HighFiber

Monday, May 4, 2026

Jet Lag

The long trip home provided much knitting time. It's a little boring, though, just knit stitches in the round over and over again, with no movie to watch or audiobook to listen to. However, the Summer Sorrel top is coming along.

(You're looking at reverse stockinette stitch, normally done with purl stitches, but the designer has us turn the project inside-out, so we can knit instead of purl.)

Our first full day in Onalaska, Peter and I ran over to Fitting Knit Shop in La Crosse to pick up my yarn, which I bought in January after having bought two skeins in December and then decided I wanted more for a cardigan.

I started the project on Thursday. I couldn't wait to get started! Now, for a while, I have one interesting project and one mindless-knitting project.

This model doesn't look anything like me, but it will give you an idea of what the cardigan will look like when it's finished, only I'm adding at least one pocket, or two if I have enough yarn. The pattern is the 5 Naisen neuletakki by Lea Petäjä.

Our last two days in Wisconsin were very busy. Peter and I ran errands on Monday. I was still on PEG feeding duty and he was in charge of the Hoyer lift on Tuesday, so Karen could take Daphne for a regular doctor's appointment, but they retuned in time for us to leave early to drive back to Minneapolis. We dropped the car off at the car-rental place, which was a few miles past the airport but provided a shuttle.

At the airport I tried to use my e-passport again, but it didn't work, so I had to dig out my physical passport, which was OK, only I left my cell phone on the counter, so a TSA person had to run after me, and then I had to wait for the phone to go through the machine. The TSA rep had the nerve to ask how old I was! Fortunately, they weren't too busy, so I didn't hold anyone up.

I waited with Peter for his flight, which was a couple of hours earlier than mine was scheduled. I found out my flight to Seattle was delayed, but I had my knitting, so I was fine. That added an extra 40 minutes to the time I had to wait in the airport, but I had my knitting, so I was fine. On the flight, I was seated between two very large young men. One of them had lost access to his charging cord when he gave his carry-on bag with the cord inside to Alaska Air to check for free, and he was worried that his phone would die before he could call his ride from the airport. I didn't need to use my cord to charge my phone because I have the cordless charger now, and both it and the phone were fully charged, so I gave my cord to him, and he used it for the entire trip. He was very grateful. We landed a few minutes ahead of the original arrival time, which the pilot attributed to "short cuts." When I arrived in Seattle, I learned that my connecting flight to Redmond was also delayed, so I sent Charlie a text so he would know to check arrival times before he left home to pick me up. That flight also arrived ahead of schedule! I had checked my carry-on bag for free, and it arrived in Redmond when I did, praise be! Total time awake on Tuesday: 21 hours. (I never can sleep on the plane.)

The dogs went absolutely nuts when they saw me. Charlie even seemed happy to see me, too. I took two naps on Wednesday and then went to choir practice. I started cooking again with what was left in the fridge.

I made carob brownies on Thursday, because Friday was going to be Dusty's birthday, and dogs can have carob. I just left out the walnuts. We celebrated Dusty's special day by walking to Ponderosa Park, so the dogs could have some off-leash time. Dusty showed how he could chase the ball unaffected by the advanced age of ten.

Sandy got the idea of posing for a photo, while Dusty was focused on that piece of brownie on his plate.

Then we received our Voter's Pamphlet and ballots, along with some promotional materials from candidates.

Sunday's anthem was fun. "Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled" by Mary McDonald. It's a gospel-style piece and fun to sing. Steve, the saxophonist, joined us again.

As for the new book, I didn't really have time or the ability to concentrate on it during the trip, so only got minimal work done on it. I changed my mind about the fifth story and spent some time deciding which story to replace it with. However, once I made up my mind which story to use, it only took a day to switch out the story I had already put into the layout and then go through and adjust the photo sizes to make the layout look as polished as possible. Another read-through, and it should be ready to go to my editors. Ahead of schedule.

Now for another nap....

I have a lot of difficulty responding to comments to my blog posts because of technical issues beyond my control (my lack of understanding of how things work). Message me on Facebook, Ravelry, BlueSky or Spoutible if you need information.

If you have a few minutes and are willing, please go to Amazon or B&N and search for Billy: Stories from The Doll's Storybook by Peggy Stuart". Every click on the page for the book makes it more likely they will keep a good supply in their warehouse and stores. If you are outside the US, you may have a separate website for these retailers. If you have a copy of any of our books, including Emil, Mariah, Classic Tales Retold, Our Favorite Verses, More Classic Tales Retold or Billy: Stories from The Doll's Storybook, please leave an honest review on the websites, especially if you bought from them.

Where's my blog: If you want to follow my blog, go here and sign up to follow.

What's on my needles: Still working on the Summer Sorrel top and now the Women's Cardigan by Lea Petäjä.

What's on my iPhone: Still listening to The Friend of the Family by Dean Koontz on the BookPlayer app. No progress at all since I got home.

What's on my sewing machine: Put away until the next project.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: Pippa is disappointed that the thunderstorm is making it impossible for Mandy to take her to the beach. Mandy explains about lightning in this story from The Doll's Storybook.

