday party for Rocky on Saturday. I'll bring dog-friendly birthday cake for him and his friends at the dog park.

Most of our meals are meatless, all of them if you don't count fish as "meat," so I put together this "Meatless Loaf."

It was pretty good. It isn't vegan, but the meat was replaced with TVP (texturized vegetable protein). If you're looking for meat alternatives, here's the recipe. (We should be looking for alternatives for beef, especially, because of the negative impact of beef production on our environment.)

Meatless Loaf

Ingredients
• 1 C TVP• 1 C boiling water• 1 2-cup bouillon cube• 1 C bread crumbs• 1/2 onion, finely chopped• 1 clove garlic• 2/3 C chopped mushroom• 1/4 C ketchup• 1/4 C Parmesan cheese• 1 T brewer's (nutritional) yeast• 1 t Bragg's Liquid Aminos (or soy sauce, and leave out the salt)• 1 t dried basil leaves• 1/2 t salt• 1/2 t ground mustard• 1/2 t chili powder• 1/4 t pepper• 2 eggs• 1/3 C milk
Directions
Measure TVP into a medium bowl. Dissolve bouillon cube in the boiling water. When dissolved, add to TVP and stir. Allow to sit while assembling other ingredients.Add remaining ingredients to bowl in the order listed and stir well.Pour into loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350°F for 90 minutes.Serve plain, or with bbq sauce or mushroom gravy.


Thursday we went to River's Place to listen to Coyote Willow. The weather was nice, so we sat outside. The brewery was surrounded by food carts, so we selected what we wanted from one and had a nice, inexpensive meal.

The music was delightful, and so was the company.

We went back to River's Place last night for the usual Sunday meetup.

Saturday, DH was working in the backyard, when he brought this in to show me.

This baby is 7" across. I looked it up in my mushroom book (given to me by my friend Joanie after Dusty's second attempt to ingest mushrooms from the yard). I found two possibilities:

the Meadow Mushroom is "[e]dible and excellent, raw or cooked," it says. However, it could be the one on the next page:

With a similar description, except that is says, "It is inedible and poisonous." We weren't planning to eat it anyway, but yikes!

Sunday was the last day our choir director, Susan, would be with us. We came up to sing with her during communion. We already have an interim director, but the church is looking for a permanent person. During coffee hour we had a special cake for Susan.

We participated in the 1619 project, marking the arrival of the first known African slaves in what is now the United States. Father Jed explained what it was all about.

At noon, we went out to the street to listen to the bells ringing. Now that I know I'm 2% Senegal African, the beginning of the arrival of slaves in our country has a special significance. I would never have existed without the slave trade.

The church bells were ringing all over the US at 3:00 PM Eastern time, 12:00 PM Pacific Time. (I don't know if the short video will play. I had no way to test it. If it doesn't, just imagine church bells ringing.)

You would never know I had African ancestors by looking at my exterior.
What's on my needles: The French Back-to-school Cardigan for Emil.

What's on my sewing machine: Pants for Emil.

What's in my hoop: Still the Whole Cloth Quilt. I actually managed to work on it for a couple of hours this week.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: On the Wing. Charlotte and Jolena question the difference between butterflies and moths.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Rainbird's Revenge by M. C. Beaton. Included with the Escape Package. I'm trying to get through the short novels by this author. The cost per month is less than it would cost to buy one of these little gems, so I'm making the most of it.

What's in my wine glass: emBRAZEN Revolutionary Red Blend from Treasury Wine Estates Americas Company, Sonoma, California, a new favorite.

What's my tip of the week: Don't eat mushrooms you find in the wild unless you have them identified by a true authority.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Changes

We're getting our house painted. Here's what we started out with:

We picked our colors from this pretty house:

On Wednesday they pressure-washed the house. They came back on Friday to start. First took down the decorative shutters. They did the masking, then they filled in areas that needed filling, scraped peeled paint and started with primer (that pinkish-grey color). Next they put on the first coat of white. On Saturday they worked for a few hours and then went home. Here's what it looked like mid-morning on Saturday.

They are back today to continue.

I changed two more T-shirts from plain to interesting using the iron-on photo-transfer process. Here's Mandy's.

Then Jolena's.

I learned from my mistakes last time. My iron needs to be set on linen, and I need to iron the heck out of it, turning it over to press again on the back. Images are free from UIHere. (Some of their images have royalties, so you have to pick and choose. I added the text to both. (There is no US Doll Ski Team, so I can't get into trouble, there, either.)

I'm using a free baby dress pattern trying to see if it would be suitable for a doll dress. I'm using fingering weight yarn and my smallest needles (2mm for the bodice and 2.25mm for the skirt). It's still coming out a bit big, but it might be all right, once the ribbon is threaded through the holes at the waist.

The story from Friday was based very loosely on The Three Little Pigs. Three dolls have an adventure they weren't expecting in An Encounter with a Wolf.

On Thursday, we hiked in Shevlin Park again. This time it was just the two of us. The park is very beautiful, with very tall trees (Ponderosa, I think).

