First Day of Nursery School and a black eye

Delaney started her first day of Nursery School today. She seemed to really like it. I will post the obligatory first day of school picture when I have access to my mom's computer. I had her stand out by the cosmos in the front yard.

Am was wonderful and took Delaney with him while he went grocery shopping. I got to lay in my bed. Ahhh. Then they came home and she immediately found me. We snuggled and played for a few minutes, and then she bashed my face in with the back of her head. Thank god Am was there to make sure I was ok. (It always is nice having a paramedic on hand when you need one) He got me some ice. Delaney was very upset and was very appologetic. She kept saying, "No cries, Mommy." It keeps getting more black. I hope it doesn't inhibit my knitting capabilities. ha ha.

Tomorrow it is off to New London to visit some family friends on Ocean Beach. Yay!
Then to pick up my new glasses. (Teal and Chartreuse, with rhinestones) Yay!

Then to an OB appointment. Yay!
Then to work. Blah.

Prioritizing rant follows:
My goal is to be monogamous with Wisteria. Hopefully this goes according to plan. I am pretty sure I can accomplish this over the weekend. Once I finish Wisteria, I am debating what to do. I need to make a game-plan and stick to it. I think that it will be as follows:

1. Finish Desire by French Girl. I am halfway done, damn it - and it is on size 17 needles. This should be a cinch.

2. Charity knitting for Warm Woolies http://warmwoolies.org/ for the Good Karma/Guilty Pleasures Swap.

(Here's where things get a little jumbly)

3. Do I cast on for Rogue?

3 (alternative) Do I cast on for something else on my queue? Like Loppem? That should be a quick knit and will also be useful while bebe is still in my belly.

hmmm.

Blue Addiction

All my current projects/recent yarn buys are turquoise or teal. Hmm.. I must really like that color.

I made another Robin's nest for Delaney's friends, Tristan and Bodhi. Tristan immediately put the nest in a nearby shrub. :o) It was so cute to see him apply what he knows in nature.

Found this on etsy that I will use for inspiration for the babies. http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=12178590

Check out her stuff - really cute.

Soon (payday) it will be off to Mocha's again to buy some roving of all different colors so I can felt whatever I damn well please whenever I want.

Yesterday I made a space-saving book pocket for my bed. I took a bunch of pictures and will make a tutorial for it as soon as I can. We rearranged our bedroom so I no longer have a nightstand. I have been tucking my book behind the heater, which will not work in winter. It is amazing what you can think of before you fall asleep to make your life easier.

I always think about how funny it is how much I daydream about knitting, spinning and fiber. A fellow Ravelry friend and blogger http://www.livnletlrn.blogspot.com/ was having the same feelings about spinning. It is nice to reflect at the end of a long, hard day and give thanks to all of the beautiful experiences and wonderful people in your life. And then all the yarn to pet, roving to spin and garments to knit. ahhhh....

Post Deck-Warming party

Mom and Dad finished their new deck!

Here's the post party...

Pooped. If you know my daughter, you know that her being still never happens.

Don't reread directions. Causes unnecessary tinking.

[side]Note to self: don't get cocky about your math skills. Get a calculator because 18/4 does not equal 5.

It is always a good idea to read directions before you start something. (Just ask my husband how many times I have told him that, and then said, "I told you so." - They never listen.)
Well, I was so excited to cast on for Wisteria, I just did it. I knit a few rows like an addict and then went to bed. As I was laying there waiting to fall asleep, I thought to myself, "Gee, it is pretty late, I probably should have reread the directions to make sure I did it right." I fought the urge to go downstairs and pick up the knitting and fell asleep. First thing I did when I got up was to reread the directions. Oops. I made a mistake, I should have repeated row one 12 times. Rip, cast on, repeat. I thought, "Hmm, this doesn't look like the picture, it is not so turtlenecky..." Knit knit knit like an addict for just "one more row" of chart.
I finished the yoke yesterday and decided to endulge in the joys of top-down knitting and tried on the sweater. Neck - too tall and turtlenecky. Yoke - great.
Reread directions, notice that 12 repeats of a chart were supposed to be for the round, not row.
Decide to rip out neck with great difficulty to the tune of 2 hours and cause husband to get mad at me because I wouldn't go out to dinner with him.
I now have the stitches on a needle and will work one row bottom up and bind off in rib. I just can't even look at Wisteria right now.

AHHH. I feel better. thank you for listening to a rant that I know only knitters would understand.

Oh, got Knitter's Book of Yarn by Clara Parkes from library - I think I will do that instead.

