Beautiful Weather, Gorgeous Colours, & Friendly Creatures...

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We have been having such beautiful weather these days...very sunny and very warm!

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I took advantage of the sunshine and got outside with my camera yesterday afternoon to capture the beautiful colour of our backyard Maple Tree...these red leaves won't last long at all...before we know it our Fall breeze will sweep them off their branches and they'll lay like a carpet on the ground all around here.

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It's hard to imagine the trees will all be bare soon...sad.
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Look who decided to FINALLY pop around for a morning visit...

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Yup, Mr. Fox. He was hungry and obviously very thirsty as he was licking all the rain from the night before, off our deck chairs...yup, he hopped right up into the chair as if it was his. And because the chair was nice and wet it was pretty darn dirty after his muddy paws were all over it!

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What a nut bar!

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After he got down from the chair, I followed him all over the backyard as he was eating all the little raspberries along the way...he had the sneezes too so perhaps that's what's been keeping him away...maybe he was home sick with a cold...lol!

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I followed him with the camera all the way to the back of our yard and into the bush...before he got in the thick of the bush he turned to me as if to say, "see ya later"....he's such a cute little fella...I've really grown to like him...I'll miss him if he goes away...I wonder if he'll visit in the Winter?

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And then there was this little guy...mad as heck with me...not sure why but he sat on this branch for a good 10 minutes making the biggest and loudest racket directed at me! For cute little creatures they sure can be annoying!

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Today is picture day at the school so I knew I would have a lot to do with the kids this morning. Kailey's hair needed to be straightened which takes forever because it's so long...we had all the clothes picked out the night before so that was good. Usually Luke is the easiest one to get ready for things like this but for some reason today he was having so many issues...he accidentally squirted sun screen on the front of his good shirt, then got wet on the front of his shirt from brushing his teeth, and then while I was helping Kailey with something down the hall I heard a big, "OH NO!" from the other bathroom...it was Luke...he got his shirt soaked after he squeezed the cloth to ring it out from washing his face...instead of the water going in the sink, it went all over his shirt! This is all 5 minutes before they have to be outside for the bus, so I was frantically trying to dry him off and reapplying sunscreen to his face because for some reason he decided to wash his face AFTER he put sunscreen on! Good Grief!

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So here I am sitting, still in my jammies, feeling like a need another cup of coffee cuz I can't even remember drinking my first cup...I must have inhaled it in between getting the kids ready and hubby out the door for work...I don't even want to look around cuz it feels like a tornado whipped through here and it probably looks like it did too! Oh well, I've got the whole day to get things cleaned up.

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I hope everyone is well...take care and have a great day!

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Hugs and Smiles,

Rachel

~ September 2009 KAL in Rachel's Knitting Room ~

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~ Daily Progress Pics ~

(photos are clickable for a larger view)

Please feel free to join and knit along with us :o)
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Hugs,
:o)
Rachel

~ September 2009 KAL in Rachel's Knitting Room ~
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~ Daily Progress Pics ~
(photos are clickable for a larger view)

Day 3 of our September 2009 Knit Along!
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The third colour that I've added is Geranium...

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I think I like just the Shrimp and Persimmon together better though...oh well...I can always do another one up if I want...
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Please feel free to join and knit along with us :o)

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Hugs,

:o)

Rachel

~ September 2009 KAL in Rachel's Knitting Room ~

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~ Daily Progress Pics ~

(photos are clickable for a larger view)

Day 2 of our September 2009 Knit Along!

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Some of us are choosing to use more than one colour for this one...my second colour added is Persimmon...

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I love how those two colours look together!
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Please feel free to join and knit along with us :o)
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Hugs,
:o)
Rachel

~ September 2009 KAL in Rachel's Knitting Room ~
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~ Daily Progress Pic ~
(photo is clickable for a larger view)

Day one complete! I'm using size 4mm needles. I'm choosing to use 3 different colours of cotton...this first colour is "Shrimp".

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Please feel free to join and knit along with us :o)

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Hugs,

:o)
Rachel

What do you say to your kids when they ask, "Mom, what are those 2 squirrels doing up in the tree?".....

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Well, this is what we saw out the window this morning...

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I've got my little guy home sick today...had my girl home sick yesterday too...guess that means I'm next?...I sure hope not...I've already had a nasty summer cold...but with the kids back in school now, it's really easy for them to pick up any and all bugs out there!

