Vacation time!

 Today was a good work day.  Wrapped up the paper on time, and I was able to take care of a few other things before I signed off for no work for the rest of the year.  

Funny how long that sounds until you think of what the date is and how close we are til the end of the year. 

My hubby has a long weekend and I don't kow what my son's work schedule is for next week. I've taken vacation time next week. 

I hopped on to the library Overdrive to find an audiobook to listen to. The few that I were interested in are checked out.  Others I can't remember the name of, or the author.  It doesn't help that I'm not sure what genre I want to listen to.  Anyone have any recommendations? 

This afternoon I went out hunting for a few hours. The weather today included fog, mist and touch of rain. 

Can you see how misty it is out there?  There was enough moisture in the air that it was dripping off the trees. 

It was also so quiet out there that my ears were ringing. Figure that one out. 

There was a weird incident when I was walking out to my blind. My husband heard it too, and neither one of us can quite figure it out.  It sounded like a drone flying overhead but we couldn't see it.  So bizarre. 

Anywho, I got myself all bundled up for going out there, even though it's probably the warmest it's been out there since September. 

I had my hot water bottle tucked into my coat and I even had my handknit mittens. 

My electric handwarmers were tucked in.  Those things were worth purchasing.. 

Alas, nothing came to my area.  Either the weather had them huddled down or they could sense I was there. Boo!  

This evening I finished the first mitten. It fits my husband perfectly. 

The second mitten has been cast on and about two inches of the cuff have be worked. I need to remember that I need to knit the convertible piece on the other side for this second mitten. 

I don't know what tomorrow will be, but we will have a small family dinner on both Sunday and Monday. Which means I'll be busy in the kitchen. 

My friend Becky mentioned watching a few of the Christmas movies.  I realized I haven't watched any Christmas movies yet. 

This morning the links to three movies came across my view. Maybe I'll watch them this weekend? 

I don't know how to insert a dailymotion video into a blog post. 

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x57fkhi?fbclid=IwAR1lGDRAGhLDdMT73gIOvdLhIhNWfOezswm7_EOFae3hwikUjNBQFQs8NrY

A ho hum sort of day

It was a fairly quiet day at work.  I did have a surprise.

My bishop popped down into my office with a case of canning jars.  It was to say thank you for the jam I gave him a while back.  It was a very nice gesture and I never say no to jars.

I made yet *another* trip to Menard*s today to get some 2 x 2s for the firewood we bought this past weekend.  My coworker and I are now starting to joke about how much we each go to Menard*s. 

I'm mentally gearing up for religious ed.  My son decided he wanted to stick with the church I have been taking him.  It means long Wednesdays again.  But I reckon it's worth it to not be raising a heathen savage.  Things will be a bit more tricky now with him riding the bus.  I may have to go pick him up from school. Nothing set yet.

The white turkey is getting a bit stubborn at bed time.  She did not want to go to bed when I told them it was time to go in.  So I walked away for a bit and she jumped off the chicken run.  But then set herself down on the ground right in front of the door.  If a turkey doesn't want to move, it's really hard to move it. 

Yup, a ho-hum kind of day. It's nice to have this kind of day once in a while.

Daily 5 things of the day that made me happy

1. I have never had a mouse in my car.

2. The unexpected gift of canning jars.

3.  I stayed strong and did not eat the chocolate in my desk drawer.

4. My stash of dishcloths is slowly building up again.

5. Texting with my son.  It's a hoot!

First FO's of the year

I'm going to take advantage of the day home and do a quick post showing the first finished objects of the year.

Ballband dishcloth. I think this may be my new go-to dishcloth pattern.  I am in love with how the dishcloths turn out when you use a solid color yarn and a variegated yarn. I made a few of these for Christmas gifts (didn't take photos).  This was my first one for 2014 and the start of my dishcloth stash.

Needle: US size 7
Yarn: Peaches and Cream

 Susie's reading mitts. These are such a quick knit. 

Needle: US size 6
Yarn: Caron Simply Soft worsted, Autumn Red colorway

"Jude" inspired hat for my son. My son enjoys the "6teen" cartoon and asked if I could make him a hat like Jude's.  I said sure.  Then we didn't watch the cartoon for a while. I remembered that the hat was black with at least one white stripe and was beanie-styled.

