There's change in the air

Yes, change in the weather.  I have a couple of small shrubs to plant and a larger shrub.  Dang, time has a way of flying by.

Shop samples are caught up for a bit.  I started Ariana's Shell with Rowan Felted Tweed DK.  It is lovely yarn.  It would have been really nice in my original color choice--Treacle--but instead there was more of the Carbon color, which is a dark blue/gray.  Right now I am working on a fun hat project called Round Dance.  I had a couple of skeins in the stash for some time and they were perfect for the hat.

I heard from a friend that she saw the 60 Quick Knits book in Washington state while visiting her daughter.  It is nice to hear from others how they like the hats.  I thought they turned out really cute.  The hooked rug, sample yarns, article, and photos arrived at Interweave Press.  That will take a bit longer to see, as the spring issue will not be out for a few months.

23.10.2013  I finished the Gnome Hat for my Halloween costume.  I retired the costume I made around 1982.  The only piece I needed for this costume was the hat.  Heck, why not make one I can wear when I cross-country ski?  Whether or not gnomes wear glasses remains to be seen, but this one does--I cannot see without them!  Maybe I can decorate them somehow to fit in with the costume.

The Paton's red is perfect for the hat.

Early morning light makes the red look pinkish.
The top photo's color is accurate.  

Over the weekend Jim and I had training.  He was inside and I was outside.    The participants made Little Reubens and Mountain Man Breakfast in the Dutch ovens.  Because we had only one hour for the session, the Reubens were finished quickly and finished off quickly!  I was too busy to take photos and wish I had taken one of Steve's troop when they brought their Dutch oven up from their campsite to show off their apple pfannkuchen.  It smelled heavenly.  I think that was wonderful for the adults to see the boys take pride in their cooking skills.  I can train people until the cows come home, but nothing beats seeing the boys in action.

The trees and the road looked pretty as I was leaving camp. 

Autumn colors.

Below are the recipes I used for outdoor cooking.  These are very easy to adjust.  Just remember:  You can cook food, but you can't unburn food!

Recipes:

Little Reubens

1, 8 to 10 oz pkg corned beef, chopped (or use turkey for Rachels) 

1, 32 oz jar sauerkraut well-drained (I use Frank's--it's my Ohio thing)

1 cup mayonnaise

2 cups shredded Swiss Cheese (or a bit more is better--this is not rocket science!)

Ritz crackers (The first time I tried this we had rye bread, but the Ritz crackers are really good!)

10-inch Dutch oven, matches, charcoal briquettes 

This cooks up in a preheated Dutch oven in about 20 minutes at 375 to 400 degrees F, 10 to 12 coals on top and 8 to 10 coals on the bottom of a 10-inch Dutch oven.  The amount of coals used vary when the weather is cold, or is windy and cold, which was the case on Saturday.

Mountain Man Breakfast

1/2 pound bacon (we used precooked sausage cut up)

1 medium onion, chopped

1, 2-lb bag of frozen hash brown potatoes

1/2-lb grated cheddar cheese

1 dozen eggs

1 small jar salsa

12-inch Dutch oven, matches, charcoal briquettes

This requires 6 to 9 bottom coals and 12-15 top coals.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Slice bacon into small pieces and brown with onion in  the bottom of the oven until translucent.  If using precooked sausage, thaw and then cut into small bits.  Stir in the potatoes and cover, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes.  Scramble the eggs in a separate container and pour over the potato mixture.  Cover and cook until eggs start to set, about 10 to 15 minutes.  Sprinkle grated cheese over egg mixture, cover, and continue cooking until eggs are completely set and cheese is melted.  Serve hot with salsa!  

Something else I love when camping is Philmocha--coffee with hot chocolate, which tastes so good on a chilly morning or evening by the campfire.  

This week I received the designer's copy of the book and was excited to see my pattern in print.  I will enjoy my 15 minutes of fame to the hilt!  Too bad the Twins did not do well (yet again).  It would be nice to wear the original hat to a game--I only went to the stitch and pitch game years ago the first season the ballpark opened.  

It is nice to see not only my name but Amazing Threads, too.

Back from Gilwell and onward to Iceland

Yesterday I returned from Gilwell (Wood Badge).  The weather was amazing!  I headed up to Stearns Scout Camp on Thursday afternoon.  My birthday was on Thursday, so Wednesday evening Jim and I went out to supper and then to Cold Stone Creamery for dessert and then bought a cake to share with Ben on Sunday.

Besides the nice weather on Saturday and Sunday (with just a bit of rain on Thursday and Friday) the course was a success!  The participants had a good time, finished writing their tickets, presented their projects and camped.  It was a pleasure to visit some of the patrol in their campsites for lunch and supper.  Sharing delicious food with old friends and new friends is always special.  The leaves are beginning to turn and there is just enough of a nip in the autumn air to wear a jacket.

As with any event such as Wood Badge, logistics and facilities have their challenges.  The participants are not aware of the near kitchen disasters of  putting meals out on time, blown fuses, large coffee pots that don't perk, and having to drive to another kitchen to use the large convection oven!  We Quartermasters managed just fine and worked together as a team to feed the hungry staff, participants, and guests.  Never a dull moment in the kitchen/s!

Looking from the front of Landes Training Center at the beautiful sunset

Colors from the sunset gave a pinkish cast to the wood.  Below the Wood
Badge sign is the course number.  Our motto is "Envision Scouting Service."

My new hiking boots were very comfortable through the long weekend!

The patrols entertained everyone at the campfire.

I started Oats (the cowl) when I drove over to Heritage Lodge to
use the convection oven for baking the brownies.

My bears visited the Bear Patrol's table every day--this was Saturday.  Smoky and Woody Bear were the last ones to visit on Sunday.

Home again.  Tired bears, laundry to do, and projects to finish...

I managed to knit a bit on Oats, an easy cowl from Tin Can Knits.  It is one of eight free patterns for new knitters.  The patterns from The Simple Collection posted thus far (they are being released over a six-month period) are simple and stylish.  I am making the short cowl.  Working on the Pine Bough Cowl has me not wanting to do another large cowl!  Also, there was enough time for me to work on the project for Spin-Off Magazine for the Spring 2014 issue.  My goal is to complete the project this week.  When I return from Iceland I can edit my article and send everything off to Interweave Press in Colorado.

The Oats cowl is coming along nicely.  I made the ribbed border just a little bigger than 1.5-inches, and need to have the piece 8.5-inches wide before adding more ribbing.

Later this week is the beginning of an adventure to Iceland.  I am going on a Stitchtopia knitting tour through Arena Travel and Rowan.  I cannot wait to see more of this lovely country than just as a stopover.  Time to charge the camera and get some knitting together!