Chicken Caprese, South Bay ShawHoette and a Little Buddy fix........

How are all of you?  Hanging in there I hope and enjoying warmer weather if you are experiencing Spring and cooler temps if you are heading Autumn's way.  The weather here has been perfect, perfect enough that I sat outside today and finished my South Bay Shawlette.  Do you want to have a little  peek?

This is the simplest pattern, no wonder all of you have been making tons of them for years.  I am kicking myself for not making this sooner.

The finished measurements of this shawlette are 58 in x 29 in.  It expanded a good six inches in both directions after a good steam blocking.  You know me there is no way I am pinning this baby out, if I can't steam it I don't want to make it.

Made with Aspen Yarn, Baah, in the color Byzantine Gold.  I used about 1 and 2/3 hanks of this yarn, I am estimating about 550 yards to make this shawlette, I have a wee bit left over to add to something else.  I used a size H hook and whipped this out in nine days.  It was just so simple, it is a brilliant pattern.  This yarn was a dream to work with, a combination of merino, silk and cashmere, I am in love with it.   I would definitely play with this yarn again given the chance.

  My friend Lynne at Pieceful has joined me making another South Bay, she told me she was thinking of making another one so I asked her to join me.  Lynne's is being made with hand dyed ombre yarn from Two Black Sheep, I can't wait to see it finished.  Lynne is the kindest person, she makes spectacular quilts and knits gorgeous projects, go over and see her and see what gorgeous thing she is making now.

Next I have to give a shout out to Jo of Through the Keyhole.  She posted this yummy chicken recipe a few weeks ago and I thought I would try it.  It is from The Low Carb Diabetic.  You can find the link to the recipe on Jo's blog or The Low Carb Diabetic, above.  I really liked this yummy recipe, but just might add some garlic and other herbs before I make it again.  I know I overcooked mine, and it still tasted great.  I have a big fear of under cooked chicken, especially as I am not a cook so I am not all that confident in my abilities to cook things right.

Thank you Jo for you recipe inspiration.  Jo is just so lovely and so creative, pop in and give her a shout out for me.

Besides sitting on my behind listening to another Sue Grafton novel and crocheting this weekend, I warped my loom for my next project.  This is my Ashford 32 in. Knitter's Loom and I am thrilled to be using it again.  I am making another shawl for myself that I probably won't wear, but I will make it just the same.  The golden Baah yarn above and the yarn on my loom are both from the 50% off, going out of business sale I went to a few weeks back.  See I am putting my purchases to good use already and I am thrilled I got these yarns at bargain prices.

Thank you for all your well wishes for Little Buddy.  He went back to the doctor on Thursday, I was still thinking he had an ear infection, but nope just a cold.  His nose is still crummy and he has a bit of a cough.  He is also extra sensitive, crying during nap time, asking me repeatedly to, "stay awake at night in the dark."  I assure him he is okay, nice and safe.  I also put a nightlight outside his room and a dimmer night light in his room, but he does not seem to like that one at all.  He wakes up crying, and crying, it breaks my heart.  I think of this more as two year old behavior, not four and a half.  But he is delayed so maybe that part of his development is also delayed.

We went to the park yesterday and spent some time on the swings and went down the slide together.  You can give yourself a big laugh if you picture me with my long legs trying to maneuver both of us into the tiny space at the top of the twirly slide.  We did make it down and Little One giggled all the way, I felt like a bit of a contortionist to be honest.

We met a lovely young man named Matt who came over to show Little Buddy his leg brace.  He wanted Little Buddy to know that lots of different people wear leg braces.  He is 27 and when he was 15 had a big accident while playing soccer.  He ended up having a knee replacement and during the operation had complications to his nerves so his foot drops.  He said it was tough going when he was 15, but now he does not think a thing about it.  Maturity will do that to you, he was just darling and I thanked him profusely for sharing his story.

Little Buddy sat up on our, "picnic towel" as he likes to call it and ate his lunch outside today.  He sat up in this position for close to 30 minutes, eating, talking and maintaining his balance.  I have never seen him do this before, he usually topples over after a good five minutes.  He is growing up isn't he?  Forget lunch, I could just eat him up!

Hope you all have a good week,