This Is Kind Of Fun


But, I had to put the Kauni away for now. I got it as far as I planned and now I'll let it sit til Camp.
I kind of like doing it. The only problem is my two handed technique really sucks. If I try to pick, I start to get the hang of it, but soon, I look down and the stitches are way too tight.

So, I switch to two hands and throw with the left as well as the right. It is a little time consuming.

Then I switch to throwing both with the right hand, thats really not very pretty of thing either.

Who knows what I'll eventually end up with as far as the two handed knitting, but as long as there is no rush I can do whatever I want.

Toy Shopping

My latest toy shopping. This is what happens when you are not knitting and left to your own devices. You start shopping. And so this little toy followed me home and into my lap. I love it!

It is so small and cute and oh so the right color. I put some podcasts on it last night, charged it up, sat down and intended to knit with it in my ears AND promptly fell asleep with it playing in my ears.

Who needs sleeping aids when you've got an iPod!

Where I Had Coffee This Morning

In my rocker sitting there watching my yarn. The white storage cabinet is all of the WIPS,well not all of the WIPS, but alot of them.

In the corner behind it, is my knitting DVD and videos. The shelves have my knitting figurine collection.

My books have all been dusted off and catalogged. I just need to get them into my database.

I have my stitched pictures on the wall.

And I got the guys to move my fold up table into the room. Now, when I get ready to block, I can unfold it and leave it to dry for however long it takes.
I have new blinds on the windows that still needs to be replaced.

My chair is close enough to the yarn that I can reach out and touch it. I even have been know to talk to it! Like, how did I get so much? Or, you guys can't have a whole bin to yourselves.

There are several bins that are rather full. I sorted it according to Brand ie Encore and then other bins have baby yarns, spring yarns, cotton for dishcloths, sock yarn. Somewhere I have more sock yarn, but I havn't found it yet.

Maybe it's best if I don't find it....I think there is enough there to start my own yarn shop! Please tell me that is what everyone says.

I'm pleased with the new room, even if it hasn't been painted yet and the doors still need stripped and the closet needs cleaned. There will be time for that in the winter!

So Much For What I Intended To Do Yesterday

All I was going to do yesterday, is go into the room and clean around the baseboards. Clean out the windows. Vacuum the floor.


Then, my intentions were to knit on a couple of projects that are needing attention before camp.


If you remember from my previous posts, I was going to start with the closet and get it nice and fixed up and then down the road re-paint the room. I figured with all of that it would be late summer, early fall before I was ready to move in.


Well, once in the room, I got a little itchy to move in. I opened the closet and then shut it and decided if I have to wait to move in until it is all nice and painted that would drive me batty. I was ready NOW to start getting my knitting stuff all in one spot instead of in six different rooms on two levels.


Then the tall guy encouraged me to go to Menards with him. And while there, I looked and tons of paint chips and brought lots home with me. They did not have the mesh cubes that I wanted. Then the tall guy, hey, lets try Lowes and see if they have what you want! Nope, so I said heck lets go to Target in Peoria, I know they have the cubes cause Norma gave me the ad a couple of weeks ago.

And the rest is almost history! With his encouragement and help late last night he helped me them together. Today, I finally finished the room for now. Pics and blog about today's adventure then!

Things I Want To Accomplish This Weekend

In between watching the Cards (hopefully) beat Boston, the Olympic Trials and the IRL race, I have several things I would like to accomplish this weekend.

First I am going in to Baby Boy A's old room (now to be known as PJKnits Central until I can decide if it is the yarn room or the knitting room )and do a little cleaning. That room is going to be a big project because I am going to start with the closet and work my way out. Nothing has been done to it in about 30 years (the closet that is) and it will take me awhile. That and I have pre-camp stuff to do.

But, in the meantime, I want to store some yarn and a chair that has been overflowing a corner of the living room for sometime. But back to the weekend list.

I started my Kauni late last night. I would like to at least get the ribbing done this weekend and start working on the body.

