not quite sweater weather, but a sweater nonetheless

I have a new camera and it's so fancy!  I learned the basics this week, but it's too hot to go outside and play with it (mid- to upper 90s for days).  I do have a few things to report with the help of my lousy cell phone camera.

I finished a sweater!

I wanted to knit something basic, and I wanted to use up scrap yarn.  I had quite a bit of green, but not enough white, grey, gold, and blue to do much of anything.  It knitted up beautifully!  Yes, the sleeves are supposed to be short (they're 3/4 length).  I've got it blocked and hanging, waiting for winter!  Future note:  I don't think I'll ever knit a bottom-up sweater again (pattern is BLANK CANVAS by Ysolda).  I prefer top down, so the arms can grow naturally out of the yoke.  But at least it's done, and I've gotten rid of lots of tiny yarn skeins!

It's tomato season, and I have A LOT of tomatoes.  I planted around 16 seedlings, and they're bursting with fruit.  Todd brings in a few pounds every few days (our string trimmer is broken, lots of weeds around edge of tomato barrier, and I'm too afraid of chigger bites after that one disastrous episode two summers ago to wade through it).  At first I was just roasting the tomatoes, processing them into sauce, and freezing it.  But I read about another method that I think will be a winner.

Slice your tomatoes and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Roast at 250 degrees for 2 hours, then turn up to 300 - 350 degrees for another half hour.  They dehydrate nicely.

These dehydrated slices can be frozen and thawed whole (unlike raw, which turn into sludge when thawed because of their high water content).  This means that they can be used in fresh salads all winter long!  

Last week was a long, slow week, because I had a constant headache and nausea due to a prescription lapse.  I dragged through work and mainly worked on puzzles (when I wasn't laying down).

Since I certainly wasn't out taking photos, I've been looking over photos that didn't make the cut over the past few weeks, although I certainly liked them.

Lots of flowers...

small sweet pea crop this year...

...but tons of zinnias!

love yellow zinnias in bouquets

amazing 5' dill crop this year!

insane hydrangea blossoms this year...photo doesn't do it justice!  

Cute kittens...

Frances on laundry pile

Frances again

...and some pretty things found on hikes.

incredibly vibrant slime mold!

ditto the blue on these butterfly wings

pickerel weed, beloved by deer, muskrats, ducks, and other aquatic animals!

trumpet vine flower just about to open

I've seen some gorgeous sunrises...

...and some less-attractive things.

horse fly...painful bites!!

All in all, it's been a pretty nice summer with a lot of nice views.

horses across the street

Excited for fall, though...and to get some good shots with my new camera.

Have a great week!