A Grand Day Out

 But no Wensleydale. (Sorry, if you aren't a fan of Wallace and Grommit)

We took Daisy on a road trip to a lovely nearby town. We are working on her car riding and being in strange places skills. We like to take our dog with us on outings.

We went to the Rideau Canal Lock Station at Merrickville.

We watched the boats lock through. The water is being lowered in the lock they are looking in.

Daisy walked across a lock gate.

We had lunch on a dog friendly patio.

She had some chicken Caesar wrap, too.

The weather was lovely, we met some dog friendly people and dogs. and got our "lock nerds" fix.

I spent a lot of the week tidying. I was on hold for way too long the other day, and got the top of my desk cleaned off.

I got a bin from last summer finally emptied, except for one item.

I finished the first lace section of my shawl.

One final picture from Merrickville, a reminder of the history of our relations with our neighbours.

This is the 200 year old Block House, guarding the route to Ottawa from the south. So far, it hasn't been needed.

I'm So Tangled

 A song from Pretty Woman movie is stuck in my head. "Oh, baby I'm so tangled". Apparently the singer was from the Go-Gos. I'll take the internet's word on that.

My tangling took much longer to solve, than looking up the song.

Daisy has been trying to play with this ball of yarn for awhile. I've had it well guarded, but I guess I let my guard down for a minute. Last week, I spent much of my knitting time, untangling that snarl.

And now it is 400m of usable yarn. I didn't even have to cut it anywhere (though at one point I thought I might.)

The yarn is Drops Lace, a discontinued yarn, that has been living in my stash. It is the second ball for a shawl I started. The shawl is called Ontario. It seemed appropriate.

I cast it on about 5 times before I got the cast on and foundation rows right. Now it is going quite well. Slow mindful knitting. And, yes, it will have beads.

I finished the baby socks, and they are just so cute.

I also made my first pair of mittens for 2026.

I think I can get a second pair from the ball of stash yarn. A friend just donated 10 more skeins to the hat and mitten stash.

Meanwhile, my sewing has been on hold but I hope to get back to it today. My summer buddy is only with us for a couple more weeks, before he goes back to school. We didn't get to half our plans.

Our new gardens are nearly ready. 

There are still more places to plant, but it is progressing. I am not a gardener. My job is to keep Daisy out of the garden, and supply cold drinks. I also do plant identification, the result of many years volunteering at summer camps.

I have some sewing stuff to show you, but I think that will wait for another day.

Rain, Rain....

 It is Colonel By Day in Ottawa, and like the last holiday, it has been pouring rain.  On the upside, the patio pots have been doing well.

The tomatoes are starting to ripen. I buy my tomato plants at the garden centre, and they are often a surprise. This year, I have black tomatoes, some small salad tomatoes, and I think I have some orange ones. Nearly every meal includes tomatoes.

Daisy enjoyed a rare sunny moment under the tree.

Although she will not be a large dog, she is a lot bigger than when she arrived.

The knitting continues. I finished the big boy socks, and they are off to Alberta, this week.

The yarn is a DK weight sock yarn, from Area 51 Fibres in Regina, and the colourway is "I survived 2025". 

Because my hands need to be busy, I grabbed some leftovers, and started a pair of baby socks.

I'm sure they will find a little foot, soon. The second sock is already down to the heel.

I need a new project for knitting, but for now, I pulled out my only UFO. It's been on the needles since October 2024. It requires a fair bit of attention, and the pattern is not well written. I've seen several comments on Ravelry about missing lines of pattern. It is a "Choose your own adventure" pattern, mostly in graphs, but more words would be helpful.

With diligent work I think I can manage one more repeat and then the edging, and I will call it done.I know it is hard to tell from the pictures. It looks like a hot mess. However, I hope it will be a nice cowl for somebody, after blocking.

The LYS is having their annual sale this week. I need to compare the projects I think I want to do in the next while, with the yarn I have on hand, and make a shopping list. Yarn sales are dangerous places. I'll post pictures next week.

Grandparenting

 I read many years ago, that anthropologists think that older women have long had a place in our world as the providers of childcare for their grandchildren. These days, it seems to be the way. Three to five days a week, we are running Camp Nana and Grandad, It seriously cuts into my sewing time.

Last Friday, we went on an adventure to a Day Lily Festival at a local nursery. I'm all for free adventures.

Here is Daisy, enjoying the new sights and sounds. It's a big field. She is the little dark blob at the end of the leash.

The lilies were lovely, although a bit heat stressed.

They also had outdoor art for sale. This was my favourite. A bit more than our yard needs, so I'll stick to giant pinwheels from Canadian Tire.

