Jill's Chat

Kingdom Sweater

2012-01-28T22:40:00.000-06:00

The past few weeks I discovered the British series, Kingdom. It stars Stephen Fry as a solicitor (lawyer) in a small town in England. This town has many quirky characters that make the show very enjoyable to watch. I found it on Netflix Instant watch if you're interested.

Anyway, Peter Kingdom has an older aunt he visits often. On one of the visits she was wearing a sweater that I am in love with. She also had a way cool knitting bag on the table next to her and a ball of yarn in her chair. This lady rocks! So I had to watch that scene multiple times and try to get a few pictures of the sweater.

The front of the sweater is very long and flowing with a wide lace band around it. The cuffs on the sleeve bell out a little bit with the same lace. The back is simple and ends at the waist. There is just something about this sweater that makes me think it would be very comfortable to wear and it looks quite elegant in the process.

While on the topic of the series Kingdom, there is one things about the series that has me upset. Like most British shows it has short seasons instead of longer season like we do. So it was 3 season but only 18 episodes. I can deal with that but the last 5 minutes of the last episode Peter Kingdom finds something out that is life changing. Yup - a cliffhanger. I shall never know how he deals with finding out that he.......... don't worry I won't give the secret out in case you decide to watch the show.

Now I'll leave you with a cliffhanger of my own. Do you think I'll actually take the 10 pictures I took of the sweater and design something similar to it or will I procrastinate and just let the pictures sit on my computer forever and look at them every few years and say - "gee, I should do something about these pictures."

Surprises

2012-01-14T16:32:00.000-06:00

A couple things came this week. The first was very unwelcome. Winter decided to pay us a visit. The wind chill dropped below zero and the wind was so strong it was hard to walk without tears coming to your eyes. But, still no snow to speak of. We had maybe an inch if you had a short ruler. This afternoon the snow has started up again so perhaps even that will finally come to the north Minneapolis area.

The second thing that came was a total surprise. I received a book from a publisher. I hear about that happening to other people who blog, you know the "famous" bloggers, but never to me. The letter inclosed with the book started "Dear Esteemed Member of the Kniterati". The book came wrapped in a huge ribbon/bow of yarn. How cool is that! So what's this book? To me it was a disappointment because I don't have a child of my own. The disappointment wasn't the book itself, it was the fact that I didn't have a child at hand to read it to. For some reason Chief and Bert weren't good child substitutes at this moment. But, I'll carry on and tell you about the book anyway. It will find its way to a child and I know it will be enjoyed more at that time.

The book is called "Extra Yarn" by Mac Barnett and illustrated by Jon Klassen. It's the story of Anabelle, a little girl who lives in a town with no color. One day Annabelle finds a box and when she opens it, she finds colorful yarn. She makes herself a sweater and still has more yarn. After making her dog a sweater and finding still more yarn she continues throughout her town to make sweaters for everyone and ..... well you'll have to read the book to find out what happens. The story is a simple story of generousity and illustrated with simple but very effective stories. I think its a wonderful story for sharing knitting with your small ones.

New Year - New things

2012-01-01T11:39:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year!

The year started out by giving us something we haven't seen yet this season in the Twin Cities - snow. I headed out to my friend's house last night at 8pm to a light rain and when we looked out at midnight the world had totally changed. There was heavy snow coating everything and making the world look all fresh and new.

This morning I've been getting a few things ready for the new year. First I cleared out some pictures from my camera. Back on Dec 23rd the sunrise was so amazing I had to attempt to get a few pictures as I drove to work. Unfortunately, I took pictures at the stop light and the best part of the sunrise had already passed.

Luckily, by the time I got to work things had changed up again and the sky was absolutely amazing. Now if I could just figure out how to dye yarn to look like this!

Now to more current things, today I've been packing part of the stash into plastic containers to protect it from the evil moths. I haven't seen moths for about a month but I decided better safe than sorry.

The boys have been very helpful in moving things out of the boxes and into plastic. I can always count on them.

Other new things for this year are my eyes. I have not had to wear glasses most of my life. About 5-6 years ago I joined the ranks of people needing reading glasses. I hate them. Having to put glasses on and off every 2 seconds is very irritating. I tried bifocals and they didn't work for me. I tried progressive lens - nope. So I've spent these years running around with readers on my head like a headband when I didn't need them - whipping them off when someone comes in to talk to me so I can see them. On and off all day every day. Not able to see the directions on the frozen dinner, not being able to read labels in the store when shopping. GRRRR! I know many of you know this feeling.

So, I bit the bullet and asked for options from my eye doctor. We came up with contact lens - dominate eye for regular vision, other eye for reading distance. I've been wearing them for a couple days and am still having to get my eyes used to the new way of looking at things but I think they're going to work out fine once my brain figures things out. Time will tell..... Now if I could just remember I don't have to re-adjust the glasses cause they're not there anymore! (my hand keeps going up to adjust and nothing is there)

Christmas is for families

2011-12-26T18:21:00.001-06:00

Christmas is for families. If you don't have a family, create one with your friends or people in the neighborhood. I'm very lucky I have a family that comes back home from all parts of the country.
This year we were at my cousin's house.

We have many traditions that have gone by the wayside (Santa hasn't visited us in the afternoon for several years) but one tradition that WILL NOT be denied is our cookies. Every family brings their usual cookies and some new ones. The E family brings lemon bars and the Christmas wreaths; the S family brings decorated sugar cookies, cherry bars and peppernuts and my family - well this year I kind of fell down on the job and didn't bring the C family traditional cookies. Beside all the ones listed above every family brings enough cookies to over feed everyone there.

This means lots and lots of cookies on the cookie plates. Here's 2 cookie plates being made up. All those tins on the table are filled with cookies.

Just in case you think that's a lot of cookies and how could 14 people eat that many cookies, let me should you what is on the floor next to the table.

That my friends is another bag filled to the top with more tins of cookies. If we were to eat nothing but cookies for a week, we would not have come close to finishing all the cookies.

Of course, there was the meal. My cousin does not do Christmas small. She made ham, turkey, potatoes, dressing - there was 2 vegetables, salad and oh so much more. For supper we had even more wonderful food. Yup, my family knows how to do Christmas food.

We also know how to spend time enjoying each other's company. Layla is now very firmly established in her 2's and she talks non stop (in a good way!). She found the village and spent a lot of time carefully playing with the people that were skating, the children making snow angels and when she found the horse and sleigh, Layla broke into a chorus of Jingle Bells - delighting all of us.

The week before Christmas Layla's parent took her to Shedd Aquarium and she loved the penguins. So, I decided I had to make her a penguin hat and mitten. Only problem was I couldn't find any penguin mittens so I found a good hat pattern and came up with a mitten design that would work with the hat. I'm pleased to say she loved the hat and mittens and had to show them off to everyone (I got a big hug out of the deal!) Unfortunately, my camera was in a different room and I didn't get any poses.

Christmas Eve I was watching TV - the 8 millionth sappy Christmas movies I've watched this year, and decided to make another hat for Layla. This is just leftover yarn and a real quick knit. No real pattern, I just made it up as I went.

Quick Child's Hat

Worsted weight leftovers

Size 7 needle

CO 80 sts. Working in the round, make k2-p2 rib for 1.5". Switch to knitting around and work striped for 6-7". Bind off using kitchner stitch. Make 2 pompoms for the corners.

After Christmas I love having a day to sit around and enjoy the company of my boys. Bert and Chief were very pleased with the warm weather today (a record high for Minnesota 52F) and they spent the day sleeping in the sun.

I did not sleep all day. I got up and ate twice!

I'm not sleeping. See I'm standing right here on the floor and my eyes are almost open. Me sleeping!?! Nope, not me!

If you look closely at Bert's pic you'll see the kitty afghan. It a long, fairly thin scarf like piece I made several years ago to fit on the back of the sofa. It has cats dancing across it and fits perfectly to cover the back of the sofa and protect against some of the fur that collects back there.

Dyeing can be fun!

2011-12-11T19:23:00.001-06:00

This weekend was the dyeing experiment. Friday night my friend, Sarah, came up from southern Minnesota and we planned how we were going to go about dyeing. We had sent several emails back and forth the previous weeks and Friday night decided to go with Kool-aid dyeing this time around because that meant we wouldn't have to worry about chemicals and could use regular kitchen utensils.

Before the dyeing began we did 2 things. I gave her the Christmas present I made for her and can finally post a picture of it. The pattern is in the Berroco Flicker free ebook/ The pattern is called Gurie. I made a few changes. The original was created to use 1 skein of Flicker (a wonderful, soft alpaca chain yarn). Because it only used 1 skein, the neck portion went down to only 10 stitches and was fairly short. I made it wider and longer but kept the 2 ends exactly as the pattern showed. It's a beautiful yarn and I love the design of the 2 ends. Sarah seemed to be happy with it too.

The other thing we did before dyeing was head over to Lila and Claudine's for a quick trip. Sarah hadn't seen the new expansion and me, well, I just like to go over there cause they're so friendly and have a great stock. The expansion now includes a lot of gift items. Something for everyone.

So, time for dyeing. We stopped by the store on the way back and grabbed a bunch of kool-aid.

The yarn - I had bought a pound cone of WEBS fingering weight yarn. We wound the yarn off into 50 gm skeins. We got 8 skeins and a 12gm skein. Sarah also wound off a 25 gm skein of a merino-alpaca blend she got at Lila and Claudines. All the yarn went into a bath to get it ready for dyeing. The bath was lukewarm water with a small amount of dish soap.

While the yarn was soaking, we made up the dye mixes. We had 5 colors so made 5 cups of 2 packs of the same color with a splash of vinegar and a 8 oz of water. The rest of the kool-aid, we made cups of 1 pack and 4 oz water so we could mix colors or do multi-color skeins.

With everything ready we did our first attempt.We also decided to use the microwave. 2 minutes - check the yarn - 2 minutes more - check yarn, etc until the water was clear. Most of the skeins took 3 trips to the microwave.

After the microwave each skein was allowed to rest for a few minutes then we transferred the skein to a different container without its water. Once the yarn was completed cooled, Sarah gave each skein a final wash in tepid water and a small bit of shampoo.

After it's final bath the yarn was squeezed of all its water and hung in the bathtub to dry. As you can see some of the yarn was done solid - some tonal and some multi colored.

We had a great time giving this a try and both of us agreed this wouldn't be the last time we dye yarn. Next time around we'll try the jacquard dye I buy a while back or possibly Wilton's food dye. I understand Wilton's has more ready colors available.

If you haven't try dyeing yarn give the kool-aid dyeing a try. It's fun and easy and you get to knit something totally your own. Plus, its best to try it with a friend cause we had a GREAT weekend!

While we were dyeing yarn, Chief was busy amusing us by trying to tangle himself in the chair.

I'm Dying this weekend

2011-12-07T20:33:00.001-06:00

If you aren't into knitting and all things yarn and fiber I'm guessing that the post title took you by surprise. Rest assured, there's no terrible disease going on in my household - the dying is all about yarn. I have a friend coming to spend the weekend and we have lots of plain yarn to dye. It will be the first attempt for both of us and we've been emailing lists and instructions back and forth. I don't know what the results will be but one thing I know for sure - there will be pictures..... lots of pictures.

My Christmas List

2011-11-28T21:57:00.001-06:00

Now that Black Friday is over - Cyber Monday has about an hour to go. I decided to do a little Christmas shopping for myself. Just think of all the great and wonderful things on the Internet that I could be buying for myself. Here's a few of the incredibly wonderful gifts I will (not) be buying this year.

Racing Grannies: what's not to love about a couple of grannies chasing each other around with their walkers! (I've been thinking about buying these for a few years and each time I see them I remember back to my nursing home days when I'd have to avoid the racing grannies where I worked.)

Bacon Band-aids: you never know when those grannies will get so exited they cause an injury. To be fair, there's lots of bacon themed items available now but, there's just something about having a strip of bacon attached to your skin that gives me the giggles.

LED Faucet Light: just imagine, it's late at night and you just need to have a glass of water. Why bother to with the lights to see that you're turning the faucet to get cold water when you have the LED faucet to show you if it's cold or hot.

Dr Who Sonic Screwdriver Pen: OK, I admit it - I'm a SciFi geek. I've been a Dr. Who fan since it first started playing on PBS during the Tom Baker era.

Catnip Bubbles: Bert says if I'm posting a Christmas list he wants to add this.

Not a Llama Mug: This would be great to go along with my current knitting project "It's not an afghan".

You may have noticed several items are from the ThinkGeek website. I think its a fun site to browse but - truth be told - I've never bought anything there so I don't know how their customer service is.

I hope you have fun shopping for your loved ones and get just the right present for everyone on your list. Of course, the best present of all is one that's bought with love and not just bought because you have to!

Giving Thanks

2011-11-23T21:06:00.001-06:00

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. Traditionally in my family Thanksgiving was a day of my family getting together with my Mom's sister and her family. There would be all the traditional foods, lots of laughing, and an afternoon of the guys sleeping in front of the football game while the women did the dishes and chatted in the living room.

That was the good old days. People grew up and moved away. The older generation aged and passed on. Thanksgiving changed.

This year I'm meeting some friends for a day of friendship (and no football!). We'll have some of the traditional foods, lots of laughing, and an afternoon of working on a sewing project and chatting. Then I'll go over to a cousin's house in the evening for a visit with them.These are the good new days.

Being Thanksgiving I decided to look back at what's happened this year and I can honestly say it's been a good year. Since last Thanksgiving I lost Dad but it was a peaceful passing. You can't ask for more than that. I also lost something I was glad to lose, I lost my old attitude of sitting around doing nothing and eating everything. This summer I had a mind change. I'm going to be here another 20-30 years or more and I don't want to spend them wishing I could do more. I started thinking about things in a different way. I didn't go on a diet, although I changed how I eat quite a bit. I didn't decide I'm going to lose 5 pounds a week and in a few weeks I'll have lost a million pounds and be the perfect weight. That never worked for more than a few days.

What I did do is decide I deserve to be the girl who could swim across the lake; the girl who could hop on a bike and go 30 miles just because it was a nice day. She could be very lazy but she could be very active. I liked her and she wants to come out and play. I'm giving her a chance to come back. That is a good feeling.

Since summer I lost 45 pounds. I went to New York and visited a friend. I dug out clothes from the back of my closet because the ones I was wearing were too big. I've had people come up and tell me how good I look. But more than all that, I'm starting to feel like the old me. I have a long way to go before I'm back to my "fighting" weight but this time I see this journey as real. For that I can be very thankful and and very happily say - this has been a good year.

Annual Fall Knitting Retreat

2011-11-15T20:19:00.001-06:00

My knitting group has gone on a knitting weekend the past 2 years. In my mind that means it's an annual thing and we'll be doing it "forever". We have fun. We have a lot of fun. Friday afternoon to Sunday afternoon with nothing to think about but enjoying friend's company; knitting and eating incredibly good (and surprisingly healthy) food.

This year 11 of us headed an hour south to Red Wing Minnesota. We rented a house thru vrbo.com and were really pleased with our weekend home. It was just over on the Wisconsin side with a beautiful view and lots of room to spread out.

Knitters need lots of room to spread out because they have lots of projects going at the same time.

We had wonderful food. Being a house we could bring our own food and not worry about going out to restaurants. This group knows how to cook! Homemade butternut squash soup - chili - vegetable lasagna - and so much more. YUM!

Saturday we headed out to Riverside Suri Alpacas. A farm in Lake City. Dana has 36 alpacas and a few cows. We had free run of the pasture and had a ball bonding with the alpaca.

They all have their own personality. This little girl reminded me of a meerkat

Cute Alpaca

Meerkat

Some of the alpacas had incredibly huge teeth. Dana told us the teeth keep growing and they are trimmed every year. That just sounds painful to me. Back when I was an avid swimmer I dove a bit too deep in the pool and hit bottom. I chipped a tooth (and luckily didn't break my neck!) But my dentist filed the tooth down to even it out. That tooth was so sensitive for a long time, I really feel for the alpacas.

From what I've found out these teeth get long in the males. They're the fighting teeth so they can "prevent" the other males from being competition for the females. (think about it, you'll figure it out!)

Then there was Sarah. We bonded. I stood and scratched her ears while she snuggled her head into the crook of my arm for about 5-10 minutes.After a bit Sarah decided to sit down and Rosie got in the act.

According to Dana, Sarah is so sweet that she let Rosie nurse from her even though Rosie isn't her baby. While we were there, Rosie decided she was hungry and she would not leave Sarah alone. Sweet Sarah just sat and let Rosie crawl all over her but wasn't about to be on the dinner menu.

Saturday night ended with more excitement then we planned. About midnight we heard a crackle and thought nothing of it. A few minutes later we decided maybe we should figure out what it was. One of the ladies got up and checked the other room. After making a few rounds she noticed the ceiling fan was on fire! Yup! we had an electrical fire.

The power to the light was turned off along with the fire going down to just smoke. A couple of the ladies headed downstairs to find the circuit breaker and we woke up the few that were sleeping in case we needed to leave. Circuit breaker found - doors opened to deal with the smoke fumes - the really bad smoke fumes. The owner was called and a message left cause he didn't answer and we discussed whether or not to call the fire dept. Better safe than sorry so we gave them a call and 20 minutes later we had many- many fire fighters in full gear with masks on and 2 policemen at the door. They checked out the fan with a heat sensor and declared it safe. Meanwhile the owner said he was on his way but about 1 hour to get there.

Rumors have it we giggled a lot with the firemen and the policeman said something about not wanting to come back because of a rowdy party (he was laughing at the time so we weren't worried). Everyone left around 1:00 am which meant we didn't get to bed until after 2 cause it took a while to calm down from the unplanned party.

So, we had fun. I always have fun with these ladies. They talk my language - knit. I can't wait till next year's retreat. Lucky, I don't have to wait that long to see everyone, knit night is Thursday!

Thanks

2011-11-11T10:18:00.001-06:00

Our country was created by people willing to sacrifice. Men went to war. Women and children stayed home to be sure the men had a home to return to when the fighting was over. Since the Civil War my family has served in every war with honor.

To all my family members who served and to the family members of everyone - THANK YOU!!

Week of Fiber Fun- part 3 - RHINEBECK

2011-10-21T19:41:00.000-05:00

Knitters and spinners on Ravelry talk about Rhinebeck like its the best thing in the world. It's full name is New York State Sheep and Wool Festival. After listening to that talk for a while I had to make the journey. First off, I've been to a few other fiber fests before. Every year I go to our local one at Washington County fairgrounds. I've seen llamas, alpacas, sheep and goats. The critters aren't new to me. I've seen yarn, roving, and all sorts of fiber goodness. So, why the pull to go to Rhinebeck? For me it was a chance to see all sorts of other knitters enjoying a common love, and of course the chance to see more yarn.

My friends and I got there finally after the massively long line of cars and headed toward the critter barns. She isn't big into critters so I had to snap a few quick shots, pet a sheep or 2 and move along.

One thing I learned while taking sheep pics was the numbering system. This cute guy/gal was number 97 but the shoulder mark is a ribbon. This is a winning sheep!

More sheep

People outside the sheep barns.

