Cast On!

The Ravellenic Games have officially begun, and I have officially missed the mass cast on party. We were still on our way back from St. Louis with the senior kidnapping youth event when mass cast on began, and yesterday was a catch up/recoup day that was *mostly* successful. (I decided laundry's unimportant this weekend.)

Tonight I'm officially casting on my project, which, unfortunately doesn't exist in the Ravelry database. Imagine that. The shawl I'm attempting completing is part of a kit D bought me for Christmas last year. (He let me pick it out. Isn't that thoughtful of him? :) He's the best.)

Ravellenic Games 2012!

I can't wait to finish it -- my first shawl, and it's going to be gorgeous! Hopefully the pattern's not too confusing or frustrating.

I also got many lovely birthday presents from some loved ones.... and although I love them all, I really wanted to share this one. It's from my grandparents and I can't wait to wear it once the weather finally cools off. The colors are so perfect, and my grandma found it at a farmers' market -- how perfect!

Birthday scarf!

It's been a rather exhausting weekend, so I'll leave you with this. Maybe I'll actually have a finished shawl to show off by the end of the Olympics!

Why, Hello Again!

Things have been pretty quiet around the blog lately, but that's not for lack of things going on in real life: friends visiting, celebrations and family get togethers, church events, volunteering, and softball have resulted in quite a busy summer! We've finally arrived home from our whirlwind vacation, which included visiting both sides of the family and spending some time in Kansas City on our own. We had a splendid time, and it felt sooo good to rest and relax a little (having other people cook for me wasn't so bad, either!) after the busy, stressful, and blessed year we've had.

Some friends of ours shared the bounty of their garden. Not only does it look pretty, but it tastes good, too! I was definitely busy making lots of zucchini breads and bars a few weeks ago in preparation for our travels and visits with friends and family.

I've got a few things lined up to highlight in the next week or so, but first they must reach their intended recipients. I'd hate to spoil any good surprises. I'm also starting to get everything together for The Event Now Known as the Ravellenic Games. I'm really excited to participate this year and hope it will be a resounding success! D bought me a shawl kit for Christmas and I'm thinking this will be the perfect time to complete it!

As if I don't have enough other crafty things going on, I'm also taking up cross-stitching again, and have decided to venture into the world of embroidery as well. More crafty goodness!! I got a cute The Lord is My Shepherd kit to work on, plus some extra supplies to create a few other projects. And some iron-on transfer embroidery patterns, which is convenient considering I just happen to have some plain tea towels tucked away upstairs in storage.

Hard to believe we've been here for almost an entire year. It's been a year of changes, learning, struggles (mostly with schoolwork, haha!), acceptance, and laughter. Looking forward to a much more steady (and hopefully not as stressful) second year!

For now, I leave you with a few pictures from our vacation:

Steamboat Arabia

View atop the Liberty Memorial Tower

T-Bones game on Independence Day!

Flash the Stash!

Things like this make me happy:

I love 75% off sales. And today was one of those days. Got there first thing, and made it out within an hour with all this loot. Plus I got a few freebies unexpectedly, which is always a nice surprise when you get home and start unpacking the goodies.
Good thing I actually have projects lined up for most all of this!

Tasty Thursday: Muffin Love

{Rhubarb Lemon Muffins | Taste of Home}

I love rhubarb. And I love muffins. My girlfriends still giggle over the Great Muffin Hunt of 2006. Ever since seeing this recipe posted online, I've been patiently waiting to try it. As today was a grocery shopping day, I picked up the last few items I needed and after supper got to work. (Supper, by the way, was chicken stir fry with this sweet and sour sauce, which was more sweet than sour, but satisfying nonetheless.) This time, I actually followed the recipe. I didn't substitute, I didn't cut corners. And they look and smell delicious. :D I'm still waiting on them to cool enough from the oven to actually eat one without endangering my mouth.

Behold: The Muffin.

(Disclaimer: The recipe said it would make 12 muffins. I got 18 out of the batch.) This recipe was easy to follow, and I'm looking forward to breakfast time the next few days! I anticipate they'll disappear in the next few days, and I'm oh, so ok with that.

Here's the recipe if you fancy making a batch of your own: Rhubarb Lemon Muffins

What are your go-to summer baked goods? Do you make use of local foods in your cooking?

