Sunday, November 29, 2015

Thanksgiving weekend

We had a great time visiting my husband's family for Thanksgiving. Our daughter Naomi was able to join us so Ben was super happy! I really enjoyed playing with the great grand nieces and nephew.  We all overindulged in turkey and way too many desserts.  It was great to see everyone and we even celebrated two birthdays.  My son Ben turned 22 on Wednesday and our great niece Alice was 1 on the 23rd.  My father in law was also there and he is 95.

While there I heard the words that every knitter loves.  My darling great niece, Lily,8, asked me to teach her to knit.  She quickly picked up the knit stitch.  I wanted to head down to one of the local yarn stores to choose some yarn to make legwarmers and decided to take her and her cousin Claudia with me.  We had fun looking at the squishy yarns and the sparkly buttons. We ended up getting ice cream and playing on the waterfront before heading  back to the house.  It was a great afternoon!



After two days with family we had to head home.  We made a stop at All Wound Up, a yarn store in Edmonds, WA.  I picked up some lovely chunky yarn to make a cowl for our Ben sitter.  We then indulged my husband and picked up some Amano shrimp for his 8 foot long aquarium.  We hit the drive through for lunch and headed over the mountains.

We actually got home just before sunset and of course there was really nothing for dinner since we had no leftovers except chocolate cake. Now I could be perfectly happy eating chocolate cake for dinner, but it was getting icy outside and I wanted soup.  Something hot and spicy would hit the spot.  My son asked for pizza, and I thought, why not make pizza soup? I checked a recipe or two and didn't really like what I saw.  I knew I could make a tasty soup and also make it lighter than the recipes I found.  I quickly drove to the store and picked up what I needed.  An hour after I got home we sat down to a hot, mildly spicy pizza soup that warmed me up to my very core!  It was so yummy!

From our family to yours: HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

If you make the soup, please leave a comment whether you liked it or not.

Peace and many blessings!

Jeanne






Pizza Soup
1 lb. Italian sausage
1 pkg. sliced pepperoni cut in quarters
64 oz.  vegetable broth
16 oz. tomato sauce
2 cans 15 oz. diced tomatoes
1 red pepper chopped
1 green pepper chopped
1 onion chopped
2 cups mushrooms sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
Olive oil
½ tsp. each, Basil, oregano, parsley
Directions:
In a large soup pot, pour the vegetable broth, tomato sauce, tomatoes and herbs. Heat while cooking the rest.
In a large saute pan, over medium high heat, cook the Italian sausage, chopping it up as it cooks. When it is done, using a slotted spoon, spoon it onto a plate covered with paper towels.  Now put the onion and peppers into the pan and turn the heat down to medium for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  When they are done, pour into the broth. 
Pour 1 tablespoon olive oil into the saute pan and add the mushrooms. When they are done (6-7 minutes) pour them into the soup.  Add in the minced garlic along with the sausage and pepperoni.  Let cook for 10 minutes then taste.  Add salt and pepper if needed.
Serve with cheesy garlic bread. 




Sunday, January 4, 2015

Yarn and Downton Abbey

Today we went to church, came home and had lunch. Then I did something daring!

I went downstairs and grabbed a box of yarn from my stash.  I actually plan on spending some time putting my yarns in my Ravelry stash.  I am one of those people that try to be organized, but it doesn't usually work out too well.  Maybe this will help me when it comes time to decide what I should knit next.  A lot of time is spent on Ravelry and other sites looking at patterns, but when I'm not sure how much I have of something, it can be time not well spent.  Of course any time looking at beautiful yarn and garments is not in my opinion, wasted.  




 Here are my finished slippers.  I decided to knit up bows for them and I think they look pretty cute!  They are also nice to have for these chilly northwest days.  
                                                     
                                           





    Tonight I will be watching the Season 5 opener for Downton Abbey.  Of course I will be knitting and having a cup of tea.  My sweet hubby put this in my Christmas stocking.  Good thing it is decaf.  Tomorrow is a long day and I will need my sleep!


I hope you all have a lovely week.  I will be busy working, rehearsing (I'm in a production of Les Miserables), and trying to work on my Ravelry account.

Ciao!

Jeanne

Saturday, January 3, 2015

My First Pattern!!

My First Pattern!!

The other day I started knitting a cute little pair of slippers for myself.  I posted a picture on Knit and Chat in Facebook and immediately had about a dozen requests for the pattern.  So as of now, I am a published pattern maker!  

It took a few days to complete the slippers and I am still knitting the finishing touch, so the only picture available right now is the one I originally posted on Facebook.  When I finish the adornment, I will post another picture.  

Jeanne’s Slippers
Supplies: Bulky yarn. I used Lion Brand Hometown USA in Portland Wine. I have a size 9 US foot and I almost used up the whole skein.  If you have a larger foot or want to make pom poms, I suggest you get two skeins or at least 100 yards of a comparable yarn.
Size 8 needles, yarn needle
Using the long tail cast on, put 20 stitches on your needle. Keep enough tail to sew up the back when you are done.
Row 1-10 knit
Row 11: knit 6, purl 8, knit 6
Row 12: knit across
Repeat rows 11 and 12 until you get to a length that comes up to your pinky toe.  End with row 12.
Next row “A”: k1, k2tog, keep to pattern for rest of the row.
Next row “B”: k1, k2tog, keep to pattern for rest of the row.
Keep knitting rows A and B until the knitting is the same length as your foot. End with row B.   At this point you will:
K2tog across and leaving a long tail for sewing, cut your yarn.
Thread your yarn into your needle and weave through the last row, pulling tight keeping the stockinette on the inside of the slipper.  Weave the top together for two inches, weave in ends.  Using your tail from the beginning, sew up the back of the slipper and weave in the ends.  Add a decoration of your choice and have cozy feet! Enjoy!