Oops, sorry I missed you last week! I was laid up on the couch with bronchitis once again and fell into a small pit of depression from coughing and springs disappearance. Furthermore, in my haze of fever, I noticed some of my seedlings were suffering greatly. They really need to be planted, but what can you do when it's still -10c at night? Fortunately, I managed to recuperate pretty quickly and this weekend I spent the last two days transplanting my tomatoes into bigger pots and an improved soil mixture. Sadly, everyday I get up and notice I have lost a few more plants. This is very painful and I am not sure what more I can do. I 'told' them they have to hang in there for a couple more weeks and if any pass away, well, then they get tossed! No further measure will be taken to keep them going. abut tough. I'm not sure if heirloom tomatoes are less hardy, or if I have planted them too soon. This is my first year growing from seeds, so its' all a learning experience.
Then a miracle happened last week - the weather warmed up, all the snow is all gone, and the robins are back! Imagine that!!! I love the smell of summer don't you? There is a freshness about the smell of summer and the sound of robins. It always takes me back to a favourite childhood memory I have of my mother ironing in the kitchen. I am reminded of that smell every summer. The hot iron on the clean sheets, with a slight breeze of clean fresh grass wafting through the window. Mmm heaven. That same smell also reminds me of my own life, when my children were small and I faced the endless chore of folding laundry and ironing. There is a peacefulness about this chore in the summer when our senses are aching for sensual fulfilment. Somehow its not the same in the winter! Maybe these memories are partly what attracts me to sewing. I love the smell of ironing fabric and well, add a summer breeze through the window and there I am, transported back through generations and living memories.
So having been sick for over a week, I have not done any sewing or knitting. All week, I remained nestled on the sofa, in our den, with the blankets piled high and Scruggs, my kitty, curled underneath the covers with me. I spent time alternating between sleeping and reading through all my old issues of Interweave Knits. I love the older issues more I think. I have some back to 2003 and they are all dog eared and marked up. Not sure if it's just me, but the newer ones seem to be lacking something, although I couldn't tell you what! Regardless, I do treasure my issues and it was comforting to look through them all and fantasize about future projects. I saw an article about Ravelry and decided to add all my favourite patterns into my library. Whoohoo! Now I don't have to search through old issues to find a project because its all saved in my very own library. I haven't used Ravelry for anything else yet, but it certainly looks like a great system. If you haven't checked this site out yet, I recommend you do so. Do you have any experiences using Ravelry? Do you depend on it for keeping track of your stash? Anything else you use it for?
What else did I do while sick? Other than coughing and steaming? I ordered more fabric from Ann Steeves of Gorgeous Fabrics! Oh yes! Nothing like shopping online when you're sick because it gives you something to look forward to when you feel better. Right? Yes, I think that's good logic too!
I am now planning out our garden and how to plant everything in a symbiotic manner,you know like 'carrots love tomatoes' sort of thing. Do you have any special plans for your garden this year?
I was working on my Etsy shop just before I got sick and am in midstream of some big changes. I changed my shop name to be more consistent with my product so now I am "HelgasHandbags". I love my new name! But I must change my avatar etc this week.Stay tuned and check my site out.
As always, I would love to hear from you!
God Bless!
