Home Sweet Home

Nathan Philips Square decorated for PanAm Games

It was great to finally visit my family.  It had been four years since I'd last been out to Toronto.  And I missed so much!  The city has grown, especially on the periphery where homes mushroom like weeds.  

Old City Hall

There was much knitting as there was lots of waiting in airports, on airplanes (I am not a good flyer--not one bit) and in subways.  And of course I got to shop at one of the best yarn shops--ever!  Romni Wools on Queen St W.  I was so intoxicated by yarn fumes that I forgot to take photos inside the store.  But yarn was bought--and I am happy, happy, happy! :)

Knitting, tea and good company

Most of all, it was good to catch up with family and friends: laughed and giggled with my sisters; chatted with my bro and mum; got to see my nephews and meet my niece; and re-connected with friends (and I mean really good friends.  The kind that when you start chatting, it's like you've never been apart).  Most of all, I got to spend time with my dad. 

Dad enjoying time with family

He's been ill with one thing or another and we had a few health scares in the last 10 months.  So I was happy to spend time with him, just shooting the breeze . . .  

There's still lots of summer left, even though In a few days I'll be back to work.  Hope you're enjoying your summer.

Some Distractions

Mixing dry ingredients

Instead of finishing my wee little Kirbys, I was busy doing other things.  Of late I've taken to baking every other weekend, usually muffins and occasionally cookies.  

Stirring dry into wet 

There's something terribly satisfying about makin' stuff from scratch: it feels like I'm doing something good for my family and they truly do appreciate it.  Everyone enjoys a muffin for breakfast or snack.

Spooning batter into tins

And I have a really good basic recipe that can be used with just about any fruit.  My fave are with bananas, but I've made them with apple sauce and pumpkin puree.  I bet you could easily substitute other fruit (although come fall we'll have a tremendous amount of apples to use up 'cuz we got loads of apple trees).

Freshly baked banana muffins

Not sure where it originally came from, but my mother-in-law gave me the recipe.  Thought I'd share with you my most fave muffin recipe:


2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2  tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar (packed)
1/2 cup raisins (optional)


2 eggs 
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups fruit (applesauce, mashed bananas, or pumpkin puree)
Note: for pumpkin puree use 1 cup of pumpkin mixed with 1/2 cup water


Mix dry ingredients thoroughly.
Mix in sugars until well combined and the stir in raisins (optional).
In another bowl mix wet ingredients until smooth.
Stir dry into wet (don't over stir.)
Spoon into greased muffin tin and bake at 350 F (180 C) for  20-25 min.
Makes a dozen muffins.


Enjoy!  And hope you're having a great weekend too. :D

Yarny Goodness

So even though I didn't get to visit many yarn shops whilst in TO, I still managed to acquire a few tools and some yarn.  First off, I finally got a stitch gauge along with a bamboo circular and two cushioned crochet hooks.

Some Crafting Tools

These I purchased at a Mary Maxim shop at Yonge and Eglinton.  Although small, the shop carried a variety of fibres from acrylics to alpaca, silks and wool.  Lots of brands such as Rowan, Noro, Sirdar and Debbie Bliss, as well as basics like Patons and Mary Maxim's house brand (remember that there's no real yarn shop in my hometown, so for me there was variety). 

Mary Maxim Store in Toronto Mall

I also found a large Michael's outlet in Newmarket.  I love acrylic and acrylic blends and was happy to see a variety of brands from Red Heart to Lionsbrand along with Patons, Bernat and Michael's house brand.  My only purchase there was a set of Susan Bates crochet hooks.

Set of Crochet Hooks

Perhaps the most exciting excursion for me was a visit to Romni Wools on Queen St W in Toronto.  This was yarn heaven!  I must confess that if I lived in Toronto, I would be down at Romni Wools every weekend (even though it took about an hour and a half to venture down to the city).  

Yarn Heaven

It was two full floors of yarn (you name it, they had.  And honestly, if it wasn't there, then chances were you probably couldn't get it in the city).  Downstairs the store carries all discounted brands and discounted colours at discounted prices (I believe it was an automatic 20%).   Staff were ready to help, but I just wanted to browse and savour the yarny goodness because there was just soooo much! 

Upstairs was brighter and yarns seemed to be grouped by fibre (all sock yarns were together, all cottons, etc).  The variety was staggering!

Back of Store

Check out the photo above: that only represents one aisle out of four (and its not even the entire aisle 'cuz I was standing in the middle of the store).  Below is a section to the front where you'll find summer yarns and lots o' knitting books and magazines (again, that's only half of the front 'cuz the entrance and cashier are not visible).

Front of Store

And I'll confess that I didn't even see everything because there was too much to see.  If I had the time, I would have come back on my own (sans husband and children, although I was a good sport and waited patiently while they perused action figures at the comic book store or plucked guitar strings at the music store).

I had promised myself a lovely skein--just one.  I ended up buying two: 400+ yards of a pretty silk-wool worsted blend (regular $30 and on sale for $18) and 400 yards of super soft alpaca in fingering (only $10). 

Alpaca Fingering



Silk-Wool Worsted Blend

Mmmmm . . . . yarny goodness at its finest :D