Thank You on this Veterans' Day

I want to start today's entry thanking everyone who has served and currently serves in our Armed Forces. Words cannot express my gratitude for your sacrifices to protect us all.

 Today in honor of Veterans' Day, there was a ceremony at the assisted living facility where my father lives. He was asked to participate by reading a poem and then all the veterans present were named and thanked for their selfless service. The first photo was taken the day my Dad returned home from active duty. He is on the right with his buddy, Bill Piper. I mentioned before he participated in the Battle of the Bulge and I'm very proud of him and how honorably he's lived his life. I am so grateful to be able to thank him and his neighbors where he lives.

Barbara took a little time this week to work on a sweater for her granddaughter. She wanted to hurry up and finish it before Isabella outgrows it!

 This is what it will look like finished. The stripes will be a navy blue. Barb is using Plymouth Encore yarn so it will be machine washable and dryable.

 Sofia visited us on her day off from school. She wore the hat she made herself. So cute!

 

 Today she finished up her first pair of mittens. All that was needed was to weave in the loose ends and they are ready for inventory.

 Cinzia and Barb looked over the pattern for the cute top down cardigan.

 Cinzia made a lovely cowl to go with the mittens Kathleen knitted last week. She used Jelly Beans yarn, a cheerful colored project that can be worn two ways.

 If a change in weather hits suddenly, the cowl can be pulled up over the ears for warmth.

 Carole used up some more Berroco Jasper for a cozy pair of mittens. This is an Aran weight yarn and very warm, as Carole can attest to.

 Maureen made lots of progress on her cabled mittens. The yarn is perfect for highlighting stitchwork.

 And I finally learned how to count to 3! I've been sailing through this cowl nicely. I sure hope I didn't jinx it by saying so.

                                                

 This Barber Pole Cowl should be finished soon and then I can sew up the ends to make it an infinity scarf. Maybe it will be done by the next time we meet.

Feeling fall-ish

Fall has arrived in the Capital District of New York. The view out my family room window fills me with awe every time I see the crimson leaves on this tree. My knitting chair sits right in line with these spectacular colors.

Last Saturday was the first fiber festival of the season held at the Washington County Fairgrounds. The scenery on Route 40 on the ride up was breathtaking. The Adirondacks Mountains were clearly visible in the distance.

The farm markets were overflowing with their fall bounty.

 The colors beckoned me to photograph them.

 I almost forgot to shop for some produce because of all the distractions. I did, however, find the sweetest corn on the cob for dinner!

 The residence where my father lives has a feature called "Resident of the Month" and he was chosen for October which coincided with...

 a visit from our Congressman Paul Tonko. He attended a ceremony to recognize the veterans who live at Ingersoll Place and to give special recognition to my father for his service during the Battle of the Bulge and securing the Ludendorff Bridge in Remagen, Germany.

 My Dad, humble as he is, kept asking me why all the fuss. Through tear filled eyes I hugged him and told him because we are so proud of him!

 I'm so happy we got to honor my Dad! He is a very special man and now he knows how special!

 On to our knitting! Last week I neglected to show you some of our FO's. Maureen finished binding off the stitches of her Last Minute Cowl and I forgot to post her picture. Here she is in all her glory.

 Carole's Sanibel Cowl drapes beautifully on the neck. It's a good pattern for tonal dyed yarns, especially hand dyed, since it has a minimal lace pattern. Sometimes a busy lace and multi-colored yarn conflict with each other. I learned that the hard way. From now on I stick with a solid or tonal yarn for intricate lace work to properly show off both and save those crazy printed yarns for stockinette!

 Another Carole FO is her Saroyan Scarf. She used a yarn that has a touch cashmere and angora fibers so it floats like a cloud and feels so soft to the skin.

 I finished my Dream Stripes Shawl after 19 months in hibernation!

 You know how sometimes you just get bored with a project? Well, that's what happened with this one. I was tired of knitting stripes and put it down for a minute to pick up something more challenging and BAM! Over a year went by before I felt ambitious enough to pick it back up again. I feel relief knowing it's done now and can be donated.

Another FO of mine is the Noro Striped Scarf by Jared Flood. I started out using these yarns for a Staci Perry Barber Pole Cowl but found the yarns to be too close in color and kept making mistakes. It was time for plan B and this worked out much better.