 I used the Barley hat pattern from Tin Can Knits as my starting off point.  I placed the stripes where I thought they should be and finished the hat. 

US Size 8
Yarn: Red Heart worsted weight

We watched a few episodes of 6teen last night and I realized Jude's hat has only one stripe and some wide ribbing. My son is pretty darn pleased with this hat so I don't think I will be switching it up anytime soon.

I do not know what I will be working on next. Something small and portable, I'm sure.

FO ~ Splendid shawl

Splendid shawl from Lion Brand.

Lionbrand Homespun yarn, Lagoon colorway
Needles: US Size 11

Given to my son's Godmother on May 1, 2013. She loved the colors and the softness of the yarn. I am so very pleased with how it turned out.

The last couple weeks in pictures

On Monday, Feb. 4, the little man came home from school on Monday and said: "Teacher said we have to make valentines."  Don't you love how he said that? "Teacher said"  Oh how it reminded me of the audio book we listened to last summer. "The Teacher's Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts"

On Tuesday, Feb. 5, I stopped at Walmart and picked up some items for him to make Valentines. He had a blast. 

 On Saturday, Feb. 9, the temps were warmer than they have been so the DH took advantage and smoked a port roast. It was very tasty and as you can see it, was done to perfection.  Yum!!!!!!!

Monday, Feb. 11 was yet another snow day.  I haven't had so many snow days in who knows how long. It was also publishing day and I had to proof and approve pages on the computer screen and remotely. I ended up missing at least three minor "boo boos". So not happy about that.  But ... it was also the Monday that Pope Benedict announced his resignation.  I think that pretty much gives us a pass for any oops in the paper. 

Anywho ... Here is what I saw when I looked outside my front window that day.  

That same day I decided to rip a blanket that I knit during my early days as a knitter. I love the yarn and it was a warm blanket. Big needles and this yarn really didn't work out as well as I had hoped.  It felt like I was putting on a yarn net or a big bunch of yarn when I snuggled up under it.

I made this blanket back in 2008. If I remember right, it's size 25 needles.  I don't know if I would ever use needles that size again.

It's hard to rip because I held two boucle yarns together.  So when I rip I have to split the yarn apart and then skein it up.  The blue is one yarn, the multicolored yarn is a different yarn.

 Saturday, Feb. 9 I got some fun mail from Reflections Yarn on etsy. The shop owner had a Valentine surprise yarn club.  The yarn is lovely. The package also included some yummy chocolates and ...

Stitch markers!  I love stitch markers and these are so cute.

I already have a sock pattern picked out for the yarn.  It's True Love by Chrissy Gardiner. It's gonna look wonderful in this sock yarn.

Then this past weekend my DH finished putting a new floor in the kitchen.  The old vinyl was defective or something and DH spotted this flooring at the local Menard*s.

I am so thrilled with this new flooring.  It really pulls the kitchen together and it makes me happy.

I actually have a finished object for knitting.  I had to take a break from my squares and decided to work on a scarf that I promised my son MONTHS ago.  I had been under the impression that my son's school colors were black and orange.  They are the "tigers" and a lot of the school stuff I had seen was orange-ish.

Earlier this week I had a discussion with two coworkers and they set me straight on the colors.

I asked my son if anyone noticed the scarf at school today and he said at least one kid asked him if he got it at the "paw shop" that the kids can shop when they accrue enough tiger paw tickets.  I'd say the scarf is a hit.

I'm not sure exactly when this photo was taken.  My son took it and showed it to me.  I thought it turned out pretty good.  We've been letting the turtle "walk" a little more and he's enjoying it. 

I think this is a great close up.  You can see his grumpy old man face and those little things that are on his chin.

Thank you for stopping by!

Now what?

My knitting mojo has slowly returned. I picked up a vanilla sock that I started back in May. Over the weekend I turned the heel and gusset and I'm in the home stretch.

I also have one thing I'm knitting for Christmas. I'm knitting an invincibility star for my son. Last night I joined one side of it together and am currently decreasing down. I am really kicking myself for not getting it going sooner.


Then last week I heard of the Shalom cardigan. Oh wow, I really like it. In my stash I have no yarn for it. However, I do have one pound of a nice brown BFL.

