Friday, December 15, 2006

COFFEE HIGH!!!!!!


Look at what the the post brought me . . . I am in COFFEE HEAVEN!!! When I came back from lunch on Monday there was a package on my desk at work from Canada . . . well I knew immediately what that meant . . . ANITA LEE SENT ME GOODIES FROM RICHMOND, BC!!! . . . and what goodies they are . . . Anita and I had a slow start (we were unable to connect with each other at the beginning the the Coffee Swap due to wrong email addresses and Anita doesn't maintain a blog) . . . anyhoo . .

Anita wrote in her letter to me (the back side of the letter is shown here . . . Anita cut out ladybugs and put them all over the letter . . . too cute!!!!) that she went to three different coffee shops in the Vancouver area where they roast coffee and sent me organic French Roast beans from Salt Spring Coffee, organic Arabica beans from Viva Java (a local Richmond coffee shop where the beans were roasted the morning that she sent my package-talk about fresh!) and a Christmas blend from JJ Bean House of Coffee . . . and the bonus to all these coffees is that if I fall in love with any of them I will be able to get more by e-mailing my request to the shops. . . isn't that great!!!!! Anita also visited "THE" Canadian coffee & donut shop, Tim Horton's, and sent me a mug with a little package of their blend of coffee.Now as you can tell from the picture the goodies did not end there . . . Anita also whipped up a batch of homemade (that's right . . . made fresh the morning of the mailing) Peppermint Bark . . . of course my co-workers and I had to try some of that right away . . . WOW its great especially with a cup of coffee . . . who knew that you could make something that tastes so good from Special K cereal . . . and the final goodies in the package were 3 skiens of 100% wool Jojoland yarn if a soft varigated green color . . . I can't wait to start knitting that yarn up!!!!

So a BIG THANK YOU Anita . . . you did good!!!!! . . . I am now going to enjoy a cup of Viva Java coffee while I look through some knitting books for the perfect pattern for the yarn!!!

Oh . . . for those of you who want to try a semi healthy goodie . . . here is the recipe for Anita's Peppermint Bark as she wrote them to me . . . "it's really easy - some melted chocolate, some Special K cereal and some crushed up candy cane. Toss the candy cane in while the chocolate is melting, then stir in the cereal. Pour it all out onto a foil lined cookie sheet, pop it into the fridge for about 15 minutes, take it out, break it into pieces and enjoy!" THIS STUFF IS REALLY GOOD and I am going to try making it this weekend!!!!

Wednesday, December 13, 2006

SOME HOLIDAY EATING TIPS

Here are a few holiday eating tips that I am thinking of incorporating into my holidays this year . . .

1. AVOID CARROT STICKS. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls.

2. DRINK AS MUCH EGGNOG AS YOU CAN. And quickly. Like fine single-malt scotch, it's rare. In fact, it's even rarer than single-malt scotch. You can't find it any other time of the year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnog-aholic or something. It's a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Better still have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas!

3. IF SOMETHING COMES WITH GRAVY, USE IT. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. AS FOR MASHED POTATOES, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

5. DO NOT HAVE A SNACK BEFORE GOING TO A PARTY in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. HELLO!!!


6. IF YOU COME ACROSS SOMETHING REALLY GOOD AT A BUFFET TABLE, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again.

7. SAME FOR PIES. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or, if you don't like mincemeat, have two applies and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one essert? Labor Day?

8. DID SOMEONE MENTION FRUITCAKE? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid store-bought fruitcake at all cost. I mean, have SOME standards.

I have every intention of leaving this world with chocolate in one hand, a martini in the other and screaming "WOO HOO WHAT A RIDE!"

Oh, and speaking of MARTINIS, there is a new short term knitting swap (ends January 31st) starting up called the "DIRTY KNITTER" (dirty is what they call martini's I've been told) . . . if you are interested in joining check out this site: http://knitqmb.blogspirit.com . . . you must join before Friday, December 15th (she did say that when she matches people up they will be given the "dirty knitter" blog site address) . . . email her (princessk1p2@sbcglobal.net) the following info:
your name; your mailing address; your blog address and blog name; your preferred email contact; do you have allergies; are you 21 . . . apparently you do not have to drink but you do have to knit . . .

So that's all for now . . . till later ladybug kisses . . .

Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Finding Inner Peace and Calmness

Things have been pretty hectic around here . . . okay down right crazy . . . and I have been dealing with a lot of stress lately . . . I was recently (just a few hours ago) emailed this message and I want to share it with everyone who is crazy enough to read my blogs . . . so here it is . . .

"I am passing this on to you because it definitely works. We could all use a little more calmness in our lives. By following simple advice heard on the Dr. Phil show, you too, can find inner peace. Dr. Phil proclaimed, 'The way to achieve inner peace is to finish all the things you've started and never finished.' So, I looked around my house to see all the things I'd started and hadn't finished. And before leaving the house this morning, I finished off a bottle of Merlot, a bottle of Zinfandel, a bottle of Bailey's Irish Cream, a bottle of Kahlua, a package of Oreos, the remainder of my old Prozac prescription, the rest of the cheesecake, some Doritos and a box of chocolates. You have no idea how freaking good I feel!"

This made me laugh . . . even though that person did not mention one unfinished knitting project . . . my husband was under the short lived illision that knitting relieves stress but he has since learn that in my case knitting makes me swear like a sailor and throw things (yarn-needles)!!!!

I hope this little message has helped relieved some of the stress anyone may be going through right now . . .

BTW . . . with rehersals, parties, families, work, board meetings, church meetings . . . I have not been knitting for the past week . . . hey maybe this is why I am stressed . . . maybe I can get some swearing (I mean knitting) time in this weekend . . . here's hope'n!!!!!!

Saturday, November 25, 2006

GREEN HAT CONTEST ENTRY



I just finished my contest entry for "The Monkees" hat that Mike wore on the program (an apparently all the time in real life) . . . I know that it is not quite the same color as Mike's hat and it has a rolled edge and is made from yarn that is 65% cotton/35% acrylic (Lang Yarn-Coco and oh soooooo soft) instead of scratchy wool . . . but it is green and will look adorable on my granddaughter (and the cat loves it too)!

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

SLIPPER SOCKS!

Look at what the mailman delivered yesterday . . . another wonderful surprise from my secret pal . . . aren't these the cutest slipper socks you have ever seen . . . I LOVE THEM . . . especially the little attached pom pom ladybugs at the back of each pair. . . of course they went on my feet as soon as I walked in my front door when I got home from work . . . they not only kept my little tooties warm while I was knitting last night . . . they kept me from slipping and sliding on the hardwood floors . . . the bottom of them have little heart shape grippers . . . THANK YOU SECRET PAL . . . YOU ARE GREAT!!!!!

Monday, November 20, 2006

HANDMADE STITCH MARKERS


Here they are . . . the beautiful handmade beaded stitch markers that my SP9 Pal had made especially for me . . . I can tell that she has done her research about me as she knows I love and collect all things ladybug . . . THANK YOU AGAIN SP9 PAL . . .

BTW . . . the picture was taken with my new digital camera . . . its a Pentax 7.0 Optio M20 and has the one feature I cared about most . . . it's suppose of be jiggle-wiggle proof . . . so hopefully no more blurry pics . . . with the help of my daughter I have kind-of figured it out and with time I expect I will get better at taking pics of everything (especially of my granddaughter)!!

On the knitting scene . . . I have started another project . . . my SP9 hostess with the mostest, Heather, is having a little contest about knitting a green hat like the one Mike from the TV series "The Monkees" wore . . . the contest ends December 1st . . . sooooooo . . . I am going to sign off as hat knitting time is getting short . . . thank you again secret pal . . . your the best . . . ladybug kisses!!!!!

Thursday, November 16, 2006

GOODIES FROM MY SP9 PAL

WOW . . . I received not one package . . . but . . . two packages from my secret pal this week . . . unfortunately I have not figured out how to work the new digital camera I have (home on meds right now and everything I read seems to be in a foriegn language and upside down) . . . but I can tell you about them . . .

With Friday being a holiday (when the courts are closed our office is closed . . . I LOVE IT!) and Saturday being a nonwork day (besides I was at a legal sec conference most of the weekend) . . . on Monday when I got to work there was an envelope from my SP9 Pal and in it were the instructions for making flower washcloths (these will be christmas gifts of course) and a package of the cutest ladybug stickers (which I have already used some on some cards I designed) . . . however before the day was over UPS delivered ANOTHER package from my SP9 pal . . . it contained six handmade (from Karen, the beadmaker lady) ladybug stitch markers (2 each in red, orange & yellow) . . . they are sooooooo cute and look even cuter on the little white sweater I am knitting for my granddaughter (yarn & pattern were b-day gift from Heather) . . . THANK YOU again secret pal . . . I will post pictures as soon as I figure out the camera . . .

On the knitting news . . . I have unfortunately not been doing much as I have been under the weather healthwise (meds make me very very sleepy) . . . but plan to be going strong again this weekend (okay next week) . . . I have got a lot of christmas gifts to complete!!!!! I can't believe that Thanksgiving is a week away . . . where in the world did all the time go?????? So that's all for now . . . take care and ladybug kisses!!!!!!

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

COFFEE SWAP ANSWERS!

Here are my answers to the coffee swap questions . . . can't wait to find out who my pal is . . . I have been gathering all things coffee related with the thought that if my pal doesn't like them . . . that will be okay . . . because I like them (hehehe)!!!!!!

1. WHOLE BEAN OR GROUND? whole - I love love love the smell that fills the house when you grind beans.

2. FULLY-LOADED OR DECAF? fully loaded please . . . it goes with my personally don't ya know!!!!

3. REGULAR OR FLAVORED? regular - french roast or anything rich & dark . . . I add the flavoring after brewing.

4. HOW DO YOU DRINK YOUR COFFEE? first thing in the morning I have a cup with just a little milk . . . later in the day I add flavors . . . especially cinnamon cream right now . . . and in the evening there is nothing better than a cup of dark rich coffe which Bailey's has been added to!!!!

