I have a few more pictures to share from our heritage tour of North Dakota.

I imagined that my knitting progress would be extensive while driving halfway across Minnesota and then North Dakota, but I was wrong.  Despite the flatness of the country, I was completely mesmerized by the beauty of the open skies and the sweeping farmland.  

The wheat was golden and most of it had been harvested, or was in the process of being harvested.

There were kids driving these combines (is that what their called).  We were impressed with their responsibilities, once we were able to get the kids to tear their eyes from the video and i-pod games. I knew I should have been a farmer.

The only knitting occurred at our campsite on the first evening.  We spent the night telling stories and performing campy skits.  

 

But the morning was early and I had it to myself.  So I set up camp on the picnic table and worked on my Luciole mini-shawl.  The color is not impressing me, but the pattern is so cool.

We rented a little cabin within the camp grounds and had a good time playing "Little House on the Prairie" which, by the way, is an absolute staple of a book. . . even for boys.  Get the book on CD and listen to it in the car for those boys who think it's too girly.  Pa gets into a scrap with 50 wolves and you'll have the boys on the edge of their seats. Yeah, baby.

So off to another cemetery.  Just outside of Upham, Nd (pronounced up-ham, thank you very much), is a dusty old Icelandic cemetery full of my relatives.  The care and upkeep of the place is largely due to dedicated volunteers, including a 91 year old who we met and spoke to.  He spoke an poem to us in Icelandic and choked up - so did we all.  Not a dry eye in the bunch.  He is one of the last of his kind.  He was from a generation of children learning the English language for their parents and grandparents, assimilating into American history.  He knew my grandfather when he was a boy. 

This time to visit my great great great grandpa Jon "Postur" Magnusson.  He was a mailman in Iceland.

 

And here lies my grandpa's little brother Norman "Buddy", who died from undiagnosed diabetes when he was 18 months old.  Blessed family - only one of ten children to die in childhood.  Boy, have we come a long way.

 

When my grandfather was nearing death, he said to my mother, "I'm ready to go.  I miss my wife and I would really like to see Buddy again."

May they all rest in peace.  Truly.

Where to begin

This post will be long and will probably include a  . . . to be continued . . .

For my 40th birthday, my husband and our parents organized a heritage tour of our Icelandic relatives.

We packed up the car this weekend and headed to the Great Plains in search of my relatives who traveled from Iceland in the 1870's and ended up in the most unlikely of places - North Dakota.

My great great grandmother traveled across this land in a covered wagon.  The week long wagon trip took us two hours by car.

My relatives came marching, rowing and riding into the Dakota Territory just after the Battle of Little Big Horn - a victory for the Lakota and Cheyenne Indians, with 262 of the US 7th Calvary Regiment killed in battle, including Custer himself.  The Sioux suffered the loss of 136 warriors.

Tensions were high on the Great Plains between 'the whites and the indians' and settlers moved across wild, lawless countryside at great risk to themselves and their families.

My relatives were mostly sheep farmers from the northwest and northeast parts of Iceland.  They were not familiar with farming and were admittedly naive when it came to choosing the best parcels of land.  Tall, lush grass growing on 160 acres looked good to the untrained eye until after moving into their sod shanties and realizing that the soil was mostly sand and growing crops would prove difficult.

They sustained themselves with diversified farming: chickens, pigs, milk cows, haying and sheep.  My Amma (my great grandmother) taught my mother to knit.  My mother remembers her always with her knitting, never looking down at her work, but visiting and going about her duties while all the time, knitting.

Knitting needles at the Icelandic Pioneer Museum, Cavalier, ND

My grandfather remembers never learning to knit, but remembers carding wool and spinning in his grandmother's home.

"A lesson in spinning and carding. Note the Icelandic spinning wheel" - Icelandic Pioneer Museum

Icelandic spinning wheel - Icelandic Pioneer Museum

Of course, when looking into the past, we tend to gravitate towards the experiences of our ancestors that most reflect our own.  So for my children, the school house with its dunce cap and neatly aligned desks was a fascination.  Where did they go to the bathroom?  What did they do if it was snowing?  Who kept the stove going?  What games did they play?

Lunker said, "Raise your hand."  Belle heard, "Raise your hair."

As a mother, I wonder how my great grandmother survived the death of 3 infants and a 4 year old daughter.  How did she manage after her young husband was killed when he fell off the hay wagon and was crushed to death.  How did she pass the winter months with the bodies of her children in the hen house, awaiting spring and enough warmth to thaw the earth so a proper grave could be dug.

