around the garden

peach tree buds
crocuses
some of our daffodils popped open today
and so did the apricot tree blossoms
well -some of them are still waiting to open up.

japanese winter stew

from the Moosewood Restaurant cookbook

using some of the mustard greens from our winter garden

winter in the garden

Norway spruce
This is our straw bale cold frame...it seems to be doing okay, though it has also been a pretty mild winter so far. I swept the snow off of the windows yesterday after it warmed up outside. I'm using Eliot Coleman's Four-Season Harvest as a reference. He suggests leaving the snow if the temperatures drop too low because the snow can act as more insulation.
Spicy mustard mix is looking pretty good. The tallest parts of the plants that were touching the windows got a bit brown and dead -- maybe from the windows getting cold. I'm guessing our menu for the week will include a big ol' salad.

lots and lots of knitting...

The Liesl cardigan

Pattern by Ysolda Teague

Yarn hand dyed by Genevieve {lemon grass color way} at Sweet Basil Fibre Works.

Muckle Mitts

Pattern by Mary Jane Mucklestone

Yarn Cascade sport weight {green} and using up some of my stash {yellow}.

Such a great pattern and I'm looking forward to digging into my stash to knit up some other color combos!

Wraps are both the TGV (High Speed Knitting)

Pattern by Susan Ashcroft

Yarn is Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool

deck the halls

Falling Snow Stocking pattern by Jennifer Hoel on ravelry here.

I made the other stockings several years ago, using fabric scraps.

peaceful heart alpacas yarn (thanks g&g)

winter garden

japanese maple

and another sweater was born

Paulie sweater by Isabell Kraemer - more pictures and details on ravelry here.