The Blogging Spirits Have Been Mean to Me

I have been HORRIBLE about blogging lately. I think about blogging and then I think I want to have some more progress on such and such progress and then I have days I don't think about it at all. I hope there are still people out there wanting to read this.


I took a picture for the blog and as I was taking the picture the camera battery died. I guess this post will have to wait until tomorrow. I do have progress to show though.

Wow

It sure has been an eventful couple of weeks around here. I got a year older and it was a big birthday. I got sick. I sent my little buddy off to preschool, which wasn't nearly as traumatic as I expected. The girls have both been sick. Other things have happened but that is a later post I think.




I did finish a project. (I STILL need to weave in the ends though.) It is the One Row Lace Scarf. (Ravelry) I knit it out of handspun and I think it turned out pretty good. I had the Punkinbug do some modeling for me. I think she would keep it for herself if she could.






This is just a little closer picture to see the colors and stitch pattern a little better.

First Day of School

The girls headed back to school today. From what they told me they had a great day. Punkin even had a little homework today too. I think they are even excited about going back tomorrow.








Little Buddy doesn't start preschool until next Tuesday. He is still enjoying his summer vacation.

Fun in the Sun

My wonderful husband had a day off today. Those don't come very often around these parts. So I thought I would share some of the things we did today with some pictures of the kids thrown in. First, he got up, and drove to get me breakfast at McDonald's and a Frappaucino. (These are some of the flowers that I planted after we finished the remodeling the flowerbeds, I think they are looking pretty good.)







For lunch, I made him home made pizza. While I was making the pizza Wonderful Husband and the kids washed the cars. (Cars= 1 Van, 1 Truck, and 1 Economy Car that helps our gas budget tremendously since the truck is a gas hog.) Punkinbug after she played in the sprinkler. Thanks again, dear, for washing the van and doing the windows.






A Punkin still playing in the sprinkler. She didn't want to stop playing but since she gets sunburned easily I had to make her. I actually ran through there with her a few times and I forgot how much fun it was.







And what would a Fun in the Sun post be without a picture of the Little Buddy. I thought this was an awfully cute picture of him.





On a knitting note, the yarn from yesterday didn't become either one of those projects but it is in the process of becoming something else that I am pretty excited about. (That is a Minnesota accent "about".)

New Month = New Post

Well, I have to admit that I am glad that June is over. I was stopped in my tracks last week with some earache thing that I am extremely glad is over. I really didn't get much knitting done last month either, which I guess is another reason for being glad that June is over.









I did finish spinning this.








Which became this.
248 yards of fingering weight yarn in Gale's Art Fiber's Black BFL in the Grape Vine colorway. I think it might become this or this. (Ravelry Links) The colors are more accurate in the above photo compared to the finished yarn photo.





I am STILL working on the Mockery socks. I really have no idea why they are taking me so long. I like the pattern and I love the yarn. I guess I just haven't had much motivation to work on them since I won't be wearing them until the fall. I have finished the first one and I am on the leg of the second one. Hopefully they will be done soon.

First of Many (Hopefully)

Last week, we did some landscaping improvements around here. We tore out some old landscape timbers in a couple of our flower beds. This was the before picture.






This is the after picture. We moved 110 of these landscaping stones. Each one of these stones weighs about 30 pounds. I have mucho respect for people that do this for a living. I felt a great sense of accomplishment after completing this job.




The girls have "learned" to use the camera. They have been very busy taking self portraits of themselves and other things around the house. I am going to show off some of these photos in the future. This is the first of this series. This is Punkin. I am so glad that they aren't using film.




There will be some knitting and spinning posts coming up. I promise.

This And That

The wind caused this. This is our street sign on our corner that blew down due to the terrible winds we are having right now. The weather people say that they should die down here in a little while. I also know that I didn't really miss hot weather all that much. It is too hot to knit even. I am not willing to turn on my air conditioner just yet especially when it is supposed to be back in the 60's tomorrow.