Sometime ago, I started it, but for some reason ripped it out. It has been sitting downstairs with the needles attached to it with about a dozen cast on stitches. I am not sure if I did a gauge swatch or not with it. I sure hope I did?!
Next up for the weekend, is to see just where I am at on my Around the Bend Jacket that has had the two pieces finished for more than a year. But, when I went to icord it up, the two did not match very well.

Then, I saw some things at the shoulder join that I thought could have been done better, so I started ripping out. I hope to get this accomplished so I can get some help with at camp or from Char and Linda who are working on it too.

Thats my Want To List for the weekend, just a couple of things....oh there are more but lets be real here now!

Just In Case

You didn't know, it is the first day of Summer. And the longest day of the year! We picnicked today at lunch here at work and I got a little bit of sun on the arms.

It was too hot to knit in the sun (I'm kind of wimpy like that), but it was a great social time. It is quiet today here at the College, I hope I can keep out of trouble this afternoon.

Char and I are already contemplating what we are taking to Camp in LESS than three weeks. We are a case! But,hey thats the way we are!

Eeek! Three Weeks Til Camp!

I cannot believe it. In just three short weeks, we will be heading for camp. I have so much I wanted to do after last years camp. How did a year go by so fast? Heck, how did life go by so fast?

I have several things on my almost daily revised list that I want to have completed by camp.

My Mythical Beast - not sure that is going to happen
My Shawl
A Tank that I have been working on for several weeks
My Around the Bend Jacket ripped back aways
The Kauni at least started past the rib
The Sunrise Jacket - cause it is always cold in the room

Then there is the list of what I am taking with me to work on:
The Gansey
The New Zealand Sweater
Cinnamon Bark

I need to NOT sleep as much. And knit more. Eeek Three Weeks, It's gonna be so much fun.

As If

As if I did not already have tons on the needles, I couldn't resist. I needed to start a new shawl. So I picked the first one in the Gathering of Lace Book. The more I look at this book, the more I want to knit more out of it. I'm seriously thinking about working my way through it.


So, I ordered my yarn from Meg. The colors on the screen can be deceiving. I thought this would be lighter.

The color reminds me of a handspun that I made a sweater for Baby Boy A some years ago.


I don't mind the color so much. I have a game plan on the knitting of it. According to the instructions, you knit on it until you have used half of your yarn up.

My plan is by the weekend, to have one of the three balls knitted up. I'll make that plan if all goes well and I pay attention while knitting on it!

I'm Still Not Sold

This is my lunch time project. Since it has turned nice outside, we have been eating outside and then walking so there has not been much time to work on it. But, still I plod along.

I've ripped it back to the first rib more times then I want to remember.

I have changed needle sizes, I have decreased less stitches,I have decreased more stitches and then decreased differently and back again.

I really like the way the stripes are looking on the first section but not so much on the second rib. The whole time I keep thinking the yarn would be neat in another sweater.

Oy, will this sweater ever be finished?

It's Back To Work

It was a long week. I never cleaned so much in my life and sweated quite a bit too. The kids have a great house and it is right off of the main artery that leads you everywhere. I know, I did a bit of exploring in between my chores!

There are four yarn shops relatively close by. I got to three of them: Stash, Rainbow Fibers and Yarns To Go. They all could have done major damage to the pocketbook, but I was a good little knitter.

My greatest find? The Bass Pro Shop only two short blocks from my hotel. I got a new smaller version of my worm bag to hold my Harmony needles.



I love it!

Today Is KIP Day

Knit in Public! I was planning on going over to Morton to KIP, but too many things need to be caught up here at home. Baby Boy A just arrived from Memphis (he has to work a few days here and do some clear up paperwork at the prison). I'm slowly clearing my desk of bills and mail. My couch still has my knitting bags from the Memphis trip on it waiting to be unpacked. I did not even knit yesterday at all. I do however feel rested!

My new toy has kept me quite busy.

For Norma --this one is not for you, keep looking for something else in a smartphone.

