Reading list #1

 

The days have warmed up. Our snow is gone except for the large piles. Over a 70 degree temperature change in a week from -20 to +50 give or take a few degrees. I picked up a feather on my walk the first day that it was warm, that little bit of red caught my eye. And I spotted a cardinal in the tree outside my window as I was sipping my coffee and enjoying a few moments of dolche far niente. Now I see a squirrel enjoying the moment in the sun too.

That little squirrel looks very comfy on that branch as it bounces with the breeze. I heard geese fly over earlier in the morning could it be that spring is really here or are we on the prairie in for a surprise in weeks to come? I’m going to sit outside and read for awhile. I can’t enjoy the sweetness of doing nothing all day.

—Ann—

1. The House at Chorlton by Prue Leith the same Prue Leith as the British Bake Off Show.  The story begins in England during WW2 an English girl gets pregnant, falls in love with an Italian pow, gets disowned by her father……..English food with an Italian twist, post war rationing, cooking, family and forgiveness.
2. The Story Collector by Evie Woods about a woman traveling home for Christmas but instead gets on a flight to Ireland, she finds a 100 year old diary. The story is about grief, forgiveness, family, faeries and love.
3. The Kitchen Front by Jennifer Ryan the British baking show goes back to WW2 using war rations.  The prize is to host a radio program helping people to stretch their rations and make them taste better. It’s a story about survival, family and friendship. Delightful story with some delicious sounding recipes and others not so good.
4. The Underground Library by Jennifer Ryan WW2 London during the blitz, library books are moved to the underground railway tunnels, family, friendship, survival very good. 
5. The Chilbury Ladies Choir by Jennifer Ryan even better the second time I read it especially since I didn’t remember anything from the first time in 2018 no wonder I didn’t remember anything. The story takes place in England during WW2 the vicar wants to disband the choir since all the men are off to war. The women have other ideas, the healing power of music, friendship, community and family. I may read every book Jennifer Ryan has written this year.
6. Maria by Michelle Moran historical novel about the real Maria von Trapp. Her life was very different from the play opened in 1959 with Mary Martin playing Maria and the movie in 1965.
7. Counting Miracles by Nicholas Sparks I haven’t read one of his books for a long time. This one did not disappoint. A love story, finding family and a story of faith.
8. Lightening Strike by William Kent Krueger book 18 takes a step back in time when Cork is 12 years old and his father is sheriff of Tamarack County. Another good story.
9. What is Color by Arielle Eckstut and Joann Eckstut everything you ever wanted to know about color and then some. How we perceive color and how color is made mostly about color and light as opposed to pigment colors. I now understand how when the lighting guys at the basketball games are doing their little pregame light show all of a sudden it looks like everyone is wearing green instead of blue…..yellow lights lots of yellow light.
10. Where Coyotes Howl  by Sandra Dallas takes place in Wyoming in 1910’s a young woman accepts a teaching position and falls in love with a cowboy about friendship, love and loss.
11. A Single Thread by Tracey Chevalier takes place in England in 1930’s a woman moves away from her overbearing mother to a small town to work as a typist and get involved with the local church ladies stitching group (they embroider cushions for the cathedral) she also learns about bell ringing, not the brass bells and white gloves but the bells in the tower with rope pulls. About family, friendships and women’s roles at the time. It was a nice story. I have read other books by Tracey Chevalier that I thought were better.
12. History’s Pages by Jean Grainger book 3 of the Knocknashee Story. Life continues for Grace and Richard but not together then the story just ends. Book 4 comes out summer of 2025.
13. Fox Creek by William Kent Krueger book #19 of the series 
14. Natural Selection by Elin Hilderbrand a very short story modern day romance I probably won’t look for more of her books.
15. Born a Crime by Trevor Noah for book club about Trevor Noah growing up in South Africa very good.
16. Snow in April by Rosamunde Pilcher a short book just for fun light romance takes place in London and Scotland published in 1972, referred to a rotary dial telephone.

Enjoying the moment

 

The Hubby was off on an ice fishing adventure, I had an eye appointment and a dentist appointment so I had to stay home not that I wanted to go ice fishing with him…..not my idea of fun. It was also extremely cold that week not a good week for even a day trip so I stayed home I didn’t want to put the big coat on unless I had to go somewhere and neither did anyone else.  I had a list of things I wanted to do but a lot of those things were downstairs and it takes forever for the electric radiators to warm up the room even with a space heater by my sewing machine.  So I stayed upstairs and read and knit and watched girl stuff on tv, like the recently released season of Sweet Magnolias after that the “suggested viewing” suggested Dolce Villa a little romance movie that takes place in Italy.  Dolce far niente  was mentioned many times throughout the movie. The sweetness of doing nothing. Put down your phone enjoy your coffee (some of those cold cold days I put an extra nip in my coffee) some days I slipped off my shoes to feel the sun on my toes and do nothing and above all don’t feel guilty about doing nothing for a little while.  Color coordinated socks and mug again—Ann—

Cold days for knitting

 These cold cold days I have been knitting and reading.  We went out the the river the weekend before last so I knit on the blue sweater 4 hours up and 4 hours home.  I just finished one sleeve and now the other I want to get it done to wear to the Summit basketball tournament in March I wear the colors but I don't wear words.  In between I have knit a few rows of the pink yarn from Ireland.  I like the fit better now.  That knits fast on #9 needles.  So knit a little, read a little, knit a little, read a little, sometimes a lot....my socks and my mug are color coordinated.  Hope you are staying warm --Ann--

A quilt top!

 

Finally something to show on the quilt front. It took all week to get the last 9 rows sown together, some weeks are like that…….my brain was thinking more on what fabrics I would use next instead of focusing on the current project. It’s together now start a stack of quilt tops because I don’t layer and pin baste until I have 3 or 4. It’s too much bother to move chairs and set up the quilt frame for one quilt. —Ann—

Low tech weekend

 

It was a very low tech weekend— Grandma wouldn’t turn on the tv and find any kids shows!!  Instead it was sugar stamp cookies, paper dolls and quilt forts (grandmas who quilt can make the best forts) and lots and lots of picture books for quiet time…….naps are becoming a thing of the past.  —Ann—

Not loving it

 It’s not finished until I love and I’m definitely not loving it. I tried knitting the pattern a size smaller because my gauge was bigger 14 stitches over 4 inches instead of 16.  There is too much fabric across the chest and over the armpits.  I have 10 inches of positive ease which means it’s 10 inches bigger in the bust than I am. I spent hours online looking at patterns again and finally found one that I like. Point and click and a few minutes later I’m reading the pattern. I’m going to ripped back to 3 1/2 inches from the center of the neck, it took me 12 minutes to rip sweater and wind the yarn . Instead of raglan increases every other round I will increase every 3rd round. That’s the plan and it’s too warm to wear this sweater anyway. It’s only February there is still time for a good snowstorm. While I was stewing about the pink sweater I started another and so far so good.

A yarn and a pattern I have used before. Clickhttps://straythreads-straythreads.blogspot.com/2024/05/its-not-done-until-i-love-it.html Knitting is just tv time my hands need to be busy . —Ann—