Call me crazy, but I think when the new year starts I'm going to start spinning for this cardigan.

The pattern calls for a bulky yarn. I've always spun as thin as I could go. This will be quiet the challenge for me.

Not only that, the pattern needs to be adjusted because I'm bigger than the pattern. This should be fun.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas dear readers!

This year we were blessed to get a beautiful snow the week of Christmas. This past Tuesday my son had a snow day. I stayed home with him. When we went out to play I brought the camera out with me. These are a few shots from my neighborhood.

I did have one other Christmas gift made that I gave to a past coworker.

I can't remember the name exactly. I think it was called chunky neck warmer.

The yarn is Plymouth Yarn, More than one skein.

Needles U.S. 105.

I got the buttons at Wal-mart.

We had a very nice Christmas eve. Today we are taking it easy. We played some games and a late breakfast. It's too chilly to go out so we have "A Christmas Story" on tv. For me that is turning into a Christmas tradition.

I hope everyone else is having a wonderful day.

Busy day, no photo

I was fortunate enough to sleep in the last few days. But I've been working hard around the house the last few days getting stuff picked up, purged out, etc.

Today I wrapped up the last of the presents. I ended up doing a little switch at the last minute. I think the one coworker of mind would rather appreciate one of my monster rice packs than a pair of fingerless mitts.

Yesterday I started working on the heel of my vanilla sock. I also did a round on the Pi Shawl.

Right now it's almost 10 p.m. I've got a couple loafs of bread in the oven. I have a feeling I won't be going to bed anytime soon.

I think the next couple days are going to be a blur. A complete blur. Thank goodness for short work weeks the next couple weeks.

Christmas knitting is done!

Wow.

I didn't finish by the end of November like I wanted. I was having second mitt syndrome and decided I *had* to work on the 3 a.m. cable hat, and my vanilla sock was suddenly very interesting to me.

But I finished! This past Monday I cast off and weaved in the ends of my second fingerless mitt that I am making for my nephew.

Pattern is my own design. Knit using Kathmandu DK yarn, color 408. This yarn is super soft. It's Merino woo, silk and cashmere. I did have a bit of a struggle knitting it with wooden DPNs though. I used DH as a model to get the sizing. One person at my work really likes the pattern and wants it. It's in my head right now screaming to be let out.


These are a pair of my vanilla socks that I made for my SIL. I couldn't get the color quite right. It's a really pretty deep turquise color. Knit using Berroco Vintage yarn.



Susie's reading mitts. Made for a coworker. I *heart* these mitts. I'm going to make a pair for myself.

Look at that adorable picot edging. Adorable!

And what would the gift giving season be without a pair of fetching mitts? This is another pattern I enjoy and have made several pairs of them. None for myself -- yet! I made this pair for my other coworker. Blue is her favorite color. Knit using -- what else -- Berocco Vintage yarn.

No I have two projects on the needles. My vanilla socks and the Wendyknits Pi Shawl.

The sock I'm working on here and there. The shawl ... I am *not* going to get this shawl done by the end of the month. I have transitioned to clue 4 and I have almost 600 stitches per round. It takes me quite a while just to do a all-knit row. But I have a lot of energy and focus on these two projects right now. So I'm going with it until I burn out again. I am breaking the shawl up into bite size pieces so it's not so overwhelming.

I will post updated photos of these two projects soon.

FO ~ Washcloth (gift)

Standard discloth cotton yarn
U.S. size 5 needle

Pattern is "baby fern stitch" pattern. It can be found here.

Yarn color is lemon and lime, I think. I love the long color repeats on it. The pattern itself if a fairly quick knit. I think each repeat took me 15 minutes. I made this to give to my son's teacher at Christmas time. I would definitely make this pattern again but in a solid color. As pretty as those colorways are on the ball I dislike the short color changes and those tend to hide the pattern when you are making lacey dishcloths.

FO ~ Socks (a gift)

Yarn: Berroco Vintage sock yarn, worsted weight.
U.S. size 3 circular needles

I made these for my niece. I found a cable pattern in a book and used it for just the cuff. I would have brought the pattern down to the foot but I couldn't find a way to transition the cables down and not mess up the pattern. I really do like this sock yarn. The price is right for it as well. The socks are come out toasty and are perfect for walking on wood floors.

