First, some sewing!
Some of the events of this week made it clear that we needed more than one mask each, so I made two more. We are happy with this design, because, with the filter, they provide eight layers of fabric, and the ties can be tied behind the head to get a snug fit without interfering with our hearing aids, which fit behind the ear. I plan to make a few more. For the nose piece, I had one more aluminum strip from my BIL, so I used that. Then I made another one by rolling heavy-duty aluminum around a straw, pulling the straw out and flattening it, then cutting it to the right length with rounded ends to make insertion easier. This worked fine.
I made some progress on the Which Came First Shawl. The multi yarn has entered in. The pattern for this part of the design is looking very interesting in the different colors.
The yarn is Blue Moon Fibers' Socks that Rock Lightweight in "Navy," "Hipster Hen" and "Red Dawn." I have been taking my knitting or quilting out onto the front porch/deck while it's still shady out there. I used the puppy pen opened up flat to close off the access to the steps, so the dogs can stay out there with me if they want. Late in the afternoon, when the sun gets low, it's too sunny for me out there, so I come in, but until the sun hits me, it's very pleasant. The hottest day of the week it was still pleasant out there.
I'm really glad the weather has played nice. We had this past week scheduled for replacing the rest of the windows in the house. The men came on Monday to get started.
Here are some of the windows, ready to be installed.
They finished the downstairs on Monday and did the upstairs on Tuesday, four windows each day.
They wore masks when they had to come into the house, and so did we. (That was part of our increased mask usage.)
We will have to have our house painters come back to paint the outside frames the same color (off-white) as the rest of the windows.
This is my favorite window. It's in our guest bath. The glass pattern is called "Raindrop." It provides some privacy while letting in the light. I think it looks like rain running down the window.
So that was the "out-with-the-old-and-in-with-the-new" Part I. It was planned over a year ago and done in two batches, so we could avoid having to pay for all of it at once. Nothing unexpected. However, we had another issue come up this week that required an additional but unexpected change. Our over-the-stove microwave quit suddenly. First it was fine, and then there was no power coming to it. We discovered that the circuit breaker had tripped, but after resetting, it kept tripping every time we tried to use the microwave. It's too bad, because the previous owners had installed it new, we think, right before they put the house on the market. So now we can use it as a cabinet, and the light over the stove works, but I have a Post-It note taped over the keypad to remind myself I can't use anything else on it.
DH took his mask and ran over to Costco and picked up a new microwave for us. We tried it several different places, but it's pretty big, and I need my countertop space for cooking, so we settled on the spot where we had the coffee pot and toaster. They have been relocated, and my big Kitchen Aid mixer, the best-looking appliance I have, had to be stored in the broom closet. I don't use it often, so it was the one that had to step aside. Here's the new microwave. It's easier to use than the old one. My only complaint is that the numbers on the keypad are hard to see, but I had the same trouble with the old one. The functions are more useful, and the auto-cook settings are labeled on the front of the inside. It's a Panasonic Model No. NN-SC668S.
Dusty went to the vet on Wednesday, another use of the mask for me.
Later in the week I cut up some of the apples I was sure we wouldn't get through before they rotted and sliced them up to dehydrate. They are deliciously sweet and sort of crunchy and chewy at the same time. We are trying not to go to the store any more often than we have to.
The garden is growing pretty well, considering the nights have been cold and the days not too hot. We've had a lot of flowers on our zucchini plants and hope to be seeing some little zucchinis growing soon.
The radishes are growing well. We got a late start with them, but they don't take too long to grow, fortunately. The peas are getting taller. Either the birds or the squirrels have taken our strawberries before they are anywhere near ripe enough, so I don't know if we'll have any this year. They might do better after they have grown longer in the ground where they are.
Veronika and Mandy got some new shoes from the UK. They are real leather and fit nicely. The dolls can even wear them with socks.
I've never heard them complain about the old shoes pinching their feet, but they probably don't want to bother me with their problems.
What's on my needles: Still the Which Came First Shawl by Cheri Clark, from the kit I picked up at this year's Rose City Yarn Crawl.
Some of the events of this week made it clear that we needed more than one mask each, so I made two more. We are happy with this design, because, with the filter, they provide eight layers of fabric, and the ties can be tied behind the head to get a snug fit without interfering with our hearing aids, which fit behind the ear. I plan to make a few more. For the nose piece, I had one more aluminum strip from my BIL, so I used that. Then I made another one by rolling heavy-duty aluminum around a straw, pulling the straw out and flattening it, then cutting it to the right length with rounded ends to make insertion easier. This worked fine.
I made some progress on the Which Came First Shawl. The multi yarn has entered in. The pattern for this part of the design is looking very interesting in the different colors.