There's a stream running along close to the trail, so we don't have to take water for the dogs.

The Walk for a Dog app changed its app considerably. I'm still learning how it works, but it looks very different. Now we have levels we can work for. I had been setting my own goals. We're already on Level 4.

We were in second place in the group of people and dogs walking for Best Friends Animal Society until our walk on Sunday. Now we're tied for first place with someone who may still have walked on Sunday but hadn't yet.

One new feature I really like is the interactive map that shows you where you are in real time, instead of just the walk you completed. The app is free. It's supported by advertising.

That evening, we went with DBIL to the Bend Brew Fest. Attendees buy tokens and a mug for tasting. Your beer chances with each stop at one of the booths.

Each sample is 2 ounces of a beer of your choice from among the 100 breweries represented.

DH and I shared the sampling. There were food trucks lines up and serving, so we ate there, too. The weather was perfect.

Sunday evening we went out with DBIL and his friend Hank. We went to the Monkless Brewery. They have beers with a higher alcohol content than most, and the names are interesting, such as "Meet Your Maker."


What's on my needles: The Best Sunday Baby Dress to fit a doll (with luck). I think it may be a bit big for the Happy Kidz, but it has ribbon around the waist, which should help, and it may fit the much plumper American Girls well, which will help people who are knitting for these dolls.

What's on my sewing machine: Waiting.

What's in my hoop: Still the Whole Cloth Quilt. No progress this week.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: An Encounter with a Wolf.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished The Sleeping Beauty by Mercedes Lackey. It was very good. Now reading The Adventuress: The House for a Season, series, Book 5, by M. C. Beaton. An interesting tale with a lot of humor, as always.

What's in my wine glass: Monkless Belgian Ale, only it was in a beer glass. A nice change.

What's my tip of the week: I've learned that dogs like anyone's kibble but the one they're used to, so a different kibble, especially puppy kibble, makes a good treat. Just feed one as a treat. Sometimes you can pick up samples. Dogs like changes, too.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

Crochet!

I haven't had much experience with crochet, but some of it was this week.

I have used this pattern and this one. They are pretty similar. the design is pretty simple, although knitting with strips of nylon net isn't very smooth. The result is a great dish washing device, though. I have paired these with knitted dish cloths in the past for Christmas gifts.

While I was delving into crochet, I decided to try to make a doll bikini.

For the top, I used this pattern (not available as a PDF, so you either have to read it off of the computer screen or copy and paste to something you can print). The pattern gives you a top with a skirt and wide shoulder straps. I just ended the pattern at the point where I had the completed band around the chest. Then I attached chain ties to the top of the triangles and tied them behind the neck.

The bottom was a greater challenge. I had to keep poor Veronika in the altogether, so I could match what I was doing to her body. I did a lot of ripping before I got it the right shape, which turned out to be something like the silhouette of a champagne glass. I may try to make another one of these.

The Coastal Skies Shawl finally got blocked. It has an 82" wingspan. My niece, who is a Seahawks fan, says these are Seahawks' colors. I hadn't though about that, but they are. At any rate, I've been wearing it, and it's warm and soft. The pattern is Knockout Round.

Our kimchi was going fast, so I made some more, this time with the seasoning a friend recommended. It's Mother In Law's Gochugaru Korean chili pepper flakes. I'm thinking it is a little less spicy.

I ended up with six cups of kimchi this time. (Each jar holds 1 1/2 C.) One of the things I like about kimchi is that you don't have to can it. It's still raw, but pickled.

This week's story is "Money in a Jar." Billy and Veronika discuss how to save money to buy what you want, and the difference between "want" and "need."

I got the idea from a recent article by Warren Buffett, which has a few other ideas besides what I used in the story.

We missed two days of walks this week. I waited until late afternoon, so DH could walk, too, and then it rained. Both days. The rain comes in the late afternoon and early evening.  It would be better for me to walk in the morning and then again in the afternoon, if the weather is OK. We had been waiting because it was pretty warm (a high of 92ºF) in the middle of the day. DH doesn't get up until 9:30 AM or so.


What's on my needles: Still the Trickle Brick Socks and another dish cloth.

What's on my sewing machine: Not much this week

What's in my hoop: Still the Whole Cloth Quilt.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: Money in a Jar.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Finished From This Moment by Elizabeth Camden. It was pretty good. Now listening to The Sleeping Beauty by Mercedes Lackey. This is one of a series "A Tale of the Five Hundred Kingdoms," but each novel is a stand alone, based on the same fantasy world, one in which "Tradition" tries to force likely candidates into the mold of well-known fairy tales, while the protagonists try to go their own way.

What's in my wine glass: Red Blend Portugal by Casa Santos Lima. Pretty nice!

What's my tip of the week: A rolled-up newspaper in your hand is a good way to get a dog to behave. You don't have to hit them with it (in fact, you shouldn't), but just holding it is like a kings scepter. They know you are boss. For serious misbehavior, hit it against your hand. It gets their attention.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.