Touching this not-so-distant past has always been emotional for me.  I realize there is one historian in every family and I am most certainly that person.

Here I stand, at the center of the earth - with the sky and the wind and the grass around me.   I can hear and feel and smell the past as if it were a past that I somehow experienced.  Is this genetics?  A past-life?  Nostalgia?  Or simply romantic notions of times gone by?

Close to "High Bank" farmstead - now gone to the ducks and geese of a wildlife refuge.

My Frog Toes

I finished my toe-up socks, thanks to Chrissy Gardiner's Toe-Up book (thanks Gail!).  My toes are too skinny, so next time I'll cast on more stitches for the start.  Then, I tried the short row heel and the jury is still out on this one.  Again, I think I made it too skinny and I didn't understand the overall construction until I was well under way, so I didn't add any texture to the heel, which I really do prefer.  I think a slip-stitch heel lasts longer. . . . maybe not.


BUT, having said all this, the instructions for the short row were as clear as a bell, and the best part - written so that you can just plug in the numbers from your own pattern.  At first, it looked like a horrible flashback to my 10th grade algebra class, but it really was a cinch.  I think this book may become a knitting-bag staple. 

I did not like the overall finish of these socks but I'll try it again before I give up.  I need to tweak my style a bit.  Widen the heel, widen the toe, add texture to the heel and I think I may really like this.  


SHORT ROW PRO - YOU DON'T HAVE TO PICK UP ANY GUSSET STITCHES!!! YEAH!


THE YARN:  Knit Picks Felici in "Green Veggies" - nice soft, strong feeling yarn.  I had two knots in one skein which was a big old bummer since I was trying to match up the stripes.  Yes.  It was tedious.  But they match, so there!  I loved the self-striping so much that the knots will not put me off.  I'll buy this again.  And you can't beat the price.  $10 for a pair of socks!!

A Friend Who Knits

This weekend was spent up north with some longtime friends and their beautiful children.  We had a relaxing time spent swimming, 

fishing,

and yes . . . knitting. 

This is Mollie.  She started knitting years ago, but it never seemed to click.   You know what I mean - that obsessive gleam we get in our eyes when anyone mentions yarn or knitting.  This weekend, she pumped out a baby sweater in record time and announced that she is now an obsessive knitter.  It's all she wanted to do.  She knit all day and into the evening.  When she awoke, she picked up the knitting off the floor and continued before she even got out of bed.  Atta girl.

I can't tell you how happy I was to have a companion that wanted to sit, knit and talk patterns and yarns all day.  I was in heaven.  


I surprised myself with my teaching skills, too.  I felt like an old pro.  Dropped stitch - no problem.  Purled a row instead of knit - hand it here, I'll fix it up quick.  Can't remember how to cast off?  - I'll show you.  The Debbie Bliss pattern was a bit tricky to read, but we managed to work through it and figure out our way up the sleeves.

What would be the perfect "Next Step" pattern?  I want to suggest something a with a teeny tiny bit of challenge, and something that she can wear so she'll be more motivated to finish.  Is the Clapotis too difficult?  Too big?  Do you have any suggestions?

I finished my green socks thanks to my new Toe-Up book, but they're soaking right now.  I'm not sure about the short row heel, yet.  I think I made it a bit too skinny.  And my bind-off looks horrendous.  I also made a bit of headway on my Luciole shawl.  Pictures to come soon.

All in all, a very good weekend.  Here's to more knitting!


ps.  We would never have kept a fish that big - they need to go back in the water as breeders.  (and they don't taste good at that size) However, this old walleye was netted off the dock as he floated by - apparently about to die of old age. 

Spiraluscious!

 During a beautiful rainstorm, I was able to finish my Spiralucious by Anne Hanson and get my hubby to take a few photos.  This is how important knitting is to me . . . he threw his back out, but he got up and took some pics for me anyway.

There was a nice package in the mail for me, too.  A day full of knitting joy.  I won a contest over at We Heart Yarn and she sent me a book and a beautiful photo card (she is the talented photographer) of the prettiest blue flowers.


All the specs are here on Ravelry.

The book is Chrissy Gardiner's Toe-Up!  And it's just in time because I'm stuck on the heal of these green Happy Feet socks.

Thank you Neuroknitter for the wonderful prize!! I can't wait to dive into the book!

I. LOVE. SUMMER.

I am trying to juice every last drop out of these warm days.  The best part starts with a good sleep-in.  It's 9:45. 

