Late Night Snacks at the Pond

Good morning,

While walking with the dogs in the back yard around midnight we checked out the activity in our gold fish pond.

Mother Spider had set up housekeeping over part of the pond and was enjoying the fruits of her labors.  The light we have on the pond was drawing plenty of tasty treats.

The pups and I watched as bugs flew into the web and Spider quickly arrived to make sure they would never leave.

The fish were busy, too.  The minute any bug would land on the surface of the water, there were several fish there for a midnight snack.

There are approximately two dozen fish in the pond.  When Catherine put them in there as my Mother's Day gift last May they were approximately one inch in length.

 The fish are now four to six inches in length and are fat.  This is a self sustaining pond so we don't add any food. 

In the day time with sunlight on the pond that round device produces bubbles that keep the water moving while providing plenty of oxygen. 

Happy Summer!

Lois

Patio Knitting - Something Different

Good morning,

I always have something to knit or crochet nearby.  I started this project this week.  Since the weather cooperated with pretty days at reasonable temperatures, I enjoyed working on it on our patio while My Honey worked nearby on his computer designing intricate patterns for his wood engravings.

This is just the beginning of something new and different.  :)  What you see is the bottom ribbing for an adult size pullover sweater that will have an intarsia (fair isle) knit design in the yoke.  My plan is to use emerald green and white for the intarsia knit design around the shoulders and neckline.

Stay tuned!  I'll surely post updates as this project progresses.

There are many sweaters for all members of the family currently available in the shop.  Sweater weather is coming soon!  Take a look!  EvensensProductions.com

All the best,
Lois

Penny's New Bed

Good morning,

It's hard to see under Penny's comforter, but she has a lovely large new bed that is a gift from her friend (and ours) Auntie Erica.

This bed is on the first floor near the TV where we often gather to watch movies together.  What a sweetie.

Of course, we have other beds and comforters for the "kids" around the house.  Often the other bed is OUR bed! 

;),
Lois

Smoked Salmon

Good morning,

My Honey is an expert at smoking salmon.  ;) 

He smoked this salmon last weekend and we served it with a slaw salad that made it a perfect summer meal.

Oh, YUM!

Lois

How It's Done - CNC Machine

Good morning,

This is Kjell's CNC machine that he uses to make the beautiful boxes and plaques that you may have seen in my other posts and in our on line shop.

Kjell develops the artwork with his computer software, then develops the precision programs needed to engrave these beautiful pieces.  It takes hours of planning, design, and even more hours for the piece to be engraved.

Following is a link to more information from Wikipedia:

Numerical control - Wikipedia

All the best,
Lois

Wendy's Personal Space

Good morning,

Sssssh!  Wendy is sleeping.  When Wendy wants to be alone she goes to her kennel.  We keep the door open so she can come and go as she pleases.  I've tried putting a blanket in with her, but she pulls it out and prefers the bare floor.  This kennel is on the first floor in our living room.  When the grand kids come over, they know to leave the pups alone when they go into a kennel for privacy.

When we all go upstairs to our sitting room, Wendy can be found nearby on the carpet or in the next room in our bed.  ;)

After taking this picture, I realized Wendy hasn't put away her Christmas decorations yet, either.  We'll just leave it there and be early for next Christmas.  ;)

What a sweetie!

Lois

The Hibiscus are in Bloom

Good morning,

The Summer is moving along quickly!  The hibiscus have begun to bloom and will continue to bloom well into Fall.

Beautiful!

Lois

Let's Play!

Good morning,

Little Mr. Tumble is here almost every weekday morning to go to work with our daughter, Catherine, while his Mom goes to work.  Tumble is getting socialization while he's a little guy so he'll know about the big beautiful world when he grows up.

Today he wanted very badly to play with our Mr. Erik.  It's very early in the morning and I believe I heard Erik nicely tell Tumble he was too tired to play. 

Tumble tried a dance in front of Erik to get him to play.  Erik just watched that dance....  ;)

So cute!

Erik is so very good with puppies.  He's gentle, kind, and watches over them.

Tumble will never be quite as big as Erik.  They will always be great friends.

So sweet!

Lois

Blue Star Garden in Ohio

Good morning,

On our recent road trip we stopped at a rest stop where there is a beautiful area prepared for a garden planted as a tribute to our veterans.

The Spring blooms have passed and it's time for more work on the garden.  It was obvious that it is between the early Spring blooms and grooming for later Summer and Fall blooms.  Summer is very, very hot in Ohio so gardens need a great deal of work to keep them looking pretty all Summer.

Lois

The Current Project in My Studio - Large Afghan Blanket (Post Updated!)

Update:

This blanket is now finished.  Images here.

-------------------------------------------

Good morning,

Every once in awhile I show you my "waiting room" or "road trip" needlework projects.  Today's post is about a project that is much too large to take along so I'm working on it in my studio.

I've finished 80 of those pretty pink flower squares you see in the image above and am now...

...adding the border that makes them into a large afghan blanket suitable for a couch, recliner, or bed.

The blanket will be topped off with a scalloped border.

This pink and green combination is just so pretty!