One bump of this roving.











Became that yarn. Which is about 482 yards of lace weight or light fingering. It might end up being a Shetland Triangle Shawl, I am not sure yet.








This is the reason why the Mockery Socks from the last post have not grown any. I am trying to finish up some projects that were in my knitting and this seemed like the easiest one to finish up first. Socks go pretty quickly when you are working on size 3's.

Serious Aunt Pride

Check this out.

That is my nephews sculpture that is headed to New York for the finals.
Way to go, Jake.

A Good Day

Every now and then you just get blessed with a good day. Today happened to be one of those days.






We got some snow this morning. It was so pretty just watching it fall. The wind wasn't blowing and it was just pretty. There were some big flakes and I always like those.




I also got to do a little knitting. I worked a little on all three of my obsessive projects that I am doing now. I do realize that one row on a scarf really doesn't make that much difference but all those rows add up after a while and you end up with a finished scarf. I have got the gusset decreases done on the sock and am hoping to finish one of them this weekend. I have a feeling this will be my Super Bowl knitting for Sunday.



I also got in a little spinning today. I love spinning. I am really starting to 'get in the groove' of spinning. I like the whole relaxation of the process of watching roving turning into singles. I am also enjoying all the variations in this roving that are really hard to see in this picture.



This afternoon was a big day in Kindergarten. It was the Annual Kindergarten Potluck. The potluck is when you bring your favorite foods and share them with the other children and their families. Punkinbug chose to take Crockpot Mac and Cheese. There wasn't much of it left when it was time to put the food away. After the lunch, we decorated Valentine's Day boxes. I hav to say that her box is quite snazzy. I forgot to take a picture of it though. BAD MOM Little Buddy got to go along too and he had a great time playing in the housekeeping area.

Did You Know????

That -8 is really cold. Not quite STUPID COLD, but still really cold nonetheless. I think we might hit stupid cold really soon.






That the best way to combat really cold weather is to cast on another project. I finished the Branching Out Scarf so I rewarded myself with casting on my Sick of Winter Clapotis. I just started it this afternoon. I don't really care if it doesn't go with anything I own but I have decided it is better than white. Snow is white and snow is cold. Enough said.





That you can buy whole bags of the Green M&M's. No Janice, you can't have them to stick in the microwave. Wonder if what they say about them is true??? Anyway, every girl needs chocolate in times like these. Living in a deep freeze.

New Beginnings or Starting Over????

New Year's Day always makes me wonder about new beginnings or starting over to do better in the new year. I know that every day I should try to do better than the day before but I guess I just think about it more this time of year.



This year I will be knitting with a new iPod thanks to my wonderful family. It is good for video too. I tried it out last night and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the video.




The girls and I are also starting out the year with new manicures or pedicures. We were able to go have some "girl time" with NaNa and Auntie A on Monday. It was great to be pampered a little. Punkin is already asking when she can get her toes done.




Unfortunately, I will be doing a little "starting over" this year too. The sock on the left is quite a bit smaller than the one on the right. This means I will have to start it over. I am thinking of putting this pair in time out but I will probably plug on.

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas and I hope that good things come to all of you in the New Year. God Bless.

Busy Wednesday!!!!

The little people got out of school at 12:50 this afternoon. Punkinbug helped bake pies. I think she is going to be the one that likes to cook the most. Punkin is getting good in the kitchen also.








I think they turned out well.




Since we have been getting ready for tomorrow, very little knitting has occured today. I think I have knit five rounds on this sock today. So far it might be a keeper. I did have to rip it out since the last post due to a dropped stitch that I couldn't fix. I am on the second repeat now.






A day just wouldn't be complete without playing a game of "Squash Your Sister".