5. FAVORITE COFFEE EVER? french roast with bailey's . . . even though the other day I tried a cup that was pumpkin spiced flavor -yummmmmmmie. . . which is great for a small treat during this time of year!

6. ARE YOU FUSSY ABOUT YOUR COFFEE OR WILL ANY OLD BEAN DO? I guess I am semi-fussy as I love rich dark coffee . . . any type of dark bean will do.

7. FAVORITE TREATS TO HAVE WITH YOUR COFFEE? pie for breakfast-lunch-dinner-snack . . . okay I also like cake . . . hummmmmm . . . let's just say any kind of dessert!!!!

8. ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT YOUR COFFEE PREFERENCES? Just no weak coffee please!

9. YARN/FIBER YOU LOVE! any natural fibers . . . sock yarn can have a little elastic in it.

10. YARN/FIBER YOU HATE? cheap cheap novetly year . . . any of that eyelash yarn - it sheds!

11. WHAT'S ON YOUR NEEDLES? right now I am making a pair of felted mary jane slippers for a christmas gift and a tiny purse to be felted as a gift and a pair of socks to be a gift . . . oh yea I almost forgot . . . making an "ice cream cozy" for my husband (he likes to eat ice cream right out of the carton)!

12. FAVORITE COLORS? right now its rich looking purple . . . I also love red, golden yellows, greens, rusts, browns, creams . . . NO PINK!!!!!!

13. ALLERGIES? none in regards to this swap.

14. ANYTHING YOU REALLY LOVE REALY DON'T LIKE, OR JUST NEED TO GET OFF YOUR CHEST? just one thing . . . I really really really HATE peanut butter!!!!!

So that's it for now . . . soooooo . . . oh where, oh where, can my swap pal be?????

Wednesday, November 08, 2006

Need Golf Club Cozies Pattern

Help . . . does anyone know where I could find a simple, but manly looking pattern for a set of golf club covers, hats, coozies (whatever they are called) . . . ya know the things that go over the golf clubs when they are in that thingy bag that golfers seem to lug them around in . . . I want to make them for a christmas present . . . BTW . . . in case you couldn't tell I know absoluately nothin about golf . . . how many of these cozies do I make and do I need to make them in different sizes . . . should they be made out of a particular type of yarn???? . . . HELP!!!!!!!!

OH WHAT A WEEK!

Don't you just love birthday's . . . especially when you can celebrate yours all month long . . . well that is what I am doing . . . it all began with the surprise party from the knit group the Sunday before my birthday . . . then the morning of my birthday I won a b-day cake , via the oldies radio station I listen to, from my favorite bakery - Mim's . . . however what surprised me most was hearing on the radio the names of other people who have the same birth date as me and had a chance of winning my birthday cake . . . here I thought I was the only one born on "All Saint's Day" . . . anyhoo . . . I get to work where more goodies await me . . . flowers and ladybug stationary from my co-workers and a gift card to my favorite scrapbook store from my bosses (they knew I had a gift card from my favorite yarn shop) . . . that night I had to conduct my legal sec associations board meeting and I knew we were having dinner (pizza of course) and I kind of figured I would get a cake . . . which I did . . . it was chocolate with white frosting, had little ladybugs all over it and said "Happy Birthday Madame Prez" . . . it was almost too cute to eat- but never fear we did eat it . . . however I didn't expect the wonderful gifts . . . they gave me a Mary Engelbret crystal paper weight saying "The Queen Mother" (goes with the crown I was given at my installation) and Lynn gave me "all things" ladybug and a crane magnetic needle holder . . . needless to say it was the best board meeting I ever led . . . on Thursday everyone at my office went out to lunch to celebrate my b-day at one of my favorite restaurant's . . . Friday was a birthday holiday from work from my bosses so of course I spent it getting hair and nails done and doing some knitting (okay it was really crocheting) . . . Saturday my friend Marsha and I went to a scrapbooking convention and she treated me to a birthday dinner and on Sunday evening the kids arrived from Wichita with granddaughter (early - they weren't suppose to be here until Monday but they drove straight from Idaho) . . . you would think that the celebrating is over but oooooooooooh nooooooooo . . . the kids, hubby and I are going out to bunch this Sunday . . . and at thanksgiving we will be with the rest of my family in the bay area . . . now do you see why I love birthdays!!!!

On the knitting front . . . I have been crocheting . . . I am "A" Mary Jane slipper . . . yes that's right . . . I am only doing one slipper not a pair because the LYS only had 1 skien of the yarn I liked and apparently you need 2 (they thought they had more in the back room) . . . so Devvy has promised me that she would find another skien so I can have one for the other foot . . . all I have to do now is connect the two additional bottom soles to the slipper and felt it . . . I think I may be bringing the slipper to the legal conference this weekend and begging Lynn to help me with this part . . . I can't figure out which is the front & back loops on this part . . . its been a very very very long time since I have crocheted . . .

So anyhoo . . . that's what this past week has been like and this coming week looks to be very interesting also . . . more on that in my next blog . . . for now ladybug kisses . . .

Monday, October 30, 2006

LATE BLOGGER!!!

No the title doesn't mean that I have stayed up late blogging . . . it means that its been a while since I have blogged and I don't have a good excuse either . . . haven't been sick . . . haven't been on vacation (I wish) . . . just have been plain lazy . . . so I hope that my friends and SP pals will forgive me this laspe! I promise not to make a habit of it. BTW . . . my camera is broken so no pics until I get a new one (hopefully for my b-day - hint hint hubby in case you are reading this) . . .

Before I tell you what I have been doing the last couple of weeks . . . I want to tell you about the surprise my knitting friends gave me yesterday (Sunday) . . . we had our usual CHAMPS get-together at the LYS and we were also celebrating Lynn's birthday (birthday was Oct 11 but she was out of State and this was the earliest we could all get together) . . . here we all are singing happy birthday to Lynn when those sly friends of mine also say my name also. . . boy was I surprised (I kind of forgot that my birthday is Wednesday- All Saint's Day - this is what happens when you have too much stuff going on in your life - you start losing brain cells) . . . and I not only had some yummy chocolate cake (which Julie's granddaughter Kaylee blew the candles out for we two old broads) I also got all kinds of other goodies . . . the group gave me a gift certificate to the LYS (which of course I had to use that day and still have some left to get more yarn - yahoo!) . . . Heather gave me the cutest tape measure, a set of snap hooks (for purse handles) and three skiens of white Lion's Brand Jamie Baby yarn (so I can make another cute sweater for my granddaughter-she emailed me the pattern today) and all of it was in a bag from the yarn shop "knitting arts" in Saratoga, CA (I have visited this store a number of times as it is only 10 minutes away from my favorite mother-in-law's home and LOVE IT!) . . . Devvy, the owner of the shop, also gave me a ton of yarn scraps for me to use on my scrapbooking pages (she knows us scrappers!) . . . Lynn also gave me the cutest fabric lamb orement and a coaster that says "did you say chocolate? I'm listening" which she brought back from Maine . . . I can't say it enough . . . THANK YOU GUYS!!! YOU ARE THE BEST!!!

Now on to what I have been doing . . . which hasn't been much . . . let's see . . . at work we had an attorney from our firm sworn in as a judge . . . so we have been either completing her client's work before she left or continuing on with the matter now that she is gone . . . the last two weeks have just been exausting at work (working through lunch, staying late) . . . on the family front . . . my hubby completed the baby crib Thursday night and it is just beautiful . . . it is by far the best piece of furniture he has made yet (and he has made quit a few pieces) . . . this is a hobby that will hopefully keep him busy when he retires (I will publish pics soon) . . . the kids will be leaving Wichita on Friday (11/3) . . . Justin's last day in the Air Force is the third and they should be here by Monday (11/6) . . . weather permitting over the Rocky's (they are driving) . . . I can't wait to see and hold my granddaughter (can't wait to see my daughter either) . . . the kids are excited about coming back home . . . Justin will be attending college and Brooke will have to be the bread winner for a little while . . . and with family support they will be just fine . . . I have been busy with housework . . . practicing my songs for the christmas concert (BTW the hubby and I are singing in this year's community choir christmas concert - he sings bass and I sing alto) . . . church . . . a little scrapbooking . . . a little knitting . . . a little more scrapbooking . . . and just plain vegging out when I get the chance! I have to admit that I have been scrapbooking a lot lately (I am trying to finish up a couple of calendar gifts for family for christmas presents) . . . even though I did finally finish my first pair of socks and have almost finished a little (and I mean LITTLE) felted purse . . . just have to sew the handles on it . . . I haven't been doing much knitting . . . I will tell y'all in another blog (with pics) what I am knitting next . . . I have also been busy with the legal secretaries group I belong to (actually I am beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed) . . . . not only conducting meetings as prez . . . but attending meetings also . . . keeping members involved, etc . . . it will hopefully all calm down when the holiday's are over (ya right . . . I am such a dreamer!) . . .

So in a nut shell . . . that's what's been going on in my life lately . . . till later . . . ladybug kisses!!!!!!!

Wednesday, October 18, 2006

MORE QUESTIONS / MORE ANSWERS!!!

Okay . . . better late than never with the answers . . . some of these have more than 1 answer and some just plain overwhelmed me . . .

ACTOR: James Garner, Harrison Ford and any hunky looking ones
ACTRESS: Reese Witterspoon, Sally Field, Shirley MacLaine
ANIMAL: Cats
BAND: The Eagles
BEVERAGE: - HOT: french roast coffee - any type of tea / COLD: iced chai latte (love this one winter and summer) - Pepsi (regular) and white wine
BOOK: Harry Potter series, any on knitting - just about anything I can get my hands on
BUBBLE BATH/SHOWER GEL: anything spicey/citrus
CANDY: this is the one that overwhelmed me as I love all candy EXCEPT anything with PEANUT BUTTER - NO PEANUT BUTTER anything
COLOR: right now PURPLE , then green, rust, brown - NO PINK!
DESSERT: pies
FLOWER: orchids, roses, daisies
FOOD: Mexician, Chinese, Italian
LIP BALM: whatever is available
LOTION: Oriental Spice by Camille Beckman
MOVIE: Shall We Dance, Twister, all Harry Potter and any mystry type
NUTS: all of them
SONG: I Have A Dream by ABBA and Hotel California by The Eagles
TV SHOW: House, Monk, Cold Case, Without A Trace, Law & Order and Sex In The City (even watch all the repeats of these over and over)
VACATION SPOT: Victoria, Britsh Columbia
VEGGIE: artichokes
WEB SITES: SP9 (home, pals & friends), Ebay, knitting pattern central, CafePress, Sizzix Shop and Aha! Clean Jokes

That's about it for now!!!!