Fartin' in a milk carton with Dolly Parton

1. Got some pregnancy news the other day. THE GOOD NEWS: The baby looks good and normal and healthy. THE BAD NEWS: However, I have a partial placenta previa (say that 5 times fast). The doctor said, "So, just as before, no intercourse." It was like one of those movie moments where the record player screeches to a halt and the camera pans all around into a dizzy circle. I was like, "Um.... Wait a minute. This is the first I am hearing of that. No one said anything like that before. Well that sucks." THE GOOD NEWS: We get another ultrasound at 28 weeks to check on things. Maybe we will be able to find out if it is a boy or girl! I have a name for a girl that I really like, but Am is not too fond of it. He says that people will make fun of the name. If you ask me, people/kids will make fun of any name whether it rhymes with something or not. I guess no one made fun of him because no one has ever heard of his name then or since. I think he is the only kid that never got made fun of because of his name. I am still scarred for life thanks to Karl Bayek. "Karrie Martin fartin' in a milk carton with Dolly Parton."
2. Thank god for Knitting Night. All of you lovely ladies were just what I needed. A good laugh and good times. Natasha, you are right, if we ever recorded our conversations, boy..... I love all of you and am so grateful for the support we share.
3. Mom and I went on a WEBS voyage yesterday so I could test drive a couple of spinning wheels. I tried a Louet and the Ladybug. I definitely liked the Louet. I wanted to love the Ladybug because it is just so damn cute - but it didn't feel as smooth as the Lendrum or Louet. Thank you to Gail http://gailthekangaroodyer.blogspot.com/ for being such a wonderful person and helper. She helped set up the Ladybug from the box so that I could try it. Gail, it is great to know someone that is just as much excited about spinning, dyeing and knitting as you are.
I also go to meet Joan http://knittingbytheocean.blogspot.com/ . She is also a beginning spinner.
4. As if Webs wasn't enough, I purposely took the scenic route home to go by Mocha's Fiber Connection http://www.mochasfiberconnection.com/. It is great to support their small shop because of their philosophy and supporting small, local businesses. I got a little bit of roving and some felting needles. Which turned into my first needle felting project.
5. I knit what turned out to be a big nest (out of Lamb's Pride worsted). I cut it in half and then felted the ends together to make 2 smaller nests. I took the robin's egg color batt along with some of the left over creamy Manos and nest colors and felted 3 eggs.
All Delaney wants to do is to hold a bird. Whenever she sees one, she runs after it with her hands wide open just wanting it in her hands. (I think that having Snow White as a role model is reinforcing this desire.) When Delaney woke up this morning, I told her Momma Robin stopped by last night and asked me if Delaney would look after her eggs. I explained if she took really good care of them by being gentle and keeping them warm, maybe baby robins would hatch. Delaney was so excited and handled the nest with care. As I tucked her into the carseat this morning, I kissed Delaney and then I kissed the nest. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her do the same. It was so cute. I plan to switch the eggs out one night after I make 3 baby robins.
6. Started Wisteria. Yay! Almost done with the yoke!
7. Photos to come!

Crafting FO's (and one mostly finished)

FO's in the following order:
1. Martha's reversible purse http://www.marthastewart.com/article/reversible-purse?lnc=13fbf423088ee010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&rsc=taxonomylist_crafts_sewing, Amy Butler fabric
2. Aran Pullover in Cascade 220 tweed (with cutie turquoise buttons)
3. And mostly finished Harvest Mittens

































I will be trying out a version of a hat with the same cables for this (with permission from the author of course). We'll see how it works out.



And... here's a picture of my friend's baby in the Kimono I made her. Soooo cute.

Inconclusive evidence Ultrasound #2

We had our 2nd ultrasound. Authorities cannot either conform or deny if it is a boy or a girl. The ultrasound tech fished around for a while scanning from the bum, up, but it was inconclusive. She was funny with how she worded it, "The parts that should be there for a male don't look like they are. It is really easy to tell when they are, but not so easy when they are not." So.... We think that it is a girl. The ultrasound was about an hour long. We got to see the heart, kidneys, stomach, spine, head, face, hands, feet - so cool!

Thursday I had another spinning session. Peggy was great and just let me use her wheel while she taught weaving. I spun up some 2-ply out of teal, pink, green roving I had. It came out looking greyish. Peggy suggested plying it with the color I would like to bring out. I stopped at my LYS and we'll see what happens plying with pink!

I finished the Aran Pullover and now just need to find 4 cute little buttons. I decided that I love tweed.

I cast on for the Yellow Harvest mittens. One whole cuff is done and a little more. We will see how much I can get done at work.

Awesome Spontaneous Days 1 and 2

Day 1:

Delaney and I had the most wonderful day (last week that I never posted about and didn't have my camera). We started by taking Baxter to a nearby field for his daily run and fun. Then we armed ourselves with a huge bag of carrots and headed off to Sandee's farm and LYS. Laney and I shared an iced chai on the way. We fed all of the horses and got to pet them. (I also got some Manos for those awesome mittens in the Fall Vogue 2008).