We have others in a variety of colors and styles in both couch/bed sizes and lap blanket sizes available to ship now.  Click here to see them all.

What are you making, cooking, photographing today?

All the best,
Lois

Big Wheels

Good morning,

Recently we took a drive North to visit my brother in Central Ohio.  As we pulled closer to this vehicle hauling trucks it took a second to figure out what it was all about.

Of course, it's a couple of monster trucks surely on their way to some sort of event.

It's fun to see these monsters from this angle. We won't be seeing them at any event.

 When I think of "big wheels," I think of those nifty tricycles made for preschoolers.  

;),
Lois

Kisses and a Lesson from Granny Penny

Good morning,

That's Mr. Tumble trying to give kisses to Granny Penny.

Penny:  Tumble, sit down and I'll tell you all about happy puppy life.

Tumble:  OK, I'm listening.

Penny:  Life is good here.  Just behave yourself and you'll be treated like royalty.

Tumble:  Yes, ma'am.  I'll be good.  I sure do love you, Granny Penny.

;),
Lois

Another Fungus Among Us

Good morning,

We grow some very pretty fungus here. 

This one is on an old tree stump.

Lovely!

:),
Lois

Tumble in the Leaves

Good morning,

Mr. Tumble is here again today. 

Tumble just loves to frolic in the ground cover leaves on the side of our home.

 It feels pretty good to stretch out, too!

 Whoops!  There he goes!  He moves fast.

;),
Lois

Waiting Room Knitting - Lavender Baby Sweater

Good morning,

This baby cardigan sweater is my current "carry out" project.  What you see is an arm being knitted onto the body of the sweater.  The only seams in this sweater are three needle bind off seams at the shoulders.

There is still a great deal to do on this project.  It will have a flower basket pocket on the front with a flower "growing" our of that basket.  It will also have a matching hat.  I have written my pattern for it all and will have it completed and in the shop soon.

Stay tuned!

Lois

EvensensProductions.com

Day Lilies of Old

Good morning,

We have two fairly large clumps of orange day lilies that came with the house when we moved in. 

I moved the location of the main clump many years ago so we could have a low wall built around the front porch.  The move didn't bother the lilies at all.

What pretty Summer color!

Lois

The Queen on Her Throne

Good morning,

The Queen is on her trone in the middle of the living room.

Our Sweet Penny is thirteen and a half years old now.  That makes her almost 100 years old in human years.  She sleeps a lot and doesn't see so well.  Arthritis has slowed her down, but she still gets so excited when we get home.  She stays with us wherever we are in the house or outside in the yard.

During Penny's career she was an Agility Dog and has earned many titles.  As a canine athlete, she is in remarkable shape for her age.  

There is something so special about the love and devotion of an old dog.  We are so glad she is still with us.

We love our old lady so very much.

Lois

Baby Back Ribs on the Smoker

Good morning,

It was just that time to make ribs on the smoker when the weather got cool enough to be outside for more than three minutes.  Cool meant down to 80 F from 107 F of a few days earlier!

Of course, it's an afternoon event to smoke ribs and the entire neighborhood smelled wonderful.

After the first three hours I drizzled some honey...

...and sprinkled brown sugar.  I then wrapped them up and returned them to the grill for another hour so they could cook in their own juices until tender.

When finished, they were just perfect!

At the same time I was smoking the ribs, I had my special recipe beans baking in the oven.  I served it all with a salad and the feast began!

Happy Summer from Cincinnati!

Lois

Pretty Patio Visitor

Good morning,

This pretty visitor was only here a sort time.

It stayed just long enough for me to snap a couple of images with my phone camera. 

So pretty!

Lois

Lights Out!

Good morning,

Can you see that telephone pole that's tipped to the right? 

The reason it's tipped is the trees that are down across the wires further up the street.  If you can look carefully, you can see them in the street.

When our lights went out a couple of weeks ago during a storm and we heard emergency vehicles we walked up to the corner to see what was happening. Thousands of homes were without power for almost twelve hours.  Duke worked through the night to get our power back on.

All is well here now, the lights are on, the refrigerators and freezers are doing their thing, and the pups aren't all confused because we are living by camp lights.

It was another Summer adventure in Cincinnati.  I hope the lights stay on wherever you are.

Lois

It's Like Making Sausage....But So Much Prettier!

Good morning,

This may look a little messy, but it gets...

...even messier as I make my original design patchwork items.

These are new sweaters in colors grouped and knitted together with the intarsia technique of working with multiple strands of yarn at one time.

The finished product is quite nice!  I've finished the sweater in the images above. If you'd like to see more images of the finished sweater, click here.

There are several other patchwork sweaters here.

There is a back story to my bright and beautiful patchwork sweaters.  I was watching a children's movie with my grandchildren when they saw a similar sweater on one of the lead characters.  They liked it so much that I designed and made one for each of the grandchildren.  They have had a grand time wearing them. 

Each sweater is truly unique.  I've now designed and made them for our shop in sizes for children and adults.  They are very popular and I've sold and shipped them to countries around the world.



As always, if you see something you like and would like one made for you in your size and other color groups, please write.  We invite custom orders.   EvensensProductions.com

All the best,
Lois