Friday, January 16, 2015

Gifts from near and far......

I had two very special surprises this week.  The first was a package in the mail from the wonderful Ellen.  The very funny, very wonderful and very, very caring Ellen had a giveaway and I was runner up!  I was totally shocked because I missed her post about the winner and of course about the runner up.  So I opened the package and squealed with delight.  I mean how beautiful is this yarn?


Do you see wonderful possibilities here?  I do.  Thank you so much Ellen and your random generator for picking my name and sending me this surprise gift/win in the mail.  By the way Ellen bought this yarn a while back when visiting her Mother in Hawaii, doesn't that make it all the more special?  I mean yarn from Hawaii, wow!  Pop in and visit my dear friend at her blog The Ellen Report and see her gorgeous knitting, her gorgeous family and her gorgeous sense of humor.


Surprise two was a wonderful breakfast today with my dear friend Holly.   Holly's son was so ill over Christmas with kidney issues.  The miracle of his recovery is just amazing.  He is a wonderful young man and I am so thrilled for him, and of course his whole family, that he is back at school, catching up and receiving great marks on all of his kidney function tests.  Holly and I usually give each other a little gift at Christmas.  She got boring dishcloths and soap from me, and she gave me this.  Isn't is wonderful?  It is decorative ribbon or twine on this spool which I guarantee you is going to hold beautiful cakes of yarn I make with my yarn winder.  Can't you just see this displayed on my table while I knit or crochet?  I love it.  I am not wasting this beautiful red on bows for packages, maybe a beautiful, simple doily for my table.  Any suggestions anyone?


My tomatoes yesterday.

My tomatoes today.  I think they are almost ready to pick.  I happened to get this plant a while back and thought it would be fun to try and grow some tomatoes.  I plopped it in a pot and just watered it when I remembered.   I never thought I would actually have a real tomato to eat from it.  Now I am not a real city girl, I have flowers not have plants that actually produce real things to eat.  I sound like I am in first grade I know but I am pretty excited.  Maybe a bacon (turkey bacon of course) lettuce and tomato sandwich is in store for me tomorrow.  Yum!

Look what I found at the store today, Mickey Mouse underpants!!!  Now we are no where near ready to train Little Buddy although he is at the perfect age.  He is a boy first of all and he has cerebral palsy which is a double whammy.  We talk about it all the time, read about it and I have him sit on the potty which he shows absolutely no interest in.  In fact he has told me on several occasions he likes to poop in his diaper, I think this is going to be a long process for us.  He loves Mickey Mouse so these just might be incentive!

Have a great weekend.

35 comments:

CJ said...

Tomatoes in January! Well done you, I'm most impressed. It will be time to think about sowing seeds in a few weeks here, but there won't be a ripe tomato for a very long time. Lovely yarn from lovely Ellen, no doubt you will enjoy making something beautiful from it. Wishing you all a very good weekend. CJ xx

Ingrid K. said...

Hello Mere! Wow, what wonderful surprises!!! How exciting! Well done for 'scoring' the yarn in the competition - it reminds me of Noro. I wonder what you will make from it - is it enough for a shawl??

The twine looks amazing - could you make a string bag from it??? (You could always add another colour twine if needed).

It's fascinating to think that you got tomatoes ripening, whilst in England it just snowed... ;)

Good luck with LB... you might need extra patience and he might need extra time..

Have a wonderful weekend!!!
Ingrid xx
http://myfunkycrochet.blogspot.be

Jennifer Hays said...

Hey, if they made Mickey Mouse undies in my size, I'd be all over them. :) I'm sure he'll love them and maybe they will motivate him. I love your new yarns, the colors are so rich. I hope you have a good weekend.

Amy at love made my home said...

Fantastic gifts!! It is so nice when you receive something that you weren't expecting isn't it. I hope that Mickey does the trick! xx

Home Meadows said...

Beautiful gifts, I don't have any ideas for the red jute, but I like what you suggested. The Mickey Mouse undies are very cute. I used a sticker chart for my little guy and when he used the potty, he got to put a sticker on his chart and of course we did a happy dance too. Wishing you the best of luck when your little one is ready. Heather

Acorn to Oak said...

I'm excited for you about the wonderful gifts you received! How fun! I love the little stand that came with the red twine/yarn. I'll be excited to see what you make with that lovely red yarn. It's so exciting to grow your own veggies! Congrats and enjoy! Those little briefs look like a great incentive! Good luck!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Pammy Sue said...