We stopped for a little picnic on the way home. at the Metcalfe Geoheritage Park, in Mississippi Mills. We got to learn about the rocks that form out landscape.

Interesting limestone examples, with lots of fossils.

Grandparenting has left lots of time for knitting.

I knit one sock last week, and got an immediate start on the second. These are a late birthday present for one of the Alberta crowd,

On my day off, I did manage to get my sewing space tidied, and ready for the next project. I have two projects kitted, missing bits ordered, and I hope to get a bit of sewing done this weekend. 

Kate

Gerbera and Socks

 I finished my latest bag commission. It is my first bag made nearly entirely in cork fabric.

The pattern is Gerbera Crossbody Pouch, by Blue Calla Patterns. I used a rainbow flecked cork from MM Cork, in BC. The recipient chose the fabrics, from her grandmother's stash. This is her birthday gift from Grandma.

I realized as I sat down to type this, that I forgot a picture of the back.

A bit darker, because I just did this one quickly.

I used a cork overlay on the interior zipper pocket.

The other side has card pockets and a slip pockets for her phone.

It also has a carabiner for her keys. 

I hope she enjoys her new bag. Grandma is going to visit her at her university, next week, and will deliver the bag.

Meanwhile, I finished a pair of socks that I started in May.

They look kind of odd. I think they need a light blocking. The pattern is called "Make Your Heels Strong". It is free on Ravelry. The yarn is some clearance bin sock yarn I found in my stash. The advantage of these socks is that you don't have to pick up any stitches. Not sure I will make them again.

The garden is loving all the rain. since our plants are in pots, their feet have a chance to dry out.

You can see our blueberries at the top of the picture . This is an experiment, for this summer. They have set fruit, but we might just be feeding the birds, if they get them first.

Wild Fires are raging to the North of us. I think of those who have to evacuate, and of course, the animals. We just have to deal with bad air.

Today, I'll clean up the sewing room, ready for the next project.

Washed Out Canada Day

 Although we live in the National Capital, we leave the big show downtown to the visitors, and enjoy something quieter.

Our favourite little Canadian was dressed in her patriotic bandana. She was planning a day in her pool.

Meanwhile, off in the official celebration, our Prime Minister announced that Canada would be in Eurovision, next year. 

However, just after 1:30 in the afternoon, the sky started to boom. The rain started to fall. It was very dark. The people at the downtown festivities were told to take shelter. The storm went on for hours. The main highway, just east of us, became a lake. In the end we set a new record for a single day in July, of 118 mm of rain. 

In the late afternoon, I saw a rainbow. It was rather faint. In a few minutes the clouds turned dark again, and the rain started again. 

I spent some time, playing with a new knitting pattern.

This is Floral iCord Garland, a practice pattern for Floral Bouquet Shawl, both by Xandy Peters. 

The sun is out today, and it is very hot, and of course, very humid. I'm hiding inside. 

I'm making progress on a new purse. I have to keep reminding myself that even 15 minutes is progress. I hope to have it done by the end of the weekend.

Have a good weekend. 

Solstice Unboxing

 It is the summer solstice here, and of course, it is rainy, again. All the rain has made everything green and lush. The picture on the left is early March, and the right is this week, standing basically in the same spot in the yard.

I promised a Quilt the North unboxing, so here it is.

This box's designer is Andrea Tsang Jackson, from Halifax. This looks like a fun box.

As always, the box is beautifully presented. The first thing you see as you open it, is a piece of clear vinyl. I had already removed it when I took this picture and it is currently sitting under a couple of bins in my sewing room, to flatten it.

A designer card, and some information about Halifax, and Andrea's favourite places.

This is Andrea's pattern. It is a project bag, with a vinyl front and a quilted back. The design looks like a twirling ribbon, and we have paper piecing this time. Not everyone's favourite, but I enjoy it.

The highlight of every box, for me, is the designer's choice of fabrics. This box had a bonus.

We can choose to make the bag in either solids or prints. Isn't that great. I can see making one bag with the paper piecing in solids and a second one, with some additions from my stash. I'm loving those Anna Maria fabrics. 

We got some nice Maritime swag.  There is a card with a print from a Halifax artist. There is a rope bowl, from Warm, Woolie, and Woven. There are tags with kisses on one side, and made with love on the other. The tags are designed by Andrea.

Of course, Monica , the creator of the Quilt the North boxes, sent us another block for our Canadian collection. This is a lobster claw.

And finally, the zipper I teased you with, last time.

I have a purse to make this week, but I think I will follow it with this project.

Confession: While preparing this post, I realized that I never did a March unboxing. I'll try to do that later this week.

Happy Solstice!