Who's watching the kids?  The good news: they are old enough to get themselves up, dressed and fed.

The bad news:  the breakfast of choice means I'll have to eventually get out of bed and make them real food.  This is Belle's potato-chips-on-a-bun breakfast.   Mmmmmm.


Despite Minnesota's cold reputation, the summers are generally hot and steamy.  You know the kind of humidity that turns your chip stale by the time it reaches your mouth.

So we're swimmin' with the kids and dog.

I'm also waging my annual garden war with the vermin.  This year, I came up with a plan to protect my ripening tomatoes.  And it has worked!

I slip ziploc baggies over the tomatoes that are starting to turn.  At night I zip them closed and in the morning I zip them open but leave them on.  The chipmunks and rabbits have decided they don't like the baggies.  Tomatoes have been ripening on the vine!  Last night we had a 2 pound Brandywine tomato for dinner with some mozzarella.  I wish I could share it with you.  Summer in a mouthful.

Of course, there is the knitting.  This is Spiraluscious by Anne Hanson.  The yarn is Wollmeise "Poison #5".  It's a neck cowl and it knitted up faster than I thought.  The hem threw me for a loop.  In fact, there was a moment of tears.  But I figured out my mistakes and forged ahead.  I should have this blocking by tonight.  


Until next time!

Veggies down the hatch!

My kids ate cukes.  It's true!  We made this  Cucumber chicken recipe for dinner last night and OH MY, was it delish.  

 We substituted our favorite curry powder for the cumin/mustard and instead of sour cream, I used plain yogurt.  Oh, and doubled the garlic.  Cooked cukes are fabulous!  Who knew.   Here's the proof that is was a Kid Friendly recipe.

That's not all.  Just after the onslaught of cucumbers, the zucchini's made their timely assault.

But have no fear - 

Zucchini Chocolate Cake is here and it is another great way to sneak in a pile of veggies into the unsuspecting and suspicious mouths of my kids.  MWOO HA HA HAAAAAA.  I told them about the zucchini after they helped themselves to seconds. 

The recipe was from Of Faith and Fiber but she's out of town and I'm not sure where she got the original.  So hopefully, I won't get into trouble if I share it with you here:

Chocolate Sneaky-Zucchini Cake

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, unsifted

1/2 cup cocoa

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 cup soft butter

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 teaspoons grated orange peel (we left this out and it was still fab)

2 cups grated/shredded zucchini - no need to peel or seed.

1/2 cup milk

1 cup chopped walnut or pecans (we skipped this too - kids, ya know.)

Glaze: (see below)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

1. combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, soda, salt, and cinnamon; set aside.

2. with a mixer, beat together the butter and the sugar until they are smoothly blended (Beat for a longer time and you'll have a fluffier cake).  Add the eggs to the butter one at a time - mix well between.  Gently mix in vanilla, orange peel, and zucchini.

3. Alternately stir the dry ingredients and the milk into the zucchini mixture, including the nuts with the last addition.

4. Pour the batter into a greased and flour-dusted 10-inch tube pan or bundt pan.  Bake in the oven for about 50 minutes (test at 45!).  or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan 15 minutes: turn out on wire rack to cool thoroughly.

5. Drizzle glaze over cake.

Glaze:  Mix 2 cups powdered sugar, 3 Tablespoons milk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla (we used almost extract).  Beat until smooth.

Cut into thin slices.  Serves 10-12 (generously).

Woman smothered by her own cucumbers.

Cukes for dinner, cukes for lunch, cukes for anytime you want to munch. 

Folks - if you have any cucumber recipe ideas - now is the time to share them!  I don't want to make processed pickles because they always turn out mushy and salty.  I made Barefoot Contessa's Provencal Potato Salad and added a boiled egg and a pound of cucumber.  It was delish!

It was a productive knitting weekend up at the cabin.

The sock yarn is Knit Picks Felici "Green Veggies".  I am absolutely in love with this yarn.  It is light, soft and knits up to a dense, tough fabric.  PERFECT for socks.  And it's affordable.  I see much more of this in my future.  Here's hoping that Lumpy doesn't tear a hole in these the first week out of the chute.

 I finished the knitted portion of a fetal wrap but I still have to add a crochet edge to make it a bit more pretty.  The first of many, I hope, to be donated to the hospital that took care of my sister and her loss.  If you are interested, here is a link to the free pattern by Betsy Dey.

I also cast on for a beautiful neck thingy called  Spiraluscious by Anne Hanson of Knit Spot.  I'm using some Wollmeise called "Poison".