Friday, October 13, 2006

HELP! WHERE DID MY PAGE GO?

So I went to check my blog yesterday and when I logged on all I got was a pretty solid green page (which is the background color of my blog) . . . but I did do not know where everything else went to . . . no postings-no buttons-nada . . . this is very very very frustrating!!!!! I thought maybe my computer at work was acting up so when I got home I tried it on that computer but alas still just a solid background paper .. . . I can still post to my blog by putting in the bloggers address and accessing it that was . . . but I CAN'T SEE MY PAGE (btw I CAN see everyone else's page)!!!!!! . . soooooooo I AM HERE . . . I REALLY AM . . . I JUST CAN'T SEE MY PAGE . . . I NEED HELP!!!!!!

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

HEATHER'S CHALLENGE!

I know that this is really a test to see if I am reading my hostess's blog . . . so here are my answers . . .

1. Where is your favorite knitting spot?

Okay as a true knitter I will knit anywhere, anytime . . . but the sofa in my living room seems to be where I get most of my knitting done . . . even though lately I have been thinking of knitting in the bathtub . . . I'm thinking it will cut down on "felting" time.

2. If you suddenly could never knit again (shudder) - what would you do instead?

This is a very frightening thought . . . something that my chocolate swap pal Joan is going through right now . . . so I guess that I would scrapbook . . . or read . . . and if I can't do either than I guess it would be to watch (gasp) "Murder She Wrote" reruns.

3. If you could travel anywhere in the world - where would you go and why?

Okay I know that this is not technically a foreign country but I have always wanted to go to Flordia and I have also always wanted to go to England . . . no particular reason just places I have always wanted to go to!!!!

4. When you were little - What did you want to do "when you grew up?" Are you doing it?

I wanted to be a stewardess . . . I even interviewed with American Airlines . . . but alas it didn't happen (during that time which was long long long ago the major airlines just lowered the age to 19-1/2 but you still had to look like a playboy model-not a pixie) . . . so I went to college and ended up becoming a secretary . . . which has been fun (you know you make your own fun!)!!!!

5. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?

Rocky Road!!!!!!!!

This just proves the point that I will answer anything in order to have my name added for a contest (hey I am easy - not cheap - just easy)! hummmmmm that doesn't sound right . . . but my friends know what I mean.

Monday, October 09, 2006

I AM IN CHOCOLATE HEAVEN!


A big box arrived at work the other day from my Chocolate Swap pal Joan full of all things chocolate related and of course my co-workers made sure I opened it up right away (they are really good at smelling chocolate within a 50 foot radius) . . . there was so much in that box that I had to take 2 different pictures to do it all justice . . . Joan sent me a pattern for a B-4 Bag (4 B's meaning bobbles, beads, bumps, and buttons), with everything to make this purse . . . 2 skiens of chocolate brown Patons classic Merino wool, 3 skiens Noro Silk Garden yarn, 6 silver buttons, 2 packages of silver beads, and 1 package of glass ladybug beads . . . now those were just the goodies to make a really cute looking purse . . . Joan also sent ediable chocolate goodies from her hometown candy shop, Watson's . . . I got a jar of Watson's original hot fudge sauce, a bag of Watson's famous sponge candy (this was a very special treat for me as I have not had sponge candy since I was a child and I had forgotten how much I loved it) . . . and a container of Watson's famous milk chocolate "Buffalo Wings" with white chocolate dippin sauce (this was a hit with my co-workers) . . . there was also a large Jolee's labybug for me to use when I scrapbook . . . now I know that you are amazed at everything I got . . . but believe it or not there is still more . . . Joan found out that I just discovered knitting socks and sent me a skien of Cherry Tree Hill SuperSock yarn in a color called "Chocolate M&M's" (don't ya just love that name) and 4 Hersrey chocolate bars . . . JOAN . . . YOU KNOW HOW TO SPOIL!!!!!! I cannot thank you enough for my box of goodies . . .

I just want to leave with one more thing . . . I hope everyone who reads this blog checks out Joan's blog site (www.thejoyofsocks.typepad.com) and DO SEND HER your good wishes . . . life is being a little rough with her right now . . . Joan is going through chemo - was recently on the receiving end of a hit& run (the family car was hit and Joan says no one was hurt) and just had a MAJOR MAJOR MAJOR boo boo to her left hand . . . I have so much adminration for this lady and her family - she is a true inspiration!!!!!

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

SP9 QUESTIONNAIRE ANSWERS

Greetings . . . here are my answers to the SP9 Questionnaire . . .

1. WHAT IS /ARE YOUR FAVORITE YARN/S TO KNIT WITH? WHAT FIBERS DO YOU ABSOLUTELY *NOT* LIKE?

I do not have a favorite yarn, I like all of them, but fibers are another story. I do not like eyelash yarn, the fibers keep on falling out so you end up leaving a little trail where ever you go or stand or sit.

2. WHAT DO YOU USE TO STORE YOUR NEEDLES / HOOKS IN?

Right now all my needles (straights/circulars) are being stored in a little fabric bag that school kids use to put pencils/pens in. I would love to have a seperate case to store all of my circular addi turbo needles in.

3. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN KNITTING? WOULD YOU CONSIDER YOUR SKILL LEVEL TO BE BEGINNER, INTERMEDIATE OR ADVANCED?

I have been an on-again / off-again knitter since I was about 10. I stopped knitting during my teenage years (it was not the "COOL" thing to do) and took it up again when I had my son. I kept on knitting through my daughter's baby years and then stopped. I picked knitting up again a couple of years ago when scraves were all the rage. I consider myself a beginner.

4. DO YOU HAVE AN AMAZONE OR OTHER ONLINE WISH LIST? I do, but for the life of me I have not been able to get the link to it set up in my side bar.

5. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SCENT (FOR CANDLES, BATH PRODUCTS, ETC.)?

I am an earthy kinda gal. I like anything that contains citrus, spice and cinnamon. I usually buy Camilla Beokman "Oriental Spice" and I love Claire Burke's "Apple Peel" products for the home. I am NOT into the flowery scents.

6. DO YOU HAVE A SWEET TOOTH? FAVORITE CANDY?Boy do I ever! I LOVE dessert!!!!! I am participating in a chocolate swap and I like any kind of candy as long as it does not contain PEANUT BUTTER! (candy cover nuts are okay - just NO peanut butter).

7. WHAT OTHER CRAFTS OR DO-IT-YOURSELF THINGS DO YOU LIKE TO DO? DO YOU SPIN?

I am into scrapbooking big big time!!! My craft passions are scrapbooking and knitting in that order. I have crafted all my life it seems and have tried just about every type of craft out there, so whenever the need arises I will craft what has my interest at that time or if it is a gift that I know a particular person would love to have. As for spinning . . . no I don't do that (neither wool or bike).

8. WHAT KIND OF MUSIC DO YOU LIKE? CAN YOUR COMPUTER/STERO PLAY MP3S? (IF YOUR BUDDY WANTS TO MAKE YOU A CD).

I like mostly easy listening music, broadway show tunes, oldie goldies, swing and light jazz. No my computers do not play MP3s.

9. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE COLOR? ANY COLORS YOU JUST CAN'T STAND?

My favorite color is green even though lately I have been getting tired of green and am leaning toward purple. Some years ago I had my "colors" done and I found out I looked best in the "fall" season and I have pretty much stayed in that color range for clothing and furnishings in my home (I have 2 red walls in my living room). I do not have anything in the "PINK" range in my life because I personally do not like the color for myself (coral is as pink as I get). Also I wear gold jewerly . . . no silver jewerly.

10. WHAT IS YOUR FAMILY SITUATION? DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS?

My husband and I have been married 37 years. We will be celebrating our 38th wedding anniversay on July 5th. We have two children . . . our son is 34 and our daughter is 29. In January of this year (2006) our daughter gave us our first grandchild . . . a girl, Kyra. Right now it is only my husband, myself and our two cats (Chloe and Gato) living at home.

11. DO YOU WEAR SCARVES, HATS, MITTENS OR PONCHOS?

I wear scarves, hats only in very cold winter, gloves (nomittens) all the time. I do not wear ponchos.

12. WHAT IS/ARE YOUR FAVORITE ITEMS/S TO KNIT?

WOW that hard . . . it started out being felted purses, but now it's whatever I am working on at the moment. I have just started knitting socks and am having a lot of fun with those! I also like to make things for my granddaughter to wear.

13. WHAT ARE YOU KNITTING RIGHT NOW? Okay I went and got my projects so here they are (a) the second half of a sock (my very first pair) . . . (b) a shopping bag (from knitpicks called a Flordia Bag) . . . (c) a neck down pullover for myself . . . (d) a felted bowl with a lid . . . (e) a slip stitch felted purse . . . and last but diffently not least (f) premie baby hats to donate to local hospitals (have made 6 so far).

14. DO YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE HANDMADE GIFTS?

Yes! Yes! Yes!

15. DO YOU PREFER STRAIGHT OR CIRCULAR NEEDLES? BAMBOO, ALUMINUM, PLASTIC.I prefer circular needles and will use them whenever the pattern does not require straight. I have started purchasing "TURBO" circular needles and most of my other needles are bamboo.

16. DO YOU OWN A YARN WINDER AND/OR SWIFT?

No the neither item, but I forsee somewhere in my future where I will purchase a yarn winder.