A Mouse took My Knitting

There is snow on the ground in my part of Minnesota. I will admit that I am not ready for snow yet. Okay, I am never really "ready" for snow but I didn't look forward to this at all this year. I guess if the wind wasn't blowing and it wasn't so cold I wouldn't mind. I do know that in the big scheme of things 22 degrees isn't really all that cold.



I tried the 'get up and do something, maybe you will feel better' trick this afternoon and this is what I did. I made some banana bread. It made the house smell so yummy. I am not sure if it worked or not. I am still really tired and achy but I think it is getting better.



I never thought a knitting Mickey Mouse could be so elusive. I looked for the Little Buddy's Mickey Mouse for half an hour last night and I couldn't find him. Little Buddy finally went to sleep so I quit looking. I guess he was trying to find peace and quiet to get the sock that he is knitting cast on. He is knitting the Waving Lace Socks from the Favorite Socks book. He is using Seacoast Handpainted in Signs of Spring colorway.



Are you wondering where I finally found him??? He was hiding in my closet on top of a small filing box. Notice how he somehow hid that sock while I wasn't looking. Who knew that the most famous mouse in the world was so sneaky??????

Sightings

I am glad the election is over. I was tired of the mudslinging about two months ago. I hope that the new government can work together and do something great for our country. We are very blessed to live in the United States and I am thankful for that. I have to admit I get kind of tired of all the political junk that comes with it sometimes.

Not much knitting going on around here lately. Don't get me wrong I have been knitting just not enought progress on anything to warrant a picture. Unless you count some dishcloths I knit up since mine were looking kind of ratty.

Now on to the sightings.



Fairies and Elmo. Along with goofy Uncle B.




Playing in the leaves. This is a tradition that we have now that we have moved here and the kids love it. This year it almost didn't happen since I was sick but I pushed through feeling horrible and raked enough leaves so I could take our yearly picture. I had chills and felt horrible the rest of the evening but it was so worth it.



Talking on the phone with Papa. I think this girl will have a phone growing out of her ear in a few years or a texting bill that I don't want to see.







Napping. Husband is going to kill me for this one. There is nothing as sweet as a little boy and his daddy taking an afternoon nap together. Love you both.

U is for

Upon. That would be that fall is upon us. It is windy as all get out here today and chilly. This tree is now pretty bare since the wind blew all the leaves off of it. It is such a pretty tree in the fall and I enjoy seeing it change every year.




Knitting has been pretty sparse around here lately. I have been spinning some but the knitting is taking a bit of a back seat. I am not sure if it is due to the pattern or the yarn. I might just be suffering from sock burnout. It seems that is all I have knit this year. I am enjoying the shawl project but not making much progress as the rows get longer and longer. My friend Linda summed it up pretty good when she said those triangle shawls suck you in with those shorter rows in the beginning. I really think that it will be very pretty when it is done though.




We had a sighting of the Tooth Fairy last night. Punkinbug lost her second tooth last night. The first one she lost at school and didn't tell anyone so it got lost somewhere. She was pretty excited this morning when her tooth was gone and there was a dollar bill in its place. I don't remember getting that much for a tooth. Must have something to do with the economy or inflation.

T is for

Trip.





Last weekend, I surprised the girls and picked them up from school around lunch time. I had the bags packed and we were off. Grandpa and Grandma P. were nice enough to let us come to Kansas to see this.







This being High School Musical on Ice. The girls loved it. Punkin sang and wiggled the whole time while Punkinbug was just in awe. They had lots of fun.





While the three children were spending the night with Grandpa and Grandma P. at the hotel Friday night, I was able to catch some football. Awesome Rose Hill Rocket football. See that number 53 (the second one from the left walking towards the center of the field), he is my nephew, who happens to be one of the captains of the football team this year. They won 56-26, the nephew didn't get to play in the fourth quarter due to the lead they had but it was fun seeing him play his senior year.

S is for

Sundays.


A typical fall Sunday when the husband works, I get up. I make coffee. I drink coffee and chat for a few minutes with my friend Linda and get ready for church. Get the kids ready for church and off we go. We get home around 12:15, there is something great about living in a small town where the church is. Eat lunch.

