Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Another snowy day

English toffee

Knitted teddy

 

Around noon we got the automated call: schools were being let out early because of the impending snow storm. Yippee! I'll let you wonder if I'm being sarcastic. My brother Matt was up here last weekend from Rhode Island and brought the tail-end of a cold with him, which I'm now valiantly fighting off. It's, unfortunately, leaving me very sluggish and unmotivated to work. No production, no pay: the glamorous life of freelancing!

So I've been finishing up holiday projects, stuff that needs to get done by ... oh my gosh, is Christmas next week? The top photo is the first batch of English toffee. It has been tested liberally, thus why I'm feeling sugar-sick. I'll be making several more batches over the next couple days and sending packages off to friends or delivering goodies in person. The recipe is from the Cooking for Engineers blog and it has never failed me. This batch was made with milk chocolate instead of semi-sweet; I'll be making future batches with the darker stuff.

The bottom photo is my first effort at knitting a teddy bear, and I have to say, it turned out quite well! When it's completely finished, I'll post details of the pattern. I've been putting off sewing the back to the front, though ... must get cracking on that. I'll be tying a red tartan ribbon around the bear's neck and sticking this cutie in O's Christmas stocking.

My 12-year-old is unabashedly fond of stuffed animals. He would probably kill me for saying this, but my favorite parenting moments involve walking into his bedroom in the morning and finding Taffy (a Bernese mountain dog), Goldie (a huge golden retriever), Softener (a mixed-breed stuffie), or Nordie (a wooly mammoth I bought in Norway many years ago) snuggled into his arms while he sleeps. The sight reminds me he's still my little boy.

What are you up to today? Are you getting snow where you are?

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