What's my tip of the week: Using strongly brewed hazelnut herb tea as the liquid when making brownies or cake with carob powder instead of chocolate (which is toxic for dogs) makes the resulting dessert taste remarkably like chocolate.

Where are my books: The stories in each book first appeared in the blog, and they are reproduced in print with a few changes.

The stories in Billy: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Talking About Boys, Changes, Shhhhh!, Staying After and Money in a Jar.

The stories in More Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Welcoming a Stranger, The Rescue, Unmasked, Fuzzy Town––A Play and Sky Blue.

Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook. Poems included are Valentine's Day, Keeping Pets, Back to School, Victor the Vulture, The Week Before Christmas, Insomnia and Veronika's Vocabulary Verses.

The stories in Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Little Green Greatcoat, The Boy Doll Who Cried Wolf and Lost in the Woods.

The stories in Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Best Buds, Getting What You Want, and The Boys Cook Dinner.

The stories in Mariah: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Being Little, Besties, and Distraction.

If you don't get free shipping from Amazon or B&N, buy from the BookBabyBookshop, because 50% of the price goes to St. Jude. Other booksellers pay much less, only 8%, because the vendor gets a cut. My author's page at Book Baby is here. Scroll down and click on any of the books that interest you. Find my books at Barbara's Bookstore as well, or ask your local library to order the books.

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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Monday, April 27, 2026

Feeding Family

I'm at Karen's house in Wisconsin, looking after David, who has ALS, so Karen could take the kids to a dance competition about 2 1/2 hours away. I wish I could say I've become an expert at PEG feeding, but I always forget something. Fortunately, David is still able to talk and can remind me when I forget something.

Peter is also here to help. We met up in Minneapolis on Saturday. We drove a rental car to Wisconsin. Peter has been handling the Hoyer lift. David needs it for getting onto the portable toilet. There are other little jobs to do, too, plus feed the kitty and cooking supper for Peter and me.

David has written a play, and it was performed as a reading in New York City recently. It's about Russian immigrants who arrived in Galveston early in the 20th Century and is based on a true story. They live-streamed it, and David had a thumb drive with the recording. We watched it on the TV, using my laptop and AirPlay. I'm so happy to have been able to see it!

Karen sent us texts with photos of their adventures on Saturday, which included a trip to the aquarium.

Their performances were all on Sunday. We watched every one, again using my laptop and AirPlay. All of the dancers were great. I don't know how the judges were able to decide which ones received which prizes.

I got a little knitting done, but not much. Maybe on the way home. I also didn't get much done on my book. I had added the fifth story, but had second thoughts and decided to substitute another story for that one.

However, for some cuteness, here is Katie, sitting on the kitchen trash can, where she would be able to see the rest of her family when they come home. (I told her to smile, and she turned and looked at me. I think she's saying, "Why are you still here, and where is the rest of my family?") Peter fixed her water fountain, which had clogged and needed cleaning. Today I'm fixing a casserole to leave with the family to save them time.

We leave tomorrow, Tuesday, to go home. Peter and I will drive to the airport in Minneapolis, and he will catch a flight to Portland. I go home through Seattle, where I'll have several hours to hang out in the airport...maybe to knit or work on that elusive fifth story...before flying home.

Where's my blog: If you want to follow my blog, go here and sign up to follow.

What's on my needles: Still working on the Summer Sorrel top. Just straight, mindless knitting.

What's on my iPhone: Still listening to The Friend of the Family by Dean Koontz on the BookPlayer app. No progress at all since I left home.

What's on my sewing machine: Put away until the next project.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: In Earth Day 2026, Jolena is afraid she will have to give up skiing with the Doll Ski Team in this story from The Doll's Storybook.

What's my tip of the week: Be sure to squash your recyclables as flat as possible before putting them in recycling. It's amazing how much you can fit in the bin if milk cartons are flattened, boxes are broken down and cans and bottles are squished. Remove caps from bottles, so the air inside doesn't keep them from squashing. Tin cans will flatten, too, if you remove the bottom as well as the top.

Where are my books: The stories in each book first appeared in the blog, and they are reproduced in print with a few changes.

The stories in Billy: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Talking About Boys, Changes, Shhhhh!, Staying After and Money in a Jar.

The stories in More Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Welcoming a Stranger, The Rescue, Unmasked, Fuzzy Town––A Play and Sky Blue.

The stories in Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Little Green Greatcoat, The Boy Doll Who Cried Wolf and Lost in the Woods.

The stories in Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Best Buds, Getting What You Want, and The Boys Cook Dinner.

The stories in Mariah: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Being Little, Besties, and Distraction.

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Monday, April 20, 2026

Here We Go Again!

It has been a busy week. Busier than the usual busy weeks, in fact. I leave tomorrow to fly back to Wisconsin. I'll meet up with Peter in Minneapolis and we'll drive from there to Onalaska to relieve Karen from nursing duties, so she can go with the kids to a dance competition. I've been setting aside individual servings of entrees for Charlie to heat up while I'm gone. I'm glad I started early. He hates to cook.