The hills outside the fairgrounds were alive with fall colors.

Of course there was also alpaca with cute haircuts.

At noon there was a Ravelry meet up on the hill near the main entrance. People were milling around checking out everyone's knitwear- sweaters, shawls, hats, scarves, skirts. You name it, people knit it and wore it.

The Ravelry Mom & Dad and Mary Heather were there. Casey was there talking to everyone.

Jess was talking care of the new little one who was incredibly well behaved until I decided to take a picture. Of course there was lots of baby knitwear!

Someone gave Jess and Casey a cute little baby hat and my friend, Susan, just happen to be standing in a perfect spot to get a pic of all three.

Then there was our group. Susan and I met up with a few Rav friends. The month before I made the sweater coat I'm wearing just to bring to Rhinebeck. It's what everyone does.

Barbara's cousin - Barbara - Suzy - Susan - me

There was a dead fish hat .

Man in a kilt (he wasn't the only one)

In the afternoon there was a llama/alpaca parade.

Check out the building in the background. All that glass is the front of one of the barns. They were light and clean and filled with fiber vendors.

A dress all in lace.

After a full day of people watching, shopping and critter watching we headed home the long way. Susan's friend met us with her daughter (a delightful, intelligent and witty young girl) and we drove them home after all of us stopped for pizza. My first pizza since June and IT WAS GOOD!

Sunday Susan and I spent most of the day at her house knitting and chatting. We had a late lunch/early dinner and headed over to a BBQ place in Troy. Dinosaur BBQ You know a BBQ place has to be good if there's a uinch of motorcycles out front. The food was wonderful. It was my first BBQ since before June. Starting to see the big picture here? I decided this would also be a vacation foodwise and I ate pretty much whatever I wanted without eating too much.

After our meal we drove around Troy a little bit and I learned a bit about the town from Susan. Uncle Sam is from here. Sam Wilson was a meat packer from Troy and during the War of 1812 his meat was sent to the troops with the mark U.S. The story goes that the troops started saying the meat was from Uncle Sam and eventually anything marked US was said to be from Uncle Sam.

Sam Wilson statue

Monday morning came too soon and I headed back across Massachusetts to Logan Airport in Boston. Goodbye to mountains and the beautiful countryside.

I wasn't the only one who was tired and just wanted to get home.

The best sign in the world after a fight from Boston to Milwaukee and a 1.5 hr layover was the sign that said our flight would be on time. I was away from Chief and Bert for 5 days and I missed my boys more than I thought.

I finally got home a bit after 11pm and after major hugs and cuddles from the boys I fell into bed so I'd be ready to get up for work the next day.

Would I go to Rhinebeck again? You bet. But I doubt I'll be doing it as a yearly event. It will be a special trip from time to time. You may noticed I still haven't shown you what I bought. I haven't been home during daylight hours all week so I haven't taken pictures yet. Tomorrow I'll get some pictures and let you see what I got.

Week of Fiber Fun- part 2 - Heading to Rhinebeck

2011-10-19T19:55:00.000-05:00

So, I took off last week and decided to have a little fiber fun. I went to Lila & Claudine's to see their new digs and then on Thursday I got up and an unbelievably early hour to get down to the airport, make it thru security and be on the plane for a 5:45am. I don't "do" morning. I amaze myself everyday that I actually get to work on time. But - there was fiber to see and friends to visit so I got up at 3:45am. UGH!

I landed in Boston, had a minor problem with car rental and headed across Massachusetts toward WEBS.
The closer I got to WEBS the more scenic everything was. Minnesota doesn't have much in the way of mountains or even hills so seeing western Mass. with its fall colors and rolling landscape was a treat to my eyes.

Soon I turned off the freeway and was headed into the WEBS parking lot. I was careful about what I spent because I have a large stash and try to get what I know I'll use within a reasonable length of time. I ended up getting 10 skeins of Valley Yarns Northampton, a skein of a beautiful fingering weight for a shawl, a pair of Knitter's Pride needles to try out their new needles and that's it. Wanna see a picture of the new stash? Tough - you have to wait!

After my time at WEBS I headed west toward New York to get to my friend's house in Troy - just outside Albany. Finally - New York here I come.

Little side note- in Minnesota we have entrance ramps to freeways that know their place. You get on it and within a very brief distance you are on the next freeway. This isn't the way things work in Mass. You get on the ramp and you are taken on a long side tour of the countryside, winding about forever until you finally make it to the next freeway. There's nothing wrong with this its just odd to get used to!

So, I made it to my friends house and we sat around talking for the evening and had a delish pasta/meatball dinner. And yes, there was knitting.

Friday, we headed out to do a little driving tour of Vermont; mostly so I could say I was in Vermont. The day started out rainy on and off and kind of went down hill from there. We drove through hills of wonderful fall colors but a lot of rain and most of the trip looked like this.....

Rain of the windshield and minimal traffic. When the rain stopped the colors were fantastic. It really is true, fall in this area is something to see! The river in this picture is much higher level than usual as the water from the August hurricane Irene.

The valleys were so foggy the long hanging clouds and fog made it look very mystical.

We drove into Bennington, VT ready to eat lunch but had to stop and enjoy several painted moose first. The restaurant across the street that says "Fine Ales" was our destination. I don't know about the Ale but the Reuben sandwich was perfect!

What's a trip thru Vermont without spotting at least one covered bridge. This one was just sitting at the side of the road with a gravel pathway going up to it. No cars going thru this one any more.

One of the truly frightening/sad/amazing sights was the small town of Wilmington, VT. They were hit hard by the hurricane and most of the town had major damage. We were cruising the Internet the night before the trip so knew things were going to look "not right" but seeing it was totally different from viewing it on youtube.
Wilmington one month after the hurricane.

I didn't get any pictures of Wilmington or the rest of the drive because the rain got so bad all my pics are just raindrops on the windshield. For a while the rain was so bad we could barely see the road. But we made it home and went to an Indian restaurant for dinner. Chicken Korma was delish!

Then came Saturday. Rhinebeck. The word makes knitters and fiber people all excited and they dream of the fun they'll have, the yarn they'll buy and the fiber critters they'll see.

We headed out for our hour long drive down the Hudson River with clearer skies and great views.

About a mile from the fairgrounds traffic came to a halt. The last mile to get into the grounds and park took us almost a hour! Could this many people actually be going to a Sheep and Fiber Festival? YUP!

We survived the drive in - found a parking place - got thru the gate and headed into the first barn we saw to check out the critters. I love the happy faces on the sheep. They just know they're here for something special and that all these people are here to thank them for the wool they grow that gives us all the hours of pleasure.

So - we made it to Boston - drove thru Mass - visited WEBS - made it to New York - drove thru Vermont flood zone - drove to Rhinebeck and survived the traffic to get in and now.......

you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see the Ravelry people - critters on parade - and some knitwear.

Week of Fiber Fun- Part 1

2011-10-18T19:52:00.001-05:00

The past week has been filled with all sorts of fiber fun. Last Wednesday a couple friends and I headed over to Lila & Claudine's to check out the new rooms. The company that was on main level of their building left and they took over. There's now 5 new rooms of goodies to wander thru besides the lower level where they have always been. This is a shop that can not be described - you have to see it to believe it.

Thursday I headed to Boston and drove across Massachusetts to Albany, NY to visit a friend and go to Rhinebeck Saturday. Next post I'll tell you about that part of the week.

In the mean time - enjoy the pictures of L&Cs new digs. If you live in the Twin Cities area and have not been to visit, you must make a trip up to Mahtomedi.

I am a unicorn

2011-10-10T15:15:00.000-05:00

They say robots will one day take over the world - today is not that day!

Denise in China - this one's for you

2011-10-06T22:21:00.000-05:00

A few posts back I mentioned the mall near my house (Brookdale) was no more. Back in 1955 Southdale mall (in Edina, Minnesota) became the first indoor mall in the world. Over the next few years 4 more "Dales" followed. Brookdale was the one in Brooklyn Center. The other 2 Rosedale (in Roseville) and Ridgedale (in Minnetonka) are still around. But - alas - Brookdale is no more. It's going to become a new shopping complex with Sears still there but, my childhood shopping mall will never be the same again.

When I posted about Brookdale I got a comment back from someone in China who grew up in this area and knew Brookdale well. After a few messages back and forth we figured out she went to my high school and was only a couple years behind me. What's that old story about going half way around the world to meet the person next door? Kind of freaky feeling to have it happen to you!

So - Denise in China - these pictures are for you!

This is where Dayton's used to be

From the Sears parking lot looking toward what was JC Penny

This was JC Penny's parking lot where the car repair store was in the middle of the parking lot.

Cinnamon - who knew....

2011-10-03T18:49:00.000-05:00

Time to go off the yarn - kitty path for a little bit. As I mentioned before I'm finally working at having a healthier lifestyle. I've discovered a few things along the way and decided to share them with you.

1. Never say you're on a diet.
A diet is the some total of everything you eat - good or bad. Therefore, everyone is on a diet. Better to say I'm making healthier choices or something similar. Talking this way makes is a "forever" thing. I'm not on a diet till I lose xx lbs and then go back to the way I used to eat and live. That's sets you up for failure.

2. Keep your life close to the same - make small changes and they will become part of your life easier than making big changes.
One typical cheeseburger and fries/catsup and regular cola will clog the arteries; put you in unbalanced sugar levels; and make it harder to breathe without giving you vitamins and minerals your body needs. Change that up for a side salad; small burger (plain) and ice tea or diet cola (if you must) and suddenly you've added the goodness of veggies while decreasing the bulk of fries, cheese and sugary pop. Same fast food restaurant and no one needs to know you're eating different. Besides - isn't a nice big side salad prettier to look and more fun to crunch at then greasy fries? Try a huge bowl of air popped corn. It's cheaper, healthier and eco-friendly compared to microwave bags of popcorn with fake butter stuff.

3. Just like they tell you - journal your food.
Some things I didn't think were so bad are really bad. Sometimes I end up thinking I've had a good day but the results tell me different. I've gone low on protein or even low on carbs. Your body needs a balance function to its best. (Notice I didn't mention calories because they're just a small part of eating healthy.)

4. Cinnamon is a really good thing.
WHAT? I've done a lot of hunting around the Internet and being very careful which sites I believe in. In the process I discovered cinnamon has a lot of health benefits. So, what does it do?
Cinnamon contains a chemical - cinnamaldehyde - which appears to work as an antibacterial and antifungal. It's used for gas, muscle spasms, nausea, helps with the common cold, may lower BP, have antioxidant effects, and several other benefits. Who knew!
Want something good for you and tasty to start your day? Instead of jelly on your toast try making a mixture of 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp honey. - Good stuff!

Rattle-rattle-thunder-clatter

2011-09-18T22:14:00.000-05:00

Like I said last post - It's been crazy around here with the construction. I live 1/2 block from the highway where a bunch of construction is going on. Normally, go to the end of the block-pop over 1 block and jump on the highway. I know, I said all this last post. Only reason I mention this again is because I took a picture of the end of the block from my driveway.

All that dirt looking stuff down there is the frontage road and behind it is the highway. The highway looks pretty much like the frontage road. To be fair, this picture is a few days old so the highway actually looks a bit better than this but, all this construction means I've been playing the Midas Muffler commercial in my head a lot - rattle rattle thunder clatter boom boom boom. That's pretty much what it sounds and feels like in the house from early morning till late evening.

The boys seem to be doing there own version of construction in the house. They have a kitty tunnel. I have no life so, the tunnel lives in the middle of the living room. I came home to find the tunnel had a new arrangement to it.

As I said it's normally in the middle of the living room.

What in the world did the 2 of them do during the day to get it into the new position!? I think I need to get a nanny camera. Or, maybe I don't want to know.......

In other news, a few weeks back the family got together for a BBQ and I just can't go see Layla without making something. I had this very strange ball of soft, fuzzy yarn from a swap and started playing around. I had tried knitting it once but the fabric seemed a bit thin. So, I tried crochet. That worked perfect. I made a "ball" and decided to keep going and made a doggy/bunny/critter thing. The arms and legs are kind of curly. They did that on their own. They are a chain stitch with some stitches on the end for the hand/foot then a single crochet in each chain. I think this little guy turned out pretty cute but the best was - Layla carried it around for quite a while.

This past month I finished a shawl but never got around to blocking it. Some day I'll have a monster blocking party and get everything finished once and for all. The shawl pattern and yarn escape me for the moment but I'll have all the info when I post a blocked picture (don't hold your breath!)

The boys have been pretty boring (at least when I'm at home) so I don't have any action shots or cute kitty poses but I do have a picture of Bert showing what can happen to a rocking chair after 20 years of cats using it for naps. Check out the edge of the chair and all the kitty claw marks. It's really pretty minimal damage so I can't complain too much. We had a chair when I was a kid that was totally wrecked by Frank, our cat at the time.

Cha-cha-cha-changes

2011-09-12T22:05:00.000-05:00

It's been almost a month since I posted anything. Somehow it feels like a couple days ago and somehow it feels like a long time ago. There's been a lot of changes the past month. A while back I bought my folk's house and moved back to the old neighborhood. This is the house I grew up in. I know the people; the streets; the shopping areas. This is my comfort zone. Until recently.

The highway at the end of my block is being widened and the frontage roads changed. The past few months this has really changed up things. To get to work I used to go to the end of the block and at the next street I'd pop onto the highway and head out toward work. Not any more. Now I have to go the opposite direction to the far end of the block; follow the lake for 5 blocks; turn and go 2 blocks to the stop light. Wait forever for the light to change; get on the highway; drive 5 blocks back toward my house in a construction zone and then I'm to where I normally start out. I have a feeling this is going to be a big pain come snow time!

Then there's my shopping mall. To be honest I haven't shopped there in a while but most of the stores had already left. Well, the mall is now a pile of rubble. Those of you who live in the Twin Cities area, I'm talked about Brookdale Mall. It's gone. Hasta la bye-bye. Adios. Sears is still there and I've heard they are going to be building Walmart on one side and shops between the two but, it won't be Brookdale anymore.

There has been one change I'm getting excited about. Since the middle of summer I've been working on finding a new normal for myself. I won't say I've been on a diet because, truly, I haven't. I'm making better food choices and making healthier life choices. As a result I've also over 35 lbs so far with many, many more to go. I decided not to talk about it until I had a good handle on it because I've been on diets for a while, only to lose 10-15 lbs and gain them right back. This time around I decided to try something different.

I found a website that has helped a lot.
www. sparkpeople.com
It's a free website that lets you monitor your intake and exercises. You can journal, join groups, read articles on all sorts of topics (health, motivation, exercise, lifestyle). It's quite the website. The first week I ate as usual but entered everything in. This showed me what I was doing calorie-protein-fat-carbs. From this I started learning to make small changes in what I ate.

I eat a lot in fast food/quick restaurant places. I found an app for my iTouch that shows nutritional content of foods at these places. (Fast Foods app). If I go to a fast food place I figure out the best thing to eat and still get to enjoy the time out with friends. No big deal, just think before I eat.

There's also several exercise videos, usually 10 minutes, on sparkpeople. I haven't done much with them yet but soon. I didn't want to make too many changes at once. I'm letting each change become a part of my life before adding more. After all, this is going to be for life, not just to lose xx number of pounds.

The last thing I did was to get an email buddy to report to every week. I weigh in on Monday morning and send her an email to let her know how I'm doing. I decided on someone I don't see daily because I needed someone to be accountable to but didn't want around daily. She's interested in my success and encouraging but not "hounding me", In the past when I decided to go on a diet I'd have my mother asking about things constantly or saying things that she thought was helpful but drove me crazy. "If you'd just lose a couple pounds..." "Aren't you hungry?" So, I bypassed that situation by having my go-to person live across the country.

Well, that's my big changes the past month (or so). I'm hoping the lifestyle changes keep getting better and more positive. I'm hoping the highway changes don't drive be crazy. I hoping the new shopping mall will bring new life to the Brookdale area. Time will tell.

One thing that hasn't changed is the knitting. I'm headed out to Rhinebeck in about a month so I'm working on a sweater I hope to wear out there. The sleeves and body are chestnut heather and textured with a double moss stitch and the yoke/upper body will be a stranded design with kind of a Nordic feel to it. I'm still working out the design so don't know exactly what it will end up like. There will be pictures when I have something to show.

Stone Arch Bridge

2011-08-20T20:03:00.000-05:00

Sitting in phone were some pictures from my knitting tour day with a lady from Australia. I mentioned this when it happened last month but posted no pictures. OOPS. I also managed to only take pictures at the Stone Bridge and none of the Yarn shops we visited. But, I like the Stone Bridge and thought you might like to see pictures of it.

Those of you not from the Minneapolis area have no idea what I'm talking about. The Stone Arch Bridge was built in the 1880s over the St Anthony Falls for railroad tracks. Now it's for bike and people. It's just north of the I35W bridge that collapsed a few years ago. For a time after the collapse people would come down to the bridge to see what everything looked like. Recently the area around the bridge has been redone. The Gutherie theater built their new building down there and many of the old flour mills have been turned into people friendly areas - restaurant, apartments, etc. Now, the Stone Arch bridge area is a park and people like to go down and enjoy the Mississippi river down there.

The bridge is the yellow brick. In the front is the park area and the bridge behind is a vehicle bridge.

Closer to the bridge you can see St Anthony falls Mississippi river) under it. This year with all our rain the falls have been very high

The park area has made it very popular for wedding parties to come down. The day we were there proved that point. Here's 2 wedding parties walking along the sidewalk across the street from the park.

And over by the Gutherie is another wedding party, complete with parasols getting ready to take pictures.

In other news -

The past couple weeks I've been fighting a bum knee. I have no idea what I did to it but the muscle in the back is not a happy camper, it didn't want to straighten out so walking was tricky. For about a week walking was really painful. It almost better but I went through all the fun steps of getting better including the calf getting real sore from over use. But life goes on and its getting better so that's a good thing.

Knitting - I'm in trouble. I've finished most everything on the needles. GASP AND HORRORS! I have a few things that are long term - scrap afghan type things but - other than that I have some edging on a sweater; about an hour of knitting on a scarf and that's it! I need to start something(s) but I want to do some designing and the design mojo is not visiting me right now. So, I'll probably cast on some socks just to have something going. Time will tell.

But for now, Chief has climbed up and is trying to crawl on the laptop. I think it's a hint that its cuddle time.

Knitting Connections

2011-07-30T23:49:00.000-05:00

Apparently the heat has gotten to me and I'm unable to write. That's the only reason to explain why I haven't posted anything for 20 days.

The past few weekends have been interesting and filled with fun yarn things. All this fun was courtesy of Ravelry connections.

A few months ago a lady from Australia posted in the MN Knitters group that she was coming to Minneapolis for a week and asked where the best yarn shops were. I was feeling adventurous so sent her a private message saying I would be glad to play tour guide on Saturday and show her some sites and some LYS. That meeting took place last Saturday. We did a quick driving tour of St Paul and then headed over to The Yarnery. After that Borealis, lunch and Lila and Claudine's. All this was followed by a driving tour of Minneapolis and a stop at the Mill City Park so she could see the Mississippi river and the 35W bridge since she had heard about the collapse of the old bridge all the way in Australia. All in all it was a great time. Leanie put a major dent in her credit card with several sweaters worth of yarn she couldn't get at home and returned to her hotel ready for the week's conference.