 Elaine asked our opinions on how wide to knit her Gaptastic Cowl and was relieved to know we all thought it was wide enough to bind off. Those are a lot of seed stitches to knit!

 Kathleen finished her Amsterdam Lace Shawl. Since she had only enough DK weight yarn for a small scarflette I guess we shouldn't call it a shawl. But that's the great thing about this pattern. You can knit it any size for any need.

 And Kathleen added another warm hat to the inventory. We can never have too many hats!

 Liz finished another Cushy Cowl, a very quick and easy cowl pattern by our friend, Karin Maag-Tanchak. It does not require much yarn and can be knit in a variety of yarn weights, as long as you use the appropriate needle. A word of warning, when you knit this pattern, it looks a bit wonky during the first inch or two. You must knit at least two or three pattern repeats before you start to see the diamond shapes. Then everything falls beautifully into place.

 We took advantage of the warmth and sunshine and sat outside yesterday since there probably won't be many more opportunities for outside knitting this year.

 Cinzia brought some library books for us to browse through for new knitting patterns.

 Kathleen plugged away at her Reversible Stripes Scarf. The greens look great together.

 Carole worked on her Totally Biased Cowl. Does the yarn look familiar? Maybe not, but it's the Jasper yarn from Berroco that Beth used last year. We thought it was all gone but alas! There is more. LOL!

 Speaking of Beth, she finished her Mistake Stitch Scarf. The pattern stitch makes a nice thermal fabric that is sure to keep the chill away.

 Dorah's Sanibel Cowl is almost finished. Just a few more rows and she'll be binding off those stitches.

 And Maureen is back to work full time so she doesn't have as much free time to finish her lovely cowl. But I'm sure it will be beautiful.

 Beth started a pair of mittens last night. They are always a quick knit. Unfortunately, I can't link you to the pattern since I don't know which one she's using. I'll check for next week's post.

We're finally getting a bit of much needed rain around here. So now it really feels like fall. I guess I'll have to hang up the flip flops until next year!

A Very Special Recognition for a Very Special Person

On Tuesday, May 11, 2010 the State of Connecticut honored Danbury Veterans from World War II through all the wars since with a Wartime Service Medal Ceremony. My Dad, William E. Grandison was among those honored for his service.

The ceremony started with a snare drum fanfare played by Jack Riley of the Danbury High School Marching Band.

The Danbury AJROTC presented the Colors.



There were distinguished speakers amidst a dramatic backdrop.

Senator Michael McLachlan gave the introduction and....
Representative Janice Giegler gave the welcoming remarks. It was she who was at the forefront of arranging for this event and the awards.

Commissioner Linda Schwartz, an Air Force Nurse who served in the Viet Nam War, spoke eloquently of the importance that our veterans tell the stories of their experiences so they can be recorded and handed down to the generations.

My Dad, on the right, finally told me a story last year of one of his experiences during the Battle of the Bulge.

He left for France, Belgium, and Germany when he was only 19 years old. He spent from October 1944 to June 1945, serving in the campaigns through Rhineland, Ardennes, and Central Europe. He landed on October 23 1944 in Omaha Beach Head. His main responsibility was to operate an anti-aircraft artillery half track. He served with the 563D AAA, 9th US Army, 1st US Army, 49th AAA Brigade, XVIII Corps (AB), III Corp, VII Corps, 11th AAA Group, 16th AAA Group, and 103rd AAA Group. During the Battle of the Bulge, Hitler's forces were trying to blow up all the bridges crossing the Rhine before the American forces could cross them to secure territory. The final remaining bridge over that river was the Bridge at Remagen and the Americans needed reinforcements to maintain that bridge in their control. My Dad's commanding officer asked for two men to volunteer to drive the relief troops to the bridge location to help to secure the territory. It was his act of volunteerism and valor that helped to turn the tide of the Battle of the Bulge.

When my Daddy told me that story I gave him the biggest hug I had ever given him and told him that I always knew he was my hero but that I didn't know he was everyone else's too. His response was one of complete humility as though it was nothing special.

Daddy I am so proud of you as are my sister, Jamie, and our mom, Bruna.
We love you Dad!