Pentecost, Confirmation, and Memorial Day, Oh My!

This weekend has been incredibly busy and thoroughly rewarding! Looking forward to relaxing tomorrow before getting back into the swing of things for the "normal" week... whatever normal means anymore. :)

As today is a major Church festival (Pentecost), things were naturally busier and a "big deal" at church today. Although I missed singing with choir for today (ours ended a few weeks ago... at my home congregation, we would usually formally sing through Trinity Sunday [which we'll celebrate next week]), the music was particularly fitting. One of the hardest things I've had to adjust to since moving here and joining a new congregation is adjusting to the different musical styles and preferences. (Mostly, not singing all my favorite hymns anymore.) At my home congregation, we would always sing certain hymns for each major feast and festival, and it's strange to not sing those anymore, since I so strongly associate those days with certain hymns. However, I'm also enjoying the opportunity to sing some other hymns from our hymnal that I haven't sung often before. Music, specifically the liturgy and hymns, has always been a great comfort and joy to me, and I often find the hymns from the previous Sunday running through my head in any given week. There's something so reassuring about singing the same words that people sang hundreds of years ago, and knowing I'm joining in a common confession with believers throughout the centuries.

Today we also celebrated with the four young men and women of our congregation who were confirmed today! What a wonderful day to celebrate the confession of baptismal faith as we all join together for worship and the Lord's Supper. One of the members of my home congregation worked with the confirmands every year to help design and create banners for the students' confirmations, as a memento of the day and a reminder of the promises they made to God and their congregation. This year, at our new congregation, I offered to help organize and orchestrate the banner making. A dear friend of mine helped me with the tedious task of cutting out all the letters and designs. The kids all selected their confirmation verses, the design that went along with the text, and glued their banners together. I think they turned out wonderfully and hope our confirmands love them as much as I do.

As I mentioned in a previous post, my in-laws are also visiting for the weekend. We've been so excited to have them here and spend some quality time with them, even though we've been unusually busy with church events. For part of their visit, I cooked supper on Saturday evening. {Well, D grilled everything. I planned the menu and put together the non-cooked stuff.} Everything was so tasty, and I was particularly pleased with my table setting. Simple, festive, and cute, I think it really added a nice touch to our meal. The menu included grilled brats and corn on the cob, plus a mixed greens salad with cranberries, nuts, and homemade vinaigrette dressing. For dessert, we had angel food cake with fruit salad and whipped cream on top. Summery, refreshing, and delicious!

Hope everyone has a safe and enjoyable remainder of the weekend!

Busy, busy day!

Today has been ridiculously busy. Normally I don't feel like I've accomplished enough in a day, even if I really have. Today, I'm definitely feeling accomplished, even though I know I still have chores on my to-do list to prepare for this weekend. My in-laws are coming to visit for the weekend, and I've been busy getting the apartment cleaned and in company shape. Of course, D thinks I'm overdoing it... I just say he doesn't really understand what goes through women's minds when we're expecting company. Thankfully, there's only a few things left on the list for tomorrow! :)

Today, I got my hair cut (and spent a lovely time with my friend and stylist), baked two batches of cookies, did four loads of laundry, grocery shopped, donated some food to the area food pantry, put up some Memorial Day decorations, and wrapped a few presents for this weekend. Did I mention I also had car trouble today? Looks like it might need to spend a few days in the hospital. :/

Tonight's agenda? Finish cutting out and preparing the banners that our confirmands will put together on Saturday in preparation for their Confirmation on Sunday. (Which is also Pentecost! Hello busy weekend!)

I'm also enjoying a lovely Schlafly Porter, compliments of my dad and brother-the-younger.

Finished Object: Chopper Mittens

Brother-the-younger requested some chopper mitten liners quite a while back. He made the outer parts himself... I never realized how resourceful our family can be. After almost two months on the needles, I'm finally finished with them. Ends woven in and everything! (Weaving in ends? Yeah... definitely my least favorite part.)

Yay!! Mittens finished with plenty of time to spare.

This was my first attempt at knitting mittens, and I'd say it was pretty successful. The pattern made sense, although following the layout was confusing at times. Glad to have finished these... there's so much more summer knitting that's just waiting in the queue!