During the same time I found out about a group of knitters in Kandahar at the hospital there. I contacted one of the knitters and asked if my knitting group could send some yarn to them. My group and also The Yarnery donated yarn and the box went out to the Role 3MMU hospital this past week.

When I was working at my family friend's yarn shop in the late 70s and 80s we didn't have Ravelry or other methods of finding knitters in the rest of the world. The only patterns available were the ones at the local shops. Mail order yarn for the average person was totally unheard of. And the thought of meeting up with someone on the computer and getting together was something that only happened in science fiction, after all computers were only for big corporations and took up an entire room to house it.

Each year and decade sees so many changes in the world but one thing remains constant - people with similar interests like to get together to share those interests. I for one am looking forward to all the knitting connections I will make in the future and hope you all get to meet many knitters in your own way too.

oh - one fun side note. After posting about the whack-a-doodles last time I got a message from someone I know who's father-in-law is a minister and wanted to used that post in a sermon. Who would have thought a post would end up as a sermon!

Watch out for Whack-a-doodles

2011-07-10T10:14:00.000-05:00

I hope you'll bear with me in this blog post. It's a bit different than the usual but it's something I've felt the need to write for a long time.

Back in high school we had a Lay Witness Mission at our church. That's where people from other churches come and share over the course of a weekend. They share about what God is doing in their lives and how to make Him a real part of your life. My favorite quote from that time is from Bill Sunday (a preacher from the early 20th century) "Going to church doesn't make you a christian any more than going in a garage makes you a car." At this weekend I figured out that was my problem- I was going to church but had never made a decision. Being a christian involved a decision to give your life over completely to God and accept that Jesus is the only way to heaven - you can't be good enough, you have to accept the gift. (I'll stop the preaching part here.)

So, that weekend I did just that. gave my life to Christ and became born again. Friends saw a change in me. I knew there had been a change and since then I've tried to live as God would have it. Not always successfully but always God's kid.

As God's kid I see the world differently than others. I also see what appears to be "users and abusers". People who use the Bible as their own justification for doing what they want and people who abuse the term christian. God NEVER said verbally or physically attack people who don't believe what you believe. People who do this are not following The Word.

God's Word is based on pure love. When I see people on the far right saying theirs is the only true way to believe in God or if you vote against their beliefs you aren't christian it hurts my soul. What's more it hurts Christianity. There are people in the world who are not christian who see what these whack-a-doodles are doing and saying and think to themselves - if this is Christianity keep me away!

Trust me and believe me when I say the whack-a-doodles are not what God is. They are using religion not faith. They are not speaking/acting for God but for themselves. People of the faith are republicans and democrats. They are rich and poor. They are outgoing and shy. They are people who love other people and don't want to destroy other people.

People of faith listen and pray for God's instructions - whack-a-doodles tell you what to think
People of faith show love through action - whack-a-doodles tell you what you have to do or you're a bad person
People of faith follow the Bible - whack-a-doodles tell you to follow them

I haven't said this as well as it could have been said but I hope you have read this and consider - just because someone says they are a certain religion and do something mean or crazy, doesn't mean everyone of that religion is mean or crazy.

Happy 4th!

2011-07-03T22:33:00.000-05:00

You can wear your stars and stripes on your body or

carry your stars and stripes on a flag

or you can dress up to remember our founding fathers.

(friends dressed for the bicentennial)

However you decide to celebrate - remember how lucky we are to live in a free country!

Happy Independence Day!

Do I need a press agent?

2011-06-25T21:23:00.000-05:00

Last winter someone who had been to our knitting group a few times called and asked if she could come and take a few pictures. We all said sure and had a fun evening knitting, posing and trying not to look like dorky ladies. She had written an article about knitting groups and hoped to get it published with pictures. Time passed and this week the article came out.

The new issue of Interweave Knits Weekend has the article. Shock of shocks there's 4 pictures of our group and I'm in 3 of them. It's an odd thing to be thinking people are looking at you all over the world. I know I'm not famous but it's kind if fun - the old "15 minutes of fame" type thing. So, anyway, I went over to grab a copy of the magazine at a shop I have been to once before. I went into the shop and asked if they had it and added, "apparently I'm in some pictures this issue." One of the ladies in the shop looked and me and said I was in the mag and that there was a picture of me with my shawl I just finished. GOOD GRIEF! This lady knows her magazines!

Last weekend I went to the Minnesota Quilter's Shop with a friend. I took many pictures but I have a new camera and I need to learn the best settings for indoor pictures. Unfortunately, many of my pictures are yellowish or blurry. This camera take incredible pics but the operator needs to learn her stuff!

The quilts are so well done. Every year I see them all and get inspired to get back to quilting but I never seem to have the time. This year's goal is to get the basement studio set up so I can just go down there and get to work instead of having to set things up before I can sew.

There was a series of wall hanging where everyone sewed a part of a river. They were hung so that the river is a continuous flow from quilt to quilt. Pretty cool.

The other thing fun to do at quilt shows and knitting shows is to people watch. I LOVE this ladies outfit. It says - I'm wearing what I want to to heck with expected fashion.

In the meantime, I need to check out what happens in the Upstate New York and Massachusetts area. I'll be going there in October to go to Rhinebeck and see friends. I can't wait!

I've got Cool Friends!

2011-06-11T16:21:00.000-05:00

Today is WWKIP Day - World Wide Knit in Public Day. Many of you have been out with friends and groups knitting away, showing the world knitting is a cool thing.

It's also International Yarn Bombing Day. A day to decoration public places with yarn.

I've done nothing so far but I had to grab a couple pictures from 2 friends to let you see what they were up to.

WWKIP - one friend sat in the Munich stadium watching her kids in a show to promote Munich getting the Winter Olympics in 2018. This was about an hour before the show and she says the stadium had many more people for the show but she continued to knit and almost finished a sock during the day. She is a wicked fast knitter!

Another friend here in town (Minneapolis) Prepared a head of time for International Yarn Bombing day and had a hat and some turtlenecks to display. LJWT (on Ravelry) got up early and gave the Mary Tyler Moore statue a proper knit hat to throw. She also put some turtlenecks on the turtles at a local fountain. Way to go LJWT!

It's still early enough in the day that I plan to get some knitting in at dinner with non-knitting friends. Hope you all day a great WWKIP day!

(hope my friends don't mind my "stealing" their pictures!)

The New Knitting Math

2011-05-30T21:54:00.000-05:00

A good day is not having to work on a week day and having time to spend watching TV, hanging out with the boys and knitting.

The day becomes a silly day when you decide to knit and use the laptop on your lap for the pattern. Then you get one kitty to come and sit with you while knitting and before long you get a second kitty to come up on your lap.

1 lap + 1 computer + 2 kitties = one hard time knitting but still a good day!

Rainy Days and Mowers Always get me Down

2011-05-21T12:32:00.000-05:00

Back about15 years ago my Dad found a used electric lawn mower at a garage sale. It was perfect for me. I had a small yard (very small yard) and this mower was 18" wide and started with the flick of a switch - no gas needed. Actually, the switch was broken so it was plug in the cord but, same effect. It served me well. When I moved to the current house I had a bigger yard but my rusty, broken cord, broken handle held together with a metal bar and electric tape little mower was good enough for me.

This week it coughed its last. It literally made a coughing noise gave up a little puff of white smoke and died. I might have been able to get it fixed but really - it was time to say goodbye. I went shopping for a new mower and found one. I really like having an electric mower because there's no gas to run out of - I don't have to pull the cord to get it started which is perfect for my crummy shoulder. Plus, electric mowers are suppoed to be better for the environment.

One small problem. The grass is super long - the creeping charlie has taken over the yard and - it won't quit raining to let me try out the new mower.

Someone does seem to like all the grass and mess of my yard. I live a block from a lake and every year we have daily visitors. They come up to say HI to all of us and after a stop at each house they find a spot for a nap. This week my lilac bush/tree was their nap spot.

I thought I'd show my latest finished project but the projects that are done aren't blocked so here's a look at what should be a picture of my finished projects.

Maybe I'll get something done this weekend and get a project up on Matilda. It should help that's its going to rain all weekend and I can't go out and mow the lawn!

One easy Post

2011-05-08T16:15:00.000-05:00

Today 2 friends and I headed to Shepherd's Harvest Festival then to lunch and finally to Lila and Claudine's. I was about to write all about our day but read the blog of another friend first. This made blogging today very easy. - Read Christine's blog and pretend I took the pictures and wrote the blog - pretty much the same thing happened to the 3 of us today that she did yesterday. (She even mentions me in her blog!)
This is one easy post!

Christine's Blog

Some Success and Fun

2011-05-07T21:49:00.001-05:00

Last week I posted about 3 projects - a blue top, a blue market bag and a white mystery shawl from 2007 (yeah, I started it that long ago!). So, did I finish the top for Yarnover or did the other projects take over my time and the top stayed at home. The answer is....

both

I did finish the top but I have no pictures for you yet because it is not totally finished. No buttons and needs blocking. I like it but I remembered how warm the building was last year and decided to wear something lighter weight. That was the right decision. Our classroom was warm and the blue top would have been too much.

The blue market bag is done except for the handles. I'm debating what type of handles would be best. They need to be strong and not stretchy because there's nothing worse than having a bag that ends up dragging on the ground.

The white shawl IS DONE!!! I still need to block it but that won't happen until I decide if its going to be dyed or not. Until then I'm going to let it sit for a little bit because once you dye it the deed is done and the shawl can't go back to white.

Yarnover

Last weekend was yarn over. I had a friend come up from southern Minnesota to stay Friday night before the event. Friday night we met another friend for dinner at my favorite Indian restaurant and had a great time. Yarnover is a Minnesota Knitter's Guild one day event with many teachers - vendors and a chance for knitters to learn and enjoy the day. The day began with Merike Saarniit as keynote speaker and then I had a morning class with her on Creative Estonian Knitting. I don't take too many classes because, quite frankly, there's not a lot out there I haven't tried and I don't have the money to waste on classes that don't teach me new things. I hadn't done any Estonian knitting specifically and figured since she grew up in the culture it would be interested to take a class from her. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. The class started out with page 1 of her handout not being copied for us (not her fault and we did get it emailed to us a couple days later) so the cast on on that page had to be done slowly and repeated multiple times because people didn't have the ability to look at the directions as they tried it. Then she talked a lot about just do whatever you want to and how ladies just make things up. In the end we learned a cast on, a new way to do nupps and a slip stitch that goes over multiple stitches to be a V. That's it - 3 hours, 3 stitches. The handout language seems to me to be "cleaned up" a bit. She would say things like "wiggle your thumb" to explain part of the cast on. Without seeing the stitch done this instruction just wouldn't get the average person to the completed stitch.

MN Knitter's Guild Meeting

Tuesday night was the monthly meeting. Moved up earlier than usual so we could enjoy a talk by Sally Melville, who was one of the teachers at Yarnover. She spoke on why knitting is good and what it does for us. Her main point was: Knit what you like and wear what you knit.

NW Twin Cities Burbs Knit Night

This week was also my twice a month knit group. We had a good group including a few new faces. Meeting with a regular group of knitters is so important to feeding your knitting mojo. Each time we meet we talk about silly things - female things - life traumas and more. We also get a chance to see what other knitters are working on and what yarn they have found. It's also a chance to plan for things beyond the group. That happened this week. Three of us are going over to Shepherd's Harvest Festival tomorrow. A time to enjoy the company of knitting friends and fondle yarn, watch sheep get sheared, dream about the spinning wheels, and walk around in the fresh spring air (I think spring is really here). We'll end the day my stopping by Lila and Claudine's since neither of them have ever been there. It will be a good day!

Will the bookies take odds?

2011-04-26T21:57:00.000-05:00

Yarnover is this weekend. In preparation I decided I needed a new top to wear. The weather should be nice enough so a sweater will be too warm but this is Yarnover and the top just needs to be knit. So - I started making a short sleeve top that I can wear closed or open with a tank top under it. The bits are knit, I have 3 evenings left till Yarnover. The bets are on - will I actually get this finished in time to wear.

Things to consider - I need to clean the house - do laundry - get the guest room ready - and be distracted by a million other things. Only time will tell.... If you go to Yarnover and see me, check out if this pile of light blue knit bits is a completed top on my back!

One of the things that may distract me is my knit version of Rust Goes Green. Back several years ago when I designed Rust Goes Green, a crocheted market bag, I had requests for a knit version. People liked it and I totally planned on making a knit version. I got about half done and ran out of yarn. This year I started clearing out the old projects and made plan to get some of them done.

It's not done yet but well on its way. I just have to decide how I want to finish the top and what type of handles it will have. We're gittin' there. Now I need to come up with a name. Rust Goes Green was because I used a rust colored yarn to make a reusable "green" market bag. What about "Out of the Blue" ? Maybe not...

In the middle of the cleaning out old projects I found the Mystery Shawl #3. I was SO close to done but put it away. The past few nights I've been working on it and I have very little left to knit. I used Knit Picks Bare fingering weight and planned to dye it once I finished the shawl.

What's going to win- finishing the blue top - the blue market bag or the shawl? If the bookies in Vegas can lay odds on who will cry at the Royal Wedding maybe they'll want to lay odd on the winner of my next finished project.

BIG MISTAKE

I love the scene where Julie Roberts goes back to the shop that would help her in "Pretty Woman". She walks in with her arms loaded with bags and tells the clerk who wouldn't help her - "BIG Mistake." My mistake involved my wardrobe but nothing so exciting as bags full of designer clothes.

I placed a clean black top on the bed this morning when I was deciding what to wear and forgot to hang it up in the closet before I left for work.

BIG Mistake

They just mentioned snow in tomorrow's forecast - will it ever end!?!?!?!?!

Spring Watch 2011

2011-04-20T21:29:00.000-05:00

Well, we're still waiting for spring to actually appear and stay in Minnesota. Last night the 10pm News was talking about how lucky we were to have missed the latest snow that came through. Then I woke up this morning.
As I left the bathroom and glanced out the back window I noticed the apple tree didn't look quite spring like.

Hoping that is was a figment of my imagination I went to the front and looked out the front door.

Yup. We didn't miss this one.

Oh spring, where for art thou spring?

Waiting for spring - still

2011-04-14T21:56:00.000-05:00

The Boys have been discussing the whole "When is spring going to be here" topics and they decided it's taking way too long. They miss sitting in the open window and "chirping" at the birds in the yard.

So, what do we have instead of flowers and nice green yards?

We have store closings. It's sad to see book stores closing. I love exploring book stores and paging through the latest books to find something new to read. Sometimes its a knitting book. Sometimes a mystery or historical fiction. I have a feeling that my reading will change as we move closer to all ebooks. They are wonderful and I do read on my netbook and iTouch but its just not the same as a real live book and I hope we never totally get rid of them. They're warm and comfortable. At least in my mind they are.

What else do we have instead of flowers?

We still have massive snow banks. This is in the parking lot of a local shopping mall. It's been melting for well over a week and check out the size of what's still there! Just to the right of the snow bank is a person with a stroller walking past it. That's one huge bank!

Rumor has it....

2011-04-13T22:12:00.000-05:00

The past week had definite signs of spring. It was quite exciting. I was outside without a coat. The snow finally melted off my yard. Life was looking good. Then this week came. We've started out pretty good but as the week goes on the colder it gets. They're even saying things like - rain mixed with snow - when giving the weather report for the rest of the month. Rumor has it we're in the season known as spring but, I have my doubts.

As with every spring I start thinking about getting healthy in my habits. This year I'll spend more time in the garden, I'll go out on my bike more. You know what I'm talking about. I usually end up doing nothing. This year I've actually started doing a few things in the right direction and have lost some weight.

One of the things I found that has been very helpful for eating healthier, cheaper and in a more ecological manner. I love popcorn but I hate microwave bags and the unknown chemicals they put in them to pop the corn. At Target I found a microwave popcorn popper that works. It really works well. I've also made rice in it and that turned out perfect. So, I had to share with wonderful find with you. The Target website doesn't show it but when I bought it the popper was under $10 and well worth the price.

Here's a link to the Nordicware website so you can see what it looks like. Nordicware Popcorn Popper.

Cat Parent

2011-04-03T21:54:00.000-05:00

You know you're a cat parent when....

• You automatically check for kitty tail clearance before you sit on the toilet.

• You assume everyone has an extra layer of fuzz on their clothes.

• Your knitting mantra is: Knit one, purl one, pet one - repeat.

• You don't need an alarm clock because the cat knows exactly when it's time for breakfast.

• You automatically cover any black clothes with a towel if you leave them on the bed.

• You don't need weights to hold down your pattern and material when cutting out a new outfit to sew. You have a large "weight" ready to help you.

• You think the cat is always in the way but the second he's sleeping somewhere else in the house you have to go looking because you're worried he's not with you.

• All chairs in your house belong to the cat.

• No matter how down you feel, coming room to a purr and cuddle makes everything better.

Sock it to Me

2011-03-28T19:22:00.002-05:00

I have knit since the early 1960s. I have made many items. I have designed many items. I have knit socks. Lots of socks. Usually toe up using the same general formula and a heel I have memorized. Or at least I thought so.

I have now ripped out the current heel 3 times. There may be a 4th time, I don't know because I just finished ripping it out again and I'm about to knit it again. Why in the world am I having so much trouble? I think it's because this sock was feeling ignored and wanted some extra time with me. I started knitting it in December according to my Ravelry projects. Normally it takes less than a month to knit a pair of socks, depending on what other projects are going on. This sock got halfway up the foot and went into time out. I liked the yarn, the color, and I was using one of my standard "I know it feels good on my foot" patterns. So, why it ended up sitting around for over 2 months - I have no clue.

But last night I pulled it out to give it a little love. Got to the heel and checked my notes I have on my iTouch for the shaping numbers. I've written a little not to myself just to remind me of the numbers in case my brain is tired. I turned the heel and started the back side of the heel. Things were very much not even. I had way too many stitches on one side. Rip out #1.

I rechecked my note and I was doing things right.Knit again counting very careful - still wrong Rip out #2.

Go back to the note and turn on the computer to check my original pattern. HAH! I had typed 57 instead of 47 for one of the numbers. I corrected that and started knitting up again. I was whipping along the back of the heel - slip stitches flying by and I noticed when I was almost done I had 5 stitches left to pick up on one side and a lot more on the other side. Rip out #3.

While ripping out I went back to the original pattern to see if I wrote anything else wrong on the note. Yes and no. On my note for the heel turn I wrote to "P22, Kfp, K1, w&t. Work down to 10 sts" I forgot to mention it was working down in even numbers (p22 - k20 - p18........) I knit going down 1 st each row (p22 - k21 - p20....) So, I ended up with a lot more sts at the end of the turning and well - another rip out.

I just got back to the heel turn and I really hope I manage to get to puppy right this time. I getting sick of the heel and know if I put it in time out again I'll be finishing this sock in the next decade.