LOL! Hahahaha! He likes to poop in his diaper, huh? That's hilarious that he told you that. Your gifts are both wonderful! I can't imagine anything better. Love the ball holder. I love mine, which also came with a ball of twine on it. I made a doily with mine too! I'll have to look and see if I can find which doily I made so you can make it too if you wish. Yes, I got the moccasins at Target. I'm glad you gave them such a good review. Can't wait to wear them. Nice tomatoes!

Kris said...

What beautiful yarn gifts Mer!!!! Wow!!!
Way to go with the tomatoes!!!!! I am beginning to think about my garden for this Spring too!
Hooray for Mickey Mouse undies!!!!! He just might go for it!!! But, he will do it when he is ready.
Been missing you!
XO Kris

mynestofyarnandbuttons said...

Hi there Stalker! hahahaha Love all your beautiful gifts of yarn! So fun and endless possibilities! Love the LB find, one day they will be perfect. Have a wonderful weekend, xoRobin

My Garden Diaries said...

Love that yarn! And how wonderful that your friends son is doing well!!! And yay for tomatoes pal....nothing better than that! Wishing you a wonderful weekend...love the big boy pants up there! I can't imagine a life without diapers but I know it will come! Take care! Nicole xo

Judy S. said...

Tomatoes now? Amazing! We can't even get them to ripen in our summer! Love that yarn and will be excited to see what you do with it. I make a market bag of some twiney-type yarn but can'te remember where the pattern came from. Just finished my 5th Mere-cloth! That pattern is so fun.

Betsy said...

Beautiful gifts of yarn! You're such a lucky girl. I looked and looked for yarn on Maui but all I could find was a very limited selection of Red Heart acrylic at Walmart! lol I love the ball holder. I wonder where you find them? That would be a fun thing to have.

I love bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich. It has to be white bread. Ha! Not very healthy but such great childhood memories. And your very own tomatoes make it so much better.

Love the underpants. When he's ready he'll be ready. I learned that when training my boys as I'm sure you experienced also. My daughter was so much easier.

Have a lovely weekend Meredith.
Blessings,
Betsy

handmade by amalia said...

Knitting with wonderful new wool and a tomato sandwich on the side - sounds like a recipe for a great week!
Amalia
xo

Anonymous said...

Mickey just might do the trick. LOL He won't want to dirty up Mickey.

For Stephen it was Thundercats undies.

Gracie Saylor said...

Lovely gifts! If the red is twine you could crochet a little basket perhaps, although a doily would be wonderful, too. So glad Holly's son has recovered! Enjoy your tomatoes....mmmm BLTs :-) My youngest daughter had bone shaved off the nob in her left hip joint on Wed as an outpatient, and the 11 others in our household have been pitching in to help her as each can. She is on crutches and currently sleeping on a twin bed in my room and hoping to transition up the 8 steps to her bedroom tomorrow. Challenging! I hope your Little Buddy is inspired by Mickey and Company! xx

Teresa Kasner said...

Wow, Mere.. nice gifts for you! But I'm not surprised as you're so sweet. I bet you loved that twine on the wooden spool.. how cool! Lucky LB to have such fun undies! That might just help him with this process. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

mamasmercantile said...

Beautiful surprises and nothing nicer than something arriving in the post. I am impressed with the tomatoes, looks like a great crop. My days of eating bacon are long gone I am afraid. I don't envy you the potty training my daughter is getting pants and such ready to start training my Grandson.

moonstruckcreations said...

Lovely gifts! And such great news about the recovery of your friend's son.

Boys are so difficult to potty train, I have three and it was very stressful with all of them. But daughter - sorted in a morning. Men - drive you mad from start to finish (but what would we do without them?!)

I hope the Micky Mouse underpants will encourage LB to at least think about ditching the diapers!

Helenxx

Unknown said...

Those are wonderful gifts indeed! I particularly like the spool, it looks great! I think I'd use the yarn to make a doily for one of my teapots, but that's just me, I'm sure you'll come up with some great craft! : )
Wish you a lovely weekend! xx

linda said...

What lovely gifts! that red jute is gorgeous, haha I had to laugh at little buddy saying he likes to poop in his diaper it looks like you have your work cut out Meredith lets hope Mickey does the tricky :) enjoy your homegrown tomatoes however you decide to eat them. Have a great weekend. xxx

Tanna said...