On the way home, Delaney pointed out the airport. I was amazed that she knew that it was there, because you can't exactly see it from the road. She asked to see it, and having nothing to do, we stopped in. We got there in time to see a Schweizer helicopter take off.

Afterwards, the people working at the airport invited Delaney to sit in a 2 seater airplane. We got a tour of the hangar and propellor mechanics. It was great.

Day 2:

The week prior, Ameran, Delaney and I had another marvelous day. After finishing up some business at UCONN, we went out for Thai. As we were dining, a co-worker came in to pick up a take-out. Delaney ran over to shake his hand. (do we have a politician on our hands already?) He snuck out really fast probably to be with his family. We finished up our meal and asked for the bill, and the staff smiled at us saying our friend had already paid for us. We were floored.

Then, when we were leaving and for most of the ice cream time at the Dairy bar http://www.canr.uconn.edu/ansci/dairybar/dbar.htm , we saw the most beautiful rainbow. BTW, the Dairy Bar has a list of all allergens in its icecream. VERY Nice to have a list like that instead of employees not knowing...

During dinner, Am and I were discussing a new patio set. He said he had seen Home Depot had a 20% off sale. We decided to go investigate. We walked in and saw that it was 40% off! Whoo hoo! We picked out this set. http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100493332&N=6+502544+90401

Unfortunately, they only had the floor model with 3 chairs. :o(

Well, they threw in the umbrella (retailing around $120) for us. We looked at each other "SCORE!" Nice rocking chairs, and my is it nice in the shade. :o) Happy campers.

I keep thanking the universe for all of the wonderful opportunities that just seem to fall on our laps. Thank you to all of the wonderful people there are in the world that do nice things for others.

Martha Stewart should fire the intern

I just wasted 3 hours of my life last night trying to figure out the reversible purse from Martha Stewart online. http://www.marthastewart.com/article/reversible-purse?lnc=13fbf423088ee010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&rsc=taxonomylist_crafts_sewing I cut out the fabric, followed the directions and it didn't work. I ripped seams out, tried it a different way and it didn't work. I tried to stay positive and say that was just a prototype, I can salvadge that later and make a mini one for myself. I cut out new pattern pieces and tried again yet another way, and it still didn't work. I finally gave up. I thought about writing Martha and telling her to fire the intern that wrote the directions. But then I thought that wouldn't be nice. I decided to read the comments of others about the project...

I watched the video and it totally helped decypher written directions. It was like one of those barn puzzles to get the ring off of the thing, but you just can't figure it out.

Take one. Take two.

Not only did I waste 3 hours of time, I wasted about 1.5 yards of nice Amy Butler fabric. Blah.

Finished the Shell Tank!!!!

And finally, some fun from Delaney's birthday.

Found it!

Found where to get this cute little number. I hope it's a girl for this reason! http://www.isagerknit.com/1-product-238-Clara%20dress.html

will soon be available here www.opalsockyarn.com soon. Can't wait!

What I did with Sari Silk

A fellow raveler asked what I did with Sari Silk because she only had about 100 yds of it. A wallet or makeup bag! I knit up a quick rectangle and crocheted up the sides. (I think I cast on about 20 stitches, it just depends on how big you would like to make it.) I made a nice brocade lining with zipper. Of course I had to accent it with beads. She could also just add a button and loop, that would be easier than wrestling with a lining and zipper. Quick and easy knitting and just a little more effort to do the extra details. Nice Christmas gift. I think that I squeezed 2 wallets out of one skein of sari silk.

Let me know if you would like me to do a tutorial.

Love at first sight

http://www.twistcollective.com/

MINE! Araucania Worsted, teal in stash? swatchy swatchy.

Delaney's Birthday

Saturday was Delaney's 3rd birthday. I can't believe that she is 3 already. She says she is "This many" (holding up 3 fingers). We had a great time. Wonderful friends, family and food! We are lucky we had the 10x10 canopy tent to stay under during the thunderstorms! Delaney loved all of her generous gifts. She expecially loved a hand-knit sweater from my mom and demanded to put it right on, the ballerina princess costume that plays its own music, and a treasure box from http://pylones.com/. (Such a great store for fun, cute, funky things.)

We scheduled our ultrasound for Thursday the 14th. I will be halfway through!

Got my match for the Guilty Pleasures/Good Karma Yarn Swap http://jenraymond.blogspot.com/. We have so much in common! I can't wait to start getting stuff for her!

I got to go to my LYS today to do some knitting. I am halfway done with the shell detail of the Shell Tank by Norah. The yarn rep for Berroco and a bunch of other companies was there. It was fun to see all of the exciting things coming out.

I want to queue 2 pairs of mittens from the new Vogue Knitting. Christmas will be here before you know it....