Wish me luck!

Update: 1 hour later - we have a turned heel and an even heel flap. Guess the sock decided it's had enough Jill time for tonight. Hope it's partner behaves better!

First Day of Spring - really?

2011-03-20T16:39:00.000-05:00

According to the calendar it's the first day of spring so I decided to take a little drive and see what the day brought.

First, its drizzling. Guess that could be a spring thing. Up at the shopping area you can see the mountains of Minnesota off in the distance.

You say there aren't any mountains in Minnesota?! You're right. Those are the piles of gravel and rocks from the gravel pits. Whenever its foggy or misty I always thing the gravel piles look like mountains in the distance.

To be fair, they are quite tall piles but definitely not mountains.

Let's check out the lake at the end of my block.

Well, there's still ice on the lake and there's plenty of snow hanging around so that doesn't look too much like spring.

My neighborhood has one definite sign of spring - "Detour Ahead".

The highway on the other side of my block has just started a road construction. The bridge over some railroad tracks a few blocks away is being taken down and redone. That means the highway by my house is very quiet as no one can drive over the bridge and past me. It makes getting on the highway in the morning much easier because there's no rush hour traffic. The sign on the highway says till Spring 2012. It's gonna be a long year trying to get around without the bridge!

Since its drizzling out and still snow there's not much to do but stay inside and knit. So, Chief has decided to help find a new pattern for me to work on. He's so helpful!

HI!

2011-03-13T19:07:00.000-05:00

Just peaking in to say hope you're having a great weekend.

Fun new toy

2011-03-05T22:32:00.001-06:00

When I get a new camera I have to head toward my favorite subject - The Boys. My poor, long suffering kitties put up with so much from me but with the new camera they don't notice as much. It's got 12x zoom. My old camera was 10x zoom but for some reason it didn't like to focus really tight in the close ups. This one has face recognition and stabilization and all sorts of other fun things so I can sit in a chair about 10 feet away from Chief and get "in his face".

One problem I used to have is taking pictures with a bright light behind the subject. Not any more. This shot of Bert would have been a white background with a silhouette of him in the past. Now, look at that cute face. Why, you can even see the nap of the towel he's sleeping on!

What would a new camera be if it didn't take good pics of the knitting projects? This shot was taken with not the greatest lighting coming from the windows to the side of it. With my other camera this shot would have been kind of yellowish looking or I would have used a flash and it would be washed out. I'm still in need of playing with the different modes but this is already a huge improvement over what I used to get.

Oh - the project? It's the Ten Stitch Blanket. I'm using left over worsted weight to make it so, unless I decide this has to get done and I buy special yarn for it, this project will be around for a while waiting for bits of yarn to add to it.

Then there's black. Do you know how hard it is to take pictures of black yarn projects? You usually end up with a black blob and it's hard to see what the stitches are. These are a pair of black mittens in Woolease. I didn't bother with a pattern, just cast on what I thought would be a good size and started knitting. Of course, when I got to knitting the second mitten I had to rack my brain to remember how many stitches and rows I did. Heaven forbid I actually write something down so I can do it again!

While I was taking the pictures of Chief, Bert decided to come over and check things out. Naturally, Chief had to give Bert a quick cleaning before more pictures could be taken. This shot was in minimal light with the two of them moving around.

Nice and clear picture. I think I'll keep the camera!

A couple things:
1. I had to small up the pictures so the blog didn't take forever to load. They are 25% of the original size so I'm guessing will not be as incredibly clear and sharp and the originals. (the project pictures were reduced to 500 pixels for the width so I can post them on Ravelry.
2. Other than changing the size I didn't do any cropping, auto adjust or anything else for these pics. I wanted to let them be just as the camera took them.
3. So what camera am I babbling about? It's the Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS7. When the box came from FedEx today I couldn't believe how small it was. When I opened the box I was in shock how little the camera is. I can throw it in my pocket and not even notice it's there (well, hardly notice).

Tomorrow I'll play with the audio/video and see what it can do.

There WILL be pictures

2011-03-04T21:36:00.000-06:00

What makes a good camera? You want pictures nice and clear, something easy to use, something easy to bring places so you actually use it and more. My current camera meets most of these but it's a larger camera. When I put it in my purse to bring places, I really know its there. I got tired of the size so I started hunting for a camera with the zoom and functions of my current one but a few other things. Smaller size, maybe video on it, higher resolution - you know - the good stuff. I found it. One problem, its not available locally because it's popular enough to be sold out.

However, tomorrow I will be waiting for the FedEx driver to "make my day". My new camera will be joining the household and I will be spending the day taking way too many pictures of Chief and Bert, my knitting, close ups of dirty kitty toys, dark corners of the house. You get the picture.I'm going to test the wide angle, the 12x optical zoom, the macro zoom, the stabilization. I'm going to be a silly, happy person and ....

Yes, there will be pictures for the blog. More than you probably want to see.

Oh, I'll also get some good pictures of a couple "secret" projects that I'm sending in to one of the magazines so sorry, you won't see those.

Where are you from?

2011-02-25T09:37:00.001-06:00

Last night I found a fun add-on for the blog. It listed where people who visit are from. In the 12 hours its been on the blog I already have many countries listed.

I don't know about you but I find it so amazing what the internet has done to change our view of the world. The problems in the Middle East with so many people discovering how to become their own nation instead of being ruled (and "owned") by one person. All those changes are taking place because people can find each other and organize through the internet. I hope they can all find the freedom to choose their own life as they want it to be. God bless them all for their courage to make a stand!

My world has grown so much by meeting knitters around the world and developing friendships I would NEVER have without the internet. This isn't as dramatic as creating a new government system for a nation but I live in a place where I was lucky enough to have a government of the people by the people (most of the time). So - my focus can be on knitting and my cats and simplier pleasures of life. How lucky is that!

So - people from around the world. Welcome to the blog. If you are a returning visitor - thank you. I hope to have some new patterns available shortly. I hope to have new pictures up as soon as I remember to buy batteries for the camera. But-while you're waiting, take a peak at the new visitor list on the left and see if you're the first person to visit from your country since 2/24/11 in the evening.

I've love to hear where you are from and how you found the blog so - please take a moment to send a comment. THANKS!!

Busy Day.... Need Nap

2011-02-19T11:40:00.000-06:00

It's been a busy day at Le Chat. Bert spent about 15 minutes running up and down the hall followed by leaping up onto the table next to the recliner and grabbing my knitting. I would gently say "no". Being a good boy, Bert would put his paw down for about 10 seconds and try again. Then- back to the hall to run around.

Back to the knitting. Repeat. I finally took the computer off my lap and he came over to lay down and took a nap. Silly, smart boy. He's figured out picking on the knitting will get my attention and he'll get his way.

After his nap he was thirsty so decided not to go all the way to the kitchen for a drink. My water would do just fine.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen Chief was busy rearranging the papers on the table. I'm sure he thought he was being helpful!

The activity was too much for both boys and they decided to head for the sun coming in the window and take another nap.

Wouldn't it be great to be a cat and spend time playing, eating, stealing people's water and taking naps! Of course, that would mean no knitting time so maybe I'll just stay the Mom and let them nap on my lap while I cuddle and stritch their ears and bellies.

What the sun outside has been doing is pretty nice. The shoulder high snow banks are now starting to go away. All the streets have been cleared of snow/ice and are definitely better to drive on. The piles that were so high you couldn't see if any cars were coming at street corners are now down enough so driving through intersections is safer. And - the snow plow piles of snow in my front yarn is becoming a very interesting sculpture. Last week at this time the snow plow piles were high and smooth. Now they're looking like strange critters trying to pop out of the snow.

Spring will get here one of these days. I just know it!

V-Day

2011-02-14T08:37:00.000-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day

Hope you can spend it with the ones you love

Newborn Shawl

2011-02-12T20:25:00.000-06:00

I have next week off and decided I needed something new to knit. After heading over to The Loopy Ewe website I decided I needed some lighter colored socks. Spring is coming one of these days and I just felt like I needed something to cheer my feet up. So I got some Cascade Heritage in a nice light color combo.

Since I was there and the messenger bags were on sale one happen to find it's way in to my cart. What is it with tote bags and other bags to put your stuff in. We all seem to have more than we need but keep on buying more. This one is a good size for a medium size project and has a nice padded shoulder strap.

Finally, I finished the Pi Shawl I started on Elizabeth Zimmermann's birthday (8-9-10). One thing about knit lace - it looks kind of like a newborn baby when its first finished. It's all wrinkly until you give it a little bath. Right now the shawl is tired so I'm going to let it rest overnight and it will get its bath and "grooming" tomorrow.

In the "we survived another cold front" area - today's weather in Minnesota was wonderful. Word is next week will be in the 30s possibly 40s. I'm guessing I'll see some people in shorts next week cause that's the way we do things here. One day frozen tundra, next day shorts!

Have a Nice Day

2011-02-09T23:09:00.000-06:00

Remember when the smiley face first came out and we all wore t-shirts with the face on it and underneath it said "Have a Nice Day". Those were simplier times - gentler times. At least that's how I remember it and don't confuse me with the facts of what it was really like. I was a kid and everything was gentler then.

Today on the way to work I was reminded of all this because of an unknown person. Someone tagged a snowbank on the side of the highway with a painted smiley face. When I noticed it on the way to work I smiled back. It made me happy and it was such a nice way to start the day.

So - to the person who tagged the snowbank - Thank You!

To all of you reading this - I wish you will Have a Nice Day.

How many WIPs?

2011-01-28T13:43:00.000-06:00

Every so often the same topic is brought up among knitters - how many WIPs do you have? For those who are not knitters a WIP is a Work In Progress.

There are those who plan a project - start a project - knit a project and yes - finish a project. They are rare. Most knitters have multiple projects going. Some knitters have "billions" of projects going. I like have a variety available. A simple project that can handle having a conversation while knitting; a complex one to challenge my skills; something I'm currently designing; a long term project, etc.

At my last knitting night I was working on an afghan I started a year or two ago and one of the ladies joked about me starting projects all the time and I shocked her with the fact that I don't have that many projects going right now. Turns out the past couple months I've gotten into finishing projects. I decided to do a reality check on how many projects I really have going right now.

1. Lace project - I'm about 80% done with a Pi Shawl. The Camping shawl designed in honor of Elizabeth Zimmermann's 100th birth anniversary.

2. Sit and chat project - I'm using up leftover worsted weight on a 10 stitch afghan. It all garter stitch and you only have to pay attention on the mitered corners.

3. Traveling Sock - I always have a sock project going since it's easy to throw in the purse in case I get stuck somewhere. Current sock is a lace mock cable.

4. I really need mittens - I'm making some black mittens because I'm in big need of something warm for my hands that will look ok with my coat. These should be done in the next couple days so they're really just a blip on the project list.

5. Garter Stitch sweater - It's in a bit of a time out because I ripped a sweater I had started about 5-6 years ago when I couldn't find the pattern. I started a new top down sweater, designing as I went and didn't notice till too late that the rest of the yarn is packed away somewhere and I haven't had time to go searching.

6. Long term project - I'm making a sock yarn project that I keep saying will not be the Sock Yarn afghan.
Current plan is this will be a shawl but, who knows, when I get to the shawl size I may just keep going. It only gets pulled out when I have no urge to knit other things and I don't plan on it being completed for a very long time.

7. Knit Market Bag - I designed a crochet market bag a few years back and it became very popular. As a matter of fact it's number 42 most popular bag on Ravelry. That got my knitting friends asking for a knit version. I've got a knit version about half done and it's just sitting there waiting for me to finish and write it up. one day...

I've got a few projects that I've more or less "forgotten" and may pull them out some day and may not. I rarely rip because I eventually get back to them. A couple years ago I finished a Christmas sock that I started in the 1980s. I never give up on a project! These get back to them some year projects include a Mystery shawl 3 I started 2-3 years ago; my mitered summer top; and a bunch of diagonal squares that may end up as an afghan some year.

For a knitter who usually has about 20-30 projects going to only have 10 projects is very unusual. I think I need to start something new - right now!

Happy Birthday Big Boy!

2011-01-25T23:08:00.001-06:00

March 25, 2002

January 25, 2002 my big boy was born. Little did I know at the time I would totally fall in love 3 months later and be wrapped around his little "finger".

I went to pick him up at 3 months of age and stopped by my parents house before going home. On the trip home my nameless little bundle crawled into my coat and fell asleep on my chest (18 lbs later he still does this!) When I brought him into my folk's he went right to Dad and played with him then went over to Mom and fell asleep on her lap. This little boy really knew how to get people to love him quick.

All my cats have been named after family members so, while we were trying to come up with a name Dad said the kitty had total control of the family just like "The Chief" did. And - a name was found. Grandpa was a Chief Petty Officer who was always in command of where ever he was. The name was turned out to be perfect because this little boy has always been the chief.

He's always demanded to be close and cuddle so when I needed to spend time on the computer I had to come up with a way to cuddle but keep working. I found my old arm sling and it worked perfect - we were both happy.

Time passed and he grew into a very handsome Big Boy. 18 pounds of love and good manners. So - Happy Birthday Big Boy. Thanks for picking me when I came to visit your birth home!

When is final really final?

2011-01-22T20:59:00.000-06:00

This week I received a recorded phone call announcing to me that it was the final courtesy call about my credit card and the possible lower rates I could get. This wouldn't be so unique except for the fact that I have received at least a dozen of the same phone call and its not even for any card I currently own. So it makes me wonder, if it was the final opportunity 12 phone calls ago what have the last 11 calls been?

This week was a cold one here in Minnesota. Friday was a very happy day for knitters. Going to work found me in a handknit sweater - handknit socks, handknit mittens and hat, and for good measure a handknit lap afghan to keep my legs warm in the car. Knitting is a great way to survive the challenges of a northern winter. Those of you who live in the north east regions of the US - get ready. It's coming - it's cold and it's time to dig out every handknit item you own!

I really don't have much else to say but I'm trying to get back into the practise of posting a couple times a week and maybe this will encourage me to take some pictures of my knitting and the boys to share. I've gotten lazy about that.

Once Upon a Time...

2011-01-16T22:41:00.000-06:00

Once upon a time I heard about this crazy thing people were doing called blogging. I found some about knitters and read them. I got caught up in the excitement and remembered the good ole days when I had a web site for my machine knitting business. I missed the Internet so took the plunge. Writing about the Boys, knitting and my folks I found a very small group of readers. For a few years I averaged 2-15 people a day. Not many but then, I wasn't the Yarn Harlot so what could I expect.

Then I started to think about the good ole days (that tends to get me in trouble) when I wrote patterns and wrote for a few machine knitting magazines and decided to give writing some of my basic patterns for people a try. One pattern that was put up on the blog was "Rust Goes Green". A simple rectangular crocheted market bag that caught on. People started downloading it - a lot. I decided to put it on Ravelry so I could keep track of how many downloads and to date there's been over 2,000 downloads.

I've put a few other patterns on Ravelry as free downloads and each one has had their own success. Somewhere along the way I was playing with reversible cables and came up with a fairly simple scarf that was totally reversible cables. I like the scarf but never got around to finishing it so for fun I posted it with basic how to's instead of a full pattern. Well, that's when things got weird.

You've probably seen the websites that list patterns by category. My Which Way is Up Cable scarf has been listed by several of these sites. One even listed it as one of the top 5 scarves. This has amused me because, really, it's not even a real pattern. It's kind of a - this is what I did, here's what I'd do next time, go try your own thing - kind of pattern. People like it. Maybe I should really write it up but then I think - why bother. People are doing just fine the way it is.

Statcounter is something you can put on your blog to see how many people stop by, where they're from, what page they land on, etc. That's how I know I used to get 2-15 people. Here's a shot of the last couple weeks. Do you see that tall column? That's saying almost 1,000 people came to visit the blog that day. The other days are 100-over 300. This has been going on for a few months and they are almost all landing on the scarf post.

If this type of community was around 15-20 years ago when I had my knitting/sewing shop maybe I would have been able to stay in business.

Whatever is going on right now, I'm happy people seem to like the patterns I've been putting out there. I have several other designs in process and hope to have them available soon. I've been working on several accessories using different techniques. There a lace scarf and fingerless gloves in Malabrigo; garter stitch hat and mittens, and some other accessory sets. I've also come up with a technique for cable mittens that I haven't seen anywhere before. The testers say it works for them so I'll be writing that up as so as I come up with a hat to go with it.

Speaking of knitting - a while back I bought a ball of Flying Saucer yarn is fun bold colors. I finished the socks but never got around to posting a picture. So - a little late but here's the socks from this yarn.

The yarn is dyed with 2 strands together so the socks will come out fairly close to matching. The socks in the picture look different only because you're seeing the 2 different sides. If I had them both facing the same direction they'd look similar. The pattern is just a basic one I did to give a bit of texture without losing the color. It's 10 rows of k-p texture and 10 rows plain. Next time I'd probably just do plain.

Good Hair Hat - a lesson in brioche stitch

2011-01-09T16:09:00.000-06:00

This summer I designed a simple brioche stitch hat and posted on my blog. Since I had several friends talking about wanting to learn the brioche stitch. I finally decided it was time to write up the instructions for knitting this stitch. I've put the pattern and instructions up on Ravelry and it is now available for everyone to give this simple, airy stitch a try.

Good Hair Hat pattern

New Year's Revolutions

2010-12-31T12:37:00.000-06:00

Every year people rush to make New Year's Resolutions and about a week after they totally forget about them until the next year and feel they are a failure if they don't meet all resolutions. I decided this year would be the year I make resolutions I can follow through on. 2011 will be the year ALL resolutions are met. So here is my list:

1. I will knit at least 1 sock this year.
2. I will buy at least 10 skeins of yarn.
3. I will attend my knitting group at least 3 times this year ( this would be the group that meets 2-3 times a month).
4. I will eat at least one meal a day.
5. I will go to work with a smile on my face at least once in 2011.
6. I will cuddle with Chief and Bert at least once a day.
7. I will read at least one book.
8. I will meet up with my friends for dinner.
9. I will mow the lawn at least once this year.
10. I will enjoy the small things in life and not have to look for big changes to know I am a happy person.

Christmas Wish

2010-12-24T01:23:00.000-06:00

Growing up Christmas was a huge thing. We waited till the Sears and JC Penney catalogs showed up and studied the pages many times picking out the toys that would be written on our Christmas list. One year Mouse Trap was on the list, another year Barbie's theater. One of my favorite years was getting my first 2 wheel bike. I came odwn the hall and around the corner into the living room. There parked in front of the tree was a shiny new turquoise Schwin bike. I loved that bike. It took me all over the neighborhood and gave me the freedom that kids seek.

Our family gathering on Christmas was also a huge thing. Grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and more were all brought together to celebrate. After the meal the "women folk" would clean up the dishes while the men took a nap in front of the TV. As kids we waited with great expectation because about 4pm a miracle would happen every year. Santa stopped by the house on his way back to the north pole to visit with us and drop off a few more gifts. Can you imagine! Santa actually stopped by to see us. It was thrilling! Before we could get the presents, we had to perform for him. You had to sing, read a poem, play the piano or some other performance for Santa and the rest of the family. It was such a special time.