17. HOW OLD IS YOUR OLDEST UFO?

9 months now and aging more and more every day. 9 months ago I took a "glove" class and got the cuff almost done when the class was over so that I at least went home with what I called "a puse warmer". Well needless to say at home I did some kind of boo boo, riped everything out and started over again about 20 times . . . never saw my pulse warmers again . . . have put everything except the needles in a bag in a drawer that I hardly ever open. Some day I will get back to them!

18. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE HOLIDAY?

I LOVE them all and decorate for each and every one of them!!!

19. IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU COLLECT?

LADYBUGS big time!!!! Ladybug clothing, jewerly, decorations, shoes, umbrellas, pens, pencils, paper; you name it. I also have an umbrella collection. My kids gave me my 1st one when they were little (its Mickey Mouse-his ears pop up when the umberlla is open) and they have added to him. I now have 16 unusual umberllas. And of course I seem to be collecting yarn and knitting projects.

20. ANY BOOKS, YARNS, NEEDLES OR PATTERNS OUT THERE YOU ARE DYING TO GET YOUR HANDS ON? WHAT KNITTING MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS DO YOU HAVE?

Well as I am basically new to this again and do not have alot of knitting stuff yet so I will make my answer simple . . . I want everything . . . I want it all!I do not have any subscriptions to any knitting magazines yet. I am still purchasing them at the store, waiting to see which one I like the most before I start subscribing.

21. ARE THERE ANY NEW TECHNIQUES YOU'D LIKE TO LEARN?

The exciting thing about knitting is that everytime I start a new project I also learn a new technique or two.

23. ARE YOU A SOCK KNITTER? WHAT ARE YOUR FOOT MEASUREMENTS?

I just made my very first sock (have its pair on the needles) and LOVE making them. I haven't figured out how to that foot measurement thing yet for socks but if it helps, I wear a 6-1/2 shoe (7 when I am having a hot flash!).

24. WHEN IS YOUR BIRTHDAY?

It's coming up very fast . . . its All Saints Day, November 1st.

So those are my answers and I can't wait to find out who I will be gifting . . . I have already made a "hello there" gift for my SP9 pal!!!!!!! LET THE FUN AND GAMES BEGIN!!!!!!!

Monday, October 02, 2006

WOULD YOU CARE FOR A CUP OF TEA?

WOW! would you look at all the fabulous goodies I received from my secret knitting tea pal Stephanie from New Hampshire (www.sharpsticksandstring.typepad.com) . . . a few blogs ago I mentioned that I was participating in a short term tea/knitting exchange and today at work the package arrived (having delivery issues to home with the post office . . . something about national security and not leaving unattended packages at your front door) . . . well I was going to be a very good girl and not open the package until I got home in order to take pictures . . . but my co-workers insisted that I open it . . . so being one who always follows orders (ya right) I opened the package and discovered under very colorful tissue paper many little packages wrapped in red tissue paper and tied with purple yarn and one brown box tied with just purple ribbon (Steph I saved the yarn - I can use it in scrapbooking projects) . . . so I decided to open just one wrapped package and of course I choose the brown box (hey it was the biggest) and inside were 3 skiens of luxury aran yarn called Silkroad and in a wonderful shade of mossy green called Hemlock . . . now I told you I was a good girl (stop laughing Lynn) . . . I closed the package up and took it out to the car as I did have to get some work done this afternoon . . . boy talk about a long work day . . . at 4:30 I had purse in hand and I was flying out that door . . . I made it home in 31 minutes instead of the usual 45 to 55 minutes . . . said hi to hubby and then tore into the box . . . Stephaine really out did herself . . . along with the 3 skiens of yarn I mentioned earlier she sent me 5 packages containing Republic of Tea loose leaf tea in such yummy flavors as Ginger Peach, Cinnamon Plum, Orange Ginger Mint, British Breakfast and Republic Chai . . . she also included a box of Twining's Irish Breakfast Tea (how she knew that I am half Irish in beyond me) . . . there was a candy bar of Green & Black's organic milk chocolate with whole almonds (hubby grabbed that one fast - he did save me some and it was great - even without tea!) . . . and last in the box but not the least was a chai tea fragrance pillar candle . . . I will be trying one of the teas shortly (got the water on) . . . and relaxing for the first time today . . . the weather here in Northern California is changing (today it was overcast - hint of rain) and fall is in the air and its time to hug a nice warm cup of tea . . . so Stephanine I want to say a big THANK YOU . . . you did good and anytime you get the urge and want to spoil someone you have my address . . . ladybug kisses everyone . . . TTFN . . .

Friday, September 29, 2006

SEAT BELT COZIE



After figuring out that neither my husband or my budget would allow me to knit the CAR COZIE (I would not only had to purchase 135 skeins of yarn, but I would have had to purchase a real VW car) . . . soooooooooo . . . I did the next best thing . . . I made a SEAT BELT COZIE!!!! . . . I saw this a couple of months ago on someone's blog (sorry I don't remember who's) that I was checking out during Secret Pal 8 and knew that I had to make one for myself as I am vertically challenged (meaning 5'2") and tired of having seatbelts cut into my neck . . . this is a very very very simple pattern and for those of you who knitted the Plymouth Heaven blanket it is the same pattern, just has button hole s(yarn overs) and knitted buttons (bobbles) . . . you can find the free pattern by going to www.magknits.com and looking for "Seat Belt Snuggles, by Chris Behme" . . . I used some very very very soft yarn that I had in my stash (label no longer on yarn, but I know that I bought it a couple years ago at WalMart to make a scarf . . . this was before I knew the way of finer string s0 please forgive me) . . . hmmmmmm . . . I think I may make a few more of these to color coordinate with my clothes . . . what do you think? . . . got to get ready for work so TTFN and ladybug kisses . . .

Thursday, September 28, 2006

WANT TO COME TO DINNER!

This post is in respondence to Joan, whom I will be gifting shortly with all kinds of chocolate goodies! . . . the next time Lily brings you a squirrel . . . you throw it in the freezer (of course you have to skin & clean it first-hey this may be a project for the boys!) and when you get four of them this is what you do . . . you invite four of your best friends over to dinner and serve them this (being sure to give them lots and lots of wine before you eat) . . .

BAKED SQUIRRELS
4 squirrels, 1/4 cup worcestershire sauce, 2 tablespoons onion juice, small bay leaf, 1 can bouillon, 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, clove of garlic, salt and pepper to taste . . . flour squirrels and brown in roasting pan. Add all other ingredients and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Reduce temperature and bake slowly for 45 minutes or until tender. YUMMMMM!!!!!

Actually, I have never fixed this . . . even though I have been told "its mighty tasty!" . . . whenever I am asked to contribute a recipe to a cookbook this is the one I give . . . so far people are still coming over for dinner, some even come back more than once . . . hummmmmmm . . . I have to host a knitting get-together one of these days . . . I wonder if they would be willing to try this or have they all suddenly become vegetaarians . . . OH DEAR . . . I am afraid my sick sense of humor has just kicked in . . . I think I need a VACATION!!!!!! . . . so for now ladybug kisses . . .

SOCK VIRGIN NO MORE!



Well the deed is done, the sock goddess has been appeased and despite all the pokie thingys sticking out it was fun!!!!! . . . thank you to Roni, Brooke, Amanda Cathleen and Robin for showing me the light (even though at the time I could not understand your enthusium - I do now!) . . . I don't know what I was afraid of as it was a lot easier than I thought . . . it seems each item I had knitted before had been preparing me in some way for this adventure in "sock making" . . . especially knitting the baby sweater and "road kill" . . . I COULD READ AND UNDERSTAND THE PATTERN FOR MAKING A BASIC SOCK ON MY OWN . . . YAHOO!!!!! . . . actually the sock is completed . . . of course I had to wear it and show it off at a meeting last night (some people probably thought I was strange running around with one sock on) and I am now beginning work on its matching bud and will post a picture of completed pair soon . . . I just couldn't wait to show and tell everyone what I did . . . I am that excited . . . so until later . . . ladybug kisses and TTFN . . .

Monday, September 25, 2006

LITTLE RED BAG



I finally finished the red "Romantic Ruffles Felted Handbag" . . . YAHOO . . . it wasn't difficult . . . it was a little weird though. . . first you knit the middle . . . then you pick up stitches at the top and knit the ruffle . . . then you pickup stitches and do the bottom . . . weird!!! . . . the only reason I can figure out that it took so long (started July 10-finished September 3) is that I kept on letting myself get distracted by doing other fun things . . . lesson learned here . . . time to stop knitting purses for awhile and do some other fun stuff . . . like a sweater for myself, a seatbelt cozy or maybe I will even try knitting a pair of socks (gasp and give of my title of "sock virgin" - I don't think so) . . . or better yet for right now I think I will just put the knitting aside, put my feet up . . . grab a good book (Roni I am almost through with the "Yarn Harlot" you loaned me) . . . and try that chocolate tea again with some chocolate this time! . . . so ladybug kisses and TTFN . . .

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

CAN YOU SAY "SWAPS?"

Yes that's right "swap" is plural . . . I had soooooo much fun participating in the Secret Pal 8 swap that I had a feeling of lost when it was over (yes I did sign up for SP9 as soon as sign ups opened) . . . but never fear. . . friends emailed me about another fun swap that was going to be starting shortly . . . the CHOCOLATE SWAP! . . . for this one you not only have to love knitting/crocheting - you also have to love chocolate (duh!) . . . so while I was waiting to see if I was accepted I went exploring different blog sites and found another swap that would be starting shortly and sounded like fun . . . for this one you again not only have to love knitting/crocheting but you also have to love tea (I finally confessed to the general public that I LOVE iced chai tea) . . . both the chocolate and tea swaps are short term swaps and look to be lots of fun . . . so when you have a spare moment you might want to check out these sites and possibly meet some very interesting people . . . btw . . . I did get accepted to participate in each one . . . YAHOOEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

Chocolate Swap: chocolate-swap.blogspot.com
Knitters Tea Swap 2: knittersteaswap.blogspot.com
Secret Pal 9: secretpal9.blogspot.com (still have time to sign up for this one)

Monday, September 18, 2006

ANOTHER ONE OF THOSE WEEKS!!!!