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So my little guy asks me if they are hugging or wrestling...lol! What would you say? Whatever they were "doing", the boy squirrel was OBVIOUSLY NOT taking the hint...lol! He wasn't going to let her go for nothing...he was NOT taking No for an answer! How rude!
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Just when I was starting to feel sorry for the little lady, she and her little boyfriend flashed me a look as if to say, "Hey Lady, do you mind...some privacy please...". They were actually getting mad at me for being out there taking their pictures! You should have heard them squacking at me! Good Gosh! Who knew they were so sensitive!
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Then she decides to play "hard to get"...quite funny actually.

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I managed to get some designing and knitting done yesterday which I was really happy about...I sort of took the whole summer off cuz of everything we had going on so it really feels good to get back at it!

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I haven't seen the fox in days now...getting a little worried about him...hope he's okay.

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I couldn't wait to sit down last night and watch the first episode of this season's Survivor! Just finished watching Big Brother so I needed my reality tv fix! Looks like it's going to be another great season!

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So now I'm off to go fix me some brekkie and start my day...

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Have a wonderful weekend guys!

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Hugs and Smiles,

Rachel

~ Tomato Love ~

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I L-O-V-E love Tomatoes! Raw or cooked, I love them! I eat so many tomatoes I'm shocked that I haven't turned into one!

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When I was pregnant both times I had such deep cravings for tomatoes, I just starting eating them with everything! When I didn't have fresh ones on hand I ate them right out of the can! Still to this day I crave and love a giant heap of pasta smothered with a can of stewed tomatoes...mmmmm....yum!

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This year Hubby decided to build us a greenhouse to grow our own tomatoes and lettuce and such, but mostly tomatoes. I have been thouroughly enjoying being able to go out there in the mornings to pick my own tomatoes to eat for breakfast! My very favourite way to eat a beautiful fresh tomato is on toast with margarine, lots of mayo, sea salt and cracked peppercorns...Holy Hannah is it ever yummy! I grew up eating them with my Mom....she's going to be so jealous when she reads this post! If you look below, you can find the Super Stacked Toasted Tomato Sandwich I made for myself yesterday...I managed to fit that whole tomato in between two slices of toast and boy was it good!
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You don't need anything on the side to dress it up...though it may look just like a plain and boring tomato sandwich, it just explodes with so much flavour and juices when you bite into it!
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So on that note...it's 9:00am here, time for some breakfast so I'm off to go pick myself some juicy sweetness for another yummy Toasted Tomato Sandwich!

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Hugs,

Rachel

Signs of Fall in the Air.....

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Even with all our beautiful warm sunny temperatures we've been experiencing lately, looking around at all the changing colours of leaves, it's inevitable that Fall will be here soon...

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I don't mind Fall time one bit...in fact it is a gorgeous time of the year with all the beautiful reds, golds, and yellows....

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It's what comes after Fall that I really don't care for...the long and cold Winter...
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Winter can be beautiful too, don't get me wrong, but it's hard not to completely lose your mind when the cold seems to last forever! That's why we have to enjoy these nice temperatures and beautiful colours while they last, cuz you never know when Mother Nature will decide to flick that switch...

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I love Bulrushes...always have. I can remember when I was a little girl begging my Mother if I could go and pluck one whenever I seen one...I just couldn't wait to break it open and shake it all over and make it snow fluff everywhere! Perhaps that's why Mom wasn't too keen on the idea...
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Well, I've got the house all to myself once again...Hubby at work and Kiddies at school. My mornings seems to be getting a little better...some mornings I thank the Good Lord that I only have 2 children to get ready for school...you'd think that it wouldn't be that difficult to get two children ready but around here it is...I have been finding though that the key to a good morning is getting organized the night before...laying out clothes and figuring out what they will be taking for lunch and gathering up homework...I've also come to the conclusion that they are a little bit lazy in the morning and I do believe that's my fault as I have always gotten everything together and ready for them each morning and reminded them over and over to do the things that they need to do, so I think they really rely on me to that every morning...I should really be trying to break them (and me) of this.

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Well, I'm off to go whip up a delicious toasted, "home-grown tomato" sandwich for my breakfast with lots of mayo and then I need to finish blocking dishlcoths...I'll keep you posted.

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Hugs & Smiles,

Rachel

Look What I got in the Mail....

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Cindy has organized another Calendar of Hope for 2010 which will be up for sale real quick (you can click here to read about the 2009 Calendar of Hope) I have been doing the blocking and photographing again this year for it and I have to say the designs are outstanding this time 'round...I'm finding it really hard to choose a favourite cuz they're all just so gorgeous! I'll be sure to keep you all posted when it's released...Cindy has done another spectacular job on the layout of the calendar on top of taking on a new full time job! I can't wait for you all to see it!