After Santa left, the kids would pass out the presents under the tree to everyone. Piles grew in front of each person and once the last present was passed out we would take turns - starting with the youngest - opening presents. Each person opened their present showed it to everyone then the next youngest would open a present. There was always an arguement with the adults as to who was actually older but always with laughter and joy. When the presents were all opened it was time for supper. The day ended with very tired but happy children and adults packing up presents to return to their own homes.

Those were the good old days. Now, we have grown and Santa no longer comes to visit us. We will all get together and enjoy the day with family - my aunt and uncle, the cousins and cousin's children. The grandparents and others of the next generation are no longer with us but stories of Christmas past will be told. At some point we will tell the story of Russell, the little boy who lived next door to my aunt, seeing Santa and rushing into the house to meet him. This year will be a quieter year because we've had a few deaths recently. We are a family that loves Christmas and loves the chance to get together and share. Yup, it will be quieter but filled with love and family.

I have a Christmas wish for all of you - that you will take time to enjoy family and friends, share stories and find the joy and excitement of the season that we had as children.

Topic of the Day

2010-12-11T21:55:00.000-06:00

If you live in Minnesota (the lower half) or parts of the country near us there is only one topic of discussion today - snow. Shoveling snow. Getting stuck in snow. Remember the last blizzard when..... You get the idea. We become stuck on the topic of snow and can't get out of it. It's our battleground and some of us survive, some don't.

So here's my story about today's snow.
Yesterday at work I decided to check out a few web sites and look for a snow thrower. I haven't had one since becoming an adult and I'l really tired of shoveling. When I saw the weather report I decided this was the year to get one. Sears reported a wait of 10-20 days for their models. That just wouldn't get me through this blizzard. Another home store had a model that was big enough to deal with what we were getting but not so big I couldn't handle it. They had 21 in stock. That was at 5pm.

6pm - I got to the store after dealing with rush hour and when I walked in the store 3 throwers were waiting in line to be checked out. When I talked to the clerk and he checked - they were down to 11. 10 of this model were sold in one hour. Glad I didn't wait! I got it home after a stop to get gas for it and waited for the snow.

This morning 10am - I got on line and checked for the fun of it. All 21 throwers were sold and they were out of stock of several other models. Really glad I didn't wait!

4pm - I waited till 4pm to clear the driveway so I'd only have to do it once. My new snow thrower (still waiting for a name) is wonderful. The snow was up to the top of the front end (21" high). It cleared out the driveway nice and pretty.

6:30pm - My friends were having our annual party tonight at 7pm and I only had to go a couple miles away. I headed out with my treat I was sharing, a shovel (just in case) extra mittens, etc. I was ready to go. My street wasn't ready. The plows haven't been through yet and after getting stuck in my street right outside my driveway 3 times I finally gave up.

8pm - yes, I was out there well over an hour getting my car unstuck from the street. I gave up and came in the house to cuddle with the cats, watch TV and eat dill,fresh veggies pizza squares. No party for me tonight. I checked with my friends and our party was cancelled. First time in 30 years.

So, that's my snow story. Tomorrow is another day and all I know is there will be knitting and I'm sure there will be a plow in the street to block my driveway. It's winter in Minnesota and it's gonna be a long one! And I will survive.

Alive but busy

2010-12-09T21:39:00.000-06:00

I don't have much to say except: life is busy.
I have a computer that is trying hard to die permanently so I'm looking for a new one.

Things are happening at work causing many changes and so extra mental effort that doesn't wear me out but makes sitting around at night doing nothing a really nice thing.

I finished the Tree of Life afghan but need to work in the ends before I photograph it.

I have parties and gatherings over the next couple weeks that mean making treats, and getting ready for the parties.

I have plumbing that needs attention (drat!) and no time to call a plumber to get it fixed. Fortunately, its an inconvenient things and not something I need to fix to have the house function.

So much more is going on but - I don't need to bore you. I only wanted to post something since its been a long time and I wanted to say -I'm here, I'm fine and I'm getting ready for the holidays!

Enjoy your December with all the celebrations and when I have some knitting to post - I'll be back....

Knitting + Food + Goats + Friends= a Great Time

2010-11-23T21:08:00.000-06:00

I'm a little slow in posting this but - a couple weekends ago my local knitting group headed out of town to Lanesboro, MN and the Cottage House Inn. We spent Friday afternoon to Sunday morning thinking about nothing but knitting and friendship. It's something all groups should do at some point and we plan on making it a regular event.

The people at the Inn were wonderful. They gave us the meeting room to camp out in for no additional cost. This room had tables to sit at and several comfy places to sit - couches and chairs. It also included a refrigerator/freezer, microwave, sink, and several plug ins for crock pots on a counter. We took advantage of all these things.

We didn't plan any meals but all brought food. The shocking thing about this was - it was probably the healthiest retreat I've ever been to. Fresh fruit and veg, salads, yummy soup and meat dishes. Everything was wonderful.

After staying up way too late Friday night (past midnight) we all headed to our rooms and planned to meet for breakfast at the local Pastry Shop cafe. Again the food was great. They had Vegetable scrams that were a ton of fresh vegetables with scrambled eggs and homemade toast and grapes. All for $4.00. You gotta love small town cafes!

Back at the Inn we sat around and knit. Early afternoon some of us headed over to the local Mohair Goat farm to pet the goats and buy some yarn. Austin's Mohair's is a fun place just outside Harmony, MN. The whole farm is purple which made PurpleKathy (one of our group) very happy.

There was a purple shop, a purple barn, purple fences, purple everywhere. Inside we met Ada. What a character! She is the Old Goat Lady and worth the trip just to meet her. Many things in the shop are made from yarn from her goats by local ladies. Ada helps ladies around the area who have ended up in welfare and can't make ends meet.

There's also mohair yarn to buy. Yup - there's purple yarn with PurpleKathy (note the purple turtleneck and sweatshirt) zooming in on it -some did go home with her.

The other side of the shop had items from the local ladies and other fiber goodies.

Once we made our purchases we headed out to the barn to say HI to the local critters.

These guys looked pretty tired and the one of the left reminded me of Lee Marvin in the movie "Cat Ballou. OK I admit that's a pretty old reference but- there's a famous scene where he's on his horse drunk leaning against the side of the building. Ya gotta give me this one!

This cute little guy loved getting pet, especially his horns. I never noticed before but goat horns are warm and they have the silliest grin on their faces.

Meanwhile - we headed back to the Inn and got back to some serious knitting....

and eating with knitting.......

Our final morning we headed back to the Pastry Shop cafe and had their Sunday morning special - Spinach, Swiss Cheese, and Ham stuffed Crepes. Huge serving, tasted great and only $5. Then back to the Inn and home.

This was the weekend after my Dad's funeral and was such a great way to get back into things and start a new life. I suddenly don't have any parents to have to look after. There won't be any calls from a nurse telling me I need to head over to the hospital or Dad needs some special care item. I spent the entire weekend just enjoying my friends and not worrying about anything. It will take time to get used to this but I know Mom & Dad would be happy I'm able to do things now.

Knitted Accessories

2010-11-20T10:01:00.003-06:00

For the past year I've been working on and off on accessories patterns. Each set is a different technique - lace, garter stitch, etc. My original plan was to write them up as a booklet with 6 different sets. Lately I've been thinking about a different plan.

Every year people talk about planning for Christmas or talk about wishing they planned their knitting better. Lots of people do a sock a month clubs type thing but I got to thinking - why not an accessory a month group. Each month would be a different technique and accessory or set. People could knit these for Christmas presents or just because it's fun. Besides - we can all use a variety of accessories for ourselves depending on which outfit we're wearing.

So - what do you think? Would you be interested in a Ravelry group with a different original accessory pattern each month and different techniques? One month might be garter stitch scarf and mittens, another month lace hat and fingerless gloves, another month mitered square slippers, etc.

Let me know what you think by posting in comments and if I get interest I'll plan on starting a group in January. (I'm checking a few other places as well)

They're walking together again

2010-10-31T14:57:00.002-05:00

About 10 years ago I wrote something to my Dad for Father's Day. I happen to find it last week not knowing how much it would mean to me later in the week.

It's easy to remember good times when there are so many.

As a little girl I remember looking up at the tall, strong man holding my hand tightly as we walked. I remember how much I loved him and thought nobody was as lucky as me to have this love. I remember the patience it took to teach me so many things - how to canoe and drive the car. I know how easy it would have been to shoo that little girl out of the workshop but somehow, each time I came into the shop or stuck my head under the hood of the car with you, I was met with a smiling face that made me feel welcomed. All the questions were answered, and there were a lot.
Of course, I also remember being disciplined and not getting my way every time I wanted something. Now I know discipline is part of love, that we all need to learn lessons of life - happy and sad. I also know that love does not mean spoiling the child.
As I grew up, that tall, strong man was not as tall as I once thought but was strong in ways I'll never fully understand. I know I gave you more than a fair share of traumas; but because of you and Mom, I grew to become an adult who could love others and accept love. An adult who could look at the world and not be afraid to try. The best gifts anyone can give another are love, knowledge and a sense of self worth. Thank you for giving me these gifts and so many more. I love you now and forever!

Last Sunday I got a call from the hospital that Dad was in ER with an apparent heart attack. Later that day he was moved to their hospice care and on Thursday morning while I was with him he very peacefully and quietly breathed his last breathe on earth and went on to hold hands with Mom again. They were a couple that needed each other and I'm so glad they are back together again.

Unknown Heroes and Inventors

2010-10-09T12:42:00.003-05:00

Driving home in rush hour traffic is a great way to let the mind wander (safely so there's no accident!) I bounce past so many topics in my head, its hard figure out how I started at Chief & Bert and end up at pasta salad. Somehow there's thread that binds all the topics but I'll be darned if I can keep up with my free flow thoughts.

Yesterday it all started with the knot in my shoe getting stuck while I was putting them on in the morning. By the time I got in the car I was thinking about my shoes. Who was the person who invented the way we tie our shoes? At some point in history someone decided to use shoe laces and tie them in a bow. People like this person - let's called her Sally cause I'm guessing it was a very clever woman who's husband then took credit. So anyway, Sally was untying the knots in her kids shoes for the 8 millionth time and she decided there has to be a better way. She plays around with the leather laces and discovered if she put little loops in them she could pull them out so much easier. What a time saver. So Sally showed her friends and her husband. They showed other people and eventually it became the normal way for us to tie our shoes. None of us will ever know Sally's real name.

In knitting the same thing happens. Who invented knit? purl? YO? So many things we do in knitting that are just there. Taking fiber and twisting it together and then taking 2 of these twisted strands together to make a stronger one called plied yarn. Who thought of that the first time!?!

Now with the Internet some of the new techniques are getting people's names attached to them. We're learning about the people who make of knitting lives different. Barbara Walker invented SSK (slip,slip, knit) some 20-30 years ago, It decreases a stitch but instead of the stitch leaning to right as they do in k2tog, the SSK leans to the left.

It's a simple thing to us now but when I learned how to knit- it didn't exist. Magic loop didn't exist back then. Knitting is just 2 stitches - knit and purl - but thanks to our unsung heroes, knitting today is so much better than it was even since I started knitting. So, thank you Barbara Walker. Thank you everyone to all the unknown inventors who have invented a new technique for us or created a new tool to make our knitting such a new pleasure.

And- if anyone knows who invented tying shoe laces with loops - let me know so I can thank that person too!

Chief takes over

2010-09-20T22:58:00.006-05:00

Mom is busy so she said I could write a post. So all you kitties out there, get your Mom & Dad's out of the way and I'll tell you how to get extra cuddle time. I have Mom totally under my control and she doesn't even know it.

Step 1 - Get Mom's Attention. Sit on the arm of the chair while she's working on the laptop and stare at her with big blue eyes until she can't stand it anymore.

Step 2 - Once she has decided you're not going to give up, she'll help you get into the sweet spot between the computer and the arm. This spot is very comfortable for sleeping and Mom will even pet you while she is working on the computer.

Step 3 - After a while you may need to get her total attention because she's too busy with the computer and not petting you enough. Get up and crawl onto her chest where she can't ignore you. This will get you the best petting time.

In the meantime, Bert is very happy in the kitty cottage in his special spot. He just doesn't have the cuddle time thing figured out yet.

Leaking Brain Day

2010-09-10T10:57:00.005-05:00

I read other blogs that have random posts and thought - what a good idea. Some days there are so many things bouncing around my brain I can't come up with a topic. Today is that kind of day. I haven't posted for a bit but really have nothing to post so today is -open up the gate and let the random stuff leak out.

1. I've had the week off and have done virtually nothing productive. Sure, I loaded up the car with donation stuff and drove over to the Bible for Missions store; and I finished my flying saucer socks; and I caught up on sleep and down time; and I got quite a bit done on a sweater; and I got a lot done on my pi shawl; and the laundry is being done as I type and the kitchen was cleaned but - when you think about it - that's a small list compared to the time I have had to do things in. I usually end up doing a lot less than I plan on. It's just the way life is.

2. You can make a meal with virtually nothing in the house. Last night I had noodles, canned diced tomatoes and the usually spices, etc in the cupboard. I made a pretty pretty sauce by adding cupboard stuff to the tomatoes and cooking them down for an hour. Problem is- I have to go shopping today or starve. That's really nothing in the house. Really. The refrigerator has a few cans of pop, condiments, and one bagel. The freezer - one egg muffin; package of corn; and ice. That's it. Really. And I like to cook. I just hate to go grocery shopping.

3. A friend has been having a lot of problems getting her Husqvarna sewing machine fixing (Hi, Toni). This whole story has really bothered me because I was a dealer when I had my shop. I never had a customer wait as long as she has for parts and then have the machine not work properly. I had a great repairman and parts were in within a week - not a month or longer like her took. Toni lives in a totally different state and I am no longer a dealer so I am not able to help her but the story makes me very sad.

4. There are somethings that are so totally unexpected that they give you the giggles that turn into a belly aching laugh - that's a good thing. Last night on Mythbusters Jamie and Adam were testing how far a sneeze will go. They had to make themselves sneeze "on command" and then have the resulting sneeze particles show up and be able to measure the distance. Their method was to use snuff and just before a sneeze came to get some food coloring in their mouths. The result was colored sneezes and leftover color on their faces and in Adam's case, on his mustache. I haven't laughed so hard in a very long time. Chief and Bert both came in the room to see what was wrong with me and I had Chief so worried he kept meowing and pacing until I managed to stop crying and laughing. If you want a good laugh check out this Youtube video of the show. The colored sneeze starts about 7 minutes in. But- go to the bathroom first; it's that funny!

5. I mention above there's been knitting this week. I have been bouncing between projects each with a different needle size and different technique. This keeps the fingers from getting tired and the mind from wandering too far. Right now I've got a lace pi shawl; garter stitch sweater; simple sock; a knit version of Rust Goes Green bag; Tree of Life afghan; then when I have nothing else going on I'm still working on my sock yarn, mitered, haven't decided what it's going to be project. I tell people it's going to be a shawl but - who knows. People have been donating their sock yarn to the cause and right now I think I have enough for a huge shawl or an afghan or???? We'll see.

6. Bubble Spinner is a huge time suck. I noticed a friend was playing it on Facebook and thought I'd give it a try. BAD MOVE! It's one of those games where you have a cannon to shoot different colored balls and try to hit 3 or more to make them drop off the group. The normal group is colored balls coming down from the sky but this one has the group in a circle in the middle and when you hit the circle it spins around based on where you hit it. I've been playing - just one more game - a lot this week. The link above is for the game at deadwhale.com you can try it there or on facebook if you belong. But be warned - it's very adictive!

Finally some knitting

2010-08-29T19:59:00.008-05:00

I did some blocking this week so I could finally call a few projects complete and get some pictures taken. I block a bit differently than some people - I use an ironing board and steam iron. This all started in my machine knitting days when some projects just needed to have the knit "killed" to become a fabric instead of a knit. This technique works great when blocking wool shawls and some other items. For the wool shawl I actual touch iron to shawl after misting quite a bit with a water bottle/mister. The other items are misted and then the iron sort of hovers over the items without actually touching it. Works great on seams. Once they are "steamed" I set them on a flat surface to dry and finish blocking. Using this technique means no pinning or blocking wires.

The one problem with this technique is - well - the iron board is left alone for a few minutes while I bring the completed item to the flat surface and get the next item. I usually don't come back to an empty ironing board and have to reclaim it before I can continue.

First up - my first cousin twice removed had a first birthday party today. (For those of you trying to figure that out - it is my cousin's daughter's daughter)

About a month ago someone at my knit group brought in some hats she had made from Bernat Baby Jacquard. I totally fell in love with the yarn and had to make something out of it. So- the project I had just finished for the party became a Christmas present (it's a little big) and I ran out to get some Baby Jacquard to make something.

I made 2 things. A little vest using a couple patterns and some ideas of my own. It has a couple little green flower buttons and ruffled sleeves. I love this yarn the way it makes little flowers without having to do anything except knit.

The second item to go with the little top/vest is a skirt. The skirt is on the Bernat website in the free patterns for this yarn. It's so cute and was very quick to make. The ruffle is just knit/purl and decreases, very easy.

I had a simple surgery procedure this week and needed to take it easy for a couple days. The first day I hunted up some green stash cotton and Susan Anderson's Ribbit pattern (another free pattern).

Mom of birthday girl loves frogs so I thought it would be fun to make this cute little guy to give to the birthday girl. He was quick and a big hit - especially with the Mom!

Back in April I made a short sleeve vest/top from the Drops patterns that I planned on wearing to Yarnover. We ended up with very warm weather so the top never got blocked and finished. Well, it's finished on except for button, which is typical of me. I've been wearing one sweater for about 15 years and it still doesn't have buttons.

The yoke of this top is all bobbles (actually mini-bobbles) and the body has cables running down the front next to the button band and down the middle are a more complex cable. Yarn is Woolease cause the budget is a bit tight and this yarn is a good basic budget yarn.

Don't look too close at the button band cause you can see the string I based the button band together with for blocking.

Actually - maybe you should look at the string. When you are making something that splits like a cardigan and want to be sure things line up right, the best thing to do is baste the two sides together for blocking and they will match once it's dry and ready to wear.

One more item. Quite a while ago I knit the Haruni Shawl. According to my Ravelry page I finished in April. Well, it got blocked this weekend too - finally.

It's out of Knit Picks Telemark yarn. Thicker than the recommended but it works and will be a nice warm shawl on cool evenings.

There's a few more items but I won't be posting them until I decided what I'm going to do with them. There's the Christmas present for our little 1st birthday girl; several accessory items that will either be submitted to magazines or I'll be doing a self published accessory booklet. We'll see what I decide.....

Coming Soon

2010-08-26T15:12:00.002-05:00

There's a couple things coming soon...

1. I've been knitting but things that I can't post because of a few people that read the blog. This weekend all will be revealed and I can post pictures after that.

2. I had a simple day surgery procedure this week that ended a long time problem. This means coming soon is healthier, less problem filled me. Sorry not much in details but this is the Internet and it's very public. Some things are best left a bit private.