Before I do anything else I wanted to post a picture of the pink baby "ugh" booties I completed for my granddaughter. I used pink Berroca Suede for the main color and Geisha Microfibra for the white edging . . . the pattern called for Berroco Plush for the edging but I gave up trying to find any after going to 3 different yarn shops in 3 different towns . . . these were my very first booties and were very very very easy to make (I took a class at semi-LYS and we used the suede booties pattern from DIY network knitty gritty show) . . . I sure hope they fit my granddaughter . . . will find out in November!

Sooooooooooo . . . this past week has been very strange . . . it started out normal (whatever that is) and then just plain got weird!!!! . . . Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday were pretty normal . . . then on Wednesday heard from my favorite daughter (okay I only have the one daughter - but sometimes she is not my favorite) . . . saying that it looks like they will be out here November 3 . . . Justin is being discharged from the Air Force and they are relocating to the Kelley Ridge area here (less than 10 minutes from our house) . . . I am very excited about them coming home . . . I am going to be seeing my granddaughter all the time (well I do have to share her with the other grandmother . . . I know that's only fair) . . . so it looks like I am going to have a fantastic birthday this year . . .

now on to the rest of the week . . . Thursday I get to work and it's like a dark cave in the offices . . . no power-no backup . . . YAHOO I'm thinking that I get to go home because computers are down, etc . . . but noooooooooo . . . the bosses would not let me go home right away(I could have taken some work home to do) . . . they decided that we should walk to the other side of downtown (small downtown area & they had power) and get some drinks, some food and talk about court cases, etc . . . so we get back to the office after about 1-1/2 hours and drats the power is back on . . . a squirle caused this blackout - it was not done on purpose by PG&E . . .

on Friday I get to work in the morning and see that the back office door is opened . . . hummmmm . . . I go inside and boy does it stink . . . I am not the only one who is smelling something electrical burning . . . so I call the electrician . . . he comes out and agrees that it stinks (duh!) . . . does a little poking around and tells me to call the fire department . . . it appears that we have a fire in the ceiling between the 1st and 2nd floors but he is not sure where exactly (no smoke-no flames) and to tell the fire department this is NOT A CODE 3 (meaning no sirens). . . I didn't even dial 911 I used their regular fire department number . . . well you can guess what happened next . . . hearing lots and lots of sirens heading our way . . . we had 3 big fire trucks and 1 fire chief overrunning our offices . . . now remember there is still no smoke - no flames - just a really bad stinky electrical smell . . . these people are now running up and down the stairs - taking the ceiling tiles out and just plain creating a huge mess . . . they were there for 3 hours and still could not locate the source . . . so at noon they shut the power off to the building and will be turning it back on at 2 pm (on Friday's the office closes at noon so I went home) hoping to find the source . . . in the meantime we in the office are OH SO COOL . . . we just keep on working as if its normal to have all these people in uniform running around destroying the offices . . . and yes they are cute in their uniforms . . . I found out this morning that they never were able to locate the source but they believe that a rat ate through some wiring and blew up starting a small fire . . . which now also leads to another problem . . . so I had to place a call to a pest control company . . . and the people in the other offices that are connected to our building what do they do . . . they send someone over not about a possible fire and should they leave . . . but to find out if one of my bosses had a heart attack . . . geeeez people!!!!! I did suffer a headache and very bad sore throat for a couple of days . . . so I took it easy Friday and Saturday and I was looking forward to meeting with the knitting group I belong to on Sunday afternoon at the semi-LYS. . . but I was sick all Saturday night and didn't get to sleep until about 4 am (and yes Roni I did wash my hands!!!!!) . . . soooooooo that about sums up the past week . . . .

I did find out who my pal is for the "Chocolate Swap" . . . it's Joan and she lives in New York . . . I am looking forward to knowing and spoiling a fellow chocolate lover and needless to say I will be shopping for anything and everything chocolate this week to send off to her . . . that's about it for now . . . so ladybug kisses!!!!!!

Thursday, September 07, 2006

FINAL GOODIES FROM SP8 PAL


Okay . . . my computer, dital camera, internet and I have been having issues this past week and I have not been able to post until now . . . sooooooo . . . WOW . . . would you look at all the neat stuff I received from my Secret Pal Liz!!! . . . Liz gifted me with two skiens of Debbie Bliss Merino Chunky yarn in hunter green, two skiens of Peruvian Baby Silk (baby alpaca & silk) in a dark mossy green, two skiens of multicolored Esprit elastic yarn (that's right it contains elastic) in shades of blue and burgandy, the "One Skein" knitting book and a card telling me a little more about herself . . . I didn't guess who Liz was - she blocked her blog site for the simple reason that I would have been able to guess who has been spoiling me right away as she had recently been in an auto accident (she came out of if okay-her car didn't - but she did) and I knew this from an email I had received from her . . . so check out Liz's site at http://dancergrrlliz.livejournal.com . . . she is one "cool" girl . . . THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU, LIZ!!!!! You have been a fantastic secret pal and anytime you get the urge and want to gift someone - you have my address . . . okay so my fingers are just itching to get started on working these yarns into some fantastic items from the book . . . but the real world (meaning job) is calling . . . so till later . . . ladybug kisses!!!!!

Thursday, August 24, 2006

WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY FRIENDS

I blame this all on my good (andy slightly crazy) friend Lynn and her knitting for the dead (you don't want to go there) . . . so okay here's what happened this morning . . . I think that I am now able to write about it without bursting into laughter . . . I was on the net at work when what should pop up on my screen but instructions on "HOW TO KNIT A CAR COZY" (really I was looking for some legal stuff for the boss . . . I don't know HOW a knitting instruction page got on my screen) . . . well I just had to be in one of those quirky moods because I started laughing and couldn't stop (others in the office had to answer the telephone) . . . tears were running down my face . . . the whole bite . . . I must have been quite a site for when asked by fellow employees what was funny all I could do was laugh harder (they do not understand the way of the string) . . . so I'm pleading with my friends that if you ever see me buying 95 balls of Lion Brand yarn at the semi-LYS that you will quickly take all checks and charge cards away from me and get me the "hell out of Dodge" until the mood to knit a car cozy passes and I promise to do the same for you!!!!!! Hummmmmm . . . I wonder if anyone has really tried to knit a car cozy???????

Monday, August 21, 2006

PROUDLY PRESENTING "ROAD KILL"

BEWARE . . . THE FOLLOWING PICTURES MAY BE DISTURBING . . .



As you can see "Road Kill" has had a very active life. . . my nieces (ages 1 to 12) were the ones who gave him his name . . . it has to do with that strange English humor which my husband's family possess . . . so after 37 years of marriage I found that I went along with their sick humor and had to take pictures of "road kill" in a street (middle picture taken before he was felted and picture on the right was after he was felted and stuffed)! I know sick!!! sick!!! sick!!!!!! . . . he and I did have a strange love / hate relationship and it will be quite a while before I do another one . . . I did learn how to make short rows with him so something good came out of it and the really amazing thing is my husband absolutely LOVES "road kill" . . . . so it looks like "road kill" will be staying with us and the granddaughter and nieces can pay their respect when they visit us.

Here is a better picture of him! . . . he does grow on you!!!! I can't believe that SP8 will be over shortly . . . what they say is true "time goes by fast when you are having fun" and I have been having a lot of fun not only gifting someone special and getting to know them . . . but in being gifted . . . I can't wait to find out who that person is . . . well got to go and eat dinner . . . so until later . . . ladybug kisses!!!!!!!

Thursday, August 17, 2006

GOODIES FROM MY SP8 PAL


Look at all the goodies my SP8 Pal sent me!!!!!! Gardening hand tools with a handpainted ladybug and pale purple daisy on each handle!!!! WOW . . . I wonder if she handpainted them herself???? . . . my husband told me I no longer had an excuse for working in the yard (he just doesn't understand the way of the yarn and how that comes first-well almost first) . . . these tools are too cute to get dirty . . . I think I may frame them behind glass with a "break in case of emergency" sign (OMG I beginning to sound like Martha Stewart) . . . my SP8 Pal also took into consideration how hot and thirsty one gets working in the yard and so she gifted me with the cutest teapot I have ever seen . . . it has little red ladybugs all over the body of it and one ladybug on the lid top . . . I can't wait to serve tea from it (right now I am going to put ice tea in it) . . . my pal also sent me chocolates . . . but as you can see from the picture on the right the chocolates did not survive the heat from her house to mine . . . . DRATS!!!!!!! THANK YOU SECRET PAL FOR THE CUTE GIFTS. . . YOU'RE THE BEST!!!!!

Not much happening on the knitting front . . . "roadkill" has completed his felting day spa treatment and is just waiting to get stuffed . . . I still have a red purse to finish knitting and felting (this purse was knitted from the top down - I only have to do the bottom now) . . . and I have finished one pink bootie for my granddaughter with the matching one still to knit . . . I am already planning my next projects . . . a short sleeve pullover sweater for myself and a scraf (I sent a pattern to my spoilee and I am going to use it for myself also) . . . more info on these later . . . I know, I know . . . I have some more projects to do but I have been afraid to check out my huge knitting bag to see exactly what all is in it . . .

Have to go and get ready for work (that's the thing that keeps me in yarn) . . . . so . . . ladybug kisses and keep on knitting!!!!!!!!

Saturday, August 12, 2006

IN THE WEE WEE HOURS OF THE MORNING

Yes it is the wee wee hours of the morning . . . 3:30 am to be exact and here I sit with laptop in hand, and a glass of red wine . . . I bet you are asking yourself "why?" . . . answer is very simple . . . I'm waiting for the cream cheese brownies I'm making to finish baking!!!!! Next question is "why bake brownies at 3 in the morning . . . was her week that stressful, is she having a hormona moment?" . . . well it's really very simple . . . I have a picinic to atttend tomorrow afternoon (or is that later today . . . hummmmm more wine) for my husbands work (he's a surveryor for a very small company) and I am bringing corn-chili relish from Trader Joe's (this is not only great as a chip dip - which is how they sell it . . . but it is great as a side dish with steak and chicken) and homemade cream cheese brownies . . . and the 3 in the morning part is easy to explain also . . . I had a tiring week at work and I fell asleep around 7 pm tonight and woke up at a quarter to three realising that I had to make brownies for Saturday (I mean today) . . . see that was pretty simple to explain . . . long but simple . . .