There were times yesterday when I wanted to throw it across the room. And I am sure when I get my bill, I'll want to re think it! But, for today, I like it a little more than I did yesterday.

There still are a butt load of things that I want to do with it, but for now, a shower and some knitting is calling me.

Enjoy KIP day. I'll be KIP (knitting in private).

We're Home

I'm tired (we left Memphis at 3:30 a.m.) I have things to report. I'll bore you tomorrow, but for today I'm back!

Memphis

Tomorrow morning, very very early, I am on my way to Memphis to clean Baby Boy A and his new bride's house. The rest of the family follows on Tuesday with the UHaul. I have the back end of the Jeep filled with cleaning supplies, a fan, shop vac and a chair to sit on.

The back seat will have my knitting (LOTS of Knitting) for the evenings. On the front seat, will be all of my directions. The Memphis Group over on Ravelry were a wealth of information, and I hope to take in about three shops down there before everyone else comes down.

See you back here next Fridy with a report. Until then, keep knitting! I will be.

One Warm Sweater

This is my New Zealand sweater from two yarns mixed together, Brown Sheep and Diakieto Fino. I discovered last weekend as I knit on it before the wedding, this is going to be one warm sweater.

It did not seem like it would be when it was just the garter hem, but the more I knit on it the more substantial it is getting. It is DEFINITELY going to be one of the warm ones. It will be great for wearing out without a jacket. You know when winter comes back!

Look What I Got

I've been talkin about these for months. So, last week amongst all the pre- wedding stuff, I decided I deserved them.

Well, maybe I didn't deserve them, but it seemed like a good idea at the time.


Did I need them all, no, but I bought them anyway. I used them last night for a new project that I am doing my gauge swatch on. And I was pleased that I bought them for myself.

Now, I just have to decide if I want to order the binder to put them in or add them to my worm bag collection so they are all together. What is anyone else doing?

It Was Hormones


Because I work at a medical college, I have my unofficial MD (mother degree) and I have diagnosed the last few days as not a funk, but hormones.

These are pictures of what Baby Boy A left for us to contend with. All of this needs to be taken care of before his father-in-law arrives with the truck to move him next Tuesday! I must have went in there six or seven times and just could not figure out where to start. Thank goodness Baby Boy B is on it and will do some of it. He seems to know what some of it is. Some is going to go in a surprise box and Baby Boy A can figure out what to do with it when he gets it in Memphis!



His room in the future (notice I did not say near future) is going to be the Yarn Room. It is going to take alot of work on my part, but I am looking forward to having all my "stuff" in one place. I'll keep you posted.

Tomorrow, it is back to knitting!

I Was In A Funk

Operative word - WAS. It started yesterday, at brunch, when I felt alone. My oldest no longer looked to me to keep him in conversation, he now had a wife. It continued into last night, when we were finally home and there was only three of us to sit down to dinner. I really wasn't ready for that! The funk kept going into the night and this morning. Tomorrow, I will show you why the funk is gone!!! That and hormones.

But for this post, here is the rest of the pictures that I have on my camera that turned out fairly decent for posting.
The best man (Baby Boy B) who made a very funny but yet very emotional best man speech, except that he forgot to toast the couple...still it he did a good job.




The ring bearer, my great nephew who was so damn cute!







My dancin partners for the evening. My legs and feet still ache today, but it was all worth it!

I'm Back!!!

After a rocky start to Friday if my mom would even make it to the wedding (she did and it was better that she came down on Saturday with my cousin, bless him; the near by tornados during the rehearsal (that had the Father disappearing right after, he was back for the wedding) and the torrential rains we put up with on Friday night, the wedding day was beautiful if but a tad hot!



It was a happy day with a few tears, but finally we have a daughter in our family. Not only is she beautiful on the outside, but on the inside as well.
The next day or two, I'll have a few pictures to show, but not a whole lot since the light bulb did not go off until we are the reception that I should give my camera to someone else to take pictures.

And I did promise that we would be back to knitting content this week!