Knitting pics and cats pics later this weekend - stay tuned........

Happy Birthday Bert

2010-08-14T08:42:00.010-05:00

August 14, 2004 was a big day in our family but at the time I didn't know it. That was the day a cute little bundle of energy was born.

3 months later this little bundle came to live with Chief and me and he told us his name was Bert. Bert has made our lives much fuller and taught us many things.

Bert showed us how to do his best Yoda impersonation on the first day he came to us.

It took a few days for Chief to get used to this little guy but soon they were sharing everything including meals.

Bert learned how to sit and would spend long lengths of time sitting up just looking at the world

He loves to watch TV but has decided Craig Ferguson is his favorite.

Bert and Chief love to play with each other. Just like all little boys they play hard and they play rough.

After a hard day of playing Bert loves to relax and watch more TV.

Bert has been a great hunter lately. He helped stop 2 mice from setting up housekeeping. This great skill came from hours and hours of practicing catching the little gray mousey.

One of Bert best skills the past 6 years has been to pose for pictures. Tell him you have a camera and he strikes his best pose. Or should I say - I tell him I have a camera because as cute and full of energy as this little guy is - he's scared of people. No one gets to meet Bert which is just a shame.

So little guy - sit back and enjoy your birthday. Today you'll get some special treats and big snuggle time. Thanks for agreeing to be a member of our family and bringing so much joy.

Cats and Computers

2010-08-04T21:52:00.007-05:00

Yeah, I know... still no knitting pictures. I am knitting and being quite productive. It's just that, well, pictures of knitting blobs that you can't tell what it is aren't too exciting to me so I just can't get enough excitement going to set the knitting out to take a picture. Soon - I promise.

In the meantime let me tell you about the boys and the computer.
The boys love the laptop. I'm guessing it's because of the warmth. They always head toward the heat. Here's the proof.

Chief and Bert on 7-17-10 - sitting on top of the laptop together.

Chief and Bert on 7-19-10 - sitting on top of the laptop

Yup, you guessed it. Chief sleeping on top of the lap top.

For a change, because I'm using the laptop, Chief sitting on top of me next to the laptop

Some things just seem to fit together. I'm guessing when I put the laptop back on the chair next to me I'll find a cat there within 15 minutes. Any bets?
Update - just before I published this, Chief crawled up on my lap to cozy down next to the laptop. Life is good.

A Tale of Two Kitties (and two mousies)

2010-07-31T17:01:00.002-05:00

Once upon a time, long, long ago, I read about a wonderful breed of cat and knew someday I would have a Ragdoll. They were everything I wanted; a companion, lovable, big and fluffy, could be trained. Just perfect for me. Then Chief came into my life when he was 3 months old. He picked me. I went to the breeder to meet the kitties she had. They were all cute but he crawled up on me and snuggled into my neck with the biggest purr. He wouldn't leave me alone. How can say no to that! Jamie could, that's who. She was an old cranky kitty who was still in mourning for her "sister" when Chief came to live with us. She missed Jessie who had dies a few months before and just wanted to be left alone. Chief had other ideas and tried so hard to be her friend. He hugged her, licked her, tried to play with her but nothing worked.

After Jamie died Chief did the next best thing. He made friends with the mice that got into the house that fall. I would find Chief walking down the hall with a mouse next to him, just like buddies. That's wrong, it's just wrong! This event happened a couple different times with a couple different mice. I know they were different because I physically and permanently removed each mouse as it happened.

Then came Bert. Mister bundle of energy. He took care of Chief's need for a buddy and they became the best of friend - inseparable. Time pasted and we moved into a different house. No mice in this house, only the occasional fly or other bug that would amuse the boys for a while.

Earlier this week I came home from work and headed down the hall. There in the middle of the hall were two blobs. Crap! Bert's been at it again. He likes to play vacuum cleaner and suck up every bit of fur left on the carpet. He gets so excited about sucking up the little fur bits that is whole butt wiggles like a Labrador puppy. After he sucks up enough fur and condenses it in his tummy, it comes back up in the form of a tight fur hot dog (sorry that's the best description I could come up with without being gross). So, there it was in the hall, two dark fur hot dogs. Bert had been busy.

Unfortunately, looking closer at the blobs, they turned out to be a couple dead little mice. ICK! This brings up a couple questions- 1. How did one, much less two mice get into the house when I've been without them for many years? 2. Who did the deed of protecting the house from these intruders? The first question bothers me because I want to prevent more from coming in this fall. But the second questions has me curious. Chief would just as soon make friends with the mice so if it was him; his size probably scared them to death. Bert runs away at any noise in the house or outside so he would probably see a mouse and go hide under the guest bed. Guess I'll never know. At least the mice are, for now.

Good Hair Hat

2010-07-17T23:54:00.004-05:00

Really poor picture of Brioche and Garter stitch Hat

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I don't have much to post but I've been playing around with some bulky yarn I was given at Yarnover in April. This hat is a loose fitting hat because I have a friend who hates her hair being smashed down by the normal fit of hats. Brioche stitch (the body) is a very loose stitch but is double layer so nice and warm. It's quick to make up and I keep forgetting this lovely stitch but - it spoke to me for this project. The brim is garter stitch - another looser fitting stitch.

The hat took one ball of Lion Brand Jiffy and less than one evening's time. I will evenually write it up as a proper pattern but until then - if you want to try it out, here's the basics....

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Good Hair Hat

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Bulky yarn. Sample was 1 ball of Lion Brand Jiffy

Size 11 needles

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CO 60

Knit garter st for 8 ridges (16 rows)

Knit brioche st for 36 rows

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Top shaping:

Row 1: (k1, p1 catching the purl st and loop), repeat across

Row 2: k1, p1 across

Row 3, 5, 7: ssk across row

Row 4, 6: p across row

Run the stitches on needle thru yarn, pull tight and sew side of hat.

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Brioche stitch: The stitch is one set up row and then repeat the next row for length needed.

Set up Row: * k1, bring yarn to front between needles, slip one st as if to purl, knit next st bringing yarn over right needle to the back creating a loop over the slipped st; repeat from * until last st; yarn forward between needles and slip last st.

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Working row: *k1, yarn forward between needles, slip one st as if to purl, knit next st and loop over it bringing yarn over right needle to the back creating loop over slipped st; repeat from * until last st; yarn forward between needles and slip last st.

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Sorry about the formatting- for some reason blogger isn't letting me put in blank rows lately so I'll put in a row with one dot just to split things up a bit and this creates some blank row and the dot row - go figure......

He Gets It

2010-07-11T09:07:00.003-05:00

I made a pair of red socks. They were out of Paton's Classic Wool using Elizabeth Zimmermann's Woodman's Socks. I've made these socks tons of times. Each year Dad would get a pair to keep his diabetic feet nice and warm. He liked them so much he even washed them himself to make sure Mom didn't put them in the washer and felt them.

But this pair - this red pair went to a friend. After I gave him these socks I didn't think about them anymore. This week I saw the socks again. I stopped by the house to bring a couple knit hats and socks for a charity auction and his wife mentioned the socks. "Can they be repaired?" They had been well worn. When I saw the socks I almost laughed. The heel no longer existed, just a giant hole the size of the entire heel. The side of the toe area was gone. It too was a giant hole.

These socks were worn constantly by someone who loved them literally to death. This is what a knitter likes to see. Someone gets it. They get that hand knitting is to be worn and enjoyed. I'll be making my friend another pair. He deserves it!

Knitting in the Rain

2010-07-05T21:57:00.002-05:00

This summer has been odd. There really isn't any other word for it. It's been very rainy and when not raining it's hot and humid. So we rotate between 4 "weather" modes: rain - drying out from rain - hot and humid - dark (night time). This makes it tough to find time to mow the lawn especially since I like to put it off. I'll get up Saturday and think -I'll do the yard Sunday morning and when Sunday comes it's raining. Then I complain and berate myself and say- I should have done the yard Saturday and the next weekend I'll know better. During the week when I get home at night I'm too tired and the weather is too hot so I wait till the next weekend and the grass grows - and grows. It's amazing how quickly grass grows when it gets a lot of rain and heat! So I've spent much of the summer talking about how I should be mowing the lawn. I'm getting very boring!

While it rains I knit. That's the good thing about rain, nothing else to do but knit and watch TV. I've used up small odd balls of yarn and made some hats, gauntlets and a few other items. I've also worked on a cardigan. Of course none of this is photographed as of yet. I need to decide if I'm going to write up the patterns before I post pictures. I've also knit socks. Yup. No pictures.

Last night while watching the fireworks on TV (and knitting the cardigan) I got to thinking about a design that would be black background with a hand dyed multi-color yarn for the design. The design would be fireworks. I think that would be a really cool looking design but I don't have the "umph" to sit down and design it. Maybe someone will read this and be inspired.

Right now I'm in a good place - the yard is mowed (yes, I got out there today and got it done before the rain came), the air conditioning is on and I have knitting to do. Unfortunately, I should get to bed cause tomorrow the work world returns and I really hate getting up early in the morning. We should have 3 day weekends more often! Hope your weekend was filled with family-food and fun with a bit of knitting thrown in!

Happy 4th

2010-07-04T14:46:00.005-05:00

We all celebrate in our own way.

I planned on writing a post about celebrating the 4th because I haven't been on here in a week or so but then I saw the last date and it was the middle of June. Where did the time go!?!

Many people in Minnesota all but live at the cabin in the summers. We all go "up north" or "to the lake". There are well over 10,000 lakes - actually 15,291 lakes over 10 acres in size. We love our cabins. My family was no different.

Grandpa built a cabin in the 1940s that would house the family when the big bomb hit )people did that thing back then). It was 2 hours north of Minneapolis and had multiple buildings for all of us to stay at. The main cabin had 2 bedrooms, a porch and a large main room/kitchen. Then there was the guest house and the screen house. Many weekends would be my grandparents; my family, Mom's sister and brother's families. Six cousins to hang out together and enjoy our freedom.

July 4th weekend would include going to the local small town that had fireworks on the beach at night. July 4th has always been a family time for me and the changes in my family are most noticeable on days like today. But the 4th is still a day to celebrate what we do have.

I'm so grateful to grow up in a country where we can celebrate our freedom and families on a day like today. For the most part we don't worry about bombs going off in the neighborhood. We may disagree about the "other" political party but rarely do these disagreements turn to violence or the government throwing us in jail. I know our country is filled with flaws and problems but I also know we have it so much better then most of the world. We just assume we'll have enough food and fresh water. We assume we can complain about the government. We assume our life will be basically a good one. We are a very lucky country and today we can celebrate and remember how lucky we are.

(sorry everything is all mushed together - blogger isn't letting me format properly)

Meet Some New Friends

2010-06-19T09:07:00.003-05:00

The best blogging rule is - when you have nothing to talk about, talk about other blogs. This isn't actually a rule but it's what we are going to do today.

I have a long list of blogs that I subscribe to in Google Reader but I tend to glance over many of them and just look at the pictures. But there are knitting blogs I love to catch up on and here's a list of some of them.

Note: I read most of the usual well known ones - Brooklyn Tweed, Crazy Aunt Purl, Yarn Harlot, etc. but everyone knows these so I won't mention them here.

A Little Yarn on the Side - Toni and I have become friends through our blogs and last year did a food/stuff exchange. She lives in Idaho and has a monthly soup "party" with her friends. I felt the need to get her some Minnesota Wild Rice and she gifted me several Idaho food items. Toni has kitty buddies that are with her while knitting, quilting and dealing with life. She's also trying to eat non-processed foods and that part of her life can be read about in her second blog: A Little off the Beaten Path. In both blogs she comes up with lists about life and things she notices that make me wish I had said it.

Of Faith and Fiber - Lorraine is a local Minnesota person. I love reading what other locals are doing and Lorraine seems to get into everything. Currently she posted several pictures of cleaning a fleece for the first time. It was fun to be taken along on the adventure without having to clean the mess! She's also a big sock knitter and has lots of pictures of her projects.

Passing Down Crazy - Another Minnesota knitter, Maria has done a wonderful job at creating a blog that's fun to read, incredible pictures of projects and her life journey. One of my favorite recent pictures was a close up of her knitting and the next was of a sunset. The colors of the 2 are very similar and the comparison is amazing. Great pictures of quilting, knitting and a cute dog- what more do you need!

The Rainey Sisters - Surprise. Another Minnesota blog. Well, half of it is. One sister lives in Minnesota and one in the "outside world". Susan and Sally trade off writing on the blog and showing current projects, pictures from days gone by, and other fun bits. Susan has an afghan available as part of the KnitPicks IDP program so it's always fun to see people you know (even if it's just as a person in your local knitting guild) make it in the real world!

Too Much Yarn - never was a blog was aptly named. Christine is a crazy sock yarn collector. She's one of the ladies in my knitting group that meets twice a month and I'm always excited to see what yarn, project bag, or other goodies she has purchased since the last meeting. On her blog you'll get to see several sock clubs, her latest projects, and soon I know we'll be seeing many pictures of her summer trip to London and Paris. If you like sock yarn you'll love Christine's blog.

Well, other than Toni's blog this turned into a tour of Minnesota. I like where I live and I love the people I meet here so, I hope you'll give these blogs a try if you haven't read them before and I really hope you'll enjoy all the pictures of knitting projects and stories of these ladies and their knitting journeys - ENJOY!

Don't Drink and Drive

2010-06-12T17:28:00.004-05:00

When I come home after a long day at work I can depend on one thing - my neighborhood is peaceful and quiet. I live on a street that time forgot. Neighbors know each other and other than new looking cars our neighborhood could be from any time from its beginning in the 1950s to the present. We like living here. We live right off a highway but other than rush hour its pretty quiet. The outside world just doesn't affect our little neighborhood.

Until today......

When I came home after shopping today I turned onto the service road only to discover a very long line of cars waiting to get through our quiet little neighborhood and around a huge number of flashing lights just past my block.

This picture doesn't show it well but there were cars coming up and going down my street - cars lined up on the service road. Just a big mess.

Once I got home (and Chief yelled at me for leaving for 2 hours) I grabbed the camera and headed down the block to see what happened.

Here you can see the line up of cars on the service road better. If there's a couple cars an hour on this road its a busy day. Hard to see what's going on but off in the distance on the next block is the cause of all the traffic. Lots of official vehicles and lots of lights.

The lady that lives on the corner house of my block got the scoop from the guy next door who was out in his yard when the whole thing happened. He's also a good one to ask questions of official type people so usually knows the whole story.

Our highway is a quiet one with a 45mph limit. About 4 blocks away on either side of me are stop lights, so it's not a freeway where you can go long distances without having to stop.

Some guy decided to drive down our highway at 70+mph and slammed into a little red pickup truck. The pickup then slammed into the car next to it.

Once the police, ambulance, fire department and several others got there, the guy was hauled away because he was drunk. His kid went to the hospital and the lady was stuck in her truck. By the time I got home they were still trying to get her out and about 15 minutes later the ambulance was heading down the road. When I left to go back home cars were still being routed around the accident.

This all leads me to the 2 questions I always ask:

Why do people think its OK to drink and drive?

Why to people think speed limits aren't for them?

Oh one more question-

What kind of stupid moron drives drunk and speeds with their kid in the car?!?

Please be safe in your car.

What Goes on In That Little Head?

2010-06-06T15:44:00.009-05:00

Bert is a strange little kitty. He's got all the energy in the world and a love for life that you can't believe. He's a happy little boy but, he's a scare little boy.

I think things went "wrong" for him when he was young and he got a deep inner ear infection. During that whole time period he spent much of his time having vets poke at parts of his body he didn't enjoy. He ended up with a fear of strangers. He also ended up with bell's palsy on one side. His eye doesn't blink and his ear doesn't wiggle around.

This no blinking eye thing makes for great pictures of him "winking" but it made him very protective of his eye and he hides from the world. When its just the three of us in the house (Chief, Bert and me) he runs around like a maniac, getting into all sorts of trouble. Poking his head into anything and everything.

Sometimes he doesn't fit into the places he finds so well but that doesn't stop him. If I call his name he appears almost instantly from wherever he's sleeping or hiding.

But usually, I don't have to call for him because he's always near. When I sit and knit he's on top on me or in the rocker next to my chair. But, with all with wanting to be around me and Chief, he needs to protect his bad side.

Bert needs to be where he can make a quick escape in case there's a strange noise outside. He doesn't like to be held too long but loves to be pet if he's got his feet on the ground or a solid surface.

Bert is one cool kitty and I'm glad he's part of my life - even if I can't figure out what's going on in his little head!

You don't need to understand me - just love me. - Bert

What I've Been Up To

2010-06-06T15:07:00.012-05:00

I've been rather lazy in getting around to taking pictures. My excuse is the camera and and weather. I had a nice day and took pictures but I forgot to put the card in the camera and the pictures ended up in the camera itself. My cable has been missing for a while which doesn't cause any problems when I use a card because it will just plug into the computer but - pictures from the camera need the cable and well, its not around. That's my story and you just have to live with it...

I've been into socks lately. I got some yarn from a stash exchange my knitting group did and I decided to play around with it. It's Regia Jacquard Color - more of a sport weight. Because its so bright and stripey I decided to keep it simple and just add a slip stitch diagonal for a little interest.

Then there was the May Mystery Sock on the Sock Knitter's Anonymous group on Ravelry. Cookie A designed the sock. Each week in May another clue came out. Mine were made out of Knit Pick Bare figuring I'd decide what to dye them once I saw what they looked like. Well, I like them plain and for now they will stay natural color.

One of the classes I took at Yarnover was 2 color knitting with Meg Swanson. We started a hat and I just kept going. I finished that hat on the right and then plowed right into the hat on the left. I didn't know how much yarn was left so I made a simple striped hat to finish out the 2 skeins. These hats will end up being donated to charity next fall. They're Paton's Classic Merino and its a great basic yarn for projects like this.

I brought out of the small project mode long enough to knit a shawl. It's made from Knit Picks Telemark. Pattern is Haruni. Telemark is a bit rough for a shawl and I haven't blocked it yet so I'm not sure what the final project will end up like.

At Yarnover the ladies from Lila and Claudine's did an amazing thing. They gave everyone who stopped by their booth a skein of Aslan Trends Pima Classico Cotton and a pattern. This is not a cheap yarn and there were a lot of people! This weekend I decided to give it a try and made a Spa Cloth. This yarn is so soft and silky, I'm in love. It's 4 strands of cotton twisted together. A bit splitty but not terrible. The difference between this yarn and the bargain brands like Sugar N Cream is very noticeable. I'm totally impressed with the yarn and ,of course, with ladies at Lila and Claudine's.

Finally, another sock. A friend is part of the Breast Cancer walk and they have an auction as part of it. Last year I donated a couple things for the auction and this year I decided to do something a bit special. I found some pink yarn and a ribbon pattern sock. The pattern is Pink Ribbons and the yarn is Lion Brand Sock Ease in Cotton Candy.

I've added an extra ribbon to the toe so the foot won't be quite so plain.

There you have it - I've been busy knitting lately just terrible at taking pictures.