Before coming home this afternoon I stopped off at my semi-LYS to pick up some BERROCO Softwist yarn in a wonderful golden beige color . . . I have decided that instead of making an adult size sweater like my granddaughter's with long sleeves that I would make for myself a short sleeve pullover sweater . . . I am thinking of using the Ann Norling "The Perfect Tee" pattern which has fitted shoulders with set in sleeves and a little shaping at the waist . . . what I really liked about this pattern is that it has 6 different edgings and you can make it to the length that looks good on you . . . it doesn't stop at the top of the hip bone!!!!! So after I finish the baby booties for granddaughter, a red felted purse and a scarf (I think I have a couple of more projects also in my work bag and no Lynn one of them is NOT your roadkill) I will start on this sweater . . . hopefully it will be done in time for when I attend a confernce in November . . .

Okay got to go . . . timer went off . . . brownies are done and I need to sample them . . . that's why I am drinking red wine . . . red wine and chocolate are a match made in heaven!!!!

Thursday, August 10, 2006

YAHOOEEEEEE - PROJECT #2 IS DONE!!!!!!

I can't contain myself any longer . . . I FINISHED project #2, better known as "roadkill" the stuffed hedgehog toy!!!!!! I will post pictures of him as soon as he completes his stay at the "Felting Day Spa" (for weight reduction of course - he's drying out right now!) . . . and of course I have already started a new project . . . I am making baby booties for my granddaughter Kyra (that little 7 month old roly-poly bathing beauty - see previous post for picture) . . . and my thoughts are also turing to fall . . . I'm not sure if it's the thought of the beautiful colors of the trees or just the thought that it is going to be cooler weather . . . anyhooooo . . . I am thinking of knitting a sweater for myself like my granddaughter's (same style - neck down but with different type of yarn, of course) . . . also have yarn in a yummy peach color to make a blanket like my granddaughter's only BIGGER - a grammie blanket . . . then there is of course the yarn and pattern I have for making another felted purse and then . . . wait a minute . . . it seems I have a lot of projects ahead of me, so I had better stop writing and begin work on one of them . . . TTFN!!!!

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

HOW TO BEAT THIS HEAT!!!!!




My granddaughter Kyra found the perfect way to beat the heat when she was visiting from Wichita!!!!

PROJECT #1 DONE!!!!!


HERE IT IS . . . PROJECT #1 . . . BABY SWEATER FOR MY GRANDDAUGHTER KYRA!!!!!!!!! Back on April 29th I signed up to take a class (needless to say I am not the world's fastest knitter) at my semi-LYS on knitting a child's sweater from the neck down using the Knitting Pure & Simple Baby Pullover pattern . . I used purple Jelli Beenz yarn by Plymouth . . . this sweater is an all one piece (no seams or hand sewing) and has a rolled neck, arm and bottom finished edging . . . I not only had fun making this sweater (okay I also got frustrated at times) but I also learned quite a few new techniques . . . for example using double pointed needles (found out my fingers are fat), increasing a stitch by knitting into the front & back, casting on to the right needle, yarn over and the oh so famous slip slip knit stitch. Now you have to remember until January of this year I was only knitting simple scarves (nothing more complicated than a knit or purl stitch) so I have come a long way baby!!!! . . . well . . . as there was almost 3/4 of a skien of yarn left over and not wanting to let the yarn get lost in my stash . . . I decided I should try my hand at making a matching baby hat . . . so off I go toBarnes and Noble and buy a book called "itty-bitty hats" (internet down again - so much for DSL and finding free patterns) . . . and here is the finished project an "upside-down daisy" hat . . . don't ya just love it!!!!!! . . . sent these off to Witcha and can't wait to see Kyra in them (even though it may be awhile . . . they are having a terrible heat wave right now) . . . now on the finishing project #2 the hedgehog or better known as "ROADKILL" . . .


BTW . . . here is a picture of Lucy my instructor on this knitting project and new friend . . . thanks Lucy for all your help . . . I could not have completed this project without your expert "hand holding"!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday, August 01, 2006

Postcard From The Edge


Just a quick note before I head out to work. Last week I found out where my SP8 pal who likes to spoil me goes when the weather is HOT HOT HOT!!!! She was on vacation in San Francisco and sent me this postcard from one of my favorite cities! I have to admit that I was envious that she found the perfect spot to stay cool during this California heatwave! I will be there in February 2007 for a legal conference (and to get a little yarn shopping in of course). Got to go!!!!! Next post will be about PROJECT NUMBER 2 . . . its DONE!!!!!!

Friday, July 21, 2006

Felted Bowl



Here are the before and after

pictures of the bowl I felted . . . thanks so much for the inspiration Lynn . . . they are such cute little things! . . . I finally figured out how come my bowl came out so much smaller than friend Lynn's . . . different needle size, duh!!!!! . . . the size I was suppose to use are on another project so I used needles the next size down . . . size 13 . . . puzzle solved . . . now I'm off to start knitting a new little project . . .

Sunday, July 16, 2006

Take Me Out To The Ballgame!

Oh My God . . . I just discovered that I am a "knitting addict!" . . . my employers gave me a couple of tickets to see our local team's baseball game Thursday night . . . and beside taking my hubby, our comfy padded cushions (those metal seats really hurt after 4 hours) and frozen bottles of water (it thaws out pretty fast in the heat wave we are having again around here) . . . I took my no brainer kniting with me!!!!! . . . for me "no brainer knitting" is working on an item where all you do is knit row after row after row for however many inches . . . when my hubbie and I got settled in I asked him if he would be embaressed if I knitted during the game . . . it was okay with him . . . so out of the bag comes in all its bright red glory the yarn (one of our home teams colors I'll have you know!) . . . I did get a couple of strange looks but no one said anything to me about it . . . I was even able to concentrate on the game . . . saw a couple of really fantistic plays . . . clapped, stomped my feet and yelled when I was suppose to . . . I even participated in the "chicken dance" and the Village People YMCA sing-a-long . . . and the biggest surprise to me was I didn't drop a stitch!!!!! . . . well needless to say I will be taking my knitting with me when I go to the baseball games from now on . . . I also learned the next afternoon when I went to my semi-LYS for needles (honest that was all I went in there for-double pointed needles and I still have not figured out how I also came out it 12 skiens of yarn and a handmade button) . . . anyway I was told that what I did Thursday night is called "Pitch and Knit" and women have been doing it for ages . . .

I am still working on project #2 ("roadkill" - hey he might be done by Christmas Heather) and project #1 (granddaughter baby sweater - I am in the middle of completing the second sleeve and then it will be done thanks again Lucy for the help) and have also added a couple of more little projects . . . my friend Lynn so inspired me with her felted bowls that I had to try knitting one for myself . . . I used some of the left over yellow yarn that my SP8 pal gave me to make the "rick rack" purse (thanks again SP8 pal - your gift just keeps on letting me make all kinds of additional fun things) . . . no before and after pictures - right now computer is not corporating I don't think it likes the heat either . . . soooooo . . . that's all for now . . . stay cool!!!!!!

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

PROJECT #3 IS DONE!!!!!!

Wellllllllll . . . I finally completed project number 3, the RICK RACK purse and I LOVE IT!!!!!!YAHOOOOO!!!! I learned so many useful techniques in making this purse that I now feel I can call myself an accomplished beginner knitter . . . 1. I learned how to knit a welt around the purse base (this helps the purse to sit flat after felting) . . . 2. I learned to "knit- in" eyelets (intentionally put holes in the purse for ribbon to be woven in and out of - can you believe intentionally making holes) . . . 3. I learned how to knit an I-cord bind off at the top edge . . . 4. I learned how to make I-cord split handles or "y" I-cord handles (these were knitted right into the purse - no hand sewing the handles on and when the purse is felted you cannot tell how they were knitted on) . . . 5. I learned how to knit a bobble (it became the center of the flower) . . . and finally I learned that its okay to make changes in a knitting pattern (I added the yellow stripe in the center of the purse-if it didn't work I could just rip it out which I am very good at!) . . . I know that some of these techniques will be used in future felted purses and other knitted projects even if the pattern instructions don't call for a particular technique.

This exciting project also led me to create my own "Knitting Journal" . . . its just a binder containing those clear sheet protectors where I slip in a sheet of paper that lists project name, pattern used, needle(s) used, who the project is for and from and a space to list the new techniques I learned . . . I also included yarn labels, samples of yarn used and a "worked up" sample of the knitted yarn . . . On the opposite side I place pictures of the project! . . . I have also learned that I need to take better closeup photos of the project before it is felted . . . so for your viewing pleasure I present to you below pictures of project #3 . . . the "RICK RACK" purse!


Before purse was felted . . . . . . . . . After purse was felted . . . . . . . .Closeup flower-ladybug button

Monday, July 03, 2006

THREE LITTLE PROJECTS ARE WE!

PROJECT NUMBER 1: About 1/3 of the way done. Granddaughter Kyra's sweater (this is the first sweater I have knitted since I first learned to knit). It still needs sleeves and I will have to go to the semi-LYS and have Lucy help me. I have been having such a wonderful learning experience with this sweater that I cannot wait to make the adult version for myself.





PROJECT NUMBER 2: About 1/3 of the way completed. Hedgehog toy or more affectionally named by the nieces down south as "roadkill." Have to knit the back of him now out of a combanition of wool and an eyelash type yarn. I got encouragement from Heather (the instructor for this project) last Tuesday letting me know that I was doing the back correctly . . . but alas I then got this inter ear thing and began making all kinds of non-correctable mistakes . . . had to ripe "roadkill's" back out and will start on him again as soon as I finish the purse (project number 3).