Then I do a few minor tasks, then I sit, knit and watch football. I am sorry to say that I am not a Vikings fan. My Kansas blood just can't wrap my head around that one. Maybe someday though but don't hold your breath.




This is the pair I finished last weekend as I watched the Chiefs and the Patriots play. Sad to say the Chiefs lost, even though I am not so sad about Tom Brady being done for the year. I feel bad that he was injured I am just glad that I dont' have to listen to every sportscaster tell me how wonderful he is. No offense meant to Patriots or Brady fans.






Yesterday instead of watching football, I couldn't get the Chiefs game and the Colts were losing at the time to the Vikings, I decided to spin for a while. I forget how much I really enjoy it. I started this bobbin.





And I finished this one. I am hoping to get some more spinning time in today between laundry and other household chores.

R is for

Rant.

If you don't want to hear about what is bugging me than this probably isn't the post for you.

The State of Minnesota's drivers license requirements. They need a certified copy of my marriage license for my driver's license. The state of Iowa and the US government agrees that I am married to my husband so why isn't the copy from the church when I got married good enough???????


Stupid drug dealers and people that make illegal drugs out of cold medicine. Due to weird Minnesota law from the drivers license I just have this piece of paper for my ID, it doesn't have a Minnesota ID number therefore I was unable to buy some Advil Cold and Sinus medicine for my husband who was going to use it for the purpose that it was intended. To get over his cold. I think it is great that they are monitoring don't get me wrong. I just hate that it has gotten that it has to be monitored hence the stupid drug dealers that are interrupting my life.

On the annoying side also, why is it when I think I have the laundry and dishes done they are all piled up again. Explain to me how five people make such messes so quickly.

Why do little boys think that spilling water all over the bathroom floor is neat?

Why do little girls think that the world will end if they don't get to wear a hair barrette in their hair????

Why do shirts not iron themselves????

Why do not beds make themselves????

And last but not least, why does the big chain store that I have to go to for groceries have to quit carrying things that I like.

Okay my rant is over now.

P is for Produce

The produce is starting to come from the garden here at our house. I picked these a few days ago. I dried the jalapenos in the dehydrator and turned most of these tomatoes into salsa yesterday. I only got four pints but my DH loves it, even though I can never seem to get it hot enough.

I also want to say how proud of our Punkinbug I am. Yesterday she went and got 10.5 inches of her hair cut off. She donated it to Locks of Love. It was so amazing to see her ponytail gone. I asked if she was going to grow it out again and donate it and she said yes. Good Job Punkinbug.

M is for

for Marriage. DH and I celebrated 12 years of marriage a week ago Sunday. I am so blessed to have such a great friend and husband. He is the most amazing and sweet guy. I love him so much and I am so thankful that God brought us together. I am sure you are wondering why did she take a picture of a pair of shoes?? These were my anniversary gift. I had seen them at the store and he remembered. They are so comfy and go with just about anything. Thank you again dear, and I LOVE YOU.





I have FINALLY finished a sock for the Summer of Socks 2008. I am not having much luck in this department this year. I am shooting for finishing four pairs finished during the knitalong but it probably won't get done.



I have been trying to spin more often. This is the Bonkerz that I got on vacation. I am pretty close to being halfway done with it. I am planning to Navajo ply it and make a scarf or hat with it.




Saturday was the yearly parade here in our little town. Little Buddy had a great time seeing the fire trucks and tractors. We watched on the corner at our neighbors. The kids love getting candy and one group even hands out popsicles. It rained most of the day but cleared up in time for the parade.



Horse drawn hearse being driven by the neighbors across the street. Did I ever mention that I live across the street from a funeral home??? The theme is always Christmas in July so that is the reason his little boy is wearing a Santa hat.


Firetrucks




Tractors that Little Buddy noticed right away.