He can choose from enchilada casserole with refried beans, lasagne or Italian tuna pasta with homemade bread, Indian red lentil soup with naan and something I call green soup (sort of a pea soup fancied up). In the big freezer in the garage, we have ready-made tamales, mini tacos, individual pizzas, breaded cod, Irish stew, spanakopita and precooked chicken pieces. I made another batch of corn salad to have with feta cheese. That should take care of salad for several more days. (It will keep up to a week or more in the fridge.) There are also a few leftovers.

We had pizza earlier in the week. We get the frozen cheese pizzas from Costco and "decorate" them with whatever we have on hand, usually mushrooms, zucchini, peppers, greens, avocado and faux pepperoni, which is actually pretty good.

I did an extra load of laundry midweek, so I could pack my clothes for the trip. I'm all packed and ready to leave in the dead of night tomorrow. My flight leaves from Redmond at 5:50.

Over the past year, I've been going through stories I think might be good for the new book. For this one, I actually have enough for several books, so it was difficult to choose. I think I have the choices made now, though. I'm editing, curating the photos and boosting the photo exposure when needed. (The publisher made me do that on my first book, so now I've learned that the photos are never as bright as they appear on my laptop, so I try to take care of it ahead of submitting my manuscript for publication.)

I use the previous year's final draft as a template. I just "save as" with the new book's name. Then I go through and replace text and photos on each page, as needed. That way I have the same type faces, margins, and other characteristics, as in the other books. If I have a question about something, I check in the previous book to see how I did whatever I'm concerned about. There will be five stories in this book, and I have four of them pasted into place in the new manuscript. One more to go! I'm hoping to have all of the stories pasted before my trip. I'll take the laptop with me, and as I have time, I'll tweak the type and photos as needed, then go through and proofread before giving it over to my wonderful proofreader/editor family members.

Obviously, I didn't get too much knitting done this week, but I know I'll have time to work on my project on the plane. Here's the right side. If you read last week's blog post, you'll know I'm knitting on the wrong side now, just knit, knit, knit. I don't mind purling, but the designer wrote the instructions to allow knitters––once the yoke was done––to work the body in all knit stitches down to the ribbing. You just turn it inside-out and start knitting in the opposite direction at the underarm.

Dusty had surgery on his foot 2 1/2 weeks ago, while he was knocked out for his teeth-cleaning. He had a lump between the middle two toes on his left front foot and another on the back of his neck. They were both benign, but the vet thought it was best to remove them. He was licking the one between his toes (Dusty, not the vet), so it was probably bothering him. Wednesday the vet removed the stitches at both locations. Everything looks good. It hadn't slowed him down much, but we tried to keep him from running and playing vigorously until the stitches were out. We didn't get too much walking in during the recovery time, not just to reduce stress on Dusty's foot, but also because we had rain, wind or mud much of the time, and Charlie has been recovering from his procedure, which made it difficult for him to walk too far. All of those problems have mostly cleared up. The weather has been nice the last few days, Dusty's stitches are out, and Charlie has been walking slightly farther each day we walk. He took charge of Dusty on Saturday's walk, the first time he's walked with a dog since his procedure. We've been walking mostly on the Larkspur Trail.

We noticed this sign on a post that obstructs motor vehicles from getting on the trail. I'm assuming the message is, someone doesn't like E-bikes. I don't much like them, either, having come close to being run over several times when going around a curve where visibility is a problem. Some people here allow their children to ride E-bikes on the trail without supervision, and it can be dangerous...for them and for pedestrians.

On Saturday,, the warm weather seemed to return. We try to divert from the trail to what's left of the wild area that's left over from the main section being developed for housing. We let the pups off-leash for a little running, which they really enjoy. They keep us in sight, though, and when we have to leash up again, they come when they're called.

Here's a screenshot of our walk on Saturday.

We received this charming little story on a postcard from the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), which we donate to. It describes perfectly how I feel about my books, as they go out into the world.

Where's my blog: If you want to follow my blog, go here and sign up to follow.

What's on my needles: Still working on the Summer Sorrel top.

What's on my iPhone: Still listening to The Friend of the Family by Dean Koontz on the BookPlayer app.

What's on my sewing machine: Put away until the next project.

What's in The Doll's Storybook: In Why Don't Airplanes Flap Their Wings, the dolls find out how airplanes fly with the help of "The Four Superheroes," in another story from The Doll's Storybook.

What's my tip of the week: When I travel, I usually take a 2-oz bottle of Kookaburra Wool Wash along, in case I need to wash clothes. You can take it on the plane, and because it doesn't require rinsing, it's convenient. Just soak, wring out and hang to dry.

Where are my books: The stories in each book first appeared in the blog, and they are reproduced in print with a few changes.

The stories in Billy: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Talking About Boys, Changes, Shhhhh!, Staying After and Money in a Jar.

The stories in More Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Welcoming a Stranger, The Rescue, Unmasked, Fuzzy Town––A Play and Sky Blue.

The stories in Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Little Green Greatcoat, The Boy Doll Who Cried Wolf and Lost in the Woods.

The stories in Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Best Buds, Getting What You Want, and The Boys Cook Dinner.

The stories in Mariah: Stories from The Doll's Storybook are Being Little, Besties, and Distraction.

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