PROJECT NUMBER 3: Only have a couple of more things to do before this project is completed (hopefully I will be able to post the finished project on tomorrows blog). I have fallen in "love" with this project (I have learned so many new techniques) and can't wait to see how the purse felts up! THANK YOU secret pal for sending me this pattern and the yarn to complete it. I have made a couple of little changes (like adding a yellow strip around the middle) and I will be making a felted flower to go on it. BTW . . . in case you are curious about the white nylon cord in the middle of the yellow . . . its there to keep the knitted holes from closing up during the felting process (it was strange making holes on purpose). A ribbon will be woven in and out of the holes when the purse has finished drying.
So now you have seen the three projects that I am currently working on . . . and I have told myself that I WILL NOT start any new knitting projects until these are completed!!!!! Till Later . . .









I STILL BE HERE!!!!!

Just a quick little message today to let everyone know that YES, I'M STILL HERE and that the knitting juices are coming alive again--YAHOO!!!! I got help on two of the projects that I am working on (granddaughter sweater and roadkill toy) and have done more work on them along with just about finishing up the felted purse that my SP8 pal sent me to make . . . bbbbbbbut (there always seems to be one of those) . . . I got hit with an inter ear thing and have lost my sense of balance (thank God not my sense of humor) and am dizzy all the time . . . ya know walking into walls, spilling thing , taking BIG GIANT steps, having my hubby drive me around . . . all that fun stuff . . . doctor gave me meds for the "dizzies" and I quickly discovered that I should not knit while going thru the "dizzies" . . . so I have been catching up on reading (reading a light and fluffy book right now called "It's A Girl Thing" by Jan King), watching chick flicks (okay so what do y'all think . . . last night I watched the new version of "King Kong" on DVD with hubby who says this is not a "chick flick" but of course being who I am I beg to differ - it's a great love story and I always cry at the end so that makes it a "chick flick" right . . . even if the creppy crawly bug scene makes you want to throw up and check under the bed before you hop into it????), charging things on the internet (do ya think hubby will believe it when I say the meds made me do it? it's worth a try!), putting contact info on the new cell phone I bought (I did say that I was still able to shop, right?) and reading my friends and secret pal's blogs (boy, have y'all been busy) . . .

So I decided that I not only had to answer my friend Roni's blog . . . but I had to include a picture of the purse she knitted & felted and sold to me (I didn't even have the "dizzies" then) on my blog for everyone to see as she said she forgot to take a picture of it before she sold it . . . so here it is . . . had to take a picture of it with some birdhouses in the backyard because I call it the "Feather" purse and I get a lot of positive feedback on it from everyone who sees it . . . it is just too, too, cute!!!!! THANKS RONI -- YOU DO GREAT WORK GIRLFRIEND!!!!!

Okay . . . it is getting close to naptime now (I have also been sleeping a lot . . . ya know the "better living thru chemicals" thing) so I am signing off for now . . . hopefully next message will have pictures of my finished projects . . . TTFN!!!!!

Thursday, June 22, 2006

AT A STANDSTILL

OK . . . have you ever been knitting a project . . . come to a point where you need help but you don't have the time in your schedule to get to your semi-lys or even get together with your "knitt'n buds"???? . . . well I have been at that point for the last 2-plus weeks!!!!! Its been pretty hetic around here with the kids (in state and out of state) visiting but I was managing to get some knitting time in . . . I even made it to my semi-lys during this time for a Sunday get-together with my "knitt'n buds" (boy did I need that down time! thanks "buds"!) . . . well for the past week-plus I have been at a stopping point on 2 of my projects (the baby sweater and the "road kill" - oh! that's what the kids down south called the hedgehog toy I am knitting - its kind of flat looking . . . 4 legs pointing straight out from a flat body) . . . anyhoo . . . like I said in my last post I got a package from my SP8 pal so I was saved as I have a new project to work on . . . but BUMMER . . . I am now at a stopping point on that project (a felted bag) !!!! . . . maybe I need to take a break from knitting and do something else for a while . . . well okay a short break . . . until Friday that is . . . LOOK OUT SEMI-LYA . . . I am going to drop in Friday afternoon for some much needed help (which will take them about 2 seconds to answer something that I have not been able to figure out for 2 weeks!) . . . until next post . . . KEEP ON KNITT'N!!!!!

Sunday, June 11, 2006

THE SP8 GOODIE BOX

IT CAME! IT CAME!! OH BOY IT CAME!!! My SP8 pal had emailed me a message that I would be receiving a few goodies from her shortly . . . so being who I am . . . starting last Monday I began checking my mailbox and the secret place where my mailman leaves packages everyday . . . but boo hoo nothing was there . . . I even took my new granddaughter to work on Tuesday (I was home on vacation last week) telling everyone I was showing her off but I was really checking to see if my secret pal package might be there . . . Bummer . . . it wasn't :- ( So on Friday morning I packed up hubby, daughter and granddaughter and we took a 3-1/2 hour drive to visit great-grandma (my mother-in-law, whom I adore). We spent Friday night with grandma and the cousins (more about this and pictures, of course, in another message), had the family gathering Saturday morning to introduce the newest family member (my granddaughter) and headed back home late Saturday afternoon . . . Well, when we pulled up in the driveway I saw a package by my front door (so much for the secret hiding place) . . . YES . . . it was from my SP8 pal!!!! Well forget about going to the bathroom . . . I had to open my package first . . . and look at what I got!!!! . . . this girl knows what I like!!! . . . she not only sent me the pattern for making a cute "Rick Rack" felted bag, she also sent me seven skiens (yes that's right 7 skiens) of "Wool of the Andes" yarn . . . in the yummy colors of green, blue and yellow . . . it looks like I will have enough yarn to make two bags . . . but the gifts didn't stop there, my SP8 pal also sent me 12 identical note cards that not only have a "ladybug" on them (in case you didn't know, I am mad for anything ladybug) but they have my first name on them!!!! THANK YOU SECRET PAL!!!!! I can't wait to start knitting a bag!!! I only hope that the rest of you who are participating in SP8 have a pal like mine who loves to spoil you!!!!!

Sunday, June 04, 2006

A NEW CRITTER IN THE YARD


Just a quick message . . . my granddaughter is visiting California until June 17th (she brought her mom & dad also) . . . she will be 5 months old on June 6th . . . and I am hoping to send her home with a cute little new animal pal . . . an adorable hedgehog! I took this class at my semi-LYS with a couple of other friends. I am knitting my "hedgie" in earth tones even though I am pretty sure that my granddaughter would probably prefer it in the instructors daughter's colors . . . bright purple and lime green! In case you are interested in this pattern, you can find it on Fiber Trends website www.fibertrends.com . . . TA TA FOR NOW . . . the little one is waking up and "grammie" gets to go play!

Monday, May 29, 2006

BOOGLE BOOGLE



Oh Joy!!!!! The boogle purse is finally done and it felted down to a manageable size. A couple friends and I, in the CHAMP group, decided to each make a boogle bag. I had a skein of Crystal FX in these fabulous fall colors in my yarn stash (I can't believe I have a yarn stash-it sure didn't take long to get one of those going!) and my semi-LYS suggested I combine it with a rust colored Cascade yarn and make a "Booble Bag." Well the instructions said to "knit loosely" and I did! . . . the only problem is I knit loose to begin with and while I was knitting this purse "loosely" it looked like I was knitting a sleeping bag!!!!! It was pretty scary there for a while and I don't believe my LYS and the girls in my knit group thought it was going to shrink down enough. As you can see by this before picture my purse is a wee bit on the large size (15" tall by 20" wide to be exact). The pink purse was done by my good friend MPH who knitted hers a wee bit on the small size. Well, miracle of miracles when I "felted" my boogle bag it became a wonderful size. Like Goldilocks says, it is neither too small or too big-it is jusssssst right!!!!!!
I am now working on 2 projects (aren't I gettin to be the brave one) . . . I am still working on the all-in-one pullover sweater for my granddaughter and an really cute little hedgehog toy!!!!!
TTFN

Thursday, May 25, 2006

IT'S GOOD TO BE QUEEN OR THE ADVENTURES OF THE CROWN!



This tale began innocently enough on the evening of May 4, 2006 when I had the honor of being installed as the 54th President of the professional association I belong to. That night my association was not only installing its officers for the next fiscal year, it was also celebrating "Boss of the Year." Two very dear friends were in charge of planning this combined event(they also happen to be in my knit group) and these girls not only made this a fun evening for everyone, they made it a memorable one! While my boss escorted each officer up to the front of the room, the MC (who was one of the organizers) gave a brief and humorous history about each officer (I sure hope she made a lot of the stuff up). We were each presented with a symbol of our office and as I was going to be President, the logical choice was a crown (I've been telling them for years at work that I was Queen of the office - yea - finally recognition!) It was a wonderful evening and I was happy to see everyone leaving that night smiling, laughing, and talking to each other as if they were old friends (so okay some of them have know each other forever).

I did discover one very interesting fact that evening about "THE CROWN" (as I now call it-don't ya think it needs a name - I'm open to suggestions), it seems it is not content to stay in one place for too long. Anyway so begins the adventures (and misadventures) of "THE CROWN." I did wear it to work the next day and the clients just loved it. "The Crown" even accompanied me to the salon when I got my nails done that afternoon. However I did leave it home on Saturday, as I spent all day at my semi-LYS knitting. I took a class that morning for knitting an "all-in-one" (meaning no hand seaming) pullover baby sweater for my granddaughter Kyra and somehow I ended up there until 3 p.m. I am knitting Kyra's sweater out of purple Plymouth Jelli Beenz yarn. It's going to be one cute sweater when done.

Anyhoo . . . that's all for tonight's adventure (believe me there are a lot more to come) . . . by the way . . . my SP8 sent me a card via snail mail letting me know she is looking forward to spoiling me and that a package should be arriving soon . . . I can't wait!!!!!

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

THE BABY BLANKET


This is my granddaughter, Kyra, modeling the blanket that Grammie made for her. Isn't she beautiful (blanket's not to bad looking either) . . . when I sent the blanket I also sent 3 cute outfits with it and Kyra is modeling one of those . . . lavender seems to be Kyra's color . . . it goes so well with her red hair. My daughter said that Grammie's blanket is Kyra's favorite . . . sooooo . . . I am going to have to get very very busy knitting another one as they will be coming out here June 3 for two weeks . . . it will be just one less thing they have to take on the plane . . . hummmmm . . . I think I am also going to have to make some kind of light weight lacy blanket for her to use during the hot muggy summer months. Grandpa and I are so excited about this visit!!!!