The yarn is Blue Moon Fibers' Socks that Rock Lightweight in "Navy," "Hipster Hen" and "Red Dawn." I have been taking my knitting or quilting out onto the front porch/deck while it's still shady out there. I used the puppy pen opened up flat to close off the access to the steps, so the dogs can stay out there with me if they want. Late in the afternoon, when the sun gets low, it's too sunny for me out there, so I come in, but until the sun hits me, it's very pleasant. The hottest day of the week it was still pleasant out there.
I'm really glad the weather has played nice. We had this past week scheduled for replacing the rest of the windows in the house. The men came on Monday to get started.
Here are some of the windows, ready to be installed.
They finished the downstairs on Monday and did the upstairs on Tuesday, four windows each day.
They wore masks when they had to come into the house, and so did we. (That was part of our increased mask usage.)
We will have to have our house painters come back to paint the outside frames the same color (off-white) as the rest of the windows.
This is my favorite window. It's in our guest bath. The glass pattern is called "Raindrop." It provides some privacy while letting in the light. I think it looks like rain running down the window.
So that was the "out-with-the-old-and-in-with-the-new" Part I. It was planned over a year ago and done in two batches, so we could avoid having to pay for all of it at once. Nothing unexpected. However, we had another issue come up this week that required an additional but unexpected change. Our over-the-stove microwave quit suddenly. First it was fine, and then there was no power coming to it. We discovered that the circuit breaker had tripped, but after resetting, it kept tripping every time we tried to use the microwave. It's too bad, because the previous owners had installed it new, we think, right before they put the house on the market. So now we can use it as a cabinet, and the light over the stove works, but I have a Post-It note taped over the keypad to remind myself I can't use anything else on it.
DH took his mask and ran over to Costco and picked up a new microwave for us. We tried it several different places, but it's pretty big, and I need my countertop space for cooking, so we settled on the spot where we had the coffee pot and toaster. They have been relocated, and my big Kitchen Aid mixer, the best-looking appliance I have, had to be stored in the broom closet. I don't use it often, so it was the one that had to step aside. Here's the new microwave. It's easier to use than the old one. My only complaint is that the numbers on the keypad are hard to see, but I had the same trouble with the old one. The functions are more useful, and the auto-cook settings are labeled on the front of the inside. It's a Panasonic Model No. NN-SC668S.
Dusty went to the vet on Wednesday, another use of the mask for me.
Later in the week I cut up some of the apples I was sure we wouldn't get through before they rotted and sliced them up to dehydrate. They are deliciously sweet and sort of crunchy and chewy at the same time. We are trying not to go to the store any more often than we have to.
The garden is growing pretty well, considering the nights have been cold and the days not too hot. We've had a lot of flowers on our zucchini plants and hope to be seeing some little zucchinis growing soon.
The radishes are growing well. We got a late start with them, but they don't take too long to grow, fortunately. The peas are getting taller. Either the birds or the squirrels have taken our strawberries before they are anywhere near ripe enough, so I don't know if we'll have any this year. They might do better after they have grown longer in the ground where they are.
Veronika and Mandy got some new shoes from the UK. They are real leather and fit nicely. The dolls can even wear them with socks.
I've never heard them complain about the old shoes pinching their feet, but they probably don't want to bother me with their problems.
What's on my sewing machine: More masks, I hope
What's in my hoop: Still the Whole Cloth Quilt. A little more progress this week. I worked on it for about an hour. It's mindless, so it's good to do while watching TV.
What's in The Doll's Storybook: The Boys Cook Dinner and have an interesting experience they weren't expecting. I sent Daphne a text on her iPod when it came out. She and Zachary read it. She said they "loved it because it was about boys and it was funny."
What's in The Doll's Storybook: The Boys Cook Dinner and have an interesting experience they weren't expecting. I sent Daphne a text on her iPod when it came out. She and Zachary read it. She said they "loved it because it was about boys and it was funny."
What's on my iPad/iPhone: I finished listening to My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows. It was a funny story, but I don't think I would have enjoyed it nearly as much if I had read it as a physical book or an eBook. Katherine Kellgren's narration was outstanding, and her over-the-top expression fit the sometimes-sarcastic, often melodramatic writing. I can highly recommend this story. Now I'm listening to Mrs. Tim of the Regiment by D. E. Stevenson, one of my favorite authors.
What's in my wine glass: Landing 63 Heritage Red 2017 from California. We have been getting most of our wine online lately, something we can do in Oregon but could not in Utah. It's nice. Not up to favorite standards, but very nice to drink with food.
What's my tip of the week: I've been making a lot of bread lately to cut down on trips to the store. I use the bread machine set on "dough" to mix it, then shape it into a loaf or loaves to bake in the oven. The bread machine pans on most if not all bread machines don't hold up well if you let water sit in them for too long to clean them. I have learned that I can use almost no water at all if I let the pan sit out, without the paddle, until any little bits of dough have dried completely. Then I use a dish brush to brush out the inside, following up with a rinse and turning upside-down to dry. The paddle can be washed with the dishes.
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.
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