Thank you for all your comments on the house closing earlier this week. I’m happy to say, things went quite smoothly. We got an email from the lawyer that the deal was done, and an hour or so later, we had the keys in our hand

It was a little anti-climatic, actually. It probably would have been more exciting had we been moving in that day, but as you know, we’ve got some renovations to do before we make that leap.

As you read this, I should be on the road to my brother’s. He’s giving us an old box trailer so we can haul away all the old carpet and paneling as we pull it out.

Meanwhile, back in the garden, we are in a bit of an “in between” time. Most of the spring flowers are done, and the summer flowers aren’t quite ready yet.

The Iceland Poppies are one of the few things blooming. In fact, I’ve never had so many blooms up all at once on them.

The ants are hard at work on the peonies. I expect they will fully open this week.

In another week or so, I should have some ripe, juicy strawberries to eat. That is if the buns leave them for me. It won’t happen this year, but I plan to build some big raised beds for edible gardens at the new place. One will be ALL strawberries.

The Bachelor Buttons should start blooming soon too. These ones always bring in the bees.

It turns out, I lost four roses in total after the great garden move last fall.

Since I’ve forgotten which I planted where, I have to wait for them to bloom to know which ones survived. I really hope Garden Party and Honey Perfume are among them. Eventually there will be LOTS of roses at the new place.

Meanwhile… Burton has discovered the cat nip pots…

Happiness is…

Yep. They are done already. I can hardly believe it myself. It feels like I just cast on.

It’s true that I had lots of sitting and waiting time that helped this pair along, but they still went much quicker than I expected.

I love this colourway. Although they look quite yellow here, they are actually more green in real-life – a real chartreuse.

I am so glad that Dave likes to wear “fun” socks. I wouldn’t make him nearly as many pairs if they all had to be boring grey, black or blue.

Although, the rest of his wardrobe is generally all black (black jeans, black shirts) and trying to get him to add any colour there is like pulling teeth.

So I’ll make the most of it with his socks.

This pair is now tucked away for his birthday in late July. I just have to make sure I remember which box I put them in when we move!

Another quilt is quilted and bound.

This was one of my Leader/Ender project.: Colourful nine-patches to use up a pile of scrap squares. It’s fun and simple with a spectacular result.

I punched it up a bit with my favourite rainbow-variegated thread. It doesn’t show great in the pictures, but it really pops in real life.

For the back I had this nice, cheerful aqua stripe, and the green binding is leftover from the back of the Zebra quilt. You’ll also notice our little branded tags sewn in. Mom had them made special. The underside is the washing instructions. I think they are just so cute!

This one isn’t going into the shop, but into the gift pile for Christmas.

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Before I wrap it up though, I’m going to have to give it a good going over with a lint roller. As you can see, Relic gave it a full-scale quality inspection.

Silla is finally done blocking, and has all her ends sewn in and buttons sewn on….

And you may be thinking she looks a bit different than you last remember. After I got the knitting finished, I just wasn’t 100% loving that green. And since I wasn’t keeping it for myself any more, it wasn’t really suited to the recipient. So, while I was dyeing up the last of the Fluffy Cat, I tossed it in a big bowl of blue dye.

Because of the green base, it came out this lovely, mottled teal. It’s a colour that will suit the recipient MUCH better. And it’s just perfect for the buttons I had picked out for it.

I bought these Abalone shell buttons from a bead store at least 10 years ago now. They’ve been sitting in my stash since then, just waiting for the right project.

Overall, this was a fun knit. The pattern is simple and easy to follow. Because it’s done on big needles (7mm), the fabric, even though it’s bulky, has a really nice drape. And it doesn’t feel heavy at all. I will definitely make one for myself, just as soon as things with the house settle. (Today is closing day, so no doubt, by the time you read this, I’ll be running around like a chicken with my head cut of, trying to get the keys!)

Though May definitely didn’t give me as much time to sew as I would have liked, I’m glad I still found time to finish up the May block for the Spring Blossom quilt-a-long.

I’m doing mine totally scrappy, and I’m having fun matching up fabrics from the stash. Like my pinwheels, I’m trying to pair fabrics that really pop against each other.

We’re not even halfway through the quilt-a-long (there are four months left), but Relic and Burton are very happy with the way this garden is growing!

This is it… I dyed up the last bag of yarn. Ten skeins of Fluffy Cat Light.

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Like my previous dye session, I kept to simple semi-solids – Light Periwinkle, Dusky Green, and Cape Cod Cranberry.

Each of these has enough yarn for a big shawl or a light cardigan.

We had a lot of fun with our dyes, and while part of me is sad to say goodbye, I definitely have more than enough yarn.

Now, I’ve got the dye and all the tools up on Kijiji, hoping I can find them a good home, and some one new can have a wonderful dyeing adventure.

It’s dandelion season here.

I am one of those people who just loves dandelions (so much so that I have a dandelion tattoo). I grew up in the country, and I have very vivid memories of fields just solid with happy yellow flowers.

The other day I was reading about the benefits of dandelions, and it got me thinking about other “weeds” in the yard.

Because I plan on digging all my perennials up for the move, and reseeding the garden areas back to grass, I haven’t really worried about doing much weeding. As a result…

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These are just a few that are blooming. Clockwise from top left: Oxalis (or shamrock), Common Mallow, Hop Clover, and Ground Ivy.

One thing I can say – there definitely won’t be any pesticides used at the new place!

Meanwhile…

The Iceland poppy has started to bloom. This one is so much fun, because I get four different colours from the one plant (red, yellow, champagne, and white).

My oriental poppies are blooming.

At first I was worried. I had white ones too, but none seemed to be blooming. I thought maybe they white ones didn’t survive last year’s garden reorganization.

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But finally one bloomed, and I hope there’s more on the way.

The dark purple irises are done…

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But the burgundy and yellow ones are still going. I suspect these will be the last of the blooms for them though.

The lilacs will fade soon

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But they’ve been spectacular this year. I really hope I can get some cuttings to root!

And last… I keep forgetting to show you…

This is the happiest African Violet I’ve ever had. She’s about a year and a half old, and started reblooming this month. I used to have a really hard time with African Violets, but I seem to have gotten the knack now. I just hope she’ll be as happy in the new house!

Another week down!

We’ve earned the rest!

I know I just said I was hoping not to have to spend any more time in outdoor “waiting rooms” aka … my truck but then Dave went and chipped a tooth….

He could have driven himself, but he doesn’t really like driving any more. 15+ years of daily commuting through the worst congestion in the country has really taken its toll, and he doesn’t drive unless he absolutely has to. I commuted too – but for fewer years than him, so I really don’t mind driving. And I had the morning free anyway.

So while he was getting his tooth fixed, I was stitching

As a result, I’m through the leg and ready to start that heel! Woohoo!