Monday, May 15, 2006

IT MUST BE MONDAY!!!!


Today can only be a MONDAY!!! This day started out normal and then it has just plain gone down hill. I took today off from work (this is what I typically do after I come back from attending a weekend conference or seminar) . . . I even got to sleep in a little later than normal . . . I should have known that that was a bad mojo sign! Got up. . . got coffee . . . started my morning shower (I bet you know what is going to happen next . . . now no laughing - don't even chuckle) . . . yes you guessed it . . . in the middle of my shower NO WATER!!!!! Well, the only thing to do now is to find the bottle water and rinse off (I did cover up - didn't want to give the cat a heartattack while on my bottle search) . . . it took 14 of those little bottles of water to get the shampoo and soap off my body!!!!! After 2 years the local water company finally decided to fix the water line to our home (instead of the usual patch job that they do which only keeps on leaking) . . . anyhoo . . . they forgot to notice us . . . they assumed we would be at work as usual . . . HA the joke was on them - I wasn't at work!!!!
So now I am dressed and sitting down in front of the laptop checking emails (while composing a message to send to my SP my computer screen went black . . . had to do my message all over again) . . . I also decided to do a little office work (I have been out of town for 4 days and was home the 2 days before that because I pulled a muscle in my back) anyway everything is going along smoothly . . . or so I thought . . . well you guessed it -- another bad mojo is about to happen . . . after I finished my work I went on line and I went to make a response to a friend's blog and my sign-in name and password were not reconizable!!!!! . . . well I went to check my blog site and all my profile info was gone and I could not even make corrections . . . UGH!!!!!
4-1/2 hours later and many messages going back and forth between me and the blog people the problem has been corrected . . .I have absoluately no idea what I did to screw up the site but I can access my site again so all is right with the world for the moment . . . I do however have to spend some more time putting back in my profile info (it's out there somewhere in never never land and I am tired of looking for it) . . . so please bear with me . . .
I am signing off for now . . . it has been one exhausting MONDAY . . .
so here's wishing everyone a wonderful and relaxing MONDAY!!!!!

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

OH MY ACHING BACK!

Boy do I feel old!!!!! . . . while getting dress for work yesterday I sneezed and did something very painful to my back (I recommend that you try not to sneeze while putting on pantyhose) . . . inched my way to a telephone - called doctor - had drugs delivered . . . I am feeling better . . . staying home today and laying around (drugs make me not only dizzy and sleepy . . . they are making me loopier than ever so please excuse the spelling and sentence structure) . . . who knew that a little sneeze could cause so much pain . . . I am leaving tomorrow with two other friends (who also are in my knit group) to attend a professional conferece for the next 3 day in middle California . . . we are of course going to check out the yarn shops in that area (I will also be checking out the scrapbook stores) . . . so TA TA FOR NOW!!!!!

Thursday, May 04, 2006

SP8 QUESTIONNAIRE ANSWERS


Wow . . . SP8 is beginning and as you can see from the picture I am so excited that I dropped everything to complete my answers . . .
1. WHAT IS /ARE YOUR FAVORITE YARN/S TO KNIT WITH? WHAT FIBERS DO YOU ABSOLUTELY *NOT* LIKE?
I do not have a favorite yarn, I like all of them, but fibers are another story. I do not like eyelash yarn, the fibers keep on falling out so you end up leaving a little trail where ever you go or stand or sit.
2. WHAT DO YOU USE TO STORE YOUR NEEDLES / HOOKS IN?
Right now they are being stored in a little fabric bag that school kids use to put pencils/pens in. I guess that one of these days when I have free time I will have to see what is out there in world for this purpose.
3. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN KNITTING? WOULD YOU CONSIDER YOUR SKILL LEVEL TO BE BEGINNER, INTERMEDIATE OR ADVANCED?
I have been an on-again / off-again knitter since I was about 10. My aunt taught me the very basics at 10, I made a crazy sweater that no one could or would wear. I stopped knitting during my teenage years (it was not the "COOL" thing to do) and took it up again when I had my son. I kept on knitting through my daughter's baby years and then stopped. I picked knitting up again last year when scraves were all the rage. I consider myself a basic beginner, quickly becoming a beginner.
4. DO YOU HAVE AN AMAZONE OR OTHER ONLINE WISH LIST?
No I do not. What are they and how does one get one?
5. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE SCENT (FOR CANDLES, BATH PRODUCTS, ETC.)?
I am an earthy kinda gal. I like anything that contains citrus, spice and cinnamon. I usually buy Camilla Beokman "Oriental Spice" products. I am not into the flowery smells unless they are the roses from my garden.
6. DO YOU HAVE A SWEET TOOTH? FAVORITE CANDY?
Boy do I ever! I like any kind of candy as long as it does not contain dark chocolate or peanut butter (peanuts are okay).
7. WHAT OTHER CRAFTS OR DO-IT-YOURSELF THINGS DO YOU LIKE TO DO? DO YOU SPIN?
I am into scrapbooking big big time!!! My craft passions are scrapbooking and knitting in that order. I have crafted all my life it seems and have tried just about every type of craft out there, so whenever the need arises I will craft what has my interest at that time.
Spinning . . . no I don't do that (neither wool or bike).
8. WHAT KIND OF MUSIC DO YOU LIKE? CAN YOUR COMPUTER/STERO PLAY MP3S? (IF YOUR BUDDY WANTS TO MAKE YOU A CD).
I like mostly easy listening music, broadway show tunes, oldie goldies, swing and light jazz. Yes my computers can play MP3s.
9. WHAT'S YOUR FAVORITE COLOR? OR DO YOU HAVE A COLOR FAMILY/SEASON/PALETTE YOU PREFER? ANY COLORS YOU JUST CAN'T STAND?
My favorite color is green. Some years ago I had my "colors" done and I found out I looked best in the "fall" season and I have pretty much stayed in that color range for clothing and furnishings in my home. I do not have anything in the "PINK" range in my life because I personally do not like the color (coral is as pink as I get), however I do give pink gifts to people if that is the color they love. Also I wear gold jewerly . . . no silver jewerly.
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAMILY SITUATION? DO YOU HAVE ANY PETS?
My husband and I have been married 36 years. We will be celebrating our 37th anniversay on July 5th. We have two children . . . our son 33 and our daughter is 29. In January of this year our daughter gave us our first grandchild . . . a girl. Right now it is only my husband, myself and our two cats living at home.
11. DO YOU WEAR SCARVES, HATS, MITTENS OR PONCHOS?
I wear scarves, hats only in very cold winter, gloves/mittens all the time. I do not wear ponchos, I don't know why, I just don't have any. Hmmm....guess I should try one one of these days.
12. WHAT IS/ARE YOUR FAVORITE ITEMS/S TO KNIT?
Felted purses. Actually its any kind of purse. I also like to make things for my granddaughter to wear.
13. WHAT ARE YOU KNITTING RIGHT NOW?
A felted purse (did I tell ya I like purses). I am almost through knitting the purse and have started to knit a baby sweater (from the neck down) for my granddaughter. I am going to be taking a class this Saturday to learn to knit flowers (some may even have leaves).
14. DO YOU LIKE TO RECEIVE HANDMADE GIFTS?
Yes! Yes! Yes!
15. DO YOU PREFER STRAIGHT OR CIRCULAR NEEDLES? BAMBOO, ALUMINUM, PLASTIC.
I prefer circular needles and will use them whenever the pattern does not require straight. I have started purchasing "TURBO" circular needles and most of my other needles are bamboo.
16. DO YOU OWN A YARN WINDER AND/OR SWIFT?
No the neither item, but I forsee somewhere in my future where I will purchase a yarn winder.
17. HOW DID YOU LEARN TO KNIT?
I was ten years old, staying on my grandparents cattle ranch for the summer when I aunt and uncle came for a visit, and my aunt thought that knitting should be added to my "basic housekeeping skills" training. Like I said earlier, that was the strangest sweater anyone ever saw.
18. HOW OLD IS YOUR OLDEST UFO?
5 months now and aging more and more every day. 5 months ago I took a "glove" class and got the cuff almost done when the class was over so that I at least went home with what I called "a puse warmer". Well needless to say at home I did some kind of boo boo, riped everything out and started over again about 20 times . . . never saw my pulse warmers again . . . have put everything except the needles in a bag in a drawer that I hardly ever open. Some day I will get back to them . . . right now I am into purses!
19. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE HOLIDAY?
I like them all, but I do love Easter. After the gray of winter everything is bright and colorful again. My favorite season is Fall (bet you thought I was going to say Spring).
20. IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU COLLECT?
LADYBUGS big time!!!! Ladybug clothing, jewerly, decorations, shoes, umbrellas, pens, pencils, paper; you name it. I also have an umbrella collection. My kids gave me my 1st one when they were little (its Mickey Mouse-his ears pop up when the umberlla is open) and they have added to him. I now have 16 unusual umberllas.
21. ANY BOOKS, YARNS, NEEDLES OR PATTERNS OUT THERE YOU ARE DYING TO GET YOUR HANDS ON? WHAT KNITTING MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS DO YOU HAVE?
Well as I am basically new to this again and do not have alot of knitting stuff yet so I will make my answer simple . . . I want everything . . . I want it all!
I do not have any subscriptions to any knitting magazines yet. I am still purchasing them at the store, waiting to see which one I like the most before I start subscribing.
22. ARE THERE ANY NEW TECHNIQUES YOU'D LIKE TO LEARN?
The exciting thing about knitting is that everytime I start a new project I also learn a new technique or two.
23. ARE YOU A SOCK KNITTER? WHAT ARE YOUR FOOT MEASUREMENTS?
I haven't attempted to make socks yet (ankle warmers) . . . I want to do my gloves first. I wear a 6-1/2 shoe.
24. WHEN IS YOUR BIRTHDAY?
All Saints Day, November 1st.