A Week of First Times

I discovered BJ's Quilt Basket on Saturday. I ended up there almost by accident, as I'll explain later.

I was very impressed with the shop. They have a cozy spot where people can sit.

The supply of fabrics, books, thread and notions was impressive.

There was a lot of inspiration as well.

This was only part of the batik section. It was huge.

I'm guessing they have someone who can machine-quilt for you. I will have to find out.

The mascot of Bend is a dog. BJ's has a bunch of small stuffed toy dogs with name tags. When you put a bolt on the counter to be cut, but you aren't done looking, you put one of these dogs on your bolt. 

The way it came about that I was there was this: I have been developing some T-shirt designs for my characters and needed a someone with an ink-jet printer to print the transfers for me. We have an ink-jet printer that hasn't been used in years because we did so little color printing, and the cartridges dry out if you don't use it often, so it needs cleaning and new cartridges. After calling all the print shops only to learn they just had laser printers, I started on the quilt shops in town. (There are three.) Davidene used to print my quilt labels for me at her shop in Park City, so I thought they might have an ink-jet printer. I struck out with the first two I called, but the third was BJ's. It turns out they also print quilt labels for customers and, once they learned that all they had to do was print on the transfer sheet, they were happy to do it. That got me into the shop, and I know I'll be back. I bought some fabric that caught my eye and got their permission to take the photos. Here's my fabric.

I plan to use some of each for costumes for my characters, but I got enough to put in my stash for future quilts. BJ's sells online as well as in their brick-and-mortar store.

Here's Billy wearing the first of my T-shirt transfers. I found some images online that are royalty-free. Eventually all my cast members will have at least one shirt that reflects their special talents or interests.

We went to the DMV on Wednesday to get a new license plate for the trailer and my Oregon driver's license. (DH took his test last week.) We knew we would be waiting awhile, so I took some knitting––a dish cloth I hadn't yet cast on. Three-and-a-half hours later, we left with the new plate and this:

It was actually a lot of fun, with people sitting around, chatting. I'm sure some people were stressed about being there so long, but everyone was pleasant, and the staff was really nice to work with. I didn't even get hassled by DMV over the Peggy-Margaret thing, and I've been wanting enough cotton dish cloths that I can use a fresh one each day. It didn't take long to finish that one up after I got home.

Thursday morning, we participated in a small-dog hike at Shelvin Park. It's only three miles out of town, but it's a nature reserve with hiking trails, a picnic area, rest rooms and a year-round stream. The dogs have to be on a leash, but it's still nice for them to be out in nature. There was only one other participant, a lady named Kathy and Finn, her mini Golden-doodle. We had a nice time and got in a 4-mile hike early in the day before it got hot. In anticipation of this hike, we got licenses for the pups on Tuesday, as they are required in the park. Not that there was anyone there to check for them.

Thursday evening we (DH, DBIL and I) went to Sisters for a free concert in the Fir Street Park. We took some beer and sandwiches, and sat on the lawn. The group that played was Town Mountain. They play Blue Grass and Blues music. They were excellent. Some children climbed a fir tree close to us or played on the grass, and some people got up and danced.

Friday evening we went into downtown Bend for the First Friday Art Walk, which takes place on the first Friday of each month. It wasn't just art. Most of the shops were open and had something to offer. Some of the shops had music.

Most of the open shops had beer (a Bend specialty, as I've been told we have more independent brewers per capita than any other city in the nation) or wine, or something to nibble on, and some places even had cocktails. It's a good way to become acquainted with the local stores.

There was some street entertainment, like these fairies making huge bubbles, which the children who were present really seemed to enjoy.

In this week's story in The Doll's Storybook, the dolls make ice cream. We actually made frozen yoghurt using a very simple recipe, and we have been enjoying it ever since with our DDIL's rhubarb compote. Yum!

The Missing Link is now out on DVD and Blu-Ray. The Wisconsin grands found Uncle Peter's name in the credits.

What's on my needles: Still the Trickle Brick Socks. I'm at the heel turn. Not much progress this week, as I've been working on dish cloths.

What's on my sewing machine: More clothing for the cast of the stories.

What's in my hoop: Still the Whole Cloth Quilt. No progress this week.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: Ice-cream Social. The dolls make frozen yoghurt and talk about ice crystals.

What's on my iPad/iPhone: Still From This Moment by Elizabeth Camden. Not much time to listen this week.

What's in my wine glass: emBRAZEN Revolutionary Red Blend 2016, recognizing Showgirl and Spy Josephine Baker. Her story is interesting.

What's my tip of the week: Don't throw away or recycle those plastic jar lids. They make handy saucers for plants or to put under bottles of things that might drip and make a mess or damage the surface they're on, like plants, a wine bottle, salad dressing or oil. They can be washed in the dishwasher. This one was the lid to a jar of roasted nuts from Costco.

Note: This blog post was produced on the iPad and the MacBook, using the iPhone for some photos and some photo processing. No other computer was used in any stage of composition or posting, and no Windows were opened, waited for, cleaned or broken. No animals or dolls were harmed during the production of this blog post.