Come now.

downy woodpecker :: white breasted nuthatch :: nuthatch on tree :: chickadee in the redbud 

 chatty chickadee :: birdbath reflections :: wind in water

Sweet, contemplative moments have been few and far between. What with me being sick for the better part of the last month and Julian's workload, it's all we can do most weeks to eat, sleep and do it all over again. Our walks have come to a halt - first because of weather, secondly sickness, and lastly the time change.  

This past Saturday, we had a really lovely morning sitting on our deck, wandering the yard, bundled in coats, taking slow sips from our mugs like long draws from a grandpa's pipe. And playing. 

We got a new camera specifically for taking pictures of birds. We skitter through the house from one porch to the other, and back to the window again, like kids on Christmas morning with a new toy. The user's manual is so huge it came on a CD, so we really have no idea what we are doing and are essentially learning by trial and error. Who has time for reading instructions when you could just mash all the buttons? Come now. 

knit knit knit

I just cast on my cowl and I am already in love. Because it uses short row shaping, it's not going to be a mindless knit but because of the larger yarn, I am hoping it will at least be quick. The yarn is so delicate that the rough spots on my hands catch it, so I'll be going through the lotion and knitting with dishpan hands.

I'm back to reading The Bean Trees and I am happy that the two plot lines have finally converged. I had been scratching my head wondering where we were going. I finished The Tower, The Zoo and the Tortoise and I liked it. It was a happy-ending-book though good heavens, sometimes I wondered. It was very busy with a couple different couples, each with their own weird plots. A good brain vacation, but nothing life changing.

In other news, this past week I found a bunch of other Yarn Along-ers on Instagram. Delight! I love keeping up with what everyone is doing in the week. If you'd like to look me up, I'm MrsDymacek. 

What are you reading and stitching? Show and tell with Ginny. 

autumn tree

Fall, leaves, fall; die, flowers, away;

Lengthen night and shorten day;

Every leaf speaks bliss to me

Fluttering from the autumn tree.

I shall smile when wreaths of snow

Blossom where the rose should grow;

I shall sing when night’s decay

Ushers in a drearier day.

Emily Brontë