last day of november yarn along

       Thanksgiving is over and even though we lighted our first Advent candle on Sunday, and the Christmas tree is up and the decorating way on its way, the event that truly welcomes Christmas celebration into our family with full intensity is attending the annual performance of Handel's Messiah given by the local oratorio society/orchestra, which we attended last night. It was nothing less than glorious.

But with the balmy days of late and the carpet of leaves left underfoot, a source of confusion is created in my mind as we are on the brink of flipping our calendars to December.

 Nevertheless, I knit on, and I read books about godly woman.

 Women I want to emulate in their quest to know God, to serve Jesus, and to obey the voice of the Holy Spirit.

These particular socks I am presently knitting, I named the Merry-Go-Round Socks; the color of fir and pine trees against clear blue skies with the golden glow of sunny days... yes, Merry, a word we hear quite often during this season... and the constant going round and round on the ribbing and knitting that sock knitting certainly affords. I am thinking I will do an afterthought heel on this pair of socks.

I have finished the Fair Isle sweater mentioned a while back.  You may read about it if you like on ravelry, or on my past post.

And on this last day of November I am thankful to be able to join Ginny's Yarn Along.

...with a grateful heart

Sense of beauty is the gift of God,
for which those who have received it in good measure,
can never be thankful enough.
                                                      ~ Gertrude Jekyll

 Why does one upload from a wide, or not so wide, array of photos?
It does not have the sphere of making the day any more lovely. But for remembrance sake I share several photos of our Thanksgiving Day feast at Witt and Clarie's house, a distinct place where I found myself breathing and relaxing on a grand scale on Thanksgiving Day. To me that must be a sure sign of  being hailed as a good host and hostess. It was a day of balmy temps, spoken thanks, and palatable food. Claire's curry pumpkin soup was my most favorite dish of all.

*Claire set a beautiful table from her assortment of dishes and thanksgiving decorations.
*Don and I brought the collards and pumpkin pie
*Claire cooked the brined turkey and other side dishes
*the day was so warm we sat in the garden and watched the bees
*until I became chilly and moved into a patch of sunshine
*Charlotte, our photographer of the day, sat on the deck for a spell with her chevron glass of ginger ale

Thanksgiving

I have much to be thankful for this day.  Beef stew simmering on the stove anticipating a side of buttermilk biscuits for supper, an organic cabbage fermenting in the larder, and a walk in the woods where even the brambly briers that grabbed the legs of my jeans scratching through to my shin did not deter me.


And a completed sweater.

You may read about this sweater on my ravelry page.