Such wonderful "prizes" as we call them! I can't wait to see what you make with that yarn. =) and that twine spool is so pretty just like it is, but with cakes of yarn... oh, yeah.

The boys like their superhero underpants... and LOVE for their Noni to read from their dragon and pirate love underpants books... All in good time.. He'll be ready when he's ready. =)

blessings ~ tanna

Jill at emeraldcottage said...

Gorgeous yarn , and gorgeous yarn holder thingy too! Good luck with the potty training, I would not want to go back to that phase of parenting again.
And of course we call underpants pants, and we call your pants trousers. So when on tv someone has lost their pants or "isn't wearing pants" there is much giggling and hilarity here
Jillxo

Géraldine B. said...

I'm jalous ... of those yarns !!!! So lovely gifts !!! I'm sure you'll choice a very nice pattern for a great craft with them ! Have a lovely week end !

Linda @ A La Carte said...

I love to see your yarn, gorgeous colors. Oh big boy underpants are a great incentive!
hugs,
Linda

Lynne said...

You're going to have fun making something with that yarn I bet. The spool of red twine is so cute! I would want to leave it sitting out just to look at it.
A little Disney magic might be just the ticket to motivate Little Buddy when the time comes. Good idea!

kristieinbc said...

That Noro yarn is gorgeous! I'm a big Noro fan. And the ribbon/future yarn holder is amazing. What a unique gift. I love Little Buddy's honesty. He'll probably be just as up front about telling you when he's done with diapers. And tomatoes in January? You've got to be kidding me!

Christina said...

You are one lucky lady Meredith! I just love self striping yarn. Mickey Mouse underpants are just perfect for a little boy. I bet he will tell you exactly when he is ready for them! Potty training can't be rushed (we tried and failed with number one), everybody has their own right time for starting to use the toilet. Have a lovely weekend. xx

Wainwright and Wright.Co said...

We'll I would be very happy too to receive that beautiful Hawaiian yarn in the post and the spool of red is gorgeous! I hope the Mickey Mouse pants give you some success, potty training can be difficult at the best of times so yes I can imagine with Little Buddy it is going to be trickier, but I know you have the patience and love for him to help him through this when he is ready.
Caz xx

Carla from The River said...

Hello,
I love all your goodies. Very fun and so pretty.
I also agree with the BLT! My favorite!
Good luck with that potty training, I remember those days.
Carla

kathy b said...

Mere

Thanks for the encouraging words on my blog post accident yesterday. :)

Your wooden stick...reminds me of my nostepinne.

Hooray for incentive underwear! IF I recall correctly there was a jar of m and m's in the bathroom for each potty positive for my son.

Crystal Rose Cottage said...

Your tomatoes are beautiful! I can't tell you how many tomatoes I had planted last summer and I think I only got one and a few cherry tomatoes. Very disappointing. Love that yarn from Hawaii! I am sure you will be making something beautiful from them. Good idea on the Mickey underwear......sometimes a good incentive will do the trick. Enjoy your weekend!
Hugs, Patti

Chris said...

There is nothing better than a sun warmed freshly picked tomato, they taste divine! And they smell soo good. Yum!! Your gifts are so nice, what great surprises and your dishcloths and soap are not boring- don't even go there girlfriend! Good news about your friends son, life is so precious isn't it? Mickey Mouse underwear, totally cute! Have a good Sunday!

HollyM said...

Home grown tomatos are so flavour able. A BLT would be perfect. I would possibly cheat and have the 'real' bacon.
Little surprises in the mail are so fun and that's a pretty nice one. The yarn is beautiful
My daughter preferred the diaper as well. I hope the cute undies will help.

Handmade and off-centered said...

How fun to receive two presents in the mail this week. The yarn looks fab and I thought to myself that the yarn colors are just up your alley. The spool is gorgeous!

Good luck with potty training Buddy. I also just bought some Mickey Mouse undies for my little guy but he seems just as content to using the diapers instead of the potty.

Have a great week Meredith!
Birgitta xx

Linda said...

Congratulations on winning a prize, the yarn is gorgeous. Your late Christmas gift is gorgeous, just beautiful for displaying cakes of luscious yarn.

Good luck with the potty training, I understand it may be a long process for you but be safe in the knowledge that you will get there in the end.