FO ~ Splendid shawl

I made this during the month of August. It's the second one I made. I forgot to take a photo of the first one. The first one was a gift to a dear friend who is in need of some comfort right now. This is a Lion Brand pattern and pretty easy. It's also a quick knit and is good for working on while watching tv.

The only thing I did different from the pattern was that I didn't make the crocheted edging. I don't have a proper size crochet hook.

A gift to my bishop

Today my work place had a party to celebrate the 25th anniversary of our bishop's ordination. As soon as I heard about this significant milestone I immediately knew which pattern I wanted to knit for him. The Irish Hiking Scarf.


I made it green to honor his Irish heritage.

Playing catch up

Or as one of my friends would say, a state of the knitting.

Well, that fiber that I got at at the beginning of the month was spun up into 2 singles.



159 yards of yumminess. I got it from forbiddenwoolery. Not enough to do a pair of socks like I had hoped. I didn't figure the WPI for it either. I think I can make a cowl with the amount of yardage I have.


While we are on the topic of spinning. I have something to share:


This is about 28 yards of what I would call lace weight shetland yarn. Last year another SIL gave me a couple fleeces from one of her friends who has a few sheep. I took a bunch off of the fleece and processed it. Then spun it up on my wheel. No plans for it whatsoever but I sure felt a sense of accomplishment with it. Next year I think I'm going to get a drum carder.

I've also been working on the Adamas shawl in a KAL with my BBs.

Yarn is Knit Picks laceweight that I dyed myself.


A close up. Don't you love the varigation?

I'm also working on a couple of gift knits so I don't want to post about them yet.

I also have a sock on the needles. Just about ready to turn the heel on it.

I'm using this pair to figure out my very own vanilla sock pattern. First time I have taken the time to count the rows on the leg and the heel flap. But it has made things easier. I'm knitting the sock in a 2 x 2 rib. It's gonna be so snug! I'm debating on continue the ribbing through the foot.

I also knit a pair of worsted weight socks for my SIL for her bday. A pair of lovely purple socks in Berocco yarn. Alas, I forgot to take photos of them. But trust me, they were very nice :-).

Well, I guess that's about it for now. When I put it all down it sure seems like a lot has gone on the last month, but I feel like I haven't accomplished much.

FO ~ Son's birthday socks

Yeah, his birthday was over a week ago. I didn't get a chance to take a picture of the sock til now.

Yarn is a DK weight that I handpainted. Socks were knit with U.S. 5 DPNs. I'm quite please with how well it turned out. Though the photo doesn't quite do it justice.

In other news, I'm *this* close to being done with the first vanilla sock of the pair I'm working on in the background. I'm decreasing the toe. I'm feeling so OMGOSHWHYISN'TTHISDONEYET about the sock. But it's my only current project. I'm itching to start something else though.

January, the month of selfish knitting

I heard about January being the month of selfish knitting a couple weeks ago. First time I had heard of it since I started knitting.

Well, I sure wish I had known that sooner. The only selfish knitting I did this month was the blowsey scarf.

I finished my son's birthday socks this past Sunday. He put them on his feet right away so I haven't had the chance to take a photo of them yet.

Dye project Jan. 2010

Last week I dyed some white superwash yarn I had. It's to make DS a pair of socks for his birthday. I didn't feel like kettle dyeing this time. I wanted some variation in the blues so I tried handpainting yarn again. I've done this only one other time.

This is what it looked like after the dye had set and the yarn was completely cooled off.

I've been asked very nicely to not do this in the house anymore when the windows can't be opened up. I put the yarn, covered, in the oven to heat and set the dye. The odor coming from the oven was not very pleasant. I was told I could do this again as soon spring rolled around. But preferably outside.

Here it it all skeined up and pretty, sitting on a window ledge. This was the first time I got to use my umbrella swift that I ordered from Knitpicks back in June of 2009. Took long enough, huh?

I am almost done with the leg of the first sock.

FO ~ 2x2 ribbed scarf

A simple 2 x 2 ribbed scarf that I made for DS for his birthday next month.

Lionbrand hometown yarn in the "green bay" color.

One skein

His favorite colors are green and blue. So I thought I would make him a green scarf and then blue socks.