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Anyway, my friend Kathleen did some test knitting for last year's calendar as well as this year's and she happens to be a big stamp collector so she's asked that I save all the stamps from the envelopes with the Breast Cancer Awareness Dishcloths for our Calendar to be photographed. So that's what I've been doing. She also asked for me to send her tested cloths back to her and in return for doing this she decided to bless me with a whole bunch of really yummy cotton! She really did go all out...I couldn't believe how many balls just kept coming out of the box that she sent me! They were all beautifully wound and wrapped in individual plastic bags. So a huge thank you to her for being so thoughtful and generous! I surely do appreciate it! I can't wait to start using some of these up...my daughter has already put dibs on the ones she would like to use!

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Thanks again Kathleen for being such a sweetheart! Your generosity is most appreciated!
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Hugs,
Rachel

Making Friends...

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My little Fox Friend has been visiting everyday...

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Each time, he gets a little more comfortable and a little more friendlier...
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I'm beginning to think he thinks that he owns the place lol....
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We've discovered that he loves to play and he loves to chew anything we happen to leave lying around the yard...
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We had a case of a missing flip flop at one time and found out later that it was in fact the fox that carried it off to play with...
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You'd think that we would have learned our lesson about the flip flops but somehow another pair was left out only to be found the next morning all chewed and totally destroyed...little devil!
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It's hard to be mad at someone this adorable though, don't you think?
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He has started coming right up to me now...I'm sure if I had a piece of food I could have him eating out of my hand but that's something I'm not comfortable with...I don't agree with feeding wild animals...we couldn't figure out why we were getting so many Bear visitors this summer until we found out the other day that our neighbour has been actually feeding them in his back yard! Good Grief! What are these people thinking? Bears remember year after year where they got food and they go back for more...I am soooo not okay with that!
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I have some videos from this little fella the other night...I'll have to see if I can upload them here one of these days...he plays real cute with you...gives you the sweetest looks...he really knows how to get your attention and your love!
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So now I'm off to go start my day...bit of a late start...somedays I wish I could just stay in my jammies the whole day!

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On the knitting front, I've just finished test knitting the next pattern we will be doing for our mystery dishcloth knit along in Rachel's Knitting Room which will start next week...real pretty one too...it's going to be a good one! If you're not a member of our group please feel free to join and knit along with us!

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I'm also working on reknitting a couple of my halloween patterns...something I've always been meaning to do cuz they were originally done in black cotton and while I love the black cotton especially for Halloween, the black cotton does not like the camera, or perhaps the other way around? Anyway, they are done and now I just have to block them and I've also decided to redesign my Spooky Pumpkin Face Cloth with a garter stitch version...the original one is a seed stitch version and I love it, in fact it's one of my favourite designs but I have come to the conclusion that not all knitters love doing all that seed stitch, so this next one is for them! I'll keep you posted!

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Okay, I think I've babbled on long enough now...it'll be noon before I know it and hubby will be home for lunch and wonder why I'm still not dressed :oP

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Hugs & Smiles,

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Rachel

"Grandpa"
Designed by Danielle Côté
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A Big Thank You To Danielle Côté for allowing our group to use her pattern for our August 2009 KAL!
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This pattern is called, "Grandpa" and can be found here on Danielle's website which now has a new home.

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I have created a photo album for us to post our finished kals into...here is the link.
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If you go to the group homepage you can see the photo of my finished kal.

Thanks to everyone for participating with us on this one...hope you all enjoyed it. Also a really big thank you to everyone for filling in the KAL Questionaire on the group that I posted last week! I have been reading through all the answers and I am finding them extremely helpful.
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Hope all is well with everyone...take care, and thanks again!
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NEXT KAL BEGINS MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 21st!
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Hugs,
:o)
Rachel

Where you can find me:

Knits by Rachel:
http://www.knitsbyrachel.com/

Rachel's Knitting Corner:
http://rachelsknittingcorner.blogspot.com/

Ravelry(KnitsByRachel):
http://www.ravelry.com/people/KnitsByRachel

Rachel's Knitting Room:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Rachels_Knitting_Room/
KAL Info: http://rachelsknittingroom.blogspot.com/

~ August 2009 KAL in Rachel's Knitting Room ~

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~ Daily Progress Pics ~

(photos are clickable for a larger view)

~ August 2009 KAL in Rachel's Knitting Room ~
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~ Daily Progress Pic ~
(photo is clickable for a larger view)