Quiet Weekend

2010-05-30T20:13:00.006-05:00

It's been a quiet weekend around here. I needed that because of last week. One of the problems with foot surgery is the swelling that seems to take place at the drop of a hat for months afterward. Last week the temperature outside went way up. The humidity went way up. The barometric pressure went way up. And because of all this the measurement around my ankle and foot went way up. My foot was at least double its normal size and I ended up not being able to get my shoe on for several days. This also meant a lot of pain and basically a really cranky Jill.

To make up for this I've been sitting around most of the weekend except for early morning yard work.
Sitting around means 2 things:
1. Knitting
2. Cats hanging around (or on) me

This picture is terrible for color but I started a pair of Pink Ribbon socks out of Lion Brand SockEase in a bright pink called Cotton Candy. These socks will go into an auction for Breast Cancer that a friend is part of every year.

I also worked on the May mystery sock for SKA. This is a group on Ravelry - Sock Knitter's Anonymous. I haven't done anything with them so far but this month the mystery sock was by Cookie A and I thought it would be fun to try. I finished the socks a few days ago with Chief's wonderful assistance but I haven't gotten around to taking pictures. The best I did so far was to get a shot of Chief helping me by laying across the computer and randomly hitting keys.

If the boys aren't on top of me they are near. I have a chair that sits by the recliner and put the computer on it when its not in use. If the computer isn't on the chair - the boys are. They feel the need to monitor my knitting and I fully approve. There's nothing better than a 2 second break from knitting to scritch a fluffy head or tummy.

From the Boys and me - have a great Memorial Day and be sure to take some time to remember those who have served to protect us whether in the military or civil service.

Thanks Dad, both Grandpas, Uncle Bud, Uncle Bob, Uncle Werner, cousin Paul, SIL Jan (Fire Captain)and all the others in the family that give your life and time for the rest of us!

Chief gets a crown

2010-05-14T21:36:00.008-05:00

Last weekend I had the chance to work at the MN Knitter's Guild table at Shepherd's Harvest. For 2 hours I sat and talked to a couple other guild members and the people that came to the fairground. We were surrounded by fiber, fiber critters and people who love fiber. What a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

I did come home with a skein of Happy Hands sock yarn. a lovely merino/bamboo hand dyed yarn in pale purple/lavender that will make me very happy when I knit it. The weather has been dark and grey all week so I didn't even try to get a picture of this, because this beautiful yarn needs to see sunshine to show itself off.

With all the rain and grey we've had this week Bert has been bored and getting into things in the house. I've found a partially used ball of Malabrigo spread out over the guest bedroom (no damage was done thankfully!). I've found every kitty toy put in new places every day including several placed in the bathroom (your guess is as good as mine). When I try to knit Bert has to spend much of the time trying to do cute kitty poses on the rocking chair next to me.

I'll just lay here and pretend I'm not looking into that bag - Bert

OK. Nothing in the bag. Maybe there's something over here to play with. - Bert

Nothing in the bag, nothing over there. Now there's nothing over her to play with. This is pretty boring. Guess I'll have to try another spot. - Bert

While Bert is look for another place to play I'll just stand here and look regal. - Chief

OK. I tried regal but Mom, this yarn band crown is not what I had in mind. - Chief

While the Boys are busy getting into trouble I've started a mystery sock on Ravelry. The Sock Knitter's Anonymous group (SKA) is doing a mystery sock this month designed by CookieA. I have clue 1 & 2 done on the first socks and started the 2nd. Clue 3 comes out around midnight tonight so I'd better get ready.

It's my fault

2010-05-04T23:32:00.002-05:00

Simulated view of what I saw at 4:16am this morning.

MOM! THE FOOD BOWL IS EMPTY! - Bert

The whole Cat Bordhi Thing

2010-05-02T20:22:00.004-05:00

If you don't know who Cat Bordhi is this story won't mean a whole lot. So here's a brief who's who. Cat lives on an island and knits. She thinks in ways of island people - outside the box. This thinking shows up in her ideas about knitting socks. She also used to be a school teacher, This also shows up in her knitting. If you want to see her in action go to youtube and search Cat Brodhi. She has several videos on different knitting techniques. If you want to see very different techniques in knitting socks go to Amazon or your favorite book store and look for her books.

Now on to the story.

Two years ago I headed to Chicago to Stitches Midwest to take a couple classes and enjoy the company of some knitting friend from Ravelry. One class was with Cat Bordhi on sock knitting techniques and I was amazed at some of the ideas she came up with. During class I managed a few minutes of her time and we talked about machine knitting vs. hand knitting techniques and somehow I mentioned I love to use garter rib for socks because it's such a quick rib to knit up.

Garter rib is one row of k2p2 and one row of knit. This creates a knit 2- garter 2 rib. Because you're only purling every other row it goes quite quickly.

Back to the story - Cat said she had never heard of this rib and thought it was a great idea and would try it on her grandson's socks. Cool.
I went home with wonderful memories of Stitches Midwest and naturally did a bit of babbling about the classes at my next knit night. The ladies started teasing me that I was Cat Bordhi's new BFF because I talked about her probably more than I should have. I may have mentioned I taught Cat Bordhi something (the garter rib) during my babbling.

Over the next 2 years it has become a running joke in the group. People join our group and I'm introduced as Cat's BFF. I've lived in fear these past 2 years that somehow this story will get to her and she'll think I believe it and I'll end up with a restraining order where I can't come without 100 feet of her. (I know I'm basically paranoid and this would never happen but - if she did hear about it, I would be embarrassed).

Last fall, one of the ladies in my knit group went to Wisconsin and took a Cat Bordhi class. She took a picture of herself with Cat and declared she was now Cat's BFF. This went on till Yarnover. At Yarnover last month Cat was the keynote speaker and also taught a class at Amazing Threads on Sunday. This same lady and another wrote that they were Cat Bordhi's BFFs on the board in the classroom and convinced Cat to take pictures with them. At this point the whole story came out and even though she doesn't know me from a hole in the wall cause this lady teaches over 1000 people a year, well, I was in disbelief. I couldn't believe they had the guts to do this, I wouldn't. But the gauntlet was thrown down and I won't be stopped.

I wrote Cat an email rather tongue in cheek and thanked her for being so kind about this bizarre group of people and wouldn't it be nice if we could prove who her real BFF is and not these "posers". She's such a sweetheart. I got a return email a few days later saying she hopes we can all get a group picture some day and signed it "Your BFF". Will the story continue? Who knows....

Of course, I still have my Elizabeth Zimmermann stories to keep me warm at night and I've let Meg Swanson know she owes me $.23 from a debt her mother left from the late 1970s. Meg is a kind person too and hasn't thought me too bizarre. Knitters are a very strange group of people, me included!

What a Month!

2010-05-01T13:58:00.010-05:00

I suddenly realized I hadn't posted anything since before Yarnover. OOPS! The weekend of April 15-19 was an incredibly wonderful and busy time. There's no way to share everything but here's a few highlights.

Thursday-April 15 I picked up a couple Raverly friends at the airport at 2 different times, 2 different terminals and they stayed with the Boys and me for the weekend. I've met many friends through the She-Knits Podcast Small Talk Group and this weekend many of us were going to meet here in Minneapolis. I did get both picked up in time to head over to my regular knit night -another Ravelry group. How great is Rav for meeting knitting!

Barbara and Angela

So when Friday came along we got ready for the gang to meet here at my house for supper and a knit night. The largest gathering of She-Knitters to date and Sharon (She-Knit) would be coming up from Chicago to join us.

Chief was the official knitting bag inspector and, trust me, he did not let one bag go without a proper inspection. His favorite was the felted knit bag - good taste Chief!

Yup, this bag is okay to store yarn. But maybe, I'd fit in there too! - Chief

There was food. Angela made a HUGE batch of lasagna. To say it was good would be an insult to her lasagna. It was Fabulous! We also had the usual - salad- garlic bread, etc. And Lorri brought Snickerdoodle cake and cupcakes. YUMMY!

We managed to stop eating and talking and knitting long enough for a group picture. I have to make a confession here - most of these pictures are not mine. I was a bit busy and forgot to get my camera out for most of the night.

The group comes from all parts of the country - Washington - Minnesota - Massachusetts - Colorado - Oregon - Illinois. I was totally impressed that they would travel so far to come to visit us in Minnesota. But then that's what knitters do - travel anywhere to knit!

Friday ended and most headed back to the hotel to get ready for Saturday and Yarnover.

Saturday was wonderful starting with Cat Bordhi giving the keynote speech. I have to mention over the weekend my biggest fear concerning Cat Bordhi happened. A couple members of my Thursday knit group told her about our running joke about who is her BFF. I knew it would happen one day and I just grateful she has a good sense of humor and didn't take out a restraining order on me! But - I'll save the story for another post. (this is know as a cliff hanger)

Meanwhile - Saturday night we all met up for dinner at a local diner and met a few who couldn't make it Friday night.

Sunday was a small shop hop to Lila & Claudine's and Borealis. Much yarn went home with the gang and a good time was enjoyed by all.

Monday I got Barbara and Angela back to the airport and planned on cleaning the house but Bert had other ideas. Once I piled the bedding on the sofa he declared that this was his new place to sleep and I would be a terrible Mom if I took it away from him.

Normally, he spends one or two nights in the new spot so I figured the bedding could wait to be laundered. There's also a pile on the guest bed that he has claimed. Apparently one pile is for night and one pile is for the day nap.

So here it is 2 weeks later and I still haven't done the bedding because Bert gives me his sad "you won't take this from me" look and I give in. (either that or I'm really lazy and just haven't gotten around to it yet - you decide)

Happy, happy , happy. I love my new nap place! - Bert

Oh Angela - there's still plenty of lasagna in the freezer and I've been enjoying it very much!

And so the fun begins

2010-04-14T13:37:00.004-05:00

I've been getting ready for Yarnover weekend lately. I had to finish the top I want to wear. Had to clean the house cause people are coming over. Had to organize the stash closet cause when knitters are around you know they will be getting into the stash! I've done just about everything to get ready except get food. Guess making some brownies and going shopping is on the list for this afternoon.

I've mentioned a few times that a bunch of my Ravelry buddies are showing up this weekend for knitting fun. From Thursday afternoon till Monday morning all I'll be thinking about is these friends and knitting. What could be better!

So I won't be posting for a few days but come Monday I hope to have lots of fun pictures of knitting and knitters, the places we have all been, and the projects we are all working on. Hope your weekend is just ad fun (but I doubt it!!)

Side note - while I'm having fun, Chief will be playing host and Bert will be hiding. I hope my poor scared little guy survives several days of people in HIS house!

If you need me I'll be in the closet - Bert

Split Personality

2010-04-04T16:16:00.004-05:00

HOPPY EASTER!!

Hope it was Ducky....

Whoever you are!

3rd Blogiversary

2010-04-02T19:06:00.003-05:00

OOPS! I almost missed my 3rd blogiversary. How did 3 years go by so fast!?! What happened during the past 3 years? I've met so many new friends by taking a chance and stepping into the knitting computer world again. Back well over 15 years ago (I have saved posted copies from 1993) I was on a machine knitting group. We moved to a few different places as the Internet companies closed but we ended up on Compuserve. They gave us our own forum and we chatted away about all things machine knitting. Our group was similar to what is now the forums in Ravelry but these were the days when you had 4 hours a week on the Internet or you had to pay for the next level. How times have changed! But the machine knitting industry changed and many of us ended up going our separate ways.

So 3 years ago I heard about blogs and thought I'd give it a try. I was ready to hunt up a new group of knitters - this time hand knitters - to share my hobby/obsession with. This blog led me to others who blogged and then to Ravelry when it started. Ravelry has led me to many wonderful friends. Some created a 2x a month knitting group near my home. Some created a virtual knitting groups and daily small talk on Ravelry.

I've been very blessed with the friends and opportunities that have come from deciding to start this blog. Some months I let things slip by without saying much but I watch the numbers on my counter and marvel at how many people stop by to see how I'm doing and what silly things Chief and Bert are up to. Thank you all for coming along on this journey of finding knitting friends and to see the Boys and what they are up to.

Well, have a great Easter weekend and enjoy the time with your family.

Healed Heel & Fun Yarn shops

2010-03-30T16:16:00.003-05:00

I've had the past few days off and have enjoyed them quite a bit. Today was a doctor appointment. We took x-rays and poked my foot. In the end he declared my foot healed. It will take time to be fully back to a normal foot but there's no reason to come back to see him unless something bizarre comes up. The doctor continues to be amazed at how quickly I healed and how much strength is already back to my tendon. I managed to wear a real shoe for a couple hours yesterday and today but I can tell my foot isn't ready for a full day of normal shoes yet. But - I'm getting there faster than normal. Yea foot!

The fun part of the past couple days was getting ready my visitors next month. As part of Yarnover the weekend of April 17th I'm hosting several ladies from the SheKnits Podcast group on Ravelry. We've known each other for quite a while but most of us have never met in person. That weekend we'll be having a big party.
Thursday night there's my regular knit night group and some of the She-Knitters will be coming along.
Friday night will be knit night at my house for the group.
Saturday is Yarnover with a dinner at a local restaurant that evening.
Then Sunday for those interested we'll be doing a Shop Hop. So naturally I had to go visit a couple shops I don't normally get to and check out directions and schedules to be sure they are open Sunday.

Yesterday I went to Borealis. I live on the west side of the cities and don't get over to the east side too often. At Borealis I was greeted immediately and when I explained I was there to check out the place for a shop hop I was given a tour of where the yarns were and had a great chat with the staff member (sorry I can't remember her name). Not once did she try to sell me anything. She was just friendly and wanted me to be comfortable. That's the kind of service that makes you want to come back and buy at that shop.

Today I drove to the northeast end of the cities and went to Lila and Claudine's. I had heard about this shop and would have gone there sooner but its down a flight of stairs and I wasn't sure my foot could make it there until now. All I can say is - WOW! The shop is my kind if place. Colors and yarn and big stuffed chairs to sit in and knit. Friendly people. My first impression was like walking into a Mary Engelbreit picture. When I talked to Kirsten and one of the ladies who works there (again sorry, I'm terrible with names) I felt like they were old friends.

UFO no more

2010-03-13T19:30:00.008-06:00

(If you did a search on UFOs and think aliens are here - hit your back button, no aliens here - just crazy knitters)

There are many philosophies on unfinished knitting projects (UFOs).
Some people believe they should only knit one thing at a time and even when it gets boring - knit on to the finish.
Some people say as soon as you get bored or don't like it - rip it.
Some have "billions and billions" of projects going because they like to start new things or like to have different projects for all circumstances. Sitting alone - knit something complicated that takes great concentration. Knitting around others - pick something easy that is automatic to work on. Other circumstances equal other knitting projects.

I tend to fall solidly in the "whatever floats your boat" category. Sometimes I'll start multiple projects and end up with way too many things in progress. Sometimes I get very loyal and work only on one projects. This attitude varies with the seasons or moon phases or something I haven't' quite figured out. Then there's the projects like linger. I've been known to let things sit around the house "for a while" until I actually finish it.

Last year I pulled out a cotton vest I started in the 80s. Yes, the 1980s as in 25-30 years ago. I finished the vest and have worn it (and gotten compliments) several times. I also finished a Christmas socking started around the same time. It was donated to a charity for a silent auction.

This year I pulled out a sweater I started in 2003. I wanted a sloppy sweatshirt kind of sweater that I could throw on and bum around in. It's big and bulky and when I decided to finish it I was stunned at what little needed to be done.

This sweater is from the Knitters magazine issue #72 - Fall 2003. It's a Kathy Zimmerman cable sweater called Soft Shoulders. The shoulders are a clever saddle shoulder where the cable that runs up the sleeve then splits and goes on either side on the neck opening. I decided on Woolease because it's a good price, has wool to give it life and can be thrown into the washer without worrying about it. Forest Green Heather is a nice deep color - not at all what the first pictures look like.

Somewhere around Fall 2007 I had the back and half the front finished and pulled it out to knit some more. The front was completed and it was put away for a while.

Last year I pulled it out again and decided to start the sleeves together to be sure they were the same size. More knitting and it was put away. This year I pulled it out again to finish and discovered I had about 4 inches of the saddle shoulders left to knit, the collar, and then sew it all together. That was it. I had let this sweater sit around for over a year with less than 4 hours of work to do.

Yesterday & today I pulled it out one final time.
I knit. I sewed. I finished.
It's everything I wanted - big and sloppy and very sweatshirt like. Something I can throw on to run to the store to a friend's house. It will be well used.

My name is Jill and I'm a computer addict.

2010-03-08T09:06:00.005-06:00

Thursday night while on my computer it froze. Nothing worked not even Ctrl-Atl-Del. So I had to do a hard shut down. When I tried to turn it back on I got an error message. After lots of checking memory, recovery checks, etc. I discovered I no longer have an OS partition. ARGH!

Much more checking and moments of sadness and going to the Geek Squad gave me my answer but not the one I wanted. I needed to get a recovery disk from HP. Wouldn't it be nice if they still gave you these disks at time of purchase like the old days. So - I contacted HP and will get the proper disk (I hope) Wednesday. I was looking at way too many days without a computer and I'm on vacation this week so I decided to get my old laptop functional to get me through.

This computer is OK, it gets me on the Internet but the Internet programs are older and I can't update them because it's a work computer and I don't have admin rights. It's great to be able to at least check email and get on Ravelry, etc but I feel like I'm in a hotel with a crummy mattress. You know that feeling where it's just not home, it's not your comfortable mattress you're used to. My fingers automatically go to the place where "enter" should be on my computer and it's the "shift" key. I go to Favorites and my links aren't here. I play a couple games on Facebook and this computer won't open some of them up because the Flash version is too old. How did we get so dependent on computers!?!

So until Wednesday my computer life will feel like it's staying at a slightly older hotel without the latest and greatest but I will be glad it's not "homeless".

I'm not going to try and get any pictures posted with this computer because it's just not made for pictures and "home" computing things.

I LIKE My Doctor!

2010-02-26T21:02:00.005-06:00

As you may recall, I had multiple things done to my foot Jan 4th. Surgery that "forced" me to hang out at home for a month. This past month was a return to work but with limited walking and lifting to let the tendon re-attach to my heel and my toes to get back to normal.

The normal healing time is 4 weeks no weight bearing and 4 weeks with an air cast. Then up to 4 months more of getting your foot back to normal as far as walking without a limp, incision scars healed without "shrinking" to cause toes to be malformed, etc.

Well, yesterday was my latest check up with Dr Cute Eyes. Did I mention he has the greatest eyes. I'm an eye person. Anyway -

Two weeks into this whole thing he was so impressed with my healing powers that he lessened the no weight bearing by a week and let me try walking a very little bit after week 3. My check up a month ago he declared I was healing "spooky fast" and I could try a loose shoe the beginning of this week instead of waiting for normal time period.

Yesterday he looked at my foot and chuckled that I was healing "wicked good". Doesn't know what I'm doing to make this go so fast but - keep it up and if I figure out what I did I should bottle it. You have to love a doctor that calls you spooky fast (in a good way) and wicked good!

I've been wearing an old loose Velcro strap sandal this week with a major limp and soreness but - no more air cast and that's just fine with me. My heel is healing!

How about a quick game of where's Bert. We haven't played that for a while.
I came home earlier this week and was greeted by Chief but no Bert. I called him, Nada.
After searching his usual hiding places I noticed something wrong in the living room....

Guess he wanted to take a nap with Sam the Ram.

Ensign Ricky & Magazine Reviews

2010-02-24T20:41:00.005-06:00

Some days I feel like Ensign Ricky - Some days I feel like Mr. Spock.
The way things are being managed at work this month is highly illogical (it's end of the work year craziness) and I know it will get better and I know I'm not going anywhere but my sanity may be expendable. Time will tell.

To deal with the month from "you know where" I decided to treat myself to a few new knitting magazines. Some people drink. Some people take drugs. I do knitting.

Interweave Press has come out with a new magazine without a date on it so I'm thinking it's a one time special issue. Maybe it will be popular enough to do once a year.

Knitting Traditions
As the cover says there are socks, socks and more socks but not the usual we see today. These socks are Turkish knitting stockings (cover pic), Bulgarian stockings, Ellis Island socks, socks two at once knit inside each other and more.

There's baby patterns from the past, knit figures from Peru around the time of Christ, gloves from the 1600s and 1800s, shawls from cultures big into lace, the Wild Apple Bohus sweater, and so much more.

When I first got the email blast from Interweave saying this was coming out I got excited. I like tradition. I like knowing how things we have today came into being. This magazine is a bit pricey ($15) but for me it's well worth it.

The Knitter
This is one of my regular magazine purchases. It's glossy paper makes the pictures stand out and make it something worth keeping. The patterns are some new - some from other sources. This works for me because some of the patterns in past issues are ones I was interested on but didn't want to buy the entire book they came from.

This month (issue 14) just came out for America as we're usually a month behind the UK in these magazines. The main focus is Designs for men but as you can see from the cover the patterns can be guys or gals. Kaffee Fassett has a vest sweater combination called Rochester which is done in his usual colorful manner. A few of the sweaters take cables in new directions. One sweater has the normal columns of cables but then takes another set of cables and cross hatches the entire sweater. The combination of the two cables group mingling with each other creates an interesting optical illusion.

For me this magazine is a good resource item. I read, look, enjoy and add it to the library I've created knowing I'll be pulling them out for years to come to get inspiration.

Simply Knitting - issue 63
I like this magazine. It's another UK magazine and for me, it's my "everyday lady" magazine. It doesn't think it's better than the rest, it's just for everyone to enjoy. Each month Alan Dart has a knit toy. This month is a pair of french doll (Pierrot & Pierrette). There's socks, quick knit gifts, sweaters, yarn reviews. Unfortunately because we get it a month late there are Valentine ideas that will have to wait until next year to try.

Every month there is a gift included with the magazine. I look forward to these gifts and have made great use out of many of them. Over the past few years I gotten diaries for the new year, a cute sheep measuring tape, a small project sack that goes with me often, wooden shawl pins and much more. This month should have been another tape measure but for some reason when I went in to get the magazine there was no plastic bag around any of them. No free gift even though the first page says there should be one. I hope this doesn't mean America is going to miss out on the gifts. That would make me sad.

All's Well That Ends Well

2010-02-13T13:36:00.008-06:00

Back in Shakespeare's day the part of the lady was played by boys. Women were not allowed to act until Gwyneth Paltrow decided she wanted to act because she fell in love with Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love - 1998). But that's another story.

Today in our production of Romeo and Juliet the part of Juliet will be played by none other than Bert.

All good actors have their own dresser. Bert is no different. Chief works endless grooming Bert in preparation for the part.
And grooms - and grooms.

Finally Bert's prep is completed by Chief and Bert is ready for his close up.

The crowd anxiously awaits the beginning of the play and they are especially looking forward to the balcony scene.

"Romeo, Romeo, where are you, Chief?" - Bert

"Oh how embarrassing! I can't believe I blew my line!" - Bert

Well - it looks like Bert won't be pursuing the acting career much longer. This Comedy of Errors is over and it appears to have been Much Ado about Nothing. Measure for Measure this may have been a poor Winter's Tale but I'll end here - As you Like it.

Morgan's Hat

2010-02-03T21:20:00.004-06:00

First some quick business -
1. I've been getting comments in Japanese that when I translate them are obviously not anything having to do with the blog. So I turned on the comment moderator for a while till the Japanese comments quit showing up.
2. No. I don't read Japanese. I used an online translator.

One thing that happens on Ravelry is amazing. We all join some forums (or a lot of forums) and end up making friendships with people from all over that we would never meet in a million years. I hang out in the She-Knits Podcast forum where we have daily Small Talk and a core group of us have developed a very tight bond. Many of us have met in person. Many have brought their friendships to personal emails and trading yarn & gifts. Most important, when someone in the group has a need we're all there for that person. This group kept me sane while recovering from the foot surgery last month.

Little side bar - today was my first day of work and my foot is pooped! I walked a bit more than I should have and need to be more careful the next few days while getting back to "normal".

Back to the group - one of the ladies in the group has a cute little daughter who has been dealing with problems requiring brain surgery way too frequently in her young life. She's headed for more surgery and will need to keep her head (incision site) covered while it heals so some of us from the group are making hats for Morgan.

I finished my hat tonight. It's made out of some KnitPicks Shine I had from last year when we made a group afghan. It's a nice soft cotton yarn so I hope it feels good on Morgan little head.
I only wish the camera colors were a little closer to the real colors. The main color is called Bachelor Button.

Her Mom says she's not too girlie and likes socks froma web site that had some funky graphic designs so I hope the combination of just a little lace and some some graphics will make her happy.

Cat in the Cube

2010-02-01T16:23:00.007-06:00

This isn't a very exciting post but I was so amused at what happened Sunday I had to take some pictures and post about it.

Saturday I went out to dinner with a couple friends and - boy, did it feel good to get out into the real world again! Afterward I went over to the store to get some cat food and saw some cloth cubes on sale. I've always wanted to try them out for yarn storage so I got one thinking if it works I'll get some more.

Sunday, I pulled out the cube, made it and set it on the floor while I got some yarn to fill it with. When I turned around I found the cube had been repurposed.

If I stand in this box do I look more handsome? - Chief

I waited a little while thinking Chief would get tired of it and I could fill it with yarn. Chief left the cube about 20 minutes later after just sitting there staring into space (what an exciting life he leads).

Next commercial I got up a bit too late to fill it and had to wait again.

I don't see what is so exciting about this but if Chief likes it- it must be good cause my big brother is very smart and very handsome and I must do everything he does cause I'm the little brother and I love my big brother and he's just so cool... - Bert

Well - wait a bit more.
Back to Chief who decided to take a one hour nap in the cube. Then Bert decided - time to play.

I don't plan on attacking Chief. Really I don't. - Bert

Bert seemed happy enough. Chief would hide in the cube until Bert's paw would sneak over the edge and then he'd strike. This game went on for almost an hour.

Just gotta get myself into the right position, then I'll bounce! - Bert

Do you REALLY think I'm not watching you little boy!? - Chief

Who knew buying a $5 cloth cube would entertain the boys for 3 hours straight! Maybe they need to repackage them and sell the cubes to twice as much money as a designer cat toy.

Farewell to January

2010-01-31T10:39:00.005-06:00

I'll be glad to say good bye to January in one way and sad in another. I spent all of January with my foot surgery and staying in the house recovering so I am glad to be now getting out a bit and seeing the "real" world again. But - I also spent January relaxing, decompressing from the stresses of everyday life and getting some knitting done with no guilt about other things I should be doing. That part I'll miss a lot.

Stress free is a good thing and I hope one thing I learned this month is that I need to allow the problems of the world to stay away from my den. So, I don't do new year's resolutions but this year I'm going to try and keep problems out of the den. When I come in here - the world doesn't. Let the kitchen table be the place for bills and life problems and let the den be a place for knitting, friendship, relaxing, etc. My little safe zone in the world.

My view of the outside world this month was through the window in the den (and the TV). All I worried about was seeing whether there was new snow on the roof of the house behind me. I was lucky this month and we had so little snow I didn't even have to hunt up someone to shovel the driveway/walkway. I hope February stays the same.

As I said earlier I did knitting this month. A few days ago I started a new sweater. I can tell I'm feeling better cause I burned through 2 skeins in 3 days. Much quicker knitting than the beginning of the month when it took me 2 weeks to go through 1 skein.

The sweater has cables on the front along with a yoke filled with "berries". The back is plain rev. st. with the berries yoke. I've knit a lot of berries the past few days with many more to come!

As for the Boys - they're off sleeping somewhere. (what a surprise).

Where's the Humidifier?

2010-01-29T22:05:00.003-06:00

I'm thinking I should add water to the humidifier.

What was your first clue Mom? - Chief

Hangin' out with the Boys

2010-01-25T16:11:00.005-06:00

I'm definitely seeing more energy and strength this week compared to the last few weeks. My foot is on the mend. I've managed to stay awake for most of the day now except I still sleep about 10-12 hours out of the 24. It's amazing what the body does to heal itself. The other thing that's helping is I haven't had to take any drugs this week (not even ibuprofen) so it looks like the next hurdle is being able to drive. I'll be trying to drive later this week once the doctor gives me the OK. Then......... back to work. Will I survive? Will the boys survive without our afternoon nap time?

What could be better than an old quilt, knitting and the boys to hang out with!?

Knitting news - I finished the red sock shortly after the above picture.

Saturday a friend gave me some KnitPicks Crayon in green, a Christmas sweater from her little bear and a request. She wanted a St. Pat's Day sweater for her bear. Sunday I made the sweater and I'll get pics before I give it to her.

Knitting meets Camera

2010-01-21T14:22:00.010-06:00

I finally got my camera, my knitting and my ambition together at the same time so - we have pictures.

First up - the Wonderball Shawl. You may remember for Christmas my knitting cousin gave me a Wonderball. I had a problem deciding what to knit because I didn't know what kind of yardage it had so - I decided on a shawl and if worse came to worse I could add yarn from my stash.

Size 10 1/2 needles - Cast on 5 sts and I did the yarn over increase at each end and either side of the center stitch. I did the whole shawl in knit so it's a garter stitch.
When I came to some of the yarns they definitely had a right side and wrong side. Check out the light purple fringe stripe. Once I knit that yarn I pulled all the fringe to the right side. The yellow/teal stripe is fun fur but that fulled in enough so I didn't need to pick any to the front.

Besides not knowing what yarn will "show up" next the Wonderball includes presents wound in the ball throughout.

I ended up getting 5 presents: a crocheted bunny which was at the very center, a felt pin cushion, silk ribbon, a crystal Christmas ornament, and stitch markers. The stitch markers and crystal gave me some problems because they popped through long before the whole item so I had to be careful pulling yarn around the sticking out part.

But - it was fun to knit and an adventure to see what yarn or present would show up next. Had me thinking about making some Wonderballs of my own for presents to fellow knitters.

Other knitting?

I started making some bath mitts to create spa baskets for presents. No time like the present to get started on next year's presents.

This mitt is Sugar'n Cream and the pattern was on the ball band.

One friend stayed with me at the hospital the whole day during my surgery - drove me there and home so I decided to make him a pair of Elizabeth Zimmerman's Woodman's socks. These socks are great for outdoor Minnesota winter activities. One sock down - one to go.

Slow but sure. I'm making the Tree of Life Afghan. It's been sitting next to my chair all month so when I have nothing else to do I pull it out and work on a few rows. So far I'm over half done

The second pattern is a flower garden and supposed to be 4 flowers high but - the leaves are yarn pulled through making long strands. To me it's asking for someone to get their fingers, toes, etc. caught in it and that would pull the stitches out of shape making the afghan look ugly. I came to this decision after a couple flowers and changed the pattern up a little. It only has 3 rows of flowers and I added another little design above it to keep the length of the whole afghan.

What I really like about this afghan is the tree of life pattern. The afghan has 4 of these across and repeats it at top and bottom and in the middle.

I can't go a complete post without mentioning the foot. It's been 2 1/2 weeks since my surgery and I'm finally starting to walk around a little. I also managed to stand in the shower a few times and it feels SO good to be really, really clean! My walking around is usually to the kitchen and back to my chair followed by a nap or at least sitting around for 2-3 hours to recover. My foot no longer looks like something out of a bad horror movie but it has a new feature that amuses me.

Three weeks ago my 2nd toe was the same length as my 3rd toe. No more. My toes is now longer than all the toes, it sticks out past the big toe even. This length comes at a cost. It no longer bends. When I bend the toes of my foot all the others bend as they should and the 2nd toe stays sticking straight out. Good thing it wasn't the 3rd toe or people would think my foot my giving them the finger!

On the Mend

2010-01-14T16:53:00.004-06:00

It's been 1 1/2 weeks since my surgery and I'm definitely on the mend. I've managed to make a couple things in the kitchen (although I was totally worn out after) and I've had my 2nd post surgery Dr. appointment today.

The Dr. says everything is mending as it should. We removed the stitches and I have permission to stand lightly on my foot. AND take a real shower!! I still can't walk on it and doing anything more than getting to the kitchen and back to beyond current capability but we're moving the right direction. I have another appointment in 2 weeks and that will tell whether I'm ready for work or not.

In the meantime it's lots of naps, lots of TV, some knitting, and lots of cuddle time with "The Boys".

I like taking naps on your lap, Mom. - Bert

Stay off That Foot!

2010-01-07T17:41:00.004-06:00

Well - Monday was my foot surgery. I got there at 8:30 for 10:30 surgery time. The normal prep took place and I ended up in a huge paper gown and disposable underwear and footies. If you have never seen the underwear they give you you're missing one of the great events in life. I'm a larger person and therefore wear larger undies. The pair they gave me were a one size fits no one. They were kind of wide, a boy cut and about 3 inches tall (if that). They were pretty much a "why bother" kind of thing but, well, better than nothing sort of.

Once in the OR I did the deep breathing thing and some time later I saw a clock in front of me that said 1:15. Then it said 1:25 and so on while I tried to wake up. They gave me anti-nausea drugs because I don't wake up well from surgery. All in all it took me until almost 4:30 before I was alive enough to get dressed and leave.

One of my friends stayed the whole time and got me home. He stayed till 6:30pm when his wife took over while I slept on and off. By 10:00 I was alert and felt fine so I sent her home and promised to call if I needed anything. I'm a loner and it's easier to sleep if I don't think I have to be a hostess. So, slept I did.

Tuesday and Wednesday I would get up for 3 hours and sit in my recliner, then back to bed for 4 hours. I have a knee walker so I can pedal around the house pretty good (in short spurts).

Here's the first shots of my foot. Lots of bandages and braces keeping it from moving. No weight bearing allowed.
Here's a more typical shot of the last few days. Chief has been my nurse and rarely leaves my side. That thing in the back right of the picture is the knee walker. What a great invention! I just prop my bad leg knee on the cushion and pedal around on my good leg. I'd be lost without it!

Today was my first doctor visit and I now have a little less bandages. Everything is looking good but no weight bearing for the month. My little trip to the doctor showed me staying in the house and not going anywhere is a very good thing. The trip wore me out, getting in the car was tricky and well - I'm very glad I have the sick time to take the month off and be sure things heal properly.

Nothing left to do but stay off my foot and knit.

This little Piggy is going to the Hospital

2009-12-29T23:44:00.005-06:00

I'd like to know how the average person gets ready for long term recovery. As a knitter my first thought went to "long time to knit stuff". What am I talking about?

Well - Monday is the first week of the new year and it is also the day of my (finally) foot surgery. About 6-7 years ago I had heel spurs removed from my left foot. The Dr did not remove all the calcium build up so that foot still has a bit of a bump in the back but I can walk and that was the main thing. Fast forward to today and my right foot followed and grew a boatload of icky heel spurs. Over the years I also developed a few other problems. Seems I have a bunionette. Doesn't that sound cute? It's not. When you have a bunion its on your big toe. When the little toe decides to grow the wrong way and have its bone stick out, its called a bunionette like its not going to hurt as much. WRONG! That puppy hurts a lot. I've spent many-many years not being able to wear normal shoes.

So- I have heel spurs and a bunionette but my foot likes to overachieve and I also ended up with a hammertoe on my 2nd toe. Are you impressed with my ability to have a deformed foot? Monday things change. I won't go into the details of the surgery but the Dr & I decided to go for broke and get everything taken care of at once. The surgery he is doing on the heel will get rid of all the extra calcium but it means I'll be off my foot for a month. One month of not being able to go to work or do much of anything but sit and knit (and take really good pain killers). Followed by another month of an aircast and not getting around a lot other than to work and home.

So- I've been getting ready for my convalescence. Stocking the freezer with easy to prep meals, getting Netflix set up on the TV instead of instant watch on the laptop, getting a knee walker (a very cool devise!), but most importantly - getting knitting projects into bags with the pattern-needles and everything needed. I may not being blogging the first week of January because I've told myself I won't post until I can make sense talking. You don't want to see what strange and bizarre things come out of my brain when I don't edit myself a bit. Trust me!

If I don't get back here until after the 1st. Have a safe and happy New Year's Eve.

Better than a Wonder Bra

2009-12-26T23:11:00.006-06:00

Christmas has come and gone so its safe to post the little baby hoodie I made for cousin's daughter's daughter. (Life can be confusing to post about when multiple generations get together!)

Anyway - This cute little hoodie is made from Mexican Wave yarn by Elle. I used 3 skeins to make the small size of the Divi Hoodie.
Baby's Mom and her Grandma (a fellow knitter) were impressed with the sweater and loved the yarn.
Speaking of the Grandma - she made baby the absolutely cutest dress for Christmas. It was red with a white collar and the yoke was ribbed. The hem was so cute. Many little prairie points. The only problem of the day was that I forgot where I put my camera for safe keeping so I didn't get any pictures of it. Maybe cousin will see this post and send me a digital pic (hint-hint).

Being a knitter cousin knows I enjoy a wee bit of yarn. She brought me a fun present.

It's a Yarn Wonder Ball. It came wrapped and obviously "handmade". The little note on the side explains what this is -

"Different yarns of many colours and lengths are manually tied together to create a surprise yarn ball of wool blends, textures, small amounts of cotton, and surprises. Popular in the 1800's, the wonder ball was given as a gift at Christmas. As the person knit, and used up lines of yarn, small gifts inside the ball would surface. The knitter could not fast forward to see what the next trinket, surprise or yarn would be. The ball of yarn embodied the spirit of giving, as the gift continued to reveal presents, and the knitter produced a lasting gift or either a scarf or wrap."

Here's a better look at the side so you can see some of the different yarns. When I took it out of the wrapping to get a picture I could feel some things inside. I can't wait to get knitting on it and see what is hiding inside. I hope I can manage to hold off knitting it until after my surgery Jan 4th and I can have this as a special recovery present.
If you're interested in this fun little present the paper with patterns inside the wrapping says it came from Threads and More. Their website is: www.threadsandmore.com.au

Not a creature was stirring

2009-12-24T21:42:00.003-06:00

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house

Not a creature was stirring

Not even Chief or Bert.

The three of us wish you a very Merry Christmas!